Are you all cozy, little one? Blankets pulled up? Good. Because last night we left poor Aladdin sitting all alone at the bottom of a very dark cave, with only a dusty old lamp, one small green jewel, and a strange copper ring on his finger. Not the best place to spend the night, was it?
For a long time, Aladdin just sat there and cried. It was so dark. The air smelled of cold stone. And somewhere far away, water went drip… drip… drip.
"Ammi," he whispered, "Ammi, if you can hear me, I'm sorry I went so far from home."
He put his face in his hands. And that's when — oops! — he rubbed the strange copper ring on his finger by accident.
Zzzzip! Whoosh!
A small, sparkly blue cloud puffed right out of the ring, and floating inside it was a tiny fellow no bigger than a teapot, with pointy ears, floaty legs, and a shiny bald head.
"Yes, master?" said the tiny fellow in a squeaky voice. "You called?"
Aladdin nearly rolled down the stairs in surprise. "Who are you??"
"I am the Djinn of the Ring, at your humble service," said the little creature, bowing so low his nose almost touched Aladdin's toes. "Whoever wears this ring may ask me for small favours. What do you wish, master?"
Aladdin blinked. His whole body was still trembling. "P-please… I just want to go home. Please can you take me home, back to my mother?"
"Home is a small favour indeed," smiled the little Djinn. "Hold on to your cap!"
He clapped his tiny hands — pop! — and suddenly Aladdin was NOT in the cave anymore. He was on the doorstep of his own tiny house in Agrabah, blinking in the moonlight, and the little Djinn was gone.
Aladdin banged on the door. "Ammi! Ammi, it's me!"
His mother threw open the door and screamed with joy. She hugged him so tight he squeaked. "Oh, my baby, my baby! I thought I had lost you forever!"
Aladdin poured out everything — the tall stranger, the strange song, the roaring cave, the mountains of gold, the plain old lamp, the yellow eyes, the great stone door slamming shut.
His mother listened with wide eyes. When he showed her the little green jewel, she gasped. When he showed her the dusty lamp, she wrinkled her nose. "Bring it here, my son. This is filthy. Let me polish it — perhaps we can sell it at the market tomorrow for a bowl of rice."
She sat down with a rag and gave the lamp a good, hard rub. Rubba-rubba-rub —
BWOOOOOOOM!
The lamp shook in her hands! Bright orange smoke exploded out of the spout, filling the whole little room! Aladdin's mother screamed and dropped it. The smoke swirled up and up and up… and out of it rose a giant — as tall as a house, with muscles like tree trunks, glowing eyes, a curly beard, and a booming laugh that rattled the pots on the shelves.
"HO-HO-HO-HO!" boomed the giant. "WHO HAS FREED ME? I AM THE MIGHTY DJINN OF THE LAMP! Whoever holds this lamp is my master, and I MUST DO WHATEVER THEY COMMAND! Even if it is to move a mountain! Even if it is to swim the ocean! Even if it is to bring the moon down for tea!"
Aladdin's mother fainted onto the floor. Plop.
Aladdin was scared too — oh, so scared. His knees knocked together like two little drums. But he was clever, remember? So he took a big breath and said, in the bravest voice he could find, "Um… Mr Giant Djinn? Sir? Could you… could you please just bring us a nice hot dinner? We haven't eaten all day."
The giant Djinn threw back his head and roared with laughter. "A DINNER? Ho-ho, what a small first wish! Watch this, small master!"
He clapped his enormous hands — BANG! — and suddenly, in the middle of the little room, there appeared a silver table loaded with steaming bowls of rice, hot flatbreads, sweet mangoes, roasted meats, honey cakes, and a jug of cool sherbet. Twelve golden plates! Twelve silver cups! And a pair of gleaming golden spoons.
"HO-HO! Enjoy!" boomed the Djinn — and with another poof, he shrank back into the lamp.
Aladdin sprinkled a little water on his mother's face until she woke up. "Ammi! Ammi, look!"
She opened her eyes, saw the silver table, and nearly fainted all over again.
Well, my little dreamer — from that day on, life in the little house was quite different. But Aladdin, being a good and gentle boy, did not ask the Djinn for silly things. He did not wish for a mountain of gold. He did not wish for a hundred elephants. He simply asked, every few days, for a warm meal — and once a week, he asked for a small purse of coins so his mother would never have to spin thread again with tired fingers.
The little grey cat purred by the doorway. Aladdin's mother laughed a proper laugh, the kind she hadn't laughed in years. And Aladdin — well, Aladdin kept his magic lamp safe under his pillow every single night.
Little did he know, my sleepy one, that the biggest adventure of his life was still to come. Because one bright morning, while walking through the market, Aladdin would look up… and see something so beautiful, his heart would forget how to beat.
Sweet dreams, little dreamer. Tomorrow night, we meet a princess who has never, ever been allowed to leave her palace.