Vana cringed as the stairs vanished beneath Peter’s feet. Again. Luckily, this time, he was holding on to the railing. Which also started to disintegrate. Holy smokes! Would her magic ever turn out the way she wanted it to? At least she could manage Invisibility, and did so, standing at the top of the staircase and gripping the railing so it wouldn’t fall apart. Luckily for everyone attending Peter’s weekly gathering, the structure seemed sound—despite the stair-mangling efforts of the bear she’d accidentally conjured. Vana winced. A bear. Thankfully, Mr. Hornberger had chased it out before it could do any more damage, but she shouldn’t have tried to repair the steps, let alone varnish them. Especially with the way her magic worked. Or rather, didn’t work. “I know you’re here, Vana,” Peter called loud enough for everyone at the luncheon to hear. Not the best idea. Peter still hadn’t grasped the concept of secrecy when it came to having a genie—anymore than she’d grasped the concept of being one.
