Poppy woke up suddenly from her sleep after hearing a loud noise. Just after, someone mumbled indistinctly.

She turned around just as Joe was approaching with a breakfast tray in his hands. He was back to his twenty-six-year-old self.

‘’ Good morning, sweetheart!’’ He said to her with an enormous smile on his face.

As soon as she locked eyes with her uncle, her eyes immediately filled with water and her lower lip quivered. She jumped into his arms, squeezing him tightly. ‘’Oh, uncle Joe! I am so happy to see you.’’

‘’ Careful, careful! The breakfast tray!’’ Joe shouted while trying to keep his balance.

‘’ Oh, sorry!’’ Said Poppy, letting go of him.

He put the tray down on the table, then adjusted his glasses that had slipped up his nose because of Poppy’s embrace. He said between two breaths, “ my goodness, Poppy! You almost knocked me out.’’

Then he came towards her and cuddled her. ‘’ I am fine, darling. I am still standing on my two legs without the need of a cane.” He said jokingly.

Poppy sniffled, then laughed. “I can see that! But how come you know about the ageing thing?’’

“ Altan and Ius told me everything. But what shocked me the most was Theo. I don’t know how to thank him for his help.” He said.

‘’ I’m sure we’ll see him soon.’’ She answered. ‘’ Wait! Altan is back?”

‘’Yes, a couple of hours ago. He was all serious and wouldn’t elaborate on his quick trip.’’ He then whispered. ‘’ It is probably a jinn matter. Top secret!’’

She made a face. ‘’ Maybe.’’

She stared at her uncle and asked again, “do you seriously feel fine, uncle Joe?”

“I feel amazing!” replied Joe, while taking a seat on his bed. “I slept like a baby. The best sleep ever! Let me tell you something, if a sleeping spell has this effect on people, I wish I could conjure one from time to time just to get a good night’s sleep.”

Poppy shook her head profusely and said, “noooo! You don’t want to do that, Uncle Joe!”

He chuckled. “I know! The dying part is a deal-breaker. And Ius showed me that photo he took. Clever boy! It was so funny!’’

Poppy laughed. ‘’ I’m laughing now, but it wasn’t funny at all! We almost didn’t make it out of there.’’

Joe took off his glasses and smiled. “But we did! It will not always be rainbows and roses, sweetheart. You just have to be prepared. That's the reason your mum was working on uniting everyone outside of the coven. Theo would have never given you the mark of the bull if we didn’t have a close friendship. And thanks to your mark, he came and helped.’’

He sighed, then added. ‘’ And now, the two of us have met and befriended two jinns. We are kind of following in your mother’s footsteps. I understand better what she wanted to do. Since meeting Altan and Ius, I feel different.”

‘’Me too.’’ Replied Poppy while nodding.

Joe put back his glasses, then clapped. ‘’ Alright! It is nearly noon, sleepyhead. Why don’t you get ready? I’ll call Altan and Ius to let them know you are up. I’m going to run downstairs and check our itinerary for this afternoon. I’ll be back in a jiffy!”

Poppy grabbed her clothes and made her way to the bathroom while Joe was dialling Altan’s room number.

As soon as she was dressed, while waiting for Joe, she sat on her bed with her laptop on her lap surfing the internet.

Let me see what I can find online about that Pharaoh restaurant. I knew something fishy was going on. I literally felt it. But something must have spooked Uncle Theo for him to warn me about that place.

Couple of minutes later, there was a knock on the door.

Poppy got up, opened the door and smiled widely once she saw who it was. She let Altan and Ius in.

‘’ Uncle Joe went down to the reception. He should be back shortly.’’

‘’ I know,’’ said Altan. ‘’ He mentioned that on the phone. Thank you, Penelope.’’ He said, taking a seat on the chair.

Ius jumped on Poppy’s bed instead. He noticed her laptop, peeked at it and asked with a grin, “are you looking for rejuvenating cream?’’

She pulled her tongue at him and swiftly close the notebook. ‘’ Ha, ha. None of your business.’’

Altan smiled. He was happy that Ius had made a friend so early on their journey. He admired Poppy’s poise and knew that she could tame Ius' impatient nature.

“I am glad that you are well.’’ He said to Poppy. ‘’ Ius told me how you show a lot of courage during the spell.”

Poppy smiled and replied while glancing in Ius' direction, “thank you! I wouldn’t have to manage without him. He kept me going.’’

Ius smiled back.

“Uncle, have you thought about the power of the spell and how a warlock could be that strong to tweak it?” asked Ius

Altan nodded. “Yes, I did, and I passed the information to the High Council. They will look into the matter for us.”

He then leaned forward, looking straight at the teenagers. “Now that the incident is behind us, how about we continue with the tour in peace?”

‘’ I second that.’’ Said Joe who had just entered the room. ‘’ It is Papyrus making this afternoon, which sounds pretty fun, but you’ll have to go without me. Hanane needs my help.’’

Altan frowned. ‘’ And what kind of help will that be, Joseph?’’

‘’ Turns out, apart from working with a warlock which Hanane doesn’t know about, Ali was also stealing the guests' valuables. I found her sobbing in her office. She can’t call the authorities because they don’t care about petty crimes. But she is terrified the hotel ratings may go down. The critical reviews from the guests will crucify her business.’’ Said Joe in a concerned voice.

‘’ I would not let that happen. The only thing she has is the hotel. She is planning to go to some town where Ali is from, Badr city. So I’ve offered to go with her. Maybe we can bring back the things he stole and give them back to their rightful owner.’’

‘’ It is a terrible idea, Joseph. You do not know what Ali is capable of. You should stay back and let me handle the situation.’’ Said Altan firmly.

Joe scoffed and shook his head. ‘’ I can handle Ali. I have all the gear I need with me,’’ he said while pulling a watch from a minor case. ‘’ It is not my first rodeo, Altan.’’

‘’ I think you should proceed with caution. Your need to impress is clouding your judgment, Joseph.’’ Said Altan. ‘’ But if this is what you really want to do, then I will not stand in your way. I also understand your need to help her.’’

Joe put his watch on and smiled. ‘’ Now that everything has been decided, let’s all go down. The buses will depart shortly. You’ll be taken to a local restaurant near the Papyrus Institute.’’

Altan got up. ‘’ Yes, children, let us go. We’ll accompany you to the bus then Joseph, Hanane and I will go to Badr city. Are we taking a taxi or Hanane will drive us?’’ He asked without hesitation in his voice.

Joe looked at him. Altan stared back without blinking. He immediately understood that Altan was not about to let him go by himself.

Fine! Let it come. Maybe he will learn a thing or two by watching me in action. He thought.