A Suitable Gift
By Jill Weber

Part 1 of 3
 

Disney characters copyrighted by the Walt Disney Corp. and used without
permission. The villains are mine and not to be confused with any other
person, living dead or fictional.
 

     In spite of, or perhaps because of, the bitter cold, there was a small
crowd around the steps. The building the steps lead to was nothing much to
look at, its walls were crumbling and the roof was half gone. A casual
observer might not have understood the reason for the crowd's interest.
     The man in the shadows was not a casual observer. He knew what was going
on: Princess Jasmine was giving clothing and blankets to the poor of Agrabah.
However, he did not understand why she was doing it, it seemed like a waste
of time and money. So he watched to see if he could figure her out, after
all, she was going to be his bride someday.
     This doesn't make sense, Princess," the bright red parrot squawked from
the girl's brown clad shoulder. "Even you can't afford to clothe everybody in
Agrabah! Why even try?"
     "Iago, I have to do something!" exclaimed Jasmine as she handed a coat
to a thin, shivering girl. "I have so much, and they have so little." She
handed a cloak to a stooped woman holding a squalling baby. "Besides, it's a
fair trade-- they get a warm feeling outside, and I get a warm feeling
inside!"
     The parrot flapped his wings and rolled his eyes. "Yeah, right, get
philosophical, it's easy for you... your warm! And I suppose it's a
coincidence that this gets you away from that Prince Wazzoo," he sniggered.
     "Iago, the scarves?" Jasmine reminded him pointedly. "And why would I
want to get away from Prince Wasim? The trade agreements he's come to talk to
Father about will bring more jobs to Agrabah."
     "But more jobs means less poor people, and less poor means less warm
fuzzies for you," Iago mocked. Then he added: "Besides, he keeps drooling on
your feet."
     Jasmine looked at her new green boots. "That's why I bought some
waterproof boots," she giggled. Then she shook a finger at the parrot.  "Now,
stop trying to get out of work, Lazy-Feathers."
     "Yeah, yeah," Iago muttered. He flapped over to a basket and snagged a
bright red and yellow scarf and handed it to a street urchin. "Here ya go,
kid. Who cares if its ugly? Beggars can't be fashion critics."
     The boy took the scarf with a shy smile, then ran off to rejoin his
mother, who was waiting to get shoes. "Here you go, ma'm," Aladdin said in a
subdued voice, handing her a pair of soft boots. "I think these should fit."
He smiled tiredly at the boy with the new scarf and handed him a pair of
shoes. "I don't think we have any more boots your size," he said. "But these
should keep your feet warm."
     The boy eyed the shoes dubiously.
     "I know," Aladdin said. "I prefer to go barefoot myself, except in
weather like this!" he looked at the sky and shuddered. Then he coughed.
"'Scuse me," he said to the boy. After a few minutes thought, the boy took
the shoes. Aladdin spent a few moments wondering if he'd actually wear them,
or if he'd sell them. Then he forced himself to pay attention to the task at
hand.
     Iago gave Aladdin a sharp look, then went back to handing out scarves.
It was late afternoon when, after many glances around, Iago handed out the
last scarf from his basket. But he hesitated before getting another basket,
then he flapped over to Jasmine's shoulder.
     "You ever hear the saying "Charity begins at home?" he said in a quieter
tone than normal.
     Jasmine chuckled, looking at him sideways. "Really, Iago, you can't tell
me you're cold under all those feathers!"
     "I'm not talkin' about me, kiddo, I'm talkin' 'bout blue boy over
there," Iago's voice went even lower, as if showing concern was something he
was ashamed of.
     Jasmine looked around and frowned. "Don't be silly, Iago, Genie's not
here. He's gone to visit Eden, the Genie of the bottle. Eden's little
mistress has started school, you know."
     "Yeah, yea, I know," Iago snapped. "Genie and Aladdin have been bragging
about that street mouse's... er... Dondi's getting that scholarship so much
you'd think they were her uncles or something. But Genie isn't the blue boy
I'm talkin' about, I meant uh-LAD-din, you know, your boyfriend?"
     Jasmine frowned at him. "Don't be silly, if Aladdin was cold, he'd
tell... me..." her voice trailed off uncertainly as she really looked at
Aladdin for the first time that day. He really wasn't blue... he was more
greyish-brown, almost the same shade as his disreputable coat. He looked as
cold as the people he was handing shoes to. But while the beggars also looked
excited, Aladdin just looked...cold.
     "Yeah, su-u-ure he'd mention it," Iago sniped.
     "Aladdin, are you all right?" Jasmine asked, half expecting the answer
she got.
     "S-sure, I'm f-fine," Aladdin insisted, pretending to be very interested
in the basket of shoes.
     Abu, who had been handing out warm hats from his perch on the magic
carpet, bounded over to Aladdin and clambered onto his master's shoulders,
scolding at Aladdin and shaking his clenched paw.
     Jasmine put her hands on her hips, cocked her head, and gave him an "Oh,
really?" look.
     "Abu, Jasmine, I-am-perfectly-all-right," Aladdin tried to look
indignant, but only managed to look cold. "Now, will you stop fooling around?
It's getting late and we have all this clothing to give out."
     Jasmine looked at the baskets of clothing and frowned. She estimated
that it would take a couple more hours to hand all this out. Much as she
wanted to help the poor, she didn't want Aladdin to kill himself. "I wish
Genie were here," she muttered. "He'd get this stuff distributed in a wink."
     In response to her wish, Carpet swooped down, scooped up all the
baskets, then flew down the line of paupers, tossing clothing out with all
four tassels. It wasn't quite a blink, but the clothing was distributed much
faster than it would have using the old method.
     "Geez, why didn't you do that sooner?" said Iago, wrapping his wings
around him and shivering.
     "Nobody asked him," Aladdin defended his Magic Carpet.
     Jasmine took hold of his arm, cursing herself for not noticing sooner
how  weary he looked or how threadbare his coat was."You're freezing," she
said. "Why didn't you say anything? We could have given you one of the
coats."
     Carpet floated up, dusting off his tassels.
     "Good work, pal," Aladdin said. To Jasmine he added: "There are so many
other people who need those coats. Besides, I'm fine. All I need is something
to eat."
     Jasmine cupped her free hand around Aladdin's chin. "Don't be like this,
why won't you let me give you a coat?" She pulled at his chin so he'd have to
meet her eyes.
     Aladdin resisted, looking at the ground instead. "I... you've already
given me plenty of clothes," he protested weakly. "I don't like accepting
gifts from you when I have so little to give you in return." (He also hated
her taste in clothing, but didn't think it was advisable to say so.)
     "Aladdin!" Jasmine said in fond exasperation. "Gift giving isn't a
contest, and it's not a business transaction. I don't give you things because
I want you to give me things back! I give them to you because I want you to
have them! You should just accept them graciously."
     Aladdin snorted. "Like the way you accept Wazzoo's gifts?" he asked with
a sardonic smile.
     The man in the shadows hissed angrily. "How dare that street rat take my
name in vain!" Prince Wasim growled under his breath. He moved closer, so as
to record any further insults for future reference. He didn't notice that he
was no longer alone in the alley.
     "That's different!" protested Jasmine, thumping Aladdin on the chest
with her fist. "If I accepted any of Wasim's gifts, he might get the
impression that I liked him... the way I like you. Giving him false hope
would be rude wouldn't it?"
     "Well..." Aladdin said.
     "On the other hand, if you continue to refuse to accept my gifts, I
might decide that you aren't really interested in me!"
     Aladdin's eyes went wide and his voice went up. "Jasmine, you know I...
mrrph..." It was impossible to finish his sentence with Jasmine's mouth
pressed against his, so he gave up and leaned into the kiss, shifting his
arms to encircle Jasmine's waist.
     Carpet folded his tassels underneath him so his 'chin' was resting on
his 'hands'. He loved mushy stuff. Carpet was the only member of the audience
who did. Abu made a 'eeeewww, yuck, cooties!" face and Iago flapped around
the young lovers, fussing: "Oh, for crying out loud! Why does it always come
down to the lip-wrestling? Don't you two have any sense of decorum?"
     Reluctantly, Aladdin pulled away from Jasmine enough to hiss out of the
corner of his mouth: "Shut up, Iago, this is the first time all day that I've
been warm."
     "Ah-HA! I knew it! You are cold!" Jasmine said triumphantly. She yanked
on his arm and hauled him onto the carpet (in both senses of the phrase).
"I'll bet you don't even have a shirt on under that flimsy excuse of a coat!
If you won't have any consideration for yourself, think about me! What would
I do if you caught your death of pneumonia?"
     "Jasmine, I..."
     "Home, Carpet!" she ordered imperiously. "Aladdin has an appointment
with the royal tailor."
     Carpet gave her a thumbs (tassel?) up sign and 'ffwwwiiished' off in the
desired direction.
     "But Jasmine..." protested Aladdin, who had visions of another sissy
suit like the last one she'd given him.
     Prince Wasim didn't hear the rest of the protest. He came out from the
alley where he'd been lurking and scowled after the magic carpet and its
passengers. "How dare that... street rat bandy my name about is such a
familiar fashion!" he snorted indignantly.
      "OOoooo, if that Princess Jasmine wasn't so beautiful... or her father
so rich... I'd just... take my trade agreement elsewhere. Gah! I have to get
rid of that Aladdin, somehow."
     "Do you wish Aladdin dead, your highness?" a voice cackled from behind
him.
     Prince Wasim whirled and found himself confronting a withered old hag,
dressed in the tattered remains of clothing that looked older than Agrabah
and she smelled like she hadn't bathed since the city had been founded.
     "I what's it to you, witch?" he demanded, (she had to be a witch, no one
else could smell like THAT!).
     "I have something in common with you," the Hag hissed. "A desire to see
Aladdin suffer. The street rat once stole some fruit from me... rare fruit
that I needed for a spell, fruit that I risked my life for... and he fed it
to his MONKEY! I want revenge!"
     "Then why don't you get it for yourself?" Prince Wasim asked snidely.
     "I lack opportunity!" the Hag said. "I cannot get near him without his
Genie sniffing me out."
     ('Who needs a Genie to sniff you out?' wondered Wasim, but, in an
uncharacteristic fit of self-preservation, he said nothing. Not even princes
can insult witches with impudence.)
     "So you need me to approach Aladdin... and take the blame," Wasim
sniffed.
     "Blame? For what? All you need to do is give the lad a present. Where's
the blame if something you buy in the market is... dangerous?"
     "The blame is with the merchant," Wasim smiled. He didn't trust this
hag, but he figured if push came to shove, his word would be taken over hers.
"It's agreed then," he said.
     "Not yet! You haven't said if you want Aladdin dead or not," the Hag
said.
     Wasim rubbed his neatly trimmed beard and thought it over. "No, I don't
want him dead. I just want him out of the way for a long time, so I can win
the Princess. I want to see the statement on that street rat's face when
Jasmine marries me! "
     The Hag smiled, showing green fuzzy teeth. "Exc...ssss...ellent," she
hissed. "That is so much worse than anything I could think of. Besides, I
can't kill anybody."
     "Why not?"
     "It's a witch thing. Now come along and I'll tell you what you need to
do."

     Aladdin managed to convince Jasmine that he really needed a good meal.
But all during the meal, Jasmine kept talking about clothing. She'd even
emphasized her point by going off for a few minutes and changing into a
warmer pair of pants and a long sleeved, off the shoulder top. (Aladdin
couldn't figure out how that top would keep her warm. Not that he was going
to complain, it sure kept him warm!)
     As soon as Aladdin finished eating, Jasmine grabbed him by the arm and
began hauling him (with Carpet's assistance, Carpet had liked that last
outfit) down the hall towards the Palace Tailor.
     "Jasmine, really, I'm fine now!" Aladdin protested, still trying to
avoid another overly pretty, sissy suit. He had a vivid memory of how Abu,
Iago, Genie had laughed at him. Even the sand monster that had kidnapped
Jasmine had laughed at it.  "I don't need you to buy me a suit! I can have
Genie make one for me when he gets back from his vacation!!"
     "No you won't," Jasmine said. "You don't like accepting presents from
Genie, either. Every time he offers you something nice, you start with the 'I
promised myself I would never misuse your powers' routine."
     "I just don't like to misuse his powers," Aladdin explained. "I'd rather
take care of myself. But I promise, I'll get some new clothes as soon as he
gets back."
     Jasmine and Carpet exchanged considering looks, then decided 'Nah!' at
the same time and began hauling on his arms again. "You might catch pneumonia
before then!" Jasmine said. Carpet liked Genie, but had little faith in the
rambunctious blue one's taste. So he kept pushing for the Palace Tailor.
     Aladdin looked around for help, only to see Abu, his faithful sidekick
of many adventures, laughing himself sick. Iago was turning blue under the
feathers from laughing so hard.
     Obviously, both of his 'faithful sidekicks' remembered the last suit.
 For a brief moment, Aladdin considered rubbing the lamp... but interrupting
the Genie's romance to get out of getting a new suit didn't seem fair... or
safe. Besides, Genie would probably just laugh at him, too.
     Aladdin tried digging his heels in, but Carpet, tired of the struggle,
swept him off his feet and wafted him off to The Tailor of Doom. Jasmine
gracefully hopped onto Carpet and silenced Aladdin's protests by the simple
expediency of sitting on his chest.
     Abu jumped onto Carpet to laugh in Aladdin's ear. Aladdin gave him a
'and who's side are you on, furball' glare and squirmed, but it looked like
he was really going to get that new suit.
     "Oh, don't be such a baby!" Jasmine said. "You need to learn to accept
gifts graciously. Besides, you'll look so..."
     Carpet jolted to a halt, knocking Jasmine from her perch. Aladdin took
advantage of the distraction to roll off Carpet. Once on his feet, he whirled
to see what had stopped Carpet and found himself facing Prince Wasim.
     "Oh, hi," Aladdin said, pushing his hair out of his eyes nervously.
     Wasim staggered back a step, frantically trying to keep his pile of
packages from falling out of his arms. Aladdin jumped forward and helped
steady the stack.
     "Princess Jasmine! How good to see you again!" Wasim said. "And Aladdin,
my young friend, how are you doing?"
     Aladdin and Jasmine exchanged glances. For some reason, Wasim's
effusiveness struck them as being forced. Almost like he was covering up
something... probably the fact that he really didn't like Aladdin, they
decided.
     "Um, I'm okay," Aladdin said, scuffling his boot like a schoolboy. He
really hated it. Every time one of Jasmine's rich and cultured suitors showed
up, he felt unclean and uncouth and began to wonder what Jasmine saw in him.
(A question that puzzled many other people, as he well knew.) "How are you?"
he added, somewhat belatedly.
     "I'm quite well," Wasim said. "I was visiting your charming market place
and picked up a few gifts."
     Carpet made stairs so Jasmine could step gracefully to the floor.
"Prince Wasim, I appreciate your kindness, but I've already told you..."
Jasmine stopped when Wasim held up his hand.
     "Now, Princess, you are jumping to conclusions, these presents aren't
for you, they're for your friends!"
     "For us?" Aladdin and Iago chorused. Abu squeaked out something that
sounded like 'for us?'
     Carpet pointed to himself, though he was sure he wouldn't get any
presents. (What do you give a carpet, anyway?)
     "Certainly, let's find a place to sit down and I'll show you," Wasim
smirked.
     For a moment, Jasmine and Aladdin felt queasy, as though one of the
villains they had fought was setting them up for something. Then both decided
that they were letting their imaginations run away with them. The five
adventurers exchanged looks and shrugs, then Jasmine led the way back to
where they'd been eating.
     Everyone except Jasmine and Carpet took advantage of their surroundings
to start snacking. Jasmine's appetite was not as large as Aladdin's, much
less as large as Abu and Iago's.
     "So, what did you get?" she prodded curiously when it looked like eating
was going to shove thoughts of presents out of everybody's mind.
     "Oh, right, the presents," Wasim said, as if they'd been pushed from his
mind by the food. He started digging through various baskets and bags and
handing wrapped boxes out to the others.
     Iago was given a pair of red and blue booties designed to keep avian
feet warm. "Hey, these are nice," he said, looking at his feet with
admiration. "And they go so well with my feathers!"
     Abu received a hooded jacket embroidered with bananas. He squeaked out a
thank you and tipped his hat to Wasim.
     Carpet got a lint brush.
     "It isn't much," Wasim apologized. "But I couldn't think of what else to
give you."
     Carpet gave a few experimental brushes, then bowed his thanks.
     "And for you... Aladdin, my friend..." (Wasim almost blew by choking on
his words. He covered by pretending to choke on a date.) After swallowing
half a glass of water, Wasim continued. "I have a very special gift for you."
And he pulled out a suit. It was nothing spectacularly fancy, just a wool,
medium green tunic and pants, with some sort of design in black at the hems.
     Carpet was heartbroken. It was looked like Aladdin wasn't going to get
that suit from the royal tailor.
     Aladdin wouldn't have normally accepted a gift from a rival, but this
beat a sissy suit from the royal tailor! "Thank you, Wasim!" he said with
genuine gratitude. "It's just what the princess ordered."
     "Mine would have been nicer," Jasmine muttered sotto voce to Carpet, who
'nodded'.
     "Oh, good," Wasim said. "I do so hope you'll wear it soon." This was the
first sincere thing he'd ever said to Aladdin.
     "Good idea," Aladdin said. "I think I'll go change now." Aladdin spoke
with enthusiasm. Not even the Royal Palace had what Genie called 'central
heating', and though it was warm in this room, bundling up seemed like a good
idea.
     "And Princess, if you will please allow me to give you a token of my
affection...?" Wasim asked.
     Jasmine thought she had Wasim's motives figured out now. If she didn't
accept the 'small token' of his esteem, Aladdin might feel obliged to refuse
his present. And, though she wanted to see him dressed up fancy, it was more
important to her that he dress warmly. And if Aladdin liked this plain suit
more than one of the royal tailor's lovely suits... she finished the thought
with a mental shrug. Who could figure men out anyway?
     "Why, thank you, Prince Wasim," she said graciously. She opened the
package. "Oh, Wasim! This is no 'small token'! You shouldn't have!" And she
meant it. The diamond set in the gold pendant was as big as a walnut.
Dazzled, she picked up the gold chain and held the diamond up to the light,
making it glow like a miniature sun.
     "Please, Princess," Wasim said. "It was the only thing I could find in
your market that even came close to matching your beauty."
     Jasmine blushed. "I... it's the most beautiful necklace I have ever
seen," she said. "Thank you, Wasim." And she immediately began planning on
what to give Wasim. It had to be worthy of the diamond, without being
something... romantic. She didn't want to lead him on.
     Then, a little nervously, Jasmine shot a glance at Aladdin, wondering if
he would be jealous that Wasim gave her such a fabulous gift, or if he'd be
embarrassed that he could not match it. She needn't have worried, Aladdin was
too busy gawking at the gem to feel either emotion.
     Aladdin's spellbound statement was mirrored by Abu and Iago, reminding
Jasmine her friends were reformed thieves  (well, Iago and Abu were
semi-reformed). She could just see little abacus disks shuttling in their
minds as they calculated how much they could fence it for.
     Except Carpet, who was neither an ex-thief nor calculating rates.
Instead, he swooped around the room agitatedly. 'Perhaps he was still upset
about the suit,' speculated Jasmine, with a mental apology for lumping Carpet
amongst the 'thieves'. Her gaze returned to the diamond, so she didn't notice
Iago whisper something into Abu's ear.
     "Allow me," Wasim said, apparently not noticing how the others had been
turned into drooling idiots.
     All attention was glued to the diamond .
     "Why, thank you," Jasmine said. She knew she shouldn't accept such an
expensive gift, but she just couldn't resist. (Ex-thieves weren't the only
ones who could be enchanted by beautiful jewels.)
     Aladdin's gaze followed every movement  of the diamond until it came to
a rest against Jasmine's warm brown skin. Then he realized exactly what part
of Jasmine's anatomy he was starting at. He 'eeped',  jerked upright, stepped
back a pace, and rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment. "Um,
Jasmine..." his voice trailed off as his brain refused to supply any more
words.
     Jasmine folded her arms, tapped a foot and glowered. "So, what, exactly,
are you dazzled by?" she asked in a "come up with the right answer fast, boy,
it's almost Rajah's dinner time" tone of voice.
     "Uh," Aladdin hesitated. 'What would Genie do in a situation like this?'
he wondered. Something dazzling, he decided.
     Not being able to do any of Genie's magic tricks, Aladdin decided to try
another way of dazzling. He bowed low and said passionately: "The combined
beauty of you and the diamond completely overwhelmed my senses, My Princess."
Then he straightened and his big brown eyes met her big brown eyes in a look
that would have melted a polar ice cap.
     Jasmine, not being anywhere near as cold as a polar ice cap, melted into
his arms.
     "Nice save," Iago said, then squawked and fluttered his wings in
disgust. "Aw, geez, do we have to make with the tongue tussling!? We got
company you know!" He flew around the room, molting copiously on the happy
couple.
     "Oh!" Jasmine said, breaking away and blushing. She'd completely
forgotten about Prince Wasim, which really isn't any way to treat the man who
just gave her a diamond worth enough drachma to clothe... half of Agrabah?
She looked at it speculatively. Well, maybe not half, but the right buyer
would certainly give enough money to clothe a lot... Oh, no! Now she was
thinking of fences!
     "Um, sorry, Wasim," Aladdin was saying. "I guess we got carried away."
     Wasim waved his hand as if it were of no importance. "Not at all, I
don't blame you a bit. Though I must admit I wish I were in your place, young
man."
     'Young man!' thought Aladdin with a mental snort. 'Oh, well, it's better
than the perpetual 'BOY' everybody keeps calling me.'
     "Do try on the suit. I so want to see how it looks on you," Wasim urged,
as if the only thing on his mind was seeing his friends enjoy their new
gifts.
     "Oh, right, good idea," Aladdin said.
     "You can change in the guest room," Jasmine said, taking him by the arm.
"Excuse me, Prince Wasim, but it's much too cold for Aladdin to go back to
his quarters tonight. So he's staying over in his usual guest room."
     "I am?" Aladdin asked bemusedly, only to get a royal elbow in the ribs.
     "You are," Jasmine informed him, twisting his arm behind his back.
     "Of course, my princess, I will see you later," Wasim bowed gracefully
and laughed to himself.
     "We'll be right back, Prince Wasim, and thank you again for the lovely
necklace," Jasmine said, muscling Aladdin out of the room, followed by avid
monkey, a greedy parrot and an anxious Carpet.

Part 2 of 3
 

     Aladdin changed quickly and dutifully displayed how well the new suit
fit. (Well, it was a little large, but that just gave the Palace Taylor a
chance to show off his skills.) After the suit was fitted properly, it was
time to eat again. The Sultan dutifully admired the suit, though privately he
thought the Palace Taylor could have come up with something nicer.
     The discussion turned from suits to shopping, which turned to a spirited
discussion of trade possibilities between Wasim's homeland and Agrabah. This
discussion lasted well into the night and only broke up when the Sultan
pleaded his age and went off to bed. Jasmine excused herself as well, so the
younger men also went to their assigned rooms.
     Jasmine felt guilty about sleeping in the diamond necklace, but she
couldn't resist. It was so beautiful that she wanted it to be the first thing
she saw in the morning. But when she woke up, it was gone.
     "You're sure you had it on last night?" Rasoul, the Captain of the
Palace Guards asked.
     Jasmine folder her arms and gave him such a LOOK.
     "Eh, of course," said the oversized, over muscled guard, rubbing the
back of his neck in embarrassment, much as Aladdin had done the previous day
. "And you searched your entire room."
     Jasmine nodded.
     Rasoul's right hand man, Fazal, eyed the breakfast on the Sultan's table
wistfully. "Maybe it's stuck in your hair?" he asked, thinking if he figured
out where the bauble was, he might get something to eat!
     "I thought of that," Jasmine said. "So I combed my hair out... twice."
     "Did you look in the Street Rat's room?" Rasoul asked snidely.
     Jasmine's eyes widened and she straightened up and gave Rasoul a 'Off
With His Head' glare. (And when a princess gets THAT look in her eye, it's
time to start worrying.)
     "Now, Rasoul!" the Sultan scolded, pushing away from table. "I know you
don't like Aladdin, but there is no need to blame him without cause!"
     "Without cause!" Rasoul exclaimed. "He's a thief!"
     "He's reformed!" protested Jasmine.
     "But, Princess, only a few people knew you had the necklace, and the
only way into your room is through the corridors, past the guards... or
through the window. Not many people can sneak into a window at the top of a
tower! Besides, if he isn't guilty, why hasn't he come down to breakfast yet?
He has almost as big an appetite as Fazal here."
     "Ra-soul," the Sultan said, acquiring the same 'Off With His Head' glare
that Jasmine was wearing. (When a sultan gets THAT look in his eye, it's time
do more than worry, it's time to change your tune... at least, within the
Sultan's hearing.)
     "Well, you know what that monkey of his is like," Rasoul said, making
placating gestures. "And that parrot! Perhaps one of them took the gem and
Aladdin is trying to figure out how to return it without getting them into
trouble. Perhaps I should ask... politely... for his help, then if one of his
pets did take it, he can give it back and we'll all pretend it didn't
happen."
     "What if neither Abu nor Iago took it?" Jasmine asked.
     Rasoul shrugged. "Then perhaps his genie could help us find a flying
thief."
     Rasoul and Fazal went to Aladdin's room to 'ask politely'. They burst
into the guest room and found Aladdin still in bed. So they turned the room
upside down, searching his clothes, the furniture and even tore through the
bed with Aladdin still in it. They ignored the screeching monkey and the
cursing parrot and the fluttering Magic Carpet. But they didn't find the
diamond.
     "He could have flown it somewhere last night," complained Fazal. "We're
just wasting our time." He didn't add 'when we could be eating', that went
without saying as far as he was concerned.
     "So, boy, what do you have to say for yourself?" Rasoul demanded.
     Aladdin didn't answer and Rasoul finally looked at him. The Street Rat
was sprawled limply across the ravaged bed like a discarded toy. Nobody could
have slept through that search! Nobody could have even pretended to sleep
through that search! It finally dawned on them that something was amiss.
     "There's something strange going on," Rasoul said.
     "What gave you your first clue, Rocket Scientist?" barked Iago. "The
fact that  not even you imbeciles could wake the kid up? Or the fact we've
been trying to tell you that something's wrong since you got here!? Get the
royal physician! Move it!"
     Rasoul scowled. "I have to recover the Princessess' diamond first. If
either of you have it, turn it over now and I'll forget where I found it."
     The 'if' was a concession that he may have been out of line.
     "DIAMOND!!" squalled Iago at the top of his not inconsiderable lungs.
"The kid is DYING and you're worried about a stupid DIAMOND?"
     "Dying?" Jasmine cried from behind the guards. "What... get out of my
way!" she demanded, plowing into the room. Normally she did not throw her
weight around with the guards, but right now she was glad that she had that
weight to throw around.
     "Out! Both of you! Rasoul, summon the royal physician!"
     Rasoul, who had a feeling he was treading between the bread line and the
royal executioner, decided that this was not the time to argue. He waved
Fazal back to his regular duties and rushed off to fetch the royal physician.
     A few minutes later, he heard a ' ffwwwiiishing' sound and saw the magic
carpet pace him. Carpet gestured him to get on with a clenched tassel. Rasoul
wondered why Carpet needed him... then realized the voiceless Carpet couldn't
explain to the doctor what was wrong. Rasoul had never ridden on the magic
carpet before, but this was no time to be squeamish. He jumped on and Carpet
hustled him to the royal physician's.
     "Aladdin? Aladdin!? Wake up!" Jasmine sobbed, shaking Aladdin by the
shoulders.
     Aladdin made no response, not even a groan.
     "Easy dear, you may injure him," the Sultan soothed. "Lay him down and
let's get a look at him."
     Aladdin did not look asleep, though he didn't look dead, either. When
the breathless physician arrived on Carpet a few minutes later, he was able
to eliminate some possibilities. "Skin clammy. Breathing steady, but shallow.
Pulse slow and steady. Pupils contracting evenly. He doesn't appear to be
poisoned, or to have a concussion. It almost looks like internal bleeding,
but not quite."
     Jasmine backed up a few steps and sat down on Carpet, who was hovering a
few feet above the ground. "Oh, Carpet, what are we going to do?"
     Carpet rapped on the back of her hand with a clenched tassel and floated
her over to the couch where Aladdin's new suit was lying. (Aladdin was
sleeping in his old clothes. Sorry, ladies.)
     "What do you mean, Carpet ?" Jasmine said.
     Abu scrambled over her lap and yanked the Genie's lamp from under the
tunic.
     "Oh, of course!" Jasmine said, snatching the lamp and rubbing it
vigorously.
     There was a puff of air, accompanied by a blare of raucous music and a
hail of confetti. "Hey, you interrupted Dondi's party! Somebody had better be
dying..."
     Then Genie saw the too limp form on the wrecked bed. He swooped over and
gathered Aladdin into his arms "Al! Little Buddy! I didn't mean it! Speak to
me!"
     A few hectic moments later, all was explained. Genie augmented the royal
physicians findings with a bunch of beeping, whirring, blinking gadgets
Jasmine couldn't make heads nor tails of.
     "No head trauma, no internal bleeding, no poison, no allergic
reactions..." was the comprehensible part of Genie's report.
     "Someone must have cast an evil spell on him," decided the physician.
     "You're right," Genie said, soberly for once. He one-finger zapped the
bed back into order, then laid Aladdin down tenderly on the ultra clean,
April fresh linen. "But who? And how?"
     The physician straightened up. "I'm going to look in my library to see
if there are any useful spells." He looked at the Genie apologetically. "I
know you probably have more knowledge on curses than my entire library, but I
can't just sit around and do nothing." He scurried off before Carpet could
offer him another ride. One lost meal was enough, thank you very much.
     The Sultan wrung his hands. "Jasmine, my dear," he said.
     Jasmine nodded. "I know, you have to run the kingdom," she said, laying
a hand on his arm. "That's all right, I understand. I'll let you know if
there's any change... or any way you can help."
     "Um, yes," the Sultan patted his daughter's hand and looked at Genie
with tearful eyes. "Do you suppose it would help if I offered a reward for
information regarding the curse? Or perhaps I should offer a reward for
anybody who can cure Aladdin?"
     "It couldn't hurt," Genie said. "I think I can take care of it, but if I
can't, we'd better start investigating other avenues right away."
     "Yes, very well, I'll post the rewards as soon as possible. And I'll be
back as soon as I've dealt with Prince Wazzoo's er, Prince Wasim's trade
delegation." He hurried off, determined to finish his foolish royal duties
and get back to his important job... being his daughter's father... as
quickly as possible.
     Genie took his head off and began to pace while scratching his top knot
the way he'd pet a cat.
     "I think I'll start with Jafar's library." He said, screwing his head
back on tightly.  "That snake knew every curse ever uttered." He zapped
himself into a hundred little genies (all wearing sweaters with patched
elbows and bifocals) and dashed off to Jafar's hidden tower. (Still known as
Jafar's tower, because nobody wanted to go near the place.) He came back
within minutes shaking his heads. Then he poofed into one blue lug. "Sorry, I
found too many sleeping curses, I don't know which cure to use. We need more
information."
     Genie turned to Abu and Iago. "So, what happened last night?"
     "Nothing," Iago said. "We said good night to the Princess and Wazzoo,
came to our room, cheated each other at Chinese checkers 'til bedtime. Then
it was morning and Aladdin wouldn't wake up."
     "I guess I'll have to do some detective work." Suddenly, the big blue
lug was wearing deerstalker cap, an Inverness cape, and had a chocolate
meershum pipe clenched in his mouth.   "It could be a verbal  curse... but
that would leave a trace."
     A large magnifying glass appeared in his hand and he peered about as if
he'd lost something. Then he took the pipe from his mouth. "Nope, no curse
traces. So, did you smell anything unusual last night?" he asked Abu and
Iago. Abu and Iago shook their heads.
     Genie cupped his chin in a third hand that appeared from his chest (so
he wouldn't have to put down the pipe or the magnifying glass). "Figures, if
it were some sort of scent, it would have gotten you two, too. What did Al
eat? Drink? Anything unusual? Take any medicine? Chew on a pencil? Get
bitten? Bite anybody? Prick his finger on a spindle?"
     Abu shook his head again. Iago said: "He didn't put anything in his
mouth the rest of us didn't eat."
     Genie curled his smoke under him and scratched his head with a fourth
hand that appeared from his back. "Hmm," he said, chewing on his pipestem,
then blowing a large bubble that transformed into a question mark. "What else
could curses be transmitted through... words, incense, drugs, gems..."
     "Gems!" exclaimed Jasmine. "My diamond!"
     Genie jerked around. "What diamond?" he demanded, waving both extra arms
plus two new arms around.
     "The one that Prince Wazzoo gave her," Iago explained. "He said he
bought it in the market."
     "Diamond could be it, they're notorious for carrying curses, take the
Hope Diamond for example, no, it hasn't been discovered yet, never mind,
let's see this thing," Genie said, holding out a seventh hand that extended
from his side.
     "It's gone, it disappeared from my room last night," Jasmine said
forlornly.
     "I see, from a tower room," Genie said. He looked sternly at Iago and
held out a eighth hand that appeared from the other side. "Come on, feathers,
let's have the gem."
     "ME!" shrieked Iago. "Why am I always the main suspect! I'm the only
shady character in Agrabah?"
     "No," Jasmine said. "But you are the only shady character who knew about
the diamond and who could have flown into my bedroom. Please, Iago, this is
important."
     "I'm tellin' you, I don't have it!" wailed Iago. "Don't you think I'd
hand it over to you if I did? You think I want my friend... er... meal
ticket... to DIE!"
     "Iago, who else knew about the diamond and could have flown into my
room?" Jasmine asked. "I doubt Carpet would have stolen..."
     Carpet reached over her shoulder and dangled the missing diamond in
front of her face.
     "CARPET?!?!" exclaimed the other four, loud enough to wake the dead, but
still not loud enough to get a response from Aladdin.
     The Genie was so surprised that he poofed, making all his extra arms,
and his Sherlock Holmes outfit disappear.
     "Carpet, why...?" asked a hurt and bewildered Jasmine, reaching for the
gem.
     Carpet moved it out of reach just as Genie exclaimed "Don't touch that!"
     Jasmine's eyes went wide as she connected Genie's information that gems
could carry curses to the uncharacteristic behaviour of the magic carpet. "Is
this what cursed Aladdin?" she asked.
     "No," Genie said. "THAT is a Love Locket Number Nine!! A nasty little
dickens with enough glamour on it to look like a gem, but it really looks
like this." He poofed the magnifying glass back into existence and held it
between Jasmine and the 'diamond'.
     Jasmine recoiled from the arthropodous locket. "Ycchh! I was wearing
THAT?" she yelped. "Why didn't it do something to me..." her eyes went wide
and her hand went to her throat. "Or did it?"
     Genie turned the magnifying glass on her. "Nope, you didn't have it on
long enough. Good thing Carpet recognized it for what it was!"
     "Yes, thank you, Carpet!" Jasmine said, bending over and kissing the
rug.
     Carpet did some 'aw, shucks,' gyrations and dusted the floor with one
tassel.
     'I don't believe it, if I'd'a done it, they'd all yell at me,' Iago
griped. Then he yelled: "Could we get back to the business at hand? Unless
you want to dump the kid for the rug."
     Jasmine blushed. "But if the diamond was a love spell, then what..."
     Jasmine and Iago both whirled. Abu jumped onto the couch. "The SUIT!"
they all exclaimed.
     Genie swooped past them, to examine Aladdin's suit with the magnifying
glass, then a microscope. "This is it. That thing's loaded with some sort of
sleepy juice. Those runes on the hems are obviously a powerful sleep spell,
one that's keyed to Aladdin so the juice won't affect anybody else. It's a
good thing he didn't have it on for long!"
     "Then he isn't dying?" whispered Jasmine tearfully. "You can break the
curse, can't you, Genie?"
     "Well, my powers aren't what they used to be, but I'll give it the old
college try." The old college try didn't work, neither did the old university
try, the old grad school try, or even the old trade school try.
     "I'm sorry, Jazz, but mixing magics doesn't always work," said Genie,
between pants. "Our best bet is to find whoever cursed the suit and force him
(or her) to cough up the anecdote, I mean, antidote."
     "But who...? Never mind," Jasmine said, replacing her 'poor helpless
princess' tears with the 'Off With His Head' glare that had so disturbed
Rasoul. "I guess we all know who it HAS to be. Carpet, Abu, take care of
Aladdin. I have to see a man about a rat."
     "More like seeing a rat about A-lad-din," Iago muttered.

Part 3 of 3
 

     The doors of the audience chamber were thrown violently open, one of
them half falling off its hinges in the process. Denizens of the twentieth
century would have been strongly reminded of a wild west showdown. Jasmine
stood at the front of a rough 'v' of grim looking characters, Iago rode on
her shoulder. Genie was to her right and back a step and Rajah was to her
left, also back a step.
     "Wasim!" Jasmine snarled. "What have you done to Aladdin?"
     "I don't know what you're talking about!" declared Prince Wasim.
     "Jasmine, what are you talking about," the Sultan asked in shock.
"Prince Wasim is our guest!"
     "He poisoned Aladdin, and he tried to poison me!" Jasmine accused.
     "Don't be ridiculous!" Wasim blustered, pulling himself to his full
height. "I had no idea that the necklace or the suit were anything other than
what they seemed!"
     Rajah paced forward, snarling and slavering.
     Genie sprouted a scholar's gown and mortarboard (complete with tassel).
He waved a scroll under Wasim's nose and said: "Now, in case you're so
uneducated that you don't understand Basic Tiger, allow me to translate." He
unrolled the scroll, and a picture of a tiger (who strongly resembled Genie)
said: "If you're innocent, then how did you know it was the necklace and the
suit that were the culprits and not, say, the food you ate last night?"
     "I... I..." Wasim sputtered, backing away.
     Jasmine did some snarling of her own, with some fist shaking for
emphasis. "You take that spell off Aladdin or I will cut your heart out and
feed it to Rajah... with a spoon!!"
     Her allies all looked at Jasmine in shock. "Why a spoon?" Iago asked,
scratching his head.
     "Because it will hurt more!" Jasmine snarled.
     Genie *plinked* back into his normal er usual form and curled around
Jasmine's shoulders. "Um, Jazz, leave the anachronistic references to me,
okay?"
     Jasmine had no idea what Genie was talking about, but she didn't have
the time or inclination to become enlightened. She advanced after Rajah,
hands clenched at her sides and THAT look in her eyes.
     Wasim backed up until he was literally cornered and dropped to his
knees. Rajah stuck his muzzle into the quivering Prince's face and made with
his best 'Off With His Head' glare. (When a tiger gives you THAT look, don't
bother worrying, just prepare to meet you doom.)
     "I... I don't know how!" wailed Wasim. "It was the old hag's fault! She
made me do it! Oh, please don't let your tiger eat me! I'll do anything!
ANYTHING!!"
     "Where is this 'old hag'?" Jasmine out-growled Rajah.
     "In the market," whimpered Wasim.
     "WHERE in the market?" Genie demanded. He wasn't fooling around now, he
merely loomed. (Though admittedly, he added to the impressiveness of the Loom
with a few discreet lighting effects.)
     "I'm not sure," quavered Wasim.
     "Where did you meet her?" Genie growled, out-growling both Rajah and
Jasmine. (Face it, he's had several millennia to perfect his ominous growl.
He had to do something to while away the time while trapped in the Cave of
Wonders.)
     "Near that decrepit old building where Jasmine was handing out clothing
to the poor."
     "That's PRINCESS Jasmine, to you, Wazzoo! Come on, guys, let's find this
old hag," Genie snapped.
     "Sorry about the trade agreements, Father, but this slug just got onto
my persona non grata list," Jasmine said. She grabbed Wasim by the collar and
hauled him along like he was an especially annoying toddler. Iago tumbled off
her shoulder and had to flap frantically to catch up.
     "Your father will be very disappointed in you, Wasim," the Sultan called
after them.
     A few minutes ago, his father's displeasure would have been the most
frightening thing in Wasim's life. Now that honor went to Princess Jasmine.
     "Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, or a princess robbed," said
Genie. He turned into a fiery steed (in tasteful shades of blue and lavender)
and galloped after his party.
     Rajah started to follow, but the Sultan restrained him with a hand on
his neck. "I'm sorry, Rajah, but you can't go with them. You'd likely start a
riot in the marketplace. I'm sure they can handled this."
     Rajah gave a deep "I never get to have any fun" sigh and stalked out to
the garden to sulk.
     The hunters made their way to the alley, where Genie turned into a giant
(blue)bloodhound.
     "How can you sniff out anything in this crowd?" demanded Iago.
     "Not to worry," Genie said with great confidence. "Evil magic smell
isn't easy to drown out, even in a crowd like this!" After an hour or so of
sniffing (complete with several sidetracks to various butchers stalls and one
hair raising cat chase), Genie stopped outside a dilapidated shack and turned
into a giant arrow. The (flashing neon red) writing on the side of the arrow
said: "This Way to the Evil Hag's Lair. No One Under Thirteen Admitted
Without Parent."
     Jasmine was over thirteen, so she didn't fetch her father. She just
kicked the door down and strode into the shack, absently hauling Prince Wasim
behind her.
     "How dare you enter my home without knocking?" a wheezy, onion laden
voice demanded.
     "How DARE you curse my boyfriend!!" demanded Jasmine in return. The
Princess didn't flinch from the Hag's ugliness, or her smell. Wasim, however,
began to look a little green around the gills.
     "You must be Princess Jasmine," snarled the Hag, shaking a fist at her.
"That street rat of yours stole something from me, and he must be punished!"
     "Stole what from you?" Jasmine asked. She put her hands on her hips and
tried her best/worst 'off-with her head glare', but it made no impression at
all on the Hag.
     "He stole some magical fruit from me, Your Highness!" The Hag snarled,
saliva dripping from the corner of her mouth. "Magical fruit that I risked my
life for! And when I tried to get it back, I saw it get eaten... by his
MONKEY!!"
     "Oh? What kind of fruit? And where did you get it?" Iago asked. "Maybe
we can get some more for you." The parrot's tone of voice was  politely
curious and amicably helpful. In Iago, this usually meant that the parrot was
feeling especially snide and obnoxious.
     "I...  Never mind, it is not important now," the Hag backed away from
Jasmine, and suddenly would not meet the girl's gaze. "What is important is
Aladdin's being punished!"
     "I don't understand, if we replace the fruit, why would you need to
punish Aladdin?" Jasmine was momentarily puzzled out of her hostility.
     She let got of Wasim's shirt. The prince staggered back against a wall
and sat down.
     "Oh, I understand perfectly, Princess," Iago snarled, settling on the
least unsound piece of furniture in the shack. He pointed a flight feather at
the hag. "She doesn't want you to know that she stole the fruit in the first
place!"
     "I did not steal it!" the Hag protested overmuch.
     "Then how exactly did you risk your life to obtain it?" Iago asked
sarcastically. "And why did you never go back for more?" When the Hag was
silent, Iago supplied his own answers. "You risked your life getting around
the some guardian, didn't you? And now that the guardian knows you for a
thief, you won't ever be able to get near him again."
     "How do you know all this stuff?" Jasmine asked, looking at Iago over
her shoulder.
     "Hey, Jafar dragged me on zillions of stupid quests after some magic
thingie or other. Trust me, nobody gives out or sells magic fruit. And you
never find the stuff lying around, either. The only way to get it is to earn
it or steal it. If she'd earned it, she could always go back and get more."
     Jasmine placed her hands on her hips and glared at the Hag. "So, you
were going to kill Aladdin for doing the same thing you had done?"
     The Hag looked horrified. "I cannot kill! I'd lose my magic! I only put
him into an enchanted sleep."
     Jasmine looked at Genie. "Is this true?"
     Genie turned into a giant contraption with flashing lights and a dial
that said TRUE/FALSE. A little blue hand swung to the TRUE side, bells went
off and the lights did a can-can. "Yes, she is telling the truth. Aladdin is
only sleeping."
     Abruptly, the Genie poofed out of sight and a blue man clad in a blue
trench coat appeared. "Awright, shweet-heart!" Genie drawled in what later
generations would know was a credible imitation of Humphrey Bogart. "How  can
we remove this curse you've laid on our buddy?"
     "It cannot be removed by any means at my disposal, or that I have
knowledge of," smirked the Hag. She waved to her herb laden shelves. "I have
spent a lifetime acquiring these precious magical herbs and those priceless
scrolls of spells. I was very careful to pick a curse that has no known
antidote, so you can't force it out of me!"
     "Why don't we just have a look see for ourselves?" Genie suggested.
There was a poof of smoke and Genie was wearing scarlet long johns with a
gold lightning bolt symbol on his chest. He flashed around the room, peering
into scrolls and bottles and cupboards. Finally he came over to Jasmine,
poofed back into his usual self and shrugged. "Sorry, Princess, but she's
telling the truth. There's nothing here to break that spell."
     Iago slapped his forehead. "Oh, great, so Aladdin gets to spend the rest
of his life in La-La Land!"
     "Don't be silly, Iago, Los Angeles won't be founded until 1781." Genie,
ignoring Iago's "I knew that" glare,  pulled a blindingly fierce light from
somewhere, holding the light so it shown in the Hag's face. "Spill the beans,
shweet-heart," he demanded as a deluge of kidney, navy, coffee and jelly
beans rained on the Hag's head. "Just how BIG is this Big Sleep you've zapped
the kid with? For your sake, it had better not be one of those hundred year
thingies!"
     "No!" Wasim cried. "I wanted Aladdin at my wedding, so I could gloat at
him!"
     "That is right," the Hag said. "The sleep spell is only for as long as
it would take Princess Jasmine to get over her heartbreak enough for the
prince, aided by the Love Locket No. 9, to win her over."
     "And that was?" Genie prompted.
     "Thirty-three years."
     "Thirty-three years!" yelped Wasim. "She'd be OLD by that time!"
     "And you'll still be a fool," snapped the Hag. "Now be off! I'm a busy
witch!"
     "I should have you arrested and thrown in the dungeon," sputtered
Jasmine.
     "You can't, I've done nothing illegal," smirked the Hag. "There is no
law against impregnating a suit with sleep magic."
     Jasmine hesitated, then realized the Hag was right. (Jasmine had been
studying the laws of Agrabah back when she had been trying to get out of the
'must be married by her next birthday' thing.)  There were no laws against
dousing anything with sleep magic,  or even any against giving sleep doused
suits to people. There were laws against poisoning people, but she couldn't
figure out how to make them apply to this case. Aladdin hadn't really been
poisoned, after all. She decided that she and her father had better have a
talk about laws pertaining to magic.
     "Come on, let's go," she said growled. She turned her back on Wasim and
the Hag and stalked out of the shack with as much dignity as  she could
muster.
     "Whew!" said Wasim.
     "Don't look so relieved, Wazzoo," Genie said, getting a firm grip on the
miscreant's collar. "There's still a matter of that "Anything" you would do
to avoid getting eaten by Rajah.
     Genie hauled the perfidious prince after Jasmine. As he left, he pointed
a finger over his shoulder and zapped the Hag's lifetime accumulation of rare
herbs and scrolls into Hostess Fruit Pies and Betty Crocker cook books.
(Written in English, an as yet Unborn Language.)
     "You thief!" screamed the Hag, shaking her fist in helpless fury.
     "But I didn't take a thing," Genie returned. "And there's no law against
turning nasty magic herbs and spices into tasty, yet healthful, snacks. And
these have real fruit filling!"
     He ignored the Hag's sputtering. None of her spells were strong enough
to hurt even a merely semi-phenomenal, nearly cosmic powered Genie.
     An hour later, Genie joined the others in Aladdin's room. "We have
Wazzoo out there giving away large quantities of his trade goods to the poor
of Agrabah," he reported. "The Sultan is sending a delegation to the Prince's
father to complain about his behavior and explain what his punishment was. I
don't think Wazzoo will get much in the way of a warm welcome when he gets
home."
     "Thanks, Genie," sighed Jasmine. She was perched on the side of
Aladdin's bed, holding his hand. Carpet was hovering at her side, alternately
stroking Aladdin's cheek and wiping away Jasmine's tears.
     Abu was sitting on Aladdin's pillow, stroking the youth's hair. There
were big tears dripping unheeded down the monkey's face.
     Iago was moving restlessly from perch to perch. "Come ON, are we going
to spend the next thirty years like this?" he groused. "Is this what HE would
do? NO! If YOU were the one in the enchanted sleep, he'd be out lookin' for a
cure!"
     Iago fluttered to the bed and started pacing. "He'd be checking out
every magic gizmortifrack this side of the Cave of Wonders! He'd at least try
the (gag) True Love's Kiss routine!"
     Jasmine had been rubbing her eyes when Iago said this last sentence. She
jerked upright, eyes going wide. "True Love's Kiss?" she repeated. "Of
course, that's what breaks the enchanted sleep in all the fairy tales!" She
stood up, bent over Aladdin and kissed him tenderly.
     Nothing happened.
     The others looked from Jasmine to Aladdin then back again in shock.
     "Humph," Iago said, disappointment lending a sharper-than-normal edge to
his snideness. He snapped his wings shut and said: "So maybe it isn't true
love, after all?"
     Carpet smacked him off the bed and into the wall.
     "It was just a suggestion!" Iago sputtered indignantly, prying himself
out of the wall.
     Jasmine tried a more lingering kiss, with the same lack of result.
     She burst into tears again, grabbed Aladdin's shoulders and shook him.
"Aladdin, wake up! Oh, PLEASE wake up!"
     She felt Aladdin jerk under her hands, then, blessedly, the next words
she heard were his: "Huh? Whazzut? Jasmine?" She drew back and met Aladdin's
blinking, befuddled gaze.
     "Jazz! You did it! You broke the spell!! You said the magic word!!!"
Genie gave her a big hug, then disappeared into a puff of smoke.
     A large blue duck with a funny black moustache with a cigar in its mouth
dropped from the ceiling and triumphantly held a HUGE sign that said:
"PLEASE!"
     Then a funny little blue man with the same moustache duck walked across
the bed saying: "Say the magic woid and the duck will drop down and spell
will be broken!"
     "What?" Aladdin propped himself up on his elbows and shook his head,
trying to clear the cobwebs from his brain. "What's going on? Why are you all
in my room?" he asked.
     He didn't get an explanation, because everyone was too busy trying to
hug him at the same time.
     It wasn't until much later, when the excitement had finally died down,
that Aladdin got his explanation. They were sitting around the dinner table
(Aladdin dressed in his new, not-too-fancy blue pants and white tunic from
the Palace Tailor). The others were relating what had happened since Aladdin
went to bed the night before.
     "...and it makes sense that the old hag wouldn't know THAT cure," said
Genie. "I'll bet she never said 'please' or 'thank you' in her life."
     "I was in an enchanted sleep, again?" Aladdin said, again. He shook his
head in wonder. Then he snorted and added. "Well, that will teach me to
accept gifts from strangers." He grinned at Abu. "Stealing was much safer,
right?"
     "Uh-ha!" agreed Abu, nodding his head so vigorously that his whole body
vibrated, and a few spoons fell from his vest. Aladdin smiled and removed the
rest of the stolen tableware from various hiding places.
     "No it isn't! Stealing is what got you into this mess in the first
place," Jasmine said firmly. "Promise me, no more stealing!"
     Aladdin flashed her a grin. "I wasn't planning to steal anything
anyways... except your heart," he added, giving her a melting look.
     Jasmine obligingly melted. "You don't need to steal THAT," she purred,
snuggling up to him. "My heart is already yours... forever." She brought her
face close to his as she spoke.
     "As mine is yours," Aladdin murmured, wrapping his arms around her waist
and leaning forward.
     "Oh, for cryin' out loud! We're back to the do-it-yourself
tonsillectomies again!!" squawked Iago. "Don't you two ever think of
anything..."
     Iago's complaints were abruptly cut off as Carpet flick-kicked him out
the nearest window. Then Carpet turned to watch dreamily as the young lovers
kissed. Carpet just loved mushy endings.