Rajah's Curse

Chapter 36: The Sultan

I surveyed the crowd, but the bell-ringer and the monkey trainer were truly gone.

Then I heard the sultan say to Jasmine, "My dear, I think I need to have a word with you."

I glanced back at the sultan. He had been quiet during the last part of that unpleasant conversation, but I suppose it'd be asking too much of him to disregard what just happened.

Even so, Jasmine tried to resist the inevitable. "Father," she pleaded, "Can't it wait until later?"

"No, no," the sultan said, standing up. "It is best said now." He summoned a guard and informed him, "We will be back momentarily." Then the sultan turned our way. "Come Jasmine."

The princess reluctantly rose from her chair. She looked down at me and asked, "Do you want to come too?"

Of course.

I got up in response.

No one spoke as we followed the sultan. While we walked, I tried to wrap my head around what the Ababwans had told us. Prince Ali was set to return this week and he was bringing some elaborate gift that he thought would make Jasmine forgive him.

Or he was planning to.

The way the bell-ringer acted, it almost seemed like the prince had sent him and the monkey trainer to interrogate the princess for ideas. It was all very suspicious, so it made perfect sense that the sultan would want to discuss things.

We arrived at a meeting room with a balcony that overlooked the festivities. The sultan waited for us to enter. Once we were all inside, he closed the doors shut and locked them with an audible click.

We were officially trapped.

Jasmine and I exchanged a quick look before the sultan turned back to us and said, "There. It is traditional to hold court on festival days, but it is good to have a respite from the rabble now and then."

He smiled. "Now my dear, what's that grim expression for. I did not bring us up here to scold you."

Well, that was a surprise, but also a relief. The last thing, Jasmine needed was to be harangued for standing up for herself.

The sultan added, "If I wanted to do that, I would not have allowed Rajah to join us."

Hey!

I huffed.

Jasmine stifled a laugh.

I shot her an annoyed look, but I was actually glad to see that she was in a good enough mood to laugh.

The sultan seemed to be glad as well. For he said, "That's a bit better. I hoped coming up here might do you some good."

"So, is that all you wanted?" Jasmine asked hopefully.

"Heavens no," he said, waving off the suggestion, "I didn't climb all these stairs just for that. No, my dear, you see, there is something I've been meaning to say to you. I was just waiting for the right moment to share the news and after that scene back there, now seems to be the perfect time."

Jasmine's hand gripped my head tightly and I knew what we were both thinking:

Please. Please. Let it not be another prince.

The sultan's eyes twinkled. "It is good news."

Jasmine nodded. Neither she nor I was comforted. To the sultan, a new prince would qualify as good news.

"Today is like a celebration of Agrabah's rebirth. Thanks to you, that so called Phantom Vizier of yours,"

I hated that epithet.