A Cold and Lonely Arabian Night in Agrabah ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Loneliness had become an unwelcome companion in the frigid winter nights of Agrabah.A Cold and Lonely Arabian Night in Agrabah ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Loneliness had become an unwelcome companion in the frigid winter nights of Agrabah. The days were still warm, but the desert cold swept through the palace with a viciousness that reminded Jasmine of vizier Jafar's smile. Ex-vizier, she reminded herself. He was a genie now, powerless and buried hundreds of feet under the desert sand in his own cave of wonders, where she hoped he would stay for the next ten thousand years. She sighed and wrapped her woolen cloak tighter about her, looking out over the town where she had first ventured to find the man of her dreams, her beloved Aladdin. With the passing of her father, however, he had been named Sultan of Agrabah, and one of the consequences of his coronation was the slew of invitations to visit other Sultanates and confirm his position among them. Not that there was any chance of war. Agrabah was a comfortable city that served its people well. Once, it had been an incredibly busy trading city along the profitable Myrrh Road, but the valley to the north had not seen rain in many years and the city there had vanished into the encroaching desert, taking the Myrrh Road with it. Agrabah's charm along the Myrrh Road had been its powerful spring that fed their agriculture and kept them alive. Smaller now, poorer in riches but richer in spirit, Agrabah had become one of the most beautiful and self- sufficient sultanates in all of Allah's lands, but it possessed little that would lead another warlord against it. Her hands were freezing as she leaned against the painted stone railing. She decided to go inside, closing the ornate door behind her and crossing the cold tiles to the fireplace, stoking it up to great warmth. Behind her she heard a soft shuffle as someone pushed aside one of the heavy winter tapestries that held warmth in her room from fleeing to the rest of the chilly palace. |