Ok, I'm on my knees here. Can I please get some reviews? I don't want to be nasty like other writers and withhold the story unless I get X amount of reviews. To me that's not fair. I just wanna know what you guys think of my story and know that people are actually reading it. Can you please cut me some slack? I'm not asking for much. Here's the next chapter.

Chapter 3

Street Rats

"You are going to be the death of both us one of these days, Al." I said as our feet touched the ground.

"Hey, I take care of myself, don't worry." Aladdin said, throwing the carpet to the side. We were now in a dark and filthy alleyway. But it was secluded, which meant the guards wouldn't find us here.

"Al, we almost got caught that time. And it didn't help that you 'flew' off a four story building. Look at Babuk here, he's terrified!" I said, stroking my friend's scaly head as he shivered from shock on my shoulder. "One of these days, your tricks are gonna get you captured, and I won't be able to help you."

Aladdin sat down and began tore the loaf into four pieces. He gave one to Abu, and tossed two my way. "At least we got away, Cassim. And now, we feast!" he said beginning to eat his piece.

I sighed and sat down as well, placing my piece on the ground beside me and giving the other piece to Babuk, who took it in his claws and began chewing voraciously. I undid the bag at my waist and looked inside to see what I risked my life for. I poured the money on the ground and began counting. I didn't take long for me to do so, and it was even less then I first thought! A mere sixteen coppers. It wasn't as much as I had hoped, but at least I got some money out of this. I slid the money back into the bag, tying it at my waist. I looked over at Babuk, he was done his bread and was looking at mine.

"Krissssska?" he asked. Like Aladdin and Abu, Babuk and I have been together so long, I can practically tell what he's trying to say. He was asking me now if I was going to finish my snack. I smiled and shook my head no. His long tongue lashed out and wrapped around the bread, bringing it back into his mouth, where he chewed it, smiling at me. I knew he needed it more then I did. Pickings had been lean these last few weeks for us. Besides, I had other things on my mind then food. I heard the breaking of a pot and looked up, seeing two children digging thru the trash looking for scraps. It looked to be a young girl and her younger brother, orphans, street rats like ourselves.

"Come here, we're not going to hurt you." Said Aladdin getting up. The two children approached us cautiously, but relaxed when Aladdin held out his bread, untouched, to them.

"Here, take it" he said, giving his piece to the girl. He looked over to Abu, motioning his head as if telling him to do the same. Abu walked over and grudgingly gave his piece to the little boy. The children smiled at him and petted his head and began to walk away.

"Hey kids!" I called out to them. As they looked over to me, I drew some coins from the bag at my waist. "Catch!" I called out to them, tossing the coins their way. The children smiled; jingling the coins I had given to them in their hands and ran away. I leaned back against the wall and smiled myself. Sure I was down ten coppers, but it was worth it. Besides, those coins would do a lot more for those kids then a piece of bread would. That's what Aladdin didn't seem to understand Sure, stolen food can keep you alive, can keep the emptiness in your stomach away for one day. But you can only steal as much as you can carry. Money, on the other hand, could get you food, clothing, anything you wanted! The idea of having honest money in your pocket and going out and getting what you needed without the guards chasing after you. That was a luxury I wish I could have someday. But for now, I stuck with small thieving, hoping to save up and buy an actual house or apartment instead of the ruined building we made our home in. After that, I'd go straight and turn my back on thieving, and probably get a job to.

Just as my mind was endelved in my fantasy, I was brought out of it by the loud sound of a trumpet. It was coming from a nearby street and Babuk scurried up my shoulder as Aladdin and I got up to go check it out.

It was a fairly small procession, correction, a single person, but people gathered around the edges of the street to view him. Babuk clambered onto the top of my head to see above everyone. It was a princely figure, a tall man clad in bright scarlet silks, with gold chains and baubles hanging off of him. He was riding a large white stallion, and turned his nose up in the air with superiority.

"Another suitor for the princess." Said the man next to me, viewing the prince. I smiled, it was a bit of a joke around Agrabah. Princess Jasmine, daughter of the Sultan, was visited frequently by hopeful princes and nobles, attempting to gain her hand in marriage. It had to do by some old law that she had to be married by here eighteenth birthday, which I might add is in three days. But she has so far turned down every suitor that has come her way, saying she wants to marry for love. Sad, isn't it? And the law doesn't say anything about what happens if she doesn't marry by then, so it will be interesting if it does come to that.

I then noticed the two children from the alleyway. The boy dashed out in front of the street, playing, and the girl ran after him, trying to bring him back into the crowd. The girl caught him, right in front of the horse, which reared and almost knocked the prince off.

"You miserable little whelps! You shall pay for that!" the prince yelled, brandishing a whip. Just at it was about to come down, Aladdin dashed out from the crowd and took the blow. The children ran back into the crowd, and I dashed out of it, running to my friend's side.

"If I was as rich as you, I'd buy some manners. Or a better looking face." I said, as Aladdin grabbed the whip and tossed it away, infuriating the prince. He rode up to us and knocked Aladdin down into the mud, I was just able to miss the blow meant for me. As I was helping Aladdin out of the mud, he called out "Look Cassim, its not every day you see a horse with two behinds." The prince turned around and shot him an angry glare.

"You are worthless street rats. You were born street rats, you will die street rats, and only your fleas will morn you." said the prince insultingly. Aladdin ran at him, but the gates shut in his face an instant before he passed thu. He pounded at the doors, saying to himself "I am not worhtless, and I don't have fleas."

I looked around, the crowd was beginning to disperse. I then noticed Babuk's absence on my head.

"Yo! Babuk, where are ya buddy?" I called out, looking for him. Sure, Babuk can take care of himself. But if something was to happen to him, do you really think I could ever forgive myself?

I then noticed Babuk crawling towards me, he was safe, but it looked like something was in his mouth.

"There you are," I said picking him up and placing him on my shoulder. "What do you have there?" I asked. His tongue shot out, wrapped around an object and dropped it into my hand. "Well will you look at that!" I said, holding it up to the light. It was a large golden coin, almost as big a Bubuk's claw. "Where'd you get this?" I asked him.

"Ssssssssskkkk" he replied, his forked tongue flickering in and out of his mouth. "Stole it from that stuck up prince huh?" I said. Babuk's head bobbed up and down, smiling pleasantly. "Nice work little buddy!" I said, placing the coin in my bag.

I walked over to Aladdin and placed my hand on his shoulder.

"Come on Al, just ignore him." I said trying to cheer him up.

He nodded and I led him away down the streets. I was getting dark as we entered a really old part of the city where we made our home. Most of the building were in ruins, and very few, if any people lived here. Our home was a large ruined building, the walls crumbling and several beams had fallen. We climbed several makeshift ladders till we reached the top floor, and I ducked under a fallen beam and entered our home. It was a single large room, with several old pillows and blankets in the corner, our beds, and old rickety table with several coins and other trinkets on it. A large hole penetrated one wall, and I had rigged up an old sheet as a large curtain. Abu and Babuk curled up onto the cushions and fell asleep. Aladdin sat down on one of the cushions and I emptied my coins onto the table, flipping the gold one once before placing it with the others.

"Street rats? Riff raff? Huh, I don't buy that!" I said plopping down next to him.

He stared glumly at the wall and asked, "If only they looked closer, would they still see us as poor boys?"

"No siree!" I said throwing my arms up into the air. "Al, there's so much more to the two of us then they'll ever understand." I said, putting a friendly arm around his shoulders in a brotherly fashion.

He got up and opened the curtain, revealing a tremendous view of Agrabah. The palace shone in the distance against the night sky. I must admit, it was a amazing sight, it was one of the main reasons we made this our home. Aladdin sat on the ledge and said "Some day Cassim, things are gonna change. We'll be rich, live in a palace, and never have any problems at all."

I leaned against the wall with my arms crossed. Aladdin enjoyed this fantasy almost as much as I did mine.

"It's a nice wish Al, but one that can't be granted. A palace? Wealth?" I said waving my hand over the table. "We can only do our best, and this is it. Our fortunes might change, but not that dramatically. How about we focus on small things, like a house for now." I said laying down on the cushions and pulling a blanket over myself and Babuk.

"You'll see Cassim. It'll happen someday." Said Aladdin, but his words did not reach me; I have already drifted off into slumber. Aladdin laid down next to me, took one last glance at the palace before closing his eyes.

Ok, so honestly, how was this chapter. I need some reviews here! Please, seriously, all I want is a mere ten reviews for my story before the next chapter comes off the press. I'm still going to put it here regardless. I wouldn't hold out on people like that. I just really want some reviews. Maybe Genie can help me?