The next morning, it came as no surprise to Jasmine when she walked into the council room and was met with Jafar's cold shoulder.

"Don't get so indignant with me, Jafar," she told him. "Everything I do is for Agrabah. Try not to take it so personally."

He gave her a stony glare and went to his seat without a word.

As is usual, the Sultan sat at the head of the table, and he did so today with a romp of his fat ass into the oversized, cushioned chair. Though Jafar was the Sultan's right hand man, he always opted to sit at the other end of the table, symbolic of being the second head of the kingdom. Jasmine generally sat next to her father's right because she liked to whisper into his ear and manipulate him into her schemes. Somehow no one but Jafar had caught on. The other fourteen directors took up the remaining seats, including Aladdin who was in the middle where the designated Military Director sat.

"Let us come to order," the Sultan declared. He was always positive in the beginning and asleep by the end. Everyone had come to understand that Jafar was the one that directed the efficiency of these meetings.

"If it would please the council, perhaps we should discuss the news about the eastern village," Jasmine stated. Everyone had also always come to understand that Jasmine would be the one to bring up the first item of the day. It had been this way for over a year, ever since Jafar no longer contested her on it.

"There's nothing to discuss," the Director of Education answered. "It is an anomaly."

"I disagree." Jasmine had not set all this up for the Director to easily defy. It had taken nearly half her life to plan.

The eastern village was large enough to warrant a place on the map of Agrabah but not too big as to need it's own representative present in the capitol. It was the perfect place for Jasmine to set her trap. She had been there as a teen in the role of a missionary, offering food and aid for the sick and poor. While there she was deep in setting up her political network and what resulted was a small following of women who were convinced by the princess to form their own secret school for girls under the guise of a place for young women to learn to be homemakers.

Jasmine sent school supplies and books to the women teachers and the girls became formally educated. Every year Agrabah tested every boy between the ages of fifteen to eighteen to find the brightest so that they could be sent to a formal college and possibly become valuable to the kingdom. After ten years of education in the secret school, all of the girls dressed as boys and took the higher education assessment test. All fourty-four girls were offered positions in the universities. Though no one had heard of the school, it was determined that it had an unimaginable one hundred percent success rate and the education department heralded it as the greatest school in Agrabah. After the praise and recognition, the students then disclosed themselves as girls, causing an uproar in the education department. Because the crown had already praised the school, there was no way to diminish their accomplishment without the education board looking like fools. With her wealth, Jasmine bribed one of the capitol journalists to write an article about the ability for women to succeed. She bribed another to write a scathing report about the Education Director's inability to admit his sexist position was detrimental to the future of Agrabah. Both articles had been published that morning and Jasmine was reveling in it.

"Perhaps we should open schools to the girls of this land," Jasmine continued, much to the Education Director's chagrin. "It has been proven that once women are given the same entitlements as men, they are just as intelligent and resourceful."

"It means nothing," the Director responded bitterly. "Those girls took the test without permission. They are not welcome in the universities."

"I think that if we allow them to continue their education, it could serve as a baseline as to who we open our schools to. Half our people are not being utilized and therefore are going to waste. This kingdom could benefit if we used all the brainpower we have."

"Women are brainless," the Director remarked with nothing else to add. Jasmine felt her rage begin to flame inside herself but she stayed calm. He would get his due in time and that eased her mind.

"Well," Jasmine replied, undeterred. "Why don't we ask the Grand Vizier on his thoughts." Everyone turned to look at Jafar who silently sat all the way on the other side of the table with his arms folded across his chest. His heated stare at Jasmine was noticed by all. There was a long pause while they waited for him to speak, and when he finally opened his mouth, Jasmine smiled prematurely.

"No."

Again, there was a lengthy interval of time before Jasmine could find the words to reply.

"What do you mean no?" she contested.

"No," Jafar stated again. "The women will not be welcomed into the universities."

Jasmine stared into him, hoping she was mishearing what he had said, but by the awkward motions of the others, glancing from Jafar, then to her, then back to Jafar, she was pretty sure he had just purposely defied her.

She wondered if he didn't want to look like he was weak in front of the others. She gave him the benefit of the doubt and decided it was best to try to 'persuade' him.

"Perhaps it would be a good idea to look at the evidence of this situation and then-…"

"Don't waste your breath," he interjected. "Nothing you say will change my mind."

She felt the tendrils of furor clench around every cell in her body. How fucking dare he. He was supposedly trying to punish her for last night. If he thought she wouldn't push him on this, he was sorely mistaken.

"I must warn you, Grand Vizier…"

"Of what?" he dared. "Of what, Princess?"

Jasmine turned to the Sultan. "Father, please, I beg of you to allow these women to attend the universities. They have worked hard and shouldn't they deserve to be offered this rare opportunity?"

"I'm sorry, my dear," he said, patting her hand. "Women just aren't allowed."

In this instance, Jasmine did not want to belittle herself by erupting into a tantrum like she so desperately wanted to do. It wouldn't help at all and would most likely be detrimental to her cause. The men in the room would use it as an excuse why women shouldn't be educated or have a say in a man's world.

She would have to fight another day, but she felt the bile of hate rise in her throat at the set back. She sat quietly in her seat for the duration of the meeting, staring daggers at the Grand Vizier. Jafar sat unperturbed.

Jafar had never hated Jasmine more than he did the night he realized he was attracted to her. After she had fled his chambers, leaving him humiliated and with a raging boner, he was no longer able to deny that she was the reason for his erections. Once he admitted it to himself, self-loathing flooded within him. Still, that did not stop him from thinking of her while he relieved the aching pressure in his cock.

Once he was done and free from the influence of his testosterone, he sat in his robe upon the edge of his bed and contemplated what it was about Jasmine that had him wanting her. It hadn't been all that long ago that he considered her a royal brat. Now he saw a beautiful woman with a sharp mind and an impulse for control.

He despised the way his mind focused on the curves of her body, the way her hands had pressed into his chest, her bare flesh to his. She was headstrong and fiery on the council, which made her an effective ally and together a good team. She had now shown she was equally as temperamental in his chambers and he just knew they would make an exceptional pair in bed. The sex they would have was bound to be deliciously tempestuous. His body longed for that.

And this is why he hated her all the more. She was a married woman to the Sultan-to-be, daughter of a man who could destroy his career, and she had made him, a man who had immense control of his faculties, lose it whenever she was around. There was no one in the land who could cause him to be robbed of his temper so fast, nor to become so hard in an instant. He wanted her so very badly but she was unobtainable. A tease in every way. He didn't like to be teased.

It occurred to him that Jasmine was the female equivalent to him. She was just as conniving and intelligent. She was not born impoverished like he was but she worked every bit as hard to get a place on the council. And she would do anything for Agrabah. There was just one thing that made the most difference between them. Power. She was born with it and he had to fight every inch of the way. She had the power to have him ousted from the council. She had the power to expose his sorcery and have him stoned. She had the power to inflict shame upon himself for wishing to have her beneath him, begging him to enter her.

Above all things, Jafar craved power, and Jasmine represented what he wanted most. She might have been a woman but she had found a way to gain authority over him. It was the most frustrating, anger-inducing and sensual thing in the world. A woman with more power than him; to one day overpower. It was a fantasy he hadn't even known he had. He hated her for igniting it within him, for there was so much challenge in it, so many obstacles blocking his way, yet it prevailed in his mind as the greatest challenge to face.

Power over the princess. It was impossible and not worth pursuing if he wanted to stay sane. He would punish her for evoking this desperation inside of him. He would no longer play by her rules. She was using him and he was aroused by it and that made him despise her all the more.

Jafar had stayed silent while he watched Jasmine spin her scheme on the Education Director. He had to admit her main point was not wrong; Agrabah was not utilizing the intelligence of half it's citizens and would prosper if everyone was educated. She was a prime example of the brilliance women could reach. His cock hardened while she spoke and it drove him mad.

He was miffed that she had the idea to undermine the Director of Education for some time and had not thought to tell him about it. They were supposed to be allies after all, what with her talk of being a partnership and not just in it to extort his secrets, but here she was playing out her plan and expecting him to jump on board as soon as she signaled him. He had no idea how she had finagled the women of the eastern village to take and pass the higher education assessment exams but he was thoroughly impressed nonetheless. Still, he expected at any moment she would force him to make a judgment call on her behalf and was not surprised when she directed the attention of the council on to him.

He knew what would be best for Agrabah was to place the women under protection and offer them a chance to prove their worth in the universities, but he was too upset about being used in every conceivable way by a woman who he couldn't look at without feeling a flood of desire for. He prided himself as a decent man yet she had somehow reduced him to an animal, determined to rut her, the most beautiful of creatures. She would pay.

The look on her face when he told her no was more satisfying than he had imagined. He could see her confusion manifest, the quick wheels of her mind spinning to determine what his game plan was, and then a hard look of rage and betrayal when he told her not to bother making her point. He could feel her murderous stare throughout the rest of the meeting and it only served to fuel his satisfaction.

As soon as the meeting was over, Jafar collected his things and strode out of the room, straight to his office. He had hardly entered when he heard her rush in behind him and slam the door.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" she seethed. She was so upset her chest heaved with tremendous breaths.

"It is one thing to control my position on the board. It is quite another to intrude on my personal life," he stated. "Our partnership is over."

"You would be making a grave mistake," she replied, shaking her head at him in disbelief. "I have told you the reason for interrupting your…leisurely activities…was simply on Agrabah's behalf."

"And yet not an apology from your lips."

"I did nothing wrong! The only reason I'm sorry you didn't get your seed milked is because you are in an especially sour mood today, but the rumors around this palace of your womanizing ways are a disgrace to the kingdom."

"I am neither a womanizer nor a disgrace," he defended. "I can also see that you are not willing to take the responsibility for your indecent actions."

"I'm not apologizing for wanting the best for Agrabah!"

"Let's just say that if you want to remain allies, you must first apologize to me for extorting my talents and you must show that you are willing to work with my agendas. No more one-sided schemes, especially your recent one that you could have at least disclosed to me before letting it all erupt through the education office. You will work with me or we're over."

He could see her thoughts rolling in her mind at a sandstorm's pace, whirling and twirling fast enough that nothing could escape it's hazards. She finally frowned at him and shook her head. "It's over when I say it is."

"Then I'm sorry to inform you that you think much too highly of yourself, Princess," he mocked. "I have taken steps to ensure my secrets can not be exposed. The lab has been moved. You are without evidence and I am once again free from your threats."

She eyed him skeptically before approaching him with an arrogant strut. He did not back away though the sway of her hips tried to stimulate the arousal within him. He swallowed hard and attempted to stay rooted in place, undaunted by her bullying gestures. She stood an inch in front of him, looking up as he stared down at her with an angry grimace. Their height differences were never more pronounced.

"We'll see about that." Jasmine prodded her finger into his chest and looked him over in repulsion. She was dangerous, like a poisonous snake, looking for his weaknesses and a chance to strike.

Not today, Princess. He would not give her that opening.

She turned and left him alone in his office to stew on her words. She would undoubtedly attack him where it would hurt the most. He had covered his tracks though and any effort on her part to expose his sorcery would be met with road blocks. He would have smiled at his ability to veil his lab in another part of the kingdom if he wasn't aware of how shrewdly perceptible she was. He sat back in his chair and stroked his beard in heavy thought.

The punishment came later that night. Jafar was reminded that he had not found release with a woman the night before due to Jasmine's interruptions and he wished to dispel the pent up tension caused by it as well as from his work.

It was time to get clean.

There was a woman who worked in the bathhouse whom Jafar had been intimate with on many occasions over the years. He entered the sauna but was not greeted in the way he expected.

"Good evening, Grand Vizier," the bathhouse woman, Zarah, welcomed as she bowed low. Jafar looked around the area to find they were alone.

"Why the formalities, my dear?" he placed a hand to her waist to draw her in but she shrugged off his touch under the pretense of checking the temperature of the water. He was thoroughly confused. Zarah was as forward as they came. She was usually the one to initiate their unions.

"Would you like to choose a towel as you usually prefer?" she asked him. He had never preferred to choose his own towel. Her eyes were wide as she spoke to him, her head nodding towards the cabinet in obvious indication.

"Er, yes. Of course," He said loudly as he followed her to the corner of the room.

As soon as he was beside her she began to eye the door warily while whispering up at him. "The Princess has spies everywhere. Rumor has it that Yasmin, the kitchen servant, has been reposted to the stables because the Princess found her in your room."

"Uhh…" Jafar was rendered speechless for once. He was sure Zarah and Yasmin and the other women knew he bedded them occasionally, but this was the first time it had ever been brought up. Luckily, that didn't seem to be at the forefront of Zarah's mind.

"The entire palace staff have been issued a notice. Anyone caught with the Grand Vizier would find themselves out of a job."

"What?" Jafar nearly spat. "Neither mine nor anyone else's personal life is the Princess' business!"

"I don't know what happened last night," Zarah replied. "but Yasmin says she's lucky not to have been exiled. Everyone knows the Princess hates you."

The rustling of the knob caused Jafar to grab a towel and pretend to be inspecting it when a burly guard entered the bathhouse.

"Yes, this one will do," Jafar responded before looking up in feigned surprise at the guard. "What are you doing here?" he demanded. "Guards are not permitted in the bathhouse."

"Sorry, sir, but the Princess ordered more security around the palace."

"The Princess." Jafar shook his head in disbelief. "Of course she did." Jafar made sure he remembered the guard well for he was undoubtedly in Jasmine's circle of spies.

He slipped into the hot bath but the warmth could not temper his rising irritation. He had only one way of relieving his stress and Jasmine had taken it from him. His one vice. No matter. He was a careful and patient man. He could go without for a while.

Two weeks of the stress the education department was giving him coupled with no way of relieving it forced Jafar to realize he was being reduced to a beast. By the end of the council meeting where Jasmine was relentlessly pushing for an education overhaul had him sweating from the intensity. He didn't know how but she had managed to get the Professor on her side. Not that he doubted the Professor would be daft enough not to realize the wealth women had to offer, but that as the newest member to the council, he was actually willing to be confrontational with Jafar.

Not only that, but Jasmine had managed to get more journalists to write on the issue in defense of women and to illustrate intelligent women through history to serve her agenda, and now the capitol was starting to stage protests. Jafar was pissed. Not so much with Jasmine for trying to give women the right to education, but for himself for being so stupid as to think he could defy her with no consequences. This would not have happened if he had not told her no.

Now he looked like the bad guy. He certainly wanted women to be given the right of education, but it was too late to agree and not look like it was out of complacency. He hated how weak this made him feel. He looked to Jasmine and saw her arrogant smile. It was all he could do not to punch the wall.

He expected it and was not surprised to be summoned by Jasmine that night. He was, however, surprised to be led to the palace recreation hall. The servant opened the door and bowed low as Jafar walked in, shutting the door behind him.

He thought he was alone at first until he glanced in the pool and saw a woman beneath the crystal clear waters, swimming fast and silently. She came up after having swum the length of the pool.

"Ah, Jafar," Jasmine noted. "Care for a swim?"

"Why have you summoned me?" he asked, tapping his cane against the floor.

"Fine, then. I had hoped we could have a talk. Perhaps we can come to some kind of…agreement," she said as she made her way to the stairs ascending out of the pool.

"There is no agreement to be made. I don't like being manipulated."

"Come now, my dear Grand Vizier," she smiled haughtily, "surely you're wise enough to see that the future of Agrabah involves the women of the land?" The water streamed off her body as she rose out of the pool. Step by step, her body was revealed to him, smooth olive skin barely covered by two sinfully thin sashes of bikini, complete with the snake charm clenched around her arm.

Jafar swallowed hard. "I have made my decision and that is all there is to it." He couldn't help but note her hips were those of a woman. Why could he not envision her as a girl anymore? It was impossible now.

"You did not say you disagree though," Jasmine said as she strut towards him with a catwalk that he was sure was meant to set him on edge. "Do you know what I think? I think you're still mad at me for trying to set high standards on the palace hierarchy."

She was using her sexuality on him and it pained him that it was working. He would think this was her modus operandi except he had never once heard of or seen through his spying of her being sexually promiscuous, especially as a means of getting her way. Well, except for framing Rami of sexual assault. Still, this was new, and yet she was using it quite well.

"You charged into my room," he seethed. "You set out to control my personal life."

"For Agrabah," she shrugged. "If you want to get laid, get a wife."

She knew damned well he could never marry. His job was his wife. No woman could ever understand the priority he had for Agrabah, which he would always place above anyone. He knew she was aware of it because she was the same. She might be married to Aladdin but he could see Agrabah was her true love.

"Aladdin has a wife. He doesn't get laid."

She paused and he could see he got to her in that second, but she smoothed over it and chuckled at his attempt. "Aladdin is exceptionally bad in bed and not worth training. You, however, I hear have mastered the art." She looked him up and down lasciviously. He was even more confused by her forwardness.

"Is this how you got the Professor on your side?" he accused. "Did you tantalize him with your beauty?"

"Nonsense. The Professor has four daughters and a wife who wished to be a doctor. He came to me asking if I'd support him in the fight. But it's nice to know you consider me beautiful." She gave him a wink and he cursed himself for slipping more leverage her way.

"If you want to do what's best for the country, you would let me run it accordingly. We both know I'm the reason it thrives."

"Do we?" Jasmine eyed him with sarcastic shock. "A nation that doesn't allow women to be educated? That still has a sizable homeless community? That spends money on frivolous things like toys for the Sultan?"

"Do not put that on me," Jafar began to rage. "I have been fighting the stupidity of this crown for decades. It's lucky the kingdom has not been overrun with thieves and murderers."

"It's time to do better," Jasmine remarked, sliding up to him in a way that nearly had him biting his fist. "I'm giving you the key. All you have to do is unlock the door." Jasmine placed her hands up to his chest and ran them around his neck. She came in close and pressed her lips near his ear. "Or do I have to beg you?"

His hands suddenly gripped her waist and he held her tight to his body. She was still wet and he could feel the water seep into his clothes. "Is this what you've reduced yourself to?" he asked her through gritted teeth. It was so hard to keep his control. "What is it that youreally want from me, Princess?"

She fisted his cloak with both hands and hung onto him as his hands wrapped strongly around her. "I want only what's best for Agrabah," she claimed though her breathing had intensified and it was certainly not out of fear. He could feel her drawing him closer, their faces closing the distance between them.

"I think there's more to it than that," Jafar said in a low, grave tone. If she was unaware of the rise in his pants, then it was fortunate for him. However, the smug smile she gave him and the glance down indicated it had not gone unnoticed.

"And exactly what do you think that could possibly be?" she challenged. She gyrated her hips against him and he grunted through a paradox of both approval and disapproval.

He hesitated, struggling to keep his wits about him when his body was imploring he take her. "I think you want me to enter into your…partnership."

"Yes," she whispered. He was close enough to feel her breath hiss against his mouth. "Full partnership." He slid his hand down her waist and under her bikini, squeezing the fullness of her ass. She made a slight gasp more welcoming than not. Her palms were at his face, holding him steady as she guided his mouth towards hers.

"Then, yes," Jafar stated, his lips at hers. "You will beg me."

She lifted her gaze from his lips to his eyes with confusion. "What?"

"Beg me, Princess," he told her, releasing her before she could push him away. "Beg me to submit to the council that women should be given educational privileges and I will do so."

"I-…what?" Jasmine stuttered and Jafar was pleased to have caused this kind of reaction from her.

"You were the one that brought up begging. I only validated that it would further grant-…"

"I know what I said but you must have known I didn't mean it," she scoffed.

"What's the problem?" he asked. "Perhaps if you got down on your knees, it would be more effective."

"Have you gone mad?" Jasmine yelled, backing away from him and folding her arms so as not to reveal so much of her chest. "I'm not begging you for something you should do for the good of Agrabah."

"This is not about Agrabah anymore," he defied. "This is about you and your pervasive methods to control the board. I'm not submitting to it until I see that you're willing to put yourself in a vulnerable state for the good of Agrabah as well."

"You're sick!" she shouted at him as she yanked a towel off a nearby chair and draped it around herself. "You'll never see me beg!"

"All in due time, Princess!" he called after her. She rushed out of the room, slamming the door behind her. "All in due time," he chuckled to himself.

The Princess had her own weaknesses. It just so happened, he was one of them.

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