Chapter 11: Supply

"You should cut your hair." Masrur said. Nadia had asked him to plait it again. He ran his fingers through the silky strands. They were in the woods together for what felt like the twentieth time. Nadia pulled her hair.

"Oh so now you're a hair specialist." She said sarcastically. Masrur smiled. She always made him smile, she made everyone smile. It was her general effect. "Still it probably could be shorter."

"Maybe down to your waist." Masrur said. He could imagine that silky silver hair just touching her waist or being in a simple braid down her back.

"Hmm are you offering to cut it for me?" Nadia asked teasingly.

"Maybe I am." Masrur said. He tugged the end of her plait. "Maybe I should." Nadia laughed as Ja'far walked to them.

"Remind me why we employ you?" He asked Nadia.

"I already cleaned and did my jobs for today." She said. "You know I work fast."

"Judar is calling for you." Ja'far said. Nadia frowned.

"I would have heard if he called." She said. "It can't be too important."

"He seemed pretty upset about something." Ja'far said with a shrug. He still didn't like Judar that much. "He started talking to Sinbad about it." Nadia frowned.

"I guess we'll have to rain-check on that haircut." She said to Masrur as she walked back to the palace. She knocked on Sinbad's door. Judar opened it much to her surprise. He looked nervous, like he'd been yelling and crying all at once.

"Nadia!" He exclaimed. "Tell Sinbad that I'm not making things up." Nadia looked at Sinbad as she shut the door behind her. He was paler than Nadia had ever seen him.

"What's going on?" She asked. Judar looked pale again and Sinbad was glowering at him.

"Judar said that..." Sinbad started turning his cold look to Nadia. "He said that he had a nightmare about Al Thamen."

"And the problem is?" Nadia asked still confused.

"I'm sorry but you expect me to believe that Al Thamen, would actually… that they actually… raped and tortured their Magi." Sinbad said. He spat out the last few words as if they tainted his royal tongue.

"He had to fall into depravity somehow." Nadia said bluntly. "And they had to keep him in line."

"But that's just too far." Sinbad said. Those for looks weren't for Nadia and Judar they were for Al Thamen. "That's cruel."

"I tried to tell you subtly clearly you didn't get the hint." Nadia said with a roll of her eyes.

"What?" Sinbad asked. "You gave me a hint?" Nadia actually did a double take.

"Don't you remember the first night we stayed?" She asked. Sinbad scratched his head.

"Vaguely." He said.

"Is there something wrong with you?" Nadia asked him.

"I can find it believable that occasionally they tortured him." Sinbad said. "But no way had they raped him." Judar hissed at him jumping onto Nadia's back.

"It wasn't occasional." Judar said. Nadia peeled Judar off her back.

"Sinbad I assure you he isn't lying about this." She said. "I know it can be hard to believe since he always acts like a cocky brat but really Al Thamen did not treat him kindly."

"Nadia I can tell that maybe he wasn't treated the best but why would they rape him." Sinbad asked.

"I'm still in the room you know." Judar said trying to draw attention to himself, trying to avoid that ugly word.

"I didn't think you would understand Sinbad." Nadia said softly. "You only would if you had been raped." Judar had to admit, Nadia was very good at selling his story. Everything she said was true but the way she said it earned a certain amount of sympathy.

"He never talks about it." Sinbad said.

"Would you?" Nadia asked. Sinbad bit his lip.

"To a friend yes." Sinbad said.

"He told me." Nadia said. "And clearly he tried to tell you."

"It's not that I don't believe you." Sinbad said. "It's just I don't want to believe that someone."

"It wasn't just one guy." Judar said. He put a hand over his mouth. He hadn't meant to let that slip, he was just getting really angry with the idiot king. Sinbad shot him a worried look.

"That some people." He amended. "Would do something like that to a child."

"I'm like 19." Judar said. Sinbad frowned. He didn't know how old that boy was but if he had guessed he would've come to a younger age. It surprised him since Judar was so thin and scrawny. Nadia was chewing her lips again.

"I understand that you don't want to think people are capable of that but this is Al Thamen they are capable of much worse." She said.

"I see." Sinbad said falling back into a comfy chair. "I'm sorry Judar I appear to have insulted you." Judar shrugged.

"Can you say that again but louder?" He asked cheekily. Nadia cuffed him round the back of the head.

"Play nice." She warned. Judar shrugged again. Nadia walked out of the room. Masrur bumped into her holding a pair of scissors.

"I'm cutting your hair." He said bluntly dragging her off to her room. Nadia sat down while Masrur got a basket. She pulled out her plait.

"How short is it going to be?" She asked.

"Down to your waist." Masrur said. He brushed it out with his fingers. Carefully catching it around her waist he began to cut. Clumps of silver hair fell into the basket. When it looked even enough Masrur brushed it out to get rid of any loose strands. Nadia tilted he head back so that she was looking up at him.

"Where did you learn to do things like this?" She asked.

"In Reim." He said. "You just sort of picked up these things."

"Are we friends Masrur?" Nadia asked. Masrur looked down at her slightly confused. He didn't understand where that question came from. Of course they were friends. He could see it in Nadia's eyes though that she was hungry for the truth. She needed to know.

"Yeah." He said. "I've said it before you're a close friend who's very important to me."

"You know when I came to Sindria I felt out of place being who I am but you." Nadia smiled at him. "You made me feel like this was a good place, you shared your knowledge with me and for that I am grateful. I haven't had a friend like you in a long time." Masrur almost smiled at her but he stopped when he heard someone walk near the door. There was a knock.

"Hey Nadia have you seen Masrur, I'm supposed to be teaching him reading and writing but he ran off." It was Ja'far. Masrur looked almost pleadingly at Nadia who silently giggled and shoved him behind the bed. She opened the door.

"No I haven't." She said. Ja'far sighed.

"Honestly he never stays too long." He looked at her. "You cut your hair."

"Oh yeah it was too long." Nadia said. Ja'far nodded.

"It was ridiculously long." He said. He began to walk away. "If you see Masrur tell him I'm looking for him." Nadia nodded and shut her door.

"So what are we going to do with all this hair?" Nadia asked as Masrur sat up. He shrugged.

"It's so long you could use it as thread." He said. Nadia giggled then an idea hit her.

"Oh that's an idea." She said, Masrur raised an eyebrow. "Clothes for the poor." Masrur grinned.

"Yeah that'd be an idea." Nadia smiled. She loved helping people and using her Magoi she could easily make clothes.