Hello there. Yes, as some of you must have already observed it is not Saturday. It is in fact, Monday the 17th of January. I was at a friend's house all day on Saturday and was unable to update or write at all. But I am here now, so don't fret. And since I am a little tardy, I have decided that I am going to update once more before Saturday. Most likely on Wednesday or something like that. Also, I will still be updating on Saturday, so yeah. In a way, it is almost a benefit to you guys, because you get three updates in one week. Pretty amazing, right?

For one of my readers: I am the stig: I apologize for my grammatical errors in the last chapter. It was two in the morning when I finished writing that last chapter, and I was terribly tired and only focused on getting the chapter on here for you guys to read. This chapter, I will have proofed it thoroughly, so I hope that you won't find any significant errors (hopefully none at all). Also, the Hassansins are quite interesting characters, and I enjoyed watching them in action, however, this story isn't really focused on their group, so there can't be a whole lot from them. However, once Dastan and Tamina meet the Hassansins, I will try to do a little narrative of thier perspective, just for you. :)

So, here comes the next chapter! Yay! And, since I am so amazing, in this chapter, though it may seem impossible, I incorporated quite a lot more romance! :D


They sat around the small, dirty waterhole, the pond shimmering in the sunlight with the constant stirring of the young woman's hands, soaking in the somehow cool water. She held their canteen, filling it up to the very brim, taking a few thirsty swigs, then repeating. They only had one canteen, and this time, Tamina vowed that she would not drink all of it by herself. She looked up from the water, staring at Dastan through the tops of her eyes, peering at him through her eyelashes. Careful not to drip, Tamina screwed the cap on and tossed the canteen to Dastan, him catching it without effort with just one hand. He smiled happily at her, taking a swig of his own, refilling it once he was done.

Dastan looked back at Tamina, who was now scooping water up in her warm hands, rubbing the water over her sweaty neck and arms. Occasionally she would sigh, and the young prince swore that that alone shook him to the core. She looked so carefree, sitting there, like there wasn't any crisis and that they were just sitting there together because they wanted to. It was a liberating feeling, and Dastan realized how much he had come to depend on it. Even when they hated one another, the bickering kept his thoughts away from his father and all of the other things that were going wrong in his life. She was a great distraction, and now...well, she was more than just a distraction now. Tamina was a part of him now. He knew that that sounded weird, he didn't even know how to take something like that, but he knew that that was just how it was.

He looked at her again, seeing her smile and her brown eyes closed thoughtfully as she relaxed. He had never really seen her relaxed, or at least not like this. She had always looked so worried and so plagued by what was going to happen in the future, but seeing her like this was a happy change, or at least one that he hoped would stick around a while longer. Tamina needed to be happy and relaxed.

"What are you staring at?" she asked suddenly, her eyebrows perched in the perfect smirk and her brown orbs as smug as they always were. A small smile played at the corners of her lips, finishing off the effect completely.

"You look happy when you're relaxed," Dastan replied, shrugging it off, but truthfully feeling quite embarrassed that she had caught him staring at her.

She looked skeptical. "Being relaxed generally implies that one would be at least satisfied, if not happy," she teased.

"Alright, go ahead and ruin the moment!" he teased back, smacking a handful of water in her direction, not really aiming, but slapping it nonetheless. However, his aim was a lot better than he thought, and the tossed water sprayed across her face and front, making her gasp in complete alarm. He looked at her and stood, his hands in front of him as a gesture of surrender once he saw the familiar firey look in her eyes which, truth be told, made her look even more beautiful, like a sinful or a cruel beautiful. "Now, Tamina," he said warningly, but in a frightened tone as well. "You must know that that water was not intended at all to actually hit you." She looked like she wasn't buying it in the slightest.

But suddenly her eyes cleared, and she nodded in understanding, sitting back down again, continuing to bathe herself in the water as if nothing had happened, making Dastan feel somewhat satisfied at his little victory. Still though, Dastan still stood, his eyes tracing her every move in fear that she would in some way retaliate. You never could tell with Tamina; she was always very shifty in her moods, but that was just another one of those little ticks that really made her stand out for Dastan. She was perfect. Perfect for him.

"Sit down," she said harshly, gesturing to a spot of sand next to her. The prince still wasn't sure, but judging by her tone, he didn't want to give her another reason to get angry with him. He sat down, resting his legs out in front of him in a lackadaisical manner, resting his palms behind him, his face looking up at the sun.

Dastan closed his own eyes, letting the Persian sun warm his youthful face. Though he was already sweating terribly, he could never deny the sun the pleasure of heating him more. However, suddenly, his face cooled in rapid time, newly bestowed water dripping from his beard and hair. His blue eyes flashed open in an instant, immediately going to a not-so-innocent Tamina who was barely containing her laughter. "Now, that wasn't supposed to actually hit you," she mimicked, a rebellious giggle coming out from the back of her throat, making it also the first time he had heard her laugh. She had a marvelous laugh, even though he only heard the giggle, he knew that her laugh would be just that more exquisite.

The prince sat up completely, looking her dead in the eye, making her shiver, while also making him a little smug with his accomplishment. "Of course it didn't," he said calmly, then jutting his hand in and out of the water quickly splashing water back up at her, he hit her in the face once more, her hair getting even wetter.

Tamina scowled playfully, tossing yet another scoop of water at him, while he did so as well, giving her a little wink.

Soon enough, both were almost completely drenched until finally, Dastan gathered the rest of his courage and wound his arms around her waist securely, startling her to a point where she could do nothing but let his arms remain around her. He held her closer, taking the time to let that moment of intimacy sweep over the both of them. He had never felt that way before. Dastan slowly began standing up, his back towards the pond, and with happiness and a devilish laugh, he fell backwards, falling into the deeper part of the pond, making her squeal.

"Dastan, no!" he heard, just before they went under, and once they came back up to the surface, she smacked his arm playfully. "You are an idiot." She swam to side of the pond, meaning to get out and dry. But he was a much faster swimmer than she was, and as soon as she started crawling out, he wrapped his arms around her again and pulled her back in, this time, letting his arms remain around her waist in the water. He couldn't remember a time when he felt as exhilirated as he did. Especially with everything that had been happening to him, this little reprieve was so welcome, and the fact that Tamina was there, sharing that moment with him and making that moment possible, was everything.

"Stop it!" she yelled, though he could hear the smirk in her voice and the excitedness in her words. She was having fun, probably more fun than she had had in years. She playfully struggled to get away from him, pretending to elbow him in gut, while he only tightened his grip on her.

He rested his lips right next to her ear, purring, "If I let go of you, will you promise not to try to get out?" he said, all too seductively. She stopped her squirming without a thought, slowly trying to turn around to face him. She nodded softly and he almost reluctantly let go of her, his nose withdrawing itself from her hair. "There. See?" he said proudly.

"See what?" she asked, her normal mood and wittiness coming back with astounding speed. "See that you are a completely selfish, arrogant man who -" she stopped suddenly, hearing a faint rustle. He obviously heard it too as his "fun and games" look was etched off his face in a matter of seconds.

"Get out," he whispered urgently, slowly making his way to the horse at the shallower end of the pool. Tamina nodded and she followed suit, swimming to the side and crawling out like she had done before, though this time, there were no strong arms pulling her back in. Only rocks that steadied her balance. Why did everything have to go wrong? They had been having such a good time!

Dastan looked over to that rustling spot, and he saw something that he had not expected to see ever, ever again. It was an ostrich. A red coth covered its head, leaving only the beak apparent to the world. The blinded bird squawked in annoyance, and Dastan quickly took another survey of everything around him.

He jumped up out of the water, running to the horse, but already, horsemen had surrounded them, men coming up to the both of them and grabbing them both violently. Tamina, who was not used to getting captured as much as he, tried to look for an escape route, but she stopped trying after a while once the men's grips were becoming to painful to ignore, Dastan already having his hands up, though quite reluctantly. He looked at Tamina who bit her bottom lip and closed her eyes. Two hands were squeezing her forearms, their ungroomed nails digging deep into her flesh, making her squeeze her eyes tighter together.

"Stop it!" he yelled at the man who looked startled. He tore his gaze from Tamina, (a rather disgustingly lustful gaze at that) and turned to Dastan. "She won't try to run away!" Tamina shook her head violently in agreement. "Can't you see you're hurting her? Stop it!" The hands around his own arms tightened and he bit back a small yelp then looked back at Tamina's captor who still hadn't relinquished his hold on her. "I said let go of her. Now." Dastan glared at the man so hard, he thought that his eyes were going to pop out of their sockets, but he didn't care. He refused to blink, even though the pain from his arms were beginning to sting his eyes. Finally, the man let go, only barely grasping her arms.

"Persian!" a familiar voice yelled all too happily - the voice of Sheikh Amar. Dastan turned his attention to Amar, not catching the look of gratefulness Tamina was sending him. He had done that for her. "We parted under such rushed circumstances, I didn't get a chance to say good-bye." A sword went around Dastan's neck, holding him in place, while he could hear Tamina trying to struggle behind him.

"Tamina, stop!" he commanded, not wanting to see or hear her in pain ever again. Once had been quite enough. He heard her stop rustling behind him, and he huffed a sigh of relief. At least she knew when not to test his orders.

He did not move, only walking with the Sheikh's man. Suddenly the anger of the Sheik's became more apparent. "Yes, pretty girl, stop it. Wouldn't want your precious arms getting snapped off would we?"

"Get to the point, Amar," Dastan said warningly, his voice husky and deep and his eyes challenging.

Amar nodded absentmindedly. "We've been tracking you for a week!" His hands stretched out like claws and his chapped lips made a terrifying snarl. He walked up to Dastan, his finger only inches from his nose and continued, "That little riot you started, it went on for two days!" He turned away from him, his voice growing almost hollow and more pained by the word. "My beloved racetrack, all washed away like footprints in sand. You see Anita there?" He pointed to the covered ostrich that looked as if it was being guarded. "Hmm? Look at her. She's all that's left of my gaming empire. And no matter your skills as a promoter, who can't organize and ostrich race, with just one ostrich! Am I right?" he screamed, his pudgy fist blowing its way into Dastan's gut, making him groan out in pain, the men around them cheering.

Tamina gasped behind him as well, and he heard her give a little struggle, but he shook his head, and after a moment, she seemed to get his message and stopped squirming. Dastan bit his tongue through the rest of the pain, just trying to live it out. "Yes, sir. Come with me." Amar walked away, two men now dragging Dastan along.

They walked up to the lonely ostrich, Amar tenderly petting the deranged creature on the neck while slowly lifting the mask off, leaving what appeared to be two, glossy, glass eyes that looked more alien than anything else. The thin eyelids would sometimes wander lazily over the bulging black eyes, giving the bird an even more eerie feeling. Dastan avoided looking in them. For whatever reason, he would never understand Amar's love for such ugly beasts.

"Did you know that ostriches have suicidal tendencies?" Amar asked softly, looking affectionately at the bird. Look at this poor thing." Dastan cast a look around him, trying to see if there was anyone else who looked even mildly disturbed by the overwhelming love the Sheikh was giving to the animal. No one even looked bothered in the slightest. "She used to be a grand champion," Amar continued, his voice seeming to get tighter and tighter. "Now I have to watch her night and day to make sure she doesn't do anything stupid." What Amar did next was almost too much for Dastan. Amar bent over and placed the most gentle of kisses on the bird's neck, as if the creature was his own child. Dastan turned slightly to look at Tamina who looked a little wary of Amar and slightly disgusted. He couldn't blame her.

Amar then turned away from the bird and continued his prideful stride, not breaking his emotional speech. "So, it occured to me the only way to recoup my tragic losses was to track down you two young lovers..."

"Sheikh Amar," Dastan tried to interrupt, trying to tell the man that he and Tamina were indeed not lovers at all, but the Sheikh did not pay any heed to him.

"...who cast this dark cloud upon me. Ah, yes! I'm going to need the price on your heads!" He turned around, jutting his finger out once more at the young monarchs. "Your brother will be very pleased to see..."

Dastan wasn't listening anymore. He was looking beyond the group, seeing four sand dervishes twirling majestically there. He didn't know why, but there was something about those dervishes that just didn't seem natural. He felt as if he was being watched.

"Oh, it's sand dervishes, Persian," Amar said disinterestedly. "They're common as camel turd in the desert."

"No, Sheikh Amar, listen to me!" Dastan yelled in agitation and need, but a thick rope was tied around his mouth before he could continue any longer.

Amar shook his head madly. "No, no no! I'd rather not! You got me into this mess, and it is going to be you who gets me out!"

Seso, the famed Ngbaka that Amar so loved talking about, came up to him, pulling the Dagger out of his belt, just like he had done back at the ostrich races in the Valley of the Slaves. "Nice knife," he said, continuing thier little charade.

Tamina's eyes widened worriedly, and she turned her attention to Amar. "Noble Skeikh, we are on a sacred journey to the Temple..." But, just like Dastan she was quickly cut off by a choking rope, ending her plead. Dastan bit back against the rope in attempt to protect her, but after getting hit once more in the gut, he gave up.

The fat Sheikh rolled his eyes, completely done with the game that the two outsiders were playing. It had cost him everything, and more than anything, he was not going to get any more involved than he already was. "Temple, the Temple," he mocked. "There's nothing more sacred than Persian gold!"


After a while on their detoured journey, Seso finally removed the ropes from their captives mouthes, even being generous enough to let them walk together. However, still, he would not remove their bounds around their wrists. He knew that the man was quite talented with a weapon, that was just too obvious with his build and his confidence, and he didn't want the woman to get any ideas either, and it was also just as obvious that she was crafty and was always trying to find a way to get out of thier little mess. But he wouldn't let them. He would give them their little walk together, but that would be it.

"I'm so sorry, Tamina," Dastan said quietly, making sure that the guards around them wouldn't hear their conversation. "I shouldn't have gotten so carried away at the pond. Perhaps if we would have just filled the canteen and gone, we wouldn't even be in this mess right now."

She shook her head. "It was just as much my fault as it is yours. Besides," she paused for a moment, as if shocked at what she was about to say. "It was...entertaining." She blushed and looked away from him, her gaze settling on the knife that dangled on Seso's belt. And just as soon as her small happiness had come, it was gone just as quickly. Everything came down to the Dagger. That was the way that it always had been. Every single time something significant or happy had occured in her life, there was always the Dagger right there to remind her that she would never be free of its presence or from the responsibility that came with it. She was...enslaved to it. She didn't like that word; she wasn't a woman who was accostomed to being enslaved. But she was the Guardian of the most important thing in the history of the world and she would always have the pride of being that caretaker, even if no one even knew that her duty exisited.

Dastan noticed her sudden change in mood, and he so badly wanted to wrap his arms around her like he had in the pool, but that was impossible due to the ropes around his hands. And judging by the look on her face, a simple hug would not be enough to make her happy again. He understood that. "Tamina, this isn't your fault. At all," He said surely, dragging her eyes away from the Dagger with his voice.

Tamina looked at him, blinking a few times to keep the tears from coming into her eyes. "Your uncle wasn't supposed to know about the Guardian or the Dagger. You weren't supposed to break into the gate in Alamut. You weren't supposed to find the Dagger. I wasn't supposed to leave Alamut! You were never supposed to find out about the Dagger at all! And we were not supposed to get caught out here! And we most definitely weren't supposed to develop feelings for one another!" she whispered in a yell, making Dastan shrink back so as not to get hit by her venomous words.

"I'm sorry, Tamina. You are right. You are always right. And I promise that as soon as we somehow find a way to get the Dagger to Temple, I will get out of your life forever, and you will never even hear from me again." Dastan closed his eyes and began walking away from her. Of course, none of this was supposed to happen. Especially the part about him falling in love with her. That was outlandish and sinful and criminal. But it was amazing and exhilirating and fantastic all at the same time. But obviously, she had never wanted for that to happen. He was alone again.

Tamina felt terrible. Out of everything she could have said to him, that had to have been the most hurtful thing. She knew that she wasn't supposed to do a lot of things, and so far she had done them all. Why stop now? So, against what she knew was deemed right, she trumped after him, getting several curious looks along the way.

"Dastan, wait," she said softly, making him freeze in his tracks. He turned around and faced her, blinking a couple of times, his eyes hardening into stone. "I shouldn't have said that. I-I-I don't know how I'd-" She took a deep breath, the apology getting caught in her throat. No matter how many times she needed to apologize, she had never been able to really do such a thing. It wasn't in her nature to ask for forgiveness. "I don't know how I'd do all of this without you, Dastan. Please?"

They looked at one another for a long time, Tamina never blinking once. Dastan nodded after a while and walked to her side, playfully bumping her side, though it was still obvious that he hadn't "healed" completely. "I'm sorry, Tamina," he repeated. "I was just trying to help," he said, his voice sounding like an injured puppy.

She nodded, relieved that he had forgiven her. "And I wasn't 'supposed' to get so angry with you about it," she teased, bumping back into him.

"You're getting soft, Princess," he said cheekily. "I feel as if I have conquered a beast," he said in the same manner.

"And you grow more arrogant everyday, Prince," she responded in kind, a small smile playing on the corners of her lips in enjoyment.

"Only to balance out your loss of it, Princess," he said proudly.

"I was never arrogant," she told him stubbornly.

He shook his head. "No, no. You were never arrogant. You were only ignorant."


Alright, so there it is. Now, this has to be one of my favorite chapters that I have written. However, I am really worried that I might have made the two of them jump out of character a little bit. So, of course, any feedback on that subject would be awesome, cause I'm kinda self conscious right now. :/ Especially with the apology. That wasn't even supposed to come out, but I guess my fingers had plans of their own, huh?

Kay guys, I think we only need 15 more rewiews till we hit the big 100. Let's aim for 92 reviews. That's only seven. Not that much. We can do this! Be bold!

Love ya'll! - Books