IF THERE BE THORNS

By: Maggie Griffin

CHAPTER 15: Deliver Me

Aini stirred. She couldn't remember the last time she had ever felt as warm as she did at that moment. The streets had always been cold, the stones of the earth making her tremble. Even the bed that Jasmine had made out for her so long ago, though comfortable, had not felt as good.

There were arms around, slim but strong in their hold, coming around her bare shoulders to rest gently on the small of her back. Soft breathing caused her to rise and fall with each breath, resting against Arbutus. Her own arms were linked lightly around his neck, as if afraid that once she awoke, she would be alone.

She looked up at him, studying him with an ease she hadn't experienced before. His eyes were closed, but Ai knew he wasn't sleeping. The lightest of smiles tugged at the corner of his lips, making her smile as well.

The events of the day came back to her. But she pushed the pain back in favor of the joy she felt now. His whispered words of love, his kisses, his hands on her cheek, in her hair. They had talked of nothing that would bring pain, speaking only loving words.

The garden was so bright.

The sun had beaten its way through the foliage, and now illuminated the garden stronger then it ever had before. Even now, with dusk approaching, it still shone golden. The plants and flowers were blooming, and had filled the air with such sweet fragrance that Aini had felt her spirits lifted completely.

He loves me… She couldn't resist her smile getting wider, and even after the closeness they shared, she still felt her face flush at the thought of it. He really loves me.

Her wing had healed considerably well in the short span of time that had passed. It no longer hung limply, and the leaf Arbutus had tied on had fallen off at some point while she had slept. There was still a small amount of cracking on the bone itself, but it was repairing itself very nicely thanks to the ointment Arbutus had applied. Ai tried giving it a little flap, but winced when she still felt a dull sting, resigning herself to waiting a bit longer before trying again.

It was wonderful, yet strange, being back. It didn't feel as though she had been gone for a whole year, and yet she was filled with that sensation of not seeing a place she had known for a very long time. That delightful déjà vu of returning to familiarity after being away for so long. She was itching to take a look around again.

Slowly, she rose up into a more comfortable position, and was about to stand when she felt a hand snake up around her waist and tighten slightly. Still blushing, she looked down at Arbutus, who was smiling back at her gently. His eyes travelled over her face, her hair, coming to look into her eyes.

"Going somewhere?" He smiled, laughter in his eyes.

"I w..was going to t..take a walk," she couldn't stop the stuttering, though it was for utterly different reasons then previously. Now, her nervousness stemmed from the natural delightful anxiety that came from a newfound love. The butterflies in her stomach, as it were.

Arbutus rose back to his full height, casting Aini in shadow momentarily before moving to take her hand, leading her through the garden.

At points through their walk, he would pause, and Aini found herself kissed more that night then ever in her life. Not that she had been kissed all that many times in the past. She had been too alone, too afraid to even try to be close to anyone. Now, feeling as loved as she did, Ai felt herself almost craving the kisses, though too shy to initiate any by herself just yet.

When they arrived where Arbutus had been leading them, Aini let out a small gasp of surprise. The gazebo in the sky had regained its previous beauty, and she all but dragged the Earth Element up the stairs leading to it.

Déjà vu once again, standing in front of the railing. The garden bloomed beautifully in all directions, and it seemed so vast that Ai imagined it to be the whole world.

What a beautiful world that would be, She smiled.

She stood very still, entranced by the sight of it all until she felt a hand settle atop hers. Looking up, she saw Arbutus was looking towards the distance as well, though he seemed lost in his own thoughts.

"Can you ever forgive me?"

Aini blinked, a bit confused. "What for?"

He looked at her then, an incredulous look on her face. "I let the darkness into this place. I think I killed myself…"

There was a moment of silence then, and Aini felt her eyes filling with tears. She understood, even with her naïve sense of understanding, she knew what he meant. He couldn't die naturally. Not forever, as humans could. As she would have, someday. But there was another sort of death for him, another sort of stasis suicide, and that was what had happened.

"I think…I think I may have blamed you, somehow." He winced, a shamed expression on his face. "You see, when Jasmine betrayed me, the pain was not as…bleak. I had no faith in humans at that time, so while her betrayal was painful, it was not a surprise…" he paused, unsure of wether or not he should continue. Aini waited. "…meeting you. Getting to know you, proved there was a side of humanity I had somehow missed. It was as if by knowing you, I could be betrayed by others a thousand times over, but still remain with the knowledge that there were good heart's left in the world."

Aini smiled, drawing closer to rest against his arms, her small hands holding the cloth of his robes lightly.

"Then you died…" he paused again. "…and I felt as though I had been lied to all along…"

Aini's grip tightened, and Arbutus realized he had said the wrong thing. Her shoulders had begun to shake slightly, and he knew without looking at her face that she was crying. Not out of self-pity, or anger, or a feeling of being betrayed. But out of guilt.

"I'm so sorry." They spoke simultaneously.

"I'm s..sorry. I'm so sorry. I…I never m..meant it like that. N..never," she stopped, letting the sobs and shivers subside before going on. "Maybe it w..would have been better if…if…" she didn't finish, looking down at the railing as though there was something very fascinating about it.

"Wait." He interrupted before she could finish. Ai looked up at him, her eyes a bit red from crying. Arbutus felt sick inside, but knew it was best he told her and was done with it. She deserved to know. "My flower, you misunderstood me! I said I had killed myself in a way, by allowing the darkness in. That darkness was rage. I needed to reassure myself that all the anger I felt, all the hatred for Aladdin and Jasmine, was somehow justified. What better way could I have done that then by blaming the dead, if your final act had prevented me from striking out against the living."

"S..So you don't hate me?"

Arbutus shot her a wry look. "I hated Aladdin once…when was the last time I told him I loved him?" It got a small giggle out of her, and Aini felt her sorrow subside considerably. "The only sure cure for guilt, is forgiveness." Arbutus spoke gently. "So, can you ever forgive me?"

Aini reached up shyly, bringing his face to hers and touching his lips with hers. The kiss was slow and hesitant, and in the midst of the happy haze she was in, Aini felt a surge of pride at having been bold enough to kiss him. Silly as it was, she was proud of herself.

"I won't," she murmured against his lips. "Because there's nothing to forgive." She rested her head against his chest. "We were both lost for a while."

"But now…" he smiled.

"Now we'll be okay, won't we?"

His arms tightened around her, answering her question.

It was amazing how quickly strange news spread through Agrabah. Particularly when started by someone as eccentric as Mechanicles. The Greek had wasted no time in relaying what he had seen within the Cloak and Dagger to the other denizens, not leaving out the fact that Aladdin had seemed particularly interested.

"Why was he so bent on knowing about it?" Abis Mal wiped the corner of his mouth. He lifted the mug containing some unknown liquid Mechanicles would never have touched to his lips, taking another swig. The inventor frowned in disdain, noticing the rather intoxicated look on the other man's face.

"I'm not completely sure, but it seemed important. He was rather…insistent that I tell him all I saw," he adjusted his tunic, still convinced that the creases caused by Aladdin's manhandling would never come out. "Wretched boy. What interest could she have in the like's of you," he muttered under his breath.

"So…was she pretty?" Abis Mal grinned lecherously.

Mechanicles resisted the urge to sneer. "She was out of your league."

"Hmph, what do you know about who's in my league and who isn't!?" Abis Mal demanded.

"Mostly that no woman alive is within your league," Mechanicles grinned cruelly. "You are…one of a kind, by all means!"

"Why, thank you!" Abis Mal replied, seemingly oblivious that he had been insulted.

Mechanicles rolled his eyes, not bothering to correct him. Instead, he concentrated on finishing his tea.

"What else did you hear old man?"

Mechanicles looked up at the presence of a new voice, his eyes widening as he did so with fear. He lowered his cup slowly, pursing his lips.

Mozenrath was now seated across from him, where Abis Mal had sat seconds ago. But of the drunkard there was neither hair nor tail.

"Could you not assume a more eye-pleasing image?" Mechanicles managed to sneer, despite the fear at having the powerful dark wizard sitting right across from him. He without any of his machines or weapons.

"Like this perhaps?" The young man grinned, his eyes narrowing as his form changed once again.

"That is no improvement!" Mechanicles replied with considerable bitterness.

Aladdin now sat across from him, though the look in his eyes told Mechanicles that the damage this particular Aladdin could do to him was far worst then the slight mishandling he had suffered at the hands of the streetrat hours before.

"Answer my question inventor, before I turn you into insect food!"

Mechanicles tensed, then let out the breath he had been holding. "All I've said is all I know…except…"

"What?" The sorcerer demanded.

"The sand witch, the one who lives in the temple in the desert…"

"-I know of her, what is your point?"

"There is a rumor, that someone heard the streetrat mention her when it came to this girl-creature. She…may know what this is all about."

Mozenrath said nothing else, rising from his seat and striding out of the Cloak and Dagger without so much as a backwards glance. Mechanicles slumped against the seat, breaking his normally perfect poise in favor of releasing the iron-grip rattle on his nerves.

He didn't finish his tea that night.

Despite her grown power. Despite her expanded knowledge, and matured personality, Sadira failed to see through Mozenrath's disguise.

"It still hurts, you know," She spoke, her back to him. The book before her was one she had memorized, but had felt like reading all the same. "Not as bad as before, but there's still that sting, once in a while."

"I know…" He didn't, but knew it was what she wanted to hear.

"Do you ever think about her?" She asked, turning around to look at him.

"Of course."

Empty words, but they worked none the less. He wanted to know what it was that Aladdin was so intent upon knowing about. Whatever it was, Mozenrath was willing to bet it would be worth a good deal to his adversary. Something that he could easily bait a trap with.

"I know you think she's back Aladdin. I know. Jasmine thinks so too, and Genie. Even Iago thinks that maybe her ghost is somehow trapped here…" Sadira trailed off.

"And you? What do you think?" Mozenrath asked, false compassion painting his voice.

"I think…that I don't want to know. I think she's dead, and raising any hope that it's not true will only make it worst when we see what you saw wasn't…what you thought it was," she spoke, a pained expression on her face.

"But what if it was?"

He was playing the part perfectly. The look, the voice. Mozenrath felt especially proud of his illusion. If it came down to it, he was even able to fool Aladdin's closest friends. But he knew his illusions would never fool Aladdin himself, or his Genie for that matter, who could see through false images. That is why he needed something tangible to hold against the streetrat.

"It's better not to hope. Besides, you remember what Arbutus said. Even if it was a year ago, I have a feeling that if we set foot into the Garden, his threat would still stand!"

Mozenrath had what he needed.

"Was it very painful?"

"Only for a second, and then it just got all dark…"

Arbutus held her closer.

"I missed you so much." He murmured into her hair, his hands running through it slowly.

"Can I tell you about it?" She asked timidly. "I really want to tell someone."

"Of course."

She spoke then, the bits and pieces she could remember. The endless white, the brightness, the lack of knowing who she was, what she was. The lack of knowing of the simplest emotions, of her own humanity. It was wondrous and terrifying at the same time, and Arbutus wondered if such a fate awaited all those who died. It seemed bleak, and frightening.

"Were you very afraid?" He asked when she was finished.

Aini shook her head. "I didn't know what fear was. I didn't know any emotions, only of being. It was scary, now that I think about it. But it wasn't when I was there."

"Did…you remember me?"

Aini looked down at her feet with a sad frown, not saying anything. Arbutus reached up, lifting her chin so she looked back at him. "It's alright. It doesn't matter. You came back, and that's all I care about."

"I love you." She breathed, realizing that this was the first time she had said it, and felt her face flush once more. "I love you Arbutus." She repeated, her voice a bit stronger.

He smiled, his eyes mirroring the feelings in hers.

They held each other, looking out towards the setting sun.

Next, Mozenrath initiates his plan, while Aini decides to return to Agrabah.