Amareena raced through the streets of Tashbaan, ducking through stalls and darting through the crowded thoroughfares, to the shouts of vendors and grumbling of the city folk. The sun beat down on them all, causing the stones to bite at her feet with every footfall. At last, the Harbourmaster had sent her to the Tisroc's Menagerie, a massive garden at the top of the city, with a message for the Head Servant in change. And the sooner Amareena delivered the message, the more time she would have to spend with the Head Servant's slave Peppi before she was expected back. Thinking of the exciting story she had for him, she increased her speed.

The Menagerie was a magnificent garden, with palms and gingers and colourful flora of all kinds adorning the edges of manicured lawns, but as its name suggests, it offered so much more. Interspersed throughout the greenery, ostentatious fountains and shady ponds, were a series of clever enclosures. Intended for the viewing of the Tisroc, who appreciated such things, the enclosures were full of oddities. Creatures from across the empire both strange and fascinating were procured and kept for the Tisroc's and the chosen few he allowed to walk here's amusement.

Amareena, of course, entered not through the bronze gates, but the groundskeeper's side entrance.

"Master Ahara… the Eastern Harbourmaster sends his greetings… and a message," Amareena puffed out, leaning over her knees to catch her breath.

"Well?" The Head Servant demanded, impatient as he waited for her to speak, "What is his message?"

"He has word…" Amareena gulped in air, "that a sea devil has been…captured. He expects its arrival in little… under a week."

A hungry gleam entered the Head Servant's eyes as his impatience dissipated.

"Excellent, tell your master that we will finalise preparations on its enclosure. The Tisroc (may he live forever) will be greatly pleased."

"To hear…is to obey," Amareena bowed, completing the traditional response with as much dignity as she could muster. There was no need to spoil the Head Servant's good mood.

"Peppi!" Amareena exclaimed, racing across the empty lawn towards her friend. He looked up from where he was sitting - just in front of the bars of a tall cage.

"Reena!" He said, face breaking into a smile. Peppi was a boy of about twelve from the island of Terebinthia and had been working at the Menagerie about as long as Amareena had been working for the Harbourmaster. His family's fishing boat had been captured by pirates and his family sold into slavery. It wasn't a bad lot, as he always said, because he had ended up in one of the most interesting places in the world. The two had met when Amareena had first been trusted to run a message up to the Head Servant from the Harbourmaster, who interacted quite often because of their work.

"You would never believe-"

"I have been wanting to tell you-" both began at once, but paused when they realised.

"You go first," Amareena graciously conceded, thinking to herself that her story was by far the better of anything Peppi could tell her.

"Allright," he began, settling in cross-legged, and Amareena followed suit. "Of all the extraordinary creatures in this Menagerie, none seemed more ordinary than the Squirrel. In fact, he resides in this very enclosure." Here, Peppi gestured to the bars before them. Amareena peered in though the dense greenery, but could see no telltale flickers of movement.

"I was tending to its needs one morning when who should come along but Prince Rabadash along with a small party of foreigners. Concealing myself, as those important persons as the Tisroc (may he live forever) and his household have decreed that we are to make ourselves scarce unless called for, I had nothing but to listen to the proceedings.

"O Prince, what manner of creature is caged in here?" Presently a finely dressed Lady from strange parts spoke and the Prince, having found the engraved plate listing the creature, answered. "O my beloved, jewel of my eyes, there is caged here a most rare and unnatural beast from faraway lands. Called a Squir-relle, it was once observed to speak in the common tongue."

Now you must understand, I, being unable to read the written word and having never heard a word from the creature in this cage, was quite surprised.

"A Talking Squirrel?" Exclaimed the Lady, "And caged like a common beast? How can you abide such cruelty? As surely as I am Queen of Narnia I for certain wilt not stand for it."

And at this moment a most wondrous thing happened - for as the Queen revealed her identity, out came the Squirrel, who had been hiding in the very cage I had hid myself in.

"Please, your Majesty, have mercy!" Cried the small beast, "I have been here very long and suffered great indignity! Only return me to Narnia and I shall serve you gladly ever more, even as a humblest servant." And he (for it was a he) began to explain the great many trials and tribulations he had suffered since being taken from his green home in Narnia, a country far to the north of here. He had refused to speak any longer for pride and sadness, but at his monarch's appearance he entreatied them until they had interrupted that they already intended to free him, and to be not afraid.

The Prince was quite nervous, the Squirrel belonging to his father the Tisroc (may he live forever) and was not his to free, but the foreign Queen wore him down and eventually he agreed to petition his father the Tisroc (may blessings fall upon him) to release the strange beast as a gift for the object of his affection.

And thus," Peppi concluded, "I have been waiting at this cage at all times, even sleeping here, waiting to hear the beast speak again, but alas," Peppi frowned, "I have not heard another word. And surely soon the foreign Queen will return for her loyal servant."

Amareena was entranced, but also quite put out. Her story was not nearly so entertaining as that.

"And now, what tale do you bring?" Peppi asked, finally turning his attention away from the enclosure to look at her.

"Oh, it was a tale from a Tarkheena," Amareena said half-heartedly, "her friend went to a party and the Barbarian Queen - perhaps the one from your story - managed to avoid dancing with the Prince. Perhaps they are not so close as lovers after all."

"Ah," Peppi said, looking disappointed. Amareena suddenly wished she had told the story better, instead of letting her disappointment in not having the better story get the better of her.

"Well, anyway," she rushed, "I had better be running back to the docks. Do tell me if you hear the Squirrel talk though!"

Embarrassed, she hopped to her feet and took off running back down the spiral streets and back alleys and the beating sun of Tashbaan.

Author's Note:

The adventure continues! The prompt for this one was a quote: "Nothing is ever done beautifully which is done in rivalship; or nobly, which is done in pride" by John Ruskin.