A/N: This story is just my interpretation of what happened in a few placed gaps in the movie "Aladdin and the King of Thieves" when Aladdin helped Cassim escape. I've been working on this for a long time now and finally decided to finish it. I'd always wondered if Aladdin had actually ran into someone on his way out or what he was feeling when Rasoul caught him, so these are just my ideas. I followed the movie exactly, so this is not A/U.
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"I've come to say good-bye." Aladdin whipped the cape behind his back and stepped from the shadows. Looking down at his Father, he could see what he really was, a thief that belonged in chains.
"Why are you ..." Cassim began to question as Aladdin unlocked the shackles around his wrist.
"We don't have much time. While the guards chase me, you get out." As Cassim watched Aladdin put the mask back over his face he was stunned at the sudden feeling that he was looking in a mirror. He wanted to be proud, but he couldn't. Not knowing that his son deserved better and didn't get it.
"I can't let you ..."
"Forget it. They can't catch me." Tossing Cassim the keys with a cocky grin, he dashed through the doorway.
Once Aladdin was gone, he watched the empty hallway and felt like laughing. "He even sounds like me."
Creeping through the dungeon, the mask of the cape pulled over his face, Aladdin moved swiftly and made his way to the guard's chamber. Stepping near the light that pooled out from the room, he strained his hearing and made out the voice of Rasoul.
"...when the Sultan gives me my due, I'll put in a good word for you, little people, who --" Exposing himself as Cassim to the light and looking at Rasoul through the reflection of the mirror, Aladdin felt his breath catch and his heart thud. Nothing he had ever done before as a street rat compared to this. "It can't be." Rasoul stared blankly at the form, incredulously.
Aladdin swiftly climbed the rutted brick wall and pinched himself in the corner of the ceiling above the entrance to the guard's room. Panting and searching as they left the room, Fasal, Hakim and Rasoul looked desperately around for the King of Thieves.
"He was here, I know it." Rasoul tightened his grip on his unsheathed sword and scanned the darkness.
Perfectly placed beneath him, Aladdin jumped from his hiding spot and landed smartly on Rasoul's head and then leapt onto the other two guards. Landing nimbly on the ground, he paused and watched them regain their composure. He couldn't stop the grin that spread across his face and was thankful for the thin piece of cloth that covered it.
"The King of Thieves!" Fasal exclaimed in shock.
"No man could escape that cell." Mouth agape, Hakim could only stare at him.
"He isn't a man, I say. He's a demon."
Finally wrenching free of his turban, Rasoul caught a glimpse of the King of Thieves before he ran up the flight of stairs and disappeared. Feeling the gold slip through his fingers like sand, Rasoul's temper burst. "I want him, dead or alive."
Aladdin's pace quickened. They didn't know it was him. If he could just get back to his home and get rid of the clothes, no one would be the wiser. His Father's fate wasn't in his hands anymore, it was up to him to make it. Finally, Cassim would be out of his life, even if it wasn't what he truly wanted.
Finishing his ascent up the winding stairs, he paused and heard their loud and boisterous pursuit not too far behind. He had a few years on Rasoul with his endurance and speed, hopefully it wouldn't fail him.
Turning, he ran down another corridor and replayed the path in his mind that he had set to get out of the palace. Knowing the guards wouldn't expect him to travel to the North end, he took a sharp right and headed in that direction. The guards weren't looking for someone who had practically lived their for nearly three years.
On the main level, Aladdin sprinted down the final hallway before he was to make a quick leap over the garden wall. Nearing the window, he heard a startled gasp from and open doorway in the hall. Stopping in his tracks, he turned and saw Jasmine, a candle lit in her hand and her hand fisted near her throat where she grasped her robe so hard her knuckles turned white.
"Cassim?" She whispered breathlessly.
His own breathing escaping his lungs hard and fast, Aladdin stopped himself from approaching her and concentrated on stopping his wheezing. Cursing under his hot breath, his stomach fell to his knees. His heart slammed into his ribcage violently, but not from the running. Saying nothing, Aladdin backed closer to the window.
"Cassim?" She asked again. "What are you doing? Did my Father ... " She trailed off and realized the answer to her own question. After a moment of staring into his eyes, she felt a shiver run down her back. Shaking it off, she loosened her grip on the robe and stepped forward. "Why are you doing this to Aladdin? He only wants to be with you."
Aladdin swallowed and felt the constricting wall of his throat tightened and threaten to suffocate him. Looking away from her, he stared down at the carpet and took another step back towards the window. She looked so innocent, so confused and beautiful, he felt absolutely horrible to know that he didn't deserve her, especially after what he'd just done.
"Don't you have anything to say?"
He shook his head and wagered he was only a few more feet away from the window. Jasmine's brow suddenly furrowed. "How did you escape?" She asked inquiringly. "I know what cell they put you in and ..." She stopped and felt her breath catch. "You didn't escape, you were let out." She finished.
Glancing both ways down the hall, he checked for any stray guard, but found none. The dim lit hall way offered minor protection from his distinguishing features that he worried she'd notice. The slight difference in height, the gray tint that was in his Father's hair, the sound of his voice -- should he slip up and speak.
"Cassim?" She questioned and stepped towards him. When his eyes met her's again, she felt the spark, she saw the light and the struggle that was going on inside of him. Taking a deep breath, she shook her head as everything fell into place all at once. "Aladdin?" She corrected, his name escaping her mouth in a rushed breath.
His hands now trembling, and so he fisted them at his side and turned away from her and stared out the window. Looking down at a small part of the city, he could make out the faint glow of running torches. Perfect, just perfect.
"Why did you do this?" She asked, nearly hysterical. The tears that threatened to fall were blinked away impatiently. "Don't you know what you're risking?" She paused before approaching him again and her voice lightened. "Who your risking?"
Aladdin nodded and shut his eyes tightly. "Yes, I do." He said tightly and felt her presence at his side. Turning back to her, he saw her eyes water and the hand that clenched the candle shake. "I'm sorry. I had to." He was ashamed and the feeling that he was utterly worthless couldn't escape him. Yes, he had to do it ... for her. For them.
After a moment with her battling emotions, she looked up at him, into his eyes and with her free hand pulled down the mask that covered his face. "I know." She choked a sob and forced it down before it could break free. "Do they know ..." She asked, referring to the guards.
Aladdin shook his head. "No. They think I'm my Father." Bowing his head in shame, he continued. "I might as well be."
"Don't say that, Aladdin. You're not your Father." Shaking her head, she stroked his cheek and he felt the soft warmth from her touch.
"But I've risked everything. If they catch me, we --"
"Then don't let them." She said with a hint of a smile. "A street rat can get out of anything, right? Find your way out of this one." She took his chin in her hand and met his eyes. "You better go. Quickly." She added at the sound of footsteps and lowered her voice.
"Jasmine ..." He began as he neared the edged of the window. "I don't know what to say. I'm so sorry."
"You have nothing to be sorry for." As the footsteps grew near, she glanced down the hall and back to Aladdin who put the mask back over his face. Setting the candle on a nearby table, she threw risk into the wind and yanked down the mask before covering his mouth with her own.
Wrapping her arms tightly and possessively around his neck, she depend the kiss and felt everything she depended on in her arms. Breaking the kiss, Aladdin looked at her one last, longing time before turning to the window. "I love you." He whispered tenderly.
"I know, I love you too. Be careful." She squeezed his arm and stepped back.
Jasmine looked back down the hall and saw her Father round the bend. Eyes wide, she grabbed the nearby candle and saw his quizzical look. "Dearest?" He asked.
Glancing hopefully at the window, she sighed with relief as nothing but the moonlight filtered through. He always knew how to make an exit. "Yes, Father?" She asked innocently, adding a stifled yawn.
"What are you doing up so late?" He rubbed one of his eyes and held onto his stuffed tiger with his other hand. "I heard voices."
"I haven't heard anything. I had a bad dream and I couldn't sleep, so I decided to take a quick walk." She fibbed openly and began to wander back towards her room. "Goodnight Father." She said quickly before kissing him on the cheek and disappearing into her room before he could question.
Once inside, she ran over to her balcony that over looked Agrabah and strained her eyes in the dark. Sitting down, against the balcony railing with her back to the city, she kept her ears tuned and responsive for the dreaded feeling in her stomach. She knew what the guards could do to him if he was caught. Listening, she prayed to Allah she wouldn't hear any sounds of rejoicing from a capture ... or a beheading.
Running through the marketplace, Aladdin felt like the rat he had been called all his life. Trapped within the city he held so dear, he could only hope that they would soon give up. Choosing on one of the quickest paths to his home, he turned down an alley and stopped dead in his tracks as he saw Rasoul and five guards around the bend. Turning back the other way, he hid behind the corner of a building and silently tried to catch his breath.
"Surround the block! He's close ... I can feel it." Aladdin turned to see Rasoul, Hakim and Fasal slowly and unknowingly close in on him. Turning down another dark alleyway, Aladdin ducked behind a wall and listened.
"Which way did he go?" One guard shouted.
"I don't see him." Another responded. Aladdin winced as he realized; most of the guards were now looking. He was, after all, the Most Wanted of the Seven Deserts. His Father's head was worth more than he could imagine and they were looking for blood. They weren't going to stop so soon.
"Quickly, look over there! Hurry!" On guard shouted to Fasal and pointed to the alley that Aladdin was in. Glancing up at the building and seeing a perfect staircase of baskets, he quickly climbed just to miss Fasal enter the street.
"There! The King of Thieves, on the roof!" Fasal bellowed and began his climb up to follow him.
Aladdin ran over the top of the building and felt a very strong sense of déjà vu of those few years ago with a stolen loaf of bread as his dinner. "Only this time," He muttered to himself as he came near the edge. "They'll cut off more than my hands." Searching around desperately for an escape, Aladdin spotted one just as they climbed over the ledge.
"Get up there! Now! Now! Now!" Rasoul shouted from below, his gold was so close to finally being his ... so very close. Fasal and Hakim stumbled over and nearly smiled.
"Found him." Fasal proclaimed.
"Lost him." Hakim groaned as the King of Thieves rolled back off the roof and vanished from sight. Hakim could feel his muscles ache and bones cry; he wasn't being paid enough for this. Running to the edge of the roof, the looked up and down the street, but saw no sign of the man ... no hint of movement, no shift in the shadows.
Aladdin climbed the side of the tower after leaping off of a merchant's canopy stand. Watching the fumbling guards and could feel his smug smile returning. Aladdin finished his way up and paused as he reached the top. Finding the walkway that lead to the other end of the tower, Aladdin leaped off the perch and aimed for the path.
"Gotcha!" Rasoul yelled triumphantly as he snagged Aladdin's ankle before it could reach the ground.
Aladdin's body slammed into the pavement and his ankle twisted. Grimacing against the pain, Aladdin groaned and shook his head to clear his vision. "Oh, no." Was all he could think as he rolled over slightly to look at Rasoul, his sword ready. He was so close, and to have it all end like this.
"The King of Thieves." Rasoul stated proudly for his capture. "Your charmed life is over, your Majesty!" Rolling away just in time to miss the heat of Rasoul's sword, Aladdin was spared from the sharp edge of the blade, but his cape wasn't so lucky. Pinched under the sword, the cloth ripped and tore Aladdin's mask away. Standing, Aladdin faced Rasoul only to realize too late that he was now exposed. "You!" He said in bafflement. The clouds of confusion cleared away quickly and were followed closely by the glint of happiness in his eyes.
"Yes." Aladdin stepped back, his mind whirling of a possible way to flee, but saw none. This was it, he was finally caught and everyone would know what he really was and the family line he couldn't hide from anymore.
"Well, I guess I'll have to settle for the Prince of Thieves." Rasoul snatched Aladdin's shirtfront and hauled him up. "We shall see if the Sultan wants you in his family now." Aladdin felt his breathing stop for a beat. Rasoul was right, there was no way that the Sultan would want him marrying Jasmine, even if she did approve of what he had done. This was it, there was no use even trying to fight or talk his way out of it, his life was over.
Just as he gave into Rasoul's pull, he was suddenly thrown free as a figure slammed his body into Rasoul's and caused him to crash into the side wall. "Keep your hands off my son." Cassim said angrily to Rasoul as he fell unconscious.
"Dad?" Aladdin asked, nearly believing it wasn't true. He had been sure his Father was all ready miles out of Agrabah.
"Hurry son, we must move." Down the street they ran, dodging and falling into some close calls with a few stray guards before reaching the two horses that were tied and waiting near the gate of Agrabah.
Through the desert they raced, the wind battering into Aladdin's face as he ran over another dune. Ahead of him, his Father rode with Iago hanging on by the horse's mane. With each inch the horse's gained in distance from the city, his heart broke more and more. "Did we loose 'em?" He asked once they entered a large rock formation.
"I don't know, but I did loose my lunch back there." Iago's pale face dulled as he dangled from the mane before scrambling up and laying on it's neck.
"They won't be able to pick up our trail 'til daylight. By then, we'll be long gone from Agrabah." Cassim turned his horse and began to gallop away. When he turned and saw his son's strained face, he paused. "I'm sorry for what you lost. But you can't go back now, you know that." Once Aladdin dismounted his horse began to move back towards Agrabah, he stopped and turned around. "What are you doing?"
"I'm not going with you. I can't."
"Well you can't go back. The moment they saw your face, your life in Agrabah was over." He wasn't only trying to convince Aladdin it was the right thing to do, but himself as well. He didn't know if he could bare to be separated from his son for so long again and not know what would happen to him.
"I have to go back, Jasmine's there." Patting the horse's sweat-covered back, he decided to let it rest before he rode back home.
"Kid, it's over, you're a criminal now." Iago stated and shook his head.
"I won't do what he did, I won't run away." Taking the reins of the horse, he turned.
"I never ran away from anything in my life." Cassim approached Aladdin, a new temper burned in his eyes.
"You ran away from your family." The hurt that was there simmered in his voice and was as clear as day to the both of them.
"I told you what happened. What else could I do? What else can you do?"
"The right thing. You should take this back." Tossing his Father's dagger to the ground, Aladdin sneered at it and then Cassim before turning.
Staring at the dagger, he could feel his only family leaving him. "You can't!"
"I won't walk out on Jasmine." Like you did to Mom.
"Aladdin ..." Broken for words, his voice trailed.
"I'm your son ... but I can't live your life."
"Al, they'll lock you up." Iago shook his head at the flashback of seeing Aladdin in chains as he hid under Jafar's cloak while he persuaded him to enter the Cave of Wonders. Aladdin didn't deserve that again, not for doing something right. Never again.
"If there's a punishment, I'll take it." He nodded and glanced back towards Agrabah. He'd take anything just so Jasmine would know he'd never leave her. So she wouldn't live with the doubt and the worry that his own Mother did while his Father was away. With the guilt and feeling of not being good enough or wanted.
"So be it." The words stung his mouth and his own ears as he spoke them. His son was throwing his life away for something he didn't need. He made it without his wife and ... and it nearly killed him.
"We have the oracle. The treasure's just waiting for us." Iago smiled and offered the last valuable thing he could to convince Aladdin to come with. It was very hard imagining his adventures and life in general without Aladdin.
"The oracle?" His tone turned frigid.
"I had nothing left to loose." Cassim shrugged and felt the weight of in his belt. Suddenly, it was becoming increasingly heavy and a burden to hold.
"Yes, you did." They both knew it.
"It was supposed to be a Father-Son outing!" Iago shouted with a whine. This wasn't what should be happening. This wasn't right.
"Go with him Iago." Holding him in his hands, Aladdin offered a weak smile and a small push.
"What? You mean it? Really?" Telling himself over and over to go because of the treasure that he'd get was the only thing that helped him leave. To be greedy was good, because you didn't need anyone.
"Go." His voice stern, he watched Iago decide.
Saluting, Iago turned towards Cassim. "Good luck kid."
Aladdin faced his horse to Agrabah and sighed. As he heard his Father take off in the other direction and run out of his life ... again, he turned his attention towards the glittering lights of the city. Clicking his tongue and kicking the horse slightly, he began to run towards home.
He had lost his Father, for the second time in his life, but he wouldn't dare loose the real family that waited for him. The blood he shared with his Father didn't compare to the love he shared with Jasmine and the relationships of his closest friends. They were worth fighting for, and facing the consequences of his actions just so he could see them again. And he knew, he didn't need an oracle to tell him that.
~*~ END ~*~
May, 2002
Escaping What Matters by Kim