Iago awoke and knew he was in a bed. He sat up and looked around him.
In the nightstand next to the bed was a portrait of Cassim and Iago.
When Iago saw that the horrible reailty hit him. Cassim was dead!
Iago remembered him perfectly.
When he closed his eyes his saw his friend's smiling, handsome, bearded face, he dark brown eyes twinkling, his white smile flashing, his long hair blowing in the gentle breeze,...
Iago opened his eyes and looked around the room a little more.
Then he heard footsteps coming towards the door!
He looked over, but the hallway was too dark for him to see who it was.
Genie came into the room.
"You're awake. Good."
Genie changed the bandages.
Iago wanted to ask were Cassim had been buried but couldn't bring himself to even start the question. He just couldn't believe that Cassim was dead.
Genie left the room.
Iago burst into tears.
"Oh, Cassim. I never even got to say good-bye."
"What do you mean good-bye?"
Iago stopped crying but was convinced that his ears were playing tricks on him.
"Iago, are you gonna look at me or just sit there all day?"
The parrot lifted his head, looked over at the door, and swore his heart skipped a beat!
Standing in the doorway was...
"Cassim?"
Cassim smiled and nodded.
"You're alive?"
Just to make Iago smile, Cassim looked himself over then back up at Iago.
"Last time I checked I was still alive."
Iago smiled.
"Cassim!"
Iago ran towards him, forgetting he was on the bed, and fell! Cassim dove forward and caught him before he hit the floor.
"You okay?"
"Yeah."
Cassim put him on the bed and knelt down beside it.
Iago hugged him as tightly as he could.
"Iago. Iago, loosen up. I can't breathe."
Iago let go and stepped back.
"Sorry."
"What's with you? You're acting like I've come back from the dead or something."
"Jafar told me you had been killed."
"Iago, when are you going to learn that when Jafar tells you something like that he's lying?"
"I don't know."
Cassim stood up, and Iago then noticed that he was wearing golden armor.
"What's with the gold armor?"
Cassim didn't answer at first.
Iago saw his friend clench his hands into fist until his knuckles turned white!
"Cassim, what's wrong?"
Cassim sat down on the bed next to Iago.
"I was Aladdin's second in command."
Iago noticed that Cassim's voice became a little choked when he said Aladdin's name.
"*Was*?"
"Jafar killed him in battle yesterday."
Iago gasped.
"I'm sorry."
Cassim's voice became even more choked as tears filled his eyes.
"He didn't die right away. He looked up at me and said, "Dad, you are sultan now until Ali is ready. Tell Jasmine I love her." Then he died. I never thought I would see my son die, let alone see him die in *my* arms."
"How's Jasmine?"
"She's taking it the hardest of all of us, which is understandable."
Cassim's voice broke, and he burst into tears. Iago put his wing on Cassim's arm.
Cassim stopped crying and put Iago up on his shoulder.
"How does breakfast sound to you?"
"It sounds heavenly!"
Both laughed as Cassim walked out into the main room of the layer of the Forty Thieves.
The army of Agrabah was staying in the layer.
Seven Deserts War and Afterwards by Cassim fan
Author's Notes:
A much loved character is already dead when the story starts.