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The oppressive heat of Agrabah was beginning to fade as the sun finally dipped beyond the towering walls of the palace. Aladdin's hair was still a mop of sweat due to the exertion working at the City of Mystery and Enchantment Food Bank all day, but it was an honest and rewarding day's work.

Rashid and Nura set down their baskets near the door, and hugged him. Rashid had begun to put on some real muscle for a child his age, and Nura's hair was fuller and her skin healthier, than they had been in the alley a year ago. Amazing what four good meals a day could do for a child.

*A rewarding day's work indeed*, he sighed as he let them hold tight until they chose to let go.

The food bank had moved almost eight hundred thousand uquiyyahs of food that day, much of it to residents of the new stone apartments that Aladdin had built in his once-worst neighborhood in the city. Nine of the seven-story buildings had already opened and there was a tenth that he expected would be finished by Ramadan. By his quick math, it would take twenty-two to house the formerly homeless population of the entire city, plus at least eight more to house those who would relocate to Agrabah once they heard that housing and food were provided in abundance to all here.

He dismissed the other volunteers and began extinguishing the lights. He was maybe halfway done that when a group of men appeared at the main entrance. The one in front looked familiar. Aladdin tensed. They had swords.

"Are you fine gentlemen looking for ... whoa!!" His *street-rat* instincts were neither gone nor unnecessary, it seemed. The leader had tried to open Aladdin's guts.

The lunge had brought the leader into the light, and the image clicked into place in Aladdin's mind. "Now I remember you!" he said. "Missed out on cutting my 'sister's' hand off so you want me now?"

The merchant from the bazaar stall that had almost cut the hand from the wrist of that beautiful, strangely naive girl almost a year ago snarled. "What I *want* is for a chance to earn a living without competition from warlocks making deals with devils."

"What?"

"You stupid little street rat," said one of the others. "Did you really think anyone would pay for food anymore with you here giving it all away? How many of us are you going to put out in the streets?!"

"*No one,*" Aladdin grated. "I literally don't want *anyone* to be on the streets in this city. Or hungry."

"Then tell people to do something useful and come up with money to buy their food like honest men. Instead you let the beggars live like the sultan."

*A four-room walk-up apartment for a family of seven isn't exactly living like the sultan*, he grated to himself, but he could tell by now that that this lot wasn't here to be persuaded. *Well, let's see if I can still move like I'm running from the ...*

"The palace guards!" cried one of the men in the back. Aladdin spun. There was a side door to the food bank, recently widened as the volume had increased and he'd taken on some extra volunteers to help with distribution. Four palace guards had just appeared on either side of it, and a woman hurried through the middle of them.

Aladdin did a double-take. *That was the girl from the market!* It had been almost a year, but he'd recognize that face anywhere. She spoke a moment later, and that would have dispelled any lingering doubts if any had remained--the gentle fire was unmistakable. In fact, the *words* were unmistakable.

"Oh, thank you, kind sir, I'm so glad you've found him," she said to the merchant. *It's her! What's she doing?!* She turned back to look at Aladdin. "I've been looking all over for you!"

"What're you doing?" Aladdin gasped incredulously.

"Just play along," she replied. She turned back to the leader, the merchant who had almost cut her hand off not even a year past. "Remember me?" she asked.

The merchant stared, dumbfounded, clearly unsure what to say.

"You *know* this girl," Aladdin prompted.

The merchant began to lower his sword, still clearly unsure of who the girl was, yet she traveled in the company of eight palace guards. No, Aladdin realized, eight *inside* the food bank. There would be more outside on the street, where the threat would likely be greater.

"I told you once I knew the sultan," she prompted. "I told you that if you let me go to the palace, I could get you your money. She extended her hand from within her robe, her movements graceful, her skin perfect. "You tried to cut this off instead. Which would have been most unfortunate, since it's where this goes." With her other hand, she slid an unmistakable mystic blue diamond ring onto the finger of the hand she had almost lost.

If the man's face had paled any further, he'd have turned invisible. He clearly wished that he could.

"Sultana Jasmine," he gasped. "But how ..."

Aladdin took a step back himself. "The *sultana?!*"

Abu peeked out of a crate where he'd been helping himself to leftover figs. "*Hulhana?"* he squeaked.

(1/2)

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Submitted by YWAK98alum on Thu, Nov 10, 2022 to /r/WritingPrompts/

The prompt

When Aladdin finds the Genie, his first thought isn't about the woman he met of the streets, it's about the little boy he gave his bread to. He decides to use his wish to actively help feed the hungry and give homes to the homeless. Surprisingly, he still ends up with Princess Jasmine.