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Anahita laughed. "As opposed to just being desired? You speak of that thing all the crusader knights long for. What do they call it? Some sort of divine cup? Or is it a bowl?"
"The holy grail," Maram said. "And no one knows what it truly is. They speak of a story about a knight named Perceval, or Gawain...ah, I forget. It is a favourite among foreign courts. The object is a myth, no more."
"Ah, there is always some truth in old tales, even if it is hidden deep. There are men who love their wives above all else." Now Anahita looked wistful.
"Those men are not princes, or men with power of any kind, then," Maram said gently.
Anahita grinned. "Not powerless at all. He must have the power to please you, surely?" She pumped her hips like a rutting man might, making them both blush.
"Enough about men. They are poor gamblers, for they never bet anything of value. I have new jewels and trinkets from my travels and I'm sure you have gifts from your latest husband that you haven't yet lost in a game of chance. What say you to dice, or a round of chess?"
"It has been a long time since I have played chess. I suspect you are after that necklace...or is it the jewelled dagger?" Anahita asked. "I must teach my men to play, so that I might stay in practice while I am with this new sheikh."
"Dice, then, for a fair match. You will like some of my new jewels, and I always did like that dagger." Maram clapped her hands, and one of her serving women fetched her dice box.
"Now you are home, we should go hunting. I have a splendid new falcon, Merlin, who has a taste for frogs above all else." Anahita grinned as she selected a die made of green glass.
"Frogs? She sounds like a very strange bird. Has she never tasted a fat pigeon?" Maram asked, choosing a die of rose-coloured wood.
"Plenty, but if she hears a frog, she will abandon the hunt to dive for the frog. Why, I've seen her skim through the bathhouse, making all the harem girls scream." Anahita's smile turned wicked. "They screamed even louder when they saw the size of the frog Merlin had plucked from their bath."
Maram tucked her feet up under her and shivered. "I'm sure I would scream, too. I do not like frogs. Slimy creatures."
"I'm told the crusaders eat them as a delicacy at home," Anahita added. "Perhaps Merlin was a crusader's falcon."
Maram felt sick at the thought of a frog anywhere near her mouth. "Enough talk of your crazy bird. Before you cast the dice, what do you hazard?"
"What would you like best, the necklace or the dagger?"
"The dagger, for it will defend me better against frogs," Maram said.
Anahita pulled the jewelled dagger from a fold in her robes, its sheath glittering with more jewels than the blade itself. "The dagger it is, then, though I doubt you will ever use it. A blade is not your style, sister. You are far more subtle than that."
"When men have had too much to drink, subtlety is lost on them, and a woman has need of a dagger," Maram said.
Anahita nodded. "You should train with me and my men one day, so that you might better defend yourself, dagger or no. For the times when a guard is not close enough to call."
Anahita's eyes met Maram's in shared pain. Both had known the violence of men, and neither wished to be a victim again.
Maram broke the silence. "So you bet the dagger, sheath and fighting lessons with your men. I will counter with an amber comb, gifted to me by the king of Kasmirus."
"Just a comb? My dagger is worth more than that," Anahita scoffed.
Maram pulled the comb from her hair and laid it on the table. "Ah, but this comb is immune to dragonfire. A dragon roasted the princess wearing it, crisping her hair to ash before it ate her, but the comb is untouched."
Anahita's eyes widened. "Did you see the dragon?"
Maram flashed an enigmatic smile. "If you want to trade for tales of foreign lands, you must increase your bet."
And so the game began.
SIX
Gwandoya led Aladdin out of the city, to where he had tethered a couple of camels. Aladdin glanced apprehensively at the large beasts with hooves as big as his head.
"Have you ever ridden a camel before, boy?" Gwandoya asked.
Aladdin shook his head, not trusting his voice. He might emit an unmanly squeak.
