A Whole New World

by Liz Braswell

“Don’t let life’s unfairness, don’t let how poor you are decide who you are. You choose who you will be, Aladdin. Will you be a hero who looks after the weak and powerless? Will you be a thief? Will you be a beggar—or worse? It’s up to you, not the things—or people—around you. You can choose to be something more.”

She walked with the grace of a cloud in the wind, like her body weighed nothing at all, and held her head high with easy dignity.

“Yeah, how about we not give Mr. Revengey-pants here ideas?” the genie suggested archly. “There’s a substantial legal and magical difference between forcing to love and forcing to marry.” He had a point. Jasmine kept her mouth shut.

But he didn’t give up hope. The same endless expectation of good things that had kept his mother struggling until she died was in his blood, as well.

She had just…just…started to come to terms with her father being someone who wasn’t only her father. He was also a human with human failings. She was only starting to figure out how she could love him and judge him and accept him all at the same time.

She was the royal princess. She had to start acting like one. She had to stop talking about being trapped, about being handed over from one man to another. She had to start acting. She had to start being the hero.

“But history has shown time and time again that it is generally unwise to rely on others—especially those in charge—to provide for the poor. I give this new sultan a week or two at most before he realizes he doesn’t want to keep giving people handouts. At least not without getting something in return.”

Aladdin swore angrily, storming out. “There’s another way. You don’t have to choose this life. You could be something more.”

“When you can bring forth gold from the sky,” Duban explained, seeing Jasmine was still confused, “when anyone can reach up and take as much as they want—gold stops having value. Like sand.”

Aladdin was reminded once again of the mountains of treasure now buried under the desert. A strange thought occurred to him. Had this all happened…before? Was the treasure buried not because of some mad old sultan who wanted his wealth to die with him, but because someone nearly destroyed the world by bringing too much gold into it? With the help of a genie, whose lamp was the only “worthless” thing in there…Maybe it was all hidden to protect people from the power of wishes.

There was something about the genie’s face. It was instantly likable, more suited to smiles and grins than the frowns and grimaces he seemed always to have. He was far more human than Aladdin imagined a djinn would be. In a different time, he could almost see the two of them becoming friends.

“I never cared about the law,” Aladdin said. “Only what my heart tells me.”

“I’m not denying that I have bigger plans and a penchant for moving shiny objects,” Morgiana said with a shrug. “I’m just saying that we aren’t as purely evil as you think us, Aladdin. There are shades of gray and goodness to us as well.”

“When it got too much, he just…left. And my mom…she was a great mom,” he said forcefully, looking into Jasmine’s eyes. “She could make soup out of dust and a drop of water. She could make clothing—decent clothing—from scraps she begged for from people only slightly less poor than us. She kept our nasty little house spotlessly clean and as cheery as she could.”

“But wealth isn’t a magic lamp that suddenly erases all your problems,” Jasmine said slowly, breaking off a piece of bread for herself. “Imagine being a large bird in a tiny—but golden—cage. If it weren’t for the death of my father, I’d be happier now than I’ve ever been. I’m free here. Having the freedom to choose is better than having everything you want.” “You’d better convince the people of Agrabah that,” Aladdin said wryly. “Otherwise they’ll never back you. So far they seem to prefer full bellies and no choice.”

She wished a silly, girlish wish: that she’d had a chance to really fly on the carpet when it was still a carpet. With Aladdin. Zooming through the night air like she was doing now, but with his warm arms to hold on to and the entire world at their feet. They could have gone anywhere they wanted. They would have been completely free.