第16章

The girls who companied with her are the ladies of her court and guards and grandees of her empire，and the plumed skins wherewith they fly are the handiwork of enchanters of the Jann.Now an thou wouldst get possession of this queen and wed this jewel seld-seen and enjoy her beauty and loveliness and grace，do thou pay heed to my words and keep them in thy memory.They resort to this place on the first day of every month；and thou must take seat here and watch for them；and when thou seest them coming hide thee near the pavilion sitting where thou mayst see them；without being seen of them，and beware，again beware lest thou show thyself，or we shall all lose our lives.When they doff their dress note which is the feather-suit of her whom thou lovest and take it，and it only，for this it is that carrieth her to her country，and when thou hast mastered it，thou hast mastered her.And beware lest she wile thee，saying，'O thou who hast robbed my raiment，restore it to me，because here am I in thine hands and at thy mercy！' For，an thou give it her，she will kill thee and break down over us palace and pavilion and slay our sire： know，then，thy case and how thou shalt act.When her companions see that her feather-suit is stolen，they will take flight and leave her to thee，and beware lest thou show thyself to them，but wait till they have flown away and she despaireth of them： whereupon do thou go in to her and hale her by the hair of her head[68] and drag her to thee；which being done，she will be at thy mercy.And I rede thee discover not to her that thou hast taken the feather-suit，but keep it with care；for，so long as thou hast it in hold，she is thy prisoner and in thy power；seeing that she cannot fly to her country save with it.And lastly carry her down to thy chamber where she will be thine.'

When Hasan heard her words his heart became at ease，his trouble ceased and affliction left him；so he rose to his feet and kissing his sister's head，went down from the terrace with her into the palace，where they slept that night.He medicined himself till morning morrowed；and when the sun rose，he sprang up and opened the staircase-door and ascending to the flat roof sat there till supper-tide when his sister brought him up somewhat of meat and drink and a change of clothes and he slept.

And thus they continued doing，day by day until the end of the month.When he saw the new moon，he rejoiced and began to watch for the birds，and while he was thus，behold，up they came，like lightning.As soon as he espied them，he hid himself where he could watch them，unwatched by them，and they lighted down one and all of them，and putting off their clothes，descended into the basin.All this took place near the stead where Hasan lay concealed，and as soon as he caught sight of the girl he loved；he arose and crept under cover，little by little，towards the dresses，and Allah veiled him so that none marked his approach for they were laughing and playing with one another，till he laid hand on the dress.Now when they had made an end of their diversion，they came forth of the basin and each of them slipped on her feather-suit.But the damsel he loved sought for her plumage that she might put it on，but found it not；whereupon she shrieked and beat her cheeks and rent her raiment.Her sisterhood[69] came to her and asked what ailed her，and she told them that her feather-suit was missing；wherefore they wept and shrieked and buffeted their faces： and they were confounded；wotting not the cause of this，and knew not what to do.Presently the night overtook them and they feared to abide with her lest that which had befallen her should befal them also；so they farewelled her and flying away left her alone upon the terrace-roof of the palace，by the pavilion basin.--And Shahrazad perceived the dawn of day and ceased to say her permitted say.

When it was the Seven Hundred and Ninetieth Night； She said，It hath reached me，O auspicious King，that when Hasan had carried off the girl's plumery，she sought it but found it not and her sisterhood flew away leaving her alone.When they were out of sight，Hasan gave ear to her and heard her say，'O who hast taken my dress and stripped me，I beseech thee to restore it to me and cover my shame，so may Allah never make thee taste of my tribulation！'But when Hasan heard her speak thus；with speech sweeter than syrup，his love for her redoubled；passion got the mastery of his reason and he had not patience to endure from her.So springing up from his hiding-place，he rushed upon her and laying hold of her by the hair dragged her to him and carried her down to the basement of the palace and set her in his own chamber，where he threw over her a silken cloak[70]

and left her weeping and biting her hands.Then he shut the door upon her and going to his sister，informed her how he had made prize of his lover and carried her to his sleeping-closet，'And there，'quoth he，'she is now sitting，weeping and biting her hands.' When his sister heard this，she rose forthright and betook herself to the chamber，where she found the captive weeping and mourning.So she kissed ground before her and saluted her with the salam and the young lady said to her，'O King's daughter，do folk like you do such foul deed with the daughters of Kings？ Thou knowest that my father is a mighty Sovran and that all the liege lords of the Jinn stand in awe of him and fear his majesty： for that there are with him magicians and sages and Cohens and Satans and Marids，such as none may cope withal，and under his hand are folk whose number none knoweth save Allah.How then doth it become you，O daughters of Kings；to harbour mortal men with you and disclose to them our case and yours？ Else how should this man，a stranger，come at us？'