Thousand & One Nights: 157th Night: Barber Tells His Story -6

My second brother's name was Baqbaqa, and he was a paraplegic. One day, as he was going on some business, he happened to meet an old woman, who said, "Fellow, stop for a moment, I would like to propose you something, and if my proposition pleases you, you may proceed with the help of Almighty God."

My brother stopped.

"What I have to say is," she continued, "that I shall take you to a pleasant place, be careful not to make too many questions."

She hurried a few steps to keep pace with my brother and said, "What do you say to a handsome house and a garden with running water, fruits, and wine, a face as lovely as the moon for you to embrace?"

"Are all these in this world?" asked my brother.

She replied, "Yes it is all yours, if you behave sensibly, and refrain from meddling and talking too much."

He replied, "very well." She walked. He walked behind her. 

"The young lady to whom you are going, likes to have her way," said the woman, "and hates to be contradicted.  If you follow her wishes, she will be yours."

My brother said, "I will never contradict her in anything."

She brought him to a mansion full of servants. When the inmates of the mansion saw him, they asked, "what are you doing here?"

The old woman replied, "Leave him alone, he is a workman, we need him."

Then she took him to a spacious yard, in the middle of which stood lovely gardens, and she seated him on a fine couch. Soon he heard a great commotion, and came in a group of young ladies, surrounding another lady as lovely as the full moon. My brother rose and bowed to her. She welcomed him and bade him to be seated. As he sat, she told him, "God has chosen you and sent you as a blessing to us."

My brother replied, "My lady, the blessing is all mine." She called for food and they brought fine dishes. They sat to eat. The lady could not stop laughing. Whenever my brother looked at her, she looked away from her maids, as if she was laughing at them.  All the while her glances towards my brother were affectionate.  He concluded that she was in love with him.  After the food, wine was served, and there came ten lovely girls carrying lutes, and they began to sing plaintive songs which delighted my brother. Then the lady took the wine and drank and my brother rose.....

As he was drinking the cup in greeting, the lady gave him a slap on the neck.  He drew back in anger, but as the old woman kept winking at him, he returned and the lady bade him sit.  But she hit him again, and as if that was not enough, she ordered her maids to hit him too, all the while saying to the old woman, "I have never seen anything better than this," and the old woman replying, "Yes, By God, my lady. Then the lady ordered her maids to perfume my brother with incense and sprinkle rose water on him; then she said, "May God reward you. You have entered my house and submitted to my conditions, for whoever crosses me, I turn him away, but whoever is patient with me I grant him his wish."  My brother replied, "My lady, I am your slave." 

She bade all her maids to sing with loud voices, and they did as she said. She cried out to one of her maids, "Take my darling with you, take care of him, and bring him back to me soon."  My brother asked the old woman, "Tell me, what she wishes this maid to do with me?"

"Nothing but good," she replied, "She wants to dye your eyebrows and shave your moustache."

My brother said, "The dyeing of the eyebrows will come off with washing, but the plucking out of my moustaches will be hard on me."

The old woman warned, "Beware of crossing her, her heart is set on you."

My brother submitted.  The maid dyed his eyebrows and plucked his moustaches. The lady cried out, "Shave his chin, I want a beardless sweetheart."  The maid went back and began to shave my brother, and the old woman soothed him, "Be glad, she would not have done this to you if she had not been passionately in love with you. You are about to have your wish fulfilled."  My brother submitted willingly.

The maid brought him to her mistress, who was delighted and laughed until she fell on her back and said to him, "My lord, you have won my heart with your good nature."  Then she requested him to rise and dance.  When he began to dance she and her maids grabbed everything around them and threw it at him and he fell from pelting and hitting.  When he came to himself, the old woman said to him, "You will have your wish."

Morning overtook and Shahrazad lapsed into silence 

Notes:

1. Paraplegic: affected by paralysis.