The Jewel Orchard Read online

  Copyright © 2013 Disney Enterprises, Inc.

  All rights reserved. Published by Disney Press, an imprint of Disney Book Group. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the publisher. For information address Disney Press, 114 Fifth Avenue, New York, New York 10011-5690.

  ISBN 978-1-4231-8703-5

  For more Disney Press fun, visit www.disneybooks.com

  Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  The moment Princess Jasmine walked into the palace dining room, she could tell something was wrong. Her father, the Sultan of Agrabah, had a huge frown on his face, and there was nothing on his breakfast plate. That was unusual.

  “Good morning, Father,” Jasmine said as she slipped into her usual seat. She reached for a crystal pitcher and poured herself a glass of milk. “Is everything all right?”

  “Well, my dear, not really,” the Sultan said, clearly distressed. He gestured at the table.

  Jasmine glanced at all the food. She saw platters of pastries and bowls of creamy yogurt topped with honey and walnuts. In the center of the table was a tower of breads and hot rolls. It looked like a feast fit for a sultan!

  “I think everything looks delicious!” Jasmine replied.

  The Sultan looked disappointed. “Where are my favorite date-and-apple pancakes?” he asked.

  Jasmine tried not to smile. “Oh, I do see that those are missing,” she said sympathetically. She looked at one of the servers. “Rajeed, did something happen to the pancakes?”

  Rajeed took a step forward. “Princess, please accept the apologies of the kitchen. The royal chef was unable to prepare the pancakes, as there were no dates to be had in the market.”

  “Thank you, Rajeed,” Jasmine said kindly. Then she turned to the Sultan. “I knew there had to be a reasonable explanation.”

  “I suppose,” the Sultan said, still pouting. “Rajeed, would you please tell the chef that I would love some persimmon soup with lunch?”

  “We will do our very best,” Rajeed promised before he left the dining room.

  “It just doesn’t make any sense,” the Sultan said to his daughter. “This is the height of date season! How can the entire market of Agrabah run out of dates?”

  “Well, perhaps you’re not the only one who is so fond of date-and-apple pancakes,” Jasmine teased her father. “And I’m sure that your special pancakes will be served as soon as more dates have been harvested.”

  “Very well.” The Sultan sighed. Then he glanced around the table and realized that someone was missing: Prince Aladdin, Jasmine’s husband. “Where is Aladdin this morning?”

  “Oh, he and the Magic Carpet left before dawn,” Jasmine replied. “They’re on their way to the royal menagerie. The peacock hatchlings are big enough to live in the pavilion now!”

  For the first time that morning, the Sultan smiled. “Splendid, splendid!” he exclaimed. For weeks, the Sultan had been looking forward to the peacocks’ arrival. He loved the birds’ brilliantly colored feathers. “And what will you do today, dearest?” he asked his daughter.

  “Oh, I’m sure I’ll think of something,” replied Jasmine. She glanced across the table at Aladdin’s pet monkey, Abu, who had stuffed his face with walnuts. “Abu, maybe you’d like to help me get the pavilion ready for the peacocks.”

  Abu clapped his hands as he jumped up and down, scattering broken walnut shells across the table.

  As soon as they finished breakfast, Jasmine and Abu went to the pavilion. Jasmine could hardly believe what she saw there. The fresh straw for the peacocks’ nests had been scattered throughout the open courtyard. One of the tall fountains had been knocked over. There were even some tiles that had fallen off the roof!

  “This is dreadful!” Jasmine gasped. “What happened here?”

  “It was the storm, Princess!” a servant called from the roof. “All that wind last night caused more damage than we expected. But we’ll have it fixed in no time.”

  “Oh, yes,” Jasmine said at once. “That was a tremendous windstorm, wasn’t it? Well, don’t worry about the peacock area. Abu and I will take care of that.”

  First, Jasmine and Abu made sure that the peacocks’ nests were full of fresh, clean straw. Then Jasmine moved the nests closer to a fountain so that the peacocks would have plenty of water to drink.

  Abu started chattering as he pointed at a large bowl near the fountain.

  “You’re absolutely right, Abu,” Jasmine said. “Our peacocks will need some grain, of course! I will go and get some from the kitchen.”

  That made Abu chatter even louder—and this time, he rubbed his tummy.

  Jasmine laughed. “Are you hungry, too? I will bring you a snack. Would you like some grapes?”

  Abu grinned and nodded his head. He never turned down a snack!

  “I’ll be right back,” Jasmine promised. She picked up the bowl and carried it to the kitchen. As she poured the grain for the peacocks, Jasmine couldn’t help overhearing a conversation between Rajeed and the royal chef.

  “And I am telling you that it is not possible!” the chef cried.

  “Then perhaps you should be the one to explain that to His Majesty, the Sultan,” Rajeed replied. “He has requested persimmon soup for lunch, and I am merely passing on his request.”

  “But how can I make persimmon soup without persimmons?” the chef cried. “I am not a miracle worker! How can I make something out of nothing!”

  “Perhaps the fruit deliveries were late this morning,” Rajeed suggested.

  The chef shook his head. “Amir just came back from the market,” he said. “I told him to buy any fruit that he could. And yet he has returned empty-handed. There is no fruit for sale in the market—none! No apples, no pomegranates, no dates, and no persimmons. Not even a single grape!” He threw his hands up into the air.

  No fruit for sale? Jasmine thought. How can that be? She knew that hundreds of fruit trees grew in the royal orchards outside Agrabah. Jasmine couldn’t remember a time when the palace—and the entire city—was not full of fresh fruit.

  Suddenly, Jasmine knew how she wanted to spend the day. She hurried back to the pavilion and placed the bowl of grain near the fountain. Then Abu scampered up to her. He held out his paw for the treat she had promised him.

  “I am sorry, Abu,” Jasmine said. “There weren’t any grapes in the kitchen. Let’s go to the market and see if we can find some.”

  Something strange was happening in the city of Agrabah.

  And Jasmine was determined to find out what it was!

  Before she left the palace, Jasmine changed into a simple brown dress. Then she wrapped a matching plain brown scarf around her head. The scarf hid the bejeweled headband that gave away her royal identity. Jasmine could travel much faster through the crowded streets of Agrabah when people wouldn’t be able to recognize her! She grabbed her satchel.

  “Ready, Abu?” Jasmine asked as they headed out. Then she laughed as she noticed that Abu had a tiny little satchel of his own. He wore it across his body. “I see, my friend—a place to put your grapes.” Jasmine smiled.

  Jasmine and Abu left the palace and went through the gate. It was easy to get lost in Agrabah’s twisty streets, but Jasmine knew that Abu was a great tour guide! After all, he and Aladdin had lived on the city streets for years before they had come to the palace.

  Soon, the pai
r reached the market. It was one of the busiest and most exciting places in all of Agrabah. Hundreds of stalls and tents lined the streets. Almost anything imaginable was available in the market, from colorful rugs to brass lamps to vivid bolts of fabric. The scents of fragrant spices like cinnamon, cardamom, and coriander filled the air. There were tents that sold silk slippers and leather sandals. There were even tents that sold jewels and gold!

  Usually, Jasmine loved to visit each and every stall, admiring all the beautiful and interesting items on display. Today, though, Jasmine and Abu went straight to where they would find fruit.

  “Let’s start at Mr. Kabali’s stand,” Jasmine suggested. She had never met Mr. Kabali, but everyone in Agrabah knew that he sold the best apples in town. Jasmine had often heard that the line for Mr. Kabali’s fruit stretched all the way down the street.

  But today, there was no line at Mr. Kabali’s stand.

  And there was no fruit!

  The baskets on each shelf were empty. Mr. Kabali stood behind the counter, glumly polishing it with a soft cloth.

  “Mr. Kabali looks so sad,” Jasmine whispered to Abu. “Maybe he knows what happened to the fruit. Let’s go talk to him.”

  “Good morning!” Jasmine called out as she approached. “I was hoping to buy some apples.”

  Mr. Kabali just shook his head. “I’m very sorry, miss,” he replied. “I am afraid I have no apples to offer you.”

  “Oh, dear,” Jasmine said. “Has something happened to the apple harvest?”

  Mr. Kabali shrugged his shoulders. “If so, then something has also happened to the date harvest,” he replied. “I placed my usual order for two bushels, and yet I received nothing.”

  “Hopefully things will be right tomorrow,” Jasmine said. She smiled encouragingly at Mr. Kabali. He tried to smile back, but Jasmine could tell he was very worried.

  Mr. Kabali wasn’t the only one. The market was usually full of laughter and chatter as the people of Agrabah visited with their friends and neighbors. But today, everyone seemed quieter than usual as they shopped.

  Abu tugged on Jasmine’s dress and patted his satchel.

  “Of course we’ll stop by the grape stand,” Jasmine promised him. “But it is all the way across the market. Since the pomegranate stand is closer, let’s go there next.”

  Pomegranates were one of Jasmine’s favorite fruits. She loved to drink tall glasses of cool pomegranate juice on hot afternoons. But to Jasmine’s dismay, all the shelves in the pomegranate stand were bare, too.

  Then Jasmine and Abu visited the stall that always sold mangoes—well, almost always. Today, the mango stall was closed.

  Their next stop was the persimmon seller. Jasmine held her breath as she approached, hoping to see an enormous display of the small orange fruits.

  But every basket and shelf was empty.

  It was just as the royal chef had said: there wasn’t a single piece of fresh fruit for sale in the entire market!

  “This is so strange,” Jasmine remarked. “Abu, what could have happened?”

  There was no reply. Jasmine looked down and realized that the monkey wasn’t there!

  “Abu?” she said again, louder this time. Jasmine looked to the left and the right. She looked under the counter and on top of the canopy. Abu was nowhere to be seen.

  The little monkey was gone!

  “Abu!” Jasmine cried. Her heart started to pound. Even though Abu knew his way around the market, Jasmine was worried that he might have gotten lost. She also knew that sometimes the little monkey took things that didn’t belong to him. If Abu got caught stealing, he could be in serious trouble. Jasmine had to find him right away!

  Jasmine rushed through the streets of the marketplace. But soon, she had to stop to rest. She leaned against a tall statue as she tried to catch her breath. If you were Abu, where would you go? Jasmine thought to herself.

  The princess bit her lip as she tried to answer the question. Then her eyes lit up. “Grapes!” she exclaimed. All day long, Abu had wanted to eat some grapes. Maybe he’d gotten so tired of waiting that he’d wandered off to the grape seller’s stand without her!

  Jasmine glanced up at the sky. The sun was starting to set, and she didn’t want to be out much longer. She had only been to the grape stand once before, but Jasmine was sure she could find it again. It was located across from the high wall that surrounded the city.

  Jasmine ran all the way to the southern wall and followed it to the grape stand. By the time she arrived, the market had started to empty. Sellers were packing up their wares and closing their stalls.

  “Abu!” Jasmine called again as she approached the grape stand. The last time she’d seen it, dozens of baskets had lined the shelves. Clusters of exotic grapes in every color—red, green, blue, and black—spilled out of the baskets.

  But today, the grape stand was empty.

  “Oh, Abu, where are you?” Jasmine cried.

  Suddenly, the monkey jumped out from behind the grape stand and threw his arms around Jasmine’s neck.

  “Oh!” Jasmine cried, surprised. “Abu, I was so worried about you! I’ve been looking for you everywhere!”

  Abu started chattering excitedly, jumping up and down as he pointed at the grape stand.

  “Yes, yes, I know,” Jasmine said. “I am so sorry that there are no grapes. But we must hurry back to the palace. It will soon be dark!”

  Clutching his satchel tightly, Abu rode on Jasmine’s shoulder as she ran through the twisting streets of Agrabah. The first stars appeared in the sky just as they reached the palace gates.

  “Stop in the name of the Sultan!” Rasoul, the head of the guards, shouted. “Who goes there?”

  Jasmine pulled back the scarf to reveal the jewel in her hair. “It is I, Princess Jasmine of Agrabah,” she announced.

  At once, the guards swung open the heavy metal gates so that the princess could come inside. Abu scurried into the palace.

  “There you are,” a familiar voice said. Jasmine smiled when she saw who it was.

  “I might have known you two were up to something,” Aladdin continued with a playful twinkle in his eye as Abu ran past him. “I hope you haven’t caused too much trouble today!”

  “Well, there is trouble,” Jasmine said slowly. “But we did nothing to cause it.”

  A frown crossed Aladdin’s face. “You must be tired,” he said. “Come, let’s sit in the tearoom and you can tell me about it.”

  On their way into the tearoom, Jasmine and Aladdin passed by the pavilion. “Oh! Look at all the peacocks!” Jasmine cried in delight as six peacocks strutted around the courtyard. She smiled when she saw the Sultan trying to coax one of the birds to eat out of his hand.

  “So what happened today?” Aladdin asked when they sat down.

  “Something very strange is going on,” Jasmine began. She told Aladdin everything, from the missing pancakes at breakfast to the empty fruit stands at the market.

  “That is strange,” Aladdin agreed. “You know, it hasn’t rained in a few weeks. Perhaps that has something to do with it.”

  Jasmine shook her head. “The royal orchards are watered by a series of fountains for precisely that reason. There should be plenty of fruit,” she explained. All this talk of water made Jasmine realize that there wasn’t any tea on the table! The princess got up to fetch the teapot herself.

  “Oh!” she suddenly cried.

  “What’s wrong?” Aladdin asked, jumping up from his seat.

  “I just stepped on something hard,” Jasmine told him as she bent down to see what it was. When she picked up the object, she saw that it was a perfect gemstone in the most beautiful shade of purple that she had ever seen.

  “It’s an amethyst!” Jasmine exclaimed. “But what was it doing on the floor?”

  “I have no idea,” Aladdin replied. Then he saw something else. “Hey, what’s that?” He pointed behind Jasmine. She turned around to see another amethyst glinting on the ground!

  �
�It matches the other one perfectly,” Jasmine said. She held the gems up to her ears. “They would make a lovely pair of earrings, wouldn’t they?” She smiled.

  Before Aladdin could respond, he and Jasmine heard the sound of something rolling across the floor. They glanced at the doorway just in time to see another amethyst roll to a stop. It sparkled in the light.

  Jasmine and Aladdin looked at each other, confused. “These jewels must belong to someone,” Jasmine said, “and we’re going to find out whom!”

  In the corridor outside the tearoom, Jasmine immediately spotted another amethyst.

  Then she saw another.

  And another!

  The precious jewels made a clinking sound as Jasmine clutched them in her hand. Six amethysts…then seven…then eight…

  When Jasmine and Aladdin crept around the corner, they found Abu sitting with a pile of amethysts in his lap! Jasmine’s hand flew to her mouth as she watched Abu try to bite one of the amethysts. Then he made a face and tossed it away.

  “Ow!” Aladdin yelped as the amethyst bounced off his head.

  Abu scrambled up, surprised to see Jasmine and Aladdin. He hugged Aladdin’s leg tightly and looked up at the prince with his big eyes, clearly upset that he had hurt his friend.

  “Okay, okay, okay,” Aladdin said with a laugh. “It feels better already. But you’ve got some explaining to do, Abu. Where did you get these?”

  Abu jumped down to the floor and scooped the amethysts together so that they looked like a bunch of grapes. Then he danced around them, clapping his hands happily.

  “So that’s why you were so excited at the grape stand,” Jasmine realized. “You thought you had found some delicious grapes after all.”

  “I guess these aren’t so tasty, are they?” Aladdin joked. “They sure are beautiful, though.”

  Abu enthusiastically nodded his head in agreement.

  “Whoever owns these jewels is probably missing them, don’t you think?” Aladdin continued.