Badriya as-Sahra is sick of piling up camel dung and picking people's pockets for a living. Her world discriminates against women and orphans, and it is only her damned luck that she happens to be both. She yearns for more but can't do anything else...
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Back in her private chambers, Badriya took out the Jewel. Kareem appeared in front of her in a wisp of golden smoke, sitting on a long, cushioned bench while gazing at an empty parchment.
"Kareem, I need you to- What are you doing?"
Kareem glanced up from the sheet. "What? I'm thinking of writing a list of things I want to do once I'm all done here. I'm not allowed to do that, hm?"
"I'm not even going to ask." Badriya rolled her eyes. "Kareem, I have a few wishes that need some granting."
Sighing, the djinnsnapped his fingers, which caused the parchment to disappear from his grasp. "A djinn's work is never done. What is it? Is it something boring again?"
As Badriya began to explain the ideas she had in mind, a wide grin slowly formed on Kareem's face. By the time she was done talking, he had already jumped from his seat and rubbed his palms together, as if he were the one planning the elaborate scheme.
"You're slowly becoming my favorite master, sayyida," he said. "Consider all those wishes accomplished."
With a few snaps of his fingers, everything around Badriya spun into a whirlwind of sand. For a moment, she thought Kareem had been messing with her, tricking her into some sort of prank. Her heart raced as she saw nothing but gritty sand that forced her to close her eyes and mouth. But eventually, the storm died down, and she was standing in her room again like nothing happened.
One of the doors opened, and Kareem peeked from outside. His outfit had changed from violet and gold into white and silver. A turban too big for his size slid over his head, which he adjusted with his hand.
Badriya stomped towards him. "What was the sandstorm for? What did you do?"
"Sandstorm? What sandstorm?" Kareem looked at her innocently. "I was simply doing my job. See here?"
He swung the door open. Badriya stepped outside and gasped. She didn't think the palace couldn't be more extravagant, but Kareem did it.
Golden stripes snaked around the marble columns, complimenting the brown color of the palace's support. Red carpets ran continuously and covered the floors. Long lines of hanging lamps crisscrossed the ceiling, giving the halls warm light.
But that wasn't the part that caught her attention the most.
Sweet-smelling plants bloomed inside jars of different shapes and sizes, which were arranged throughout the halls. The plants had leaves that made swirling patterns around their centers. Some of them were blue and red, yellow and pink. Even white. They had many leaves in their bottoms-some with a few thorns. Until now, she had no idea plants could come in those colors.
Badriya plucked one of them from its stem, looking at it up close. "This is... beautiful! What are these things called?"
"Those 'things' are flowers. Naayiki pearl blooms, to be exact," Kareem replied. "Your first time seeing flowers?"
