Page:Tales from the Arabic, Vol 1.djvu/129

109 So he carried her to a place wherein was running water and setting her down on the ground, left her and went away, marvelling at her. After he left her, he found his camels, by her blessing, and when he returned, King Kisra asked him, ‘Hast thou found the camels?’ [‘Yes,’ answered he] and acquainted him with the affair of the damsel and set out to him her beauty and grace; whereupon the king’s heart clave to her and he mounted with a few men and betook himself to that place, where he found the damsel and was amazed at her, for that he saw her overpassing the description wherewith the camel-driver had described her to him. So he accosted her and said to her, ‘I am King Kisra, greatest of the kings. Wilt thou not have me to husband?’ Quoth she, ‘What wilt thou do with me, O king, and I a woman abandoned in the desert?’ And he answered, saying, ‘Needs must this be, and if thou wilt not consent to me, I will take up my sojourn here and devote myself to God’s service and thine and worship Him with thee.’

Then he bade set up for her a tent and another for himself, facing hers, so he might worship God with her, and fell to sending her food; and she said in herself, ‘This is a king and it is not lawful for me that I suffer him forsake his subjects and his kingdom for my sake.’ So she said to the serving-woman, who used to bring her the food, ‘Speak to the king, so he may return to his women, for he hath no need of me and I desire to abide in this place, so I may worship God the Most High therein.’ The slave-girl returned to the king and told him this, whereupon he sent back to her, saying, ‘I have no need of the