“Then stay.” Hasim shrugged, the kitten bobbing gently with the motion. “Eat with me.”
“I wouldn’t want to intrude upon your time,” Francis said, only to be polite. He very much wanted to stay and intrude.
“Intrude?”
“Er, that is, to take up your time,” Francis explained.
“Ah.”
Hasim smiled, then casually looped his free arm through Francis’s arm, and began to lead him away.
“Let us take time together.”
* * * *
Francis was treated to a rather intimate meal with his new friend, Hasim.
There was no dinner table, no chairs, and no fancy cutlery to worry about. They reclined on silk cushions in the shelter of a blossom laden pavilion, eating with their hands from plates balanced in laps, watching the beautiful sunset over the gardens.
A few cats came to investigate what they were eating, which was a delightful entertainment all its own.
Francis was new to the joys of cats clambering over him and being playful. His friend, Hasim, less so, and grunted a few times with annoyance, though that only amused Francis further when the cats ignored his grunts.
One of the ever-present cat attendants came to their rescue, setting down a few small dishes of meat cuts to keep the cats busy.
“Eat,” Hasim urged. “While they are distracted.”
Francis didn’t mind the distractions, but he was hungry. He ate the delicious food: the exotic fruits, the small cubes of salty white cheese that crumbled in the mouth, the delicate cuts of spiced meat, and the exquisite tear and share bread. He drank plenty of the chai, arriving on a silver tray in tiny glass cups, sweetened with sugar lumps.
Everything was without fuss and ceremony, just the way Francis liked it.
Hasim passed more plates of fruit to Francis, and cut open a fig for him to try.
Francis hadn’t dined so closely with one man like this in a long time. They weren’t touching, but they sat almost close enough to, and there were many moments of gazes meeting and shared smiles.
Like a newly flowering bud, Francis realised this new friendship was off to a promising start.
That was, until a palace guard interrupted things.
The guard hurried into the pavilion, where he was met at once by the cat attendants. Hushed whispers were exchanged, along with glances sent his and Hasim’s way.
“Sorun nedir?” Hasim called over to them.
One of the attendants approached them, pink robes swishing around her legs.
“Bagislayin, efendim.” She stopped and ducked her chin in a polite head bow, then continued speaking in Turkish which Francis didn’t understand.
Hasim answered, and the two had a quick discussion with urgent words.
“I’m sorry,” Francis interjected. “Is anything the matter?”
Hasim turned to him. “One of the visitors has gone missing. An important one.”
“Oh, dear,” Francis said, hoping it wasn’t himself. “Well, he couldn’t have gone far?”
The attended spoke again, gesturing to Francis.
Hasim nodded. “Whose party did you arrive with?” he asked Francis.
