So this one shot is maybe a little under a month before the wedding and I just always thought Dastan would like stars. Enjoy!

Tamina couldn't sleep and yet she was very tired. Her mind was still buzzing with the conversation she had had with the Alamution High Council, who had called a meeting which had taken early that morning.

That morning had dawned far too early for Tamina's liking as she had spent the night tossing and turning in her bed. In fact Tamina hadn't been able to get a good night's sleep for the past few nights. The reason for her sleepless nights was easy to explain, but not to remedy. The first night she hadn't been able to rest had followed the first time that Dastan had told her about his adventure the dagger. Yes that dagger. Her first reaction had been of the utmost horror when she found out that he knew every secret the city held and then shocked when she found he had no desire to exploit them.

Tamina had demanded right then and there to tell her the whole story not sparing the slightest detail. Although she told a serene Dastan that it was her duty to know so she could protect the dagger, the further her betrothed got into his – their story the more she wanted to know for herself, rather than just the daggers protection.

The only problem was that the story kept on getting interrupted. Several times Tamina became incredibly angry at Dastan for his actions and no moment in his story were these fits of rage best induced when Dastan revealed that he had sold her to a bunch of ostrich racing garboons. Now that had been an interesting afternoon.

"You did what?"

"I sold you to a tax evasive, ostrich racing business man."

"You did WHAT!"

"Well you did knock me out while pretending to faint of dehydration and-"

"MINOR DETAIL!"

At this point Dastan could not hold his lauphter back any longer, further infuriating Tamina. When she stomped out of the room, she could still hear his lauphter and it continued to ring in her ears for many hours afterwards. Less than a day later she walked back to his room and quietly asked for him to continue his story. Dastan simply smiled fondly and continued his story.

Other times servants seemed to burst into the room saying that Tamina was needed to do or oversee this or that. After the third servant interruption, Tamina had no doubt who was ordering them. It was obviously the high council and it was so very them to do such a thing. It was only after she met Dastan did she realize how puppeteer like the council really was. For her whole life she had been pushed and pulled to become exactly what the council wanted her to be from the moment Tamina's mother had passed away in her sleep. But had it really been by natural causes? Her mother had been in perfect health that evening. And a prophecy had been made soon after Tamina had been born that she would be the daggers best guardian since it had been given to man. Then soon after her mother's death, her cat Dragon [after her favorite flowers – snap dragons] that the council had openly disapproved went "missing". Tamina never saw Dragon again.

Similar events happened throughout her life, but it wasn't till Dastan came into her life that began to question them. Although the council did could not control her thoughts and feelings, they could sensor everything around her. Make sure she saw only what they wanted her to see, but Dastan, Dastan was a wild card the council had not anticipated. He unlike anyone ells she had ever known, he followed his heart no matter what the consequences, and his heart was not just any heart, but one not corrupted by greed and power, but noble and true, though and through and yet the council was still trying to separate them! After spending a good two hours convincing them that Dastan's plan was for the good of the world, they told her Dastan was a worthless, abet lucky street rat, born on the streets of Nasaf, the Persian capital.

The councils words made Tamina mad, but not at Dastan for not telling her. Although the princess did not know the prince nearly as well as his family did, she did know him well enough that she was sure Dastan would tell her when he was ready. No she was furious at the stupid, idiotic, controlling council for trying to do everything for her. Just thinking about them made her angry, but she was curious about her betrothed past.

Gods Tamina was tired! But she still could not bring herself to fall asleep. Dastan had finished his grand story the day before and she had gotten the council to approve of Dastan's plan to deal with the hassansins at the meeting that morning and she could ask him about his origins tomorrow, so why was she still so worried. Tamina had no logical reason to be. Even the rouge guardian had been found and imprisoned that afternoon.

Something was wrong, but Tamina could not remember what it was. After the council had informed her of Dastan's true birth, they had proceeded to remind her of what they had told her when she had first accepted the prince's proposal. He could not be trusted, but now Tamina wasn't so sure. She felt . . . different around him and whenever she remembered his laughter she couldn't help but smile. The only time she could have sworn he wasn't telling her the whole truth was in his story, right after they killed the leader of the hassansins. He had paused for a moment and looked out the window while he continued that part of the story.

It was then that Tamina knew what was wrong.

She leapt out of her bed and few out the door not even bothering to grab her night robe. Flying down the corridors to his chamber, Tamina realized he hadn't been telling the whole truth and for once she wanted to know for herself and not for the "daggers safety" or any other pathetic excuse she had hid behind for so long.

When Tamina finally burst into his room, she was immensely disappointed to find an empty room with wrinkled sheets and opened widows. Tamina was about to leave when she froze and turned around very slowly. Opened windows? No he wou, actually yes, yes he would, she thought. Tamina couldn't help the smile that came to her lips. Climbing out onto the roof was so very Dastan that a part of her couldn't believe she didn't assume what he had done the moment she saw the opened windows. Judging by the state of his sheets, he hadn't been able to sleep well either.

Taking a deep breath Tamina lifted her night gown so she could step onto the roof of the palace. Gingerly she continued to walk toward a dark figure lying on its back not too far from where Tamina was standing. When she was around ten feet from the figure, Tamina felt it was safe to call out to the dark figure she hoped was her husband to be,

"Dastan!" she called softly

The figure jerked up looking over in her direction.

"Tamina?" he called back

"Hi" she said sheepishly coming closer so she was standing right next to where he was now sitting.

"May I join you?"

"Of course you may. Could you not sleep or where you so eager to see me you just couldn't wait?"

Tamina knew he was teasing her by the sound of his voice, but she wasn't sure how to answer him yet. After several moments of silence Dastan spoke to her again.

"You wanted to talk didn't you?"

"Is it true you're not of royal blood?"She asked suddenly turning to look at his face, after sitting down beside him.

"Yes it is. Why do you ask?" He told her looking her in the eyes and cocking one eye brow.

"Apparently the high council thought it prudent I know. . . But I want to hear it from you, not a bunch of biased, over protective elders."

On the word you, Tamina [feeling very daring] gently put a hand on his cheek, ignoring the feeling of electricity when Dastan caught her hand in his and kept her palm pressed to his check. A short laugh escaped from his lips when she insulted the council and his blue eyes still visible in the moon light were full of kindness.

"Twenty five years ago I was born on the streets of Nasaf the capital of Persia. My father died as a solder in the Persian army when I was three. Two years later my mother died of some sort of diseases and I became an orphan."

Tamina's eyes widened with shock, suddenly feeling upset that she had not known this information earlier.

"Then when I was ten, I saved my friend Bis from dying at the hand of Persian guard and the king just happened to see me do so. I've been a prince ever since. . . But the question I must ask is does it matter to you that I am not of noble blood?"

"No, not to me. What is not in your blood, you make up for in heart" Tamina told him smiling softly.

Dastan returned the smile, taking her hand and putting it over his heart.

"Thank you Tamina"

"There was something ells I wanted to ask you about" If she didn't ask now, Tamina didn't k now if she'd ever get a truthful answer out of him again.

"And that would be?"

"There was more to your story then what you told me wasn't there." Dastan searched her eyes carefully looking for deception.

"Do you need to know because you want to know, or because you feel it will better help you protect the dagger?"

When Dastan put his question like that Tamina realized what she meant when she thought she felt different around him. She felt safe, she felt happy and even more then that she felt loved. And hadn't that been what she had truly wanted all along? A moment later when Tamina answered him she knew in her heart that she was telling him the truth.

"I need to know because I want to know. Please will you tell me?"

"After we killed the Hassansins, we kissed. Brief yes, but we did kiss. Then. . ." He paused. Tamina still remembered the look in his eyes when he first told her how they had been dangling off that accursed cliff and how she had sacrificed herself, but she had never seen him look so haunted. Tamina had to do something to help him feel better, but she didn't know what. So she grabbed his empty hand with hers and squeezed it the way her mother had when she was little and scared. It seemed to work too. Taking a deep breath he looked her straight in the eyes and continued with what had taken place between them.

"Then when we were dangling over the cliff you told me that you wished that we could have been together. Then you let go . . .screaming my name as you fell" Dastan put one of his hands on her face, gently stroking her cheek with his thumb.

Then as if Tamina couldn't take the electricity running though her veins at his touch, she leaned forward and kissed him chastely on his lips as he tenderly kissed her back. When they separated, Dastan had a soft smile gracing his face and eyes filled with. . . love.

"Come and look at the stars with me. Tell me what you see."

Laying down Tamina could not believe that she had never just looked up to marvel the stars before.

"There're so beautiful and other worldly."

"When I was an orphan I would stay up for hours just looking at them. I don't know why, but I just did. I guess I always thought that the stars were stories written in the sky and hoped that if I looked at them long enough I could read them." Dastan turned toward Tamina to find her already looking at him.

The sleepless night were finally about to consume her, but she had to ask him something before they did.

"When I fall asleep out here, will you keep me safe?"

Tamina had just started to shiver as it had begun to get very cold on the palace roof. Dastan had a beautiful smile on his face when he answered her.

"I promise to protect you forever and always"

"Thank you Dastan"

She could just feel him throw a thick blanket over them but when he wrapped his arms around her frame and placed a kiss to her forehead, she found herself very warm indeed.

As Tamina snuggled closer to Dastan, she had the shrewdest feeling that for the first time in a long time, that when she woke up she would be happy.

Please Review as always!

Lots of love M.G.B.