by which time the sun had begun to appear. Then I ate some food and,
calling Bes, made ready to start for the palace.

"My son," said my mother, the lady Tiu, before we parted, "while you
have been sleeping I have been thinking, as is the way of the old.
Peroa, your cousin, will be glad enough to make use of you, but he
does not love you over much because he is jealous of you and fears
lest you should become his rival in the future. Still he is an honest
man and will keep a bargain which he once has made. Now it seems that
above everything on earth you desire Amada on whom you have set your
heart since boyhood, but who has always played with you and spoken to
you with her arm stretched out. Also life is short and may come to an
end any day, as you should know better than most men who have lived
among dangers, and therefore it is well that a man should take what he
desires, even if he finds afterwards that the rose he crushes to his
breast has thorns. For then at least he will have smelt the rose, not
only have looked on and longed to smell it. Therefore, before you hand
over your gold, and place your wit and strength at the service of
Peroa, make your bargain with him; namely, that if thereby you save
Amada from the King's House of Women and help to set Peroa on the
throne, he shall promise her to you free of any priestly curse, you
giving her as dowry the priceless rose-hued pearls that are worth a
kingdom. So you will get your rose till it withers, and if the thorns
prick, do not blame me, and one day you may become a king--or a slave,
Amen knows which."

Now I laughed and said that I would take her counsel who desired Amada
and nothing else. As for all her talk about thorns, I paid no heed to
it, knowing that she loved me very much and was jealous of Amada who
she thought would take her place with me.