Arabian Tails

## Stats

**Arabian Tails** is the 23rd episode of the series *The Country Mouse and the City Mouse Adventures* that aired on May 17th, 1998. The setting in this episode is Iraq.

## Summary

In the desert, Emily and Alexander ride in a camel's basket along with their cousin Siri. Emily reminds Alexander to not drink all their water in one gulp, as Siri said that the desert is a "vast ocean with no water". Alexander comments that he feels seasick, which Emily says that he should've wore a hat. Siri wishes they could get to camp, as she's worried about friend Abdul and his family because it has been so hot, the water and the oases have been drying up, and wishes they could find The Lost Oasis, a rumored place with trees that grow like magic and a water fountain. A sandstorm occurs, but everyone is alright once it passes, however, unfortunately they are lost. Emily spots a tree, and Alexander runs to it but it is just a mirage.

Seating under a tree, a snake appears but it gets stunned by music playing, and consequently, so does Alexander. It is Abdul who plays the music, and Siri explains that Abdul had charmed the snake. Abdul remarks that he can only hypnotize lizards and snakes and can't make them act like a chicken, and Alexander starts clucking like one. He also spins around and then wakes back to reality with a snap of Abdul's fingers. They then go to his camp by sundown, when they hear two people arguing in a tent about them stealing the water. Though, one of them is Abdul's dad and both he and the other person named Khaleed make up after seeing Abdul, and they all eat in their tent, so do the mice. Alexander says that he and Emily could find The Lost Oasis as they are great at finding things. Siri says that the legend brings up that the oasis is protected by the guardians of the king's footsteps, but nobody knows what it means. Alexander is sure he's heard that phrase before, but doesn't recall where.

That night, Abdul goes out to untie his camel, Habibi, as he needs to find water soon. Emily suggests he hypnotizes the camel, so he attempts to do so with his flute and says to go into the desert and bring back water jugs. While it doesn't work for Habibi after all and he just aggressively hits Habibi with his head, Alexander falls under the spell and starts wandering off. While he walks into the desert, a snake attempts to eat him but it just bites it's own tail, and even a bird tries to get him. He makes it to Khaleed's tents where he and his men get ready on their journey to find The Lost Oasis beginning in the morning, telling them to put pomegranate on a rope holding their water camel rope to reveal who stole it if they do so. Alexander manages to take it and pokes holes into the water sacks to fill the jugs.

That next morning, people at Abdul's camp are celebrating the water find. Abdul is believed that it was Habibi who did his deed after all, and snaps him back to reality which actually happens to Alexander, who made it back into the tent. Alexander, confused, lays down but he is woken up by Emily who tells him the good news. She questions the red juice stains over his clothes, but he doesn't know and goes back to sleep. Then, Khaleeds arrives questioning the whereabouts of his water camel. He finds the jugs are suddenly filled and one of the sacks fall off a camel, and blames Saleem, but Saleem tells him that he'll bring the person responsible for this theft to him. Abdul arrives with the red stains on him as well, which were left by Alexander's footprints, which makes him billed as the thief, Saleem's own son. Abdul tries to explain, but Khaleed doesn't buy his story and he has to leave with Khaleed. Siri is very sad. Emily finds mouse footprints that lead into Alexander's tent, and Alexander himself wakes up. Told the problem, he embarks to find who the real thief is. Habibi gives them a ride to Khaleed's camp, where they find Abdul inside a tent. Abdul explains that he played his flute and just told Habibi to get water, and he accidentally hypnotizes Alexander again. Emily concludes that Alexander was the one who stole the water because he was hypnotized.

He leaves and takes Habibi, so they come up with a plan to pass the guards. Siri covers the plate of dates with honey, while Emily uses rope on a sack to tie to the guards' ankles. A lady collects the dates and the guards find them to be too sticky. At that same moment, Abdul runs out and when the guards try running after them they fall. Alexander gets picked up by a passing bird, making Siri and Emily question how his tracks mysteriously disappeared. Though, they find an ancient tablet with images drawn on it, which could be an ancient map for The Lost Oasis. Abdul lifts it up, causing the place to shake and unveil a large palace ruins. It also makes the bird drop Alexander and he gets inside, and he almost walks in a hole but Siri quickly snaps her fingers. Even then, they still have to save him from a branch. Emily tells Alexander what happened and while he feel embarrassed, Siri spies water falling from a hole in the ceiling. Up there, they find two statues and Alexander remembers that they were "the guardians of the king's footsteps". The statues have parts of a message written in an ancient language, so Alexander and Siri move a rock to combine them together, right when Abdul comes. Abdul presses something by accident, and water comes flowing out. Alexander mentions that it must be the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. Sheikh Khalid comes with his men and is happy about this discovery, and he declares that it should be called Abdul's Oasis. Later at home, Emily asks Alexander if he thought that was a good adventure, when he enters the room hypnotized. Emily is worried, but Alexander laughs at her face because it was a joke.