An adaptation of The Story of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves from The Arabian Nights: Their Best-known Tales.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1: The Woodcutter’s Discovery

Once upon a time, a boy named Ali lived in a bustling city in Persia. His family’s small house, with its courtyard full of fragrant jasmine, sat nestled among the winding streets of the old city.
Years later, when he became a respected merchant, people would call him Ali Baba, but our story begins when he was simply Ali, a young woodcutter who lived with his parents, his clever sister Marjana, and his older brother Cassim.
The family gathered in their small courtyard for breakfast in the soft light of dawn. Ali sat cross-legged on a cushion beside his siblings as Marjana poured tea into small glass cups while Cassim tore pieces from the warm flatbread their mother had baked.
The morning air was still cool, carrying the mingled scents from their small garden plot.
“The forest will be quiet today,” Ali said, dipping a piece of warm flatbread in honey. Though he was the youngest, it had fallen to him to help support the family by gathering and selling firewood.
Marjana passed him the plate of white cheese. “Be careful, brother,” she said softly. “Even quiet forests can hide secrets.”
Cassim, already apprenticed to a silk merchant, raised an eyebrow. “Listen to Marjana, little brother,” he said, as only an older brother can, protective yet patronizing. “Some say there are bandits in those woods.
Ali smiled at his siblings’ concern but said nothing as he finished breakfast. He could hear his three donkeys shuffling impatiently in their small stable at the edge of the courtyard. The morning sun was climbing higher, and it was time to begin his day’s work.
Ali guided his donkeys through the winding streets. This familiar path would take Ali beyond the city walls to the forest, where he would gather his firewood.
Chapter 2: The Secret Cave

The sun had climbed high in the sky as Ali worked, his back warm from gathering wood. His three donkeys grazed nearby, their saddlebags already half-full with the morning’s collection. The forest was indeed quiet, just as he had predicted at breakfast, with only the occasional song of a nightingale breaking the silence.
Suddenly, the peaceful afternoon was interrupted by the distant sound of hoofbeats. Ali froze, Cassim’s words about bandits echoing in his mind.
He quickly led his donkeys behind a massive boulder. Holding their reins to keep them still, he peered around the stone.
A group of forty horsemen thundered into view. They came to a halt before a towering cliff face that Ali had passed hundreds of times before. Their leader, wearing a deep red cloak, dismounted with one swift motion.
The man raised his arms and spoke in a voice that rang with authority: “Open, Sesame!”
Ali watched in amazement as a door materialized in the solid rock and slowly swung open. In that first glimpse, he saw piles of treasure that took his breath away.
The men, who Ali now realized must be bandits, began unloading their horses. They carried ornate chests, silk-wrapped bundles, and bags that clinked with the unmistakable sound of coins.
The men worked quickly and quietly like they had done this a hundred times before.
When the last of their plunder was stored, the leader stood before the entrance. “Close, Sesame!” The door sealed seamlessly into the cliff face, leaving no trace it had ever existed.
Ali waited until the sound of hooves had faded completely, his heart pounding like a drum beneath his ribs. His hands trembled as he led his donkeys to the cliff face. Speaking barely above a whisper, he repeated the magic words: “Open, Sesame!”
The door appeared once more. Ali stepped inside, and his breath caught in his throat. The cave was vast, its walls lined with Persian carpets finer than any he’d seen in the bazaar. Piles of gold coins shared space with jewels that sparkled like captured stars. Silk tapestries hung between stacks of carved wooden chests, and the air was heavy with the scent of exotic spices.
Remembering his sister’s words about secrets in quiet forests, Ali filled a small leather pouch with gold coins. It was enough to help his family, he reasoned, but not so much that it would be noticed. Then, with shaking hands, he sealed the pouch and hurried from the cave.
“Close, Sesame!” he called, watching the door disappear. His three donkeys, still laden with firewood, stood patiently waiting. As Ali led them home through the lengthening shadows of late afternoon, the weight of the gold against his chest felt as heavy as his secret.
Chapter 3: A Brother’s Greed

That evening, Ali could hardly eat dinner, his mind still in the mysterious cave. He watched his family eating and talking as they did every evening. Everything was the same, yet everything felt different.
He watched his older brother, remembering all the times Cassim had protected and guided him.
After their parents and Marjana were sleeping, Ali approached his brother, who sat counting the day’s earnings from the silk merchant’s shop.
“Cassim,” Ali whispered, “I need to tell you something about the forest.”
Cassim looked up with genuine curiosity at his younger brother’s serious tone. As Ali revealed his discovery, Cassim’s eyes grew wider and wider.
“Show me,” Cassim demanded, his voice harsh with sudden urgency. “Tomorrow morning, before the bazaar opens, you must take me there.”
Ali hesitated, remembering Marjana’s warning about quiet forests and their secrets. But this was Cassim, his own brother. “Very well,” he agreed softly. “At dawn.”
The next morning, the brothers slipped away before breakfast. When they reached the cliff face, Ali spoke the magic words: “Open, Sesame!”
Cassim rushed into the cave. “We’re rich!” he exclaimed, his voice echoing off the walls. He began stuffing a leather sack with gold coins and jewels, his hands shaking with excitement.
“Brother, please,” Ali urged, “take only what we need. And hurry โ the thieves could return at any moment.”
But Cassim, enchanted by the treasure, paid no attention. The sack grew heavier and heavier.
Suddenly, the sound of horses echoed through the forest. “Cassim!” Ali hissed. “They’re coming back!”
In his panic to hide, Cassim dropped his bulging sack. Gold coins scattered as he dove behind a large wooden chest. Ali barely had time to hide behind a pile of carpets before the thieves entered.
The leader in his red cloak turned slowly to his men. “Someone has been here,” he said, his words deadly quiet.
Ali watched helplessly as the thieves moved through the cave. His heart pounded so loudly he feared they would hear it. When they finally left, the leader spoke words that chilled Ali’s blood:
“We have been discovered. Whoever knows our secret must be found โ and silenced.”
When the sound of hooves had faded, Ali emerged from his hiding place. “Cassim?” he called softly.
His brother appeared pale and trembling. For once, Cassim didn’t act like a know-it-all big brother.
“Forgive me, little brother,” Cassim whispered. “You were right. We must be more careful.”
As they hurried home through the forest, both brothers knew their lives had changed forever. They had discovered more than just treasure that day – they had learned how dangerous being greedy could be.
Chapter 4: Marjana’s Cleverness

That evening, as the scent of saffron rice drifted from the kitchen courtyard, Marjana noticed something different about her brothers.
When their mother left to fetch more water, Marjana kneaded dough for the evening’s bread, her dark eyes thoughtful as she watched her brothers. Known throughout the neighborhood for her wisdom, she waited until just the right moment to speak.
“What happened in the forest today?” she asked softly.
Both brothers jumped. Ali’s eyes met Cassim’s.
“How did you know?” Ali whispered.
“I know my brothers,” she said simply. Then, her face grew serious. “And I know when you’re carrying a burden too heavy for your shoulders alone.”
Ali and Cassim told her about the cave, the treasure, and their narrow escape from the thieves. Marjana listened carefully, continuing to work the dough, her clever mind already seeking ways to protect her family.
“These forty thieves,” she said finally, brushing flour from her hands, “will not give up easily. We must be prepared.”
Her warning proved true. The following day, while fetching water from the well, Marjana noticed a small red X marked in chalk on their door. Looking closer, she spotted similar marks on several neighboring houses.
“So,” she whispered to herself, “they’re hunting us.” That very night, she gathered chalk and moved quickly through the streets, marking Xs on every door in the neighborhood, carefully matching each mark exactly.
As the family sat down to dinner in the courtyard, they heard voices in the street.ย
Ali gripped Cassim’s arm. “The thieves,” he breathed.
Marjana motioned for her brothers to stay quiet as they heard footsteps approaching their door.
“Useless!” the leader’s voice carried clearly through the evening air. “Every house bears the same mark. We’ll need another way to find them.”
Ali looked at his sister with newfound appreciation. The clever girl who had always solved their childhood problems had just saved their lives. “You’ve bought us time,” he said, “but what happens when they try again?”
Marjana was determined. “Then we’ll be ready,” she said softly.
Chapter 5: The Disguised Thief

The leader of the forty thieves paced in his cave, his red cloak swirling with each turn. “Someone in the city knows our secret,” he told his men. “Someone clever enough to teach others how to find us.” His dark eyes glittered in the torchlight. “I will find them myself.”
The next morning, a well-dressed merchant appeared in the bazaar. Few would have recognized him as the thieves’ leader – his red cloak replaced by fine silk robes, his sword hidden beneath flowing fabric. He called himself Mustafa.
But Marjana noticed.
She had been watching the streets carefully since marking the doors, and something about the new merchant caught her attention. Perhaps it was the way he walked – like a predator trying to appear tame. Or maybe it was how his questions, seemingly casual, always turned to talk of sudden wealth or mysterious good fortune.
Pulling her headscarf closer and staining her hands with berry juice to look worn and rough, Marjana became a different person – a beggar girl who blended into the background of the busy streets. No one noticed as she lingered near the merchant’s conversations, her sharp ears catching every word.
“Times are hard,” she heard him say to a spice seller, “though I hear some in the city have found unexpected fortune recently?”
Day after day, she followed him through the winding streets, learning his patterns and listening to his questions. She discovered he had men posted throughout the city – watching, listening, searching for anyone who might have known their secret.
Each evening, she shared what she learned with her brothers in whispered conversations in their courtyard. Ali and Cassim continued their normal routines – one selling wood, the other working at the silk shop – but their hearts beat faster whenever they passed the disguised thief in the bazaar.
“He’s drawing closer,” Marjana warned one evening, her voice low as their mother prepared dinner nearby. “He’s like a spider, weaving a web of eyes and ears throughout the city. And I’ve discovered something worse – he has an informant, someone who knows our streets and our people.”
Ali reached for his sister’s hand. “What can we do?”
“He thinks he’s the hunter,” she whispered, “but he doesn’t realize – we’re watching him too.”
Chapter 6: Marjana’s Daring Plan

In the quiet of late evening, after their mother had gone to bed, the three siblings sat in their courtyard beneath the jasmine vines. The scent of mint tea drifted between them as they spoke in whispers.
“The informant must know the city well,” Marjana said, absently tracing patterns in spilled sugar on the low table. “Someone who can watch without being noticed.”
Ali and Cassim nodded, but their faces showed their worry. They had noticed more strangers in the bazaar lately, more questions about sudden wealth.
Suddenly, Marjana’s hand stilled. Her eyes took on that familiar gleam that her brothers knew so well. “What if,” she said slowly, “instead of hiding from Mustafa’s trap, we set our own?”
She outlined her plan as the moon rose over the courtyard wall. Ali and Cassim listened, their eyes growing wider with each detail.
“A feast?” Cassim whispered. “But we can’t affordโ”
“We don’t need to,” Marjana interrupted. “We only need everyone to think we can.”
The following day, Marjana began weaving her web of whispers through the bazaar. To the fruit seller, she mentioned how her brother Ali had come into good fortune. To the spice merchant, she spoke of preparations for a grand celebration. Each carefully placed rumor was a strand in her trap.
Word spread quickly, as she knew it would. Soon, the whole neighborhood buzzed with talk of Ali’s mysterious wealth and the lavish feast he would host.
Mustafa heard the whispers and smiled, thinking he had finally found his prey. He sent word to his men: they would attend this feast disguised as merchants and nobles.
But Marjana had already reached out to Captain Hassan of the city guard. She told him everything, and he agreed to help. His most trusted men would come to the feast, hidden among the guests.
On the night of the celebration, lanterns lit their courtyard like stars brought down to earth. Cushions lined the walls, and the air was rich with the smell of saffron rice and roasted lamb. Guests arrived in their finest clothes, admiring the borrowed carpets and platters that made the modest home seem grand for one night.
Mustafa came too, dressed like a wealthy merchant instead of wearing his red cloak. His men scattered among the guests.
They did not notice how Marjana’s sharp eyes followed their every move or that some of the guests were city guards in disguise.
At the perfect moment, Marjana served the special sherbet she had prepared.
But before Mustafa could raise his glass, Captain Hassan’s signal rang out. In an instant, the courtyard erupted into action.
The city guards revealed themselves, surrounding the thieves in a flash. Mustafa lunged for the door but found his path blocked by three of his own men.
“Your greed betrayed you,” they said, removing their disguises to reveal Captain Hassan’s lieutenants. “We’ve been watching you for months.”
Through the crowd, Marjana spotted a figure trying to slip away unnoticed. This had to be the informant – the one who had been feeding information to the thieves. But Marjana had expected this.
She nodded to young Hakim, who stood watching by the back gate. The carpenter’s son was the fastest runner in their neighborhood, which was exactly why Marjana had asked for his help. Before the informant could escape, the city guards moved in.
As the city guards led Mustafa and his men away, Captain Hassan turned to Marjana. “Well done,” he said. “Your clever plan has caught not just the thieves, but their spy as well.”
Chapter 7: Under the Stars

Later that evening, after the excitement had died down and the last guests had gone home, the three siblings sat together in their quiet courtyard. The lanterns glowed softly, casting gentle shadows on the jasmine vines above them.
“I can hardly believe it’s over,” Ali said, looking at his sister with admiration. “You saved us all.”
Marjana smiled in the lantern light. “We saved each other,” she said. “That’s what family does.”
Cassim reached over and squeezed her hand. He was no longer the proud older brother who looked down on Ali’s work in the forest. “You were right that first morning,” he said softly. “Even quiet forests can hide secrets.”
“But clever sisters can keep them safe,” Ali added.
The three of them sat together under the stars, sharing the comfortable silence of those who have faced danger together and emerged stronger. Above them, the moon hung like a silver coin in the Persian night, keeping their secret safe.

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