||RishNa OS - Together||

RishNa OS - Together

"Were you out of your mind?!" Rishabh yelled at Raina as soon as they were in the relative safety of the abandoned hut. Raina paid no heed to him as she tore the end of her now drenched kurti and held it to the wound on his head. Frustrated by the lack of response, Rishabh grabbed her hand and pinned her against the wall, "I am asking you something Raina! Why the heck did you risk your life out there in front of the Brahmarakshas? He could've killed you!"

A few hours ago

Raina had woken up feeling like a million men had taken hammers to her head. When she focused her drowsy eyes she realized she wasn't in her bedroom. In fact she wasn't even at home! She was at the Asur Sthal - the very same place Rishabh and she had gotten married a couple of days ago. Worried, panicky and unsteady on her feet she had made her way out of the temple glad to be alive. Her sindoor, chooda and mangalsutra were still in place. How had the Brahmarakshas not attacked her yet? She wondered. But she'd spoken too soon. Just as she finished the thought, the sound of heavy footsteps and the bestial growl of the Brahmarakshas echoed behind her. With no lotus or Rajgira to afford her any protection, Raina knew she was fighting a losing battle but she still tried to run away as fast as she could. But the beast was catching up too fast. She tripped on a rock and would have fallen flat on her face hadn't it been for a pair of strong arms that caught her just in time.

"Rishabh!" She exclaimed before hugging him. "Raina! Raina! Thank God you are safe! Thank God! I was so worried when I found out you weren't at home!" Rishabh exclaimed as he returned her hug just as fiercely. The growl of the Brahmarakshas had them spring apart. Rishabh reached quickly into his pocket and pulled out a lotus bud and the beast took a step back. "This won't be able to keep him away for long Raina. Run! Run! Just run!" Rishabh told her. Raina caught hold of Rishabh's hand and started to run for what it was worth. But the beast caught up just as the lotus bud slipped from Rishabh's hand. In one swoop, he caught Rishabh by his neck and had him dangling mid air. With whatever little energy he had, Rishabh yelled at Raina to escape but Raina stood her ground. She reached for the lotus bud and threw it at the Brahmarakshas. Rishabh slipped from his hand and fell to the ground. It took Rishabh a few minutes to regain his breath after being strangled and he kept gesturing to Raina to run away. Raina, however, refused to leave his side. In the next second, the Brahmarakshas had Raina as his captive. "Rainnnaaa!!!" Rishabh screamed, willing his body into action to save her but not being able to.

Like a miracle from the heavens above, it started to rain just then - a torrential downpour. The Brahmarakshas let go of Raina in haste and disappeared into the forest howling in agony at having come in contact with water. Raina rushed to Rishabh and helped him up. He was in no condition for them to try to escape from the jungle. That's when they spotted an abandoned hut and made their way there. As was the case with any house or hut in Kamalpura, this hut too had been secured with lotuses all along its perimeter to keep the Brahmarakshas at bay.

Now that they knew they were relatively safe, Rishabh was unleashing his fury on Raina. "Do you know how worried sick I have been ever since I found out you were missing? I was terrified that the Brahmarakshas had gotten you and I've been searching for you like crazy! But you?! You are out there offering yourself up to the Brahmarakshas as if he is your pet dog and you are offering him a bone! Why the heck did you not run when I asked you to run? What if something happened to you?!!!"

"And what if something happened to you?" Raina asked softly in return. "Arey! If something were to happen to me you should've let it happen and save yourself.." Even before Rishabh could finish his sentence Raina covered his mouth with her hand and shook her head furiously. "How would I live if something happened to you? Much less finish our mission.. I wouldn't be able to live without you!" Raina blurted out.

Rishabh stared at her in shock and took a step back letting go of her arm. Raina looked away embarrassed for a moment before she took a step toward Rishabh and went back to cleaning his wound. Rishabh took the moment to watch her closely. What did she mean by what she'd just said? Surely she didn't mean.. She hated him, didn't she? Every time they were together they were always fighting over something or the other. In fact, she had the worst impression of him ever, maybe not without reason, but nevertheless. His eyes traced a path from the vermillion in the parting of her hair to the mangalsutra resting against her bosom. The bangles in her hand clinked merrily in her hands as her fingers gently dabbed the wet cloth against his wound. Why was she still wearing these? Why had she been wearing it when he wasn't around? She wasn't foolish enough to think she could destroy the Brahmarakshas on her own. Then why?

As his eyes kept searching hers, Raina finished cleaning up Rishabh's wound and tying a makeshift bandage around it. She stepped away and hoped and prayed desperately that he wouldn't question her anymore on what she'd blurted out about not being able to live without him. She couldn't explain it to herself, much less him, how and why he had come to mean so much to her. She had assured him that their marriage would be a fake one, meant only to destroy the Brahmarakshas, but the truth was from the moment Rishabh had placed the garland of lotuses on her hair and covered her head with the chunari, telling her she was his responsibility, she had lived every moment like it was real. When they exchanged garlands, when he held her hand, when they performed the gatbandhan, when they took the circles around the fire, when he tied the mangalsutra around her neck and especially when he said that he was going to ask her to be his forever as he filled the parting of her hair with sindoor. How could she explain the desperation and fear she'd felt every single time he had been harmed by the beast? How could she explain to him that she loved him - felt overpowered by the feeling and yet at the same time empowered.

She stepped away from him and realized she was drenched to the skin. The downpour outside hadn't stopped and any time there was a breeze, she shuddered. She hugged herself and rubbed her arms to try and get some warmth into her freezing limbs.

The action did not go unnoticed by Rishabh. He scanned the hut and found some wood and logs that he quickly threw into a pile and got a fire going. He also found some spare clothes and offered them to Raina. She hesitantly took them from him and walked toward a corner. Rishabh turned away from her and focused on keeping the fire going.

He couldn't let her harbor any fantasies about their marriage he decided. Whoever or whatever this Brahmarakshas was, it had some deep running connection with his family. If Raina came into his family, she'd definitely become his next target and no, no.. He couldn't let that happen. Yes, they'd agreed to get married as a bait to the bring the Brahmarakshas and destroy him. But he could no longer bring himself to put her in danger. Twice.. Twice the Brahmarakshas had attacked them and both times he had been helpless to save her. He couldn't let that happen. When he heard the soft hustle of her footsteps behind him, he turned, determined to cast her away from his life for her own safety. But whatever he was about to tell her died at the back of his throat as he caught sight of her.

She was clad in a deep red plain chiffon saree that clung to her curves since she was still wet. Her wet hair clung to her face and she was trying to dry her hair by the fire. She flung her hair away from her face, spraying water droplets on his face. When she turned she found him looking at her as if in a trance. "What happened Rishabh? Why are you looking at me like this?" Rishabh shook his head and broke out of his reverie. Her appearance seemed to have robbed him of conscious thought. He thought of ways to start a conversation with her on what she'd said earlier but when he looked at her, he found her shivering despite the fire. His shirt had pretty much dried up so he stood up, took it off and offered it to her.

"Its.. It's okay.." Raina said hugging herself just a little tighter. She was shivering alright but she didn't know if she could peg it entirely on the cold anymore. Of course she'd be stubborn, he thought as he walked towards her and draped the shirt over her shoulders. "You might have your mind set on getting yourself killed. But you are forgetting that you are my responsibility now and I can't let anything happen to you - at the hands of the Brahmarakshas or by your own foolishness," he said sternly. "And do you think you are a superhero? How will you survive this cold walking around shirtless?" Raina asked in turn. "Don't worry about me," Rishabh replied. "If you have the right to worry about me than I have the right to worry about you too," Raina said as she stood up purposefully. She searched through the hut and found an old blanket. She walked back to Rishabh and helped him back into his shirt, his toned muscles rippling with strength beneath her hesitant touch. She then settled next to the fire with the blanket wrapped around her. When Rishabh sat down, she scooted closer to him and wrapped him with her blanket too.

They sat in silence for long moments till Rishabh finally decided to speak up and talk to her about the marriage. He turned toward her but found her eyes drooping as she tried to stay awake. Without any conscious thought, he pulled her closer and tucked her head under his chin as her face rested against the warmth of his chest. She fit perfectly against him, like he'd noted without really meaning to many a time before. She had always been his chindi chameli for as long as he could remember. But he'd come to realize that she had an amazing strength of character, a sense of right and wrong and the most endearing quality of hers - her unwavering loyalty.. To the point that she'd do anything for the people she thought of as her own, not thinking twice about risking her own life. It was that very same quality of hers that awakened his most primal protective instincts when it came to her. With a gentle hand, he tucked away a wet strand of her hair that had fallen on her face. She looked so beautiful, he admitted to himself. To be honest, ever since he had seen her in her bridal attire, he had started seeing her, actually seeing her for how gorgeous a woman she was. And she was his.

The realization caused an odd sensation in his heart. There were a million reasons why this marriage was all wrong, why he shouldn't acknowledge or accept their marriage. And there was just reason for them to be together - because they wanted it. And he did. With her sound asleep nestled against his chest, he moved her closer into the circle of his arms, promising to keep her safe. And maybe, when they'd braved this storm, when the beast would be back where he belonged, as a mythical creature in local folklore, maybe one day, beyond all the compulsions and obligations, they could be together because they wanted to be.

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