ArHi FF:1: The BEASTS and the BLEEDING ROSES - Page 36

Aquiline's FF Update

For Chapter Thirty Seven, visit:

Chapter Thirty Eight: Not an Easy Departure

It was a numbing moment. Having intended to return home, Kushi had been heading for the stairs when she heard his voice below and then his long legs, taking quick majestic strides up the stairs. He was coming and she could not have him see her here. Scanning the upstairs floor, her eyes fell on the door of a room right in front of her and without thinking or inspecting it beforehand, she leaped in and shut the door noiselessly behind her. With her back to the door, she glanced around the room. The window had its curtains apart and the light from it showed that it was a pale coloured but expensively furnitured room. White curtains concealed the huge canopy bed and as she gaped at the luxury the room boasted of, she was sprung back to reality by the realization that the footsteps that had forced her to find refuge within this room were heading towards this door.

"Oh no," she whispered and then, with her basket, flew towards the window. She realized she had no time to open it and also that if she opened it is was useless, for the room was at a great height and she didn't want to die that day and especially not from his Castle.

Hearing the handle turn, she did the next thing that came to her mind. There was a huge wardrobe along one side of the wall, to the left of where she was standing as she stood facing the window. There was a tiny space between the wardrobe and the wall along the window. She slipped into this space, pressed herself and her basket against the cold wall and held her breath, waiting.

The door swung open and in entered the master of the room. He walked to his immense bed and threw down his overcoat. He seemed extremely frustrated.

He bent down and removed his boots. He placed them by the wall near the door for the servants to collect later for cleaning. Walking back to the bed, he began removing his shirt. Kushi peeped from around the wardrobe just then, realized what he was doing and going red in the face, tried to dig herself further into the space between the wall and the wardrobe. If only I could walk through walls''.

Slipping the shirt off his back, he tossed it down onto the bed and one hand moved towards the buckle on his belt. He paused. He sniffed, why did it smell of flowers in here? He was certain it wasn't his sister's. No, this smelled more like fresh out from the fields''.from the village fields.

He cast a glance over his room. Nothing seemed to have been touched or moved. Had someone come in here? He frowned as he stood still and his eyes picked on every detail in his room.

And then he heard it, the slight ruffle of a gown's hem against a wall. Someone had been in his room. And that someone had still not left. Anger flaring in his cold eyes, he headed towards where he had heard the soft sound. His senses were undeniably strong and he easily picked out the smell of the village flowers getting stronger as he neared the wardrobe. He walked towards its farther end, the end that was close to the wall''..

Kushi had her basket on the floor. She didn't know how to face her enemy but one thing crossed her mind: she was not weaponless. Just as his shadow crossed in her vision, towering above her, and in the time his incensed 'What the' had escaped his mouth, she had bent down and slipped out a sword from her basket.

"Stay away!" she claimed with all the energy she had, brandishing the sword before her.

He paused, and looked down at her sword. Without any expressions, he stared at it. She looked down too and realized that a handkerchief was hanging by the tip of the sword. How embarrassing! She tipped her sword to the side, letting the kerchief fall and then held it before her in defense again, "Stay away I said."

"What are you doing in my room?" he said through clenched teeth, his eyes boring into her, not giving a care to the sword.

She couldn't take her eyes off his chest. Immaculately golden it seemed, as the rays of the sun from the window kissed his chest muscles and strong arms. He noticed where her gaze was and used the distracted moment to knock the sword off her hand. She gasped when it loosely fell onto the ground but just as he stepped forward, she had slipped a second sword out of the basket and paused him in his approach with its tip upon his chest, "Stay away."

Her hand was trembling and so was the sword she was holding and Lord Arnav felt ticklish where the tip trembled at his chest. He brought a hand up and, with merely his thumb and forefinger on either side of the sword's tip, he pressed against the flat sides and stopped its shaking.

She looked up at him, and his cold eyes looked amused that he was frightening her.

"I'm not scared of you," she said, trying to say it in a controlled tone.

He said nothing, but with his cold eyes fastened on her face, he let his fingers slide down the smooth blade until his hand was nearly at the hilt. Flustered by the way he was looking at her, she realized too late what he had intended. With one quick move, he had his hand over hers on the hilt. His burning fingers tried to ease the hilt out of her grasp. But she tightened her hold on it. She pulled at it, intending to loosen her hand from under his hold, but instead, her tug brought his hand and his chest towards her. Immediately, she resorted to pushing. She rammed the hilt towards his chest but he easily held it off, inches away from touching him. She was panting terribly in her struggle and his hands, pressing on hers, were making matters worse.

As if god 'sent, suddenly, Lady Anjali's voice called from outside the door, "Chotey?"

Instantly, his free hand was upon her mouth, muffling her about-to-emerge yell.

"I'm bathing, Di!" he said impatiently, his eyes on the girl struggling to remove his hand off her mouth. His hand felt so rough and she wondered why they weren't smooth but feeling like long lines of pricking pebbles on her jaw. The only thing that awed her was the warmth it offered''a warmth that surprisingly weakened her.

"Do you need more warm water, then?" Lady Anjali asked.

"No," he said, and then looking at the victim in his hold, he added with an evil light in his eyes, "It's warm enough for me."

"Alright then," said his sister and then her receding footsteps could be heard, sinking Kushi's heart and gearing Lord Arnav's mind for action.

He pulled the sword hilt out of her hand and she pushed his slackened hand away from her mouth, "You are a terrible creature!"

He balanced the sword in his hand, and eyed her, "I had told you not to step into my premises ever again, hadn't I? Why are you here then?"

"I came to sell goods," she said, with a dignified light in her eyes, "You destroyed my family name and you made my father sell his mill and-"

"Did you come here to complain, beggar?" His gaze sliced through her heart more than his words.

"I came to curse you," she said deftly and reached for her sword, "Give it back, animal!"

"Not until you apologize," he said curtly, keeping the sword from her reach.

"Apologize? Me?" Her breaths increased with her growing rage, "For what?"

"For daring to come here again, sneak into my room and try to steal from me and chiefly for talking to Lord Arnav Singh Raizada without any respect," he said, his eyes glinting victoriously, as he swayed the sword in his hand.

"Mark my words, Lord Arnav Singh Raizada," she said, saying his name through her clenched teeth, "I will never, NEVER apologize to you as long as there is life in me."

"Then I shall have to kill you," he said simply and brought the sword tip to her chest. She froze, feeling the tip press upon her chest. Would he do it? She looked into his eyes and he had an evil light in them. He leaned closer to her and she closed her eyes, feeling the punishing tip of the sword heavily upon her fast-beating heart. Behind closed eyes, she congealed, feeling his hot breath on her ear, and his whisper was very much like the slice of a sword though her throat, "My hands itch to pierce this sword through your young heart, beggar. But to kill you would mean you will not pay for all the disrespect and anger you have caused me. I want you alive''and I will make you suffer until you hate existing."

She was panting, afraid of what was to come and his face was still near her; she could feel his eyes on her even behind closed eyes''

Rip! She opened her eyes suddenly, and whispered, tear-swept, "No!"

He had torn the first few threads of the neck of her gown and he was pressing his sword to cut more, when she pressed her hand on the sword, "Please''."

He paused the movement of the sword and reasoned, "You saw me naked."

"You are a man," she said, staring at the celling, unable to meet his eyes for hers were filling with tears and she could not bear to see his victorious gaze, "And you are only shirtless."

"Then let's make you gownless," he said, and was about to press the sword tip.

She didn't know from how she found the mind and strength to react: she only knew that she had to save herself from this wild heartless man. With one quick move of her feet, she kicked her basket of swords towards his feet and he looked down, pain rocketing up one leg. As soon as he looked down, she had pressed down on the hilt of one of the scattered swords with her feet and when its blade leaped into the air, she caught it, not caring if she cut herself in the process. He looked up just in time to see her sword coming at him and he deflected its move, with a quick swipe of the sword in his hand.

She was on fire, her hands no longer trembling, for he had dared to mar her dignity.

She swung her sword and cut through the air before her and he stepped back, his legs poised firmly on the floor, his sword ready.

"I've never clashed swords with a girl before," he said sarcastically, "But I assure you, my experience with the blade will have you floored in seconds."

"I don't need experience," she said, her voice determined, her eyes still wet with tears but not blurring her vision, "I only need fire in my heart."

"Really?" he said, "Then try and burn me!"

She cried out as she swung at him and a clang resounded in the air as their swords met. He smirked but she glared, "I will never let you win, Lord Raizada!"

Lord Arnav always subdued people under fear and no one dared to ever fight him. So when this pipsqueak of a girl had begun fighting him, he was indeed taken aback. And to top it all, he didn't know what moves to anticipate from a girl who knew nothing of sword-fighting. Under training she would have been an interesting challenge but in this untrained state, she was easy prey to his skill. However, he didn't know that this fiery girl when angered or hurt was a wild cat and thought quick'..

As he watched her desperate sword moves, he didn't know she was planning out another more necessary move. She drew near with her sword aiming for his throat, and he brought his sword to deflect it and was focusing on this lifted stance. Kushi had purposely aimed for his throat; she needed him to not look down. Just as he brought his gaze and his sword to block her sword's approach, without taking her eyes off him, she ducked and with a kick of her leg from behind him, brought his leg to imbalance. As he tried to recover from the shock and resume his poise, she had moved to the window and pulled it open with a thrust of her sword tip. But before she could leap onto the window ledge, he was upon her, his sword flung to the ground and his hands gripping her shoulders, forcing her to stay on the floor and to turn around.

They must have made a lot of noise with their sword clashing, for footsteps approached outside the door and voices could be heard. But the two struggling inside were too occupied with their exchange and paid no attention to what was at the door.

"Leave me!" She struggled in his arms, her sword knocked to the ground, by a flick of his hand.

He brought her to face him and with his enraged visage inches away from hers, he hissed, "You dare to play games with me, beggar! I will make you suffer for all this!"

"Let me go!!" she winced, his hands were hurting her.

"Shut up!" he barked, "I will not let you go until you suffer for everything you made me do!"

Her hands were numb now, his hands clenching her so hard, that she thought she would see her veins burst out from them any moment.

Tears filled her eyes and she could stand on her feet no more. She did the one thing she could do to show him that she would still keep fighting. She spat on his face.

He froze. Appalled by what had happened. The door burst open and Lady Manorama, Lady Anjali and the butler came through. They stood at the doorway, shocked at the sight before their eyes.

"Chotey!" Lady Anjali began.

One moment. One moment was all Kushi needed. The shock of her spitting on him and the intrusion of his sister as he stood there with her, made his grip on her lax. That very instant, Kushi rammed into his chest, sending him hurtling a few steps backwards out of surprise but not quite falling to the ground as she wanted, and she turned and climbed onto the window ledge.

"Miss Gupta!" Lady Anjali called out, panicked, but Kushi didn't turn around. Standing on the window ledge, her hands pressed on either side of the window and her eyes wet, she was unsure what she was about to do. But to make matters even more worse, she felt movement at her feet and then felt hot skin press against her back and she turned around to find him standing on the ledge with her. His eyes were red with rage and his forehead still wet with the drops of her spittle. With one hand on the upper window ledge and the other holding one of her hands, he clenched his teeth and growled darkly, "You want to die, don't you? Then die!"

And then he pushed her, and let go of her hand and she was hurtling downwards, unable to believe that in a fraction of a second she would hit her head on the ground and then all will be over''.her parents and her sister flashed through her mind and she shut her eyes to shut them out as the wind raced past her descending body.

For Chapter Thirty Nine, visit:

https://www.indiaforums.com/forum/fan-fictions/2901910/arhi-ff-1-the-beasts-and-the-bleeding-roses?pn=52�

Lin / Aura 🤗 how did you know I was in need of some decent, well written escapism from real life toda ? ... LS this BS wishes you well and misses you terribly, Shweta is well but busier than when you last saw her ...

Am speechless!! three words;
ABSOLUTELY MIND BLOWING.!!👏
Hv read it thrice n cn still nt get over da magic u span around.. what a breath taking sequence.. what a clash of egos.. such charismatic characters..
what a fabulous description of their interaction..
5 ⭐️s...