Hi Dearest friends!
Thank you all for your generous comments and likes! I am humbled.
After you overwhelming response I am continuing this story and would like to present the second part. I hope you will enjoy this also and leave your valuable comments.
Please ignore any mistake and typos!
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Part 2
It had been a week since Rajkumari Ishitas arrival at the palace. The frantic activities held in her honour along with the various customs and traditions which had to be followed ensured she was occupied nearly all the time. At the end of each day she would fall into bed exhausted, the several maids helping her dress and undress.
Yet she hadn't seen him again.
Sitting now at her desk, while writing her daily journal she thought back to what he had said.
"I am a patient man"
This and his absence had puzzled her over the days, completely contradicting all she knew about him. Had she misjudged him, she thought. Being an intelligent woman she knew when to admit that she may be wrong about something.
Then suddenly she had a thought. In a moment of fancy she decided she would go and meet him herself. After all she was the queen. He had said "If you need me, you need just call me, I will be by your side" which she interpreted to mean that he must be in rooms nearby. The more she thought about it the more the idea appealed to her.
Rajkumari Ishita put down her quill and sealing her papers, placed them in the chest. Now charged with adrenaline she donned her jamawar shawl around her slender shoulders and quietly retreated her chamber into the balconied hallway.
The silence of the night told the Rajkumari that most of the palace was asleep. However as soon as she stepped out of her door a maid came to her at once. She quietly waved her away and started to walk along the hallway looking for a door or entrance. She found none. Feeling embarrassed she thought it inappropriate to ask the guards, who lined the hallway, for directions to the Kings room. Maybe his set of rooms was further down the hall, she thought and decided to explore the palace herself.
She went down stairs and through gullies, through vast rooms and hallways marvelling at the palaces beauty in the moon and candlelit night as she went along.
Reaching the end of one such gully she heard faint jovial music playing at a distance. Undeterred by her adventure of the palace at night, the Rajkumari decided to venture further to the source of the melody.
She walked towards the sound until she found herself on an upper balcony, looking down on a vast hall of people merry making boisterously. She quickly hid from view, behind a marble pillar, her heart racing erratically. But her curiosity got the better of her and she peeked out from behind it to see the scene unfold before her.
Musicians were playing classical tunes, men, mostly soldiers were eating and drinking away. And lewd scantly dressed women were dancing, swaying and swinging rhythmically around the men, eliciting cheers and shouts from them. The scene shocked the princesses sensibilities, bringing to her mind the many tales of obscene behaviour of soldiers she had heard in her home kingdom. Then an unusual fear gripped her heart and her eyes searched for the man she was looking for. She hoped beyond hope that her recent change of opinion about him would not be marred by his presence below.
Before her eyes could locate him though the Rajkumari heard the tempo of the music change. It became much slower, the sound of a single flute playing seductively to the rhythmic beat of the hand drum. Some of the candles were diminished by the dancers, creating a sensuous ambiance. And then a single dancer, clad in a black translucent ghagra choli, with white milky skin, swayed into the clearing straight towards someone directly below the balcony.
Who was the feast below being held for and who could the courtesan be dancing for, the Rajkumari thought. She felt a heavy weight on her heart, but her curiosity made her shift along the balcony to get a better look. What she saw as the dancer came into view left her stunned her.
Raja Raman Kumar had come to the feast, held by his friends, reluctantly. These were the men who had served him loyally and fought for him without fear. It would have been an insult to their loyalty if he did not partake in the celebrations held in his honour. He had to attend, even when in reality all he really wanted to do was be with his queen.
Ever since he had glimpsed her face, he had thought of nothing else.
Throughout the week the King had watched his Rani, discreetly and without her knowledge. And every time he saw her, she had looked more beautiful, more radiant than the time before. He was finding it hard to concentrate on matters of the court and wanted to be with her all the time. However he was a man of his word so kept his distance allowing her the space he believed she needed.
And it WAS with great patience indeed with which Raja Raman Kumar was controlling himself because the desire he felt for Rajkumari Ishita was having a devastating effect on his sanity!
Coming back to the present the King looked around him at his comrades who were busy enjoying themselves with the entertainment they had provided for him. He had no interest in the woman. And looked away, bored, every time they approached him.
However now the music had changed and the lights were dimmed and he saw an alluring dancer came towards him. Her dance was sensually erotic and the way she smiled and looked at him stirred something inside him. She began to come close to him, arousing him somewhat.
But it was not the courtesans moves, or her touches, or even her face the Rajkumar was seeing. It was a different face entirely. He wasn't sure if it was his intoxicated state, the sensual atmosphere or if it was his pent up desires, but the woman HE saw dancing around him provocatively was Rajkumari Ishita!
He became transfixed! Beginning to enjoy the Rajkumaris seductive glances, her bewitching smile, her alluring body, her soft touches.
For the first time in his life Raja Raman Kumar felt helpless as he was drawn into the woman's spellbinding moves. And as she flirtatiously brought her body close to his, he was unable to stop his arm from winding around her waist and pulling her into his lap.
Unaware to him, in the dim light above, another woman was desperately trying to see if her husband was amongst the party of unruly men. Rajkumari Ishita looked down disgustedly at the activities going on in the courtyard, but at the same time she wasn't going to leave without ruling out the Kings presence here.
If only the dancer would move away, the Rajkumari lamented, then she would be able to get a better look at the man whom she was dancing for.
After much shifting around the queens prayer was answered. As the drumming reached the crescendo, she saw the man snake his arm around the woman's bare waist and pull her into his lap.
Then, she saw the mans handsome face. She felt a strange pull towards him. Could it be? Her mind, clouded by uncertainty, tried rapidly to look for any indication as to who he was. It was then, that she saw the Royal crown on his head, bearing the Royal crest of 5 huge emeralds around it. It was him. The King.
Rajkumari Ishita was unable to suppress the scream which escaped her lips, just as the music stopped and realisation dawned on her as to who he was. Raja Raman Kumar was the only one sober enough to hear the noise and looked up to where the sound had emerged from. However all he caught a glimpse of was the form of a female clad in a mauve shawl, similar to the one he had seen the queen in, earlier.
Raja Raman Kumar detangled himself and pushed the courtesan aside, leaping to his feet and sweeping a look around the room. The men seemed too drunk to notice what he was doing therefore he quickly made his retreat. He needed to get to Rajkumari Ishita straight away and explain the situation to her. He felt he needed to reassure her that what she had seen wasn't at all what it appeared to be. Heck, how could he have lost control, his patience. This behaviour was so unlike him. But there would be time to reprimand himself later, now he had to reach the Rani sahiba. Where were the damn guards? Why hasn't anyone of them informed him that she sought him.
The King continued to curse himself, his guards and anyone else he could think of as he rushed to the queens private wing. He hoped and prayed that his prem kahani would not end tonight, before it had had its chance to flourish.
😳 😃
CID
Anupamaa
9