Nandini paused to catch her breath near the gate, and felt a wave of relief. Prithvi had gone a long way ahead, and was approaching the curve in the road that would cut him off from sight. But she could still catch up with him. Even as she began hastening again, she noticed that he was walking very slowly, almost dragging his steps a little.

"Prithvi! Wait," she yelled.

He came to a stop and turned around swiftly, and just for a moment, she was sure that she had seen an answering spark of happiness in his expression.

But as she ran towards him, he pulled down the shutters on his expression, and flatly ordered, "Go back to college!"

"I won't, until you talk to me about what's bothering you!" she said firmly, slowing down as she neared him, sweetly red from the exertion and annoyance.

"There isn't anything to talk about, so don't waste my time," he said tersely.

"I don't care whether you have the time or not. You can't leave like this - I won't let you go."

"Alright then. Let's see how far you'll tag along," he said with a cool smile.

And Nandini stared at him in astonishment as he simply veered off the cemented road with infuriating indifference, and with cool and steady steps, strode down the side to the rough track that led into the wilderness. What was he thinking.... there was surely no path that led to the highway through those forests.  Or was there?

In any case, he was unmistakably confident that she wouldn't follow him on such a dodgy path. But he was not going to get rid of her that easily.

"Wait! Where are you going?" she asked irritably, and stubbornly followed his steps and carefully walked down the slight slope towards the undergrowth.

Prithvi stopped and turned with clear annoyance at her resolve. "Keep following me and you'll find out in a day or two," he said ominously. "And I'd really enjoy seeing you stroll through that rat-infested patch ahead."

Nandini stopped and looked at him apprehensively. Rats? There were rats around! No of course there weren't. He was just trying to play on her morbid fear of the creatures.

"You're making that up!" she said feebly.

But he only grinned at her impudently, and set off again at a relaxed pace. She wanted to hurl something at him, burning with anger at how little he cared for her feelings. And the streak of obstinacy, that she usually kept buried, resurfaced with force.

Nandini started hurrying after him, but the tangles of wild plants and vines on the ground kept hindering her progress. And when she finally managed to going in a bit, she realised that he was nowhere to be seen. She turned on the spot and looked around with desperate eyes but there was no trace of another human being in the area.

And suddenly, it all became too much.
His continued arrogance and disregard, the worsening ache in her heart at his impending departure, and her failure to convince him to talk before leaving. She had no more patience left. Without waiting to mull the wisdom in it, she took a deep breath - and screamed.

Nandini hadn't appreciated how many big and small noises had been buzzing in the grove until it all went silent with such abruptness. But she didn't get the chance to ponder the miracles of nature, because within seconds she heard a loud rustling, and in a flash, Prithvi was standing in front of her, white-faced and breathing very hard. He blinked in mystification at her upright and completely unharmed state, and then the shock and relief in his gaze swiftly transformed into black thunder.

"What – why did you – why did you scream?" he asked hoarsely, struggling to catch his breath.

"I wanted you to come back and you didn't leave me with any other choice," she said with a mix of happiness and lingering irritation.
"You shouted like that because – are you out of your mind?" he spluttered angrily, hating the numbing coldness that was taking forever to leave his body.

"But my plan worked. You should be congratulating me! I'm learning so much from you about manipulation," she retorted, refusing to back down even though his haggard state was starting to make her feel a little remorseful.

"Nandini, don't ever- ever," he emphasised harshly as some scraps of colour returned to his fair skin, "do something that again."

"I will. If you behave so meanly without reason," she said peacefully. "And I'm not sorry about anything I did," she added staunchly, more for the benefit of the worsening twinge of guilt than for him.

"Oh I'll make you sorry," Prithvi snarled, and to her great alarm, he unexpectedly moved towards her with almost frightening speed.

She gasped and backed away fearfully as he stormed towards her with revengeful aggression. But he stormed towards her unforgivingly, and in a horrifying flash, he tackled her, knocking the air out of her body. And she cried out in genuine fear as they both went crashing down onto the grassy ground.

Winded completely by the hard impact, she stared in a daze at his heartstoppingly handsome face, sluggishly wondering whether she should be worried at being squashed in his arms in the funny half-sitting position. Or was the real danger in the wrath still flaming in his eyes - which petrified her enough to bring her voice and senses back.

"Please don't beat me!" she squeaked, saying the first thing that occurred to her terrified mind.

"I won't this time," he rejoined pitilessly. "Because I can think of a better way to make you apologise."

Before she could understand what he meant, to her ever growing disbelief, he started tickling her. Although utterly staggered by the punishment he had chosen, she began laughing instantly as her skin had always been sensitive to tickling.

"Do you have anything to say now?" he asked with arrogant satisfaction, as his fingers continued their sweet torment around her waist.

"No – I will not apologise!" she managed to gasp obstinately through breathless laughter.

"You asked for this," he said grimly, and began tickling her even more ruthlessly. And for added torture, his fingers began transferring their nefarious attention to the delicate skin on her neck with increasing frequency.

As tears of mirth flowed down her red cheeks, she flailed to escape his grip but every movement only made him pull her closer.

"Stop it!" she giggled helplessly.

"Say you're sorry," he insisted.

 "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" she chanted with laughter, and his fingers paused at last. Still wheezing, Nandini wiped away her tears.

Prithvi took in her rosy and tumbled appearance with haunted eyes, frustrated with his inability to keep annoying emotions in check when it came to her, despite years of having done it effortlessly. He abruptly pulled away and got up to his feet, and she looked up at him bemusedly. 

"That apology doesn't count because you tortured me into it," she said crossly.

"I'll make my peace with it," he shrugged, "Now don't waste my time and go back to college."

Translated – There would be no discussion about whatever was on his mind, and neither should she expect an apology for his behaviour.

Fine, she wouldn't mention it now since he was leaving. There would be time later to settle that score, she decided grimly. She glanced at the bag lying some feet away, where it had been flung off her shoulder. A few of the books had spilled out and were lying in the dirt. She got up clumsily and walked towards the bag to repack it.

"Where is your bag?" she asked casually as she picked up the books.

The question caught Prithvi off-guard. He distantly remembered that it had slid off his shoulder in the chilling instant when he had heard her cry out.

He glowered at her. "I dropped it somewhere when you decided to practise your stupid dramatics here. If I don't get it back, I'll – hey, what's that?"

The sharp question startled her, and she looked up quizzically to see Prithvi frowning at the pile of books.  She looked at the books again, and with another start, discovered the object that had caught his eye.

It was the edge of a red thread sticking out from the pages of one of her tomes. The one that the old saint had given her days ago, which she had tucked away in her bag.

"Its nothing," she mumbled embarrassedly, "Just a sacred thread."

"Not one of the ghostbuster's, I presume. Or you wouldn't have put it away like that," Prithvi said incisively.

She remained silent while taking the thread out of the book, trying to decide what she could say to evade. But there wasn't any harm in telling him part of the truth.

"Do you remember the old saint we'd seen somewhere here - the one I'd gone to give my lunch to," she asked apprehensively.

"He gave it you?"

She nodded.

Prithvi didn't say anything for an instant, trying to dismiss any ominous implications. And out of the blue, the nightmare that had shaken him one afternoon rapidly recreated itself in front of his eyes.

The temple. The warmth. And the terrible tempest that had taken her away.
"Why haven't you tied it then?" he mumbled, staring at some weeds with downright fascination.

"I'd forgotten about it. Actually, I had only taken it to make him happy," she said, confused at the direction of the conversation. Since when did he believe in all this?

"I guess your work is only blackmailing others into wearing it," he said darkly.

She chuckled at the memory he had evoked. "But my blackmail was effective enough to keep it on your hand until now," she said naughtily.

"I told you – I'm only keeping it for Baba," he retorted. "Now tie that thing on your hand."

 "Is this really you talking?" she said in amusement. "You don't have any faith at all in these things!"

"Just do as I say," he said angrily.

There it was again. That tone of command. Like she was a slave to jump at his every bidding.

Well…she wasn't.

Nandini stood up and walked to him and held out the thread. "Tie it for me then," she said offhandedly, provoked by the arrogant tenor of his voice.

He gaped at her.

"If you don't tie it for me, I'll just put it back. And then if something horrible happens to me, it will be your fault," she added coolly.

"Shut up," he said with gritted teeth, and yanked the thread out of her grip and began tying the thread around her wrist.

"Don't get your hopes up," he muttered, looking as lovably uncomfortable as he usually did while doing something sweet. "I'm doing this to protect everyone in this town from you."

Nandini chuckled as he tied it securely, and just then saw the bluish tint on the skin of his arm, peeping under the sleeve of his black shirt.

With her free hand, she quizzically pushed back the sleeve, and her horrified eyes saw a vicious purple bruise.

"Prithvi, is that where I – I'm so sorry!" she whispered in dismay, and gazed up at him warily.

Prithvi silently gazed at her beautiful face which had turned a little pale, and the distress etched on the delicate features. She looked like a woebegone imp, waiting uncertainly for punishment. Suddenly, a brilliant smile lit up his magnificent features, and then, to her unending amazement, he threw his head back and laughed.

Nandini stared at him in exhilaration. She had never seen him laugh before, and the sound was like special gift from heaven, and he looked stunning enough to be a god….

Then something softened in his smile and he leaned forward and kissed the tip of a pert nose. Nandini's heart jumped to her throat and her lips trembled with feelings so intense that she didn't even dare study them. And to both their astonishment, she moved ahead and embraced him tightly.

"Come back soon," she said unevenly, only concentrating on the rock-steady rhythmic thump of his heartbeat against her cheek.

He clasped her soft form protectively to himself, and the inner turmoil that he'd been enduring since morning diminished to nothingness.

"I'll return in three days," he promised, stroking her silken tresses, and quietly added. "I'm sorry about the way I behaved before."

"It's alright," she said softly, idly fiddling with a button. "But why were you so disturbed?"

"I don't really know," Prithvi admitted, "I guess - I – I just don't want to go."

He hadn't planned on saying the last words and was shocked when they escaped without warning. But they were true, he realised bleakly. And he didn't want to analyse the reasons for the deep reluctance.

He couldn't see her face…but somehow sensed that she was smiling. He dug his fingers into her hair and tugged her face upwards to verify that a beautiful smile was indeed playing on her lips.

"Why are you smiling?" he asked bemusedly.

In reply, her fingertips automatically rose to soothingly touch his cheekbone. "Your heartbeat is the most beautiful sound in the whole world," she whispered warmly, and the immensity of her love glowed on her flushed skin and in every syllable she spoke.

There was a captivating power in his gaze as it roamed over the angelic beauty of her features. Her heart jerked to a halt as his head bent, and for an instant, his lips tantalisingly hovered over hers. But then he ultimately covered the tempting distance of a breath, and he kissed her gently, and she closed her eyes as his lips burned against hers.

When he drew back, she felt utterly forsaken, but then he touched her face with an unsteady hand. "You should go back now," he murmured. "I need to get my bag….if I can find it," he adjoined wryly.

Feeling miserable, she nodded awkwardly. Unwilling arms fell to their sides and they broke apart. They looked at each other for a long moment in silence, and Nandini forced her feet to turn away. She was being absurdly emotional, her mind derided. He was going away for only for three days, after all.

It didn't help. 

Prithvi watched her leaving. He would wait just for a moment more. Or maybe just until she went out of sight. Just a few more minutes….

She began walking towards her bag, but every step was taking forever, like he had thrown a loop around her to drag her back. Ultimately admitting defeat, she looked behind hesitantly, fully expecting him to have left already. But her staggered gaze found him standing in the same place, looking at her with unspoken surprise.

And just like that, all of a sudden, a dangerous tension was crackling in the atmosphere like static.

There was a curious stillness in his usually restless form, which she found intriguing….and strangely compelling. How peculiar that a strong gust of wind was blowing, and yet, she couldn't find enough air to breathe, nor could she wrench her gaze away from his. Neither broke the silence, which stretched interminably, but was still strumming with so much primordial force that even the flora and fauna ceased their movements to listen.

She didn't know who moved first. But as if watching from a distance, she saw herself rushing towards him, and dazedly registered that he too had moved forward. And before she knew it, she was in his tight grasp and his lips had covered hers fiercely. There was no gentleness this time, only the harsh savagery of a passion that had been kept tightly leashed until then. It should have frightened her but it didn't, and the slender arms wound around his neck did not slacken.

Countless long moments had gone past before he lifted his head, but only by a fraction so that his warm, uneven breath caressed her cheeks. She was breathless herself, and his possessive clasp was the only thing supporting her trembling frame. But his heart was pounding as hard as her own.... 

They remained suspended in that ethereal, tantalizing space for a moment, and then, he pushed her away viciously.

"Go….just go!" he muttered roughly.

Disoriented by everything that had transpired between them, Nandini didn't utter a word. She mutely turned around, picked up her bag and walked back towards the college road on wobbly legs. She only dared to swing around once her feet were on the concrete path, and this time, he wasn't there. She wasn't sure if he intended to continue walking through the woods to reach the highway or he would return to this graveled road. But she wouldn't wait here to find out because she didn't have the bravura to face him again at this moment….

Nandini managed to walk a good distance back to the college before tottering to one of the pavement stones and crumpling down. She knew there were students around but she felt incapable of conducting herself accordingly. Her mind had shut down. Raising unsteady fingers, she touched her aching lips and winced. Not at the soreness, but at the shattering reminder of what had just happened.

Even the memory of the untamed, raw brutality of those moments was petrifying. She had been sucked into the vortex of a dark and dangerous force. The sheer power in it had caught her completely unawares, and she knew that it had stunned him too. In despair, she wrapped her arms around her waist.

But it offered scarce protection from the knowledge that, in the pure insanity of those moments, she had almost asked him to take her along to whichever end of the world he was leaving for....
*********************

A little way into the thicket, next to an abandoned bag, the young man sat down heavily on the lush floor of the forest. Tiny beads of perspiration glistened on the white skin of his forehead, one leg was drawn up, and an arm rested on the knee.

Prithvi felt shaken by the barely-repressed violence of the moments when he had.....he closed his eyes tightly, willing the wild uproar to subside and leave him alone. But instead, he only saw beautiful eyes filled with love, and he snapped his eyes open again in frustration. His resilience had already been mocked, but he wouldn't let it happen again, he thought harshly, despising the weakness.

But what had disturbed him the most was that, just for a tiny second, when he had been holding her close, he had come within an inch of asking her to come along with him....

In all these days, he hadn't spared much thought for the brief separation, though some aggravating instinct had told him it would be difficult.  But that wasn't true. Because for a moment, it had seemed virtually unendurable.
 
 ***************
Several gorgeous crystal chandeliers had lit up the vast hall beautifully, there were golden embellishments on the walls, and the floor gleamed. A stunning picture depicting a hunting scene of yore decorated one of the walls. But apart from that, the room was remarkably plain, and there was none of the flamboyant display that was associated with the family's status. Here and there, they could see small groups of heads belonging to male and female servants who were huddled behind the long columns, eagerly staring at the visitors.

As they walked towards the seating arena in the hall, Sumer Singh cast a sidelong glance at Prithvi to gauge his reaction. Especially since the boy had been behaving very unlike himself since the time he had returned from college, looking more uncomfortable and confused than Sumer Singh had ever known him to be. When they were leaving, Prithvi's eyes had alternately scanned the roads and Vrindavan's doors. And all of Sumer Singh's cautious questions were initially dismissed as needless, and then given the royal ignore. And in the past few hours, he had watched with growing amusement as Prithvi took the phone out every few quarter of an hour, muttered some curses, and irately replaced it in the pocket. Sumer Singh was hard-pressed not to smile, and amusedly wondered if someone back in Shamli was behaving identically.

But now he gladly noticed a faint trace of approval in Prithvi's eyes at the unexpected restraint and simplicity of the decor. Gajendra and Dilawar also looked at the young prince and exchanged happy glances. Both the men were feeling very elated. The family had disintegrated so much, and hardly any of them were alive at this point. So it was exhilarating to be in the presence of young royal blood in the house after what seemed like eons.

Dilawar, especially, was so excited to meet the young scion that he could barely take his eyes off the boy. He had met His Majesty Adityaraj when he had come to visit his uncle very long ago as a young man. And for a minute, he had almost been sure it had been Adityaraj who had walked in through the massive wooden door with Sumer.  Dilawar noted affectionately that Prithvi had definitely inherited his father's good looks and that same indefinable aura of exclusiveness. In fact, that the son was actually a tad more handsome than his father, perhaps because his mother had reputedly been very beautiful.

"This used to be a much grander place. But his highness stripped away all of the trimmings many decades ago and made it like this," Sumer Singh said. "He hated the family – apart from your father, of course – and was always adamant that he didn't want any reminder of the family's roots or ancestors."

"I'm sure the affection was mutual," Prithvi said under his breath.

Sumer Singh ignored the words and accepted the tone, and heaved a sigh of relief. He hadn't dared tell Prithvi that the staff had been planning a grand, celebratory reception for him. It had taken him an hour to convince Gajendra that it was disastrous idea and that it would be wise to keep their welcome as subdued as possible.

Having missed Prithvi's words, Gajendra shook his head benignly at Sumer Singh.  "He has changed a lot, Sumer. Especially in the past year. He's actually been asking us to renovate all the old parts of the palace."

"We spruced up almost all the sections," Dilawar interjected, "The locked up parts, the stables, the weaponry room - "

Prithvi, who had been staring angrily at his phone, swiftly turned towards Dilawar with an enthralling new light in his eyes.

"There's a weaponry room here?" he asked eagerly.

 Dilawar felt a burst of happiness at Prithvi's first show of enthusiasm since he had stepped across the threshold of the palace, but Sumer Singh turned mysteriously pale.

"Not a very big one, your highness," he apologized with a smile. "But it contains several prized possessions. There are swords, rifles, bows and arrows and javelins that are centuries old. We had them all cleaned up and sharpened just last week. Actually this old palace had been amongst the smallest forts owned by your family. The external ramparts were shattered in a war - "

"That's all very interesting and I can't wait to hear more about it but can I see the weaponry room first?" he asked enthusiastically.

"Most definitely, your highness," Dilawar laughed, his jaded heart getting warmed by the youthful enthusiasm. "It is just along this way to the left, where there is a flight of stairs. The room is right on top."

 "Let's go then!" Prithvi grinned.

Sumer Singh cleared his throat.

"But we'll meet the relative first," the prince added with sudden gloom.

"We're sorry, your highness. He had been waiting very impatiently since evening, and I think all the excitement took a toll on him. He fell asleep just half an hour ago," Gajendra said ruefully.  "Please have dinner and then you could retire for the night and meet him tomorrow morning."

"What exactly is wrong with him?" Prithvi frowned.

"There is a small growth in his heart. The doctors say if it is removed, he'll be able to live for some more years, because he is otherwise quite healthy for a man of his age. But he won't hear a word about the operation," Dilawar said sadly.

"He's good natured most of the times, but we only need to mention medicines and treatment and he loses his temper," Gajendra complained. "We've given up hope. He is too obstinate to listen to anyone."

"That characteristic has been passed onto My lord here," Sumer Singh said austerely. "Because even though I advise him against handling dangerous weaponry, he persists in doing as he wishes."

"When have I handled 'dangerous weaponry' any time recently?" Prithvi asked indignantly.

"You are planning to do it now. Can you tell me otherwise?" Sumer Singh said severely.

"It is natural for him to be interested, Sumer," Dilawar objected. "Why do you stop him?"

"You don't know him," Sumer Singh snapped. "He plays with lethal weapons like they are made of plastic. On top of that, we are already tired after the long journey, and if he makes a mistake out of exhaustion -"

"Fine! I will not juggle with swords tonight, grandmother," Prithvi said irritably, and indistinctly swore, "But I will play with them a little before the night is over."

******************
Sarojini kept the plate of fruits next to Nandini, who was sitting on the couch, sewing a small rip in Bhoothnath's kurta.

"Thanks ma," she smiled, glancing at her mother.

Sarojini patted her head, and looked at her son who was gaping openmouthed at the latest cartoon show that had become the rage in his class.

"Pikku, put the TV off and start studying," she said sternly.

"But my stomach is paainnniiingggg," Prakash said, without tearing his eyes from the TV screen.

"Stop making excuses. I'm going up to your room to bring your books," Sarojini said. "And you will study until your bedtime."

When she turned to leave, she saw Nandini looking at the phone with an inexplicable mix of hope and anger. Her daughter had been behaving very peculiarly from the time she had returned from college, and she hadn't strayed away from the phone since evening. And even now, there was something odd about the agitation in Nandini's face. Something that caused a sense of foreboding known to mothers whose daughters were on the threshold of womanhood.

 "Nandini, are you waiting for a call?" she asked calmly.

Nandini jumped a little in surprise, and quickly said, "No, ma!"

That little start stoked the uneasiness, but still unwilling to believe such a thing of her daughter, Sarojini simply nodded and left the room to go upstairs.

Nandini only dared to look up after her mother had left. After the emotionally and physically draining day she had endured, she wouldn't have survived a round of questioning by her mother. She was already dreading the fourth-degree interrogation that was sure to be tomorrow's highlight because of her behaviour in college today.

She looked at her little brother who had still not moved from his spot. She verified that her mother wasn't around, and then naughtily mused, "It is really strange how your stomach never pains on Saturdays and Sundays."

"I'm not lying about it, di," Prakash said inattentively.

"But then it is a very serious matter," she said worriedly. "I think I'll take you to the doctor tomorrow and ask him to give you an injection in the stomach just to be on the safe side."

In the blink of an eye, Prakash put off the television, leapt to his feet and brightly said, "The pain's much better! I'll help ma to get my books downstairs and you can teach me."

"You're feeling better already? This is a miracle!" she cried in astonishment.

"The pain is still there, but I'll bear it just for your sake," he said in a dignified manner.

"You are such a hero!" Nandini chuckled.

"You have exams too! Why aren't you studying?" her brother demanded.

"My exams have been postponed and they are more than TWO months away!" she said cheerfully, mischievously holding up and twiddling two fingers in front of her brother's face to bring home the point.

Then the phone started ringing, and with the kurta in hand, Nandini rushed towards the instrument. But it was for her grandfather. Before she could get up to go and call him, Prakash did a U-turn from the stairway and ran into Bhoothnath's room. Unseen on the head of the stairs, Sarojini witnessed the awful disappointment on her daughter's face and felt her own heart sink slowly.

********************************