AVIRAM looked up at me.

The sword rested on his shoulder, only an inch or so from his neck. One slice and his carotid artery would be cut off.

Yet, the man had no fear in his eyes.
His eyes.
They were strangely expressive.
I heard the guards advance towards me, but he raised his hand to stop them.

"If you kill me, this crowd will kill you.", He said simply.
"No one likes you.", I stated the truth.
"Yet, no one shall dare to disrespect me. Even in death.", He replied, as calm as the ocean before a storm.

I glanced at the agitated crowd. He was not wrong. Even the woman he had got thrown would pick up a sword against me, if I caused him any harm.
The anguish in their eyes seemed to give that away.

I drew in a sharp breath.

"Fine. Let me kill you and then die.", I replied, a tear of rage escaping my eye. My grip on the sword tightened.

I pulled it closer to his neck.
"Leela..", Babuji mumbled teary eyed.
"Good bye, Ram.", I whispered fearlessly.

"It is the hour of soulmates.. Leela don't ruin your own fate!", Babuji said, almost revolting.
"Fate?!", I shouted at him, teary flooding down my eyes, in the fire and ache, it was almost blinding.
"This Raavan is my fate?! He?!", I shouted.

I heard his hiss. The sword had just touched the side of his neck.
A line of blood formed.

"HEY!", A man from the crowd shouted.
"How dare you?!", Someone else said.
All my courage ebbed away within a moment.
The guards tightened around the crowd. They looked enraged. They were angry.
My grip on the sword loosened.

I felt his hand on mine, softly. He looked up, a tear simply slid down his right eye.

He took the sword from me and stood up.

"Maharaj! Give us one command! We will show this woman her place!", Someone shouted.
Aviram's gaze was fixed on me. He simply placed his finger on the cut on his neck, wiping off the blood with his thumb.

"How dare you?! You mannerless girl! Let alone the King! No man deserves you!", Someone shouted.

The insults were hurled towards me.
This was probably his punishment to me. Now he would throw me like a toothpick and walk away.

Aviram drew in a sharp breath.
He simply took his thumb, with his fresh blood, and lined my hairline with it.
Yet again.

Then he turned towards the crowd.

"Do you not see the sindoor?!", He shouted. There was instant silence.
"That is of my name.", He said.
I looked at him, wondering why.
Why did he care now?

"Devika is my wife.", He stated, "She is your Queen, and you will respect her."

"Santosh.", He said turning towards who looked like his Head Guard, "I wish to meet her in my bedroom. My purpose for this marriage is to have a male heir."

Oh. That's why.

I drew in a deep breath. The guard guided me out of the temple, to his car.
A black BMW.

I quitely sat inside the car.
The guard instructed the driver and I was immediately driven away to the palace.

The Palace of the Beast.

•

Raghuvanshi Palace.

Aviram Raghuvanshi finally stepped back into his domain. His cave.
The guards worshipped him, so did every servant of the palace.

The palace had over a hundred rooms, taking up hundreds of acres. Almost half a century ago, his grandfather had allowed the commoners to stay inside the palace and work, to reduce the rate of poverty.

They did not rule anymore, yet they commanded more respect than any government official could ever.
This was still the kingdom of Raghuvanshis.

Aviram walked down to his bedroom. The largest room in the palace.

He pushed the door open.
There was an cold silence.
Nonetheless he stepped in. The room was pitch dark.

The woman he had married forcefully didn't seem to be present on the bed. Otherwise he would have heard something, even a gasp or movement.
And then suddenly a flash of light almost blinded him in the dark.

Then he felt the warmth. The warmth of fire lit right before him. He bent.
He blinked once or twice to clear his vision, his hands before him eyes to adjust to the flame.

And before him stood the woman he had married.

I stood before him.

With a burning torch of fire, right before him.
"What are you even doing?!", He shouted.

My heart skipped a beat, as I took a step back.
"Put the fire off!", He shouted.

I held the torch of metal with a handkerchief. It still seemed to burn my palm but I refused to let go.

"If you dare to touch me, I will burn myself!", I shouted back at him.

He stood upright, his eyes flared in rage.
"You will burn yourself!", He shouted.
"I am a Rajput, Aviram.", My voice was laced with a firm determination, the kind that I had never felt. The strength seemed to be drawn from my very soul.

"A Rajput woman will let the fire devour her, but never a man who threatens her self pride.", I shouted.

His guards rushed into the room.

He raised his hand again, asking them to step back.

"I shall not harm your self pride, Leela—"

"Devika.", I said sharply, "Leela is for those who I love. For you, it will always be Devika."

He drew in a sharp breath, annoyed. His composure seemed disturbed by me.

"Devika.", He said firmly, "Keep the torch down."

"Give me your word.", I stated.

The heat seemed to burn through my palm. The pain was unimaginable. Yet I stood firm.

"I, Aviram Raghuvanshi, give you my word. I shall never touch you against your will.", He stated drawing in a deep breath.

"I hope you remember.. Raghukul—"

"Raghukul reet chali aayi, praan jaye parantu vachan na jaye.", He said, his voice laced with pride for his elite bloodline.
The tradition of the Raghu Bloodline, my life might go but my word, my promise shall never.

I lowered the torch, he indicated his guards to run and take it from me.

They did as commanded.

The window beside me opened due to the storm that had risen outside. Cool breeze filled into the room. His otherwise perfectly combed hair, was disturbed by it. And so was his composure.

The fire torch seemed to get lit a little brighter by ever passing moment.

A fire had been lit, between him and me.

A fire that would either devour our entire lives, or would be the witness to a new life from the ashes of what we were.

The guards immediately took the torch out.

He drew in a deep breath and turned.

"How does defeat feel, Aviram?", I asked him, my voice laced with loath.
He turned towards me.
He was not cold anymore, his aura seemed to have been lit by a fire like no other.

"In this game of fire and ice, only time will tell, who wins and who is defeated.", He said, his voice trembling with emotion.

I assumed it to be rage.

He turned and walked out.
I drew in a deep breath.

"Fire and ice? It is beauty and the beast.", I said to myself, realising I was the beauty trapped in the palace of the beast.

•••

Disclaimer : This story is a work of complete fiction and does not claim any of the bloodlines or royalty to be real or related to mythology.