LOVE: To Infinity And Beyond

Afresh

Krishnaa's P.O.V.:

I just cannot believe my own eyes. Nitambini and... whoever he is..! Finally! She must be her man.. Oh! Now I understand why she was being a bit absent-minded for the past few days-- the enchantment of first love... Arya looked at me with astonished eyes, and unsettled baffled too. Oh well... My oh-so-innocent man didn't even understand this... I held him by his arm and nearly dragged him out of the garden (not that I was any match to his strength physically, but obedient man... lucky me...). He kept on looking at me incredulously. "Really?!", I asked, more baffled than him. "You really don't know who HE is??" He continued to stare at me and after the  stretch of a few timeless moments, the pair of warm hazels began to smoulder in front of me, dragging me along with them into their endless depths. Oh no... It won't take me much longer to really get lost into them, and honestly, I would love not to ever return from that mystic land of love and bliss. I have been there way too many times before and the well-known sweetness lured me like always, intensifying each time. How I love him.... How WE love each other! My trance was broken by his warm and so-familiar touch on my upper arms. "I think I know.... now..." This voice... I suddenly remember the moment when I heard it for the first time..

"I think I have caught the princess staring at me", his stealthy voice rang. Hearing it reminded me of the gentle adoring rumbles of my familiar lions in the forests of Panchal, it reminded me of the first cloud-rumbles of early monsoon. For a moment I really wished there was some way to touch and feel the warm velvety texture of the supremely celestial voice, how it would pulse and spring to life under my touch, how the secret musical high and low notes in it further enriched the lively velvety texture in it.... It took me one prolonged moment to gather back my wits and reply, "And I think, in order to catch me, he needs to stare at me too", and my voice automatically trilled a ringing laughter, echoing the smile that finally broke across his pursed lips. "So, how do you feel I would be as a husband... Or as a groom at the first square?" 'Unbelievable', I wanted to blurt out, but my subconscious commanded to keep my tongue tied. 'Really? Can't you just stick to THE MOMENT?' I peeked up at him from the corner of my eyes, and the blank yet rich mesmerization in his eyes most probably didn't let him see that. Good. Isn't he too good for me? Oh no... 'Don't go there, please..', my subconscious pleaded to me, almost grovelling on the floor. I obliged. I will try to be as good as possible to be god enough for him. But, an unknown fear scratched the walls of the dark alleys of my mind with its vicious claws... What if someone else draws his mind, away from me! 'Can't you just stop hovering into those thoughts and concentrate-- really Concentrate on his question!' Oh right... He has asked me something.. "Good.... Quite good...", I managed to mutter. "Just 'good'?! I thought you would say 'beyond words'.." He was already having  quite some fun at the expense of my distraction! But, I had rightly spotted the mesmerization in his bright hazel eyes, hadn't I? Well... he's the world's best archer, thus intercepting my words like arrows on the warfield must be just a part of his incredible reflexes... "A-l-r-i-g-h-t..", I blushed BADLY, though I don't think he could spot that a lot against my dusky complexion, but he must have noticed the heat.. I REALLY was in NEED to answer his oh-so-articulate words. I fiddled a bit with the end of my odhni, and unconsciously chewed on my lower lip, before finally giving him a mild taste of my sharp tongue, "So.. How do you think I would be as a wife.. or at first place... Bride..? The Mahanayak's wife?", I mock-teased him. "Too good for him to handle.."

But right now, I could feel him handling me quite well, wrapped in his strong, warm, loving embrace. Well... my sweet sweet liar.. I failed miserably to suppress a damp giggle, at the supremely cherishable memory... 

Sakha's low mock-cough broke our reverie, but not the hug. That's always the best thing about him. None of the two of us are shy or hesitant to share our feelings in front of him, he  never ever feels like an interruption in our privacy, rather, he further concentrates the atmosphere with a beautiful aura of undying love-- that's the aura of him. "Paarth.. Sakhi.." The note of serious-business in his voice now propels both of us out of the intensity of the moment, as we quickly break off from the hug and walk towards him. As we approach him, he steals a quick peek into the dark garden and quietly chuckles. "Love, or, just casual..?", he prods me on our way to Arya's chamber. "I don't think Nitambini is the kind of person for 'just casual'. She has always been pretty sincere and therefore I hope this is serious indeed. I won't prod her right now.. By legal counts, she is just a year younger than me, and although late, I think she has finally found her true love..", I reply, being as sincere and logical as possible, at the same time. "And, Who do you think he is..?", he raises an eyebrow, and I immediately grasp the question as well the absence of the generally usual worry in it; however, Krishn isn't USUAL at least.. "I think someone from the royal staff. That's what he looks like from the attire, which is actually pretty good. Nita won't need to go far away even after marriage.." "Oh! Let her... Kindly, lady, let her atleast make this relationship official. Then you can think as much as you want about where she may or may not go AFTER MARRIAGE..", Sakha quickly cut in, laughing lightly. Arya joins him in a split second.. Wow.. these two are really so amazingly competent in making fun of me! My eyebrows furrow in a scowl... "Jokes apart... We have some really serious talking to do..", Sakha announces quite authoritatively, both calm and menacing at the same time, before Arya could even quite push me into some kind of embarrassment by a way-too-intense kiss or something... And, guess what, I know this tone too well... NO!! No more separations, please, I almost wanted to scream..

"See, we will have to start afresh... The end of all predicaments is quite near.. But, first things first... Paarth, get ready. You'll have to leave soon enough... Though, I bet, this one will get you more gains than ever before, though at first the dark shadow of a cruel loss may seem to cloud your fate forever, but remember to deal with it carefully and intelligently, and you will shove away the dark clouds in no time..", Sakha's first set of words flew in a graceful flurry, as we sat in Arya's chamber. Again... and, afresh... Such a confusing combination of words..