✔️Tale as Old as Time (Kunwar Pratap/Ajabde [Praja])

10//~kunwar pratap's new friend~

A/N: Guys I am just putting quotes that I like or I remembered after reading this chapter. It's not that deep but I hope you are enjoying so far!

✯ the saddest thing about betrayal
is that it never comes from your enemies ✯

The journey which had started off as exciting had now quickly turned into a boring, never-ending road and she was getting palki-sick because Kunwar Pratap insisted she stayed in the palki as it was the enemy's area. Ajabde looked at Ganga who looked way too excited for sitting in a palki all day long.

"Aap etna kyun muskura rahi ho?" Ajabde asked her.

"Humne lamba wala marg liya hain kyun ki vun wala marg surakshit nahi hain," she said smiling.

"Ha vahi to! Pura din nikal gaya ess marg pe aur abhi tak Bijolia to poche hi nahi," Ajabde sighed.

"Haan parantu yeh Dhondhi elaka hain. Yaha par etna bhavya hat bazar lagta hain. Aisi karigari jo apne kabhi na dekhi ho," she said. "Ma ne hume mudrae di hain. Hume jo pasand aiyega hum kal pratakal kharedenge!"

That was the best news Ajabde had heard all day. Perhaps, this trip wasn't so bad after all.

"Hum bhi chalenge," Ajabed decided with excitement. Ranima had given her plenty of money.

"Bhavjiraj nahi jaane dene," she said smugly. "Sultano ka eelaka hain. Dhondhi raj karte hain aur unke sipayio ki to prathistha hain raha chalti streeo ko ched na,"

"To phir aapko kyun jaane de bhala," Ajabde asked skeptically. Ajabde was 14, Ganga was just 11.

"Mein to jayungi, Aap hi ko nahi jaane denge veh," she said.

"Hum yadhi na ja paye to aapko kaise jaane denge?" Ajabde replied smirking though she had no real intention of dragging a poor child down if she was doomed.

"Aaj raat ke liye either hi padav dalenge," Kunwar Pratap announced after a few minutes.

Ajabde peeked outside from the palki. This did look like a good spot, it was close enough to the river and just far enough from the jungle. Besides, they couldn't go on for longer, the sun was about to set.

"Hum either hi rookne wale hain aaj raat ki liye," he informed Ajabde as he got off his horse. The palki was lowered and Ajabde turned around finally stretching her feet, they were so sore. Kunwar Pratap offered his hand and she used it to get up but lost her balance as her feet struggled to hold her up.

"Dhyaan se," he said supporting her up. Ajabde regained her balance and thanked him. She fixed her ghagra that had been scrunched up for so long. How she wish she could ride a horse, she loved riding horses. She craved the freedom she felt while speeding on the back of a horse.

That's exactly when she heard a bunch of horses heading their way. Kunwar Pratap flipped his head around toward the noise and so did Ajabde. They saw a whole bunch of men on horses coming their way.

"Hum dekh ke aate hain, aap saman mat kholna, hume agge jana pad sakta hain," he said.

Ajabde nodded as he left to go. She watched him walk away with his sword in one of his hands taking big strides toward the new group supposedly setting up their own tents.

"Baisa, apna chehra sudhariye. Bhavjiraj ko aise mat dekhiye, sab kya sochenge," Ganga whispered to Ajabde.

Ajabde looked at her trying to mask her shock and she started laughing.

"Aap to jaise haath se nikal gaiyi ho!" Ajabde exclaimed. Ganga giggled at that.

Misunderstanding the friendship between a girl and a boy was a real problem that needed awareness.