Aishwarya ~ The Prince's Brown Bride

1 ~ The New Beginning

A political alliance in which you must not expect anything and just perform your duties. And, someone like me who had longed for love day and night just ends here.

With the slow steps, after just hearing 'God Bless You' from the only person I called my family, I took a step towards the palanquin waiting for me. Without knowing how many days I had to live in there to my new home. And, realising how many days it would be, a shiver ran down my spine because this departure was not a vacation but a forever.

My tears were drying out, and my senses were not able to feel anything. My words were not able to express what I was feeling, just nothing, I sat in the palanquin.

And, the palanquin lifters pulled up the palanquin.

My heart sank deeper and deeper when we started heading towards Suryagarh, my new home.

My fingers traced my deep red wedding bangles shakily and I just felt that my world was torn apart even more and more.

I did not know what to expect in that place, what to expect from my husband or should I say If I should expect anything from my husband.

I did not know how he look, how he talk, how he behave, what was his past, what he thinks of the future, or what he think about me. Did he know that I have a dark complexion? Did he know that I was scared right now?

Thousands of questions and thousands of thoughts headed up to my brain, caging me, suffocating me and killing me until we reached Suryagarh.

"Come outside, Princess Aishwarya,"

I heard a sweet girlish voice and I washed my leftover tears and put my feet outside the palanquin.

I stood up and adjusted my clothes a little and then I felt a helpful hand on my shoulder.

"Come,"

The same voice said.

She took me to the front of the huge door and I could feel my husband standing beside me.

"Welcome, Bhabhi-sa,"

A manly voice caught my attention and I did not say anything.

"I am Agastya, younger brother of Ranvijay Bhai-sa,"

He said and I just gulped nervously.

I did not know anything. I just adjoined my hands and greeted him with signals.

I was trying to feel normal, and behave normally despite there being a storm bubbling up inside me.

"Aishwarya, you have to gently kick the Kalash with your toes,"

The same voice said and I looked at the small metallic pot filled with rice.

I held my skirt and lifted it a little up.

I looked at my dark feet majorly covered with the red Mahavar and Mehndi along with the toe rings.

I gently pushed the Kalash and the rice fell on the floor.

There was suddenly a kind of gigglings and laughing.

And, it was making me even more nervous.

"Now, with these red feet, step inside,"

The girl said and I looked at the wide plate with red liquid in it. I lifted one leg to place it inside the plate.

And, just when I was about to step inside, I lost my balance a little and found two hands around my shoulder with a slow manly voice.

"Aaram se,"

"Careful,"

And that was when I felt goosebumps on my neck.