Kundavai fidgeted with her bangles as she sat down in the boat. It has been almost an hour since Vandiyathevan was captured by her guards and has been held captive on an abandoned island under her strict orders. Is he alright? Did the guards treat him with care like I asked them to or did they …?
Various thoughts were running through Kundavai's head as the boat moved forward. Kundavai was known across Chola Nadu for her incredible presence of mind and her way with words, but right now that very princess seems to be struggling with composing a sentence in her mind. How am I gonna do it? Kundavai thought. How does one express one's feelings to someone? Why has no one ever taught her this? She is well versed in everything starting from state craft , to poetry, but she doesn't know how to confess her feelings to a man? How can this happen?- Kundavai sighed as she covered her face in frustration.
Since she was a child, Kundavai was never the one to get blown away by feelings. She was always the picture of perfection, logical and practical . Love or any other kind of absurd feeling didn't have any place in her small world. But this certain Vanar warrior changed everything for her. He arrived out of nowhere like a gust of wind in her life and transformed the practical Illavarasi into a simpering girl. How did he do this ?- Kundavai wondered aloud.
From where did he learn this art of winning the hearts of young maidens with nothing but a few words? He is the only man who had the power to render Kundavai speechless.
It had been three months since Kundavai had met the Vanar Kulam veer , three months since she had struggled with all these unknown emotions. All these months , Kundavai had tried her best to ignore those unruly thoughts , she had tried her best to drive Vanthiyer away from her dreams . But the news of him drowning in the sea together with his brother ,changed everything. Being brought up with two warriors made Kundavai hard-hearted; crying was always a sign of weakness to her. But the news of her beloved and her brother drowning in the sea broke her stone-cold facade, and revealed a side of her which was unknown to everyone. It has forced her to finally acknowledge her feelings for Vallavaryan, to accept the fact that love is a very real thing. Three months of separation had proven to her that she couldn't live without this warrior. She needs him like a fish needs water to survive, or like a Chakor needs the moon. She is incomplete without him and his love.
" Leave me ! I am not a spy ! I have brought good news for your Illavarasi!"- Vallavaryan's screaming brought Kundavai back to reality. She looked up to find him on the abandoned island , blindfolded and handcuffed just like she ordered. Kundavai took a final breath to compose herself as she got down from the boat. This is it , this is the moment she has been waiting for , for three months.
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Ropes dug into Vandiyathevan's hands as he tried to break free. He has been struggling to get out from his handcuffs for an hour now , his whole body is tired by the journey; it doesn't have enough strength to work its way out of those tight ropes. Vandiyathevan entered the city of Pazhayarai with many dreams in his eyes. He spent his whole journey daydreaming about the beautiful princess, the queen of his heart. Oh how beautiful she will look when I tell her about my brave deeds , how happy she will be when she gets to know that her dear thambi is alive. Will she compliment me on my bravery? What if she smiled at me and asked me what I wanted as my reward for such an honorable deed? What will I say ? Can I ask her to give me a small piece of her jewelry as a keepsake to remember our rendezvous? Will she remember me? Of course she will! How can she ever forget the man she sent to bring back her brother? She promised that she would wait for me. Does that count as something? But all this wonderful bubble of imagination he built in his head was burst as soon as he reached the palace. The princess didn't even bother to glance at him! She completely ignored his presence and, on top of that, all these stupid soldiers decided to capture him and put him in this godforsaken place!
