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Aishwarya POV
"Ab aap Bai-sa ki maang me sindoor bhariye,"
"Now fill the vermillion in the partition of her hair,"
I heard the voice of the priest exclaiming to him.
Silent tears were rolling down my tears that no one could see because of the long veil I was wearing. My whole body was shivering like anything. It had been a whole week since I have eaten properly, slept peacefully or done anything to my heart's content.
I closed my eyes to calm down my trembling lips when I felt him pulling my veil just a little up only to touch my forehead. My whole body turned numb and my eyes closed with my head low, when I felt his hand touching the centre of my hairline, adding the vermillion to the partition of my hair.
This was it.
"Now, I announce you both husband and wife,"
I became his. In a single moment, just in a snap of fingers my whole life, world, everything changed.
So drastically as if someone has fallen from the height of a mountain and ended right into the depth of the river flowing down, just in a snap of fingers. And, no one could explain the moments of the snap of fingers, when that someone slipped from the mountain and touched the bed of the river. No one could explain that turbulence, that storm, that feeling. No One.
I got married to a person, I had never known, never heard of and never even seen. Whole my life I craved love, crave something better, longed for feeling important and this was it. My hope died here, my wanting to be ended here, my craving burned here and I ended here.
Everything was finished when my father married me off to a complete stranger man for the sake of the betterment of people. I was just a pawn of the political Chaturanga (chess).
"Now, you both must stand up and take the blessings of the elder,"
The priest said and I felt the person sitting beside that had become my husband now standing up. I was feeling frozen.
All the voices, all the visuals of my childhood and everything was blurring my teary vision.
Suddenly, I felt a hand on my shoulder and a sweet girlish voice saying.
"Aishwarya, stand up,"
I blinked and more tears fell from my eyes. I shakily stood up and looked at my dupatta tied with his.
I was now his wife, his half, his.
And, I did not even know who he was.
All I knew was that his name was Ranvijay Dev Singh and he was the Prince of Suryagarh with which my father had recently established a peace treaty and given me as a token of a strong relationship with the Kingdom.
With my shaky steps and weak knees, I walked towards my father first. He placed his hand on my head and said.
"God Bless you,"
I knew that the words were just a mere formality.
I was never a good girl for him, never the girl he wanted. I did not know what was wrong with me, what had been wrong with me my whole life.
Though, he was the only one I had even if his behaviour had always been cold towards me.
"Congratulations, Bhaisa,"
I heard a few faded noises of congratulations, giggling, happiness and a wave of dreamland. But, inside my heart, only ashes were left.
Never in my thought, I thought that my father would arrange for me with a stranger for a political alliance.
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.
I placed my feet inside the plate and stepped forward.
The cold liquid beneath me sent a shiver down my spine and I kept walking.
My heartbeats were insanely racing as I stepped into my new home, a home I least knew would be a home or a cellar.
Well, four walls do not make a house a home, but the freedom, happiness, vibes and energy its surrounding radiates, make these bricks a home.
And, knowing how much importance I was given when they all were deciding about my life, I could hardly think of a home.
I kept walking along with them hardly remembering the way as there would be plenty of time in my life now to remember the ways. I did not know how was I feeling exactly.
But, the closer one was lost, in every sense.
After a good, long walk. I climbed a few stairs and was informed.
"Princess Aishwarya, this is your chamber,"
And, I suddenly feel shaken.
My chamber.
That means it was all real.
I was far away from home and alone here in between unknown people.
With shaky steps, I walked forward and stepped upon the cold marble floor which was of deep maroon colour that I could notice from the inside of my veil and with gaze low.
I felt a pair of hands around my shoulder pushing me gently onto the bed.
"You can uncover your veil now,"
I find the same girlish voice and lifted my eyes.
When I did not react in the upcoming few moments, I felt a pair of hands gently lifting my veil.
I lowered my gaze and my fingers were tracing my bangles nervously.
"Aapka hamare Mehal me swagat hai, Choti Rani-sa,"
"You are most welcome in our Kingdom, Choti Rani-sa,"
I heard and lifted my gaze to see a beautiful young lady with a heartwarming smile looking at me.
She inhaled a deep breath and sat beside me.
I was feeling anxious.
In a fraction of a moment, I raked my eyes around to see that there were so many ladies standing there and no men.
"I am Nandani, Your sister-in-law,"
She said and I adjoined my hands to greet her and bend to touch her feet.
She immediately held my hands and shook her head.
"Ranvijay hamare bhai jese hai, bahut ache hai, or is naate aap hamari devraani nahi, behan hui, to per mat chuiye, seedha gale miliye,"
"Ranvijay is like my brother, he is very nice and by this relation, you are not my sister-in-law but like a real sister, so do not greet me like this rather, get into a hug,"
She said and leaned in closer to hug me.
A sense of comfort and peace ran into my body immediately with the hug and I closed my eyes for a moment.
She realised the hug and said.
"You must go and get freshened up. Everyone is waiting for you for the prayers,"
I blinked and nodded lightly.
"Ji,"
I managed to say.
She stood up and suddenly said.
"Also, Aishwarya, She is Moni, she is your helper. If you need anything you can always tell her,"
She said pointing her finger at a girl in the attendee's clothes.
"Obviously except for the things only your husband can fulfil,"
She said with a slight tease a shiver ran into my body and everyone giggled.
"You go and get ready, I will be back in some time. I need to see the arrangements and all,"
I nodded and looked at her leaving along with all the ladies leaving only a few attendees here.
"Aapka nahane ka paani taiyaar karde,"
"Shall we prepare the water for your bath?"
Moni asked and I nodded lightly with a soft voice.
"Ji,"
She left and I waited until she came back.
She took me to the bathing room and I was amazed at its size and elegance. The Kingdom was seeming way huge than mine.
She along with the other attendees helped me take off my all pieces of jewellery and then take the bath and get dressed again in the dark red attire with the same jewellery.
She tied my hair in a bun and unwantedly I noticed my hands, all inked with henna and mahavar.
I was his wife now.
"You are ready?"
Suddenly the voice of my sister-in-law caught my attention and I immediately stood up from the chair.
I placed my veil on my head quickly and said.
"Ji,"
She took me out and I pulled my veil low to cover my face while stepping out of the chamber.
The fragrance of cinnamon and roses hit my nose and I immediately recognized him.
He was him, the person I married to. Because I could smell the same fragrance all the while sitting on the mandap.
"Let's go,"
He said in a slow voice and I nodded lightly.
We both started walking and reached a small temple-like structure and prayer to the deities as the rituals.
After coming back from there, I was told to have food in the evening and it was when my real anxiousness began.
As the darkness was bubbling up in the surroundings, I was feeling strange butterflies in my stomach.
The fear of him not liking me, not liking my complexion and everything was making me shiver.
"Come here,"
My sister-in-law said.
Taking me from the resting area to inside the bedroom.
And, the moment my sight fell on the bed all filled with the petals of roses and covered with the curtains of flowers, my heart skipped a beat and I started feeling nervous and afraid.
"Time for your wedding night,"
She said with a smile and I lowered my gaze.
What the hell?
I had not even seen my husband, he had not seen me either.
I was feeling my gut twisting and turning insanely.
She helped me sit on the bed and I was shaking.
"Now, you must wait for him,"
She said and I saw all of them leaving me alone.
I started to focus on my breathing while sitting frozen like that on the flowery bed, in the middle of the night, waiting for my husband.
And, after a while, I heard the door push open and my heart's beats turned insanely wild.
The very first Update of Ranvijay and Aishwarya.
Let's begin this one. So, this is kind of a sweet story with no fighting and all. Just our Ranvijay and Aishwarya. But, it's hell interesting. Because we all know how much workaholic our Ranvijay is and her bride is too shy to seduce him. How will things work out then?
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