A husband's regret

Episode 21

Jaipur

​​​​​​​India 

Bhavani idly sat on temple stairs, his cheeks between palms.

Emotionally grounded now, he investigated the forbidden factors fuelling Rudra's defenses. Foremost, a homosexual relationship in a conservative society would be frowned upon. Second, coming from a high league, it would be struggling to accept such a flaw.

Third, the mystery behind his own birth remained unsolved yet.

Fourth, for a man as powerful as Rudra, his personal demons adding fuel to the fire would be nothing less of satan.

He sighed and glanced back at Kali lit by warm rays of Akhanda jyoti. Morning rays illuminated the place in its benevolence.

Last but not the least, Rudra was prince and he was, a pauper.

"Can I know who are you?" There was a chirpy high pitched murmur. "Who are you invited by?"

He turned around. A gleaming young woman around his age, in a floral dress with some of its fine cotton dragging behind her, observed him curiously. Her bouncy brown hair and curious eyes starkly reminded him of Vikram.

He smiled, a polite one. "I'm invited by Kunwar Rudra, we're friends." He would never call the oldest prince his without proper consent, until he would confess his true feelings.

Her eyes widened as big as saucers. "Friends?"

Subconsciously, he straightened, confused. "Yeah?"

"Omg, don't tell me you're the reason he's back here."

He shrugged. His lips pressed in a thin line before he put on a friendlier approach. "Why are people making it a big deal?"

She plopped down beside him. "So you are the one...oops my bad, hi, I'm Ira Rao, princess of Jodhpur."

He reciprocated the gesture. Both siblings had a unique charm to ease people into liking them. "Bhavani here." Fully facing her, his head tilted with interest. "Why are people so shocked at prince's homecoming?"

Her eyes narrowed around the edges, chin tucked in. "You don't know?"

His shook his head in cluelessness. "Should I?"

Ira exhaled softly in calm and collected manner. She fixed her dress before looking up. "It's been about a decade, minus a few months, since he last lived here. One would think he vowed to never step a foot here or something by the amount of creative excuses he'd lined up. My brother had to abandon nine meetings half way when he received the exciting news. I tagged along, because why not? You can't blame me, can you?"

Why is she so talkative?

He nodded. "Can you tell me why this puja is done anyway? I mean," He glanced at red eyes of mahakali before meeting expectant golden brown eyes, "I mean he told me it was for redemption from a sin but I want to know exactly why? What sin?"

A blue subdued her enthusiasm. Her shoulders slouched down as she sighed. "It's a highly sensitive story."

He blinked. "Uhm..I'll be mindful..then."

"You should be." She fiddled around her pearly bracelet. "This festivity is held to beg for forgiveness for one of Rathore ancestor's gravest sin, the sin of murdering an innocent woman, his own wife. Chittorgarh had presented their princess's hand in marriage to back then Rathore King, Agrim Bhairav. It was as a pacifist alliance meant to halt his political rampage. However she truly began to love him, devote herself to him, despite the dark politics played by him and...his unapologetic self. However," Ira smirked bitterly, "some men will forever stay power hungry maniacs. He wanted more, so much more that he had gone crazy in power lust. When King of Chittorgarh, Ganga's brother Badrinath, refused to send away more of his army just for hollow manslaughter, well guess what? He attacked the kingdom. He believed it was his humiliation as a son-in-law, a blow to his vanity. Queen Ganga resisted it, daring to uproot four crucial civil laws of that time under her jurisdiction, if he chose power over familial ties, and because...there's only so much shit a woman can tolerate before protesting. Well...he murdered her, annexed her kingdom. Badrinath secured martyrdom, his three wives committed suicide in retaliation, and the only heir...was treated like a servant for more than a decade, before Bhairav's ass finally left to hell. Rest is history."