"Oh, and I forgot to mention," Vishwamitra began, turning around from his perch at the helm of the long boat they were rowing down the river. "That after you undoubtedly defeat Tadaka, Subahu, and all the demons they bring along, that we won't be heading straight back to Ayodhya and your father." 

He raised his hand as Ram went to say something. "You are a dutiful son. Don't worry. I told your father about this, lest he have a cardiac arrest at your disappearance."

"Where will we be going, Guru?" Ram asked, placing his bow down for one second as Lakshman surveyed the surroundings suspiciously. He wasn't suspicious, that's just how he surveyed surroundings. "Are there more demons we have to kill somewhere else?" The sky had, at this point, darkened considerably, and both princes squinted up at it, confused at the rumbling and flashing rain clouds that had suddenly appeared.

"Oh no." Vishwamitra chuckled. Ram stared at him with wide eyes. Vishwamitra tended to not laugh. Like, at all. Ram hadn't even seen him smile that much. "Though there will be, no doubt demons in the place we're going after. Just a different type of demon." Lakshman blinked, looking up in an instant. More demons to kill? How exciting! This was like a whole itinerary for him to peruse! Life was great! Him and Ram bhaiyya, killing demons forever, Ram bhaiyya getting crowned-

"Ah yes. You'll be meeting quite a special form of demon. Females." Vishwamitra said. Ram suppressed a smile and a light blush as Lakshman slumped.

~~~

"Oh my God, oh my god, oh my god, the swayamvar is in three days!" Urmila shouted. She shook poor Shrutakirti's shoulders until they almost fell off. "We need to find a good prince for Sita didi, or else she'll be married off forever to some old man that could claim to be my long lost grandfather without me even questioning him!"

"Oddly specific, but yes." Mandavi agreed, pulling Urmila's self-declared stress ball (Shrutakirti), out of her grasp. "But how? There isn't any prince catalogue or something we can skim." Shrutakirti coughed, delicately sipping (read: chugging down) a goblet of ice cold water, which only made her cough harder, which made Mandavi thump her back, which made her fall over.

"Wait, is she trying to say something?" Urmila wondered, leaning down and lifting Shrutakirti up. "She is trying to say something! Well, Shrutakirti, cough it out!" They waited for Shrutakirti to say something, but she kept coughing. Mandavi put her hands on her hips, and Urmila shook her head. "We're not quite as intelligent as you, Kirti, we do not speak coughing as a second language."

Shrutakirti finally stopped coughing when a servant brought her some warm water, and she glared at her two sisters. "What I was trying to say is that actually, there is." Urmila and Mandavi both stared at her, and she stomped her foot. "Do you guys not remember what we were talking about?" She grasped Mandavi's arm, and began running.

"Hey, hey!" Urmila called out, watching her youngest sister run away. "Shrutakirti, calm down! We can negotiate this! There's no need to kidnap Mandavi for your own gains! Don't resort to a life as a criminal!" Shrutakirti disappeared around the corner, and Urmila sighed. "Oh well. We lost another one to the dark side. You will always be remembered, soldier!" She saluted the empty space before walking away.

~~~

Ten thousand rakshasas later, or so it felt, anyways, Lakshman and Ram were on their way to, well, Lakshman didn't really know where. Guru Vishwamitra had mentioned something about a kingdom, but hadn't even said the kingdom's name. Or maybe he had? Lakshman didn't quite remember. 

All he did remember was that the rakshasas had ambushed them before any further words could be said, and then there was no time for discussing kingdoms, rakshasas, females or otherwise. And all he could think of, right now, was the fact that he was a little exhausted and he would appreciate it very much if they could go home and eat.

But instead, he found himself, his brother, and the great and very food-depriving sage Vishwamitra on-track to travel away from Ayodhya rather than towards it. He pressed his hand to his bow instead of his stomach and scowled at the passing scenery. 

 Oh if only that tree was edible. He'd eat the entire thing! Gosh, it really was tiring being a demon killer, even if Ram bhaiyya did most of the work. Never any food on hand.

Demons had it so easy. They had wings and fangs and claws. There was always food everywhere. Because they ate everything. Maybe that was why Lakshman wanted to kill them so much. Maybe he was jealous of their view of Earth as a never ending kitchen utopia? Nope. It was definitely the way they kept on trying to kill him.

He turned around to stare at Ram, who was looking out of the window with a pleasant smile, and slowly felt his frown wither away. Of course. If bhaiyya, who had no doubt fought ten times harder than him, with all the weight of Papa's expectations on him, wasn't hungry, then what right did he have to be hungry? Calmly, he settled back into the (rather comfortable) carriage and decided to wait. What good kingdom didn't have food, anyways?

~~~

Shurtakirti finally brought Mandavi back, and after an emotional reunion with her family, they gathered around the book that the youngest had swiped from the treasury. "Look," Shrutakirti whispered. "It's a meticulously kept book of all the eligible princes and kings in the entirety of the mainland. And look! This one is even from Persia! Rajkumar Zubair? Hmm. I think we knew him?"

"Yes, yes, Sita di met him at one point." Urmila said impatiently, flipping through the pages in rapid speed. "I heard that a few princes will be showing up to Mithila a few days beforehand in order to prepare for the competition. Come on, Maan, Kirti, let's go to the tallest room to watch them as they roll in." Holding onto the book, the three princesses raced up the stairs, passing Sita as she walked down.

"Hey, where are you guys going?" she asked, confused, before shrugging her shoulders and turning back around. Must be up to some prank. Raja Janak had called her from the depths of the throne room to sit, for they were planning to welcome some princes. She also knew that from her throne, she could see any princes and Kings coming into the city. Shaking her head, she walked away.

~~~

"Eeek!" Shrutakirti hissed. "That one looks like a boiled toad!" She shuddered and looked away from the portrait right as the prince passed by in his equally toad-like looking carriage. "Didi, if they're all truly this ugly and indecent looking, then will Sita didi ever find a good man amongst them?" She looked at Mandavi, who looked at Urmila, who was still adamantly staring out the window.

"Hmm, let's flip to the next letter. 'K'. These are all princes and kings from empires whose names start with K." Urmila flipped. "Hmm. Kachori Republic? Khana Republic? Kheer Republic? Who names these kingdoms?" She flipped the page, and her eyes landed on the next name there was on the book. "The Kingdom of Kosala," she read out loud, before glancing out the window.

Mandavi snatched the book from her. "Finally. We're getting somewhere. Alright, the Kingdom of Kosala is an empire neighbouring Videha. Their crown prince is Prince Ram." She tilted her face, before handing it to Shrutakirti for further consideration. "This one doesn't look like a boiled toad. I approve." She peered out the window eagerly. "Now the question is, when is Ram arriving with his party?"

Shrutakirti grinned at the portrait. "Oh, he has three brothers! So he understands the bond between siblings! He'll allow us to come with Sita didi, or let her visit us! Perfect!" She set the book aside, and they all crowded up next to the window to try and spot the incoming Prince.

~~~

Ram bhaiyya was looking out from one side of the carriage, and Lakshman gazed out of the other. The streets were extremely crowded, filled with merchants that carried large baskets of toys and games on their heads. Some sold roses and flowers, others traded fried sweets and large gulab jamuns. Lakshman almost bought one for Shatrughan, before reminding himself that unless he wanted to feed the flies, sending sweets back to Ayodhya would be useless.

Buildings taller than Tadaka (the new standard of height for Lakshman) towered over them. "The people of Mithila are nice," Lakshman said simply. "The last time we visited a neighbouring kingdom, a crowd almost dragged Bharat bhaiyya and you out of the carriage. Papa was panicking so much, he didn't even notice Shatru willingly leaving." Ram chuckled, his eyes sparkling.

Ram's eyes always sparkled. It was kind of weird. It gave him the look of Dumbledore, but less old. It also made Kaikeyi declare that Ram was sick 24/7, because his eyes always looked watery. Frankly, Lakshman was quite scared of those twinkles. It was as if Ram bhaiyya could never be surprised by anything. They passed the two tall towers leading into the palace of Mithila.

A tall dome greeted them from the left side. Ram, right next to the window, glanced out, and in a moment, his eyes widened. Lakshman could barely see what had graced elder brother's eyes in a way that made him turn a pale pink, but he thought he could make a guess. "We just passed the quarters of Rajkumari Sita," Vishwamitra confirmed, and Lakshman leaned back, a small smile spreading over his face.

"Bhaiyya," he said, an almost teasing lilt to his voice. "There are little hearts in your eyes," Ram turned around and smacked him lightly on the arm, before looking back out the window. If he wasn't mistaken, Rajkumari Sita had looked at him too. "Bhaiyya!" Lakshman called, sounding slightly worried now. "Pull your head back in from the window! It could get chopped off!"

"No it won't," Ram said, voice sounding dazed. "Tell me, has your head ever gotten chopped off from putting it outside the window?"

Lakshman gaped, before rubbing his eyes. "Yes. Yes, in fact it has. I speak from my vast experience when I say that getting your head chopped off via window is quite a terrible way to go. But refastening it, ugh, much worse."

Ram didn't even question him, instead placing his chin in his hand like a lovestruck teenager (which he technically was, but pretend you don't know that). Lakshman stared at him for a second, before turning back around to gaze out his side of the window. He heard a distant giggling, and automatically, his eyes looked up.

There, on a tower even taller than Tadaka, were three girls, leaning out of the opening. One held a book in her hand, repeatedly glancing up from it. Another was pointing. Faintly, he realised that she was pointing at them. Their carriage. The third, at the end, had long black hair that wasn't tied into a braid, but instead left open. Her eyes seemed to assess their carriage, before they locked onto him.

They held eye contact for a single second, before Lakshman snapped his gaze away, staring at the ground instead as they passed. But he could feel her eyes on the back of his head. Boring into it like two drills determined to reach his mind and map it out, every single nerve, quirk, and trait. It was like they were trying to see into him, determine his motivation.

What motivation?! It wasn't as if he was trying to kidnap her or something! Why would a prince show up at a kingdom? To frolic around and stare at the flowers, or set the palace on fire, or perform a magic show with monkeys, or eat lunch? Well, he had come along for the food, but he was a special case altogether. There must be some big event going on, something worthy of an alliance. Some big event.

A marriage.

Immediately, Lakshman whirled around with wide eyes, leaning his head outside the window to stare at the girl. He got one last fleeting glimpse of her eyes before they turned the corner, and she disappeared from his sight. 

If there was a catalogue for First Meetings, right under the 'L' section, Lakshman and Urmila's eyes would be painted, wide and appraising and everything the beginning of a romance needed.

A/N-Aaaand, they've seen each other! Yay. I'm so proud of them. I'm excited to get Urmila and Lakshman married, so our dear prince knows what he's truly gotten himself into. If eyes are the door to a person's soul, Lakshman didn't quite get a good look at Urmila's before agreeing to marry her.