The winter sunlight had a strange combination of gold, yellow and silvery white to its complexion. In that crisp light she shimmered in a different aura. It was the first thing Sanskar saw as he woke up; Swara’s face, basking in that golden stream of sunlight as she slept on, her head leaned against the coach. They had been sitting there and talking, he was not sure when sleep had finally over powered them.
He stood up and went to the glass wall that they had forgotten to curtain down that night. It had been filled with stars then, now it was filled with soft fluffy clouds that sparkled in the morning sunlight. He mused how he had noticed, not his reflection but the view outside for a moment before he caught her reflected behind him, still asleep, tightly trapped in her innocent dreams.
A week ago he had categorized this Swara as the wizard of Aladdin, who simply wanted him to get in to the dark, deep cave and bring him the magic lamp. He was sure that once the lamp was attained, he would be left in the dark cave to starve and die. The hatred in her eyes had confirmed this.
He was not suicidal. Still he let her use him, under no conditions of his own salvation. SK, would laugh at his stupidity and even Sanskar was not sure what had driven him in to this danger. But it seemed a worthy sacrifice, to heal the cuts he made on her soul.
Guilt had a strange appeal to Sanskar. His guilt had made him do things his sane mind would have questioned. It had been his guilt of not being able to save his love that made him SK that had almost ruined everything surrounding him. It had also been his guilt that made him agree to become Swara’s sword no matter what hard rock she yanked him against. He was ready for any pain she was going to bestow upon him, for pain was no stranger to him and no longer held an upper hand over his soul. But…affection was entirely a different matter.
She had said she would not punish him, so that she would never sympathize with him and could continue to hate him. He had agreed. But, now, she was breaking his walls as well as her self-made rules…melting his icy emotions; that he was not comfortable with. True he wanted to be closer to her. He wanted to comprehend her. But the closer he went, the more barriers of her heart fall and he realized that beneath all those layers she was a magnet. There was no return from nearing her, the pull was too strong.
Maybe that feeling was mutual. He had seen it in her eyes. She was too deep in as well and that frightened him. His past has turned his heart in to quick sand, the deeper she went the lesser where her chances at survival. He could not destroy her but then again…she was his only hope at healing. He sighed. This spinning had to end with him falling on either side; either a friend or an enemy, he could not cope with this middle ground route anymore.
She was staring awake. His analyzes had to be folded in to a quick conclusion before she opens her eyes and catches that expression in his face, he had to pull his mask up. He walked away, gritting his teeth at his weakening resolve. He always ended up doing something completely opposite to his plan when it came to Swara. He is her sword, a weapon with no strings attached. When has anyone heard of a sword with a bleeding heart?
Swara slowly opened her heavy eyelids, idly wondering what that strange room was. The ever calm tone of Sanskar greeted her.
‘Want some coffee?’
The hour of wavering was gone, everything was as normal as it could be.
*
Those red foot prints in the gleaming floor of the Maheshwari Mansion burned Ragini’s sight as well as her heart. Her mouth tasted bitter, as if she had swallowed her defeat. All her life she had tried to be a mirror. Initially it reflected what other people wanted to see, an innocent, naive version of her and inwardly it knew the exact image of every person who looked in to it.
It had known exactly what her Dadi, her Baba was. When she wanted to utilize them in her motives, those tiny details came in hand. Then she knew exactly what Sanskar was and how she should play to turn him in to SK. She knew exactly what Swara, Lakshya and Durga Prasad Maheshwari were…all her arrows had gone to precise bull’s eyes.
But her mirror seemed to have turned convex or concave as the second half of the game begun. She had thought Swara would die. No. Sanskar saved her. She thought Swara would never forgive him, No. He was forgiven. She thought Lakshya might accept her and gave in to the pressure of family. No. He was still broken hearted and whining! She thought as soon as Gadodias merge with Maheshwaris the crown was hers. No. It was still Sanskar’s. Finally she thought Swara would never take their charade this far with her entering his house. But no again. Her footprints left after the Grahapravesh this morning were mocking Ragini in glee.
Then she remembered her last conversation with her Baba and Chandraraj Agrawal. The man was furious with Sanskar’s behavior. He had repeatedly pointed out that this merger has to happen; it has to at any cost. Something in the way he behaved unsettled Ragini. It was she the player here. Chandraraj was her pawn, she could demolish his castle in a moment if she hands over the evidence she had. But no, the man was behaving like she was his pawn in a bigger game she had no idea about.
There. She took a breath. It was time to start her homework again. She would have to find a new restrain for Chandraraj as well as a breakthrough for Swara. The second seemed easy. She could sense her sister was falling back to her childhood habits, starting to depend on Sanskar. She just had to pull that plug of her life support system away and she would die eventually. For that she already had a plan.
‘Sali ji, who’s murder are you plotting?’
She shuddered at his voice that came so close to her ear. Ragini glanced up and saw Sanskar grinning slightly at her. How well he could see through her soft, angelic mask. She smiled at him serenely.
‘You’re forgetting Sanskar bhai, that I’m also your brother’s wife.’
‘Oh that,’ said Sanskar casually. ‘I haven’t forgotten. But your husband seems to be on roll of breaking his relations. You see he broke off his engagement, then he said I was no brother of his,’ he looked at her. ‘From what I gathered you are friend zoned as well right?’ She scowled at him.
‘At least even after your sweet treatment your sister thinks of you as family, otherwise we would have no relation at all,’ he gave her a mocking disappointed look. ‘Ah, how I wish that was the case.’
‘Being your family doesn’t make anyone safe from your wrath does it?’ Ragini pointed out slowly. ‘If that is the case, be rest assured I know we are no family…’ she gave him a dark look. ‘Your relation is fake and I know that. How does it feel Sanskar to finally accept that you are nothing but a weapon, no matter which sister’s hand you’re in?’
Sanskar dropped his easy smile at once.
‘It matters a great deal Ragini. A weapon in a god’s hand is a vanquisher of evil itself.’
‘Oh, so Swara is your god now? Good going…’ She laughed a little. ‘From pawn to god, what a progress!’
‘Fighting together and fighting against are too very different things Sali ji,’ Sanskar said now in a serious tone. ‘You have tasted my friendship; you won’t survive the taste of my hostility.’
‘Is that a threat?’
‘No, it is a warning. You’re right I am her sword; I don’t mind how many I’d have to cut open in order to score her victory. Step back Ragini, while you can.’
With a crocked grin he left her to ponder over his words. So Sanskar was here to initiate a battle. Good. At least she would not have to take the first step.
‘You are forgetting a sword without a holder has no value,’ she muttered to herself. ‘I will make sure the same is your fate soon.’
With that final resolve she launched in to her plan. Sanskar will not see what hit him and neither will Swara.
*
‘Umm what are you doing?’ Sanskar said uncertainly as he entered his room. A strange sight greeted him. Swara was standing at the foot of the bed with a pillow in her hand and a weird expression of concentration etched across her face.
She turned to look at him with a crocked eyebrow and bit her lip.
‘I’m trying to build a pillow wall.’
‘Kiss kushi mein?’ He had to ask. ‘There is no need I’ll sleep on the couch.’ Swara gave him a sarcastic look.
‘Yeah right,’ she said then. ‘Have you seen the thing itself? It’s so small Sanskar, you can’t sleep there!’
Her words drew his attention to the offended piece of furniture. True, he would have to spend a painful night there. But… He turned back to Swara.
‘I’ll manage,’ he said snatching the pillow from her unsuspecting hands. ‘After all I’m not going to sleep there for my entire life; it’s a matter of days.’
‘Give it back Sanskar!’ Swara said stubbornly. ‘How would you focus on our plan if you have to stay awake all night making sure you don’t fall off that thing?’
‘I can,’ Sanskar pointed out. ‘I haven’t exactly been sleeping in the past years as well. It never compromised with my planning though.’
That exactly been what Swara was worrying about had no effect on her decision. She had seen what torture he went through and had no intention of adding to it.
‘You won’t!’ She snatched the pillow back as he held to an end of it. Both not wanting to give up had started to drag it in their respective directions. The poor pillow meddled in to their battle of egos gave up and split in to two.
‘Gosh!’ Said Swara as Sanskar mumbled something incoherent under his breath. Soft flacks of cotton were raining around them. Swara laughed after a moment. ‘It’s snowing!’ She stretched out her arm to touch a hovering fluffy white bit of cotton and her eyes gleamed in soft happiness.
Sanskar grinned at her glowing smile and unable to restrain himself emptied the whole contents of the split pillow in to the atmosphere around them. The real winter of evil around them momentarily forgotten in the soft bubble of happiness they laughed together. It almost seemed an untouchable reflection of their old friendship in a mirror of the moment.
‘This is not done yet!’ Swara said as she picked up another pillow and started to thrash him with it. Her innocent blows made no damage to his face but cracked some of the ice around his heart. Soon both, laughing uncontrollably and cheering was having an epic pillow fight. The issue which initiated the utter war lay forgotten as many more pillows split in to white, flakes raining around them.
Drained out from laughing and running around, they both fell on to the bed covered now in fluffy cotton, still laughing. As their laughter died out slowly in to weak chuckles they heard that someone was knocking the door.
Sanskar still shaking his head at the chaos in which now his room lay, opened the door. A gust of cold wind swept in and their bubble of happiness burst off rather roughly. Lakshya stood their observing the scene in front of him in absolute disgust. Swara sprung up to her feet instantly, shaking off the sticky cotton flakes of her hair and clothes, still slightly out of breath.
Sanskar took a breath as he took in the repulsiveness in Lakshya’s face. For the first time he realized how the view might be to an outsider’s eye. He could see the conclusion stretching itself across Lakshya’s mind.
‘What is it, Lucky?’ He asked casually before he would hear any of those thoughts verbally. No one had the right to taint that innocent moment of theirs with an inappropriate approach.
‘Laksh ji, you forgot to take this…’ it was Ragini, carrying a heavy set of clothing and jewelry. She stopped at the threshold and her eyes swept across the room, she smiled slightly before pushing past Sanskar and entering.
‘Swara these are for you, I know you don’t have Marwari clothing. But if you are a daughter in law of Maheshwaris you should dress like one, at least.’ She deposited them on the couch and looked around.
‘There’s a party tonight at Agrawals,’ Lakshya said dragging Sanskar’s attention back to himself. ‘Chandraraj Agrawal wants us to attend it. I know you don’t like the man…’ he added with an afterthought. ‘But at the moment he has much to offer.’
Slamming the invitation card against his palm, he went away moodily and Ragini who had been having a cherry moment clapped her hands at what she thought was Swara’s approval and glided after him.
‘Do we have to go?’ Swara asked him.
‘Yes,’ Sanskar said slowly. ‘Let’s see what he has to offer.’ He looked at her worried expression and added in a sly voice. ‘Looks like you don’t have any pillows left for your great wall…’
*
Ragini smiled as she descended the steps. In war, one moment of lost concentration can grant you death. That moment had passed. She looked at the tiny bottle in her hand, which had white petite pills contained. She was one of the few people who knew Sanskar took sleeping pills and the only one who knew exactly how to manipulate that tiny detail in their bigger plan.
Of cause, she had swapped the bottles.
‘There you go Swara.’ She said serenely. ‘Save your sword if you can.’
*