The Princess’s Fury
Chamundeswari was pacing furiously on the veranda outside her bedchamber. She had shooed her hovering maids away once they had helped her remove her jewellery and sari. Wrapped in a silk robe, with her hair hanging loose, she walked up and down the length of the veranda that faced the back of the palace garden. It was a good thing that she stayed in the east wing, in the last of the six suites on that side. It could not get any further from the queen’s chamber.
Where was Adityan?
She had been sure she would get to meet him before the night was over. Was he still with Naganandini?
The princess stopped in her tracks, a deep furrow drawing her shapely eyebrows together as she glared at the twinkling stars as if it was all their fault. She could not help feeling angry with the queen for garnering so much of their guest’s attention. After all, was he not supposed to be Chamundeswari’s relative? She began to pace again restlessly.
She had a good mind to go down to the throne room and kick up a storm before dragging him back to her chamber. Taking deep breaths, Chamundeswari tried to calm herself down. She had always projected a serene front to the queen and her brother. They had no clue about her rebellious nature. And Vishnurayan had not only trained her well, but also warned her many a time not to allow them to know her true nature. According to the loyal servant, there was a better chance for the princess to remain safe if she appeared to be a shy and retiring. That way, the enemies would never feel threatened by her.
But Chamundeswari could feel a deep change in herself after meeting Vijayendran. Her emotions were in a constant upheaval as well as her body. She was unable to fathom the new sensations that seemed to bombard her, making her lose sleep at night. Like now! The princess usually was fast asleep once she laid down on her bed. That she woke up completely alert at the least noise was another matter. But whenever she did sleep, it was so deeply that she was totally rested even after only a few hours at a time.
But last night had been a complete revelation. Her thighs had ached with need even as she felt a strange tingling sensation between her legs. She stopped in her tracks once again. Is that not what she had wanted to ask Adityan about? Where the hell was the man? Was it not his duty to guard her? Especially with Vishnurayan and Anagha in their home and her Manu out of action?
The princess’s fury built slowly but surely; higher and higher. Until she was all set to erupt. Stepping into her bedchamber, she quickly walked the length of it to go into her living quarters. Startled, she stopped in her tracks when she saw Vijayendran step into her suite to shut the heavy doors and push the bolt in place.
“What took you so long? Did you not have the heart to leave the queen’s presence?” Sharp words burst out of Chamundeswari even as her temper exploded.
“Did you miss me, my princess?” asked Vijayendran, a smile on his face which also reflected in his voice as he walked closer to her.
“Answer me first!” she snarled, her golden eyes spitting fire in the light of the oil lamps. The torches had been doused while there were at least ten lamps that lit the room brightly.
Vijayendran sighed, stopping barely a foot away from her. “Your stepmother is a leech. Shaking her off was not an easy task,” he said.
Still angry, Chamundeswari said, “You did not seem to be trying all that hard as you shared your life story with her. I did not see any reluctance on your part to leave her company.”
His frustration at the princess’s proximity, that too the way she was clad in a robe of thin silk; his irritation at the queen’s flirtation; along with four consecutively sleepless nights, Vijayendran was on the verge of a temper tantrum himself. Glaring at the princess, he said, “Alright! If that is what you want to believe. At least your stepmother seems to like me and is sweet towards me. Unlike you, my princess. You only spew your dislike towards me. Let me wish you good night.” Turning away from her, he took a few strides towards the door.
Chamundeswari could not believe her eyes. All this long, he had been the personification of patience, putting up with all her outbursts. What had come over him today? She had never expected Adityan to turn away from her.
“Aditya! Stop!” called out the princess, rushing to him and throwing her arms around his waist from the back. “Is something wrong?” she asked, her voice gentle; even as she ran her hands up and down his torso, her touch a soft caress.
“Why do you care?” It was his turn to growl in anger. But his sudden flare of temper was fast subsiding as he felt the warmth of her soft body pressed against his hard back and her hands caressing his front. He could not help but simply melt in her embrace.
“Aditya!” She let go of him to go and stand in front of him, completely unaware of her robe having come loose, exposing the front of her body to his bold gaze. “You know I care about you,” she pouted, fluttering her eyelashes at him.
He shook his head in wonder. How did she do that? The ingenuous princess? He could not stop his gaze from travelling down the length of her body. Oh my God! She was simply too perfect for words. Reaching with both his hands, he brought the two edges of the robe firmly together before tying the sash at her waist firmly, making sure that the robe did not fall apart once again.
“Why? Why are you wrapping me so tightly, Aditya? Do you not want to touch my body?” she asked in protest.
“No! Listen, my princess,” he commanded when she would have interrupted him. “We both need to talk. But with your robe open, talking is the last thing I want to do with you.”
Her eyes glimmered mischievously. “What is the first thing that you want to do?”
“You know,” he said, walking further into the room to pour himself a silver tumbler full of water before gulping it down thirstily.
“You know I do not know anything.” She pouted at him. What the hell was this mystery thing that she was supposed to know?
“Why don’t you come here and sit down? I want to talk to you.”
She dragged her steps as she walked across the room to sit down on an ornate chair.
Not keen to sit on the twin chair next to hers, Vijayendran paced from one end of the room to the other. After a few minutes, he stopped in front of her to ask, “You wanted to tell me something earlier. What was it about?”
She shook her head even as hot colour ran up her cheeks. She had so wanted to tell him about the earlier night when the many sensations in her body would not let her sleep. But she had thought to be held in his arms, close to his muscular body when she shared her intimate secrets with him. Not like this, with her sitting back on a chair and him prowling the room like a caged tiger. Glaring at him, she said, “It does not matter.”
He stared at her in astonishment. What did not matter? Earlier, she had sounded so excited about something she wanted to share with him. What had happened between then and now that it did not matter anymore?
“Chamundi?” He stepped closer to her. “What is it, my princess?” he asked, his voice softening as he noticed her mouth drooping at the corners. Going down on his knees in front of her, Vijayendran placed his hands on the arms of her chair. “Look at me, sweetheart.”
She opened her half-closed eyes to do as he said, her heart picking up beat when she saw the warmth, no, heat, in his dark gaze. Her throat closed up as she continued to look deeply into his adoring gaze.
“Chamundi… there is no need to feel upset. It looks like your stepmother is not above flirting with a stranger. She…”
A deep frown brought Chamundeswari’s eyebrows closer. “Oh! Is that what she was doing? What does she expect to gain from it?” Did not all actions of Naganandini depend on what she was going to attain for herself from any given situation? That was something Chamundeswari had always noticed about her stepmother.
How was he to explain it to her? The fact that the queen was keen to have him in her bed? Naganandini had been only too obvious about it. It had been a task for Vijayendran to escape from her, pretending not to understand her overtures. It was only his first day here. There were still three months to go before Chamundeswari’s coronation.
“Aditya?” she prodded him, placing a hand over his left hand as it lay on the arm of her chair.
Vijayendran quickly jumped to his feet, after pulling his hand away from her touch. He did not want the distraction of her proximity as he mulled over the situation. There was only one way out of this mess. It was best if he and the princess were married as soon as possible. It would not only keep the queen off his back; but it would also give him a right to remain by the princess’s side all hours of the day and the night. More than all this was the deep attraction between the two of them. As for Vijayendran, he knew for a fact that it was not just attraction on his part, but a deep, abiding love for Chamundeswari. He wanted her to become completely his.
But what about her? Was the desire she felt for him enough for her accept him as her life partner? Will she agree to the marriage?
He went and sat on the chair next to hers, taking her hand in his. “Listen, my love. I have just thought of a plan. I am hoping you will agree to it.” He paused, watching her keenly as he waited for his words to sink in.
“What is it?” she asked, slowly rubbing her thumb over his calloused palm, revelling in the sensation.
“You are distracting me, my love,” he grumbled, trying to pull his hand away from hers.
She held on tightly, shaking her head at him. “You are not going to get away from me so easily, Aditya. You had better accept that. The sooner you do, the better for both of us.” Her face lit up with a naughty smile as she looked up at him, even as she continued to trace his palm with her thumb.
“I think we had better get married, and fast,” he said, his voice thick with longing. Her gentle touch on his palm made his nerves jump, his body going tight with a fierce need to make her his.
Her mouth fell open in astonishment. “Marriage? You and I?” Did he really mean it? She could not believe her ears. The princess did not give a damn that he was only a warrior. What did it matter? She was the princess of Kongunadu and was soon going to become the queen. As her husband, Adityan could rule by her side as the king of the region. A slow smile spread over her face as she continued to look up at his handsome face. “Tomorrow morning?” she asked, laughing out loud when she saw the staggered expression on his face. “What? Do you want to get married tonight itself?”
He burst out laughing, standing up to pull her into his arms. “You are a naughty child, my princess. And you hold me in the palm of your hand. Do you realise that you have made me your slave for life?”
She pulled his head down to hers, rubbing her slim nose against his hawk-like one. “It is you who have made a slave out of me, Aditya. I want to belong to you, forever.”
“One thing bothers me though. Will the queen consent to a wedding between us? After all, I am only a warrior in the emperor’s army.” No way was he going to let out—not till the time the queen and the chief minister revealed their plan or were caught red-handed—that he was a Chozha prince. It was best that even Chamundeswari remained unaware of it. It also felt good that she was ready to marry him for himself, uncaring that he was only a soldier in the army.
“Let us get our heads together with Vishnurayan. He will know best how to deal with the situation,” offered Chamundeswari.
Vijayendran nodded. “You are right!” Placing his lips on her forehead, he gave her a gentle kiss before extricating himself from her arms. “It is late, my love. You should be in bed.”
“Aditya!” She pouted. “You are not going to escape so easily. Not before kissing me,” she insisted, giving him a mock glare.
Vijayendran was shaking his head even before she finished speaking. “No, sweetheart. Please have patience. We will be married soon and then I will make love to you, fully.”
“I hate you,” she declared, balling a small fist to hit him on his chest. “I did not sleep at all last night, you know. I… I felt this strange sensation between my legs. That is what I wanted to ask you about. My thighs ached as if…” Her eyes were half closed as if she was looking within herself, trying to recall what she had actually felt.
Vijayendran groaned, his body responding to her words with alacrity. “My poor sweetheart,” he said in a whisper, leaning forward to brush his mouth over her small ear. “Did you remain awake the whole night?” he asked, his voice gentle even as he traced the shell-like shape of her ear with the tip of his tongue.
With a soft sigh, Chamundeswari sunk into his hold, turning her head to accommodate his kisses. “I like it, Aditya. Do not stop,” she commanded, her voice hoarse. “And yes, I was awake most of the night.”
Unable to resist her, he asked, “Do you want to show me where you felt the strange sensation?” He refused to feel guilty. After all, they were going to be married in a few days. Maybe even tomorrow.
Taking his hand in hers, Chamundeswari drew it down to place it on the triangle between her legs. “There!” Her eyes went wide when she felt him cup his large hand over her feminine mound, his palm brushing rhythmically over her. “Adityaaaa…” she moaned, “That feels so good.”
“You have a delightful body, sweetheart,” he crooned in her ear, even as he dipped the tip of his middle finger between the folds of her femininity.
“Oh yes! I like that,” she sighed, turning her face to press her lips to his, even as she pushed her lower body closer to his wandering hand, thrilling to the sensation of his finger inside her. “I do not know what you are doing to me, Aditya. But it is too wonderful!” she declared against his mouth.
Bringing her face closer to his with his left hand, he kissed her luscious mouth deeply, even as he explored the depth of her wet core with his right hand, increasing the pressure slowly but surely.
Chamundeswari bucked in his arms as an unfamiliar pleasure built inside her, making her moan. “Adityaaaa…”
“Come for me, my love…” he invited, adding his index finger to the middle one as he pleasured her core even as he felt the tremors build within her womb. “Come, sweetheart…”
She did not really understand what he was asking her to do. Except that her whole body seemed to be on fire as the sensation between her legs built to a crescendo. What she had felt last night was barely a spark compared to what was happening now. Is this what he had been telling her when he spoke about the physical relationship between a man and a woman?
Her thoughts suddenly came to a halt when she felt an orgasm rip through her, her whole body going taut as a bow. She would have definitely fallen down if Vijayendran’s arm had not been holding her firmly to his chest. If someone had told the princess that it was her voice that rang loudly in the room as she yelled when she reached the zenith of pleasure, she would have never believed them. “Adityaaaa…”
Vijayendran could not stop the proud grin that split his face in two as he held the satiated Chamundeswari in his arms. “I promise you that you will sleep well tonight, my love,” he whispered in the ear of the princess who had gone limp in his arms. She was obviously tired out and on the verge of sleep. Lifting her up in his arms, he carried her through the doorway into her bedchamber. Placing her down on the bed, he kissed her forehead before pulling a silk sheet over her near naked body. “Good night, sweetheart.”
“Mmm…” mumbled the princess as she turned on her side before falling into a dreamless sleep.
Vijayendran stepped out of her quarters and noticed the sentry guarding her door. Recognising Vishnurayan, he smiled. “Vishnu, I am glad you are in charge of the princess’s security tonight. I can do with a proper night’s sleep.”
“But, of course, Your Majesty!” replied Vishnurayan in a whisper.
“Do not leave in the morning without meeting me,” said Vijayendran.
“I will do that, My Lord!”
“Goodnight!”
As for Queen Naganandini, she was restless as she paced her bedchamber, her eyes going to the connecting door every now and then. The locked door led directly into the bedchamber which used to be a part of the king’s suite. The very same set of rooms that she had told the manservant Muthu to allot to their guest from Thanjavur.
While she was tempted to open the door and walk into Adityan’s chamber, Naganandini was a tad hesitant. He had not been encouraging of any overture she had made towards him that evening. Gritting her teeth until her jaw hurt, the queen glared at the shut door. It was not going to be easy to get him into her bed, it seemed. But that did not mean she was going to give up. Tomorrow was another day! Going to her bed, she punched her pillows a couple of times before lying down on the soft bed. But it brought her no sleep. She realised it was going to be a long night!
