Tanisi took the fruit basket and went to Naksha's chamber to share it with her as it was considered as divine food after offering it to the Lord. She found Naksha sulking. As soon as she saw Tanisi she smiled gleefully and almost ran towards her.
Tanisi: "Careful!!! You are pregnant you remember?"
Naksha: "Thank God atleast you remember. I just had you for a day and now the Samrat wants you to go to him for some work. I will get to be in your company only after lunch..." She said with a small face.
Tanisi: "Oh its only for a week Naksha, Samrat is not going to attend court for this week, and he wants to wrap up some administrative work."
Naksha: "Why do you know what he is going to do this week? Why should you do the work? Are you his wife or are you going to be?"
Tanisi was dumbstuck. She didn't know what to say. She smiled sheepishly and said, "What are you talking of! He is an Emperor and I am a just one of his subjects. Women can die at his fee
Tanisi lowered her head silently and asked him to explain her work. Samudra explained and they got busy for the rest of the morning. At noon, the pratihari(guard) came to inform Samudra of arrival of his master spy Praptavarsha. Samudra soon summoned him to his chamber. Praptavarsha hurriedly came in only to see Tanisi with Samudra and he was surprised. Tanisi wasn't looking at Prapta, she was busy working on the record assigned to her. Samudra saw his questioning look and nodded smilingly to continue with his updates. Seeing this Prapta understood that Samrat trusted her. He said: "My Lord, your doubts were true. A man named Vikas had joined hands with your Uncle Makaranda and assisted him in contacting the Kaingityas about the impending visit of the moderners. He had asked a woman Tanisi as reward.." Tanisi looked up shocked! Prapta understood who was the reward and one look at her told him why she was asked as a reward. Samudra clenched his f
She silently got up and went to the table. She continued working on the accounts. In one of them she found many discrepencies. Trying to figure it out caused her to frown. Samudra had woken up. He looked around to find Tanisi sitting and working intently on the accounts. He saw her frown. She looked beautiful even with such a serious expression and a frown. He kept staring at her. A part of him wanted to go and ask her what was bothering her. The other didn't want this scene to change. In this dilemma he kept looking at her.Tanisi wasn't able to figure out. She knew something was not right but she couldn't point out what needed correction. She wanted to discuss it with Samudra. Thinking he is still asleep she sighed and looked at him hoping to see him sleeping blissfully. But she found him staring at her. She felt embarassed and her face turned a hue of pink. She tried to push this feeling of discomfort away and spoke, "Your highness, I found some discrepencies in this accou
"Is that why you are a celebate?" The words slipped from her tongue before she could check them. Samudra looked at her astonished. She quickly turned her face away to hide her blushing cheeks. "Emperors and Kings are known for lavish lifestyles. Indulging in performing arts, alcohol and women. You seem to not do any of those".Samudra didn't say anything, but kept staring at her without batting an eyelid.Tanisi: "Why are you so harsh on yourself?"Samudra: "My my, looks like you are interested in knowing everything about me."Tanisi: "I am just a common citizen. I know I am off limits when it comes to details of your life. Pardon me, your Majesty."Samudra: "Who is complaining about you being inquisitive? Did I prohibit you from asking questions? If I haven't commanded you to stop, it means I want you to continue asking questions. Why should you put leashes around you, yourself. Infact I commanded you to be yourself around me. Didn't I? Or d
Soon it was dark and Samudra reluctantly allowed Tanisi to return. He then started to think about Acharya's foretelling. "Palace welcomes the future Queen, Shyamala, a misunderstanding, force, and finally the Lotus blooms.." What does it mean? Palace welcomes the future Queen? Which palace, the Old Palace? My Palace. Just then he turned around to find Tanisi in the corridor leading to her room and when she reached the doors of her Chamber, a gust of wind blew and the Jasmine flowers from the vine fell on her. Wasn't it welcoming? As an emperor his subjects always welcomed him by showering him with Jasmine blooms! He remembered it had happened the same way when he had carried her to her chamber. The corridor was clean before, meaning the shower of flowers coincided with their entry. And it happened again. Samudra didn't want to think any further. But his mind still wandered. Shyamala. Why was she brought up? Would she cause me to marry Tanisi? Or would she cause the mis
Acharya smiled and said, "Aayushmana bhava(May you live long)"Samudra didn't know where to start. He decided to make the Acharya talk more. Usually the guru spoke very less and in sentences which had hidden meanings. He wasn't in a position to think clearly. His brains were muddled with thoughts of Tanisi, fury towards Makaranda, anger towards Padma, as though he had lost his peace.He said, "Acharya, I came seeking answers from you. You must help me. My mind is a mess now. I need straight answers to all my questions. Please help me out!"Acharya smiled, and said "I will answer all those questions which I must answer now. But I shouldn't answer all your queries Samudra. I can help you find your mental peace back. I promise no more".Samudra: "Alright. Uncle Makaranda killed my mother by slow poisoning. I suspect he has a hand in the death of my father as well".Acharya: "I wouldn't rule that out. Your father's death was sudden. If a seeming illnes
Samudra sat chatting with the men who were delighted so see him. They all had started to revere him after his daring rescue. They felt indebted to him.The other women, Varidhi and Padma also were sitting around and listening to his accounts of hunting and wrestling competitions that he participated as a youngster.After a hilarious account of one of his victories Padma clapped her hands and laughing loudly she said, "Oh your highness, You are gifted with words. I might die of laughter the way you narrate the incidents.."Tanisi was feeling overwhelmed in the kitchen. She came out for a moment to catch some fresh air and she was using her Uttareeya to fan herself. She looked adorable with strands of her hair stuck to forehead and neck due to slight sweating.Samudra was hurt to see her exhausted like that. He said "Padma and Varidhi, I found three ladies working hard in the kitchen. Will you both not help them out?"Varidhi responded saying: "We ar
Tanisi thumped on the bed. She had a doubt. She had been to Aarna's chamber before coming back to hers. Aarna's bed was lot stiffer. Tanisi noticed that her bed was very fluffy. Her curtains and bed linen appeared to be of more expensive fabrics than Aarna's. The lantern in her chamber also appeared to be more brighter. She wondered if all this was true or if it was a figment of her imagination. She decided to discuss this with Vishwakeerthi. She lied down to sleep, but her thoughts went drifting towards Samudra. The way he spoke, the way he smiled. His cocked eyebrows. His naughty expressions. His dirty words. She felt the heat in her body rising. She thought to herself, "I need to control myself. I cannot fall for him. But what if I cannot? If I do, then I vow I will not marry anyone else!". But her thoughts were occupied by him. The way he looked at her. His threatening stares. The proximity with his body when he had carried her so many times. But luckily
After finishing breakfast, Tanisi and Samudra went to the emperor's chamber to finish the administrative accounts updation.Samudra was pleased with Tanisi's work. Even though she had done it for the first time, she had done it diligently. She had also mentioned cause for special expenses in small syallables next to the expense. And she had also created a scroll which contained the details of all the special expenses and the reasons thereof for that Maasa(Lunar month of 27 days). She had updated it for all the accounts she had worked with. Samudra had found no mistakes in any of her accounts. Wherever, she had found issues she had asked Samudra and gotten them resolved.They had finished working on it much earlier than anticipated. Wrapping all up, it struck to Samudra that he can remove the current minister for account management and give that responsibility to Tanisi. He decided that he would discuss this with Vishwakeerthi and if his friend too felt the same, once t
Tanisi snuggled up to him. Samudra was extremely happy, but was still not willing to let go of punishing Tanisi. He kept thinking and suddenly a wicked idea propped up into his head.He loosened his embrace and looked into her eyes by lifting her chin up with his index finger and said, " My Love, what a wonderful day today is. I got to play naughty around you early morning, got into an adventure, and now got a love confession. Hmmm... Very good. However, as you said nobody should misuse power. Hence, you too cannot forego your punishment. You dared to defy me again, forgetting I am the Emperor of the Land. How dare you ignore me? You should have praised my efforts, instead you thanked God; you should have followed me back to check if I was hurt or if I needed anything, you didn't. On top of it, you joined hands with Naksha to make me feel envious and stood cuddling Bahu?! I think I have been too lenient towards you. Before I fell in love with you, Naksha didn't dare to play a
Tanisi, opened and closed her mouth few times. Words forsake her. She was not able to think coherently due to the panic that rose in her earlier and now the embarrassment of pouring her heart out. Samudra: "Calm down Tanisi. Tell me what you wanted to talk about." Tanisi suddenly felt as though her thoughts had strung together. She spoke. Tanisi: "I wanted to talk about two things. First about Pradyumna and Naksha." Samudra was so disappointed, his face said it all. He had hoped she would speak about what he wanted to hear so desperately. But he quickly regained his composure and looked keenly at her as though saying go ahead. Tanisi: "I think Pradyumna likes Naksha. I don't know how it is in your society. But you asked her to move on which I suppose indicates she can remarry. Am I correct?" Samudra: "Yes, you are correct and that is what I meant. I saw Pradyumna's smile being warm towards her. I realized he probably loves her. Naksha
Samudra went back to his Palace and took a bathe to clean the sweat and dirt off. He summoned the Royal doctor who told him Tanisi was now fine with a smug smile on his face. Samudra still had a stern expression on his face. He came down to look where she was. He now had the doctor's permission to break his abstinence. He wanted a reward for his daring act for the day from his beloved wife. He came near the discussion hall to find Naksha dressing Pradyumna and Tanisi... wait, what!? Tanisi was cuddling Bahu and kissing the child's chubby cheeks!! Samudra was now enraged. Tanisi and Naksha had their back towards Samudra, but Pradyumna was facing him and he saw the emperor. He slightly bowed his head upon seeing Samudra who acknowledged it and then with a smirk winked at the handsome husband of Tanisi. Samudra understood there was something fishy and soon realized that this was a deliberate attempt to make him jealous. He smiled a victorious smile and once agai
After Padma's incident, Tanisi felt very confused. She didn't know how relevant her feud was with Samudra. But she also felt she shouldn't be lenient towards him. The way she ended up marrying him was not ethical. She wanted to ensure Samudra doesn't twist laws to suit him and wanted this to be a lesson for him. She continued to maintain distance with him but respectfully. Samudra noticed that she had gone back to her original ways, but was still aloof from him. He didn't force her. Slowly Tanisi resumed her war practices. She started to learn more about spying from Naksha as well. During this time Pradyumna was elevated in levels in Samudra's army. He started to frequent the Palace along with Balabhadra the commander-in-chief of Samudra's army. Samudra missed Shourya greatly. He once joked with Tanisi, that he should probably annexe Kritadesha so that he can have Shourya back as his army's commander-in-chief. Tanisi retorted, "Just because you got me through
Samudra:"If you don't want me to punish them I won't force you Padma, but you should atleast reveal the names of the people who did that." Kumuda was now too distraught she kneeled down on her knees and said, "Please my Lord I don't want to relive my ordeal. Can we please stop this here?" She was breathing heavily and was behaving as though her life depended on it. Samudra looked at Tanisi and asked Naksha to come out from her place. Both of them had a shocked expression on their faces. Kumuda looked around and was puzzled as to why Naksha was hidden. Naksha: "What did you say your name was again? I couldn't remember sorry." Kumuda: "Who are you and why should I say my name to you?" Tanisi: "Even I forgot your name. Can you say your name again. Offlate my memory seems to be playing tricks on me." Kumuda: "Kumuda.. My name is Kumuda." Naksha was now enraged. She walked towards her and stood staring at her face. Kum
After breakfast, Samudra took Tanisi to meet Naksha who told them about Bhavabhooti's murder. He was fed up of the hatred he received everywhere he went. Everyone knew how he had tried to trick the Emperor. He had been to a Kaingitya mask maker to get a mask and change his identity to eke out a living. Kaingitya guards had recognised him as the spy from Nishantha. Afraid that their current ruler would be lenient to him, they had hacked him to death. The gruesome details of the incident disturbed Tanisi. She said, "If this is the case, then Padma also must have found it very difficult" Naksha: "Your heart still goes out for her Tanisi? What are you made up of? She put you through so much and yet you are thinking of how she would survive? Well strange news is there is no news about her whereabouts at all!" Suddenly Samudra looked at her as though she had provided him with the solution for a great problem. Samudra: "Naksha, do you know if Bhavabhoo
She regained her composure and was now ashamed at her behavior. She lowered her head and breaking free from his embrace, she dressed his wound. Samudra looked at her lovingly. She caught sight of this and didn't know how to react. She got up and simply left the place. Samudra sat down. He then decided to take his horse "Ativega"(Ati - too, Vega - Fast) out with him for sometime. He shared a very strong bond with his horse and always felt consoled in its presence. He changed his clothes and went downstairs. He heard Tanisi's voice, she was playing with Naksha's child Bhadrabahu. Bahu could now walk and he loved playing blindfold. Samudra walked upto the place where they were playing. The child noticed him and ran to him. Samudra picked him up and caressed him. Tanisi who was blindfolded kept calling Bahu's name. Samudra was reminded of the time when he had rescued her. She was blindfolded then too. A smile crept up on his lips at the naughtiness he had exhibited towards her.&
Tanisi was tied down by Samudra. He wouldn't let her out of sight. He wasn't going to let her go anywhere. Tanisi's poisoning was wreaking havoc. At one point she could think clearly and see that the said events had a long timeline and that Samudra genuinely loved her. But most of the times her thoughts were a chaos and she remembered the past more clearly when compared to recent events making her hate herself.Samudra had seen her mood swings. The Royal Doctor had prescribed another medicine to help her heal quickly. This was prepared and sent by the doctor himself instead of allowing the royal chefs to prepare it.Kumuda was kept under watch without her knowledge. She still sent medicines thinking that Tanisi was consuming it. In some days Naksha requested Tanisi and Samudra to give her audience.Even though Tanisi had toned her attacks down, the relation between her and Samudra had greatly soured. The doctor had told Samudra in private that, she w
Samudra went to his chambers. He found Tanisi relaxing on the swing. He smiled gently at her and asked how she felt now. She looked at him sadly and said, she doesn't feel very well. Just then Naksha asked for his permission to enter. Samudra: "Naksha, what would I do without you! Thanks for bringing this issue to my notice before Tanisi could have been hurt more." Naksha: "Samrat, my intention was to make you scold your heavenly beautiful wife!! But I was shocked to see what she has gone through. Tanisi, I am sorry for having bullied you!" Samrat: "Well I have a task for you, after announcing that, I request our Samrajni(Empress) to punish you for bullying her." Tanisi laughed heartily at their banter which instantly lightened her mood. Samudra: "Naksha, I have a doubt that Kumuda is someone I know. Her story seems too farfetched to be true. For one, Padmanabha (Royal cook) has a particular timetable. For him to find her j