Raghuveer and Pratiksha were walking ahead from the green meadow.
The forest had gone behind. The beautiful meadow, too, had a red stain on it that made it terrifying.
Only the meadow knew how many people had shed blood on this very spot. It was a witness to the enmity between the Mukt and Aryat kingdoms. Two kingdoms that chased each other's lives just to expand their land.
Raghuveer and Pratiksha had been walking for a long time. The sun had reached above their heads. That meant it was afternoon.
Pratiksha was holding her wounded hand with the other hand as she walked. She had torn a piece of her dress and tied it around the wound. That gave her some relief from the pain. But since she was walking, her hand still hurt. So she held it with her other hand.
The cold wind acted like salt on her wound. She was walking behind Raghuveer because she didn't want to show him her pain. She felt that if Raghuveer saw she was suffering, he wouldn't let her stay with him.
Raghuveer was walking calmly. His hands moved with his steps — the same hands that had severed so many others. His coat flapped with his movement, revealing only his palms to the cold wind. His coat was dusty. The sword on his back shifted with his stride. His face was glowing. The happiness on his face showed how beautiful that place truly was.
His eyes — the ones that had seen all of Raghuveer's good and bad deeds — were now showing him the beauty of that place. His quiet nature said how precious words can be.
Pratiksha kept looking at Raghuveer, then at the beautiful meadow. She was confused. She didn't know whom to look at. Both were beautiful. So she kept glancing at Raghuveer, then at the meadow.
With her steps, her earrings swayed. Her red-green eyes looked stunning. The rose tucked in her hair added to her beauty. Yes, her dress was dusty. There were bloodstains in some places. But still, the dress suited Pratiksha.
Their dusty clothes erased the caste differences between them.
They had come a long way. But the meadow still hadn't ended.
*I don't understand… why is she coming with me?
To chase me?* Raghuveer asked himself.
Pratiksha wasn't chattering like before.
I should stay quiet… if I keep talking, Raghuveer might get angry or not let me come with him, Pratiksha told herself.
Her worry was valid. Because Raghuveer liked silence. If Pratiksha kept talking, he might leave her behind.
"Are you hungry?" Pratiksha asked Raghuveer. Her eyes looked at him.
Raghuveer didn't answer. But his stomach did — saying yes, he was hungry. They had been walking since morning. Now it was almost evening.
Pratiksha gently said, "So you are hungry… let's stop. Come, let's sit and eat. I have some fruit."
She sat down in the meadow and pulled out two apples from the pocket of her dress. She offered one to Raghuveer. Raghuveer was standing, and she was sitting. She stretched her hand to give him the apple. Raghuveer took the apple from her hand and started walking ahead while eating it.
Pratiksha quickly got up and followed him.
"We could've sat and eaten… would've gotten some rest too," she said.
Raghuveer didn't say anything. He kept eating the apple. Pratiksha sulked — but not for long.
Raghuveer finished the apple. But Pratiksha hadn't eaten hers. She was waiting.
"You want this too?" she asked.
"And what about you?" Raghuveer said. She saw that he was concerned for her. She felt very happy.
"I'm not hungry… here, take it," she said and gave him the apple. Raghuveer took it and started eating.
In her happiness, her hand accidentally touched her wounded arm. "Ouch…"
Her hand started hurting.
Raghuveer looked at her. She tried to hide her pain.
"Does it hurt a lot?" Raghuveer asked.
"No… it doesn't hurt at all," she said.
The meadow was now ending, and a stone road began.
Perhaps this road was the path into the Aryat kingdom.