Chapter'5
The next day gaurav deliberately went into that room agen..
he searched evry nook and corner of the huge room and came across some more
portraits of Heera'though in a bad state bt he selected 4 among those paintings
in wich her face was almost clear.. he took then to his own room and took snaps
of them as he had decided that he wud include Heera's story in his project.. as
THE STORY OF A BRAVE RAJPUT PRINCESS..to add to the historic glory of the
rajputanas' the whole day went away in
carving out the story and taking other pictures'. By the evening,Gaurav became
quite tired and decided to take some rest'
he laid down on his bed and kept gazing at one of the paintings of Heera' he cudnt take his eyes off her' in his tired
and lazy mind'somehow he wished he cud see her alive,praise her extraordinary
beauty on her face and see her blush shyly,he wished he cud touch her'. The deep
desire in his mind started to disturb him' as a totally alien feeling filled up
his mind and heart'. Unable to keep himself relaxed,he sat up on his bed'.
suddenly agen the lights went off... he sighed--ooff ye yahan ke electricity problem... dimag kha jata hain....
he got up and decided to call manju,the caretaker as the bell wud nt be working without electricity.. bt then he realised,that he himself cud fetch some candles frm the dining room,downstairs without the help of the caretaker....
he climbed down the stairs and started approaching the dinig room,slowly making his way out in the almost dark hall... wen suddenly..he collided with someone and due to his reflex,he stepped back.... the person with whom he had collided looked up at him.... it was a girl...the first live female figure he saw in the palace.... he was so surprised that he stared at her face without any reason... he cudnt see her face properly and it was almost hidden by her long black strands of lose hair... all he cud make out in the moonlight creeping through the window panes was that she had big,beautifully expressive eyes.. he was about to say something,perhaps a " sorry " ,wen to his utter astonishment,she quickly walked past him and then started to run.... Gaurav,attracted by curiousity, ran behind her... he even called out---hey...kaun ho tum...? kahan ja rahi ho? ruko..... bt she paid a deaf ear.... she continued to run in the dark quite swiftly unlike gaurav whu kept on colliding with things and balancing himself.... suddenly she disappeared.... Gaurav stopped, panting.... he looked around him... no... she was nowhere.....
gaurav(to himself)--are ye gayi kahan? yehi to thi....
then he thought that perhaps she had hidden herself somewhere in the dark... he wondered who she was.... whu knew this palace quite so well that she cud even make her way out in the dark..... he gave it up and started walking towards the dining hall.....bt... he didnt realise that a pair of big,black and careful eyes were continuously keeping at his track.... he took some candles frm the drawer of the kitchen shelf and started walking back towards the stairs... as he stepped inside the main hall agen....all of a sudden,an eerie feeling misted up his mind.... he looked around him carefully,his eyes searching for something in vain.... he didnt know why he cud feel the presence of another living person in the room....it seemed that he cud even feel someone's breath.... bt he cud see noone..... just then the lights came back... and the room became all bright.... Gaurav heaved a sigh of relief and started ascending the stairs....
a part of the room was still dark,bacause of the shadows created by the constantly blowing curtains... unnoticed by gaurav, there was a different type of shadow....a more humanly kind....with long straight hair wich was also blowing continuously.... bt the person was nt visible.....only her shadow was there....staring at him,whu was slowly climbing up the stairs......
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manju idhar suno to--- gaurav called the caretaker,whu was busy washing the plates in the morning...
manju---ha sab ji.... he wiped his hand in a cloth and walked up to him...
gaurav---accha mujhe ye batao.. kya sach mein yahan koi ladki nhi rehti?
manju---ladki sab ji? his face looked lik gaurav had asked him abt an UFO and not abt a girl....
gaurav was nt to be put out this time.. he knew there was a girl all right... he had seen her...
gaurav--haan ladki.. maine khud dekha hain use.. kal jab lights chali gayi thi tab.. niche ke malle mein... maine use dekha hain.. woh ladki hi thi....
manju--nhi sab ji.. aapko zaroor koi dhokha hua hain....yahan koi ladki nhi rehti... aur is mahal ke aas pass to kiska ghar bhi nhi hain ki koi wahan se aa sakti hain...
gaurav shouted impatiently---to kya maine kisi bhutni ko dekha hain kya? huh? are.. main keh raha hu na... maine ek LADKI ko dekha hain... ek chalti firti ladki ko.. tum kyun nhi samajh rahe ho....
manju sighed---sab ji aapko dhokha hua hain.. aisa hota hain kabhi kabhi... aab hume jane dijiye.. hume bht kam hain....
gaurav was shocked--par.....
manju did nt reply this time.. he nodded his head sympathetically and went back to his work.... gaurav felt really pissed off....he walked out into the garden.....
the whole day he spent in the garden,looking around and taking snaps of the flower herbs,the beautiful anonymous twigs with pretty flowers....
in the evening he decided to visit the old,ruined temple at the back of the palace.. it was previously a part of the palace itself bt now it was totally neglected and had been turned into a haunting place....
gaurav carefully climbed up the old stairs as they looked really dangerous... almost ready to crash... successfully he climbed the last step and reached the temple gate... there was no idol in the temple as it was a ruin.. all the idols had been destroyed in the remote past...
slowly and carefully he walked,keeping a sharp watch for snakes and other harmful creatures...wen suddenly he heard footsteps behind him.... immediately he turned back and froze for an instant.... he found himself face to face with the girl frm last night... even she saw him too and he cud make out frm his eyes that she was terribly taken aback at his sudden appearance..... gaurav looked at her totally uncovered face.... she was vry beautiful,no doubt...bt he didnt know why,he felt that he had seen her somewhere....where.... he cudnt remember...bt her face looked known to him..... his attention was diverted for a few moments to think where he had seen her...wen she covered her face with her white chunri,turned and ran....
Gaurav---areh...!!! tum.... tum bhag kyun rahi ho? he ran behind her... bt she ran out of sight agen....
disgusted,gaurav decided to return back to the palace once agen... he felt that he had lost his mind....
he reached the palace and firstly splashed some water on his face and neck..... it felt nice as he was having a bad headache by then... then he wiped his face and climbed up to his room... he had no appetite so decided to skip his meal....
as soon as he walked inside his room,he felt something unusual.... then he realised..... the paintings of Heera,wich he had brought with him frm that room were nt there..... he was surprised... he wondered whu cud have moved them... perhaps the caretaker... perhaps he was nt supposed to move palace things frm one place to another... he sighed and reached out to switch on the lights... a moment's silence.. then suddenly gaurav turned back in a lightening speed and caught her hand.... yes,it was she all right,who was trying to escape swiftly out of the door... bt got caught..... gaurav pulled her towards him and pinned her to the wall... she covered her face with her free hand...away frm him.....
gaurav---aab to tumhe batana hi padega ki kaun ho tum....batao.....
the girl kept mum..... her lips were stiff and plastered to each other.... he tightened his grip around her wrist...she breathed heavily...it was painfull......
gaurav---abhi hum caretaker ko bulayenge aur tumhe police ke havale kar denge.. isiliye tumhare liye behtar yehi hoga ki tum apna naam bata do aur yahan ane ka wajah bhi....
the girl spoke out almost in a whisper---ji...wo..hum...hum....
gaurav switched on his lighter...and moved her hand away frm her face....she looked at him....her eyes full of fear..... she looked beautifuuulll in the dim light.....
gaurav---aab batao.....
the girl----hum....hum....Heer...HEER hain..... she sighed.......
gaurav-- heer? he suddenly remember the painting of Heera....and shuddered.... the girl looked so similiar to the princess..... now he realised why he felt that he had seen her somewhere.....
gaurav studied her face carefully and murmered to himself----no...this cnt be true.....she looks so similiar to Heera....just like her name.....
heer pleaded to him----hume jane dijiye plzz... hum yahan kisi galat irade se nhi aye hain.....hamara yakeen kijiye.... hume plzz jane dijiye....
gaurav loosed his grip around her wrist bt he did nt let her go...he pulled her away frm the wall and made her sit on his bed... then he switched on the lights..... heer got up---hume jana hoga....suniye....
gaurav closed the door and locked it.. then he faced her--- tum yahan se tabtak nhi jaogi jabtak ki hum puri baat jaan na le ki tum yaha kis maksat se ayi ho.....
heer gulped....and looked down.. she cud nt digest the way he was looking at her....
gaurav-- baitho...
she obeyed....
gaurav---tum yahan kyun ayi ho aur mujhe dekhkar bhag kyun rahi thi.. aur tum mere kamre mein kya kar rahi ho?
heer---ji woh....hum....rasta bhul gaye the.... hamara ghar bht dur hain.....is mahal se to bht dur.... hum yahan bhagkar aye hain.....
gaurav---bhagkar? par kyun?
heer's eyes welled up in tears..as she said---kyunki hamare gharwale humari shaadi zabardasti kisi aise insaan se karwa rahe the jo hume bilkul pasand nhi hain....isiliye hum shaadi ke din mandap se bhagkar aye hain.... abhi wo log hume dhund rahe hain...isliye hum yahan,is mahal mein aa gaye hain... woh log itne dur nhi aa payenge.....
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Edited by kasturika_kashu - 13 years ago
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