His Queen

Long ago, in the Kingdom of Gauravpur.

Gauri Harshvardhan Varma, sucked in a panicky breath when she heard the snap of a dry twig. This time the sound appeared to get nearer than before.

It was the mid of the night in December and for a little girl to waltz into the forest without her guards to protect her, meant an attempt at suicide.

What was the need to play a warrior woman? You should have listened to your brother's warnings, the twelve year old girl chastised herself. But she wanted to search for her savior and prove to her brother that she wasn't making up stories.

What if he didn't come to save her this time? The last time, she had been lucky... her heart dreaded.

Oh... no issues at all. As the princess of Gauravpur, it is your duty to see that every life in your providence be well fed. No matter if they were a pack of starved wolves waiting to kill you..., replied her sarcastic brain.

She stopped in her tracks as she heard a low growl behind her.

Heart hammering inside her chest and beads of sweat covering her forehead, she turned around to face her enemy.

Though she tried to be as brave as possible, she couldn't help the soft gasp that escaped her lips on seeing the sight of the animal whose eyes were blazing red, glowing in the darkness of the night. A string of drool hung down the side of its mouth, as it ground its teeth which looked sharp enough to cut through her skin, even with a gentle gash.

She looked to its either sides and saw four more of its kind, their bodies large enough that they reached her height though they stood on their four paws, covered in thick velvety fur, shimmering in the night.

They had similar pairs of eyes which looked at her in hunger, but the only difference was that the one in the center appeared more diabolical than the rest.

Perhaps, it was their leader, she thought grimly.

No matter how much she wanted to stand her ground, her feet took a reflex step backwards when her enemy took an advancing step towards her. When the animal snarled and appeared ready to pounce, the flight response in her kicked in and she ran, screaming for help.

"Shivaay bhaiyya," Gauri shouted at the top of her voice, as she ran for life, the pack charging towards her and covering the distance with time.

Noting the nearness of their steps, she screamed once again for her brother, though she knew it wouldn't be of much use.

In her quest for adventure, she came too far from the palace and her voice wouldn't reach her brother who most probably was sleeping in his chamber.

As she panted her way further into the thick forest, one of the dogs clawed at her leg and she fell first on her face, the dry leaves of the ground shattering under her weight. Though the adrenaline rush dulled the pain of the wound, the quiver of getting caught pinched at her heart.

After the thud of her fall, silence reined in the place, the enemies waiting for her to face them. Watching their prey's fear of death gave them a high and they wouldn't have a fight-less dinner, no matter if it were the beloved princess of the kingdom offering herself to them.

Okay, this is your last day Gauri, remember what your brother taught you. Face your fears with a smile, she lectured herself and turned around in her place with a winning smirk.

The leader of the pack frowned at the little girl who looked too gallant for her age.

She sure has the blood of her ancestors running in her. Those progenitors, who caused the downfall of their leader. Anger of the clan's first defeat got the best of him and he pounced on her, his paw raising in the air to tear through her fair skin.

Gauri closed her eyes, preparing herself for the pain of the gash when she heard a low growl followed by the rush of air on her face.

Was that him? she thought with a smile and opened her eyes expectantly.

As she saw the tall and big, half human valiantly attack the pack, his fists smashing their jaws, emitting painful howls from them, her face broke into a grateful smile.

He saved her...again.

The savior turned to take a look at her and when she nodded her head assuring him that she was okay, he shifted his gaze back to the injured animals. The leading wolf growled at him and charged towards his opponent again when it saw him raise his hand in the air, making a ball of fire.

The wolves stopped in their attempts to hurt their rival, shocked to witness his unique powers. The half man juggled the ball of light before striking it to the ground in front of the cannibals, litting the dropped leaves of the forest which formed a fuel.

In no time, the flames grew wild, burning the area. The commanding wolf glared at the opponent through the inferno when it saw him smirk back. With a call to flee, it turned around to disappear into the darkness, the other beasts following their master.

"Thanks again," Gauri said as she saw the half monster put the flames off with powerful blows of ice cold air. Within a minute, the blaze transformed to embers.

"You shouldn't be this careless princess," he rebuked, facing her.

"I wanted to see you again," she said in her defense but it did nothing to wash off the look of disapproval on his face.

"I should have been more careful" she said in defeat and he hummed in response giving her his hand, helping her off the ground.

One touch from her and his fur clad hands transformed into a normal one, the claws retracting into the nail beds. His back straightened up to full height and his wolf like face evolved into a complete human.

Gauri watched with wide eyes as he transformed himself, his hair jet black and long, reaching his shoulders. His eyes chocolate brown bore into hers speaking volumes, his body lean and muscular, strong enough to fight an army.

He was the most handsome boy she had ever seen in her life and to think that he had been something entirely different a few seconds ago was too much to believe.

She had to tell this to her brother, first thing the next day, if at all he refrained from killing her listening to her escapade.

As she took a step towards him to touch his beautiful face, she hissed in pain and he looked at her leg in concern. Bending to his knees, he touched the wound which appeared deeper than he first thought.

"You need to take rest princess; this will hurt a bit," he said raising his hand to close her eyes and she caught his hand shaking her head in a no.

"You will make me sleep just like the last time and leave me in confusion that you were a dream."

"But princess,..."

"Gauri... My name is Gauri" she said and he nodded.

"Gauri, you know now that I am not any dream. I am as real as you. The power of healing comes at the cost of pain and I need to make you sleep before I work on that wound of yours," he explained pointing at the nasty cut.

"Just some time more, I want to talk," she asked, giving him her infamous pout which is known to melt stones.

Her savior sighed and lifting her up in his arms, took her to the huge banyan tree nearby. Resting her back against its bark, he settled beside her and silently waited for her questions.

"Who are you and what is your name?" came her first question.

"I cannot answer that Gauri, I am sorry"

"Oh!! Are you meeting me in secret?" she asked and he nodded his head in a yes.

"How old are you?"

"Seventeen," he said and she smiled eagerly.

"You are of my brother's age. He is my best friend too," she said and he smiled at her enthusiasm.

"You are not from my Kingdom right?" she asked next and he hummed a yes.

"Tomorrow is my birthday, will you come to meet me again?"

"No Gauri, we cannot meet again" he said honestly and she felt a pang in her chest.

"Why? I will make you meet my parents and brother. They would be incredibly happy to..."

"Are you sure they will be happy to know that you set out to explore the woods on your own, that too at night?"

"No!!" she said realizing.

"We cannot meet until the right time Gauri," he said and regretted it when he saw the film of water form in her big hazel eyes.

"Will you ever meet me again?" she asked, her voice cracking.

"We will and it is my promise," he said making her slightly happy.

"Now, we should take care of your wound" he said again, lifting his hand to close her eyes.

"Wait, please stay until the morning. You can leave once I see you," she pleaded.

He hesitated for a moment before he nodded.

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The sun rays fell straight onto Gauri's face the next morning. As she wasn't in the habit of looking directly at the sun ever, she hissed in irritation on opening her eyes.

"Are you awake?" his voice asked and the night's events rushed to her memory.

"You are still here," she pointed out the obvious and he smiled.

"I promised you."

"Hmm, thank you again."

"Let me take you home" he said getting up from his place and giving her his hand.

Gauri's smile dimmed knowing that they have to part ways. She only met him twice, both under life and death situations but every time it happened, she felt a longing to be with him. She thought of him as her friend, though she knew nothing of him.

Maybe she could ask her brother to give her a friend. Her brother granted her every wish and she was sure he would do that this time as well.

"This is not our last meet right? You promised me" she said taking his hand.

He looked at her. His hair was still a mess and in the bright morning sunlight, he looked more handsome and more human than she'd ever seen him.

"I guess I'm asking you to trust me," he said.

"But you should promise me too that you will not step into the forest without your brother guarding you" he asked as leaned and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead.

Gauri looked into his concerned eyes and nodded her head with a shaky smile muttering an okay.

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"Bhaiyya, please tell me that jungle monster story today," asked Gauri making a cute pout.

"Gauri, I will tell you about the princess with long hair. That story is going to be interesting too," said Shivaay Harshvardhan Varma.

"No!! I want the monster story. It is my favorite."

Shivaay shook his head in a no.

"Our father and mother will scold me again for filling your brain with stories of monsters and ghosts. You pester me to tell you stories like those kinds and then get scared to sleep alone at night."

Gauri knitted her eyebrows into a frown "I will not. It is my birthday today and mother said I am a big girl now."

Shivaay smiled and kissed her cheek "Like other princesses, be the subdued and naïve girl kiddo. Mom is right, you should take your etiquette lessons seriously without being the rebellious kid you are. I am the one who is spoiling you."

"No!! You said I am different and I am going to be that."

"Mother says you have to marry someday and be the ideal wife, a noble queen to your husband."

"I am never ever going to marry a King," she declared and he looked at her scared.

"What are you saying?"

"Why are you so shocked? The princess in that story loved the monster and when it died saving her, she stayed a spinster."

"So? You are not her and you don't have a monster friend."

Gauri glared at her brother this time.

"I told you I saw him two days ago while I was taking a stroll in our forest."

After a refreshing bath in her chamber, her mind cleared up and so did her thoughts. Gauri decided that it was safe to not tell her brother about her meeting with her friend the night prior. He wouldn't be happy and furthermore, he might increase the number of guards who would breath down her neck.

Shivaay looked at the door in alarm and swiftly closed it, lest their parents heard his sister.

"Gauri, we discussed this. You are not supposed to believe in these stories. You just can't lie like this."

"I never lied to you bhaiyya," the little girl said in disappointed, her heart breaking a bit seeing her favorite person not believing her.

"Gauri, monsters and ghosts exist only in stories. They are not real."

"They are. I saw him and he saved me from the wolves."

"And what did you describe him to be?"

"He was tall and big with long hair, his eyes shined in the dark as he glared at those animals. He just waved his hands in the air and it formed a ball of fire. He threw it at the pack and they scrambled off in fear," she said as usually enacting the events for him to believe.

Again, she withheld the information that he transformed into a handsome boy with her touch. It would be more unbelievable.

"Nothing you said is practically possible Gauri. We searched for him earlier and we couldn't find a trace."

"Maybe he doesn't want to be discovered."

Shivaay sighed tiredly and got down on his knees to his sister's height.

He held her hands and said in a gentle tone, "You are not supposed to be out of the palace at night. You never listened to my warnings and went there to get into trouble."

"When I saw you there, you were alone and unconscious on the ground Gauri. You must have dreamt about him when you saw those wolves come near you."

Gauri huffed in annoyance.

"Then how was I alive? Those dogs would have eaten me by the time you came bhaiyya. Why don't you understand."

"No, you listen to me. The king and the queen are worried about your safety since the royal astrologer had said that your life will be at risk in the coming years. If they came to know that you went out in the middle of the night, you will be grounded for life. Do you want that to happen?"

Gauri vigorously shook her head in a no when her brother continued, "Then don't ever bring this subject again"

"But..."

"No little sister, we are done with this discussion. No more night strolls, no more rebellion and no more monsters."

"Please, I am okay with the night strolls and rebellion part. You need to continue telling me stories" she pleaded,.

Her brother rolled his eyes before he said, "Why do you love those monsters? I mean who will like a villain. You should fall in love with the prince charming"

"Well, I am not a cinderella and you are definitely not my evil step-mother. Why will I want a Prince charming? I think I am the one who will change a monster to man" she said grinningly, making Shivaay suck in a breath of shock.

"God! What do I do with you girl"

"Tell me a story" she answered pulling him to her room and he obliged though his heart was filled with an unknown worry.

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Ten years later,

Gauri sat in the middle of the bed, her face covered in a thin veil, glaring at the flowers artfully arranged all around her. She was waiting for the prince of Darshanpur to grace her with his presence and claim his rights as her husband.

She cursed again as an angry tear escaped her eyes. She was sure her mother would be turning around in her grave seeing her daughter's un-classy behavior.

Why are men such hostile and un-trustworthy creatures?

Her father promised her marriage to a man she did not want. Her brother, whom she loved till a few days ago, forced her to bow her head to the kingdom's beliefs of marrying the prince of Darshanpur saying it will protect their domain from demons.

Let the legends go to hell. When her brother never believed her arguments of her monster friend, how the hell did he get convinced with the stories of an evil wolf God loose on her hunt?

His only argument was that she would be safe with the prince of Darshanpur. How hard was it for him to understand that she had a friend who would always keep her safe.

Gauri shook her head in disbelief as her thoughts zeroed onto her friend. Even he who had promised to meet her if she did not venture into forest alone, did not keep his word.

She waited for him for ten long years, her eyes always skimming through the greens of their lands, trying to catch a glimpse of him from her palace windows.

Though it sounded silly for that ten year old self, she recognized early that the longing she felt for her half human had a deeper meaning. She knew she loved him and that was why she felt terribly hurt when he betrayed her trust in him.

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The door of the bedroom opened and Gauri slightly lifted her head from the bed, to see her husband's feet wearing the royal velvet loafers. Her gaze followed him until he reached the bed and took a place beside her.

Damn his alluring scent !! she cursed mentally.

Her chaperones wouldn't stop praising her husband's handsomeness and valor but she stayed rigid, not sparing him a glance until now. She was curious to know the person she had to marry but every time that thought occurred, she chastised herself for being disloyal to her love.

As she saw her husband's hand snake its way on the bed to hold hers, she tightened the grip on the dagger, which she had slipped into her wedding clothes earlier.

"I don't want you to regret killing your husband on the wedding night, princess," his husky voice said in amusement and she snapped her head towards him in shock.

When she caught the same brown eyes looking at her with so much love and his signature lustrous hair gently being blown by the wind breezing through the room's window, she cried out in a joyous emotion before pouncing on him.

Her new husband chuckled and hugged her close as he felt her body shake with unbound happiness.

"You kept your promise," she mumbled and he hummed, parting from her.

Gently lifting the veil off her face, he looked at the big hazel eyes which had big drops of water in them just like he remembered her the last time he left her home.

"You thought I wouldn't?" he asked, gently wiping the tears off her beautiful face.

"I had waited for you until the last minute. I just couldn't believe that you jilted me"

"I did not Gauri," he uttered as he pulled her close, settling against the headboard of their bed.

"I did not know that you monster man. You could have told me. I did not enjoy my wedding at all," she accused.

"Monster man? Is that the name you gave me?"

"Well, you never told me your name so I was free to keep any bloody name I wanted."

"I am not complaining."

"You have no right to complain. You kept me in the dark. Why would you do that?" she asked glaring at him.

He chuckled, kissing her temple "When did you even look at me. I was ready to tell you, the first time your brother came to us to fix our alliance."

"I wasn't interested to marry the prince of Darshanpur. I was forced."

"I realized that. I wanted to see how long you would keep up with your brother's promise. I wondered what would you do once we were married."

"I would never have loved the prince," she said, funnily referring to him as the third person.

His heart melted with the love she had for him. Leaning, he gently kissed her cheek bringing out a cherry red blush.

How does she manage to be both fierce and cute at the same time... he marveled.

"So, you love me?" he asked and the blush turned a darker shade.

"No!!" she denied moving away from him when he tightened his hold on her waist.

"I think we spent enough time, staying apart from each other Gauri," he said caressing her cheek and she couldn't help but agree.

Giving up her false anger, she leaned into his touch, letting the happiness of their marriage sink in.

They stared at each other in silence each one admiring the beauty of the other when she interrupted their moment by questioned him.

"So, you are a prince?"

"Yes"

"Was that why you kept your name a secret?" she said and he nodded a yes.

"Can you tell me your name now?"

"You didn't know whom you are marrying?"

"I want to hear it from you."

"Omkara" he said with a smile "Omkara Kaalavarya Thakur"

"Hmmm"

"So, you intended to marry me before or was that...."

Omkara frowned at her "You were, are and always will be mine Gauri. You are my queen."

Gauri grinned happily before she placed a chaste kiss on his cheek.

"What happened to your other form?"

"I was blessed with powers since my birth but I was always aggressive and irritated since I couldn't find a way to control them," he explained.

"But the moment you touched me the first time, the wolf form had become a power I could control. I knew then that we had a connect and I worked hard in reining in my other forces."

"Does your mother Shivaangi Kaalavarya have something to do for your powers? The Kaalavarya clan have a soul-connect to the wolves and it is said that they are the descendants of an evil God"

"Hmmm"

"Your father married her for love?"

"Hmm"

"Are you..."

"Can we keep the talking to a better time Gauri?" he asked tracing her lips with his thumb and she stilled in his hands, the purpose of the night shrinking in.

Omkara looked at her eyes for a second and getting a yes from them, leaned towards her slowly.

"Wait wait wait!!" she exclaimed suddenly and he drew back.

"What?"

"I wasn't prepared"

"Y... You don't want to..."

"No!! That's not what I meant. I don't know anything about this. I mean, I never paid attention to the classes on husband and wife's relation back then"

Omkara's lips curved up into a smile, "No issues I will teach you Gauri."

"Oh!!" she mumbled, her blush returning with vengeance, as she saw him move towards her again.

"Wait...wait"

"Now what Gauri" he said, his voice showing irritation at being denied his candy.

"We didn't blow the candles off" she said and he turned around without a second word, swiftly putting the light off.

Then, pulling her to him, he quickly took her lips in his, not giving his wife any chance to talk further that night.

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