(Contain warning: This part contains portion that may trigger certain dark emotional chords.
Advised to take it as a work of literature).

Only in the blessed black of the starry night, Satyakirth gained a fuller sense of home. He lay composed on the deck of his small boat, tied to the bank of Ganga, hiding from the eyes of the world. His eyes gazed at those bright friends of the moon and their pattern that seemed so fixed and yet ever-changing, distant lights to call his heart, remembering all whom he had lost, to inspire dreams of other worlds.
That night he had felt lonely, a sense of melancholy lingering in his heart, and under the sky of perfect midnight velvet, under stars so brilliant, he drew his eyes heaven bound, the lyrics of his favourite Scottish Ballad hummed softly in his arriving dreams.

Auld lang syne, my dear
Auld lang syne...

He pulled out the soft blue feminine shawl from inside the cane hood of the boat and held it to his nose, it's faint fragnance, lavender mixed with mild sandalwood perhaps, filling his heart and mind with an overwhelming delight.

It's been six months!!

His lips had touched the softness of the cloth, as he sniffed it once again before planting a soft kiss on it. It was held in his arms, closer to his strong, yet weak heart, his chest muscles relaxing at the tender touch.
This was his space, his world, without burdens of the past, or promises of the future. This was his refuge, just him and the thoughts of her, his mysterious princess, the shadowed enchantress who had probably came down to earth for one night, just for him!
The shawl still had her aroma, but Satya was scared to hold it for long, in fear of loosing her smell, the bewitching feeling of her touch.
He got up and sat upright, keeping the cloth to it's safety once again, as he pulled out a sleek bamboo flute from a crevice of the hood and took a deep breath.
Oh! And one last thing...
His fingers found two cotton swabs from his pocket and as he stuffed it carefully to his ears.

Now it's perfect!

Detached from the rest of the world, lost in the rhythm of soundless breathing, blowing life softly into the flute, not knowing how it sounds, and the vast starry sky above head!
Satya inhaled the fresh air of the river, his eyes closed, and his lips kissing a tune in the flute.

Auld lang syne...

................................................

The night was different inside Raimoti's room, quiet and anxious, the long silk sarees had formed knots, tied to each other, and Raimoti took a swift glance at the antique clock in her room.

2 am, and it's time!

She had glued the envelope back and tucked it in her waist. Conscious enough not to make a sound, she had opened the window carefully, overlooking the vast dark greenary at the backyard of the palace, as her soft hands flung the long chain of sarees down the casement, touching the grass of this unguarded portion of the household.

It was probably her only chance!

First she would destroy the letters and then she would find her way to the Roy Chowdhurys!
But, before that, there was one more place that she needed to visit, the place she hadn't visited in the last six months, the place that had made her feel alive for the very first time in life.

The path leading to the river bank, the shortcut route through the estate, wasn't unknown to Raimoti. She didn't wear shoes, infact she couldn't, and her feet had bruised a little from the abrupt jump before her toes could touch the ground. She had tiptoed outside the backyard garden, outsmarting the sleeping guard, her legs carried her as fast as they could, leading her to the dark deserted familiar bank of the river.

The moon was bright, shiny, and upon reaching the river, she discarded the idea of resting on white marbled slab, forming a seating area beside the river, as she walked down two steps and sat down, dipping her feet into the cold rippling water of the Ganga.
It felt soothing to her bleeding feet.

The night looked different than the last time, with bright twinkling stars overhead, their glow reflecting in the slow ripples of the water. It felt different too, lonely, melancholic!
She looked up, her eyes drew sky bound, and a small tear rolled down her cheek. Her lips were quivering, as she mouthed the lyrics of her favourite song, the Scottish Ballad of separation, crying in the hope of an unannounced reunion...

Auld lang syne...

Her voice was inaudible, her throat was choked as the vastness of the ambience made her acutely aware of the loveless life that lay ahead of her.
Her father, the man whom she had looked up to had betrayed her, breaking her trust beyond repair, the man whom she tried to love didn't reciprocate her emotions, and she doesn't blame him for that either, for probably, it was the passionate wildness of her first mystery lover, her Lochinvar, that she was trying to find in him.

Raimoti's was sobbing silently, continuous jets of tears trailing down her red swollen eyes. She pulled out the envelope from the concealment of her saree and tore it into two.

Anirudh Roy Chowdhury had asked her to destroy it, and she would follow his words!

The letters weren't evidence for the court, they were evidence for her... To intimate her with the brutality that her father had committed, to show her the cruelty that was concealed behind a mask of goodness!

What would Raimoti do now?
Whom she would go to?
The Roy Chowdhurys? But what if she wasn't welcomed there?
Being an unwanted, unwelcomed guest was the last thing she wished to subject herself to!

Anirudh had requested her to stand in the court of law and testify against her father...
It was the right thing to do as well, and she won't deny that, but won't it be just easy to end it all?
On this night... her sorrow, her miseries, her loveless life, everything...
Won't it be just easy to end everything at once?

What was this life without love?
What was this life without hope?

Raimoti took a deep breath and got up from the steps. Her eyes were still, vacant, as she tore the envelope into a hundred pieces, offering those tiny crumb of papers in the flowing river.

"With this, I set myself free..."

She closed her eyes and walked down the steps, submerged below the water level, as the water touched her ankle, raising slowly to her calves, it's pleasant chill caressing her thighs and raising further north, touching her waistline like a lover's embrace.
Her breath was steady, her gaze fixated at a distant emptiness, and her heart filled with the memories of the moments she had felt love.
This was her destiny, just she and bottomless river, and the thoughts of her mysterious pirate, the shadowed lover who had probably came down to earth for one night, just for her!

The water level had reached up to her breasts, sending a shiver down her spine. Her white skin was glistening, her soaked saree had struck to her slender body, giving away in prominence the perfect sculpture of her curves.
Raimoti gulped anxiously.
It's wasn't fear that she felt, it was a strange arousal, the sensuous destructive excitement of embracing her end, and she envisioned him standing at the other end of life, to rescue her forever!

The water had touched her lips, kissing her, filling her mouth with its tender savagery, and Rai closed her eyes. Her head felt light, as she let go of herself, letting her body fall freely in the swaying waves of the Ganga, slowly taking over her senses, very slowly...

The water had muffled her senses, yet, the last thing she heard was a distant flute, as a faint melodious tune washed over her mind, and before the river engulfed her, the moon showered it's rays on her crystal lips under water, curved into a smile of contentment.

Thou shalt dwell in silence in my heart
like the full moon in the summer night.
Thy sad eyes shall watch over me
in my wanderings.
The shadow of thy veil shall rest upon my heart.
Thy breath like the full moon
in the summer night
shall hover about my dreams,
making them fragrant.

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The song at the end is a Rabindrasangeet,  it had my heart. 
Tumi Robe Nirobe... Rridoye momo!
Listen to my favourite version attached to this update.

My heart feels a little heavy after writing this!