'It is not too difficult to Love Someone but you know whats Easier? To Hate Someone.'

01.

Her hands held the white pigeon delicately as she ran in the garden, her curved lips indicating her happiness. Her shimmery Lehenga shined in the bright rays of the sun while her anklets produced a mesmerizing sound beautiful enough for anyone to get lost in it, Her luscious long curly locks reaching her waist made the already beautiful princess resemble an angel right from heaven's above.

Her doe-shaped eyes have a chasm deep enough to take in an ocean and a sharpness focused enough to pierce holes into anyone daring to hurt her, innocence and strength beautifully amalgamated into her.

Just as she leaves the pigeon to fly off with the winds, her smile widening a call for her name from back pulled her back from her dreamland, " Gauri...Gauri..."

She turns and smiles looking towards a lady who just walked out of the huge palace to the lawn she was running in, " Ji Maasa..." Her voice was as sweet as honey.

The lady walks up to her slowly as she stops just next to Gauri, " Gauri, Your father is calling you to the Darbar..." She lets her voice trail off as she thinks something, the uncertainty on her face making Gauri believe her mother wanted to say more but something made her not to.

"Me? But Princesses aren't supposed to go to the assembly hall no Maasa? Unless there's some function." Gauri questions innocently as she ends her sentence by mimicking her mother's stern way of saying this to her usually.

" Yes; you, now can you come?" Rani Durgavati ignores her daughter's playful taunt as she questions, sternly.

Realizing there was something serious, Gauri nods as she almost runs inside when she is stopped by a hold at her upper arm from behind, She half turns to look at her mother questionably who ignoring her look, comes forward and puts the pallu of Gauri's Lehenga on her head, " Now you should go..." Rani Durgavati speaks moving her head worriedly at her daughter's carelessness.

Gauri gives an 'I don't Care' look to her mother as she runs inside like wind, not to forget this time holding her Pallu lightly to prevent it from falling.

Rani Durgavati stands tensed as she speaks to herself, " Don't know how will she react knowing the matter..."

~~~

Soon Gauri reaches the Rajdarbar as the doorkeeper announces her arrival.

~~~

She is now standing in the middle of the assembly hall, in front of her-her father Raja Vishwasagar sitting on a throne, at the left side, the usual members of her father's court but what catches Gauri's eyes are a few men in royal robes sitting towards the right still ignoring the questions in her mind pertaining to the new arrivals, she joins her hands and wishes her father, " Pranam Bauji !"

Raja Vishwasagar wishes back blessing her as Gauri finds the same uneasiness in his eyes which she had witnessed in her mother's a few minutes ago, she is confused. The various thoughts clustering her mind are put to a halt as soon as Raja Vishwasagar continues speaking, " Rajkumari Gauri, We have arranged your wedding to..." As soon as Gauri hears the words, shock flushes over her face making her pale as she cuts him unwittingly, " But..."

"Gauri...Come inside with me..." Rani Durgavati who had eventually followed her immediately stops her from speaking as she lightly holds Gauri's lower arm and takes her inside.

" Give me 5 minutes, I'll just come..." Raja Vishwasagar speaks looking towards the new arrivals who nod.  He descends down his thrown as he follows the mother-daughter.

As soon as they reach Gauri's room, Durgavati leaves Gauri's arm as she glares at her, " How many times should I tell you not to cut your elders  specially your father, especially not in public places?"

Gauri stares at Durgavati angrily as she is about to speak but before that she sees her father entering her room and runs to the door, " You decided to marry me?" She asks surprised as soon as Vishwasagar enters.

Vishwasagar gulps hard as he looks at Gauri unsure, still, he manages to speak, " Beta, He is a good King, You'll remain happy with him...Maharaja of Raigarh...Om...Omkara..."

Shock was an understatement to define what Gauri felt when she heard this name from her father's mouth, Omkara...King of Raigarh...The cruel King whose thirst for bloodshed has destroyed God knows how many kingdoms, he has expanded his kingdom to far off regions...many might consider him an ambitious but good king but only she...no, no her father knew how bad he was, Her father was the one who told her about his cruelty, about how bad Omkara was, She had hated him from the time her father told her about his thirst for war, he was an enemy, Infact Raigarh was an enemy then how could her father plan her wedding to him? She looked around herself, at her mother...at her father to make sure it wasn't a joke, the resolution in her mother's and sadness in her father's eyes made her realize it wasn't...how could life turn so harsh all of a sudden? How could her paradise change to hell all of a sudden?

" You hated him...He is an enemy..." Gauri only spoke two lines out of the many in her mind, slowly, her eyes were clustered with unshed tears...she didn't even know if speaking this would change anything.

Vishwasagar didn't reply as he lowered his eyelashes, rather Durgavati spoke, "Gauri...we don't have any other option...he is planning an attack on our Kingdom...we'll have to be his relatives to stop that attack...you know his representatives were sitting outside, they just wanted to know your opinion that's why they called you to the Darbar, I thought you'll understand but you didn't so I had to bring you inside..."

" I don't want to marry Bauji but I will if you want, I'll marry anybody but not him...please, not him...I hate him, I can't...please...please..." Gauri begged joining her hands as the unshed tears started descending down her cheeks unhinged.

Vishwasagar held her hands stopping her as he moved his head in a 'no' trying to stop her from crying further, he himself had tears,  she was his princess, he had always wanted the best for her and yet today was selecting the worst as the most important thing in her life, he couldn't...he knew he couldn't force his daughter for anything, he would rather die in a battle than force his princess for anything, "Gauri... it is your decision, I won't force you but please think about our kingdom and its people...the war, if it happens, is going to lead to a lot of destruction, a lot of it...please come to the Darbar to give your reply soon..." Vishwasagar left the room saying so as having a last glance at a broken Gauri, Durgavati followed him.

She sat down on the floor with a thud as she looked straight in front at nothing in particular, she didn't know what to do...she had always defied norms, she had followed her heart, her father has always supported her in doing so, he was ready today too but could she do so? Did she have the strength to take the blame of even 1 death leave aside the hundreds that would happen if the war took place but then...was not hearing to her heart right? Wasn't listening to what your heart says the sole teaching imbibed in everything she had learned from childhood?

"Buasa, Buasa...What happened?" Her 5 years old nephew's voice pulled Gauri out of her trail of her thoughts as she looking at him entering her room, she hugged him tightly as soon as he reached her.

"Kushi, I need to take a decision but am not able to...I feel I'll take a wrong decision..." Gauri replied as she silently cried.

"Arey Buasa, Such a small thing, Didn't you teach me to always follow my heart? So you too should do the same na, Listen to what your heart says...you'll never fail and...I am going to play now, you take your decision fast and come to play with me." Kushiraj spoke, breaking the hug as he ran outside, little did he know his words will lead to a decision that will stop him from playing for many weeks to come.

Gauri stared at Kushiraj going, his words reiterated a fact she already believed in...She didn't know what she was going to do is right or wrong according to the world but her heart believed it was right and so...she followed it, she had finally taken her decision...She won't give up, not before trying, neither will she let her parents to.

She stood up as she wiped her tears, then adjusting her Pallu on her head, she walked outside slowly yet steadily with a determination she had always been famous for.

~~~

"Cautious, her royal highness, The Princess of Jaigarh in entering the hall." Gauri's entry was announced as she walked inside the Darbar slowly.

" Gauri..." Vishwasagar couldn't continue as Gauri nodded her head staring at him, then turned towards her right and looking at nobody in particular declared, " I won't marry King Omkara...Let him know, He can't purchase me with his threats of war."  Her voice had a determination that made King Vishwasagar proud of the daughter he had raised and yet the fear of a certain war loomed at a corner of his brain, he wasn't scared for himself or even for his family but what scared him maximum was the thought of destruction this war would lead to.

" Your representatives told us you want your daughter to marry Maharaj  Omkara  to stop the war from happening and your daughter insults him in your court in front of us, you are going to pay for this Raja Vishwasagar...the war will happen now, certainly and everyone knows who'll lose." One of them dressed in the best of the robes spoke standing up as he started walking out,  the others following.

Gauri looked at them going out angrily as she angrily turned forwards towards her father, The one who had just spoken paused midway as he turned halfway, looking at Gauri's back with a smirk, "My God, The anger...this anger is going to destroy Omkara and make me the King..."

He turns back to look in front and continues walking.

"Let us see who wins, Our Self-respect or your Omkara's Ego." Gauri finally replies loudly as all the representatives hear her, one of them is about to turn to reply when the one who had spoken before, stops him with a smirk as they all walk out.

All the members present in the Darbar are left dumbstruck, moreover scared from the upcoming war.

***
Glossary:

Darbar/Rajdarbar: Court of King/Assembly Hall
Lehenga: A type of Full-Length Skirt
Pallu: The End of a dupatta used to cover head.
Maasa: Mother
Bauji: Father
Buasa: Father's Sister
Raja/Maharaja: King
Rani: Queen
Rajkumari: Princess
Pranam: An Indian form of greeting