Impressed(1) : Chapter 3

It was still dark outside. The hoarse crow of the rooster welcoming the dawn made Lavanya stir in her sleep. Groaning, she closed her eyes tightly before her long-lashes flickered and her eyelids slowly opened. A faint smile appeared on her lips as she could see that the sun rays already made their way on the earth while the sky was invaded by the shades of orange in the lower part and a vast part was covered by a darker shade of blue, welcoming the dawn.

She turned her head to the left side to see her sister sleeping peacefully. Smiling a bit, she slowly withdrew herself from the bed without making any noise so that her sister could sleep peacefully. She quickly took a bath and took care of her daily necessities before returning to her room.

She took out a red-colored Lehenga with a red-colored blouse and white-colored dupatta which had a golden design on its border. Changing quickly into fresh clothes, she tied her hair into a bun and beautified it with jasmine flowers. Being a simple girl, she quickly wore a simple necklace around her neck with a pair of simple earrings and a pair of gold bangles. Her look got completed with placing a small bindi between her brows.

Perfect! Lavanya smiled as she saw herself in the mirror. Then she averted her gaze to her sister who was sleeping soundly. This girl will never grow up. She chuckled before sitting on the bed.

"Akshara, wake up." Lavanya gently caressed her sister's head. "We have to go to the temple today."

"5 more minutes please." Akshara moved close to her sister, placing her head on her sister's lap. She slowly opened her eyes when she felt the fine fabric against her cheek. "You are ready already!?" She looked up at her sister.

"Yes, my little one." Lavanya gently pinched Akshara's nose making the latter scrunch her nose. "Now get up and get ready. I still have a lot of work to do."

"Hmm mnn." Akshara hummed as she lazily moved her head from her sister's lap and sat on the bed.

"Get ready okay." Lavanya stood up. "I want to see you ready within 30 minutes."

Akshara nodded her head and Lavanya smiled at her sister before leaving the room. She went to the backside of her house which had a huge empty space. A bright smile appeared on her face when she saw her father was practicing swordsmanship.

"Good morning father." Lavanya smiled before walking towards her father. She bent down and touched her father's feet, seeking blessings.

"Ayushmati Bhava." Bhargav smiled as his big palm landed on Lavanya's small head. "Where is Akshara?"

"She just woke up," Lavanya said while walking towards the table where few swords were kept. "Aren't you going to the royal court today?"

"I will." Bhargav put the sword in its place before walking towards his daughter. "You are spoiling your sister too much."

"Let it be father." Lavanya chuckled. "She is still a little girl," Lavanya said while checking the swords kept on the table.

"Lavanya, I may return home late today," Bhargav said wiping his sweat with a white cloth.

"Alright father." Lavanya smiled. "I have to go now. I have to prepare lunch as well."

Bhargav nodded and Lavanya went inside. She quickly went to the kitchen and prepared sesame rice, two types of vegetable curry, and little amount of porridge.

"What are you cooking sister? It smells so nice." Akshara entered the kitchen, sniffing the mouth-watering aroma.

"Your favorite dish," Lavanya replied as she looked at her sister. "You look beautiful." Lavanya smiled seeing that her sister who was wearing a royal blue lehenga with a royal blue blouse and a cream-colored dupatta. Her hair was tied into a long braid, hanging freely at her waist while the jasmine flowers enhanced the beauty of her hair.

"Really?" Akshara chuckled. "It's your favorite clothes."

"I am almost done," Lavanya said putting the sesame rice down from the oven. "Can you arrange all the necessary items for the temple?"

"Mn." Akshara nodded and disappeared from the kitchen.

Lavanya smiled while checking the porridge. It was early time of first prahar and Bhargav already got ready for the royal court. Lavanya quickly arranged a plate of food for her father and served it to him. After having his food, Bhargav bade goodbye to both his daughters and left for the royal palace. As Bhargav was the King's best friend, he had a lot of duties to perform. So he had to go to the royal palace regularly even in the absence of the king.

After doing all household chores, Lavanya and Akshara set for the temple. After walking for around 20 minutes, they reached the temple. Lavanya and Akshara went to the pond to clean their feet before setting their feet in the Shiva temple. They were huge devotees of Mahadev (Lord Shiva). So naturally, they prayed to God with full of devotion. They performed all the necessary rituals like abhisheka with milk, water, tender coconut water, vibuti, etc. After their rituals, they took the prasadam and blessings from the priest before leaving the temple.

As she set her foot out of the temple, her eyes fell on a strong stout male figure in his early 40s and a delicate girl in her teens. Her eyes widened the moment when she recognized the person. The next moment a soft smile appeared on her lips and she gently bowed to the person, showing respect without saying anything and left the place.

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"Father, it looks like our people are happy with our rule." Princess Saanvi smiled as she was walking in the kingdom, wearing an extreme simple lehenga-vaani with braided hair on her both sides so that no one could recognize her.

"Don't use words like rule when you are walking among the common people." King Surendra Dev said in a low voice to avoid getting recognized.

"Sorry." Princess Saanvi gave an apologetic look to her father.

Surendra Dev shook his head and smiled at his daughter's deeds. "I think we should go to the temple since everything is fine here." He looked at Saanvi, seeking an answer from her.

"Huh? Are we going to offer prayers?" Saanvi glanced at her father with bewilderment in her eyes as if she saw a ghost. "I didn't bring anything." She extended her hands, showing to her father that they were empty.

"It's alright." Her father chuckled at her behavior. "We can just watch without entering the temple."

Saanvi's face glowed and she smiled widely before averting her gaze to the common people. As they reached the Shiva temple, the King's eyes fell on a particular girl in red lehenga with a white dupatta. She was offering her prayers to Lord Shiva and doing all the necessary rituals.

A smile formed on the king's face as he saw how immersed the girl was in her prayers. What a pious girl! The king exclaimed internally as his eyes got narrowed while observing the girl. The king nodded his head slightly in amusement when he saw how well disciplined the girl was and the way she took the blessings from the priest, touched his heart.

His eyes were stuck to the girl until she came out of the temple and her gaze fell on him. The girl froze on her spot for a moment before the most cheerful smile appeared on her face. She gently bowed to him without saying anything and left the temple along with her sister. A big smiled appeared on his face and his eyes showed the amusement at the girl's behavior as he was impressed by her.

"Father, who is she and why did she suddenly bow to you?" Saanvi asked confused at his father's behavior.

"She recognized me as King Surendra Dev. So she bowed to me, showing respect and she didn't say anything because she realized that we are here to check on well being of our people." The King smiled and looked at his daughter. "She is Siravuri Lavanya, the daughter of our Commander General of our Army, Siravuri Bhargav." The king let out a deep breath. It looks like you are going to be the future Queen of Maheswari.

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Ayushmati Bhava: long-lived. It is used for females.

Prasadam: Blessings from God.

Abhisheka: It's a ritual of worshipping the gods and goddesses in India. The idols are sprinkled with water, milk or other items ( they are limited ones. One cannot use whatever they want)

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