Tuesday, 8 September 2015

A Suitor for the Princess - Chapter 34



       The King asked Juan to stay away from Sara for a few days till she became fully all right, so as to not be the cause of any further trauma to her.  As the agonizing days went by slowly, Juan took care of his ailing mother, who was delirious with joy on seeing him again; and nursed her to good health again.  He then informed her about all that he had undergone in the past few years.  Several times through that detailed narration, her eyes welled up with pride, happiness and sorrow in turns.  It was as if she had gone through all his trials and tribulations. For Juan, it was a cathartic experience, one that he had really needed.  He felt as if he was at the crossroads of life again, just as he had been, when he had first set off for Regina, to participate in the contest to win the fair Princess’ hand!  Little had he known then, that destiny would test him such a lot.  He had failed the King’s test, much to his dismay, won over the hearts of not just one, but 2 beautiful damsels and undergone a personal transformation at the shrine!  The last experience belied words.
        He had lived in an enchanted and secluded world filled with peace and contentment for 3 whole years and had lost all desire for material wealth and accomplishment of any kind!  He didn’t want to marry the Princess now, he didn’t want to Lord over Regina as a King and neither hankered for wealth, power or prestige.  All that he wanted now was to go back to his humble abode with the 2 women he loved most in the world now; his mother and Myara.  But he realized that it was easier said than done.  He now had an even more grueling test in store for him. 
        He had to convince Myara of his intentions, politely tell off the King and escape from the wantonness of the ailing Princess Sara who had set her heart on making him hers, like a coveted toy.  Really, how long could her fascination with him last, he wondered!  After all, rich kids were never short of supply of toys to amuse and entertain them; which they discarded callously, once their fancy faded, like the moon giving way to the sun in the mornings!
        Yes, Sara was obsessed with him, but wasn’t the King too, considering that he had requested him to stay there till the Princess fully recovered, which could be, no one knew when!  Had he escaped one prison to land up in another?  The difference being; from austerity to royalty!
        Would he never be able to live a life on his own terms?  He felt frustrated and miserable. 
        His mother on the other hand, was very happy to live in comfortable surroundings for a change.  Here she didn’t have to worry about where their next meal would come from, nor slog endlessly without reprieve.  She secretly hoped that her son would marry Sara one day and become the King of Regina.  She was just being a normal mother, who desired simply the very best for her only son.
        Juan had confided in her, his dilemma over Myara’s refusal to accept his love and his desire to settle down in his village again.  But his ambitious mother nursed ambitions to see him rule over the Kingdom and desired to be known all over, as the King’s mother!  She didn’t desire luxury; she only wanted her son to be an achiever.  Having nearly reached his goal, she considered it stupid on his part to want to throw it all away.  She didn’t want his ordeal of the past few years to go in vain!      
        She had tried to reason it out with Juan, only to be met with a stubborn silence.  He wouldn’t even talk back to her; she knew that and just ended up raving, ranting, wailing and cursing their destiny!
        She was grateful to Myara for bringing her son back from that place of no return, the shrine, but resented her for ‘ensnaring’ her son in return! She wanted him to live a life of luxury after all the struggle and hardship that he had suffered in his childhood.  She decided to persuade Myara to reject Juan and extricate herself from his future life.
        One day, she went to Myara’s house.  Myara was pleased to see her; “Sit down mother.  I’m happy to see that you’ve become fit and strong now.  I’m sure that seeing your long-lost son has given you the impetus to become well again.  What will you have?”
        “My son!” said Juan’s mother.
        “Excuse me?” inquired Myara, shocked.
        “You heard it right.  I want my son back.  Please don’t give him the idea that you desire him, if you want him to succeed in life.  If you are his true well-wisher, you’ll do as I say.  I’ll be always grateful to you for bringing me here and re-uniting me with my son, but he’s destined for bigger things in life.  Please let him marry Sara and become the King of Regina.  You may consider me to be selfish, but if a mother’s best wishes for her only son are selfish, so be it.  I don’t care what anyone thinks about me.  But promise me that you’ll din good sense into him.”
        Through the tears that threatened to blind her, Myara said “I promise, on Juan’s life since I love him so much. Trust me; I’ll never go back on my word.  I’ll do all I can, to make him marry Sara.”
        “I’m sorry,” said Juan’s mother with tears coursing down her cheeks.  Yes Myara was truly a noble girl.  Brave, kind and generous.  Why she couldn’t have been Sara, she thought as she made her way home, at peace with herself.
        As she wrote that sentence, Martha felt very annoyed with herself.  She had indeed promised Sara that she’d unite her with Juan, but she hadn’t even imagined that she’d have to break the stoic Myara’s heart for that purpose!  She (Martha) had become the vamp in that love story.  Even then, as an author, she was amazed at the way her story was proceeding at break-neck pace, with sudden twists in the plot and never-ending intrigue.  She put down her pen, sat back in her chair and wondered how her story would finally end!

To be continued.... 

The copyright of this novel is with Mrs. Priya Ramesh Swaminathan.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Please send constructive feedback only.