The Princes of Ayodhya-The Ramayan Through Short Stories

Settling in

Plotless

Ram and his brothers had adapted to the ashram quite fast, much to the surprise of the pupils, but not Sage Vishwamitra. Bharat loved to stare at the scenery all day, daydreaming, until Shatrughan pulled him away for classes. Shatrughan pranked everyone except the sage, even managing to target Lakshman successfully, but never again. He had gotten quite a chewing out for that. And Lakshman himself had found a new person to fight with, even if it was with lethal glares and snide remarks. And Ram himself had found a place in the sage's and everyone else's hearts as the perfect prince, pupil, and person.

Except Daura. Daura and his friends might have been jealous, or were just downright mean, often attempting to bait the brothers. Ram always greeted them with a smile, even if deep down, he was not very happy with their insults.

They called Bharat stupid, dreamy, and girl-like, because of his love for art, something which had even managed to provoke cheery Shatrughan. They called Lakshman a coward and arrogant, which he didn't really care about as most everyone knew that he was the exact opposite. And they called Shatrughan, dear Shatrughan, whom they all doted upon, a baby, a stupid child, and unworthy of being there. That had made everyone angry, and Ram thanked his lucky stars that he was able to maintain composure and stop his brothers from plowing the group down.

"Bhaiyya!" Lakshman called, catching up to him. "There's a race today, in a minute!" He smiled warmly, clapping his brother on the back.

"Coming," Sensing he wanted to be alone, his brother ran off towards the race path. He and Lakshman were the closest of the four, although Bharat and Shatrughan had a bond as well. Ram wondered in the back of his mind, what would happen in this race that they had been preparing for. It was a simple run, and he felt confident that one of the four princes of Ayodhya would win. Bharat always had technique, slowing down at the start, and then becoming faster. Lakshman and Shatrughan were naturally energetic, and had plenty of practice running away from their parents, Shatrughan more so on both counts.

"Finally, we were wondering where you were, bhaiyya!" cried Shatrughan, pacing up and down at the starting line. Bharat smiled in relief, and Lakshman was too busy trying not to glare at Daura and his gang, something which, Ram thought, would take plenty of self-control for his younger brother.

"Go!" cried Vishwamitra, clapping his hands, and immediately, Daura and his friend, Riku took the lead. Shatrughan just ran, laughing, followed by Lakshman, who barely broke a sweat. As expected, Bharat was last, but Ram got the feeling that he was just doing that for strategy. Ram himself was right smack in the middle, and he didn't mind. This way, he could keep an eye on everyone. Lakshman was speeding up, gaining on Shatrughan, and Bharat too was getting close.

The twins outpaced Daura and Riku, and at this point, Ram just got the feeling that Lakshman was chasing Shatrughan like they used to do in the palace. Bharat ran in front him, and Ram sighed in relief as Riku began to slow down, looking out of breath. But Daura was getting faster, and Ram found himself speeding up, observing the troublemakers closely. For, he didn't get a good feeling about the determined look on the bully's face. His suspicions were proven valid.

Just as he passed Shatrughan, Daura held a leg out, and Ram stumbled, but didn't fall. He did stop though, and turned around to warn Shatrughan, eyes wide.

"Shatrughan, Lakshman, be carefu-" He was cut off by the youngest brother falling right over the foot and falling on his knees. But it wasn't a simple scratch, blood flowed out from the wound, and all the others could do was gape. Laughing triumphantly, Daura crossed the finish line as everyone else had stopped, trying to help the bawling eleven-year-old.