Chasing the Sun

I

||- The Caged Lioness - ||

Some people who pretend to be beach are actually quicksand...
- Steve Meraboli

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“…Like the wind had caught a pinch of sindoor and spread it everywhere, there is a faint red dusting the azure sky.” Pair hazel brown eyes peeped through the carvings of a wooden window and their owner inhaled the cool morning air into a pleasured sigh. “I wish you could see Kashi, sunrise is the most beautiful thing in the world!”

Beams of playful sunlight escaped through the gaps in the wooden panels, filtered into the room and splashed across the carpeted floor, creating a pool of golden light. Tiny particles of dust danced a mute ballet over it, swirling in spiral formations as they rose with the wind. There was a tinkling of anklets as Kashi drew her feet back, away from the path of the sunlight and into the still cool shade of shadows dominating the corner where she sat on her divan. Still her eyes followed the beams of sunlight, now illuminating the window completely and casting her friend into shadows, with a thirsty look in them.

“I can recall you said the same thing about your new dress from Persia, and before that about that gift horse,” her tone sounded decidedly aloof as she climbed down and retreated further into shadows by her ornate mirror. “You have eyes that see beauty in everything Noor!”

Noor sighed dramatically, knowing an argument with Kashi was one which she never won and turned back to gaze out of the window completely missing the forlorn look in the other girl’s face that the shadows around her had expertly masked. Hearing the rustle of clothes that signalled Noor turning around, Kashi returned her gaze over to her friend. Noor was glowing in sunlight.

She had inherited that peach skin tone from her mother, her hair currently coiled into a thick braid was of henna colour and in the crisp sunlight, the escaped curls around her face looked like spun threads of gold. First thorns of jealousy pricked at her heart and she averted her eyes guiltily. It was no fault of Noor that Kashi could not bath in that inviting warmth of the morning sun like she was.

“Ya Allah!” A new voice startled both girls, followed by the loud resonating sound of metal against ground.
Kashi jumped and turned back to her mirror in a flash and started to braid her hair as if she had been doing that since long and Noor bit her lip muttering a silent prayer before turning around to face the full-fledged wrath of her fuming mother; Nadheera Beghum.

The older woman who had dropped the platter of almonds she had brought looked positively possessed in her seething anger. The two women behind her; handmaidens of the lady, remained shocked into inactivity as their mistress marched towards her daughter and stood nose to nose with her, breathing her anger down at the girl.

“Who gave you permission to open the window Noor?” She demanded, shutting it with the ominous sound of cranking wood. The room dissolved in shadows once more and unnoticed to them Kashi sighed again as she finished braiding her hair. Noor fidgeted under her mother’s scorching gaze, clearly stunned into a silence before she managed to curl her lips into a demure smile.

“Ammi Jaan, are you finished with your prayers already?”

That, it seemed was the wrong thing to say, as, no sooner than the words left her mouth, Nadheera seemed to swell with anger.

“So, you did this thinking I was still in prayers?” When she spoke her voice had raised an octave and Noor shuddered as she heard those words. “How many times – tell me how many times I have told you that –“