You and I - a pranushka tale

chapter thirty-two

im back!!! sorry for this very long break i took guys!! but the story is back and running xx

The heat was warming Mithrah's skin in a way that began to feel like the inside of an oven as a trail of sweat began to drip down her forehead. Wordlessly she wiped it away and continued her work wanting to honour her father without complaints. But a moment later she glanced to her left when she heard the soft laughter and voices. A glare fell on her face. With the use of a lot of mental strength, she clenched her jaw and looked back at the ground.

But it wasn't just her who found their patience thin.

"Their marriage was last week. Why do they get to sit and talk as we do work?" Nithya asked, dropping her equipment to the floor and standing straight to glare at the young couple who sat by the lake, clearly content in each other's company.

Mithrah continued ploughing as she refused to voice her inner complaints. "Please don't get me started." She muttered swallowing the words that rested on the tip of her tongue.

But Nithya paid no attention to what her cousin said. Her heated glare was focused on the pair that began to laugh. With narrowed eyes, she leaned closer, almost squinting to get a clearer image of the couple. "Is it just me or can you see Thara's hair slightly moving? Do they have breeze over there that we don't over here?" She exclaimed appalled, the windless weather luring her into irritation quicker than usual.

Mithrah sighed and pulled Nithya back onto the soft soil, dragging her drifting afar attention back to the task at hand. "They're sitting a few metres away. Stop complaining. Do you remember what my father said?" She asked, reminding her younger cousin of the wise words they heard a few hours ago.

Dramatically, Nithya stared at the sky with a sigh as if the flashback was being portrayed for everyone to see. With a confused expression, Mithrah mirrored her action and looked up as Veeraiyandi's words began to echo in her mind.

"Our family is known to be the leaders and protectors of this village. When there is a problem, our villagers should want to come to us because of faith. When there is a joyous ceremony, our villagers should want to come to us because they consider us as one of them. A good leader is one that sees themselves as equals of those they protect. Whenever we could we need to be the extra pair of arms they want-"

Nithya turned to look at Mithrah with a glare. "You're father was awfully dramatic this morning only to send us to help the villagers with farming. I almost thought he was going to ask me to join the army."

Mithrah winced and tried to shrug it off. She thought she felt rather inspired by her father's words before he casually told her and Nithya to go to the nearby farm and help out the villagers. Initially, she felt excitement but as the sun soaked up every comfort in her skin, she began to dread every moment.

Veeraiyandi at that moment decided to come and check on the two girls with Radha. The elderly couple took long walks near the farms daily, often stopping to visit the villagers. When Veeraiyandi asked the girls to help out at the farm, he and his wife had also decided to join them. They were working on a slot of land further away but decided to come to see what the two troublemakers were up to. When they caught sight of Mithrah and Nithya working, they walked over with affectionate smiles taking a break from the small chores they were doing.

"How is it?" Radha asked, knowing her daughter's fiery spirit and how she must have a lot to say.

But Mithrah shook her head with a blank expression as if she was living through something she had overlooked her whole life without realising how difficult it was. "I never realised how hard farming is." She mumbled, standing up straight only to feel how her back was beginning to ache.