The Apple Of Her Eye

"Dharani!"

Lilavati's hand had risen again in anger, ready to hit the girl again when her elder daughter intervened and held her back.

In a soft voice, Dharitri said to her sister, "You shouldn't treat everything with frivolity. Some topics are not suitable for you to think about, forget saying them out loud, Dharani."

Dharani realised that her mischief had crossed the usual lenient bounds set by her family and she lowered her head in remorse. "I apologise, Mother, Sister."

Dharitri smiled and said, "It's good that you understand. Anyways, I was going to come look for you after greeting Mother. The kitchen has made your favourite gajar ka halwa* with lots of nuts and raisins in it. You should ask for a bowl before Third Aunt gives it all away to our two younger brothers, who arrived back this morning because of their winter vacation."

Even before Dharitri finished speaking, the younger girl had run out of the room at top speed, paying no attention to etiquette.

"Look at this girl… just look at her," Lilavati said furiously, her hands clasping together in agitation.

At 33, she was an epitome of grace and elegance with not a single hair out of place. Her clothes were made from the finest organza with a satin lining attached below, giving it a slightly flared look. Dressed in a peach skirt and a heavily embroidered navy blue top, her slightly wheatish complexion was blemish free and had a youthful appearance.

A beautiful Shahtoosh* shawl dyed in pale brown color lay daintily on her shoulders. Intricate gold jewellery nestled in her ears and neck. Even the hair accessories inserted into the centre of the bun were made with multicolored precious gems. Two fat bangles made with rubies surrounded her wrists.

Dharitri made soothing sounds trying to placate her mother. She knew that the mere mention of Katyayani's name made Lilavati lose her rationale.

As expected, Lilavati was extremely irritated. "This girl knows nothing except to add to my woes. Don't I have enough to deal with already in this house? That indifferent youngest sister-in-law is conveniently busy throughout the day doing nothing! All she knows is how to count the money. And why not? Her husband and both her sons revolve around her, indulging her every whim. If your father's salary as a minister had not been paltry, I would have separated households with her ages ago. But now, she and her merchant husband look down upon our family's scholarly background. All I mentioned yesterday to her was the requirement of increasing the monthly public funds and..."

Lilavati's tirade was interrupted by the rushed feet of her close attendant, who barged in the room without knocking.

"Madam, the guard just came in to inform that Miss Katyayani's carriage has already reached the outskirts. She has sent a rider to inform us and will be reaching here in the next hour or so," Saswati said in a breathless voice.

Both Lilavati and Dharitri stood up, looking at each other in shock.

"What? Why did she not send anyone to inform the house earlier? Does she expect us to drop everything and start getting her chambers ready? That uncouth girl! Argh… why does no one take me seriously enough in this house," Lilavati screamed, forgetting her usual, graceful behaviour.

"Mother!" Dharitri's low voice reminded her to calm down.

After taking a few deep breaths, Lilavati looked at her trusted maid and started giving instructions.

"Get someone to open up her courtyard. Send a couple of cleaning maids to start airing out the master bedroom. For the rest of it, she will have to wait for a day or so. She doesn't keep much staff here and we don't have enough free hands to spare. Ah… and have someone deliver a message to Father-in-law about his favourite granddaughter's arrival. Make sure to let him know that we were given only an hour's notice before her highness's arrival," sarcasm dripped out of Lilavati's mouth and she made no effort to hide her displeasure at this unexpected news.

Saswati was well aware of her mistress's acute dislike for the orphaned daughter of the Bali household and didn't hesitate before nodding and stepping out.

"It is rude on the part of Second Sister, Katyayani, to not inform us in advance. But mother, she is usually so docile and doesn't even step out of her chambers the entire time when she stays here. Her arrival is not worthy of your attention. As for Third Aunt, she is just jealous that Father has steadily been gaining importance in the royal court while my uncle is simply busy running the business. Just ignore her pettiness," Dharitri consoled her mother in a soft voice.

She was used to placating her mother and kept her words and stance neutral.

Lilavati looked at her gorgeous daughter with reddened eyes. She had always lamented that she hadn't been blessed with a boy but this sarv-gun-sampan* daughter of hers was worth ten boys.

She had high hopes for her daughter's marriage. She wanted her daughter to gain the best household, one which would cherish her and appreciate her good points.

"Don't worry, I am fine," Lilavati patted her hand, reassuring her.

Dharitri relaxed when she saw the calm expression back on her mother's face. During the past few years, her mother had started becoming prone to mood swings often. Her mental state swung from extreme happiness to gloom to irritability with the slightest trigger. Despite consulting a few physicians, her state had steadily deteriorated instead of improving.

Her father, Rudradev, had taken her aside a few years ago and told her about his wife's condition. It was at that time that he had asked her to help Lilavati stay calm.

A lot had changed that year for Dharitri. She had gotten to know many things and found herself maturing overnight. Along with her studies, she had slowly started taking a bit of household management burden on herself quietly.

Even so, her mother's behaviour was becoming more and more difficult to manage.

With a sigh, she turned to look at Lilavati who seemed to be lost in her thoughts at the moment.

"Mother, it'll be better if I personally oversaw the arrival of Second Sister. You stay indoors and don't take unnecessary stress. The wind is particularly biting today," with that, Dharitri gave her a warm smile and stepped out.

*Gajar ka halwa - a carrot-based sweet dessert pudding from the Indian subcontinent

*Shahtoosh shawl - made from the wool of the chiru, an antelope found in Tibet. The chiru yields the one of the finest and most expensive wools in the world

*Sarv gun sampan - a female having all virtues and merits to be a perfect girl/woman