Karikalan: Saviour of the Cholas

Chapter 38: Intoxicating

Valavan sat up and blinked against the bright sunlight. In an instant, he felt the familiar throbbing in his head and sighed.

When was the nightmare going to stop coming?

He let his face drop into his palms and stayed in that position for a moment. He then dragged them up, pressing the heels of his palms onto his eyebrows tightly. This had become a part of his morning routine. It never failed to alleviate the pain, at least for the time being. It always ebbed as the day progressed, though.

Once the headache became more bearable, he got out of his bed to brush and bathe. Pain shot through his legs. He looked down at them in confusion before he realized his error.

In his tiredness, he had forgotten to apply the balm last night before going to sleep.

Cursing himself under his breath, as soon as he returned from his bath, he slathered his legs with the balm lavishly to make up for last night. Having woken up in time for once, he went down to find that he was among the first to arrive for breakfast.

Only Alli, Poovazhagi, and Ilanchezhiyan had come down. They were seated in the shape of an incomplete circle with Poovazhagi and Chezhiyan opposite each other. Alli was next to Poovazhagi. Everyone looked at him in surprise.

Except Alli.

He shrugged and grinned, offering no comment. Then, he made his way towards Alli deliberately and sat next to her, all the while trying to make eye contact.

She didn't respond.

Valavan felt a sharp stab of disappointment. If not a smile, he had, at the very least, expected a scowl. "Good morning", he tried to add cheerily and mentally groaned.

He was still squeaking.

"Good morning", she mumbled back without meeting his eyes. A sudden thought struck Valavan, leaving him cold.

Had she heard his screams?

He shut his eyes. She must have. She was sleeping right opposite him.

Why is it that she had to always see him like that?

Feeling miserable, he left her alone, not trying to initiate conversation further. The others filled in, everyone shooting him similar puzzled looks. He merely shrugged. Even Alli, surprised by his quiet demeanor, shot him a subtle sideways look. He didn't reply or look at her.

Vikraman made up for his silence. "Hello there, Dead Prince! Good morning to you!"

Valavan rolled his eyes. "Could you please refrain from calling me that?"

Vikraman shrugged. "Are you trying to say that it does not have a nice ring to it?"

Valavan paused before replying. "As a matter of fact, it actually does." Vikraman shot him a smug I-told-you-so-look. Valavan continued. "However, that doesn't mean I wish to be called that."

Vikraman spread his hands as he sat down beside him. "That's too bad, Dead Prince. That's just too bad."

Valavan turned to look at him, eyes glinting. "I didn't want to do this. I truly didn't. But you might be forcing me to exercise my power."

Vikraman chortled. "What power? You are dead, remember?"

Everyone shot him shocked looks. While Valavan might act in a jovial way around them, he was still a Prince. That called in for a certain amount of respect to be shown towards him.

Valavan simply shook his head and shot Chezhiyan a sullen look. "Why don't you learn from him, Chezhiya? Why don't you behave more like him?"

Chezhiyan shot him a baffled look even as the tension dissolved and everyone chuckled. "What?! He technically still calls you a Prince!"