"Khoob ladi mardaani woh toh jhaansi wali rani thi". The memories of her sitting up on a hospital bed, recovering from an illness, and yet cheerfully singing this poem of the fiesty Queen of Jhaansi with full gusto, brandishing an invisible sword while galloping on an invisible horse, is still very vivid. The bright, young, joyful little girl had no inkling back then of what was to happen, of how her life would be turned upside down and what horrors she would have to see and experience for decades to come.
Pain has a way of bringing people together. Two little kids, a little girl and a little boy, each dealing with internal turmoil and terrifying monsters in their heads, found each other and became best of friends. They laughed together, made plans together and found solace in each other's company.
Their monsters still lived inside, waiting to rear their ugly heads at the slightest chance. As they grew, one ran from the monsters, and used alcohol and drugs to suppress their hold, while the other drew her sword and fought them. One succumbed to temptation, while the other fought relentlessly and never backed down. When she needed time to recoup, she used her shield to protect herself from the blow after blow falling on her, but never once left the battle. Even when the whole world doubted her, even when all the odds were against her, even when it looked like this was the end, she held on. He burned in the hell he created, while she did everything in her power to douse the inferno.
At one point, after years and years of living a nightmare, when his inferno threatened to destroy her and her whole family, she escaped. The inferno followed her, did everything in his power to catch her and feed his fire, for she was his fuel. She had kept him going all these years, it was her blood that he sucked on for strength, how could he survive without her? It took every ounce of strength she had to fight it and free herself from it's clutches.
Even after escaping the bondage, life did not leave her alone. It threw curveball after curveball at her, and she stayed in the game and dealt with catastrophe after catastrophe. The power and strength it took to go on this way was immense. He still continued to succumb to his monsters, and she still continued to stand up and fight.
There came a time when her arms grew tired of carrying the sword and the shield and her body grew tired of fighting. She fell to her feet, still grappling with everything that was coming her way. Her spirit was growing tired of the punches and her soul was starting to give up. The monsters pounced at the chance, grabbed her sword and broke it in half. They laughed menacingly and jeered at her, we will have you at long last, you shall finally surrender to us. The girl looked at their faces and thought, is this how it all ends? I have fought steadfastly for so many years, how can I let evil win? She gasped for breath and screamed for help. She had screamed for help before, and some form of help had always come. This time she wept to the Universe, I'm losing hope, I don't know how much longer I can hold on, please don't let evil win, please please come help me, I don't know how much longer my shield can protect me.
The Universe sent help, and this time it was not a magic potion for strength, it was not another sword, it was not an additional shield for protection, it was a Phoenix! It is time to end this, dear child, the Phoenix whispered into her ear, and proceeded to wrap it's majestic wings around her and set itself on fire. The girl burnt in the Phoenix's funeral pyre, but it did not hurt her one bit. The flames enveloped her with the warmth of a mother's loving embrace and she closed her eyes and felt relief wash over her. The flames, for all their warmth on the inside, was raging fiery hot on the outside. The monsters writhed in pain as the fire enveloped them and burnt them to the ground. The Phoenix continued to burn and slowly turned to ashes, along with the girl. Time ticked by in complete silence, without the slightest sign of movement. And then, slowly from the ashes, the Phoenix was born again, and so was the girl. They both rose once more, stronger, bolder and more powerful than ever before.
The sands of time are ever changing. Nothing remains the same forever. The fight was finally over. And what happened to the boy you ask? Alas, he gave in to his monsters and succumbed to death. A sad tale, but one that recapitulates the power of will and grit. One ended his misery and chose death, the other reinvented herself and chose life.
