Hanuman Finds Sita - First Words in the Grove

She was thin. That was the first thing Hanuman noticed. Thin and worn, sitting beneath an ashoka tree, surrounded by demon guards.

He waited until the guards dozed. Then, from his hiding place in the branches, he began to sing.

Not loud—barely a whisper. But it was a song of Ayodhya. Of the palace, the court, the festivals of Rama's kingdom.

Sita looked up.

Sita: "Who's there?"

Hanuman dropped from the tree—a small monkey, hands folded in greeting.

Hanuman: "Mother, I am Hanuman. Servant of Lord Rama. He sent me to find you."

Sita: "Rama. Prove it. Demons take many forms."

Hanuman: "I carry his ring. And I carry his message: 'I am coming. The monkey armies gather. Hold on.'"

Sita took the ring. She turned it over and over, examining the inscription, the weight, the familiar shape.

Sita: "It could be stolen."

Hanuman: "It could. Ask me something only Rama would know."

Sita: "Where did we first speak privately?"

Hanuman: "In the garden of your father's palace. You were watering flowers. Rama pretended to be lost so he could ask you directions. He told me he was never lost. He just wanted to hear your voice."

Sita's eyes filled with tears.

Sita: "He remembers."

Hanuman: "He remembers everything. The color of your sari that day. The flower you were holding. The exact words of your first conversation. Mother, he speaks of nothing else. Every moment is bent toward finding you."

Sita: "Why hasn't he come himself?"

Hanuman: "The ocean stands between Lanka and the mainland. I crossed it because I can fly. But for an army— We're building a bridge. Stone by stone, monkey by bear by every creature who loves justice. Rama leads them. He would be here if physics allowed."

Sita: "How long?"

Hanuman: "Soon. Days, perhaps. Weeks at most. Mother, I can carry you back. Right now. Let me take you to Rama."

Sita: "No."

Hanuman blinked.

Hanuman: "Mother?"

Sita: "Rama must defeat Ravana. If I escape secretly, the world will say I was rescued by a monkey. But if Rama comes with his army, if he defeats the demon king in open battle, if he takes back what was stolen— The world will know he fought for me. That I was worth fighting for."

Hanuman: "You are worth everything."

Sita: "Then let me be won, not stolen. Let this become a story of justice, not just rescue. You are the greatest of servants. Crossing an ocean for your master. Risking your life for his wife. I will ask Rama to honor you above all others."

Hanuman: "Your blessing is honor enough."

Sita: "No, it isn't. Courage like yours deserves recognition. Take this to Rama. Tell him where I am. Tell him... Tell him I wait. Not because I have to. Because I believe in him. Because I know he will come."

Hanuman: "He will come."

Sita: "I know. Now go, before the guards wake. And Hanuman?"

Hanuman: "Yes, Mother?"

Sita: "Burn something on your way out. Let Ravana know that Lanka is not impregnable. That his walls can be crossed, his gardens infiltrated. Let him spend the next few weeks in fear."

Hanuman grinned.

Hanuman: "It would be my pleasure."

He left her beneath the ashoka tree and began his rampage through Lanka. By the time he was done, half the city was burning.

But his heart carried only one thing: her smile.

That, he would bring to Rama along with her jewel.

And that, perhaps, would mean more than anything.