One Year Later -

Karn waited for Duryodhan along with all the other members of the court. Duryodhan had held a court meeting for the nearby kingdoms in Hastinapur. Karn, as Duryodhan's best friend and the King of Anga, was invited as well. Duryodhan's father, King Dhritarashtra, was seated in the middle of the court and next to him stood an empty throne for the Prince of Hastinapur, but Duryodhan had just left to get someone. He said he had a surprise for the courts.

While he waited, Karn thought of her. Her beautiful eyes and how Karn would manage to find her. Last he heard, Draupadi had married Arjun and all 4 of his brothers, due to a condition set by their mother, Kunti. Kunti said that Arjun would have to share with all his brothers and so Draupadi married all 5 of them.

Duryodhan seemed to always hate the Pandavas. Karn remembered playing with them when he was little and came to visit Duryodhan's palace. That's when he first met Arjun. He instantly hated him, but the other brothers were okay. Karn actually quite liked them. However, Duryodhan was always mad when he went to play with them, so eventually Karn just had to stop. After they married Draupadi, they were cast to Indraprasth where Yudishtir, the oldest brother, built a beautiful palace. Karn was sure that Draupadi was there in the palace with them. Now, all he had to figure out was how he was ever going to win her back if she was already married to the 5 brothers. It was impossible, and Karn was sure that she would've forgotten him by now.

Karn was torn from his thoughts when he heard footsteps coming from the halls. The conversations in the court halted, and everyone turned to look at the door. In walked a smiling Duryodhan, followed by... the Pandavas? They were wearing servant attire and they looked extremely ashamed. What had Duryodhan done? What was going on?

"Look what I have won, my father!" boasted Duryodhan. "I have just won the Pandavas beautiful palace, and all of their wealth. Then, I asked Yudishtir for his brothers, and he gambled them all away to me. I've even managed to win their beloved wife, Draupadi!" Duryodhan laughed.

Karn looked up shocked. Duryodhan had won Draupadi? Karn could not live like that. He'd readily give anything for her, but to see her in that state. It would kill him! The princess of Panchal could not be a mere servant to these crude kings. How could Duryodhan do that?

"Look what I have done to them. They are our servants now. They bow down to us, and that wretched girl who was loyal to them, is now mine."

Karn's heart was racing. Where was she? Was she alone, crying somewhere for all her world had been lost, or had she already been put to work? Karn's head was whirling. How would he find her? Is she here?

Duryodhan continued taunting the Pandavas, and yet the court was silent. No one could believe that Duryodhan could commit such a task. How did he steal away everything, and make the Pandavas mere slaves to the kingdom? Karn glanced at the Pandavas. Yudishtir stood, shaking, ashamed of himself and how he had lost his everything. Bheem stood in fury, staring angrily at Duryodhan, ready to pounce, but he couldn't due to his new status as only a servant. Next stood Arjun, with murder in his eyes, and his hands clenched in fists. Finally, stood Nakul and Sahadev. Nakul's face was scrunched up, almost as if he was about to cry, but Karn knew that Nakul only cried in fury. Sahadev's face was stoic and in concentration, almost as if he was trying to figure out a way to stop this.

What really shocked Karn was what came next. A giddy Duryodhan full of crude laughter called out to his brother, Dushasan. Bring her in, brother. Let's show the courts what she really is. Karn, already angry, turned to the door once again. What he saw made his heart shatter. Dushasan was pulling in an angry Draupadi into the court by her hair, while Duryodhan and he laughed with coldness filling their souls. Horror filled the court. She kicked and screamed and scratched at his arms. Her eyes filled with tears, as her head hit each white, marble stair, Dushasan pulled her across. Her legs kicked, and her body struggled against the overly powerful cousin-in-law who dragged her to the middle of room.

Karn's eyes almost watered with tears as he almost ran to the girl. Before he could do anything, Duryodhan called his name.

"Angraj Karn, look at her! Look at this idiotic wench who denied your love for these Pandavas that are now our servants." Duryodhan shouted. Karn's heart clenched. He had to stop this. He couldn't take it for much longer.

At his name, Draupadi looked up. She had missed him with all her heart, and it broke her heart even more now that she knew that he might not have missed her as well. He was staring at her being dragged across the court with tears in his eyes. How could he let this happen? If not for her sake, how could he let this happen to any woman?

"This girl refused to marry the King of Anga, and for what? Just so that she could marry 5 men? She's a prostitute. She deserves all of this. A woman is made to serve and love one husband. This woman has five. It is certain that she is an unchaste woman. Dushasan!" Duryodhan shouted. "Vastraharan Kharro!" he screamed, "Strip her bare!"

An audible gasp was heard from the crowd. Karn held his breath, ready to help the girl. Before Dushasan reached Draupadi, she stood up.

"How can any of you stand this? Everyone here is a King or a divine noble! How can you see a woman's honor be stripped bare? How?" she screamed. The court was silent at her words. "What about you, Dronacharya? You are the guru of all of these warriors. They hold you in their highest regards. How dare you stand there and say nothing!"

Karn could see her anger seeping in, now. Here was the confident Draupadi who had rejected him at the Swayamvar. Instead of helping her, he let her speak. Karn knew that she could defend herself.

Draupadi turned to the Pandavas, "And you! All five of you have sworn to protect me and my honor. How can you patiently stand there while my honor is taken from me?" Draupadi was heaving now. The Pandavas looked like they were in pain. If they did anything, they would be punished for they were only servants now. Each of them resisted the urge to murder.

Before she could speak or taunt anyone else, Duryodhan yelled again "Dushasan, Vastraharan Kharro!

Draupadi looked up into Karn's eyes. He was itching to get to her. She was in terror. Karn was dying on the inside. He needed to help. Draupadi could see the desperation in his eyes and in his stiff exterior. Why hadn't he come to help?

Dushasan grabbed her by her hair once again, grabbing her shoulder as well in the process. Draupadi let out a small shriek of pain. The king himself couldn't stop it either. The world was literally blind to him, and Draupadi had already been won. He could not stop a master from ordering a servant. The elders in the court could not stop Duryodhan, because Draupadi was his conquest. No one could save Draupadi, except for Lord Krishna himself. So, she folded her hands in prayer and rose to her feet.

In a silent prayer in her mind she said, "Lord Kanha save me. You are the only one who can work a miracle powerful enough to regain my honor."

The sweet voice of God rang in her ears as he replied, saying, "My dear Sakhi, you do not know for your eyes are closed, praying to me. There is already someone in the process of saving you. I do not need to intervene.

Draupadi felt a tug on her blood red sari as Dushasan started to pull it away. It was wrapped around her twice, so she knew that in two spins, it would be off her, and her honor in the hands of a crude man. She reluctantly spun once, fighting for control of the red cloth, but it was to no avail, as Dushasan was stronger. The second round was coming. She spun half way again, but before she could finish the round that would destroy her honor, strong arms were wrapped around her body. She opened her eyes to see that Angraj Karn had hugged her, in an attempt to cover her half naked body. Karn reached for her sari and pulled it away from Dushasan, ripping it in half in the process since Dushasan would not let it go.

Karn pulled away from the hug, and quickly wrapped the half sari around her front and her shoulders, as it wouldn't reach any farther. Draupadi looked up into his beautiful brown eyes as Karn looked into her grief stricken eyes. Draupadi's face was struck with fear and tears ran out of her eyes. She was frightened, but she still stood up for herself. Karn had saved her, but now he had to make decision. He couldn't leave her here, or she would most likely suffer the same fate again. He couldn't take her to the Pandavas, because they were already servants of Duryodhan. He also couldn't take her to anyone else, because no one would protect her like he did. No one else had spoken for her, like he did. Karn had made his choice. He quickly took the small, separate piece of cloth covering his bare chest, and wrapped it around Draupadi's shoulders as a second attempt to cover her ripped sari. Then, he took her hand in his and began to walk out the big gold doors of the court.

"Rookho, Karn!" Duryodhan yelled. Karn was irritated. The man he thought was his friend would never, ever commit such a task. What gave him the right to stop him?

"You do know that the only way for you to take my daasi away from me, is to either buy her or marry her, right?", he said evilly. "I'm not letting you buy her, so if you want to take her away, you must marry my servant."

It was a harsh move. Duryodhan thought that Karn was in love with some girl so he would never marry another. Little did he know, the girl Karn he was taking away was the only girl he would ever love. However, Draupadi was second guessing Karn's actions. She didn't think he would marry her. She had insulted him in front of the kingdoms of India. Just because he saved her, didn't mean he would sacrifice his life for her.

"Fine. I will marry her," Karn said briskly. He did not want their wedding to go anything like this. He didn't even know if Draupadi wanted to marry him. Would she refuse him, and rather stay with the Pandavas just to face this incident again? But when Karn marched them up to the middle of the room, where the fire was ignited in the pot, she didn't move away. Karn held Draupadi's hand as he walked around the pot 3 times, reciting his vows to her in front of all the kings, elders, and nobles in the court. Next, it was Draupadi's turn, but she didn't have the ritual memorized so she turned to look at Karn, giving him a small frown. He only glanced at her and slightly nodded his head, telling her to keep going. He would recite the vows for her. Draupadi walked in front of Karn as they circled around the pot 4 more times. Karn recited her vows for her as said, and with the last circle, their vows were finished.

"Is this enough for you Duryodhan? Can I take her from you now?" Draupadi could tell that he was angry, but she didn't know if it was because of the events that just took place or because he had to marry her.

Duryodhan was mad. "If you take a single step out of this court, Karn, you should know that you will no longer be considered a friend, and the grounds will never be welcome to you again," he shouted.

"Well Duryodhan, you should know that our friendship was over the second you had a woman dragged across the room, and insulted in this manner," Karn yelled back, his eyes seeing red.

Duryodhan started to speak again, but before he could ruin anything else, Karn took Draupadi's hand again and they walked out of the court and into the halls. Draupadi and Karn were both silent as they walked outside of the palace to Karn's chariot, but Karn did not let go of Draupadi's hand and she did not want to pull away. When they reached the chariot, Karn climbed up and helped her inside. Draupadi sat in the back, while Karn took the reins and encouraged the horses to start moving. He was taking her to Anga, where he could keep her safe himself. Eventually, he sat down next to her, for Anga was a 10 hour ride away. After a few hours of awkward silence between the two, Draupadi fell asleep on Karn's shoulder. He smiled at her peaceful face and they continued their journey to Karn's home.

***

A few hours later -

When they reached Anga, Draupadi was still sleeping on Karn's shoulder. So, Karn carried her into his own chambers as the guest chambers were not ready yet. He laid her on his perfectly made bed, and pulled the bedding and an extra blanket on top of her. Draupadi was shaking due to the chilly wind from the open windows. Karn started towards the windows, but when he looked down, his wrist was tightly held by Draupadi's soft hand.

"Don't leave me," she mumbled in her subconscious state.

Karn once again smiled at her sleeping face and removed her hand from his wrist, tucking it into the blanket. He then walked over and closed the windows, hoping that the room would finally warm up a little. He quickly left the chambers to find a daasi. He asked her to get them both some food and she left to hastily prepare the food of him and his new queen. Meanwhile, Karn sat down, across the bed, on the couch. He took out one of his favorite books full of different styles of archery, and began to read. However, after a few minutes passed, he too dozed off, with the book lying on his chest.

2 hours later -

Karn woke with a startled gasp. The book lying on his bare chest, fell open onto the floor. He remembered that he had given his strip of cloth to Draupadi, so he walked to the dressing wing for another. After quickly freshening up in the bathroom, Karn walked back to his chambers, and saw the steaming hot food sitting on his table. Mouth watering, Karn moved towards the table and sat down in the chair before it, but before he could taste the savoring food, he remembered that there was a girl in his room, and she was still soundly asleep. He got up and moved to the bed, just to see that Draupadi was sleeping with a peaceful expression on her face. Karn was sorry that he had to wake her up.

Hunched over the girl, Karn spoke "Draupadi, wake up. You need to eat something." Careful not to hurt her damaged shoulder, Karn lightly shook her. "Draupadi, get up." Karn heard a small moan come from her lips. Draupadi's eyes opened as she took in her surroundings and quickly jumped into a sitting position, bumping into Karn's head in the process.

"Ahh. Kya kar rahi ho?" he exclaimed, rubbing his forehead.

Draupadi cringed at her actions. "Sorry, sorry. Meri galti hain."

Karn chuckled as he said, "Come eat some food. You're probably hungry after the long ride."

She got up, out of the warm bed, and towards the table where the steaming food sat, ready to be eaten. Karn quickly pulled out a chair for Draupadi, and she sat down. He sat down as well, in the chair next to hers.

"So, what would you like to eat, princess?" he asked playfully, trying to lighten the mood.

"Give me anything. I'm starving," she said laughing. Karn scooped some food onto her plate and passed her the basket of bread. They silently ate, savoring the food for a few minutes.

Then, Draupadi piped up, "So you are the King of this palace?" she asked.

"Well, seeing as Duryodhan gave it to me as a gift, it's not really mine," Karn replied with a sting when he said Duryodhan's name. "But, I did win the palace in an archery contest against Duryodhan, so I doubt he will try to take it back," Karn said reassuring the girl.

Draupadi was happy to know that she was safe. She was a little shaken up over the events that occurred but no doubt, she was happy to be with Karn. They continued to make small talk until they finished eating. After a hearty meal, they got up, now unsure of what to do. They did get married today, but Draupadi and Karn both knew that they weren't expecting anything couple like from each other.

"Umm Karn?" Draupadi said his name questioningly.

"Yes"

"Umm, my clothes. I haven't changed. My sari is still ripped and I think you probably want your cloth back," she said, almost anxious for his reaction.

"Oh, yes. I will ask a daasi to prepare it for you," he replied. How could he have forgotten? Her red sari was still ripped in half and it only barely covered her entire front. His cloth was the only thing holding her attire together. Suddenly embarrassed to see her in this state, Karn looked away. He walked out of his chambers.

"Daasi," he called, "Please grab a sari from my mother's cabinet and bring it for the princess," he stated.

The daasi ran off. His mother kept a stash of her clothes in the palace since she visited often. The daasi came back with a beautiful, royal blue sari and handed the clothes to Karn. He hadn't permitted anyone to go into his chambers yet. Karn walked back to the chambers and found Draupadi sitting on the couch, looking through his archery books.

She was just about to turn the page, when Karn spoke, "Here. This is my mother's clothing, but it will have to do for now. Tomorrow, I will send for attire that you like."

"Thank you, Karn," his name rolled off her tongue with ease. "Thank You for everything," she said, this time quieter.

Draupadi left to change and she came back looking just as beautiful as when he had seen her the day of her first wedding. The royal blue sari made her look like a princess once again, and Karn knew that no matter what, he would always treat her that way. She sat down across from his on the couch, her feet lifting onto the couch. There was a peaceful silence between them, but a few minutes later, Draupadi spoke.

"Do you forgive me Karn?" she asked.

"What?" he asked confused.

Draupadi took a sharp breath, "Do you forgive me for what I did to you at the Swayamvar?

"I-I. I don't know, okay," he shook his head. "Can we just not talk about this right now?" Karn started to get up.

"No, Karn. Wait. We need to talk about it at some point. Why not now?

"I can't just forgive you for what you did. I don't understand any of it. Why did you choose Arjun over me? Was it really because I'm only a Sut Putra, or is there another reason? Did you really judge me because of my status, because of my caste? And if you did, why marry me now? Is it because I now have a palace to keep you in, or is it because you have no one else to go to?" Karn ended his rant, breathing hard, and expecting an answer from the quiet girl.

"Karn, I- I couldn't marry you then. There were some things stopping me. My father did not want to side with the Kurus in anything, so he had me marry the Pandavas as a political alliance. The task was set for Arjun only. No one expected anyone better, anyone else to succeed in the task. But I knew. I knew that you could do it as soon as you pulled your arrow to aim at the fish's shadow." Draupadi finished her explanation and Karn stood silent.

"It doesn't change anything. We are married, but I do not expect anything in turn. You are still the Pandavas, and I swear to Lord Kanha, that if you ever wish to go back to the Pandavas, I will not stop you. You are free to do what you want." With that word, he sat back down. Another awkward silence sat between the two.

Karn did not know if Draupadi even thought of him that way, and she did not know if Karn even wanted to feel that way. They were stuck between words. If either had revealed their true feelings, perhaps the night would've gone differently. However, neither spoke a word until Karn finally dozed off on the couch while reading his book, and Draupadi fell asleep on the other side, watching him.

6 months passed. Every day, in the morning, Karn would go perform his duties as a King, and every night he returned with food for his queen. They ate and made conversation, in turn learning more and more about each other, but the more serious topics were never delved into. Draupadi spent her time reading in Karn's great library, and exploring the castle. She took up learning to cook, and how to perform other duties as a wife with the daasis, but this was a secret to Karn.

Once a week, Karn's mother and father would pay a visit. The first meeting was a bit awkward, but eventually Radha and Draupadi bonded over Karn's foolishness as a child. Karn remembered that the first time Radha and Draupadi met, Radha had told her the story of when he had hidden in the kitchen's rice basket as a child. They eventually grew fond of each other after that, and soon every time his parents came over, Radha would leave to find Draupadi, and Karn would spend time with his father. Last week, Radha had sat both Karn and Draupadi down to give them a talk about family. Radha had explained that she wanted many children from the couple and that she was expecting good news soon. Karn and Draupadi had both blushed a crimson red and had avoided glancing at each other that night.

***

A new day, one month later -

It was late afternoon when Karn went to practice his archery as he usually did. He was wearing his simple white dhoti, while his chest was bare. He didn't like to wear his armor when he practiced, because it was heavy, and wore him down faster. Karn started off with a simple exercise. Placing the arrow onto the string of the bow, Karn pulled the arrow back and let go. He looked up and saw his arrow straight in the middle of the target. As the minutes passed, his exercises got harder, and the sun beat down on him as if pushing him to do better.

Draupadi had finished her latest novel, which was an adaption of Kanha's first lifetime as Ram, and his wife Sita. She had already gone to her cooking session with the cook that morning, and now she was heading to explore the palace grounds. She was outside, passing the gardens, when she saw an arrow fly through the air and hit its target down the far field. Draupadi walked forward towards the archery grounds and was happy to see that it was Karn. He was flexing his arm, and pulling the arrow back, when he released it and it hit the target. Karn picked up another arrow. Draupadi never got to see him like this. Even during their dinners, Karn was always a little distant, always keeping away from Draupadi. He never broke his boundaries. He was always careful to respect the Pandavas' wife. Draupadi didn't exactly like this. With her slightest touch, he would quickly move far away and completely change the topic they were discussing. It was starting to infuriate the girl.

Draupadi knew what she had done to the Pandavas. She hadn't exactly been the perfect wife to them, and she didn't want to do the same with Karn. He didn't know the whole truth and Draupadi was too afraid to tell him. There was too much at stake. There was too much for her to lose.

Snapping out of her thoughts, Draupadi spoke "I didn't know you were this good at archery. I guess those books really do pay off," she said jokingly.

Karn had been flawlessly shooting all of the arrows as each exercise got harder and harder. Even now, though his attention was on Draupadi, he hit the target straight in the middle. Karn chuckled at her words.

"You know, I would like to learn sometime too. Then, maybe you won't have to worry about protecting me all the time," she said as she walked over to the rack of bows. She started to pick one up from the bottom, but it was too heavy and it fell to the floor in front of her.

"Well, if you really want to learn, maybe you should start with a smaller and lighter bow," Karn said laughingly. He walked over to the rack of bows and picked a long, sleek black bow from the top. "Here, get into your ready stance, hook the arrow, pull it back, and then release it." Draupadi did as he said, but her arrow only went two feet forward and then arched to the ground. She pouted and dropped the bow, crossing her arms.

"Maybe archery isn't for me. I'll just find another hobby," she said sadly.

Karn laughed, "Now, now, Princess, don't give up so easily. Where's the Draupadi I know? The one who never gives up."

"Ugh, you're right. I shouldn't give up." She picked up her arrow again and once again tried to position the arrow."

"Wait, wait, wait. Let me help you." Karn put down his own bow and walked over to Draupadi. "First, you need to fix your stance. Spread your feet a little more than shoulder width apart, and then face me." She did as he said. "Now pivot your upper body so that it's facing the target."

"What?" Draupadi asked confused. Karn chuckled. He did it for her. He put his hands on her shoulders and turned her upper body so it was facing the target.

"There. Now you have a perfect stance," he said. Draupadi's heart beat faster at his sudden close proximity. Karn was already heaving due to his earlier session of archery. He then moved behind her. Karn put his arms around her arms as they both lifted the bow together. His face was right next to hers and if she just turned a few inches, she would be kissing his cheek.

"Now position your arrow, aim for the target, pull back, and release," he said. They aimed together and when Karn's arm pulled back with hers, her back hit his chest. She inhaled sharply. They released the arrow. Draupadi was heaving just like Karn now.

"You hit it," he whispered in her ear.

"What?" she gasped.

"You hit the target."

Their chests rose and fell together. Registering his words, Draupadi pulled away quickly.

Clearing her throat she said, "Thanks for the lesson."

"Uhh, I think I should leave now," Karn said, quickly changing the topic.

"No Karn, wait. I don't mean to start anything, but we can't just keep doing this. We are both always doing a dance around each other. You avoid me, I avoid you. We can't do that forever. We need to figure out what this is, and I need you to understand something." Draupadi had definitely done it now. He would probably shut her out again. He would go back to being stiff.

Instead, Karn did something else entirely. He opened up and let his anger out. "What do you expect me to understand, Draupadi? I can't hold you. I can't touch you. I can't even comfort you! You are never going to be loyal to me. You are always going to be for the Pandavas. I'm just here to protect you so that event that occurred can't happen again! How can I love you, if you are theirs?" he shouted. Draupadi flinched. She wasn't expecting an outburst, but at least he wasn't completely shutting her out.

"Karn, that's not what this is. I haven't really been there for the Pandavas. There are some things that you just-"

"That I just what? That I just don't understand? There are a lot of things we both don't understand Draupadi, but I know that you will never be only mine. I can't keep you forever. You will leave me someday, and I'd rather not be completely broken when you don't choose me for the second time," With that rant, he left the archery grounds leaving Draupadi to ponder his words.

Was he really only afraid of her leaving? Draupadi knew that she did not want to leave the love she had finally found. She didn't want to go back to the Pandavas. But, could she really explain that to Karn so they could finally get over their differences. She didn't understand why Karn thought that she would leave him, but she couldn't change what had just happened, so she picked up her bow off of the ground, put it back where Karn had grabbed it from, and headed back inside to the chambers she shared with Karn.

He didn't come to their chambers that night. He only sent a daasi with the food. This saddened Draupadi, but she understood that he probably needed some time to cool off. So, she ate the food, and then moved to the bed. Under the bed, she found Karn's upper cloth from the day of the event in Hastinapur. He hadn't asked for it back so she had hidden it under the bed. Today his presence wasn't here so she wrapped the cloth around her shoulders and fell asleep on the bed.

That night, Karn could not stay away. He couldn't go up and face her after he had yelled at her, so he had sent a daasi with the food. However, Karn wasn't content until he knew that his queen was safe and sound asleep. When it had gotten late and Karn was sure that Draupadi was most likely asleep, he slowly crept into their chambers and found the girl sleeping on the bed. Around her shoulders was his upper cloth wrapped tightly. Karn smiled. Perhaps she did care for him, even just a little bit. He closed the windows of the chambers once again, grabbed a thin blanket, and fell asleep on the couch.

***

The next morning -

Draupadi woke up as the light beat down on her closed eyelids. She pulled the blankets off of her and got off the warm bed. As she got up, Karn's cloth fell to the floor from her shoulders. Draupadi quickly picked it up, folded it, and hid it under the bed once again. She walked over to the bathroom to go freshen up, but on her way she bumped into the couch, hitting her knee. Hunched over, Draupadi began to rub her bruised joint, but when she looked up, she realized that she was face to face with a sleeping Karn. Quickly backing away, Draupadi limped her way into the bathroom and got ready for the new day.

When Draupadi came back, she was surprised to see that Karn was still sleeping on the couch. Karn never actually stayed in the chambers this long. He always had kingly duties to perform for his people. Karn was rarely ever tired, and if he was, he usually ignored it, and performed all his duties anyway. Draupadi heard footsteps coming from the hallways. She walked out to find one of Karn's diplomatic colleagues waiting for her.

"My queen," he bowed. "Angraj hasn't come to perform his daily rounds to the village poor. He is often accompanied by me, and I would be glad to know that he is under protection," the man spoke.

"Sir, Karn is otherwise occupied at the moment, and he may not be able to perform his duties to Anga today. However, he is well taken care of in his chambers. He is thoroughly protected," Draupadi spoke like a true queen.

The man smiled and bowed to the queen once again, and said, "Of course, Your Highness." He walked away, leaving Karn in Draupadi's hands.

After the exchange, Draupadi walked back to the chambers and made her way to Karn's couch. He was still sleeping, but now she could tell that he was warm and breathing heavily. She grabbed his hand, and felt its temperature, realizing that it was unnaturally hot. She turned, and with her other hand, Draupadi felt his burning forehead, but before she could remove her hand, Karn's hand shot up and trapped her wrist, unintentionally pulling her closer. His eyes blinked open to see the pretty girl hovering over him. Karn blinked a few times, waking up from his unconscious state. But before he could get up, Draupadi pushed him back down.

"Karn, you're burning up. You need to rest. Arram kharro," she said with care.

"No," he shook his head, "I have duties to perform. I probably already missed my trip to the village with the chief advisor." Karn tried to get up again, but Draupadi pushed him back down.

Too weak to move again, Karn settled for fighting with his words. "Draupadi, I must go. It is my duty as a King, and I cannot avoid it due to some minor health problems. I have to leave now," he said, but Karn knew that she would not agree. He could feel the hot and cold shivers running down his spine, and his cheeks had taken a feverish blush.

Karn tried to get up again, and this time Draupadi didn't stop him. Instead, he fell back on the couch again, due to the aching of his muscles. Karn nodded his head and said, "Fine, but only for a few hours. I have meetings to attend in the afternoon."

"Fine, I'll wake you in a couple of hours, but for now, just sleep," she answered. Karn sank back down into the couch, but before he could fully rest, Draupadi pulled him up again.

"Take the bed. It's warmer and it will help you rest comfortably," she said while smiling. Karn was confused, but he agreed. His muddled, sick mind could not process her words at the moment. He took the bed, pulled up the blankets, and fell asleep in a dreamless world.

While he slept, Draupadi took to watching over him. Every hour, she took a wet cloth and massaged it on his forehead in an attempt to break the fever. She could tell it wasn't working as well as she hoped, so she removed one of his blankets so that his body wouldn't warm up more than it already had. As hours passed, Karn slipped in and out of consciousness. He was never fully awake and he was never fully asleep either.

A couple of hours later, Draupadi heard a low moan. She quickly got up and ran to Karn's bed. He was mumbling something in his sleep. It was most likely just a nightmare. She started to turn and sit back down, when she heard a voice say, "Wait, don't go." She stopped and looked back again. Karn's eyes were still closed, but he was talking, quite audibly, in his sleep. "Draupadi, I need you. Don't leave me for the Pandavas," he mumbled, Draupadi's heart broke. He still thought that she would leave. "Please, I've wanted you more than anything since the day I first saw you. Even when you rejected me, I only loved you. I broke my wedding off, because if not you, there is no one else. Please. Stay." The rest of his words slowly became incoherent as he mumbled off to sleep. Draupadi knew that no matter what happened, she would never go back to the Pandavas. After what happened, the way Karn took care of her was something that no one would ever do. Karn was now her everything. All she wanted now, was to know if he felt the same way.

In late afternoon, Draupadi finally saw beads of sweat starting to form on Karn's forehead as a sign that the fever had broken. She was ecstatic for him to wake up. In just a couple minutes, he had started to stir awake. Karn blinked open his eyes. He looked up to see that Draupadi was sitting next to him, perhaps waiting for him to get up.

"What time is it?" he asked her as he sat up.

"I'm sorry, Karn. I couldn't wake you up sooner. You were so sick and you had a fever and I didn't know what to do and I'm sorry," she rambled.

"Hey, hey," he stopped her. "It's fine. At least I'm not so tired now. I can perform my duties as a king in a better condition." Karn started to get up again.

"Wait. Drink something first. I don't want you to get dehydrated and fall sick again," she said. Draupadi poured him a glass of water and held it up to his parched lips. He took a few sips, and then stopped drinking.

"Rukho math, Angraj. I'm not a specialist, but I'm sure that you need to drink more than a couple sips to get better." She forced him to drink the rest of the water, and put it down on the shelf next to him.

"Now can I get up, oh dear Queen of Anga?" he asked jokingly.

Draupadi laughed. "Of course, oh dear King of Anga," she said using his same manner of tone.

Karn laughed and got up to go take a shower, and to rid an oncoming fever from his previously aching body. As he walked into the bathing wing, he realized that Draupadi did care. Perhaps as only a friend, or maybe even just a fellow human, but she did care for Karn, and that made a smile spread on his face, making his rather sickly afternoon, a happy one.