For Adham Khan, failure was rarely an option, especially regarding his long-held ambitions. His face fixed on a barely concealable scowl on his face which seemed to worsen as the woman he called his "biwi" had her voice grating in his ears like nails against a chalkboard.

Ya Allah, what had Ammi Jaan been thinking when she presented this airhead before him as a potential bride?

"Have you heard the good news, Adham? Shehenshah Jalaluddin Mohammad is awake!"

Ugh, it seemed Khuda was working against him with how that man refused to die regardless of the dangers ahead of him.

The frustration was enough to push Adham to the point of tossing his goblet against the wall. Better that than strangling Javeda as she went on with her monologue of how grateful she was that Jalal was alive and worse, at the thought of going to Amer for Begum Jodha's sister's shaadi.

As if the divine had chosen the perfect moment to put him out of his misery, Sharifuddin stormed into Adham's hojra, his face twisted in frustration as he gave a hasty taslim. This was one of the few moments Javeda had her wits with her as she took the cue to take her leave.

Adham barely moved an inch as he lazily tilted his goblet, watching the dark liquid swirl around.

"You look as though you've just bitten into karela," he pointed out drily as he lifted the cup to his lips.

That earned him the strongest glare from Sharifuddin who crossed over to his seat, his jaw clenched and his eyes blazing with fury.

"Our plan to shut Jalal's light before a single ray has the opportunity to pass through has failed. Your men have failed in their task with their astounding incompetence!" He pointed out, frustration bleeding through his voice.

Lackadaisically, Adham scoffed with a roll of his eyes. As soon as he had the opportunity, he was going to ensure those men disappeared off the face of the earth due to their negligence.

"I will take care of them," he added, setting his cup aside.

Sharifuddin cast him a mocking glare. "That is if you are not as inept as those men you sent out. Because of you, he still has his takht."

As if something suddenly clicked in his mind, Adham felt his mind jolt with an idea. "Amer," he said, gazing up at Sharifuddin.

He was met with narrowed eyes.

"This had better be good, Adham Khan," he spat, his eyes blazing with venom.

Adham flashed a lupine grin, his posture calm as he reclined against the divan. "Sharifuddin," he drawled out with a smirk. "Sometimes, you do not wait for opportunities to open, you create them yourselves."

Sharifuddin scoffed, turning aside for a moment. "Let me guess, you have some profound thoughts to soothe your ineptitude," he jeered.

Always like the people to underestimate him, from Ammi Jaan to even Sharifuddin.

"Think about it, Sharifuddin," he responded instead. "Shehenshah Jalaluddin Mohammad is not the only person who would be attending the shaadi, many Rajput kings would be present. So many things can go wrong..."

"I see where you're going."

"And the best part of this is we place the blame solely on those Rajputs," Adham added, pausing as if to congratulate himself on his well-formulated plot. "This is an excuse for us to wage a war against them and expand the Mughal Sultanate." He looked up at Sharifuddin, "You will be able to reclaim the treasures Jalal forced you to return to Amer."

Sharifuddin's face bloomed into a predatory grin as he pointed a finger to his chest, "Delhi." He muttered before pointing them back to Adham. "Agra."

The taller man merely swirled the content of his goblet, a faint smirk playing on his lips as he gleefully anticipated the start of his plans.

The day began its descent into dusk as the sun decided to set down its horizon, the effect creating beautiful and fiery hues across the sky and pleasing the people of Mewar with the wonderful sight.

Yet, within his courtyard, a sense of dissonance swept through as Rana Pratap sat on his throne, deep in contemplation while one of his advisors took his time reading the details of the correspondence delivered to him from Amer.

A rishta between Kunwar Mahandra and Rajkumari Sukanya...he mused, albeit not displaying any form of surprise at the development. His network of insiders had delivered the news to his doorsteps while he awaited the moment an official invitation would make it to his fort.

If he was surprised, however, it was at the fact that Raja Bharmal had found another match for Sukanya considering the scandal that surrounded the previous one.

Still, he remained silent as the contents were read out loud for the court. Despite how straightforward those words were, Pratap could not help but note the heavy-handed implications they came with.

The court was anything but silent, murmurs filling the air as his advisors awaited his response. Their expressions ranged from unease to muttered protests. It would seem he was not the only one to see the glaring implications in this invitation drafted by Rani Apurva.

It raised more questions than answers could satisfy, after all, for Raja Bharmal to have been able to find a match so quickly for Rajkumari Sukanya, and amongst the Rajputs at that, was enough to trigger off some of Pratap's internal alarms.

However, with a raise of his hand, the court fell silent as they awaited his verdict. "I have made my decision - I will be attending Rajkumari Sukanya's rishta," he announced, the courtroom bursting into another round of murmurs.

"Rana Sa," one of his advisors, Karan, began with a note of caution in his voice.

Pratap exhaled deeply at the question as he pondered. It was a question of his honour and the strategizer in him. On one hand...

"Not only has Amer betrayed the honour of the Rajputs by giving away Rajkumari Jodha Bai, Registan ka Gulab, to the Mughals to broker peace," Karan continued. "They also spared no second thought in allying with them against Sujanpur. What loyalty, Rana Sa, can we expect from them?"

A note of silence fell across the room as Pratap weighed his options. Looking up, he could note the dissent each of his advisors bore at the thought of him honouring Rani Apurva's patr yet...Pratap found himself carefully considering his words as he slowly observed his court.

"I have not forgotten Amer's betrayal and my choice to honour their invitation..." he let the words linger as his dark eyes swept through his court. "Is born out of the immense amount of respect I hold for Rani Apurva Devi. We Rajputs revere our women with high esteem and Rani Apurva is no exception. To decline her invitation would be a slight against her and the values we hold dear."

He paused, still noting their displeasure. "Moreover and beyond this," he rubbed his chin, allowing his words to settle before continuing. "I have every reason to believe that Jalaluddin Mohammad has a hand behind this rishta and his gestures are far from selfless."

This drew few murmurs from the court, some of the men raising an eyebrow as they displayed their interest. The mention of the man himself was like something from the legends with tales of his ambition and cunning. It brought with it an additional weight.

"As Pandit ji once advised my father, Maharana Uday Singh, it will be unwise to pass by an opportunity especially if they have been presented by the gods themselves," he said, his tone introspective as he remembered the words he had overheard from the pandit as a young boy. "I have every reason to believe that Jalal will attend this event alongside Rani Jodha Bai."

Now, the court's murmurs gave way to stunned silence as they stopped to let the weight of his words sink in. Rana Pratap stood from his throne, stepping forward to address them.

"Jalaluddin Mohammad is an ambitious man, from the reports I have of him - a cunning man and formidable opponent which makes him dangerous," Pratap pointed out. "My decision to honour Rani Apurva's patr grants me the opportunity to observe the man behind the warrior and study him closely."

Glancing around the room, he could tell that most of his courtiers understood his motives albeit reluctantly as one of them finally spoke up, "Rana Sa, Jalal is no ordinary opponent as you have mentioned; it is possible he has heard about you and seeks to study you. And as far as we know, he might be plotting to provoke you."

With a faint smile playing on his lips, Pratap focused his attention on the older man as he addressed him, "Your concern is appreciated, Veer Singh. But, in addition, it is never like the Rajputs to falter in the face of a challenge, especially if it presents itself in the form of our enemies." Pacing ahead with a determined look, "Come what may, I gladly welcome whatever challenge Jalaluddin Mohammad is about to send my way. My decision to travel to Amer still stands."

The court fell silent at his words, doubt, unease and uncertainty still lingering in the air but the men seemed to slowly regain their faith in Pratap who walked back to his throne.

Amer may have breached the Rajput ideals by bending a knee to the Mughals but he was not about to sever all ties with whom he considered family, especially not when the opportunity to study his lifelong opponent presented itself.

With a final wave of his hand, he summoned his servants with a firm command. "Prepare the caravan, we leave for Amer at daybreak."

It was amazing how slowly time seemed to move, especially for a matter as crucial as Sukanya's wedding. The journey stretched for hours, turning into days as the Mughal caravan moved through densely populated villages and thick forests.

Despite how tempting it became for Jodha to doze off in her palki, the movements made it difficult and frustrating as a wave of nausea threatened her efforts.

She chalked it up to her nerves as she attempted to take deep breaths. It was only a matter of a few days, she repeated to herself like a mantra until Fate decided to smile down at her with mercy finally.

A relieved exhale left her as soon as the caravan stopped by Jalal's orders, setting up a camp midway in Dausa.

Feeling too weary to maintain any form of conversation, Jodha gave a weak and exhausted smile to Ammi Jaan, Jiji Ammi and Phoophijaan as she was led to the khema she was to reside in for the meantime.

Accompanied by Moti and Reva, she worked on taking off her jewelry, starting from the golden necklace to her chooriyan then her nath. Moti helped in unravelling the pins which held her pallu while Reva loosened her braid, leaving her hair flowing freely.

As she had expected, he entered the khema, the two women pausing their movements. Even now, his presence brought with him a sense of tension especially when it concerned her. Not that she blamed them.

"Ekant," Jodha said, her command firm but soft. A moment of hesitation passed between Reva and Moti who exchanged glances before they decided to follow through.

It was just him and her alone in the tent. A heavy silence fell upon them, the sound of his juttis against the floor being the only sound she could perceive from him.

She ought to have adapted to being with Jalal now from the months of being married to him yet still, many things about him managed to unsettle her. His silence right now had her unexpectedly alert.

Looking down at her hands bare of her chooriyan, she silently counted the time by seconds before finally opting to break the silence. "I sleep on the right side."

The footfalls stopped midway, silence bridging the gap between Jodha and Jalal again. She could feel her heart pumping erratically as she contemplated taking the bold step of looking at him.

Her fingers trembled even as she took deep breaths again to calm herself. Slowly, she turned to face him, meeting that damn unreadable look from him. Setting her gaze down to the floor felt tempting yet she kept her head up.

He remained silent, scanning her face as if to gauge her; it was intense, uncomfortable in fact that she could only ask sometimes if he deliberately did this for that effect.

Then, a corner of his lips tugged into a smirk as he stepped closer. "Surely, you did not think I came in to argue over what side of the bed we would be sharing, did you?" He asked, his voice low and tinged with what she could perfectly surmise as a mock curiosity.

It was also a bait, something to rouse that argumentative side of her but right now, she was too weary for any of that as she exhaled, rousing from the stool and walking over to the bed. "I am not in the mood," she replied instead before pausing. "I did not say this earlier but I appreciate your help in finding a match for Sukanya," she added as she reached out for a body pillow, setting it alongside the middle of the bed as a makeshift boundary.

Her ears picked up the sound of his footsteps moving closer until they stopped.

"You have questions," he stated, prompting her to face him again.

It would seem that he was increasingly attuned to her body language and cues in a way that was simultaneously impressive and unsettling to think about.

"I wonder why so many soldiers, Shehenshah," she said, taking a bold step. "Not this many soldiers were present in Sambhar nor did we have even half this number on the entourage to Ajmer."

Her inquiry was met with an eyebrow raised as he stared at her in incredulity. "Here I was thinking you'd question my decision to partake in Sukanya's shaadi," he chuckled with a snarking tone before settling on his side of the bed as if he owned the whole place (and to be fair, he did).

Jodha could only let out a frustrated sigh as that question once crossed her mind. Indeed, it ought to be asked knowing that this was probably another strategic move of his devoid of altruism.

"What I mean is that such a move would be considered a slight, an offence to Amer and Rajputana as a whole," she added with a frown. "Surely, you do not fear-."

She instantly regretted that as he cut in with a scoff, "Fear? Do you believe that fear is the motive behind my bringing in a large regiment, Jodha Begum?" He clicked his tongue against his teeth. "Amer has proven her loyalty to me multiple times, but the others...can I trust my safety with so many enemies?"

Fair enough

"It is merely a matter of formality anyway," he added, offhandedly. Then a faint smile tugged at the corner of his lip, "Besides, I hope your brothers have made preparations for my security. After all, my men will protect me from my enemies...but who will protect me from you?"

Jodha frowned, staring up at him warily. "Matlab?"

Infuriating enough as it was, he closed the distance between them, leaning over her shoulder. "Isn't it a strange observation I have made within these past few days, Jodha Begum?"

Eyeing him with suspicion, she silently awaited his next words.

"Every time I am beside you, chaos brews in the air and I have to wonder if you have a flair for stirring up trouble," he further taunted, his tone light and teasing.

The urge to roll her eyes seized Jodha who simply huffed as she reclined on the bed. Of course, he would make use of the opportunity to push her buttons while on their way to Amer. How could she have thought otherwise?

She was caught up in her exhaustion, her mind taking note of her heart rate as it came to a slow and steady pace while her eyes fluttered shut.

Seconds gave way to minutes and sleep was slowly catching up with her when she unexpectedly heard his voice from behind her again.

"Why did you save me?"

Just like that, the gods of sleep evaded her again as her eyes snapped open.

She rolled over with her back meeting the bed and she met his gaze. For once, Jalal looked serious - no teasing remark, no smirk. Just his eyebrows drawn together, betraying no emotions, as if this question had been weighing on his mind all along.

"Do you have a problem with that, Shehenshah?" Jodha shot back, defensive.

He let out a mirthless chuckle to her chagrin as he shrugged nonchalantly. "Is it a crime to gain insight into my begum's actions? Everything about you is like discovering a new thing every day. Will it be out of turn if I wanted to know more?"

Subtly shifting on the bed, Jodha looked away from him. This was not the first time he would be surprised that he was discovering one thing or the other about her yet how could she easily give him an answer to a question that placed her on the spot?

What trick did he have up in his sleeves for her this time?

She slowly exhaled, taking her time to respond to him. "Before Ajmer, Ammi Jaan visited my hojra and she told me about the significance of our pilgrimage to Ajmer Sharif." she paused. "I saw a mother concerned about the welfare of her son that day."

An audible unimpressed scoff escaped Jalal's lips. "If you had let me die, it would be with the honour of dying in battle," he paused as if to mull over what he just said. "Technically. You would also have gained your freedom and gotten your desires fulfilled."

She was almost offended by his implications. She wanted him dead by her sword, not by the poisonous arrow of an assassin. "If I had left you to die, I'd gain my wish for freedom," she admitted. "But my conscience would not let me rest, knowing what it would do to Ammi Jaan."

Another sardonic laugh filled the air, Jalal looking down at her. "And here I thought you let me live because you might be... feeling something for me."

It was her turn to scoff as she rolled onto her side, "In a million lifetimes, Shehenshah. And even then, that is a matter of maybe."

"You fear that I'd haunt you?" He teased again, chuckling as the memory of the dargah flashed in her mind. Rolling her eyes, she shut them with an air of finality as she laid her head on the pillow.

"Shaba khair, Shehenshah," she replied instead and for once, he let the conversation end.

closing notes: I was going through a brain fog/burn out when drafting this chapter, hence, the delay in posting it. the early months of this year have been quite busy for me and my mind is all over the place with applications to schools, trying to sort out personal issues, falling down with a cold because of the blasted Canadian weather and feeling burned out.

I also found myself writing and rewriting certain scenes, especially the Rana Pratap scene. in case you might not know, I'm not really a fan of how he was written in the series. I know I'm commenting from an outsider pov as I'm not Indian (or from the subcontinent); I'm just a nostalgic West African fan girl who fell in love with the show.

anyway, I felt that Rana Pratap was written to be one-dimensional and his initial decision to not want to travel to Amer was quite naive for a man who is politically involved and known as a freedom fighter. of course, I cannot claim to have written him better than the screenwriters did, after all, I'm talking from an outsider perspective but I hope I did well in writing him.

as for the final act for this chapter, it was also a tough journey as I was *trying* to tie loose ends and kinda have akdha have a discussion about the incident at the jungle. and as much as I loved the boat ride scene, I chose not to include it because of the absurdities I found with it in the serial.

enough of my yapping, I appreciate you guys as always and I hope you have a lovely day/week.