Picture above: Draupadi

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Only in the agony of parting do we look into the depths of love

            -George Elliot

A fond smile grows on his face as he senses the happiness in the air. Faint excited murmurs reach his ears as the palace workers rush to their kith and kin eager to spread the news they heard. The king of Manipur aimlessly strolls across the hallways soaking in the glee in the atmosphere. The corner of his eyes catch a giggling pair of workers speaking in hushed tones. A chuckle forces it's way out of his mouth as his sharp ears capture the names of a certain prince and princess. His lips curve into an amused smile as he reminisces the events occurred the day before.

"Who said anything about a wedding? Also, do you mean Maharaj Yudhishtir sent you to talk about wedding proposals? Are you lying? He would never do that. That is not the way things are done. Anyway, now that you mentioned a wedding, Suthanu, I told the king of Mathura that I will consider his proposal of marrying his daughter to Bhanu. What are your thoughts on it?"

Silence presides over the garden as shock sinks in the two youngsters. Gaping at the divine lord, both the cousins attempt to utter something but in vain. Babhruvahana's brain ignores the first part of the lord's words and focuses on the latter, replaying only one coherent thought in his mind. Princess of Mathura? Her proposal to prince Bhanu? Where did this come from?

His eyes find his sister's glassy ones and he shuffles to her side squeezing her hand in re-assurance. Gaining comfort from her brother, Suthanu takes a deep breath and clears her throat.

"Uncle Krishna, if princess of Mathura was your choice for prince Bhanu, you would not have approached me."her tone takes on an angry edge as she continues, "No. I was your first choice because you know I like prince Bhanu. Now you are saying another princess might come in because she is nice and not because she loves him."

Babhru's eyes widen at her words and he snaps his head in her direction waiting for her to realize what she just uttered. Soon, the said realization dawns on the daughter of Dharmaraj and she gasps in shock and embarrassment. Krishna observes the kids and turns away from them to hide his smirk and amusement.

Gasping dramatically, he says, "What are you saying Thanu? Hey Narayan! I promised the king that I will consider the alliance. What do I do now? I cannot ask you to be his second wife..... Can I?" He asks the last question turning his head towards Thanu with a mischievous glint in his eyes.

Huffing indignantly, the princess replies, "Stop joking uncle. You wouldn't have given me the offer if you had already agreed to the other alliance. Besides, you just promised consideration. Not the alliance."

Krishna turns around to face them with a bright and proud smile. "So you are learning from your father-in-law already. Good going Thanu. I am extremely proud of you and as a prize for your wit, I give you my son Bhanu."

Narrowing her eyes at Krishna, Suthanu replies, "Prize? Prince Bhanu is not some prize to be won and I am not any contender. We love each other and would have married sometime."

Raising a perfect eyebrow, Krishna teases, "Even without our permission?" to which Thanu counters, "You would have agreed anyway. If you had any issue with our marriage, you wouldn't have let love bloom between us right under your nose."

Laughing heartily, he replies, "Good. Good." Turning serious, he continues, "You. young prince. You haven't answered my question. Were you lying? Don't tell me Maharaj Yudhishtir sent you to deal with the marriage proposal."

Babhruvahana, who was heaving a sigh of relief at the proposal going well, pales at the sudden question. So, he is not off the hook yet. He wonders what else his uncle has in store for him and tries to keep the nervousness off his tone as he answers.

"Forgive me, Maharaj but I am not lying. Yes, uncle Yudhishtir did not send me here right now but he did ask me to take the proposal to you." Still in the mood of mischief, the king of Dwaraka asks, "Why would he ask a young boy such as yourself, who himself is not married to talk to elders about the divine union between two people? Why would he not approach me as is the custom?"

Wracking his brains, the young king wonders why such things were not taught in his trainings. He finally replies, "I maybe unmarried my king but I do understand the divinity, importance and the beauty of marriage. As for why he did not approach you himself, I am not aware of the reason. I am afraid you will have to ask him that."

Nodding, Krishna asks one final question, "How would you know about marriage? Do you have any life partner in mind?" Without thinking much, Babhru immediately answers "No but.. Wait what?" Shrugging casually, Krishna says, "Just checking."

As if on cue, both uncle-niece burst out laughing at the young king's expense. A confused Babhru tries to connect the dots and his eyes widen as he asks, "Was this planned? Maharaj, did you know about the proposal before my arrival?"

Suthanu denied any prior knowledge about it but Krishna had something else to say. "Did you really think Yudhishtir would not have informed me about this? Surely you would not have thought of him to drop such a huge responsibility on your shoulders and leave you to fend for yourself. Oh, dear! Your innocence is so cute. You can call me Uncle Krishna you know. You don't have to keep referring to me as Maharaj."

Babhruvahana blushes at his uncle's words mentally chastising himself for not realizing it sooner.

"Maharaj! Maharaj!" a meek voice brings the son of Arjun out of his reverie and turn to see a helper standing behind him. "Yes?" he asks. "Rajmata Chitrangada wishes to meet you in her chambers." the helper delivers the message.

Nodding at her, the young king proceeds to his mother's chambers hoping that no worrisome news falls in his ears.

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With a hesitation in her step, she lets her feet follow the familiar path and enter the abandoned practice ground. Her eyes sweep over the area, pausing for a second longer on the dusty wooden dummies. Multiple scratches could be observed on the said dummies due to the imperfect aims of the little princes. Draupadi's eyes turn glassy as a similar ground in Indraprasth flashes before her eyes. 

The gleeful shrieks of her sons when they manage to hit their aim perfectly echo in her ears causing a lone tear to escape their confines. Her orbs stop on an unusually stiff figure few steps away and her legs carry her involuntarily in that direction. As she approaches the trees cocooning the person in their shadows, her mind maps the person to her co-wife Uloopi.

Unlike with the others, the queen did not share a deep bond with the naga princess, Uloopi, due to the latter never visiting their kingdom. Since her arrival in Hastinapur, Uloopi was fairly closed off until her talk with her husband.  Sensing her presence, Uloopi turns around though her face is still hidden in the shadows.

"Oh! Greetings Maharani. I thought it was some helper who entered by mistake. I'll take your leave if you have some work here."

Draupadi nods negatively, "There is no need for you to leave. I wasn't aware that you knew of this location as well. I come here every once in a while to get away from everything."

Uloopi nods understandingly, "I found this while exploring the palace. I was told by a helper that, this used to be the practice arena for the Pandavas and Kauravas before their gurukul. Apparently no one entered here after the war."

Silence follows for few moments allowing the two mothers to mull over their thoughts. Call it a mother's intuition or a woman's intuition, the atmosphere and the unsaid emotions make both the mothers identify each other's thoughts.

"You are thinking about them too right? Your sons?" initiates Uloopi in a low whisper.

A shaky breath leaves the fire born as she nods, "It is inappropriate to be upset when my daughter's alliance is fixed with an admirable prince but I am unable to explain that to the mother in me that yearns for her sons."

"It is understandable. No person can fill the loss of another. Especially if the lost one is our child." says Uloopi keenly observing Draupadi's expressions.

The two wives of Arjun settle down under the tree and Uloopi points to a wooden toy in Draupadi's hand asking whose it is. A surprised yelp leaves the fire born's mouth as she registers the object in her hand. Her fingers caress the bow of the wooden warrior.

"It belongs..belonged to Shrutakarma. It was his favorite toy during his childhood. He gave it to me when we left for the exile. He said it will protect me in his stead in the forest... I did not realize I brought it with me here." Another tear slips from her eye at the bittersweet memory.

Her voice is heavily laced with sorrow and longing as she continues, "Thanu's wedding is surely a very happy occasion. However, it also reminds me of the weddings I will never get to see. The joy that my little boys never got to experience."

Silence spread for few minutes and Uloopi thought Draupadi was done talking but the queen shut her eyes tight and swallowed her tears before speaking,

"During the exile, the memories of their smiles and the thoughts of their glorious future after the impending war, were the only thoughts that got me through the tough times." She chokes on her words as she continues, "But all of them are stolen from me. I am scared Uloopi. I don't think I will be able to completely enjoy and be happy during Thanu's wedding. These gloomy thoughts will haunt me always."

Uloopi remained silent for a moment before replying, "Thanu is matured. If she finds you unhappy, she will understand that it is not due to her. If she does not understand, she will talk to you. As long as you are happy for Thanu and give her your heartfelt blessings, it should be fine."

"Do you feel the same about Iravan?" asks the queen in a low voice. Uloopi nods. "During the war, he sent me letters. They are the ones that keep me going now. I wish I got to witness his marriage too. I wish I got to see him decked up as a groom, the ever radiant smile on his handsome face during his big day, his bubbling laughter at his friends' jokes. I can only wish and imagine."

The despair in Uloopi's tone makes Draupadi voice her apprehension, "Do you regret sending him to the war?"

Uloopi observes the latter's expressions gauging the intentions behind the question. When she is satisfied that the queen had no ill intentions for her son or her, she replies,

"No. He fulfilled his duty to his father. He respected the values I taught him and stood true to his word of abiding by them."

Uloopi's eyes flicker to the darkening evening sky and she says, "Do not worry. It is alright to be upset. It shows your love for your sons. We should head back. People will be wondering where are. "

Draupadi nods in agreement and stands up, "Thank you. Sharing my thoughts with you made me feel a lot better. Thank you for understanding."

Uloopi sends a soft smile her way and says, "You can always talk to me when you feel low. Consider me as one of your sisters. It was good talking to you."

The two mothers return to the palace feeling a lot better than when they entered the ground.

Glossary :

Maharaj - King

Rajmata - Queen Mother

Maharani - Queen

Gurukul - Schools in ancient India

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Hello everyone!

I am sorry for vanishing suddenly. I was taking a break from wattpad. I am back now and the updates will be much more frequent now.

Here's the next chapter of the book. How is it?

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