Vishnupriya

12

"Subhadra, why are you so upset?" Kunti asked Subhadra who had been upset ever since the banquet night.

"Nothing bua." Subhadra said clearly upset to which Kunti sighed and held her hands gently. "Subhadra, I'm your bua. You can feel free to say whatever is in your mind troubling you right now." Kunti said.

"To be honest bua, I didn't like the way Rajkumar Duryodhan and Angraj talked in the banquet last night. What is so bad about Rajkumar Arjun being able to play instruments?" Subhadra said. 

"I appreciate you taking a stand for me, kumari Subhadra. But what's the use now? We cannot change the way one thinks now can we?" Arjun said.

"It's not only about you, rajkumar Arjun but the way Rajkumar Duryodhan talked about my sakhi Vishnupriya angers me. What if she is a gopika? She is still a Yadav Shresth's daughter if not an emperor's daughter. Addressing her as a 'simple gopika' didn't settle right with me." Subhadra said.

"Subhadra! Putri, calm down. It's just how Duryodhan is, he didn't mean it in a bad way I'm sure." Kunti said and Bheem scoffed in the background. "Mata, tell me when has Duryodhan ever meant something positive? All he does is make our life a living hell along with the one close to us." Bheem said. "Bheem." Yudhistir warned.

"Why are you so much attached to this sakhi of yours for you to go such lengths?" Arjun asked as he noticed that Subhadra had never stopped talking about Vishnupriya. "I heard that the closest to her heart among all her friends is some other gopika and not you." he added.

"You are saying this only because you haven't met her yet. Just one glance is enough to not to love her. Yes, I'm not the closest of sakhi Vishnupriya, it's her sakhi Vishakha but that does not meant that Vishnupriya isn't the dearest to mine." Subhadra said.

"Like you said her sakhi Vishakha is the closest to her heart. And you know that but still why is she the dearest to your heart when you know it very well you aren't to hers?" Arjun asked.

"Who said I'm not, Rajkumar Arjun? Vishnupriya may get along with sakhi Vishakha better but in her heart everybody is equal. I am very dear to her heart as well and I know it. My sakhi says that love is not something that you do blindly but at the same time it's not something that you do to get gain. Love is supposed to be selfless, it is where you expect nothing in return and yet continue loving them. And this is exactly what I do." Subhadra said.

"But-" "At this rate it is going to be a fight between them." Nakul said to his twin who nodded in agreement as Arjun asked more questions and Subhadra continued to answer.

"I don't care, Rajkumar Arjun. But I will always stand by and choose my sakhi Vishnupriya. Plus I've known her since our childhood so I think I know more about her and this situation that you. You haven't even met her or known much about her so who are you to judge?" Subhadra said.

"She got you there, bhrata Arjun." Shahadev said. "Then tell me how your oh so dearest sakhi Vishnupriya is." Arjun said. "Arjun." Kunti called her son out for his tone.

"My sakhi Vishnupriya is the most beautiful and kindest in the whole world. When everybody called my bhrata Krishna mayavi, my sakhi approached him. Whenever my bhrata krishna, dau and their friends got into trouble she always got them out, she always brought makhan for us, she even helped nanda baba and Yashodha maiya in household whenever she can, she takes cares of the animals, the gopalas, the gopikas, kakashree, kakishree and everybody in Vrindavan. She is pure from heart and soul." Subhadra said.

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"Is something the matter? Why are you smiling arya?" Satyabhama questioned her husband who seemed to be smiling to himself.

"Nothing. Just wondering about what troubles Subhadra is causing in Hastinapur." Krishna answered. "Hush now. Subhadra will do no such things, she is a well behaved child." Jambavati said smiling shaking her head as she did her work.

"Yes, yes. Afterall she's the only well behaved child in this house. The child you speak of is near to age of marriage now,  priya Jambavati. It won't take her long to forget you all, me and dau once she meets her prince." Krishna said.

"I doubt that she has already forgotten us. Not once did she send us a letter for the past two weeks." he added and his wives seem to take Subhadra's stand and with that the playful back and forth between Krishna and his beloved wives started.

"Kalindi? Where are you lost?" Rukmini said resting her hand on Kalindi's shoulder. "Nothing jiji." Kalindi shook her head. "It can't just be 'nothing'. Tell me Kalindi, I'm your older sister, aren't I?" Rukmini said placing her hand gently under Kalindi's  chin as she smiled at her.

"Nothing. Just thinking about somebody dear to me." Kalindi said. "Huh? But I'm right here, priya Kalindi." Krishna piped in with a charming smile. All the wives laughed at that.

"What? You mean to say somebody more dearer than me resides in your heart? Is that so Kalindi?" Krishna said sitting up with a glint of mischief in his eyes.

"What is there is?" Kalindi said folding her arms as if challenging him with a teasing smile. Krishna gasped loudly at that. "More dearer than me?? Oof!" He said dramatically while falling back resting on the comfortable cushions behind him.

"You wound me, Kalindi. Tell me! Tell me right now who is that mayavi who put this spell on you so that I can break you free." Krishna said.

"First break yourself free from the spell of that mayavi, arya. Then attempt to break mine, besides I don't think she would appreciate being called a mayavi, especially by you." Kalindi said.

"She??" that seemed to have caught all the wives' attention. "Who? Who is it arya?" Mitravinda asked. "Is she pretty?" Nagnajiti asked. "How does she look?" Bhadra asked. "Where does she live? Which rajya's rajkumari is she?" Lakshmana asked. "Why does only Kalindi know about this woman? I too want to know!" Satyabhama said. "Jiji do you know?" Jambavati asked Rukmini who smiled in return shaking her head as no as the wives bombed Krishna with their several questions about the 'mayavi' in question.

"Look at the mess you've put me in Kalindi." Krishna looked at Kalindi for help. "Don't look at her for help, arya. Look at us." Bhadra said. "Me? I didn't do anything. Besides you didn't deny it either, arya." Kalindi said.

"Meaning she really has put arya under her spell?" Lakshmana said. "And you never told us?" Bhadra turned back to her husband. "You have to take us to meet her." Nagnajiti demanded. "Yes, arya. Even I have the wish to meet her now." Rukmini said.

"Even when you are not here trouble with your name always seems to follow me." krishna sighed while thinking of how to answer his beloved wives' questions.

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 "Arey! Who is missing you so much sakhi?" Vishakha laughed as she offered a glass of water to her friend who was having hiccups since early in the morning. "Only Narayan knows." she said and just then her hiccups stopped confusing her.

"Yeh loh. They say if you take the name of the person who is missing you the hiccups vanish away. Yours vanished away right after you took Narayan's name." Vishakha said laughing.

"Kuch bhi, matlab kuch bhi." the woman said drinking the water which was offered to her.

"Your troubles always vanish away when you think of your lord, just like right now. Abb jagannath bhi tumhe kisee bhee prakar kee pareshaanee mein dekh nahin sakte. You really must be his favorite." Vishkha said.

"As if it wasn't already obvious by her name. Her name itself already states that she's Vishnu's priya, isn't that right sakhi Vishnupriya?" Raangadevi said while smiling at her sakhi who rolled her eyes as she finished the water and went back to making maakhan so that if he finally comes back to her today she already has them ready in advance.