Kirti Kriti Aur Kartik Ki

Chapter 6

A/N: Again, sorry for not getting to you sooner. Assignments are shit. So are internals. So as much as I want to do an additional chapter with fluff before Pandu's death, it won't happen right now. Probably will do so for the OS book tho :) just comment what bonding scenes you'll like to see!

It'd been just over an year since the cousins had come from the future and their day had started just like usual. Kartik went out with his ducklings to collect fruits, Kritika accompanied Kunti for collecting water, Yudhisthira and Bhima and Arjuna to collect sticks and fruits, leaving Madri and Pandu to collect the flowers.

But then a loud shriek cut thorough the air, followed by a cry that Kartik had wished he'd never hear again which made him send the twins back to the hut safely while he went to check out what is wrong.

And the scene he stumbled upon left him devastated, watching Madri crying hysterically over Pandu and he barely registered the two other pairs of footsteps stopping at the side of him. He and Kritika had been expecting this to happen any day now, it was a fixed point and had to happen but... knowing and experiencing are two different things and seeing another father figure, lying dead on the ground just broke their heart all over again.

"All he did was to hug me didi" Madri cried, gasping for breath. "The scenery was beautiful he said, I wish Kunti and the children were here he said and then... and then..." she stuttered and Kunti rushed forward and hugged Madri, both if them crying onto each other's shoulders while Kartik and Kritika stood there in shock, trying to process what was happening.

"The children..." Kartik said as he paled and Kritika just side hugged him, grounding him to the present. "We must take care of all the rites... inform your sons about the unfortunate incident and decide what we do with our future" Kartik said as he took a deep breath, trying to get a grip on the situation.

They'd experienced this before... and now they had to take the helm and help this family with their crisis. Not that it helped with the pain he was experiencing right now. Experiencing it once doesn't mean he was immune to the feeling, not for one second.

Breaking the news to the ones he'd come to see as friends, as even siblings maybe, was really tough. The oh so familiar protests of denial and going into a state of shock... He vividly remembered how he felt when his family and love died in front of his eyes, the way Kritika used to cry for hours to the end as she remembered her family drowning in those floods along with most of the memorabilia of what used to be their home...

But now they had to stay strong and help them get past this. They agreed that a funeral was to held in the forest itself after consulting the rishis in the forest, who informed them that they wouldn't be able to transport the body of the king to Hastinapur intact and Kartik had to agree. The human body starts to decay if not preserved right... unless you mummified them... which he didn't think anyone would appreciate.

It was determined that the final rites will be done by Yudhisthira the next day and the night was filled with a lot of jitters and crying. "Kartik, Yudhisthira... can you please put the others to sleep. Madri and I have some decisions to make" Kunti said, feeling dead on her feet but knew that it was necessary.

The duo nodded and Kunti gave them a weak smile before leaving. "Is father really...?" Nakula asked, looking up at Kartik, tears welling up his eyes. "Father isn't coming back Nakula" Yudhisthira said as he pulled him closer.

"Kritu, do one thing and join maa..." Kartik said with a look and Kritika understood and left the place, gently shifting Sahadeva off her lap, who immediately laid down on Kartik's lap.