SWEETHEART DRAUPADI (INNOCENCE OF THE FLAME)

KASKI 2

THE EIGHT OF THEM WERE IN DENIAL ABOUT BOTH KRISHNAS'S MARRIAGE. "BUT WHYYY?"BOTH THE KRISHNA WHINED. "DON'T WORRY I MYSELF WILL HANDPICK BRIDE AND GROOM FOR YOU TWO."BALRAM SAID. "FIRST FIND FOR YOURSELF THEN SEARCH FOR US."THEY YELLED IN UNION. "BUT BALRAM HAS A POINT."DADISA SAID. "THEN FIND FOR BHAIYA AT FIRST."DRAUPADI SAID. "WHY MEE?"KRISHNA ASKED. "BECAUSE I STILL HAVE A LONG TIME LEFT."DRAUPADI REPLIED. "STILL WHY ME?"KRISHNA ASKED. "BECAUSE YOU ARE THE ELDEST AFTER DAU."SHE REPLIED. "YEAH SHE HAS A POINT."NANIMA SAID. "YEAH AFTER ALL I AM THE YOUNGEST BORN OUT OF WE BROTHER AND SISTERS SO I AM GOING TO MARRY AT LAST AS PIYA JIJI, AYAN BHAIYA, SHIVAI BHAIYA, ASTHA JIJI, OMKAR BHAIYA, RUDRA BHAIYA AND DHRISTDHYUM BHAIYA ARE STILL LEFT." SHE REPLIED. "WHY US? " THEY ASKED. "BECAUSE DHARAM SAYS SO UNTIL THE ELDER BROTHERS AND SISTERS ARE NOT MARRIED THE YOUNGER ONE CAN'T"DRAUPADI SAID DEFENDING HERSELF. THE PANDAVAS WERE IN HER SUPPORT. "BUT WE ARE STILL YOUNG"THEY WHINED. "WHAT DO THINK I AM? OLD?" KRISHNA ASKED. "WELL OLDER THAN US."DRAUPADI AND HER COUSINS SAID IN UNION. "JUST MARRY OFF DAU WITH SOME PRINCESS THAT WILL BE ENOUGH FOR US."THEY SAID TO THEIR DADISA. "WHYY??"DAU WHINED. "BECAUSE YOU ARE OLD!"THE COUSINS YELLED IN UNION MAKING THEIR FAMILY PRESENT IN THE ROOM LAUGH. AFTER THAT THEY ALL WENT TO THEIR ROOM TO SLEEP. IT WAS LATE NIGHT AND THE PANDAVAS COULDN'T SLEEP AS THEY WERE THINKING ABOUT DRAUPADI'S NIGHTMARE. THEY WERE ARGUING WITH THEMSELVES WHETHER THEY SHOULD CHECK ON HER OR NOT. FINALLY THEY DECIDED TO CHECK. THEY SLOWLY OPENED THE DOOR TO SEE DRAUPADI NOT PRESENT IN THE ROOM. THEY WERE SCARED AS HELL. THEY WERE SEARCHING FOR HER. THEY SAW THEIR MATA'S ROOM'S DOOR OPENED AJAR WITH LIGHTS STILL ON. THEY CREEPED IN THE ROOM JUST TO GET THEIR HEART CRUSHED AT THE SIGHT INFRONT OF THEM. DRAUPADI WAS SOBBING IN KUNTI'S ARMS AND KUNTI CONSOLING HER. "SHH DEAR THAT WAS JUST A NIGHTMARE."KUNTI SAID. "BUT STILL FELT VERY REAL. MORE REALISTIC THAN EVER."DRAUPADI SAID BETWEEN HER SOBS MAKING PANDAVAS HEART ACHE. "NOTHING WILL HAPPEN. EVERYTHING IS FINE. "KUNTI SAID. "NO MATA NOTHING IS. EVERYTHING IS MESSED UP."SHE REPLIED. "SHH CALM DOWN DEAR."KUNTI SAID AS TEARS FORMED IN HER EYES SEEING HER DAUGHTER WHOM SHE LOVED MORE THAN ANYTHING IN THIS CONDITION. "I CAN'T MATA I CAN'T. HOW CAN I BE CALM AFTER ALL THIS NIGHTMARE IS NOT JUST A DREAM. ITS REALITY AND IT IS A PART OF ME THAT I CAN'T DENY OR SEPARATE IT. EACH AND EVERY MOMENT I AM SCARED THAT THIS NIGHTMARE WILL BECOME REAL AND ANGRAJ,DHARMARAJ AND THE REST..."SHE JUST COULDN'T CONTINUE AS IT JUST HURT HER EVEN MORE AND CRIED EVEN HARDER. THE PANDAVAS HEARD EACH AND EVERY WORDS. THEY WENT BACK TO THEIR ROOM ALL WEAK AND DISTRESSED. "WHAT WAS THAT NIGHTMARE ABOUT?"LEFT OUT OF KARN'S MOUTH. "WHICH HURT HER SO BAD?"YUDHISTIR QUESTIONED. "IF THIS NIGHTMARE WAS A PERSON HE WOULD HAVE BEEN DEAD BY MY HANDS BY NOW"BHEEM SAID. " WHAT WAS THE REALITY THAT SHE WAS HIDING?"ARJUN SAID. "WHICH INCLUDED US.."NAKUL ASKED. "NOW ONLY MATA CAN TELL US" SHAHADEV SAID MAKING THEM ALL NOD IN APPROVAL.

THE NEXT DAY,

THEY WENT TO CHECK ON DRAUPADI THE NEXT MORNING. DRAUPADI WAS MEDITATING AT THE CENTER OF THE ROOM. THEY COULD SEE THAT SHE WAS MEDITATING TO KEEP HERSELF CALM FROM LAST NIGHT. DRAUPADI FINALLY OPENED HER EYES, LET OUT A SIGH AND WENT TO THE DRESSING TABLE. SHE WASN'T AWARE OF HER SURROUNDING AND THE PANDAVAS PRESENT. THE PANDAVAS WERE VERY DISTRESSED SEEING HER. DRAUPADI WAS JUST WEARING HER BANGLES SLOWLY AS SHE WAS STILL LOST. PANDAVAS THOUGHT THAT THEY SHOULD GIVE HER SPACE SO THEY LEFT AND WENT TO THEIR MATA. "PRANIPAT MATA"THEY SAID AND TOOK BLESSINGS OF THEIR MATA. KUNTI JUST SMILED AND GAVE THEM HER BLESSINGS. KUNTI'S EYES WERE A LITTLE PUFFY AS LAST NIGHT SHE WAS TRYING TO CONSOLE DRAUPADI. "PLEASE TELL US."KARN SAID. "WHAT PUTRA?"KUNTI ASKED. "WE KNOW EVERTHING.." YUDHISTIR ADDED. "WHAT?"KUNTI  ASKED. "DRAUPADI.."BHEEM ADDED. KUNTI FROZE IN HER PLACE. "WE KNOW MATA ABOUT THE NIGHTMARES"ARJUN SAID. "WHAT WERE THOSE NIGHTMARES?"NAKUL SAID. "ONLY YOU CAN SAY US" SHAHADEV ADDED. "NIGHTMARE? WHAT NIGHTMARE? YOU MUST HAVE MISUNDERSTOOD."KUNTI SAID. "NO WE DIDN'T WE WERE HERE YESTERDAY NIGHT AND HEARD YOU AND DRAUPADI SPEAKING ABOUT  THE NIGHTMARE." THEY SAID. "YEAH KUNTI I THINK ITS TIME FOR THEM TO KNOW FEW THINGS ABOUT DRAUPADI AS WELL AS THEMSELVES."PANDU SAID.