Arjunsangini - An Ardi Novel

A Morning Walk and the Promise

The sun would rise in a few hours and the cool breeze kept away travellers. Draupadi tightly wrapped her angavastram around her to maintain whatever body temperature she had left. It wasn't as cold as in the winters but it was enough to make people stay inside the warmth of their homes unless necessary. But she was Draupadi, the fierce princess of Panchal and the cold didn't bother her. She really wished she could say that. She had no luck sleeping so she had thought of taking a walk before anyone woke up but probably not her greatest idea as she had no layer of clothes to protect herself from the cold. 

She was wearing her night outfit which was very light so that it would not disturb the wearer while sleeping. Her slight cotton dhoti wrapped up to look like a skirt was playing in the wind and exposing the length of her legs. Her white cotton blouse thankfully had sleeves, but not long enough. Her angavastram had been detached from the dhoti and was wrapped around her arms. Except for her clothes she just had her sheathed knife, which she never parted from her body, she was a warrior after all.

Draupadi could have gone back inside but she didn't feel like it. Something made her restless and she couldn't point out what. It had been two days since the festival Holi and almost two days since she had talked to Arjun. A load of work had surprisingly been thrown at her and she could only steal glances of him between her work. She had sent out the last letter the night before and wanted to run to him but not wanting to disturb had laid on the bed for hours before deciding to take a walk. It would be a few hours till he woke up and Draupadi didn't know what to do with herself till then. Her feet now tired of walking led her to the swing in the garden Drishtdyumna had made. She often liked to sit here, surrounded by the plants and trees she felt like she was int the forest. No man or woman or building in sight, the presence of unhindered mother nature helped her in maintaining the peace within her. 

She heard a noise surprisingly not from behind her. So maybe it was not an attack, and even if it was, it was a feeble attempt as Draupadi had already unsheathed her knife and angled herself to throw it at the threat as she had already pinpointed the source of the voice. When the body came out of the foliage Draupadi though shocked sheathed her knife. 

"Brought a shawl for you!" Arjun said holding one out.

"How did you know I was here?" Draupadi asked sitting back on the swing.

"I didn't until now," Arjun said walking towards her and Draupadi observed that he himself had not brought another covering to save himself from the cold and if anyone hated the cold more than she was him. He was wearing a white cotton dhoti and an ivory coloured angavastram. 

He sat down to her left nearby but still a little too far according to her. He placed the shawl on her legs.

"You always know what to wear don't you?" Draupadi said sighing and resting her head on the post of the swing gazing at him.

"What do you mean?" he asked resting his right arm on the back of the swing.

"You just know what makes you look fabulous!" Draupadi mutters. It was the truth, even when he wore the simplest of clothes he looked so handsome to Draupadi she had to restrain herself.

To this Arjun only laughed.

"It's not funny! You don't make it easy for me to-" Draupadi caught herself in time. Or not.

"To what Drau?" he said leaning closer to her using his new name for her and to intensify her more, he said it in an eerily calm but gravelly voice. Draupadi knew better than to speak and she dare not look at him. Her breath hitched when she felt a cold hand on her back, Arjun let it stay there for a few seconds so she could accommodate to the temperature. Just as her breathing had returned to normal she felt a sudden pull and she was inches away from the swarthy face she had grown to love. Her hands had rested on his bare chest and his hands circled her back. Now it didn't matter if it was cold or not if there was a storm brewing or a hurricane about to hit, all that mattered was that he was there beside her.