Tiasha brought Bhanumati and Supriya to a chamber and told the maids to prepare a bath for the two girls.

She sat Bhanumati down and started to take off all the heavy ornaments slowly one by one. Bhanumati asked curiously, "Who are you, Devi?"

Tiasha smiled at her and said, "I am Tiasha, I am Vasudev Krishna's Sakhi. I am Rajkumar Duryodhan's Sakhi as well, but he says I am more like his second mother. And, Rajkumari Dushala of Hastinapur, Rajkumar Nakul and Sahadev and Rajkumari Subhadra of Dwarka call me their Didi. Now, you make what you want with this information. Before you ask I would have to tell you that I am twenty-three years old, so I am older than both of you."

Bhanumati and Supriya looked at her in shock then broke into a smile. This is the first time they felt relaxed and protected since yesterday. Bhanumati said, "If you are Rajkumar Duryodhan's Sakhi, what should I call you then?"

-"Well, I would like to be your elder sister..."

-"Then you are my Didi too." Bhanumati's smile widened.

-"Of course I am." Tiasha pinched Bhanumati's cheeks. Bhanumati looked down. Tiasha kneeled in front of her and asked, "Are you ok? You can tell me anything, you don't need to be scared."

Bhanumati looked at Tiasha with teary eyes and said, "I don't know what to do."

-"I know a lot has happened since yesterday, and you are overwhelmed. Take your time..." Tiasha took Bhanumati's hand in hers and rubbed her thumbs on them gently. "...If you don't want to marry Rajkumar Duryodhan then you can tell me that as well."

-"He abducted me, Didi. The society won't accept me after this..." Bhanumati looked down. "But It's not about that...I was going to put the Varmala on Rajkumar Duryodhan. He captured my heart from the moment I saw him. I was just taking some time to make the final decision...before that he..."

Tiasha shook her head and sighed. 

-"He doesn't have an ounce of patience in his blood. Bhanu, can I request you something?" 

Bhanumati smiled, "Yes Didi."

-"You know, he is not bad at heart. If he loves someone he loves them fiercely. He is the most loyal person you will ever find. Just...just be a little patient with him. He doesn't know how to express himself, he is very impulsive. But he is not bad at heart."

Bhanumati nodded smiling. 

Tiasha touched her cheeks, "Now, I guess the bath is ready, You two go, freshen up. I will bright something for you to eat." Tiasha left smiling at them for the last time.

On her way to the kitchens, Tiasha saw a maid coming out of the wine cellar with a jar of sura.

Tiasha stopped her, "Chandra, who is this for?"

The maid bowed to her and said, "Rajkumar Duryodhan ordered for Sura."

-"Is there anyone else with him?"

-"Maharaj, Ahichatra Naresh and Rajkumar Dushasan are with him in his chamber."

Tiasha nodded, "Come with me Chandra, let's bring them sura." Tiasha's eyes narrowed at the end of the sentence.

--

Duryodhan paced up and down the room. Dushasan, Ashwatthama and Karna sat looking at each other and Duryodhan. 

-"Mitra, can you sit down for a moment?" Karna said. Standing up from his place he held Duryodhan's shoulder.

-"Bhratashree, calm down."

-"Where is this dashi, how much time does she need? Where is the sura?"

Ashwatthama sighed, "Mitra, pacing up and down is not going to help."

-"You don't say a word Ashwa. You blew up everything and told Sakhi about Kalinga Princess's abduction. You and those women are the reasons she is mad at me..." Duryodhan looked down clenching his jaw,"...She didn't even look at my direction." 

-"For the millionth time, Duryodhan I didn't tell her anything. She figured it out herself..."

Karna stood between the two, "Ok, ok now stop, Ashwa, sit down...and Duryodhan...If you are blaming Ashwa then I am at fault too...I sent a letter yesterday to Bhupendra, telling him to make preparations for your marriage..."

Duryodhan's eyes widened. 

Ashwatthama stepped beside Karna and said, "Look, she is not as angry as you think. she is even..."

But he was interrupted in the middle of his sentence. 

-"Pranam, Maharaj." A young maid stood in the doorway with a silver jar in her hands.

He let out an angry growl and knocked down a vase in anger. The vase landed in front of the threshold near the dashi's feet. The poor girl took a step back, terrified.

Karna walked towards her and took the jar from her hand.

-"You can go now, Chandra."

The dashi bowed and left quickly.

Duryodhan snatched the jar from Karna and took a swig, immediately.

His brows furrowed and he threw the jar across the room. The silver jar hit the wall making a loud metallic thud. One side of the jar was dented and the liquid inside spilt in every direction, wetting the floor.

Duryodhan boomed, "What kind of a joke is this? It's just cold water!"

Karna was about to call for Chandra, the dasi who brought the jar, but stood still in the middle. A stoic cold face made his lion heart shiver for a second.

Duryodhan had his back turned to the door. He heard a serene voice say in a bone-chilling tone, "This is no joke."

Duryodhan turned only to find, the always warm and welcoming eyes of his dear Sakhi Blazing in rage.

No one has ever seen her angry, maybe annoyed or frustrated or annoyed once or twice, but not angry. 

Tiasha took a step inside the chamber. A stream of clod ice went down Duryodhan's spine when she stood just in front of him. He feared her. More than that he feared losing her.

-"I told Chandra to fill the jar with cold water. Because you seem to be out of your mind and only cold water could help."

-"Sakhi, I am sorry...I..." 

Tiasha raised her hand and stopped him. She turned towards Karna and said, "And you? I thought you were the sensible one. How could you let him do this?" 

Karna looked down in shame. 

Ashwatthama tried to calm Tiasha down, "Tiasha look..."

-"Don't" Tiasha raised her index at Ashwatthama making him stop, "Don't you, any of you, dare to justify his actions." She turned to Duryodhan again and continued, "You abducted that poor girl and have no regret. You don't even care how she feels, do you? And out of everything you decided to drink sura now..." She pointed at the other three, "...and you, you are supporting him! Unbelievable!"

-"Sakhi, I..."

-"No don't you say sorry to me, save your sorry for the one who deserves it. Have you looked at that poor girl's condition?" 

Duryodhan looked down. Tiasha's eyes softened a bit, "Go, I have told the dashes to arrange a hot bath for you, take a bath and I will bring your food here." Duryodhan looked up and saw the warmth returning to her eyes, but not the smile. Duryodhan nodded and went towards his bath chamber like an obedient child.

Tiasha looking at Karna and Dushasan said, "You two as well. Go and come back here after your bath." 

They left and went their own way. 

As soon as they stepped out Tiasha charged towards Ashwatthama, "What were you doing? You almost told Duryodhan I am making arrangements for his wedding."

Ashwatthama stepped back, "Whoa...whoa...whoa...What did I do wrong? You are making arrangements, aren't you?" 

-"Yes, I am. But he shouldn't know just yet. He needs to understand what he did was wrong and I am not going to support his wrongs at all. I will tell him, myself when he apologises to Bhanu."

-"Bhanu?" 

-"She calls me Didi."

-"And how did that happen?"

-"Well, what can I say? It's my charm." Tiasha shrugged, "I am going to the kitchen, unlike you, I have work here." She left the chamber with that. Ashwatthama chuckled to himself shaking his head. 

--

Tiasha, Karna, Ashwatthama and Duryodhan sat in the gardens. Tiasha was explaining the whole situation of her leaving Hastinapur and coming to Anga when they saw Bhanumati stomping towards them and Supriya from behind trying to stop her.

Bhanumati reached them and seeing Duryodhan stood hesitantly, shifting from one leg to another.

Tiasha stood up and held her shoulder, "Bhanu, do you want to tell us anything?"

Bhanumati looked at Tiasha with pleading eyes and said, "Didi, Supriya was also abducted. She can't go back to Kalinga as well. The society won't accept her if she doesn't get married."

Tiasha turned to Supriya and touched her cheek.

Supriya looked down and said, "I tried to stop her, I told her that it doesn't matter as long as I get to live with her, but she didn't listen. She came running to you, she said you will not let any injustice happen to anyone." 

Tiasha smiled, "And she is right. I don't know about justice but I won't let anything bad happen to you two. You called me Didi. And as your elder sister, it's my duty to protect you."

Karna said, "Then, what do we do?" 

Tiasha shivered. She heard what Supriya told Bhanumati when she was passing their chamber earlier this evening.

--

Bhanumati and Supriya sat at the window looking at the night sky. 

-"Tiasha Didi is so nice, she made us her own in an instant." Bhanumati said.

-"Yes, and Angaraj too. He looked after us the entire way. He asked if we were ok if we were tired. I bet he will be a great husband."

Bhanumati looked at Supriya curiously a teasing smile adoring her lips. She said, "Do you like Angaraj Karna or something?" 

Supriya blushed and looked the other way. Bhanumati squealed in excitement, "You do like him. Oh, and I think you two would be a perfect match for each other."

--

Bhanumati cleared her throat, "I think..."

Duryodhan interrupted her saying, "It's only right for Indrasena to marry your friend, Rajkumari."

Bhanumati frowned, "Indrasena?" 

-"Yea, Mitra Karna's Senapati. The one who abducted your friend, well technically she came in our way and he had no option, so..."

Ashwatthama agreed with Duryodhan, "It doesn't matter if it was intentional or not, She was abducted by Indrasena and it's only right for him to marry her."

Tiasha looked deep in thought. Her heart was telling her to be selfish, telling her to agree with Duryodhan. But her head was saying otherwise. Supriya trusted her, Bhanumati trusted her, and she couldn't break their trust for her selfish desire. 

-"Supriya, what do you want?" Tiasha asked, her voice shaking a little fearing the worst.

-"If Angaraj's Senapati agrees to this marriage then I don't have any problem."

Bhanumati looked at Supriya in shock. She held Supriya's arms and turned her. Supriya avoided eye contact. 

-"Bhanu, It's only right to get married to the person who abducted me. I can't..."

-"Supriya, you don't have to be afraid of anything. If you don't want to marry Indrasena then it's alright, you can say it."

Supriya forced a smile, "No, I want to. I don't have any problem." 

Tiasha looked at Karna. 

Karna nodded at her and said, "But we have to ask Indrasena's opinion as well." Duryodhan and Ashwatthama nodded in agreement

For Karna Indrasena was not just the Senapati of Anga. He was one the most loyal and dear friends who helped them during the hard times. Karna and Indrasena shared a much closer bond, more than just a king and his commander of the army. 

Karna stood up, "I will go get Indrasena." 

A few minutes later he came back with Indrasena tagging behind him.

Indrasena bowed to them and Tiasha started, "Indrasena...umm...you...you know you kind of abducted Devi Supriya, right?"

Indrasena gave a curt nod his gaze casting downwards. He said in a calm tone, "I know, I am sorry Devi Supriya. I didn't do it intentionally..."

-"But Indrasena, you know the society wouldn't accept your sorry and punish Devi Supriya, for your fault." Ashwatthama said. 

-"I will do anything in my capability to make sure Devi Supriya doesn't face such fate."

-"Then, Indrasena, we are requesting you to marry Devi Supriya and take her as your wife." Karna said. Indrasena's head snapped up looking from Karna to Tiasha. They both gave him slow nods. 

Tiasha pleaded, "Please, Indrasena..."

Indrasena looked down to his feet again lost in thoughts for a moment. All the others looked at him except Supriya. 

She was fighting her own inner battle. It's only right to marry, Senapati Indrasena. You have been dreaming the absurd Supriya, come back to reality. He is a king...and...and he has his Kumari Tiasha, Supriya thought. 

She noticed the way he looked at her and they looked at each other, their eyes full of admiration and love. If only it was her, but not in this life, maybe some other life in another time. She accepted it. Indrasena wasn't a bad person, he was handsome and kind...

Supriya remembered last night Indrasena came to her to apologise. A blush crept up her cheeks remembering the moment when he went down on his knees to beg for her forgiveness. He said he would do anything to protect her. Not a bad person at all...

Indrasena took a deep breath and said, "I will marry Devi Supriya if she agrees." He would be lying if he denied having a soft spot for Supriya.

Supriya said in a small voice, "I have no problem."

A broad smile appeared on Karna's face. Ashwatthama smirked, "Problem solved, now Princess Bhanumati are you happy?" 

Bhanumati looked at Supriya. Supriya nodded and Bhanumati noticed her friend's red cheeks under the moonlight. Her heart calmed. Smiling wide she said, "Yes."

Tiasha eyed Duryodhan and nodded her head pointing at Bhanumati. Duryodhan cleared his throat, "Rajkumari, can I talk to you for a second?"

Tiasha held Supriya's hand and eyed the other three to follow her. They nodded and the five of them went away. 

Tiasha stopped inside the corridor. She looked from Supriya to Indrasena and smiled, "I think you two should talk as well. We will leave you alone."

Tiasha, Karna and Ashwatthama left the two alone and went to see the arrangements for the marriage. On their way back they saw a pair of love birds embracing each other in the garden under the moonlight. They looked at each other. Ashwatthama and Karna smirked and Tiasha giggled. She took a step forward watching the two from a distance. Karna and Ashwatthama stood mesmerised looking at their priced gem, shining in happiness.

--

The next morning a bunch of horses and chariots entered through the gates of Anga's palace. 

Duryodhan and Dushasan went to welcome their brothers, Mama and their dear sister.

Shakuni embraced Duryodhan and said, "Congratulations, my boy! You are going to be married soon."

Duryodhan asked Shakuni, "How is Hastinapur, Mama Shree?" 

-"Your Pitashree is very happy Putra. You Mata is happy too but she doesn't show it. Your Kaka, well he doesn't show any emotions but he is not pleased. Your Pitamah Bhishma is angry but he also seemed relieved in some way. And your Dear Sakhi...Kumari Tiasha...she is not in the palace, so..."

Dushala was standing beside Duryodhan when she saw Tiasha at the top of the stairs. She joyously screamed, "DIDI!" Dushala ran and tackled Tiasha in a hug.

Shakuni's eyes widened and Duryodhan smirked, "I can't get married without my Sakhi, now, can I?"

-"But...But how..."

-"I sent Ashwa to bring her here, and Mama Shree you can't tell anyone about it. Tomorrow is my wedding and she has almost finished all the arrangements within a day. It's not possible without her Mama Shree."

Tiasha introduced Bhanumati and Supriya to Dushala and the rest of the day went into the final preparations of the marriage.

--

The next day passed with happiness flying around the sky of Anga. 

In the middle of the evening, Duryodhan filled Bhanumati's partition with vermilion and Indrasena filled Supriya's. The two couples took the oath of being together with each other for the rest of their lives. The holy fire became the witness of the union of four hearts as they completed their Saptapadi.

-XX-

Ahh!! I am feeling extremely lazy so I skipped the description of the marriage. I will have to write one later anyway when Tiasha gets married. Do tell me your thoughts and opinions on the chapter guys.

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