"You could've come with us," Abhijishya moved towards the balcony overlooking the the archery arena.

Kunti was gazing outside. She turned and smiled. "It is time my sons take decisions without my guidance. None of them have ever been good in politics and diplomacy. They are too simple minded in that aspect. Draupadi is intelligent but not clever. You, my dear, on the otherhand," she turned towards Abhijishya and cupped her cheek "are exactly what all six of them need. My nephew is clever but he cannot stay with my five sons always. So I place the responsibility to look out for them on you. Keep your eyes and ears open, dear. Your mind is sharp in itself."

Abhijishya chuckled. "Of course, of course. You will be acting as our eyes and ears in Hastinapur. Seeing your sons' downtrodden faces, I thought I had to play around with my words to get you to accompany us. But I had an inkling that your motive could be something else entirely so I sought you out."

"Most men take us for fools, putri. Jyesth knows as long as I reside in Hastinapur my sons won't wage war against him and his sons. But everything goes both ways if one knows how to utilise the situation in one's favour. Expect plently of letters from me, dear," Kunti said. She looked towards the arena again.

"A mother always yearns for her children so no one would think anything is out of place," she had a melancholy smile on her face. Abhijishya followed her gaze to find Vasusena engaged in a spar with one of the Kaurav brothers.

"Angraj must look like his mother," Abhijishya commented. Kunti went rigid by her side.

"I mean I have seen his father from a distance. He looks nothing like him," she added looking at Kunti.

"He must," Kunti mumbled. Abhijishya hummed. "I spoke to him some days ago. The competitiveness between him and Bhrata Arjun has escalated to enemity. I feel that is unnecessary. Does he not seem like he belongs with the Pandavs?"

Kunti remained silent then said softly, "Reality is very different than wistful thinking, putri. Angraj has faced insults from both Bheem and Arjun. Nakul was no better as well. Other than that, Suyodhana has cemented his loyalty by making him the King of Anga. Either way, it is useless pondering on mayhaps. Let bygones be bygones."

"Let bygones be bygones," Abhijishya echoed her words. "What if this affects your sons in the future?"

Kunti startled then turned a shade paler upon realising she had given away more then she thought she ever would. She settled on a strained smile." What is important now is that my sons will be leaving Hastinapur. There is nothing to worry about as everything is peacefully resolved. I-" she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "I have to see whether the preparation of lunch is complete or not. You must remain by Nakul's side. I'll send both of your meals in his chamber." Saying that, she strode away quickly.

Abhijishya stared at Kunti's retreating figure. This was proving to be more difficult that she had estimated.

================================

"Was it you?"

Sushasan opened his eyes to find his elder brother standing near the edge of the diwan he was lying on. He sat up lazily. "Pranipaat Jyesth, how are you fairing this fine morning? I feel a little under the weather. Maybe I indulged in more wine than-"

"Sushasan," Suyodhana said sharply. Sushasan fell silent and stared defiantly at his brother.

"Have you come to chastise me about my 'ethics', Jyesth?" He stared at his brother daring him to call out his act.

"Sushasan," Suyodhana softened. "Brother, you tell me any princess, any other women you want and I'll make sure she becomes yours but give up on Abhijishya. She is married, Sushasan."

"I thought we were done with this conversation before. Are you going back on your words then?" Sushasan asked carefully masking his emotions.

Suyodhana looked at his brother's face silently. The stubborn set of his jaw was one with which he was extremely familiar with whenever his reflection stared back at him from the mirror.

"We, the people of Gandhar are known to possess obstinate determination, dear nephew. Once we set our mind on one thing nothing in the entire world can deter us," Mamashree had said once while chuckling at his demand to do something about that bullying Bheem. At first, Mamashree had tried to dissuade him but then gave in after seeing him undeterred. It had been the same stubborm look on his face as a child. "You are truly your mother's son. The blood of Gandhar runs strong in you," he had murmured looking oddly melancholy.

Suyodhana hadn't understood what it was about then and doesn't still completely understand now. But he wondered if he had his mother's eyes.

"Bhratashree?" Sushasan called out uncertainly. Suyodhana smiled and shook his head.

Sitting down beside his brother, he said,"The man has been found dead in the groove of mango trees of the Royal Garden. It is suspected that he slit his own throat in the fear of getting caught. You missed out on a lot while you were sleeping. I also got to hear that Nakul is fine as Abhijishya herself sucked out the venom."

Shock was palpable on Sushasan's face. "But the venom of hump-nosed pit viper is deadly. How did Nakul even survive? And.. and Nirav? Who killed Nirav?"

"RajVyada says the venom is deadly if treatment is prolonged. You could have asked Mamashree to get you some potent poison," Suyodhana put a hand on Sushasan's shoulder. "You were foolish and extremely fortunate that it was me who found your man hiding. One smack and that Nirav blabbed out everything. Next time, consult me and Mamashree before taking such a drastic step. If it were Pitamaah or the Pandavs who found the man, you would be heading for the dungeons by now. You should know better than to leave loose ends."

Suyodhana got up. "And most importantly, Pitashree declared the division of Kuru Kingdom. I still can't believe that fool Yudhisthir accepted Khandavprastha without complaint," he chuckled.

Sushasan got up hastily and gripped his elder brother's hand. "Abhijishya? Is she leaving as well?"

Suyodhana sighed. "Yes, obviously. They will depart from Hastinapur within a week. Maharani Kunti will not be going with them so you can expect frequent visits from the Pandavs."

Sushasan clenched his jaw and looked away. His entire plan had fallen through and Abhijishya would be leaving him soon.

Suyodhana touched Sushasan's hand which was tightening it's grip. "Listen to me, brother. Lie low for now. Neither Pitamaah nor the Pandavs are convinced Nirav killed himself. Let the Pandavs leave peacefully. It is not like they are leaving Aryavart. We need to think and consult Mamashree. No more hasty actions." He removed Sushasan's hand with little force.

"Think of this as an order or request, I don't care. But what I care about is your well being. I don't want you to be among those who ruined themselves for a woman. Do you understand?" Suyodhana asked.

Sushasan lowered his head and kept mum.

"Do. You. Understand?" Suyodhana raised his voice. His patience was running thin.

"Yes, Jyesth. I'll do as you say," Sushasan said softly.

"Good. Oh! And I'll be keeping the gold as compensation for your carelessness as I had to deal with your mess. Wash up quickly. Your breath stinks," Suyodhana patted his back and walked out.

'Mamashree was right about that girl. She is nothing but trouble. No wonder Vasudev Krishna jumped to make her part of the Yadus,' he let out a long suffering sigh.

================================

"What is the matter?" Abhijishya asked entering Nakul's chamber.

Arjun was seated beside Nakul who was lying half inclined against pillows on the bed.

"The man with the jumping tiger insignia was found dead in the mango groove this noon," Arjun said.

"Pitamaah came earlier to see me. We spoke about what happened. He suspects the man didn't kill himself as the soldiers who found the body seem to believe. The slit of the throat looks self caused but the body also had a bruised cheek and the clothes looked unusually ruffled," Nakul said while looking at her.

Abhijishya walked up to his bed and sat down. "And? Was anything found with the body?"

"Only a gold dagger. Which is very unusual for a commoner to carry. I am sure it is someone from this palace who hired that man," Arjun said rubbing his face tiredly.

"I agree," Abhijishya nodded thoughtfully.

"Are you sure that it is not Gandharraj Shakuni's scheme or even Bhrata Suyodhana this time?" Arjun asked.

She shook her head. "No no. It isn't them. The plan was not well thought out and hastily executed. That too inside the palace in presence of Pitamaah. It is someone else."

"Sahadev said the mark on the man's neck is given by the Chola kingdom to the people that are ousted. It is burnt into their skin," Nakul said.

"Yes, the mark is the highest form of disgrace to the Cholas. They do not deliver in death penalty. Their most heinous criminals are branded, stripped of all clothes and left into the forest at their border. Survivors who make it to the other side are scanty," Arjun informed.

Nakul scoffed. "What a nice alternative to execution! And they call themselves non-violent bunch of people."

"Someone should tell them not to let loose their criminals in rest of the Aryavart," Arjun grumbled. "The man is dead. And now we don't have a clue who hired him."

"Well, it is not like we will be staying here much longer. Finally we'll have some peace in our lives," Nakul said.

"Mata isn't coming, is she?" Arjun asked Abhijishya.

"No. She has taken her decision," Abhijishya said apologetically.

Arjun nodded in understanding. "I must leave. I have to look into the arrangements for our departure. Take care, both of you." He gave them a tired smile and left.

"He hasn't been sleeping properly again," Abhijishya said looking at Nakul.

Nakul yawned then said softly,"More like not sleeping at all. Bhrata Arjun is worried about all of our safety. He doesn't deal well with paranoia if he can't pierce the enemy with his arrows. This time he doesn't even know who the enemy is so it is bothering him."

"He never says anything," Abhijishya looked at empty doorway through which Arjun left few moments ago. Then she turned to see a dozing Nakul and murmured,"Just like someone else I know."

================================

"Rajkumari," Abhijishya heard a whisper and immediately had her dagger posed again a slender throat.

The intruder's breath hitched. "It- It's me-e Charu."

Abhijishya put aside the dagger and got up from the bed quickly.

"Dear Gods, Charu. What are you doing at this hour?"Abhijishya whispered checking if Nakul had woken up.

Thankfully he was still asleep. Abhijishya tugged Charu along with her to the balcony attached to the chamber.

"Forgive me for disturbing your rest, Rajkumari but I thought you would like to hear what I came to know as soon as possible," Charu said joining her hands.

Abhijishya pushed down her hand gently and said," Now none of that. I am sure the news is very important. From next time call me from a distance. I haven't hurt you, have I?"

Charu shook her timidly. "No you haven't, Rajkumari."

"Alright. Tell me what is this about?" Abhijishya asked stifling a yawn. She estimated it was past midnight. No wonder she felt so drowsy.

"I just heard a few dasis gossiping. They were talking about Rajkumar Sushasan burning a painting. It was the night we arrived in Hastinapur. One dasi said she had never seen Rajkumar so angry before. He even had an argument with Rajkumar Suyodhana-"

Abhijishya interrupted in irritation. "How is this relevant to me or my husband Charu?"

"It was your painting, Rajkumari. That dasi saw it for herself," Charu said.

"Oh," Abhijishya let out a breath. Everything now made sense.

"What will you do now, Rajkumari?" Charu asked worriedly.

Abhijishya closed her eyes to quell the rising anger within her. That swine dared to kill her husband, the love of her life.

No. No. Nakul's safety comes first. The security of her family comes first. She couldn't jeopardise the agreement of division of Kuru Kingdom in an attempt to penalise Sushasan on the basis of no proof as well as no witness. The dasi wouldn't speak against a Rajkumar. That too when the incident doesn't concern her. It would be throwing around accusations. Just like Varnavart. Just like the time Bheem was given poison.

"Rajkumari?" Charu called uncertainly.

Abhijishya gritted her teeth and brushed away the angry tear that slipped from her eyes.

"Nothing," she said. "I'll do nothing."

'Only this once,' she promised to herself.

~°•~°•~°•~°•~°•~°•~

A.N. - I spent a lot of time writing and erasing and re-writing this chapter. So I don't know if it is upto the mark or not.

I'll write one more chapter in Hastinapur. Then there will be the interlude with Dussala's letter. After that they'll leave for Khandavprastha.

From Chapter 55, Indraprastha will begin.

About updates: Expect no updates till 14th Sept. I am having a hard time coming up with words to pen down my ideas. This chapter was a proof of that. It usually takes me 3 to 4 hours to write down a chapter once I have an idea what are the things I want in that chapter. For this one, it took me the entire day. It was exhausting. I only updated as I hadn't informed you all previously about the temporary hold on my story.

On a positive note, I have decided that there will be a second part to Dhi which will be a prequel of sorts to this. I have a vague idea what I want it to be about.

I think Dhi will be completed in 2020 itself and I'll be able to start the second book within this year. Idk. Maybe. But there will be another part. (Related to this but can also be read independently) For that, I have to do a lot of research so it'll take time. Let's see how things go with Dhi. (Hoping for 100 K views by the time I complete it people and maybe 10K votes? I know I know I am hoping for a lot but *shrugs* can't help it.)

If that happens, I'll publish the prequel or maybe if I still have enough motivation to write in 2021, I'll publish it either way. But there will be a prequel for sure (even if it is just for myself)

Please do vote and comment,

Until the next time,

Byee ;")

P.s. Never thought Dhi will turn out to be so lengthy when I started writing it. And yea in my head Dhi is already completed. Words are difficult. Imagination is much easier. I wish there would be imagination interpretation. Like I's plug it in my brain. 5 mins and BAM an entire book is completely well written and published. How cool that would be!

Yes, I am lazy if you all haven't guessed that already. I rambled a lot today which I generally don't? I am gonna shut up now. Bubbyyeee pepsssss.

P.p.s - I am not in the mood of editing this so just point out the misspelled words and grammatical errors if u want. I'll edit it later.