Ananya was walking through the palacial corridors towards the "Pandavas and Yadava family " wing which was how they had dubbed it.

She was huming a song as she hopped while walking when she noticed a figure spying on her from behind a statue. She froze and in a steady and defensive voice asked,

"Kaun hai wahan? Agar dhairya hai toh mere samne aao!"

(Who is there? If you have the guts then come infront of me!)

The figure stepped out with some hesitation and nervous energy.

It was Duryodhan.

Anya stiffened and politely nodded. She stepped to the right to keep walking but was stopped.

"Rukho!"

(Stop!)

Anya stopped and looked at him with a
neutral face, waiting for him to speak.

Duryodhan hesitated and looked
around.

Loosing patience, she finally asked,
" Rajkumar Duryodhan kya mein jan
sakthi hu ki aab konse prapanch ka
yojna kiya gaya hai?"

(Rajkumar Duryodhan, can I know what
manipulative strategy has been planned
now?)

He visibly looked hurt as if Ananya punched him which in turn made her a bit baffled. She raised an eyebrow in question.

Duryodhan asked in a softer voice,
"Tumhe lagtha hai ki mein prapanch kar raha hu?"

(You think that I am doing manipulation?)

Anya stared at him pointedly not feeling like gracing him with as much as an yes or no. Honestly she was just trying to figure out what sort of dangerous trap had they planned for Pandavas now. Considering the fact that the kaurav side had been quite after poisoning Bheem.

Duryodhan nodded mutely but again checked around to make sure they were alone which made Anya more alert.

Every single thing that Duryodhan had done or will do flashed through her mind. She fisted her hands at her side ready to punch him on his face if he tried anything.

But what he did next completely shocked her for a second. He slowly made direct eye contact and he shed few tears.

"Mujhe tum..Bhrata kar ke nahi bulaogi?"

(You won't..call me Bhrata?)

Anya frowned. To be frank, she used to address Duryodhan as Bhrata back in Kaliyug but that was mostly because she loved the bond the actor who played Duryodhan had with others in Starplus's Mahabharat. But after coming back to her home era where everything was real, she didn't get a single urge to address him as such. She couldn't forget the fact that he poisoned her Bhrata Bheem as well. Yes it led to him gaining his powers but the fact remained that a 'brother' hated his cousin so much that he poisoned him and pushed him into a river. There is a difference between knowing about an event, reading about it and actually living at that time.

Anya looked Duryodhan with controlled anger in her eyes,
"Nahi...aap ka mansik santhulan toh sahi hai na? Aap ko kya lagtha hai? Ki aap achanak se aake mere saath yeh Bhai behen ka natak..dongh karenge aur mein aap ke upar vishvash karu? Mein murk nahi hu! "

(No...is your mental stability OK? What do you think? That you will all of a sudden come and do this drama...this pretence of brother sister and I will believe you? I am not an idiot!)

Duryodhan shook  his head and said,
"Nahi mein koi Natak nahi kar raha...jab se tumhe dekha hai...tabh se mere hridhay mein tumhare prathi wohi bhavna hai jo Dusshalla ke prathi hai..."

(No I am not doing a drama...since the moment I saw you...I have the same same feelings for you  in my heart which I have for Dusshalla..)

Anya looked at him unimpressed and asked,

"Acha? Toh aap ne ek bhar bhi isske pehele mujhe se baath karne ki koshish kyun nahi kiya? Baath toh chodo humare aas paas bhi nahi the aur jabh dekho krodh se hume ghoor rahe the.. aur aaj aise bol rahe ho?"

(Really? Then how come you never tried to talk to me even once before this? Forget talking you never came anywhere near us and you glared at us all the time..and today you are saying this?)

Duryodhan sighed and his voice hardened as he explained,
"Woh..tum humesha unn Pandavo se ghire rahathi thi..isliye...par mera vishvas karo Anya, mein ek Achcha Bhai hu!"

(That..you were always surrounded by those Pandavas..that's why...but believe me Anya, I am a good brother!)

Anya thought about the way he would literally marry Dusshalla off to that evil sorry excuse of a human- Jayadhrath just for the power and support that was offered to him. Yeah. Such a good brother.

Anya raised a hand to stop him from speaking further,

"Pehli baath, mera naam Ananya hai..aap mujhe Rajkumari Ananya bula sakthe ho ..yaa phir sirf Ananya bula sakthe ho! Mujhe Anya bulane ka adhikar keval mere parivar aur priye jano ko hai! Aur Dusri baath, Achcha Bhai? Kis prakar ke bhai?.."

(Firstly, my name is Ananya..you can either call me Rajkumari Ananya or Ananya! Only my family and loved ones have the right to call me Anya! And secondly, good Bhai? What type of Bhai?..)

Duryodhan looked hurt while Anya was on the roll and sarcastically asked,

"Haan! Woh joh apne Bhai ko nadhi mein ghir ne se bachaya tha? Par ekk kshan rukho! Aisa toh hua hi nahi tha! Aap toh woh Bhai hai jisne apne hi bhai ko kheer mein vish mila kar khilaya tha..phir? Unhe Nadhi mein phek diya! Haan dikh raha hai..Kis prakar ke bhai hai aap!"

(Haan! You are that Bhai who saved his brother from falling into a river? But wait a second! This didn't happen! You are that Bhai who mixed poison in kheer and fed it to his own brother..then? You threw him in the river! Haan I can see..what kind of a brother you are!)

Duryodhan had a different look in his eyes which surprised and confused Anya. He almost looked like something broke in him?

He then replied with a trembling voice,
"Woh..mujhe gyath nahi tha Ananya..ki uss kheer mein ithna khatharnak vish tha..Mamashree Shakuni ne mere haath mein Kheer diya aur bola ki mein Bheem ko isse yadhi dunga toh meri samasya katham ho jayegi...Jab voh murchit ho kar ghira..toh mein bhaybheeth hogaya tha...mujhe kuch samajh hi nahi aa raha tha..aur usse pehele mein kuch samajh ya soch pau Mamashree ne aake kaha..ki hume Bheem ko..nadhi..mein nahi ...mein..nahi.."

(That..I wasn't aware about that Ananya..that there was such a dangerous poison in that Kheer..Mamashree Shakuni handed me that Kheer and told me that if I give this to Bheem then all my problems will get solved...when he fell unconscious..then I got terrified..I couldn't understand anything..and before I could think or comprehend anything, Mamashree came and said..that we had to Bheem...river...I didn't...I..didn't..)

Anya gave him few seconds to compose himself which he did. She then calmly

"Aap Ek baath bathao mujhe, Aap Pandu Putro se ithna ghrina kyun karthe hai? Woh 6 aapke hi bhai hai..Bhrata Karn hum sabh ke Jyesht hai..toh kyun?"

(Tell me one thing, why do you hate the sons of Pandu so much? Those 6 are also your brothers...Bhrata Karn is Jyesht for all of us...so why?)

Duryodhan's expression changed instantly. He scowled with anger.

"Woh mera adhikar chheena chahathe hai! Mere Pitashree Jyesht hai! Unki adhikar tha Raj singhasan pe! Kinthu unke Anuj..Pandu ko Raja banaya..uska Rajya abhishek kiya tha! Keval iss liye ki mere Pitha dekh nahi sakthe!"

(They are trying to snatch my rights! My Father was the Jyesht! He had the right to the Throne! But his Anuj..Pandu was made the King..Rajya Abhishek was done for him! Only because my father couldn't see!)

Anya sighed feeling like she was talking with a bratty spoilt toddler who didn't understand anything but was still obsessed with his candy. She then stopped and realised that at this point in time, he was like that. He didn't grow up. He only got worse! Dhritarashtra and Gandhari truly failed as Parents.

She mentally calmed herself down. She could try once. To make him understand. To open his eyes.

"Woh karan nahi tha..unke Rajya Abhishek na hone ka.."

(That wasn't the reason..him not getting consecrated as the King..)

Duryodhan looked at Anya with a questioningly look.

Anya looked at him straight in the eye and told frankly,
"Aap ke Pitashree ke andhar Moh ki bhavna hai...wahi karan tha"

(Your father has the feeling of Moh inside him..that was the reason)

Duryodhan frowned and asked,
"Arthath?"

(Meaning?)

Anya sighed and replied,
"Jab ek insaan kisi ke prati mohith hotha hai na Rajkumar, woh sahi aur galath...dharm aur adharm gyath hothe hue bhi apne moh ke karan galath nirnay le bhait tha hai...aur yadhi ek Raja mohith ho..toh uske pure Rajya..uske praja ko hi haani pahunch thi hai.."

(When a human has moh for something na Rajkumar, inspite of knowing right and wrong..Dharm and adharm..he ends up taking the wrong decisions..and if a Raja suffers from moh..then its detrimental to his entire kingdom..his people..)

Duryodhan nodded and said in a firm tone,
"Haan parantu mere Pithashree kisi vastu ke upar mohith nahi hai !"

(Haan but my father doesn't have any moh for any thing!)

Anya looked at Duryodhan and shook her head,
"Aap ke Pitashree ko Putr Moh hai...woh janthe hai kya sahi aur kya galath hai phir bhi agar baath yadhi unke Putr ke upar aathi hai toh woh sadaiv unke Putr ke paksh...artharth aap ke paksh mein hi nirnay lenge! Yadhi aap kuch galath karthe hai...toh woh aapko uska dandh nahi denge..par agar Pandavo se wahi aapradh ho bhi jaye toh unhe dandh avishya milega! Ek Pita ka dharm hotha hai ki apne Putr ko sahi marg darshan karna..apne santhan ko sahi galath samjhana..agar woh kuch galath kare toh uske apradh ka dandh dena thaki woh usse kabhi punah na dohirai..aur ekh Raja ka pratham dharm hotha hai upne praja ke prathi nishpaksh hoke..nyay dena.."

(Your Father suffers from Putr Moh...he knows what's right and wrong but still if it comes to his son then he will always take decisions in favor of his sons..that is in favor of yours! If you make a mistake then you won't be punished for it...but if the Pandavas make the same mistake then they will definitely be punished! It is a Father's dharm to guide his son in the right path..to make his child understand the difference between right and wrong..if he does something wrong then he needs to be punished so that the same mistake is not repeated again...and a Raja's first dharm is to his people..to give impartial justice..)

Duryodhan looked deep in thought while Anya continued,
"Kya vastav mein apke Pitha apne Raj Dharm aur Pita-dharm nibha rahe hai? Mein kuch nahi bol rahi..keval sochiye!"

(In reality, is your Father following both Raj Dharm and Pita dharm? I am not saying anything...just think!)

Duryodhan looked at Anya, while he had slight anger in his eyes. But he was also thinking about all the instances of the past 15 years whatever he could remember.  Then he thought about the way his father behaved since Pandavas entered the Palace.

Anya looked at him and sighed. She started to walk off when she was stopped yet again.

"Tum..tumne Kaliyug mein kuch samay vyathith kiya hai na?"

(You..you have spent some time in Kaliyug right?)

Anya turned around to look at him and nodded.

Duryodhan looked at her with a seriousness in his eyes.
"Kya tum batha sakthi ho..ki yeh...humare Bhavishya mein kya hoga..?"

(Can you tell..what happens in our future..?)

Anya shook her head and said,
"Mujhe anumathi nahi hai..ki mein kisi ko bhi uska Bhavishya batha sakun..haan par ek salah avishya dungi..aap ke priye Mamashree Shakuni aap se aur aapke bhaiyo se prem nahi karthe..unka udheshya keval prathishodh hai..aur aap Dhritarashtra ke putr keval unke pyaade ho..agar unpe vishvash karoge toh aap kudh ki vinash ke ore chal rahe ho.."

(I don't have the permission..to tell anyone about their future..but I can definitely give you an advice...your dear Mamashree Shakuni doesn't love you or your brothers..his sole objective is revenge...and you Dhritarashtr's sons are just pawns for him...if you trust him then you are simply walking towards your own destruction..)

As expected, Duryodhan got angry,

"Tum humare Mamashree ke vishay mein aise kaise bol sakthi ho!?"

(How could you talk about my Mamashree like that!?)

He glared at Anya expecting her to back off but Anya rolled her eyes feeling irritated.

She glared back at him which was unexpected for Duryodhan.

"Dekho Rajkumar! Mujhe koi pharak nahi padtha chahe meri baath pe vishvash karo ya na karo! Par aap na ekk karya avishya kariye! Aap ja ke unse boliye ki...ve aapko Ghandhar ke Raja bana de..uske baad dekhiye ! Woh baath ko kaise ghuma the hai aur anth mein aap ko maana kar denge! Mujhe jo bolna tha ..meine bol diya! Jo karna hai karo! Mujhe kya!"

(Look Rajkumar! I don't care whether you believe me or not! But you do one thing! You go and tell him..that he should make you the Raja of Ghandhar..then watch! How he twists and turns the matter and in the end he will not agree ! What I wanted to say..I said! Do whatever you want! I don't care!)

Duryodhan and Anya were both glaring at each other when they were interrupted by a voice.

"Anya?"

It was Karn. Looking at the tense scene, he quickly made his way to Anya's side and subtly pushed her slightly behind him.

Anya smiled, feeling his protective stance.

Karn then asked in a calm but authoritative voice, looking at Duryodhan.

"Yahan pe kya ho raha hai?"

(What was happening here?)

Anya lighly held Karna's hand and said,

"Jyesht Bhrata, kuch nahi hua..kuch manushyon ko satya ka darpan dikhana avishyak tha!"

(Jyesht Bhrata, nothing happened..it was necessary to show the mirror of truth to some humans..)

Anya pointedly looked at Duryodhan, and then she dragged Karn as they walked away from that place, leaving Duryodhan alone.

-----Next day-------

It was time for the Yadava Siblings to take leave from Hastinapur. They were going to Sandipani Muni Ashram for their gurukul.

It was with a heavy heart that Kunti, Gandhari and the Pandavas were saying their goodbyes to them.

Arjun looked at Anya and called her as she was talking with Nakul.

She looked at him and smiled and came to him and raised her eyebrow in question.

Arjun smiled and asked,
"Tum..mujhe bhoolugi tho nahi na?"

(You..won't forget me na?)

Anya smiled and teasingly asked,
"Aap ko nahi lagtha ki yeh mujhe aap se puchna chahiye? Kuch samay ke baad aap sabh bhi tho gurukul ke liye prasthaan karne wale hai Guru Dron ke saath!"

(Don't you think I should be the one asking you this? After some time, all of you are also going to be leaving for Gurukul with Guru Dron!)

Arjun chuckled and nodded,
"Tho hum na ekk dusre ko ekk vachan dethe hai..chahe kuch bhi hojaye..mein tumhare diye hue iss haar ko kabhi nahi utharunga...waise mein aaj thak kabhi uthara nahi hai..par phir bhi.."

(Then we will make a promise to one another...whatever happens...I will never take  this chain off, which you gave me..by the way I never removed it till now...but still..)

Arjun indicated the simple chain around his neck with the charm given by Anya. She smiled and pointed to the bracelet in her wrist which made by Arjun and continued his promise,

"Aur mein bhi vachan de thi hu ki mein isse kabhi bhi nahi utharungi..aur meine bhi isse aaj tak nahi uthara hai...par phir bhi!"

(And I also promise that I will never take this off..and I too never removed it till now but still!)

The way she mimicked his tone made Arjun laugh.

Though they were joking around, their eyes conveyed the sincere promise that they just made to each other.

While Arjun and Anya was busy talking amongst themselves, the rest of the Pandava brothers exchanged knowing looks.

Soon it was time to leave. Bheem had given 3 pots of laddoos to Anya while Kunti Bua had given them many pots of Makhan and other food to eat on the way.
Taking everything, they finally started their journey from Hastinapur to Avanti ( Ujjain) to start a new chapter in their lives.

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A/N:

Hope you all liked today's update!

Please comment your thoughts and whatyou like/dislike.

Your comments are my
motivation.

Jai Shree Krishna🙏
-Anu