Hey Guys!!!!

Here is the hundred and forty second chapter.

I don't own Mahabharat.

Happy Reading!!

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Bhanumati's POV

In Evening

In Kalinga.

I bided my family a painful tear- filled goodbye. No daughter is ever ready to leave her parents' home, the love , the care. How could I be?

I think whenever a parent gets their kid married, they wish to find the best house they can. One where there are facilities for their daughter to live comfortably, my parents couldn't do that. And thus, my mom seemed extra chagrined about it.

Somehow even as I am walking away from the palace, away from the place that housed me for more than twenty years, I don't really feel the loss of a mother. Bhabhi Shree has been walking beside me as the brothers walk in front of us. The moment we walked out of the palace, she silently took my hands in her own, intertwining our fingers. Occasionally letting it swing between us. It was therapeutic, I found myself at ease.

As the small hut that would house us was seen, Bhabhi Shree squeezed my hand before un-weaving our fingers, passing a reassuring smile to me she pats the brothers on their shoulder saying something silently.

I watch her speed walk to our hut as the brothers silently started to walk with me in between them. I am very well capable of taking care of myself but at the moment, their presence helped fill the hole in my heart.

As we reach the house, I realised that Bhabhi Shree walked faster to make preparations of welcoming me in the house.
Can a person grow any sweeter?

Me and Arya stand at the gate of the small hut as see does a welcoming arti for the two of us. We take her blessings once she is done.

"Jite raho. Hamesha Khush rehna." (Stay Blessed. Always stay happy.) She pats our back softly before letting us rise.
"Aaj toh iss ghar mein bula kar tumhari aarti maine karli, Bhanumati. Lekin yeh vada bhi aaj main tumhe de rahin hun ki ek din Suyodhana ki ma, bhi aapni bahu ko uske ghar mein bulaye gi. Aur tab main nahi, woh aarti karengi." (Today, I did your Aarti & welcomed you in this house, Bhanumati. But I promise you that one day Suyodhana's mother will also invite her daughter- in- law in the house. And then she will stand with the Aarti in her hand.)

"Arya ki ma?" (Husband's mother?) I turn to my husband confused. What is Bhabhi Shree saying.

"Bhabhi Ma ..... ?" Arya trails off as he and Bhabhi Shree talk silently with eyes.
"Andar aao, Bhanumati." (Come in, Bhanumati). Bhabhi Shree turns to me with the biggest smile. "Kuch baatein hona abhi zarrori hai." (Some things need to be talked about, right now, it's important.)

Ten minutes later, all of us are sitting in a loose circle with me having my husband on my right, Bhabhi Shree on my left and Jyestha beside Arya.

"Har pariwar ke pass aisi baatein hoti hain, Bhanumati, jo aur logon ko gyat nahi hoti hain." (Every family have secrets, Bhanumati, things that are not known to other people.) Jyeshta begins. "Humare chhote se pariwar ke anek aisi baat hain jisse tum parichit nahi ho." (This small family has many such things hidden, that you are unknown to.)

Bhabhi Shree takes my hands between hers, as she continues, "Hume shuma karna, Bhanumati. Shayad ye baatein tumhe shaadi se pehle gyat hone chahhiye the, parantu hum aapne jaan ke khatir tumhare pariwar ko in baatoan se jaankar nahi bana sake." (Pardon us, Bhanumati. Maybe we should have told you about this before your wedding, but for our lives are at stake, we could not tell your family about this.)

"Nahi gyat hoga tumhare pariwar ko yeh baatein abhi. Abhi kya, tab tak anhi hoga jab tak hum wapas aapne raj mahal pahunch sakenge." (Nor will your family learn about this at this point of time. Not now, actually not until we can safely reach the palace.) Jyestha completes.

"Aisi bhi kya baat hai ki aap mujhe baatane mein bhi itna sankoch kar rahein hain?" (What even is the secret, that you all are hesitant to tell me about it?) I ask lightly, "Kya main aapke chhote se pariwar ka hissa nahi ban payi hun?" (Have I still not earned a place in this small family of yours?)

"Kya karogi Bhanumati, agar main yeh kahun ki yeh pariwar utna chhota nahi hai jitna tum isse samajh rahi ho?" (What will you do, Bhanumati, if I will say that this family is not as small as your taking it to be?) Jyestha questions confusing me.

What is he saying?
Do they have more siblings?
Have their parents gone a pilgrimage?

What is it?
Why do they seem so worried of my reaction to whatever they are hiding?
They couldn't have been doing anything wrong right?

"Jyestha, aapko bhi agar Bhabhi Ma ke prakaar paheli hi bhujani thi toh unhe kyun nahi bolne diya?" (Elder brother, if you also had to talk in circles and riddles like Bhabhi Ma does then why did you not let her do the talking?) Arya makes a face at his elder brother.

"Na Bhai, main toh bas yeh dekh raha tha ki, Anu ko aise baat karke kaisa lagta hai." (No, brother, I was just trying to see, how Anu felt talking in this way.) Jyestha shrugs.
While Arya laughs at his words, Bhabhi Shree rolls her eyes in exasperation.

"Mera naam Karna hai, Bhanumati. Yeh meri Dharma Patni Ananya hai, aur yeh mera Anuj Duryodhana hai." (My name is Karn, Bhanumati, this is my wife, Ananya. And my younger brother Duryodhana.) Jyestha says as he gestures at both of them one by one.

Ok, he is Karna, his wife is Ananya. What is in it to be worried off?
And Arya's name is Duryodhana. And these affect my thinking any way because?

Wait a minute?? WHAT????

"Ang- Raj aur Ang Rani!?" I gasp out in surprise.
Both of them nod in response.

"Aur aap Maha Raj Dhritarashtra ke Jyestha putr hain." (And you are King Dhritarashtra's Elder son.) I turn to my husband, again receiving a nod in response.

"Mujhe laga hi tha." (I thought so.) I exclaim. "Aap log Varna Vat ki aag mein jaal kar maar sakte hi nahi. Parantu Rani Kunti aur Pandav kahan hain?" (You guys could not have died in the fire of Varna Vat. But where is Queen Kunti & Pandeva's, her son?)

"Woh aapne raaste par hain, Panchal mein hona chahhiye abhi unhe." (They are on their own paths; they must be in Panchal.) Bhabhi Shree answers.

"Kya aapko gyat tha ki main aaungi?"(Did you know that I will come?) I question intrigued, remembering she is from future. "Meri aur Arya ke vivah ke bare mein gyat tha aapko?" (Did you knew of my & husband's marriage?)

She nods, smiling softly. "Tumhara intezzar Tha. Balki Main toh thodi pehle se hi intezzar kar rahi thi tumhara." (You were yearned for. AI was waiting for you for a while now.)
I smile at her stunned. That's so cool!!

What must she feel to now all this? Was it a burden? Or did she feel like a author of the tale? It must also hold a lot weight on her shoulder. Perhaps it was even scary to know that things will go bad yet not say a thing for her fearing disturbing the timeline!
Wow! This all must heavy. I never get much thought of it before on the same but seeing right now in front of me, I can only imagine a part of the pain and weight she has been carrying.

Sehdev POV

A week Later

With Pandeva's.

We have been staying near Panchal for a few days now. It was easy to stay here, there was a rive nearby and we had also built a small though barely passable hut here. Everything was set for us now.

We were back to a peaceful life. Not the preferred one but the most passive one we had in a while. It all seems like a dream, to be honest.

I was in front of our base, washing the utensils we used to cook our food.
We had decided to divide work amongst us, and my duties were to wash the utensils that had been used the day in cooking the food.

Had I not been so deep in thought I would have realised it much earlier but then I suppose all of us had got to used, to this peaceful life of ours.
We would have realised of the happenings much earlier were we not this chilled about the happenings. We assumed that because we were in the shaded part of the forest, we were safe. But we were close to Panchal, the point we overlooked in our over- confidence.

Border patrol of any kingdom is a very normal thing to happen. Every Kingdom should have scheduled and un-scheduled border patrol to ensure that their kingdom is safe and there are no spies on their borders.   

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