Hey Guys!!!!

Here is the hundred and forty third chapter.

I don't own Mahabharat.

Happy Reading!!

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Third POV 

 The Day of Dushala's Wedding 

In Hastinapur.

Dushala moves closer to her father and kneels in front of him, hesitantly she grabs his hand, "Mujhe Shama kar dijiye Pita Ji, jaanti Hun Maine jo Kiya woh saahi nahi tha. Mere is kadam se aapke mann par bhi prashn uthe Hain. Lekin pita shree, aaphi logon ne sikhaya tha na mujhe ki duniya ki parvah Kiya bina mujhewoh nirnay lena chahhiye jo Mujhe sahi lagta Hai? Woh kadam uthana chahhiye jo mere liye aur mere praja ke hit Mein Ho?"
(Forgive me father, I know what I did was not right. The step which I took, it raises questions on your pride too. But father, you guys have only taught me na that I should not care as to what people have to say, & do what I feel is right? Take that step which is good for me and my people?)

"Aur Kya pita Shree mere pass itna hakh nahi Hai ki main chun sakun, ki main aaoni zindagi kiske saath bitana chahti Hun, huh? Main Jaanti Hun ki aap log mere achche ke liye hi bol rahein Hain paruntu agar main nirnay nahi lungi toh kaise sikhungi Kya achcha Hai mere liye aur Kya galat hai?"(And father, do I not have this much right, that I could select the man I want to spend the rest of my life with, huh? I know that you all will always think the best for me. But if I do not take decisions, how will I learn to differentiate between right and wrong, huh?) Dushala questions.

But to her disappoint her father doesn't say anything, at least the relief was that he did not snatch his hands from her. Rather he silently looks ahead as if he is deep in his thoughts. Dushala just hoped that it was for her benefit.

"Maha Raj." (King) Ashwatthama kneels beside Dushala, his head a little bent, he was not looking at the King in face. "Shama Karein Hume, jaisa ki Dushala ne kaha humne jo Kiya woh galat tha, shayad. Par Hume aur koi rah nahi dikha, Maha Raj. Hum bhi yeh kadam nahi uthana chahhte the, parantu paristhithi hi aisi thi humare pass aur koi rah nahi tha." (Please forgive us, just like Dushala said what we did was maybe wrong. But we could not see any other path, your highness. We also no way wanted to take this step up, but the situation was such that we had no other path left.)

"Maha Raj se ek baar baat kar lete." (You could have talked to his highness once.) Gandhar Raj Shakuni says.

"Humare pass samay hi nahi tha, Gandhar Raj." (We did not have time, King of Gandhar.) Ashwatthama says. "Aur shayad koshish kar ke bhi kuch nahi pa pate hum. Hum smabhavnao pe nahi chal sakte the." (And maybe we could have not have achieved something even after trying that. We could not take any chances especially in this matter.)

When silence enveloped them once again, no one knew what to say to what Ashwatthama had to say. They had nothing to say to them.

"Yeh mera vada Hai, Maha Raj, Dushala ko kisi chij ki kami nahi hogi." (This is my promise, your highness, that Dushala would never feel lack of anything.) Ashwatthama says finally.
"Dushala Panchal ki Rani Hai. Usko na toh kabhi koi dikat ka samne karna padega na koi pareshani jhelni hogi. Main aako yeh vachan deta Hun Maha Raj. Dushala meri Patni Hai, uske sivay kisi stri ko is pad ki Prapti nahi hogi. Dushala ko mera sab pyaar milega. Uska khayal main hamesha rakhunga." (Dushala is the queen of Panchal. Neither will she face any problem nor will ever she face any bewilderment. Dushala is my wife, I give you my word, that no other women would ever achieve the status as my wife. Dushala will get all my love. I will always take care of her.)

"Agar aap dono ne yeh nirnay le hi liya Hai toh hum Kya karna Hai?" (If you both have already taken the decision, then what am I supposed to do of it?) Maha Raj asks, his voice tough.

"Kya aap is shaadi koi swikar nahi karenge, pita Shree?" (Will you not accept this marriage, father?) Vikarna questions, from where he was standing. 
"Jab kuch din purv Dushala mere pass yeh baat lekar aayi thi. Tab Maine usse yahi kaha tha ki main uski madd karunga. Mujhe yeh laga tha ko aap samjhenge." (When a few days ago, Dushala came to me with her problem then I agreed to help her. I had thought that you would understand.)

"Samajh toh hum rahein Hain lekin hymari sunne ko kin taiyar Hai?" (I am understanding, but who is ready to listen to me?) Maha Raj asks.
"Jis se pehle hum kuch kahein aap log hi bole ja rahein Hain." (Before I can say anything, you guys keep talking.)

Everyone was left stunned at the words. They were not expecting that.

Maha Mahim smiles at his nephews words. He knew that however tough King Dhritarashtra was he had the softest heart ever for his kids, especially his daughter. And he actually knew for fact that Ashwatthama was not that bad for a son- in- law. Rather he must be the perfect candidate.
And he was good for their Dushala too. He was attentive, loved with his whole heart, was a strong fighter, an able king. They perhaps could never find anyone better than him, however much they looked.

Maha Rani smiled at the words. She knew that whatever happened, her husband would always support their daughter. She was their little kid, who they loved to no ends.
And for the fact, as far as Ashwatthama was considered, he would will always be the best option for her daughter. She herself trusted that boy, he had grown up with Kauravas and Pandeva's, he of course had great learnings.

Plus, it was not to be overlooked that Ananya, Karn, Duryodhana, the Pandeva's and Kunti all preferred Ashwatthama over any other boy in all of the Aryavarta. Ananya and Karn would under no circumstance let Dushala get hurt or even let anyone think bad about her.
If Ashwatthama had not been the appropriate choice they would not have selected him for her. They would always think of her first before anything else.

Gandhar Raj felt the ground beneath him slip. What now? Was his plannings failing? Would this create problems in his schemes?
Hopefully it won't. For after marriage Ashwatthama and Dushala would go to Panchal. Actually, with this like he wanted Dushala was away from the palace, just like he wanted. She could also be a problem in his scheme's after staying with Ananya she was much more confident and shows more emotions.
But if Ashwatthama agreed to Dushala coming back here whenever she wated it could surely lead to problems, that he wanted to avoid.

"Jo hona tha woh Hua." (What was supposed to happen, already happened.) Maha Raj speaks up once again, his voice much stronger than before.
"Par aabhi baat yeh Hai ki meri beti ki Shaadi Ho chuki Hai, uska jashan manaya jayega aaj." (But the point right now is that my daughter has just got married, there needs to be a celebration for the same today.)

Dushala felt her eyes fill with tears of relief when her father held her hand, when he said those words. It meant that he accepted her, he accepted her husband. Her father held nothing against Ashwatthama.
Perhaps he also felt that Ashwatthama was better than Sindhu- Raj.

"Dushala meri bacchi!" (Dushala, my daughter!) Rani Gandhari calls for her daughter, and Dushala rushes to her. Wanting to find the warmth that a mother's arms only can give.
All will be good now. Dushala felt that things were falling back in place slowly.

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