➸ 𝓦𝓸𝓻𝓭 𝓬𝓸𝓾𝓷𝓽: ２４９０  

➸ 𝓢𝓾𝓶𝓶𝓪𝓻𝔂: 𝒲𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝒽𝒶𝓅𝓅𝑒𝓃𝓈 𝓌𝒽𝑒𝓃 𝒟𝓇𝒶𝓊𝓅𝒶𝒹𝒾 𝒾𝓈 𝓉𝑜 𝓂𝒶𝓇𝓇𝓎 𝒶𝓁𝓁 𝑜𝒻 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒻𝒾𝓋𝑒 𝒫𝒶𝓃𝒹𝑒𝓋𝒶'𝓈? 𝐻𝑜𝓌 𝓌𝒾𝓁𝓁 𝓅𝑒𝑜𝓅𝓁𝑒 𝓇𝑒𝒶𝒸𝓉? 
𝒜𝓃𝒹 𝓌𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝒶𝒷𝑜𝓊𝓉 𝓉𝒽𝑒𝒾𝓇 𝑒𝓁𝒹𝑒𝓇 𝓈𝒾𝓈𝓉𝑒𝓇- 𝒾𝓃- 𝓁𝒶𝓌 𝒜𝓃𝒶𝓃𝓎𝒶, 𝓌𝒾𝒻𝑒 𝑜𝒻 𝒦𝒶𝓇𝓃? 

➸ 𝓑𝓪𝓬𝓴 𝓢𝓽𝓸𝓻𝔂: 𝒟𝓊𝓇𝓎𝑜𝒹𝒽𝒶𝓃𝒶 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒦𝒶𝓇𝓃 𝒶𝓁𝑜𝓃𝑔 𝓌𝒾𝓉𝒽 𝒜𝓃𝒶𝓃𝓎𝒶, 𝒦𝒶𝓇𝓃'𝓈 𝓌𝒾𝒻𝑒, 𝓌𝑒𝓃𝓉 𝓉𝑜 𝒱𝒶𝓇𝓃𝒶 𝒱𝒶𝓉 𝒶𝒸𝒸𝑜𝓂𝓅𝒶𝓃𝓎𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒫𝒶𝓃𝒹𝑒𝓋𝒶'𝓈 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝑅𝒶𝓃𝒾 𝒦𝓊𝓃𝓉𝒾. 
𝒜𝒻𝓉𝑒𝓇 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒻𝒾𝓇𝑒, 𝒟𝓊𝓇𝓎𝑜𝒹𝒽𝒶𝓃𝒶 𝒹𝑒𝒸𝒾𝒹𝑒𝒹 𝓉𝑜 𝓉𝒶𝑔 𝒶𝓁𝑜𝓃𝑔 𝓌𝒾𝓉𝒽 𝒽𝒾𝓈 𝒸𝑜𝓊𝓈𝒾𝓃𝓈 𝑜𝓃𝓁𝓎. 

➸ 𝓡𝓮𝓵𝓪𝓽𝓲𝓸𝓷𝓼𝓱𝓲𝓹𝓼: 𝒦𝒶𝓇𝓃 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒜𝓃𝒶𝓃𝓎𝒶; 𝒜𝓈𝒽𝓌𝒶𝓉𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓂𝒶 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒟𝓊𝓈𝒽𝒶𝓁𝒶;  𝒟𝒽𝓇𝒾𝓉𝒶𝓇𝒶𝓈𝒽𝓉𝓇𝒶 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒢𝒶𝓃𝒹𝒽𝒶𝓇𝒾. 

➸ 𝓦𝓪𝓻𝓷𝓲𝓷𝓰𝓼: 𝒯𝒽𝒾𝓈 𝓈𝒽𝑜𝓉 𝒹𝒾𝓋𝑒𝓇𝑔𝑒𝓈 𝒻𝓇𝑜𝓂 𝓂𝓎 𝑜𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓇 𝒷𝑜𝑜𝓀, 𝓌𝒽𝑒𝓇𝑒 𝒜𝓃𝒶𝓃𝓎𝒶 𝒾𝓈 𝓈𝒽𝑜𝓌𝓃 𝒶 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓃𝑔 𝓌𝑜𝓂𝑒𝓃 𝑜𝒻 𝟤𝟦 𝓌𝒽𝑜 𝓉𝒾𝓂𝑒 𝓉𝓇𝒶𝓋𝑒𝓁𝓁𝑒𝒹 𝓉𝑜 𝒟𝓌𝒶𝓅𝒶𝓇 𝓎𝓊𝑔𝒶. 

⋆ ——————————✧◦♚◦✧——————————⋆ 

Third POV 

THE REUNION WAS DONE and now everyone was sitting around in the sitting room, ready to discuss about the marriage ordeal. 

It has been a prahar, since their arrival. 
They had decided to freshen up and adorn their royal clothes back before they began with the decision as to what they should be doing further. 

Just for some of them to note that Gandhar Raj Shakuni was still in shock. 
Internally, Ananya was hysterical at the scene that she was seeing and it was getting very hard for her to maintain a straight face, now. 

"Toh, ab kya?" (So, what now?) Dushala drawls. 

"Waise Pitamah," (By the way, grandsire,) Ananya perks up. "Aapne jo kaha woh nahi ho sakta." (The solution you suggested, cannot be followed.) 

"Kyun?" (Why?) Maha Mahim raises an eyebrow. "Yudhishthira wala hi vajah hai ya kuch or hai?" (The reason is same as Yudhishthira's or is it something else, all together?)  

"Kuch aur." (Something else.) Ananya says, her expression stoic. 
"Bheema ki shaadi ho chuki hai, toh ab brahmacharya ka kya fayda?" (Bheema has already been married once, so then what is the point of celibacy now?) 

Everyone turns to Bheema, who looks wide eyed at his Bhabhi. 

"Bheema," Duryodhana called for cousin twin. "Tum bhul gaye the, na?" (You forgot, right?)
He grins mischievously at him as he sat, on the ground with his head in his mothers lap. 

People were surprised that he without thinking twice sat down but then a mother's love, makes people do a lot of things.  

"Nahi." (Nope.) Bheema says shortly.  
But truth to be told, the point had really gone at the back of his head.  

"Bahu kahan hain?" (Where is the daughter- in- law?) Maha Rani Gandhari voiced everyone's thought. 

"Woh Rani hai, aapne rajya ki, Kaki!" (She is the queen of her land, aunt!) Karn says when everybody else keeps mum exchanging looks. "Hume unhe aapne sath nahi la sake." (We could not bring her, here with us.) 

The royal family nods in understanding. 

"Galat baat hai, Jyeshta." (This is wrong, elder brother.) Duryodhana speaks up.
"Sach nahi chupana chahhiye, hain na, Bhrata Yudhishthira?" (The truth should never be hidden, am I right, brother Yudhishthira?) 

The said brother just nods mutely, why was he being dragged into this? 

"Main Bhrata Duryodhana ke saath hun." (I am with Brother Duryodhana.) Nakul smirks as the two share an high- fi. 
Leaving the others confused. 

"Ek jhap denge tum dono ko, hum." (I will slap you both.) Ananya says staring down at the two brothers. "Itna zarrori kam ho raha hai, aur tum dono ko backwas sujh raha hai?" (We are having such an important discussion and you two are joking.) 

"Jhap?" Ashwatthama raised an eyebrow. 

"Thapad." (Slap.) Ananya shows her palm. 
Silence followed her words nobody knew how to react at it. 

Draupadi was staring at her Bhabhi. This lady was something different all together. She had a confidence, Draupadi had never seen in a lady before.  
The way she walked, the way she talked, it all showed that. 

Plus, her beauty. She was just wearing a black and gold beaded chain, two rings (one in each hand), soundless anklets; the glimpse of which Draupadi had caught once. And that was it, she was not wearing any more jewelry or make up and still looked the prettiest in the whole room. 

Draupadi wondered how she managed that. Managed to look so flawless and so beautiful. 
Look like a sweet flower and still strike her power over the others, without any difficulty. 

It was as if she was not from this land. 

Maharaj clears his throat, "Ab karna kya hai?" (What to do now?) 

Nobody had a answer to the question. How could they? 

"Hume kya karna chahhiye, Putri Ananya?" (What should we do, daughter Ananya?) Maha Mahim asks, looking at the girl closely. 

Ananya crosses her legs, "Draupadi ki shaadi sare Pandeva's ke sath honi chhhiye." (Draupadi should be married to all of the Pandeva's.) 

Draupadi frowned, The admiration Draupadi had found for the lady since last some while was all lost. 
How could she suggest something like that? 

"Kyun, Putri. Yeh toh galat hai na?" (Why, daughter. This, is wrong, is it not?) Maha Rani asks. 

"Kya galat hai?" (What is wrong in it?) Ananya questions instantly. 

"Ek stri Panch mard ke saath?" (One woman with five men?) Shakuni speaks up for the first time, on the long night. 

"Jab ek mard panch stri se shaadi kar sakta hai toh ek stri panch mard se shaadi kyun nahi kar sakti?" (When a man can marry five ladies then why cannot a lady marry five men?) Ananya questions them. 

"Woh ashudh ho jati hai." (She becomes impure.) Shakuni put forth a point. 

"Ashudh?" (Impure?) Ananya raises an eyebrow, "Matlab jaante hain us shabd ka aap, Gandhar Raj?" (Do you even know the meaning of the word, King of Gandhar?) 

"Hum awashya hi jaante hain." (I, for sure know it.) Shakuni sounds over- confident.
"Baat toh yeh hai ki tum uski gehrai nahi samjhti." (But the point is that you do not understand the depth- ness of that word.) 

"Ek stri nahi samjhegi?" (A lady will not get it?) Ananya snorts. "Ek Stri nahi samjhegi ki 'ashudh' kya hota hai? Ek aisa shabd jis ko is pursh pradhan duniya ne stri ke hathoan ki kadi bana di hai?" (A lady will not get what 'impure' is? A word that this male dominant society has used to make shackles for her hands?)  
"Stri ko jitna nazok aap samjhte hain na, utni nazok agar woh hoti na, toh yeh duniya chal nahi pati, Gandhar Raj." (Women are not as delicate as you make them seem, if it had been so, then this world would not have been functioning, King of Gandhar.) 

"Shudh, Ashudh kisi chij ka koi mayna nahi hai uske samne." (Impure, Pure, these things do not matters in front of her.) Ananya continues, "Aur waise, Stri ko Ashudh bula kar aap Lakshmi ka bhi aapman kar rahein hain, Gandhar Raj. Lakshimi hi srif kyun? Ma Durga Ka. Ma Kali ka. Ma Sarasvati ka. Hazaroan hain, Mama Shree, puri raat yahin baithe rehna hoga, agar main naam lena shuru hui toh." (And by the way, by calling a lady impure, you are also dis- respecting Lakshmi, Gandhar Raj. Why only Lakshmi? Of Goddess Durga. Of Goddess Kali. Of Goddess Sarasvati. There are in thousands, uncle, we would need to sit here all night to make a list of all of the names.) 

"Kahiye hai takat unsab ko ashudh bulane ka?" (Say do you have the power to call all of them impure?) Ananya raises an eyebrow in question. 

"Un mein se kisi ne Panch bhaiyoan se shaadi nahi ki." (None of them married five brothers.) Gandhar Raj Shakuni points out. 

"Baat toh sahi hai." (Your fact is correct.) Ananya nods agreeing with him. 
"Par kitni khas hai humari Draupadi ki use ek pati nahi panch pati ka pyaar chahhiye, jivan mein." (But how special is our Draupadi, that she needs the love of five husbands in life and not only one.) 

Gandhar Raj Shakuni scoffed at it. 

Draupadi stared at her to- be- sister- in- law. She had no idea as to how she should be reacting with her around. At one moment she seemed like her well wisher and then next antagonist to Draupadi's little story she called life. 

"Par tum itni atal kyun ho aapne nirnay par, Putri?" (But why are you struck so much to your decision, daughter?) Maharaj is the one who speaks up this time. 

"Kyunki wahi sahi hai. Wahi tarika hai jaise, Niyati roop le rahi hai." (Because it is correct. That is the way, Niyati is taking shape.) Ananya shrugs. 

"Aur tumhe pata hai, niyati kya chahti hai?" (And you know what Niyati actually wants?) He further questions, intrigued. 

"Haye! Itne Prash! Itne Prash." (Oh! So many questions. So many questions.) Ananya exclaims, she sits up straighter which is just a little more than before. She un- crosses her legs, and rests her left leg on top of her right calf. 
"Aisa karti hun mein, Chacha ji, ki aapko ek kahani sunati hun." (Let me do this, uncle, that I tell you a story.) 

"Kahani?" (Story?) Maha Rani frowns. "Kis chij ki?" (Of what?) 

"Sun na, Chachi. Jan jaogi." (Listen to it, Aunt, you will get to know.) A mischievous smile adorning her face. 

Karn, who was sitting beside her shakes his head, mentally laughing, she was transforming into Krishna's twin, that she is. 

"Kahani ek stri hai." (This story is of a lady.) Ananya begins. "Us stri ki jisne, aapne tapo bal se Devon ke Dev Mahadev ko prasan kar liya tha." (The story of the lady, who impressed the God of Gods Mahadev by her powerful penance.) 

"Uski kahani sun kar hum kya karenge?" (What will we do hearing her story, huh?) Gandhar Raj grumbles, annoyed. He did not at all wanted to talk to her. She was the reason his plan failed, or it was that he assumed. 

"Kahani toh suni padegi Gandhar Raj, kyunki mere baat ka saboot hai is kahani mein." (You will have to hear the story, Gandhar Raj, because it kind of proves my point.) Ananya practically snaps at the man. "Aur Fir se beech mein mat boliyega Gandhar Raj, Kahani khrab ho jati hai." (And next time, do not speak in between, Gandhar Raj, the feel of story gets ruined.) 

"Waise, us stri ne itni mahima se Mahakal ki puja ki, woh prasan ho haye aur unhe, us stri ke samne prakat hona pada." (By the way, the girl prayed with so much devotion to Mahakal that he was impressed and he had to appear in front of her.) Ananya recites.  

"Jab Bholenath ne us stri se pucha ki use kya chahhiye toh us stri ka jawab tha- 'Pati dehi, Pati dehi, Pati dehi, Pati dehi, Pati dehi'." (When he asked what the girl wanted, the lady answered, asking for a husband, five times.) Ananya pauses for dramatic effect. 

"Us stri ne Bhagwan Shiv se panch bar pati ki mang ki thi." (She had asked for a husband from Lord Shiv five times.) Ananya says slowly, looking at everyone closely. "Bhagwan ne pucha ki tumne pati toh mang liya par uske gun ka kya? Toh us stri ka jawab bahut hi seedha sa tha." (Lord asked, that she asked for a husband but what of the qualities? The answer to that question of the lady was a simple and straightforward one.) 

Everyone in the room was siting at the edge of their seats. 

What is she talking about? 
Who is this lady? 
Why did she ask that? 

Ananya surprising gets up from her place and stands in the room, looking at all of them. 

"Uska jawab tha, ek aisa pati jo dharma ka palan kare, ek aisa pati jo sab mein sabse takatvar ho, ek aisa pati jo apne yudh vidya aur shurveer- ta ke liye jana jaye, ek aisa pati jo sab mein sabse sundar ho, ek aisa pati jo sabse budhiman ho." (She asked for a husband who followed the path of Dharma, a husband who had was the most strong amongst men, one who was knowledge of battlefield and is courageous, one who is the most handsome of all, one who is the most knowledgeable amongst all of the known men.) 
Ananya once again ends dramatically, her hands gesturing to show the five Pandeva brothers, in front of whom she had been standing since a while. 

Everyone stares at the girl in shock, What was she implying? Why did she tell the story?  

"Woh stri koi aur nahi par aapne pichle janam mein Draupadi thi. Nalayini naam tha uska, ya Indrasena jaise aur log jante hain. Maharaj Nala aur Maharani Damaynati ki putri, Nishadas ki Raj kumari. Us janam mein jo baat Shankar Bhagwan ne kahi thi woh is janam mein sach honi hi thi." (The lady was known else but Draupadi in her previous birth. She was named Nalayini or more commonly known as Indrasena. Daughter of King Nala and Queen Damayanti, The princess of Nishadas. The words of Lord Shankar, that he said in his previous birth, was bound to turn out true.) Ananya completes. 

"Baat main bata rahin hun aapko, par yeh toh hona hi tha." (I am telling you all this, yes, but this all was bound to happen.) When silence still envelops the room she further continues. 
"Us wakt jab Ma ne woh baat kahi thi toh woh Shivling ke samne thi. Yeh sab unki marzi se ho raha hai, humari nahi." (At the time when mom uttered those words, she was in front of the Shivling. All this is happening because of his wish not because of us.) 

Every one in the room was stubbed to silence. They were not sure on how to react at what Ananya revealed. 

"Aapko kaise pata?" (How do you know this?) Draupadi's voice makes everyone turn to the girl. 

"Tumhare Mitra ne bataya." (Your friend told me.) Ananya smiles at her. 

"Mitra?" (Friend?) Gandhar Raj raises the question, trying to find a way to prove supporting Draupadi wrong.  

Ananya nods, smirking at them. "Mitra Govind." (Friend Govind.) 

Gandhar Raj Shakuni actually deflates, sitting back in his seat, disappointed at hearing that.
There was no point in fighting about this. 

"Theek hai." (Al right.) Maha Mahim speaks up. "Agar Raj Kumari Draupadi ko iteraaz nahi hai toh uski shaadi Panchoan Pandeva's se hogi." (If Princess Draupadi has no qualms, she will be married to all of the Pandeva's.) 

Thinking about for a minute Draupadi nods. 
And smiles pulls upon everyone's face except some *Cough* Shakuni *Cough*. 

Dushala cheers, "Aao Bhabhi, hume ek shaadi ki taiyaari karni hai." (Come on Bhabhi we need to prepare for a wedding.) 
Grabbing Ananya she runs out of the room and Ananya follows laughing at excitement her sister- in- law was showing.  

ᴄᴏᴍᴘʟᴇᴛᴇ! 

ρℓєαѕє тєℓℓ мє, ωнαт уσυ тнιηк.
ι αм єαgєяℓу ωαιтιηg ƒσя уσυя тнσυgнтѕ.