➸ 𝓦𝓸𝓻𝓭 𝓬𝓸𝓾𝓷𝓽: ２ ４ １ ０   

➸ 𝓢𝓾𝓶𝓶𝓪𝓻𝔂: 𝒲𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝒾𝒻 𝒜𝓈𝒽𝓌𝒶𝓉𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓂𝒶 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒦𝒶𝓇𝓃 𝓈𝓉𝑜𝓅𝓅𝑒𝒹 𝒟𝓊𝓇𝓎𝑜𝒹𝒽𝒶𝓃𝒶 𝓌𝒽𝑒𝓃 𝒽𝑒 𝓌𝒶𝓈 𝒹𝒾𝓈- 𝓇𝑜𝒷𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒟𝓇𝒶𝓊𝓅𝒶𝒹𝒾? 
𝒲𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝒹𝑜 𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓎 𝓁𝑒𝒶𝓇𝓃? 

➸ 𝓑𝓪𝓬𝓴 𝓢𝓽𝓸𝓻𝔂: 𝒯𝒽𝑒 𝒫𝒶𝓃𝒹𝑒𝓋𝒶'𝓈 𝒽𝒶𝓋𝑒 𝓁𝑜𝓈𝓉 𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓂𝓈𝑒𝓁𝓋𝑒𝓈 𝓌𝒽𝒾𝓁𝑒 𝓅𝓁𝒶𝓎𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒹𝒾𝒸𝑒 𝑔𝒶𝓂𝑒 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝓃𝑜𝓌, 𝒹𝓇𝒶𝓊𝓅𝒶𝒹𝒾 𝓉𝑜𝑜. 

➸ 𝓡𝓮𝓵𝓪𝓽𝓲𝓸𝓷𝓼𝓱𝓲𝓹𝓼: 𝒩𝑜 𝓃𝑒𝓌 𝓇𝑜𝓂𝒶𝓃𝓉𝒾𝒸𝑒 𝓇𝑒𝓁𝒶𝓉𝒾𝑜𝓃𝓈𝒽𝒾𝓅.
𝒞𝒶𝓃𝑜𝓃 𝓅𝒶𝓇𝒾𝓃𝑔𝓈 𝑜𝓃𝓁𝓎. 

⋆ ——————————✧◦♚◦✧——————————⋆  

THE SUN SET IN THE SKY as fresh colors brushed upon an artists canvas, as if those rays were destined to create a great work of art – one given to those open to capturing simple moments in the soul. 

The glamour lies within the effervescent sky during a sunset. It combines the serenity of the auburn sun, pale pink hues, and the rich light radiating from the ends of the to the last grain of sand in the ocean to achieve absolute perfection. 

Sunset today was similar, his eyes drifted to the horizon, the sky was pink and the sharp prongs of bare trees had ripped a hole in the clouds. While the other tree's rustled as the breeze blew softly through their leaves, the sunlight shining through exposing colors of green and orange of all shades. Through the wound the colors of winter bled and burnt his mind. 

He sighed softly, as tears started to prickle his eyes. 
These things were now heaving him out. How could it not? 

"You are worrying to much." A voice says from his right. 

"How can I not?" 

"Never said that you should stop worrying completely, just have some faith too." 

"Have faith in whom?" 

"God, Vasu. The eternal God above." Ashwatthama says exasperated. 

"I was never shown his kindness." Karn sighs. "I am not complaining, you know. It just kind of hurts to know that some people have been blessed such while the others are left to fend on themselves. What kind of arrangement is this? There should be equality, right?" 

Ashwatthama places a hand on his friends shoulder and squeezes it. "There is equality, Karn. The world has a balance. And that is it, it is in its best form. There is always equality, the weighing scale of happiness and sadness can never be un- even." 

"Oh really, Gurudeva?" A voice mocks from the room. 

The two friends who stood in the balcony, turned in a mili- second to look at their other common friend. Duryodhana. Or as they preferred to call him Suyodhana. 

"Suyo!" They walk towards him, scanning him for an injury. 

"Not to complain or something ...." Suyodhana begins. "But why the fuck am I here? How did I even come here?" 

"What is the last thing that you remember?" Karn questions. 

"Talking to Mama Shree and my brothers?" Suyodhana answers after a while.
He clutched his head suddenly as if something hurt him there. 

"Are you alright?" Karn sat at the edge of Duryodhana's bed and pushed him down to lay on the bed. "Why did you get up? What was the need? Of course, your head will pain. You never listen to what we say, how can you be so careless, Suyo?" 

"Stopping being a mother hen!" Ashwatthama wails at Karn. 

"Exactly, my head is already paining and spinning, you do not need to add on to the pain."  Suyodhana huffs angrily. 

"You both act like bloody five year old's !" Karn sulks. 

"Sorry Momma!" Duryodhana pouts looking at his best friend with mischief and innocence both in his eyes at the same time. 
He looked like a five year old kid, begging his mother to forgive him. 

"You better be!" Karn replies wryly. 
And the three boys giggle at their acting. 

"So? How did I come here?" Suyodhana questions, once they have stopped laughing. 

"What all do you really remember?" Ashwatthama questions. 

"Do not put stress on your head, just tell us slowly, we have all the time of the world." Karn warns his friend. Karn did not want his best friend to be in pain. 

"Pandeva's came to Hastinapur?" He questions after some moments. "And I sat opposite to Yudhishit for something?" 

Karn winced at the name while Ashwatthama had to struggle to keep control on his laugh.
Suyo had used the name many times before, all three of them did but still this reaction always found its place on their face when they heard or said it. 

"What happened?" Suyodhana looked at his friends suspiciously. "Why do I feel as if there is something big that you are not informing me about?" 

"There was something big that happened, Suyo." Ashwatthama says hesitantly. 

"But you do not need to worry about it right now." Karn speaks in between. "Rest up, get well and then we can talk all about it." 

"Did I do something wrong?" Suyodhana makes a face. 

Karn and Ashwatthama exchange looks. And came to a decision. 

"You did not." Karn said in a firm tone. 

"What happened was not your fault." Ashwatthama re- assures his friend. 

"Ok, forget it." Karn waved his hand. 
"Lets talk about something ..... nice." He finished lamely. 

And his two friends laughed at his predicament. 
"Why do you even try, Vasu?" Ashwatthama snorts out. 

"I know about something to talk that would be nice." Suyodhana says in the silence. 

"What?" The friends say in sync as they turn to him together. 
Creepy!  

"Food." Suyodhana says. 
When the two friends continue to look at him confused, he makes a face. 

"I am hungry, dumbasses." He exclaims. 

"Oh! Right! Yes. Yes." Karn nods. "I will order some food to be brought." 

Karn walks out of the room, leaving Ashwatthama and Suyodhana behind. 
Just as Karn walked out of the room, Ashwatthama flopped back on to the bed, lying down. While Suyodhana was half laid half sitting on the bed. 

"Is he alright?" Suyodhana asks softly, still staring at the door of the room. 

"Worried, other than that, yes, he is fine." Ashwatthama answers after few moments of hesitation. He did not know if he should be saying this. 

"He is a mother hen!" Suyodhana pouts. 

"For the one's he loves." Ashwatthama agrees, ignoring his friends pouting. 

Silence encases the room as the two friends are lost in their own thoughts. 
Ashwatthama was worried about the coming days. It was going to be a tough job to explain Suyo about all that happened. And to deal with the royals of Hastinapur. 
Suyodhana was wondering about Karn and Ashwatthama. They were acting a little weird and a hell lot of concerned that they normally are. So, what happened? From what he had gathered from the small tasks was that something happened. Something big. And it was in- directly his fault. But what was it exactly? 

"Suyodhana!" Ashwatthama shrieked suddenly. 

"What!?" Suyodhana was instantly on watch, the warrior in him ready to fight.
But there seemed nothing wrong in the room? 

"Do not think!" Ashwatthama says, his face as serious and straight as before. 

"What? Why!?" Suyodhana looks confused at his friend. 

"Doing anything for the first time is difficult. And Karn will scold me if you hurt yourself!" Ashwatthama says, a wide smirk on his face. 

"You dunderhead!" Suyodhana was instantly annoyed at his first friend. 

'He is growing into a cheeky little bastard.' 

"I know right?" Vasu's voice, floats in the room and Suyo realizes he says that aloud.
And his second thought was that Karn brought food with him. 

"Excuse me!" Ashwatthama looked outright affronted at them both. "How can you both even think about it?" 

"There is nothing to think in it, Ash!" Karn says, slowly as of trying to explain something to a kid. "It is very clear once some one knows you." 

"I want to have food!" Suyodhana stops the fire before it could even raise to heights. 

"Of course!" Karn nods at the maids behind him. "Please set it out there." 
Karn had pointed in the direction of balcony. 

And thus, they sat down in the balcony and had their food, teasing and joking around. 

-- Time Skip -- 

"Ok, that is it!" Suyodhana slammed his hand on the table outright. "It has been more than two weeks, I am healed and now I remember these half things; it is all getting to confusing. Tell me what happened?"

"It has been fifteen days!" Karn says.

"Do I look like I give a damn?" Suyodhana questions back his tone equally calm.
Ashwatthama who had his legs on the table and was swinging in his chair, snorts.

"Come on guys! Tell me na!" Suyodhana whines, before he starts pouting.

"Mummy, look at him, he is being a bad baby!" Ashwatthama talks in baby voice as he points at Suyodhana. While making weird expression.

Karn rolls his eyes as he sits down on a chair, just after he pushed Ashwatthama's leg off the table almost making him fall of the chair.

"What do you remember?" Karn questions with a sigh.

"Yudhishit coming to Hastinapur, with his Charas (drug) squad." Suyodhana answers instantly.

Karn rolled his eyes as Ashwatthama crackled opposite to him.

"Well, as you said Yudhishit and his uhm- charas squad were called to Hastinapur to play a game of dice." Karn says bluntly.

"What the fuck!?"

"And how much was I involved in it?" Suyodhana asks after few moments of tense silence between them.

"Much." Karn says shortly.

"And I do not remember this all happening because?"

"You were drugged." Ashwatthama says bluntly.
"Your mind was not really in your conscious state. You weren't really aware of what was happening. You were being controlled."

"And who do you both suspect did the drugging thing?" Suyodhana further probes the two.

"Shakuni"

"Shakuni" Ashwatthama and Karn say in perfect sync.

"You should have seen his face when I declared about your state in the court." Ashwatthama shakes his head. "He was flabbergasted."

"How did you find out that I was not being my own self?" Suyodhana asks curious.

"Because we know you?" Ashwatthama answers, even though it sounded more like a question.

"Try again." Suyodhana dead pans him.

Karn sighed before he started recounting what exactly happened. "In the game of dice, Yudishit was loosing at all of them. He put all of his brothers and then even himself on bet. But all the times he lost. His kingdom, throne, everything."

He takes a deep breath before saying this, "Shakuni pushed him to put Panchurail on bet."

"Let me guess, he lost that round too?"

"Yep!" Suyodhana's two friends nod in perfect sync.

"And then?" Suyodhana looks at his two friends expectantly.

"You ordered, Dushassan to bring her to court by dragging her by her hair." Karn answers his voice soft and understanding, "Se pleaded for help but no one listened to her, people rather were insulting her, and then -"

"And then what?" Suyodhana asks, his voice shook as he seemed shocked.

"And then you ordered to disrobe her." Ashwatthama decided to pull the band aid straight off the wound. He knew that this was going to hurt Duryodhana a lot but they had to do this.

A look of straight guilt crossed Suyodhana's face.
He had ordered that. He had voiced that. He had laughed at it. He. Just plain simple He.

Feeling two pairs of arm wrapping around him, makes Suyodhana look up at his two friends.
At his two best friends. His supporter in all times.

"I am sorry!"

"It was not your fault."

─── ⋆ ⋅ ☆ ⋅ ⋆ ──  

Everyone in the Hastinapur palace was in shock. They were not able to understand dynamics of things now. It had all got too confusing since that fateful day, a week ago.

As soon as the Silver Trio walked out, Maha Mahim decided to take matters in his hands and dissolved the court, sending people out of there.
Draupadi still stood in the middle of the throne room, on the dais, she was in shock. How come this happened to her? But at least it was not that bad.

Kunti and Gandhari who had rushed to the throne room on hearing about the order were relieved to know that nothing happened to Draupadi. The young lady was perfectly fine.

But where was Suyodhana?
Gandhari had been hard to deal with. For nobody knew what to exactly tell her.

Her son had ordered to disrobe Draupadi?
Her son was on drugs?
Her son had been taken away?
Her son could not been seen by anyone from the Kuru family?

Gandhari was livid. Who dare drug her son?
Because she very well knew that he would never do drugs. 

So, least to say, the last week had been a hectic and confusing week for the royals of Kuru family, the palace dwellers were not sure of what they were supposed to do. 

Any letter or messenger that was sent by them were returned without a word. 
They had no contact with their Duryodhana. And they were not even sure that he was fine now.

Maha Mahim Bishma and Maha Mantri were keeping an eye out on Gandhar Raj Shakuni.
That man seemed to have a overflowing tumbler of problems, and once in a while he would fling one of them in for the Kuru royal family to deal with.

Gandhari could not be consoled regardless of everything. 
She was worried for her son. Was he alright? Had he woken up? Was he having enough sleep? Was he eating enough? Was he healed, now? 

The Pandeva's were stunned. They did not know what exactly they had to think of this new development they came across. They could had had no reaction to it other just a lost look on their faces. 

Was Duryodhana not as he seemed? 
Was Duryodhana under drugs all these years? 
Was Duryodhana still a git, when not under drugs?  
Was Duryodhana merely a puppet in someone's hands? 
Was Duryodhana still in the fight to take the throne from them? 
Was Duryodhana under drugs same as the Duryodhana who is not? 

The Kuru family was in an uproar, and so was the city. The eldest son of their current king was missing. The Crown Prince of Hastinapur was missing. 
How would it not be.  

ᴄᴏᴍᴘʟᴇᴛᴇ ꜰᴏʀ ᴛʜᴇ ᴅᴀʏ!! 

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ι αм єαgєяℓу ωαιтιηg ƒσя уσυя тнσυgнтѕ.  

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