Elements of Fire

77. An Imperfection- 1

"I will have to drop them home before sunset" he said, half unwilling to rupture the comfortable silence deluging the moment, but did not want to make his wife uncomfortable. He did not fail to observe the immediate faltering in the prior smile gracing her lips.

Draupadi did not know why the little statement from her husband caused her to wince internally. She looked over at Suritha, her eldest daughter Suthanu was nearly the same age and her marriage was supposedly to be arranged soon. The fire born princess tried to fight of the sadness from washing over her craning her head more to see the girl better while nodding without looking at Karna.

"They can come anytime they wish to" Karna offered on seeing her changed expression, "I will have someone pick and drop them here whenever they want or your want Panchali."

"Thank you, Aarya" was all she managed to say, not trusting her voice to not break or even lash out.

"Uh...I should get to work" Karna mumbled awkwardly, heading to the windows untying the gold threaded ropes holding together the long heavy crimson fabrics hanging down. He lookedout, one of his important spies was scurrying through the pebbled paths of the royal gardens and in no time he too was hurrying down.

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The lithe form of the dusky skinned woman garbed in crimson silks ambled around the extended balcony of her private residential floor. Her eyes actively scanning the surroundings quiet in contrast to the leisurely pace of her steps.

The tall wooden frames set around aesthetically, swayed imperceptively while the rose buds growing on the vines entangled around them nodded more conspicuously to the cool evening breeze, its viewless wings made more fathomable by the sweet smell of distant fruit trees along with the heavenly fragrance of the nearby jasmines opening their tender petals, as the hues of purple and pink slowly made their way towards the saffron fabric of the sky concentrated at the red orb of the quickly setting sun.

Draupadi's breathing was peaceful; the sound of rustling of paper on a small table at the rear of her vision reminded her of the half finished letter to her siblings that needed completion. She sighed, not knowing how she would do it anytime soon recalling the condition her husband had attached to it the night before. She could not decipher if he really meant it but she would never allow her more vulnerable and unguarded self to be laid out before the 'King of Anga' in personal letters to her family.

Fatigue had blocked her from giving it a thought then and morning had brought with itself the pleasant distraction of the childish, frolicking innocence bundled up in the two energetic little girls. Her hand clutched at the end of the dainty pedestal table with a pretty flower vase atop it, as if on their own accord, their childish chattering and gay laughter had not just stretched her lips into wide grins and content smiles but had also singed at the forlorn mother's heart within her.

Yet again the surreptitious restlessness clawed at her being, like it did each time she found herself incapacitated in the articulation of her thoughts apropos of the matter she cradled with immense tenderness within her, and succeeding the reluctance that were meted out to her simplest desire to reestablish communications with her family the night before, she was even more perplexed.

Each day rippled with new dilemmas and labyrinthine emotions and interactions that she had been plunged into in a manner akin to the sudden fall and rise of notes of a veena (an ancient Indian musical instrument) being strummed to enkindle the fighting spirit of warriors in battle. The regal lady took a long breathe, focusing instead on enjoying the solitary moment immersed in the entrancing scenic beauty of the evening.

Flocks of birds sped across the firmament, the few signs of motion in its still and cloudless expanse. The Queen of Anga watched the sun go down behind some of the western guard towers of the palace leaving the black fluttering silhouette of the country's flag against the dusk sky speckled with a twinkling star hither and thither. It was not long after that her beautiful almond shaped eyes bore witness to the sun's ascent again but this time on one of the walks in the sprawling gardens downstairs, garbed in the tall, muscular, radiant embodiment, rendering its divinity bearable to human vision.

"Panchali"

She heard her name endeared behind her sooner than what her expectations had gauged. She turned around, unconsciously shaking her head in a gentle ladylike manner to keep the stray bangs of her loosely braided hair from falling across her face, whilst smiling in acknowledgement at the heaving form of her husband standing at the entrance.

"The servants told me I would find you here!" He continued unaware of the dissonance in his wife's mind. He was feeling fresh and revitalized from the long horse ride dropping the girls home, speeding through the uneven terrain unhindered by worldly responsibilities and daily mundanities.

"And what may have triggered such urgency on your part to find me?" Draupadi queried in response.

"Oh yes that" a wide grin framed the archer's handsome face as he answered the empyrean beauty standing forth him, "A gift for you Maharani"

Karna let his gaze touch upon the pretty face of his wife as both surprise and curiosity loomed in manifesting in the arching of a perfectly trimmed eyebrow and the slight parting of the luscious pink lips, while his hands held up a small, crudely made bouquet of marigolds and wild ferns.

"Well you see I had strict instructions to deliver them to you before they welt" he explained picking up a slow paced walk gesturing to Draupadi to join him, "That should explain my urgency to you Angraani."

"Oh Suritha and Sanitha are such sweet girls!" Draupadi replied fondly bringing the floral cluster to her nose breathing in the soothing fragrance of the yellow and saffron blooms.

"Indeed they are Panchali" Karna agreed not letting his eyes wander away from his wife. He had to bring to admittance in his own conscious mind that she could command the eye of any with the fine features and graceful poise whether she be decked up lavishly in heavy silks and gold or simply clad in light sarees and minimal jewels as she was now.

"Oh Panchali, How did the Gods create you with such flawless perfection!" He exclaimed before he had the chance to mentally censor his speech, as his nostrils were inundated with her ever ethereal fragrance.

"Aarya?" the gentle melodic voice only drew him closer to her while its owner now looked on with a quizzical expression.

Karna's gaze on her only intensified in response, the soft enquiring voice of his wife seemed not to break him from his reverent admiration. Watching her naturally rose-tinted cheeks rising sublimely at the sharp attractive cheekbones, he felt a sudden pang of jealousy twitch around his fingers at the soft tendrils of her black hair that brushed against the smooth skin of her cheeks every now and then.

"Smile more Panchali, you can send Goddesses to shame with your smile" he said out of nowhere, cautiously bringing his hand closer to her slender waist encircled by a simple kamarbandh(waist band) preventing the uttariya(upper garment worn by women) from flying completely askew by the breeze serenading unknown tunes through the evening.

The mighty wielder of the bow was delighting in the soothingly intoxicating beauty of the evening as well as that of his wife, choosing to revel in the beauty of her perfections, his keen eyes now flitting on sudden impulses to her partially exposed midriff when they spotted an imperfection.

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Hello everyone!

An update after a long while! I tried to write a longer chapter this time and I do hope you liked it!:D

Please let me know what you think of it and what you expect to happen next! It is always a pleasure going through your comments! ❤❤