How can she reap hope on a land where despair plants seeds of agony and sufferings?
Whose destiny is written with the ink of misery, how can she rinse the stains with mirth?
How can she put on the cloak of patience when life strips her out of it eve...
"We are ready to leave!" Nakul called out from the cowshed as he untethered their cows and set them free. Kairavi appeared in the doorway carrying some essentials in two bundles of cloth.
After spending nine years, it was time for them to abandon Kosal for good. Her husband loaded the luggage on the back of a horse that he had bargained in the city market. That way, they could reach Dwaita faster without worrying about being attacked by wild animals on the way.
Kairavi sighed, looking around the area one last time before they moved out for once and all.
Nakul put a hand on her shoulder, "We are taking so much from this place. Don't brood over what we are leaving behind." She nodded and mounted the horse with the Madreya's help.
With that, they took off to the forest where the rest of the Pandav brothers were residing.
It didn't take them more than a day to reach Yudhishthir's abode. Draupadi had been on her toes, waiting eagerly for both of them.
The creases of anxiety disappeared from her forehead as she noticed the blurry silhouette of the couple at a distance.
She rushed to the front of the house, face beaming with happiness seeing her sister-in-law nearly after a decade.
Chandraja hopped off the horse and immediately rushed towards Panchali to be welcomed by an adoring embrace. One could argue that the ladies hadn't been this thrilled in a while.
Yudhishthir appeared around the corner of the house, dropping the work that he had been doing to greet his brother and Kairavi.
"Pranipat, jyeshth." Nakul crouched to touch his feet as the two queens giggled and chatted away, too occupied to pay attention to their husbands. Seeing Nakul, Arni sobered up and walked towards the eldest Pandav with a slight smile on her face.
Much to Yudhishthir's surprise, she followed Nakul's suit and touched his feet solemnly. Years before, she had refused to seek his felicitations out of resentment of the dice game, but now, she seemed to have forgiven him, believing that he had atoned for his mistakes to be a wiser man.
The day couldn't get any better. The eldest Kaunteya could finally rest at night with the satisfaction of procuring the pardon of the woman he had wronged. But all damages can be repaired, and hers will be too.
"If it isn't my boneheaded brother!" Exclaimed someone from behind. Nakul and Kairavi turned around to find Bheem standing beside Sahadev, holding a bunch of banana leaves in his hand.
Both of their faces were graced with beaming grins as they finally reunited with each other.
"Bhrata Bheem! When did you come back?" Quite taken aback by the surprise, Nakul jogged his way towards his brother as Arni followed. "Coincidentally, Sahadev and I arrived at the same time."
A series of jolly conversations ensued between the four brothers before Panchali ushered them all inside the house.
They discussed everything that happened in the nine years they had been apart, including the incident with Lord Budh.
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