ᴄʜᴏɪᴄᴇꜱ | Republished ✓

65. The leftover Boon.

Matsya Desh:

The six brothers and their wives, excluding Advika, along with Maharaja Virata and his wife Maharani Sudeshna, sat in the open veranda of the palace terrace, while Advika was busy speaking with Krishna.

"Samrat, I hope the food was to your and your family's liking?" asked Sudeshna softly.

"Indeed, it was. I believe Bheem was rather happy with the tasty dishes," commented Karna, looking towards Bheem, who nodded.

"Yes, Jyesht. It was good," said Bheem, with a small smile. Vandita sat beside him, and they whispered with each other occasionally.

"If you give permission, I would like to say something, Samrat," said Virata, a bit hesitantly.

Karna smiled and nodded, "Please Maharaja, no need to be so hesitant."

"We have heard tales of your sons' heroics. If it is possible, I would like to propose an alliance between one of your sons and my daughter, Uttara," said Virata, still a bit hesitant.

Karna's face blanked a bit, while his brothers exchanged glances with their respective spouses. Virata and Sudeshna looked at each other, wondering if they had been too forward.

"Maharaja, I won't deny I like Uttara. Arjun has nothing but praises for her. She would be a wonderful addition to our family. But, in our family, we do not do anything without consulting with each other and the kids, if it involves them. I can't promise anything without speaking to them," said Karna, using every ounce of diplomacy.

As Sudeshna's face fell a bit, Arjun spoke up, "Jyesht is correct, Maharaja. Isn't Uttara a teenager currently? Let her enjoy her life before she has to choose her life partner."

"Yes, Arya is correct. We aren't saying no; it's just that we need to speak with the kids and know their preferences before committing to anything. It is them who have to marry, after all. Not us," added Draupadi.

Virata smiled thoughtfully, while Sudeshna also looked a bit perky at the not-complete-no.

"Of course. As you wish. I hope I wasn't too forward," said Virata, with joined hands.

"Not at all Maharaja. Every father has the right to find the best possible groom for their daughter," said Yuddhisthir, with a smile. Karna simply nodded back, with a smile.

Virata smiled at the words of the Yuvraja. They were such down-to-earth people.

"It reminded me, we have girls in our family too whom we need to find grooms for," commented Devanshi, thoughtfully.

"I had no idea there were princesses in Indraprastha. We only heard of princes," said Sudeshna, curious.

"No Maharani, we have a lot of daughters. Aparna, Jyesht's daughter, is the eldest princess of Indraprastha. Then Dhruvi, bhrata Yuddhisthir's daughter, and Anaya, who is Jyesht's youngest child. Then Bhavya, Jyoti, and Harshada, daughters of bhrata Arjun, bhrata Nakul and mine, respectively," replied Sahadev with a gentle smile.

"We will get six son-in-laws then!" said Vritika, with a soft, excited clap of her hands.

"Yes, but my Aparna's swayamvar or finding any good alliance is a first priority. Then my Dhruvi's. Our other daughters are still small enough. We will have years for them," said Devanshi thoughtfully.

All the brothers' faces specifically fell at that. Kalyani, who noticed, giggled at their faces.

"What happened?" asked Draupadi, a bit confused.

"Look at their faces, Jiji. They look like as if their daughters are about to leave their home or something," said Kalyani, still giggling a bit.

Everyone who was listening to their conversation looked at the faces of the males, who actually looked a bit sad.