Elements of Fire

73. Of Weaving a Bangle

"It is the Maharani's garden too" Karna answered after some time, smiling pleasantly at the surprise exuding from his queen's widening eyes, before turning to the sister and laughing softly, "Your Maharani has done a better job of it than I could."

"Now I understand" Sanitha began calmly,"We were—"

"Let's go now!! We are getting late! I want to play in the garden" this time an excitedly impatient Suritha interrupted.

"Of course" Karna replied chuckling, "My little girls are so impatient to go to the garden."

"Yes yes, now let's go!" Suritha exclaimed as she and her sister sprinted ahead with the royal couple following after them.

"My little girls are happy" Karna whispered to Draupadi before adding with a mischievous smile "All three of them."

Draupadi abruptly turned up to him but he was already walking ahead with the sisters, joking and laughing with them, and glad she was of it that the crimson blush that crept up her cheeks remained unseen by him, or so she thought.

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"See this knot here, and this vine here" Draupadi said showing a string of flowers to her two little students, "You have to turn over the vine through this loop."

She smiled to herself, observing her two attentive little students bent over making some little floral accessories. She tucked in another vine, tenderly touching the crudely braided tendrils of the stem, her mind relegating to the night before, the images of her husband's large hands dexterously placing one parting of hair over the other.

"Maharani I can't knot the final knot, the head band is opening every time" Suritha grumbled.

"Suritha patience is the one of the most fruitful and pertinent of all virtues" Drupadi said calmly, taking the floral work from the little girl's hand and weaving the last knots herself.

"But sometimes you need to bring a cut to it, having tremendous patience can also prove to be detrimental" a deep make baritone broke out from alongside her.

Draupadi's gaze shot up taking in the form of her husband sitting on the grass, his fingers and eyes focused on some of the flowers. It was a most unusual sight for her to witness.

"Aarya you are also making something?" She asked trying hard to keep the surprise off her voice.

"Not very different from what you ladies are doing but not very similar either" Karna answered before giving a satisfied smile and holding up a circular arrangement of blush pink rose in his hand, "There I made it!"

"What is that?" Sanitha gasped while her younger sister had already run up to Karna who was holding it up with it up with the air of a soldier who had just achieved a great victory.

"Let's see Suritha" Karna chuckled, slipping it into her hand and sliding it up her arm, "It is too big to be your bangle or even your armlet and certainly not a headband.."

"Then it will be my big sister's bangle" Suritha said giggling.

"Let's see..." Karna replied matching her enthusiasm but also putting up an act of seriousness, "It doesn't fit Sanitha either...now who can wear it?"

"Then see if it fits the Maharani" this time Sanitha chirped in excitedly, while Karna had already turned his gaze in the direction of his wife seated under the bright soft sunrays of the morning creating a rich golden aura around her.

The corner of his lips tugged up, as he let his eyes momentarily drink in the beauty of his pretty wife, made almost divine with the sunlight being reflected from her golden jewels, while the little pink rose buds from the bangle he held up framing her in his vision only added on to the charm and intoxication of sight before him.

"Maharaj..." Suritha's slow call startled him, "Why are you only holding it up like that?"

"Hunn...oh..." Karna mumbled moving closer to his wife and delicately taking her hand in his without any warning, "Let's try it on the Maharani."

Draupadi silently allowed him to slip it inside her wrist while keenly observing him in her vision made hazy by the some incomprehensible emotion making gradual bounces in her mind.

"There that is a perfect fit" Karna exclaimed softly once the little floral trinket adorned Draupadi's hand, "I said I will make some different from those headbands but something similar too so I made a bangle which is circular like those things you all are making."

While the youngest lady there clapped in admiration, the oldest only smiled though her eyes danced in an amusement rarely seen in them before and the lady in the middle of them could only laugh softly not completely ignorant of the kind of Karna's motive like her younger sister nor was in absolutely certainty of it like the Queen.

"Sanitha" Draupadi began quietly looking at her husband for some time before turning to the elder girl, if one observed keenly it was hard to miss the mischievous tug at the corner of her blush pink lips partially hidden by her elaborate nose ring.

"Sarith don't you think" Draupadi continued stealing a fleeting glance at her husband who was playing with little Suritha's hair while still giving her rapt attention, "That Maharaj has simply made an excuse to not work on something as large as an headband but also could not understand how to end the weaving so continued until he figured out and it resulted in a bangle for me."

She could stop the chuckle from leaving her this time as the two little girls burst into peals of laughter while her husband near stupefied look did not good in her attempts to reign over her own trials at not laughing.

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Hello to everyone

Firstly, I am not Nimarna, I am her close family member who has published the chapter on her behalf.

She is under bed rest for some days now and she drafted the chapter when she was allowed to sit up and since it would be bed time by the time she would be nearly done, she asked me to publish it.

I have tried to reply to each of the comments the way the way she does. I hope you liked the chapter and you and your families are keeping well :D :D