Kairavi

Chapter 25

"You created this deception so that you and your clan could feast on us?!" Bheem raged at Hidimba. "No I was going to get you out of-"
"ENOUGH! I don't give traitors a chance to explain themselves." He cut her off. "But listen to-" she started again.
"I SAID ENOUGH! For the first time in my life, I liked a girl. And what did she do? Conspire to get us killed?" He vented on.

"Bhratashree, but she went against her brother. And moreover, she begged for my life. Why would she do that if she was a participant in the conspiracy?" Kairavi defended her. "But she lured us here." Nakul fumed. "Arya, did you see her brother? Do you think he would've spared her life if she didn't comply with him?" Hidimba hung her head in dejection, tears threatening to spill out.

"Yatharth Chandraputri. So now, as a compensation, devi Hidimba will show us the way out of here." Yudhishthir spoke up. Disappointment clouded over her face as she looked at Vrikodar; eyes pleading for forgiveness.

"Bhupati!" A subordinate ogre appeared out of nowhere and bowed before Bheem. "Whose what?" He was startled.
"You killed our previous king Hidimb. So now you have to take his place as the rakhshasraj and marry kumari  Hidimba as per our traditions." He elucidated.
"But that's not possible. We cannot settle among the demon community for the rest of our lives." Kunti said, dismissing the proposal.

"Mai, please. I love your son." Hidimba folded her hands. "But putri, how can a human marry-" "Why not, mai? Which of your ved says that it isn't appropriate?"

Kunti fell deep into contemplation. She walked upto her and took her hands in hers. "Mai, I know you are the Rajmata of Hastinapur and these are the pandavs. The ogre community cannot get a better ruler than your son." Her eyes met Hidimba's.

"But I'm afraid, we won't be able to stay here for long. Bheem has killed both Bakasur and your brother. It won't take Gandhar Raj  much to know our whereabouts." 

"Just for a while, until I bear a son, so that he can succeed Vrikodar to the throne of Kamyak. I promise I won't ask you to stay even a day longer, after my son is born." she pleaded.

Kunti knew what a kingless kingdom's future looks like, so she agreed.
"Alright, putri. I accept you as my daughter in law. But bear in mind that you'll have to suffer long periods of separation from your husband." Hidimba smiled at her.

The wedding took place as per the rituals of the ogres. But however strange the ceremony might have looked; the happiness on Hidimba and Bheem's face were a sight to behold. The ogres rolled their tongues, hollered and cheered when it came to taking vows.

"I think we missed those vows." Sahadev nudged Kairavi. "If we try that, God knows whose spirit we would end up summoning, Arya." she joined him in his little attempt to flirt with her.

The dinner that followed was pure grandeour. Numerous baskets of various fruits, asur cuisines and sweets were kept before the new Bhupati as a token of respect. Bheem was over the moon seeing the vast array of food after so long.
"Oh dear laddoo. It's been a yug since I saw you last." He said while sniffing it.

"No no, my love. How can I forget my first wife?" He spoke again as if the laddoo was talking to him. "Excuse me?" Hidimba glared at Vrikodar. "Who's your first wife?"

Bheem's eyes went big when he saw the frightening look on her face. There were certainly some perks of being a rakhshasi. "You, Hidimbi. Who else?" She narrowed her eyes. "I-I was just joking, I didn't-"
"Bhabhishree, he loves food more than anything else. So, best of luck with your married life."

"Arjun! Stop tattling on me! Mata, look what he's doing." He whined. "And are you seriously jealous of this laddoo? A poor, lifeless laddoo?!" He turned to Hidimba.

"Hmph! You better give me more attention from now on, Bhupati." She huffed.
"Hey Narayan, save me. What have I gotten myself into?" He wailed. "Bhratashree, this agony is called a wife." Nakul jeered.
He did a double-take after spotting Kairavi's furious gaze riveted on him. "Sometimes I wonder whether it was Purochan who set Varnavat on fire or that explosive anger of yours." he said nervously.

"You'd never know." She challenged and everyone laughed.

9 months later :

"Jiji, have patience. Stay with me, you're doing fantastic!" Kairavi encouraged Hidimba, who had been in labour for a few hours. She screamed and thrashed in pain as the contractions grew stronger.

"Rajkumari, we need more rags. The bleeding is excessive and the baby isn't ready to come out yet." The mid wife said.
Kairavi rushed out of the cave at once to fetch some clean cloths. Bheem was pacing up and down restlessly and the other pandavs sat with their mother, waiting eagerly for the birth.

He pulled her by the shoulders as soon as Kairavi came out of the cave. "How is she? How far is my son? Why is she screaming so loud, it's heart wrenching." Worry leaked from his voice.
"Bhrata, she is Vayuputra Bheem's wife. This pain can do nothing to her. She is fine, but seems like my nephew doesn't want to vacate his mother's womb yet." She informed.

Bheem inhaled sharply.
"Putra, don't give so much pain to your mother. I understand, you don't want to abandon your little safe haven; but the world outside isn't so bad either.

I know I'm in no place for saying that; for my own cousins plotted my death twice. But look, I'm here with your mother now. Happier than ever before.
I would've never discovered that adversity nestles joy in itself too, if it wasn't for these people and your mata.
You are taking birth in such a lineage where nobody falls out of love, son;

in your pitamah Pandu's family.

Please give me a chance to show you what this really means."
He tried to raise his unborn child's morale. Kairavi became very sentimental on seeing the emotional side of the person who had mercilessly massacred two asurs. "He's definitely-"

Before she could complete her sentence, a spine chilling scream reverberated from the cave. She sprinted back inside at once and Bheem fell on his knees. "Bhrata Bheem!" Arjun, Nakul and Sahadev rushed to his side.

An exhilarating vagitus cut through the defeaning silence which was engulfing Vrikodar's heart. His eyes lit up with hope. Kuruvansh's first valiant descendant had blessed the world with his birth.
"Mata, is that my son?" Bheem had never sounded so vulnerable before.

"Abhinandan putra!" Kunti congratulated by stroking her anxious son's head. He touched her and Yudhishthir's feet to seek blessings. "May your son be invincible, just like you." The former yuvraj said.

After a while Kairavi stepped out, cradling the new-born in her arms. His hairless head shone bright in the little light that penetrated in the forest. His eyes held warmth just like Hidimba's, and body was robust like his father's. Although, he was just an infant, it seemed like he could toss veteran wrestlers without breaking a sweat.

"Give him a name, putra." Kunti said. "Me?"
"Who else then?" Kairavi laughed. "Okay, let me think."

"His head is so shiny, just like a bald ghada. Therefore, he will be called Ghatotkach." He declared while taking him from Kairavi's arms. "Welcome to the world my tiny rakhshas." said the smiling father, beaming with pride.

"Arya." Hidimba entered the scene. "Put a tilak on your son's forehead with your blood." Bheem was taken aback.

"But why?" He protested. "A rakhshas becomes a youth after being ordained by his father's blood." She explained. Bheem nodded and put Ghatotkach on a raised platform and pulled out a knife from his scabbard.

He slashed his thumb and swiped it across his son's forehead. Almost instantly, Ghatotkach began increasing in size. He went on, until he reached Bheem in height, his arms got huge and the rest of his body buffed up. He looked like the true reflection of Vrikodar.

"Pranipat Bapu."