BUTTERFLY FROM THE FLAME (JOY AND GENTLENESS OF THE FLAME)

Chapter 54

"NO!" the twins chitrasen and satyasen said. "Beta!" draupadi said a bit firmly but still with full of motherly love and affection. "Maiya!" chitrasen and satyasen copied. Though the twins were still very young they just like their every sibling took after their mother, mischievous and adorable. But these two were the mixture, total copy of their mama, krishna along with their mother draupadi. Just imagine having two male twins who were barely toddlers with the same energy level as krishna and their mother draupadi, it was like handling two krishna and two draupadi at the same time.

"Why?" draupadi asked. "Feed baba as well." chitrasen and satyasen said moving towards karn who was enjoying the drama while doing some work. "Wah! Wah! Dil jitliya! Muh ki baat chinli!" karn said picking up his twins and placing them on his lap. "Dasi! Bring food for samrat as well." draupadi said. Draupadi cleaned up the table as karn was busy entertaining and being entertained by his kids. Draupadi smiled seeing her love and twins together, later the dasi brought the food and kept it on the table and left. 

"Ek- " "Ekant!" as karn was about to order privacy the kids ordered in the cute voice trying to copy their parents making everybody chuckle. The dasis, das and soldiers quickly went away hearing their little twin princes. Draupadi took  tied her saree's drape secured it tugging on her waist near the plates and sat on the throne like sofa taking the plate of food. Karn sat comfortably facing draupadi as the four were sitted on one grand seat placing his twins comfortably on his lap and draupadi started feeding the three.

"Baba! Story!" chitrasen whined. "Which?" karn asked. "Mata!" satyasen said. "What mata?" draupadi asked. "How and when you married." satyasen and chitrasen said. "Now that's a bit too much complicated." karn said. "Still!" the twins demanded. "You both are way stubborn than me, bhaiya and dau mixed." draupadi said making the twins giggle. "So your matamah and matamahi arranged a swayamvar for your mata." karn said and paused seeing that his kids were about to ask something.

(K- Karn, Chitrasen- C, Satyasen- S) 

C-"Why so? I heard that jyesth mama promised her icchya vivah."

K- "You will know later in the story"

K- "That time we were disguised as brahmans, the potter in whose house we were living in informed us about the swayamvar. We went to the swayamvar to see your maiya bringing the Kindhura bow and doing its pooja."

S- "The bow in the royal temple right?"

K- "Yes the same. Many prince came try but failed then there was a second round and again princes came and tried but failed."

C- "Then how did you? You are disguised as brahmans and only princes were allowed."

S- "But why were you even disguised as brahmans?"

D- "That's another story why and that you will know after you grow up. Now eat and listen to your baba carefully." 

C & S- "But why was the task so easy? Picking up the bow and why everybody failed? How everybody failed?" 

K- "Because the bow is no ordinary its shiva bhagwan's bow and only your maiya can lift it and that particular day whoever would marry her could only lift it. Plus do you think your maiya's brothers would let any prince come and marry her without any tasks? Your mama dhristadyum then presented the task to everybody. The task was to lift the bow, string it then hit the circling fish's eye up in the air way above in the middle of the universe just by looking at its reflection in the water down used for as its reflection. And that's the question to your first answer."

C & S- "And second? Third? AND THE REST?"

D- "Have patience beta. Let arya answer and eat fast or your baba will stop saying the story." 

K- "Then your mamashree krishna came and suggested your matamah drupad to let the brahmans to participate as well and they invited the brahmans. We too were in the brahman area. Every brahman wanted to go but were fearful that they would be humiliated and had lost hope to win as no princes could. Your pitashree arjun wanted to go but stayed back as he wanted our permission but was shy to ask. We sensing his wanting to go ordered him to go and he happily like a joker smiling like a fool he is went and picked up the bow and targeted the fish and won. Story finished."

C- "I knew my pitashree would win!"

S- "Who were the ones who couldn't marry my maiya?"

D- "No need of that"

K- "Ofcourse there is! Lets me boast how those fools couldn't get you. So first was your mami rukmini's brother rukmi and rest of his brothers, chitangadh prince, kashi prince, shivi prince, chedi prince sisupal, your KAKASHREES, my DEAR BROTHERS, 101! HUNDRED AND ONE BROTHERS FAILED!" 

C- "Okay but if pitashree arjun won then how did maiya marry rest of you? Wasn't she supposed to only marry pitashree arjun?"

Draupadi and karn shared a look hearing their older twin's innocent question. "But I heard pitashree arjun eloped maiya from her wedding." prativindya said entering the room along with abhimanyu and suthanu. "That also her wedding with kakashree duryodhan." abhimanyu said. "That means laxman and laxmanna would be our sibling instead of cousins and kakashree duryodhan would be our father instead of you?" suthanu asked. "NO WAY IN HELL! SHE IS OURS ANF ONLY OURS!" arjun nearly shouted entering the scene startling everybody. 

"Then say us the story!" the kids said. "Abhi, thanu, prati have you finished eating?" draupadi asked making them nod. "Then take your brothers along with you as well. Next time arya will say you the story." draupadi said feeding last morsel to the twins and karn. "Baba! You said today you will play with us along with teaching us archery." abhimanyu said excitedly. "Then lets go!" arjun said all the children followed him. "Sorry." karn said embracing draupadi. "Why arya?" draupadi asked. "You being a human is divided among us." karn said. "Correction GREAT, GENEROUS WOMAN." draupadi said. "No wonder from where our children got their sassiness from. Still your tyag is very big nobody in the world can do this." karn said. "Afterall I am the great danveer karn's beloved wife." draupadi said making karn chuckle. 

"Our children are smart they will understand because I am their mother." draupadi said making karn place a kiss on her temple while chuckling. "My head was really hurting but you not only killed my headache but my bad day along with our twin diamonds." karn said. "Then let me kill every bad day of our year." draupadi said making karn look down at her as karn was embracing her tight resting his head on her head and draupadi's light body weight on his. Draupadi intertwined her right hand with his left and took it to her stomach and patted his hands. 

Karn was trying to understand what his wife was signalling and soon a whole lightning hit his head making him sit up straight along with draupadi and made her face him by holding her shoulders. Karn's expectant eyes were staring at her, draupadi slowly raised her eyes meeting his eyes. Seeing her shy, glistening eyes with a small shy small made his heart race for many reasons, one even during these many months of their marriage she still managed to make his heart race without doing anything and another it confirmed what he was expecting. Draupadi slowly nodded her head and slowly looked away. Karn's happiness knew no boundaries he was flying higher than the heaven. Karn threw himself on draupadi resulting her to fall back and rest her back on the high hand placement of the chair while giggling.

"My love, my life, my heart, my heart beat, my soul my everything, my beloved my wife. You made me the happiest for the fourth-no fifth time. Wait a minute your twin pregnancy was a surprise for everybody so does it count? Nevermind still. My child." karn said showering draupadi's face with kisses and utmost love and affection while caressing their expectation.