|| 𝐘𝐀𝐆𝐘𝐀𝐒𝐄𝐍𝐈 || 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐚 𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐧

𝟓|| 𝐀 𝐃𝐚𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐞𝐫||

"Look, how pretty my daughter is looking!" Tingling the jewels, Maa returned back. Maa came closer to me. Placing her little finger on the edge of her right eye, she took a tiny mark of Kohl and placed on my nape.

"May all evil eye away from my daughter." She kissed my forehead and smiles. "Your father want to see you. He asked me, he will come. Will you allow?"

"Offcourse Maa, offcourse." Encircling my arms, around her waist, I leaned. I felt the most beautiful shelter ever that time. Maa too embraced me, in the similar encircling of arms around mine. I felt to prosperous that moment, under my mother.

"Do my brothers also coming?"

"Yes they are-" Maa nodded cheerfully.

"Dhri too?"

"Yes, yes, yes-" Maa laughed. "Dhri is asking about Krishnaa, and Krishnaa about Dhri."

Maa walking here and there on the rooms, remained doing the little chores. But, inside me, another question was crumbling, and the darkness of that question clearly I could understood.

"Maa", finally I called her, again. Looking at me, nodded her head and assured me to ask the question.

"Maa", I looked at her. "Is my sister also coming?"

Maa was holding a vermilion vessel. At my question, she became soo awestruck that, one third of the vermilion falls on the floor.

"From w-where you know?"

"Maa", I continued, "So, I am till now introduced with several persons, first royals like you, Pitashree, Jyesth and all, and Dhrishtadyumna also a royal."

"Hmm" she lowered her head a bit. With the edge of index finger of adorned right palm, she wiped the corner of eyes.

"Then, all the ayurvatis, maids, armour guards, female guards, companions I recognised-"

"Yes, so?" She came close to me, leaving everything.

"But, after birth I saw another female beside you, most probably she was royal. She was wearing vibrant attire and jewelleries, and their was a turban on her head. Who was she? Why I didn't meet her or she didn't come to meet me when everyone come?"

Maa looked at my face. No expression was coming out, eyes were not blinking.
"Who told you about her?" She faintly asked to me.

"Maa-I heard" I said.

Maa stayed silent. Just a gentle nod she did.

"All saying", I continued, "There are princesses. Is it Maa?"

The fingers of hers around my arms became strong in grip. Two drops of tears silently rolled down her cheeks and she immediately hugs me tightly.

I was shocked. What I had asked that she behaved so weird, I thought to myself. I thought again if my question had hurt her.

"Maa, you don't have to reply if it is paining you. I won't ask about her again." I spoke at one go.

Maa wiped her teardrop. "No- no, it's okay." She replied.

"She is the offspring of us, first offspring of Maharaj Drupad and me. My marital life was also new, then only became a new mother, that also a girl." Maa's eyes shone glittering the oozed teardrop.
"Kingdom desired a male heir, their crown prince, upcoming ruler. Though as a queen I didn't have contrast wish, but for a mother a daughter is something very very different. Although sons understood their parents, mother, still there exist some small chit-chat, womanly tales, secrets that a mother only could share to a daughter and a daughter could understood. A son sympathize a mother but a daughter empathize. Even Mata Parvati too desired for a daughter."
"Your father wasn't unhappy. He with expanded arms took the daughter on her lap. That day Panchal was on festive mood. Maharaj distributed golds, calves, and wealths. Festing of brahmans were done.
"At the day end, when the sun were almost leaned under the horizon, at that moment, the sage Vyas came. He was dark as evening, eyes were like two shiny stars, attire were deep red. That day my heart was shaken with terror. Clutching baby Shikhandini in my arms my lips were automatically murmuring the chants of her wellbeing.
"That day what the sage told wasn't tolerable to me.
"After that I gave birth to many sons, but the affection towards my daughter I couldn't let go even knowing that she won't be my daughter forever. She isn't taking the lesson like a daughter.
"Even it was my fault.
"Your father penance for the revenge to Drona, sacrificed to get a son who can kill Drona, but we never assume of a daughter."
"When the sages announced and called me to be there for the birth of twins, a son and a daughter that hit me internally. Shikhandini was excited for her siblings, I was happy for my son, but daughter!" Maa sighed. "All remedies were ready for my bathing, still I delayed. Sitting on the steps of lake, I was thinking about Shikhandini. I weren't dressed up properly.
"I was late. After the birth of Dhrishtadyumna I reached in the sacrifical hall. You were still inside the fire, the fire was rising high. The sky grew in different shade of blue. The clouds concentrated around the fire of sacrificial pyre."

Maa touched my face just I am an imagination. I too looked at shiny face on the gloomy room.

"Shikhandini" I uttered. "So, Shikhandini is my sister."

"Hmm", Maa nodded tearfully, with a smile on her lips, caressing my face.

"I will be glad to meet her."

"She too", she said.

At that moment, the heavy footsteps audible outside the chamber. Shuffling hastily the silk curtains, a large figure entered.

"Forbearance" the voice thundered.

🌼🦋