Mistaken Vows: Draupadi and the Five Pandavas

Hastinapur

Panchali jolted awake at someone's voice and saw Rati's worried face. For a second she thought as is back at Panchal and almost laughed Rati's scaredy cat behaviour.

But then she felt the motion of the palanquin and reality registered. She was on the way to her in-laws house.

"Are we taking a rest?" she knew Hastinapur was not far, but she did not know how near it was too.

"We already did princess, you were sleeping so peacefully that the Rajkumar told me not to wake you up. We will be reaching the palace in some time, I just wanted to wake you up, so you feel prepared." Rati smiled at her softly but her eyes spoke something else and Panchali did not know what to make out of her smile.

Was she proud that whilst the Rajkumars were doing all the work she was taking her beauty sleep and ignoring her duty to her husbands?

"Do you need anything else princess?" Rati had already passed a glass of water in her hands.

"Rati, never do that again. Its my duty to look after my husbands and they always come before me and my needs. You are there to aid me in fulfilling my duties, not to hinder it." Panchali's heart was twisted into two. On one hand, she was disappointed that she was not there to look after her husbands and on the other hand she was confused about Pandav's actions.

She couldn't decide what to think of their actions, were they really concerned for her or they just simply wanted to avoid her.

None of them had met her eyes during the wedding as if she was a mistake they would rather avoid.

Shaking her head, she willed herself not to think such negative thoughts. The Pandavs were not like that. She had heard the tales of their triumphs and virtue.

She had heard the other princesses praise Rajkumar Yudhishthir's virtue, desire Rajkumar Bheem's power and caring nature, swoon over Rajkumar Arjun's protective personality, lust after rajkumar Nakul's beauty and compliment rajkumar Sehdev's understanding heart.

She hoped that all those lovely princesses she often met at banquets were not wrong.

She settled back against her small pillow. The lulling motion of palanquin making it hard for her to keep her eyes opened. Her drooping eyes landed on the red viel which lied crumpled in a corner and her sleep vanished.

Oh god, why was she not wearing that veil? The rajkumar were not to see her till the wedding rituals were done with. How, how can she be so careless about this?

"good way to go Draupadi, you are making mistakes even before you enter your new home." she grumbled under her breath and covered her face again.

Arjun could hear her grumble and couldn't control his smile. She was cute. Her voice was inaudible to bare ears, but he had all his energy directed towards her. He was aware of her every breath, every moment.

He was not being a creep. Or was he? Maybe.

But, keeping an eye out for your wife is not creepiness right? Her cries earlier had almost drowned him, it was hard for him to breath through the agony her wails were causing to him. But then her sleep provided a much needed reprieve to her and him. Guilt had hard rooted itself in his mind for not being able to do anything.

He thought what his brothers might be thinking? Were they thinking about her too? Were they feeling this unknown way too? Or were they not as affected as him and he's the only one who's ictching to see her again, talk to her again, spend time with her again?

He thought if he was feeling this way because he had already seen her once?

He recalled the sight where she descended the stairs of the Sun temple where he was meditating. His heart skipped a beat, no multiple beats with the chimes of her anklets. Her beauty was other worldly, lush dark curls that fell below her waist, her serene face and full lips, slender neck and...