the desert's rose

pay unto caesar (🏜️🌹)

opening quote:
"show me a denarius. whose head and whose title does it bear?"
they said, "the emperor's."
he said to them, "then give to the emperor the things that are the emperor's, and to God the things that are God's."

Time flew fast as days went by after the jashn and it was finally time to return home to Amer.

Unlike her initial fretfulness which had followed her into Agra, Mainavati stood beside Bharmal with a peace of mind.

"We express our gratitude for the hospitality we have received, Shehenshah," Bharmal smiled in appreciation with a slight bow with Jamai Sa giving him a slight nod.

With him stood Malika-e-Azaam, Wazir-e-Aliya and Jodha.

Stepping forward with tears in her eyes, she paid her respects to Bharmal and Mainavati by touching their feet. Upon standing, Bharmal tenderly touched her shoulder.

"May Ambe Maa continue to protect you, bete," he said, his response being a shaky nod from Jodha who then turned to face her.

Mainavati looked up at her daughter, her soft hands wiping off some of the tears which rolled down her cheeks.

The younger woman beheld her with a teary smile, earning a joyous laugh from Mainavati. She was not the only one who had to face the fact they would be apart from each other again, it seems.

"Remember what I told you the previous night," Jodha nodded in response. "Do your best to abide by that, bete."

"I will, Maa Sa," she replied, then Mainavati took her in a hug, her hand slowly stroking her dupatta-covered hair.

Jodha's grip was exceptionally tighter as if she was holding on to a lifeline before they parted. Mainavati did not miss the shaky sigh her daughter let out.

"Amer will always be your home, bete," she said reassuringly. "You can always come visit whenever you want."

She received a nod again, before watching Jodha retreat back to Agra's royal family. Her hands pressed together, she also expressed her gratitude to Jamai Sa, "Dhanyavaad, Jamai Sa. Thank you for your hospitality and for taking care of Jodha."

"Of course," Jamai Sa gave her a soft smile. "I will always take care of her, Rani Sahiba."

"And please, do visit when you can," Hamida cut in. "Agra is also your home."

With a slight bow, she acknowledged her before moving into her palki. Outside stood Jodha with Hamida consoling her.

From the short time spent in Agra, Mainavati had gotten to know a bit about Hamida. The woman stood with grace and exceptional kindness and they both seemed to share a few things in common as well like concern over the wellbeing of their people.

While Mainavati had come to know that her Jodha still was not happy in her marriage to Jamai Sa, she left for Amer with relief that she had an Ammi like Hamida.

Regardless of whatever obstacles Jodha was about to face, Mainavati could rest in assurance that her daughter had someone to fall back on.

She inhaled then exhaled, taking a peek to look at Jodha who stood forlorn. The palki and procession heading back to Amer moved further away from the fort and Jodha's figure grew shorter within distance.

Her eyes pricked with tears as she would reminisce on the words she had said to Jodha the day before. Her heart beat with joy that her daughter was starting to take on a bit of her queenly responsibilities yet, she had to break down to her what it really meant to be queen.