A MAHABHARATA RETELLING
~~~
All the other flowers in the garden were brought up to envy the rose. Maybe shun it even. And admire it, too.
Unusual ways. Too-red petals, too-sharp thorns, too-sweet fragrance.
If only each flower did not have a mind...
Eyes like sinking ships on water, So inviting, I almost jump in.
~Taylor Swift, gold rush
Navy
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Valandhara detested thunderstorms. Probably because she the roar of the thunder terrified her, shook her to the very bone.
She had grown up with her father reminding her that being afraid of nature's fury was far from a weakness. It was a strength - caution was always a strength. So, whenever she heard the thunder roil and crackle outside and sat with her cheek atop her tightly gathered knees, slightly swaying in a rhythm that aspired to beat the storm, she distracted herself by redirecting her thoughts towards marvelling about this astounding fury of nature.
And that was the exact way she had envisioned spending this night too. Just with more handmaidens closing the windows around her and fanning her and lighting all the lamps that the gusts of moist wind had earlier snuffed out. One of her handmaidens had even picked up her taanpura, caught a note that all her ladies were sure would ease her mind.
What she certainly was not expecting was one of the ladies outside hurriedly walking in, and the room falling quiet at the halfway tensed, halfway overjoyed look on her face.
"What is it?", she unfurled herself a bit from her curled up position at the very centre of her expansive bed. That her husband was yet to so much as touch.
"It is your lord husband, your highness", her eyes shone, "He seems a little quiet, but rather eager to meet you."
The princess did not need any expertise on reading people to see how the lady's smile seemed to stretch a little too thin while describing her husband's eagerness. It was quite understandable, really. She was only trying to be as supportive as possible under her current circumstances.
She made a move to sit up straight just as a particularly loud rumbling shook the sky outside. None of the windowpanes rattled.
"They say Indra's city sees so many storms that every brick and wood and shard of glass is fortified accordingly.", one of her handmaidens stared at a quiet window, awe-struck, as the flash of light dimmed on the other side, "Even their windows don't rattle much."
"You may take your musings outside of her highness's quarters, girl.", the lady who had come bearing the message instructed sternly enough that all her handmaidens scrambled to get up and leave at once. One of them helped the former minstrel keep away the taanpura safely, tucked away at a distant corner of the cool, gleaming stone floor, before they too bowed and left.
The lady, slightly older than the others, but not nearly as elderly or experienced in matters of court or upbringing as the Princess's tutoress - who was presumably engaging the second Pandava prince in conversation in the sitting lounge - took a few more steps into the room, not ignorant of the princess's wary eyes on her.
