The whole palace of Hastinapur got ready to welcome their third prince who attained victory in his war, bringing Glory into his country... the second wife of King of Dwarka, satyabhama was also present there, adding more tinct to the occasion...
As krishna went to Kashi to bring his parth, and dwarkeshwari satyabhama is with draupadi in her chamber, helping her with her adornments...

"Panchali.. today arjun will faint beholding your beauty dear...you are looking so etheral that I've no words to give an account of it..."
Satyabhama commented which instantly daubed tinct of red to panchali's visage...

"When will they arrive satya?are you sure that they will arrive today?"
A restless draupadi asked and satyabhama's laugh echoed the whole chamber...

"Seems like You are so Desperate to meet your husband... don't worry draupadi, they'll come.. they have already crossed the frontiers of Hastinapur...didn't you hear the proclamation...?"
Satya asked curbing her laughs and draupadi nodded positively...satya  shook her head and continued with her work..

"By the way, let me ask you something ...you doesn't seem like the draupadi I saw for the first time in dwarka a few months before... you've changed a lot...the way your eyes sparkling whenever I took his name,the tincture of longings and affection for Arjun in your voice, everything tells a different story...may I know the reason? you fell in love with paarth.. didn't you?"
Finally, bursting the silence, satyabhama interrogated while subtly observing the reflection of yagyaseni, through the mirror...
Draupadi downcast her eyelids and  lips twitched up to form a charming smile, conferring almost a precise answer to Satya...

"I don't know satya...i feels delighted and complete whenever he's near me..the way he gaze at me, makes my heart flutter and the way he winks at me , makes me feels like snow dropping in my abdomen...the way he kiss...kisses me feels like droplets of fresh water gliding over my skin .."
She enclosed her eyelids which looked like tapered lotuses and smiled to herself coyly...
Satyabhama's eyes widened at her last statement and she chuckled heeding to her cute tiny confession...
From the way she delineating her feelings itself screams her love for Arjun...

"You are so much deep in love with him dear...confess it as faster as possible...such things can't be procrastinated...today you have to unfold your feelings to him...open up your heart and confess it..."
Satya motivated draupadi and draupadi bit her lips to bridle her bubbling excitement and coy smile....

" I don't know how to explicate it satya..if it is love, then I love him...i really really love him...but I don't know how to confess it...i don't know how to set forth my feelings to words ..."
Draupadi confessed so naively... By birth itself, yagyaseni had blessed with the knowledge in almost everything in this world , but still she's so naive to the knowledge of man made things and also this kind of feelings towards a man was novel for her...

"Oh dear! Don't feel like that...you can..love has no particular language to confess...the only language of love is heart..pour your feelings out to him.. explicit it ... he'll understand you .."
Satya boosted her confidence, glancing straight into her reflection, placing her hands over draupadi's shoulders....as the final touch, satyabhama adorned her braided hair with a fresh red flower...
Satyabhama gawked at her reflection and raised her brows in awe...

"Oh my almighty, you look so divine that today, the invincible savyasachi will revolve around you like a bee revolving around flowers...and I'll get some time to spend with my Swami..."
Draupadi chuckled hearing satya's last statement and Satya corrugated her brows...

"Don't laugh draupadi...I'm serious..Swami always forgets me after arjun arrives...you tell me, don't you think that we have to spend some quality time together..?"
Satya's innocent quest made yagyaseni laugh more...

"Don't say that Satya...i know you always reside in sakha's heart... afterall you're his beloved satrajiti...the warrior queen of his heart"
Draupadi appeased satya to which Satyabhama reciprocated a warm smile...
Just then, grabbing their attention, they heard timbrels beating and conches blowing... draupadi had the biggest smile ever on her lips, bestowing a tinct of ruddiness to her cheeks...she uplifted her Kohl smeared eyelids and glanced at Satya bhama...

" Attention... attention.. attention...the illustrious prince of kuruvansh , second blessing of King pandu Prince Arjun along with the lord of Dwarka, Sri Krishna is arriving...."

brines filled with happiness permeated from her eyes as she heard the proclamation... Satyabhama smiled mischievously at draupadi and it didn't took a whole minute for draupadi to comprehend that her lifeline is here...

Her deep maroon lehenga fluttered in air and anklets tinkled in rythm when she ran through the corridors of Hastinapur palace...
Clutching on to the railings of the balcony, draupadi gazed at her warrior husband clothe in his white attire and bejeweled with princely ornaments , standing right infront of the palace beside her govind, looking like a celestial being...

The waves of overwhelming emotion hit her and the tears of Joy and mirth cascaded down from her eyes...satya wrapped her arms around Draupadi's shoulders and tranquilized her frenzy of happiness...she wiped her as they blurred her vision...she saw grandsire Bheeshm embracing him and appreciating him and mother kunti shedding tears of delightment...
A smiling Krishna glanced above and spotted draupadi along with satya on the balcony...he smiled at draupadi and winked his one eye at Satya, making her cheeks scarlet...

••••••••••*••••••••••

Arjun gaited briskly out from the meeting room of palace ... Guards respectfully obeisanced while he walked... it is been 2 hours since he set his foot inside the palace but still he couldn't even catch a momentary glance of 'her'...as per the royal etiquette, he was summoned by the king for a formal royal meeting ,straight from there to discuss about the war and to collect the financial details of treasures that has received from the Kingdom of kashi as bestowal...
Arjun paced aiming at the palace temple...a special veneration is supposed to conduct this evening by his mother,  as a way to aknowledge her gratitude towards the almighty to keep her son safe and now savyasachi is sure that now he could only get his wife there...

Entering into a silent and vacant corridor , arjun saw the silhouette of a woman standing at the end of the corridor , inattentively glancing outside...a smile formed on his lips, beholding the frame ,he yearned to scop inside his arms and hide into his chest...Draupadi swivelled her head, hearing to the familiar footsteps..
World ceased for a second for both of them ,when his Hazels intertwined it's gaze with her black brownish orbs ...

Tears of love , longing, bereavement and anguish streamed down from then as they met after weeks... without caring about anything, draupadi sprinted towards him and enveloped her arms around his well sculptured figure...
Arjun closed his Hazels feeling her warmth after weeks and delicately fondled her tresses...he could hear her erratic breathing and short whimpering escaping from her mouth...

"Please don't shed your precious tears dear... it's hurting me..."
Arjun said in his rich deep voice which transmitted chills down through draupadi's nerves...

"Gratitude to my almighty...you are here arya ..I'm happy...i can't set forth my happiness in words... you are alright.. aren't you?"
Draupadi's quests filled with anxiety made arjun chuckle...she corrugated her brows and glanced naively at him..

"Yes I'm doing great... because of someone's heartfelt prayers and fast .."
Arjun divulged and winked his one eye while saying the last word, leaving yagyaseni in amused...

"How do you get to know that...?"
Yagyaseni interrogated innocently unable to believe what he said .. fasting for him was her secret...

"Simple..your sakha told me.."
He said pinching her nose and she glanced at him in dissatisfaction...that was her and her govind's secret and he mercilessly broke the secret...

" Sakha... No he can't do this to me ..I'll ask him.."
Draupadi whined like a toddler and suddenly her eyes fell on a deep cut on the right arm of Arjun...her eyes dampened...

" Arya...it's...it's..how did it happen...?"
She asked in a heavy baritone, unable to bear the sight she saw ...she delicately fondled the fresh wound and glanced at arjun...tears dampened her cheeks...

" Drau... please don't..it's just a small cut got from the combat zone and wounds are almost like an ornament for a warrior...it will get healed..."
Arjun wiped the tears and fondled her cheeks... draupadi placed her head over his chest and arjun conferred kiss on her forehead...they remained in the same posture for sometime and finally draupadi moved apart from him as if she reminiscenced something...

" Arya... you must be very tired and hungry ,right?...go and have something...mata , jyesht sree , Rajkumar Nakul and sahadev must be waiting for you..."
Draupadi suddenly reminiscenced arjun and arjun wrapped his palms around her wrist and pulled her closer towards him...
Draupadi felt her heart palpitating frantically as his breathe touched her forehead...

" I want you to serve me food today... won't you?"
Arjun asked out of sudden, making yagyaseni go dumbfounded...arjun smirked beholding her perplexed face and he traced the contour of her face with his forefinger...

"Shh...no excuses for today.... You'll serve me today.."
Arjun said rather behested her to which yagyaseni delightfully obliged, nodding positively...

••••••••••*••••••••••

"Wow!!!...these dishes are so delicious mata . especially the kheer... I think I'll eat up the whole bowl in one go.."
Nakul exclaimed like a toddler to which kunti passed a slight chuckle...

" Don't you dare nakul...the dishes are made exclusively for me... especially the kheer..."
Arjun glared at nakul and declared making nakul pout...krishna laughed at his sudden fascination towards the kheer... satyabhama nudged draupadi with her elbow and draupadi rolled her eyes at Satya...

"That's impossible Arjun and Nakul.. because for that , you've to ask the permission of the maker of this kheer..."
Kunti divulged.. Arjun and Nakul glanced at each other in perplexity and looked inquisitively at kunti ..

"It's draupadi who made it ..."
Kunti said smilingly and arjun glanced incredulously at his wife... instantly he heard his younger brother whispering into his ears...

" Bhrata Arjun... indeed it's exclusively for you ..have it..have it alone ..i don't want anymore..."
Arjun chuckled hearing his dear brother nakul's statement and glanced at draupadi...she bestowed a charming smile which enchanted savyasachi, unbeknownst to the fact that it enchanted someone too...

Karn glanced at the bowl of kheer infront of him...he slowly took a bite and relished it's taste and got thawed in it...

" Draupadi, I must say that your cooking skills are also just amazing like your singing skills... I loved this one...can you make it once more for me?"
Karn asked grabbing everyone's attention...arjun incredibly stared at his brother...his brother who mostly eschewed sweets was now tasting sweet and complimenting it...
Krishna's face lost the hues that he was carrying and glanced sadly at karn ..

Arjun corrugated his brows slightly and glanced at his brother only to see him gazing at his wife...The elders were already left finishing their feast so , kunti didn't felt awkward unlike the previous time...but obviously
Arjun felt the situation a little bit clumsy..but soon his clumsiness faded as he discovered his wife's endearing glanced darting at him...

" Yes sakhi draupadi...for me too..I'm absolutely impressed by your kheer..."
Krishna said , alleviating the atmosphere and he observed karn striving to smile with others...

Just then , an idea made its way into Arjun's thoughts ..he have to confess his feelings for her..he has to pour his heart out infront of her... unable restrain himself,arjun whispered something into nakul's ears without diverting his gaze from draupadi and  draupadi saw nakul's eyes widening...

As Arjun noticed her inquisitively glancing at him , he bestowed a quick wink to her and yagyaseni bit her lips to restrain her smile....

••••••••••*••••••••••

The golden globe in the sky hid behind the horizons and the cresent moon made his appearance, sprawling his radiating rays....
After completing the special evening veneration conducted by mata Kunti, draupadi took a quick bathe and came back to her chamber and sat infront of the dressing table...
krishna and satyabhama has already left for dwarka...she glanced at the large silver plate infront of her and bit her lips...she took the small scroll rested on her dressing table beside the plate...she sluggishly unfolded the scroll ... heart beated rapturously and blood rushed towards her cheeks as she read Arjun's message...

Meet me at my private garden .. nakul will help you to reach there...I'm waiting for your presence ...

Your's

Arjun

Draupadi traced her fingers through her off-white silk lehenga and looked into the mirror and smiled at her own reflection, thinking about the mystery behind her husband's message....
The splendid moon and lustrous stars shone Bright in the sky, getting ready to witness the great night of Fire and Rain...

•••••••••••*•••••••••••

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How's the chapter guys..
Hope you all enjoyed it...so finally arjun is going to open up his heart to draupadi...are you ready for it...
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