For the @modernmythsnet Event Twenty Four- Mother’s day, and for @kali-is-my-idol, who asked for Utaraa and Parikshit as a prompt fill.
Hardly had Uttaraa and Abhi known that she carried their child in her womb than Abhi was gone. Forever. Utaraa and Mother Subhadra had held each other and cried, but tears did not lessen their grief. Sometimes, Utaraa wondered if she, too, should give up, but she could not abandon her son. Abhi would have wanted her to be strong.
Oh, but it was so hard to be strong. Anytime Uttaraa tried to put the past behind her, something or the other would remind her of Abhi, his laughter, his voice. Once, she had thought that he had returned, even called his name aloud, but it had turned out to be Father. Since then, she could hardly bear to look at Arjuna, for in his mannerisms, she saw Abhi. He stayed by her side still, taking care of her as much as he could, and, slowly, she took comfort in his familiar presence. As the birth neared, Uttaraa fancied that Abhi watched over them in the guise of his father.
When Parikshit was born, Uttaraa found her purpose again. She began enjoying life, little by little. At first, he felt too heavy a responsibility for her, but her Parikshit soon became her strength. With him, she could forget her worries, and dream of a bright future.
As Parikshit grew, his grandfathers and his grandmothers doted on him, teaching him all they could. Inevitably, the child often asked of his father. Mother Subhadra would tell him of Abhi’s childhood, and Uttaraa found it in herself to enjoy thinking about Abhi again.
Parikshit loved the rain. Most of the family shied away from it, but Uttaraa enjoyed the rain, as did Arjuna. They spent many rain-sodden days together, shedding the cares of the world.
Parikshit was very contradictory in nature. At times, he reverted to childhood, at others assuming a grave air. As he grew older, he changed, assuming his responsibility smilingly, and Uttaraa thanked God for it.
He was the hope of the Kuruvansh, and he fulfilled the hopes invested in him in time. Uttaraa was at his side every step of the way, and when the kingly crown rested on his brow, she smiled in relief. They had secured the future of their children.
