It was dark outside..
Lakshmi took kids towards the water pipe in the garden and made them wash their hands and legs.
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On the other side,
The whole family is seated in the hall room and as soon as they heard commotion from other side of the main door , they turned around to look at kids running in hall while lakshmi is scolding them to walk slowly as their feet are wet.

And as lakshmi expected, Noor slipped and she fell hard on the marble floor while trying to keep up her pace with her siblings...

Noor started wailing loudly while feeling pain in her elbows and lakshmi took her into her arms while telling  "ololu ololu edavak Amma"  ( don't cry)  and wiped away those tears. Noor snuggled her little face into her mother's bossom still crying.
Lakshmi rubbed her small legs and hands tentatively to relieve the pain.

" floor hurt you na !
See " said utkarsh and noor looked at her brothers while they are stomping on the floor. She started giggling while rubbing her red cheeks with her both hands...

" maa pail no " (pain) she said while wriggling out of her mother's arms and joined her brothers in beating the floor with her little hands.

' Nautanki bache ' lakshmi said smiling while looking at her kids. She turned around to find the family looking at her kids with a smile on their faces and she mentally noted to take disthi of her kids the next morning.

She was about to leave when dadi called her . She went towards them while the kids went back to their room.

Dadi started talking about their family and their ancestors while Lakshmi just threw a deaf ear, pretending as if she is hearing. Soon the topic changed to noor....

" from where did you get noor beta? " Nandini Devi asked as she already knew about Ibbu. She wanted to know where was Noor from...

"from Syrian desert near Iraqi border" lakshmi answered earning gasps from the ladies in hall.. She realized what she has just said .

" syria? Why did you go there? " and here lakshmi started fumbling with her fingers... She forgot that little story this family cooked up and fed this old lady...

" oh that....
Actually the owner of the orphanage told me that her parents were immigrants from Syria and they couldn't afford....
They left noor because they couldn't afford......and I have adopted her from the orphanage....." lakshmi said trying to cover up.
The old lady's suspicions spiked up more... She could tell that the whole family is hiding something from her...

Once upon a time,
she wasn't a queen for nothing...

" Now that you have your own children, don't you think that you wouldn't be able to be impartial?
They will come to know in the future that two of their siblings are not their own " Nandini Devi said while drinking in the expressions of lakshmi slowly...
Assessing her keenly to see how would she answer this question.

Lakshmi felt hurt at the mere thought of this....she never wants her children to seperate....
Hell she wouldn't let it happen.
Ibraheem is their elder brother and Noor is their younger sister.
That's it.

She looked up at Nandini Devi who is staring at her keenly...
" It all depends on how we nurture our kids.
My first child is my first son and my last child is my last daughter.
I will fight for all of them equally and give my love to them equally.
They are the ones who grew up in my arms.....
I might not have given birth to them but they are a part of my soul like the others.

And about future.
My kids are more matured than the adults. I have imparted them with the knowledge of wisdom far beyond their age.
As a mother, it's my duty to teach them ethics, morals and mould them into better human beings.

They already worship their elder brother who is like a mother to them in my absence, and look after noor like their own baby.

I know that they all will be together.
They are  'My'  kids and I'm  'Their' mother after all.
I know it. "
hearing to Lakshmi, Nandini Devi understood that her younger grand daughter in law is soft at heart....
She is strong, but still innocent at heart reflecting pureness in her every word that she spoke from with in...
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After having dinner in the kitchen with her children, Lakshmi hurried them to their room.
She changed into a night suit which saraswathi left in her room.

The boys wore 3/4th trousers while the girls just wore a long shirt with panties and sat around their mom on the couch. Lakshmi took the remote from table and switched on the TV.
Played Jabardasth in YouTube.

Within few minutes, the whole room is filled with laughter and the kids were falling on each other while laughing.

The ever green engine motor laughter of their mom made them laugh even more harder.

There was a knock on door and lakshmi turned around to look at the door while Abhimanyu went to open it.
She looked at her husband standing near the door and turned her head towards the TV which was no more hilarious....

" come papa
Join us!! " Abhimanyu pulled Arjun's hand excitedly while Arjun was doubtful... He didn't want to join them...he thought that he could take the kids and spend a night with them....
only if she allows...
But after seeing her expressions,
he knew that she didn't want him any where near them.

The kids squeezed on to one side to make place for their father to sit.
9 members on a couch.....
poor couch.
Neelu sitting on lakshmi's lap and noor sitting on arjun's lap while the boys were sprawled in between them on the couch and two of them got down and sat on the carpet....

Lakshmi was silent for few seconds until she forgot the presence of that person and got immersed in the comedy show.
She started laughing heartily while watching TV and listening to her children's laughter...

Arjun felt good.
In these few minutes, he felt that he returned to where he belonged... He felt the feeling of being accepted in his life...
He felt the feeling of belonging to someone...
He felt the feeling of responsibility of his family on his shoulder...
Imagining everyday coming after work and looking at his wife and children....
watching shows with them and laugh along with them...
Made him feel the warmthness...
A sense of belonging...

He looked at lakshmi's face and smiled seeing her funny laugh...
He remembered how he used to make fun of her when she used to laugh...
He used to say ' engine purring ' for which she used to be angry at him for taunting her like that...
He remembers every single detail about her and him
and together
their moments...

As soon as lakshmi felt a gaze on her, she snapped around quickly to find her husband staring at her whose presence has been long forgotten .
Anger spiked up in her while she caught him smile at her....

She went away from the couch towards the balcony to cool down her raging self.

Leeches
Insects crawling
Made her toes curl
In his presence.....

Arjun followed her and stood behind her while maintaining a distance from her knowing that she wouldn't like him standing near her.....

lakshmi's instincts were on high alert. " talk " she said. She didn't know why she said that.... All she could feel was anger and pain. A feeling of not belonging to this place made her more uncomfortable....

" n....nothing
How are you? " he stammered and lakshmi turned around to look at him. He looked at her thinking that she has grown into a beautiful woman.  Matured and elegant...
But he misses that little crazy and caring wife he was married to....
He knew that he has no right to ask for it after what has happened...

Lakshmi looked at her husband and observed him for the first time after many years...
noticing that he has lost weight.

" I prayed to god everyday for you " he said while gazing at her with love and fear as well, that she might disappear again after those words which he said...like the last time...

" oh...
Why didn't god listen to my prayers?
I too prayed to him to keep monsters away from our life " lakshmi pressed on the word 'our' to show him that he wasn't counted as one of them and he is a monster whom they don't want in their life... 
Arjun's heart clenched while her words kept on replaying in his mind.

He pushed it aside and looked at her while the pain in his eyes didn't go unnoticed by Lakshmi.

' pain my foot !
It's nothing compared to what he has done to me. Did he really think that his pitty self and two tear drops will make everything alright?...
And that I would forgive him? ' she thought and turned away while snickering .

He stared at her back... he felt the like...like she is going far away from him...
The whole atmosphere was silent....
when she turned back,
Her eyes landed on him, while leaving the room with his shoulders slopped helplessly...

A tiny bit of her heart pained looking at him leaving like that but as soon as those painful memories looked over her
that little pain she felt for him,
died....

' Just a few more days and when everything is safe,
We shall leave....
I should contact Alexander ' she thought while looking at her kids....
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Lakshmi yawned and got up while rubbing her eyes. She dragged her drowsy kids into the washroom.

They all brushed together while pushing each other to get a better view of themselves in the mirror while brushing.
For once, Lakshmi felt tall with her 5'3 height.
She made them take bath and later she bathed her drenched body.

As soon as she stepped out in her robe, she saw boxes being placed inside her room by maids and Saraswathi was guiding them....
'good morning' she said with a smile and the kids wished her while Lakshmi too wished her a 'good morning' while looking puzzled at those silver trunk boxes...

" I have arranged all your clothes in these boxes, do call me if you need help with unpacking " saraswathi said and left while asking them to come down for breakfast.

Lakshmi opened the large silver metal boxes and saw her clothes in them. She gulped looking at her jewelry and sarees....which she used to wear almost 6 years back.

She didn't want to discard them because they belong to her... Her family bought all those jewelry and clothes for her when she left for NYC for the first time...
As a Newly Wed.

She shut her eyes and looked back at her sarees... Remembering how happy her mother was when she was selecting all of these for her and spent almost 2 crores as if it was nothing... and how her dad acted as if we ladies rob away his sweat while he still wears those age old clothes....

She smiled feeling the texture of the cloth...

" Mumma, dad bought them? " Neelu asked looking at the clothes with her wide eyes...

" no baby
Your dad didn't give me anything (except for pain) 
This is all bought by my dad
Your nanu " lakshmi said and neelu smiled clapping her hand while placing a gold chain around her neck, which lakshmi helped her to hook it properly.

She took out another gold chain with a small pendent and placed it around noor's neck while noor immediately grabbed the pendent with her little fingers and stared at the sunflower on it with her large doe like eyes. She was amused seeing the yellow flower...
She pushed it behind quickly and looked at her mom while patting her tummy cutely and lakshmi nodded telling 5 mins.

Anu entered the room and looked at the boxes, before she could ask Neelu told her that her Nanu bought these for her mom. This made Anu to tear up remembering her own parents who were no more...

Lakshmi observed Anu whose eyes filled with tears which she was trying to hide with a smile on her face....
She pulled Anu and made her wear a necklace which Anu tried to dodge but couldn't as lakshmi held her tight by her arm.
" beautiful " Lakshmi said and Anu nodded while looking in the mirror....

She went into the closet and changed into her favourite saree and adorned herself after a long time...
The last time was when she was pregnant and Nastasha ( Alexander's wife)  arranged Hindu rituals for her preganancy....

She looked at herself for one last time in the mirror and stepped out of the closet while her kids stared at their mom with their jaws hanging down, she flipped her hair with a smile on her face... Feeling beautiful again...

As soon as they completed praying in the Pooja room, they all went to the dining hall together and kids wished the adults while lakshmi threw a ' namasthe ' to walls and sat on the chair...

It's now or never to get done with these fears. She can't let him rule her in her fears silently...

She was eating silently sitting on the long table in between her kids and also feeding noor with her baby spoon....

On the other side, saraswathi didn't like her step-sister sitting beside Arjun. She clearly knew that it is a place that must be occupied by his wife .
She felt Manika's presence as a hindrance to already deteriorating relationship of her Devarji and lakshmi... Though she is scared of Manika, but she can't tolerate this....

Nandini Devi followed Saraswathi's gaze and looked at Manika who is sitting too close to her grand son. She looked towards Lakshmi who is sitting between her children and behaving as if it doesn't really bother her....
But this very much bothers Nandidni Devi because rules are rules which are ought to be followed even by the kings and queens themselves.
No one can be exempted from this.

Without wasting another second she called out Manika's name loudly which made everyone to shiver in their seat due to sudden intrusion in the silent room .

" guests are guests
With whose permission did you sit in that place?
( she turned towards arjun disappointedly)
I didn't expect this from you Arjun " because this is a great matter of respect for them. No one can sit in a place that belongs to a wife except for the wife. Not to forget that those are the age old Royal seats meant for only the members of the royal family to occupy .

Manika stood up immediately looking at the old woman while gritting her teeth internally for embarrassing her in front of the whole family and maids .
She knew that she can't blow up her cover so she controlled herself while apologizing and sat in an empty chair on the other end of the table.

Lakshmi didn't move from her place. She didn't even lift her head and continued eating.
She heard everything.
But she won't let them affect her by giving these so called 'Royal' tags which are meant nothing to her...
She didn't fight for these....
She never wanted them and whatever she wants, she will earn it on her own...

Anita was scared thinking of how her mother in law would react to lakshmi who didn't even lift her head nor stopped eating during the whole fiasco. She didn't even move from her place to sit beside Arjun...
which was disrespectful as Nandini Devi was siding with Lakshmi.... who didn't even bother to glance towards them for a second....

Nandidni Devi looked at stubborn lakshmi and continued eating thinking that the little girl is angry with her husband for allowing an outsider to sit beside him.
Nandini Devi felt that it was right to behave like that with Arjun, who didn't know how defaming it would be if this spreads out of the 4 walls.
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As soon as they all stepped into the hall, they heard a howling sound and the kids sprinted on their legs to the entrance without a care for the world.
They hugged the hell out of husky with their small arms while husky felt suffocated with their extra cheesy overwhelming love...

Lakshmi went towards husky and let her hands rub behind his ears lovingly. Noor climbed up onto husky and hugged him from behind by circling her little hands on his neck. She missed putting clips in his fur.....

Lakshmi laughed thinking how her children are suffocating him with their love.
All this while Rahul stood near the entrance and smiled seeing them happy....
He can do anything for his sister....
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It was evening and Manika went to kitchen feeling thirsty...
She was gulping down a glass of water in the kitchen and heard the sounds of anklets . She turned around to look at the little girl whom lakshmi always treats like a precious jewel.

Noor was hungry and she wanted milk. She descended the big stairs slowly and carefully while holding on to the side railings with her small hands... As soon as she reached the hall, she cutely sighed " phoo " as she was exhausted....

She went straight in to the kitchen as she saw her Di always being fed by Big aunties (cooks) in the kitchen. But as soon as she saw the aunty from earlier on the table, she gave a smile to her....

" milc....mich-e " (milk)
Manika heard and smirked while seeing the little girl's face thinking how would her mother react. Even though they were distant relatives of royal family, but still she got humiliated because of these outsiders.

She was burning with anger and couldn't find better chance than this to satisfy herself.

" oh wait. I will give " she said and brought a bowl of green paste from the fridge and placed it infront of Noor with a spoon in it.

Noor sat down quickly with her legs sprawled on either side on the floor and bowl in the middle. She smiled remembering her brother's favourite mint ice-cream and touched the cool bowl . She stuffed a spoon full of it in her mouth and gulped it down while thinking of saving some for her bhaiya...

The next second,
the whole palace echoed with loud screams and cries of the little girl who is wailing loudly as her tongue is burning...
She rubbed her little tongue to her frock and it pained more. She started chocking on her own sobs as she felt pain in her throat...
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Lakshmi was in her room reading journal when she heard the loud cries. She ran out of the room immediately and came down the stairs while arjun too came out of his room running and followed his wife while listening to those cries....

Lakshmi halted seeing her daughter.
She felt like her body was stabbed multiple times while seeing her daughter crying on the floor