Story: Draupadi's Party and Kunti's Hundred Questions

"Make sure you're home by midnight," Kunti yelled at the five as they were leaving the house. 

"Always mom!" Yudhisthira yelled back. 

She thought they were going to a school fundraiser at a bowling alley but that couldn't be farther from the truth. Actually, Draupadi, the most popular girl in school, was having a party. It just happened that the five were all infatuated with her, each as convinced as the next that they had a chance with her. 

When they drove up on the house it was already packed, high school kids everywhere with their Solo cups in hand. Music was blaring from inside and someone was puking under a tree in front of the house. They walked through the door to people mingling everywhere. Draupadi instantly greeted them, "Hey guys! I'm so glad you all were able to make it. C'mon, let's get you some punch!" She shoved them towards the kitchen. 

Once they had their trusty Solo cups, they were ready to enjoy the party. They started to make their way around the house, stopping to talk to the people they knew. They were pretty well known at their school. Since all of them were highly athletic and good-looking every girl swooned over them. After downing the first three cups of punch you could say they were all feeling pretty good. It had reached that point in the night where everyone either loved everyone or wanted to fight everyone. A few jocks got into a fist fight and the boys had to separate them and call them rides home. Slowly, the party was coming to an end. 

At some point they had lost sight of Bhima but were all too intoxicated to really worry much about it. Soon enough, he reappeared wearing a giant smile on his face. Next, Arjuna vanished... the other four too busy dancing and enjoying the music to care. After Arjuna returned, suddenly Nakula was gone, and then Sahadeva, and then Yudhisthira. All were beaming once they returned. But no one asked what was going on, again a bit too wasted to care. 

Somewhere around four am Yudhisthira remembered to check his phone. He had fifteen missed calls and eight voicemails from their mother. His eyes widened as he stumbled over to Bhima... 

"Bh-hiima, Bhima... it'sss four am, we gotta go mom's so mad," he stuttered. 

Bhima laughed. "Calm down, Yud. You're too uptight. It's fine."

"No, no... really we hav-v-ve to go," he began to tug at Bhima's arm. 

"Let me drive you all home." Draupadi appeared, somehow completely sober.

The boy's faces instantly lit up and they agreed to let her drive them home. Once they got home they all thanked Draupadi for the great night and arranged a time to get their car tomorrow. She watched to make sure they got in alright, and then went back home to tend to the rest of her hammered guests and attempt to clean up some of the mess.

They walked through the door to find Kunti sitting at the dining room table, fuming. She raised her eyebrows, looked at the clock, then back at the boys. 

"So, five am is now the same as midnight? Would anyone care to explain your logic behind this?" 

The boys stood there silent.

"Tell me, Bhima, why is it you smell like alcohol?"

Bhima stared blankly at Kunti. 

"Fine, go to your room, now. What about you, Nakula, what went on tonight?"

Nakula didn't say a word, and just shook his head. 

"Get in bed," she scolded him. "Who's next? Sahadeva, ah... who were you actually with tonight?"

Sahadeva mumbled, "Just kids from school... that's all."

She dismissed him. "Arjuna, my sweet boy... which bowling alley were you at tonight?" 

Arjuna said nothing, scared of his mother's wrath.

He was sent to bed as well. She stopped at Yudhisthira, always the responsible one of the boys, and said, "Yud, this is so unlike you. Tell me, why did you boys decide to lie to me tonight?"

Yudhisthira trembled before her. "Mom, I tried to get them to leave... they were having so much fun and they-"

"Having so much fun bowling? So, this bowling alley serves alcohol to underaged kids do they? Well, I think that's illegal. And where is your car?"

"We were at Draupadi's, she had a party, I'm sorry that we lied. She drove us home and our car is parked at her house."

Kunti shook her head in disappointment. "You're grounded, just like your brothers. I can't believe the disrespect I was given tonight. Unbelievable!" And with that, Yudhisthira headed upstairs.

"Did you tell her?" Bhima asked. 

"Yeah, what was I supposed to do? We come home looking like crap and smelling like alcohol at five am. Clearly we weren't at a bowling alley."

"Gah, man... why do you always have to be such a momma's boy?" Arjuna complained. 

"Well, even though this night didn't end well... it was so worth it," Nakula smiled.

"What are you talking about?" Sahadeva asked.

"I made out with Draupadi. She told me I was the best kisser she'd ever met," he boasted.

The brothers all looked around at each other, stunned. 

"Yeah, I knew y'all would be jealous. I told you she was into me!" Nakula said.

"...Did we all make out with Draupadi tonight?" Yud asked.

They all nodded. They had been played, and now they were grounded. 

"Mom always told us to share with each other. At least we obeyed her once tonight!" Bhima joked.

High school, what a time to be alive. 

Author's note:
After reading the "Hundred Questions" chapter in the Mahabharata it reminded me of how mothers are always notorious for all their questions. If you don't remember that chapter, it's the chapter where Yuhishthira's father is asking the boys questions in the form of a deadly yaksha. They are all so thirsty that they don't take time to answer the questions before they drink and all but Yudhisthira die. Because Yudhisthira obeys and answers the questions he is able to live and is then able to bring his brothers back to life. I'm sure we can all relate to a time when our mothers had to know everything about our lives! My mother is still like that, and truly I don't mind. I've always said that if I went missing she would have no trouble finding me because she knows so much! I wanted to write a story on that but I thought it would also be fun to add in Draupadi. I thought the part of the epic involving Draupadi was so interesting and somewhat hilarious. Since they had to all share her as a wife in the epic, per their mother's wishes, I thought it would be funny if they all had to share her here as well. Of course it's in a bit different way, but I still wanted to incorporate it. I honestly think this is one of my best stories thus far. I was surprised at how easily the two parts molded together. I've found that making the epics more modern is an easy and efficient way to turn them into your own. I had a lot of fun writing this story and I hope it made you all laugh! 

Bibliography: Narayan's Mahabharata 

(The boys and Draupadi)

Reading Notes: The Mahabharata Part D

It was a bit sad how the epic ended up. Many died and Yudhistira, though he became king, was distraught over the fact that he killed so many people. He even wanted to exile himself for doing so. Krishna finally was able to talk Yudhistira into taking on the kingdom, though convincing him had been no easy task. Yudhistira appointed everyone to their duties, Bhima to be the yuvaraja, Bidura as his counsellor, Sanjay to the finances of the state, Bakula to be in charge of the register of the armed forces, Arjuna to defend the country, Dhaumya to be the Chief Royal Priest and Sahadeva to be his personal companion. This is a great example of something I struggle with in this epic, there are SO MANY characters! Truly it was a challenge to keep them all straight. Overall I would have to say I did enjoy the Ramayana better but both were truly interesting and gave me much more insight on India culture! (Also I have really enjoyed all the colorful pictures that go along with the pics! They're always so vibrant!)

(Yudhistira and Krishna)

Bibliography: Narayan's Mahabharata 

Reading Notes: The Mahabharata Part C

One of the chapters that's really stuck out to me so far was the "Hundred Questions" chapter. I love how there's always so much nature involved in these epics. The imagery in this chapter was also very appealing. I found it interesting the each brother still drank the water even though the voice warned each not to. Even though they could each (besides Nakula) clearly see the outcome of drinking the water without answering the questions- they could not ignore their thirst. When Yudhistira arrived and obeyed the yaksha, i found the questions and answers to all be very intriguing. While reading this it really reminded me of a mom berating their child with questions. I thought this could be a possible way for me to put a fun twist on the story. Maybe the brothers stayed out too late the night before and the moms asking typical mom questions like "Who were you with?" "What were you doing?" Where were you at?" Because I'm sure we have all been there and I'm sure we can all attest to the fact that moms can truly ask a hundred questions! 

Bibliography:

Narayan's Mahabharata 

(Yuhistira and the yaksha)

Week 5 Story: Adelaide

(Red Wine)

It was a Friday night, so of course Joe and his friends planned to go out on the town. Joe's family was very wealthy- owning many oil wells across the country. So Joe always picked up the tab for everyone. They walked into their usual spot on Friday nights - the Cosmopolitan - and grabbed some seats at the bar. The bartender, Frank, was already making Joe's whiskey on the rocks when he walked in. Joe was a regular there so all the staff knew him. 

"How's it going, buddy?" the bartender asked as he set down his drink in front of him. Joe took a sip of his whiskey and smiled. 

"Pretty good, man, just glad Friday's finally here." He was looking out the windows at the Oklahoma skyline when someone caught his eye.  

A beautiful woman, alone at the end of the bar sipping the last drop out of a huge glass of red wine. He asked the bartender what she was drinking and bought her another. Frank set the wine down in front of the woman. 

"Oh, I didn't order another. I was just going to ask for my tab!" 

He smiled. "The gentleman down there bought you another"- he nodded to Joe. 

Joe smiled at her and got up from his seat to talk to her. "Hi, I'm Joe. I couldn't help but buy a beautiful girl like you a drink! What's your name?" 

She smiled shyly. "Well, you're very kind to do so! I was actually about to head home soon, but I guess now I must stay at least to finish this wine. My name is Adelaide." She took a sip of her wine, glancing up at him with her giant emerald eyes. 

They talked and drank the whole night and he ordered an Uber for the both of them. They ended up spending the night in his loft. I'm sure you can guess how that went. The next morning she was still there sleeping next to him. This was a regular occurrence for Joe but never had he ever felt this way towards a woman. He even decided to make her breakfast.

A few weeks passed. They were still consistently spending time with one another. One evening she sat down at his table for dinner. Adelaide had been acting a bit odd. He poured her her favorite glass of red wine and she just stared at it the entire dinner. 

Finally Joe asked, "Not feeling the wine tonight?" 

She looked up from her plate, which was still full of food, and said, "I'm pregnant." 

Joe set down his utensils and tried to hide the shock from his face. "Oh. Okay, that's okay... Uhh well we can make a doctor's appointment tomorrow and we-" 

"It's okay, we don't have to keep it. I know it's not the time right now," she said. 

"No, Adelaide, I want this baby. I want you. We can have this family. I know that it's so soon, but I'm sure if you are." 

She  gave him a weak smile. "It just so scary. I feel like we just met... because well, we did." Joe reassured her that everything would work out and that he loved her no matter how little time they had spent together. 

***

Two months after that Adelaide and Joe got married and nine months from then their son was born. He was so strong and handsome. They named him Maddox and he was perfect in every way. After a couple days they were able to bring Maddox home and get him settled. Joe was puzzled when none of Adelaide's family had showed up to witness the birth of Maddox and when he inquired about it Adelaide just brushed it under the rug and said she just hadn't talked to her family in years. Joe didn't think much of this but for some reason he had felt uneasy about not knowing that part of her life. So he began to do some research. He found no one under her name. Which he found extremely strange. So he hired someone to look into her life further. Turns out Adelaide was not even her name. Her name was Heather. She was born in Germany and had spent time in jail there. In fact she was serving a death sentence when she escaped. They never found her, since she fled to the US incognito. But why? Why was she serving a death sentence? The investigator pulled out her record and showed him. She was charged for the death of seven infants. Joe's mouth dropped and he began to hyperventilate. He told Adelaide he had a work meeting and would be home late this evening meaning she was still home alone with Maddox. Before the investigator could utter another word Joe was out the door and on his way home. He didn't know how he would handle the situation but he knew he had to get Maddox away from her. 

He walked in the garage door and Adelaide greeted him with a kiss. He faked a smile. "Where's my boy?" 

"Asleep in his crib!" Joe rushed to his room with Adelaide following behind him. 

"Honey, what's wrong? Don't wake him. I just got him to sleep!" 

He grabbed Maddox and held him against his chest, his eyes wet with tears. 

"Would you like to tell me who you really are, Heather?" 

Adelaide's face fell, as she began to back away from Joe. She shook her head and ran. She took nothing with her and never returned again. That was the last Joe or anyone saw of her. 

Author's note:

I thought the story about Santanu (Joe) and Ganga (Adelaide/Heather) who drowned all seven of her children and kept the eighth was extremely disturbing but also intriguing. I thought it would be interesting to write a murder mystery kind of story modeled after the Mahabharata. I'm sure you can tell by reading some of my other stories that I really like to try to modernize these stories. I feel like it makes it easier to understand them and remember the details of the story if I can make it more relatable to my life today. I would really like to have been able to elaborate more on this story but I'm trying to do better at staying within the word count requirements! I think maybe I may end up writing another part to this. It ends kind of abruptly but that makes it more of a cliffhanger that way. I think keeping stories short and sweet definitely makes them better but I also feel like I had to speed through this story. This isn't my typical style of story so it allowed me to test my horizons a bit. I'm eager to start revising this story. I hope you all enjoyed the story! 

Bibliography: Narayan's Mahabharata 

Reading Notes: The Mahabharata Part A

Whoa. There are a ton of characters in this epic. And to make it even more confusing their names are even similar... (Amba, Ambika and Ambalika for example). That reminded me of my great aunts who were named Reeva, Rita and Reeba. I was astonished by how many sexual encounters were going on here. It seemed that the top priority was to make sure that the dynasty lived on and that there was an heir to the throne. They were desperately trying to pop out sons in order to keep their kingdom alive! So far it has also been very dark. Like with Ganga drowning every child she had and then letting the eighth live but sentencing him to a life of celibacy. Or also, it was pretty morbid when Pandu died because the curse placed upon him (during intercourse, yikes) and then his wife Madri killed herself as well. So far this isn't much of a feel good story. I haven't thought of ways to make it my own just yet but I might attempt to give them each a bit happier endings. This reminded me of how I used to tell stories as a child... I would end every story with "and then they died." Comical as a little girl but not the best ending for a story. Also I wanted to note that my friend pointed out that in the beginning of the first chapter when Ganga drowned the children in the river it reminded him of the lady of the lake who is in many fairytales. He said that this story in particular was a lot like the Irish fairytale. He told me as well about all the fairytales in which the disney moves like Cinderella, Snow White and The Little Mermaid were based off of and how all of them ended morbidly. I found that super intriguing and was able to relate to how Disney changed these stories to make them appealing to us and turned them into movies. I feel like this is very similar to what we are doing in this class with manipulating the stories to make them more of our own!

Bibliography: (I didn't know where to find the link to Narayan's Mahabharata.)

(The Lady of the Lake)

Feedback Focus

Focus technique one was my favourite. I actually already use this technique. I always find it hard for me to stay focused while reading, my mind always wonders to other things so reading out loud usually helps me stay on task a bit better. I also like to pretend I am reading to another person which helps me because I really have to try to portray the story in a way someone would understand and be interested in. I've found that this method works best for me. 

I thought the second technique was really unique. I think if I combined it with the first technique it may really be beneficial for me. Note-taking is also something I have struggled with in the past. I have a hard time picking out what is REALLY important to jot down. But just jotting down thoughts you have while reading is a great idea. I think this technique could be very helpful to me down the road with reading assignments. 

I didn't like the last technique as much as the other two. Being timed usually doesn't help me. I get anxious and end up wondering how much time I have left instead of focusing. I'm not the fastest reader so I would end up trying to beat the clock rather than really honing in and focusing on the material I'm reading. Overall, the first technique seemed to work best for me. They are all great ideas for ways to stay focused, and I know I need to learn to stay on task more!

(Cute Dory Meme)

Portfolio Introduction

I decided to go with a portfolio so I'll be able to keep my creativity flowing with new stories and new ideas! If I chose the storybook I'm afraid my writer's block would have kicked in full force! I think this will allow me to really explore all different types of stories!

Bachelor in Paradise (Indian Edition)
If you're a hopeless romantic who's into reality shows, this story is for you. If you've never seen Bachelor in Paradise, you should watch an episode. Check out my spinoff from the show and let me know what you think!

Draupadi's Party and Kunti's Hundred Questions
Ever wondered what the Pandava sons would be like in modern-day high school? Say no more because here is your answer. This is my personal best so please read away! Leave me some comments!

Adelaide
If you're a sucker for suspense then this story is right up your alley. This story is based off the chapter of the Mahabharata about Shantanu and Ganga. I found it very intriguing that Ganga drowned all her children but one and decided to modernize the story.

The Sea Turtle and Whale
Do you like Finding Nemo? Then this story is for you!!! Come on a fun little journey with Ruth and Eugene full of love and acceptance! 

Sita's Rebellion 
Are you ready to see Sita stand up for herself? Well here you go. Read about how Sita chooses freedom over love.