The night outside the Kothari mansion howled with restless wind. Inside, darkness simmered beneath the dim chandeliers — shadows whispering through the long corridors.
The front doors burst open as Gauri pushed them apart, stepping into the hall once again. Her hair was disheveled, her eyes blazing with quiet fury.
Vihaan turned sharply, his expression tightening. "You?" His tone dripped venom. "Do you even have shame left, Gauri? I threw you out once. Don't make me do it again."
Ignoring his words, she lifted her chin, walking toward him with slow, deliberate steps. "You can throw me out of this house," she said calmly, "but not out of your heart."
"Heart?" Vihaan scoffed, his voice cutting like ice. "You think Sarvansh Raj has a heart?"
He grabbed her wrist and dragged her before everyone. The family gasped, frozen between fear and helplessness. Gauri's eyes darted around the hall — and then she saw it.
Near the staircase, a small white flower had bloomed from a crack in the marble. It glowed faintly under the light — a living miracle in the midst of darkness.
Gauri's lips trembled. "Even the house remembers love," she whispered.
Vihaan followed her gaze, then laughed cruelly. "You still believe in signs? Fine. Take it as one — this is the last time you'll set foot here. Stay outside where you belong."
"I have every right to be here," Gauri said, her voice rising. "This is my home. My sasuraal. My pati's house."
Vihaan's eyes flared red. "There's no place here for jalpanchi! You belong to the rivers, not among mortals."
A slow clap echoed through the hall.
From the shadows emerged Mohini, her dark saree glimmering like liquid night. Her presence chilled the air as she circled them both.
"Enough," she said softly, yet her tone commanded all. "Let her stay… if she's so desperate."
The family exchanged nervous glances.
"But," Mohini added with a sly smile, "only one condition — she must give up her jalpanchi powers. Then she can live here… as an ordinary, powerless woman."
Everyone protested at once.
"No, Gauri!" cried Veena, her voice trembling. "You can't! Those powers protect you!"
"She's trying to destroy you Didi!" Charvi warned.
"Don't be foolish, Gauri bhabhi!" Yug pleaded. "You'll lose everything!"
But Gauri's eyes didn't waver from Vihaan's.
"If giving up my power means keeping my sindoor alive," she said softly, "then I accept."
The air went still.
Thunder cracked outside, shaking the chandeliers. Gauri closed her eyes and folded her hands. A faint blue light began to rise from her skin — glowing veins of divine energy that shimmered like river currents.
"From this moment," she whispered, "Jalpanchi returns her power — not out of defeat, but out of love."
The light gathered into a single glowing phoenix feather, spinning in the air before drifting toward Mohini's open palm. As Mohini's fingers closed around it, her smile widened.
"Perfect," she murmured. "Now you're just a normal, helpless girl. Exactly where you belong."
The divine glow around Gauri faded. She stumbled slightly, her strength draining away. Vihaan watched, unmoved — though deep within, something flickered, unseen.
"Vihaan…" she whispered weakly, holding out the small flower she had picked. "Even after everything, something pure still blooms in your heart."
He looked at the flower — then crushed it in his fist, petals scattering across the floor.
"You're a fool," he said coldly. "Love doesn't grow in darkness."
Mohini smirked, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Come, my son. We have preparations to make. The dawn of Sarvansh Raj begins on your twenty-fifth birthday."
Together, they left the hall, their footsteps echoing like thunder.
Gauri sank to her knees, clutching her chest. "Bholenath…" she whispered. "You took my power, but not my purpose. If my love is true… show me the way."
---
Later That Night
Moonlight spilled across the floor of the study, where Gauri sat surrounded by ancient scrolls and dusty books from the old Kothari library. Her eyes were red from reading, her fingers trembling over brittle pages.
Then — she found it.
"The Maan Kalash."
A sacred vessel, said to capture even the strongest of dark forces — a prison for the spirit itself.
Her eyes widened. "This… this can hold Sarvansh."
She rushed to the others — Yug, Charvi, and Veena — who had gathered in the hall.
"Listen," Gauri said breathlessly. "There's still hope. The Maan Kalash can trap the evil within Vihaan — separate Sarvansh from him!"
"But how will you find it?" Charvi asked.
"Only two people know where it is," Gauri replied grimly. "Vihaan… and Mohini."
They exchanged worried looks.
Just then, a shadow flickered in the doorway.
Unseen by them, Vihaan stood there, his eyes narrowing as he overheard every word.
And when Gauri looked up, fire in her gaze, she declared:
"I've found it. I know where the Maan Kalash is."
Vihaan's expression hardened — stunned yet intrigued — as he disappeared into the darkness, a storm rising quietly within him.