In Mahabharatha, the story of the relationship between Kunthi and her illegitimate son Karna is interesting.
After he gets to know that Kunti is his mother they have a affectionate reunion. Soon Kunti asks Karan to leave the Kauravas and join her other 5 sons, the Pandavas. He explains why he is indebted to Duryodhan, the eldest of the Kaurava brothers.
His mother asks him two favors. 1. That he should not fight against or kill any Pandava other than Arjuna who is Karna's sworn enemy. 2. That Karna should not use the deadly Nagastra (a guided missile!) more than once against Arjuna.
Both these favors together more or less eliminate the possibility of Karna doing much harm to the Pandavas while the favors he granted endanger Karna's own life. It's noteworthy that Kunti didn't grant Karna nor did Karna ask his "new mother" any favor to help protect his own life.
Of course Karna, being the person he was, unhesitatingly grants his mother the favors she asks of him. And in the war, he is killed by Arjuna.
What I find interesting is that Kunti ensured that her 5 legitimate sons were protected , even if it meant the end of her illegitimate and eldest son. While she makes a show of all sons being equal in her eyes (that the new bride was to be shared by her 5 sons, read here) she makes a clean distinction between the eldest and the younger 5 sons. What is remarkable is her calculating mind at work when she asks Karna the two favors while at the same time having an emotional reunion with him.
This story is as per the Tamil film Karnan. Quote from the movie's wiki "Karnan is based on the life of the character Karna from the Hindu epic Mahabharata. B. R. Panthulu, who directed and produced the film under the banner Padmini Pictures, had collected most of his information from scholars Kripananda Variar and Anantarama Dikshitar.
I am reminded of mother birds and mother crocodiles that sacrifice their own young runt in order to survive or to increase the survival probability of her stronger children.
It's sad and thought provoking that Kunti saw a runt in Karna.
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