A/N: Hey there everyone! :D :D Here is the next update! :D :D
Happy Reading! :D :D
28th December, 2000:
And we are back to the Solang Valley. Honestly, I could not have felt happier that we've finally got shot of the Beas Kund, even though I've never seen anything as beautiful as that. Our descent went off considerably smoother even though we were warned that the descent is always much riskier than the ascent. Well, I'm just thankful I'm back on a ground where I'm not afraid of falling off.
Unluckily for us, Ranveer and I barely managed to sleep for an hour or two when the wind grew vicious and broke us out from our slumber. The two of us beat a hasty retreat, I heading back into my tent well into time before Sharman bhaiyya could realize that he was missing anything while Ranveer sat awkwardly outside the tent, trying to draw a warmth we very well knew was impossible for him to achieve. Fortunately, Sharman bhaiyya woke up within fifteen minutes of my sneaking back in and realized that Ranveer must be outside with the bleating winds.
Pulling him inside, Sharman bhaiyya let us recover our warmth and he quickly made us a hot cup of tea that was welcome for both. Maa and Papa woke up by seven and we waited for the winds to sober down a little before Maa and Gauri headed to serve us a modest breakfast. Waiting for another hour till the winds grew stationary once again, Papa, Sharman bhaiyya and Ranveer packed up the tents and we began our descent back to Bakar Thach.
The night at Bakar Thach saw a bad weather once again and Papa made Ranveer lodge in his tent. Ranveer protested loudly but Papa would have nothing. Sometimes, I really think Ranveer should just shut up and agree to things in the first go rather than argue upon everything. Suicidal maniac. We continued the same rite for our descent to the Solang Valley and for the love of the Heavens, the temperature went up to 4. Seriously, an 8 increase in the temperature was a welcome summer to all of us.
We've had quite a healthy breakfast after three days of hunger killing and I think we might have been a little too ravenous. Hogging down as much as four servings, we all feel much more cheerful now and have been in much better spirits. No doubt that the trek was brilliant, but I think I can appreciate the heat more than the cold, thanks. We'll be heading back to the city today evening and will be catching the first train tomorrow back to Mumbai.
This trip has been nothing short of perfect save for one thing - we haven't had a snow fight yet! This trip is clearly going to be incomplete if we don't have a snowman and a snow fight. Looks like I'll have to-
*SPLAT!*
"What the-"
Ishaani turned behind to see Ranveer and Sharman smirking at her evilly, each of them having a snow ball in their hands. The first snow ball found itself smashing into bits at rude contact with Ishaani's back, the latter's pen flying away from her hand in shock. She glared at the two boys as she stood up, pointing her fingers angrily at them.
"How dare you!"
She didn't wait for a reply from Sharman or Ranveer before she stormed out from the tent, leaving behinds the boys looking baffled and slightly guilty for having ruined her mood. They had barely made to follow her when Ishaani fell onto her knees awkwardly. Sharman looked towards Ranveer and communicated silently as to whether they were to throw another shot at her. Ranveer considered the question quickly and shook his head in a no. But even before they could let the snowballs fall useless, both of them felt a slap of ice across their face, snow splattered all over their faces.
Quickly throwing the snowballs blindly in the direction of where Ishaani was supposed to be, they got rid of the snow from their faces and turned to look at each other once again, this time outraged. The looked ahead to see Ishaani jeering at them in a victory dance, before yelling at the top of her lung, "You've messed with the wrong person, boys! Let Mummy teach you how to do it!"
"You tricked us!" growled Sharman angrily while Ranveer achieved the same effect by restricting himself to glaring at her.
"Everything's fair in love and war, boys!" teased Ishaani as she stuck her tongue out that them.
"Argh!" yelled Sharman and Ranveer together as they were about to throw more snowballs at her. Before they could, however, Ishaani raised her hands to stop them both.
"Stop hollering like a bunch of silly dodders! If we are doing this, we are doing this right. Let's make our forts and take a time of thirty minutes of preparation," she voiced smartly, and both the boys looked impressed.
"Seconded, Captain Ishaani," said Sharman after giving it good thought, while Ranveer nodded his head. He continued. "Alright, we'll commence war at exactly twelve noon. You better be ready, Captain, or so God help you, you are going to be white-washed."
Ishaani scowled at him before remembering about the youngest boy of the group.
"Wait! Where's Devarsh?"
"He's in our team too," said Sharman bossily and Ishaani rolled her eyes at him.
"And Gauri di?"
"With Mota Babuji and Falguni Maa. I asked them to join us but they are all tired," answered Ranveer this time and Ishaani gave a small growl.
"Damn it! You guys want a three-against-one match?" she asked sadly, even though the boys knew this trick by now.
"Well, I would have sent Ranveer over to your team but he's our star player, so yeah, it's a three-against-one," said Sharman with an evil grin while Ishaani flared at him.
"I'm more than enough to take you all down."
"We'll see when the time comes to that."
Without another word, Ishaani and boys set to task with their respective preparations for the war. This snow fight had only two rules - one, you make the best ice-fort, use good snow balls and attack from your ends without crossing the boundary and taking care of not maiming each other. And second, the moment a snowball from the opposition hit you, you are out and stationary until the war doesn't come to an end.
For ethics sake, they decided to pitch their war forts a 100 metres away from each other, bringing out their best when it came to creativity. Devarsh and Sharman quickly built up a snow fort will Ranveer continuously keep pouring water upon it to make it solid. Ishaani on the other hand took longer with the same, but she then again had an ace of spades with her. Nobody knew that she had secretly smuggled her snowball blaster onto the field for the war.
Working hard and desperately over their forts for the next hour and the half, Ishaani nearly collapsed onto the snow by the end of it. Looking at her watch, she realized that she still had an hour to go till war commenced. Heaving a sigh of relief, she poured another round of water over her fort and it instantly formed a layer of ice upon it. Great, the temperature had dipped below zero again', was all she could remark to herself. Recovering from the strenuous work, she quickly armed up her three snowball buckets as well her snow blasters that had good ammo for as much as five snowballs.
The boys on the other hand had an easier go when it came to building their fort. Devarsh, who had enough experience with building two ice-forts in the trip already took barely forty five minutes till he had a decent structure standing guard, Ranveer pouring enough water to make the structure stand rock solid. Sharman, in the same time began compiling the snow balls and kept building a healthy stack of it behind the fort, the structure blocking their stock. They looked at their watch and realized that they had well over an hour and forty five minutes till they could commence.
Seeing Ishaani struggle, Ranveer had half a mind to help her out but remained helpless when Sharman and Devarsh dragged him away from the scene to get a little more to eat. The last thing that the boys could see was Ishaani struggling with a bucket of water that fell awry over her half built structure, which they had to admit looked funny. But they knew that it was too time consuming and that she would barely have time to build up the snowballs. So far, the odds looked greatly into their favour.
When they returned back, however, they weren't sure at all. A beautiful ice-fort remained in place of the ridiculous structure while Ishaani waved them hello from her end of the fort. She had an evil smirk on her face as she sipped on her cup of tea, winking at the boys with what certainly didn't look too innocent. Sharman and Devarsh ran to the forts to see that their ammo was untouched and heaved a sigh of relief. The scoundrel that Ishaani could be, they atleast knew that she would never cheat, no matter what.
Ranveer, however, remained lost in his own frame of thoughts as Ishaani got back to happily playing with the snow around her while trying to get a better feel of it before the battle began. Ranveer could not understand what God had truly made her from. Never had he seen anyone as good, kind-hearted, warm-spirited and innocent like Ishaani yet smart, funny, dramatic and mischievous like her. There were so many adjectives that he could use for her, but each time he came to a standstill at the first one that crossed his mind - perfect.
He felt someone tug at his arm again and he nearly lost balance before he caught hold of himself, the rude shock snapping him back into his senses. Sharman's face swam into his vision and Ranveer gave him a flustered look.
"What are you staring at the snow for? We need to have out concentration up! There's just fifteen minutes to go and we need to discuss tactics!"
Ranveer nodded his head and made a quick retreat towards their fort where Devarsh now stood, looking at them anxiously.
"Now listen. When the fight begins, Ranveer, you'll be at the fore with Sharman bhai covering you. You need to be very careful because we all know how good Ishaani is. She may be alone, but she's got the brains to bring down our regime. Plus, she's too calm today, which makes me feel that she must have something on her mind. I will be behind the forts, giving out navigations and instructions since I'm lousy with shots. Everybody clear?"
"How do we corner her?" asked Sharman curiously.
"You have got to make her retreat far enough from her fort. Ishaani may be good, but she is an evasive player, not defensive. If we get her to retreat, she won't have sufficient time to retaliate," said Devarsh confidently, while the other two boys looked excited.
"You do know that Ranveer and I would be out within two minutes if we get her retreating. No snowball has to touch us," countered Sharman after some time but Devarsh had an answer already ready for this.
"But you two aren't going to be the only ones out there now, are you? I'm your reserve player."
"Nice... I love your idea, but I think there needs to be one change," said Sharman finally after a good five minutes of contemplation.
"What's that?" asked Ranveer and Devarsh together while Sharman replied instantly.
"Ranveer needs to be our reserve player."
"But-"
"Use your common sense, Dev! Even if you and I get out, Ranveer is capable enough to get Ishaani back to her fort and carry on the war from there," spoke Sharman impatiently, while Ranveer shuffled his feet uneasily. Devarsh gave the situation good thought before he said grudgingly.
"If that's the case, then Ranveer is going to need this," said Devarsh, who opened the pouch bag from around his neck to remove an identical snow blaster that Ishaani had. "This will help you use five snowballs as ammo. I'm pretty sure that Ishaani won't see this coming. And also, you've got spectacular aim, so she won't stand a chance with this."
"You are a genius, Dev!" exclaimed Sharman gleefully and thumped his brother on the back. Ranveer, however, didn't feel the same.
"But won't... Won't that be..."
"Not again, Ranveer!" said Sharman, who knew that Ranveer was about to protest about keeping Devarsh for the same position.
"No, I wasn't saying that, Sharman!" retorted Ranveer irritably, even though the thought was on his mind. "I was saying that it would be extremely difficult to get Ishaani cornered, so we need to find a good spot."
"Oh... I'm sorry," said Sharman sheepishly while Ranveer chuckled. "And yes, you are absolutely right. Since you are going to be our navigator, do you have any particular spot in mind?"
Giving the question significant thought, Ranveer finally replied after some time.
"I have the most ideal of the lot."
"What's that?"
"Her own fort," he said confidently while both the boys looked puzzled.
"What do you mean?"
"Sharman, you can lead the war head on towards her fort while Devarsh comes from behind, using a dodge-and-shoot maneuver. And since you're the better of the two, Ishaani's focus will be drawn up you. That way, Devarsh has a better hand. But you must be quick, because she might very well scamper at the first sign of danger. But make sure she runs out of her ammo before you do so. Once you manage to corner her at her fort, either one of you can take the quick step."
"But that's unfair upon you, Ranveer. You won't get to play then," said Devarsh reasonably and Ranveer shook his head.
"That's alright, I'll make the snowman."
"You're a leader, Ranveer. And it's time. Let's make our baby girl get a taste of her own snowball," said Sharman confidently as he stood up, trying to get a good look at the enemy camp. He had barely managed to raise himself to eye level when the first snowball made contact with their fort, shaking them all.
That was as good a sign that the war had begun. Sharman and Devarsh nodded as they headed to their respective tasks while Ranveer hollered instructions to them, making sure to throw strong retaliations towards Ishaani's fort as well. Ranveer kept his eyes on the war field as Devarsh nearly slipped but managed to dodge Ishaani's attacks, while Sharman ploughed on bravely, valiantly attempting to get Ishaani, but in vain. Ranveer realized that her fort was just as well built, so there was no chance of trying to attack its base.
Amidst the constant jibes and snide commentary from both ends, Sharman nearly got hit by one of Ishaani's snowballs when the latter decided to retreat. Putting their plan into action, Ishaani tried to make hasty retreat towards the forested area when Devarsh blocked her way from behind. Both boys rounded up near her in a circle, the three of them eyeing each other with apprehension, seeing in that split-second who would be the ones on the receiving end of the snowball.
And just like that, it was over in exactly two seconds. Ishaani threw the two snowballs on either side of her and threw herself out from the way just as Sharman and Devarsh threw theirs at her. Ishaani's snowballs hit target, while both the boys missed her by inches. She stood up triumphantly before putting her hands on her hips, shrieking, "Ha! You lose!"
Ishaani had barely controlled her glee when she felt something hit her with full force on her back and staggered. Turning around in shock, she saw Ranveer standing a little distance apart with the snow blaster in his hand, a strangely careless smile upon his face. Ishaani didn't know whether to let herself smile at the way he was smiling or to remain angry before she settled for the latter.
"No, you lose."
Predicting Ishaani's move, he threw himself out of harm's way before he saw a perfectly formed snowball flying inches away from his hood. Turning behind, he saw Ishaani come out with the identical blaster that he had in his hand, preparing to take another shot at him. Quickly muttering a 'damn' under his breath, he ran as fast as his legs could carry him as he heard Ishaani thundering behind him, firing away snowball after snowball. Three caught him straight in the back and he fell down, the breath knocked out from his lungs.
Ishaani was almost close to reaching him when Ranveer turned around and fired away from his blaster, catching her square on her shoulder and her stomach. She toppled beside him and groaned for a minute before she began chuckling loudly, Ranveer joining suit soon. The laughter indicated that the war was over and the other two boys joined a now-hysterical Ranveer and Ishaani soon, taking pleasure with how amusing and fun the fight had been.
Ranveer and Ishaani lay on the ground hurling snow at each other, at the boys and simply in the air even after Sharman and Devarsh had completed building the snowman. And just like that, the two of them were suddenly content in holding hands. Ranveer, for the life of it, could not understand what had gone wrong with him. Till the previous night, he couldn't even dare to imagine holding hands with her, much less actually cuddling her, but now things felt different.
Somewhere deep down, even though they were the best of friends, he was afraid that he had crossed a lot of his limits as a servant that dawn. But the happiness he was thriving under in that moment was intoxicating. He'd think about it another day was all his mind could offer to him as it began to snow once again, Sharman and Devarsh pulling the two of them up from the ground and rushing into the warm safety of the tent.
The only day that he truly came to think about it was on 18th January 2001, when he felt himself drown into a world of darkness for a very long time.
Constructive criticism will be more than welcome and sorry for any typos. :D :D
Next chapter:
Epistle 29
Rihana, yearning to break free from the predetermined fate of being a tawaif's ...
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