"PIYALI JAISWAL" a bellow came from their left.
"Uh-oh" Piya muttered, her brows creasing in worry.
"Big uh-oh" Zara sniggered.
Aron strode over to the girls his eyes spitting fire.
"What in the name of lord was that?" he said making each syllable of his sentence clear.
"Papa I can explain" Piya began.
"Piyali Jaiswal….I do not want an explanation from you" Aron said.
Piya caught Zara mimicking Aron out of the corner of her eyes. She smothered a giggle which was not missed by Aron.
"You are giggling! Giggling…..young lady you were about to be cut by a million glass pieces and you are standing there and giggling" Aron shouted, looking affronted.
Piya shook her head in negative.
"I have told you a thousand times….you should not only focus on the object but also the direction of flow of your energy….it should be opposite you…..you should let it out slowly……I have warned you to try out with small objects…..but does the lady listen to me? No!" Aron ranted away, a vein in his temple pulsing.
"And you" he rounded on Zara who quickly put on a straight face "Are you a friend of hers or an enemy?" he asked giving her a withering look.
"I tried and tried and tried to stop her…..but does the lady listen to me? No!" Zara replied in an excellent imitation of Aron.
Piya burst out laughing at this and Aron's temper flared up further.
"You" he moved forward to Zara to catch her ear but she swiftly moved away.
Piya caught his hand and looked apologetically at him.
"Sorry Papa…..I know I should have tried with a smaller object….but I was really tempted to see the bigger effect….what it would do to the object standing beyond" Piya explained
Aron affectionately touched her cheek. He couldn't remain angry for long with his angel.
"Piya my darling…..being excited about magic is good……but you have to be cautious as well…..you for one have to be more cautious….I told you your energy is not like a normal witches……Zara may not be there to watch your back always" Aron said looking at her lovingly.
"Yep…..If I am busy in a date, I will deffo not watch your back" Zara voice came, from her perch atop a tree branch.
"Come down here you little imp" Aron ordered half smiling at her
"Little? From which angle does she look little Papa" Pia asked with a giggle.
Zara was tall and hour glass figured. Her burgundy colored hair was tied in a high pony which swayed as she jumped down from the tree.
Aron caught her ears the moment she came near.
"That should teach you to respect elders" Aron said smiling at Zara's cute scrunched face.
"Elder? I don't see any elder around…..oh do you mean yourself Uncle….you hardly look 30.…..if you wish to be called elder you should have started aging a bit more earlier" Zara grinning mischeviously
"If I had chosen to age a bit more earlier…..who do you think would have looked after you…..Maria would have gone mental trying to keep you both at bay" Aron said smiling affectionately at his two dolls.
He looked the girls from top to bottom.
"What are you both wearing" he asked looking incredulous.
"Shorts….cute and comfy" Pia said standing in a supermodel pose.
"Comfy is it…. Youngsters these days….they shorten up everything….dresses, words…..I really miss the old golden era when women were decently covered up" Aron said with an air of nostalgia.
"We so don't" Zara and Pia said together.
Aron shook his head.
"It is nearly lunch time go and freshen yourself up" Aron said, leading them towards the castle door.
"Hey Piya…..how about a race to the pool" Zara asked .
"Any time" Piya said with a grin.
"Now listen here…its too hot to race around…..you both have traveling to do….it is not…..Piya, Zara…wait no" Aron tried to dissuade them but ended sighing in exasperation as Piya and Zara were in no mood to listen to him. They went swooshing past Aron. Zara's long legs keeping her in lead.
"These two will never change...eighteen by looks but eight at heart...Lord please protect my angels" Aron send a prayer to heavens.
After an hour……
Zara came waltzing into Piya's room, her I-pod playing in full volume.
"I feel like I have entered into a room size cotton candy the moment I enter into your room" Zara commented plopping down on Piya's pink quilt covered bed "All pinky pinky"
"Better than yours…..all white white" Piya retorted toweling down her long curly hair.
"White is the color of peace darling" Zara said .
"In the room of the worlds….scratch that…..universe's least peaceful soul" Piya said smirking.
A knife came flying her way. With a click of finger Piya turned it into a colorful butterfly.
It fluttered down on Piya's shoulder.
"I love the way you do that" Zara said looking wistfully at the butterfly "Mine is always black and red"
"Shows the color of your soul" Piya said looking sideways at Zara.
The next moment Piya's was sent sideways by a huge fluffy pillow smashing into her face.
Piya jumped down and picked up another pillow and smashed Zara on the head. Zara ducked and blocked with the pillow.
Soon the room was filled with pillow feathers.
"Stop it you two…..are you eight or eighteen ladies" Maria shouted walking into the room her hands laden with clothes.
Piya and Zara were covered in feathers from head to toe looking like some kind of strange birds.
"Seriously I don't know how am I supposed to rest peacefully after sending you two to India" Maria said while cleaning up the room, looking distinctly irritated.
"My sweetie pie Maria….we will be al right" Piya said hugging Maria from the back.
"I know that…..I am worried about Mr and Mrs. Dobriyal Piya…..their niece is going to visit them for the first time after 16 years….and look at her behavior" Maria said giving Zara an angry look.
Zara went over and joined Piya in hugging Maria.
"Maria my darling……Zara Dobriyal is well behaved when needed...Dobriyals will just love me" she stated with an air.
"If you behave well they will..." Maria said with finality
"Leave all that….here these are some dresses Aron send for you……some Indian dresses….I don't know their names….some of them are for taking to India…..he told you to wear these to the dinner tonight" she said picking up two sarees from the pile.
"Saree….whoa! How exactly are we supposed to wear these" Zara exclaimed.
"Ganga will help you with that" Maria said.
"She will be here after an hour….get yourself free of these feathers by then" Maria said while walking off.
"India….hmm" Piya mused.
"What is so hmmm about India?" Zara asked cocking her head to a side.
"Do you realise we are going to visit our homeland for the first time……you have been there before….but you were hardly two or three……we are going to visit a place we don't remember but still is close to us ….isn't that exciting….I have heard that Magic in India is lot more older than it is here" Piya said almost dancing with excitement.
"Exciting yeah…..but I am worried Piya…..I might joke around about gelling in with ease in my family……Arnab uncle is feeling bad about alienating my dad and mom and not looking after me all these years….so he is eager to have me back….but I am also an oddity just like my mom and dad" Zara said with a faraway look in her eyes.
Piya knew that her friend was afraid of once again going through the pain of loosing her family. Piya had never known her family considering the strange way she was born.
Zara had also lost her mom and dad when she was about four.
Zara and Piya had grown up together. As Piya's growth rate was different from normal children, they were now of the same age.
"Hey" Piya said giving Zara a hug "I am there na….I told you do not resent what you are...heck yes we aren't normal...but there is no law that only normal people can live...we can do good things with our powers too...I will make sure I make a good impression about you in the Dobriyal house before you land up there" Piya said giving a sweet smile.
Zara's face relaxed into a smile.
"I know that…..that is what I am more bothered about…..seeing you they will think that I am also a goody two shoes like you" Zara said with a mock-horrified face.
Piya smacked her on the head.
"Now let us worry about these nine-yards" Piya said picking up a rose colored saree.
"Pink again" Zara said with a smirk in reply to which Piya put out her tongue.
Anupamaa
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