After setting the table for dinner, Aisha realized that she had left behind something- her blue silver bracelet that she never parted with. She ran up to her room to get it. When she approached her room door, she saw a bright blue light shining through the door hole.
Aisha squinted and peered under the door hole. She saw TWO masked men (or women, she wasn't sure which) , holding her bracelet. The bracelet shone brightly. One of them shoved it in a black backpack and they both disappeared in a cloud of red and purple smoke. The smoke formed some kind of symbol, so Aisha remembered how it looked like before it disappeared completely. Aisha was astonished and opened the door. But it was too late. The thieves had gone.
Meanwhile, her cousins, was downstairs, along with Sirena and Chris. They were waiting impatiently for food. They just realized that they hadn't eaten since lunch- which was hours ago. Deva boisterously came down the stairs and plopped himself in a chair. Raju was the first to notice Aisha's absence.
"Where is Aisha?" he asked Gowri.
Gowri shrugged. " She was down earlier. Then she went up to take something. " she replied, after thinking for a moment. They waited a little longer.
Finally, Raju decided to go and call Aisha. " She might be in trouble" he reasoned. Eventually, all of them trooped upstairs to find Aisha.
They went into her room, and found her still kneeling on the floor. Raju rushed to her, Gowri at his heels. Deva surveyed the room for damage. Sirena and Chris stood awkwardly at the door-they didn't feel welcome.
'There are all a family, Chris and I aren't even that close. I feel out of place. I feel like an intruder. ' the thoughts rushed into Sirena's head.
Chris has his own doubts too. ' Sure, they are a family, they can depend on each other. But who am I? What am I even doing here? ' thoughts made their way into his heart. For a minute, he felt like an outsider. He then remembered how friendly the cousins were to him, how they had accepted him into their home. He shook his head, clearing the thoughts, which were getting more meaner each second, and focused on Aisha.
Tears were still falling from her eyes. Aisha was sobbing, as if her heart had been broken. ' Now I will never remember her! And she will never be able to find me if I don't have the bracelet!' she cried inwardly. Precious memories of her and her mother filled her head. All the fantasies of finally meeting her mother after years disappeared. Then came the anger. 'Who were those people? What did they think she was? A girl who was easily frightened and no confidence? '
Aisha shook off her cousins' concerned hands and stood up, fiercely brushing her tears. " I WILL find that bracelet, even if I have to go to the end of the Earth to find it! " she exclaimed with determination so strong, it brought Sirena to tears - of admiration and strength.
She could feel Aisha's feelings, angry and fierce. She could feel it in her. Like she was Aisha. She cautiously met Aisha in the eye, and felt the anger rushing into her veins. She excused herself from the room, which was getting noisier, with the cousin's demanding to know what happened, and what Aisha meant.
As Aisha explained, Sirena felt that talking about her biological mother calmed Aisha. She sighed in relief. Her head was starting to spin, and she decided to ask Neil later about what she had felt. Was she magic? If so, why? Who was she, really?
Soon, everyone, including Aisha were downstairs, peacefully eating dinner without any other surprises. Sirena was thoughtful about her feelings earlier, but she didn't say a word about it to Chris when he asked if she was okay - he said she was a bit pale, she didn't want to him to know more than what he should know. 'Anyways, I doubt Aisha would like it if I went about telling people about her feelings,' she assured herself.
By 9.00, the dishes and food had been cleared, and everyone was relaxing when Neil returned, knocking on the door. Aisha, who had been skimming through books to find the symbol she saw earlier in smoke, immediately jumped up from the couch to answer. She opened the door to find Neil standing before her, soaking wet.
" Goodness, Neil. What happened to you? " Gowri asked concerned. She took Neil's coat and shoes to put for drying. " It isn't even raining here" she added, looking out the window.
Neil sat down and sighed. " Thankfully, my clothes are still dry" he mumbled.
" Hmm? Something to say Neil? " Deva asked, distractedly. He was too busy watching the football match on TV. Aisha took the remote and switched it off. Deva turned around. " What are you ..." he started when he saw Neil sitting with his wet hair and half-wet clothes. He gaped. " When did you... Why are you.." he sputtered as his cousins sighed. How they were even related was a mystery for all of them.
Gowri brought out some warm soup for Neil. He started drinking the soup. After a while, he put down the bowl and pushed it aside. " WELL?? WHAT HAPPENED??" the children almost deafened Neil.
Neil winced and rubbed his ears. " You all are going to make me deaf soon," he mumbled under his breath. " Alright. When I was walking home, I came across the most weirdest thing I have ever seen..."
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