Durgamasura and the Avatars

XIV- Karnya- Coming to America

Our friends are cruel. Even though Isha and I shamelessly ship Aranya and Nilan secretly, they're cruel. That's probably why they're a match made in Naraka.

Who sprays water in your face to get you up? And then whispers in your ear, "I've got money riding on this."

Seriously? They bet on us now? Those poor kids don't know how much they like each other.

But we do.

I obediently got up, and woke up Isha too.

"We found our vahanas." Aranya said, displaying a necklace, and Nilan displaying a ring.

I smirked, and Isha said, "I pity the person who's marrying you."

Aranya snickered and said, "Great minds think alike." while fist bumping the both of us.

Nilan muttered under his breath about how mean we were.

Isha and I shot each other glances, like, "What is wrong with them?"

"We need help looking for your vahanas." Aranya said.

"Fine, fine."

We walked around, and finally found our vahanas. Mine was an elephant (or so I thought, from the pendant.) and Isha's was a bull.

We didn't know how to summon them,  but we tried, by closing our eyes and thinking about them.

Surprise, surprise, it worked.

Not being biased, but I thought my elephant looked the most regal. 

We mounted them, and then, all the majestic animals flew into the air. I was so tired I slept on the elephant. The creature adjusted himself, so I could be comfortable.

After a few hours, it seemed, we landed on the sidewalk of a city. My mouth hung open. "We're in-"

"Brooklyn." Aranya finished for me.

We checked our palms, and it showed we had two days left.

"Let's go now." she said, determinedly.

Her swan, though, disagreed.

Aranya stroked her head, soothingly, and said, "She knows where the lair of that asura is, but she's too tired to go there now. Anyway, there's a hot dog cart there. We can probably eat."

"We don't have cash."

We dug in our pockets, and I found $25. Even Karnya and Aranya had $25. Nilan had $35.

He yelled at the sky, " Why didn't you just give it to her then?!" Earning him strange looks from passersby. Aranya grinned, as Nilan shoved a $10 note in her hand. 

We bought hot dogs, and as we ate, Nilan said, "We need a place to crash for the night."

Aranya nodded, and said, "If we're in Brooklyn, we can go to my cousins' place."

"What makes you think that your uncle and aunt won't call your parents?" I asked.

"I-I'll perform magic on them. Make them think that we aren't there." Her eyes streamed with tears as she said it.

"And your cousins?"

"I won't do it on them. They can know we are here. Plus, it'll tire me out, performing magic on two adults. Anyway, no one will believe them while we are there."

"To cousins' house it is."

We went straight to Aranya's cousin brothers' house. Their names were Samir, and Siddharth, but she called them Sam and Sid. It seemed to irritate them.

She rang the doorbell, and a voice crackled through the speaker. "Who is it?"

She sighed, and said, "Sid, it's Aranya. My parents aren't here, and I'll explain everything once we come inside. We need help."

Static crackled, and Sid said, "Look into the camera."

Aranya scowled, and stuck her tongue out at the camera.

Her cousins seemed to think that was normal, since the door buzzed open.

Aranya's cousins looked exactly like her. Dark brown skin, Dark eyes, and even the same dimple when they smiled. Aranya stomped in, and sank into the couch. 

Sid's eye twitched, and then he said, "Your friends?"

"Karnya, Isha and Nilan." she said, pointing at us.

Her cousin seemed apprehensive that she was traveling with a boy.

"Why are you here?"

"We're on a quest."

Sam came in, and even he looked like a younger version of Sid.

"Hi, Ar."

"Don't call me that."

Sid scoffed, and said, "On a quest? How naïve do you think we are?"

She hesitated to answer. "Very?"

"Very funny, Ar. Tell us the whole story."

She said, "I will. But you gotta believe me."

"It depends on the story."

She told him the whole story.

The two of them still didn't look convinced.

"We need proof."

Aranya rolled her eyes, and flicked her wrists. Immediately, her knife and staff came to life.

"So it's true....our sister is a goddess."

"I don't give autographs."

"I didn't want one."

"Where are your parents?"

"At work."

"And they left you two alone in the house? How? Did you Imperius them?"

While the two cousins had not-so-friendly banter, Sam took us in, and gave us cookies, that his mom had baked in the morning.

"D'you believe us?" Nilan asked, through a mouthful of cookies and milk.

"Yeah...I do."

"How?"

"Well.... you have proof. That's one thing."

"And another?" Nilan asked.

"That's between my brother, my cousin and I."

Speaking of the devils, Aranya and Sid came in.

"The girls and I, will sleep in the study, while Nilan will be bunking in the guest room. I have clothes which I left here on the last visit, and Nilan can take Sam's old clothes." she finished, with a tone of finality.

Then, she went up the stairs, and to the study, thus giving us a very dramatic exit.