“Huh? What were you doing, anyway?” he asked, adjusting the bird with no great effort. “You’ve been amusing yourself by moving your arms this way and that.”
“I can show you…if you’d like.”
“Go on.”
Chandra extended her arms again cautiously.
“There! Do you see?” she said, indicating the shadow under them. “That’s the shape of a swan.”
Chandra moved her arms again, and the shadow shifted. “And there’s a horse.”
Veer looked bemused.
“Shadow animals?” he snickered. “That’s what this is all about? A child’s amusement? Maybe I am confused about your age. I thought you’re a woman, not a nine-year-old.”
Chandra dropped her arms with a huff. “You don’t need to be nasty. It’s pretty fun when you get into it. Sarun, when he was young, used to pester me every day to make shadow animals for him. I can make almost a hundred and fifty such shadow figures.”
“What a useful skill to have,” he teased.
Chandra twisted in her seat and scowled at him.
There was something different about him today. Before, when he made sarcastic comments, his eyes stayed cold and remote, but now that ice seemed to have thawed.
He blinked, breaking the spell. Clearing his throat, he asked, “Tell me about Sarun. I want to know about him.”
“He’s a happy, well-adjusted child who is fond of getting into scrapes. You saw him that day.” Chandra hesitated. “He doesn’t know anything about his father. You recall Girish, right, my bodyguard?” When Veer nodded, she continued. “Girish’s been the male figure in his life. Kalpana and Girish are planning to be together as a family.”
“You should’ve told me everything…but at least about Sarun before. Why didn’t you?” he asked quietly, sounding sincere.
Chandra gathered her thoughts. “I was afraid of how you’d take it, and I didn’t know you well enough to think that you’d pardon Kalpana for a crime of this magnitude.” Chandra peered back at him briefly, wondering what he was thinking. It seemed like he was slowly accepting the truth about the past.
“I want him in Rajgarh’s royal palace where he’d be provided the best education. It’s the least I can do for a man who I once called a friend.”
Chandra panicked. This was another of her worries. “You can’t take him away!” she said, twisting to face him. “He needs his mother. Especially now that he’s sick.”
“Damn it! I’m not a monster that I’d separate a child from his mother, and I resent that you think I’d do that.” He paused and spoke in a different tone. “Just how sick is Sarun?”
“Well, his mother caught him levitating a while back,” she said, facing the front once again, her voice hollow. “Sarun remembers bits and pieces of these incidents and he’s terrified of them. He’s always been a somewhat delicate child, but now the powers seem to eat him alive from within. Kalpana is taking him to Rajgarh to meet Virat’s parents. To get some answers.” She threw him a glance over her shoulder. “Is there a way to cure him?”
“From what you’re telling me, perhaps he needs an outlet for his magic,” said Veer contemplatively. “So that’s why Girish left in a hurry. You sent him to accompany Kalpana.”
“Yes, it’s dangerous for a woman to travel alone. And they plan to marry soon, anyway. She’ll be safe with him.” Chandra remained silent for a while. “You think Sarun might have magic?”
“It is quite a possibility,” he said. “Why?”
“Nothing…”
Veer was silent for a while. “Being a wizard is not bad, you know. It’s what you choose to do with what you’re given that has far more impact on your life.”
Chandra curled her fingers into the downy feathers under her after hearing his observation, her mind conflicted. Growing up, she heard horror stories about wizards and after meeting Virat, it was hard for her to sympathize.
After a while, Veer asked, “You seem to be comfortable flying. Do you want to try something different?”
“Like what?” she asked suspiciously.
“Fly with him,” said Veer.
“But I am flying right now?” Chandra turned again to glance at him, and he had a completely serious look on his face. But she didn’t fool herself into thinking he was harmless.
