The next day Kartik and I try to find an opportunity to talk to Arasi, to plan how to go about interviewing people. Throughout the school hours, we don't get any time. There are no free periods and no sports or even our regular meditation. And soon it is announced in class that there will be no further meditations through school nor any activity that involves using your powers. Since there is a ban to go near the rivers or drink outside water, they say we can't risk wasting the water inside us because we have only that to drink it? Sounds pretty gross.

If they think that people can survive by drinking the water from their powers, then they are so wrong. What about the soldiers? They have to use their powers if something bad happens. Not to forget that explosion during that ceremony which is rumored to be done by Marhalis. I shake my head in dismay, there's no future for this kingdom with an idiot sitting on the throne.

After the school ends, Arasi is the first one to exit the classroom. We try to be quick and follow her but she disappears in thin air. "Where did she go?" I squint my eyes as I stand under the blinding light of the sun.

"Look, there's she is!" Kartik points at a faraway tree under which a girl's back is turned towards us.

"Are you sure it's Arasi?" We get closer to the tree when the girl turns around, revealing to be Arasi. She doesn't seems to notice us as she stuffs something in her bag.

Kartik and I exchange glances. I urge him to speak through my eyes but he nudges me forward instead. "Hey." I finally speak, earning her attention. "I'm Onkar."

"And I'm Kartik." Kartik holds his hand up.

"Yeah, I know." Her reply is blunt.

"You remember the task the art teacher assigned us with, right? We're in the same group."

"Oh right. Kaavya told about the changes and all." She fondles with the strap of her bag, her eyes diluted.

"Yeah, shall we start it?"

"Right now?" She groans but starts walking anyway. "Let's sit in the lunchroom."

The lunchroom is empty now that the school for seniors is over and the juniors are still in their classes. But the cooks are still there, preparing the meal for the other kids. I smell something odd when we take our seats at an isolated table, as if a days old sambhar is being reheated. I think it's better I tell Amma to pack our lunch instead of eating from here.

Kartik nudges me out of my thoughts and gestures to Arasi, who has her head on her hand which is propped up on the table. Her eyes are on the verge of closing and it's clear that she doesn't wants to use the bench to sit but to rather sleep.

"So... um, where should we start?" I ask her.

She looks up, startles. "Oh, ummmm let's think."

"Yeah, maybe we can start from deciding which people to interview?" I take out my book to make notes. "Maybe we can start with physicians because they are the ones who know the best." I look up when I don't get a response and see Arasi looking up at the ceiling, her neck strained as is someone is bending a pole.

"I want to fly." She whispers.

"What?" I stop my laugh as Kartik's brows raise in bewilderment.

"I can fly right? Out of this world?" She asks bending her neck more back.

"Man, I'm not sure if she's isn't high on something." I joke in a whisper and Kartik rolls his eyes. Never knew I would see this version of her in our first meet.

"Yeah you can but now can we do this?" I tell and try to bring her attention to the work we have. But whatever I speak doesn't reaches her ears, as if she has gone deaf for a while. She admires the air around us and gleams at sudden moments making us aware that her body is here but her mind is somewhere else.

I thought that if we could distribute our work and interview people individually we can get the most information in just one week. But now, it feels that only I and Kartik have to finish it because even the next day Arasi's head is in the clouds. This day-dreaming of hers is not only when she is with us but also during the classes when all she does is look out of the windows. Her eyes sparkle looking at the birds that soar through the sky or butterflies who pass us by accidentally. But that sparkle vanishes when her eyes come on any human. They are dull and pale and cry for sleep. Even now, on the third day when we have ordered some vadas she is playing with them all by herself, using them as rings on her fingers. For her, it seems she is the only one present in the room, as if we are not sitting right in front of her. If any of the other children catch her being like this, I'm sure her reputation as the Crown princess would only degrade further.

"C'mon, you should try them. They'll be pretty on you." She inserts one vada on my finger. I don't know if she's acting like this on purpose or if she was always like this. I just stare at her blankly.

"What? Okay, I know I'm being childish. But we're not like sixty year olds who sew sweaters in their free time right?" She leans back on the chair actually eats a vada instead of using it as an ornament. I and Kartik exchange a glance and from the look on his face, I instantly realize he was going to back out.

"I'll go and bring some chai for y'all." He smiled his way out even though I try to pull his tunic.

I turn back to look at Arasi who is staring at me, her legs now on the table. This is so weird. "Okay, so I know it's good to bring out your inner child out sometimes but can we complete our before that?"

She groans. "You won't let me go if we don't complete this right? You're a genuine goody-two-shoes."

"No I'm not." I mumble while Arasi sits properly again.\

"So, what's the plan?" She asks.

"We need to get people interviewed, the families who are affected and are not affected by the outbreak. And especially the physicians. I did get my father's interview who is also a physician. But that's not enough. We need more." I explain. She only stares at me which makes me realize that she has no opinion on this and I need to continue.

"So, I was thinking that if you could approach the Royal physician? It would put a better impression on students as a person of authority speaks to them the teacher would be happy too. And you know how every physician in this town is busy in the hospital which is why it is impossible to interview them. I don't think there is such an outbreak inside the palace walls right?"

"I can't."

"You can speak to Kaavya though. She's your friend."

"Why don't you speak to her?"

"I just met her a week ago. I can't ask her such a big favor."

"I can't either. She's mad at me."

"Why?" I didn't think Arasi would reply to that but the answer is right away presented.

"Because I didn't go to her house to see her brand new imported expensive dress." Woah, so many adjectives for a 'dress'?

"Then make up with her. You both have been friends since we were six." I have seen her and Kaavya being together from the time I joined this school. They always sat together. They eat together. Later, Anirudh joined their squad. Other than those two, Arasi never really talked to anyone. The last time I remember talking to her was asking for a pencil when she of course refused to give.

"That time was different. Now it is different. No friends can actually be friends for that long." She folds her hands against her chest.

"That's not true." I frown. "Friendships can last long." Out of nowhere, I have visions of my childhood, when I had both my friends by my side. My chest is heavy when Biju's writhing body flashes across my eyes.

"In my case, Kaavya and I have too many differences and we don't understand each other at all. And she irritates me sometimes."

"Kaavya is nice, okay?"

"Says the one who only knows her for a week."

I become silent. She has a point.

"Anyways, let's not fight over this topic." She yawns. "I'm over the 'best friends forever' already."

"Does that mean after this we will never talk?"

"You want to be friends with me?"

"I mean–" my eyes flicker to Kartik who is wasting his time at the counter. The order is already served but he just hasn't carried it here. He asks me about the situation through gestures but Arasi turns to look at where my eyes are. Kartik immediately faces away.

"Oh that..." She chuckles. "I know that."

My eyes widen. "You know?"

"Nothing stays with Kaavya long enough."

My hands flap in the air as my back hits the chair behind. So everyone knows that Kartik has a crush on Arasi, including the Arasi but Kartik is unaware of all that. And the source of all that information is me. Nice.

"Hey..." Kartik finally enters the scene, making me conscious of Arasi's extra grinning. He places the cups of chai on the table simultaneously glancing back and forth between me and Kartik. I look at Arasi and feel immense danger of her bluttering out that she knows about Kartik's crush. If that happens, Kartik will die in embarrassment after killing me.

"You know what? I've some work." I pack my bag.

"What work?" Kartik questions, sitting down. But before he could, I pull him by his arm.

"You also have work."

"Huh?" Kartik gets his bag before we get out of there.

"What happened? What were you two talking about?" Kartik asks.

I shake my head. "It's just that Arasi is way too different than what we perceived her as."

"You perceived her as." Kartik corrects me, making me roll my eyes. "C'mon, if we go like this, I would never be able to talk to her."

"You didn't talk even once the whole time we are with her."

"I'm not good with words, you are."

We exit the school. "That doesn't meanI have to set you both up. I know zero things about dating or asking out your crush."

"Then how did you spend a whole pazham pori date with Kaavya?"

"She's not my crush. We are friends."

It seems Kartik doesn't buy the truth because he shrugs. "Whatever. Tomorrow, Bipin is giving me a list of lines which I can try to woo her."

I snort a laugh. "What? You and flirting? I surely don't want to witness that."

Kartik elbows. "I'm practicing, ok?" I give him a thumbs up. "But for that, we need to be friends first."

My conversation with Arasi echoes in my brain. "That's not possible. She's not interested."

"We can try, man. If you help me, I will do anything." Kartik says. I stop in my tracks.

"Anything?"

He nods. And I grin.

***

"I didn't think this was what you wanted me to do." Kartik scolds me for the hundredth time tonight. I place a finger on my lips to tell him to shut up but he kept going. "What? The guards will wake up as it is. We're gonna die today, I'm sure of that." I roll my eyes when he starts to chant a prayer.

I had to do something. To find out something about the disease. And for that I need to know which rivers are safe and which aren't. That way I can proceed about learning how the disease is spreading and what rivers are actually a threat to us. We can't live without water when water is what we are made of. And sea water is not the best option to substitute pure water.

But now, the main problem is to get those water samples to test on them. However, all the rivers in the kingdom are guarded and are restricted to enter. Snore of some guards who are dozing off mingle with the crickets that chirp above the water. We silently wait behind the cotton like bushes to let the remaining sleep. It is three in the morning and so naturally they are drowsy. They don't take gatekeeping the rivers as a serious job. And when I see the last guard dropping his head back on the bark of a tree, I whisper to Kartik. "Let's do it."

"Take care." Kartik says as if I'm going to war who is destined to die.

I control the urge to laugh and scramble out of there. The moonlight is the only thing that guides me ahead. I crawl past one old dozed off guard and go to hide in front of another bush so that the long leaves hide my body. I chose the Fena river the very first because of the very reason that it has many greens surrounding it–big bushes, tall trees and the most important part of all, it is not connected with Palin river. There's no reasoning to do about why river Palin is not affected. Or maybe it is the source of this disease.

An icy wind sends goosebumps through my body. The night air is frosting in Nivaan even if it's summer. I peek through the bushes behind at Kartik, who is hiding behind the religious banyan tree. It would have been better if Kartik was in my place an vice-versa, considering he is more quick and agile as a monkey. But I can't risk his life for something I want to try out. I can't lose another friend.

With a heavy heart, I see Kartik signal to go ahead, that no danger is near, I remove the vial from my pocket and opened it's cap very slowly, so as to not create even a popping sound. When it's open, I crawl on my all fours and keep myself low. There's quite a distance from the bushes towards the river. The pebbles press into my palms and prick my knees but I keep myself going, knowing that it's only minutes work and I can get out of here.

My mind is steady when I reach the coast of the river and dip the vial to get the sample in a way that it doesn't touches my finger. Even if the disease is spreading when intake the water, it doesn't hurt to take precautions.

"What're you doing, kid?" I flinch at the hoarse voice as my limbs freeze.

"N-nothing." I hear Kartik's voice, making my head snap at them. Kartik's caught. The guard holding him accountable by his collar. Kartik's panicking eyes look at me and before the guard could spot me, I do the unthinkable.

I fall back in the river.

I could imagine Kartik's eyes going wide whilst the guard scream at the splashing of water. Seeing the shadows approach, I swim deep in the water. The cold water bites my skin as if I'm swimming in a river which is frozen at the top. I make sure not to open my mouth for the water to get inside me. There's no issue of breathing though because Nivaanians are blessed the ability of breathing from the time they are born.

I can't thank the Water Goddess enough for that.

I feel the water bubbling from the surface. Someone has dipped their face in to look. But it's too dark to see. I swim away from the shore and to where I know is another coast meeting outside the town. When I know I'm at a distance from them, I come up and my eyes can only see water around itself. Fena river is small so I can the end of the town soon. But what about Kartik? Will he be alright? Please be safe.

After what felt thirty minutes of swimming through the moonlit river and getting lost two times, I finally spot the trees and guards that are dozing off there. I'm hopeful that I don't wake the guards up when I get out of the water, my clothes dripping all the excess water and sticking to my body like gum. Surprisingly enough, none of the guards wake up when I make my way through the grass path with silent steps. Before running off, I see empty bottles of liquor.

With luck on my side, it is already early morning and I find a farmer taking cart full of harvest inside the town. I take his help and again go to the Fena river where I'm sure Kartik would be a nervous wreck– if he's safe.

"What the heck did you think you are when you jumped in that river?" Kartik's voice reaches my ears before even I see him. Relief finally allows my stiff shoulders to sag. I jump off the cart and after thanking the farmer, I show him the vial of sample.

"I don't think we even need this. You yourself are a living sample. If you stay alive, the river is pure and if you die, the river is contaminated." Sarcasm is heavy in his voice as he crosses his arms against his chest.

"Look, I didn't have any choice. If they had caught us both, we wouldn't be standing here right now. And I'm fine." I twirl around to show him I'm alright– which is a little dramatic because he stomps off.

"You're taking this very lightly, Onkar." Kartik warns me, with the angry-serious tone that he always used on me and Biju when we teased him for his long hair.

"Sorry." I mutter. I know it's my mistake.

"And this is stupid. We can't test all the rivers. Nivaan is such a big kingdom with so many rivers other than Palin river and we can't travel such great lengths without telling our parents."

I could only hum in agreement.

"We are not heroes, Onkar. You and I are too normal to save the people or something."

"I only want to protect my family. For them, I can try to be a hero. I want to be the hero."

"Am I included in that family?" Kartik asks.

I snort, nudging him in the side. "Is that even a question?" He chuckles.

"You know how things are at home. Amma is being paranoid, Deepti is being bullied, Appa is working day and night to save those people at the hospital, not even caring about his own health. I can't see them like this."

Kartik nods. "But you can't do this alone, man. Risking your life like this is stupidity with nothing getting done."

"Then what do you suggest?"

It's as if the answer is already ready with him because it comes out instantly. "Arasi."

I roll my eyes. "You're doing this because–"

"No, no, listen. It's only Arasi who can help us with this. She's a Princess. She has the power to do get the samples."

"But..." I reminisce about our conversation this morning. She doesn't wants to make any friends then how should I expect her to help?

"I'm not going to force you though because I'm just a supporter in all this. It's your decision after all." Kartik says. But deep down he too wants me to accept it so that he gets more time on his side.

"You're so cunning."

He laughs. "What?"

I sigh. "Fine then. I'll give it a try."

***