Scene:
EXT. ESTATE GARDEN – MID-MORNING
The garden had finally come alive again.
Sunlight filtered softly through the tall trees, painting golden patterns on the grass. The air smelled of damp leaves and jasmine, with the distant rustle of birds returning to their morning songs.
Aahi sat cross-legged on the bench, a faint smile playing on her lips, her shawl lazily draped over her shoulder. Her canvas bag sat beside her, book half-tucked inside, forgotten.
Across from her, seated on the edge of the lotus pond, was Eela, feet dangling just above the water, arms folded across her knees. Her bandaged arm rested lightly, her hair tied up casually — but her eyes were always watching. Always… knowing.
They had been talking for nearly an hour — softly, easily. Laughing even.
Eela's smile was genuine. But her heart wasn't calm.
Aahi spoke with the innocence of someone untouched by her own truth.
"You know, sometimes I feel like I hear things before they happen. Not voices, just… echoes. Dreams, maybe."
Eela tilted her head slightly.
"Echoes can be warnings. Or invitations."
Aahi chuckled.
"Spoken like a philosopher."
Eela didn't respond. She was watching her bag.
The charm pulsed in her palm. Hidden inside her closed fist — a bracelet, woven with fine silver thread and a spirit-marked charm no mortal eyes could understand.
It had chosen Aahi.
But Aahi had not yet chosen it.
And then—
"AAHI!"
The call cut through the calm like a blade.
Both girls jumped slightly.
"AAHI, COME QUICK!"
It was her grandmother, shouting from inside the house.
Her voice shook — not just urgent, but afraid.
Aahi's smile vanished.
She sprang up, bag still on the bench, shawl trailing behind her.
"Naani?" she called back, her tone rising.
"Aahi! Hurry!"
Aahi didn't think twice.
She spun around, barefoot on the stone path, and sprinted toward the house without grabbing her things.
Gone. Just like that.
The garden was silent again.
Eela stood.
Her fingers tightened around the charm.
She approached the bench slowly, as if the moment itself demanded silence. The koi beneath the pond had gone still again. Even the air around her seemed to hum — something old, watching.
She opened the bag.
One slow, quiet breath.
Then she slipped the bracelet — pulsing faintly with a silver-blue light only she could see — into the inner side pocket of the bag.
As soon as it touched the fabric, the light vanished.
The charm went still. As if it had fallen asleep inside its chosen vessel.
Eela stared at it for a second too long.
Then zipped the pocket closed.
"You'll feel it soon," she whispered. "You won't know what it is. Not yet. But it will start."
From inside the house, a door slammed. Another shout rang out.
Eela stepped back, her face now expressionless.
Her hand brushed across her chest where a faint sigil glowed — then faded again beneath her skin.
She turned toward the path through the trees.
Disappeared before Aahi could return.
And in the pocket of the forgotten bag —
the spirit charm pulsed once.
Then waited.