Before the world called him "strange,"
Before Talents, ranks, and whispers...
Shiva was just a quiet boy living in a quiet village — Sharanya.
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🌿 The Village
Sharanya was peaceful.
Small houses with red-tiled roofs. Stone paths lined with tulsi and marigold. Mango trees at the edge of the forest. Smoke from clay stoves filled the evening air with the smell of roti and ghee.
People here believed in simple things:
Hard work. Honesty. Blessings. The Breath of the World.
In the middle of the village stood the Temple of Awakening — a white-stone temple, always cool to the touch. Bells chimed softly in the wind. Inside, the villagers prayed for health, rain, and good Talents for their children.
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🧘♂️ The Boy Who Watched the Wind
No one knew where Shiva had come from.
One morning, the priest found him sitting under the glowing chandrapushpa tree — silent, calm, and alone. Not crying. Just… watching the leaves move.
He was only three. But he already seemed older somehow.
He didn't speak much.
He didn't cry.
He simply listened.
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The villagers took him in. Fed him. Gave him clothes. Let him stay in a quiet room behind the potter's home.
That's where he met Meera.
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👧 The Girl Who Talked Too Much
Meera was the daughter of the potter.
She was the complete opposite of Shiva — loud, curious, always running around barefoot with chalk dust on her hands.
At first, she thought he was weird.
Too quiet. Too serious. Too still.
So, of course, she sat next to him every day.
> "Why don't you talk?"
"Do you have a secret?"
"Are you a spirit-child from the jungle?"
He never answered.
But one day, he smiled.
After that, she brought him sweets, told him stories, and dragged him to festivals. Sometimes she braided flowers into his hair. He never stopped her.
They became a pair.
> "Where's Meera?"
"Where's Shiva?"
"Oh — probably under the banyan tree again."
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✨ A Quiet Bond
By the time they were five, they had their own secret place — an old stone bench near the river, where they watched stars and asked strange questions.
> "Do trees feel pain?"
"What do stars taste like?"
"What if… we're not from here?"
Shiva didn't know why those questions made sense to him.
He only knew that Meera made him feel like he wasn't alone.
Even if the world didn't understand him… she did.
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🛕 The Day That Changed Everything
As the children of Sharanya neared six, whispers filled the village.
> "Soon, their Awakening will come."
"Let's pray for high-rank Talents."
"The temple will reveal their path."
Meera was excited.
> "Maybe I'll get water magic!"
"Or healing! Or cloud-riding!"
Shiva just nodded, quiet as ever.
He didn't care what he got.
But somewhere inside, something strange stirred — like a part of him already knew his Talent wouldn't be