The Holi(day) || Part One: Green --@ [Mad Dog Skullcap]
In which Isabela arrives with Copper and his mother in India for Holi and Copper's cousin's wedding...[takes place: evening of March 1]
@copper-russell
[cw -- none]
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COPPER: By the time they landed in Ahmedabad, the flight time and the time difference made it early evening. The sun was already setting as they stepped out into the dry, dusky heat, the sky painted with deep purples and blues and orange towards the horizon. Arushi didn’t leave them much time to enjoy it. She marched them towards the car rental, where she had already booked in advance, and forced them into the car.
It was supposed to be a good three hours drive, but his mother’s terrible, terrifying driving cut the drive time almost in half. Yet still the sun had set completely as they rolled at a much more controlled pace into his grandmother and grandfather’s village, the stars appearing bright and luminous above them.
Copper had been getting more and more restless the closer they got, almost hopping out of the car before it had even come to a stop. Even though it was getting late, he knew the whole family would be up, awaiting their arrival. It was always one of his favourite parts of coming home — the welcome when they got there.
The house was tall and wide, thanks to multiple additions over the years, built by his Nanabapa and his brothers to accommodate the ever growing family. The walls were washed bright white, but most of them were covered with some sort of plant or flower, lattices covering most of the exterior.
Copper could already hear the voices from inside, loud laughter from the adults, shrieks from children up well past their bedtime. It made him anxious to get going. He moved round to the boot and grabbed their bags, lowering them one by one to the dusty ground. Soon, his cousins would come out to help, but first—
Copper turned to Isabela as she got out of the car. “Fair warning, you’re about to meet a lot of people very quickly.” He told her, unable to keep from grinning. “Don’t worry about remembering their names, they’re used to it.”
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[read here]
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