MYSTELWOOD

Chapter-10

Dayyan

Dayyan was out in the woods before the break of dawn,the uneven beating of his heart sounding gigantically small to his very own ears.Where was it again?A step ahead or a dozen more round the corner?The rain soaked his clothes,drowning his vision in a sea of droplets.Tiny twinkling drops encompassed a divine melody,too dulcet to be real,all around him,amplified by the thunderous clouds;muffled by the rustling leaves;cocooned by the canopy trees.Something so wonderful,only the Lord of the Worlds can paint,the beautiful canvas we call nature.He thought.

The rain lashing against the stainless window woke him up.He didn't thought of the time,but knew Allah Almighty is beckoning him,to wake up and witness the magnificent beauty He smeared all around in the guise of rain.Involuntarily,his hand took hold of his camera but keeping it aside,he did wudhu and prayed fajr.Then,Dayyan Malik went out to explore the drenched Mystelwood.

Minutes stretched into hours,as the occassional 'clicks' of his camera accompanied the pitter-patter of the rain.Every time a new scenery met his eyes,the 'clicks' would become faster along with the never-pausing praises that rolled out of his lips,the words of "Alhamdulillah!", "Masha Allah!', "Allahu Akbar" and "Subhan Allah".

He didn't know much of the language of his Lord but he was determined to learn it soon.However,his soul was at rest just thinking about Allah,the one who hears and listens every hidden or unspoken words,regardless of the insignificant barrier of language we humans seem to worry about.

And when the sun paddled from the shore to the East,outlining every speck on the ground and sky with its glorious tinge of gold,Dayyan could not help but think how beautiful Jannah will really be,if all these are mindless glitters and temporary!

It is He who has made the earth manageablefor you,so traverse ye through its tracts and enjoy of the sustenance which He furnishes;but unto Him is the Resurrection.
Oh that verse from Surah-Mulk!Wasn't that the very recictation he heard from his mom sprawled on the hearth of his home in Flakes,when the realization of what he wants to do for living in this temporary world hit him!And what a wonderful decision it was indeed.

After two hours or so,the 'clicks' finally subsided and Dayyan made his way out of the forest.The small creek outlined with colourful rocks;wild flowers and birds of vibrant shades;the limp tree-house resting on one of the old branches-the pictures of all these beauties remain bottled in his camera,ready to be displayed to the world.

As he loitered about the outskirts of the forest,he saw people buzzing from all over the town and pouring in one specific street.The locals were carrying all possible tools,shovels and axes,some with wheelbarrows,women with bags of foods and drinks,men pushing trolleys filled with sand;gravel and stones.Soon he found himself following the sea of people.

"Goodmorning Sir,What is going on here?" he asked an elderly man .
"What exactly is happening?Why is everyone rushing to that place,is there an event or something?" Dayyan asked in a hurry.

"It's Sunday my son!"the old man replied.

"I am aware of that,sir.." Dayyan said,now utterly bewildered.

"Sundays are special hero.The entire town is given a holiday,but not to spent leisure time I tell you.It goes to be one hell of a hectic day,but we don't really mind." The man concluded in a vague way as they neared one giant wooden door,behind which in the distance beautiful blue mountains hovered.

Everyone came here,literally all the inhabitants of the town,waiting to flock in the moment these doors opened.Dayyan still didn't get the answer to his question and it seemed like the old man wouldn't continue,he was too engrossed in his super enthusiastic self.

He spotted a little girl beside him and thought of taking another chance.
"Hey sweety,do you mind telling me why exactly everyone is gathered here?I am kinda new here.."

Dayyan couldn't even finish asking before the girl started answering.
"Oh we build the town together on Sundays!Its very much like my doll house only with reeaaal characters!This place was terrible when the fire broke but momma says we all can make it beautiful again."

"Actually Mr.Malik,this is our small effort in recreating what we lost.The builders will take a lot of time to finish the work so Mayor Rosaline thought we all should help.Its a good idea and works great."her mother offered.

Dayyan finally understood what was going on and he was so overwhelmed by the locals' love for their town.It was indeed a rare thing to see,such unity.They say hardships bring people closer to each other,it couldn't be any truer.Ya Allah,how beautiful your plans are.

So the location behind the doors must be the tourists' part,he thought.And now he was crazy excited to see this other part of Mystelwood.

"All right everyone,Mayor Rosaline is here.It's time to get on work!" and with that the doors flung open.

For a second,Dayyan was blinded by the beauty infront of him.His eyes could only devour in the surrounding like a hungry soul,as he stood there for what seemed like hours gazing at the picturusque landscape-as if under a magician's spell.

Narrow streaks of greenery rolled down the mountains while the waterfall cascaded lazily to a valley embedded with flowers.The air smelled of fresh rose.There were small wooden houses each positioned at a different angle overlooking the surreal view and there were little shops and cafes stuffed with fresh produce.If Dayyan didn't see the blackened rear end of the site with barren fields,he would never have believed this place went down in flames a few months back.

"So,what do you think of our town now Mr.Malik?Is it worth a place in your Travellers' Canvas?" Mayor Rosaline asked him.

"I was just wondering about the big bucks I'll get for this project!"Dayyan joked,thoroughly grateful for getting this project.

Aara

Aara was so excited that she found it super difficult to maintain a straight face.She even beat Arshia with her eagerness for going to the tourists'
zone.It's not Sundays everyday.

"Mum,hurry up!We're getting late!" she practically shrieked as she skipped down the stairways,Arshia bouncing on her trail.

"I am almost done love.Here,come and pack the cookies and see if you already got the water bottles." her mother replied.

"Come Arshi,lets load the car." and both sisters went outside to their old red car,dumpimg whatever foods and drinks they managed to collect inside it.The rain was long gone,and the sun shone brighter than usual.Its gonna be a veerry hot day,Aara thought as beads of sweat already started trickling down her forehead and seeped through her hijab.

"Mom!Where are the prayer rugs?Did you take those?"

"Yes yes habibti,I got them.Come along we are already very late."

********

The work already started on full swing when Aara and her family reached the site.The locals moving haphazardly in a frenzy of bricks,shovels,clay and paints.

Her mother went in search of Mrs.Castellan while Aara and Arshia made their way to the last of the thirty lodges on the east coast which needed to be painted.

If only she knew the Castellans already saw her coming and they got two full buckets of paint.And they had no intention of using that paint on the lodges...

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As salam walaikum lovelies!Looooong time no see,huh?But can't help it really,works and stuffs always get in the way.So plz tell me how was this small chappie.I really lost track with the descriptions right?Sorry I am a lover of nature...
Dont forget to VOTE and COMMENT and plz keep me in your PRAYERS..

Quote of the day-
"They asked me who I love,I gave them 99 names.."