An unrevealed enigma

Bhuvi Pandey, AIS Saket, XI

“Do you really think this is a good idea, Avika?” asked Trisha. “Positive!” I replied, flashing a confident smile.
It was a cool summer evening and my cousins and I stood half a mile away from the dense forest near our grandmother’s house. All of us were rather keen to step upon those untrodden paths which seemed to be calling upon us, urging us to engage upon the unknown. Only the youngest amongst us all, Trisha, was rather apprehensive about carrying out the whole plan. But finally, after a quick scan of the pros and cons, we convinced her and went on, into the forest where the leaves of the trees hung limp in the gray, damp air. The alley in front of us seemed eerie and sinister.
A chill ran down my spine as we decided to play hide-and-seek in the midst of the stillness that surrounded the place. However, as we separated, my adrenaline kicked in as I suddenly felt exhilarated and overwhelmed as if I were a part of some overdramatic, Hollywood film.
Suddenly, without warning, a black hooded figure appeared in front of me. Filled with trepidation, I could not move a muscle as it neared me. Up close, I could see a silvery, unearthly but tangible aura that surrounded it. And in the next instant, I fell on the ground and fainted.
Sometime later, I found myself on a plush, fluffy bed surrounded by my cousins. The memories of the past few hours flooded my brain as I jerkily sat straight. My cousins’ looks told me that they had met ‘it’, too. Our parents were outraged and as a consequence, we were grounded for days to come.
But this wasn’t what really bothered me, it was the fact that there are still realities in this world which lay unknown to us all. Venturing into the forest seemed like a good idea at first, but the overwhelming feeling of dread that overcame me felt too real. It had felt like the aura of the forest had changed into something cruel and unforgiving.
My cousins and I made a pact that day
to never walk into the forest again, especially alone. For whatever it was that we encountered in the dark, it didn’t want
us there.

Wall hanging

Fatima Samreen, AIS Jagdishpur, X

Material required

• White chart-1
  
• Cardboard sheet-1
  
• Glitter sheet-1
  
• Poster colours
  
• Waste newspaper
  
• Scissors
  
• Tissue paper
  
• Glue & Pencil
  

Method

•  Take one full sheet of newspaper and horizontally split it into two halves.
  
•  Take one half and using one of its corners, roll it into a stick. Secure it with glue, and repeat the same with the other half.
  
•  Now, repeat the whole process with 5 more sheets of newspaper to get 12 rolled paper sticks in total.
  
•  In a bowl, mix water and glue in the ratio of 1 to 2 in order to make a glue paste. 
  
•  Now, tear a tissue paper in several small pieces.
  
•  Using the papier mache technique, cover the sticks with layers of tissue and glue. Keep aside and let them dry.  
  
•  Once dry, paint them black or in any other colour of your choice.
  
•  Now, fix the sticks with their ends one over the other as shown in the picture. It will become something like a hexagon. 
  
•  Take a glitter sheet of any colour as per your choice and cut out several small circles and strips, about 2x1cm long, from it. 
  
•  Paste the circles on the sticks anywhere you like, and use the strips to cover the edges of the sticks.
  
•  Now, on a white chart paper, draw and paint birds. Cut them out.
  
•  Paste these bird cut-outs on a cardboard sheet to give them a firm base. Cut them out.
  
•  Fix the cardboard based birds on the sticks. (Refer to the picture)
  
•  Voila! Your wall hanging is ready to add grace and beauty to the walls of your home!