Delightful, humorous music sounded in the background as Aditya and others sat around a table for dinner. Aditya recognised the music as the work of Saint -Saëns, a french composer of the 'Romantic Era'. This composition is called ' Le Carnaval des Animaux' (The Carnival of the Animals). A French band had been invited by V.V. Acharya to entertain the guests. The group possessed the gear for an orchestra.
Saint-Saëns had experienced an awful tour of Germany in 1885-86, after which, he sought consolation and retreat in Austria. Here he composed this delightful, imaginative series of fourteen pieces that he decided to call "The Carnival of the Animals". Each of the fourteen sections is devoted to a specific animal. Number five "The Elephant", and number thirteen "The Sawn" are amongst the best known.
Saint-Saëns did not want to be known for composing jokey pieces and so, only allowed this composition to be released after his death. But surprisingly, these humourous pieces turned out to be his second most popular composition after 'Third Symphony in C minor'. Aditya's musical knowledge, thanks to Tya's passion for music, could be said to be the best.
The cake cutting was completed along with the gifting part. The cake was imported from Scotland. It looked grand, composing of three layers. It was decorated with golden and silver leaves over the Pierre Marcolini chocolate and Madagascar vanilla layers. Aditya had heard from Jatin that the gold was real. Anupama's father pulled all stops to get on his daughter's good side.
Anupama was busy meeting with all the guests and so did not have the time to open the gifts of her friends. Even when she had the time, Anupama was busy having an animated discussion with her father. It was as if Anupama wanted to share everything about her life to him. She was happy that, finally, she could get her father's affection and attention.
V.V. Acharya also reciprocated Anupama's enthusiasm as he did not go to meet any important guests but accompanied his daughter. V.V. Acharya had this caring expression on his face, accompanied with a fatherly smile that even Aditya would have mistaken it as real, had it not been for the dreams.
Meanwhile, at Aditya's table, Kavya was recounting her experience of Paris to Kumari. "So, last Christmas, me and Bhadra along with our friends had gone on a Europe tour... No, Adi did not come as he had already left school."
" Paris's nightlife was especially remarkable. It is not known as 'The City of Light' for nothing. It was bright during the night, almost like daytime. I loved everything about this romantic city, but I felt that it would be much better if I knew the language."
" I was so shocked when we heard that the Eiffel tower had collapsed. That place was awesome when we went there. There are many questionable points in the explanation given by the French government. The world seemed to be rapidly changing, and the undercurrents in societies, all over the world, have become turbulent."
" Hehe, I am justing quoting my father's words and don't really get what he meant. But even our Chief Minister's death, which happened on the same day, is surrounded by similar mystery."
Kumari smiled as she also nodded at Kavya. Actually, most of her attention was on Aditya who seemed to be playing with his food with his head bent down. Knowing Aditya, Kumari could tell that he was feeling sorrowful. But she did not know the actual reason as Aditya was okay before they had gone to wish Anupama. Kumari tried some of the soup, in front of her and her face slightly grimaced. She was new to the French cuisine and was having trouble eating.
"Have you tried these oysters? They are good, but they can't compare with what we had in Paris. If you like seafood and molluscs, you have to try oysters in Paris. Parisians love to eat oysters. There's a specific way to eat it. You open the oyster, put some lemon in it, and eat it right from its shell. I'm pretty sure you will love the experience."
"There's a fish store called Soguisa, which we had visited there. It's a bit expensive, and they have excellent oysters! Plus, the salesmen will give you the best advice about the way to properly eat their products. Bhadra and I totally enjoyed the food. There are also other varieties like Soupe à l'oignon, Lyon Style Chicken with vinegar sauce, Marseille style Shrimp Stew, Tartiflette au Reblochon etc. Most of these items have wine in it, so you should be prepared."
"Indian and French cuisines are not comparable; they are two very distinct cuisines with their take on food. Yet, the one thing that is common among the two cuisines is their love for all things gastronomical."
"While Indians use whole or grounded spices, the French use more aromatic herbs. French cuisine is mostly non-vegetarian and can be a difficult place for vegetarians. Even pasta is rarely 100% vegetarian. Everywhere we went, there was meat stew added in the preparation of the white sauce, leaving our vegetarian friends only with the option of choosing tomato sauce pasta."
" When it comes to non-vegetarian meals, the French have the red meat medium-cooked, to maintain its tenderness. Savouries like oysters are eaten raw and with lemon/shallot vinegar. In India, however, meat is thoroughly treated and cooked.
The idea of eating raw meat was hard for Kumari to get her head around. The more Kavya explained about the French cuisine, and the more Kumari felt that this cuisine was not going to be in her 'to-eat' list.
"Adi, what happened?" Jatin asked when he looked at Aditya, who was calmly drinking soup and was immersed in silence. Kumari turned her head to see what would be Aditya's answer. She was also concerned about what happened.
Aditya raised his head as he looked at his friends. He smilingly shook his head to indicate that everything was alright. Aditya knew that he did not have the time or the luxury to worry about Hamsa choosing to leave. That should come after Aditya had rescued his parents. After Aditya and his close ones were safe, once and for all, he could attend to matters of the heart with leisure.
Aditya wanted to send a flow of Dark energy into Hamsa's soul particle, but he couldn't do so as he was in dire need of the same. Aditya feared that the demand for this energy was only going to keep increasing as he was not even close to achieving his goal.
Remembering his parents made Aditya put down his grief a little. It was not like he couldn't contact Hamsa. Even though Hamsa left the Quantum Realm, both of their soul particles were still connected. Aditya could keep an eye on her wellbeing through Tya, without disturbing her.
Aditya's heart steadied as he started opening those Normandy oysters with an oyster knife and eating them along with lemon wedges. Kumari had taken Aditya's lunch, and he was feeling starving. Aditya ignored Kumari's look as he ate those oysters. People who never ate these oysters failed to comprehend this taste. Eventhough Yu Yan's meat stew saved Aditya, his body which was permanently 'modified' by Tya, required a lot of high-calorie food to maintain.
A stunning woman came into Aditya's view as she entered the lounge. It was not her beauty that caught his eye; Aditya knew this woman. It was Qaima, Maahi's best friend and personal secretary. Aditya always felt that Qaima hated him for some reason. He also did not bother finding the cause before as they rarely met. But if he was going to live with Maahi, it would be foolish to think that he could avoid Qaima, all his life.
Qaima was a beautiful woman who was on par with Maahi. But both of them gave a completely different visual experience. Maahi had a frail physique which made her look delicate. She looked like someone who needed protection (though Aditya knew better than to think that way).
Qaima, on the other hand, had a fiery, explosive aura around her along with a flare of arrogance. Her larger than normal eyes were very attractive and fatal to an average man. But, Aditya knew that it was Maahi who was the dangerous one while Qaima was the soft-hearted one who meticulously looked after Maahi. As they say, 'looks can be deceiving'.
Qaima spotted Aditya and curtly nodded at him. Aditya also nodded back, while giving a small smile but got nothing in return. He bitterly smiled and continued eating. Aditya would meet her after she gave her greetings to Anupama.
Qaima had opted for a classic black suit for this event. The fringe detailing at the back of the blazer and the tape detailing on the trousers added interesting elements to the outfit too. The dress looked like it was made some famous Italian designer that Aditya knew in the Dreamworld.
Complementing her pantsuit was a pair of black pointed-toe heels that effortlessly elevated her look. Qaima accessorised her look with a couple of sparkling, diamond earrings that added the right amount of shine to her monotone ensemble. She left her long tresses open in soft curls, and went with bronzed cheeks, nude lips and dramatic eye makeup—kohl-rimmed eyes, black eyeliner and mascara.
Even Aditya had to praise Qaima's plan of using her beautiful eyes and making them even more lovely. The result was evident by the many pairs of eyes turning to take a glance at her.
"Elder sister Qaima is as beautiful as always. I wonder where she got the dress." Kavya said as she looked at Qaima. Everyone here, except Kumari, knew Qaima. Bhadra and Jatin also nodded as they looked at her. Kumari was too occupied with her food to glance at anything else.
Kumari, who was a proud glutton, couldn't 'digest' the fact that everyone was enjoying their meals while she was stuck. Even Aditya seemed to enjoy this food. Wasn't the reason that Kumari wanted to come to this party so that she could know Aditya and also change herself accordingly?
Aditya laughed when he noticed Kumari's cramped expression. He stood up and said, "Kumkum, wait here. I will get you something to eat." Kumari 's eyes sparkled when she heard these words. She also got up and accompanied Aditya as both made their way to the open kitchen station in a corner. Aditya planned to make one or two dishes so that Kumari would not have to return with an empty stomach tonight. He knew very well the amount of food that Kumari would eat at her home.
Aditya's steps paused as he looked at a group of people who were about to enter the lounge. His pupils shrank a little but quickly returned to normal as he continued to walk. Finally, they were here.
These group of people consisted of a young man who was walking alongside an older man. They were followed by a small entourage of strong-looking men in black suits. The young man was good-looking, and the older man had a genial smile on his face as he walked at a medium pace. The young man held the arm of a beautiful woman, in a red dress, on his left. She had a bleak aura around her as she accompanied him.
Aditya neither knew the woman nor did he care. It was the others whom he wanted to see for himself. Raipath family had finally made an entrance.
V.V. Acharya, who had ignored others until now, sprang from his seat as he hurried forward to welcome these people. Anupama also looked at them with mild curiosity.