Page 42 of Aru Shah and the Tree of Wishes

And it wasn’t the wish.

“LET IT GOOOO, LET IT GO! I AM ONE WITH THE WIND AND SKY—”Aru abruptly stopped, glowered, and stared at the dream sky. “Okay,whomade me do that?”

Aru spun around and saw the twins, Sheela and Nikita, rolling on the bridge and laughing so hard they had tears in their eyes.

“Sorry…but…not…really…” Nikita said between gasps, kicking her feet in the air.

“I love you, but you cannotsing,” said Sheela, waving at Aru. The small clairvoyant was now floating upside down in the air like the Cheshire Cat.

“We caught you in the middle of what was going to be a nightmare, and we tried to fix it,” said Nikita, standing up. “But then…it took a turn. If it helps, I changed your outfit?”

Aru looked down and saw that instead of her favorite Spider-Man pajamas, she was in a long ice-blue gown that looked a lot like…

“Do you want to build a snowman?” asked Nikita.

“No.”

Ten minutes later—or who really knows because dream time is strange—Aru was building a snowman with Nikita and Sheela.

“We tried to get the others, but Mini is still awake, I think, and Brynne is dreaming about pickles,” said Nikita. “She wouldn’t come out of it.”

“Yeah, well, Brynne got knocked out by the ocean pretty hard,” said Aru, distracted. She was still thinking about Kara’s plan to go back to the gold roads, Mini agreeing with it, and Aiden not siding with anyone at all.

Kara had been right about the sphere on the mongoose statue, and Aru hadn’t listened, landing them all in trouble. What if Aru was doing the same thing now? What if Kara was just better at making decisions? Or, worst of all, what if everyone simply liked Kara more and would rather listen to her over Aru?

As if reading her thoughts, Sheela put her small brown hand over Aru’s. “You’remyfavorite, Aru. You make me laugh.”

Aru sighed. “Well, it’s nice to besomeone’sfavorite.”

Nikita, who was now adorning the snowman with a bright white hat and a multitude of rainbow-colored feathers, tossed her braided hair over her shoulder. “I am always myownfavorite. That works best for me. Maybe you should try it. Just be your own favorite person and then no one else’s opinion really matters.”

“That’s not nice, Nikki…” said Sheela.

“I don’t meanyou,” said Nikita, rolling her eyes. “We’re practically reflections of each other.”

Aru stopped.

“Reflections…” she whispered. “I think…I think I have an idea for how to get us across the ocean! Nikita, I think you might be a genius!”

“Duh,” said Nikita imperiously. “And while you’re thinking of a way to get across the ocean, ask yourself why you’re always wearing Spider-Man pajamas.”

“Because they’re comfy!” said Aru hotly. “Why do you always wear ball gowns?”

Nikita raised an eyebrow. “Because they’re fabulous.”

Aru jolted upright, nearly tumbling out of the hammock she’d been sleeping in.

The vanaras didn’t like beds, so they snoozed in elaborate hammocks that hung from the ceiling, or, if they didn’t want to stay indoors, tree branches.

It was early morning, and the light streaming through the windows of the chamber she shared with Brynne, Kara, and Mini looked blue and eerie.

Aru hopped to the ground, taking a step toward Mini’s hammock to wake her. In the end, she stopped herself. All Aru had was an idea. She didn’t know if it was actually going to work, and the last thing she wanted was to get everyone up only for them to see her fail.

Aru’s chest tightened as she pulled on the hoodie she’d packed, and slipped out of the bedroom. In the past, she wouldn’t have hesitated to show them her latest brainstorm, but things felt different now. These days, Aru couldn’t lose the shadow of loneliness that had followed her ever since she’d been kidnapped by the Sleeper. Even in a crowded room, she felt alone. Sure, she had the amazing company of her friends, but it didn’t change the fact that she felt separated from everyone by a layer of ice.

Aru was alone in realizing that Boo had betrayed them. She was alone in knowing exactly what the Sleeper’s lost memories had felt like. And she was alone in wanting to try one last time to cross the ocean.

Aru looked back at the sleeping shapes of her sisters and Kara.I’ll prove it to you, she thought silently.