Rocket of Rain and Thunder

Chapter 1: The Broken Umbrella

Rain taps the window of the ⟨home⟩. Aanya stands on a stool, nose nearly touching the glass, watching the drops race each other down.

⟨Character 1⟩: Another one’s coming. The big one. I can hear it grumbling. I hate thunder. It’s too loud and it makes my heart jump.

⟨Character 2⟩: Thunder’s just noise, Aanya. It can’t hurt you. Look, I’m trying to fix this old umbrella. The ribs are bent, but maybe I can straighten them. Then we could go out and stomp in puddles. Cricket practice was cancelled anyway.

⟨Character 1⟩: I don’t want to go out. I want to know where the thunder lives. If I could see it, maybe it wouldn’t scare me. I want to find it. Can we?

⟨Character 2⟩: Find it? It’s up in the clouds. We’d need a rocket. Hey, what if we build one from this broken umbrella? The handle could be the nose, and the ribs could be fins. I’ll write the plans in my diary. We can make it fly.

Later, in the kitchen, ⟨Character 3⟩ hums an old Tamil song while stirring rasam. The smell of tamarind and pepper fills the flat. ⟨Character 4⟩ is curled on Rohan’s feet under the table, snoring softly.

⟨Character 3⟩: Has anyone seen my glasses? I was reading the newspaper and now they’ve vanished. I’ve looked on the table, on the shelf, even in the fridge. My memory is like a sieve these days.

⟨Character 1⟩: Here they are, Paati! On the counter next to the onions. You set them down when you answered the phone.

⟨Character 2⟩: Aanya and I are going to build a rocket from the broken umbrella. We’re going to fly up and find the thunder. Aanya’s scared of it, so we’re going to show it who’s boss.

⟨Character 3⟩: A rocket? My, my. Just be careful. And take ⟨Character 4⟩ with you? No, no, he’d be scared. You two have your adventure, but come back safe. I’ll keep the rasam warm.

⟨Character 4⟩: Howl! Howl!

⟨Character 2⟩: Easy, ⟨Character 4⟩. It’s just the postman. Come here, boy. See? Nothing to worry about. Now, Aanya, let’s get to work. We’ll need tape, string, and your best drawing of a rocket. This umbrella is going to fly.

Chapter 2: The Rocket Rises

Next morning, on the flat terrace, the broken umbrella stands upside down with a bucket strapped to its handle. Red string and tape hold the ribs together, and Aanya's drawing of a rocket is stuck on the bucket side.

⟨Character 2⟩: Step one, tape the ribs to the bucket. This is getting wobbly. This is exciting. The string is coming loose, hold on. In the third line I wrote "steering by pulling left or right string." This is very scientific. Got it?

⟨Character 1⟩: The spokes are the fins, that makes it look stable. If it wobbles, we can pull the strings, keep it straight. I’m going to steer from the bucket.

A neighbor, smiling: What are you two up to up there? Is that the umbrella? It looks like a flying bucket!

⟨Character 2⟩: We built a rocket to find the thunder, so Aanya can see it up close! She won’t be scared anymore, we’re testing it this morning. We’ve got string and tape and a very good spark. Wish us luck!

Aanya sits in the bucket, Rohan beside her. They pull the spark string, and the rocket lifts with a heavy wobble. ⟨Character 4⟩ barks from the terrace below.

⟨Character 2⟩: Pigeons, left now, pigeons ahead! Lean back, pull the left. Go go go! That one almost sat on my shoulder! We’re over the temple roof, look at the gold top shining below us.

⟨Character 1⟩: The pigeons flutter a lot for such loud noises. Turn right, turn right! The clouds are ahead, big dark ones. Look there, they’re right in front of us. I don’t mind. I don’t mind, I’m going to see it now.

The rocket rises into damp gray air. The clouds wrap around them on all sides, cool like a wet towel, and the wind rushes past. Then the whole sky grumbles.

⟨Character 1⟩: I can hear it all around me. It’s loud, that’s all. Just loud and bright. The flash lights up the cloud like a lamp. The grumble is deep and slow, hurting nothing. I’m… wow.

⟨Character 2⟩: You see? It’s not a monster. It’s just a big sound. And now we’re in it! I’ve never seen anything like this in my diary. We’re inside the sky.

Chapter 3: Safe Landing

The rocket drifted down over a park and settled on the soft grass with a bump, tipping the bucket gently onto its side. Aanya climbed out, cheeks warm, and looked up at the sky.

⟨Character 1⟩: I’m not scared anymore. I heard the thunder right up close and it was just a big loud sound. It grumbled and flashed and nothing happened to us. We built a rocket out of a broken umbrella and we flew over Pune! Then we flew into the thunder and it can’t hurt me.

⟨Character 2⟩: I was a bit scared too, you know. At the pigeons. And the clouds, a little. When the thunder cracked I jumped, and I was glad you were holding the string. Let me write this down before I forget. Diary: flew a rocket over Pune, found the thunder, good landing. Tomorrow, cricket practice.

⟨Character 1⟩: You were brave and clumsy at the same time. Like a very brave pigeon. We can walk home now. I want to draw the thunder, so everyone can see it’s just a gray cloud with a big voice.

At home that night, the flat smelled of rasam and warm rice. ⟨Character 3⟩ set down her spoon when the door opened and folded them both into a hug, her glasses pushed up on her head.

⟨Character 3⟩: My two brave ones. I saw the rocket go up from the terrace. I was so worried I forgot my glasses again. Sit, sit. I’ll sing you a song, the one about the river, and you can draw. ⟨Character 4⟩, you keep their feet warm.

⟨Character 3⟩: Aru, aru, the river runs far, it carries the rain to the sea, and the thunder is only the sky talking to itself, my dear, only the sky talking.

⟨Character 2⟩: Diary entry finished. Today my little sister flew a rocket over Pune and made friends with the thunder. She didn’t even flinch at the last one. And I only jumped twice.

⟨Character 1⟩: I’m drawing the rocket with the umbrella on top and the cloud around it. I’m writing here, at the top, ‘My Brave Rocket’. And the cloud behind, so it looks big but not so scary. There. That’s exactly how it looked.

⟨Character 4⟩ circled once and curled up on Rohan’s feet, snoring. Outside the window, a faraway grumble rolled across the rooftops, and Aanya closed her eyes.