Aru Shah and the End of Time (Pandava Quartet, #1)

by Roshani Chokshi

She even regularly hid a stash of candy in the mouth of a four-hundred-year-old sea dragon statue (she’d named it Steve) in the west wing.

Do I get powers? Or a cape?” “There shall be no capes.” “A hat?” “No.” “Theme song?” “Please stop.”

If she was going to be meeting some long-lost sibling, she really wished she were wearing something other than Spider-Man pajamas.

“Normally, you get to the Kingdom of Death by dying,” said Urvashi. Aru and Mini exchanged nervous glances. “Eeny, meeny—” started Mini. At the same moment, Aru shouted, “Nose goes!” She smacked her nose. Mini turned pale. “Oh no…”

The first key is a sprig of youth. The second key is a bite of adulthood. And the third key is a sip of old age.” Aru stared at Urvashi. “Okay, so, which aisle of Home Depot do we go to?” Mini laughed, but it was a panicked I-am-definitely-gonna-die kind of laugh.

“What took you so long?” he demanded. “Excuse you, but we are thinking warriors,” said Aru, smoothing her mangled pajamas with as much dignity as she could muster. “We had to plan. We had to analyze the situation. We had to—” “Scream, almost die, beat back a demon with a blow-dryer,” finished Mini. “Here is where you stop regaling me with tales of your ineptitude and surprise me?” asked Boo hopefully.

As Summer turned, the light seemed to change the spirit’s facial features from feminine to masculine and back again. Aru’s confusion must have showed, because Summer shrugged and said, “Hotness doesn’t belong to any one gender.”

“Could you please move? Your shadow is touching mine.” “Oh, I am so sorry,” said Monsoon apologetically. “I didn’t mean to.” “Whatever,” said Aru.

“Well, that’s not how the legendary Arjuna would have done it.” “I’m not Arjuna,” said Aru, lifting her chin. “I’m Aru.” Boo puffed out his chest. “I know.”

“Are you ready, daughter of Indra?” it asked. “Nope,” said Aru. She took a deep breath. “But let’s go anyway.”

“We’ve got to break it,” she said, her whole face brightening. “And not with magic.” “Wait. Say what now?” Mini reached for a small pebble on the ground. “Um, Mini…?” And then she hurled it straight at the gigantic cauldron full of poison, hollering, “For science!!!”

“Another doomsday squiggle?” asked Aru. “Okay, well, it looks like a two, which would be really bad news, but maybe it means four?” “It means two.” “Noooooooo! Betrayal!”

“And if you must forget me, at least do it with a smile.”

Mini groaned. “Finding Nemo was a lie!” “Wait. You made a life-and-death choice based on Finding Nemo?” “Well, uh…” “MINI!” “I was just trying to help!”

Sometimes, when she was running late for school, she’d just eat toothpaste. In fact, she wasn’t even sure they had floss in the house.

You’re my sister. She wasn’t sure she’d ever get tired of hearing that. “I’m doing fine so far.

Aru wondered whether this was what great warriors of yore did: hit their weapons and hope they started working right.

Nestled in all that boring gray was a single golden feather, which he extended to them. “My troth,” he said solemnly. “Troth?” repeated Mini. “Gross! Isn’t that what people do when they get married?” “Ew!” said Boo. “I’m a catch,” gasped Aru when she was done laughing.