#just needs some final touches!! I've got the patches and I got gold buttons and chain to do the fastener

[blujayonthewing]

Hot diggety shit. That is a baller cosplay.

[manikas-whims]

Holi

[Read on AO3]

Ship: Kaz Brekker X Inej Ghafa

Summary:

Modern AU

Gang Lieutenant of the Dregs, Kaz Brekker lives by himself in his apartment.

One morning his Indian neighbours' daughter Inej Ghafa shows up to share the customs of a festival they celebrate.

Note:

Since I'm an Indian, between the recent celebrations of the festival Holi, this fic idea popped up!

Also, I don't know whether Inej is North Indian or South Indian, etc. So I've simply used a few Hindi language terms as her language. Ofcourse the terms are explained in the fic.

Hope you'll like it ♥

Kaz lets out an exasperated sigh when he hears the doorbell of his apartment ringing. He’s had a rough week and frankly isn’t in the mood for any company right now. One of those lowly skivs from the Razorgulls had managed to land a punch to his face. But he’d paid back fervently, battering the guy’s face enough to leave him nearly dead. Nearly being the keyword because Jesper makes sure he doesn't kill more people than necessary.

He takes a chug of his brandy, slams the bottle on the table and gets up to answer whoever the fuck has decided to bother him on his day off.

The sight that greets him dazzles his tired eyes— a short woman dressed in traditional Indian silks with a plate of powdered colors, sweed foods and a lit earthen lamp. The blouse and the long flowing skirt in shades of purple and turquoise contrast elegantly with her burnt caramel skin. And for a moment, Kaz feels embarrassed in his black trousers and white button up which is undone down to three buttons, giving a good view of the deep cut running along his chest and the slowly drying blood there. He passes his fingers through his hair, ruffling it a bit to appear decent.

“Um..Kaazz Brek..ker?” she tries her best to pronounce his name in her accent.

“It’s Kaz Brekker.” He corrects her and asks, “How do you know my name?”

Her eyes widen and she shakes her head, gold earrings jangling with the motion. “Nothing weird. I just asked the building management. I'm Inej Ghafa.”

He already knows her name but she doesn't need to know that. “What business?”

She breaks out into her best imitation of a formal smile and brushes a few strands of her lengthy hair behind her ear, “Uh..You must’ve seen me before. I live next door.”

Ofcourse he’d seen her. His skills as a hacker and gang lieutenant help him stay updated on the details of every resident in this area. He’s well-aware of the Ghafas, an Indian family who'd shifted next door two months ago. And he knows that this young woman close to his age, is their esteemed daughter who is a full time gymnastics instructor. At first he had expected them to be like the conventional loud and over-dramatic people he and Jesper have seen in some of those Bollywood movies. But he's glad that the Ghafas have been nothing short of peaceful in their living. Not once did they interact with him before so why the hell are they trying now?

“What do you want?” he grumbles out, hoping his tone will let her know he isn't an amiable person.

“Well..its Holi today. Uhmm..it's a festival we celebrate–”

“Get to the point.”

“We had done aarti earlier and my mother asked to go to put tika on you–”

“I don't know any of those words.” He waves a hand dismissively and moves to shut the door but she wedges her foot in the doorway.

“I can help you.”

The statement makes him tense. “What?”

“That,” She points at the slash wound peeking out from underneath his shirt, “looks painful. Should I call a doctor?”

His muscles relax slowly and he supplies, “No need..I already got a doctor friend. She'll drop by soon.” Well Nina Zenik isn't exactly a doctor but knows a good deal about patching up wounds. So he'll just call her up if required.

Inej's brief frown proves that she isn't entirely convinced by his words or his dishevelled demeanor but she chooses to concede.

“Well then..” she lifts up her plate and begins revolving it around his face in circular motions. He is utterly confused but stands and watches quietly. After approximately five turns, she lowers the plate and picks up a pinch of some red, pasty mixture from it. She reaches forward and before he can even question her motives, her thumb smeers the red thing in an upward stroke on his forehead.

“This vermilion is tika. We put it on the forehead between the eyebrows because its believed to be the centre of concentration in our body. Tika brings good luck and wisdom.” She explains, then picks up a piece of those sweet Indian delicacies and shoves it in his mouth.

The element of surprise leaves him with no other option but to gulp it down. His face blenches at the sweetness and she giggles, placing a palm over her mouth. Kaz feels a tug in his chest at that sound.

“Inej!”

They both turn at the intruding voice and find her mother peering at them from the door to their apartment. The older woman offers a smile to Kaz but gestures wildly with her eyes at Inej.

“Bas abhi aayi. I'm coming!” She tells her mother half in their native tongue, half in English and resumes her custom.

“Now for the final touch,” She says, her deep, brown eyes alight with something akin to mischief and picks a handful of the purple powdered color from her plate. Kaz stares in anticipation of any more weird ritual that is to come but she surprises him again. With a single sweep, she softly strokes the powdered color on his cheek. He keeps himself from flinching because thats where that asshole Razorgull had punched and tries to focus on the sensation of her palm. Sadly, she's already rretracted it and is smiling again. A genuine, kind smile.

“Happy Holi, Mr. Brekker.” She wishes and then elaborates to him, “Just like ‘Merry Christmas’, we say this as a well-wish or a greeting to our friends, family and ofcourse neighbours when we celebrate the festival.”

Kaz can barely form coherent words right now. And by the time he motions his lips, Inej is gone in a flurry, leaving behind no more than a hint of her touch on his cheek and the warmth of her smile.

Holi : Hindu festival of Colors, celebrated for the victory of good over evil and to spread love and happiness.

People put color (liquid/powdered) on each other to celebrate and have fun. Thats why Inej puts that powdered color on Kaz's cheek.

Aarti : a Hindu prayer ritual where light is offered to God in the form of lighting earthen lamps.

After Aarti, you can offer the blessings from the same earthen lamp by revolving it around a person's face several times.

Tika : As Inej says in the fic, its vermilion that we Hindus put on the forehead for good luck and wisdom.

Bas abhi aayi : its a Hindi language phrase which literally translates to "just coming"

Hope this helps..:3

And hope you all enjoyed this short fic.

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(divider by @firefly-graphics)