The Girl with The Jinn in Her Hair

"Would you look at that?" Mama disgustedly spat out, her eyes resting on the swirling, black waters that filled up most of the porch. "It has been three days since the rains ended, so why on earth is all of this water still here?!"

I peeked out the window, watching in fascination as the muddy, brown water rippled as the wind caressed it. I knew the water would come up to my ankles, soaking my washed crocs once more, but the urge was too great. Unfortunately, my mother stood beside me, her slippers in close proximity to her hands. They would ultimately be the ones flying over the top of my head as I would try to dodge her crazy accurate aim. Sometimes, I wondered why she wasn't part of an archery team.

"And there's no power!" she growled, her anger growing as the oncoming evening twilight bequeathed us. It was humid, I thought, but I didn't mind, swatting away a fly. The buzzing of a mosquito close to my ear, however, changed my mood rather quickly. Now, I shared her sentiments on having no power.

"Calm down," Baba's soft voice floated towards us. The ever-resourceful, he had already lit a few candles, and was immersed in writing his latest book. I loved watching him write. It gave a sense of calm, to hear the typewriter whir every now and then, his fingers flying across the keys deftly as he penned his next great horror story to frighten generations of families.

He stood up, carrying the candle cautiously towards us, joining in on our hourly observations of the water level. He sighed, frustration leaking out, as he rubbed his temples. I'm sure he was well aware of the simple fact; the water had no intentions of leaving. That barred him from going to the oil shop to purchase some diesel for our puttering generator that seemed to be on the verge of giving up. It should, I thought, crossing my legs. After all, it had been sixteen hours since it had been working.

"How about the back-yard?" he finally suggested, making my mother look daggers at him. "You know it's well above the ground level, and we have access to God's air conditioner. And it will be like the old times."

"Ah, the times when we didn't own a generator?" she folded her arms, as I looked at both of them. I did not care where we would set up a small camp to escape the stifling atmosphere of the house. Quite the contrary, I was hopelessly excited. I had never done anything like this.

"Come on, woman, don't be a buzzkill," he laughed, picking me up. "What do you think, Sarah? Do you want to help me set up a small camp in the back-yard?"

"I still haven't agreed, Masood--"

"I've lived with you for so long, Javeria, I know that you won't agree if I argue about it with you. You'll see how cool it is there, lying under the stars, in the cool breeze, forgetting for some time about our problems."

My mother folded her arms, taking a seat on the armchair. "Prove it."

"Gladly," he winked at me, before hurrying into his room. My mother had often told me stories of how, when they were younger, both of them had embarked on adventures all throughout Pakistan. Baba claimed it was because he wanted inspiration for his books. He certainly did get them, since most of his books centred around the folk tales of the North, filled mischievous faeries and jinns, and lost souls searching for a purpose.

He pulled out his old tent, dusting it. He held it up proudly, but his smile wavered for a second.

"Baba, do you not remember how to set it up?" I grinned.

He looked at me through narrowed eyes, pretending to be offended, before laughing and handing me the manual.

"Well, if you figured that out," he cried in anticipation, rushing towards the back-yard. I could hear his footsteps on the asphalt as he exclaimed excitedly at the water that surrounded the raised portion of the garden. "It's like a moat!"

I heard my mother's soft snigger from the lounge.

Baba and I finally moved back, wiping our brows. The tent looked not too shabby, considering how close we were to completely tearing it when we were trying to figure out how to set it up. My mother looked at us through the door, her eyebrow raised, before disappearing into the dark house. When she emerged from the pitch-black abyss (our generator gave up), she held mosquito repellent, candles, an emergency light and blankets slung around her shoulders. Baba smiled, secretly high-fiving me. She was convinced!

We settled down, snacking on the crisps I had bought the previous day, before the rains had drowned my city mercilessly. I sighed, absent-mindedly searching for the crisps in the empty packet, before realising my own mistake.

"The entirety of Karachi is shut down," my mother bit her lips as she read the news on her phone, the harsh blue light a contrast to the soft glow from the candles. "Masood, we can't keep sleeping out here; what if that bastard of a company doesn't fix this issue?"

"Now, now," Baba took the phone from her hand and pulled her close to him gently. "Don't worry. We are Karachi, after all. Resilient and tough. We'll get through this ourselves. In the meantime, don't worry yourself with such news..."

Silence resumed its stance when I decided to break it. "Baba," I turned to him, folding my arms. "Why don't you tell us a story?"

A cool breeze fluttered through the open flap of the tent, causing a shiver to run down my spine. My father looked at me for a moment, before nodding thoughtfully. "There is one," he mused, stroking his beard. "The Girl with The Jinn in Her Hair."

I adjusted myself against the pillows, as did my mother. We both turned to him expectantly as he cleared his throat, straightening himself and looking straight at us with his dark eyes.

"Once, there was a jinn who wandered the plains of an abandoned town, bored to death. The witching hour had just begun and it didn't know what to do. It was bound to this region; besides, there was nowhere to go. A small breeze blew towards it, carrying the sobs of a young woman. It looked up, surprise, before following the mysterious crying as fast as it could. It finally neared the source of the sound, looking in astonishment at a young woman who sat alone on a rock that overlooked a village, her hair cut unevenly as if it was torn off in anger. Her frail body convulsed with heart-wrenching whimpers as she tried to warm herself by wrapping her hands around her body. It did not work; she shivered even more.

"The jinn was curious, so it drew closer, but it wasn't silent enough. A twig snap made her turn around as fast as she could, fear swirling in her eyes as she looked upon the barren land, not a soul in sight. She obviously couldn't see the jinn, but the jinn could see her, and that's where the trouble began. She sighed, looking back at the village, gingerly touching her hair as tears of sadness and anger leaked down her red and blotted cheeks.

'Why?' she looked up at the clear sky, the stars winking at her as if they were mocking her plight. The pain in her voice struck the jinn, as it inched closer. 'Why did they humiliate me for something I didn't do? They took away my hair, why?!'

"The jinn realised the source of her misery. It decided to turn around; it was best to not meddle in human affairs. It could turn messy, couldn't it? Nevertheless, it was drawn to the woman's plight. Why was her hair cut? How was she humiliated? Curiosity pushed it over the brink, and without missing a beat, it possessed her hair."

"What?" I sat up in horror. "It did what?"

"Next time, Sarah beta, don't cry when I get you a hair-cut," Mama smirked in satisfaction. Baba laughed, patting my head.

"Listen on, kid," he smiled, drinking some water. "Right, so the jinn possessed her hair.

"The woman awoke the next morning in her house. Sun poured down from the windows, and the aching feeling in her heart was somehow at ease. She sat up, rubbing her temples. How had she gotten home? Trying her hardest to remember, she stumbled to her dresser, looking at herself in the mirror, before shrieking. Could it have been due to her sorry figure? Not at all, she thought, silencing all her thoughts. Her hair... she gingerly touched the luscious locks that now fell on her shoulders. Thick and dark. They surrounded her small face, shimmering slightly in the light.

" 'What on earth?' she said aloud as her brother burst into her room, gasping in shock at the sight that beheld him.

'Your hair,' he pointed a quivering finger towards it. 'Didn't Grandma cut the entire thing off?'

She couldn't stop smiling, at her bewildered brother, at the hair that she now possessed, and she certainly couldn't wait to see the face of the woman who caused her so much grief the other night. She walked out into the lounge, where her grandmother, an old woman dressed in white, using a fan to cool herself, sat. She looked at her in horror, her mouth open.

'There's a jinn in your hair, child!' she jumped to her feet. 'You are tainted!'

"The girl frowned as her grandmother fumbled around for a pair of scissors, but she soon realised what her grandmother was going to do. She moved back in horror, before running straight out the door. She didn't want this again. No more. She ran as fast as she could towards the mountain she had visited the night before, panting as sweat poured down her face. A jinn? No way.

" 'Please,' she fought to get her breath back. Her hair was too heavy all of a sudden, she thought. 'Please, if there is a jinn, just leave.' But the jinn wasn't going to leave, now that it had finally managed to leave the cursed abandoned town. So, it commanded the hair to grow. So, the hair grew. Without stopping. The woman cried in pain of the weight and heat, feeling suffocating. But the jinn didn't stop. Finally, her cries ceased. All that was left of her was the cursed hair."

I looked at Baba, gulping. "What a wonderful story," I managed.

"Well, you asked for it, kiddo," he grinned. "What else did you expect a horror writer to tell?"

"Touche," Mama remarked, before turning to me. "Sarah, the time! You should really sleep now."

I agreed with her. My eyelids had been growing heavy. I settled down into a more comfortable position, or as comfortable as you could get on the floor, before letting the darkness envelop me. I sighed, my eyes closing.

I woke up to the sunlight beating down on the asphalt, as the chattering of the birds surrounded me. In the distant, I could hear the whir of a fan, making me sit up and stare at the house. Mama peeked out, smiling.

"The power came back early in the morning," she giggled. "Baba has gone to pick up some groceries, heaven help the man. Why don't you come inside and take a bath?"

I leapt to my feet, tired of sweating, before carefully and deftly navigating my way upon the burning asphalt. Mama clapped at my technique, handing me my towel.

My city had drowned in the rain. But even so, I thought, walking towards the washroom, I was amongst the fortunate ones. I hoped that fortune was not limited to only a couple of people. Next time it rained, I wanted my city to be ready.