Souvik and his family had recently shifted back to Purulia (West bengal) for his father's business. He was very excited because he would finally get to live close to his cousins, especially Darsh, his brother.
It had been a week since they shifted and they have finally settled in. Souvik and Darsh were playing near Souvik's house when Darsh spoke up, " How about you wake up early tomorrow and I will take you to all the fun spots around town?" Souvik's eyes lit up with mischief, " Yaay! Sure, how early do you want me to get up?" " Be ready by 4, I'll come and knock on your door." said Darsh. Saying this, they parted their ways. Souvik went home and told his mother about their plans tomorrow. He ate his dinner and went to bed.
Next morning, the roads were deserted and dark as cold winds blew. A knock was heard on Souvik's door. A boyish voice calling," Souvik, Souvik." Souvik was fast asleep, forgetting all about his plans. Another loud knock was heard but then suddenly, the knockings and shoutings seized. The house was surrounded by an eerie silence. After about two hours, Souvik woke up with a start as his eyes darted towards the clock which indicated that it was way past 4. He quickly got up and was getting dressed when he realised that he had heard Darsh's voice, but he was too sleepy to even answer back. He ran towards Darsh's house but before he could say anything, Darsh spoke up, " I am sorry. I could not wake up today, so I couldn't wake you up either." Souvik looked at him with confusion in his eyes as he said," But I heard you calling my name at 4 o'clock, you knocked too. You called my name twice but I was too sleepy to answer back." Both of them stood in confusion as a deep husky voice came from behind," Consider yourself lucky that you did not answer back." They turned around and saw Darsh's grandfather sitting on the charpoy. " What do you mean?" asked Darsh. "What you heard was the nishir daak. In Bengali folklore,it is a malevolent ghost or spirit that lures people out of their homes during the dark hours by mimicking the familiar voice of a loved one. They only call out twice." replied Darsh's grandfather with a grave expression. " What happens if you answer back?" Souvik asked as he gulped down in fear. Darsh's grandfather leaned forward and answered," The spirit leads to the person falling into a trance and being lured into a secluded area, where they are killed or they disappear forever." Darsh and Souvik held their breaths as they learned that day, that one must not answer to voices sounding like their loved ones during the odd hours of the night.
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