That afternoon, the three young men were resting at the padepokan's canteen. The canteen was located in a vast green lawn area, with pyramid-roofed gazebos scattered in various spots.
The atmosphere was bustling with disciples. Some were eating their food, some were walking back and forth along the stone path, while others were busy managing the preparations for the night of Suro event that would be held later that night.
"Did she say that we have to turn black ink into white?" Handoko stared at Agniran, who was sitting across from him. Agniran was sipping a bowl of dawet. "Is that even possible? Changing black ink into white?" he added while chewing on a gempol.
Agniran sucked in a cendol noodle that had stuck to his lip. "In my opinion, what Nyai Andarini meant wasn't that the prospective Crescent Wanderer would be the one changing black to white, but rather that the divine would do it." Agniran looked at Handoko, who sat with his knees bent up. Handoko's skin looked fairer than theirs because he was shirtless, with his uniform slung over his shoulders.
"That's why she also said that the Crescent Wanderer exists because of a calling of destiny, right?" joined Joko, who was leaning against the gazebo's wooden board. Unstretching his legs and holding a bowl, he looked at the two of them.
"What do you know, Jok..." Handoko countered, shutting down Joko's argument.
Instantly, Joko rubbed his armpit and swiftly slid his palm over Handoko's mouth to gag him.
"Ew... gross... you're nuts, I swear!!" Handoko was utterly annoyed. He immediately backed away while covering his nose with his uniform shirt slung on his shoulder. Carrying his bowl of dawet in his right hand, he got up from the gazebo and walked toward the canteen counter.
Agniran burst into laughter seeing their silly behavior.
"Come on, don't be like that... Have some mercy on your younger brother," Agniran teased while ladling the dawet in his bowl, which was resting casually on the table.
"Serves him right, haha," Joko replied confidently. He continued enjoying his dawet and returned to his original position.
"What interesting topic came up this morning?" Agniran asked Joko.
"Some of the disciples have started exploring outside the village. Word is, Panandha takes effect this year," Joko answered.
"Of course, tonight is the night of Suro. I agree... When do we start exploring?" Agniran replied enthusiastically.
"Come on, how about tomorrow morning?" Joko challenged.
"Agreed!" Agniran replied.
The shadow of the white frangipani trees around the gazebo fell over the two of them, signaling that time was steadily ticking away. In the distance, Handoko was seen walking back toward them, looking a bit neater than before.
"I'm heading straight to the workshop!" Handoko said as he passed the gazebo where they were hanging out. He didn't turn his head and acted indifferent, still annoyed by Joko's prank.
"Hey... Tomorrow we're going exploring!" Joko shouted, attempting to call Handoko to rejoin them.
Handoko stopped, then glared cynically at Joko and Agniran. "You two go ahead! I refuse to come along!" Handoko yelled.
He immediately ran fast while taking off his uniform, then slammed and wrapped the cloth shirt over Joko's entire head. Using his arms and legs, Handoko instantly pinned Joko, who wasn't ready to defend himself.
"Mercy... boss..." Joko muttered helplessly. His arms and legs were restrained, his body weighed down by Handoko holding him firmly in place.
Irritated, Handoko released his grip, letting the more muscular Joko breathe a sigh of relief after breaking free from his deathly headlock.
Handoko quickly put his shirt back on, then punched Joko's thigh hard to use it as a pillow. Now Handoko lay down relaxed, looking at Agniran, who had been chuckling the whole time at their antics.
"So this morning you were busy working on the preparations for the night of Suro, Jok?" Handoko asked Joko, who was pretending to be helpless.
"No, Mas... We at the Temparaga Workshop were discussing the Year of Panandha." Joko adjusted his position while looking down at Handoko lying there.
Smack! "Ouch, Yuuongg..." Handoko rubbed his head, which throbbed in pain from Joko's flick.
"Are you coming or not?" Joko asked.
"Of course... This is what I've been waiting for!" Handoko answered while trying to strike back at Joko's head, though his attempts were fended off repeatedly.
"Tomorrow morning we leave the padepokan, Han," Agniran added with a smirk.
Handoko sat up straight. With his hair disheveled, he looked at Agniran to make sure. "It's really the Year of Panandha tomorrow, right?! That means I have to prepare my spear and shield!"
"Of course..."
Shortly after, Agniran got up from the floor, followed by Handoko and Joko.