Up For The Test (Aru Shah AU)

Chapter 5

AN: This chapter is partially inspired by a song by Alec Benjamin called, "Paper Crown."

3rd person

There was Aiden, just roaming around outside at four in the morning. 'Why?' is a question anyone may ask the prince, but the only explanation he would be able to give them would be, 'I have no idea.' 

He had been frightened awake by a shriek, and from then on, he hadn't been able to fall back to sleep. Being who he was, he decided to take a walk.

He threw on a black hoodie and sweatpants and went outdoors. Aiden found the early morning peaceful. It cleared his mind for the day ahead. Princes are supposed to be sociable, but it took Aiden a while to get into the headspace to make conversation with another walking and talking individual. 

Once more, he heard a screech. Aiden realized it was coming from the princess's room, whom he loathed so much at moments. The ladder, which he had placed there the day before, still reclined against her windowsill. So, he climbed up it, hoping to see that she wasn't dead on the carpet from some royal assassin. 

Sure enough, there was Aru, lying in her bed, fast asleep. Aiden could clearly see that her face was relaxed. It didn't have the emotion of anger that was usually portrayed whenever he was in the same room as her. 

Her expression quickly changed to fear as she screeched again. She tossed and twisted in her bed. Aiden banged on her window. 

"Shah," he whispered. Her head jerked as if she was going to wake up, then she screamed. Aiden was surprised she hadn't summoned Philipe into her room yet. He began to get worried. What if something serious was happening? "Shah!" he said quite a bit louder. 

Aru shot up, and she was panting. She looked around her room until her eyes locked on Aiden's figure outside of her window. 

"Acharya?" she asked drowsily. 

"Open your window," he said. Aru walked over and opened her window just for him to climb in immediately and hug her. 

"Uh, get off of me." She pushed him away with a shaky hand.

"Sorry," Aiden withdrew. "Wait, you should be saying sorry to me!"

"Me?! You woke me up for no good reason!" Aru whisper yelled. "Then, you randomly hugged me."

"You woke me up first! I only hugged you because I was genuinely worried that you were getting murdered or something."

"Why would you think that?" Aru asked. Aiden pulled the hood off of his head and ran his fingers through his hair. "No, no, no, no," Aru started. 

"What?"

"There is only one way I could've woken you up from down the hall. I tend to have panic attacks in my sleep."

Aiden looked at Aru with concern. 

"Don't give me a pitying look. I should be giving you one. You have to put up with me. I'm just a stupid town peasant anyway."

"No, you're not. Don't listen to my cousin. He just looks for attention because his parents never give him any."

"Rudy has a weird way of dealing with things," Aru slightly laughed.

"You've got that right. Want to know what else you've got?"

"A bigger room than everyone else?" 

Aiden smirked and looked into Aru's eyes. "Yeah, but you've also got a pretty laugh. It's unrestrained. I remember hearing it on the hill two days ago."