aru shah fan fiction

love: t h r e e

     Only two words could describe the Andhara Forest: cold and dark. 

     Aru could not remember ever being this cold. It wasn't a normal kind of cold either. It was an eerie kind of cold. Like anything could strike at any time. 

     Freezing fingertips did the Itsy-Bitsy Spider down her back. She looked at Aiden. He kept shivering and looking over his shoulder.

     Great, Aru thought. We're paranoid already. 

     Aru violently shook her head. Stay focused.

     Her eyes adjusted to the darkness as she looked around. Bare trees towered over her, their branches raised threateningly. The ground crunched as Aru shifted uncomfortably on her feet. The landscape seemed to spread for miles. There was no turning back.

     Those trees better not go all Whomping Willow on me, Aru thought as she glared at the trees, daring them to prove her wrong.

     Fortunately, they didn't move. Aru didn't know what she would have done if they did. Maybe fangirl and then die. 

     She felt a warm hand lightly press on her shoulder. 

     "C'mon Shah," Aiden removed his hand.

     Aru exhaled once, plastered a fake cocky smirk, and walked beside Aiden. 

     Stay strong. You're not alone. You have Aiden. You don't need anyone else. 

     

     ----

     After a couple minutes (but it felt like hours) of walking aimlessly in the forest, Aiden abruptly stopped. 

     "What is it?" Aru asked grabbing for Vajra, instantly on high alert. 

     "Mom," Aiden said, his voice barely above a whisper. 

     "Um...what?"

     "Mom," Aiden repeated frantically. "She needs help!"

     "Aiden, what are you-"

     She stopped. Hanuman's voice suddenly echoed in her ears. 

     Be careful. In the forest, there will be illusions trying to stop you. If you listen to them, you will certainly die. 

     The illusions, Aru remembered. 

     She shook Aiden's shoulders. "Aiden, listen to me. Remember what Hanuman said? About the illusions?" No response. "Please Aiden!"

     He didn't listen. His left foot took a step backward, crunching the fallen dead leaves. 

     Aru panicked. 

     C'mon, c'mon. What can I do? What would freak him out enough to bring him back to reality?

     Her eyes snapped to Shadowfax. 

     Huh.

     She wrapped her arms around Aiden's neck and undid Shadowfax's strap. She clutched the camera tightly to her chest, silently begging that he snap out of it. 

     Almost immediately, the crazed look disappeared from Aiden's eyes, being replaced with pure panic. 

     "Where's Shadowfax?!" he demanded. 

     Aru laughed in relief as she swallowed him in a massive hug. She reattached Shadowfax on Aiden's neck and hugged him again. 

     It took Aru a couple moments to realize how close she was to him. Quickly, she pulled away with tomato-red cheeks. 

     Aiden, on the other hand, had never felt so...happy? Giddy? Pleased? He wasn't sure. All he could think about was the girl standing in front of him. 

     I hugged Aru, he thought. 

     No, she hugged me.

     And that made it a thousand times better.

     ----

     "Aiden," Aru snapped her fingers. "Hey Wifey!"

      Aiden shook his head, disrupting his thoughts. "Yeah?"

     Aru sighed. "We need to be more careful. Remember what Hanuman said about the illusions? I think-I think you just heard one."

     Aiden grimaced. He had heard his mother sobbing, crying his name out in between breaths. One thing he could not handle was knowing she was weak. Vulnerable. It made him regret everything and lose focus . . . wow, these illusions were good at their job. 

     You need to be stronger, he scolded himself. Stronger like Aru. You let your guard down way too easily. 

     Aiden didn't know what overcame him, but he suddenly grabbed Aru's hand, lacing his fingers through her's. 

     "We need to stay together," Aiden said, a deep shade of crimson crawling up his neck.

     Aru's eyes widened, her face on fire. 

     "B-because the illusions are too strong. We need to watch each other's backs," Aiden said quickly. 

     Forget the fire. Aru's face burned. You could probably cook an egg on her cheek. But she didn't let go of his hand. 

     She let out an unattractive grunt-sqeak. Aiden couldn't keep in his amused snort.

     Aru glared at him and walked on, their intertwined fingers swinging with each step.

hi! sooo, this was a cute-ish part. for those of y'all that want to know, aiden only held aru's hand bc he wanted to. none of this "we need to stay together because of the illusions" stuff. he was just trying to convince himself that he didn't like aru in that way. ;)

anyway, i hope you enjoyed this part! a bit shorter, but important nonetheless. stay happy and healthy!

-abbizzz <3