Aru Shah 3.5 (DISCONTINUED)

The Plan Actually Does Work

AIDEN'S POV

Aiden waited at the entrance to the training room with Aru, just outside the door. Inside, Mini and Brynne had arrived as per usual for their training session. He could hear Boo's voice: "NO! Your posture needs to be immaculate! I should see no slouching!"

"What if I had osteoporosis?" Mini asked. "It's when you have a calcium deficiency--"

"Spare me the dictionary definition and do what I tell you!"

Boo seemed more flustered today. Even more than usual, because Aiden had informed Boo that he and Aru would be coming at ten-fifteen. He checked his watch. Ten-thirteen.

Aiden glanced at Aru. She looked lost in thought, gazing at the door as though she could see right through it. "It's almost the same," she muttered. "But at the same time it just feels...wrong."

Before Aiden knew what he was doing, he reached for her hand. She looked up at him, startled and a little abashed.

"We'll make it right," he promised, squeezing her hand.

She blushed slightly and nodded. "I know." Taking a deep breath, she twisted the knob to the door. She stepped inside. Mini and Brynne yelled, "Aru!" at the same time.

"WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?" the pigeon shrieked, diving toward her.

Aru grinned. It looked slightly forced to anyone who really knew her. "Boo!" She rummaged around in her pocket. "How about an Oreo? Vanilla flavored."

"Vanilla, you say?" Boo alighted on Aru's head, pecking at her hair. "I shall be glad to try it."

 She swiftly pulled something out and tossed it in the air. Vajra, in the form of a circle. Boo didn't even give it a close glance as he snatched it in his beak--and promptly dropped to the ground, twitching. Vajra zoomed back to Aru's hand.

Mini cast a violet force field over the pigeon.

"What--what is the meaning of this?" Boo sputtered once he got his breath back. "I should expect pranks from children, perhaps, but Pandavas--"

"Spare us," Brynne said, stepping forward. Her voice held an air of ferocity that made even Boo flinch. "We know what you did."

"Well--I--"

Aiden ignored the pigeon's stammering and dragged an animal carrier from out of the hallway, covered in a blanket.

"You can't put me in that!" Boo squawked, flapping about. "The indignity for one of my illustration!"

"Indignity?" Aru's voice was deathly quiet. "I think you deserve it."

Aiden moved the cage up against the force field, offering the pigeon nothing but a cold glare.

"Boo," Mini said, raising her voice. "You have two choices. You can come freely or unwillingly. I don't think you'll want to do the second."

Brynne tossed her mace in her hand, eyebrows narrowing.

Boo's feathers puffed, but he did not sound remorseful when he said, "Very well."

Mini raised the force field the tiniest bit, allowing Boo to hop into the carrier. Aiden shut the door, locked it, and pulled the blanket over it again, muffling the pigeon's indignant squawking.

"Good job, everyone," Aru said. Her face relaxed and Aiden thought he saw her shoulders lift a little. "Where should we bring him?"

"My house," Brynne suggested. "It's big enough so if anyone went looking for him, they'd have trouble."

"Wait," Aiden said. "How are we going to explain his disappearance?"

Aru shrugged. "We can say we haven't met with him since this training session. It's true enough."

"There's someone coming," Brynne said suddenly. She moved in front of the animal carrier and the others followed her lead.

Hira poked her head into the room, eyebrows furrowed in worry. "I thought I heard--" Her eyes widened as she saw Aru. "Aru!"

She jogged in and hugged Aru. "I'm so glad to see you!"

"Me too," Aru said, hugging her back tightly.

Hira backed up a step and then, for the first time, noticed everyone's defensive positions. "Um...what's going on?"

"We can tell her," Brynne said confidently.

"It's kind of a long story," Mini said, propping an elbow on Dee Dee.

"Um, I don't really have time for that. Because I have a message. For you," she explained awkwardly to Aru.

"Oh. Who from?"

"It's a summons from the Council."