HADEWA CALIPHATE,

NIGERIA.

Aria hated the palace.

It seemed like the Royals made it their mission to annoy her every chance they got.

A week has passed since she moved into the Palace as Aali's wife and not once did she get any peace. She had to deal with the Royals, aunts, cousins, basically the in-laws in general who want to see the Princess and decide whether she deserves Aali or not.

As if she cared.

She wouldn't have cared one bit about it if not that it seemed to be getting worse each day. The Queen invited her back to the 'council meeting' three more times. And each time Aria tries to reject it, she somehow ends up going with the Queen.

And that meant arguing with the women and her storming out.

When she returns to her chambers, she's met with guests who made it their mission to get under her skin. Quite frankly, she was tired of holding up that 'Nice façade'. To be honest, she wondered why she even bothered to begin with.

Maybe because she preferred to make less enemies during her stay there but it doesn't seem to help one bit.

And she couldn't deny the guests access into the chambers because it's apparently their right. Aria had to hold herself back from saying something insulting when she was told that.

Right? Is there anyone who knows more about rights than she does?

She's a damn lawyer for God sake!

And besides, even she has rights. But of course, no one wanted to listen to that. They should thank Lord she wasn't in the mood to play the 'rights' game with her else it would've ended badly for them.

The only few times she gets peace is when it's night time. That was when guests weren't allowed in and so, the only person she has to deal with is Aali. He knew everything that's going on with her, but he pretended to not know, knowing her well. It would hurt her ego if he tries to step in and do something when she can handle them pretty well.

And quite frankly, she was planning on doing that soon.

Very soon. A girl can only handle so much—especially if that girl is Aria.

She hadn't seen Hudayya since that day, and she couldn't help but wonder if the woman's off mood when they left has something to do with what happened. Nonetheless, she kept it to herself and to the back of her mind.

Whatever it is, it will one day come out.

After all, nothing stays a secret forever.

~*~

It was a little past 1pm when the guests for that day arrived. As usual, Aria wasn't expecting them and considering they came without any heads-up, they were bad news. However, the first red flag Aria got from them was when she stepped out her room and saw them all sprawled on the couches, eating the dish she had Salaha make for her.

Aali had stepped out earlier, she didn't ask where he went to and neither did he give her an explanation. He seemed to be busy lately.

"Uhm...excuse me? You are?" She tried to sound as polite as she could be, despite every nerve in her screaming at her to yell. She even plastered a fake smile for them.

But all she got was a simultaneous hiss from the three girls before they continued talking and exclaiming, then laughing at whatever nonsense they were spewing in Hausa.

Aria took in a deep breath, then lightly tapped one of the girl's shoulders to get her attention. The girl was quick to slap Aria's hand off her shoulder with a force that left Aria's hand tinging from the sting.

She retracted her hand, eyes slightly widened and narrowed. "What the..."

"Don't you dare touch me, matsiyaciyarbanzakawai!" Exclaimed the girl, hissing loudly as she threw a glare at Aria. She went on to mutter profanities under her breath as she turned around to face her friends.

One of the two other girls hissed, glaring at Aria. "Wai toh who woke up this fararmayya ne?"

"Farargidan uban wa? Wallahi baqa ce kamar mu" Said the first girl, turning around to give Aria a onceover before a glare took over.

The other girl hummed, silently giving Aria the stink eye.

Aria inhaled, and counted to three so as to not say anything that will offend them. She didn't need to understand their language to know that what they are saying isn't something she will like. Nonetheless, she was trying to keep her calm. "Though I can't understand what you're saying--"

"Who ever said it was intended for you to hear?" Asked the first girl, a brow raised.

"Tambayetakam!"

"Look, we don't care or want to see you so please, vacate the area" The girl added, shooing Aria away with a wave of her hand. "Where's that maid seff? What kind of food is this?"

Vacate the area? For a minute Aria thought of calling the nearest psychiatry she could find so she would inform them that three of their patients have escaped because clearly, they do not have any sense.

How could you come into someone's home and say that?

Instead of her original thoughts, Aria held back a scoff as her tongue touched the tip of her teeth. "If you don't want to see me, leave" Surprisingly, she kept her voice oddly calm.

The girls exchanged look before they cheered, then hissed.

"Who are you to dismiss us from our brother's house?"

Aria didn't bother to hide the bored expression masking her features. "You mean cousin, right?" She rose a brow. Aali's only sister is Hudayya, everyone knows that.

What she doesn't understand is why she hasn't encountered any of his nice cousins—it has always been the stupid and arrogant ones. Surely, there are good ones in the family, right? Not all apples are rotten.

"Whatever" The first girl waved off, she parted her lips to say something when she saw Aria head out. And being the trouble seeker they all were, they stood up and followed her. "Keh, I'm not done with you!"

Aria was getting a headache from the banter. She was already having a bad time with the dogs they apparently have whom had been barking since and getting on her nerves. She only stopped once she was outside, and then called out one of the guards guarding the chamber.

The man hastily made his way over to the Princess, before greeting her.

"You're supposed to do everything I say, right?" Aria asked, a brow raised at him once she had answered his greeting.

Her question had the other guard's attention.

The man was quick to nod, "Yes, Your Highness"

Aria hummed, clicking her tongue slightly. "And between me and them..." She pointed at the three girls that stood a couple of feet away from her with smug looks making their features. "...who would you listen to more?"

They wanted to see what she could do. She has been all bark and no bite as they said. She's just bluffing. She hadn't done anything to the other people that came throughout the week. The woman can't do anything.

The most she will do is run to the Prince bawling her eyes out. However, everyone can clearly see that she has pride. She can't do that.

How she managed to scare Eric at the wedding remained a mystery to them. Some are even wondering whether she orchestrated the whole thing.

"You, Your Highness" He was quick to reply again.

"Okay..." She muttered, a smirk making its way on her face. Her gaze settled on him, while he looked down, "Now I need you to listen to me carefully. Lock the gates, and make sure no one goes in or out"

He looked up, along with the other guards there but didn't say a word against it. Instead, he said, "As you wish Your Highness" and quickly went off to tell the guards at the gate her orders.

Amadu who stood a couple of feet behind her with his brows drawn and lips tugged into a frown walked close to her, still maintaining a reasonable distance. "Your Highness, what are you planning?"

Aria's gaze flickered to the girls before she chuckled, "You'll see" She turned around and walked back into the chambers, closing the door shut.

The girls laughed, and started to mock her; all the while making it as loud as they can so she can hear them. And she did.

Making her way towards the floor-length windows whose blinds had been drawn, she smiled in satisfaction when she realized she can see everyone and everywhere from where she stood.

Maintaining eye contact with the most disrespectful girl amongst them all, she brought up her phone and dialed a number.

Amadu's brows tugged into a deeper frown when he saw her call. He answered it, while turning around to look at her.

"Put it on speaker" She said, and he did as she said, still not getting where's going with that. Once she's satisfied, she continued. "Now I want you all to listen to me, this is an order. I want you all to stay put while one of you unlock the dogs, all three of them. And I swear, if any of you makes any move to help these girls, wallahi you'll face the consequence"

That had the girls' eyes widened. They stared at her in disbelief, the moved their gazes to the guards who stood rooted as the Princess ordered, including Amadu. Two amongst the made their way to unlock the dogs that had been barking since.

"Stop...what the hell are you doing?!" One of the girls yelled, as the men unlocked the chain holding the dogs.

"Kai! Kayihauka ne? Stop that!" Yelled the other.

The one that Aria had her gaze on her sent her a glare before turning to the men, gulping slightly. "Can't you hear?" She yelled, turning her gaze to Amadu, "Stop them or wallahi I'll make you hate yourself. Your life is already pathetic as it is. You're no different from those dogs!"

Amadu who had originally intended on helping them let out a humorless chuckle. He shook his head, stepping back as he ordered the guards to do so. With one nod at the men unlocking the dogs, they let go of the chains and so, it began.

The Palace version of Subway Surfers. Or more like, Palace Surfers.

Yells and screams filled the air as those girls ran around like mad women that just escaped the psychiatry. Aria folded her hands over her torso, chuckling as she watched them. Salaha approached her with the Champagne she had asked her to fetch her in a flute and she took it, after thanking her.

Taking a sip of it, she sighed in content; lips curled into a wide grin as she watched the live show that everyone seemed to be enjoying; especially those screams.

That was definitely the entertainment she needed to cool off. She's starting to like being a Princess now to be honest if she has this much power.

"What the..."

She turned around, startled a bit making her almost spill her champagne. She released a sigh of relief when she saw who it was, but her eyes were still a bit dilated and her heartbeat a bit faster than usual. "Aali, you scared me!"

She wasn't scared of his reaction to what she did. She was ready to face whatever he would throw at her.

Aali's eyes weren't on her though. It was on his cousins that were screaming at the top of their lungs. He could see one of them had lost her head tie while the other tripped, but she was quick to get up and continue running. "I came in through the back door" He answered her unasked question, his eyes throwing a glance at her.

She nodded, briefly glancing at his cousins before she sipped her champagne. "Aren't you going to ask?" She seemed oddly calm for someone that just did something to his family members.

His faced remained emotionless, "Yeah, I'm going to ask"

She sighed deeply, rolling her eyes slightly. She waited for him to say something to scold her and defend his family so she can back herself up.

"Salaha" He called out, making the girl that stood beside Aria look up, "Can you get a glass of the champagne too? I need it"

The girl nodded, doing her best to hide her smile as she scurried off and headed to do as he asked.

Aria stared at him with a look of disbelief masking her features. Eyes slightly wide, and lips hung slightly, she blinked.

Aali rose a brow, "What?"

"I..." She didn't know what to say exactly, "Aren't you mad?"

He shook his head.

"Why?"

It was his turn to sigh. He took a step closer to her, carefully placing both hands on her shoulder which made her tense instantly. She narrowed her eyes at him slightly, but he ignored her. Massaging her tensed shoulders, he waited until she seemed calm before he spoke. "Because you've tolerated them longer than anyone else has alone. Besides," He glanced at them, the girls were still running, "Someone had to teach them a lesson sooner or later" He offered her a smile.

She returned the smile, "You do know your family will get at us for this, right?"

"Our family" He corrected her, then shrugged, pulling his hands back. Salaha returned at the moment, handing him his flute. Dismissing her, he tilted the flute to clank against Aria's. "I'm the future Calipha and you, the Queen. They have to start dealing with the way we run things sooner than later"

Her smile turned into a short chuckle. She shook her head, "You're crazy"

"For you? The craziest around"

She stopped, eyes still boring into his. He didn't look away either, he didn't seem like he wanted to at the very least. At a point, she had to clear her throat and look away, taking a quick gulp from the flute. She could feel blood rushing to her cheeks and the tip of her ears; and she hoped he didn't notice it.

Aali smiled, but didn't say a word on that. "Besides, the dogs are harmless" He stated like it's no big deal as he turned around to see that the dogs had caught up with the girls at a dead end.

The girls remained on the floor, cowering in fear as they screamed. By the side, a couple of maids from the other chambers gathered, watching the scene unfold along with a lot of guards.

The dogs made a move towards the girls.

"All they'll do is sniff them, then leave. That's their way of recognizing them" Aali added, and just as he said, the dogs sniffed them before they turned around and headed back to their cages, leaving the girls unharmed. Well, aside from the tear stained face, the sore throat from screaming, and the dirt covered and messy body that is. Plus, the deeply bruised ego. "See?" He offered his wife a cheeky smile.

Aria chuckled, shaking her head. Internally, she was glad the dogs did no harm to the girls and she was kind of rooting on that before. Salaha had told her something about the dogs like Aali just did but she wanted to be sure. She had always wanted to be sure and the girls were the perfect test monkeys. "Damn, I wish it lasted a bit longer though. It was just getting to fun part" She pouted.

This made Aali laugh, his laughter booming around the place and as much as Aria hates to admit it, she could feel butterflies in her tummy slightly. But it was still there.

When Aali's laughter died down, he grinned down at her before bending down to peck her forehead. "I couldn't have asked for a better, feistier Queen, Askim. Alhmadullilah"