Alison was always in the middle. In every photograph she has lying around her house of her, Alison, and the other girls, it's always Alison who's the center of attention. She was like that in life too; a queen, perpetually ensuring that every conversation came around to her and that she was never far from the minds of her minions. She ruled clad in white armor and flowing dresses, armed with a sunny smile and words to chill the spine and warm the heart.
Aria knew she was never seen as a threat. She was the shortest of the group, quirky, and her problems only ever seemed to involve boys or her dad's cheating. She was an amusing toy, nothing more.
At first, that irritated her, but after Alison's disappearance, she realized how very useful that viewpoint was. All she had to do was continuously break up with and get back together with Ezra, toy with other boys, and have 'A' lash out at her every now and then.
She was never ever an 'A' suspect; not even when she wore the black and red dress that was so heavily inspired by a Black Swan poster to the masquerade ball, or when Mona nearly gave it all away by calling her 'Big A' in the school hallway.
Now, she loved the look Ezra got whenever she brought up something 'A' did and asked him where he'd been. She knew he was infatuated with her, and that he hated to 'hurt' her, but orders are orders, and he must follow Big A.
She rested her head against his chest as they lay on his couch and he read some Emily Dickens. She traced circles against his chest and decided that they've been in silence long enough. "Do you want to do lunch tomorrow?"
"Ah, I can't," he said, sounding vaguely disappointed. "I have a meeting in Philadelphia at eleven thirty."
"It seems like you're always at some kind of meeting nowadays."
"That's a good thing," he reminded her. "It's better than having no work."
Aria sat up and looked him in the eye. "Do teachers really have this many meetings?"
Ezra met her gaze squarely. "Well, I'm looking for other work too, Aria. You know that. We can't be seen in public while I'm your teacher."
She sighed and acted like she accepted this, however reluctantly, and leaned against him again, while inwardly she wondered when he would 'reveal' to her that he was part of the A team and debated whether to turn on the waterworks and hysteria or to be cool and factual and make her own revelation.
Waterworks would be a lot more fun.
She found herself playing her cards more carefully than ever now that Alison's come back. Even so, she knew that Alison didn't quite trust her as she used to. She had a recording of Alison and Emily meeting, and Alison practically saying so.
She sent Ezra a message to target Jake which will only make the other girls sympathize with her, and hopefully turn Alison's suspicions on Spencer.
She knew that everything was slowly unraveling, but she was having the time of her life.
"God, I don't know why she won't listen!" Spencer said in frustration, pacing around her kitchen. "Alison's clearly playing with her; Emily's only hurting herself by agreeing to these meetings."
"Maybe she isn't," Aria said. "Remember how A said that Emily used to be the weakest link because she was so sweet? What if Ali still remembers her that way, so she reaches out to who she knew was the most devoted to her first."
"Yeah, in order to reel her in!"
"Aria's right," Hanna said. "I was always Hefty Hanna to her, you were the only one who ever challenged her authority, and she and Aria were the most distant of our group. I'd go for Emily too."
"Listen." Aria put a hand on Spender's shoulder. "We need to let Ali know she's safe, and if doing that means letting her and Emily meet alone, we should do that. I don't know about you guys, but I don't want to lose her again."
Begrudgingly, Spencer gradually came around.
Aria felt giddy with this sense of power. They all tended to view Spencer as the boss, but it was Aria whose word tended to settle arguments, it was Aria who was the spokeswoman for the group, and it was Aria who tended to be in the middle of the pictures now.
She'd risen through the ranks, a dark queen who ruled through deception and manipulation, whose minions hardly knew who she was, but they knew to fear her and to mark her initial in vibrant red. She even has Spencer under her power now; Spencer, who had been the one to always confront Alison, listened to her and paid heed to her words.
She ruled Rosewood now, and she was not going to let Alison DiLaurentis even try to take the throne back.