Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Academy
The wind howled as the thunder roaredyelled to the world below,on the dark winter solstice. It was cold, freezing in fact as if the dead had risen and walked the earth. The long twisted road stretched to the horizon that was illuminated by the bright flashes of lightning that strikes the damp hard ground. The trees bent over the road as if reaching for each other, forming giant looming archways. The dark was stirring and waking up, emanating fear and anger. The horses reacted to the sounds of the forest, they whined, stirred restlessly, almost as if they sensed an unearthly presence.
The Prince and his companion were silent in their thoughts as they travelled in the horse-drawn carriage towards the Court of Russia where his father waited for his return. War was looming and the prince was required to handle the politics between two dominant nations: Russia and her enemy, Germany.
Prince Dimitri had a reputation throughout Europe as "The Guardian". He was known for doing whatever was necessary to protect his country but at the same time, he would send food to the poor people of Russia to ensure that they were fed.
Dimitri was a handsome man who stood at six feet and seven inches; towering over his enemies. He was sought after by many fair maidens that lusted after his perfect shoulder length brown hair and basked in the glow of his deep brown orbs; yet none had claimed his heart.
Hours passed as he pondered the upcoming events that would decide the future of Russia. He would snatch a few minutes of restless sleep, before being jolted awake by the carriage as it skipped over the indents in the road. On one of these occasions, movement in the forest caught his eye. As his gaze swept over the naked trees, he thought he saw a woman standing in the darkness. It was as though her long dark hair was blowing in an invisible breeze instead of being assaulted by the harsh-whipping winds that distorted the night. Her enchanting eyes stared back at him and her lips parted as though she was calling out for help.
By the time he realised that his vision was not false, she had disappeared; smothered by the darkness once more.
As the carriage drawed to a stop, the looming gothic building of court stood proud and tall, intimidating all who entered. Dimitri was not like the other princes who loved haunted and cruel buildings like this, instead he preferred the house on the edge of the city where his mother and sisters lived. The prince had three sisters Victoria, Karolina and Sonya and was very protective of them. Their mother, Olena or the queen had left the world of court in exchange for a peaceful life on the edge of the forest with her children.
As the prince entered the court, trumpets were called to announce his arrival. When he and his companion, Christian reached the throne room, what they saw shocked them. It had begun. The War had started. Maps and papers were strewn across the tables coating the room as if it was made of dead pressed trees. The King approached Dimitri and told him to protect his mother and sisters instead of fighting, as they would surely be a target for Germanythe enemy.
This struck a chord in the prince's heart, and he begged the king to let him fight and protect the nation. But it was to no avail. As the prince walked out of the court in a fit of fury his mind was drawn back to the girl in the darkness. When he first saw her she was not far from his mother's house, in fact she was in the forest that touched Olena`s backyard. As this thought struck him, Dimitri decided that if he was not going to fight he was going to find the girl who had haunted his thoughts from the first glimpse of her in the dark forest.
So he travelled to the edge of the mysterious forest and arrived at the house or manor. The house itself was huge with decorative stones and iron detailing. It stood at four stories tall creating a light shadow gracing the front lawn. It was a peaceful house full of joy and laughter with a bright atmosphere that improves your mood even on the glummest day.
The next day as he woke up the sun streamed through his drawn window showing the small dust motes in the air. He sat up and groaned collapsing back on the bed as he realised he had no reason to get up. It was five o'clock in the morning, his usual time for training. The prince trained tirelessly, running for miles, building up stamina. He trained for war, but now war had come he was not allowed to fight. As the seconds ticked by on the clock he could not go back to sleep, so pulling himself from his warm bed, Dimitri prepared to go for a run.
As Dimitri ran his thoughts continued to drift from his usual and sensible thoughts to those of a dark feminine figure retreating into the darkness. Questions bubbled inside him and tormented him. Who is she? Why is she in the forest? And why can I not stop thinking about her? As these questions bombarded his mind, he reached the edge of the forest. As he ran into the forest a warm tingle appeared in the pit of his stomach, but he paid it no head. As he continued deeper into the darkness the bazaar sensation increased until it felt like a thousand butterflies flitting around inside him.
When Dimitri reached the centre of the forest he turned around to double back to the house, but froze at the sight before him. There she was half in darkness half in light, looking like a goddess fallen from the sky. As his gaze fell upon her facial features she seamed to flinch, her dark brown irises stared back at him, full of fear, and wonder.
The feeling of butterflies flitting within him increased to such a rate that he griped his stomach almost crumpling to the floor. The girl cocked her head to the side to show she was puzzled; her curiosity was rising with the minuet. Who is he? Why is he here? Why do I feel as though I know him?
After what seemed like forever the girls curiosity blurted from her mouth.
"Who are you?" She whispered, the sound no louder than thea breeze.
Dimitri could barley hear her, it was as if she did not talk at all.
"Pardon, what did you say?" He stated in a calm, stoic voice, trying to appear in control as the butterflies, which he now guessed, was caused somehow by this mysterious girl of the forest, wreaked havoc on his body.
"Who are you?" She replied in a melodious voice as her eyes inspect every inch of him, taking in this new stranger that had entered her home of free will.
"I'm Dimitri Belikov, pleasure to make your acquaintance" he replied in a voice of wonder. How can she not know who I am? Well anyway I refuse to correct her by telling her I'm the prince it would serve no purpose.
"I'm Roza," she cautiously said as she made her way forward to inspect the creature in front of her.
She enchanted Dimitri. How could he not be, she had long brown hair and big brown eyes that madeturned him meltbutter. As Roza approached him the butterflies reached a majestic high were he could hear the beat of all their paper-thin wings.
As Roza stood in front of him, She got a good look at his beautiful features. They were sharp but soft and drew the viewer in. She felt a tug from her chest as she glanced across his lips. She wanted to kiss him and have him hold her as though they were the only people left oin this world.
Roza had not lived with people before, and. At the age of six she was left in the forest to fend for herself. As she grew up she listened to the people who lived on the edge of the forest learning their ways and speech. So as she approached the tall man and felt that tugpull, she followed her instincts and kissed him.
Dimitri was frozen shocked, she had kissed him. When she pulled back he looked at her with shock engrained in his features. She was touching her lips as though she did not believe what had just happened.
A split second later she ran through the trees, only to disappear again.
Dimitri ran and searched for hours but with no luck, she was gone.
Now Every morning and afternoon he went for a run looking for the girl, who with just one kiss captured his heart.
Two months have past and the war was in full swing. Dimitri no longer cared about the war as much, now he cared more about finding his mystery girl. But that was more from not knowing than enything. As the months had past there was no news from his father, so the price was left in the dark.
As the days went by Dimitri fell into a slow depression, he could not find his Roza. He searched but to no avail, his hope was dwindling.
Wind clattered against the windows of the manor and the prince sat staring at the inky-black sky. It was midnight and a storm was raging though the night. He worried for her safety, hoping she would be all right.
At one o'clock he could take it no longer and barged out of the house into the pitch-black night. The sky was covered in a thick blanket of clouds and raindrops raced each other to the ground. The air was warm and sweaty due to the high levels of humidity, and the ground shook ast near by lighting hit the damp, filthy dirt.
Dimitri jogged through the horrid conditions into the darkness created by the vast land of trees.
"Roza, Roza, Roza are you out there, are you ok if you are?" he screamed constantly into the night.
To his left he heard a whimper and a sob that seamed to echo in his heart. There she was his princess, his roza, lying on the ground huddling from the rain in a sort of makeshift shelter, she was grippingheld her right leg and was shaking violently. Dimitri picked her up and carried the girl to the manor. He lay her down on his bed and sent the servants to get a medic. When the doctor arrived and looked over the girl he stated she had hypothermia and had broken her leg. Dimitri was worried, so very worried he sat by her as she slept and kept her company when awake.
As days went by weeks soon followed and than month's.
After about four month's Roza was fully healed and could walk by her self once more. Over the time she stayed in the manor and Dimitri was kind always helping her with the simplest of tasks, and slowly but surly she had started to fall for him.
Dimitri loved her with all his heart but had not the courage to tell her so. She was sitting in the garden when he found her and he asked her if she felt alright, after a small amount of time going over everyday life, he could hold it no more.
"Roza I love you, do you love me" he blurted in the middle of a conversation about the weather.
"Pardon" she breathed.
"Do you love me"?" he whispered, and she had to strain to hear him.
Roza looked at him in shock, as it could not be true the man she loved could not love her back, she was a girl from the forest. He was a prince, it could not be true.
"Please answer me, please"," he begged.
"I do, I love you to." She stated, with a grin that couldto eat the world spread across her face.
Dimitri was overjoyed and kissed Roza on her lips; they had not kissed since they had first met. He had missed her in his arms, and from than on he never let her go.