Disclaimer: I have no affiliation with Vampire Academy other than I have read the first three books within a 24 hour period and cannot handle Dimitri as a Strigoi. Yes, I haven't read "Blood Promise", but I need to know how Dimitri would handle meeting Rose for the first time after becoming Strigoi. Happy Reading Everyone.

Awakened. That is what everyone had called it. Recounting to when I was a novice the term had disgusted me. How could a change so negative and impure make someone so diluted in their thinking that they could actually believe they were in a higher state of mind. However, it's the truth. I am awakened. Senses amplified beyond imagination as a Dhampir. My mind generally stays away from thoughts and feeling of the time before I was awakened. It seemed gray and fuzzy compared to me now. It was as if they were all childhood memories. Memories that were recounted so many times that the events were diluted and false. However, there was one memory that still shown thought the haze. Rosemarie Hathaway.

She had been on our trail for weeks unsuccessfully. Her rage, inexperience of tracking, and love, continually forced her to be hasty in her advances. She wasn't a threat to us, so there was no need to waste time to find her and kill her - or drain her.

"Don't worry newbie," I recalled one of the other Strigoi reassuring me after we first noticed Rose on our trail. "Those feelings will go away shortly. Soon she won't even be a memory. You'll start to forget your Dhampir ties. We are your true family." His hand clasped me on the shoulder. He was right; they are my true family. But he was wrong about her going away, in my memories and her tracking. Whatever feeling he was referring to I was unsure. I could not wrap my mind around Rosemarie Hathaway.

"We got to do something about that little bitch." One of the Strigoi, Aaron Wright a male Human-Strigoi, cursed as he slammed out what would soon be the first rays of sunlight. "I know, I know "She's not an issue. She's not a guardian. She's not actually killing us."" He said mocking the conversation we had when Rose first started following our clan. "But really! This is three nights in a row that she stopped me from draining a girl. I'm half tempted to order a pizza and kill the delivery boy!" The others were starting to come into the living room from the noise he was creating.

Reyna Malikai, a female Moroi-Strigoi with long pale blond hair, slid her arm around his neck effectively seducing and calming him. "Maybe you should get better at hunting." She whispered while peeling herself off of him which brought back his rage. He slammed himself into the couch on the opposite side of the room looking for something to take his rage out on.

"What do you think Dimitri?" She said slipping down onto my lap. "Should we – "do something about that little bitch"?" She asked, mocking Aaron while dragging two fingers down my jaw. I leaned into her touch closing my eyes, my breath stuck in my chest.

"You know that is not for me to decide." I answered honestly after a few moments. She melted with my accent as she always had. She scoffed at me and straddled my lap facing me directly.

"Oh but come on," She urged me on, her face slowly closing in on mine. "Don't you want to bleed her dry?" She stated urging my answer, dragging out each word in a whisper that she meant for only me.

Quickly and effectively, I slid out from under her. Being a Dhampir-Strigoi had its benefits. "You know that is not for me to decide." Without a second glance in their direction I left the room.

The problem was, yes I did want to bleed her dry. I wanted to fuck her hard then drain her dry in the process. If it was my decision she would be efficiently fucked and bled dry a long time ago. I sat on what had essentially been my room since we had taken this house two nights ago. They were a newlywed couple that was trying to live the white picket lifestyle that had three guest bedrooms. Who needed three guest bedrooms? Their bodies were drained and piled in the kitchen. We didn't need that room anyways.

I needed blood. Strigoi could go longer without blood than Moroi, but being a newly formed Strigoi I knew I would need it soon. I accidentally drained the wife when I hadn't fed in 5 days. This in turn had Jacques Montenegro, the head of our pack, drain the husband. Less noise from him dead than sobbing about his wife. Typically we kept them alive and slowly drained them over a week or until Rose got too close for Jack's comfort.

After the battle at St. Vladimir's Academy we were sectioned off into different clans, small groups to hide our numbers and stay under the radar until our next mission. We knew that the guardians wouldn't try for another offensive attack while their numbers were so diminished. Seemed like the route all of them should and would take. Regroup their numbers while we strengthened ours. But then there was Rosemarie Hathaway. My Roza.

No.

I slammed my head against the pillow and stared up at the ceiling absently watching at the fan circled above me. The door started to creak open. I knew who was there before I even looked up. I felt like a teenage boy with hormones running wild whenever Jack did this. Didn't he know I was 24 when I was turned? I did not want to be treated like this, but I knew my place.

"You are feeling it, aren't you?" He said softly as he sat in the chair next to the blackened out window. I sat up in silence not giving him an answer. He continued on. "I can't let you go out there. Especially now that the sun is up, but even at nightfall. Rosemarie Hathaway wants to take you away from us. She thinks she can; she thinks she owes you death." He paused to let the words sink in. "She will hesitate, but so will you." He accused me.

"I will not!" The rage that surged out of me as I stood up surprised even me. I really was acting like a child.

"If anything, that proves my point even further." He stated slowly standing up. "We leave in two nights time and you'll have more blood then. Just don't drain the wife dry again." He said dismissing himself while insulting me. I sat back down, knowing I deserved what I got handed to me. With the bloodlust pulling and driving my emotions and actions I only hoped that two nights would go by faster.

It was near midnight. I was sitting in the old lazyboy chair reading an old western for the third time. I don't know how, but even after the awakening I still enjoyed reading them. None of the other Strigoi could understand, but then again neither could the living. Aaron was out scouting and hunting per usual leaving just after sunset. I hoped he had found a nice dinner for himself so he would stop being such a twat. Hopefully not some redhead, those seemed to make him wild for the next night or so. Hopefully some pretty brunette, he was calm after those.

"Hey Dimitri!" Aaron called out as the front door slammed open. I could smell her before the door was even shut. In an instant Jack was in front of me holding me back from Aaron. "Look what I got—Oh." He said his words faltering as the image before him began to form.

The way she dangled over his shoulder. Her hair draped over her head the back of her neck showing her kills. The way her body seemed lifeless, but the small pulse in her neck, her aorta, beckoned me to drain her. My breath quickened yearning for her as it had in life.

"Reyna. Get him out of here." Jack demanded. I realized what was happening. I needed her. I needed her now. I struggled to get past Jack and to Rosemarie, but he was an older Strigoi, much older, and kept me back as if I was a leaf. "Now Reyna!"

She grabbed my wrist and pulled me into the kitchen. I didn't struggle leaving the room with Rosemarie not in my sight. Part of me wanted to be as far away from her as possible. The stench of the rotting corpses in the kitchen did not help as well. Their blood long since drained dry made them highly unappetizing.

"Gross," Reyna stated kicking the male closer to the female. "Why'd I have to pull you into here? At least it has your bloodlust under control." She walked around the room with her hand over her mouth and nose while I stood there with the image of Rosemarie still fresh in my mind.

I could distantly hear Jack and Aaron arguing but they kept the level where even my heightened Strigoi senses could not understand. I continued to watch Reyna pace the kitchen. She had not consumed blood in longer than I had, since I drained the wife. Unlike Aaron, she kept her emotions in check even when she was starving, but none the less, she was starving and I could tell. The rotting bodies with no blood in them probably drove her senses off the record, but she knew she had to stay with me or risk the wrath of Jack.

As the moment of silent drove longer between us, her constant pacing, Jack and Aaron in a distant argument, and my need to know what was going on with Rosemarie, I knew I was going to need to butter Reyna before I could ask for her help. The longer she stayed in the kitchen the more pain she was in. Her body started making a gaging gesture even with her hand still over her mouth and nose.

"Will my blood help?" I asked in a desperate attempt offering out my wrist. She slapped my hand down in disgust.

"Fuck you!" She screamed out barely removing her hand from her face. "No. Fuck." Her mind was swimming. "One, you don't have blood you fucking idiot. Two, -" She paused unable to think of a second reason. "Two, fuck you!"

Well, that plan didn't work. Moroi still had blood and while Moroi could not sustain themselves off of Moroi blood it was at least something. I thought that strigoi were the same, apparently not.

She sat down at the kitchen table not looking away from the dead bodies that were at the far end of the kitchen. Her hand still on her face, but not as much as it was earlier. I sat down next to her. I could feel Jack was now pacing the living room. Rosemarie seemed to be a heap on the floor by the door while Aaron was sitting on the couch like a teenage boy who was found sneaking out. Apparently I wasn't the only one that Jack treated as a teenager. I let out a slight laugh.

"What?" Reyna asked bringing her attention to me in confusion. "How is this funny?" She said gesturing to herself.

"No. Sorry no. Not you Reyna." I looked out past the kitchen door, her attention following mine. She sighed after a few moments.

"Does he treat you like you are 12 as well?" She let out as a sigh. I gave her a slight nod. "Wow, I thought I was the only one." More moments of silence passed between us. Sighing again she started to speak. "You know, that was really kind of you. You know the offering your blood thing." I sat there staring at her, urging her to continue. Strigoi are not kind. We think for ourselves and only that. Living in these clans we called eachother family, but in actuality we only fought for #1, ourselves. What was she doing apologizing? "Sometimes I forget that you are new. You are just so stoic," She paused hunting for words. "Stoic and alone. Recluse. You have your emotions in check." She paused and laughed. "Well most of the time." She referenced to my behavior earlier.

"They don't know what to do with her." She stated trying to edge me into a conversation. "You know Rose." She prompted.

"Rosemarie." I corrected. Well getting me into a conversation was easy for her.

"Okay, yeah. Rosemarie." She said slightly confused. I had hoped that she would continue but she kept her eyes on me, waiting.

"What's going on out there." I prompted biting her line.

She paused for a moment recalling the events that she had heard from Aaron. "He set her up. Ripped out a few pages from your book to make it look like she was trailing you. Trapped her in an alley way. She knew it was a trap. She was just expecting you, not Aaron." She paused for a moment. "She was expecting to die by your hand in this trap. She wants that. Wow." She looked back at me. "She must have really loved you. I don't get how anyone can love you." She may have flirted with everyone she saw, but this was the truth. I was not her type at all. She preferred Men like Aaron. That is how Aaron was turned years ago. She suggested to Jack after they had lost one of their clan to awaken Aaron rather than just drain him. He agreed.

"You know, maybe if you asked Jack he can let you turn Rosemarie rather than have him drain her." She said obviously her mind had gone the same direction as mine.

"You know that is not up to me." I stated. She threw her hands up in disbelief.

"Why not? Why not put in your two cents? Tell him what you want."

"That was my old life. A distant life. Her life is no longer up to me."

"Okay cowboy." She said frustrated but paused for a moment to hear what was going on in the living room. "But by the looks of it, it will be." She smiled in victory walking out of the kitchen as Jack walked in.

That is how I ended up here, sitting in the chair next to the darkened window with Rosemarie restrained to the bed in an endorphin induced haze. The bite from Aaron was still in her system, but as I was informed by Jack, would be leaving soon. He gave me the choice to decide what to do with Rosemarie. Let her live, let her die, or awaken her. All three choices. By being around her my bloodlust had calmed down, or had let me still think without draining her. The urge was still there, but now I could choose. That choice would have to be made fast. She started moaning on the bed grabbing her head as if she had a bad hangover. Her eyes opened to the surroundings and she sat up pushing herself against the wall as far away from me as possible. She said nothing, which was unusual for her. The silence thickened between us. She had already scanned the room and knew that there was nothing she could do in her defense.

"Good evening." I said to her eventually.

"There is nothing good about this Dimitri." She stated point blank. The silence continued to grow as I suspected her to continue the conversation. "Is this the point where you kill me, or drain me, or eat me, or whatever you Strigoi do." She accused me unable to keep her frustrations in any longer.

"That's the problem Rosemarie. What do we Strigoi do?" I questioned her. She did not answer, but continued to keep her eyes locked with mine.

"Rosemarie?" What really? Rosemarie?" She yelled.

"Yes. That is your name, is it not?"

Her face paled. "I'm Rose. Your Roza." It hit me. My Dhampir memories of my Roza. She could tell the inner turmoil that had begun to stir up in me. There was a spark of hope in her that she could not have. I am Strigoi. This is a new life. "Dimitri," She whispered. "Come back to me."

In an instant I was over her, straddling her. Her heartrate increased. Her breathing increased.

"There is nothing to go back to." I whispered back into her ear then bit hard down onto her neck tasting her blood as it ran down my throat. Don't drain her. Don't drain her. I repeated in my head as I continued to drink. She had already been sent into euphoria opening her neck wider for me. Don't drain her. But she was too sweet, too satisfying. I was starting to reach the point of no return. The point where even if I didn't drain her, there would be no recovery. STOP! Some point of my mind screamed at me. I flew away from her, pressed up against the farthest wall from her. I looked at the scene in front of me. Rose was spread out across the bed in her euphoria high, her neck still exposed and dripping blood onto the sheets.

"Rose. Roza, no." I stammered panic running all over me again. Fuck this rage that being a Strigoi created. This is not what I had decided. I didn't want to drain her. Or did I? I still hadn't made a choice. There was something that Jack had told me to do after biting a victim to stop the bleeding if you wanted to save them for later. What was it? What was it?! I held her in my lap trying to think what it was. Infuse my saliva into her blood! I placed my mouth back onto her next resisting the urge to sink my fangs back into her neck. A fire was building inside of me urging me to sink my fangs into her, to let go and be the animal that I am. But I continued on, licking the wound for good measure. She let out a soft moan and I instantly dropped her back onto the bed and was up against the wall again, panting heavily.

The door swung open and Aaron walked in. "Hah, wow not what I expected. So you decided to drain her. Not what I would have chosen, but hey man I guess you always have had a harder time with not draining the food first go around. Look like you may have some more left in her though, if you are lucky." He walked out closing the door and leaving me with Rose again.

What the fuck was I going to do?

I piled all the blankets on top of her. An extra pillow for good measure sat at the top of the pile. Not that it would help against a strigoi but I needed her veins out of sight and that pillow added to the pile of fabric between my eyes and her. I paced back and forth across the room. What had happened earlier? What was I going to do? I guess draining her was out as I tried that earlier and stopped. Surprised that I stopped, but I had. Her body was used to having routine blood withdrawals and she was filtering out the endorphins rather quickly. The pile of blankets on the bed shifted until they were knocked onto the floor and Rose sat cross legged on the bed. She didn't scan the room for escape routes but rather just sat there looking at me and I at her.

"Sit with me." She barely spoke. I listened to her command and sat with her on the bed. The furthest corner from her, but I sat with her. We sat there in silence as we had in the past. Just surrounded with eachother. It felt odd, but I remembered it. It was on one of our walks to her dorm after thought she was going crazy, that the darkness was stealing her, taking her. "And I won't ever abandon you, you know. I mean it …. not that this stuff ever happens to you, of course, but if you start seeing ghosts or anything, I'll help you through it." I remembered her determination, caring, blubbering, embarrassed smile after I assured her that she was not in fact crazy.

"It's not like that Rose." I said breaking the silence that had formed between us.

"Yes it is Dimitri." She said knowing what I was talking about. "I won't do it now or ever. Just as I promised."

"That was an old life. A past life. There are no promises for you to keep now." I said the rage slightly stirring in me.

"It may be your "past life" But this is my current life. I'm not going anywhere until one of us is dead." She screamed the rage hitting her as well.

"Is that what you want, death? I can give you that." I said placing my hands around her neck showing her how efficiently I could kill her.

"It's not what I want. I do not want death. Neither did you. This isn't you Dimitri. You would rather have death than to be a Strigoi." Tears were swelling in her eyes. She briefly paused to wipe them away.

"I do not choose death." I said to her in a quiet voice. "I did not choose Strigoi, but I welcome it now. I am giving you the option. Life, Death, or Strigoi." I said my words becoming louder and fiercer with each word. She scooted closer to me on the bed.

"There is no choice for me to make Dimitri." She said intertwining our hands together. "I see you, the living you. I'm shadow-kissed. You are not lost. There is hope. I see you." She whispered.

Confusion struck within me. There was no living me. I am Strigoi, the undead. Why did she have hope for me. She did not need to have hope for me. I am awakened. "Just go. Be with Lissa. Why have you forgotten her?"

"I haven't forgotten her. This is about me not abandoning you." Her tone was calm. Very unlike the Rose I tried to remember.

"I abandoned you Rose."

Her face paled. Her eyes frantically started searching me. She was not expecting that. "No. You didn't." She paused to breath, closing her eyes. "I am here. You are here. We are together, not abandoned."

The words resonated with me and the next thing I knew I was on top of her, my mouth instantly finding hers. Her skin was electric, passion flew through me. This was a whole new level that I did not know that Strigoi could feel. With one hand I pinned both of hers above her head and continued to kiss down the length of her neck, tempted to steal a bite. I dragged my fangs across her collarbone. She tried to suppress a moan as I licked up her neck to her face and found her mouth again. She arched her back to deepen the kiss. I straddled her as I pressed myself into her leg. She let out a moan and struggled lightly to let me free her arms so she could explore as well. I pressed down harder as I nibbled on her ear. She let out a little squeak, something that took us both by surprise. I laughed lightly and slid my free hand up her shirt.

"Dimitri, Please." She moaned as I grasped her breast in my hand.

"Please what?" I prompted my mouth never leaving from her skin. What little endorphins that were left in her system drove her over the edge. She squirmed under my touch, trying to free her hands, rocking in time with me to increase the friction on her leg. "Please what?" I said repeating myself stopping all ministrations. She let out a sigh of frustration at me stopping.

"Let me touch you!" She yelled arching her body creating friction between my legs.

"Your wish is my command." I said releasing her hands that she automatically brought to my head, intertwined her fingers within my hair and brought me down for a rough kiss. Her clothes needed to be gone. In one swift movement I grabbed the hem of her shirt and pulled up. She got the point and did away with mine as well. A snaked a free hand downwards beneath her underwear and palmed her gently. She increased the speed as she took in a quick breath between her teeth. I slipped a finger inside of her and used my thumb to rub her clitoris. She let out a choppy breath as I used my other hand to stimulate her breast. Her hands were on my back urging me closer as I rocked against her and continued to stimulate her.

I knew she was close as I slipped another finger inside of her. Her eyes were closed and her back arched, her breathing increased. She looked like a goddess. But I wouldn't give her the pleasure. Right before she would come I stopped completely. She laid there painting, confused as I trailed my hand that was between her legs along the rim of her pants.

"Umm, Okay?" She said in between breaths. I wasn't done with her. I just wanted her to come down. She tried to sit up to get to my level. I pushed her back down against the bed, keeping gentle pressure against her chest that was moving up and down frequently. Slowly, after a few moments, I started to undo her pants. She now understood that we weren't stopping and tried to arch her body back up against mine. I pressed down slightly harder against her chest effectively keeping her against the bed.

"Wait Rose." I said once I had gotten us both out of our clothes. I kissed her don her stomach and found my head between her legs. She took in a sharp inhale as I slowly licked up. She let out a deep moan as I continued. She grabbed my head and forced me a little deeper. I let out a slight laugh that had her moaning louder. I inserted two fingers back into her and sucked on her clitoris. I opened my eyes to look up at her but was met with a pulsing femoral artery.

The bloodlust kicked in again and I found myself with my mouth against her femoral sucking her leg. She grabbed my head and pulled me up. I don't know how I followed her guidance, but I had. My eyes met hers. The endorphins were about to kick in from my bite. "What you need. It's you. I choose you." She came around my fingers in ecstasy as the endorphins hit her system.

Her words hit me. She wanted me to make the choice for her. She wanted to give into my needs. And what had I done? I had just made her, my Roza, a blood whore.

Authors Note: And there you have it. I'll leave it up to you guys what happens next mainly because I have no clue because I haven't been able to read blood promise yet. The local library gets it in Monday morning, so that is still two days away for me. I'll leave it to your imagination. I needed to get this scene out of my head and add in a little smut for ya'll. Have a good night and happy reading.

P.S. Let me know if there are any mistakes. This hasn't been sent through a Beta and was written in 5 hours.