Dark Horse

I chose the name "Dark Horse" because it was Katy Perry's song that inspired my idea of the story. It is by no means a Song FanFiction, but you might catch some of the song lyrics in the text. It will be subtle, so if you notice it, then you've listened to the song a few times.

This story takes place about one year after the Bloodline Series. It's been a while since I've ready the first few books (maybe a couple years or so?) but I doubt those first few books will come into play. It's mostly going to revolve around the last two books: Silver Shadows and The Ruby Circle.

I've seen and read so many stories on Dimitri and Rose becoming Strigoi, I thought I would add one of my own. But it's going to be short and sweet. It's shouldn't be too hard for me to write because I'm basing it off of the end of the series. [If you've read any of my other stories, I tend to start my stories smack-dab in the middle of a series and try to change the whole thing. It never works too well.]

Give it a chance. If you don't like it, oh well. I had this idea in my head for so long I couldn't keep it locked up anymore, you know?

So, here we go!

. . .

I did some research on the ages and birthdays. I doubt and triple checked them, so I'm pretty sure they're accurate.

Rose: 20 - going on 21

Lissa: 20

Christian: 20

Eddie: 20 - going on 21

Jillian: 16

Dimitri: 27

Sydney: 21

Adrian: 22

. . .

Chapter 1: I'm Capable of Anything

"Alright. Are we doing this thing or not?"

I stood in the doorway of the Queen's chambers, waiting impatiently for my best friend to get herself ready. Mind you, she's been at it for almost two hours. I've been standing at the door, ready to go, for almost 30 minutes.

"Yes, Rose. I'm coming. Have some patience, will you?" the Queen herself called back with a small chuckle.

I huffed and crossed my arms, leaning again the doorframe. "Oh, please. Do you even know who you're talking to?" I was beginning to regret not taking that nap 30 minutes ago.

"We are supported to meet Sparky and Dimitri at the car in 5 minutes. It takes you that long just the get your shoes on."

Lissa made a noise of protest. "It does not, Rose! Besides, I've already got my shoes on. I'm coming out right now, Miss Impatient."

True to her word—this time, anyway—she appeared in the doorway of her room dressed in a simple pair of tan dress pants and a very expensive looking, heavily sequenced light blue top. As she passed the couch, she grabbed her coat and slipped it on by time she made it to me.

She motioned to herself, looking slightly self conscious. "Well? How does it look?"

I smiled at her. "You look as great as always, Liss."

She frowned. "During school I look terrible—like I could live on the street, or something…"

I rolled my eyes. "With the clothes you own, I highly doubt that. Come on."

I grabbed her by the arm and practically dragged her out the door. We made it to parking garage in record time, my excitement getting the better of me.

Dimitri, Christian and Eddie are all waiting my the car when we get there. Dimitri smiles his greeting. I wink at him and he rolls his eyes—it frustrates me that I still can't do that!

"You had one job, Rose. What took you so long?"

I glared at the fire-brain. "I tried, okay? Your girlfriend moves however fast she wants to move, no matter how many times I threaten her."

"I think we sent the wrong person to do the job," Eddie, the birthday boy, chimes in. "We should have sent Belikov in after her. She might have moved a little faster that way."

I glared at him; he was always 'pro-Dimitri' and would say anything to get on his good side.

"I can be scary. I think I scare at least 90% of the royals here at Court."

"That may be true, but you don't scare the Queen of those royals," Christian says after kissing his girlfriend on the cheek. "That's just…weak."

He smirked his evil smirk, and I wanted so show him this pretty little birdie I got just for him. But I promised Dimitri I would behave.

I huffed as they piled into the car and I got in the passenger seat next to Dimitri. I looked up at him with puppy dog eyes when I was sure that no one was looking.

"I'm scary, right?" I asked him in a low voice.

His lip twitched in a tiny smile and he looked at me out of the corner of his eye. "Of course you are, Roza," he said in a low voice as well, making sure no one else was listening. "When the occasion calls for it, you are very scary."

I grumbled and looked ahead of us as he pulled the car from the parking garage. "You're not convincing me at all, Comrade."

I heard him chuckle.

It wasn't a long drive to the Hall nearest to the South border of the wards where Lissa had excitedly decorated for Eddie's birthday. She then told me that she would be doing all of our birthdays there. Especially this year, since we were all turning 21, the legal drinking age.

"Is it too late to go back?" Eddie asked, the last of us to slid out of the vehicle.

Everyone but Lissa thought that was funny. "Oh, come on, Eddie. It's going to be fun! I didn't invite anyone—it's just us."

Eddie still seemed a little unsure about it, but he trudged on in front of us anyway.

We walked the hallway to the room we had reserved for the 'party', if that's what Lissa wants to call it. It really wasn't much of a party without at least 20 people attending. Eddie reached for the door and held it open for the rest of us—he's really starting to become more and more like a Mini-Dimitri. Eddie was the last one in room, and I swear he almost reached for his stake. I mean, they yelled so loud it even made me jump a little, and I knew it was coming.

"Surprise!"

Standing in front of us was Adrian, Sydney (who was holding little Declan on her hip), Mia, Angeline, and Jill. Everyone was all smiles as they greeting the birthday boy.

The room itself wasn't that big. There was a pool table, a mini-bar with a fridge to store our own drinks, folding tables and chairs on one side of the room, tables with food, the cake, and presents on the other side, and the support beam in the middle that held the 'Happy Birthday' sign in place. It was decorated with blue and green colors, and i looked really nice. Lissa and Jill had gone a little overboard with the balloons all over the floor.

Adrian gave a casual wave. "Happy 21st, Mini-Dimitri."

He took Declan from Sydney so that she could hug the Guardian.

"Happy Birthday. It's been a while since Christmas. I'm glad we made it in time for the party."

He raised his brow. "How long have you guys been here?"

She shrugged. "About a day—we flew in yesterday. We have to head back to Maine in 2 days."

There was a hint of a smile. "Well…thanks. I appreciate you guys coming here."

"Wouldn't miss it for the world," Adrian says, smirking like an idiot.

"It's too bad we didn't visit you for your 21st birthday, Syd," I said with a knowing smirk.

She did not share my amusement. "I'm actually really glad you didn't. You know how I feel about surprises."

Mia and Angeline hug Eddie with smiles. Mia didn't say much, but mentions a party trick her and Jill had been practicing for weeks. Angeline challenges Eddie to an arm wrestling match later on, and I think she was completely serious.

Jill quickly ran up to him and wrapped her skinny arms around his shoulders—the best she could, anyway. The smile that glowed on her face was almost blinding. She had been really excited to help Lissa plan and decorate for the party.

"Happy Birthday! I take it you were surprised?" she asked hopefully.

All he could do was nod, still taking in the decorations and people staring back at him.

"He knew we were coming here to celebrate," Lissa said, smiling at her half sister, "but he had no idea there was going to be a party with cake and presents."

Still not much of a party without more bodies, I though to myself, looking around the rather empty room. If I had said that aloud, then Lissa would have been pissed.

I draped my arm over Lissa's shoulders. "I think you've outdone yourself, Liss. This looks…amazing."

"It's too much," Eddie said finally, looking from Jill to Lissa. "You didn't need to do any of this for me. You could have just bought me a shot, or something."

She waved her hand dismissively at him. "Oh, shut up, Eddie." When he wasn't letting it go, she walked over to him and smiled. "You're an amazing Guardian, Eddie, and a great friend. You've fought harder than I thought anyone could to save my sister. Regrettably, you fought a lot harder than even I did when she was missing and nearly killed. I needed a way to thank you for that." She hugged him, still smiling. "So, here's my present to you. Happy Birthday, Guardian Castile."

All Eddie seemed capable of doing was hugging her back, his face melting into a warm smile.

"Great idea! Let's do presents!" Jill took Eddie's hand and pulled him over to the designated table, leaving the rest of us behind.

We blew through the presents like hot cakes. Jill's present was one of her favorite books, because they apparently have the same idea of a good read. (Thankfully, he doesn't read the old westerns Dimitri loves so much.) Angeline thought it was funny to get him a shot glass that said "Guard Dog" on it with a picture of a cute bull dog puppy. Mia decided at the last second to search great party drinks and made some for everyone; she also promised to buy him a real drink one day. Adrian handed him a list of bars that he recommended, as well as the drinks he was to try. Sydney gave him his real gift, which was a small 6 by 8 inch portrait of their group at Amberwood Academy were they were undercover as siblings. Dimitri and I pitched in and got him a custom stake, much like mine. Christian, of course, made the cake as his gift.

Eddie thanked everyone and we tried Christian's cake. I'm not going to lie: I was a little nervous. Sure, Christian can make some tasty pastries that I was more than happy to sample. This cake, however, had alcohol incorporated into it. I wasn't sure how I felt about alcohol in my food. But I was wrong—that damn thing was absolutely amazing! The food was really just a few snack items and chips, but we mostly ate Christian's cake, so no one was hungry. (Even Sydney had one full piece, which was still shocking to me.)

There were smiles and laughs, and Eddie seemed to loosen up more than usual. When it came to Adrian handing him a drink, he stiffened.

"I…I shouldn't," birthday boy protested.

Adrian, still holding the drink, raised a brow. "You're not going to drink on your 21st birthday? What kind of an adult are you?"

"Well, he didn't dedicate the first years of his adulthood in a 5th of whiskey," Sydney pointed out, glaring at his husband. "So, I'd say he's a responsible one. Don't pour it down his throat, Adrian."

Eddie looked relieved for Sydney's help.

"Eddie, if you're going to try and pull the whole 'I can't drink because I'm a Guardian' bullshit, I'm going to be the one to pour it down your throat," I threatened, half serious. Then I smiled. "Relax. You're not on duty today. Enjoy your birthday while you can."

"Yeah, Eddie. I've got extra Guards around the building, and it's only a few hours from sunrise." Lissa smiled reassuringly. "Relax and have fun! It's your first legal drink—enjoy it!"

After another moment of hesitation, Eddie took the drink from Adrian and took a drink. He didn't even flinch at that taste, which impressed me, because any drink from Adrian had to a strong one. The looked from the drink, to Adrian, and then back to the drink.

"Is there any alcohol in this?" he asked, looking almost insulted.

Adrian shrugged. "I figured I should start you off slow. You kids don't need to be little alcoholics at such a young age."

"Pot calling the kettle black, dear," Sydney chimed in. She handed Delcan off to Lissa, who had been waiting a long time to hold the little guy again.

I tore my eyes away from Eddie long enough to notice Lissa flash a knowing look over to Christian. She had playfully hinted that she wanted kids to Christian last Christmas and I think that information nearly killed him. Since then, she's been taking any chance she got to tease him about it. I had no problem with that—embarrassment at Sparky's expense was more than satisfying.

Eddie smirked and brought the drink offered to him by Adrian to his lips. He tilted the cup back and downed it. Needless to say, we were all stunned. He handed the cup back to Adrian, who's mouth was moving but no words were coming out, and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.

"Is that all you've got, party boy?" There was a clear challenge in his eyes, and it sparked that smirk Adrian was so well known for.

"Oh, you have seen nothing, my friend."

I rolled my eyes. "This is not going to end well." I nudged Sydney. "Weren't you just referring to Eddie as the responsible adult?"

She shrugged. "Everybody has a dark side. I guess I always knew Eddie was capable of anything—though I had hoped it didn't antagonize my husband's old habits…"

Christian looked thoughtful for a minute. "Is it just me, or is Eddie becoming more and more like a mix of Dimitri and Adrian?"

I groaned at the thought. "Oh, God, Sparky. You must stop talking."

His smirk was hard to miss. "Only when you grow a little taller, Rosie," he shot back.

Lissa, who had been fully engrossed with the baby, said, "Our Little Dimitri is growing up so fast!"

I cupped my hands over my ears and leaned my face into Dimitri's old duster. "Ugh! You guys are all evil!"

Everyone laughed at my expense; even Dimitri chuckled. I was almost impressed by how quickly the harsh, pointed arrow of embarrassment had quickly turned on me.

"Remember that you are to report to the Princess's room to take her to class tomorrow morning, Guardian Castile," Dimitri warned him gently, though there was a playful tone to his voice.

But I don't think Eddie was listening. Adrian already had another drink for him. Eddie tried it and smiled. "That's…better."

"'Better', huh?" Adrain repeated, his smirk ever growing. "Challenge accepted."

"Boys, let's not take this too far," Jillian cut in, looking a little worried. "I really do want to make it class on time tomorrow, Eddie. Not that I'm trying to ruin your fun, just…don't over do it."

I thought about it for a second. "I don't know. I kind of like the idea of Eddie going shot of shot with Adrian. That sounds…oddly entertaining."

Sydney glared at me. "Think about the repercussions I would be suffering if that were to happen, Rose. No way." She shook her head as to confirm her final 'no'.

We all laughed, though I was still slightly disappointed that there was not going to be a shoot off, so to speak. The rest of the evening was spent like that; Lissa and Jill chatted about school for a minute; Sydney talked about work while I made funny faces at Declan; everyone cheered on Eddie as he did a shot of Fireball; Jill and Mia entertained us with their water magic, and even shot Adrian in the face with a water ball, which was more entertaining than it probably should have been; Adrian made drinks not only for himself and for anyone who wanted one. Although the only ones who were legal to drink were Dimitri, Adrian, Sydney and (obviously) Eddie. I wasn't allowed to have even a sip of alcohol with my fiancé breathing down my neck. So…that was the only bummer.

It was safe to say that by the end of the night we could all agree on two things.

One: Eddie was for sure going to be hung over in the morning. Good luck to Jillian on that.

Two: tonight was a complete party success.

. . .

I haven't written a Vampire Academy story since 'Where Are You?', so I might be a little rusty. But I hope you all enjoyed, and that you'll be interested in more. Like I said, it's going to be pretty short—no more than 10 chapters I would suspect.

There will be a few time skips, but it shouldn't be too hard to follow. Rose's birthday is coming up, so I'm pretty excited about that! Dimitri might have something special planned for her. (Not in that way; get your mind out of the gutter!) Stay tuned for what's to come!

Also, my grammar can be horrendous—you know that if you've followed any of my other stories—so PLEASE let me know where I'm screwing up so that I can hopefully fix it.

Thanks For Reading!

—Romni