Update: Edited for plot holes and inaccuracies 10/23/2011
A HUGE thank you and rainbow-sprinkled sugar cookie to my Beta, A.I.T. –Author In Training. Together we can make this fanfic amazing!
A/N: I've seen it tons of times, but Rose and Dimitri always seem so out of character. Here's hoping I can get it right.
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Vampire Academy, the characters or anything else. I'm just making a pathetic attempt to write as well as the original author. :)
"Rose, we have to get out of here!"
"He's in there!" I screamed, straining as hard as I could. How could I have killed Strigoi and not been able to break free from these two? "Dimitri's in there! We have to go back for him! We can't leave him!"
I was rambling, hysterical, shouting at them all that we had to go rescue Dimitri. My mother shook me hard and leaned close so there were only a few inches between us.
"He is dead, Rose! We can't go back in there. The sun will be down in fifteen minutes, and they are waiting for us. We're going to be in the dark before we can get back to the wards. We need every second we can get- it still may not be enough."
I could see the Strigoi gathered at the entrance, their red eyes gleaming with anticipation. They completely filled the opening, ten I believed. Maybe more.
Shadow Kiss, pg 414
I knew my mother was right. It was suicide to run back in there, and we needed to get the Moroi to safety. My heart was disagreeing voraciously with my head. Pain ripped through my heart and burned at the thinning fibers of my sanity as I thought of him, pinned and helpless for the first time since I'd met him beneath one of those filthy monsters. He needed me. I couldn't lose him, not now, not after everything was finally right! Taking my hesitation for defeat, Guardian Hathaway's grip had lessened. I took that chance. My mad dash was cut short by her lightning reflexes.
"You can't save him. We have to get the students back to campus." When I tried to pull away again, she yanked me towards the trees with an angry growl. "They come first," she snapped, "Dimitri would say the same."
Yes, he would. And I found I didn't care. All my pent-up bitterness seemed to explode- over Dimitri, over Lissa, over everything. "I'm not letting him die for some spoiled Moroi!" With a ferocity that astounded even myself, I tore from Janine Hathaway and leaped towards the cave, ignoring her panicked shouts. She couldn't understand- but how could she, when our relationship was such a closely guarded secret? We'd been through so much with so little reward- I wasn't about to let some damn Strigoi take everything away from me now.
I rushed into those burning red eyes at full speed, intent on my mission. All guardian training was officially thrown out the proverbial window as I bowled into them, scattering them like pins. All I could think of, all that I was aware of, was the paralyzing fear that I wouldn't be in time to save him.
It didn't take long for them to recover from my unique head-on tactic. I was grabbed from behind and I grasped a cold, damp arm, throwing the body it belonged to over my shoulder. Thought ceased to exist as I battled them. I threw one head first into the cave wall; another I ducked beneath and hit his spine. It was a losing battle, and I knew it.
"Where are you, you worthless son of a bitch?" I yelled to the Strigoi that had attacked him- the same I had spoken to on the elementary campus. "Come out so I can rip your damn head off!"
There was no answer save for the onslaught of the Strigoi. I finally managed to stake one, and as I pulled the blade free, it was knocked from my hands. Fear for myself finally crept through the fear for him. As one, they suddenly stopped, leaving a neat half circle in front of me. A soft, vile voice that I knew all too well came from my left.
"I warned you, dhamphir."
My lip curled as he stepped to the front of the group. Their blood lust was nearly palpable. "Where is he?" I asked through the sudden dryness of my throat.
"Where is who?" He smiled coldly.
"Give him back to me, God damn it!" My voice was rough with exertion and desperation. "I won't let you have him!"
That smile didn't budge an inch. "He's already ours, guardian." He mocked. The scarce strength I had remaining left me in a rush. I felt lightheaded and distant. The Strigoi all laughed.
"No." I tried to swallow. "You're lying."
"Roza." Oh, that voice. I so wanted to hear it, but the sadness and disappointment it was tainted with made me want to sink as deep as I could into the stone and never come out. The crowd parted so I could see him, on his knees with his neck still bleeding freely. He was weak, too weak to fight, and my strength was fading. Could we even make it?
The easy answer: We weren't. But Dimitri might. I would die to make sure he did.
No time to think. Don't hesitate. I went for the nearest Strigoi with everything I had. My sudden movement was my only advantage- his quick reflexes kicked in too fast. He shoved me back and I fell with no grace, carried by the weight of my momentum. Then my trained reflexes finally kicked in and I turned the tumble into a roll. I faced the group with new determination. I couldn't give up just yet. This had to work.
By some miracle, Dimitri found the strength to help. I used their numbers against them, twisting and ducking to make them fall into each other. Finally, I spotted an opening towards the quickly waning sunlight. I yelled to Dimitri, "Let's get the hell out!" He was out of their grasp, but he just stood there for a moment, waiting. "I'll be right behind you!" I promised. There was so little daylight left. We just had to make it in time.
I will be grateful to my dieing day that he obeyed as he'd been trained- without question, without looking back. He ran as fast as he could towards safety, towards daylight and life. I could not follow. When I felt cold, hard arms around my waist, I bit my cheek to keep from yelping in surprise. I could not distract him. He was so close. I couldn't tear my eyes away. When I was pulled back into the crowd, I was silent, and did not fight. The last thing I saw was Dimitri's silhouette against the opening of the cave. People were reaching out to him, pulling him to safety. As razor-sharp fangs sank into my neck and I withdrew into the haze of unconsciousness, I wondered how long it would take for him to notice that I wasn't with him. Then, I thought of nothing.