I panted, staring at Dimitri with his mouth smeared with blood—my blood. I groaned, pressing my body to his, ignoring the way his cold hard red-ringed eyes looked at me. I threw my clothes off rather quickly, then threw myself to him.

"Just once, Ole Comrade? Please, Dimitri my body hungers for you. Your touch, your fingers…"

I halted in my seductive ways as he wrapped me in his arms and took me to bed.

Pain, so much pain as his manly parts thrusted so hard into my woman parts I thought for sure something would burst. Pain shone in my eyes, reflected back by his. But it was okay, it was only an escape.

Later that night, I plunged my new stake into his heart and watched as he hit the water.

NINE MONTHS LATER

I grimaced in pain, making my way quickly to the prison cells where I knew he would be waiting. Right before I opened the doors a flashback occurred, one of bittersweet sentiments.

"Dimitri! Dimitri, I must speak with you. I have to tell you something!" My guarded yet still caring voice broke the silence which had plagued the other dhamphirs' cell. "I don't care. Leave, Rose. Whatever you want to say won't change what I am…a monster. Now, GO!"

He roared angrily, and the guardians grabbed my arms and started to pull me back. Panic began to fill me and I struggled, unable to break the hold. Planting my feet firm as possible, I shouted as loud as I could "I'M PREGNANT! And it's YOURS!" Ripping out of the guardians iron grip, taking advantage of their shock, I planted myself nose-to-nose with my Dimka. My Dimitri looked furious and slapped me across the face, as I was still in his outreach.

"How DARE you hurt me like that! You know two dhamphirs cannot—"

I snarled,

"I am three months pregnant!" Grasping the iron bars with my hands I pressed my face into them, fire flashing in my eyes.

"Think, Comrade! Where were we three months ago?"

His face went slack and I could feel the tears threatening to spill. "In Russia. Russia. This child is yours, yours and mine. I thought you should know."

Then, before the tears could spill, I turned tail and ran.

I nodded at another guardian, smiling at him gently and then touching Dimitri's shoulder through the iron bars.

"Dimitri. It's time. I'll be out at the old east sentry post."

He nodded, and the guardian I had come to know as Playtorche nodded.

"We let him out at 7. I'll try to make sure he gets there in time."

Nodding, I bit back a groan as another pain hit full force. So much pain. I hoped this baby would be here soon.

Making my way to where I had set up a birthing chamber a few months earlier, I smiled letting the early morning sunrays – Human morning that is, it was about 7:15 pm vampire schedule.

Closing the door tight, I gathered everything I would need and waited, and as the pain took me, I remembered the day after I'd told Dimitri the news, he'd summoned me back, begging me to listen to reason.

"Roza, Rosa! You have to get rid of this thing. It's dangerous, don't you see? I's half strigoi! This monster could kill you, it probably already has started to hurt you. It will be a killer, Rose. You've got to—"

"WHAT?! No, how could you even say such a thing? This is your baby, Dimitri… and you were able to be converted back, maybe it's just like that. Maybe it took up your damphir genes. Regardless, this baby is innocent. And I'm not being hur—uh."

I stopped, hand flying to my stomach and gritting my teeth, grabbing a chair for support. "ROSE?! Are you okay? What is it?"

"Kick… feel." I managed, regaining breath and placing his hand on the spot, wincing as it kicked HARD against his palm. Somehow, I'd expected his face to figuratively explode in enraptured happiness, but instead it set into an angry furious look, and he pushed me away gently.

"You shouldn't be able to feel kicks already. It is lethal. Kill it."

I crossed my arms, spitting out my next words. "HE is strong. Like his father. And, if that's an order, I must remind you that you are no longer my mentor, and so have no control over me. Goodbye, I will notify you when the child comes. Either arrive or don't, but this baby will be yours. And if you choose not to participate in his life, then just remember that you left me alone to raise my baby alone."

Ring, Ring, Ring. Damn cell phone. It jolted me out of the memory, out of my state of ignoring the contractions. "Hello, Guardian Hathaway speaking, who is this?"

"Rose! Where are you, Princess Vasalisa has been looking everywhere for you. Dimitri is apparently in a state of panic, and he won't open up to her, and she's afraid something happened to you."

Mom

"I'm okay Mom. Just took some personal time off. I'll be back tomorrow morning. L—AAAAHH." I tried to stop it but couldn't as a contraction ripped through me and the cry went unbidden by my lips before I could help it.

"Rosemarie Hathaway, are you alright?! What happened? Are you in danger? Where are you Rose? Rose? Rose? ROSE?"

"Sorry, Mom. I'm busy right nAAH—"

I clicked my phone shut, only then realizing that she could have it traced. Crap. As the next few hours passed, though, I soon forgot about that and focused on a pain greater than anything I'd ever felt.

Nineteen hours later, I was only six centimeters dilated and the contractions were non-stop. Suddenly, the door shuddered, and I stared at it, almost too out of my mind to think straight. "Di…mitri?"

The door splintered into pieces, and as the dust cleared, my mother stood there with Lissa, Adrian, and Eddie at her side. As they stared at me I gathered a towel I'd had lying about to cover my legs up.

My mother's eyes stared at me in utter shock. "Wha… Rose, I…"

"What are you doing here? Can't you all leave me alone for one day?"

My best friend opened her mouth and asked the dumbest question I may have ever heard. "What are you doing?"

I stared at her. "I went into labor. Didn't want anyone to know, so I came here."

She shook her head.

"Not what I meant. I mean, sorta what I meant... but I mean... why didn't you tell anyone?"

I bit my lip and turned away. "I—"

Suddenly a pain hit harder than any of the others. "Ahh….Ow. Ow .Ow. Ow" I gasped and gritted my teeth, grasping the sheet I now covered myself with hard into my sweaty hands and shook with effort as I tried not to scream as I had been doing. Suddenly, I felt a hand replacing the sheet then another. I opened my eyes to see Mom on my left, Lissa on my right.

"I just couldn't."

More pain surfaced, but this time I forced it down. "I didn't tell you… everything… when I got back. I threw myself onto him, Liss. To escape. I didn't think this would… hap…eeeeeennnn!"

"Shh, shh. Save your breath for later. Rosemarie, I'm going to check you, okay?"

Shock must have shown on my face as I stared at my mother. "I-"

She outright laughed. "You really think I don't know what to look for? I had you, didn't I?"

I was rather embarrassed to let my mother see me but as another contraction hit the thought went out the window. I stared at Adrian and gritted my teeth. "Get Dimitri."

He was shaking, but left, dragging Eddie behind him.

TWO HOURS LATER

"Push, Rose. Push hard." My mother looked up from where she was stationed, down by my feet, her brown eyes full of seriousness.

"Can't… I'm not having this baby without Dimitri."

"Rose, if your child doesn't come soon he will die! He's in danger, Rose."

Wide eyed, I gritted my teeth and pushed hard, crying as it felt like I was being twisted in two.

Another pain blasted through my lower body, and I screamed. Oh god it hurt so badly, I couldn't focus, not even on my baby. Suddenly, once again the door flew open just as I screamed and Dimitri ran in. Grabbing my hand he kissed my forehead.

"I'm here, Roza. I'm here."

Pain, pain, pain. A never ending circle of pain and then, finally, a cry that was not mine sounded the room.

"Rose, you have a son. It's a boy!" My mother laughed, truly laughed as she wrapped up my baby and handed him to me.

"His name…. is Dimka. Dimka Mason Hathaway."

Dimitri took him from my hands and frowned. "His skin is so light, Rose. Don't get attached, you know if he's—"

"He's not!"

"If he is, then I have to take… take him out. If he's strigoi, we can't let him be free."

I hissed, fury in my veins as I grabbed my baby back. His eyes opened, and they were…

Gold. A beautiful golden, spirit-induced gold.

I grinned triumphantly to Dimtri, then a blinding pain worse than what I'd just endured ripped through my abdomen and I shoved my baby boy into Lissa's arms.

"Care for him. Promise?"

"Of…of course."

I heard my mother jerk back in shock then fumble for her cellphone.

"Мне нужна помощь прямо сейчас! Хранитель Роуз Хэтэуэй будет кровотечение после родов. Там так много крови. Отправить помощи прямо сейчас! Buria"

The last thing I would ever hear was my son crying. The last thing I remember is reaching for him one last time.

Authors Note: Very sad, but I've had this in my head for quite some time. I don't think I did the series justice, but I tried and more will be coming. This is a ONE SHOT, but other versions of things like this I might write.

Oh! Jeanene's words are translated into English here.

I need help right away! Guardian Rose Hathaway is hemorrhaging after giving birth. There's so much blood. Send help right away! Storm