When you're in battle, when you're fighting to protect lives from the most monstrous,powerful creatures walking the earth, you can't afford to be distracted. Guardians are trained to be focused. It's like we have a horse's blinders on. We have one goal – kill the enemy.

They come first.

So when you're focused on killing the enemy standing right in front of you, you tend to not notice some things. Like your best friend and her boyfriend -who, under normal circumstances, are not supposed to be a threat -sneaking up to tackle you so that you don't kill your ex-boyfriend. Who is your enemy.

Yes, that's messed up. I know.

So there I stood, outside a ring of fire -damn you, Ozera- watching helplessy as my gentle, sweet Lissafaced the achingly beautiful and utterly terrifying love of my life with blazing determination. And when Lissa finally managed to pierce Dimitri's heart with her stake, I was paralysed. Partly because I couldn't believe she did it and because her magic froze me.

I couldn't see. I couldn't hear. My senses fizzled as magic shone – literally shone. The room was filled with light, a light so bright that it felt like a thousand suns were stuffed into this very room.

And poof.

It was gone. Just like that. I moaned and squeezed my eyes shut. My eyes burned and my head hurt. After I assured myself that I wasn't blind, I realized that something else was gone.

Dimitri.

My heart stopped beating. His duster lay abandoned amidst the smoke and char.

I couldn't breathe.

No.

"Dimitri," I croaked.

No, no, no, please, no.

"Rose," Christian whispered, voice hoarse.

"He's gone." I sank to my knees, my eyes fixed on that duster. It backfired. Instead of restoring him, it must of reduced him to ash. He was gone for real this time.

"Rose." Christian was shaking me now. Hard

"He's really gone. He's dead." My hand trembled as I reached for his coat.

"ROSE. He...he's not dead!"

"He's never coming ba-wait what?" I looked at Christian in disbelief. I scanned the room, looking for his tall frame. His warm brown eyes, no longer ringed in red. His beautiful smile. And then my eyes landed on Lissa.

She was bruised, battered and wounded. And yet, she had the most beautiful smile ever seen on her face. She glowed with happiness as she cradled something, hiding it from view.

I rose unsteadily and inched towards her, not particularly trusting my balance and co-ordination right now. And when I saw what the thing was I couldn't believe my eyes.

A baby.

What the fuck?

Christian smacked my shoulder. "Language!"

I didn't realize I'd said that out loud. Lissa looked up as I approached and her smile –as impossible as it seemed – grew wider. She hadn't heard me. Thank God.

"Liss," I whispered, sitting beside her. Impossible. "Liss, what is-"

"Rose," she cut me off gently. "Meet Dimitri."

Well? What do you guys think? RnR! :D