A/N: Hey guys!! I tried to upload this and a few others yesterday, but it wouldn't let me :-(. But it is now, so here's another ! As usual, all recognizable characters and dialogue are the property of Richelle Mead. I want to give a shoutout to the following people: jane., technofever, VAMPGIRlDIMITRIE, -Cullen, dimtri has the hots for me, imaVAMPIRE, liz, Marina Del Pilar, SandonaBeachbytheSea, bella, anki145, Michelleyz, ConfusionPixie, Thaline, Crepuscolo Femmina, llrandomNESSll, Snowlia, True Love Dimitri and Rose, and ShadowKissed99 for your reviews! They really help motivate me! On to the story!!!
We had finally found them. After two years of being on the run, the Princess and Dhampir who had run off were going to be returned. I had spent the better part of the last two years trying to track them. At first, it had been just me. But as the time went on, more and more guardians were attached to the search team. We were up to ten guardians, which was more that even the queen traveled with. We had finally found them in Seattle, Washington. I stood outside of the house where they were staying. I was close enough to be hit by something flying out the window, but felt safe that I wouldn't be discovered until I made a move. It was dark, and I wasn't called one the best guardians for no reason.
The two girls started to move around. A soft light glowed from the window, not much, but just enough. I was startled to see what transpired. One girl, who must have been Vasilisa, looked like she was… kissing the other girl's neck. Then it dawned on me. She was feeding. I admired the Dhampir's, Rosemarie's, resolve. Usually Dhampirs never let Moroi feed from them, but it appeared Rosemarie had no problems doing what was necessary to help her friend.
It was over. Vasilisa left the room, and I moved closer. Suddenly a cat appeared on the windowsill, glaring out at me. I prayed Rosemarie wasn't alerted by this action. Animals didn't like Dhampirs very much. My prayers weren't answered as I saw Rosemarie come to the windows. Our eyes connected, and we both moved into action immediately. She went to grab Vasilisa, barely stopping to put shoes on, and I radioed the other guardians to be prepared to move at any time. I crept closer, and overheard snatches of the conversation going on.
"Liss, get his keys…"
"We need to borrow your car." The girl I assumed to be Vasilisa said. There was a quality to her voice I couldn't place. "Where are your keys?" I heard the clang of keys and knew they now had access to a motor vehicle. "Thank you. Where is it parked?"
"Down the street. At the corner. By Brown." A male voice said. Something in his voice was off… Then it hit me. The princess was using compulsion, and strong compulsion at that. It was against the rules to use compulsion on others. Compulsion usually worked on Dhampirs, which worried me. I sprinted off to warn the others.
"Five stay behind, follow them to the car. Two, flank left. Two, flank right. I'll be at the car. Be careful. Vasilisa can use compulsion, and will not hesitate. By the sound of it, she is excellent with it. Do not get caught in her web. Go." My orders were quickly followed. I got to the car and waited. Thanks to our surveillance, I knew the car they were going to was a green Honda. I stooped in the shadows and waited.
They were about ten feet when I stepped out of the car's shadow. They came to an abrupt stop, Rosemarie spinning the other one around, putting herself between me and the Princess. The others came up from the rear, and I could see Rosemarie becoming more and more volatile. I had to diffuse the situation before she snapped.
"Leave her alone. Don't touch her." Her voice had an almost animalistic quality to it. I felt drawn to her. As I took a step closer, she started to attack. The only thing on her mind was to keep the princess safe; that much I could tell. She didn't seem to care what happened to her, attacking a fully trained guardian, with nine others as backup, the way she did.
She was weak, and her movements were slow. She threw a high roundhouse kick, hoping to catch the side of my head, and I brushed it off easily, giving her a little push. I didn't realize just how weak she was until I saw her falling. It looked like it was going to hurt, a lot. I reached out to help her steady herself. Her hair had flown away from her neck, and I knew why she was so weak. She was still suffering blood loss. The wound on her neck hadn't closed up, and she had lost the blood the princess took… She noticed me staring, and swept her hair around to cover it. I continued to look at it for a minute, and then met her eyes. They had a defiant glint in them, and I knew that this was far from being over.
Suddenly I heard a soft voice. "Rose. Don't." it said. Rosemarie, or Rose, as she appeared to be called, glared at me for another minute, but gradually softened slightly. I accepted this as her form of defeat, and stepped forward.
I showed my respects to the princess, bowing gracefully. "My name is Dimitri Belikov. I've come to take you back to St. Vladimir's Academy, Princess." She looked startled at first, and I understood. She had spent two years away from being royal, two years away from the etiquette of the Court. She wasn't expecting to be treated the way I treated her. Yes, she was a runaway student who was in a lot of trouble, but respect was still called for. It was just as much a part of me as the part that glanced around every five seconds, assessing the threats in the area.
After giving Rose first-aid for her neck, we headed to the airport. I didn't need her passing out from blood loss. I became worried because the two girls were silent the entire ride. Just watching, I knew something was different about those two. They were more than just friends. Vasilisa trusted Rose more than anything or anyone else in the world. She hadn't hesitated when Rose had told her to get the guy's keys. She had total and complete faith, deferring to Rose in many situations, such as when I asked if either of them needed food. She glanced at Rose before shaking her head.
We got on the Academy's private jet, and took off. They hadn't been whispering five seconds before I ordered them separated. "Don't let them talk to each other. Five minutes together, and they'll come up with an escape plan." Rose shot me a look, and I smiled inside. I didn't need Dhampir hearing to know that an escape plan was exactly what they were planning. I decided the safest thing was for me to sit up front with Vasilisa. We didn't need a repeat of the car scene at 35,000 feet. Vasilisa's fear was almost tangible, and I wondered what she was so afraid of. She had to have a reason, otherwise she and Rose would have never left the Academy. I reached down to get something, and felt her gaze on the back of my neck. She was looking at my moljina marks, the six of them that represented each of the Strigoi I had killed. I hoped she would feel safer knowing I could take care of us all, but I doubt it would happen.
We were almost to the Academy, and I wanted to ask Rose a few questions. What she had done was brave. Suicidal, but brave. I wanted to know what she was thinking, if she was really going to attack all ten of us. I sat down beside her, and was silent for a little while, letting her get use to my presence. I didn't know why, but I felt a strong pull towards her, like somehow we were connected. It was troubling.
"Were you really going to attack all of us?" I asked. She remained silent, looking and sounding like a stone. She still didn't trust me, and I understood. "Doing that… protecting her like that- it was very brave." I paused. "Stupid, but still brave. Why did you even try it?" I asked. I hoped her answer would give me some insight to her mind. I could tell it didn't process like everyone else's. Otherwise she would have realized how idiotic attacking all of us was. She brushed her hair out of her eyes, and looked me in the eye.
"Because I'm her guardian." She stated simply, turning to look out the window of the small jet. Somehow, I knew that was all I was going to get out of her. I silently stood up and returned to the front of the plane; my thoughts swirling around in my head.