***I do not own these charaters, this is just my version of the last book of the vampire academy.

Chapter 1

I've given up on you. Love fades. Mine has.

"No!" I said firmly out loud getting up out of my bed and laying down on the floor and sliding my feet under a rail of the bed.

"One, two, three, four, five, six…." I counted as I did the sit ups on the nasty floor of my dang and dark cell. It was better then the words and the memories that started to plague me. Love fades. Mine has, traitors are executed, I don't love you anymore, I don't want to see you, Lissa has a half sibling, I've given up on you. The only thing I could do was try to focus on something else and the exercise was my only out. Plus there was no way I was going to let them get me out of shape while they made me rot here. I had taken to doing sit ups, push ups, jumping jacks, and squats whenever my mind became restless, which seemed like every waking moment. Finally as the sweat started pouring my body finally said enough and I went over to sit on the bed. After a few minutes and after my breathing began to slow I began to stair blankly out of my cell at one of my ten guards. I kept going over what my life has been like and what it now was. My mind kept rolling and it was scattered. I thought about what life was like when Lissa and I were out on our own. I was a better fighter and guardian now then I was. It almost amazed me at how better I could protect her now then I could then, I guess school really had paid off. That would be something I'd never admit to any of my former instructors. Then I thought of Mason. I couldn't protect him, so maybe I wasn't as good of a guardian as I thought. I went back to the first time I seen him when I got back to the academy after being on the run. His eyes had lit up and a sly smile had spread across his lips. My thoughts had then went to places like Adrian, Russia, the first encounter with my father, my mother giving me a black eye and then the pride in her eyes after my trials. I always known what was going to become of my life. I had grown up with one goal… "keep them safe." Them of course was my Moroi brethren, more so it was my responsibility to keep her safe, Lissa. Now I wasn't going to get the chance, I failed. That is what hurt the most, knowing that Lissa's safety was in the hands of someone less…well less me. My one concession was that at least if I wasn't going to be protecting her, the next best person would be doing it. Even if my former mentor was never given his status of a guardian back, he'd never leave Lissa's side and would protect her until his death. I pushed all thoughts of Dimitri away. I couldn't afford to think of him and manage not to turn into a self pitting cry baby.

After a moment I sighed and decided I needed to see what was going on in the present instead of what the past had held. I was no longer in my cell but instead I was in Lissa's room pacing back and forth. Lissa's mind seemed as scattered as mine. She wasn't sure what she could do but she knew she needed to do something. She was hopeless, lost, heartbroken.

"Liss," It was Christians soothing voice that brought her back to the present as well, "Lissa she'll be ok. It's Rose we are talking about. Nothing can keep her down."

Lissa looked up at Christian meeting his soft eyes that held all the love and determination in them.

She sighed and walked over to him, "I'm not sure about this time Christian. Did you see her face in the courtroom? With everything that's been going on with her lately with Dimitri and now this, I…I…" her voice broke and Christian put his arms protectively around her and squeezed. Tears began to soak his shirt. "I just don't think she'll fight as hard. I'm scared that I'm going to lose Rose."

After a few more moments of holding her tiring to take the pain away Christian pulled her away and tilted her head up with his soft touch and looked at her directly in the eyes, "You know better than anyone else that Rosemarie Hathaway will fight until the life is taken out of her and then even that will not stop her. There is nothing that is going to keep Rose down."

I could feel Lissa relax a bit as she sunk her head into Christians chest. Only I wasn't so sure Christian had it right. Sure the old Rose would continue to fight and to give all kinds of hell until she was ruling hell itself. Only I didn't know how I would get out of it this time.

After a few more minutes I had almost decided to head back into my own mind but before I did there was a knock at the door. Christian and Lissa both looked towards it and then at each other.

"Now wouldn't you just freak if that was the devil herself right out side that door." Christian said with a bit of a smirk on his face, before heading over to open the door.

"Rose isn't the devil Christian." Lissa said a bit exasperated.

When Christian opened the door a distraught looking Adrian walked in smelling instantly of cloves and vodka.

"Adrian," Lissa said in a quiet surprised sigh escaping through her lips.

Adrian looked up the look of panic on his face, "Liss we have to get her out. We have to do something." He sunk into a nearby lush chair and put his head into his hands.

Lissa walked over to him a look of compassion and love on her face. Like she had just realized something. She sat down on the floor in front of him placing her hands on his knees.

"Yes Adrian I do believe you are right. Rose wouldn't sit back and do nothing if it were any of us in this situation. She wouldn't stop giving grief until she got what she wanted. We need a plan."

Adrian and Lissa's eyes met and a hundred things seemed to be said between the two. Now determination filled his face and her body.

The silent conversation was broken by Christian, "Just what do you plan to do? She is guarded around the clock by ten guardians, no one can visit, even other guardians are forbidden to socialize with her and unless they are assigned to guard her for the day, they can't be anywhere near her. Nothing goes into her and she isn't allowed to leave her cell at all for any reason. She gets fed only twice a day and that's only paper lunches." He was starting to depress me all over again by reminding everyone just how bleak my situation was. "There is a rumor going around that the council won't even risk bringing her out for her own trial. They say it's to much of a risk that she is to dangerous." I was surprised at how angry Christian was getting. His voice was now yelling and they barely had heard another knock at the door over it.

Lissa and Adrian slowly began to come to the realization that perhaps rescuing me was not going to happen.

"How…How do you know all this?" Adrian finally asked.

"I have my resources and I worry about Rose too. I… I… I owe her my life. After what happened in Spokane…" His voice was soft and distressed something I never thought would be for me. He was silenced by a much louder and hasty knock at the door.

Lissa looked up as Christian went to the door with total and complete adoration and respect for Christian. She hadn't realized he might be hurting at the situation to. Standing up she went to the door next to him and quickly before he opened the door she reached her hand up behind his neck and pulled him to her, kissing his lips lightly. He looked a little surprised and then opened the door.

When the door opened much to everyone's surprise a very displeased woman stepped into the room.

"Adrian I thought I might find you here." Daniella Ivashkov had a blank look on her face as she spoke.

"What are you doing here?" Adrian asked.

Daniella sighed and for a brief moment a look of pity flashed on her face. "Adrian I know you and I know what you plan to do. All of you," She glanced at Christian and held her gaze for a moment longer then I felt comfortable on Lissa. "Princess there truly is nothing that can be done for Rosemarie that would not compromise your position. Or either of yours." She met Christians and Adrian's eyes.

Lissa let out a bit of a surprised gasp. "You can not expect me to sit back and do nothing to free an innocent person." She said with all her conviction and making sure she got her point across that I was innocent.

Daniella let out a sigh. "I wish it were that easy Princess. However if you were to do anything than you will risk everything Rose has worked for."

Lissa and the others looked up at her with a confused expressions wanting to know more.

A smile spread across Daniella's lips. "Has Rose not worked to get you to your rightful place here on council? Has it not been her wish that you take your place so you can make sure Moroi and dhampirs prosper? The best thing you can do for her now is to make sure that her efforts do not go by in vein."

I was a bit surprised at how well Daniella seemed to asses the situation. It was true I had always thought that Lissa would be able to do great things for our races. It was also true that I needed to protect Lissa. I felt a bit sad. I had to protect Lissa not only from Strigoi but also from her sense of duty to me. I was going to have to do something that would make Lissa stop trying to fight for me and fight for what was right for our people. I would have to .. I choked up a bit at my next realization. I would have to break Lissa's heart and make her hate me. That went for the others as well. I couldn't let them bring harm to themselves over me. I wouldn't allow it. They all needed to forget Rose Hathaway.

"Has she not always wanted your protection? If you were to risk yourself in helping her not only will her life be in the balance but you will all be tried for treason and the sentence will be the same for you as it is for her. I believe that Rose would rather take this on herself then have three others die because of her."

I wasn't liking that Daniella was saying these things but I couldn't deny she was right.

Lissa said nothing her mind raced and her heart began to pound in her chest. She couldn't imagine not having me by her side and not trying to help me. She felt a major responsibility as the last Dragomir.

"She is innocent." Adrian stood up and looked his mother in the eyes. "We can't let her die for something she did not do." His voice was firm and resolute.

"And yet you must allow the court to make it's decision." She was speaking softly now.

"Yes we are all speaking as if it is a sure thing that Rose will be found guilty. It is still possible that the council will get their heads out of their asses and come to the right decision." It was Christian who spoke.

Lissa had just stayed quiet. She was torn between wanting to rescue me and doing what she knew I'd prefer her do.

I had enough so I left her mind and went back to my reality in my cell still thinking of what I must do.

I was shaken out of my thoughts by the guard that I had my gaze on. I had recognized him as one of the team leaders when we went to rescue Lissa and Christian. He cleared his throat before he spoke, "You like something you see Hathaway?"

I rolled my eyes, "Don't you wish."

"Well by the way you can't seem to take your eyes off me, I guess we could say wishes do come true." He shifted a bit towards the cell with a grin on his face.

"Not in this life or the next Denson." I stood up from my bed and stretched. My body and mind aching.

He crossed his arms and gave me a cold look, "Well you might take what you can get while you can get it. Being as though your life is about to come to an abrupt end."

I was a bit stunned at the malice in his words but before I could tell him what exactly I would do to him if I had ever got the chance another person had spoken up.

"Now now what happened until innocent until proven guilty?" It was my father in all of his splendor. He strolled up to the bars with a sly smile on his face and a deadly look in his eye meant for Denson.

When Denson saw that look on his face he went white and it was almost as if he had melted into the wall. I couldn't help but feel elated.

After a moment Abe turned and looked at me with nothing but humor and affection on his face.