He walks slowly down the deserted street. His heart heavy with pain, tears cascade down his face, glinting softly in the fading, crimson light. He sings a soft melody to himself.

She see's him, on the outside he looks truly crazy, but she's curious. She has to know, has to ask. But when she does it's more than she can handle. The understanding. The knowledge hits her hard.

Dimitri's POV

I walked through the academy's cold, iron gates, head hung low. Her blood was on my hands, I had done this to her and now I had come to pay the price.

Princess Lissa was my welcome party, I spotted her lone figure standing out amongst the trees. Her despair and sorrow is because of me. We both know it but I can hardly acknowledge her pain.

I keep the same pace, dreading having to speak to her but knowing I have to regardless. One question remains the same; how do you tell a person that you killed her best friend?

We know that there was no hesitation; I was quick and efficient like always. But I kept thinking about Roza, if the tables had been turned I know she would hesitate, she would second guess her choice to kill me.

We waste no time with pleasantries, she wants facts, needs to know what I did. But I need her opinion first.

"If it were her, if I had been turned, if it were her having to kill me. She would have hesitated, she would be able to overpower me physically but mentally she wouldn't. I know her too well to expect anything else, she couldn't have gone through with it...Lissa, does that mean I loved her more, or less?" The words are heavy on my tongue.

Tears brim in Lissa's eyes and she cant seem to be able to look me in the face. I don't blame her, I never did. We stand there in silence, the wind slicing through our shattered hearts. Both of us lost in our own little worlds, both of our hearts heavy with grief. I caught her glaring at her hands and I knew she was wondering what I had so many times before; why her hands, so full of magic and power weren't able to fix our beloved Rose.

I told Lissa everything, no matter the pain it caused us. No matter the fact that all I wanted to do was curl up in a ball and die alongside my beloved, she needed to know. I had already caused her the loss of her best friend, now I owed her everything I could give.

I would never be able to forget the moment that I drove the stake through her heart and watched her body slacken in defeat. She crumpled to the floor, dragging me down with her. For the first time in years I allowed myself to truly feel my emotions, to allow them to consume me. Sobs wracked my body as I watched her slip away. "I love you Roza." I whispered, knowing it would be my last time.