"Rose" Lissa screamed in agony as one of the cuts he'd given her burned. She was praying that I would hear, but it didn't matter the powerful emotions she was experiencing had already pulled me in. Over and over again he would look at her and kind of smile, and whenever he did you could tell what he was thinking 'worthless, pathetic, delicious and all mine.' Just looking at his face made me want to rip his head off. Then Lissa turned to face him and opened her mouth as if she were going to speak, nothing came out, she tried again, success. I didn't think it possible and I could tell neither did she, what she was doing was amazing. Lissa looked her attacker in the eyes and spoke calm and clearly "you are going to give me your phone, untie me, let me go, then anyone who comes looking for me you have to track them down and stop them". That dopy look that always fell upon her victims when she used compulsion fell upon him and with no trouble he did as she asked.

She began to dial my number but there was no need I had already called Dimitri. All I needed now was a hint of where I could find her and Christian. My phone began to ring and immediately I answered.

"Lissa are you ok? Where are you? We're on our way."

"I'm scared Rose, I don't know where I am, and I don't know where Christian is either. He was too strong for them when they came for us, but they had already taken me by the time he got free. I am scared for him Rose."

She was racing her words. I didn't have to have this bond with Lissa to know what she was feeling right now, scarred, alone, lost and worried.

"I have to go for a second Liss stay on the phone I promise I will be back in a sec."

"Rose" Dimitri called from behind me where we were gathering guardians in the academy's black SVUs. He was asking about what Lissa and I had said on the phone. My mouthed moved and the previous conversation I had just had with Lissa played out, but I didn't know exactly what I was saying, I wasn't in my head any more.

Lissa was feeling the feelings she so rarely felt, hatred and anger but unlike the odd time when she did experience these emotions this was unusually strong. They were stronger than any hatred or anger I had ever felt before or any one ells had ever felt, for that matter. With ease these emotions sucked me in once again.

What I saw amazed even me. It was Christian except not his usual self. He was bloody, broken... dying. The anger inside of Lissa flooded her kind heart. She dropped the phone she was holding, a tear escaped the corner of her eye and ran down the side of her cheek. She was holding it all together incredibly well since she was in love with that person lying down there. She wanted to do something to help him, she hated feeling useless. Seeing her life flash before he she acted before she thought. Not really understanding what she was doing, Lissa put one hand on the ground and the other on a nearby tree. I was angry because I couldn't be there to do my job and protect her from the strigoi or maybe even herself. I was confused because I had absolutely no idea what she was doing or going to do. Lucky for her the strigoi torturing Christian were too busy to notice her. Lissa glanced over at the three strigoi, she looked back at the ground where her hands were firmly place and realized she had no idea what she was doing or about to do. Lissa was letting her instincts guide her. She closed her eyes and summoned up whatever magic she had left. The ground began to shake but nothing happened. She didn't dare open her eyes yet though. She squeezed her eyes even tighter closed and then reach out and grabbed onto the magic and the ground began to shake violently then three vines shot up from the ground and a tree that began to grow at an alarming speed and carry Christian on it's branches. The vines moved quickly, too quickly for the strigoi and they were stronger too, stronger than a stake,. With ease they squeezed at the strigois neck until their heads were no longer attached. Lissa took a sigh of relief but little did she know her troubles were not over yet. At the top of the tree Christian had passed out from blood loss so he wasn't able to worn here about the strigoi creeping up on her. He placed a hand on her shoulder and began to kind of chuckle I started to yell and swear. Then he stopped laughing and began to scream in agony. I was not quite sure what was happening to him but the expression on his face said that you would not wish it on someone close to you or even someone you hated. Then another vine shot out from underneath the ground and decapitated him with ease just as the other vines had done to the other strigoi. Then she saw it, just what I needed a sign post and immediately I snapped back.

"Dimitri" I screamed "DARKNELL, she's at Darknel, quick, and bring a med team and a ladder, a big one well need it!" We left strait away with more than half the infirmary staff and equipment (I think they got just a little carried away). I was out of breath as we sped down the highway. Lucky for us it was small town and nothing exciting ever happened around here so there were no cops. "How many are there?" Dimitri asked

I just shook my head and said "honestly I don't know but Lissa did some major ass whooping"

His expression went from serious to puzzled and I was amazed he hardly ever didn't keep his straight face especially in a situation like this. "What do you mean? I don't understand"

"You'll see, trust me"

When we arrived I practically leaped out of the car and ran toward were Lissa was the last time I was in her head. She wasn't there, damn it. The tree was there though. Quick the ladder, I thought.

"What's the ladder for Rose?"

"It's Christian, he's in that tree"

"What? How did he get up there?" One of the other guardians asked.

"Lissa, no time to explain all the details though"

I let her emotions pour into me and for just a second I experienced what she was seeing. She hadn't gone far and before I left her mind she collapsed from exhaustion. I ran in the direction shed gone and it didn't take me long to find her collapsed on the ground.

The Next Day.

Lissa woke up with a wicked bruise on her right arm but Christian woke up with quite a few bandages. They wouldn't be there for much longer though, Lissa healed him but she didn't heal herself.

That Night I lay in bed trying to get some sleep but I knew that wasn't possible. I love my what ifs and I couldn't get them out of my head. I never realized how creative I really could be. I never think of the positives like at least there both alive. No, I always think of the bad things that could of gone wrong... that did go wrong. And now I sit here torturing myself over and over again. It's these moments that make me appreciate the time I have with Lissa were I don't have to worry. When I become her guardian that time will be no more.