Disclaimer: I only own the plot and any characters that I've made up. If the story get's enough interest I'll do a debrief and explain any missing bits.
Dimitri had thrown himself into regaining his reputation.
Rose's absence was a hole in his heart everyday but if there's one thing Dimitri Belikov is, it's a fighter.
A small part of him always wondered if he was doing it for her. Hoping that she would one day return and he would be ready for her. But he told himself otherwise.
It had been 3 years since his restoration and Dimitri had thrown himself in to his career, night in and night out, training and working. He socialised a lot more than he used to. Not to say that he was anti social but he observed and thought and often kept his thoughts swirling in his own mind. However with everybody always watching him waiting for a slip up or just for an excuse to talk, he quickly re-learnt how to play the part: trying always trying.
This consisted of 3 major things:
1. Sunlight (Dimitri always volunteered for the "night" shift) and Church
2. People - to be reclusive and quiet was to cause concern
3. Career
Before Dimitri's death, he had been like a god, now? He was twice as good.
He had to start from the bottom again despite Lissa and few of his old guardian friends' efforts.
But eventually people began to trust him again, he led raid after raid on Strigoi attacks, at first they had gathered information from him and then handed it off to someone like Alberta to command but she knew better and demanded Dimitri be granted the opportunity to lead the attacks.
He had been Strigoi, he knew how they thought from an inside perspective he knew how to play bait and even came up with some fighting techniques to use against them. He had taken what was unbearably painful and impossible to talk about and done just that.
Teaching those classes on strigoi and lecturing dhampirs and moroi alike about what it had been like to be a Strigoi, had actually relieved him of a huge burden- he had kept all this guilt bottled up and weighing him down, to let it into the light and talk about it was hugely uplifting.
But the one thing that he never talked about was Rose. No he wouldn't - couldn't.
"So why not just restore all Strigoi?" One student called out.
Dimitri's eyes scanned the audience and settled on a boy with brown short spiked hair sitting towards the back in a green shirt, there was no malice in his question just curiosity. Not everyone always reacted so kindly to Dimitri's story.
"Well, let's just say for arguments sake that we had enough spirit users and there were no repercussions in restoring Strigoi... "
The kids face turned to one of embarrassment and he shrunk a little in his chair.
"Not all Strigoi want to be restored. As you are aware many dhampir and moroi are lured into the life of a Strigoi by the promise of power, but like I said earlier that's not how it works in the Strigoi world." Dimitri added that last part to subtly remind the promising guardians of the power plays. You had to be old or damn good to be a truly powerful Strigoi, otherwise, like he had been, you are easily pulled into a "gang" of sorts to do someone else's bidding.
"Imagine a Strigoi who may have been turned against their will, being restored after even 7 or 10 years. It is not easy to live with what you have done, what you have been."
Dimitri knew where the new line of questions would be going and was internally grateful to the teacher for ending the session.
She was a new teacher, around the same age and almost the same height as Dimitri, with brown hair cropped to her shoulders, blue eyes and the outline of a star tattooed on her wrist. She commanded the class room well.
"I want a full page reflection written by Monday, based on what you all just heard!" She shouted over the noise of students packing their things into bags. "Whether you agree or disagree with what you have heard, why or why not!" She shot an apologetic glance at Dimitri, he couldn't help the corner of his lips that quirked up a bit in response.
As the students filed past, some lingering to try and glance at his eyes, or to see any traces of Strigoi. He flashed his award winning Dimitri Belikov grin at them.
The teacher - Ms Keller, came up to him and spoke.
"Well Guardian Belikov," her use of his gurdian title and not "mr" had immediately dampened Dimitri's defences.
"I'd say that went rather well! Thank you for coming in."
Dimitri relaxed his usually intimidating demeanour and nodded.
"Glad I could help." And he meant it.
"I have to say, I'm very impressed with how you rebuilt yourself - it couldn't have been easy and if you'd like to grab a coffee, I end at 2."
Just like that. No nonsense, straight to the point. Dimitri faltered for only a moment before smiling. "I'd love to."
"Great!" she beamed before turning and walking away.
Dimitri tried to read his western after his gym session but he was too distracted.
He pondered the thought of Abigail Keller. Was this a date? Or was she just interested in his situation?
Did he want it to be a date? He sighed as he put his western down and grabbed a clean shirt to put on.
Was he even ready for dating?
His mind took him to a place he rarely liked to visit - Rose. It still stung him every time he thought of her. God he missed her and - no. He wouldn't allow himself to go there, he had worked so hard these last few years and Rose Hathaway was and always will be - his undoing point.
It had taken time for Dimitri to heal, he wasn't even sure he had wanted to be restored at first but eventually wounds healed and became scars. Over time those scars faded, he made peace with his ghosts. However one ghost still haunted him,
He remembered the look on her face as he told her "love fa-"NO! He threw the comb he was doing his hair with frustratedly, denting the dresser just slightly. He crumpled in a heap on the bed. His elbows on his knees and his fingers tangled in his hair.
He wouldn't do this now. He had spent months drowning in a depression and he couldn't go back there and right now he felt dangerously close to falling back into the water.
Abigail Keller. He tried her name again. She was beautiful, the kind where men might take a second glance or come up to her in a bar but not the kind of beauty that was in your face and forced you to think "wow". She had brown shoulder length hair with natural small streaks of lighter brown running through it. You would only notice if you were paying attention - which Dimitri had been. She had average blue eyes not piercing light like lissa's or Tashas... His heart gave a pang of sadness at the thought of Tasha O'zera.
Dimitri decided he could like those eyes.
A thought snaked it's way in to his mind: date her, it will be good for your reputation.
Dimitri was disgusted with himself, he would not lead this woman on and he certainly wouldn't take advantage of her trust and kindness. He'd dismissed the thought almost before it finished forming.
He glanced at the clock 1:40, it would be about a 10 minute walk from the dorm building he was staying in (temporarily while he gave lectures)
to the main building of St. Vladamirs Academy. He left for his date.
3 WEEKS LATER...
"Dimitri!" The princess hugged him as gracefully as she could while stretching around the mountain of a man.
"How was it!?" Vassilisa Dragomir asked excitedly.
It was good to be back at court Dimitri thought. He was one of Lissa's guardians when she was at court but when she was at school Dimitri stayed behind. Her stretch of power only went so far and he couldn't be mad that they wanted to keep an eye on him. He would have done the same if anyone else had been dhampir-turned strigoi-turned dhampir again.
"I didn't know you'd be gone so long!" She added, Dimitri had been gone the better part of a month.
"Well I uh I stayed because I met someone. I -we um" he laughed at his own awkwardness. It was a good feeling.
"I'm seeing someone."
"Oh." Her eyes widened a bit
"OH!" She emphasised. "Dimitri that's great!" The princess exclaimed genuinely. However Dimitri saw her smile falter for a second and the look in her eyes.
The guardian sighed "I know -"
"No!" She cut Dimitri of, her resolve hardening, knowing what he was thinking because she had been thinking it herself. What about Rose?
"It's great, really!" She urged looking into his eyes as she said it, trying to show how much she meant it.
Dimitri had come such a long way and if this was another step he needed to take on the road to recovery then Lissa would support that.
Of course deep down she rooted for Rose and Dimitri but Rose wasn't here and she hadn't been for 3 years.
"What's great?" Came the relaxed voice of Adrian Ivashkov followed by his lazy saunter and easy smile.
"And why" he put on a pained voice "are you always in the library?"
Lissa chuckled "because some of us actually have to study and work for things in life!"
"That hurts cousin, really." But he still held his signature grin.
Dimitri regarded Adrian with a friendly nod, they weren't friends exactly but Adrien had defended Dimitri quite a bit when it counted.
"I'm seeing someone." He supplied so Lissa wouldn't have to.
Adrian's eyes widened in surprise before squinting at Dimitri. "Looks good!" He was referring to Dimitri's aura. Though Dimitri wouldn't admit it, Adrian's comment secretly relieved him.
"and alas, there be but only one left in the Rose Hathaway broken heart club." He sighed shaking his head while pulling a cigar and lighter out of his pocket.
"Adrian you can't smoke in here!" Lissa exclaimed smacking his hand down.
Adrian had turned back to his old vices after Rose had told him she was leaving.
"So that's my fair chance huh?"
"Adrian I'm sorry, I-"
"I know" he cut her off sighing.
"I just wish for once I could hate you instead of being the nice guy."
Rose wrapped her arms around him and he held tight.
"Not even a goodbye Kiss?" He tried.
Wherever Rose was in the world, she didn't seem to require sleep.
Being that this is my first ever FanFic it would be super awesome to get some feedback from anybody whose reading, thanks!