They had stuck me in a metal cage big enough to hold a golden retriever and hauled it into the back of their black van, and I had snapped at their fingers each time they got to close. Sure I surrendered, but they werent getting off easy. And they were locking me in a cage. Irritation burned through me as I thrashed against the cage, teeth grazing the metal as I chewed the bars. I hadnt been able to hunt, so my bloodlust was skyrocketting and normally that was dangerous for young wolves. But Lissas thoughts helped to console me from the front seat of the van.

Stop Rose. Its pointless, we're stuck. Her light voice was in my mind, sounding defeated. I remembered back to the first time she ever spoke in my head. I had been in the gym and training with a fellow Jumalac student when all of a sudden I had heard her voice in my head. Soon after, the ability had progressed to actually being in each others bodies. I remember one time when I had been changing and afterwards I had walked into the apartment to see Lissa, pale and shocked. I had ran to her, demanded to know what happened. Fear had consumed me at the thought that a rogue had been outside or somewhere in the apartment. But Lissas reply shot down that theory.

"I...I didnt know it felt like that."

"What?", I had asked confused. "What are you talking about?"

"When you change... it feels horrible."

Since then I was careful with changing, making sure she wasnt present for it. The pained expression on her face told me she'd prefer it never occurred again. So I'd make sure it wouldnt.

No, I can get us out of this. We just have to wait until they get to the airport, I told her.

I knew they would load us onto a plane and fly us past the rockies to Montana, where the academy was hidden away from the world by miles of forests circling the land and mountains encasing it like the walls of a castle. Or the walls of a prison cell.

For hours we drove before I felt the car brake and heard the guardians get out of the car. Still in wolf form, I tried to formulate a plan in my head. But the cage was a big issue. And my fangs hadnt made any dents in the metal.

The back doors opened and light streamed in as i squinted. Belikov was there and pulling the cage toward the outside. His face was tranquil. Not excited about the fact that he had the royal princess in his hands now, something that other guardians had been failing to do for two years, nor expression any anger towards me. Part of me feared his expressionless face, not knowing what to expect from him. But another part of me found his quietness to be intriguing.

"We will be loading you onto the plane now with the princess", He informed me plainly as he lifted the cage without the help of his fellow guardians.

I hated how helpless I felt. How trapped. I growled at him in frustration, wishing I was human so I could tell him to fuck off. But I didnt want to change back. Not until I had clothing in front of me. Changing in front of a group of older men, even though one of them was very attractive, was not something on my bucket list.

He ignored my canine sounds of protest and continued to walk me over to the plane. It was own by the school to transport international students from europe. Today, it was the equivalent of a prison bus.

I turned my head and saw another car pull up beside the van, and four guardians got out. One guided Lissa towards the plane, her hands restricted by metal cuffs. Her green eyes were tired and puffy red, like she had been crying.

Guilt rose in my chest. I had failed her. Told her I would get her out of that school, keep her safe. Maybe if I had listened to her and just changed when my body needed to, we would have been able to escape easier and still be on the run. It was my fault we we're in this mess.

Her green eyes locked with mine and her light voice whispered my name in a whimper.

Its ok Lissa, I told her mentally. We're going to be ok.

"Princess," The guardian said and motioned for her to walk up the stairs into the plane. She obliged, having no choice. I knew she wouldn't try to make a run for it without me and I was happy she didnt try. A varcolac without a guardian in the human world was like a lamb being stuck in a cage with a pack of hungry wolves.

Once we were on the plane and up in the air, I started to feel my wolf skin itch. Shit. I had been in wolf form for too long at this point. Now my body was forcing another change. Belikov sat beside me, looking out the window at the rocky mountains below. I wanted to signal to him to leave the room, give me some privacy. But it was too late. I whined in pain as I felt my body change again. My skin loosened and the bones cracked into their usual human anatomy. The pain was basically the same, but this time I would have to suffer the embarassment of the russian guardian seeing me naked. After my change back to human was complete I squeezed my eyes shut, not wanting to see his reaction. I curled in on myself, protecting the bits that were the most scandalous. When he cleared his throat, I decided to just open my eyes and try and get over my embarrassment. I was surprised to see Belikov's eyes looking away sheepishly.

I chuckled, both in reaction to his embarrassment and mine. I decided a joke was in order.

"What, you havent seen a woman naked before..."

He didnt reply, only moved towards a shelf in the back of the cabin. I couldnt see what he was going for. He came back with a coral coloured towel in his hands. Unlocking the cage, he let me out and I took the towel out of his hands quickly and wrapped it around my body, relieved. I didnt know how many more hours on the plane I would have been able to survive if I had to sit in that cage, naked in front of him.Like I was in some weird BDSM session. At least the other guardians didnt walk in, I told myself. It didnt help. Once one guy saw you naked, it felt like all of them had.

"So now that I can talk, can I ask you something."

He didnt acknowledge me, only continued to stare out the window of the plane.

I wasnt giving up that easy. "I mean, I thought I had tied up all the loose ends. Made sure not to use any cellphones. No bank cards, credit cards. Patrolled the town for any guardians lurking around... but yet you still found me. How?"

Silence for a moment, while I waited for him to answer. I thought he would just continue to ignore me. But this time, his tranquil voice answered.

"You weren't that hard to find. It seems a Varcolac official on his vacation spotted you two on one of his evening walks. He notified the Academy and we were dispatched."

Shit! Why hadnt I thought about the Varcolac who lived in the human world. I had been so worried about rogues or guardians coming after us I had failed to consider the smaller threats.

He must have sensed my disappointment in myself.

"Your still young, and young trainees make mistakes Rosemarie-"

"Call me Rose", I cut him off. "I hate Rosemarie, it makes me feel like someones grandma."

I wondered if the stupid name even meant anything to my mother. I always assumed she just needed a name to put on the Academy registration papers.

"Rose", He corrected. "Like I said, trainees make mistakes. And you made a great one by taking the princess out of the Academy."

I scoffed, looking away and out of my own window. The plane was slowly coming closer to the ground and under us was miles and miles of coniferous trees.

"You dont understand", I said, but didnt continue. He might of seen me naked, but he wasnt going to know all of my secrets.

He fell silent once again and after a couple minutes, I could feel the cabin bounce as the wheels of the plane hit the runway and stopped.

"We've arrived", Belikov told me and stood up, taking me by the arm. I tugged it away from him, still making sure the towel was secure around me.

"I know where im going", There was an edge in my voice. We unloaded from the plane and Lissa met me outside. She ran to my side, ignoring how the guardians crowded around her overprotectively.

"I'm sorry Lissa", I said, feeling defeated as I stood naked surrounded by guardians who were escorting us to the last place we wanted to be.

"Its not your fault Rose. It was bound to happen one day."

Ill fix this. Ill get us out of here again.

I hope so, I dont know if i can survive on the cafeteria food here.

We both chuckled at her secret joke. The guardians gave us confused looks, Belikov as well, but his almost looked intrigued instead of confused.

Our smiles fell once we caught sight of the Academy. It was a large, castle like building that looked like something straight out of the medieval period. Pointed roofs, glistening windows, and a statue of St. Lachlan in the garden near the entrance. The entire property was surrounded by iron fences and guardians who paced around the grounds to protect against outside threats. It must have been around noon time, because I saw students walking through the garden, books in hand. They were dressed in the Academy uniform. White blouses with a cresent moon on the front pocket and a black skirt along with it. School policy was that the skirt hang down just above the knee, but no one cared. Some girls, including me, preferred to wear them higher. Although, some girls went overboard, I had to admit. Boys wore pants or capris (which were optional for girls as well) and preferred to wear their shirts with the sleeves rolled up to show their bulbous muscles. There were no sweaters offered because both Varcolac and Jumalac were so warm blooded to the point where cold weather didnt effect us.

At the sight of them, I suddenly remembered how I was the only one who stood naked, only covered by a towel.

"Shit", I swore out loud this time. Looking over at Belikov, I asked, "So we'll be going around the back right."

His mouth was half opened before another guardian answered for him. I could tell this one was older and his sinister smile meant he wasnt to fond of me.

"Actually, Headmistress requested to see you immediately upon your return. We will be going straight to her office from the front."

I groaned on the inside, not wanting to give him the satisfaction of irritating me. This is total abuse, I thought as I was pushed from behind by two guardians and forced to past through the wrought, iron gate and into my own, personal hell.