The following week flowed smoothly enough. I had finally unpacked all the boxes from around my new house. The house felt huge with only me living here, but I absolutely loved having a place of my own, I got to decorate and furnish it exactly how I wanted. I had a light grey colour scheme running through the house; it had a cosy yet stylish feel.

Before I knew it, it was Friday morning and my alarm was screaming in my face. A few years ago I would have picked my alarm clock up off the bedside table and smashed it into the nearest wall, but I actually quite liked waking up early now, I found being awake was a lot less torturous than being asleep. Even after all these years I still found myself faced with crippling nightmares. Adrian once found out about them and he has visited my dreams more often since, but as he battles spirits darkness he turns to alcohol a lot more often, meaning he doesn't have the power to visit my dreams as much anymore.

I hauled myself up out of my comfortable double bed and headed into the en-suite bathroom where I stripped off my pyjamas and stepped into the shower. I relished in the feeling of the hot water hitting my back, but shut off the water sooner than I'd have liked after washing my hair and scrubbing my skin.

I wrapped a soft towel around my body and headed back into the bedroom, I quickly made my bed while I dried off, then slipped my Guardian uniform on before clipping my hair to the back of my head. I didn't technically have to tie it back anymore, due to the short length, but I still liked to keep it away from my face while I was on duty, and it generally looked more professional. I slipped my phone into my pocket and put my stake and holster around my hips.

I grabbed a power bar from the kitchen cupboard on my way out, I wished I had time for a cup of coffee, but I'd have to grab one somewhere else.

I made my way to the main gate where I would be meeting the other Guardian on duty for patrolling the wards. It was still early here at Court so it was quiet enough that I didn't pass anyone on my way. Don't get me wrong, a lot of the Moroi here were nice enough, but a lot of them were snobs who didn't know how to treat Dhampir with respect.

As the gate came into view I saw a wave of blond hair and hoped to Vlad that Eddie was the other Guardian on ward patrol. His handsome face lit up into a smile as he saw me approaching. "Hey Rose!" He said as I approached and pulled me into a quick bro hug.

"Hey Eddie, you on ward patrol with me?" I asked as I stepped out of his embrace.

"Sure am, you ready to go?" I smiled and nodded as we made our way around the edge of the ward line.

"So you heard about Lissa and Christian?" I asked as I ran my eyes along the invisible ward line, we generally looked for anything out of the ordinary, it wasn't unheard of for humans to attempt breaking the ward-line with a silver stake on behalf of the Strigoi, so we kept an eye out for anything unaccounted for.

"Of course I did, Liss called me and Adrian over the other day to tell us, I'm really happy for them." He said genuinely.

"Me too, I hate to admit it but he really is good for her." I admitted somewhat reluctantly.

We spent rest of the shift comfortably talking and catching up, I had really missed Eddie, and we hadn't been able to spend much time together since we moved to Court.

We had just covered our fifth lap of the wards by the time our shift was over. There was nothing out of the ordinary and we managed to chat the majority of the time while still being alert for any potential dangers. When we got back to the main gate where we would be meeting the Guardians taking over our shift, we were surprised to see Guardian Hans Croft waiting with him arms crossed over his chest, watching our approach.

I felt a lick of anxiety pass through me as we got closer, Guardian Croft was an incredibly well respected Guardian, seeing as he was the head Guardian here at Court, and despite his age, being in his 50's, he ran this place better than I could imagine anyone doing so. Everyone respected him, even the Moroi, and what he says needs to get done, gets done with no questions asked.

"Ah Hathaway, I'm glad I caught you." He said as I reached him, I stood before him with my hands clasped professionally behind my back.

"Everything alright?" I asked.

"Yes, I was hoping you could come by my office tomorrow, we have some matters to discuss." He saw my eyes widening slightly and continued. "Nothing to worry about, just something I'd like you to do for me."

"Of course, what time would you like me there?" I asked.

"Let's say two o'clock. I'll see you then." He said before turning his back and briskly walking off. Hans was also very to the point, also something I enjoyed about his character, I couldn't be dealing with time wasters.

I made my way back home to get changed before I would be joining Lissa, Christian, Adrian and Eddie for dinner at the happy couple's house.

I stripped off my guardian uniform and pulled on a burgundy knitted dress, it was one of my more comfortable items, and I slipped a pair of tights and boots on to finish off the look. I wasn't exactly dressing up but it was nice to make an effort once in a while. I pulled the clip out of my hair and let it fall past my face. I put my stake in my thigh holster and walked out of the door, crossing my front lawn to get to Lissa's house.

Although I wasn't required to carry my stake everywhere I went, I usually preferred to take it with me wherever I go; you can never be too safe after all.

I let myself into their house and followed the voices into the kitchen, where everyone was standing around the kitchen as Christian prepared the food.

Lissa pulled me into a hug when I walked in, to which I eagerly returned the gesture.

Adrian also pulled me into his arms, which only slightly surprised me. "Ah Little Dhampir, I have not been seeing enough of you recently." He said, making me feel a little guilty that I hadn't made much of an effort to see him recently.

"Sorry Adrian, I've been working a lot recently." I said genuinely. I pulled out of his arms and Lissa held a large glass of white wine out in front of me.

"You know me so well, Liss." I said as way of thanks.

We soon sat down to eat, Christian had made lasagne, and it looked as delicious as all his cooking did. He may be a pain in the ass but he did make good food.

We had just served ourselves to the food placed in the middle of the dining table when the doorbell rang. Eddie and I both subconsciously tensed, which made Adrian laugh.

"I wonder who that could be." Lissa asked as she got up from the table and headed out of the room to the front door.

I couldn't hear what was being said, but I could hear voices, Lissa certainly sounded happy.

I wish I had thought to check through the bond to see who was walking through the house. At least then I would have been prepared for the sight that was before me.

Lissa walked back into the room with a shit-eating grin on her face, Tasha and Dimitri entered the room right behind her.

The fork I was holding fell out of my hand and clattered onto the plate in front of me, drawing everyone's attention towards me.

Dimitri looked as breathtakingly gorgeous as I remembered he did, his sensuously soft hair was tied at the nape of his neck. He wore his typical duster with a tight fitted t shirt, showing he was exactly as muscled as I remembered.

I had suddenly lost my appetite completely, I felt like I was going to be sick.

"Aunt Tasha!" Christian exclaimed as he stood up and crossed the room before pulling he beloved aunt into his arms. I didn't look at him, but I knew Dimitri's eyes were on me. I could almost feel them burning holes into my face.

Eddie stood up and shook Dimitri's hand out of pure politeness. Adrian, however, did not approach our new guests. Instead he carefully placed his hand on my arm in a comforting gesture. I wanted nothing more than to shrug his hand off, but I knew he was only trying to help.

Tasha barely even noticed me as she spoke animatedly with Lissa and Christian, Dimitri's eyes, however, had barely strayed far from my face. I couldn't bring myself to look at him.

"We're just sitting down to eat, why don't you join us?" Lissa politely asked the two of them, Tasha accepted the offer on behalf of the both of them.

I couldn't do this. I could not sit here and play happy families. I had to get out.

I downed the rest of my glass of wine before abruptly standing up, making the heavy chair scrape loudly across the floor, efficiently drawing all attention back to me. Shit. No chance of sneaking out unnoticed then.

"I'm not feeling too well." I lied. "I think I'm just going to go to bed. Thanks for dinner, Chris." I said as I took a step away from the table. My voice sounded weird even to my own ears.

"You haven't eaten any of it." He said, not at all nastily, just stating a fact.

I looked down at my plate and saw that what he said was indeed true. "Sorry, I'm not hungry. Goodnight. Good to see you, Tasha." I added hastily on the end. I knew I'd just get into shit if I ignored her completely.

I took my chance and rushed out of the door before anyone could try and convince me otherwise.

'Rose, I'm sorry. I had no idea they were coming today. Are you going to be alright?' Lissa stupidly asked down the bond. Damn one way bond. I wish I could speak back to her and reassure her I was fine. I'll have to text her later and apologise for being so rude.

I had almost made it to my front door when a strong hand gripped the top of my arm tightly. I didn't think about who it was, I simply acted out of instinct. I had my stake pointed over their chest and my forearm pressed firmly against their throat, shoved up against the wall of my house within a second.

Then his scent hit me and I thought my knees were going to give out. "Roza." He said simply.

I bared my teeth ever so slightly before grounding out the words. "Back off."

The look in his bottomless eyes wasn't one I would forget any time soon. He looked desperate. He looked like a starving man and I was the only thing in the world that could feed him. But most prominently, he looked to be in awe. Probably because I had incapacitated him within a heartbeat, that'll teach him not to fuck with me.

I pulled him away from the wall and shoved him down the steps of my porch; he stumbled ever so slightly but soon recovered and looked like he was going to speak again, until he caught my facial expression. I poured every ounce of disgust I could muster into my face.

I would have told him to never touch me again, to never speak to me again, but I'm pretty sure that the look in my eyes did that for him.

Gone was the Guardian mask that he had spent his lifetime wearing, instead surprise and guilt were written clearly across his beautiful features as he took in my appearance. His eyes raked over my body and hesitated at my short hair. Bastard.

I didn't say a word; instead, I turned on my heel and slammed the front door in his face.

There we have chapter 3! I honestly wasn't expecting to update so soon, but I love reading your reviews so much that I thought I may as well! I am absolutely loving writing this story so far, and I love to hear what you all think! Thank you so much to everyone who has already reviewed, followed and favourited the story, I appreciate every single one of you. Thank you so much for reading; I really hope you enjoy the chapter!