As the rest of the Senior Novices exited, so did most of the Guardians. In the end, there was only Alberta, Mom, Stan, and Dimitri left on the stage in front of Blake Ayett, Eddie Castile, Meredith Edwards and myself.
"Let's take this to a meeting room," Alberta said, walking off the stage and back to the administration building. I was trying to catch Dimitri or my mother's eye, but both were walking beside Alberta and resolutely not looking at me. I fell into step beside Eddie, shrugging my shoulders when he muttered "What the fuck?" under his breath.
"Please take a seat," Alberta said, opening the door to a Guardians' meeting room. I'd only been in this one a couple of times – each time for a disciplinary hearing, I recalled ominously.
Seating myself between Eddie and Meredith, I schooled my face into a calm expectant mask although I was shitting myself. Meredith and Eddie being here was a good sign, Blake, and Alto not so much.
"I'm sure you're wondering why we've asked to see you," Alberta said, taking a seat at the table. "We've asked the four of you here to speak to you about the arrangements for the rest of the academic year. As you know, most of the Senior class will be going to other academies. Everyone except you four. It's been decided that the four of you will be getting real-life guarding experience instead."
Eddie, Meredith and I sat still, not reacting, while Blake looked pissed off.
"There is a… compound… near the Bighorn Mountains that has asked for a Guardian presence. While there have been no attacks, and the property is not usually guarded, a protection detail has been requested."
"What sort of facility?" Blake asked suspiciously, interrupting Alberta's spiel.
"We'll get to that later, Ayett," she said, giving him a look for interrupting her.
"Being Novices, we will not be sending you alone. To this end, Guardians Hathaway, Alto and Belikov will be joining the six Novices for the duration of the mission."
"Six Novices?" Eddie asked. Either Alberta couldn't count, or Alberta couldn't count.
"There will be a pair of Novices from St. Basil's in Russia also joining you," she explained. "The nine of you will be living at the compound and will take part in practical guarding duties as well as intensive Guardian training from Guardians Hathaway, Belikov and Alto. It's a hell of an opportunity, so we expect you to make the most of it," she said smiling but looking at me a little nervously. I think she expected I might not be happy about the arrangement.
Looking around, I briefly met Dimitri's eyes, and I could tell he was silently telling me this was a good deal. Probably the best possible outcome I could have hoped for, given the other possibilities.
"It sounds great, and I'm really thankful to be included," I said with a big smile, blessing each of the Guardians at the table with a grin. Even Alto.
"Yeah, thanks!" said Eddie also smiling. "I appreciate the opportunity!"
Meredith also gave her thanks, followed by Blake, although it must be said the latter didn't sound particularly genuine about it.
"You won't be leaving for another few days, so tomorrow I'll be getting you to help the other Senior Novices move their stuff. They won't be coming back here to graduate, so they need to take everything with them. You can leave your things here. We're not sure exactly how long you'll be required near Big Horn, but if the mission concludes before the end of the academic year you will be brought back here and then ongoing arrangements made. Otherwise, you'll be recalled a week or two before the official end of academic year and arrangements will be made for you to take your trials."
"There's a lot you also need to know about the place you're going to. The facility you'll be guarding is not well known, and we intend to keep it that way. We'll meet at 10 pm here tomorrow to go through what you need to know before we depart; in the meantime, you can tell your friends only that you will be real-life guarding somewhere in Wyoming." It was my mother, and she seemed to be looking at Blake in particular. "We'll go through all your questions tomorrow at ten."
It was a dismissal, but I had more questions than answers.
"Rosemarie? Are you going back to your room, now?" my mother asked.
"Um. I was going to go help Lissa finish her packing," I said. "She's leaving for Court early tomorrow, and it sounds like I won't see her for a few months…"
"Yes. Her flight is 8 pm I think. Go see her, but perhaps we could catch a late breakfast tomorrow? After she's left?"
"Sounds great, thanks, Mom. I'll meet you in the cafeteria around 8.15?"
"I'll see you then," she said with a brusque nod.
"Rose? Are you going to see the Princess now?" Dimitri asked in his most formal tone. "If so I'll walk with you. I need to explain to her that I will not be accompanying her to Court."
"Yeah sure," I said, trying to sound nonchalant. "She and I are going to be up packing most of the night!"
Taking our leave, Dimitri and I walked toward the Moroi dorms, making sure there was a healthy distance between us.
"Is Lissa expecting you?" Dimitri asked quietly as we walked.
"Yes, but I can spare half an hour."
"Let's go to the gym, then," Dimitri said, striding toward the vacant structure. Checking we were the only two there he took me through to the supply room, closing the door behind us.
As soon as we were shut in, I slipped my arms around his neck, attacking his lips with mine before finally gasping, "Christian said you were going to Court with him, Lissa and Tasha. I was so worried!"
Dimitri pulled me onto his lap as he sat on a stack of workout maps.
"I nearly ended up there," he admitted. "And you nearly ended up at St. Christopher's! You can thank your mother and Novice Ayett we'll be together!"
"My mother? Blake?!" I asked against his lips, still relishing my Russian God's kisses.
"Yes. Some of this you need to know before you see your Mom, so let me explain," he said, regretfully pulling his lips from mine.
"Alberta asked to see Matthews and me to tell us that we'd be going to Court with Lissa. I wasn't thrilled, but I could hardly tell her all the reasons I didn't want to go. At the same meeting, she said she intended you to be sent to St. Christopher's. I was telling her why I thought that was not such a great idea when your mother and Alto arrived for a meeting with Alberta. When Alberta told your Mom about the St. Christopher's plan, she was also unhappy with it.
"After hearing that the top male and female Novices from St. Basil's and St. Vladimir's were going to be sent on a mission, and that she was going to be the lead Guardian, your mother fought hard for you to be included. She argued the only reason Meredith was the top-ranked female Novice is that they were also looking at academic grades, and yours are still down from your time on the run. Your training scores eclipse Novice Edwards' and everyone knows it."
I agreed. Meredith was nice, and a friend of mine, but I'd laid her on her ass enough times in training to know I was by far superior to her when it came to fighting.
"Alberta mentioned she was having trouble placing Novice Ayett – that she was embarrassed to send a Novice of such low standard to another academy. That's when your mother suggested Blake might benefit from the intensive training afforded on a mission like this, and that if they were taking one extra Novice, they could take a second. You."
"Mom really wanted me there?"
"Yes. She wasn't backing down!" Dimitri chuckled. "She looked more determined than you in the cafeteria line when there's only one doughnut left!"
"So how did you end up coming?"
"Once Alberta and your Mom agreed four Novices from St. Vladimir's would be going, I said I thought a third Guardian should accompany them, and for the sake of the Novices from St. Basil's, it should be a native Russian speaker. Not all students there speak English as well as I do. Alberta asked me whether I'd consider it, given the Princess would be well protected at Court."
"I can't believe my mother fought for me," I said, still surprised by that aspect of things.
"I get the feeling she wants to spend more time with you," Dimitri replied, nuzzling into my hair. "And Alberta is right; the mission is an amazing opportunity. Your mother is probably the best female Guardian of her generation. She could teach you a lot."
"I'm just glad you're not going to Court," I admitted, mentally adding the words 'with Tasha.' "Who's going with Lissa instead?" I asked curiously.
"Emil and Matthews."
"Tasha's not going to like that," I said with a satisfied grin. "But I can't wait to spend the next three and a half months with you by my side!"
I didn't see Dimitri again until the briefing the next morning. I'd spent the evening with Lissa finishing off her packing, and then we had a sleepover as it could be months until we saw one another again. I insisted on going to the airstrip with her and Christian, threatening pyro within an inch of his life if he let anything happen to her before promising to contact her as soon as I could to let her know about where exactly I was headed.
Lissa hadn't had the opportunity to tell Christian that Emil would be with them at Court instead of Dimitri, so he was surprised when the unusually taciturn Guardian met them at the runway with Matthews and their luggage. I'd made Lissa promise three times to let me know through the bond when they were about to touch down. She thought it was so I'd know they'd arrived safely, and partially it was. But a more juvenile part of me wanted to see Tasha's face when she realized instead of six foot seven inches of sexy Russian Guardian, Lissa had been sent with Emil.
Breakfast with Mom had been good. I was glad Dimitri had given me the back story about her pushing for me to come on the mission, and not just because it meant more time with Dimitri. For the first time in a long time, maybe ever, I got the sense Mom was thinking about me. We kept the conversation general, but she seemed happy I was positive about the mission.
"You wouldn't have rather gone to one of the academies?" she checked.
"Nah. I think I'll learn a lot more in the field. It's going to be hard to leave St. Vlad's though."
Mom's face was thoughtful. "You think of the place as home?"
I shrugged. "Yeah, I guess so. I can't remember anywhere before coming here," I explained. "Thanks for including me in the mission."
"What do you mean?" she asked, looking at me carefully.
"Well, you're the Guardian in charge. I know I wouldn't be going unless you wanted me to," I explained, "and I doubt it was Alto pushing for me to be included!"
"Yes, Stan did have his reservations," she admitted, the corner of her lips twitching in suppressed amusement.
"He's such a tool," I muttered.
"Aye," she agreed, before putting her hand over her mouth with a scandalized look.
I stifled a giggle and let her comment pass, grateful for even just a moment of private mother/daughter banter.
"Thank you all for gathering," Mom said as soon as Blake arrived, five minutes after ten, earning himself a Hathaway glare for his tardiness. "This morning Guardians Alto, Belikov and I will be outlining the mission. I need to start by saying what you learn here, and in the field, needs to stay confidential. This mission has been authorized by her Majesty herself, and she requires absolute secrecy. Breaching her conditions will be considered an act of treason."
Eddie and I looked at each other, eyes widening. This was bigger than either of us had anticipated.
"There is an aspect of your Guardian education we only cover in the last week or two of your schooling," Stan took over. "It involves a group collectively called Alchemists. Alchemists are a group of humans who know about Moroi, Dhampir and Strigoi, and whose purpose is to conceal our existence from humans. The Alchemists perform a number of roles in relation to this, including a 'clean up' service of sorts; attending on request to destroy evidence after a Strigoi event and where necessary come up with cover stories. As well as this, the Alchemists keep thorough, detailed records about Moroi, Dhampir, and Strigoi. A copy of every Guardian report is sent to the Alchemists, as are all Moroi and Dhampir birth, death, and marriage records," he explained.
"You need to appreciate the Alchemists operate entirely independently of our society and government. They believe that Moroi, Dhampir, and Strigoi are all inherently evil and are to be avoided, although they support our efforts to destroy Strigoi thereby keeping humans safe and ignorant of our existence. They keep any interaction with us to an absolute minimum and are notoriously secretive about their operations. We have only the vaguest idea of the location of their facilities, and next to no idea about what happens there. For the first time in known history, the Alchemists have contacted her Majesty and requested Guardian protection at one of their facilities, hence our mission," my mother concluded.
"What can you tell us about the location and our roles?" Meredith asked respectfully.
"Not a lot," my mother admitted. "We have been told that the facility we will be guarding is an electronic storage location. We know the Alchemists have a large distributed computer network that allows them to store the vast amount of information they collect about our kind. We also know that there are a handful of Alchemists present at the scene, and we have been specifically requested to avoid contact with them wherever possible."
"The plan is we will drive toward the area in daylight hours, stopping overnight in the township of Sheridan. We will stock up with provisions there before arriving at our location around lunch time human time. We will be accommodated in a large house on premises, and our role is to do surveillance, guard and respond to any threats. The location will also be warded," Dimitri outlined. "While the Alchemists stressed there have been no direct threats, and our presence has been requested as a precaution, we're not entirely sure why they've asked for us and what we're walking into."
"As the first time the Alchemists have requested a Guardian presence, her Majesty is eager for our mission to be a success. She is hoping it might herald the start of closer cooperation between the Alchemists and ourselves. To this end, I have to stress the need to be professional. While you are not yet Guardians, for the extent and purposes of this mission you will be considered as such. You are envoys for her Majesty, and any breach of professionalism will reflect on her."
Meredith and Eddie were sitting shell-shocked, as was I. Dimitri had told me a little about the Alchemists in the aftermath of Spokane, but it was still a surprise to hear we were going to one of their locations.
I sat dutifully listening to Mom, Stan and Dimitri as they gave us further instructions as well as a list of what we should pack. Then, with a final reminder about secrecy, we were dismissed. I was desperate to speak with Dimitri, or spend a little more time in his arms, but Meredith accompanied me back to the female Novice quarters, so the best I got was a fleeting apologetic glance as he headed off in another direction. I was twenty minutes into packing when I heard a soft knock at the door.
"Can I come in, Roza?" Dimitri asked when I opened the door to find him leaning against the doorframe.
"Sure," I muttered breathlessly, standing aside to let him through. "Why didn't you tell me last night we'd be going to an Alchemist facility?!"
"It would have taken too long to explain. Besides, that way you looked as surprised as the other three," he murmured, coming to stand close beside me and rubbing his thumb across my lower lip.
"Is it going to be ok?" I asked worriedly. Part of me meant walking into an unknown situation at Big Horn, but the other question I was asking was about him. About us.
"We'll be ok, Roza. We'll just have to be careful," he whispered, answering both questions before he leaned in for a soft, gentle kiss. "I have to go now. Guardian Alto and I are putting together some of the equipment we'll need for the trip, and you'll probably want to see your fellow Novices before they leave."
He was right. There was a farewell lunch, of sorts, being held in the cafeteria. This might be the last time I'd see some of these people, so I wanted to say farewell.
"Come to my room after dinner tonight if you can get away" he requested.
"I will," I promised, giving him a final long hard kiss before releasing him with a sigh. "Off you go, Comrade, or Stan's going to wonder where you are!"
Dimitri growled softly but let himself out my door.
I flopped back onto my bed. Twenty minutes, and most of my dorm room was packed. Other than the few things I needed to box up to leave here, and the things I'd left out for the next few days, I was done. I was wondering how things would be arranged at the house we'd be staying in when I felt the telltale tickle in my head before Lissa sent a message through the bond.
Rose? We're just about to land.
I slipped into Lissa's head in time to see her grasping Christian's hand as the wheels hit the Court runway and their plane taxied over to the arrivals area. In no time at all, the stairs were in place, and Lissa and Christian crossed the tarmac to an excited Tasha and Adrian.
Matthews and Emil were following, but Tasha paid them no mind, instead looking at the stairs waiting for Dimitri.
"Where's Guardian Belikov?" she eventually asked.
"He's been sent on a mission with some of the final year Novices," Matthews explained with a friendly smile. "Emil will be the Princess's second Guardian while she's at Court."
Tasha's face screwed up in anger. It was as I'd suspected; Tasha's motivations hadn't been entirely altruistic when she'd suggested Lissa stay with her and Christian at Court. Pulling myself from Lissa's head, I couldn't suppress the smile on my face. Thanks to my mother, things had worked out so much better than I could have hoped!