Chapter 7

RPOV

The plan was forming in my head as I was walking back towards the dorms.

Dimitri was right. I would have done the same if it was Lissa, so I didn't blame him for leaving me. I understood the difficulty of balancing your best friend and your lover all too well. I was being torn between them right now. But I couldn't stay here knowing what Dimitri was doing and that he might not come back. It would drive me crazy. He couldn't ask that of me. And honestly me letting him go like that without a fight, he should have known better.

I knew the consequences of my actions. I didn't have leave owing like Dimitri did. Although there was an Easter break only a few weeks away. So at least I won't be missing those days of school. But I knew that If I left, I wouldn't graduate, I won't be Lissa's Guardian. I know she probably won't forgive me for it. But I had to go. And strangely when I made the decision to put Dimitri first I had felt relieved. I had thought I would feel guilt towards Lissa. I was abandoning my life-long friend to go with my boyfriend who I had technically been together with for only two weeks.

It almost sounded like a Cosmo story. Friends break up over boyfriend. But I didn't feel bad about my choice. Because for the first time in my life it was my choice.

Besides Lissa might be angry but she would be safe. She didn't need me right now. Dimitri did. I could be what is standing between him and death. Here I was only standing between Lissa and boredom. The choice was easily made. I hoped I would be able to be around Lissa in the future even if I couldn't be her Guardian. But that was if I survived and if Lissa would forgive me for leaving her.

Those were a lot of ifs.

I went to my dorm room and packed a bag of clothes. I knew when Dimitri had said 'as soon as possible' he meant he had his bag packed already and was hours if not minutes away from departing. I had to move fast.

I had seen the papers in the library a thousand times. I had considered them a few times when things were bad over the years, but had never been able to use them for a simple reason. I had needed my mother's permission and there was no way in hell that I was going to get it. But I had been eighteen for a few days and I didn't need her signature anymore.

I picked up the paperwork, filled it out and went to the registry office. I placed the filled-out paper in front of the secretary and she just stared at it in shock. I knew she was about to ask for Kirova when Stan walked passed. She immediately grabbed him and showed him the paper. He scanned the form and raised an eyebrow.

"He isn't going on a vacation is he?" Stan asked, knowing full well that Dimitri asking for vacation time and me handing in withdrawal-from-school papers couldn't be a coincidence.

I only nodded. Not wanting or being able to elaborate.

"Stamp the form, Linda."

He handed the form to the secretary and grabbed a piece of paper and wrote down something. He handed the paper to me.

"If you can help it Hathaway, come back when you are finished. I don't want to bury another student."

I nodded and walked out the building looking down at the piece of paper. It held a license plate number. It was probably from a guardian vehicle in the garage and I realized this must have been the car that Dimitri had been allocated when he asked for leave. Thanks Stan, you just made my job a whole lot easier.

I had two more stops. One I was done within a minute, the other I was dreading.

I knocked on Lissa's room and she opened almost immediately. My bag was flung over my shoulder and she was taking me in.

"Not you too."

I looked confused.

"They informed me Guardian Belikov was taking a leave of absence to visit his family, as his formal charge I had to sign off on it. But you are going with him?"

I nodded.

"He isn't going to visit his family Liss, He is doing something brave and dangerous and I have to go with him. I have to do this."

"No," she said firmly. "You don't have to. Leaving now would mean you won't graduate. You could even die, if it is really dangerous."

I shook my head. "I have to do this. I won't let him do this alone."

"Even if it means leaving me?"

My heart broke. I knew how Dimitri must have felt saying yes to Ivan while considering leaving me behind, because I was facing the same choice here. I never wanted to choose between them, but I had made the choice anyway.

"I have to do this," I said yet again. "I'm sorry."

But I knew Lissa wouldn't let it go so easily.

"You're supposed to be my guardian and go with me to college," she argued. "You're shadow-kissed. We're supposed to be together. If you leave me ..."

Nothing would happen to her. She would be fine. Dimitri, on the other hand, might die if I didn't go with him.

"If I leave you, they'll get you another guardian. Two of them. You're the last Dragomir. They'll keep you safe."

"But they won't be you, Rose," she said. Those luminous green eyes held mine, and the anger in me cooled. She was so beautiful, so sweet... and she seemed so reasonable. She was right. I owed it to her. I needed to -

"Stop it!" I yelled, turning away. She'd been using her magic. "Do not use compulsion on me. You're my friend. Friends don't use their powers on each other."

"Friends don't abandon each other either," she snapped back. "If you were my friend, you wouldn't do it."

Funny. It was that exact sentiment why Dimitri was leaving in the first place. I spun back toward her, careful not to look too closely into her eyes, in case she tried compulsion on me again. I had tried being reasonable. I was willing to explain, but she wouldn't let me. She didn't understand I couldn't leave him right now.

"It's not about you, okay? This time, it's about me. Not you. All my life, Lissa ... all my life, it's been the same. They come first. I've lived my life for you. I've trained to be your shadow, but you know what? I want to come first. I need to take care of myself for once. I'm tired of looking out for everyone else and having to put aside what I want. Dimitri and I did that, and look what almost happened. I owe it to him to do this, I need to be with him while he does this. I'm sorry if it hurts you, but it's my choice!"

"You love him more than me," she said in a small voice, sounding very young.

"He needs me right now," I responded.

"I need you. Rose. "Please, Rose. Please don't leave me." She pleaded one more time.

"I'm sorry," I said. There were no other words to offer up. "I'm sorry." And left her room.

I moved towards the garage, my bag slung across my shoulder. I made it without being spotted. I was looking around trying to find the car Stan had indicated. I was almost dreading I had missed Dimitri when I saw the car in the far right corner. I walked over towards it, hoping it would be open. There was no reason for it to be locked here in the garage and I was counting on it being unlocked, but maybe it was standard protocol to lock all the cars.

I tried the lever of the trunk and was glad to see it did open. I knew I still had some convincing to do with Dimitri, and I knew he was more likely to be convinced when we were a few hours away from the academy then when we were still here. So I hoped in the trunk. It was a large SUV so it wasn't too cramped. I just hoped Dimitri would put his bag in the backseat or maybe next to him and he wouldn't open the trunk.

It took another ten minutes of me sitting there when I heard voices approaching the car. It was Stan and Dimitri.

"Good luck seeing your family, they must have been worried when news got out that the academy had been attacked."

There was a mumbled yeah coming from Dimitri. I actually doubted his family knew about the attack. And Stan was certainly aware Dimitri was leaving for different reasons.

"Oh and just put the bag in the backseat. The trunk jams sometimes. That is why you can take it to the airport, nobody wants it really."

If I do come back to the Academy, I am going to kiss Stan for helping me.

"Thanks, Stan. You'll look after her a bit for me, won't you? She does tend to get herself into trouble."

Stan chuckled.

"I am sure I can be of some assistance to her."

Dimitri then opened the passenger door and put his bag in. He took the driver's seat and started the engine. I took a deep breath as I once again left the academy hiding in the back of a car. Except this time I was alone. Lissa wouldn't be with me, and for the first time in my life I was okay with that.

He stopped momentarily at the gate, speaking to the Guardian on duty. They exchanged some pleasantries before Dimitri hit the gas again and took off.

The moment we crossed the wards I felt the pressure behind my eyes and I groaned. I had been getting better in that respect thanks to Mason's frequent visits, but it still shocked me for a moment before I got it under control. Luckily my own groan was muffled by Dimitri's groan. I nearly laughed. He really was shadow-kissed too.

Somehow that made me feel a little better. I hated that he had died. I was still reeling from that fact, but what I could do and what I can see is something so other worldly and strange that I was also grateful at least Dimitri was able to understand me.

We drove for about an hour before I heard him talking to someone. The voice didn't really sound familiar and he hadn't stopped to pick somebody up, so I could only assume this was Ivan.

It was strange. I could hear him perfectly. They were speaking in Russian, so I had no idea what they were saying, but his voice wasn't any different than if he would have been here in the flesh. Mason had been very different. All the ghosts I had seen had been very different. It showed just how long Ivan had been here and how much he had learned.

They talked for about half an hour and I even heard Dimitri laugh before Ivan switched to English.

"Oh and Dimka. You might want to check the trunk."

DPOV

I stopped on the side of the road. Ivan had an amused expression on his face. Stan had said that the trunk was broken, so I didn't think there would be anything in it. To my surprise it wasn't empty when I opened the trunk.

I was first shocked then my frown appeared and I was angry. It didn't help that Rose was smiling at me a little nervously.

I let her get out of the confines of the trunk. She stretched and took her sweet time not saying anything. Eventually, I couldn't take her stretching and silence anymore.

"Rose, what are you doing here?"

She looked at me like I was crazy.

"I am going with you."

"No." There would be no debate. She couldn't come with me. "You have school." I reasoned.

But she shook her head.

"No, I don't. I dropped out."

It took me a little while to comprehend her words, in part because she used popular colloquium and part because I didn't think she would be that stupid.

"You did what? You can't do that!"

"Of course I can. That is why they have withdrawal papers in the first place. I am eighteen now, so I don't need anyone's permission… I can't just sit there and let you do this alone, Dimitri, so I am going with you."

I pinched the bridge of my nose.

"Rose, I will not let you give up your entire life and put yourself in danger."

She put her hands on her hips in a typical Rose like fashion. She sat her jaw and I knew I was in for a fight.

"But you expect me to just sit back while you do the same? I am not losing you again Dimitri, and I will not sit behind the safety of the wards waiting for the call that you won't be coming back. Don't ask that of me. And you promised. You promised nothing would keep us apart."

The tears were running down her face and I could tell she was still very scared of losing me. I understood it. My heart was breaking for her, but coming with me would ruin her changes of graduation. And I couldn't allow that.

She closed the gap between us and placed her hands on my chest. She leaned her head against my chest.

"Please Comrade, don't make me sit still while you risk your life. I won't survive it if you died. You know I can help, you know that if I am with you, your chances of survival go up. And if we have to die, let us at least die together."

I didn't want to leave her, and she was right, she would be an asset on this mission. And if she had graduated and had leaving owing like I did, I probably would have taken her, but going now would ruin her career. I couldn't do that do her, no matter how much she was hurting, I was doing what was best for her. I think she saw my resolve because she pulled back and I didn't see the fragile girl that was begging her boyfriend not to leave her, I saw the strong warrior she was and that look in her eyes scared me.

"Besides, if you won't take you, I'll just follow you."

I raised my eyebrows and challenged that notion.

"Really, and how would you do that?"

She shrugged.

"I can see Ivan too. He will tell me where he is directing you and I will simply follow."

I looked over to Ivan, hoping he would squash that notion right now. But of course, he only made it worse.

"Sorry Dimka. I kind of want to get into the good graces of my best friends girl. Besides, I like her. I think she can help."

I glared at Ivan and he raised his hands. He wasn't helping at all. Rose was as stubborn as a mule and I don't need Ivan to enable her. So I moved on to my second point of convincing her.

"It is one thing to know where I am going. It is another to actually get there. If I leave you here on the side of the road, how are you going to pay for the ride?"

I thought I had her there. Rose didn't have any funds of her own. But the smile that made its way across her face didn't reassure me at all. She had thought of this and she had come up with a solution.

She picked something from her back-pocket and handed it to me. It was a Platinum credit card and I couldn't help but shake my head and smile a little as I read the name printed in gold letters across the card. Adrian Ivashkov.

"Where did you get this?"

Her smile got wider.

"I swiped it from him before I left. He was asleep and it was actually quite easy."

Easy? Easy to break into guest housing where a Royal Moroi was staying. The nephew of the queen. Next to the Moroi dorm it was the most heavily guarded compound on campus, despite the wards. And yet Rose has slipped in, entered Adrian's room and stole his credit card and it had been easy? Sometimes I forget that some of the accusation made against Rose, like her delinquent behavior were actually grounded.

My throbbing headache was getting worse and it had nothing to do with my newly discovered shadow-kissed abilities.

I sighed deeply looked to the sky to ask God to give me strength and uttered the words I knew would change our lives forever. How can somebody I love so much, make me want to pull my hair out.

"Just get in the fucking car Rose."

She had the good measure to keep her gloating to a minimum and kissed my cheek as she made her way towards the passenger's seat. She passed Ivan as she did it and gave him a dazzling smile. Ivan simply laughed. I swear, if he had been corporeal they would have high-fived.

"So where are we off too?"

"Russia."

So the piece with Lissa is taken almost word for word from the book. I don't own Vampire Academy and all rights belong to Richelle Mead.

Thanks everyone for your support