Here I am again on fanficiton when I should be studying =D I hold all you responsible if I fail! hehe Thank you for the reviews and suggestions, I am working them into the plot for later so don't stop giving them.
Thank you x
Chapter 8
My heart sunk even deeper into the overflow of tears that seemed to be clogging my chest rather than leaking through my eyes.
The air in the small cart of the train seemed to become thick, the weight and pressure of my surroundings had changed, becoming more dense. Chokingly dense and I found it difficult to even breathe.
I felt like my entire life was coming crashing down on me, but I couldn't do a thing but try to stand up against the downfall.
I thought back to what I had actually discovered from listening in on the Belikov's conversation in the kitchen. Not much. I had been left with more questions than I had before, with absolutely no answers at all.
Curiosity was a bitch.
But maybe the truth was even worse.
Sure, you always think that you would want to know, choose freedom and all that, but when it came down to it, you were pretty much just setting yourself up for more and more crisis's.
Through my entire mental tirade, I noticed that Dimitri didn't once take his eyes off me, bracing himself if I suddenly had an anxiety attack. At this point that seemed highly likely.
I swallowed loudly, flinching against the pain it caused in my throat because of the tumour of worry that was growing there.
"What am I?" I asked in a whisper, my voice shaky with the raging emotions my face was refusing to portray.
I knew my face was blank and expressionless, but I was useless to change that, anything.
Anger had subsided now, but I didn't know what emotion was the strongest.
Dimitri approached me slowly, extending his arm to me, I flinched back almost involuntary.
He let his hand drop, his face seemed to fall more though.
"Roza, come sit." He whispered, leading the way back to our seats.
I followed him at a distance, sitting gingerly down a little way away from him.
He rested his elbows on his knees and looked at me with strain clear on the set of his face.
"I don't really know how to say this, or where to even begin, but there are things in this world, things you are a part of, as I am." He began, his voice so soft as he tried to keep our conversation from being overheard, and to stop me from making a run for it.
I nodded when he looked at me expectantly.
"The gang I said I was protecting you from, it isn't really a gang as such. They are called Strigoi, unnatural…" He opened and closed his mouth a few times, struggling for the words. "…Creatures of the night, giving up life and everything to do with it to become powerful and immortal. They are opposed to the Moroi, though the same species, Moroi choose life and all it's processes, they are safe."
I stared at him even once he finished talking, waiting for me to process it before continuing on. I was pretty much an emotional wreck inside, but some part of me knew this had been a long time coming.
Sure it sounded like a messed up joke, a tiny, insignificant part of me expecting to see Ashton Kutcher running up with a camera screaming 'punked.'
"Creature of the ni-"
"Vampires." He cut me off, his lips moving a little from their stern line into a sad smile.
I wanted to laugh in his face and tell Ashton that he could come out now, but I knew I had to keep an open mind about all this. I knew it had to be true.
"How are vampires good?" I asked, probably the least important question, but it was the most thought provoking one I had.
"Good is a very literal word. What I mean is that Moroi do not kill. They drink from volunteering humans, only taking enough to satisfy their needs." He told me, watching closely to make sure I was retaining all the information.
I nodded again, thinking through it all.
"Where do we come into this?"
"We are the offspring of the first Moroi and human, dhampirs, born to protect the Moroi from the Strigoi." He kept his eyes on me, but I knew he was calculating the nearness of other people with his peripheral vision. "The tattoo's on my neck -and your mother's- are called Molnija Marks, given for the Strigoi we kill."
"My mom is a dhampir?" No way, she wasn't cool enough.
"Yes, and your father a Moroi." He replied almost hesitantly.
My dad was a creature of the night, a vampire. Talk about life changing.
I looked deep into his eyes, knowing without a doubt that he was 'safe.' As I stared, I felt almost like a tide was moving throughout me, changing the way I looked at everything, changing the way I felt about everything. The way I felt about Dimitri. I didn't just want him, I needed him in more ways than one.
"Can I see?" I whispered, gesturing to his neck.
He nodded, clearing his throat softly before turning slightly so I could glimpse the back of his neck. I reached up with shaking hands and brushed the long hair that hung over the back of his neck, revealing the line of tattoo's. I touched them gently, loving the way his warmth radiated through my fingers, heating me. I felt him shiver under my skimming fingers and I suddenly had an urge to kiss the beautifully exotic tattoo work.
"What's this one?" I whispered, running my finger along the horizontal tattoo above and different from the rest.
"That is the Promise Mark. I am a sworn guardian to serve the Moroi." He whispered back as I ran my fingers back and forth along the line, his skin raising in goose bumps in my wake.
He swallowed loudly before clearing his throat again roughly, turning back to face me.
"I work at St Vladmir's Academy, guarding the school until Princess Vasilissa Dragomir graduates."
"So much for a P.E teacher." I joked half-heartedly, he smiled back in the same manner.
"Is that what that is for?" I asked, reaching across and pointing into his jacket where the silver instrument gleamed. The movement caused my hand to brush along his chest and I felt his slight intake of breath.
"Yes. It is used to kill the Strigoi, though it is very difficult." He opened the jacket a little, allowing me a better look before closing it again, away from curious eyes.
"Can I learn?" I asked, my mind wandering off thinking about what it would be like to hold it in my hand like a rebel in a leather coat.
"I can teach you, eventually." He replied, his thoughts far off too.
"Will I be a guardian?" I asked after a few moments of silence.
He turned his eyes back to mine from where he had been examining his hands, a furrow deep between his brows.
"If you wish to be." He whispered in a sorrowful kind of way. "Guardian's are trained all through school, graduating at eighteen after years and years of practise."
"I've missed my boat then." I stated.
"It may not be too late, but you do not have to be a guardian. My sisters and mother aren't." He looked out the window and when I followed his gaze, I noticed we were nearing the station. "I think we better talk to Janine."
"How do you know her name?" I asked, how the hell did he know, was he really stalking me?
He turned back to look at me, his eyes looking happier than they had been since I first met him.
"Janine Hathaway is a famous Guardian, one of the best. But she left without a trace a few years ago." He said and I remembered how mom used to go away for big holidays at all times of the year. I can't believe she lied this whole time.
My arse she was going to Fiji.
We got off the train when it finally stopped and walked towards my house, him carrying all the bags and refusing to let me lift even one finger.
I noticed his steps were slightly jumpy, his face looking alight.
"Keen to meet the parents?" I asked, not realising how it sounded until it was out.
Yes, I wished he wanted to meet my parents, showing them what a decent boyfriend he would be to their daughter, but I knew it wasn't like that.
He didn't seem to notice anyway.
"Guardian Hathaway is like a celebrity in the Moroi world. It is a great honour." He spoke with a broad smile on his face.
"You won't be saying that when we turn up at her door step." I muttered, catching sight of my house.
We walked the rest of the way together, but keeping conversation to a minimal, there wasn't much you could talk about once you realise that your whole life has been a lie.
We walked into the property and up to the porch steps, taking a deep breath before climbing them and knocking on the door.
Mom must have been waiting for me to return because she opened the door before I had even dropped my hand from knocking.
The door swung open to reveal her looking like she hadn't slept in days, her eyes flitting to my face for a second with a relieved smile before noticing Dimitri at my side. Her eyes locked with him for a while and I saw her jaw clenching with withheld anger.
"I thought I told you not to go to Baia." She got out through gritted teeth, her eyes still on Dimitri.
I knew what it was like to be subject to that incriminating gaze so I reached for Dimitri's hand, squeezing his fingers.
He squeezed back but didn't release my hand, making me feel like a little kid in a candy shop despite this situation.
She had no right to be pissed. She wasn't the one who had been lied to her entire life.
"I thought it didn't exist." I told her just as sternly.
So there it is, sorry about the wait. Hopefully this will answer some of the questions you left in the reviews, the rest will be answered soon. Thank you for reading. Tell me if something is missing from my writing or if it's just plain boring. Please review! x
