Disclaimer: I do not own Bloodlines or these characters, they all belong to Richelle Mead.
Sorry for taking so long to update. I kept trying to make this chapter longer, but failed miserably. Hope you enjoy, even if it is rather short. Feel free to review and tell me what you think so far!
Adrian
Months and months went by with little improvement, it seemed. I had been training with Dimitri, supposedly one of the best guardians out there, and was getting no where. He told me that I was doing well, but I had two eyes and could see for myself. I didn't feel like I was any stronger or improving in any way. "Keep running daily to improve your speed. You will never be able to match a strigoi, but you might get fast enough to save your own life." he told me at the end of our lesson.
"When are we finally moving past this? You have been showing me how to dodge and run, not how to kill them. I'm getting bored and this is getting us no where." I told him, feeling tired of all of this. I might have made a promise to the alchemist, but there were limits to where I would go. Months of pointless instruction was almost as bad as college had been. I was ready to let this go and try something else to research spirit.
Sonya had been watching us quietly and did not like my comment. "Adrian, this is how you are going to survive against one of them. You need to be able to get close in order to stake them. Without fire using moroi around here, they won't be distracted enough for you to stake them." she argued. "How about chains? Isn't that how Robert managed to stake you?" I suggested, liking this option better. It was a quick way to get this over with, a way that didn't involve nearly as much effort.
Dimitri sighed, shaking his head. "After all you have learned, you think that it is a reasonable course of action to restrain a strigoi? They want nothing more than to kill you. Restraining them not only takes far more skill than you possess, it also poses the risk that they might escape." he responded. "Well, why don't you restrain them? I was told I'd have my own personal army of guardians with me." I told him, still liking this plan better than our original.
"It could work, Dimitri. He does have a point, this time." Sonya said, making me feel pleased. Finally someone around here understood and valued my opinion. With the boss on board with me, there was no way Dimitri could win this argument. "Fine, restrain the strigoi. Don't blame me when something goes wrong." he said, shrugging and walking away. It was rare for him to get angry and it surprised me that we had managed to get him so worked up. "He had a fight with Rose before your lesson. Just give him a moment to cool off." Sonya explained, seeing my confusion in my aura.
I decided to use this time to try and tell Zoe the good news. She was the one who was more invested in this than any of us, regardless of the others' opinions. It was night, so she should be sleeping now. Leaning back, I began to focus on meditating and calling up spirit to form a spirit dream. It would be hilarious to see her reaction to one of them, especially with their beliefs on vampires and magic. My eagerness over the chance of some entertainment soon faded. No matter how much I concentrated, no dream formed. She was not asleep, not yet at least. It was strange, considering that it was almost midnight.
"What is that alchemist doing this late at night?" I mused, more to myself than anyone else. Sonya frowned, realizing what I was trying to do. "You can't reach Zoe? That is strange. She should be resting since she has school tomorrow." she responded, even though I hadn't meant to ask her a question. Something was wrong, that I was certain of. Zoe's sister must have found her, following through on the promise in her note from three months ago.
