Hello ladies and gentlemen (are there any?)! Thank you very much for your reviews! I got 16 so far! WOW!
I'm thinking about pushing it to the limits with the reviews, but I'll give you a break! Have fun with the next chapter and don't kill me afterwards! ;) ... cliffy ...
CHAPTER 8 – The Guardian Council – The Attack
The Council went on for this for the next two days. A lot of talking was disrupted by a meal and continued after that. Even though the list of themes was quite long, the ruling themes stayed the education and possibility to allow Moroi's to use their magic.
I listened carefully which was recognised by my mother as well as Alberta. Sometimes she even called up my name to ask for my opinion which made me very proud. This was my chance to show that I've grown up and thought about things not only concerning me but also the other Guardians and even the Moroi.
Luckily I didn't meet Dimitri anymore and I was able to relax a little bit. Even though I knew he hadn't left the Councils meeting he was nowhere to be seen but from time to time I heard the mention of his name in some of the smaller discussions at lunch.
On the third day a break was planned – a free day for everyone to explore the city or do what they wanted. My mother, I and a small group of Guardians decided to make a trip through the city. We were a group of five Guardians and after breakfast we took off.
The first hours of the day we just strolled around in Dallas a little bit. Since it was nice weather we mostly stayed outside and enjoyed the sun. It was something that a Guardian started to miss quickly, since we had to adapt to the Moroi way of living – at night. Moroi didn't get along with the sunlight so they worked during the night and slept during the day.
After lunch we separated into pairs and me and my mother decided to do some shopping. I was excited since this was something I had never before done with my mother. And thanks to Lissa – I got my own personal account with a credit card and she always filled it up. The first time she gave me this card for my own account I asked her why she was doing this. Lissa answered with her sweetest smile: "You're giving up much for me, so this is something I like a small payback. Use it for whatever you want!" I was so happy that I hugged her tightly. Lissa was not only my best friend for nothing.
In the first shops of the huge mall called 'Galleria Dallas' we already had bought some smaller stuff. I was excited to go to the Abercrombie & Fitch store, which had recently become my favourite store since the clothing was absolutely my style. I just loved everything and Lissa had already offered to buy me the whole store. Unfortunately she was only making a joke.
As soon as I saw THE sign I squealed and ran into the store, my mother closely following behind. When I turned around I saw her looking not so sure if this was the right place for her. But still she entered the shop and started looking around.
Soon I had found the section with the t-shirts and jeans. Faster than a tornado I vanished in the locker rooms, already having told the saleslady what I wanted to try on. After trying on the first shirts, I heard my mother entering the booth next to me.
Sometimes we met outside the booths; we critically looked at each other. My mother did look so different in jeans and t-shirt that I had to look two times to recognize my own mother. I was only used to her wearing the formal Guardian clothing, black pants and a white shirt. And she looked – I'm being honest now – ten years younger and a lot more like me.
After we've both tried on everything we wanted, we went to the cash desk and paid.
When we left the shop, we decided to take a break and to look for a coffee bar (preferable a Starbucks. Soon we've found one and sat down, totally groggy from the shopping. Around us was a sea of bags, filled with clothing, jewellery, books and other stuff.
"May I join?" suddenly a deep voice sounded – again – behind me. Oh, the day just turned bad!
"Yes, of course, Belikov!" My mother answered. Sad, I thought sarcastically, I had just started to like her.
Dimitri sat down right beside me and a little bit too close for my liking. My heart started to race again like it has in the elevator and I just hoped, nobody would notice my reddening cheeks. The memories of the incident in the elevator where just too strong for me to ignore them.
As soon as the waitress arrived, we ordered our coffee and some cake. While eating our cakes and drinking awesome coffee my mom and Dimitri talked about the Council meeting and different other topics. None of them wondered why I didn't say anything at all. Only Dimitri sometimes looked at, while I stared straight into my coffee cup. My heart was still racing.
After a while my mother excused herself to go to the restroom and this left me with Dimitri alone. I so hoped he wouldn't …
"Why are you not participating in our conversation?" he asked – no, whispered – in my ear.
… talk to me! Oh, such bad luck with me today!
"I don't want to." Maybe he would get the hint …
"Why not? You have an opinion to all these topics, why not discussing them with us?" he questioned me further.
… or not!
"Why can't you just leave me alone?" I hissed at him, letting Dimitri see all the closed up anger and pain in my eyes. I knew that this was not really nice of me, but I wanted him to understand … I'm not over the rejection and disappointment I had felt on the balcony in the lodge when he told me that he would leave with Tasha.
"Because … because I just can't. You're much too important to me than to leave you alone." Dimitri admitted and for the first time I heard something like pain in his voice.
"This is a lie and you know it!" I accused him, so riled up that I nearly screamed at him. His hand on my arm reminded me that we had listeners and I turned my voice down immediately.
"This is no lie!" he hissed back, looking me in the eye. These wonderful brown eyes where full of emotions: anger, amusement, admiration, anger, lust, … I would have never thought that you could see so many emotions in the eyes but I was absolutely sure that they where there.
"Yes it is!", I retorted, "Because if I would have been that important to you, you wouldn't have left me in the first place. So don't dare telling me I'm the one lying!"
I saw my mother returning and turned my back on Dimitri, acting like I would watch the people walking past. In reality I didn't want my mother to see the anger and pain in my eyes as well as the tear that slowly made its way down my cheek.
My mother and Dimitri went back to their discussion where they had stopped earlier and I only listened with one ear. When an idea formed in my mind, I jumped up, scaring both of them.
"I forgot something. I'll be right back!" I said and left the table without waiting for a response.
Soon I had found what I was looking for: a door to leave the mall and to get some distance to Dimitri. Why I felt the urge to leave the mall and not just the area where the café was, I didn't know.
As soon as I stepped outside I felt the fresh cool air on my face and I could breathe again. The night had already arrived and it was very dark in the small alley where I had left the mall. For a few minutes I strolled around a little bit, hearing the noise of a big street nearby. It was the perfect place to calm down my nerves and to sort out my thoughts.
I was unable to fight the returning memories. How it felt to kiss him, to be close to him or even just to do the training together with him. I had been weeks of happiness for me, which actually had been the first time for me to be happy for ME, not for somebody else. And it had felt so good until Tasha came with her offer. But the thing was that I couldn't find myself being mad at her. During the first days I always wanted to kill her – and I knew that I had the strength to do that. But after a few days I lost that feeling, because I realised that it had not been Tasha's fault – it had been my own. I had never given Dimitri the feeling that I actually needed him. I had always wanted to show everybody that I was independent, that I didn't need anyone else. And – I have to give him credit for it – I could be very childish sometimes.
While I was deep in thought I didn't realise I was wandering even deeper into the alley where the darkness surrounded me completely. Suddenly I felt to urge to vomit. It was so strong, that I bent forward and pressed my arms to my stomach.
When I had found the strength to look up again, deep red eyes stared into mine …
Well, cliffy's can be so mean, can't they? *lol* You know the key to get the answer in the next chapter! *lol*
Love you guys!
