Disclaimer: Richelle Mead is the mastermind that created Vampire Academy and all its characters. The plot and storyline are mine.

"And over there, you can get the most delicious pastries! They're absolutely to die for." The girl walking in front of me rattled on, like she had for the past two hours. We were walking through Westhaven's market district, and she was apparently pointing out every store she'd ever been in. I was grateful for the guide, but wondered why they had assigned someone with such a grating voice.

My first night at Court had not gone well. I didn't sleep well, and I had nightmares, as always. However, this time, they featured a man with a bushy silver mustache holding a knife to my neck. I woke up in a cold sweat and laid awake until Lissa came to my chambers. Coupling that with the fact that I didn't get to eat this morning, due to a member of the Queen's court showing up to take me to the tailor's, I was in an irritable, outright foul mood. "Mary!" I snapped, cutting off whatever she'd been saying about a stall we were passing and their vast array of inks from across the continent.

She turned around to look at me, eyes wide. "It's Mallory."

"Mallory, whatever," I sighed, waving my hand before resting it to my sweat drenched chest. I was used to being in the sun for all hours of the day, but never in such heavy dresses and thick fabric. "How much farther until we get to the tailor?"

"Oh, it's just up on the right!" she said, pointing ahead. Sure enough, I saw a needle and thread adorning a sign.

"Oh, thank God." I walked ahead, leaving Mallory behind me.

Eddie and Mason, the guards who rode next to me into the gates of the city, were with me. They picked up the pace and caught up to me. "My lady," Eddie began.

Cutting him off, I responded, "What did I say about that?"

He sighed, but I heard Mason laughing. "Rose."

"Thank you." I smiled in his direction.

"Do you know how long you'll be in here?" he asked, looking in the door. The only thing I could see were rows and rows of dresses, gowns and tunics.

"Uh, I'm not sure," I said, looking at Mallory who had caught up with us. "I'm not sure how long this sort of thing usually takes."

"Oh, just a couple of hours!" She said, sprightly. I rolled my eyes and suppressed a groan. A couple of hours of trying on dress after dress and being stuck with pins repeatedly. My day couldn't get much better, I thought drolly.

"Well," he started, looking into the shop and around the area. "Do you think you'll be okay with just Mason for a little while? If you want me to stay, I'll be more than happy to, there's just…someone I want to see."

I caught the slight blush creeping up the sides of his neck and his cheeks. "Go ahead, Eddie," I smiled. "I'm sure if a dress attacks me, Mason and I can handle it." I winked at him and we all three began to laugh.

With that he bowed and began to run off. "Thank you, my lady!" he yelled back over his shoulder.

"What did I say about that?" I called out to him, laughing and shaking my head.

"Lady Rose!" Mallory chastised me. "A lady of the Ivashkov court does not yell at anyone, especially a member of the guard!"

As I walked into the tailor, I couldn't help but roll my eyes. Aside from her extremely thorough guide of the market district, the only other thing I'd heard from her were reprimands. "Lady Rose, you mustn't slouch! Lady Rose, a woman of court must cover her mouth when she yawns or sneezes! Lady Rose, you can't wander off without your guards!" I really hoped she was just my escort to the tailor and wouldn't be helping the Queen with my lessons.

Mallory ran past me and embraced a man behind a counter. "Oh, Carter, how are you, my dear?" she asked, kissing both of his cheeks.

I tuned out at that point, skimming through the dresses. Mason stood at his post next to the door, and I vaguely heard Mallory explaining why I was here. I heard her say "Prince Adrian's guest" which had me rolling my eyes again. By the end of this shopping trip, I wasn't convinced my eyes wouldn't be stuck in the back of my head.

After a few minutes, Carter led me to a dressing room filled with large, poufy dresses. One by one I tried them on, as he poked and prodded until they fit my curves and covered all the essentials.

At some point, Eddie had returned, taking position on the other side of the shop from Mason. His cheeks were flushed again, but this time, I had a feeling it wasn't from embarrassment. I winked at him, as I spun on the pedestal for Carter, ensuring the fit of the dress was to his liking. "So, Eddie, was she good? Or are your cheeks that red from running to get back to us?"

Once again, I watched his cheeks and neck flare red, and he began to stammer. I heard Mason stifling a laugh. I also heard another voice I was quickly getting used to. "Lady Rosemarie! That is a completely inappropriate topic for a lady of your stature to discuss!"

"Of my stature?" I asked, incredulously. "You do realize a week ago I was shoveling horse shit, right?"

Mallory gasped, and I thought for sure she was going to pass out. No such luck. Instead, I felt a sharp prick against my ass. "Ouch!" I exclaimed, jumping slightly. I had not anticipated the needle actually piercing my skin.

"Forgive me, my lady!" Carter bowed quickly and began to apologize repeatedly.

I bent down in front of him. "Hey, it's okay. It's fine," I said, lifting my hands in a show of surrender. "Just caught me off guard, that's all. Don't worry about it." To be honest, I was pretty surprised he was able to even poke me with the pin through all the layers and layers of fabric.

Mallory had composed herself. From the look on her face, she was getting ready to say something about my "stature" again, when someone cleared their throat from the door way. We all turned to see who had joined our little adventure. "Adrian," I said, surprised to see him.

"Prince Adrian, Your Highness!" Mallory squeaked out, before bowing. I heard Eddie and Mason murmur the same before bending at the knee for their prince. As he began to walk toward me, I noticed Carter had run back behind the counter upon Adrian's arrival.

He stopped in front of me and smiled. I returned it, as he began to inspect the dress. It was a dark green, long sleeved ball gown with a high collar and lace trim everywhere. It was made of crushed velvet, and, while it was beautiful, it looked like it was made for an 80-year-old woman. Adrian stifled a laugh and then looked back at me. "What the hell is this thing? Did you pick this out?"

I shook my head. "No. When I arrived all the dresses were previously pulled for me."

He shot a look at Mallory and said, "Were they now?" He turned around and walked towards her. "I recall," he said, stopping in front of her and folding his hands behind his back, "telling you to bring her here and to allow her to pick out her own dresses; to have them custom made if she so chooses."

Mallory's face had gone pale. "Your Highness, I just wanted to make sure she was appropriate for court. The reputation of the court-"

"Appropriate?" Adrian asked, a harsh laugh coloring his tone.

"As she so eloquently pointed out to me, not even a moment ago, she was close to a savage less than a week ago. And now she-"

"And now she is my betrothed," he said, cutting her off. He turned to the members of the royal guard who had accompanied him. "Loren, Dean, see to it that Lady Mallory makes it back to the castle safely. Make sure she sees my mother and explains to her why she's been sent back to court without Lady Rose."

Malloy's smug face was paler even still, and her eyes were wide. Two of the guards stepped to her sides and she didn't move. "Lady?" The taller of the two guards said as he nudged her. She looked from both of their faces to Adrian's. Finally, her gaze rested on me, her visage holding a barely contained ire. With a haughty snort, she was escorted away.

Adrian turned to Carter and held his hand out to the man. "I'm sorry for the drama in your place of business, my good sir. Please, accept the royal family's deepest apologies." The man gingerly took his hand and shook it, giving Adrian a timid smile. "Now!" Adrian said, clapping his hands together enthusiastically. Slipping his hand into his pocket, he produced a large gold coin and slipped it into the man's still outstretched hand. "Let's get some dresses that are befitting of the lovely Lady Rose."

The old shopkeeper just stared at the gold coin. "Sir," he stammered out. "This is enough to buy my entire shop!"

Adrian just smiled at the man. "Then it shouldn't be an issue to take care of our girl, now should it? Keep the rest as a token of good faith from the royal family."

"No, sir! Of course not!" The man just smiled at Adrian, adoration coloring his features. "Thank you, Your Highness!" It was easy to see why the people loved him so much. He made sure they were taken care of, even if it was out of his own pocket.

Adrian walked back to where I stood, watching from atop the pedestal. "Pick out any dress you want, as many as you want, for any occasion. If you don't see what you like, have him make it. You have no restrictions here."

"Thank you, Adrian." I curtsied to him, as Mallory had shown me how to do before we left the palace that morning.

He laughed, and I shot back up to look at him. "That was the worst curtsy I've ever seen," he laughed, resting his palm against my cheek which I'm sure was inflamed with my blushing. "Don't worry though. Soon enough, you'll never have to bow to anyone ever again." With that, he kissed my hand and walked to the store's entrance. He paused right before he walked out. "Goodbye, Little Princess."

Hours, and what seemed like hundreds of dresses later, I was back in my chambers. I collapsed on my bed and let myself enjoy the soft mattress, silky sheets and luxurious pillows. I began to doze off until I heard a soft knock on my door. I slid off the bed and was stifling a yawn when I opened the door. There stood the queen, two members of the guard flanking her on each side. "Oh! Your Grace!" I said, bowing, low.

I heard a soft chuckle before she said "Rise, sweet girl."

I stood up and looked at her. "What can I do for you, ma'am?" I asked as I stepped to the side, wondering what could have warranted a visit from the queen herself.

She walked in and sat down on the small couch that sat at the end of my bed. She patted the spot next to her, indicating I should join her. I sat down and looked at her expectantly. "I heard that one of my ladies was a bit too forward today and overstepped her boundaries," she said, taking my hand. "I want to personally apologize for that. Lady Mallory has always gone above and beyond what was asked for her, but it seems that today, she was out of line."

"It's quite alright, Your Grace," I said, quickly. "No harm was done."

"Please, call me Daniella," she reminded me. "I was going to have Mallory help me with your lessons, but now, I feel it might be better to have another member of my Court aid us." With those words, my door was opened and a beautiful girl stepped through. She had long, black hair and her eyes were a beautiful blue-grey. She looked like she couldn't be more than a couple of years older than me. "Rose, this is Avery Lazar," Daniella said, introducing the young woman. She curtsied to me, and I nodded in response. "She has been in my service since she was eight years old. I believe she will be a great asset to you in the coming months."

"Months, Your Grace?" I asked.

She smiled at me. "You've only just turned 17, correct?" I nodded. "To become Queen, you must be 18 years old. So, until then, there's no rush on having the royal wedding. Until you marry Adrian, we'll have a sort of class, three times a week. That way, you'll be more than prepared when the time comes." She smiled at me, and I couldn't help but smile back. She said a few more things, and then she and Avery left my room, arm in arm. I sank down onto the edge of the bed and let her words sink in. In less than a year I would be married. In less than a year I would no longer be Rose Mazur. In less than a year I would be Queen of Aliyore.

I felt a panic attack growing and decided the best thing to do was get out of my room. I changed out of the thick, heavy dress and found a simple grey tunic and brown pants in the back of my closet. I put on my riding boots and pulled my hair back. Slipping out of my room, I tried to remember the quick tour Adrian had given me the night before. A few turns and a flight of stairs and I was out of the east wing. Past the parlor and the throne room, where I heard murmuring voices, and I would come to the war room. The door across from the war room would lead me down some stairs, and from there, I would be able to follow my nose to the stables.

As I walked into the barn, the first horse I saw was the hulking beast that was Cherny. He was just a commanding in a stall as he'd been in the field. As I passed the shelving, I grabbed a handful of grain and slipped into his stall. I fed him and ran my fingers through his thick, black mane. Out of the corner of my eyes, I saw a glimmer of the light skin I recognized. Blistet was in a stall a few rows down. I made my way to her and ran a hand down her glossy coat. She turned her head toward me, and I rubbed her nose.

After a few minutes, I walked back out of the barn and headed back toward the castle. As I got closer, I heard the distinct sound of battle. At first, I was worried. Was the castle under attack? Should I warn somebody? It was only when I heard the cheering that my curiosity was piqued. I rounded the corner and found a bunch of guards circled around two men. They were in the midst of a duel. I pushed my way to the front and watched them fight. Not long after I arrived, one of them took a "fatal blow" to the chest and stepped back, indicating he had been "killed". The winner, a large man with a long, braided beard stepped forward to cheers and yelled over the crowd. "Who's next?" he cried as his eyes skimmed the crowd. I saw the disdain in his eyes as they landed on me. "And what do we have here?" he said, taking a step forward. "Well, well, well. It seems we have a little lady in our midst. Come to watch the fun?"

"No," I said, taking a step forward. "I've come to join in."

The crowd silenced almost immediately. "Little girl, I've been in the King's Guard all my life. I've been dueling my own brothers since I was 16. I've never lost a fight. You might want to run along, and go find something to sew."

I could feel my blood beginning to boil. I reached toward the man who had just lost and held my hand outstretched. He looked from my hand to my face, and finally to the sword he still held. After a moment he held it out to me. Taking it from him, I made a quick assessment. It was blunt, so a killing blow wouldn't be easy. I looked into the face of the first man. "Are there any rules I should know?"

The man looked down at me and growled. "Don't lose." With that, he swung his sword at me.

I had been underestimated my entire life. It was clear that this man had assumed the same thing. I quickly rolled to the side and ended up behind him. He spun, quicker than I would have imagined and took a quick jab toward my chest, obviously wanting to end this as quickly as possible. I jumped back, but not before a swing of my own sword grazed his armor. I was on the defensive but knew I needed to get a few blows in occasionally. After a few evasive maneuvers on my part, the man charged at me full speed. I jumped to the side and landed a blow to his ribs. This caught him off guard and gave me the opportunity to go on the offensive. I pushed at him, swinging my sword, but was blocked at every blow. I was backing him into a corner, literally, and he knew that. As he felt the walls closing around him, he spit on my face and shoved me backward, when my shock took over. I landed in the dirt and rolled away, jumping up right before a sword dug into the ground where my hand had been seconds before. "That's not very fair," I growled at him, wiping his spit off my cheek.

"Sorry, little girl. The only rule is 'Don't lose'." He lunged at me, and this time, instead of swinging back, I grabbed his wrist, twisting until the sword dropped from his hand. As I elbowed him in the face, he stumbled backward. Giving me an opening, I swept my legs beneath his feet, causing him to fall over. I pressed my sword against his neck and looked down at him. The anger in his eyes faded, and he seemed to accept his defeat.

I pulled my sword back and turned to walk away. Unexpectedly, I felt a heavy blow against the back of my head and fell to the ground. I put my hand to the back of my head. Pulling it back around, I saw it was covered in blood. I rolled over just in time to hear another sword unsheathing. The man dropped the blunt, practice sword and stood above me holding a dangerously sharp blade. He pressed it against my neck, and I felt it pierce the skin. I could feel blood trickling down to the dirt where I lay. "But, I killed you." I said, my voice dripping with venom.

He moved the sword down slightly, and I felt the cool air on my exposed skin as he cut my tunic open. The thin piece of fabric covering my breasts was all that was left. He pressed the sword over my heart. "No, you didn't. But," he said, pausing to move the sword to the fabric. "I'm going to kill you. But first, I think I'm going to have a little fun with you." With that, he cut the fabric, exposing me to all who were watching the duel.

And then a sword was run through him from the back. He began to cough up blood and I crawled away, trying to cover myself. It was then that the sword he had been holding dropped from his hand and his limp, lifeless body fell to the floor.

My eyes flew up to see Dimitri standing over the soldier's dead body, eyes blazing in fury. He picked me up and silently carried me toward the castle. The stunned soldiers just stood there until Dimitri yelled over his shoulder, "I want his body cleaned up and these barracks returned to rank by the time I get back. If anything is in disarray when I return, whoever is responsible will be stripped of their titles and exiled immediately." I heard a commotion behind us, but I couldn't bring myself to turn around. Dimitri set me on my feet carefully and took off the cloak he'd been wearing, draping it around my shoulders, covering my exposed body.

As we entered the castle walls, Dimitri led me up a set of stairs and into a part of the castle I hadn't been in yet. We came to a door, and he unlocked it and pulled me inside. He sat me in a chair, and I wrapped my arms around my body, looking down. He sat in chair in front of me, putting his hands on my arms. "Roza," he whispered. When I wouldn't look up at him, he tilted my chin up and I looked into his deep, brown eyes. "Are you okay?"

I nodded, unable to find my voice. He tilted my head higher and looked at the cut on my neck. It had already stopped bleeding. "Am I going to live, Comrade?" I whispered, as he continued to check out my wound.

I heard a soft chuckle, and he let go of my chin. "I think you're going to be okay."

I moved my arms and felt a wetness on my chest. I opened the cloak, careful to keep my breasts covered and saw a second gash on my left breast, right over my heart. Dimitri carefully lifted his hand to my chest and was about to touch me when his hand suddenly stopped. "I…" he stammered. "I need to clean this wound. It's deeper than the one on your neck."

I nodded and he removed the cloak. He stood up and gathered the things he needed; antiseptic, gauze, creams and wraps. He sat down again in front of me, and I was holding the tunic together. He touched my hand. "Roza, I need you to take off your shirt so I can clean it." It was barely a whisper; his voice rough.

I let go of the fabric and he pushed it off of my shoulders. It pooled in the chair around me and my breasts were completely exposed to him. I heard his sharp intake of breath, but as soon as I looked up at him, the emotionless mask had slipped into place. He wet a piece of cloth with the antiseptic began to clean the wound. I hissed and tried not to move as it burned and stung. "I'm sorry," he whispered, his voice low and husky. He cupped my breast to open the wound slightly and clean out any dirt that had made its way inside. His hands were rough and callused from many years of training, and though I was in pain from the wound, I couldn't help but think about how good his hands felt on my skin. I'd never been this exposed to a man, and, although I felt extremely vulnerable, I knew I was safe with him.

He dressed the wound and laid the gauze over it. As he lowered his hand, his thumb grazed my hardened nipple, and a gasp left my mouth as I felt my arousal pooling in the pit of my stomach and between my legs. He looked up at me, and his eyes had darkened with lust. They were nearly black and I felt as if he could see directly into my soul.

"Dimitri," I whispered, his face just inches from mine. My gaze flickered between his eyes and lips, wondering what it would feel like to have them pressed against my own. I touched his face, and his eyes slipped closed, leaning toward me. Somewhere, outside the room, a door was slammed.

Dimitri jumped away from me, and his chair fell back. He stood, his eyes roaming the room, avoiding my gaze. He stalked into a small room off to the side, and quickly returned with a red tunic. "Here," he tossed it to me without looking my way. "Put this on. I'll escort you back to your room." The change in his mood was so abrupt, it startled me. However, I knew what we had almost done was wrong; very, very wrong. I was betrothed to the Prince; the person Dimitri was sworn to protect.

I stood up and put on the tunic. As I did, I was hit with a smell that could only be described as purely Dimitri. It was musky and strong, yet not overpowering. I sighed, and he glanced over his shoulder. Seeing I was decent, he said, "Come on," and walked out the door. I followed him, and he slowed his steps until I caught up. The walk to my room was mostly quiet. We were almost there when he broke the silence. "What the hell were you doing out there anyway?" He asked, anger lacing his words.

I shrugged. "I went out to see the horses and just, sort of, ended up there."

"Do you remember what I told you when we were on the way to Westhaven? These soldiers are savage. They take what they want, and if they can't have it, they kill for it. What if I had shown up two minutes later? Do you realize what he was going to do to you?" We were in front of my door now, and he was so angry that he was shaking. He grabbed my upper arms again. "Rose, I can't be there all the time to come and save you."

I jerked out of his grasp. "I didn't ask you to! I can take care of myself."

His gaze hardened. "Like you took care of yourself down there, when he was about to rape you?"

The idea brought me up short. I was silent for a minute. "I can take care of myself," I whispered. "I'm just…out of practice. I need to train."

He sighed. "No, you don't need to-"

"Yes, I do, Dimitri!" I cried. "I don't want to be a helpless damsel in distress! That's not who I am. Don't you see that?"

He was quiet for a long moment and just looked at me. Finally, he spoke. "Fine."

I blinked. "Fine?" I asked, confused.

"Fine," he repeated. "I will train with you, and you can tell no one. The Queen would kill me if she found out I was training you."

That was the last thing I was expecting. "That's not what I mea-"

"This is your only option. Take it or leave it," he said, cutting off my protests. "You can either stay in the castle all day, or you can train with me once a week."

Once a week? No, I thought. "Every day," I said, standing up straighter and looking directly into his eyes, a feat seeing as I was only 5'7" and he was a foot taller than me.

"Twice a week," he replied, sighing.

So we were doing this. "Five days a week."

"No, Roza, we can't-"

"Every other day. That's the only way I'll do it. If you won't help me, I'll find someone else." He ran his hand through his hair, and I noticed it was loose and unbound again. "Please," I pleaded, hoping to convince him.

He sighed and looked at me. Finally, I saw the resolve settle on his face. "Fine," he said. "Every other day. But," he said, seeing the smile light up my face. "You have to be in the courtyard at 5:30 every morning. You miss one practice and the deal is off."

I groaned, but nodded my head. I stuck my hand out. "It's a deal, Comrade."

He shook my hand as a smirk played across his lips. "Oh, Roza, you have no clue what you've just gotten yourself into."

AN-

So a little bit of filler, but we got a few exciting things out of this chapter. We got Rose being a badass, Adrian being a total sweetheart and our first heated moment between Rose and Dimitri. Coming up will be Rose's first training session with Dimitri, "Princess Class" with Avery (can't you just smell the drama brewing?), more information on Christian and how he got to Court and, possibly, a little back story on Dimitri.

Question of the week: What song has been stuck in your head lately? New or old, country or rock, doesn't matter!

As always, reviews make me smile! I try to respond to every review, but with the family drama in the past few weeks, I haven't been able to get to all of them, and for that, I am so sorry! I'm getting back on that!

Please, don't forget to favorite and follow the story and me as an author if you already haven't! It makes my little heart happy when I get an email randomly throughout the week telling me I have a new follower!

Also, thank you so much to everyone who reached out to me after I posted my note last week. For those that don't know what's going on, my grandfather took a pretty bad fall last month. He slipped and fell off a curb while helping some of his friends from church move and fell face first onto a cement driveway. He's 6'8", so he had a long way to fall. Since then, he's fallen twice and doesn't attempt to catch himself in any way. We had to rush down to Alabama last week when he fell and sustained a pretty wicked injury on his head. Until now, it's just been bruises, black eyes, and busted lips. They think when he took that first fall, he may have had some neurological damage. Seeing as he's in his early to mid 70's, it's not hard to believe. He's doing much better now and is back home resting. He's on his way back to being himself and just has to have someone with him for the next few weeks until he can fully recover. I can't thank you all so much for all the prayers and good wishes. Writing this story has helped me make friendships that I wouldn't have any other way and I'm so thankful for each and every one of you.

Until next week!

Shelby