Chapter 11: Royal Gala

Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Academy. So first we hear from Rose, then Dimitri and then from Jill. Happy reading almost 3500 words. Don't forget to check out the poll on my home page.

RPOV

Royal council meetings were the most god awful monotonous thing on Earth. They were even worse than sitting through Alto's class at the Academy. It had been two weeks since I had taken my position on the council and already I was in way over my head. I had no idea what I was doing. I did my best to fake it and act accordingly as a princess should.

I was surprised that after our work out two weeks ago, Dimitri had been at the gym every time I went in there. It was comfortable and we worked out simultaneously side by side in relative silence. It unnerved me at first, because every time I was around him I slipped up, first telling him I missed the sun and then making fun of his crap taste in music. Two days ago I'd nearly lost it after I caught myself almost call him Comrade. I needed to stop seeing him like this, but I couldn't help it. It was just like old times or it was for me. We talked a bit as we ran although it must have been tough for him to run at a snail's pace with me. He even encouraged me to run faster and timed me so I could see if I beat my record, which had improved immensely these past few weeks. After our work out we would each go our separate ways to shower and chance and inevitably he would show up at my apartment with two chocolate donuts, a hot chocolate and every other day, a bag of blood.

I had just finished my bag of blood when I heard a knock at the door. Dimitri was already here reading the newspaper. He looked up from his coffee and moved to answer the door.

"Queen Vasilissa," he greeted her with a small bow. I snickered as I felt her annoyance through the bond. Most of the time he called her Lissa as per her request, but he was at work right now or so he thought so he addressed her formally being the ever polite man he was.

"You can call me Lissa, Guardian Belikov," she said giving him a look.

"Soraya it's good to see you," she said stepping inside. She was dressed casually or casually for Lissa in a pair of salmon colored capris and a white eyelet top. Her hair was pulled back into a sleek ponytail.

"What brings you by?" I asked slightly put off by her being here. I hadn't been expecting company. Dimitri had suddenly felt comfortable enough here to read his paper at the breakfast nook the past few days and there was no way in hell I was kicking him out even if the place was in disarray. Entertaining the queen in my very messy apartment was less than ideal. Of course Lissa wouldn't say anything, but I knew she was thinking it.

"I was wondering if you'd like to head over to the spa with me this afternoon. I thought we could both use a little R and R and besides the gala is this evening. I figured you hadn't made an appointment and this close to the event hair and make-up is usually all booked up. I have a bit of pull when it comes to these things and managed to snag a double appointment for mani-pedis, massage, facials as well. What do you say?" she asked cheerfully. I could tell she was hopeful that I would join her. She really wanted to be friends with me and that made me ecstatic. I could also sense that she had an ulterior motive for asking me, but I couldn't quite figure out what it was. She was preoccupied with so many things right now that her mind was a jumble.

"I suppose I can get away for a while," I told her.

"Great. It's all set up for two o'clock. I'll see you there," she said. "Oh and I will have my royal cleaning service stop by," she commented giving the room a once over. "Aria is really good. She's a lovely woman too," she said taking her leave.

"Is it really that bad in here?" I asked turning to Dimitri.

He glanced around, gave me a look and promptly returned to hiding behind his newspaper.

"Ugh, fine. I'm a slob, but whatever. I live alone. Whose business is it anyway?"

"I didn't say a thing," he said and I could almost see a smirk from behind his newspaper.

"Not everyone can be a neat freak like you," I muttered.

"I'm glad you came. I got us a private suite so we can talk," Lissa said as I arrived at the spa for our appointment. I was completely dreading tonight and as much as I wanted to spend time with Lissa, I couldn't help but wish she knew who I was and I could stop this charade and just be me again. Being a princess was hard work and I was so not interested in politics at least moroi politics anyway. All they did was bicker about who deserved guardians and bragged about their money, titles and whatever event they were attending next.

They were social climbers all of them and I couldn't fathom spending the next sixty or so years listening to them prattle on about their meaningless lives. One thing I had realized in the past month is that I hated being moroi; in fact, I think I actually hated moroi. Not all of them of course, but the vast majority. I didn't need the fancy house, I didn't want all the money, I had no desire to be royal and I hated being treated like I was fragile. I had thought that once I was a guardian that Dimitri would see me as his equal and he had for a few short weeks and now, now he would never see me that way. He would always see me as a damsel in distress, someone he had to protect because I was weak. He would never see the real me again and that made me so miserably unhappy. I knew that it wasn't my purpose in life to be happy and that I was here simply to pull the darkness from Lissa, but I couldn't help but wonder why after all I'd given up, why couldn't I have some semblance of happiness? Why wasn't I allowed to have love?

"Are you thinking about your family?" Lissa asked as Ambrose led us into a private suite. I nodded. After all, Dimitri was my family.

"You miss them huh?" she asked quietly as we took our seats next to each other.

"I do, more than anything. I hate that they will never see me again," I said a tear making its way down my cheek.

"I know sweetie, it's awful, but I can promise you, it does get better. In time you'll learn to appreciate the good memories you have of them and the pain will fade. It will never leave you completely, but you'll find new happiness." I could tell through the bond that she really felt that way. I allowed her to wrap her arms around me as I broke down holding onto her for dear life. It felt so good to have physical contact with someone I loved. I was doubtful that it would get easier for me seeing is that I was able to see my family and friends whenever I wanted, only they couldn't see me. It wasn't exactly the same thing.

"Sorry to interrupt your majesty, princess, but what color would you like?" Ambrose asked holding out a tray of polish for us to choose from.

"What color is your dress for tonight?" Lissa asked as she selected a pale pink polish.

"Uh, I'm not sure," I said.

"You do have one don't you?" she asked horrified at the thought that I might not have anything to wear.

I nodded. "I do, I just haven't decided which one I want to wear yet," I said trying to sound confident.

In truth, I hadn't the foggiest idea of what I was going to wear. I had perused her ball gown collection for a few minutes a couple of weeks ago and all I could think was who the hell would wear any of those poufy obnoxious contraptions? The discomfort level was enough to make me squirm around in all that itchy lace and tulle.

"I'll take that one," I said pointing to a particularly fetching shade of red. Beside me Lissa stifled a sob.

That was the one Rose always chose when we were having a girly night at St. Vladimir's she thought sadly. I could tell she felt guilty for being here with me or well the new me. She felt like she was cheating on the old me by trying to be friends with the new me.

"So you and Dimitri seem to be getting along pretty well," she said as we lay face down on the massage tables with two masseurs working on us. Ah, so that's her ulterior motive for getting me alone. She was worried about Dimitri.

I sighed. "He's okay," I said not elaborating.

"He's really a nice guy once you get to know him and he needs a friend right now. He spends a lot of time alone and it isn't good for him. It isn't good for you to be alone either. I figured the two of you might be able to get through your grief together. He's been through a lot. He lost someone he loved last year," she said softly awaiting my reaction.

I nodded. "I heard about your friend. I'm sorry," I told her. Pain flowed through her as she thought of me, but she pushed through it.

"You remind me a bit of her," she said.

"I do?" I asked trying to play dumb.

"Sure, I mean she was a guardian, but she had such a strong will just like you."

"Thanks, I think," I told her not knowing whether or not that was a compliment.

"Dimitri says you like to spend time in the gym."

"I don't want to be helpless," I stated firmly.

I could feel her lips curve up into a smile even though I couldn't see her.

"You should join Christian Ozera's defensive magic class. I think you'd like it."

I smirked a little. "I'll think about it."

"How can we be of service Princess?" a tall moroi woman asked as soon as I entered what was probably the most expensive shop at court.

"I need a gown for this evening," I told her.

"Of course. What color were you thinking of? Did you want pink like always?" she asked and I made a face.

"No, I was thinking either black or red," I said not wanting to show up in some poufy pink nightmare.

"What style? I just received a new shipment of ball gowns," she said excitedly.

"Actually I was looking for a simpler silhouette." She frowned, but showed me gown after gown and they were all hideous and so not my taste. If I was going to spend good money on a fancy dress, it would have to be something spectacular.

"What about that one over there?" I asked pointing to a simple satin gown on a mannequin. It was a deep shade of red, one shouldered with ruching that came to a form fitting point at the waist and flowed just slightly at the hip until it reached the ground.

Her eyes widened. "Are you sure you want to try that one? It isn't your usual style. It's much more form fitting," she said nervously.

"That's the one I want. I'm sure," I said. If people were going to stare at me, which they were, then I was going to give them something to stare at, especially Dimitri. I decided that instead of staying away from him, my new mission was to make him fall in love with me, the new me, however improbable that might seem.

DPOV

It was six thirty and I stood at the back of the ballroom in the palace. I wasn't officially on duty, but it was either protect the Princess and keep an eye on Lissa at the same time or stay in my room and think about how much I missed Rose. Lissa had already made her views on my seclusion quite clear and I was trying to take her advice. I'd taken to visiting my charge during the early mornings after we worked out together. She was a quick study and didn't seem to need tips on how to work out. It was her strength and coordination that needed work. I knew she felt helpless and I wanted to take that feeling away for her. In a way she reminded me a lot of Rose, in fact sometimes too much. They had the same bad eating habits, the same short temper and were both slobs. Sometimes the things she said to me were things she couldn't possibly know about and for a minute I'd have the feeling that Roza was here with me. It was silly and I knew it. In fact, it was sick. I was sick. I was using my charge as a replacement for Rose. It needed to stop, but I couldn't help myself. For some reason I felt good when I was with her. She agitated me to no end sometimes, but then she would do or say something that made me realize what a good heart she had and my anger would melt away.

I was hoping to get her to open up to me one of these days, but every time I tried bringing up the subject of her family or Andrew, she shut me down. It was too soon and I didn't want to badger her, but sooner or later she was going to have to take blood from a feeder again. It wasn't a huge deal for me to provide her with a pint of blood every other day, but if anyone found out there would be hell to pay. I would most likely get reprimanded and reassigned and I didn't want that to happen. Not to mention what she would think of me if she ever found out. I knew it was wrong, but she was afraid and after what happened with Walter, I knew she needed some time and if I was able to give her that by providing her with my blood a few times a week, then I was more than happy to do so.

The music started and the fanfare began so I turned my attention to the grand staircase and watched idly as Lissa was introduced along with a few dozen other royals. My jaw nearly hit the ground as I laid my eyes on Soraya. She was standing at the top of the staircase alone. No one was there to escort her and she looked anxious. What really shocked me though was her choice in attire. She looked absolutely stunning in her long red gown. It showed off her delicate décolletage and fit her slim figure like a glove. It was a far cry from what I had ever seen any other royal wear to one of these god-awful boring events. I hated to admit that my body was slightly turned on at the sight of her. Immediately I tore my eyes away from the stairs feeling ashamed that I'd just leered at my charge like she was a piece of meat. It felt like I was betraying Rose. I decided the best way to deal with this was to go into full on guardian mode and ignore her for the rest of the evening even if my traitorous body ached to be next to her.

JPOV

"Will you stop using so much Spirit? I'm going to snap one of these days with all the darkness you're exuding," I griped as I stood next to Adrian at the royal gala. For some reason he'd been using enormous amounts of spirit these past two weeks and I couldn't understand how or when? He must be dream walking with someone because I never felt him use it during the day. I knew he was concerned with the new Lazar Princess, but I couldn't put my finger on what he was so worried about. She had suffered a great loss and had gone a little wacky and dumped her boyfriend who was currently standing across the room drooling over her as he drowned his sorrows at the bar.

It was hardly worth the energy Adrian was putting into figuring out what was wrong with her. I supposed they were friends and he was concerned, but still, I found it odd that he was expending so much effort on her. I mean he was madly in love with Sydney so I knew he wasn't interested in her romantically.

"I'm sorry. I'm trying to figure out some things. I'll try to cut back," he said sipping his coke.

"Why are you drinking coke? I could really use something stronger," I complained. I was entirely on edge because of all his dream walking and I couldn't be seen drinking myself, but if he got a good buzz going, I could reap the benefits.

"I need to stay sober tonight," was all he said before walking away in the direction of Soraya Lazar. He stopped just a few feet shy of where she stood speaking with Abe Mazur and I couldn't help but wonder what his obsession with her was so I decided to pop into his head for a little look-see. I set down my drink and headed for a small secluded area behind the kitchen so I could be alone when I spaced out.

He was listening intently to their conversation, which seemed to be centered on defensive magic. I didn't really see how that was supposed to be interesting to Adrian, but as I took in her aura I realized what his fascination with her was. She was shadow kissed. She had died in that accident and someone, a spirit user had brought her back. How had I not been able to pick that from his brain? He was getting pretty good at blocking me out and that was annoying.

She spoke with Abe for a little while longer and then they both walked over towards the bar area. He handed her a drink and as she took a sip her eyes rested on the back of the room. I could see her aura flush bright red. She smiled and at first I had no idea who she was looking at after all there were only guardians back there, but then there it was in the back of Adrian's mind. He was wondering why her aura lit up so bright every time she was around Guardian Belikov. He then began to think of all the nights these past few weeks that he had been trying to get into Soraya's dreams, only he couldn't.

It was like she never slept or if she did, then he couldn't enter her dreams. That wasn't possible. There had never been anyone he couldn't dream walk, that is anyone who was alive. The wheels in his head were turning like mad and he couldn't figure out why he couldn't find her in her dreams. If she had died and he was sure she , and someone had brought her back, then he should be able to find her, but he couldn't which meant that either his powers were waning or she hadn't really been brought back, but then if she hadn't who was in her body or was it an illusion? He thought back to the time he made the charms for Rose and Dimitri so no one would be able to identify them. That was very powerful spirit magic and he wanted to know who else besides him, Lissa and Sonya were capable of it. I pulled out of his head more confused than anything and with a killer headache.

"Screw it," I grumbled grabbing a flute of champagne off a passing tray downing it in one gulp and reaching for another. All his conspiracy theories were making my brain hurt. One thing was for sure, now that I knew something was up, I was definitely interested in finding out. After all, this new princess had close contact with my sister and I wasn't about to let anything bad happen to her.

Uh oh! Not only is Adrian on her trail, but now Jill! What do you think of Rose's new attitude about Dimitri? Don't foget to vote in my poll on my home page=)