Disclaimer: I don't own Vampire Academy, Richelle Mead does.

RPOV:

Dimitri and I spent a week at the Court. Between preparations for Ivan's funeral, and sitting, waiting for my mother to wake up, Dimitri had me train with other female guardians at the court. It was a serious improvement when I could actually practice the moves on another human being. I picked up the techniques faster, and was actually able to see how the moves were in battle, and how they affected my opponent. It also helped me perfect my stomach protection techniques; I was now positively sure no one could hurt my stomach.

My mother woke up on the third day of our stay. I was so happy, I started crying, although it didn't take much to set me off now. I immediately forgave my mom for everything, and she even shed a few tears. She was still in the hospital, and it would be a couple of months before she was able to leave, but at least she was no longer in a comma.

It was now Christmas and I was 4 months along. The Academy was going to let the students go to a ski lodge in Idaho for Christmas due to the increased number of Strigoi attacks.

After Ivan's death, Dimitri and I became closer than ever. He now had a tendency to touch me, small touches, of course, building up to bigger ones. A pat on the shoulder, a hand along my elbow, finger tips on my back. I didn't mind for two reasons. One, it helped become more comfortable around him to the point where each touch made me feel less uneasy, less shock, and more used to it. He could now wrap his arm around me and pull me briefly into his side.

The other reason was slightly more embarrassing; I simply liked it when he touched me. I liked the feel of hid large warm hand clasping my elbow as he showed me a move. Or the casual hand on my lower back, guiding me. Every time he touched me, little jolts made their way up my body, warming me as they went. It gave me a dangerous thrill, which I blamed on my hormone ridden body, but I had a sneaking suspicion that it had little to do with my hormones, and a ll of it to do with me.

One day, about a week before Christmas break, my mom came to visit with her charge. She appeared in my doorway, bright and early, before even training.

"Hey, Rose," she said, walking into my room.

"Hey mom," I replied as I stumbled around my room, getting ready for practice. We weren't really doing all that much, but ever since I began being able to handle some touching, Dimitri has attempted to fight with me, with mixed results.

"What are you doing here?" I asked curiously.

"Well, as you know, with the increased amount of Strigoi attacks, St. Vladmir's is going to the ski lodge in Idaho. My charge is also going, which means I will be too." she answered.

I looked at her excitedly. "We get to spend Christmas together?" I exclaimed happily.

Mom smiled. "Yes, that means we get to spend Christmas together."

"Well, we must have Christmas dinner together! You, me, Lissa, Sparky, Eddie, Mason, Mia, and Dimitri!" I was practically jumping with joy.

Mom laughed. "That's quite a list you've got there. But Guardian Belikov? Why him?" she asked.

I shrugged. "Well, his family is in Russia, and, as odd as it may sound, I'm like his only friend. And I trust him. Oh, and I'm comfortable around him, unlike any other guy." I grinned at her.

She looked surprised – and relieved. "Oh, you're getting over it?" she asked hopefully.

I nodded. "Yeah, sort of. I mean, I'm okay around Dimitri, but around any other guy...they can get closer now, within two feet. Sparky and Mason can get within one, although that's simply because they don't know the meaning of personal space," I joked.

Mom looked at me with concern. "They're not hurting you, right? Cause if they are, I'm going to kick their asses." she threatened.

I laughed. "No, mom, they'd never do that." I assured her. I checked the time. "Oh, crap, I gotta go to practice! Bye mom, see you later," I kissed her on the cheek and flew out of my room, or as well as I could with a four, almost five month baby in my stomach.

I made it to the gym in record time. I was glad the morning sickness finally went away; it had kicked my butt.

"Hey Comrade!" I called out as I made my way to the changing room.

"Hi Rose!" he called back.

I changed quickly and came back out. Practice was the usual, then breakfast, then onto class. As I walked into the classroom, I got a surprise. My mom and two other guardians were standing. Yes! I thought. Free day of stories!

Once everyone settle down, Stan told us that the guest guardians were going to tell us real life stories.

I waited patiently through the two guys' stories, impatient for my mom's. Once she was reached, she definitely didn't disappoint. By the end of the story, I was at the edge of my seat.

When she finished, everyone went wild, asking a million questions. I just sat quietly, listening to her explain, proud that that was my mom. (quite different from the books, huh?)

When I went to afternoon practice, Dimitri sat there, reading a western.

"Don't change," he said without looking up.

I looked at him quizzically. "Why not?" I asked.

He held up a finger. He kept reading until he flipped the page, then put a bookmark between the pages. "Because there's someone I want you to meet. A friend of mine." he finally said.

I raised my eyebrows. "Another one?"

He grimaced. "Don't say that Rose," he warned.

I looked away. "I'm sorry," I whimpered, biting my lip.

"Oh, Roza," he said softly, coming up to me and running a hand softly across my cheek. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that."

I swallowed the lump in my throat and leaned into his hand. Warm little shocks traveled from his hand to my cheek, all the way to my chest, kick starting my heart into over drive. I swallowed again, this time for a completely different reason.

"Rose?" Dimitri asked, looking at me with concern. "Are you alright? Is it too much? Do you want me to move?" He started to move away, but I grabbed his hand, holding it there.

As soon as my brain caught up with my actions, I dropped his hand and pulled away blushing. "Sorry, I – I didn't mean – " I stuttered out.

"Don't worry about it," Dimitri said gently, looking at me with soft eyes. I looked back at him, something passing between. I started getting lost in his eyes, his beautiful, beautiful eyes like two oceans of chocolate, as deep as space, as bright as the sun.

I didn't realize we were unconsciously leaning towards each other until I noticed how close his face was to mine all of a sudden. The sight of him so close made my breath hitch. The sound of my uneven breath seemed to break the spell, and both of us immediately leaned away.

An awkward silence hung between us, the first awkward silence we've ever had.

"Um," he ran a hand through his hair. "Uh,"

I saved the day. "You were going to show me a friend of yours?" I supplied.

"What? Oh, oh, yeah, that," he stammered out.

I looked at him with shock. This is the first time I have ever seen him so shaken and disoriented.

"Come on," he said, seeming to come back to himself. He walked out of the gym with me trailing behind him.

He led me to the edge of campus, almost to the ward line.

"Are you taking me somewhere private where no one would ever find me or hear me and have your way with me?" I joked, bumping my shoulder against his – or more like his elbow since he was so tall.

He simply gave me a look. "Not funny Roza," he muttered.

I sighed. He had a point.

We walked until we reached a cabin. I was surprised to see it there. "Why is there a random cabin out in the woods? My theory about you having your way with me in the woods is sounding more and more plausible," I smirked when he frowned down at me.

"Oh, come on Comrade! Loosen up!. You haven't laughed at one of my jokes in like...an entire day. What's wrong?"

He looked down at me, his face softening. "I'm sorry Roza. It's just, well, it seems rude. You're a pregnant woman, and my mama taught me to be polite and nice and helpful to pregnant women."

I glared at him. "You did not just pull the pregnant woman card on me, Comrade. You totally owe me like a dozen donuts and a bacon pizza. And it better be here by the morning!" I snapped, my hormones and a bit of darkness taking over.

Dimitri held up his hands in surrender. "Yes ma'am. They will be there tomorrow for breakfast instead of practice." he promised.

My heart warmed at his promise. I knew he would make good on that promise, too; he'd done it before. "Thank you Comrade!" I squealed. "You're the best!" I quickly wrapped my arm around him and gave him a squeeze, then pulled away, skipping towards the cabin.

I smiled when I heard his chuckle behind me. "Where are you running off to, Roza?" he asked as he caught up with me with his mile long legs.

"To meet you friend." I replied happily.

He chuckled again. "Well, then let's go."

We walked up to the cabin, but no one was there, so we went around back. To my surprise, Lissa and Christian were also there, along with someone else. They were skating on the lake, but when they saw us approaching, they stopped.

"Hey Liss. Thanks for inviting me to the party." I said grumpily, but smiled, letting her know I was kidding.

"Oh, sorry, Rose, but you were at practice," she looked at me apolitically.

"It's okay," I waved off her apology. "I'm getting good food tomorrow; guaranteed to keep me in a good mood till lunch." I smiled.

Christian scowled at me, and I got the feeling I was interrupting a romantic moment. Oh well.

Dimitri and the other person were talking by themselves when I turned around.

Our eyes met, distracting her from her conversation. I saw a beautiful Moroi woman, tall, with long black hair, and brilliant blues eyes. There was a scar along her cheek, which sent a jolt of shock through me. I knew instantly that this woman was a fighter.

I stared at her scar, then smiled crookedly when I caught her eye. I swept my hair off my shoulder, showing the faint scars on my neck from when my throat was pretty much ripped out by his teeth. "I'll tell you mine if you tell me yours," I said, tilting my head slightly towards her won scars.

The woman smirked back at me. "Oh! Story time! I love story time!" she said sarcastically, but gave me a real smile, letting me know it was okay.

Dimitri chuckled next to me. "Rose, this is my friend Tasha. Tasha, this is my...student, Rose," he stumbled a little over 'student', and I knew he wanted to say friend, but it would seem weird. He out his arm lightly on my shoulder, a smile on his face.

Tasha grinned at me. "Hello, Rose."

I smiled back. "Hi Tasha."

Tasha looked around. "Well, it's cold out here; let's go into the cabin."

"Cabin?" I asked. "Aren't you staying at the school?"

Tasha shook her head, looking oddly bitter. "Oh, no, you see the school is a bit less hospitable towards the Ozeras, but particularly me."

"Towards...? Oh," I said, getting it finally. This was Christian's aunt, the one who defended him when his Strigoi parents came for him. That explained everything, particularly the scar, and staying away from the school. I nodded.

Tasha gave me a small smile. "Well, let's go, we can't have a pregnant woman getting sick from the cold," she joked. Or I hoped she joked, because if she didn't, she might get hurt.

We all walked into the cabin. It was surprisingly cozy; a fire burned in the fire place, or it did once Tasha lit it, the bed was made up with blankets, and there were a bunch of blanket and pillows in the font of the fireplace. We settled down among the blankets, me, then Dimitri, then Tasha next to him, with Lissa and Christian cuddled up together across from us. I sat close to Dimitri, left side of the body brushing up against his whenever he moved. I could feel that Lissa was curious as to how and why I was so close to him, but I put it to the back of my mind.

Once we were all comfy, Tasha turned to me. "So you wanted the story behind this?" she asked, pointing to her scars.

I nodded. "And I'll tell you mine," I replied, tossing my hair back again. I paused. "Well, only if you want it," I added.

She nodded. "Absolutely. Okay, so what do you know about what happened?" she asked, referring to Christian's parents turning.

I shrugged and glanced at Christian, remembering our conversation last year. "The basics."

Tasha nodded again. "Well, when they came in, I knew. I knew they were after Christian, so I tried to fend them off, resulting in this," she pointed to her cheek. "If the guardians hadn't come..." she trailed off, a faraway look on her face. I shuddered, knowing exactly what would have happened. She would have died, and Christian would have been turned.

"Well, anyway, it made me realize I couldn't spend my life hiding behind guardians, utterly defenseless, so I took up martial arts. I know work at a studio. I've been saving up all of my vacation for this. I haven't been skiing in a while."

"Wow." was all I could say.

Tasha grinned. "Now how about you? You said you'd share."

I shrugged. "You're story's a lot more impressive than mine. I was simply raped. Oh, and he practically tore my throat out biting me. Nothing like defending your five year old nephew from his Strigoi parents." I spoke casually, as if it meant nothing, but my heart was pounding. No one in the room knew about the bite, well, Dimitri had an inkling, but he never knew for sure until now.

"Oh," Tasha said softly, after a beat of silence. "Is that how...?" she let the question hang.

I nodded, knowing what she was asking.

"I'm so sorry."

I shook my head. "Don't be. Not your fault."

Tasha sighed. "That reminds. Ivan...God, I'm going to miss him. He was a great friend."

My eyes welled up with tears. "I miss Ivan too," I said, the tears spilling over.

"Oh, Roza," Dimitri murmured, pulling my into his chest. I buried my face in his shirt. One of his hands rested lightly on my back, while the other stroked my hair. He was careful to not make me feel trapped, and made sure he didn't breathe on my neck. I couldn't stand it if someone breathed on my neck; I freaked.

He let me cry myself out, murmuring Russian words into my hair, helping me calm. Damn hormones.

I felt surprise through the bond at my reaction. Lissa hadn't realized how close Ivan and I had gotten, considering the fact that she's never actually met him. After his visit, I had kept in touch with him through phones calls and emails. I could tell she was also surprised about how close Dimitri held me, but I put her curiosity to the back of my mind, focusing instead on Dimitri's scent. I loved the way he smelled, like aftershave and man. It was intoxicating.

I finally calmed down, but stayed hidden, inhaling Dimitri's smell a little longer before emerging back into the world. It was peaceful here, in Dimitri's chest. It was warm and soft, yet hard at the same time, and smelled like heaven. What was not to like?

I took one last breath before slowly pulling away from him. Dimitri pulled his arms away just as slowly, as if savoring the moment of closeness as I was.

"Thank you," I whispered.

He nodded, his face oddly relaxed, like he had let out a lot of tension.

There was a moment of silence after my break down in which everyone looked at each other awkwardly, before I finally said, "Hormones," and just like that, everything was back to normal.

The rest of the gathering was fun. It was almost curfew before we split up. I had gotten Dimitri to go with Tasha to Missoula for some shopping, and they were meeting in an hour. Dimitri was walking me back to my dorm.

"You know, even though the scars mess up her face, they make her even more beautiful. They show that she's a fighter, and she's strong. I like her." I said, looking ahead of my so I wouldn't trip.

"You're right." he said, sounding slightly surprised, like he hadn't thought of that. "And, what you did there, telling her what happened, that was brave too," he said softly.

I looked up at him, glowing with happiness. "Oh, that reminds me. I meant to ask you this earlier but I was distracted. Mom and I are having Christmas dinner with everybody, and you're invited. I guess I have to add Tasha to the list now," I thought out loud.

Dimitri looked at me with surprise. "You want me to have Christmas dinner with you?"

I looked at him puzzled. "Well, yeah, why not?"

He shrugged. "I don't know, I just wasn't expecting it is all."

"Well, you're invited, and you're coming, and that's final. Oh, and forward that to Tasha too, would?" I asked.

Dimitri nodded. "Will do."

We were in front of my door now. I didn't want him to leave, but knew he had to. "Well, bye, I guess, til tomorrow. Don't forget my breakfast," I added jokingly.

He smiled his full smile, dazzling me with it's brightness for a moment. "Wouldn't dream of it. Now go to bed Roza. You've had a busy day."

"Okay," I yawned. "Night Comrade. Be safe."

"Good night Roza," he murmured. "And I will, don't worry." he hesitated, glancing around for a moment before bending down and pressing his lips lightly to my forehead. I froze, all breath leaving my body.

He pulled away. "Bye Roza," he said, then turned around and walked away, disappearing down the hallway in a blink.

I stood by the door. I couldn't move. My mind seemed to be having a melt down. All of my senses were focused on Dimitri still; I could feel the spot on my forehead where his lips touched. I felt a smile on my face as my hand reached up to touched the spot.

"He kissed me," I breathed. Then I giggled. The giggled turned into full laughter.

I walked into my room still laughing. "He kissed me!" I exclaimed, thankful the walls were thick.

I got ready for bed with a smile on my face, and went to sleep with the memory of his lips on my forehead, and his arms around me.

A/N: I know everyone seems a bit out of character, but Rose is pregnant. Of course everything is different! I hope you all like this chapter, and I'm sorry for dropping off the face of the earth; writer's block. I have a poll on my profile page about Rose's baby; please vote! Thank you all for your wonderful reviews! I'm thinking next chapter you get to find out who did it! Sorry in advance :P Enjoy the story, and Happy Easter!