So yeah… I'm finally back. Sorry for the wait and I'm not going to even fiddle with some lame excuse as to why I've been absent. I simply just forgot to write and time slipped away. Before I knew it a year had passed and a group of angry/ awesome/ sad readers wanted me to get my ass back in gear and start working on this story again. So here I am!

~18 Years Old, Two Weeks After the Incident; One Month and Two Weeks Before the Current Timeline~
~The Mazur Estate: Istanbul, Turkey~

Dear Janine,

I know we never got to meet at the Academy, but I know you probably found a lead on Tasha and had to go investigate that first. Rosemarie is doing much better than the last time I wrote. Her friend Vasilisa mended her arm, and the strange sickness Rose had for a trying time has seemed to disappear for the time being, but I am still concerned as to where these migraines originate from. Dimitri and Rose are in a steady relationship to my delight, and he is guarding her as protectively as any of my best men could.

However this letter carries some grim and game-altering news. Two weeks ago an attack was made on the house right after Rose's graduation party. Ozera and his men busted through the windows of the kitchen, and attempted to take Rose as she was eating a midnight bowl of cereal (some things just never change). Luckily she yelled for us and we were able to help fend off the attackers with the help of my two spies. After a series of events we had Ozera restrained on the floor when he pulled a knife and attempted to sever Dimitri's throat. Rose tackled the both of them, injuring herself on the knife and accidently snapping Ozera's neck. Tasha had fled the scene before we could restrain her. Now she was full command of the Ozera group and will stop at nothing to get to Rose. I'm very concerned Janine. I need you to try and find Tasha and take her out. If this task cannot be completed then please come home to us and help me protect our daughter.

Abe

I woke up in the middle of the night when a sharp twinge of pain ran through my left side. The physical evidence of the knife had healed over with the exception of some tender areas of pink flesh, but I would still feel twinges of pain when I moved the wrong way, as I had when I tried to shift in my sleep.

"Roza? Are you okay?" Dimitri sat up in the bed, the covers pooling around his waist. I rubbed the area between my shoulder and my collar bone to alleviate the sudden pain.

"I'm fine, I just tried to put my arm under my head again." Dimitri gave me a skeptical look before sighing, and wrapping an arm around my waist to pull me back down with him. I was secretly thankful that Dimitri was so cuddly at night, especially on the nights the house was extra cold or when the nightmares were worse than usual. My initial nightmares of Tasha had faded considerably until two weeks ago. Now I dreamt of that awful sound Ozera's neck made, while Tasha stood with Dimitri in another place, kissing him until she looked at me and whispered, "Game Over Mazur." I always woke up at that point, torn between fury, heartbreak, and regret. Sometimes I would cry silently until I fell back into oblivion from exhaustion, and sometimes a cry would rip its way free before I could stop it. Dimitri would wake up and hold me tight while whispering comforting things in my ear.

"Any nightmares tonight?" I shook my head before remembering he couldn't see me very well in the dark.

"No, shockingly, just moving my arm the wrong way. I'm fine though." Dimitri pulled me tighter against him before whispering how he couldn't stand to lose me. How he would crumble and die if I wasn't in his life anymore. I sighed deeply before muttering I loved him too.

We lied awake for some time, neither of us breaking the silence but I had so many questions with no answers and possible scenarios trapped in my head, I just had to ask Dimitri a question to get them to stop.

"Do you want kids one day?" I felt Dimitri start for a moment, then start laughing softly before turning over to face me again.

"What brought this on?" I scooted closer to him, but still stayed far enough so that I could see what little of his face was illuminated in the soft moonlight filtering through the shades on the window. I shrugged.

"I have so many unanswerable questions and bad things popping up in my head. I feel like just metaphorically planning something will help take my mind off of things and help me de-stress a little. Dimitri hummed in agreement before answering my question.

"I think I would, but what about you Roza?" I laughed lightly; happy Dimitri was willing to go along with my little fake scenario.

"Perhaps, I know I'd be scared out of my mind, but I'd have you with me to help and stuff at least." Dimitri pulled me a little closer before continuing.

"Yes, I'd never leave your side Roza, especially if a child or children were involved." My recently emotionally cracked heart seemed to mend itself a little. I had been feeling such awful regret and horror at myself for killing someone. Sure he had been insane and trying to kill me or Dimitri, but that hadn't given me the right to kill him in return. Well, I guess it did but I was still feeling bad about the whole ordeal.

"Hey, stop thinking about that. Let's back up a little and ask ourselves if we were to get married, where would it be?"

"I've never been one of those girls who planned out her entire wedding by the age of sixteen, but I like the thought of a beach wedding." He hummed in agreement again and I knew he wanted to me continue.

"I like the feel of the sun on my skin, especially when the sun's setting. I remember not wanting to leave the beach and go back to the house when Liss and I were at the beach when we were thirteen. I just felt so… peaceful out there."

"I do like the sun as much as you do. What time of year would you want to do it? Don't forget poor me will be sweltering in a tux." I laughed gently and let him pull me so that my head was lying on his chest as he rolled to lie on his back.

"I think that maybe in the spring would be a good time, when the weather is still cool but starting to warm up. Kind of like when there's a cold day and the only thing keeping you from wearing a long-sleeve shirt is the sun."

"How many people would we invite? Would it be a small wedding or a large one?"

"I like the idea of just friends and family, which in itself is pretty large." We both shared a laugh, knowing what I said was true.

"Where would we go for the honeymoon? Would we stay on the beach, so somewhere else, or is there anywhere else specific you have in mind?" I had never really thought about the honeymoon per say. In all honesty the thought made me blush, despite Dimitri and I sharing a bed for over a year now.

"I've never really thought about it. Where would you want to go?" Dimitri's hand rubbed my arm gently as he hummed in thought.

"I like the idea of staying on a beach, but since the weather wouldn't be warm enough we could possibly go to a different beach where the weather is hotter. Maybe even the Mazur private beach?" I nodded happily at the idea.

"The sun plus Dimitri equals a happy Rose." We both laughed before I yawned.

"Are you getting sleepy Roza?" I nodded.

"A little, but I want to keep talking. This is really nice."

"Alright, let's skip forward again. If we decided to have kids, and it was a girl, what would you want to name her?"

"That depends; do we want her name to be Russian, Turkish, or American?"

"I'm not sure Roza, I guess it depends if a certain name pops out at us. Do you have any ideas?"

"I've always liked the name Alexandra, and it's Russian, perhaps Annabeth but it's American. I don't want her to get made fun of for a name that may sound silly to other kids her age. Which makes me wonder, where would we live? Here in Turkey or in Russia? I guess that would influence some things."

"I think it would. Where do you want to live?" I shook my head and rose up to look at the man letting me make every decision.

"Don't ask me what I want; what do you want to do? Honestly?"

"Honestly?" I nodded and rested my head back on his chest.

"I think I'd like to live here, with your father and mother, and perhaps even my mother and sisters. Abe's been trying to get them to come here for around a year now. Mama and my father have been separated for some time now, but she's still afraid that if she goes too far and he will get angry and drag her back." Dimitri sighed and laced his free hand with mine that was lying on his chest.

"I haven't seen Victoria since she was born. What's she like now?"

"She acts like any typical fifteen-year-old. Bratty, complains constantly, always wanting to go out with her friends late at night. She's definitely a Belikova though—she's been kicked out of St. Basil's twice now for beating the crap out of some kids; two boys actually who had been picking on her and her friend. One day she snapped and they've never bothered her again." I laughed and could only picture a younger version of Karoline going crazy on some mean boys.

"I want them to come here too. I miss your family Dimitri." He kissed my head and agreed with me.

"So back to baby names, if it's a boy what would we name him?"

"Bob."

"No, and I know you're just trying to be funny Roza."

"Hey who said I'm trying? You're smiling aren't you?" I grinned and looked up at Dimitri. He was grinning like I was, happy to just be enjoying ourselves for the first time in a while.

"Alright but seriously, what would you want to call him? I kind of like the name Markus." I scrunched my nose up and shook my head.

"There was a boy named Marcus at St. Vlads when I was eight, and he constantly tried to pick fights with me, stole my lunch, and things like that. I beat the crap out of him and his parents withdrew him and transferred him to another school." Dimitri was laughing after my little story, and I was all too happy to join in with him. That kid really was an asshole though.

Before we could continue our discussion, we were both drifting off into unconsciousness, forgetting for the first time in forever all of the troubles and worries on our shoulders.

The next morning I was half asleep at the bar in the kitchen, my head resting on the counter while Dimitri made me a cup of hot chocolate. I didn't even look up when I heard footsteps enter the kitchen.

"So Kiz, how'd you sleep last night?" I mumbled out something even I didn't understand.

"Understandable. So when were you planning on tell your old man about your big news?" I still didn't move and flipped him off before letting my hand drop back down to its hanging position.

"Well since my daughter has yet to become functional, you'll have to stand in Dimitri. When were you two planning to tell everyone the big news?" I groaned and slowly looked up as Dimitri set my steaming mug of wonderful chocolate goodness in front of me and took the seat next to me.

"I'm not sure what you're talking about Abe." I lifted up my head just far enough to be able to take a drink of the hot chocolate. Too bad it didn't get to stay in my mouth as what my father said next made me spit it out all of him and Dimitri.

"That I'm going to have a grandchild!" Cue the spewing of the wonderful chocolate goodness.

"What the hell Abe, where did you even get that idea from? I'm definitely not pregnant, nor will I be for awhile yet." He started to laugh hysterically while I got up to retrieve some paper towels for poor Dimitri. Abe could soak in it for all I cared.

"I'm sorry Kiz; I had to mess with you. I overheard just a snippet of your conversation last night, but caught that everything was just theoretical. I couldn't pass up the opportunity to screw with the two of you once the idea popped into my head." I let my head lightly slam back onto the counter and groaned.

"You are such an ass sometimes, you know that?"

"Where do you think you get it from, wonderful daughter of mine?" He walked off, still laughing to himself as I wallowed in my reluctance to get up awhile longer.

"You know, Rose, we could have just went ahead and told him you were pregnant. Maybe he would have taken the new better that way." I quickly caught on to what Dimitri was trying to do.

"Dimitri, keep your voice down! I don't want him to know I'm really pregnant yet. What if he gets angry and tried to hurt you?" We were both grinning as we moved to the hallway slowly, waiting for my father to come running out or something.

"Rosemarie Mazur! How dare you lie to your father!" Abe came out of his office in his, as I liked to call it, angry business man stride. I waited until he was standing before me to playfully punch his arm and say,

"I'm sorry Baba; I had to mess with you. I couldn't pass up the opportunity to screw with you once the idea popped into my head." I was grinning evilly while I spoke, watching the grin slowly spread across his face as well.

"I think I may have trained you too well, Kiz. Well played, well played."

So this is basically a filler chapter to help get into the swing of things again. I was originally not going to post this chapter at all and simply let it set in my files, however I actually liked the relaxed and easy theme of it too much to discard it. It wasn't written in the plot I have in my notes, but I rather liked it and decided to add it.

To the readers who have stuck with me through these past two years or so, I thank you immensely. I also wish to thank those of you have written me e-mails and personal messages telling me to more or less get my ass in gear and do some writing. I'm very trilled to be starting back up with story, and to finally finish it. Depending on how well of a response I get at the end of the story will determine if a sequel follows or not.

Happy reading