A few days passed and the rumours had died down. I could still hear some people whispering but it wasn't as bad. After my morning practice session with Dimitri I walked into the dining hall only to be tackled by Lissa. 'Tackled' might have been an over exaggeration but still she launched herself at me and caught me by surprise. Once she let me go and I could breath again she led me to the table and said she had some important news. I waited patiently for us to both be seated before I spoke.
"So what's the news Liss?" I asked.
"Well my parents are taking me out of school for a few days and said I could bring a friend and I want to bring you," she said. Her face was beaming with happiness.
"Oh god Liss. Thank you so much but what about training. I need to keep on top of my training or ill be kicked out," it was true. Now days that was the only thing on my mind. I was constantly worrying about my training, nothing else was important anymore. And as much as I wanted to go with Lissa, I knew I would never be aloud out.
"I have already thought of that. I got Headmistresses Kirova's permission for you to come and to bring Guardian Belikov along. You can still train and have fun with me. And there's anther bonus. Remember how you said you needed to go shopping to get more clothes? Well the place we are going to has got a mall right near by so it's a win, win situation, " with each word she said I could feel her excitement growing.
"How could I say no?" Seriously how? She had figured out every detail leaving no loopholes where I would have an excuse not to go. After that we parted ways and I went back to my room to pack. I packed everything I would need including a couple of nice dressed and shoes in case we went out for dinner. Once I had finished I took my bag and headed out to meet Lissa and her family at the front gate.
"Rose, meet my family," said Lissa as I approached. A middle-aged woman with strawberry blonde hair and blue eyes stood next to a man with platinum blonde hair and jade green eyes. Lissa's parents. Looking at them it made sense. I could see Lissa was their daughter. All though it was very obvious she took after her father with her hair and eyes. Behind them stood a boy. He looked older maybe in his early twenties with sandy blonde hair and the same jade green eyes. Must be a Dragomir trait.
"Hello Rose it's very nice to meet you," said the woman kindly.
"Thank you lady Dragomir," I said using her title.
"Please call me Rhea after all were not in court," she smiled and winked at me. I felt relieved that they were being casual and not like the stuck up royals I had heard of. "This is my husband Eric," she said gesturing to the man beside, he have me a small smile and a nod. "And this is my son Andre," the boy came forward and I got a better look at him. He was cute with his hair styled in a way that made it look like he had just woken up. He smiled at me and I smiled back before speaking.
"Its really nice to meet you all," I said politely. They looked like the perfect family with loving parents and gorgeous children that will grow up to follow in their footsteps. The Dragomir family was the smallest of the royal families but it was one of the most respecter and powerful families.
"Ready to go?" asked Eric. I turned to Lissa
"Where's Di-…guardian Belikov? How is he going to get there?" I asked.
"He's going with our guardians who are following behind us. He will meet us there," she said. I nodded and followed her to the car.
It wasn't luxurious for royals but it was easy to blend in, after all a limo would stand out like a red dot on a white shirt. The trip was long but I didn't mind. He whole way there we talked. I heard many stories about Lissa and a few times told my own stories trying to not bring up my past at the same time. When we got there the sun was just starting to rise over the mountains. We were in a three-story loft with a white picket fence and lavender letterbox out the front. It honestly looked like a house for a commercial.
Once inside I saw just how perfect this house was with six bedrooms. Lissa's parents were in the master, Andre was in one on his own and Liss and me were sharing a room. Their two guardians both had their own rooms, and Dimitri had one right next door to Lissa and me. After we had settled in and eaten dinner everyone was tired and we all called it a night. The next day Lissa promised to take me shopping. I was happy that I would finally be able to blend in dressed differently than blazers and pencil skirts. That night I slept peacefully with me head against the comfiest pillow and snug in the king size bed with Lissa beside me. I had never had a sleepover before but this felt pretty good.
I woke up to the sound of someone knocking on the door. I looked at my clock and it said it was eleven am. Way too early. Sill the knocker didn't give up. I quietly rolled out of bed and opened the door to find Dimitri.
"What are you doing!" I whisper shouted.
"It's time for practice," he said.
"Its eleven in the morning. I have only had four hours sleep. And Liss is still sleeping."
"If you want to go to the mall you will have to go early. This is a human town and they run on a human schedule. You're going to need to go in about two hours," he said. It made sense so without another word I nodded and told him id meet him outside. I got ready quietly not to wake Lissa. Once I was outside I felt something in my chest. I looked up and squinted at the sun above me. I had forgotten how much I missed full daylight. I closed my eyes and let the warmth wrap around me. My skin tingled and made my heart race with happiness.
"Am I interrupting something?" asked a deep voice behind me. I rapidly turned around and saw Dimitri half smiling at me.
"No. I was just… thinking," it was the lamest lie ever but, it was the best I could come up with.
"Come on. We had better start to give you time to get ready before you leave," he said and walked off. I followed close behind to the back of the house. There we did the same things that we did at the academy minus the laps because there was no track out here. Once I finished I went back to Lissa's room and found her up and dressed.
"Hey. How was training?" she asked cheerfully.
"Pretty good. It's a little different doing it in the woods. I'm so used to the academy's gym but I suppose I will be doing the real thing outside of the gym so good practice."
"That's good. Have a shower, get dressed and I will meet you down stairs for breakfast before we go." She instructed. I nodded and wondered what I was going to wear.
She was dressed in a white skater skirt, baby pink ruffled shirt with a pair of white heels and a fashionable white jacket. She looked like a teenage while I looked like a secretary. The shower washed off all dirt and sweat that I had gotten on me from training and also relaxed the muscles that I had been using a lot of in the past few weeks. The outfit I wore was something I hoped would help me blend in with Lissa. I wore one of the dresses I brought to out for dinner in. it was grey dress with a white collar and black ribbon at the neck. The dress finished about mid thigh and made me look like a schoolgirl. Still it was tight and fit me perfectly at the top before flaring out at my hips. To top it off I wore knee high boots and added my black leather satchel bag. I wore make up but only concealer and powder to cove up my tiredness. Once I was ready I headed down stairs. Everyone sat at the dining table talking. When I entered everyone turned to look at me. Lissa's brother Andre gave me a look.
"You look great Rose, but you do know were only shopping right its not a fashion show," said Lissa jokingly. I laughed softly feeling a little self-conscious.
"Yeah this is one of the most casual outfits have. That why I need to go shopping," I said. She nodded.
"Well you have got me to help you there," she said. "Hungry?"
"Um, no I'm fine. I think my stomach is still waiting for my normal wake up time."
"That's ok we will have your breakfast, my lunch when we get back. lets go, we have got a long day a head of us." She said. I felt excited to go shopping with a friend like a normal teenage would but I still felt totally alone. Maybe a change is all I need.