*Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Academy, Richelle Mead does!*

Four hours later, we were on a plane to the moroi Court. I had made Jill sit next to her mother in the hopes that they would talk and make up. Jill was still really upset, which made sense since she had been lied to her entire life. This plane ride would be relatively short, only a couple of hours, so I didn't even try to sleep.

I laid my head against Dimitri's shoulder. "What's going to happen to Jill?" I asked him nervously.

He lowered his head to look at me. "I don't know," he told me honestly. "But we'll protect her. No one wants to see her get hurt. No one wants to see her be another piece in the Royal's messed-up game. We'll be able to protect her."

In that moment, I wasn't sure if he was trying to reassure me or himself. I took his hands in mine. We spent the rest of the flight like that, both of us lost in our own thoughts.

When we had landed, we drove the twenty minutes to Court. We drove in a Honda Civic. I swear, Dimitri had no originality when it comes to cars. His driving is sponsored by Honda. The ride flew by and before I knew it, we were outside the Court gates.

"Where can we find Guardian Tanner?" I asked the guardian at the gate so only he could hear me. I wanted to surprise Sonya with this.

"His permanent assignment is the Guardian Archives," the guardian answered me in a monotone voice.

I nodded as Dimitri drove forward and led us to a parking garage. I turned to Dimitri. "You take Emily and Jill to the queen. I'll meet you there soon," I promised him.

He looked at me confused, but nodded. "I'll see you later," he told me, lightly pressing his lips to mine.

Everyone started to follow him, but I stopped Sonya. "Sonya, you're coming with me," I told her quietly.

She looked at me confused, but waited while the others left. "Where are we going?" She asked me curiously.

"You'll see," I told her mysteriously.

Her eyebrows knitted together in confusion, but I didn't elaborate. She followed me out of the parking garage to Guardian Headquarters.

I went straight down to the Archives. Mikhail's back was facing us when we had descended the stairs. He didn't see us, but he heard the gasp that escaped Sonya when she recognized him.

He turned around slowly. His eyes widened as he took in every inch of Sonya. He turned to me. "How?" He asked.

"A spirit user restored her," I explained to him quietly.

That eliminated any doubts he had. He crossed the room and threw his arms around Sonya. "My love," he whispered to her over and over and over again.

I felt like I was intruding on something. "I have to go see the queen. I'll see you guys later," I told them as I headed out.

"Rose?" Mikhail called when I was about to walk out the door. I turned to him. "Thank you," he told me. Tears were streaming down his cheeks. I gave him a small smile before I left.

I went straight to the queen's chambers. She, Dimitri, Emily, Jill, and Sydney were standing around awkwardly. When I entered, everyone visibly relaxed.

"Ah, Rosemarie," she said. It took all of my self-control not to flinch at the use of my full name. "We were waiting for you. We are going to head to the Council Hall. I feel that it is time to make my announcement."

I knew what her announcement would be. She had told Dimitri and me her plans before we left for our crazy quest for her… I mean our honeymoon. I was still a little angry about that.

We walked to the Council Hall in silence. I don't know how she managed it, but when we entered, the Hall was packed. Moroi and dhampirs alike filled every seat.

Dimitri and I stayed by Jill and Emily on the side of the platform as the queen approached the podium.

Adrian entered the Hall and was about to walk right past us when I stopped him. "Nominate Lissa," I told him quietly, but urgently.

"What?" He asked, looking at me like I had two heads.

"Just do it!" I ordered him.

"When?" He asked.

"When the time comes, it will be obvious," I told him.

The queen cleared her throat in the microphone. "You should go find your seat," I told him quietly. I pushed him lightly to make him move.

He found his seat, but kept shooting us confused looks.

"I have a very important announcement to make," Tatiana said loudly into the microphone. Her voice echoed across the hall. "I have given this great consideration and I feel that this will be best for my people. The time has come for me to step down as reigning monarch. I will still be present to help train whoever you elect to govern our people."

Silence met her announcement. I saw stunned looks on everyone's faces. "This decision is final," Tatiana went on, oblivious to everyone's shock. "As current reigning monarch, it is my responsibility to oversee the trials before elections and to make sure the elections are fair and just. I now must ask all of the Royal families to reflect deeply. It is your responsibility to select members of the Royal family to represent you. One member from each of the families may be nominated, with the exception of the Ivashkov family."

Tatiana gave everyone several moments of silence to reflect on whom they would want to lead them. "I am now accepting nominations," Tatiana said, her voice clear and confident.

"I nominate Ariana Szelsky," declared a moroi I didn't recognize.

"I second the nomination," the man I recognized to be my mother's charge called.

"I confirm the nomination," a third man said.

And that's how it started. Royal after Royal were nominated, until all the families except for the Ivashkovs and Dragomirs were represented. I looked at Adrian, waiting for him. His eyes locked with mine as he took a deep breath.

He stood up. "I nominate Princess Vasilisa Dragomir," he declared.

I saw Lissa shrink in her seat shock. Christian jumped to his feet. "I second the nomination," he said, going along with it.

I nudged Jill slightly. She took a deep breath and walked onto the stage. Dimitri and I followed, standing behind her. We knew this wasn't going to be pretty. Taking the microphone Tatiana offered her, she said, "I confirm the nomination." He voice was strong and powerful despite her trembling body.

Everyone in the room was silent, then all hell broke loose.