I stood next to Lissa. As was my place as her primary Guardian, even if she had a dozen more. She was sitting on her throne, her beautiful elaborate green dress flowing around her knees and down a few steps. The soft silk still showed the individual steps. Her other Guardians lined the wall close to her. Never far away, but none as close as me.

I still had a couple injuries that needed a bit more healing, but I was fit for duty again, even if standing around would exacerbate them. But I wouldn't miss today for the world.

Christian stood on her other side. As her consort he didn't have his own throne, but instead he stood next to her. His black suit brought out his icy blue eyes. He looked almost as regal as she did.

His trusted Guardian was a few steps behind him. Dimitri too was a little sore. But that hadn't stopped us from getting intimately familiar with our own bedroom again last night, or the night before… or the night before that. Which might have added to our overall soreness. It had been bliss after spending a few weeks in the small wagon to be able to explore each other again at our own discretion. We had taken our time and it had been amazing. I don't think I have ever spent so much time being naked in my own room, walking around, making tea, just because I could.

And I had enjoyed the view immensely when Dimitri did the same.

Today however, we were back on active duty. We had dealt with the Witch hunters. Those humans who were still alive had been handed over to the Vatican through an elaborate network Mr Sage had used. He had taken responsibility for the humans. He said humans should be tried and sentenced by humans. And in this he and Lissa had agreed. Both had been conscious of the fact that humans had followed this Strigoi willingly. Mr Sage had questioned the Witch hunters. How he had done this I didn't want to know, but apparently his methods had yielded 'reliable information'. Only those at the top had known what he was and revered Strigoi as some sort of Gods. These Witch hunters he had promised eternal life for their service. The rest had been fed a lie.

As Dhampir and Moroi or even gypsy, we knew the truth behind the Strigoi. The horror you could become. But most humans had no idea. We had to make more of an effort to keep humans away from Moroi and Strigoi. We also needed to have more contacts in the human world in order to conceal our presence and turn any humans over that wronged Moroi. Like the Witch hunters.

This had required a new sort of arrangement and that is why Lissa was sitting on her throne today, in full Queen get-up including her crown.

Mr Sage and Sydney were standing at the start of the throne room. They too were dressed rather fancy. The rest of Mr Sage's clan and two more clans were standing behind them.

Lissa got up and as a whole all Dhampirs and Moroi fell to their knees in recognition of their monarch and tradition. The gypsies made no similar move, as was expected. Lissa made a small hand gesture and as a whole we stood up again.

She walked towards Mr sage down the few steps leading to her throne. They sort of met in the middle of the throne room.

"Mr Sage. you and your people are welcome here." He inclined his head in gratitude although I could clearly see that he was uncomfortable with so many 'evil creatures of the night' in one place.

Mr Sage and Lissa walked to a large table. Sydney was flanking her father and I was flanking Lissa.

On the table was a large piece of parchment. The agreement she had made with the gypsies. Sydney and Lissa had spent days working out the details. It would give these people protection and longevity by working Moroi blood into their spells. And in return they would help Moroi stay separate from the human world. They would work together if not 'actually' together to protect humans from Strigoi influence.

Mr Sage put his signature on the piece of paper and Lissa signed next.

When she was done she raised the quil and she raised her voice.

"Today we start a new journey together. One in which our people will work together to make sure both of our races are safe. From this day forth our interests will align in taking down the evil that lives in this world."

I could see some of the gypsies still thought that they were staring at the evil now, but they all agreed humans had no business mingling in the world of vampires. The Witch hunter phenomenon could not happen again.

It was Mr Sage's turn to speak. "We will protect our people and we will protect our world by working together to hide theirs." He didn't sound happy about it, but he did sound resolved. He took his new duty seriously and I knew even if he would always think of us as evil, he knew the bigger threat was Strigoi and the associations with humans.

This would help both our worlds.

They signed two more copies of the agreement. One to be handed over to the gypsies and one for our own archive, the one on the prettiest parchment made with the most delicate calligraphy would be hanged in the grand throne room.

Once the ceremony was over my very own father, who I didn't know had been invited, as a matter of fact I know he wasn't invited came up to me.

He shook his head as he stood next to me. "I give you a way to lay low and you uncover a religious sect, and change the way we interact with the entire world… Maybe next time just look at it as a vacation?"

I laughed. We should have been laying low, but trouble has always followed me. My father had once called me chaos on legs. Of course, it was no secret where I had inherited this trait.

"You sound a little bitter, jealous even, that I used your contact to do this?" After all, Sydney had been Abe's contact. He must have known what Sydney was and that she knew about the Moroi world. Which begged the question how did the two know each other?

But that was a mystery for another day. I might just take that vacation my father had suggested. I looked over to Dimitri, whose eyes landed back on mine at the same time. Ah yes, a vacation would be nice. Not that we would leave the room.

We still had some catching up to do.