p class="MsoNormal"Rose Hathaway was having a bad day./p
p class="MsoNormal"First Dimitri breaks up with her over the conflict of interest their relationship caused. Then Lissa unanimously decided that it was better if Rose wasn't her guardian, even though protecting Lissa was the only thing she wanted in this world./p
p class="MsoNormal"Well perhaps not the only thing...but her dreams of freedom with Dimitri had been firmly shut down after their moment of hesitation during the Strigoi attack in the human world./p
p class="MsoNormal"Then to add insult to injury, when she sought comfort in Mason, he also rejected her. Guess he finally saw that there was more to her relationship with Dimitri than mere mentorship. She hadn't realised he emloved/em her, and she may as well have driven a stake through his heart./p
p class="MsoNormal"They say bad things come in threes, surely that was all for tonight, right?/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose sighed, and decided to attempt some sleep before training in the morning…more commonly known as the evening for non-vampiric schedules./p
p class="MsoNormal"****/p
p class="MsoNormal"Whilst her sleep involved significantly less influence from Lissa, Rose had her own nightmares to face. Mikhail still haunted her sleeping hours, his mutated Strigoi form battling and looming over her. And yet when she drove the stake into his chest, his face returned to his Dhampir form, with a look of betrayal and devastation at her actions./p
p class="MsoNormal""I'm so sorry" dream Rose whispered, tears rolling down her cheeks, as Mikhail slumped lifelessly against her./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose startled awake and felt real tears on her cheeks. She sat up in bed and sighed, wiping her face clean with the back of her hand. Her eyes adjusted to the afternoon sun, indicating that she'd woken far earlier than everyone else. Whilst she was hardly surprised, Rose couldn't help but feel angry at her lack of quality sleep./p
p class="MsoNormal"Lissa might be trying to prevent darkness from spreading to her, however the events of the last 24 hours was taking its own toll on her mental state. Who needs a spirit bonded best friend to get you down?/p
p class="MsoNormal"Knowing that any further failed attempts at sleep would only worsen her mood, Rose decided to leave the dormitory and attempt the mediation Dimitri tirelessly practiced and preached to her./p
p class="MsoNormal"****/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose found herself alone in the courtyard, not that she'd expected Dimitri to continue tutoring her after their last conversation. She worked through the moves they had practiced together, attempting to harness control over her raging emotions. However, without Dimitri the routine felt empty and incomplete. Rose felt her arms drop to her side as she sighed deeply, trying to breathe herself into a calm state./p
p class="MsoNormal"As she scanned around the courtyard, admiring the rosy sunset, a lone jogging figure emerged from the distance./p
p class="MsoNormal"Of course, he was running. No matter how low her mood was Rose would never attempt a run to improve her mood, as it was sure to only worsen it. How it made him feel better she'd never /She could've sworn he stumbled as his eyes met hers, before swiftly turning and diverting his path away from the courtyard./p
p class="MsoNormal"Well, this wasn't going to be awkward at all. How the hell was she going to act normal in class? They'd barely been flying under the radar as a couple. And now they weren't a couple, their attempts to avoid each other would likely be even more obvious to everyone around them./p
p class="MsoNormal"How did one of the best things to ever happen to her turn into this so quickly? It wasn't fair, but then it never was for the Dhampirs./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose moved to physical training to distract herself from Dimitri's distant figure. She picked up a practice stake, feeling the weight rest in her hand. She'd killed two Strigoi now, although there wouldn't be a Molnija mark for her latest kill, given it was an unapproved excursion into the human world./p
p class="MsoNormal"She was glad that Lissa had found the answers she'd been searching for, even if it had dire consequences for their friendship. Rose wasn't sure how to feel about this Adrian character, she hoped he had genuine intentions to help Lissa and himself. He certainly seemed taken with her.. not that a self-medicating drunk was an ideal boyfriend, and he could hardly live up to Dimitri./p
p class="MsoNormal""Fucks sake," Rose cursed as she felt her mind slipping back into the circular downhill spiral. She flipped the stake up into the air, caught it, and thrust it into the centre of the humanoid target. Her mind flashed to the latest Strigoi attack, with the little girl screaming at her through the bathroom window./p
p class="MsoNormal""She wasn't a girl.. not anymore," Rose reminded herself as she closed her eyes and breathed deeply. Then she drew the stake back and struck again, then a third time, before she felt her fury unleash deep within herself. She took a stumbling gasp back away from the target, stake dropping from her hand. She paused, trying to sense if it was Lissa's fury or her own./p
p class="MsoNormal"No, it was just Rose's emotions. No danger that she needed to run and protect Lissa from./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose bent to pick up the stake and heard a familiar voice called out./p
p class="MsoNormal""What on earth are you doing up this early?" Rose turned to see a weary Meredith striding towards her./p
p class="MsoNormal"She shrugged "I couldn't sleep. How are you back at training so soon? I heard you were slashed by a Strigoi."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Meredith grimaced, "Yeah, I'm strictly on light duties, but even I got sick of resting in bed. I don't suppose we could have a light spar where you don't leave me even more battered?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose chuckled, 'I can't promise that I'm afraid."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Meredith scoffed, "Of course you can't, you always have to be on top don't you? Well, I'm going to stretch and see how my muscles are recovering. I'll leave you to murdering the target."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose felt the smile slip from her face as she remembered her involvement in Mason's fall from the rankings. Her name, back at number 1, felt like it was mocking her. That ever-present darkness was persistent today…/p
p class="MsoNormal"As the sun set and nightfall arose, Rose's classmates began to appear for their daily training sessions. Alberta guided them through their warmups before letting them loose in the training field to spar./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose pretended not to notice when Dimitri arrived to oversee their practice. Besides, she was busy sparring with Eddie, who seems to have lost his usual cheeriness since returning from the Royal tour./p
p class="MsoNormal"After a particularly pathetic attempt to dodge her headlock, Rose released him and pulled him to face her. "Alright, spit it out, what's bothering you?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Eddie, already a pale lad with his ginger hair, looked gaunt compared to his usual self. "It's nothing."/p
p class="MsoNormal""Bullshit it's not nothing. You were with Meredith when she was slashed by a Strigoi, has it got something to do with that?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"His eyes met hers in a startled fright, mouth agape like a fish out of water. Eventually Eddie managed to mumble, "I was a coward.."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose scoffed, "Eddie you were hardly a coward, you escaped unscathed against your first Strigoi attack and protected Lissa and Jesse. You did your job, and you were the youngest novice on the Royal tour to top it off. Why do you think you were a coward?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"His eyes fell to the ground. "Because…when that Strigoi ripped the guardian's head off…I was afraid, I was terrified. I couldn't do anything, and Meredith got hurt, and I feel like it was all my fault."/p
p class="MsoNormal""Oh Eddie…" but before she could reassure him, she felt a card slap the back of her shoulder. She turned to find a stone-faced Mason holding a challenge card./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose sighed, "Mason, are you sure you-"/p
p class="MsoNormal""What do you think you're the only one who can challenge on Friday? I've gotta boost my rankings now I'm starting at the bottom." Mason spat out./p
p class="MsoNormal"The words stung but they were true. Rose sighed and shooed Eddie to the sidelines, where he joined Meredith watching the unfolding scene in amusement./p
p class="MsoNormal""Now this is entertainment, lover's quarrel!" Meredith gleefully elbowed Eddie as he sat down. Her observation was not particularly quiet, so Rose shot a glare at her, before noticing Dimitri's pale expression./p
p class="MsoNormal"Embarrassed, she turned back to Mason and met his stern gaze. Rose knew he was egging her on with this challenge, but she needed to prove that she would not lose control./p
p class="MsoNormal"Within the first few swings Rose knew this wasn't their typical spar. Mason usually played fair, but today was different. Today he had a point to prove, that his broken heart didn't matter, and that he was better that her. Rose could see herself in his actions, so she decided to act defensively and refuse to engage the way he wanted her to./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose blocked and spun away from the first strike towards her head. She ducked under his second and third before shoving him back, leaving Mason off balance. Instead of moving in for a strike, Rose allowed him to maintain his composure. Unfortunately, these actions seemed to infuriate Mason more than anything else./p
p class="MsoNormal"Mason let out a frustrated yell, "For fucks sake Rose fight back!"/p
p class="MsoNormal"She shook her head. "I have no intention of hurting you Mason, you're fighting like a Strigoi."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Mason hissed, "It's a bit fucking late for that Rose."/p
p class="MsoNormal"She side stepped a kick aimed at her shin and deflected Mason's palm towards her chest. Rose continued to dance out of Mason's strikes and only land the mildest of blows against him./p
p class="MsoNormal"In his anger Mason lunged with a punch and over stepped, allowing Rose to swiftly knock him off his feet and pin him to the ground. She stared him down as Mason glared at her, his red face fuming at the defeat./p
p class="MsoNormal""Point to Rose!" Alberta called out from the sideline./p
p class="MsoNormal"She let out a relieved sigh, she'd managed to maintain her composure and not rise to Mason's taunts. As she released him and stood up to move away, he called out after her./p
p class="MsoNormal""Was that a technique you learnt from your emprivate lessons/em Rose?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"She froze, trying to avoid eye contact with Dimitri. His gaze felt like magnetism, and she knew he was looking at her./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose sighed and turned, preparing a half-hearted rebuttal, when a searing white-hot pain shot through her stomach. She buckled over with several choice curse words, as this pain was worse than anything she had experienced previously./p
p class="MsoNormal""Rose?" She could hear several people calling out her name. First was Mason, with the familiar concern she knew well, followed by Alberta and Dimitri. The voices of several people blurred into the background as the familiar darkness swarmed up around her. She felt her vision cloud over, rage bubbling up from the pain in her stomach up into her chest./p
p class="MsoNormal"She straightened up, turning to face a shocked looking Mason. "You want a real fight? Then I'll give you a real fight?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose didn't hear the cries of bystanders telling her to stop, or Mason's panicked exclamation over her black eyes. All she saw was rage, trauma and death surrounding her, and Mason was the last thing she needed to push her over the edge./p
p class="MsoNormal"She ran up to a defensive Mason and started swinging, only she was blocked by Dimitri's firm grip on her wrist./p
p class="MsoNormal""Roza stop, this isn't you." He was looking at her, maintaining direct eye contact for the first time since their conversation. His gaze usually made her melt, however now it only served to infuriate her more./p
p class="MsoNormal"She let out a guttural yell and yanked her arm out of his grip before striking his nose. Dimitri backed away, pushing a shocked Mason towards the sideline. Blood trickled down his lip and chin as he moved into a defensive position./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose charged towards him, with two wild swings and a kick towards his thigh. Dimitri dodged all three and countered with a palm towards her chest. She side stepped and slapped his hand to the side before lunging at him./p
p class="MsoNormal"Dimitri, surprised by the unusual attack, fell to the ground. His shock was only brief though, and he pulled Rose to the side as she fell to pin her to the ground./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose thrashed and screamed like a wild animal, threatening to dislodge Dimitri's strong grip on her wrists and his body resting on her thighs. She vaguely heard Dimitri call out and suddenly they were suddenly by fellow novices helping him hold her down./p
p class="MsoNormal""Roza, Roza ROZA! Wake up this isn't you!"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose felt like a bucket of cold water had been thrown in her face. For a moment she thought it genuinely had been, until the faces of her friends came into focus. All of them looked terrified. Meredith, Eddie, Mason even Alberta looked shocked./p
p class="MsoNormal"When her gaze met Dimitri's, she knew something had seriously gone wrong. She spluttered, trying to understand the blur of the fight that had just occurred. Had she attacked Mason? Or was it Dimitri she had punched in the face? Judging by the trickle of blood on Dimitri's face, it was the latter, but the question of emwhy/em she did that burned in her mind. Sure, she was upset about their breakup, but not enough to warrant attempting to break his nose./p
p class="MsoNormal"She finally managed to spit out "What happened?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Dimitri looked stunned. "I was going to ask you that." He paused, looking at her strangely, before telling everyone to release her. Dimitri waited until the novices had eagerly backed away before releasing Rose and helping her to her feet./p
p class="MsoNormal"Alberta quickly declared, "Rose, Dimitri, my office. The rest of you, carry on sparring. Meredith, go back to the hospital wing please. We've had enough injuries for today." She glanced over Dimitri's nose./p
p class="MsoNormal""It's fine, not broken." Dimitri muttered, wiping away the thin trickle that had solidified on his chin./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose shook her head. "I need to check on Lissa, now." Dimitri's eyes grew in alarm, before Rose reassured him. "She's not in danger."/p
p class="MsoNormal""And how exactly do you know that?" Alberta asked sternly. Rose avoided her gaze./p
p class="MsoNormal""Alberta, Lissa is my responsibility, I should go and attend to her."/p
p class="MsoNormal""No. Alan can check on her." Alberta gestured to one of the supervising guardians and advised them to go and check on Lissa. "I'm sure Lissa is fine, and we need to have a conversation."/p
p class="MsoNormal"****/p
p class="MsoNormal"As Rose sat in Alberta's office, she tried to make sense of the feeling that overwhelmed her. It wasn't fear like she'd felt before when Lissa was panicking. But it also wasn't the feeling of nausea that hit when Strigoi were nearby./p
p class="MsoNormal"No, it was from Lissa. She was distressed, perhaps angry or upset, Rose couldn't really tell which. Something was fogging up their bond, perhaps somethings Adrian had suggested to Lissa to cope with the darkness. But now it was transferring through unexpectedly and in confusing ways. All at once or nothing at all. The unpredictability was worse than before./p
p class="MsoNormal"Christ's sake Lissa./p
p class="MsoNormal""So, what the fuck was that?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose jerked her head up to a concerned Alberta. She looked to Dimitri, then back to Alberta, unsure what to say./p
p class="MsoNormal""Whilst normally I would jest at having Rose Hathaway lost for words in my office, this is not the time. I've never seen anything like what just happened, so I'm going to need you to tell me everything."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose looked to Dimitri again, pleading for help. Alberta noticed, and turned her fierce gaze towards him. "Or perhaps you could explain Dimitri?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Dimitri met her gaze, looked back to Rose and nodded. "Tell her everything you told me Rose."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose opened her mouth to protest, there were already too many people who knew about Lissa's abilities, but Dimitri shook his head and stared at her with those soft brown eyes./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose turned back to Alberta and explained everything. That they believed there was a hidden fifth element called spirit, that St Vladimir had the same power, and it took a toll on his mental wellbeing. She mentioned that Vladimir shared this toll with his dhampir Anna to help manage the burden./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose did not however divulge that Lissa had resurrected her after the tragic Dragomir car crash nor that Lissa had pushed her away upon learning this information./p
p class="MsoNormal"After this information was shared, Alberta slowly sat down across from Rose, looking like she was unsure if Rose was crazy, however Dimitri had nodded along to her story to corroborate./p
p class="MsoNormal""Well.. this is a heavy burden that you carry Rose," Alberta murmured thoughtfully. "Why did your eyes turn black though?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose frowned, she hadn't noticed this occurring. "My eyes turned black?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Dimitri and Alberta nodded, before Dimitri added "I've seen it once before in battle, when we were fighting off Strigoi with Sasha Turner."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose's mouth fell open. Dimitri shrugged apologetically, "I thought you knew."/p
p class="MsoNormal"She shook her head. "No, no I didn't. Lissa mentioned something about the darkness and her eyes, but I didn't know it could pass to me physically. I don't really remember much of what happened in today's fight, did I hurt anyone else?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose looked apologetically to Dimitri, he gave a faint smile and shrugged nonchalantly. "It's not even broken Rose, it's fine. And no, you didn't hurt anyone else." Rose sighed with relief./p
p class="MsoNormal"Alberta looked between them, "Now we also need to discuss the…cause of Mason's accusation today."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Both Rose and Dimitri snapped their gazes back to Alberta. "I'm not sure what you're implying Alberta." Dimitri replied firmly./p
p class="MsoNormal"Alberta sighed and looked sternly at him. "Whilst Rose is 18, it would be inappropriate for you two to be engaging in any kind of relationship other than mentoring. Not only that, but it would also be a conflict of interest for you-"/p
p class="MsoNormal"They were saved by a brisk knock at Alberta's office door, Alan had returned from checking on Lissa. Dimitri and Rose shared a quick glance before focusing on the update brought by the guardian./p
p class="MsoNormal""Your report?"/p
p class="MsoNormal""Lissa is safe and well, although appeared a little upset. It appears she had an argument with Jesse Zeklos and Christian Ozera intervened. There were several scorch marks in the hallway near Lissa's room."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose jumped to her feet, "Fucking Zeklos, where is Lissa?"/p
p class="MsoNormal""Rose-" Dimitri started/p
p class="MsoNormal""No! I know she's your responsibility but I'm going to her, where is she?" Rose glared at the guardian, demanding an answer./p
p class="MsoNormal"Alan paused, glancing at Alberta and Dimitri first, before relenting. "She is with Christian in the library."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose started towards to door before Alberta's words brought her to a halt. "We are not finished talking Rose."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose briefly closed her eyes, before taking a breath and turning back to Alberta. "I can assure you that there is no inappropriate relationship going on between Dimitri and I. I have a great amount of respect for him, for guiding and training me to become the guardian I want to be." Rose kept her eyes focused on Alberta, although she could feel Dimitri's gaze on her./p
p class="MsoNormal""I am also trying to understand what is happening with this bond and the darkness, but I don't have an answer yet. I am sorry about what happened today, although I daresay it likely occurred due to this argument between Lissa and Jesse and her emotions transferring to me. So, I think it would be best if I could go to her to try and ensure it does not happen again. May I take my leave?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Alberta assessed Rose for a moment, before dismissing her and Dimitri with a small wave of her hand. Rose turned and headed directly towards the Moroi library, feeling Dimitri follow behind her./p
p class="MsoNormal"They walked in silence initially, Rose unsure what to say. They hadn't been alone together since their conversation, and safe to say it was awkward./p
p class="MsoNormal"Dimitri was the first to break the silence. "You spoke well in Alberta's office. And you fought well today."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose scoffed, "Yes right up until I lost control and tried to beat the hell out of Mason."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Dimitri stepped up to walk alongside her. "Before that though, when Mason was…angry with you, you didn't fight based on emotions like he was. I was proud to see you fight like that."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose stopped walking and looked at him, a pang of longing shooting through her heart. "Thank you." She didn't say that she was trying to make him proud, her ego couldn't quite admit that to him./p
p class="MsoNormal""I think it's safe to say you do not need lessons from me anymore," Dimitri continued./p
p class="MsoNormal"Ah, there it was. "Oh," was all Rose could say. She looked away and continued walked towards Lissa./p
p class="MsoNormal""Rose-"/p
p class="MsoNormal""It's fine, I get it, it'd be a conflict of interest. And besides, after today, people will have…questions. You're right, it's probably best that we don't train privately." She couldn't meet his eyes, it hurt too much./p
p class="MsoNormal"She heard Dimitri sigh behind her and remain silent./p
p class="MsoNormal"As they approached the entrance to the Moroi buildings, Rose sudden felt an overwhelming feeling resonate from Lissa./p
p class="MsoNormal""Oh no," she murmured as she reached up to the wall for support./p
p class="MsoNormal""Rose?"/p
p class="MsoNormal""Uhh…Lissa might not want to be…disturbed right now."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Dimitri frowned, then his eyes widened in realisation. "Ah… I thought they were in the library."/p
p class="MsoNormal""Oh they are!" Rose exclaimed, wincing as the imagery popped into her mind./p
p class="MsoNormal"Dimitri chuckled, then looked sympathetically at her. Rose groaned, "I need a fucking drink."/p
p class="MsoNormal""I wouldn't take coping advice from Adrian if that's what you're thinking," Dimitri said sternly./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose snorted and looked up at him mockingly. "Do you have a better suggestion? Perhaps I should consider Adrian for a distraction…He did seem pretty interested in that."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Dimitri's mouth fell open at her before fury crossed his face. "emRoza/em," he growled./p
p class="MsoNormal"She raised her eyebrows, taunting him. His anger started to shift to the familiar lustful expression she had grown used to seeing. Her breath caught as her eyes looked to his lips, thinking about time spent being kissed by those lips. She stepped forward towards him, feeling his body warmth resonate from him./p
p class="MsoNormal""Rose… we can't," he said softly. "You just swore to Alberta nothing was going on between us."/p
p class="MsoNormal""I said nothing emis/em going on between us, I said nothing of the past…or the future." Rose caught his eyes hopefully./p
p class="MsoNormal"Dimitri sighed, returning her longing look, but making no move to come closer to her./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose frowned, "Fine. If you're not going to help distract me then I'll find someone or something that will." She turned away and angrily stomped towards the Dhampir quarters./p
p class="MsoNormal"She felt as if Dimitri's gaze was burning into her back. She wanted him to run after her, catch her and pull her into a passionate embrace. But she knew he wouldn't, and did she really have to flaunt her intentions like that? Gods she was an idiot, now he'd be even more distant from her. And could she really risk losing what little friendships she had left?/p
p class="MsoNormal"The only smart thing she could do now is get some sleep./p
p class="MsoNormal"First Dimitri breaks up with her over the conflict of interest their relationship caused. Then Lissa unanimously decided that it was better if Rose wasn't her guardian, even though protecting Lissa was the only thing she wanted in this world./p
p class="MsoNormal"Well perhaps not the only thing...but her dreams of freedom with Dimitri had been firmly shut down after their moment of hesitation during the Strigoi attack in the human world./p
p class="MsoNormal"Then to add insult to injury, when she sought comfort in Mason, he also rejected her. Guess he finally saw that there was more to her relationship with Dimitri than mere mentorship. She hadn't realised he emloved/em her, and she may as well have driven a stake through his heart./p
p class="MsoNormal"They say bad things come in threes, surely that was all for tonight, right?/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose sighed, and decided to attempt some sleep before training in the morning…more commonly known as the evening for non-vampiric schedules./p
p class="MsoNormal"****/p
p class="MsoNormal"Whilst her sleep involved significantly less influence from Lissa, Rose had her own nightmares to face. Mikhail still haunted her sleeping hours, his mutated Strigoi form battling and looming over her. And yet when she drove the stake into his chest, his face returned to his Dhampir form, with a look of betrayal and devastation at her actions./p
p class="MsoNormal""I'm so sorry" dream Rose whispered, tears rolling down her cheeks, as Mikhail slumped lifelessly against her./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose startled awake and felt real tears on her cheeks. She sat up in bed and sighed, wiping her face clean with the back of her hand. Her eyes adjusted to the afternoon sun, indicating that she'd woken far earlier than everyone else. Whilst she was hardly surprised, Rose couldn't help but feel angry at her lack of quality sleep./p
p class="MsoNormal"Lissa might be trying to prevent darkness from spreading to her, however the events of the last 24 hours was taking its own toll on her mental state. Who needs a spirit bonded best friend to get you down?/p
p class="MsoNormal"Knowing that any further failed attempts at sleep would only worsen her mood, Rose decided to leave the dormitory and attempt the mediation Dimitri tirelessly practiced and preached to her./p
p class="MsoNormal"****/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose found herself alone in the courtyard, not that she'd expected Dimitri to continue tutoring her after their last conversation. She worked through the moves they had practiced together, attempting to harness control over her raging emotions. However, without Dimitri the routine felt empty and incomplete. Rose felt her arms drop to her side as she sighed deeply, trying to breathe herself into a calm state./p
p class="MsoNormal"As she scanned around the courtyard, admiring the rosy sunset, a lone jogging figure emerged from the distance./p
p class="MsoNormal"Of course, he was running. No matter how low her mood was Rose would never attempt a run to improve her mood, as it was sure to only worsen it. How it made him feel better she'd never /She could've sworn he stumbled as his eyes met hers, before swiftly turning and diverting his path away from the courtyard./p
p class="MsoNormal"Well, this wasn't going to be awkward at all. How the hell was she going to act normal in class? They'd barely been flying under the radar as a couple. And now they weren't a couple, their attempts to avoid each other would likely be even more obvious to everyone around them./p
p class="MsoNormal"How did one of the best things to ever happen to her turn into this so quickly? It wasn't fair, but then it never was for the Dhampirs./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose moved to physical training to distract herself from Dimitri's distant figure. She picked up a practice stake, feeling the weight rest in her hand. She'd killed two Strigoi now, although there wouldn't be a Molnija mark for her latest kill, given it was an unapproved excursion into the human world./p
p class="MsoNormal"She was glad that Lissa had found the answers she'd been searching for, even if it had dire consequences for their friendship. Rose wasn't sure how to feel about this Adrian character, she hoped he had genuine intentions to help Lissa and himself. He certainly seemed taken with her.. not that a self-medicating drunk was an ideal boyfriend, and he could hardly live up to Dimitri./p
p class="MsoNormal""Fucks sake," Rose cursed as she felt her mind slipping back into the circular downhill spiral. She flipped the stake up into the air, caught it, and thrust it into the centre of the humanoid target. Her mind flashed to the latest Strigoi attack, with the little girl screaming at her through the bathroom window./p
p class="MsoNormal""She wasn't a girl.. not anymore," Rose reminded herself as she closed her eyes and breathed deeply. Then she drew the stake back and struck again, then a third time, before she felt her fury unleash deep within herself. She took a stumbling gasp back away from the target, stake dropping from her hand. She paused, trying to sense if it was Lissa's fury or her own./p
p class="MsoNormal"No, it was just Rose's emotions. No danger that she needed to run and protect Lissa from./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose bent to pick up the stake and heard a familiar voice called out./p
p class="MsoNormal""What on earth are you doing up this early?" Rose turned to see a weary Meredith striding towards her./p
p class="MsoNormal"She shrugged "I couldn't sleep. How are you back at training so soon? I heard you were slashed by a Strigoi."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Meredith grimaced, "Yeah, I'm strictly on light duties, but even I got sick of resting in bed. I don't suppose we could have a light spar where you don't leave me even more battered?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose chuckled, 'I can't promise that I'm afraid."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Meredith scoffed, "Of course you can't, you always have to be on top don't you? Well, I'm going to stretch and see how my muscles are recovering. I'll leave you to murdering the target."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose felt the smile slip from her face as she remembered her involvement in Mason's fall from the rankings. Her name, back at number 1, felt like it was mocking her. That ever-present darkness was persistent today…/p
p class="MsoNormal"As the sun set and nightfall arose, Rose's classmates began to appear for their daily training sessions. Alberta guided them through their warmups before letting them loose in the training field to spar./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose pretended not to notice when Dimitri arrived to oversee their practice. Besides, she was busy sparring with Eddie, who seems to have lost his usual cheeriness since returning from the Royal tour./p
p class="MsoNormal"After a particularly pathetic attempt to dodge her headlock, Rose released him and pulled him to face her. "Alright, spit it out, what's bothering you?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Eddie, already a pale lad with his ginger hair, looked gaunt compared to his usual self. "It's nothing."/p
p class="MsoNormal""Bullshit it's not nothing. You were with Meredith when she was slashed by a Strigoi, has it got something to do with that?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"His eyes met hers in a startled fright, mouth agape like a fish out of water. Eventually Eddie managed to mumble, "I was a coward.."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose scoffed, "Eddie you were hardly a coward, you escaped unscathed against your first Strigoi attack and protected Lissa and Jesse. You did your job, and you were the youngest novice on the Royal tour to top it off. Why do you think you were a coward?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"His eyes fell to the ground. "Because…when that Strigoi ripped the guardian's head off…I was afraid, I was terrified. I couldn't do anything, and Meredith got hurt, and I feel like it was all my fault."/p
p class="MsoNormal""Oh Eddie…" but before she could reassure him, she felt a card slap the back of her shoulder. She turned to find a stone-faced Mason holding a challenge card./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose sighed, "Mason, are you sure you-"/p
p class="MsoNormal""What do you think you're the only one who can challenge on Friday? I've gotta boost my rankings now I'm starting at the bottom." Mason spat out./p
p class="MsoNormal"The words stung but they were true. Rose sighed and shooed Eddie to the sidelines, where he joined Meredith watching the unfolding scene in amusement./p
p class="MsoNormal""Now this is entertainment, lover's quarrel!" Meredith gleefully elbowed Eddie as he sat down. Her observation was not particularly quiet, so Rose shot a glare at her, before noticing Dimitri's pale expression./p
p class="MsoNormal"Embarrassed, she turned back to Mason and met his stern gaze. Rose knew he was egging her on with this challenge, but she needed to prove that she would not lose control./p
p class="MsoNormal"Within the first few swings Rose knew this wasn't their typical spar. Mason usually played fair, but today was different. Today he had a point to prove, that his broken heart didn't matter, and that he was better that her. Rose could see herself in his actions, so she decided to act defensively and refuse to engage the way he wanted her to./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose blocked and spun away from the first strike towards her head. She ducked under his second and third before shoving him back, leaving Mason off balance. Instead of moving in for a strike, Rose allowed him to maintain his composure. Unfortunately, these actions seemed to infuriate Mason more than anything else./p
p class="MsoNormal"Mason let out a frustrated yell, "For fucks sake Rose fight back!"/p
p class="MsoNormal"She shook her head. "I have no intention of hurting you Mason, you're fighting like a Strigoi."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Mason hissed, "It's a bit fucking late for that Rose."/p
p class="MsoNormal"She side stepped a kick aimed at her shin and deflected Mason's palm towards her chest. Rose continued to dance out of Mason's strikes and only land the mildest of blows against him./p
p class="MsoNormal"In his anger Mason lunged with a punch and over stepped, allowing Rose to swiftly knock him off his feet and pin him to the ground. She stared him down as Mason glared at her, his red face fuming at the defeat./p
p class="MsoNormal""Point to Rose!" Alberta called out from the sideline./p
p class="MsoNormal"She let out a relieved sigh, she'd managed to maintain her composure and not rise to Mason's taunts. As she released him and stood up to move away, he called out after her./p
p class="MsoNormal""Was that a technique you learnt from your emprivate lessons/em Rose?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"She froze, trying to avoid eye contact with Dimitri. His gaze felt like magnetism, and she knew he was looking at her./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose sighed and turned, preparing a half-hearted rebuttal, when a searing white-hot pain shot through her stomach. She buckled over with several choice curse words, as this pain was worse than anything she had experienced previously./p
p class="MsoNormal""Rose?" She could hear several people calling out her name. First was Mason, with the familiar concern she knew well, followed by Alberta and Dimitri. The voices of several people blurred into the background as the familiar darkness swarmed up around her. She felt her vision cloud over, rage bubbling up from the pain in her stomach up into her chest./p
p class="MsoNormal"She straightened up, turning to face a shocked looking Mason. "You want a real fight? Then I'll give you a real fight?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose didn't hear the cries of bystanders telling her to stop, or Mason's panicked exclamation over her black eyes. All she saw was rage, trauma and death surrounding her, and Mason was the last thing she needed to push her over the edge./p
p class="MsoNormal"She ran up to a defensive Mason and started swinging, only she was blocked by Dimitri's firm grip on her wrist./p
p class="MsoNormal""Roza stop, this isn't you." He was looking at her, maintaining direct eye contact for the first time since their conversation. His gaze usually made her melt, however now it only served to infuriate her more./p
p class="MsoNormal"She let out a guttural yell and yanked her arm out of his grip before striking his nose. Dimitri backed away, pushing a shocked Mason towards the sideline. Blood trickled down his lip and chin as he moved into a defensive position./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose charged towards him, with two wild swings and a kick towards his thigh. Dimitri dodged all three and countered with a palm towards her chest. She side stepped and slapped his hand to the side before lunging at him./p
p class="MsoNormal"Dimitri, surprised by the unusual attack, fell to the ground. His shock was only brief though, and he pulled Rose to the side as she fell to pin her to the ground./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose thrashed and screamed like a wild animal, threatening to dislodge Dimitri's strong grip on her wrists and his body resting on her thighs. She vaguely heard Dimitri call out and suddenly they were suddenly by fellow novices helping him hold her down./p
p class="MsoNormal""Roza, Roza ROZA! Wake up this isn't you!"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose felt like a bucket of cold water had been thrown in her face. For a moment she thought it genuinely had been, until the faces of her friends came into focus. All of them looked terrified. Meredith, Eddie, Mason even Alberta looked shocked./p
p class="MsoNormal"When her gaze met Dimitri's, she knew something had seriously gone wrong. She spluttered, trying to understand the blur of the fight that had just occurred. Had she attacked Mason? Or was it Dimitri she had punched in the face? Judging by the trickle of blood on Dimitri's face, it was the latter, but the question of emwhy/em she did that burned in her mind. Sure, she was upset about their breakup, but not enough to warrant attempting to break his nose./p
p class="MsoNormal"She finally managed to spit out "What happened?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Dimitri looked stunned. "I was going to ask you that." He paused, looking at her strangely, before telling everyone to release her. Dimitri waited until the novices had eagerly backed away before releasing Rose and helping her to her feet./p
p class="MsoNormal"Alberta quickly declared, "Rose, Dimitri, my office. The rest of you, carry on sparring. Meredith, go back to the hospital wing please. We've had enough injuries for today." She glanced over Dimitri's nose./p
p class="MsoNormal""It's fine, not broken." Dimitri muttered, wiping away the thin trickle that had solidified on his chin./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose shook her head. "I need to check on Lissa, now." Dimitri's eyes grew in alarm, before Rose reassured him. "She's not in danger."/p
p class="MsoNormal""And how exactly do you know that?" Alberta asked sternly. Rose avoided her gaze./p
p class="MsoNormal""Alberta, Lissa is my responsibility, I should go and attend to her."/p
p class="MsoNormal""No. Alan can check on her." Alberta gestured to one of the supervising guardians and advised them to go and check on Lissa. "I'm sure Lissa is fine, and we need to have a conversation."/p
p class="MsoNormal"****/p
p class="MsoNormal"As Rose sat in Alberta's office, she tried to make sense of the feeling that overwhelmed her. It wasn't fear like she'd felt before when Lissa was panicking. But it also wasn't the feeling of nausea that hit when Strigoi were nearby./p
p class="MsoNormal"No, it was from Lissa. She was distressed, perhaps angry or upset, Rose couldn't really tell which. Something was fogging up their bond, perhaps somethings Adrian had suggested to Lissa to cope with the darkness. But now it was transferring through unexpectedly and in confusing ways. All at once or nothing at all. The unpredictability was worse than before./p
p class="MsoNormal"Christ's sake Lissa./p
p class="MsoNormal""So, what the fuck was that?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose jerked her head up to a concerned Alberta. She looked to Dimitri, then back to Alberta, unsure what to say./p
p class="MsoNormal""Whilst normally I would jest at having Rose Hathaway lost for words in my office, this is not the time. I've never seen anything like what just happened, so I'm going to need you to tell me everything."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose looked to Dimitri again, pleading for help. Alberta noticed, and turned her fierce gaze towards him. "Or perhaps you could explain Dimitri?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Dimitri met her gaze, looked back to Rose and nodded. "Tell her everything you told me Rose."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose opened her mouth to protest, there were already too many people who knew about Lissa's abilities, but Dimitri shook his head and stared at her with those soft brown eyes./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose turned back to Alberta and explained everything. That they believed there was a hidden fifth element called spirit, that St Vladimir had the same power, and it took a toll on his mental wellbeing. She mentioned that Vladimir shared this toll with his dhampir Anna to help manage the burden./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose did not however divulge that Lissa had resurrected her after the tragic Dragomir car crash nor that Lissa had pushed her away upon learning this information./p
p class="MsoNormal"After this information was shared, Alberta slowly sat down across from Rose, looking like she was unsure if Rose was crazy, however Dimitri had nodded along to her story to corroborate./p
p class="MsoNormal""Well.. this is a heavy burden that you carry Rose," Alberta murmured thoughtfully. "Why did your eyes turn black though?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose frowned, she hadn't noticed this occurring. "My eyes turned black?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Dimitri and Alberta nodded, before Dimitri added "I've seen it once before in battle, when we were fighting off Strigoi with Sasha Turner."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose's mouth fell open. Dimitri shrugged apologetically, "I thought you knew."/p
p class="MsoNormal"She shook her head. "No, no I didn't. Lissa mentioned something about the darkness and her eyes, but I didn't know it could pass to me physically. I don't really remember much of what happened in today's fight, did I hurt anyone else?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose looked apologetically to Dimitri, he gave a faint smile and shrugged nonchalantly. "It's not even broken Rose, it's fine. And no, you didn't hurt anyone else." Rose sighed with relief./p
p class="MsoNormal"Alberta looked between them, "Now we also need to discuss the…cause of Mason's accusation today."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Both Rose and Dimitri snapped their gazes back to Alberta. "I'm not sure what you're implying Alberta." Dimitri replied firmly./p
p class="MsoNormal"Alberta sighed and looked sternly at him. "Whilst Rose is 18, it would be inappropriate for you two to be engaging in any kind of relationship other than mentoring. Not only that, but it would also be a conflict of interest for you-"/p
p class="MsoNormal"They were saved by a brisk knock at Alberta's office door, Alan had returned from checking on Lissa. Dimitri and Rose shared a quick glance before focusing on the update brought by the guardian./p
p class="MsoNormal""Your report?"/p
p class="MsoNormal""Lissa is safe and well, although appeared a little upset. It appears she had an argument with Jesse Zeklos and Christian Ozera intervened. There were several scorch marks in the hallway near Lissa's room."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose jumped to her feet, "Fucking Zeklos, where is Lissa?"/p
p class="MsoNormal""Rose-" Dimitri started/p
p class="MsoNormal""No! I know she's your responsibility but I'm going to her, where is she?" Rose glared at the guardian, demanding an answer./p
p class="MsoNormal"Alan paused, glancing at Alberta and Dimitri first, before relenting. "She is with Christian in the library."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose started towards to door before Alberta's words brought her to a halt. "We are not finished talking Rose."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose briefly closed her eyes, before taking a breath and turning back to Alberta. "I can assure you that there is no inappropriate relationship going on between Dimitri and I. I have a great amount of respect for him, for guiding and training me to become the guardian I want to be." Rose kept her eyes focused on Alberta, although she could feel Dimitri's gaze on her./p
p class="MsoNormal""I am also trying to understand what is happening with this bond and the darkness, but I don't have an answer yet. I am sorry about what happened today, although I daresay it likely occurred due to this argument between Lissa and Jesse and her emotions transferring to me. So, I think it would be best if I could go to her to try and ensure it does not happen again. May I take my leave?"/p
p class="MsoNormal"Alberta assessed Rose for a moment, before dismissing her and Dimitri with a small wave of her hand. Rose turned and headed directly towards the Moroi library, feeling Dimitri follow behind her./p
p class="MsoNormal"They walked in silence initially, Rose unsure what to say. They hadn't been alone together since their conversation, and safe to say it was awkward./p
p class="MsoNormal"Dimitri was the first to break the silence. "You spoke well in Alberta's office. And you fought well today."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose scoffed, "Yes right up until I lost control and tried to beat the hell out of Mason."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Dimitri stepped up to walk alongside her. "Before that though, when Mason was…angry with you, you didn't fight based on emotions like he was. I was proud to see you fight like that."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose stopped walking and looked at him, a pang of longing shooting through her heart. "Thank you." She didn't say that she was trying to make him proud, her ego couldn't quite admit that to him./p
p class="MsoNormal""I think it's safe to say you do not need lessons from me anymore," Dimitri continued./p
p class="MsoNormal"Ah, there it was. "Oh," was all Rose could say. She looked away and continued walked towards Lissa./p
p class="MsoNormal""Rose-"/p
p class="MsoNormal""It's fine, I get it, it'd be a conflict of interest. And besides, after today, people will have…questions. You're right, it's probably best that we don't train privately." She couldn't meet his eyes, it hurt too much./p
p class="MsoNormal"She heard Dimitri sigh behind her and remain silent./p
p class="MsoNormal"As they approached the entrance to the Moroi buildings, Rose sudden felt an overwhelming feeling resonate from Lissa./p
p class="MsoNormal""Oh no," she murmured as she reached up to the wall for support./p
p class="MsoNormal""Rose?"/p
p class="MsoNormal""Uhh…Lissa might not want to be…disturbed right now."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Dimitri frowned, then his eyes widened in realisation. "Ah… I thought they were in the library."/p
p class="MsoNormal""Oh they are!" Rose exclaimed, wincing as the imagery popped into her mind./p
p class="MsoNormal"Dimitri chuckled, then looked sympathetically at her. Rose groaned, "I need a fucking drink."/p
p class="MsoNormal""I wouldn't take coping advice from Adrian if that's what you're thinking," Dimitri said sternly./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose snorted and looked up at him mockingly. "Do you have a better suggestion? Perhaps I should consider Adrian for a distraction…He did seem pretty interested in that."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Dimitri's mouth fell open at her before fury crossed his face. "emRoza/em," he growled./p
p class="MsoNormal"She raised her eyebrows, taunting him. His anger started to shift to the familiar lustful expression she had grown used to seeing. Her breath caught as her eyes looked to his lips, thinking about time spent being kissed by those lips. She stepped forward towards him, feeling his body warmth resonate from him./p
p class="MsoNormal""Rose… we can't," he said softly. "You just swore to Alberta nothing was going on between us."/p
p class="MsoNormal""I said nothing emis/em going on between us, I said nothing of the past…or the future." Rose caught his eyes hopefully./p
p class="MsoNormal"Dimitri sighed, returning her longing look, but making no move to come closer to her./p
p class="MsoNormal"Rose frowned, "Fine. If you're not going to help distract me then I'll find someone or something that will." She turned away and angrily stomped towards the Dhampir quarters./p
p class="MsoNormal"She felt as if Dimitri's gaze was burning into her back. She wanted him to run after her, catch her and pull her into a passionate embrace. But she knew he wouldn't, and did she really have to flaunt her intentions like that? Gods she was an idiot, now he'd be even more distant from her. And could she really risk losing what little friendships she had left?/p
p class="MsoNormal"The only smart thing she could do now is get some sleep./p