Hello my darlings! Thank you so very much for your lovely reviews on the last oneshot! I'm back with another one and, my exams are finally over! You know that =more frequent updates, right?

I don't own VA!

Summary: Having a new baby is a miracle, but no one tells you how hard taking care of that miracle actually is especially around the holidays as well as when you're a guardian! For Rose and Dimitri, it is no different but thank god that they have amazing friends and family around to help them out!

From Russia with Love.

"Another pointless gathering of the council?" I asked an obviously frustrated Dimitri as he tossed his duster on the back of a chair and sank down beside me.

"Just as pointless as the last pointless one," He confirmed: kissing my cheek. A small frown tugged at those luscious lips as he no doubt tried to figure out what the council was up to.

"I mean they keep gathering to go over all the details of the Christmas ball," Dimitri told me. "And nothing changes. No one ever has anything to add or change and even Lissa is getting frustrated and throwing the ball was her idea in the first place."

"We all know Lissa doesn't need the help of the council to throw a ball," I noted. "She's party planner extraordinaire all on her own." Dimitri nodded and sighed. In that moment, he looked as exhausted as I felt.

We had welcomed our first baby a few weeks ago and were both still getting use to the idea. Vasya Saraya Belicova was absolutely perfect and I wouldn't trade her for anything in the world, but being a full time mom was fucking exhausting. I was always running on little to no sleep. There always seemed to be something that needed to get done whenever I lay down. It didn't help that Vasya needed to be fed every 2 hours either and the fact that Dimitri was still uncertain around her was driving me crazy.

He was trying that much I knew, but there were just certain things that only I could do. Dimitri was always very attentive but he never dared pick her up on his own as she was still too young to hold her head on her own. Burping her was a challenge too, but I knew that with practice he'd get the hang of it.

"How is she?" He asked looking down at the baby in my arms.

"She's absolutely perfect." I told him as I stroked the baby's velvety cheek. Dimitri's smile was contagious.

"She is," He agreed. "But I meant how is she in regards to that." He pointed to the bottle beside me and I sighed yet again. We had recently started introducing Vasya to formula and it wasn't going well.

"She still doesn't seem to like it," I told him. "Maybe if you try giving it to her she'll drink?"

Dimitri flashed me a doubtful look, but I wasn't about to let up. My mom, Olena and the dozens of baby books I'd read during my pregnancy had been certain that babies often didn't like drinking formula from mom because they could smell her milk. I didn't know if it was true or not, but I was willing to try anything at this point. My mom had advised me to try feeding her breast milk in the bottle, but even that advise which had seemed genius at that point hadn't worked. She apparently just didn't like the feel of the silicone nipple in her mouth.

"Please, baby?" I asked Dimitri. He looked at me for a long moment before nodding. I wasn't sure what finally convinced him to take the baby, probably because he could see how tired I was, but he opened his arms for her and I gently placed her in his arms.

"Relax comrade,
"I urged. "You got this." I helped him out further by putting the nipple in her mouth and then, I moved away.

I walked into our bedroom and then right back out when I saw the pile of laundry that needed to get done. I knew Dimitri would've taken care of it if he had the time; he'd been helping a lot around the house since the baby was born. Unfortunately, he had been pulling a lot of shifts even though Lissa and Hans had told him he didn't have too. And as could be imagined, he too was exhausted.

"Awe, come on baby, drink just a little bit for daddy?" Vasya rewarded him by waling and rubbing her face against his chest. I sighed and took her. There would be time enough for weaning later. Right now, my baby was hungry and I had exactly what she wanted.

"There, that's better, right?" I cooed as she latched on to my nipple and closed her eyes. Dimitri and I locked gazes and he smiled.

"You're a natural, Roza." I giggled.

"Nah, she just prefers to be nursed than fed from a bottle," I told him. Dimitri rolled his eyes.

"Of course she does, formula is disgusting." I nodded in agreement. "Perhaps we don't have to wean her just yet; I mean she is still young."

"I guess," I said. "Breast fed is best fed, right?" He chuckled.

"Yes and everyone's business." I laughed out right at that, remembering the signs that use to be up in my doctor's waiting room.

"I'm going to make hot chocolate, you want some?" I nodded and gently lifted a sleeping Vasya onto my shoulder so I could burp her. While Dimitri busied himself with making the beverages, I tucked the baby into her basinet and started on the laundry.

"Roza," Dimitri said coming up behind me. "Shouldn't you be resting while she's sleeping?" I nodded.

"Ideally, but someone's got to take care of the house." I told him.

"That's why I'm here, Roza." He said placing a steaming mug of hot chocolate into my hand.

"But you're tired, Dimitri. Do you really think I don't notice?" He shook his head and took a sip from his own mug.

"Of course not, you notice everything about me, but I'm more than happy to help you out." Hearing those words warmed my heart and brought a smile to my face.

"I love you," I said honestly. Dimitri's answering smile was warm and soft.

"Tell you what, why don't we go rest up for a while. The clothes are in the wash and everything else can wait until we are both functioning better." That was the best idea I'd heard in a while. It didn't take long for me to nod at him and Dimitri scooped me up in his arms while somehow balancing 2 steaming mugs.

"Dimitri!" I giggled. "You know I can walk right?" His only response was a chuckle, but he didn't set me down until we were standing by our bed.

For the first time in a while, we curled up in bed. This time, we were actually aware of the other's presence unlike the times when we fell asleep on opposite sides of the bed and woke up in a tangled mess in the middle of it. Dimitri turned on the TV, but I wasn't really paying attention to what was on. The only thing I was certain of was the fact that some Christmas show was on. I rested my head on Dimitri's chest and was lulled to sleep by his steady breathing and strong heartbeat.

When my eyes reopened, I was alone in the bed. The house was quiet and I was on instant alert. I did feel really rested, something I hadn't felt in a while. Glancing at the clock, I realized that I'd been asleep for just over 2 hours. Why wasn't Vasya screaming her head off yet?

I swung my legs over the edge of the bed and tore off into the nursery. Her basinet was empty. My heart suddenly started pounding frantically in my chest. I rushed out into the living room and froze. Sitting in my living room was the entire Belikov family, Dimitri and our daughter included.

"Sleeping beauty has awakened from her slumber at last." Dimitri said with a smile. I rolled my eyes and launched myself at Olena. Viktoria intercepted and we collided in a hug right there in the middle of the room. Everyone else rose to hug me and I soaked it all up.

"What on earth are you guys doing here?" I asked excitedly. "Not that I'm not totally happy to see you guys!"

"We're here to help you take care of Vasya of course," Olena said eying the baby who I'd just noticed was cradled in Dimitri's arms. I flashed him a proud smile. As though she was suddenly aware of my presence, she started fussing and rubbing her head against Dimitri's chest.

"My, my. Looks like someone's hungry." I said and to my astonishment, Dimitri brought her over to me.

In that moment when he lowered the baby into my arms and was so calm that only I noticed the nervousness in his eyes, I wanted to kiss him. Seeing as how we had an audience who were watching us adoringly, I settled for staring long and deep into his eyes. I could only hope he knew what I was trying to say. When he smiled and nodded, I knew he got it.

"Hi baby," I cooed adjusting her for nursing. "Did you missed mama?" Her only answer was to fuss some more. When I popped my boob out, she was more than happy once she had latched on.

"Awe Roza," You're a natural." Viktoria said excitedly. I smiled and brushed off her prays. Everyone got really engrossed in catching up and wanted to know everything about Vasya even though there wasn't really much to tell. I mean she was barely a month old. All she did was eat, poop and sleep.

"Do you want to hold her, Paul?" I asked the 11 year old later that day. Lissa, Viktoria and the rest of her sisters were taken Zoya and Letya, Sonya's 1 year old daughter to find something to wear for the upcoming ball even though it was just about freezing.

Paul had decided to stay in to hang out with his uncle Dimka, but Dimitri was helping Olena make dinner. So, he was now sitting in front of the TV watching Star Wars while I was just getting in some cuddle time with Vasya. There was something really amazing about holding my little girl in my arms, almost as though she was as delicate as a flower and this was the only place she was safe. In our world where monsters really did exist, that wasn't too far from the truth. Vasya was the piece I hadn't even known was missing in the first place.

Paul looked away from the TV and eyed me curiously before shaking his head. "She's too small, aunt Roza. What if I drop her?" His outburst was so much like something Dimitri would've said just a day ago that it made me giggle and I shook my head.

"She's not that small," I told him. "I'll help you if you want." He eyed Vasya up for a good few moments before nodding.

"Ok, but you have to stay right here, ok?" I grinned and got out of the rocking chair.

As it turned out, I didn't have to show Paul how to hold the baby. I placed her into his open arms and backed up a little. The sight of Vasya resting so contentedly in her cousin's arms was seriously heart warming that it deserved a photo.

"Wait!" Paul exclaimed a little too loudly. "Where are you going?" His outburst scared the baby and she started crying. Paul looked completely freaked out though I didn't really know why. I'd seen him with his sister and cousin and he was a natural.

"Whoa, hey, relax, Paul. Just rock her," I urged. He did as told and both he and Vasya relaxed. "See? You got it. Now smile!"

Now that I had so many willing ladies most of whom were moms themselves here and ready to help Dimitri and me out, the days seemed to fly by. Taking care of Vasya became a much easier task and even though I still had to wake up every 2 hours at night to nurse her, it really wasn't so bad once I got in a nap during the day. That in itself had been no easy feat. I couldn't possibly nap when I had a new baby to take care of, right? Olena had ensured though that I did exactly that.

"Oh dear you look tired," Olena had said to me one day. Tired? Oh no, I was fucking exhausted. Not that I was going to admit that to her.

"Oh no," I'd said. "I'm good." The fact that I was curled up on the sofa with my eyes half closed while Vasya napped probably didn't help my case.

"Roza, you do know that I went through this exact thing, right?" Olena asked obviously unconvinced that I was fine. "I know how exhausting taking care of a baby, especially your first baby can be. I would've driven myself crazy with Karo if it weren't for my mama."

"Listen to her child," Yeva piped up from the rocking chair where she was busily knitting something. "She did the same thing for Karolina and Sonya, too."

In the end, I decided to listen to the older women and give into my urges. With a nod, I stood and was about to pick the baby up but Olena shook her head.

"Leave her be. You go on upstairs and get some rest. I'll come get you when she needs to nurse." Seeing as how Vasya rarely took long naps and had only nursed about 5 minutes ago, I decided to take her up on her offer. I kissed my daughter's forehead and headed up the stairs.

After that day, I never questioned how I could possibly take a nap when there was so much to do ever again. The truth was, I needed my sane time or I really would go insane. It wasn't long before Vasya and I would nap together. We'd developed a routine where I'd give her a bath just before one of her naps, nurse her in bed until she fell asleep and then I'd lay down with her until I drifted off. I'd figured out pretty quickly that Vasya would nap longer when she and I were napping together.

The day of the holiday ball had finally arrived. Everyone in court had been buzzing about nothing else for weeks. Lissa had finally put her queenly foot down a couple weeks ago and told the council off for these nonsensical unproductive gatherings. Truth be told, it had taken her long enough.

"Hey Roza!" Viktoria greeted as Vasya and I strolled into the ball room that day. I flashed a smile in her direction, but my eyes were glued to the hunky Russian helping Christian hang streamers. In spite of the freezing wintery temperature of the court, a slight sheens of perspiration clung to Dimitri. His skin seemed to glow beneath the strings of Christmas lights that had been set up.

"Hey Roza," Dimitri said with a smile as we approached amidst the blur of activity that filled the ball room in preparation for the night's activities.

"Hey!" I greeted and Dimitri forgot about his work long enough to press a kiss to my lips and one to Vasya's head. "You need my expertise for anything, Christian?" He shook his head.

"Nope, we're all good here actually, but I think Lissa was looking for you." I nodded and set off to find Lissa. God it was times like these that I missed our bond.

"Rose!" I turned my head and smiled when I saw Lissa. "Thank goodness," She said coming over. "I've been looking everywhere for you."

"Well here I am," I said. "What did you need?" Just like that I was whisked off to help Lissa with the finer details. After that, she dragged Vasya and me off to find dresses.

"Awe, it's so beautiful." I breathed as Dimitri and I stepped into the dimly lit room that night. Everything had been transformed and it now looked glittery and golden, fit for a queen.

"It is," He agreed. "But not as beautiful as you." I blushed and kissed him.

"Let's go find her majesty." He nodded and took my hand. We stepped outside and around back to where Lissa and Christian were already waiting.

"Oh my god, you are beautiful, Liss." And she was. The glittering jade gown hugged her body gracefully and seemed to float around her with every step she took. Her hair was swept up in a simple bun and a few curls fell around her shoulders and framed her face. She wore light makeup though it was absolutely unnecessary in my opinion. The jade stone tiara sitting atop her head was the icing on the cake.

"So are you!" She squealed. I was clothed in a blood red floor length gown. Lissa was right. It was beautiful. It was every bit as glittery as hers though not as modest. The neckline was pretty low, specially designed that way for when I had to nurse Vasya, but I knew it was going to draw some eyes and I didn't doubt that it was what everyone would be talking about tomorrow. It also fell loosely around my waist making it easy for me to use my legs say like in a fight. A thin piece of silver fabric was wrapped around my waist and was the perfect place for me to hide my stake.

"Shall we go?" Lissa asked. I nodded and Dimitri, Eddie and I took our places behind Lissa, Christian and Jill. Jill wore a similar dress to Lissa's, but she looked every bit like the princess she was. They announced her majesty queen Vasalissa Dragomir, Lord Christian Ozera and princess Jillion Mastrano Dragomir. In spite of our attire, we were still guardians, so we followed a few paces behind them, our eyes alert as we scanned the area around us.

Once all the formal crap was over, Lissa took off her tiara and so did Jill. These girls didn't care about all that royal crap, hell, they were young and so was I. It turned out to be a pretty awesome night. I would've gotten drunk if I hadn't known that someone, Christian, had spiked the punch.

Wrapped up in Dimitri's arms as he twirled us around the room, I closed my eyes and laid my head on his chest. Vasya was hanging out with my parents and Olena on the other side of the room and as I listened to Dimitri's steady heartbeat and his voice singing me the song we were dancing too, I realized something. I had everything I'd ever truly wanted in this life, and I honestly had not expected any of it.

"What's that smile for?" Dimitri whispered as he led me off the dance floor.

"Oh nothing," I said. "I just realized that I'm the luckiest girl in the world." His answering smile was warm and soft and lit up his eyes.

I was lost in those beautiful brown eyes until someone, Christian again, screamed: "Mistletoe!" As 1 Dimitri and I looked up and yep, there it was. Grinning, we leant in and our lips met in a slow, sweet kiss which ignited a fire within me.

"That dress is beautiful," Dimitri said huskily. "But I cannot wait to take it off of you." It was needless to say that, he did exactly that when we went home. I couldn't be happier that we had our amazing babysitters from Russia with love here to help us out.

Ooooo! So, you guys! How are we feeling? Do let me know in a review!

And if anyone wants to write any of these with me, please let me know! You know how to get a hold of me!

XXX

Roza