We walk together in silence for a while, and I'm honestly beginning to think that he just genuinely can't walk any other way. It defies the laws of nature, given that his feet are about half as long as I am.

A couple of minutes in, I notice that he keeps giving me these strange looks from his lofty height. Deciding that it will make this excursion longer if I attempt a conversation, I resolve to just keep walking. So I'm flabbergasted when he's the one who finally speaks.

"Should I be concerned?"

Yep, definitely Russian. I recognise it from all those corny movie criminals.

"About what?"

He frowns. "About the blood thing. Why did you wait so long?"

That throws me off. I'm not used to people paying such close attention to me, and while I know that it's his job, it makes me a little uncomfortable.

"I like to make an entrance." As usual, I mask my vulnerability with sass.

He shakes his head. "I need an honest answer."

But I'm not sure that I can give him one.

You see, I am the rebel; the write-off. I'm the girl that people pay attention to while she's making a spectacle of herself and then turn away the minute it's over. I don't do 'real.' And this falls under that category quite decidedly. These are things that people don't see: things that I definitely do not enjoy talking about.

But apparently I've been quiet for too long.

"Were you just too lazy to go, or are you actually self-destructive?"

Oh boy, I do not want to get into that last part. But I shrug. "I'm not suicidal, if that's what you're thinking. And if I were, there are much easier ways to kill myself than starvation."

"That statement doesn't exactly set my mind at ease."

I sigh, deliberately avoiding his eyes. "Normally I don't leave it that long. With everything else, I don't know, I just got caught up."

A pause, then: "Rose, you can tell me the truth, you know."

It's not fair. This guy has known me for all of five minutes, and he already seems to have a better understanding of my character than the people who birthed and raised me. And from what I've gathered of his personality so far, I know that he's not going to let this go. I don't know why, but I desperately want to believe that I can tell him, even though he's practically a stranger. For the first time in a while, I decide to take a leap of faith.

"It's not about me," I say at last. "It's about them."

"The feeders?"

Boy, he catches on quickly.

I nod. "They always overuse them, and they think it doesn't matter because they don't even see them as people. I guess I just like to wait a while between. It helps ease the load a little."

I address my words to the ground, but look up as I finish, craning my neck so that I can see his face. What I find there confuses me. If he wasn't a guardian, I would swear he almost looks surprised.

"What?"

As soon as I speak, he regains his composure. "Nothing. I get that you want to help them, but it shouldn't be at the cost of your own strength."

I close myself off at the chastisement. That's what I get for telling the truth.

"Whatever."

In a shocking turn of events, we sink back into that ever-present silence. At one point he looks like he wants to say something, but decides against it. It's a relief when we finally reach the classroom. Luckily, Mr Peter is sitting at his desk as I walk in.

"Miss Dragomir," he says, glancing up from the pile of papers that he's marking. "To what do I owe this pleasure?"

"Um, actually Sir, I er… I came to, uh…" I clear my throat and try again, through gritted teeth. "I came to… find out what I missed."

His silver eyebrows shoot upwards, registering his astonishment. I simply stand there and wait for him to get over it.

When he finally does respond, it isn't quite what I expected.

"Why?"

"What?"

"Why do you want to know what you missed?"

"I…er…" Despite my best efforts, I glance behind me where the guardian is standing, looking all Russian and intimidating. My eyes only flick in his direction for a second, but Mr Peter has sharp eyes for an old man.

"I see. Well, in that case, I will tell you what to catch up on, but only on one condition."

For some strange reason, my life seems to have gotten more complicated since yesterday. I forcibly remind myself that I actually like this teacher, but roll my eyes nevertheless.

"Fine. What's the condition?"

An amused smile plays across his lips. "That you actually do all of the work."

Damn.

While I may be reckless and disobedient, contrary to what Lissa said this morning, I am not stupid. I know that in order to get away with most of my behaviour, my grades have to be satisfactory. In fact, half the reason that my parents haven't implicated more serious measures before now is that I've never actually failed a subject. It's come close once or twice, and my grades are never anywhere near excellent, but I've always made a point of doing just enough work to get by.

Mr Peter's condition now throws a spanner in the works—or lack thereof.

As if he can tell what I'm thinking, his smile becomes kinder. "Miss Dragomir, you and I both know that you are capable of much better marks than you are currently achieving. I also happen to know that you enjoy my subject."

I sigh. "Okay. I'll do the work."

"Excellent. In that case, I'd like you to read through the chapter we were working on and answer the questions at the end. You'll submit your answers to me at the start of our lesson on Wednesday."

I thank him, nod, and start to leave the classroom. Just as I reach my guardian by the door, a thought occurs to me and I turn back.

"Sir?" I say, taking a breath. "I would appreciate it if you could keep this between us."

He chuckles, blue eyes twinkling. "Oh, I won't tell a soul."

"Where did you go?" Lissa asks as I sit down opposite her.

"Never mind that now. I have so much to tell you."

Five minutes later, she's all caught up on the events of the morning Being Lissa, she takes a few more moments to think it all through, frowning as she does so.

"Honestly, I'm kind of surprised that it took them so long," she muses. "You really should have had a guardian before now. I mean, you're kind of a big deal."

I roll my eyes. "Right. Well, I got by just fine without him."

"Oh, yes," she laughs. "Perfectly fine."

"I did! I haven't died yet."

"By sheer luck. It's come ridiculously close a couple of times. Remember the ostrich?"

"To be fair, it was a sick ostrich. Allegedly. And that took two people; don't pretend you're entirely blameless."

"You're just a bad influence," she grins. "Although you are pretty innovative too, so you get points for that."

I roll my eyes again, but she suddenly seems to realise something.

"Wait," she says. "This means you're actually going to have to behave."

"Huh?"

"This isn't just about tricking your parents anymore. A guardian is going to be impossible to fool."

"I'll find ways around it." Despite my carefree tone, my heart sinks a little lower in my chest.

Her grin widens. "No, I don't think you will."

I groan. "You look way too happy about this."

"Is it really that bad?"

"Yes! It's only been one day, and he's just everywhere! Stuck here with me, when he could actually be putting his training to use."

She sighs. "You're looking at this all wrong."

"And the guy is so freaking quiet, it's unnerving!"

"They're all quiet."

"No, he's worse. He doesn't make a single sound. He just glides along, like a freaking Disney princess."

She lets out a loud peal of laughter, which cuts off abruptly as her eyes fall on something behind me.

"Uh, Rose…"

I know that it's him without having to turn around. "I guess it's time for class," I grumble, grabbing my bag.

My maths teacher can't believe her eyes when I arrive on time thanks to my escort, but at least my classmates can't point and whisper for very long before the test papers are set before us. I spend the next hour doling out death stares and half-heartedly attempting to 'solve for x.'

Once our test papers are in, everybody relaxes and starts talking. There are only a couple of minutes left until class ends, so our teacher just lets it happen. Mason sidles up to my desk.

"You arrived on time today," he grins. "Only you can become the talk of the academy by actually obeying the rules."

"I'm the talk of the academy either way," I shrug. "I guess I just attract attention."

"Among other things. So your parents are finally making you be good?"

I smile. "Nobody can make me do anything. And there are always other was to misbehave."

"I don't know so much."

I jokingly put a hand over my heart. "Do you doubt me?"

"Not at all," he grins. "But if anyone could do it, it's Guardian Belikov."

"Really? He doesn't seem all that impressive, apart from his stealth skills and somehow managing to make that coat-thing look cool. I suspect witchcraft is involved."

He grins. "Trust you to land up with one of the most talented guardians alive and not even know it."

"Exaggerate much?" I scoff. "If he's really as good as you say, why would he be assigned to me?"

"Trust me, the guy is practically a god." His tone is bordering on reverent as he glances to the back of the room where the guardians stand, mine among them.

"Do you want me to leave you two alone?"

That earns me an eye-roll. "Seriously, Rose. Didn't you notice how young he is?"

"Well, yeah," I admit. "But I thought it just meant he was fresh from training or something."

Mason shakes his head. "They wouldn't let somebody inexperienced protect the Dragomir Princess."

Great. So now not only is this guardian wasting his skills protecting me, but apparently said skills are prodigious. Why do I get the sneaky suspicion that my father had a hand in this?

But something else about Mason's reply makes me narrow my eyes.

"Don't call me that," I warn.

"What else am I supposed to call you? You are a princess, even if you don't act like it."

"It's not something I need reminding of."

The bell interrupts whatever he's about to say, luckily for him. All of a sudden, he just doesn't seem as cute as before.

I stand up and sling my bag over my shoulder, relishing the ability to move after an hour of mental contortion. Mason waves his farewell and heads back to his desk to gather his own things.

The school day is finally over, and I am free once more.

Well, almost free, I amend as I'm joined by the coat-wearing wonder-child himself.

The thought draws my attention to a mounting problem, and I frown.

"You know," I say as he ghosts along beside me through the campus. "I've never had a guardian before. What am I supposed to call you?"

He seems to consider this for a moment. "I wouldn't recommend the continued use of 'Disney princess', if I were you."

Whoops.

"Hang on, did you just make a joke?"

He ignores me. "You can just call me Dimitri."

"Okay," I reply, but then his accent gives me an idea. Idly, I wonder if he's ever had to deliver a bomb threat, and then push the thought aside. "How about Comrade?"

"No."

"I think it has a nice ring to it."

"No."

"Are you sure?"

"One-hundred percent."

"Just to be clear, was that for or against it?"

He raises his eyebrow, but maintains his silence.

"Couldn't I technically order you to let me call you Comrade?"

"You could, Princess Dragomir."

I repress a shudder. "Dimitri it is, then."

He doesn't play fair.

A tiny smile breaks through his composure. "Wise decision."

By this point, we're almost back to the house, passing the wall that marks the edge of the property. As we walk by, a faint glimmer catches my eye from the grass near the base.

"What are you doing?" he asks, sounding faintly exasperated as I veer off the path.

"Just a little detour," I call back over my shoulder, drawn to the sparkling objects like a magpie.

"You're supposed to go straight home."

But though he catches up to me with ease, he doesn't actually stop me.

"Bingo!"

I stoop down and grab the shiny pair of heels that I so carelessly discarded last night. Even in the weak light of the moon, they glitter dimly.

"Okay, we can go now."

"Why exactly did you leave them there in the first place?" he asks once we're back on track.

"Are you kidding? These things were like four hundred bucks! Plus there's no way that I could scale that wall in 5 inch heels."

"That's the wall you climbed?"

"Yeah. Why?"

He looks sceptical.

"Is that a challenge?"

"No," he replies, but before the word leaves his lips, I'm halfway to the top.

I can't help but grin. While it doesn't take him long to respond, I actually caught him by surprise, which is proof that even one of the alleged best guardians can't be prepared for everything. Maybe there is some hope for me after all.

A second later, he's after me like lightning, vaulting over the wall like it's 3 feet instead of 7. He finds hand and footholds seemingly by instinct, his coat flapping out behind him like a slow-motion movie moment.

And in that moment, I can see what Mason was saying. He is simply incredible. His movements are graceful and fluid, despite his ridiculous height. He's like a well-oiled machine made by a master mechanic. I have an inkling now just how deadly he would be in a fight. In that moment, he is glorious.

And because I'm watching him, I forget to pay attention to myself. He's already landed when I reach the top and the aged edge crumbles beneath my precariously-placed heel. I pay the price for my distraction by being fully focussed on the ground blurring towards me.

Oh shit.

Strong, leather-clad arms break my fall, and the scream that I wasn't even aware of forming suddenly cuts off. All the air is knocked out of me at the impact.

We stay frozen for several seconds.

"Are you okay?" he asks. There's no emotion, only the no-nonsense, commanding tone of a guardian.

"I'm fine," I breathe, slowly becoming aware of the warmth of him as I come back to myself. "Could you, er, put me down now please?"

Gently, he sets me on my feet, making sure that I can stand by myself before he lets me go. His eyes flick over me for any sign of damage. Only once he's ascertained that I am indeed unscathed does he speak again.

"That was stupid and reckless," he chides. All traces of joking have vanished from his voice, which is now hard and stern.

And he's right, of course, but reckless is practically my middle name. I've done countless things far worse than hop a wall, and received far worse punishment than a reprimand from a virtual stranger. This man was foisted upon me less than 24 hours ago, so why in the hell do my eyes slide away from his face and attach their gaze to the ground? And why do I feel the prickle of colour flooding my cheeks?

Part of it is that I hate being some kind of damsel in distress.

It's bad enough that my race chooses to be weak in spite of our potential, and that I'm bound by the choices of some assholes that lived several hundred years ago. It's even worse that because of my title, I wound up with a super talented guardian whose deadly skills are currently being used to save me from a stone wall.

But there is another small part—one I really don't want to think about too hard—that simply doesn't want to look bad in front of him.

Dimitri returns to his default state of silence as he marches me back to the house. I don't try to speak for once; I just follow meekly and try to answer the question that's floating around my head:

What is happening to me?

Author's Note

Thank you for reading! Please leave a review to let me know what you liked and what you didn't. It's always fantastic to hear your feedback, particularly with this fic. If you'd like to keep in the loop, feel free to favourite and follow, too. I try to update every month, but I'm not entirely sure how long I'll be able to keep that up.

I'm really enjoying writing this one. It's outside my usual content, because I normally try to stick as close to canon as possible, but I guess that's what makes it entertaining. At least, I hope it is entertaining. Also, apologies for any mistakes, as this is unBeta'd.

All credit for the VA universe, and the characters therein goes to Richelle Mead.