I woke up early the next day after a restless night of sleep. I was ready to face whatever my life would become, but that didn't mean it didn't still scare me. I placed my backpack and duffel in the most comfortable positions I could manage, knowing I would be carrying them across Court. I sat on my bed and waited for Guardian Croft to come and escort me to my future.

Looking around my room, I noticed how sparse and neat I had left it. I wasn't exactly sure if I was going to get to keep it, so I wanted to leave it as clean as possible in case someone had to clear my stuff out.

I was feeling a little nostalgic for my room back at St. Vladimirs when I heard the knock at my door. I threw it open as quickly as possible, ready to leave Court behind. It took me a second to realize it wasn't Croft at the door, but Dimitri.

He had dark purple circles under his eyes, and I knew he hadn't slept at all last night. He was in the same clothes I had seen him in at Lissa's the night before, and I silently wondered what he had been up to in the last six hours.

"What do you need? I'm kinda waiting for someone," I said and shoved around him to poke my head into the hallway. There was no one else I could see out there. I needed to keep my guard up around him.

"I called in a favor. I'm here to escort you," he responded.

Dimitri grabbed at my bag and I took a step back. He paused, slightly, before making another grab for it. He was successful this time. Turning on his heel, he walked at a brisk pace down the hall. He knew I'd follow if he held my stuff hostage, and I cursed my slow reaction time and chased him down the hall and out of the building.

He slowed once we were outside, and I tried to think of something to say to him. After the church incident I was drawing a total blank. What else could I say to him? He didn't want to hear me tell him about my love anymore. So I decided to let us walk in silence instead. Tension was radiating off of him, but I ignored it as best as I could.

"You don't have to do this, you know. Lissa and Adrian can get you out of here. It isn't too late," he said so quietly I could barely hear him.

"I know,"

The silence stretched on for a couple minutes before he asked his next question.

"So why are you? Doing this, I mean?"

I took some time to consider the question, because I didn't fully know myself. Deep down, I knew it was more than just the fact that Dimitri didn't love me anymore. It was about me feeling trapped and finding an escape route. Even if I did somehow manage to get assigned to Lissa, I would never really be able to make my own decisions here.

"Remember back at St. Vladimirs? When we thought we had everything all figured out? That we would get to be together, have our own lives? " Dimitri nodded slowly, "Well... I spent the last few months thinking that it was impossible. Hell, it still is impossible. But I don't just have to stay here in Court and take it."

"So you're leaving out of spite for the sytem? That's going to get you killed, Roza," Dimitri said harshly.

"It's not spite! It's..." I struggled to find the right words, "tell me, Dimitri, what is there here at Court for me?" I asked.

"Lissa, Adrian, Eddie... and me," he added the last part quietly at the end, as if he didn't want me to notice.

I barked out a laugh. Dimitri knew just as well as I did that we couldn't be lovers, we couldn't be friends, and we couldn't be guarding partners. It was too much for both of us.

"Lissa hasn't been much of a friend to me lately. Something changed between us..." the 'when you came back' was silent, but I knew he felt it, "Adrian managed fine without me, and so did Eddie. They'll survive."

"What about me?" He stopped walking when he asked this. He put his hand on my shoulder and spun me around to look at him. I stopped breathing when I looked into his eyes. There was so much there. Hurt, guilt, pain, those emotions were all consuming. It made me angry to have to look at him.

"What about you? You told me everything I needed to know back in church," I said as I ripped my body away from his. I increased my pace and walked a few steps ahead of him the rest of the way. We didn't talk again until we reached the single black SUV waiting for me near the gate.

I took in the scene as soon as we got close enough to make it out. There were four people standing around. First, I noticed Lissa and Adrian, because of course they would have a way to find out when the super secret mission left. Next to them was Eddie Castile. I smiled, grateful to tell him goodbye before I left. He had easily become one of my best friends and confidants in our time together. Lastly, I saw Mikhail Tanner throwing bags into the back of the vehicle. I hoped he was one of the guardians going on the mission. It would be nice to see a familiar face, and he was definitely someone who could imagine how I felt in this situation.

As we walked up, Lissa reached over to give Eddie a hug. Adrian then gave one of his own, and realization dawned on me. Eddie wasn't here to say goodbye, he was here on the same mission. I suddenly cared a lot more about the danger we might be walking into, although I promised myself I wouldn't show it.

"How'd you get roped into this, Castile?" I asked, opting to keep things light.

"Someone's got to make sure you don't get killed, Hathaway," he responded in a teasing manner. I was the only one to laugh, unable to break the tension among our friends.

"This isn't right. I'm going to do everything I can to bring you guys home." Lissa said with a fierceness to her voice. I could see the fear in her expression.

"We're tough, Princess Dragomir. We'll make it just fine," Mikhail responded, joining in on our conversation.

"I know... I was hoping to talk to Rose for a few minutes before you guys left?" Lissa asked suddenly, her question directed to Mikhail. He must be the leader of our operation.

"Sure. Guardian Croft called to let me know we had a last minute addition to our crew. You have until they get here," he responded. I wondered if this addition was someone I knew, or a stranger. I didn't have much time to consider it as Lissa started tugging at my arm.

I didn't want to talk to her. I wasn't sure if I would be able to leave when she begged me to stay. I steeled myself for the conversation as we walked a few feet away, out of earshot but close enough to see what was happening. Our group resumed chatting as Lissa and I turned to look at each other.

"Please don't go, Rose," Lissa begged. I knew this was coming, and I slightly averted my eyes from her own, not putting compulsion past her.

"Queen's orders," I responded simply, ignoring the fact that Dimitri had told me they had a plan to get me out if I wanted it.

"How am I supposed to do this without you? College, Court, life? I can't be alone here," she cried.

"You won't be alone, Liss. You'll have Christian, Mia, and even... Dimitri. You have people here that love you," I responded and took her into my arms, smoothing her hair through the hug. I had to hold back tears of my own.

"I wouldn't have picked him if I had known, Rose. I thought I was doing the right thing."

It broke my heart to see Lissa like this. All I wanted to do was comfort her, but I knew I had to stay strong if I was going to get out of here. I knew deep down that she would be okay. She was strong, and she would be able to move on past our friendship.

"You did the right thing. Dimitri needed help getting his guardian status back. That was the right thing for you, and him, and the whole Moroi society. They need to see he's a dhampir. Working with you can help him to prove it... It just wasn't the right thing for me," I shrugged against her, "And that's okay. I'll be okay, Liss."

I wasn't sure who I was trying to convince at that point, myself or her. I felt my heart breaking once again as she cried into my shoulder. I held her tighter and told her goodbye as Mikhail started waving at me over her shoulder. We managed to break away from each other, and as we did I saw who I thought the fourth member of our party was.

My jaw dropped open as he popped his bags into the back and turned to face me.

It was Christian Ozera, smirking at me as if we were throwing sarcastic comments at each other, and not like he just joined a group of state sanctioned strigoi hunters. I couldn't believe it, and part of me thought it had to be some sort of prank. There was no way Guardian Croft would allow him to put himself in danger like this.

I was brought back to reality when I heard Lissa scream beside me.