Author Note: special thanks to my Beta

and thanks to all my readers for being patient and sticking around. I appreciate you all!


The silence was a bit awkward after Tasha left the room.

No one knew what to say to continue the discussion or to end it.

"Are you guys that uncomfortable with me being one of the Voids? I mean, I'm still me, on the inside. I know that I can look a bit scary at times, especially during feeding time, and I understand if your trust in me is shaken or lost due for not telling you guys sooner. It's just, I didn't know if you would still accept me or not." I explained to them while looking at their faces for any sign that they might be not supportive.

"It was a shock at first to be honest." I turned my head towards Sydney, "At first I thought that you were a Strigoi and I was thinking of quick ways to kill you. But then I saw you had different features and that you still acted like the Rose I know of. We were all distressed by what we saw, granted not all of us saw it, but it was explained vividly. Christian was explaining things to us with the help of Eric, before Tasha tried to make an enemy of you."

" I see. Well, I am not surprised that Tasha would do that. It would not be the first time that she has betrayed me and shown her true colors." I admitted, avoiding Dimitri's gaze.

" Thank you for not just kicking me out though, it means a lot to me. I promise to try and be more open with you guys and answer any questions you have."

"Any time little Dhampir." Adrian winked at me playfully while receiving a light flick to the nose from Sydney. I chuckled at their loving antics.

"Well now that my aunt's drama is settled, how about we discuss what our next plan of action is?" Christian suggested, trying to change the topic.

"Atali is upstairs finishing up her ritual to find the relics as we speak. I suppose once we know the locations, we split up and go get them before Celeste does. However, there a lot of things that can happen to make each quest full of obstacles." I inform the group.

"Splitting up is not a bad idea, we can cover more ground that way. But how do we decide who stays and who goes? Not to mention we are going to need to find a way to communicate with each group without alerting any nearby enemies to our locations. We also need to scout and plan for each route to an artifact along with provisions for each member." Dimitri added to the conversation.

I nodded in agreement and looked at Sydney and Adrian, "I think you should stay here with your son. That way you both can protect him and you don't have to worry about each other if one of you went on the mission. Plus, we will be using this house as headquarters during this mission. I will make sure there are strong protective wards around this house and its land so that you and those staying here are safe. Not only from Strigoi but from my kind as well." They both nodded in agreement confidently and I gave them a little smile in return.

"How are we going to divide teams?" a feminine voice asked from behind,

We all turned our heads to find it was Atali in the doorway drinking a can of Pepsi.

"We have not discussed it yet, but I was thinking that each of us four," Erik pointed towards him, Atali ,Christian, and I. "Create a team that fits our needs and we each go after a relic."

I took time to think about what he said, and it makes sense. It's just we don't have that many people here to create teams with. We would need to recruit some hunters and guardians.

Speaking of which, I haven't seen Eddie, Mia, Mikhail or Sonya around. Did they go with my parents?

"Hey, where are the two happy couples?" I asked out loud, hoping someone would answer.

"Eddie and Mia are with Lissa. Mikhail and Sonya have been casually strolling around the house and forest before going back to their room, minus the time they come to collect food." Christian answered with a smirk, leaving me to assume he probably knows more than what he is telling. Things that would mentally scar me if I knew.

I pretend gag at Christian's way of bringing up my two friend's sex life, making most of the people in the room laugh. Moments like these make me miss the old days before all this crazy shit happened. Before I left the academy to hunt down Dimitri.

My eyes slide over to the side of the room where I see Dimitri just looking out of the living room window, his eyes look distant and focused. Probably off in his own world overthinking something.

I take this time to really look at him while I have the chance before anyone notices.

His posture reveals that he is weary and stressed, and there are bags under his eyes that I didn't notice before and his skin looks paler too. He has acquired more worry lines but his eyes are still the rich deep honey brown I remembered and loved long ago. He has also kept up with his work outs since last I saw him, his body still looked toned and muscular.

Mentally sighing, I shifted my gaze back to the group around me. Being around him has been taxing on my emotions, I still feel drawn to him but I know I should stay away. Not only because of what he did to me, but because of my relationship with Erik and the thing I've turned into. I don't have the best control right now, and I don't trust myself with any normal person. Whether it be human, Dhampire, or Moroi.

Caressing the ring on my left middle finger to comfort my nerves and to remind myself that there is always a last resort in case the worst happens. A ring that my grandfather gave me as a leash of some sort, and a spell that makes Erik and Christian as my handlers.

"I could contact one of the Fae Lords and see if they have any discreet communication devices that they could let us borrow." I suggested out loud. "I could even ask around in the magic community to see if I could find anything there."

"That would be wonderful Rose," Christian replied. "But its always so complicated going to the Fae world, times moves differently and i hate the Royals over there. Bunch of stuck up snobs."

Erik let out a deep chuckle in response to Christians words. "They're not all that bad. Some have a very interesting drinking parties."

"Well, then you two go talk to them. Atali and I can go to the magical community and any other places she might think of." Christian answered back with a smirk.