(Disclaimer I do not own any of these characters that would be Richelle Mead)
Pavel POV
Leaving Ivan in the room once he has fallen asleep. It's the first time I've left his side while at the academy I just need to get some fresh air before preparing for our departure. Abe has notified Headmistress Kirova of our departure in a couple of hours stating a family emergency in Turkey will be taking the boy out of school for a few weeks.
I have an uneasy feeling about this. Call it a gut feeling but having us all in the same place is making the hair at the back of my neck stand up on end. I know that if anyone is planning anything they'll be hard pushed to succeed I mean they'll be 44 of us guard and that does not include Meredith, Rose and Belikov. Oh and Abe even though Moroi is far from harmless. Abe is a fire user and let's just say he hasn't used it to light candles all his life like some, he practised and built his element up proving that if Moroi trained in their element they wouldn't need to fear strigoi. Dhampir would always be physically stronger than Moroi. But where they lacked physical strength they could counter it with their magics.
I can see that the days we are at court I'm going to be keyed up and probably will end up driving the squad mad.
Rose POV
Pulling up to the hotel I am feeling nervous, this is it in the next few days I will know if I will ever be able to go back to a normal way of life or be forever in hiding either behind my persona of Anna or just hiding all together. Whatever. Either way the only important thing is making sure Ivan is safe. My life doesn't matter it's all about him.
I know why Baba is doing this. It's a power play, a show of strength and a warning to all that if they come after me they came after Abe Mazur and the guardian army that he has amassed. As all of our guardians are either un-promised Dhampir or guardians who have left the council they are not loyal to the Moroi as a whole and only loyal to Abe. Hopefully all the other Dhampir will also want to stand by me as well.
Obviously I was lost in thought as Dimitri puts his hand under my chin lifting my head up to look at him. "Where did you go?" He asks me quietly.
"Sorry was thinking." I answer just as quietly it feels like it's just us two in the whole world.
He gives me a small smile. "I know milaya we are going to have to watch ourselves for a while. Don't worry I won't let anything happen to either you or Ivan."
"Calling me darling now hay comrade?" I give him a sexy smirk wagging my eyebrows.
"You speak Russian now?" He asks shocked.
"No your safe just a few words, oh and the swear word of cause!" Just then the car stops and he steps out the car mumbling some of those swear words while I walk past him laughing.
Stepping into the foyer together I hear a loud "Mummy." Looking in the direction my sons voice came from I was just in time to see Ivan launch himself into my arms, swinging him round I wrap his legs around my front using both my arms to make a makeshift seat under his bottom, he wraps his arms around my neck and lays his head on my shoulder.
Oh god it's so good to see him I'm kissing the top of my head. "And how's my little man? Have you been good for Uncle Pavel?"
Specking to me over my shoulder "I've been good mummy promise." I give him another kiss and he gets comfortable on my shoulder again, I think he is getting tired.
I see Dimitri just staring at him with a look of total longing. I mouth to him 'soon not here' and he nods at me. Looking around I note most the guard are around ready for anything.
Pavel walks up to me giving me a kiss on the cheek and rubbing Ivans back. "Hello my little Rose good trip?"
"The best. Pavel why are all the guard on duty?" I'm not questioning his tactics as Pavel is the best probably better than Hans Croft at being a leader just wondering what his thought process is.
"We are inside wards so they will all sleep at night (day to humans) apart from a lookout that way we only have one tired guard when we head to court. All the guard are in rooms all around you, Ivan and your father that way if anything happens while we sleep they still have to get through all of us to get to you. You, Ivan and Belikov are in a two bedroom suite on the top floor next to Abe." See what I mean the man thinks of everything. "I hope you haven't been slacking the last couple of months as I want you in the gym at 6am sharp."
"Really you can't let me off for one day?" He doesn't answer just chuckles and moves on to the next piece of business giving Ivans head a rub as he goes. "Bye then! Come on you two let's find our room."
Once we got our keys and the luggage was taken upstairs we enter the suite. The suite is huge with two bedrooms both with king size beds light colour walls with grey Egyptian cotton sheets, duvet and curtains. The floor a dark wood that contrasted with the light colours. Both rooms had there own en-suite bathroom, floor to ceiling in a sand coloured marble each having two sinks in front of a large inlet mirror. The smaller of the two having a step in shower that could fit four people in it with the huge shower head coming out of the ceiling in the middle. The larger one was identical apart from sporting a huge marble bath in the middle of the room that could easily fit two people in it.
The front room has a cream three seater sofa that when you sat on swallowed you up, two arm chairs on either side of the sofa in the same colour, a black rug in front of the sofa with a glass table on it. There was a large high definition TV mounted to the wall with a DVD player, stereo and what I guess is a cable TV box in a cabinet underneath it. Behind the sitting area there was a four seater glass dinning room table in front of a large Juliet balcony whose doors opened inwards. Looking through them I could see that there's no balcony but safety grills that came up higher then Ivan, good to know when there's an adventurous four year old running around!
There is a small kitchen that was only gonna be used for the coffee making facilities. What I can't cook and hate doing it when I try! In fact if dad didn't have Di who came with us everywhere, we would probably die of starvation. Claiming the room with the bath for Ivan and I Dimitri took his bag to the other room.
Asking Dimitri to join Ivan and I in the front room it was time to tell him who Dimitri was. I just had no idea how to to this. Ivan and I are sitting on the sofa facing each other while he tells me all that's happened since the last time I saw him when Dimitri comes in and sits on the floor in front of the sofa on the side I'm on so both of us are looking in Ivans direction.
"Hi who are you?" Great well that was not the start I wanted!
"My name is Dimitri and I'm an old friend of your mums." Dimitri says looking up at his son with what I'm guessing is him trying to look as non threatening as possible.
"Really how old?" My son asks.
"Oh years your mother is really old!" Thats it I kick Dimitri to shut him up.
"Ivan baby do you remember what I said about your daddy?" I ask our son taking his hands into mine.
"Yeah you said he is a guardian like Pavel and the others but he had to guard someone else and he loved us." Ivan states as he has heard the story dozens of times.
"Do you remember what else I said?"
"Yeah that he will come to see me soon as he can."
"Good boy well Dimitri is that guardian and he finally was able to come see you." Ivan looks at me then Dimitri he is obviously a little confused and doesn't properly understand, he is four. So we let him think for a bit figuring it out in his own time while he is playing with my hands.
"Are you my daddy?" Ivan asks finally looking at Dimitri.
"Yes Ivan I'm your papa." Ivan looks again at me for reassurance.
"It's okay baby say whatever you want." I can see he wants to do or say something but is unsure of himself when Dimitri says to him. "Is it okay if I give you a hug?"
"Yeah I guess." Ivan jumps off the sofa and opens his little arms for Dimitri. Well when Dimitri hugs his son for the first time I thought I was going to cry. Dimitri just held him in a death grip and stood up with him still in his arms his head on Ivans shoulder. Ivan was just as bad trying to squeeze Dimitri back. They stayed like that for a full minute and when Ivan pulled away he gave Dimitri a kiss on the cheek.
Dimitri POV
Lying in bed going over the whole day and I can say that today was the best day of my life I didn't think anything could of topped yesterday when I finally got to meet Ivan and him being told about me. The rest of the day we all spent together and slowly Ivan became comfortable with me. The boy is a miracle and I already loved him unconditionally. Always wishing I could be a father but excepting that it would never happen especially after turning down Tasha and getting together with Rose, so now that I have a child I'm never going to take that for granted. I know now that my world has fundamentally shifted from "they come first" to he comes first. I was wrong compared to yesterday today was 100 times better.
I was in bed when I was woken by Rose coming in carrying Ivan. Looking at the clock I could see that it was ten to six. She places Ivan in bed besides me.
"I have to meet Pavel for training and didn't have the heart to wake him. I didn't want him to wake up alone in a strange place." She whispers as she walks back around the bed and takes a seat on the bed by me. "If he wakes before I get back can you get him washed and dressed? We can all go have breakfast together when I get back."
"Of cause milaya."
Giving me a huge smile she places both her hands on my chest bends down and kisses me. I lift my hand up and skim it from the bottom of her spine up to her neck stopping at her hairline. I take a handful of her hair into my hand gently pulling her nearer and deepen the kiss. Allowing me entrance into her mouth I can taste the mint of her toothpaste. Just as I'm starting to lose coherent thought I hear a.
"Yuck mummy that's gross." Both of us laughing under our breaths as we pull away.
I turn to my son. "One day you'll want to kiss girls."
"No way daddy kissing is gross." Ivan informs me like I should know this already.
"Oh yeah?" I ask turning my body towards him and tickling him and giving him small kisses all over his face.
"Yeah" He barks out while laughing and wiggling under my hands "stop daddy you win!" As this is going on Rose shouts from the front door. "I'll see you boys later be good both of you."
Ivan and I stay in bed for another hour talking about my family in Baia. He was overjoyed to hear that he has aunts, cousins another grandmother and even a great grandmother. His exact words. "WOW she must be really old!" He is so much like my Roza.
He informs me that he speaks to nana Janine a lot but has never seen her as like me she is a guardian and can't leave her charge. I know it's more likely they didn't want anything leading back to either Rose or Ivan. "I'll take you to meet your family there soon."
"Really daddy when can we go can we go now?" I laugh as he gets excited siting up on his knees and slightly jumping up and down.
"Not now but soon I promise malySHOnuk." He stops and looks at me lifting his eyebrow in question, this makes me laugh out loud as I can picture the jealousy that Rose feels that our son can do that when she never could. "Come on little man let's get ready for when your mother gets back then we can all go eat something."
"Okay daddy if we are ready before mummy's back can we go to the gym and watch her and Pavel fight?" Oh yeah the last time I saw Pavel fight was in Baia and it blew my mind how good he was I don't think I've ever seen someone fight like that.
"Oh yeah" I couldn't keep my excitement out of my voice with that we both jump off the bed.
Well the fighting did not disappoint we only saw the last fifteen minutes of the training session but what we saw had my mouth open in awe. Even though Pavel must be hitting his early 40's now he has not slowed down or become less of a "god" as Rose would put it. I don't think there's a guardian alive that could take him down he new so many fighting styles that you could not predict what move he was going to do next, the man did not have any tells from what I saw and made sure that any weak spots were covered up before his opponent could take advantage. Even Rose who was an exceptional fighter did not stand a chance. Oh she held her own even getting close once or twice but in the end she ended up flat on her back!
Watching Rose fight was like watching poetry in motion, her gracefulness made it look like she was dancing. She was agile and moved with a speed that was hard to keep up with when watching. Just like I did when I was training her back at the academy Pavel continued training her to use her natural speed to beat her opponents. At 5.7 feet and female most of her opponents are going to be taller and stronger so her speed and agility are her strengths. What makes Rose exceptional is her ability to pick up fighting styles quickly and her thinking out of the box attitude which makes her unpredictable.
"Yay mommy you did so well. You almost got Uncle Pavel!" Ivan says from my arms.
"Thanks baby still got my arse handed to me though." She states as she looks at a smiling Pavel. "Your getting there little one your getting there. Right I have to go see your father I'll catch all of you later." Pavel informs us while walking in the direction of the doors.
Rose turning to me."Right I'm going to have a shower if you two head over to the restaurant I'll meet you there. Can you order me double eggs and bacon, um four slices of toast some waffles and oh a fruit salad please? Thanks." I answer her with a smirk dam that women still could out eat everyone I knew hell she could out eat two of us.
The rest of the day played out very similar taking Ivan to a park that was inside the hotel grounds sitting inside of the wards and spending the day as a family. Ivan was a bundle of energy and honestly wore me out. I fight strigoi for a living and yet a day with a four year old had me beat! He reminded me of my nephew Paul when he was little, he too had more energy then the energiser bunny on TV! I wouldn't change any of it though I must of had a stupid grin on my face all daylong. I spent the day with my son and his mother the woman I knew I was still in love with. Even though the most exciting part was watching the sparring in the morning it was the happiest I've ever been.
Well that is until a couple of hours ago when I was lying in bed arms behind my head staring at the ceiling getting my brain to slowly shut down when I hear my door open and I look towards it to see Rose leaning against the door frame with her arms crossed over her front.
I didn't say anything my breath became more ragged as both of us just looked at each other when she walks over to my side of the bed. She puts her hands down on either side of my torso and just as she did this morning leans over and kisses me. As the kiss becomes more urgent I wrap my arms around her and pull her down so she is lying flush against my body on top of me.
I don't know how long we stayed in that position before I feel her pull her knees up and placing them on either side of my waist so that she is straddling me. As she leans up into a kneeling position I following her up sitting, still kissing and exploring her mouth with my own. Her hands are at the bottom of my spin and slowly circle around to the bottom of my abs and stroke up to my chess where they still. Leaning slightly back from her I slowly lift her tank top up and over her head she lifts her arms up over her head aiding me in discarding the offensive barrier that's between us and throw it somewhere in the bedroom.
Placing my hands on each side of her face I pull her back and start the kiss again, slowly letting one of my hands run down to her breast and cup it in my hand letting my thump stimulate her nipple. Hearing a little gasp against my lips when I first touch her there ignites me and I smile against her lips. I haven't wanted anyone so much since we were last together in the cabin the feeling was all consuming.
Using the hand still at her cheek I tilt her head up and start kissing her neck down to the dip in her shoulder. "Roza" I breath out her name like a prayer. Her hands have moved one is gripping my hair at the top of my neck the other is softly going up and down my spine leaving a tingling sensation along it's wake.
Grabbing her by the waist I lift her onto her knees moving both my hands to the small of her back I pull her torso to my face taking her left nipple into my mouth. I can't help but moan when I hear her shortness of breath letting me know that my efforts are pleasing her. Without breaking my attention to her breasts I flip us on the bed so now Rose is under me, keeping my weight off her with one arm the other hand slowly make its path down over her rib cage past her belly button to the band of her shorts. I look into her eyes asking permission to take this further she gives me a small smile.
That's all that was needed I lean up on the bed and slowly pull her shorts down her legs all the while taking in the sight of the most beautiful woman I've ever seen lying there. Looking back up to her face I see there is no nervousness, fear or apprehension this is us and it feels so natural and right between us.
Waking up I turn in bed and see her asleep on her front facing away from me her arms under her head cuddling a pillow into her face. The duvet pulled up to just above her buttocks bearing her naked back to me her neck and back displaying her marks. She looked so sexy it brought back memories of last night. Moaning to myself at those memories of the slow love making the first time. Putting into action all the words we haven't said to each other yet, getting reacquainted with each other's bodies through touching and tasting, to the more animalistic rougher second time which was like pure hunger. Feeding our need and quenching a thirst for each other's bodies, making her scream my name and giving me a release so powerful I lost all coherent thought. Last night's memories has produced a physical reaction.
Reaching over I softly run my finger tips up and down her back and arm slowly waking her up. Facing me she moves herself over and puts her head onto my chest putting her hand in front of her face over my peck. "Morning comrade how are you feeling today?" She asks her head turned up to face me with a cheeky tone in her question which makes me laugh out loud.
"I feel great better than great how about you?" I ask with a lifted eyebrow and smirk looking back at her.
Stretching her whole body out before putting her head back on my chest. "Mmm Sore in all right places!" She whispers sexily to me. I see her face going from blissful to worried and sad in a few seconds. "Tomorrow we have to be at court and if everything goes as planned what then? What are we going to do comrade?"
"I don't know milaya but I know one thing I'm not losing you or Ivan again. I love you Roza."
"I love you too Dimitri but your a guardian and based with Lissa."
I interrupt her before she can continue and ends this before we have began. "I know but we will figure something out okay. As I said we are not losing this."
She slowly lowers her hand down my torso before lowing it under the duvet to my erection. Gripping it with her hand my eyes going to the back of my head as she begins to stroke me. "Mmm looks like you have a big problem there comrade!" Let round three begin.
Abe POV
I'm sitting in my room with Pavel and our four team leaders finalising plans for tomorrow's trip to court. Meredith and Di went ahead to the houses to set them up for our arrival after the showdown in the council hall.
"They will try something when we get in the hall, it will either be one of the royals working alone or a few of them working together. Either way there will be an attempt on my daughters life. We'll need to be prepared for it." I turn looking at everyone. Pavel has already come up with the same conclusion as me we probably came up with it at the same time we think so much alike!
"Are you sure Abe? I mean what's the point now that they can't change what's happened by killing her. They would actually make it worse as many Dhampir would see it as killing an innocent Dhampir, also the fact that she has changed our world to allow Dhampir a better future. Would they really risk a split at best, a war at worst?" Dawn asks
"I can't say with 100% certainty that it will happen but I know how they think. I've spent my life studying them so I can stay ahead of their plans. Rose has destroyed the world that the few enjoyed as it was and wanted to keep it that way for their own gain. This will be a vengeance play and yes they're stupid enough to do it. They'll do it in the hall as they have no idea where she is or where she's going after. It's the only place they'll be sure that they can get to her. That's where we come in they will not expect a small army with her, they will not expect that she is still a fighter and they will definitely not expect that I am her father."
Pavel next jumps in. "We will have two teams go in with Rose, Belikov and Ivan. A team at their rear and Abe coming in last with the final team. I have a feeling that will give the assassin pause!" Well if that doesn't nothing will the whole court will probably be gob smacked. "The team will then spread out on the walls with the court guardians and along the walk ways. Abe will join Rose at the front. Sarah has had her hair and makeup done to look like Anna Mazur she will be with the final team and Rose has had her hair changed back to its original colour. The Moroi will just think that Abe has had two Dhampir daughters which let's be honest isn't unusual, but it allows Rose freedom if this all goes wrong." He briefs all the leaders on the plan and what positions he expects to be held on a diagram of the hall. I don't like that they have chosen the hall with galleries I knew once I was appraised of this from one of my people at court that an attempt will be made. They have a hidden assassin up there I'm sure of it.
"I will be at the front with my daughter, Toruń and Belikov if need be I will be able to help protect them using fire. Rose will also be wearing a bulletproof vest. That's it does anyone have anymore questions?" With no sirs and we've got this the leaders get up to brief their teams and get an early night for the very big and maybe long day we'll have tomorrow.
Pavel grabbing his and my coffee mugs walks over to the kitchen counter, refilling both and bringing them back sitting mine in front of me. Taking his seat.
"What about Belikov?" He starts.
"What about him?" I answer him with a question.
"Oh come on Abe you can't be blind to them, it's obvious that the relationship between them has grown and that Rose has told Ivan who he is. What do we do about that?"
"Pavel you love my daughter, I love my kiz but this we can't help her with. This they have to figure out on their own. But if he does anything I want you to break his knees and don't worry I'll handle Yeva!" I half joke the last part.
Pavel finishes the joke for me. "Good because that woman scares the shit out of me! Being his grandmother just makes her scarier!"
