The only thing that stopped me from intercepting Lissa and Christian when they met up early in her lobby the next morning was that Hans summoned me to work even earlier.

"You know I have a baby to care for, right?" I told him as he slammed paperwork down in front of me. He shrugged "maybe you should have thought of that before your little stunt" he shot back. Bastard.

I watched Lissa through the bond. I took it as a sign of my multitasking skills that I was able to alphabetize and spy at the same time.

Yet my observations were interrupted when a voice pulled me from my head, "didn't expect to find you here again" I blinked out of Lissa's head and looked up from my paperwork. Mikhail stood before me. I set the files down and gave him a small smile. "Yeah, weird how fate works huh? They actually want me here now."

"Indeed, I hear you're in a fair amount of trouble" my smile turned into a grimace. "Tell me about it '' I glanced around, even though I knew we were alone. "You didn't get in any trouble, right?" he shook his head "no one knows what I did" I nodded. Good at least someone had escaped this unscaved.

"Was it worth it? Did you get answers?" he asked, hope shimmered in his eyes. "That's a hard question to answer," he arched his brow. "There were some...not so successful things that happened. But we found out what we wanted. Or well what we think we did." his breath caught "how to restore a Strigoi?"

"I think so, if our information is good, then yeah. But it's not easy to do, nearly impossible really."

"What is it?'' I hesitated. Mikhail had helped us, but he wasn't in my circle of confidants. Yet I shall it. The pain, the hope. Would I be doing more harm than good by telling him? Would the fleeting hope hurt him more?

I finally decided to tell him. "It Takes a spirit user" I explained. "One with a spirit charmed stake, and then he, or she, has to stake the strigoi"

"Spirit…like Sonya. I knew spirit is supposed to make them more alluring...but I swear, she never needed it. She was beautiful on her own" as always his face fell more as he talked about Ms. Karp. I have never really seen him truly happy since meeting him. He suddenly seemed embarrassed at his romantic lapse and returned to business. "What spirit user could do a staking?"

"None, '' I said flatly. "None of them are skilled enough, and they don't need to try anyways" the truth of my words hit him, and I couldn't help but share his pain and disappointment. He sighed and stood. "Well...I appreciate you going after this. Sorry your punishment is for nothing" I shrugged "it was worth it" I said, before he left me to my work.

I tuned back into Lissas mind. Lissa and Christian were at a hotel near Lehigh's campus. Lissa's tour wouldn't start till the next human morning. Lissa's new guardians, Serena and Grant, were with her, Serena was a picture perfect example of a guardian. She was there, but not there, as Lissa hung up some of her clothes.

A moment later a knock came from the door. Serena pulled her steke telling Lissa to stay back while she answered it. Behind the door was Christian and Grant. "He's here to see you," Grant said, stepping aside. They entered, and Christian shot Lissa a meaningful look as he did.

"Could we have some privacy?" Christian asked. The guardian nodded, averting their eyes, and letting him drag Lissa into her attached bed room. "We should start on basic self defence moves" Christian said giving Lissa a smirk. She rolled her eyes at him. That's when the punches started.

It wasn't as sloppy as I though it would be. Christian showed her how to ground herself, and put her hip into it, as to put more force. It was going well, till she stumbled over the small table, losing balance. Christian tried to catch her, ultimately bringing him down with her.

Serena bursted in at that moment, then turned beet red "oh my apologies" she said, seeing Christian and Lissa on the floor, Lissa straddling him while trying to regain her bearings. "Its...its not what you think!" she stuttered "we were fighting. I mean practice fighting, I want to learn how to defend against Stragoi. And attack them. And strike them. Christian was trying to help me" she rambled out.

Serena visibly relaxed, an amused smile crept onto her face "well" she said "it doesn't look like you're doing a very good job" Christian turned indignant as he stroke his injured cheek, a good red mark Lissa left when she got the upper hand on him. "Hey! I taught her this!" he said. She gave a playful smile "That seems more like luck than anything else" she hesitated, as if contemplating a decision and sighed "Look if you want, and you really want to learn, I can show you how"

No fucking way.

I was ready to go to Lehigh and show them all how to throw a punch.

Something however pulled me back to reality. Hans. "forget the paperwork, follow me you've been summoned" he said

"I, what?" highly unexpected "to where?"

His face was grim. "To see the queen"