Anastasia leaned her head back and let the warm sunlight spill across her face. That was one benefit of not technically being a princess anymore, she thought. No one cared if she got tanned or sunburnt anymore. She looked back down at her feet, which were now caked in dirt and dust since she had kicked off her shoes an hour ago. That was something else she could do, though Mama was sure to still make a big deal about it.

She was sixteen, now. Had everything gone according to plan, her parents would be looking at suitors for her. Maybe she'd already be courting somebody. Both Olga and Tatiana had been courting at her age, reluctant though they were. Even Maria had had people to casually flirt with. A part of her envied them. At sixteen, her sisters were finely dressed Grand Duchesses. At sixteen, she was not.

But another part of her thought it suited her just fine. What should she care about courtships? Her duty had always been to be married off- ideally to a crown prince. She would have been a pawn in the political scheme of Europe. Now, whenever her family was released, she would be free to do whatever, and go wherever, her heart desired. She could go to France, if she wanted to. She could find Nana, whom she hadn't seen now in ten years. Anastasia wondered what her beloved grandmother might say when she saw her all grown up. Sure, they had sent pictures back and forth over the years, but it was different seeing a photograph of someone and seeing them in person.

They could walk the Alexander Bridge, just as they had promised to do. She could bring the music box Nana had given her all those years ago. Anastasia hoped Nana would be proud that she had kept it in such good condition all these years. And she could introduce Dmitry to Nana finally. She had told her so much about him over the years, and she wanted them to finally meet in person.

She glanced over at Dmitry, who was kneeling in the dirt about twenty feet away. Maria stood next to him, holding a basket of vegetables they had just harvested from the garden. Dmitry was laughing at something her sister had said.

She felt a sudden flare of jealousy in her chest. She knew Maria currently had a crush on him. Maria had always developed crushes easily, ever since they were children, and with the house arrest they were all spending every waking hour with one another. Anastasia could easily see how Maria had fallen for Dmitry. But in her mind, Dmitry had always belonged to her. Not in a romantic sense, she mentally added. Dmitry had been her friend first. He had come to live with her family because of her. She felt she had more claim over him than any of her siblings had, even Alexei.

And Dmitry was as impossible to read as ever. Anastasia could not make head or tails of how Dmitry felt about Maria. On the one hand, he did not seem to dislike her sister's company. The two of them had created an easy friendship over the years, and were able to talk and joke freely. He never made excuses to escape her company. But on the other hand, he didn't seem to intentionally seek out Maria's company. In recent weeks, the two of them were often seen together, but that was more because Maria sought him out.

Anastasia bent her head down and tried to push them from her mind once more. She busied herself by pulling some of the ripe tomatoes off of their vines, trying hard not to look up at Maria and Dmitry again.

"You're pulling them too roughly," Tatiana chastised her from a few feet away. "You'll squish the tomatoes like that." Anastasia huffed and stuck her tongue out at her sister.

"So what if some get squished?" she shot back. "There are more of them, Tatya." Tatiana rolled her eyes and delicately plucked another tomato from the vine. Now she was just showing off. Anastasia had to suppress the urge to throw the tomato in her hand at her sister. A shadow fell across the plants, and she and Tatiana looked up. One of the guards stood there, his expression stoic.

"What do you want?" Tatiana asked, straightening up. "We're not bothering anyone."

"You're needed in the palace," he informed them with a sneer.

"We'll be there in a minute," Anastasia said. "We're busy right now." She bent to place the tomatoes in a basket by her feet, and the guard's hand closed around her upper arm. He pulled her upright again, making her cry out in surprise.

"Hey!" she heard Dmitry shout.

"You'll come inside now," the guard said. "All of you will. The plants can wait."

"Take your hand off me," she snarled, prying at his fingers. When he didn't loosen his grasp, she dug her nails into his fingers. The guard didn't react except to narrow his eyes.

"Let her go." Dmitry's voice came from right over her shoulder, and Anastasia flinched. She hadn't even heard him approach. The guard stared hard at Dmitry for a few seconds, then released her arm.

"You're needed inside, too," the guard informed him. "It is of the utmost importance, and it is best not to keep everyone waiting."

They were escorted back inside and led to the dining room. The rest of their family and a few of the servants were gathered there, obviously waiting for them. Anastasia inched closer to her sisters and managed to wedge herself between Maria and Dmitry, taking her sister's hand so she wouldn't raise her suspicions. Dmitry's hand closed around her free one and squeezed it gently. She squeezed back.

"Are you all finally here?" asked one of the guards.

"Yes," Alexandra replied calmly. "Now, we would like to know what is so important that it could not possibly wait another minute." A man entered the room, and the guards snapped to attention. Anastasia didn't recognize him, and judging by the looks on their faces none of her siblings did either.

"Kerensky," Nicholas said, a note of resignation in his voice. "This must be important, if you're here."

"Indeed it is," Kerensky replied gravely. "The Bolshevik forces are growing stronger and heading this way." Alexandra inhaled sharply and curled her hand around Nicholas's arm. Anastasia felt Dmitry stiffen next to her. She didn't understand what this man, Kerensky, was saying.

"What can be done?" Alexandra demanded. "These insolent children must be stopped."

"Well, madam," Kerensky said, "there is really only one thing we can do. You and your family must be relocated."


Dmitry didn't understand why they were still waiting. They had been told to be in the foyer and ready to depart by midnight. It was now approaching three in the morning, and everyone was clearly restless. Alexei was attempting to sleep on a bench nearby, his head in his mother's lap, and Olga and Maria were leaning against the pile of suitcases in the middle of the room. Anastasia had disappeared under the excuse of needing a bathroom, but that had been almost ten minutes ago. It was really only a matter of time before someone went looking for her, and Dmitry hoped she wasn't trying to hide in the hopes of being left behind.

The week since they had been told they were going to be moved had passed too fast. It had been spent packing what they wanted to bring with them in the limited space they had, and the only clue they had about where they were going was that they would be needing warm clothes. Dmitry didn't like the sound of that.

The provisional government had intended to load them all onto a train in the middle of the night. They said that it would reduce the risk of an attack by the Bolsheviks. The sun would rise the next day and the imperial family would simply be gone. But there had been a delay, and Dmitry thought that if they didn't move them soon then they might have to wait for the next night to do so. He really hoped that wasn't the case. They had already been kept waiting long enough, he couldn't imagine being told to wait another day. Nicholas was already pacing up and down the hall, and Dmitry had half a mind to join him just so he had something to do.

"What is taking so long?" Maria complained loudly. Olga shushed her quickly. Maria frowned and stood up, walking away from her sister. Alexei sat up, looking annoyed. He whispered something to Alexandra, who shook her head in response.

Maria slid onto the bench next to Dmitry, still frowning. "I just want to leave," she said, crossing her arms and leaning against the wall.

"Why?" he asked. "Are you really so eager to leave your home behind?"

"Of course not," she snapped at him. "But I've already made my peace with it and said my good byes. Now it's just prolonging the inevitable."

Dmitry frowned. "I don't want to leave." This palace had been as much his home as it had been hers for the past eight years. He had so many fond memories in the halls and rooms of this place, and he was not so eager to leave them behind. What made it worse was the knowledge that they were probably going somewhere much worse.

"This is only a place we once lived," Maria said, as if she could read his thoughts. "The way I see it, it doesn't matter where we go as long as we are all together."

Anastasia reappeared and took Maria's spot next to Olga. Dmitry watched as she closed her eyes and leaned back against the luggage like her older sister. Both of them looked so uncomfortable there, but neither of them moved.

Hours passed, and Maria didn't try to make conversation with him again. Instead they all sat in relative silence in the foyer. Around four in the morning the guards finally began loading the luggage into the motor cars waiting for them and Anastasia and Olga relocated to a wall. But by five o'clock they had barely made a dent in the pile, and Kerensky had showed up again. He asked the family and the servants accompanying them to join him in the dining room for tea. As they all stood up and followed him, Dmitry thought that perhaps the family should be insulted that someone was inviting them to have tea in their own dining room, but they all looked so exhausted and he felt so tired himself that he didn't have the energy to be annoyed. He doubted they did either.

"There was a small delay with the train," Kerensky informed them when the tea had been poured, as if they hadn't noticed yet. "It should be arriving soon, though, and when it does we will transport you to the station. I would advise that you prepare to depart soon." All anyone could do was nod.

And still it was another hour and a half before more motor cars arrived to pick up the family and their entourage. By that time both Olga and Maria had had brushes with the guards and Tatiana had burst into tears. Dmitry felt exhausted right down to his bones, and still sleep was impossible. They were all herded into the cars almost as soon as they arrived, packed in as tightly as they dared. Dmitry found himself pressed up against Botkin and Daria, a lady-in-waiting, and almost forgot to look back at the palace for a last glance. He didn't have much time at all to mourn the loss of the place he considered home, though, as the bumpy ride quickly made him nauseous. He closed his eyes and clenched his jaw tight in an effort to push it down.

When he opened them again, their car had stopped in the street outside the train station. There were soldiers and guards every few feet, but that didn't stop the crowds of people gathered from trying to get a glimpse of the Romanovs as they exited the cars. Dmitry was a little surprised that there were so many people there so early in the morning, and it appeared that most of them were not taking trains themselves. They had come solely to see the imperial family leave.

Dmitry felt oddly proud, watching the family board the train calmly. He could see that Tatiana's eyes and nose were still red and Anastasia looked distinctly furious, but they did not make a spectacle of themselves. Watching them gave him the courage to stand as straight as he could and hold his head up as he boarded the train as well, a few cars down from the family.

"They can go!" Kerensky shouted from outside, and the train shuddered under their feet as it began to move. Dmitry watched from the window as the crowd outside began waving their hats and scarves. It was eerily silent outside as the train picked up speed.


I apologize that I hadn't been able to update this in a few weeks. I had a bunch of final assignments due, but now that I am on winter break I'm hoping to get more chapters of this written! I hope you all have a wonderful holiday!