~ DIMITRI POV ~
I let Rose off early. We sparred for a good half hour before I called it quits, knowing that if we continued any longer, my body would betray me, and I would slip again and take her right there on that sweaty mat. It was ridiculous. I was a grown man. Yet every time I saw Rose, I turned into a stupid teenager, fighting against the urge to kiss her and worship her as she deserved.
Rose had improved greatly in the last few weeks. She even managed to take me down once. I was stunned staring up at the beautiful woman hovering above me. She pinned me to the mat, one of her arms restraining mine while she straddled my waist and slammed her palm on my chest right over my heart. Dead. Even though the fight was over, neither of us moved. I couldn't tear my eyes away from hers. She panted heavily, her chest rising and falling rapidly as she continued to stare into my eyes, my very soul, with the stupid smug smirk still on her lips.
Her eyes darkened and I knew she noticed our compromising position the same moment I did. I should have said something right then, but I couldn't stop staring at her. In the end, it was Rose who moved first. She smiled once more before moving off me.
"Another round?" she asked, her voice slightly huskier than it had been moments before. I stood a second later and shook my head.
"That's enough for today," I said. "I'll pack up. Go. Have fun with your friends and I'll see you tomorrow." She smiled and gave me a small nod before she ran for the door, bag in hand. Just as she made to open the door, I said, "Rose." She turned, that sparkle of joy still shining in her eyes. "I'm proud of you," I said. The sparkle seemed to brighten as a beautiful smile lit up her face. She left a moment later and I began the tedious work of putting away all the equipment I had taken out earlier.
Once all the mats were away, I brushed my dust-coated palms against my shirt, removing the dirt and grime before I made for where I had left my book and water bottle earlier. The book was one of my favourites and probably the most valuable of the small collection I had brought with me to America. The cover was still intact with only minor damage along the spine, showing how many times I had opened this book after a long day and had fallen asleep with the book still wide open before me.
I took a long sip of my water as I crossed the gym to leave. my fingers found the light-switch against the wall on instinct and I flicked them off before opening the gym door and found myself walking into a cloud of cigarette smoke. I swatted it away and quickly pulled the gym door shut to keep the smoke from slipping in and stinking up the gym with the smell of cloves.
"Not a fan?" I turned toward the male voice to find Adrian Ivashkov leaning against the wall a few feet from me. I cursed my guardian instincts for not spotting him before, but I had been occupied trying to keep the smoke he blew out from infiltrating the gym space. "Shame," he said, inhaling another drag before he dropped the burning butt to the ground and stamped on it with the heal of what looked like very expensive designer leather shoes.
"You shouldn't be smoking on academy grounds," I said and quickly added, "Lord Ivashkov."
He smiled smugly and released the smoke he held in a cloud that seemed to deliberately fly directly into my face. I ignored the urge to hold my breath, refusing to give him the satisfaction of seeing me react. The young Lord cocked his head to the side and looked at me curiously.
"Two people in one day. I have never been reprimanded more in my life. It's a little refreshing actually. I do hate it when they grovel." I didn't have a response. Instead, I turned and made to leave. Rose had told me that I had no reason to be jealous of the Ivashkov Lord. That there was nothing between them and I believed her, but that didn't mean I had to like the infamous Ivashkov playboy or had to endure his company. I wanted to get away, grab a quick bite before returning to my room to take a long cold shower and get some much-needed sleep. But, as I heard Ivashkov training behind me, I knew that wasn't going to happen any time soon.
"Tell me, Guardian," he said trying to keep up with my long stride. "Are all your students as dedicated as Rose Hathaway? Or do you just enjoy her company too much to let the girl have a break for the holiday?" His question hit a nerve I didn't know existed. I curled my free hand into a fist at my side and willed myself from slinging it into his smug face.
"Why do you ask, Lord Ivashkov?" I asked, refusing to turn around.
"Just curious as to why none of your other students attends these extra training sessions," he said.
"Miss Hathaway missed a year of training. I was assigned as her mentor to bring her back on track so she can graduate in a few months," I responded casually, keeping to the truth of what my job was before that stupid lust charm changed everything.
"Hmm. Maybe at first, but from what I've heard, Rose is at the top of her class and doesn't exactly need any extra help anymore."
"There's always more to learn. Sometimes, being the best isn't enough. I am training her to be prepared for the field and battling against real Strigoi instead of Dhampir classmates. I am just Rose's mentor and my job is to make sure she is prepared for anything."
I expected Adrian to give up and walk away, letting me get back to my plans for an easy and relaxing evening. What I didn't expect was to hear him laugh. I turned to find him with his head tipped back, laughing loudly with a hand on his chest.
"You should have seen your aura," he said still laughing like a mad man.
'Aura? What the hell was he talking about?'
I turned to leave again, hoping this time he would actually leave me alone.
He sobered up from his humorous fit and called out to me, a simple sentence that made me freeze in my place. "I know you love her." I stood as still as a statue as he approached me, that smug smile once again gracing his face.
"I don't know what you're talking about," I said, keeping my mask firmly in place.
"Oh, please. Stop the innocent act. I'm not going to tell anyone." He rolled his eyes. "Relax, I know she loves you too." I stayed silent for a while, watching his face for any sign of dishonesty. When I found none, I rolled my shoulders and looked around for anyone who might be listening, but it was clear.
"How?" I asked.
"Your auras," he said simply. I gave him a confused look and he sighed. "Sort of a ring of colour and light that surrounds everyone. It allows me to see how people feel and even think at times. Rose's aura is very unique, but when she mentioned you and your extra training sessions, you should have seen how it glowed. Your aura is less unusual, and when I mentioned Rose, it lit up like a damned Christmas tree. You should have seen how your aura moved when you told me you were 'just' her mentor. You might as well have had a neon sign hanging over your head flashing the word 'Liar'. You are good at hiding your emotions from your face, but your aura says everything your face doesn't."
"How can you see these auras?" I asked.
He smirked. "Spirit. It's why I'm here. My dearest aunt caught wind of Lissa's skills and sent me to work with her. As another Spirit user, she hopes we can learn from each other and might become very useful to her in the future. You're lucky there are no teachers here that are Spirit users of your secret would be out."
"What about Lissa?"
"I suspect she hasn't learnt to use this particular ability yet. It probably won't take long though, when we start practising and I teach her how to read auras."
I watched him for a while, taking in all that he had said. Could I trust him? if I admitted he was right, would he tell anyone who mattered and separate me from Rose? I clearly couldn't lie to him if he could see my aura and tell when I wasn't being honest. Would it be better if I just stayed silent and walked away? No. I needed to talk to him, know what he wanted from me and Rose, and convince him to keep this secret. I sighed at last.
"What would it take for you to keep this to yourself?"
"I've heard about you, Guardian Belikov. You have a stellar reputation and since the incident with your previous charge, Ivan, I can see how dedicated you are to your job. "He moved closer, looking deep into my eyes. "I want to know how you, a dedicated guardian, fell in love with a wild reckless party girl like Rose. I want to know how you got her to fall in love with you. I want to know everything."
I nodded. I expected nothing less. I looked around again, checking for any curious listeners. I found none but it was too dangerous to tell this story out in the open where anyone could walk by and hear.
"We should go somewhere more private." He nodded. "Rose should be there too. It is not just my story to share." Adrian looked conflicted but eventually nodded his agreement.
"We'll go to my suite. The guest building is basically empty with everyone away for the holiday." I nodded and followed closely behind Adrian while I messaged Rose to meet us there in two minutes.
Dawn was fast approaching. Almost everyone on campus would be asleep by now. Thankfully, there was no curfew during the holiday period so no one would question why Rose was out of bed or why she was visiting someone she considered a friend. They might question my presence, however. So as we made our way to the guest building, I came up with a perfect excuse.
She must have been getting ready for bed because she was dressed in a pair of flannel pyjama bottoms with a thick cream sweater that looked inside out. She must have thrown it on as she ran to meet us. Her fluffy pink slippers looked ruined as she ran from her building through the sodden grounds of the academy. I had told her it was urgent in my text, but I didn't mean urgent enough that she couldn't have time to put on proper footwear. Her hair was a tangled mess that I longed to dig my hands into, but her face made all those thoughts disappear as she noticed us approaching. She ran up to us, worry shining in her eyes.
"What's going on?" She asked, her eyes locked on mine. I shook my head.
"I'll explain when we are inside," I said. She nodded once but I could tell she already knew why she was called here.
"Cute slippers," said Adrian breaking the tension. "I never saw you as a pink bunny kind of girl."
"We met today. Do you expect me to share all my secrets on the first day?" She placed a mischievous smile on her face to cover up the fear in her eyes.
"We'll see. By the time the sun rises, I think I'll have heard almost all your secrets. I'll know you better than Lissa does." Rose looked away. It was true. Once Adrian knew everything, he would have power over Rose whenever they were with Lissa.
It was at that moment I decided; Vasilisa should know. I would leave it up to Rose whether she would tell her everything and if she wanted me there when she did, but it was time Lissa knew. Our relationship impacted her future in more ways than one and she deserved to know why only one of us would be guarding her after graduation.
We followed Adrian into the building. The Moroi woman at the front desk saw me with Adrian and Rose and stood to greet us.
"Lord Ivashkov," she greeted. "I didn't know you were expecting guests. Should I send for some tea to be brought to your suite?" she asked sweetly.
Adrian smiled at her. "No thank you, Julie," he said reading her name off her badge. The woman smiled wider pleased to think he remembered her name. "My guests won't be staying long. We are just going to have a nice chat." She nodded and her eyes flickered to me.
"Guardian Belikov, I'm sure Lord Ivashkov doesn't need to be guarded within the academy wards. If there's any trouble, I'll send for you," she said, clear dismissal in her voice. I wanted to sigh at the obvious discrimination between Moroi and Dhampir. She offers tea and smiles to the Royal Moroi Lord and gives orders and disinterest to the Dhampir Guardian. Rose shot me a sorry look, seeing the encounter and understating how it felt.
Instead, I smiled kindly to the woman. "Actually, I am here to talk to Lord Ivashkov. He wishes to know of Miss Hathaway's training as he might request her for a guardian after she graduates."
She gave me a suspicious look. "Isn't Miss Hathaway already promised to the Dragomir Princess?" she asked.
I shrugged, "Perhaps, but it never hurts to have options. Who knows what might happen in the future? If Rose isn't given the Princess, an Ivashkov Lord could be a good alternative." Rose nodded along in agreement. The Moroi woman looked between all of us between nodding and we all walk off to Adrian's suite.
'Suite' didn't do the room justice. The room was bigger than mine and Rose's rooms combined, with luxury furniture that looked like it had just been bought specifically for Adrian. It probably had, with him being the Queen's Great-Nephew.
Rose's eyes widened at the sight of the room. She had told me stories of her time outside of the academy when she would travel with Lissa's family and stay in luxurious apartments all over the world, yet her expression told me that this was a different sort of luxury and it was only a two-minute walk away from her dorm.
"Did you know the guest rooms looked like this?" she asked me quietly as we walked further into the room.
"No," I told her. "I assumed they would be more spacious than ours but nothing like this."
"Shall we begin?" asked Adrian as he dropped onto the white lounge before an already burning fireplace. Rose and I joined him.
Once seated Rose looked at me. "He knows?" she asked. I nodded. "How?"
"Auras," I said.
"Auras?" she asked. I looked to Adrian who was smirking watching both of us. I knew he was watching our auras. Rose turned to his direction. Once he caught her stare, she shook his head and gave the same explanation he gave me.
Once he was finished, Rose slumped onto the lounge and rubbed her temples with her fingers. I wrapped my arm around her in comfort and she sighed. Adrian looked at us amused but I didn't remove my arm. There was no need to hide when Adrian already knew.
"There is so much more to Spirit than we ever thought," she groaned.
Adrian huffed. "I have a feeling there is even more that I have not uncovered. Lissa and I will do that together when we start training. But enough about spirit. Time to share your story little, Dhampir. I want to know everything." He placed his chin on his propped-up fist and waited for us to begin. I looked to Rose who was looking at me. She swallowed audibly and I was reminded of how much stress she carried in her shoulders at such a young age.
"Just like with Tasha," I said. She nodded and sighed before sitting up and turning to Adrian and began the story. We told him the exact same story we told Tasha, but when we got to the part about the lust charm, I told him the truth of what I did that night.
Rose turned to me; her eyes filled with horror that I had told him. I squeezed her hand comfortingly.
"He can see when we are lying, there is no point trying to hide it. We can only be honest, Roza." She stared into my eyes, her own starting to fill with tears, and nodded. We continued with the story, simply skipping over our other intimate moments, hoping he wouldn't ask about them later.
When we finished, we all sat in silence. The only sound came from the crackling fire before us. Adrian took in every word and watched our auras carefully for any signs of a lie.
Eventually, he clapped his hands together loudly and stood. "Well, glad that's all out in the open." Rose looked confused.
"What exactly did you plan to do with this knowledge?" she asked.
Adrian shrugged. "Nothing, I was simply curious to hear the tale of the rebellious Rose Hathaway and the Duty-bound Dimitri Belikov. But from what I have heard, you aren't that rebellious little party girl anymore."
"No, she isn't," I said cutting in.
"Actually, it seems as if you two have influenced each other in some ways."
"What do you mean?" asked Rose.
"Well, in just knowing you for a few hours, I can see you are way more responsible and dedicated than the rumours at court say and from that story, I see that your boyfriend is a little more reckless than he'd like to be but only when it comes to you." Rose turned to me and smiled.
"I think there was always a little rebel in him. I just helped bring it out." She said.
"And Rose was always dedicated. Even before I met her. She has always known her duty to Vasilisa. I didn't help with that, I just helped her learn to control her abilities." Rose's smile grew and she leant up to kiss me.
"Okay, okay. Not on my couch. I just had these shipped from London," he said confirming my earlier theory.
Rose scoffed and we broke apart to stand.
"So, you're not going to tell anyone?" I asked.
Adrian shook his head. "I'll keep your secrets. But remember to keep your distance. Spirit helped me see your true feelings but anyone with eyes can see how you react around each other. If someone sees you two together and puts it together, you're in trouble." I nodded. Rose let go of my hand to hug Adrian. She thanked him with a small kiss on his cheek that would have made me jealous if I didn't know how much she loved me.
"Thank you, Adrian." She said quietly. He smiled.
"Remember, Rose, if this doesn't work out," she said gesturing between the two of us, "I'll always be here for you." She scoffed. "I'll make sure to send you another pair of fluffy bunny slippers too." She rolled her eyes.
"Only if they're pink." She said.
"Count on it," Adrian said as he opened the door and we walked out. "It was nice talking to you both. Hope to see you around campus. Too-da-loo," he waved, and we walked away.
"Do you think we can trust him to keep this secret?" Rose asked once we were outside.
"Definitely," I said. She turned to me, attempting and failing to raise an eyebrow.
"How can you be so sure?"
"Because I saw the look on his face when you kissed me. He likes you and he won't do anything that would hurt you."
"Tasha loved you and she was ready to storm down to Kirova and tell her everything. How can we be sure he won't be willing to do the same?"
"Even though I can't read auras, I could see how he felt. He cares about you and he knows how much we care for each other. If he ever did anything to hurt us, you would never forgive him and that would hurt him more than simply letting us be together."
We reached Rose's building and paused in the shadows, hidden from sight.
"There was no one at the desk when I left earlier. I think they have given up trying to keep us from sneaking out during the holidays. Wanna come up?" she asked, he hand training up my side slowly, teasingly. I smiled and reached to stop her hand.
"I wish I could, but we agreed we need to stop until that it is appropriate." She sighed. "It kills me too, but I'll rather just hold your hand for a couple of moments than have you taken away from me forever." Rose smiled sadly.
"Yeah. Your right. Oh, I just remembered. Christmas is in two days. Lissa is throwing a little gathering in her room to do a gift exchange and have a small private dinner. She has invited you. Said because you're her guardian and you will be there for all the important holidays in the future, you should be there for this one too. I think she even has a present for you."
"I'm sorry to say I don't have anything for her and it's might be a little tricky for me to get anything in the next twenty-four hours," I admitted.
"That okay. You don't have to get her anything. She just wants you there. And you don't have to get me anything either."
"You got me a gift?" I asked. Rose blushed.
"I might have. You'll have to come to find out," she said. I pulled her into my arms.
"I'll be there Roza," I whispered in her ear. "I love you."
"I love you too, Comrade."
With that, we parted ways. I went back to my room and collapsed on my bed, still dressed. Even my shoes were still on my feet. I was starving too but right now, sleep won out. Tomorrow I'll find something to get the Princess. I couldn't wait for Rose to open her gift from me. It would have to be in private, but I needed to see her face when she opens it.
XXX
Another chapter. Thank you for all your wonderful reviews I am so glad you like this story and I hope you enjoy this chapter. Quarantine has me stir crazy. Any suggestions for books, movies or activities, in general, would be great. Currently reading, The Hunger Games Prequel: A Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.