Thank you all so much for sharing your thoughts! I appreciate it a lot! Here's the second chapter. I hope you all enjoy.
I came back into the wards right after my encounter with Damian, compelling the guard once again to forget what happened. I was about to head back to my class when I rounded a corner, abruptly bumping into a tall figure.
"Crap," I muttered, relieved that it was just Dimitri. "You scared me, Comrade!"
"What were you doing at the front gates?" he asked, ignoring my comment. He didn't sound angry, but he was in no mood to joke around. I was hoping he wouldn't find out about that, but somehow, he did. Who was I kidding? He always busted me when I ran into trouble. I was naive for thinking I could get away with anything.
"I don't know what you're talking about," I said stupidly, averting my gaze. Dimitri grabbed my arm before I could go anywhere. His grip was firm, but he wasn't hurting me.
"You know exactly what I'm talking about," he said, never breaking eye contact.
"I-I just needed fresh air." I really needed to stop using that as an excuse.
"Outside the academy wards?" he asked. I closed my mouth. The last time I needed to exit the front gates, I was summoning Mason. There was no way I could hide this from him.
"Did you compel the guard there too?"
I stayed silent as guilt settled in my stomach. Compelling people to get what you wanted was considered wrong and immoral. I used to look down on people who did it, but I was the one doing it now.
"Damn it, Rose. Do you have any idea how dangerous that is?"
"I've killed more people than I can even remember. I can handle threats."
"It doesn't matter. I know you can take care of yourself, but you're still a target and I'm not going to let you put yourself in danger. Haven't we had this conversation before?"
I sighed and slumped against the brick wall behind me. I hated to admit that he was right. Sneaking out of the wards was asking for trouble. Since the strigoi attacks, our security had been upgraded. Students were never allowed outside of the wards unless they were accompanied by guardians. Although Dimitri knew I was more than capable of handling threats, I had to accept that he was my guardian now. My life was his number one priority. Even if he wasn't my guardian, he had proved to me several times that he would always protect me.
Dimitri calmed and his voice softened, but his next message was still clear and strict. "If you do something dangerous like that again, you'll be squirming the next time you sit down."
My eyes widened as I remembered how sore I was the last time he had punished me. I was okay with him inflicting that kind of thing on me, but his spankings still hurt. To be honest, I was a little surprised he didn't insist on doing that now. I wasn't going to push it, so I nodded sincerely to show him that I understood and he sighed, loosening up.
"What were you doing, anyway?" he asked.
"Nothing, I..." How was I even supposed to answer that? I was summoning ghosts. He knew that kind of thing made me vulnerable. "I was trying to see Damian..."
Dimitri looked up at me, locking his eyes with mine. I expected him to start lecturing me about summoning a ghost since he knew it affected me, but he pulled me into a hug instead, surprising me altogether. I thought he would've been uncomfortable with the idea of me seeing Damian, but maybe there was a part of him that felt sorry for me. He knew I didn't want him to die and the fact that he had died in my arms made it harder for me to get over it.
"I'm sorry," I whispered against his chest. "I wasn't trying to put myself in danger. I just wanted to hear him out."
Dimitri went silent for a moment, but responded a few seconds later, sounding a little hesitant. I had to remind myself that he was trying to understand me. "Did he say anything?"
"All he said was danger. Nothing else, no details."
"Danger..." Dimitri repeated. "That can't be a good sign. Listen to me, Roza. Don't ever go outside the wards at night by yourself. If you really need to talk to him, at least tell me next time so that you're not alone. During the day too."
"You would do that for me?" I asked him, pulling back. Dimitri cupped the side of my face and nodded his head.
"I would also take you back to class, but it'll be over soon. Why don't you grab some food? You must be hungry," he said.
"I was actually going to see Nevaeh," I mentioned. "Her classes end before mine and I just wanted to see how she was doing."
"Sure," Dimitri said, lighting up a little. "After you."
As usual, I was happy to see her. She was playing outside on the playground with the other kids and was wearing the new winter coat Dimitri had bought for her. The place was swarmed with guardians who surrounded the set and monitored the children.
As soon as she saw us, her jaw dropped and she gasped excitedly.
"Mommy!" she screamed, going down the slide. I lowered myself and held my arms out as she ran to me. I swooped her up in my arms, twirling her around. I let her back down, and she went for Dimitri, hugging his legs. His expression softened and he picked her up to hug her, delivering a sweet kiss on her forehead.
"How's it going, Nev?" he asked when he set her down.
"I built a snowman today!" she exclaimed excitedly.
"A snowman? That's amazing," I praised, giving her a high five. "Can I see it?"
"Of course!" Before I knew it, Nevaeh had her hand around my wrist, dragging me to the side to show me her work. The snowman was a little crooked, but it was still adorable. Nevaeh sank to her knees to poke her fingers into the head and give it eyes. I was grateful that she had the matching snow pants on. Otherwise, she would have gotten her legs all wet. I squatted beside her and used my fingers to smooth out the sides, watching her intently. Dimitri was mostly watching our surroundings, but I could tell his mind was fixated on the two of us.
Nevaeh continued to carve a face into the snowman's head, but she wasn't smiling anymore. It looked like something was bothering her.
"Are you okay?" I asked her, brushing some snow off of her hood.
"Something happened today," she said, still avoiding eye contact. My mind was immediately jumping to conclusions.
"What happened? Did someone bully you? Was anyone being mean? Because if that's the case, I swear to god, I will—"
"No," she interrupted. "I saw someone."
"Who? Who did you see?" I pushed.
"Damian," she said. I froze. The colour drained from my cheeks, and I shivered, recalling the memory from earlier.
"Are you sure?" Dimitri asked her. Nevaeh nodded.
"I saw him outside, and then he was gone," she said sadly. I glanced at Dimitri worriedly. He seemed worried too, but it wasn't just for me—it was for Nevaeh too.
"I'm just going to talk to Dimitri for a second, okay?" I asked her. Nevaeh still seemed a little down, but she nodded, continuing her work. Dimitri and I stepped away but kept an eye on her.
"So, she can see the dead too. Just like you," he said, running a hand through his hair.
I sighed. Nevaeh was far too young to have to see things like this. "I want to help her. She probably doesn't even understand what she saw. She knows he's dead. She only acts like this when she's afraid of something."
"Do you think it would help if you spent the next few days with her?" Dimitri suggested. "Maybe just let her sleep in your room as long as you take her to class and pick her up before curfew."
"I can do that," I said eagerly. Dimitri took me to the office on the campus and spoke with their head coordinator for permission. They knew about our situation even if it was in minor details for them, so they didn't object.
We headed to Nevaeh's room after that to grab some of her stuff. We mostly just packed the essentials into her backpack, and she held her teddy bear against her chest as we headed to my dorm. Nevaeh was going to have to share a bed with me, but she was small, and I could handle it. After settling everything in, she changed into her pyjamas and engulfed herself in my covers. I stepped outside for a moment as I knew Dimitri needed to head to his place soon.
"I guess I can't sleep with you for the next few days," I said, keeping my voice down.
"Don't worry about it too much," Dimitri said soothingly, rubbing his hand against my arm. "If you need anything, just call me. Even if it's a nightmare and you need to talk, don't be afraid to wake me. Let me know how our girl is, okay?"
"I will," I reassured him. I was getting tired now and my speech was sounding a little lazy. "I'll see you tomorrow. In your common room."
Dimitri chuckled and shook his head before leaning down giving me a gentle kiss. All I wanted to do was cuddle with him all night until we both slept in each other's arms, but I couldn't. I had a little girl to protect. Hopefully, I'd get alone time with Dimitri soon enough.
"Goodnight, Roza," Dimitri said as we pulled away. I watched him head out before returning to my room where Nevaeh now slept peacefully in my bed.
The next morning, Lissa was already getting ready for classes before me. She was tying Nevaeh's hair into two pigtails and I couldn't help but laugh. She couldn't have looked more adorable.
"So cute!" Lissa squealed, bringing her back over to my bed.
"I'm going to go to class. See you later." Lissa kissed my cheek before swinging her bag over her shoulder and leaving the room.
"Any bad dreams?" I asked, pulling out my laptop.
"Not really. I feel better with you," Nevaeh replied, crossing her legs. I kissed her cheek and found a kid's show online, deciding to let her watch it on my laptop while I showered and did my usual morning routine. After putting on some light makeup, I came out and got dressed.
"Want some breakfast?" I asked, sitting my Nevaeh's side and twirling one of her pigtails in my hand. She looked up at me and nodded rapidly with a smile on her face, indicating that she was hungry. I closed my laptop and packed my bag before heading off with her by my side. We still had about half an hour until classes started, so I head to the guardian's common room for breakfast again. Nevaeh held my hand on the way there, so I had to slow my strides for her tiny steps.
It was busier than usual today, and after spotting Alberta in the far corner with Dimitri, I asked her if Nevaeh could come in with me. She nodded her head and I dragged her inside. I was a little surprised to find Eddie there too, but like me, he was one of the few students that were allowed here. He greeted me with a hug and pulled away, smiling at Nevaeh.
"Hey kiddo!" he exclaimed. I suppressed the urge to laugh at his cheerfulness. Nevaeh was always shy with people she didn't know that well, so I tried to encourage her.
"Say hi," I told her.
"Hello," she said timidly. I chuckled before turning her towards the farther side of the room. "Go say hi to Dimitri." She ran up to him and her pigtails bounced adorably. Dimitri's face lit up as he swooped her off the ground and tried to get her to interact with his guardian friends. She was shy at first, but his enthusiasm and tickling of her stomach made her giggle, allowing her to burst out of her little bubble. I watched them with a smile on my face.
I didn't eat much for breakfast other than a few packs of fruit. It wasn't a lot, but it would be enough for now. I was still trying to get back on track with my food and I was making little progress. Dimitri usually kept tabs on me throughout the day to make sure I was eating.
I sat down on the couch with Eddie as he unwrapped the plastic around his breakfast wrap. "Do you ever miss eating other food? I mean, if I only ate that every day, I'd go crazy."
"Sometimes," I admitted. "It's weird. In the cafeteria, I just eat fruit or drink juice while everyone else is devouring burgers and sandwiches or whatever. You know how dhampirs are."
"I'm a perfect example," Eddie chuckled as he took a bite into his breakfast wrap.
"It's still hard for me to eat the same way I used to," I continued. "It's mostly just mental issues. I feel like they hold me back."
"Why do you think they hold you back?" Eddie asked. He looked concerned now.
I shook my head, trying to pass it off as something light. "Body image. PTSD—which, according to Dr. Olendzki, I suffer from."
"Maybe you should consider getting help. Like, real professional help," he suggested. I had already heard this from Dr. Olendzki several times and constantly refused. Maybe she was right about me needing professional help, but I didn't like the idea of talking to someone I didn't know.
"I don't like talking to strangers about my problems," I muttered.
Eddie sighed. "I get that, but they're there to help you. I'm here too."
"Thanks, Eddie," I said gratefully, giving him a sad smile. I continued to pick the grapes in my cup off their stems while Eddie devoured his food. By the time he was finished, he leaned back and rested his hand on his now full stomach.
"What about blood?" he asked. His sudden curiosity caught me by surprise.
"That's a whole other story. Blood...it's euphoric. Different from being fed on, but still amazing. You feel it spread across your body. It's like being regenerated with power."
"Is that why strigoi feed so violently? To gain power?"
"I think so. That's what scares me. I'm part of them, and that makes me dangerous. The bracelet Lissa gave me helps, but I'm still afraid that one day, that dark part of me will consume me, and I'll turn into something ugly."
Eddie seemed to sense my worry and paused to look at me. He opened his mouth to say something, but he was cut off when Nevaeh suddenly jumped on the couch, startling us both.
"I think it's time to take her to class," Dimitri said as he walked over. I had forgotten about that. I checked the time on my phone, realizing she had ten minutes left.
"I should probably head to class too," Eddie said, picking up his bag. "I'll see you later, Rose. Nice seeing you, Dimitri." He passed by Dimitri with a slight nod of his head before leaving the room.
I dropped Nevaeh off at her campus, watching her go up to her best friend to hug him. It was the same little boy I had spoken to when Nevaeh had gone missing. His name was Nick, and although he was a couple of years older than her, he was her closest friend and I often saw them playing in the park together. He was more than happy when we had brought her back and I was glad Nevaeh had a friend.
I was a little bit late to my class, but the professor barely noticed as I had gone in through the back door of the small lecture hall. Dimitri stood at the back, so I sat in the last row and chose the seat right in front of him. I offered him a smile and I saw the side of his mouth tug upwards. It was the most he could give me while still keeping his guardian mask on.
I sat down and pulled my laptop out to start taking notes. I was bored out of my mind after only half an hour, but my boredom was saved when someone walked in five minutes later. The professor paused his lecture.
"Ah," he said. "You're the new student."
I laughed. Only in an academy like this would a professor ever introduce a new student to a university class. In the human world, they wouldn't even notice.
She was a moroi, and she was fairly attractive. Most moroi girls were tall and skinny, but her body shape had curves. She was around my height and had pale skin like most moroi. Her black hair was around my length and shaped her face perfectly. Some of the students in the class admired her looks.
After a few seconds, I realized she was staring at me. I was at the far back, but somehow, she managed to make eye contact and her expression faltered a little. I wasn't trying to come off as a bitch or anything, but her constant staring was almost unsettling. I wondered if I had a resting bitch face.
The professor cleared his throat. "Miss, please take a seat."
She finally looked away and apologized. I went back on my laptop, getting a page ready to take notes when I realized that the chair beside me was being pulled back. I looked up to find the same girl standing there, her pale blue eyes gazing into mine.
"Is this seat taken?" she asked me.
"Uh, no," I told her, moving my bag out of the way. There were plenty of other seats in the back row that she could have taken, but I let her sit there anyways. She gladly sat down, and I was suddenly engulfed in her scent. She was wearing some kind of perfume, but it wasn't strong enough to affect me. If anything, it smelled good on her.
"I'm Avery," she said after pulling out her notebook. "Avery Lazar."
Thank you all, once again, for reading! :)
Also, Avery is only slightly different in my story. I'm not as much of an expert on her, so I apologize.