Lololololol who's still with me?

It's been less than a year since the last update so… well done me?

Days until wedding: 1

The hours following the arrival of the rest of our extended family were a mad blur of activity, with changes had to be made to sleeping, parking and eating arrangements to accommodate everyone. The Belikov house was now officially fit to burst, but we'd somehow got everybody settled. Well, almost everyone. Dimitri, Eddie, Christian and Adrian would be sleeping in a hotel tonight as Yeva insisted it would be bad luck for us to spend the night before the wedding together, and everyone knew that if we were in the same house, nothing would keep us apart. I thought it was stupid, but Dimitri was just superstitious enough to follow along. Lissa agreed, but only because she saw it as an opportunity for a slumber party.

After a frenzied rush of last-minute preparations- checking the church, the food, the clothes, the flowers, the rings, finally, there came a blessed lull in the activity. The Moroi had been taken to the feeders, accompanied by Eddie and Mikhail. They really didn't need protection in Baia, especially in the middle of the day, but Eddie wasn't convinced. The commune his mother had lived in before he was born had been attacked by Strigoi, killing his grandmother, so I understood his apprehension. Sydney was upstairs napping as she'd driven in from the airport, and of all of us, humans were the least capable of staying awake for long periods of time. Honestly, I was just about ready to crash out myself.

I was sat in the back garden with my mom, watching flames dance in the firepit. Olena had shooed us out of the kitchen as she and Karolina finished up the cooking. They were polite about it, but it was clear we'd be more of a hindrance than a help. I didn't mind, except it meant that I didn't have the chance to steal bits of food when they turned away. Robbed of the chance to cause havoc in the kitchen, I decided to make a nuisance of myself with my mom instead.

"So," I started slowly, wondering if I was going to regret this, "what's going on with you and dad? You looked pretty cosy when you arrived."

It felt strange to be actively inquiring about my parents' love life. Usually, I avoided the topic at all costs, but for once I was intrigued, and couldn't pass up this chance to speak to her alone. She'd been giving him goofy stares all afternoon. It was unlike her to stare lovingly at anyone, especially my dad, who seemed to annoy her as often as anything.

"Hmm? Nothing. Why?"

I shrugged. "Something seems different." I didn't think she'd appreciate me pointing out her doe-eyed stare.

She was quiet for a long time, and I thought she'd decided my question wasn't worthy of an answer. It wouldn't be the first time. But after a couple of minutes, she answered in a brisk but quiet voice; "We've decided that once we get home, we're going to move in together. Give the relationship a proper try."

I wasn't sure what I'd been expecting, but that wasn't it. I'd have been less surprised if a Strigoi had suddenly leapt out of the bushes wearing nothing but a hula skirt. "Mom, that's… really something. What's brought this on?"

"You were right, when you said that everything can change in the blink of an eye. All the reasons we had for keeping our distance aren't important anymore. You're a grown woman, our careers are no longer heading in different directions, and the stigma surrounding Dhampirs in long-term relationships is abating." She frowned. "Well, not quite, but more people are doing it anyway. It seems unbearably cowardly for us to be afraid of something when our own daughter isn't."

"Are those the reasons it never worked between you the first time?" I'd thought it was just because they hadn't wanted to commit, young and desirable as they had both apparently been.

"Partly. But it wasn't just that we were being kept apart by circumstance- we just weren't ready. Ibrahim asked me to marry him three times, but I think we both knew that it wouldn't work. Neither of us was willing to make the right compromises. We were too young and too selfish."

I'd had no idea that Abe had ever proposed to mom, or that she had turned him down. I was quiet as I mulled it all over. Dimitri and I had faced similar challenges; we'd said as much by the river the other day. Before the attack, Dimitri had been willing to give up guarding Lissa to be with me, and but it wasn't a perfect solution. We'd not have had much time together, and the stigma surrounding the relationship- for a multitude of reasons- would have been unpleasant, especially at Court. Neither of us would have been prepared to run away from our lives and duty entirely, so I could understand why my parents hadn't either.

"I don't think it's selfish," I said finally. "Love isn't always enough. I think you have to get the timing right and have a healthy dose of luck on your side."

Mom turned to me and smiled. "When did you get so grown up, Rose?"

"Not a clue. I guess Dimitri's zen wisdom has rubbed off on me." I refrained from saying that since I'd been dangling from a streetlight with a traffic cone on my head just last week, I probably wasn't that grown up. "Hey, don't take my being a responsible adult as an excuse to make a Rose 2.0, okay?"

Mom's face screwed up. "Don't be ridiculous, Rosemarie."

Ah, she was calling me Rosemarie again. All was right in the world, especially when Olena came outside carrying a tray laden with three glasses of mors and a small bottle of vodka. My mom didn't take any vodka in hers, but Olena and I sloshed a healthy shot into the cranberry drinks before taking a sip. The taste reminded me of overindulging at my bachelorette, but it was too good to pass up. I had the distinct feeling that this was the calm before the storm. In less than 24 hours, Dimitri and I would be married and this garden would be overflowing with revellers.

Commotion inside announced the return of the rest of my friends and family, and the end of this peaceful interlude.

Dinner was a simple affair, what with the kitchen being used mainly for catering preparation and the Moroi having just had their fill of blood. I was more than happy with the black bread and soup and ate through the nerves that had started to flutter in my belly. Pre-wedding jitters were no match for my appetite. Dimitri didn't seem fazed either. When Abe pointed this out, we both just shrugged and reached for more bread, our hands meeting as we grabbed the same slice.

I only began to regret my gluttony when it came time for Dimitri and the groomsmen to leave, and the weight of all that bread and soup sat heavily in my stomach. It churned as we stood in the hallway and Eddie started to load the car. I reached for Dimitri's hand, forcing a smile onto my face.

"Last chance to run," I joked, but gripped his fingers tightly in mine.

"Not a chance. I'll see you at the altar."

Dimitri bent his head and captured my lips in a kiss that made me forget that our entire family was standing around. As I pulled him closer I could feel his pulse jumping against my thumb, and once again I was overwhelmed with gratitude. Dimitri was alive, and he was mine, and we were going to be married in the morning.

Abe cleared his throat and we reluctantly broke apart. "There'll be plenty of time for that when you're married. And alone."

"I love you," Dimitri whispered, twisting a lock of my hair around his finger.

"Love you too comrade. Don't let Eddie drool on you in his sleep."

"Hey!" Eddie protested, but Mia quietly reminded him that he was in no place to deny it since everyone here knew of his epic drool puddles.

A moment later they were gone. The next time I spoke to Dimitri would be to exchange vows. My stomach flipped over again.

"Alright!" Lissa exclaimed, shutting the door and snapping straight into Maid of Honour mode. Viktoria stood behind her with the wedding scrapbook, open to- was that a checklist? "We need to hang up our gowns, do our nails, then get some beauty sleep."

Squeezing five people (seven, if you counted the twins) into a small bedroom was no easy feat. It was also very warm, despite the window being open as wide as possible. But the little house was at capacity and besides, the girls had been insistent on having one last sleepover.

"I'm getting married, not dying," I'd told them.

"With you, Rose, we can never be sure."

So, we'd collected all the spare pillows and piled into Dimtri's old bedroom. Lissa was sharing the bed with me, Viktoria was on the left by the window, and Sydney and Mia were snuggled on the right, wedged almost against the door. The last time Sydney had been in this house, she'd been disgusted by 'evil creatures of the night'. Now she was practically spooning one, their blonde hair meeting in the middle. With the swamp-thing coloured face masks we were wearing, we probably all looked like evil creatures of the night.

"How're you feeling?" Sydney asked me.

"So nervous I might hurl."

"Great, it'll land on me," Vika snorted. "Shall I get you a bucket?"

"I'll just aim for Lissa. She needs to get used to being vommed on before the babies arrive."

"You literally threw up on me a week ago. I think I'm quite prepared already."

We each took turn in the bathroom to wash the green goop off our faces, and I tried to drag my turn out as long as possible by cleaning my teeth twice and braiding my hair as well. Eventually I had to return to the bedroom because Mia was pounding on the door and threatening to make the faucet blow up in my face is I didn't hurry up.

I tried my best to relax despite my nerves and get some rest, but it was useless. The light had been off for all of five minutes before my impatience got the better of me. "Guys. I can't sleep."

"Try harder," somebody to my right mumbled.

"I feel like a kid on Christmas. Excited, anxious, worried that if I don't get to sleep on time Santa won't come..."

Lisa took pity on me and sat up. "You know that I barely slept a wink before my wedding. It was horrible."

I groaned and shoved the heels of my hands into my eyes. Never had I been more envious of Dimitri's ability to fall asleep at will.

The mattress bounced beside me and I opened my eyes. Viktoria had flopped onto the bed, laptop in hand. "No stressing allowed," she ordered. "We're going to watch nature documentaries until you're totally relaxed and drift right off to sleep."

Seconds later, Sydney was on the bed too, forcing Lissa to cuddle up close to me. "Put Blue Planet on. Oceans are very soothing."

"Until a shark appears," Mia said as she crawled into the only space left- squished right against the headboard. Good thing she was tiny. Surrounded on all sides by my friends, I felt the fluttering in my chest lessen slightly.

Despite the possibility of sharks, we were halfway through the first episode when Sydney started snoring, and just started the second when I felt Vika's head loll against my shoulder. Mia lasted until the end of that episode.

"You sleepy yet?" Lissa whispered as the credits rolled.

"Exhausted, but I still don't know if I'll be able to fall sleep."

"Gotta be worth a try." She leaned across and turned down the screen brightness. "Close your eyes for a bit."

I did, and Lissa started to stroke my hair. She was going to to be such a great mom. "What if I oversleep?" I worried.

"I saw Syd set like 11 alarms. There's no chance of any of us oversleeping."

I trusted Sydney's organisation if nothing else, and that fact that she would probably be the best-rested of all of us. But in the darkness, other anxieties demanded to be heard.

"What if we're making a mistake. What if one of us changes our mind?"

Lissa turned onto her side to face me, sharing my pillow. "What did you say when I asked you that same dumb question the night before my wedding?"

"That obviously you were making a mistake, because you were marrying a sociopathic pyromaniac."

"And after I told you to be serious?"

I sighed. "That you loved Christian and he loved you, and that was all that mattered."

"Exactly. Do you seriously have doubts about wanting to spend the rest of your life with Dimitri?"

"None."

"Then are these fears your own, or those that your mom and the people at Court have put in your head?" I grinned sheepishly, and she arched an eyebrow in response. "So ignore them. This is your relationship, your marriage. The only fears worth paying attention to are your own."

"So, just the one about tripping in the aisle then."

"You've got Dhampir reflexes. You'll be fine." We laughed quietly. "Seriously, Rose. You can't predict the future, but if there was a point where things were going to go wrong, it probably would have happened by now. You've been through so much together already."

"People did already consider me his widow," I conceded.

"Compared to that, being a wife is easy." She rested a hand on my cheek. "Tomorrow you're going to promise to love Dimitri until death does you part. Considering you've both already died and come out the other side stronger than ever, it's really not worth worrying over."

"Been there, done that."

"See? Nothing to freak out about. You've both been through so much, you deserve every chance at happiness the world can give. And let me tell you- seeing him smile at you as you walk down the aisle, that's the best feeling in the world."

"I'm so happy you have Christian. Even if he is a sociopathic pyromaniac."

"And I'm happy for you, even though Dimitri is a slightly terrifying giant who used to be your teacher."

We were both grinning now. "We sure know how to pick 'em."

"And the two of us are so nice and normal."

"We should have just married each other."

Our laughter made Mia stir, and her wandering hand smacked me upside the head, setting us off anew.

"You really should try and get some sleep," Lissa urged when we'd calmed down. "There's nothing to worry about, I'll take care of everything. You just think about getting to spend the rest of your life with the man you love."

Unbidden, the memory of Avery's cruel Spirit dream came to mind. Me and Dimitri, alone in an isolated cabin, with forever ahead of us. It had been my deepest wish, and something I had thought lost to me. But, against all odds, that was going to be my reality.

"Thanks, Liss. When did you get so good at this stuff?"

"I've had a lot of therapy." She leaned forward and kissed my forehead. A sense of peace washed over me; just the tiniest hint of Lissa's magic. I doubted she even realised she was doing it; some things came as easily to her as breathing. "Sleep," she whispered. "I'm here."

I wrapped an arm around Lissa's waist and pulled her close, just like I used to when we were on the run and she was plagued by nightmares. Things had changed a lot since then-the two new people busy growing beneath my arm were proof enough of that- but we'd always have each other. And, now, we wouldn't be alone.

With the screen dimmed to a gentle sapphire glow and the narrator's soothing voice in the background, sleep didn't seem so far out of reach.

David Attenborough here to save the day with Blue Planet chillness.

Review and get a film night with Rose and the gang.