Chapter Two - We Have Visitors
Freshening up was just as quick as expected, though from Dimitri's subtle kiss on the cheek I was at least feeling better than I had upon first waking up. I showered in the training cubicles before changing into a pair of black skinny jeans and a deep red sweater that I'd put in my duffel bag before training, as well as changing my sneakers for some old, black ankle boots that I probably should of thrown away months ago if it wasn't for the fact I loved them too much. Back at my room I shed my duffel bag in exchange for my school satchel, before heading off to the cafeteria.
Eddie was already sat at our usual table when I entered, alongside two other Dhampir's I recognised from our senior class; Meredith and Shane. I remember Shane was the boy who Mason shared a room with back at the ski lodge, and a part of me wonders if they were close. "Morning, Castille." I smiled as I took my seat opposite him on the table, nodding politely to the other two both sat on his left side.
"Do my eyes deceive me? Is Rosemarie Hathaway here on time?" Eddie teased with a glimmer in his eyes and a slight smirk on his lips. I kicked him - though not hard - underneath the table, giving him a threatening glare.
"Call me 'Rosemarie' again and your eyes won't be the only thing not working properly." Although I sounded completely serious, Eddie knew I was only joking. Well, kind of joking - I was definitely capable of hurting him if he got on my bad side, and he knew that.
Lissa, Christian, and Mia seemed to materialise out of nowhere, the former of the three placing herself directly next to me with a cheerful smile. "You seem chipper." I commented with a curious expression, sending a suspicious look towards Christian. Usually when Lissa was in a good mood, it meant one of two things; she was shopping, or Christian had been more than a man in the bedroom the night before if you know what I mean, and I wasn't seeing many clothes stores in the middle of St Vladimir's.
Lissa just shrugged, casting me a more than suggestive look. "Oh, you know, just happy to be back. With Adrian on campus for the next few weeks, I can learn more about Spirit magic and how to use it." As much as I knew that definitely wasn't the reason she was so happy, I wasn't about to tell her that. Instead I just nodded, turning to face Eddie on the other side of the table.
"Fancy some food?"
He clutched a hand to his chest with a desperate look on his face. "You really do know the way to a man's heart, Hathaway." I just rolled my eyes at him as he grinned to himself, standing up and heading over to the line of Dhampir's where the food was being served.
As was typical, Eddie and I both stacked our plates a mile high full of food that, if we were humans, could be enough to sustain two or three people. The rest of the Dhampir's had just as much food as we did, though, our genetic coding meaning that we burned food faster than average so had to eat a lot to keep our strength up.
Making our way back to our table, I noticed that the aforementioned Adrian had joined our table where I was previously sat next to Lissa. I stood there pointedly at the head of the table until he looked up at me with a much-too-comfortable smile. "Little Dhampir, what a good morning it is to see you."
"I'm flattered, Adrian," I raised a hand to my chest as if to look touched, a soft expression on my face. "But you're in my seat. So move it or lose it." Adrian was all too happy to comply, moving himself so he sat on the other side of Eddie. I didn't miss the expression on Christian's face as I sat down, it being evident he was trying to hold back a laugh.
"You know, I'll never understand how somebody so small can put away so much food." Christian commented from the other side of Lissa, clearly directing it towards the 5 foot 7 me with the mountain of food.
I swallowed the piece of food that was in my mouth before looking down the table at him. "Bite me, Fire Crotch." He just shakes his head at my retort while I go back to eating my food. I glance up at one point to say something to Eddie, my words being cut short as over his shoulder I saw Dimitri sat at the Guardian's table, his gaze fixated on me. I smiled at him slightly and gave him a mock two-fingered salute, and I saw him chuckle in return before going back to his food.
"Now who's smiling?" Lissa chided, nudging my shoulder with her own. I just shrugged at her, finishing the last of my food.
"I'm just looking forward to the field experiences starting next week. Six weeks of guarding you will be perfect training for the future." I justified, making sure not to look in Dimitri's direction so not to arouse suspicion from my peers.
Truth be told, I was looking forwards to the Field Assessments, as were most of the senior Dhampir class. Each student would be given a Moroi to protect for the next six weeks as a practice charge, while the teachers acted as 'Strigoi', placing random attacks on them and their Moroi. Since I was slated to be Lissa's Guardian after graduation, there was no doubt in my mind that we'd be partnered together for the assessment - it made the most logical sense.
"Who are you hoping to get, Eddie?" Christian asked just as Eddie finished his breakfast, placing his plate on top of mine to neaten the table up a little.
Eddie shrugged. "Honestly, I don't really mind, as long as it's not someone like Zeklos or Sarcozy." That, I had to agree with, and I saw Meredith and Shane also nodding in agreement from where they were half-listening to the conversation. "I think I'd just let the Strigoi get them, in reality."
The eight of us - well, rather seven, since Mia rarely interjected - chatted for a short while about how we expected the next term to go with the field experiences happening, as well as graduation fast approaching. I was thankful that nobody brought up what happened over christmas break, some sort of unspoken agreement lulling in the air.
Adrian was in the middle of telling a half-decent story of something that happened during his Spirit lessons with Lissa when a deafening siren sounded into the cafeteria, a siren that nobody ever wanted to hear. "This is not a drill - this is a code red alert. Please follow protocol. I repeat, this is not a drill - this is a code red alert."
My entire being tensed up as dozens of people in the room began to panic, most of them being the Moroi. My immediate instincts were to get Lissa to safety, and I found my body moving entirely on its own accord as I stood up, dragging Lissa with me and shielding her with my body. "Eddie, take Christian to his dorm room and wait there until you hear another announcement." He nodded obediently, and Christian found himself started looking between the two of them before following Eddie. "Shane, do the same with Adrian, and Meredith take Mia." Everybody jumped into action as soon as I uttered the words, and I was happy enough that they obeyed my words.
Just as I was about to start guiding Lissa back to her dorm, Dimitri appeared at my side, a hand going into his duster before handing me one of his silver stakes. "We need to get the Princess to safety." He told me, as if I didn't already know that. I thanked him for the stake before heading out of the cafeteria with determination, ordering Lissa to stay in between both Dimitri and myself, and to follow our every order.
Moroi and Dhampir's alike could be seen running from the corridors into their allocated safety position, and across the campus field I could see several Guardians making their way towards the outer perimeter of the school. I didn't let myself wonder too much about what they were doing, knowing my main priority was to guard the damsel in distress that was desperately clinging to my arm from behind.
"Rose, what's going on?" I could hear the fear in her voice as Lissa obediently followed me through the corridors towards the Royal Moroi dormitories, and although I didn't look back, I knew Dimitri was right behind us as well.
"I don't know, Lissa." I told her truthfully, although I had my suspicions. Code red alerts were reserved for Strigoi attacks either within or just outside the school campus, and I dreaded to think if it was inside. Of course we had enough Guardians to take care of them, but being inside the wards meant that they had humans working for them, and that was always a situation everybody wanted to avoid.
We made it to Lissa's dorm without casualty, the entire corridor being entirely deserted as I threw open the door. I ordered Lissa to stay outside with Dimitri as I walked in and searched the room for anything out of the ordinary. Everything was cleared, so I called the pair of them into the room. Dimitri locked the door behind them, and Lissa huddled herself onto the centre of her bed, hugging her legs close to her chest.
"Everything's going to be okay, Lis." I slid myself onto the bed besides her, wrapping my arms comfortingly around her shoulders while she leaned into my embrace. She was shaking slightly, though not as bad as I had expected. I looked up to see Dimitri pulling the curtain aside slightly to look out the window, a calculating expression on his face.
"Comrade?" I called to him, still holding Lissa in my arms but watching his movements. "What's out there?"
"Nothing that I can see yet, Novice Hathaway." I knew that in the presence of Lissa he would have to have his Guardian mask on, though that doesn't mean I was completely comfortable with him calling me 'Novice Hathaway'. I put on a professional mask myself, not letting the words get to me. He turned to face where Lissa and I were sat on the bed, though she had now completely buried her face into my neck so he couldn't see her expression. "I'm going to check the building's perimeter and see if I can get any information from Alberta about the situation, okay?"
I nodded, tightening my grip on Lissa as I realised that would leave me as the sole Guardian to her while he was away. He nodded to the stake I'd dropped on the bed in front of us as he walked towards the door. "Keep that for now, you need to be able to protect yourself in case anything happens." Again, I nodded, watching as he unlocked the door.
"Be safe, Comrade." I called to him just before he closed the door, seeing him poke his head through the gap.
"You too, Rose."
I was confident enough in my Dhampir's to enforce the necessary protocol back in the main school as I gathered six of the best Guardians before heading across campus, another twenty being on standby as we went to investigate the code red alert.
"Guardian Petrov, the two Guardians on duty that begun the alert called in a sighting of at least three Strigoi around the wards." Daniel, one of the Guardians I brought along, alerted me as he stood to my right side. At least three Strigoi meant that six Guardians would probably not be enough to survive without casualties, and so I was thankful I had more on the sidelines waiting.
We approached the gates first, where the two Guardians were there with stakes drawn. "Guardians Malloy and Randall, thank you for calling in this report." I nodded to both of them, and they both took at ease positions. I ordered three of the Guardians I had brought with me to scout the perimeter for any signs of damage within the wards, and to call in immediately if they saw the Strigoi in question.
I was on the communication device within the gate booth talking back to Headmistress Kirova in the main school, letting her know all of the details I had been told thus far. In return, she assured me that every Dhampir and Moroi were safely in their allocated safety bunkers with Guardians stationed around several main sights such as the Royal dormitories.
I was in the middle of requesting for the Guardian back ups to begin moving in towards the wards when I heard a blood-curdling scream from not too far away. I looked up and ordered two more Guardians to stand out guard and wait for my signal, before alerting Kirova and hanging up.
Walking outside of the booth I could see my five Guardians - including Malloy and Randall - stood either side of the building, stakes drawn in a fighting stance with their expressions focused on one point. I turned my gaze to follow what they were looking at, seeing the three bodies of the Guardians I had sent to scout the perimeter at the feet of one Strigoi. Further back stood three more on either of their side, forming an arrowhead type of configuration.
I took a step forwards, my hand resting on my own stake at my hip as I addressed the front Strigoi. "You made a mistake when you chose to attack this school." I made sure to be confident and collected, a tactic I hoped would scare them at least somewhat. "St Vladimir's is a highly guarded compound, and you will not make it out of here alive."
"I wouldn't be too sure of that," the blond Strigoi tilted his head curiously, and I could tell he had previously been Moroi. "This isn't some random attack, Alberta. We're here for a reason." I tried not to let the surprise I felt inside show on my face, wondering how he could possibly know my name. Unfortunately I had not been as successful as I had hoped, the boy looking at me with perplexed eyes. "Don't remember me, Guardian Petrov? I was at school here many years ago, graduating a decade ago."
I kept silent as he spoke, knowing that if I didn't say anything then he could not use anything against me, while I took in his appearance. While I had been Head Guardian for twenty-some years, my job was to know of the Dhampir and not of the Moroi. However he did look familiar, though I could not place where from.
"We are here for the Guardian, Rosemarie Hathaway." He opened his arms as he gestured to the Strigoi either side of him, and I allowed myself a glimpse at them. Two appeared to of previously been Dhampir, one Moroi, and the other three had been Human. The human-majority was unsurprising, I figured, since they must be working with a lot of them to be able to get into the campus through the wards. The only way to break the wards is with an enchanted silver stake, stakes of which Strigoi cannot touch without being harmed. Humans often are found working with Strigoi in hopes of being turned, and I could only imagine that these three had found themselves in similar situations.
"You will not get to Hathaway." I told him confidently, knowing that the entire Guardian populous would fight and kill the Strigoi before anybody hesitated to let them near the student. Rose was one of the Academy's own, and thus had a special place in my heart, though was also slated to be Princess Dragomir's Guardian after graduation. Though no matter who the student was, I knew we would fight to protect them in every way.
The Strigoi laughed a humourless laugh, his red-rimmed eyes settling on my presence. "No, we know we must be fools to attack the Guardian while under the protection of St Vladimir's Guardians. Which is why we are here to present a message, from my superior. Hand over the girl to us before the Summer Solstice, or she will come." His warning was ominous, and I could feel the chill deep in my bones at his words. "You have been warned."
Almost as quickly as they appeared, they were gone, running back out of the campus grounds. Several of my Guardians stepped for them, but I knew it would be a pointless suicide mission for them to go after them. "Stand down, soldiers!" I called to them, every single one freezing in their tracks before turning to face me.
My eyes were darting between the Guardians, the trees, and the campus, frantically as a million thoughts bounced around in my mind. "Fix the wards immediately, and take these three fallen to the Infirmary to Dr Olendzki. Station double the amount of Guardians on the perimeter for the next week, and report every single minor detail directly and immediately to me."
"Yes, Guardian Petrov." The five of them chanted in unison, and I nodded to dismiss them to get back to their jobs.
I took in a deep breath as I begun the slow walk back to campus, a Guardian on either side of me as I prepared to alert the Headmistress of our little visitors.
Two chapters in a day because I'm excited for this story to take off the ground. Thank you to people who have already left me reviews, you're the best! Hope you enjoyed.