Chapter Twenty Six - In the Eye Abides the Heart

Previously on Ethereal Darkness

A voice cleared from near the edge of the room, and I had to sit up perfectly straight to be able to look over the back of the sofa to see who it was. Dimitri stepped forwards with his hands folded in front of him, and I could vaguely see the corner of something small and black within his grasp. "If you all don't mind, I have a present of my own that I'd like to give Rose."

What are you doing? I thought to myself with wide eyes as he stepped around the sofa, looking towards me. I was frantically glancing between him and my mother, seeing the peculiar expression on her face. She didn't know. Whatever he was about to do, it wasn't part of the plan! We were going to tell her together - what is he doing?

"Roza," fuck, I thought to myself. She was going to realise instantly what was going on between us, and I had no way to brace myself for what was about to happen. I fixated my gaze on Dimitri, his kind, sincere eyes as he slowly approached me. He didn't seem the slightest bit scared, which somehow settled my nerves. That was, until he lowered himself onto one knee directly in front of me, a small, black box in the palm of his outstretched hand...

"Dimitri," I said sternly, my eyes wide with a firm plea that I hoped he was seeing. "Whatever you're about to do, don't do it."

"What is this, Rosemarie?" I heard my mother speak up from beside me, and I clenched my eyes shut as tight as they could go as I willed a black hole to appear beneath me and suck me up. I heard Dimitri rise from his kneeled position, and I slowly opened my eyes to look up at him, slightly scared.

He turned to face my mother confidently, and immediately I was filled with dread. I was already mentally preparing my new name for when I fled the country - perhaps Scarlett, or Clara. I looked like a Scarlett, right?

"Guardian Hathaway," he said respectfully, placing the hand holding the small, scary box behind his back. "I greatly apologise for not telling you this sooner, however I just cannot hide it anymore. I'm in love with your daughter." I saw Lissa snap her head to me with a concerned expression, and I looked up at her with a just as terrified one of my own. I could see my mother from the corner of my eye, but I refused to look directly at her, instead fixating my gaze on my best friend as I attempted to absorb the strength from her so I wouldn't run out of there or smack Dimitri.

"I'm not sure I understand," Janine said in an oddly calm voice, which is when I knew she was about to explode. "You're in love with my daughter?"

"Yes, Ma'am." He continued in that same formal voice as before, and I took a deep breath as I looked up at him. He was standing his ground, still looking at my mother. "And I know she feels the same way about me. This has been going on for longer than I'd like to admit due to my previous commitments as a Guardian at St Vladimir's, however I can assure you that my intentions were never to seduce or cajole Roza. We fought it at first, but the connection was too strong to deny."

I saw my mother raise a hand as a sadistic smile came across her face. She stood up with her hand still raised, though clenched her fingers so just her index finger was up in a 'stop' motion. I feared for everything in that moment, and immediately jumped to my feet so I could defuse any tension. She instantly turned to me with a set jaw and fire in her eyes, and I retracted back into my shell as she turned to face Dimitri again.

"Let me repeat my question," she laughed humourlessly, taking a step towards him. "You - her 24 year old mentor and Guardian - are in love with my daughter - your 18 year old student and charge?"

"With all due respect, Janine, neither Roza or I see our relationship in that w-"

"Do not call me Janine!" She raised her voice with a fierce look as she clenched her hand tightly where it was in the air. "To you I am Guardian Hathaway, understand? And you are Guardian Belikov - at least for now. You will be lucky if you get to keep your Guardian title after I go to Court with this information. That privilege will be revoked and you'll be sent out into the human world with nothing."

"Janine, please," Abe stood from his chair and walked to stand besides her in a comforting stance. He placed a hand on her shoulder to try and calm her down, but she swiped him away and gave him a silent glare that told him to back off. Or else.

"I am not done, Abe." She growled to him. "Dimitri Belikov you will leave this house immediately before I forceably remove you, and you will never set foot on these premises again. You will not see Rose ever again, you will not speak to her - you won't even think of her. Do I make myself clear?"

"Mom!" I shouted at her with disgust, just trying to stop myself from lashing out as I watched the scene unfold. "Enough! I'm not a child anymore, you don't get to put your opinion forwards on things that affect my life."

"This is not an opinion, Rosemarie," she said incredulously as she looked at me. "This man has broken almost every rule set under both human and Moroi laws. He deserves to be stripped of his title and punished for his actions."

I rolled my eyes, stepping across the room to stand in front of Dimitri with my back to his front. It was an instinctively protective stance that I didn't realise I was taking, having only had the sudden urge to be near him through this. "Give it a rest, mother. You disappear for fifteen years and all of a sudden you want to play mother of the year? Dimitri and I love each other, and all of your preconceived ideas about us are wrong. He didn't seduce me, or entice me. He has been nothing but a gentleman ever since we met. He tried to push me away, he tried to do the right thing by not following his urges. He tried, mother. We both did."

I felt him place his hands on either side of my shoulders in a comforting gesture, and it took all my will power not to break down right then and there as I looked down my mother in the eye. She was confused, and hurt, and angry, and it was clear she didn't know what to do or what to say. She was like a fish out of water.

Everyone was silent for a moment, and honestly I forgot there were other people in the room besides the three of us. There was like a switch inside of my mother as I watched her straighten herself up and take a deep breath. "I expected more from you, Rosemarie." She said quietly with a strained voice as she looked up at me in disappointment. "This isn't the girl I raised you to be."

I scoffed at that, my jaw practically dropping to the floor in utter shock at her words. "No, it's not." I said passive aggressively, nodding. "Because you didn't raise me - remember? Because I remember every, single, moment that you weren't there."

Her stern expression faltered then, and I knew I'd hit a nerve. But I didn't care - she deserved it. How dare she insult both Dimitri and I the way she did, and expect me not to fight back. Her eyebrows raised and dropped quickly in realisation, and she let out a soft 'humph'. "Fine." She said in a high pitched defeated tone. "I know when I'm not wanted somewhere." She took one last glance between Dimitri and I before heading out the room without another word.

I tensed up and closed my eyes as she walked out, feeling the tension in the air immediately settle once I heard that door shut. I collapsed back into Dimitri's arms, letting out a soft whimper as I tried my best not to cry. I could feel my entire body quivering uncontrollably as I held back the tears, before Dimitri wrapped his arms around my waist. "Shh, milaya, it's all over. I'm so sorry this happened."

I shook my head firmly as I swallowed the knot in my throat, pulling away from him desperately. I tried to say something, but I just couldn't, as I covered my mouth with my hand and ran out the room.

All was quiet on the Western Front, and I relished in the piece and quiet of the afternoon air.

After I ran away from all my friends and family, I kept running, through the maze of doors that was Abe's mansion. Eventually I found myself out the back greenery, where there was a small patio and a large expanse of freshly cut grass. Birds were scattered around in the trees that engulfed the perimetre, and their quiet chirping was a nice difference from the anger that was hidden inside the large double glass doors.

I'd sat myself down right in the centre of the greenery, just wanting to be completely surrounded by the calming energy of nature. I brought one knee up to my chest so I could rest my cheek on top, idly ripping out pieces of grass from beside me as my mind wandered to far off places.

I barely even noticed when somebody silently sat themselves down beside me, not touching me and not disturbing my thoughts. I looked up after a moment to see Dimitri sat with his arms across his knees, looking at me softly. "I'm sorry." He said immediately.

"No," I said with a strained voice, shaking my head as I crossed my legs Indian style, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have stormed out like that. It just - everything just started closing in on me all at once and I felt like I was going to explode. I couldn't bare another moment in that room, with or without that woman."

"It was my fault," he explained softly, wrapping an arm around me while I leaned into his side. He tucked my head firmly beneath his chin in a protective gesture. "I shouldn't have done that without talking to you first. I know it made you uncomfortable and surprised, and I'm sorry."

"Not that I'm mad at you," I said hesitantly, pulling away from him to sit up and look at him again. "But were you seriously going to propose to me? In front of my mother?"

He looked at me for a moment with an unreadable expression, before breaking out into laughter. I furrowed my brows as I looked at him, confused. "Roza," he said, cupping my cheek with a smile. "I love you, with all my heart. But I know that neither of us are ready for marriage - not yet."

"Then what was in that box?"

He shifted to reach into his back pocket, pulling out that same black box as before. He looked down at it as he opened it up, revealing it's contents.

Sat on a plush black cushion was the most stunning ring I had ever seen in my life. It was like a princess tiara, the band of the ring being entirely made of encased diamonds while the top had elegant swirled patterns with more diamonds decorating intermittently. My hands outstretched hesitantly towards it before I slowly picked it up out from the cushion.

"This is most definitely an engagement ring." I said incredulously as I turned it around in my hands. I saw Dimitri smile affectionately at me from the side as he plucked the ring from my finger, taking my right hand in his.

"No," he said, sliding the tiara-ring onto my ring finger. "It's a promise ring. It's a symbol that promises my faithfulness to you. I promise to love and want you forever, and I promise that one day - when we're ready - I will make you my wife. But not yet."

I looked at the ring in awe, tearing up at his words. "Dimitri," I cooed, looking up at him. "I love it, and I love you so much. I promise to return to you no matter what, and I promise never to leave your side." I cupped his face and kissed him firmly yet sweetly, instantly melting into his touch as he wound his arms around my waist.

We pulled away after a while for air, and I closed my eyes in contentment at the feel of him around me. He placed one, two more closed-mouth kisses on my lips, before pressing his forehead to mine. "Not to ruin the moment, but I know your father was searching for you inside." He told me in a quiet whisper. "I think he wanted to give you your present before you decided to just call your birthday off altogether."

I laughed softly at that and opened my eyes. "Will Janine be in there?"

"No." He said definitively. "She's been locked in her room since you both stormed out of there. Besides, I'm sure Pavel would be more than willing to get rid of her if she starts trouble again."

I smiled fondly, giving him a swift peck on his lips. "Okay. Let's go back inside."

We started towards the back room where we assumed Abe would be, since that's where he spent most of his spare time, only to be intercepted in one of the hallways by him. Pavel was on his tail, and I would have ran straight into him if Dimitri hadn't been behind me and pulled me back before I could.

"Sorry!" I apologised immediately as I looked up at him, both the men stopping in their tracks to look at us. "I wasn't paying attention."

"You're fine, Rose." Pavel nodded politely with a smile as Abe walked to stand directly beside him.

"We were just looking for you, Kiz." He wrapped an arm around my shoulder and tore me away from Dimitri's side, guiding me down the hallway from where he'd just came from. "I thought you might want your birthday present before you swear off birthdays for the rest of your life." I laughed at that, noting it was similar to what Dimitri had said outside.

He guided me out the front door of the house, and I realised that it was the first time I'd actually been outside the front since I'd gotten there. There was a long drive out the front which lead to a large ornate gate in the near distance. There was an outpost on one side of the gate, and I presumed that was where some of Abe's Guardians worked during the day to monitor the perimitre.

I let out a yelp of surprise when Abe covered my eyes with his hands, instinctively wrapping my hands around his wrists to throw him off of me. I let out a breath of relief one I'd gotten over the shock, dropping my hands back to my sides. "Don't scare me like that - shit, I could have attacked you."

He chuckled softly, guiding me forwards with his hands still blinding my sight. "Sorry, Kiz. I sometimes forget about things like that."

We continued walking to what I assumed was the side of the house, perhaps a shed or something since I could hear the sound of metal doors shifting from in front of me. "Can I look?" I asked optimistically when we stopped walking, and I heard the doors shut again behind me.

Everyone was silent for a moment, the only sound being footsteps of someone directly in front of me. I heard the swooshing of some fabric, more footsteps, before silence again.

"Okay," Abe said with a smile in his voice. "Three, two, one."

He pulled his hands away from my face and I blinked my eyes open immediately, adjusting to the difference in light levels. My eyes settled immediately on the beautiful piece of machinery stood in front of me, my eyes widening in surprise. "No fucking way," I broke out into a grin as I ran towards the motorbike which probably looked bigger than me. "No fucking way!"

It was a sleek black style which was long and quite short, and I could immediately tell it was designed for speed. The seat had two dips in it, which suggested to me it was a two seater. I ran my hand across the front of it in awe, soaking in every single inch of it. "It's a 1200cc Sportsbike." Abe told me as I mounted it, adjusting my grip on the clutch lever. "Top speed of 290 kilometres per hour, and dual seating for you and whoever you're with." I looked up at him in disbelief as he said that, not entirely believing this vehicle was mine. He just smiled at me. "I know it's typical for a Guardian to use one of those cliche SUV type cars for getaways and such, but motorcycles are much faster. Besides, I know it's much more your style."

"You're giving this to me?" I knitted my brows together as I tried to comprehend the situation, glancing between him and the motorcycle one more time. Immediately I jumped off it, running into Abe's arms and wrapping my arms around his torso I buried my face into his chest to hide my giddy grin. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

I felt his chuckle vibrant around me as he returned my hug just as enthusiastically, placing a kiss to the top of my head. "Well, it's the first birthday I've ever been able to be with you for, and I wanted to make it memorable. Happy Birthday, Little Girl."

I pulled away from him with a cheeky smirk, keeping my arms wound tightly around him. "Does this mean I get to take it for a ride?" My voice rose up an octave hopefully as I put on the innocent act. I saw the hesitation in his eyes, and so I quickly added-"please! I promise I won't go far, and I promise I'll be back within the hour. I just want to give it a test ride. Please?"

His jaw set as he looked down at me, before softly sighing as he tried to hide a smile. "Fine." I squealed in delight as I hugged him one more time, before running back to the bike and mounting it once again. "But Belikov goes with you!" I looked hopefully to where Dimitri was stood besides Pavel on the other side of what I now realised to be a small garage. He shook his head at me with a fond smile, stepping forwards. "At least that way I'll know you're safe. And-" he gestured with his hand to Pavel to step forwards, whom did so immediately. "Take these out with you."

Pavel reached inside his jacket pocket and took out the rectangular box I recognised that my mother had given to me earlier, placing them gently in my hand. I looked hesitantly up to Dimitri as if for guidance, and he nodded. I took out the two stakes, careful not to mark or damage them, before one in my jacket pocket and one in the front pocket of my jeans. They felt uncomfortable at first, yet simultaneously right.

"Here," Abe stretched out his hand and dropped the cold metal keys into my hands, and I clenched my fist around it tightly. "Back before sun down, okay?" I nodded in confirmation, trying to act respectful when inside I was just bursting with joy.

Pavel moved to open up the door of the garage as Dimitri climbed on the bike behind me, wrapping his arms tightly around the front of my waist. As I brought the engine to life, it purred in my hands, and I leaned my head back against Dimitri's chest in pure bliss. He chuckled, placing a soft kiss to my temple. I sat up straight and wrapped my hands around the throttle and the clutch, looking back at him with a seductive smirk. "You ready, Comrade?"

"Just," he seemed slightly doubtful, though a hint of a smile was still on his lips. "Try not to kill us. I've never seen your driving skills, however I have suspicions that they're not the best."

"Have a little faith in me," I gasped in fake shock, revving the engine beneath me. I'd actually learned how to drive whilst Lissa and I had been in Portland, and I liked to think of myself as quite a good driver. I just hadn't been on a motorcycle in about a year.

I kicked up the footpeg and leaned forwards on the throttle, letting out a scream of excitement as we searched forwards and out of the garage.

My apologies this chapter wasn't up sooner. I've been swamped with a lot of coursework and exam work, and since I finish my first year of college this Thursday that obviously takes priority. But it's here, and I hope you enjoyed it! Please review, they really do make my day. Have a nice rest of your week!