Chapter Thirty One - The Calm After the Storm

"Dimitri..."

My entire body ached, though not in a way that was physically painful - it was more like waking up the morning after drinking two dozen tequila shots My head was throbbing and I couldn't move my arms or legs no matter how much I willed them to.

I could feel someone holding my hand, but I couldn't even open my eyes to see who it was; that's how exhausted I felt. I didn't know where I was, or who was with me, but all I wanted was to know Dimitri was there with me.

"I'm here, Roza." I heard the familiar accented voice of the man I loved, and I felt a wave of relief wash over me. He's okay. It was the first thing that came to mind when I heard his voice, and I found myself struggling to try and open my eyes to look at him. I wanted to see him. "Don't work yourself up, Roza," he said quietly, and I could tell he was slightly further away than directly beside me. "You lost a lot of blood and your body needs time to rest. Don't fight it."

Despite his words I continued to fight against the exhaustion, finally finding it in myself to pry my eyes open. Just barely, though, through half-lidded eyes I could see several familiar faces. I smiled at the sight, seeing it was in fact my mother who was holding my hand. I squeezed it as tight as I could, though it was pretty feeble. "Hi." I said amusingly.

"Hey, you." It was Abe who replied with a comedic grin, and I couldn't help but notice the arm he had wrapped around my mother. It was a bizarre sight, though not completely unwelcome. "You gave us quite a fright there. How are you feeling?"

"Tired." I answered truthfully, dropping my head to the side to look at them. "Where's Dimitri? I heard his voice."

"I'm here." I heard it come from the end of the bed, and though I couldn't quite move my head to look down towards the voice, I could just about see him by shifting my eyes. He was stood with his hands firmly at the end of the bed and his body leaning closer towards me. He was wearing his dirt-ridden uniform, minus the duster, which I could see draped over a table in the far corner of the room.

I could tell by the bloodshot of his eyes and the faded bags beneath them that he'd been worrying about me, and all I wanted was to reach out and hold him. I wanted to tell him that I was okay, that I was here,that he didn't have to worry anymore. But I couldn't, and truth be told I wasn't sure if I wanted to do all that in front of my mother. I didn't exactly know where our relationship stood with her, so I knew it was better to just pretend she was still opposed to it.

Instead I just offered him a smile, hoping to convey the love I felt but couldn't vocalise. "You're okay." He seemed to chuckle at that, and the noise made me feel all warm inside. How I'd missed that laugh. "You're here." It was almost like I was telling him what I wanted to tell him about me, but through talking about him.

"I am, Roza." I could see the love and affection in his eyes as he looked at me, the silent conversation between us going completely unnoticed by the others in the room. "I couldn't leave your side without knowing you were safe."

"What happened?" I furrowed my brows, looking up at my parents for answers. "How did I get here?"

Janine smoothed down my hair with one hand and removed the oxygen mask with the other, placing it on the pillow above my head. I sucked in a deep breath, sighing as I let it back out. It felt good. "Well, what was the last thing you remember?"

I furrowed my brows for a moment as I thought. Truth be told I didn't remember much. I remembered the female Strigoi coming to me and asking for my decision whether I was to join her or not, and I remembered Nathaniel attacking me when I denied her request. Everything else was much of a blur.

"I remember fighting one of the Strigoi." I said, looking off into the distance beside my father's head as I tried hard to remember it. "His name was Nathaniel. He was previously Moroi with dirty blond hair."

"He was the one who brought you to us." Dimitri said from the end of the bed, and I glanced down at him in confusion. I could tell he was thinking of something he didn't want to think about, because he seemed hesitant as he swallowed the lump in his throat. "He came in with you in his arms. He said he'd turned you into one of them... Into a Strigoi."

The words sent a surge of panic up inside me, and I found my body immediately reacting as I threw myself up into a sitting position. I cried out at the pain I felt in my head, the sudden movement sending the blood rushing to my lower half and making me dizzy. "Easy, Little Girl." I heard Abe say from besides me as hands pushed me back down to the bed. "You're okay, you're not a Strigoi! You're not a Strigoi."

His words calmed me down slightly, and I felt my breathing settle as I closed my eyes and relax against the pillow. I felt someone grip my hand on the other side of the bed, and turned my head to see Lissa watching me with a coy smile. I squeezed her hand tightly in mine and smiled back.

"When the doctor did his tests on you, there was no trace of Strigoi blood in your system." Abe explained for me, settling my worries further. "Either the Strigoi was lying about turning you, or your body is some sort of miracle machine." I chuckled at that, a genuine smile on my face.

"I don't care what happened," Janine said, looking at me with affection. I don't think I'd ever seen her look at anybody with that sort of love, including myself. It was a heartwarming sight, and gave me hope. Maybe we did still have a chance at a proper mother-daughter relationship. She tucked my hair behind my ear and cupped my face. "I'm just happy my daughter's okay."

The doctor had sent everybody out of the room while he checked over my injuries, including the puncture wounds beneath the bandage on my neck. He was satisfied that everything was healing as it should, however I was still to remain under careful watch for the next couple weeks. He'd taken me off the oxygen machine and given me time to shower and change into some fresh clothes.

My body still felt exhausted by the time I settled back onto the bed in the make-shift hospital room, and there was a light throbbing in the very front of my head, but otherwise I wasn't in much pain.

I'd just adjusted the pillows behind me so that I could lie with my head propped up when the door opposite me opened up. I held myself up with my hands and broke out into a grin when Dimitri emerged with a sheepish smile of his own. "Hey." I sighed happily as he shut the door behind him, thankful for the privacy.

"You're looking better, Malýshka." He commented as he made his way across the room, taking a seat in the chair directly at the head of the bed. I laid down with my head propped up on the pillows and turned onto my side to see him properly. He took my left hand in one of his and rested them together on the bed. I could see him twisting the ring on my finger idly as he watched me.

"I'm feeling a lot better." I agreed, blinking slowly as I relished in the peace and quiet. "How are you doing?"

He seemed hesitant to answer at first, before nodding. "Better than I was." He admitted as he smoothed his thumb over my knuckles. "Honestly, it was eating me up inside knowing you were in here, and I was just outside, and there was nothing I could do about it."

"It's okay!" I whispered, using my free hand to cup his face and bring him to me. I closed my eyes and placed my forehead against his. "It's okay, I'm okay!" I rubbed soothing circles on his cheekbone, pecking his lips before pressing our foreheads together again. "You don't have to beat yourself up because I'm here. We're both here, we're both okay."

I felt him nodding beneath my hands, and so I opened my eyes to look at him. He had his own closed, and a single tear spilled down his cheek. I removed my hand from his cheek to kiss the tear away before cupping his face once again. "I love you." I whispered to him.

"I love you too, Malýshka."

By Thursday, a full two days after they'd found me at the Strigoi hide out, I was completely cleared by the doctor. No more check ups, no more pain medication. A clean bill of health.

"You seem chipper." Eddie beamed as I dropped down besides him on the sofa in Abe's back room, draping my legs over his. It was early evening, and Christian, Lissa, and Adrian were finishing up their packing. Alberta had reported the situation of disposing of the Strigoi back to Queen Tatiana, who was pleased that her tactic had worked. I'd rolled my eyes when Alberta gave us the news, having already known that Queen B-iatch would have only cared about her attack plans rather than my safety.

I rested my head on the back of the sofa, idly picking at the fluff on my leggings as Eddie watched me with an absentminded smile. "I am chipper. We get to go home!" I prodded my fingers into his side playfully, making him jump and squirm. He grabbed my wrists and threw them back to my chest, and I laughed. "Come on, Castille! Aren't you excited?"

"I'm excited to be in a place where the temperature is above fifty degrees." He joked, turning himself on the sofa so his arm was resting on the back of the seat and he was facing me, still with my legs draped over him. "But why are you so excited?"

I pursed my lips and shrugged, not really having one specific reason on why I wanted to return back to St Vlad's. Sure, I was slightly home sick, but I don't think that was the main reason I was excited. "I guess I've just missed a sense of normalcy." I admitted. "St Basil's was nice, but it wasn't the same as St Vlad's. And as much as I loved meeting and getting to know my dad, I couldn't really enjoy myself. You know, constant threat of Strigoi and all that." We both chuckled at that, and I heard someone come into the room on the other side.

I looked up curiously to see Abe and Janine walking through, followed by Dimitri and Pavel. Dimitri was dressed in his Guardian uniform, and walked alongside Pavel to the left side of the room. I narrowed my eyes curiously at the sight, pushing myself up into a sitting position. "Why do I feel like this is an intervention or something?"

Abe chuckled as he took a seat on the sofa opposite Eddie and I, Janine sat beside him. I looked up at Dimitri hopefully, but his perfect Guardian composure gave away nothing. "This isn't an intervention, Rose." Abe smiled at me, just as Alberta walked through the door.

I raised my eyebrows as she came and sat at the chair in between my father's and mine, before looking skeptically at Abe. "This is definitely an intervention."

"It's not an intervention, Rosemarie." Janine huffed with a roll of her eyes, and I pursed my lips impatiently as I watched her. "We're here to discuss your return to St Vladimir's Academy."

"Now that the Strigoi threat has been dealt with," Alberta spoke as she leaned forwards, elbows on her knees and hands clasped in front of her. "You are free to return back to St Vladimir's with your friends for your final exams and your graduation."

"I already know this stuff," I furrowed my brows. "My bags are all packed."

Alberta adjusted her position in the uncomfortable silence, glancing at my mother before back at me. "We need to discuss yours and Dimitri's relationship." She said cautiously, and my eyes widened in realisation.

I hadn't thought about that. I'd been so preoccupied with getting better, and too excited to get back to St Vlad's, that I hadn't even considered what returning to school would mean for Dimitri and I. Would he lose his job? Would he be allocated elsewhere? I looked up at where he stood beside Pavel, looking neutrally at us on the sofas. I felt guilty for not considering the consequences of our actions, knowing that it probably would have been plaguing his own thoughts yet not mine.

"I hope you understand that we cannot allow for you two to be public about it upon returning back to St Vladimir's." Alberta continued, focusing her attention on me. I wondered if she'd already spoken with Dimitri about it.

My head shot up at her words, and I narrowed my eyes at her. "Wait, so you're still letting Dimitri return to St Vlad's?" I didn't mean to sound as surprised as I did, and from the corner of my eye I saw the amused expression of Eddie besides me. "You're not reallocating him?"

There was a gleam in Alberta's eyes as she smiled at me. "And why would I do that, Rose? Belikov is the single greatest Guardian our Academy has ever seen. I would be a fool to let him go elsewhere. Besides," she looked at Dimitri on the other side of the room, an almost knowing expression on her face. "As far as I'm concerned, no Moroi laws have been broken. He was not your teacher when you became intimate, and by the laws of Russia you've done nothing wrong."

I looked up hopefully at Dimitri, and saw that he was cracking a smile as he returned Alberta's gaze. I diverted my attention back to her, leaping out of my seat to wrap my arms tightly around her. She laughed at the shock gesture before encircling me in her embrace. "Thank you, Alberta." I mumbled into her hair, smiling against it.

"Don't thank me, Rose." She stroked the back of my head, and I pulled back to gaze at her curiously. "Thank Janine. It was her who came to me with the evidence that no laws were broken. I would have allowed him to keep his position, anyway, but it was still a nice gesture for your mother to do."

I turned around to see my mother looking down at her lap sheepishly, almost as if she was embarrassed by Alberta's words. Abe had his arm comfortingly around her waist. I jumped to my feet and took the free seat on the opposite side of Janine, wrapping my arms tightly around her neck in a warming embrace. "Thank you, mom." I whispered as she gingerly wrapped her own arms around my waist in a hesitant hug. "Thank you for giving us a chance."

We pulled away after a moment, and she moved one hand to cup the side of my face. "You deserve to be happy, Rose." She told me sincerely, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. "What I said before, about 'expecting more from you'?" She shook her head, tears brimming at her eyes. "That's not true. You've become such a brave, strong, intelligent young woman. I couldn't be prouder of you."

I choked out a cry as I held back my own tears, burying my face into her neck once again as we hugged. "I've already apologised to Dimitri," she whispered into my ear as she smoothed my hair down. "He's an amazing man, Rose. And he loves you, more than you even imagine. I trust him to take care of you."

When I was certain the tears wouldn't spill, I pulled away from her, wiping at my cheeks with my hands as I nodded. "I love him too, mom." I glanced over her shoulder to look at Dimitri who, despite his best attempt at keeping a composed face, appeared to have a small smile on his lips. "He means the world to me."

"This is a nice sight to see." Abe commented idly as he stood up, gesturing between my mother and I. "I knew you two would make it up to each other eventually."

"Don't you start getting funny with me, Old Man!" I pointed an accusing finger in his direction as I stood up, arching an accusatory eyebrow. "Don't think I haven't seen what's going on with you." He knew I'd figured him out, judging by the ways his eyes widened and he swallowed the lump in his throat. It was the same thing I did when I knew I was caught doing something I probably shouldn't have been. "Care to explain?" I folded my arms across my chest as I subtly glanced at my mother still sat down, a pointed gesture.

Everybody else in the room seemed confused, but Abe knew exactly what I was talking about. He sighed, shaking his head at me in a disappointing gesture - though, the smile on his lips suggested otherwise. "Alright, alright." He conceded with raised palms in a gesture of surrender. "Nothing gets past you, does it?" I shook my head with a triumphant grin. He held my gaze for a moment, before finally speaking again to the whole room. "Janine and I have decided to... give 'us' a second chance."

I was the first one to jump in the air excitedly with a squeal and a clap of my hands, before the whole room eventually started cheering and clapping in celebration. "I knew it!" I ran into his arms for a hug, and he spun me around off the floor. "What brought this all on?"

"Your father and I decided that what I did all those years ago was silly of me," my mother admitted as Abe put me back down on the floor, moving to wrap an arm around her instead. "Seventeen years apart and we were both still madly in love with each other. I know we weren't there throughout your childhood, but I hope we can be there for you from now on. No matter what."

I smiled at her, stepping forwards to wrap an arm around each of my parents. "I'm so happy for you." I beamed before pulling away.

"Thank you, Rose." She smiled down at me, before placing a hand on Abe's shoulder. "We haven't got much time before our journey back to the States tomorrow, so we better start packing." She tapped where her hand was before walking off out the room, leaving me looking confused at my father.

"We?" I wiggled my eyebrows suggestively. "Does that mean you're coming back with us?"

"You didn't think I'd miss seeing my only daughter graduate, did you?" I squealed again and hugged him. I was doing a lot of hugging, it seemed. When we pulled away, he chuckled, looking around at the whole room as he spoke. "The private jet will be leaving at eight tomorrow morning, so make sure you're all packed and ready to leave for the airstrip at seven. Pavel, make sure the rest of the Guardians are ready for travel, and I will see you all then." He pressed a quick kiss to my forehead before disappearing out the room the same way Janine had gone.

I saw Pavel shake hands with Dimitri out of the corner of my eye, before turning to the rest of the room. "It was a pleasure seeing you all, Guardian Petrov, Novice Castille, Rose." He nodded his head politely at each of us. "But I must make sure the other Guardians travelling are prepared, and the ones remaining here have their duties scheduled. I will see you all tomorrow morning at the airstrip."

"I'll come with you, Pavel." Alberta jumped to her feet, dusting her work out pants down as she stood. "I'd like to check on Guardian Peron, anyway."

"How's Alicia doing?" I asked curiously as they both walked towards the door, and Pavel turned to answer.

"Almost as stubborn as you when you broke your leg." He chuckled, and I rolled my eyes. "The wound on her shoulder is all healed up, and she's off the crutches now. Still under a few pain medications, but otherwise like brand new." I nodded with a smile, asking them to pass on my love to her before they made their way out the room.

That left just Dimitri, Eddie, and myself. Dimitri had relaxed himself and walked over to stand beside me, wrapping his arms around my waist and pulling me to him. I giggled as I grabbed the lapels on his duster to hold myself up as he tilted me back slightly. "Did you already know about all this?" I arched an eyebrow as I ran a finger down his jacket idly.

"I did," he tilted his head with a goofy grin. "While you were getting checked over this morning, Janine, Abe, Alberta and I all spoke it over. So long as we agree to keep our relationship private and out of the eye of any Guardians or Students, then we are both free to return back to our normal lives. You get to graduate, I get to be your mentor. We all win."

"Do I get to switch dorms?" I wiggled my eyebrows teasingly, and his grip around me tightened ever so slightly.

"Roza," he ducked his head to my shoulder, whispering lowly in my ear. "I have a hard enough time controlling myself around you in normal training. Being in the same dorm wouldn't be the best idea."

I giggled, placing a kiss on his jaw just in front of his ear. "I'm only teasing." That was only half true.

I opened my mouth to say something else when someone cleared their throat from behind us, and it was only then that I remembered Eddie was there. Dimitri pulled back and I spun in his arms to face Eddie, who was regarding us with an amused expression. "Oh, no, don't mind me." He teased with a grin, nodding his head towards the door. "I'm just gonna go see how Christian and Lissa are doing with their packing. I'm sure even their conversations are less puke-worthy than yours."

"Bite me, Castille!" I called out as he made his way out of the room, blowing me one final kiss before disappearing past the threshold. I shook my head with a laugh, turning back to face Dimitri. He was smiling down affectionately at me, and I shifted onto my tiptoes to peck him softly. "Let's go finish packing." I grabbed his hand and started walking backwards, pulling him with me.

"We've already finished packing, Roza," he said, completely oblivious to the hidden meaning behind my words. I just giggled, turning to hold his hand behind my back as I walked up the stairs towards our room.

"I know."