Hey, I FINALLY got a book!!! Here's a long chappie to make up for it. It took me forever, so plz R&R! Oh yeah, I love all the reviews!!! (Especially Heaven829's and Sugarjunkie123's) It keeps me writing and ideas flowing. Hey, is it 2 much 2 ask for 60 reviews? Only 12 reviews away from the next chappie...

I was in Kirova's office the next day; standing in a corner by the door. Images of Ashford and Zeklos kept flitting through my head; filling me with sudden anger. I inhaled deeply, trying to calm myself down. It worked, at least until Rose appeared in the doorway.

She scanned the room with the famous Hathaway smirk; making me shrink back into the shadows. Luckily, she didn't see me, but I knew why I didn't want her to. It was the fear of being rejected, or maybe being treated with the disdain she gave the other guardians. It made me feel old, too old to even associate with her. And, hell, that definitely doesn't work for me.

Her gaze finally landed on Kirova. "Hey, Kirova –er, Mrs. Kirova," she said. I smirked. Close call. Kirova looked up from her papers with an exasperated look on her face. My smile grew before disappearing. Kirova wouldn't be very happy if she saw me laughing at her expense.

"Yes, Miss Hathaway?" she asked. She tapped her pen against her leg impatiently. Rose shifted. It wasn't totally visible, but I could easily see that she was nervous.

"Does my house arrest mean I can't go to church?" I rolled my eyes. Wow, this was creative, even for Rose. From what I've heard, Rose almost never goes to church. I watched Kirova and saw her eyes widen with surprise. Obviously, she'd never heard of Rose being religious either.

"I beg your pardon?"

Rose shrugged, trying to act nonchalant. "You said that whenever I'm not in class or practice, I have to stay in the dorm. But what about church on Sundays? I don't think it's really fair to keep me away from my religious…um, needs." I studied her face. She clearly didn't have any religious needs to tend to; most likely a plot to stay close to Lissa.

Kirova adjusted her glasses. It was a habit that meant she was uneasy. Not surprisingly, she usually did it when Rose was around. "I wasn't aware you had any religious needs." Rose tried a convincing smile.

"I found Jesus while I was gone." Her sweet smile turned into a smirk. She just couldn't resist this one little jibe.

Kirova eyed her. "Isn't your mother an atheist?"

Rose crossed her arms. "And my dad's probably Muslim," she said, rolling her eyes with irritation, "But I've moved on to my own path. You shouldn't keep me from it." The corners of my mouth turned up.

Kirova scoffed loudly. "No, Miss Hathaway, I should not. Very well. You may attend services on Sundays." I looked at her, not expecting her to give in. Then, I realized that she just wanted to get Rose out of her office.

Rose backed out of the doorway with a triumphant smile on her face. I let out a long breath. Kirova looked at her watch before turning back to her papers.

Without looking at me, she said, "Belikov, there goes your student." She waved a hand at door. I sighed and left to follow Rose. Some guardian things are just so demeaning.

On the next Sunday, I sat in the back of the church. As people began to take communion, I saw Rose eyeing me curiously. Like me, she didn't take communion. I ignored her and everything out. With intense concentration, I managed to tune everything out. I let me thoughts wander.

What came to me first was Rose. I didn't know what to do with her. She was fierce and sarcastic, but I was still attracted to her. Then, I realized something for the first time.

I was in love with Rose Hathaway.

Panic gripped me. I was in love with my student. I inhaled slowly, trying to calm myself down. This was not good, but I knew that there was nothing I could do about it. She was rude, but that made her reckless…and brave. What I loved about her was her beauty and fierceness, her devotion and courage. I loved so many things about her… and I couldn't even tell her.

With an effort, I wrenched myself away from the hopeless thoughts I was thinking. I opened my eyes. I didn't know I had even closed them. Looking around, I saw that the priest's sermon was over.

Everyone stood up, stopping to talk and chat together. Rose, I saw, was elbowing her way to the priest with an excited expression. I followed slowly, still weary from my intense thinking moments ago.

After maneuvering through the thick crowd, I managed to end up next to Rose. Luckily, she was too wrapped up in her conversation with the father to notice me. I shrunk back, catching the last bit of their conversation.

"–Anna. About how she was "shadow-kissed." I could hear the barely concealed eagerness in her voice. "What does that mean?" I studied her. Why would she care about a long-dead saint?

The priest looked at her with a thoughtful frown. "I'm not entirely sure. She lived a very long time ago. It was often common to refer to people by titles that reflected some of their traits. It might have been given to make her sound fierce."

Rose scowled, even though she tried to hide it. This was obviously not the answer she wanted to hear. "Oh," she replied, "So who was she?"

Father grimaced at her, obviously annoyed. "I mentioned it a number of times."

"Oh. I must have, um missed that," she said, shifting her eyes impatiently. The father's frown grew deeper.

Turning around, he said, "Wait right here."

We watched him go, Rose tapping her fingers on her arm with concealed irritation. She glanced at the door with clear regret, obviously wishing that she had never come. A few moments later, the priest came back with a thick book clutched in his hands. He gave it to Rose.

I peeked over her shoulder to read the title of the book. Moroi Saints. Fitting. The priest spoke up. "You can learn about her in here. The next time I see you, I'd like to hear what you've learned."

By Rose's incredulous stare, I could tell that she obviously didn't expect homework from a priest. I held back a grin as she turned around and glared at the book, looking like she wanted to burn it.

She started heading over to Lissa, who was talking to a blond boy by the entrance. I followed her, feeling a lot like a stalker. The only good thing about this assignment was being able to be close to Rose.

Rose joined Lissa and the boy. I caught up to her and heard Lissa talking. "Rose, you're never going to believe this. You know Abby Badica? And Xander? Their guardian wants to resign. And marry another guardian." She put an extra emphasis on the another part.

I watched Rose's face to see how she'd react to this. "Seriously?" she asked with disbelief, "Are they, like, going to run off together?"

Lissa nodded excitedly. "They're getting a house. Going to get jobs with humans, I guess." I grimaced. Erika and Caden were some of the best guardians. I looked at Rose, not knowing what I wanted as her reaction.

Rose looked at the blond boy. "How are Abby and Xander dealing with that?"

The boy shrugged. "Okay. Embarrassed. They think it's stupid." He glanced at Rose. Then, his eyes widened nervously. "Oh. I didn't mean–"

She brushed it off. "Whatever," she reassured him, "It is stupid."

My heart sank. Now I knew that I'd wanted her to stand up and say that she thought that it was fine, that it was okay to be in love with another guardian. Hell, I was in love with a novice. After she claimed that it was stupid, overwhelming feelings of misery and distress consumed me. This was the final blow that made me know that I'd never had a chance with Rose.

After chatting for a few more minutes, the two girls left the church. I followed them…then abruptly jumped back.

A huge pile of slush slid off the roof and landed on both Rose and Lissa; Lissa taking the most of the snow.

Shaking off the slush, Rose turned immediately to Lissa and asked if she was okay. I shook my head in disbelief. I still couldn't believe how much they cared about each other. Lissa shivered.

"Y–yeah," Lissa replied shakily.

She was soaked head-to-toe, wracking with shivers. Then, to my amazement, Rose stepped out of her coat and offered it to Lissa. She glanced at her nervously. "Take yours off." Lissa eyed it disapprovingly.

"But you'll be–"

Rose rolled her eyes in exasperation. "Take this," she said sternly, leaving no room for argument. And incredibly, the princess allowed her dhampir friend to boss her around. Chastised, Liss slipped into to the coat, giving Rose a grateful look. Rose glanced around at the laughing students, but ignored them; focusing on holding Lissa's damp jacked as she changed.

A fat–er, chubby Moroi boy spoke up. "Wish you hadn't been wearing a coat, Rose." She turned slowly, a dangerous glint in her eye. "That shirt would have looked good wet." Within a matter of seconds, I hated him. Of course, not as much as Jesse or Ashford.

Just then, Alberta strode up beside me, where I was standing in the doorway. "Hey, Belikov," she said, cheerfully, "On duty?"

No one else knew about my assignment to follow Rose, except Kirova. I shook my head. "No. Why?"

She shrugged. "C'mon, let's go." She grabbed my arm and dragged me across the church yard. Damn, I've gotta say, that woman is strong. It's like being hauled away by an elephant. I shot a fleeting look over my shoulder where Rose and Lissa were. I mentally groaned as I saw Doll-face leaning close to Rose with a malicious look plastered on her pale features. What worried me even more, though, was Rose looking like she'd like to strangle Doll-face. Uh oh.

Alberta pinched me, annoyed. "Did you hear anything I've said?" I shook my head sheepishly. She groaned, slapping her forehead in exasperation. "Why do I even bother?" she asked the sky. Finally, she turned back towards me. "Kirova ordered me to give you this."

She held out a note. Suppressing a groan, I crossed myself. Alberta grinned. All the guardians were scared, or at least wary, of Kirova. With a mock pitying pat on my arm, she slipped away.

I opened the note. Belikov, it stated, Follow her. You're off duty this week. Watch everything she does. Do what you must to make sure the princess stays here. She won't leave without her. Don't let them escape again. And, most importantly, don't have any kind of close mentor relationship with her. Don't let her be comfortable. Sincerely, Headmistress Kirova.

I read the note again. 'And most importantly, don't have any kind of close mentor relationship with her.' Did falling deeply and unexplainably in love count?

(Note: Hey peoples, I added in my own personal scene that's not in the book. Should I do more of these, or should I stick to the book? R&R!)

Back in the commons, I wandered around looking for Rose. If I knew Rose, then she'd be out socializing, not cooped up in her room. I thought about my own room, neat and organized with my precious western novels waiting for me.

Once I got started thinking about my room, though, I started to wonder if Rose would like it, if she'd ever come up to see it or to see me. Maybe she'd come up and we'd talk and then I'd lean in close, twisting my fingers into her dark, silky hair. She'd close her eyes and slip her arms around my neck and–

WHAT???

I panicked and shoved my imaginary dream as far back into my head as it could go. My breath came in short gasps and my chest felt tight. I looked around, desperately looking for something to claim my attention. My eyes fell on Ashford who was glancing, looking for someone. I had no doubt who that someone was.

Coolly, I strolled up to him. He saw me and nodded. "Guardian Belikov," he said with a tinge of awe and respect coloring his voice. I nodded back, acknowledging him. I looked at him from the corner of my eye as he scanned the room again with hopeful, puppy-dog eyes. Pitiful.

"Ashford," I said, casually, "Am I correct?" He nodded proudly. "Are you familiar with Rosemarie Hathaway?" His eyes lit up at the sound of her name. I swear, I was gonna beat him up some time soon.

He grinned. "Yeah–er, yes, Guardian Belikov. Rose and I…we're… friends," he finished, blushing a dark red; the same color as his hair. I didn't fancy the way his voice caressed her name or the slight hesitation when he claimed they were friends. It didn't go well with me. Not that I was jealous…oh, hell, of course I'm jealous. Ashford has a better chance with Rose then I do. I turned to him.

"You wouldn't, uh, by any chance, happen to know where she is, would you?" I stuttered. He eyed me, puzzled, but shook his head.

"Sorry, Guardian Belikov. I haven't seen her. Actually, I was looking for Rose–uh Rosemarie right now. Should I tell her that you needed to see her?" He scowled slightly when he said 'Rosemarie.'

I shook my head. "No, I'll find Rose later." He glanced at me sharply when I said 'Rose', as if he thought that I had no right to use her informal name. I nodded at him and walked away before I gave in to temptation and sucker punched him. Man, jealousy is hell.

(Note: What do you think of it? More scenes like this? R&R)

Ashford resumed his search for Rose outside as I stood in the corner of the busy room looking for her myself. A few minutes later, they strolled in together, Ashford helping Rose into his coat possessively. A growl resounded in my chest.

They were being loud, as usual, so I could hear them easily. "–guys sparring outside the chapel. Have you no respect for the house of God?" Ashford was saying, trying to impress Rose with his wit.

She smirked, amused. "You've got about as much respect for it as I do, you heathen. You didn't even go. Besides, as you said, we were outside." The way she smiled at him made me dizzy with fury. I took a few breaths to calm myself down.

"And you still didn't answer the question," Ashford said, bumping her shoulder playfully. Rose fluttered her eyelashes at him, obviously flirting. He played along, smiling mischievously. She looked around the commons, spotting a private, vacant table off to the side. Clutching his arm, she dragged Ashford to it. I followed discreetly, knowing perfectly well that Rose wasn't allowed here.

Because of the noise, I had to go closer to them than comfortable to hear their conversation. I knew that my main assignment was to make sure Rose and Lissa wasn't planning on escaping, but Ashford and she might be discussing possible escape plans and…oh damn it, screw this. I just wanted to know what she was talking about. Especially since it was with Ashford.

I caught the last part of Rose's complaint. "I don't want to hear about your glamorous social life." As if he had one.

"All right," he said, cheerfully, "Then tell me about Mia. You're just going to punch her one day, aren't you? I think I remember you doing that at least ten times with people that pissed you off." I was guessing that 'Mia' was Doll-face, considering Rose's grimace when Ashford said her name.

She winked. "I'm a new, reformed Rose," she claimed, attempting to be serious. It didn't work. Ashford choked out a laugh and I bit the inside of my cheek to keep myself from laughing out loud. "Besides," she added in her normal, sarcastic tone, "if I do that, I'll have broken my probation with Kirova. Gotta walk the straight and narrow."

Ashford stared at her. "In other words," he clarified, cheekily, "find some way to get back at Mia that you won't get in trouble for."

The corners of her mouth turned up reluctantly, trying to resist. "You know what I like about you, Mase? You think just like I do."

He replied offhandedly, but I could see him glowing with pride. The infamous Rose Hathaway had admitted that she liked him. A triumph for any guy.

They continued chatting about Mia, boring, teenage gossip, so I tuned out of it. It was inconsequential to my assignment, but then again, I didn't exactly expect to hear anything useful. Instead, I put my 'guardian mask' on; stiff and silent features.

Eventually, Jackie, a matron, came and rebuked them, reminding them that Rose wasn't allowed in the commons because of Kirova's probation. Smoothly, Ashford broke in her lecture. "We have a group project to do for our humanities class. How are we supposed to do it if Rose is in isolation?" Bullshit.

Rose opened the book the church book and pointed to a page. "We're, um, working on this."

Jackie stared at them for a second longer. Simultaneously, Rose and Ashford smiled angelically. "One hour," she said, finally, "I'll give you one more hour down here, and I'd better actually see you working."

I decided to follow her example. I mean, even teenagers need their own privacy, right?

Well? Good, bad? Like it, Hate it? Tell me the truth here! R&R, plz at least 60 before the next chappie! (By the way, excuse any swearing I use in this. I never swear, but when I write, it gives more emotion to it, ya know? Thanks!)

~Leena