Rose woke up to screams. She looked to her left and saw that Dimitri was struggling to pull Lissa free from a man's grasp. He wasn't succeeding at anything except slowing them down. Ignoring the pain surging through her body, Rose pulled off the wires keeping her hooked to monitors and jumped out of the hospital bed. Stumbling forward, Rose took hold of the man's arms and steadied herself. She lifted her knee high enough to hit her target and lifted it. She was slightly off target and got the man's knee but it did the job and he loosened his grip enough for Dimitri to pull Lissa free.
"Rose!" exclaimed Lissa in a panic.
After hitting the would-be kidnapper, Rose had lost her balance and fallen to the floor. She was visibly sweating and looked like she had gone pale. Suddenly, the door opened and Eddie came running in with Rose's doctor and a nurse. Eddie helped Dimitri deal with the would-be kidnapper while the doctor and nurse rushed to Rose's side. She was breathing heavily and coughing now, which was worrying.
"Is she okay?" asked Lissa nervously. She was worried about her best friend.
"Let's find out," said the doctor. "Can I get someone to help me lift Miss Hathaway?"
Dimitri immediately picked up his girlfriend and gently placed her on the bed. Eddie had taken the would-be kidnapper back to the Moroi court, leaving Dimitri free to help Rose and Lissa.
"Amanda, hook her back up to the monitors please. What happened here?"
"She was trying to save me," sniffled Lissa. She wiped away a few tears. "Is she okay?"
The doctor gave a sympathetic look to Lissa and then turned back to Rose. The nurse had given her some oxygen and Rose's breathing had returned to normal. Colour was returning to her cheeks and she had stopped coughing and sweating. The doctor checked her over thoroughly and then left Rose to sleep. He gave Dimitri clear instructions to keep an eye on Rose over the next hour before leaving the room. Amanda took a little more time to make sure that Rose was comfortable and pain free.
"I'll be here overnight if she needs anything," said Amanda as she left.
"That was a stupid thing to do. I'm sorry guys," said Rose quietly after Amanda had closed the door.
"You saved Lissa. Maybe you should've found another way, but it was effective," said Dimitri.
"Thank you again Rose. You keep saving me," Lissa said sadly. "I think I need to learn how to fight them off. Can you teach me Dimitri?"
"If you're sure, then of course I can."
"I'm positive. Rose, are you sure you don't want me to heal you?"
"Yes Liss. I'll be fine. You have other things to worry about, more important things than me."
Lissa and Dimitri looked at each other. They knew that Rose felt like Lissa was pulling away from her now that she was a queen, even though it wasn't true. Rose had confided in Dimitri about her feelings and he had gone to Lissa almost immediately. Now that Lissa was actually hearing Rose's thoughts, she was worried that Rose's continual refusals of being helped magically, and of being given time off, might be linked to the thought that they were no longer close. If they were, then that would also mean that Rose was worried that Lissa might have found someone new to be best friends with.
"Rose, what's wrong?" asked Lissa. She wanted to know whether her suspicions were correct or not.
"Nothing." The answer came too quickly and Lissa jumped on it.
"Don't lie Rose. I know something's not right. You are not the type of person to refuse me healing you and you are most definitely not the type of person to lay in a hospital bed where you can't be active. Talk to me. We're best friends, remember?"
"Are we?" Tears were falling down Rose's cheeks when she looked at Lissa.
It was then that Lissa realised that her suspicions had been correct. Rose was feeling uncertain about her role in Lissa's life.
"I'm your guardian Liss. That's it."
"That's not true! You are my best friend. That has never, ever changed. Even when you went after Dimitri and Avery entered my life, you were still my best friend. You saved me from Avery. You came back to me when you didn't have to. Only best friends have that kind of relationship."
Rose looked up with a skeptical look on her face. She clearly didn't believe what Lissa was saying.
"I'm being serious Rose. You are always going to be my best friend. No offense Dimitri, but I have to say that you are my favourite guardian Rose. I wish you didn't have to waste your life protecting me all the time, but I'm glad that I have you in my life. You always know how to cheer me up. You're the only one that I have ever wanted around me. Everyone else can come and go for all I care, but not you. If you leave me again, I'll be devastated. I was so scared when Eddie told us that you weren't responding to anyone after he found you. It was bad enough that I didn't know where you were, but that made it unbearable. So when you moved your hand this morning, I was so excited. My best friend was back. Don't you believe me Rosie?" Rosie was a nickname that Lissa had given her when they had been in preschool together. She hated it when anyone but Lissa called her that.
"I thought you'd forgotten that name. I believe you Liss. I'll teach you to fight. Just us. Cause that's what best friends do for each other." A smile spread across Rose's face and she hugged Lissa tightly.