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Disclaimer: All characters belong to their rightful owner, Richelle Mead. I own nothing - except this plot; Alexei; Stephanie; Guardian Lowe and Guardian Flettin.

Chapter 12

RPOV

It is amazing how time seems to stop…and then restart as if nothing had happened.

When the light finally cleared and all traces of magic disappeared, things started to speed up.

I ran over to Dimitri and Alexei.

Dimitri was still on his back, with Alexei lying across him. He looked liked he was torn between sitting up to check if Alexei was okay and staying perfectly still to avoid injuring him.

That's when I noticed it. Alexei's shirt torn and covered in blood, but his back was fine. His skin was clear, the only sign that anything had happened was a thin white line that stretched from his left shoulder to his right hip. He was fine – except for the fact that he was unconscious.

"How bad is it?" Dimitri asked worriedly. He must've mistaken my expression for something else.

"He's fine," I stated.

"What? But I'm sure I saw-" he started to sit up but was interrupted by a voice, my mother's voice:

"Don't move!"

"Mom," I warned.

"Not now Rose," she dismissed me.

I folded my arms across my chest, "Yes now, look closer. What do you see? I don't know about you, but to me he looks kind of human. You know, just like a dhampir?"

Her eyes flickered to me, and then back to Dimitri. Confusion clouded her features as she saw what I had described. Colour had returned to Dimitri, and his eyes were as brown as ever.

"But I saw…He was just-"

"Strigoi?" I supplied.

"But…how?"

"I'll explain later, right now we need to leave." That battle was just the beginning; there are plenty more Strigoi where that came from.

I moved to pick up Alexei; but in one smooth motion, Janine had her guardian mask back on, and her stake pointed at me.

"Stay where you are Rose," she told me.

"Screw you," I replied, reaching down to grab him.

"Come on Alexei, open your eyes." I gently shook him, but his eyes remained closed. The only movement came from the gentle rise and fall of his chest.

"Get him up," mom directed to the guardians around Dimitri, "Take him to the Novosibirsk airport. We'll meet you there."

There were a few nods, and then they lifted Dimitri to his feet and directed him outside.

Once he was out of eyesight, she turned to me, "I'm glad you're okay."

She then put her stake in her pocket and surprised me by giving me a hug, being careful of Alexei.

"Don't ever do that again!"

I couldn't help it, I laughed. I had really missed her.

I wrapped my free arm around her and closed my eyes, forgetting about the other guardians standing awkwardly by the walls.

"We should probably go," Janine said suddenly. She let go and took a step back.

"Wait, before we do, I need to get somebody." Making sure that mum followed, I walked over to one of the many hidden rooms located throughout the lower level of the house. This one was along a hallway, located 8 metres on the right. You needed to be almost exactly 8 metres along, or you would miss the entrance.

I ran my free hand across the wall; feeling for anything that didn't feel solid.

It took me a few goes, but I finally found the security touch screen that was hidden in the wall. The screen hid behind the carpeted walls and could be accessed when you peeled the carpet back. This sounds easy, but when the carpet is made to fit perfectly back into place, it can cause a bit of difficulty.

I typed in the password that Dimitri had stamped into my brain: '3141592'

Who would have known he would be teaching me maths as a Strigoi? I mean, that wasn't even his job as a Dhampir. But he knows me too well; I love my food, and giving me a few digits of pi was genius – who knew relating numbers to a food would make them easy to remember?

With a click, the door opened a fraction – just enough to grip on to.

Inside laid Stephanie in a compulsion induced sleep.

I turned to mum, "Can you get someone to wipe he memory?" I knew she wouldn't last very long in this world.

Janine nodded, "Guardians Lowe and Flettin, take the human to the car, we'll be out there in a minute".

Once they left the room, she turned to the other guardians and started issuing orders to meet up at the airport.

Finally, everyone departed, mum Alexei and I got into the car with Stephanie and the two guardians beside her.

We then drove off, leaving my past behind me.

So, what did you think? Review!

This was kind of just a filler chapter - but you guys deserve something for the wait =P

If you're unsure about something, or have any questions, just ask. I might even write a chapter about to clear things up.

~Serious~