A/N: I'm slipping into Adrian's point of view for a while on this one, because I feel it's important for you to have a continued dialogue between him and the queen so there can be a greater understanding of her thoughts as well as his as the story progresses. It's also shorter than the last chapter so I hope you all don't mind. Reviews are nice, but you don't have to.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything other than the plot line and Cooper.

Chapter 6

Adrian sat there enjoying a triple espresso as he watched his aunt be pampered by the latest group of desirable men to come through her doors. As she kept getting older her men kept getting younger and being the queen there were no objections, and from the way she was ranting she wanted him to one day experience it as well. From the minute he'd arrived his Aunt hadn't shut up about him and his precious future, but he hadn't the heart to listen to her. Adrian's mind was with Rose who was still sleeping in her room. He knew this because he couldn't get a feed on her emotions, just a black lull that felt like a static charge.

"Adrian," she snapped, "You've not heard a word I just said have you?"

He didn't even try to lie to her, "no I'm sorry I was just thinking."

"What could be so important that you're not listening to me?"

"Oh I don't know, maybe the death of Princess Dragomir? Maybe the death of several of my friends, did you ever think of that? Did you ever think that maybe I'm as so good at separating myself from death as you are? These were real lives that were lost, not just pawns in a chess game."

She glared at him, "and I realize that."

"No your highness, I don't think you do. You sit here with your boys and your wards and you leave them out there abandoned. They're hopeless against the battle because you don't allow them to fight for themselves."

"That sounds a lot like treason my dear nephew; please calm yourself. I don't want you to get into trouble."

He laughed, "I think you are far too fond of me."

"Maybe, but this isn't why I wanted you to come here today. Now that I've got you away from Ms. Hathaway I'd like to talk to you about your future as a royal."

He reclined back in his chair, "I don't see how Ms. Hathaway's absence can have any effect on anything that you can tell me about my future. It's like I told you, I've already got it mapped out."

"No Adrian, I'm afraid you don't. I've spoken with your father and he seems to be quite fond of the ideas that I've laid out for your future and it's been agreed upon."

"If you had wanted to agree with someone on my future you probably should have spoken to me from the beginning."

She wasn't fazed by his remarks, "what do I have to do to get you to listen to me? I know I can't buy you off, you've become independently wealthy but I could probably make a dent in those funds if I chose. Do I need to find you someone else willing to have sex with you? I'm sure there are a number of beautiful women here who would be willing to share that aspect of themselves with you, I know many of my own staff talk about you when you're here in that way if you're just it this relationship because of the sex."

"It's not just that, there are other aspects of our relationship that I am fond of. Besides, it's no concern of yours but we're not even having sex in the first place."

"Don't play me for an idiot Adrian; she's already tried that with me once. I've heard the rumors; I know what you two have been doing behind the walls of St. Vlads."

"How can you even say that with everything that's been happening?" Rose had woken up and her sadness was compounding the feelings he'd already been dealing with that morning. "If there was even an ounce of truth behind the rumors it would be one thing, but I have yet to have any sort of illicit affair with her as you so put it and I'll remind you again even if I had it wouldn't be any of your concern."

"But it is my concern Adrian; everything about your life is my concern. You must do as I say, and that's final."

He laughed, "No your highness it's not final."

"I don't think you…"

"Understand the opportunity that you're allowing me? Look, there are children out there already plotting out ways to overthrown the current royals. You preach about not being treated like an idiot yet here you are claiming that I'm one, when I'm more connected to the people as a whole. You never listen to me when it matters the most and you'd do well to understand that Moroi sentiments have changed over the last few weeks. Ideas like those presented by the Ozera family are taking hold. Students are beginning to practice magic offensively so you'd better be ready, I don't want it to surprise you when they over throw you if you don't change."

She looked at him bitterly, "and I suppose you think your form of change would be a good one for our people?"

"As good as any, at least I'm willing to compromise for the greater good, rather than sacrifice the majority in order to cater to the minority."

"But that's politics," she stated simply.

"Only if you set it up that way."

It was her turn to laugh now, "Do you really think they'll listen to you if you marry her? I mean really Adrian, they're nothing compared to us."

"And yet you sleep with one every night? We're all willing to risk their lives instead of our own and why is that? Because we're more precious? No I don't think so, I think it's because we're all afraid of what could happen if we let them know just how important they are to us. Forgive me for wanting to live my own life and share it with someone who might save me in the end."

"You're so young Adrian; I don't know what to do with you at times. You'll find a Moroi girl in a year or two and settle down, I'll allow your affair to continue but if you marry her I'll have no choice but to pick someone else to be my successor."

"Then you might as well pick someone else now. If she agrees to a romantic relationship with me your highness, I doubt I'll be able to resist proposing to her eventually."

She sighed, "If you say so Adrian, but I'm sure once you've gotten her out of your system things will return to normal."

He looked at her confused, "are you sending me away?"

"No I'm sending her away, she's a guardian isn't she? With the amount of kills she has obtained it would be stupid of me not to assign her to someone in the kingdom as soon as possible. There are so many unprotected as you've mentioned."

Adrian stood up to leave, "I've put in my request to have her as my personal guardian several times. Would you deny me my choice of protection?"

"In this matter yes I would."

His anger filled the room but he was still able to reach out and touch his aunt with his compulsion, "I'd really hate for someone other than myself to have her though your highness."

Her face remained intact, but the fierceness that had filled her eyes was soon fading. "But she's no good for you."

"She maybe no good for me your highness, but she's a good fighter and I'm a danger to myself."

"Danger to yourself, yes that's true, maybe you should have her then?"

He smiled and forced that thought into her mind, it wasn't truly super-compulsion but it was the closest thing he could think to do in order to have his way. "I think that sounds like a lovely idea. Rose will be my guardian as well as the one I have now. Cooper with stay with Rose and all will be fine, won't it your highness?"

She smiled up at him as he stood over her, "of course it will Adrian, whatever made you think it wouldn't be?"

"I don't know just my nerves I guess."

"You will bring her next time you come won't you?"

He smiled lazily at her, "Yeah if that's what you'd want me to do."

"I'd love to see her; make a point of it won't you?"

"Sure thing, I'll see you later, not today and maybe not for a few days, but later."

The Queen shook her head in approval, "I shall surely miss you my dear."

Concerned, he looked at the men around her but they seemed so disconnected from the conversation that he didn't think he had anything to fear from them. He excused himself after this and made his way back to his suite in the castle. It wasn't as nice as his other homes, but it was a nice distraction from his surroundings of late. Once he got there he changed his clothes into something more relaxed. It wasn't often that he wore jeans and a t-shirt but he knew that Rose liked them; he'd seen it in her eyes. Adrian sat down on the bed and reach out to her with his mind. He couldn't see all that much and he didn't want her to know that he was there, but he could vaguely feel what she was feeling and thinking. Not surprisingly she was sad. Having received a call from her mother about funeral arrangements for Dimitri she'd been overwhelmed with too much too early in the morning.

Rose was hungry but didn't want to say anything to Cooper about it. He'd woke up after her but was dressed and ready to meet the day where she couldn't find the strength to even get out of bed. Adrian stood and headed back over to her room.

Rose's room was located in a separate wing of the castle but wasn't too far from his own. The room beside his was empty and he'd looked into getting them moved but hadn't heard back from room assignments yet. He grabbed an arrangement of flowers that occupied the front entry way of his room and handed them to Cooper as he answered the door.

"You can go down to breakfast, I'll watch her for a while if you'd like?"

Cooper sat the flowers down on the bedside table and looked over at her, "Rose is that alright with you?"

She nodded silently.

"Alright I'll see you when I get back and you can tell me what your plans are for the day." He handed Adrian a folded piece of paper which he read quickly before going to sit beside her. The words on the paper concerned him more than he had thought they would and he read them again to make sure he'd read them correctly.

She's seeing Lissa again, going to check the wards. - Cooper