SO I got back of holiday today and - typically - today was hte best weather we had ): but the good news is I'M BACK and here's the last chapter of my story! Read it carefully. I hope you enjoy it.

The night passed uneventfully with no storms or coldness. The most interesting part was the tinned spaghetti I burned. Packing away was easy and soon I was back in my room wondering what to do. Some air seemed like a good idea so I wondered aimlessly around and ended up in a small copse of trees. Magic flared through the bond in time but I didn't think much of it as Lissa and Adrian often practiced with spirit round about now so I just sucked the darkness away from her. I sat on a rock and breathed away the memories of the last time I went camping. I don't know how long I sat there only that it was a while as I started to get hungry. Not that that was surprising since I hadn't eaten breakfast.

Footsteps sounded behind me but I ignored them mostly because I knew who it was.

"I let Lissa finish healing me."

Tears pricked my eyes at the sound of his voice. It was barely louder than a whisper but it was more than loud enough. It sent shivers down my spine and made me forget everything that I had been thinking about. With him I was safe and out of harms way. It didn't matter if it was physical or emotional harm I was suffering, he always made it okay, always helped me to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

"You should have let her do that in the first place." I whispered. I wanted to be angry and shout at him for all the hurt he put me through but I couldn't.

"Roza, I'm sorry."

"You're sorry!" I exploded whipping round to face him. "You're sorry. After everything you've done you think a simple sorry will fix this?"

I hadn't shouted or been angry about this yet. If I had let myself I would have shouted at and probably hurt the wrong person. The closest I'd come was ranting to Lissa about how much we'd sacrificed to keep her safe. Now, now that I was talking to him all my anger came forward in one rush of emotion which almost overcame me but seeing him stood before me gave me strength.

"Do you have any idea what kind of pain you've caused me? Do you honestly think I'm just going to forgive you after everything you've done to me? You know you could have just found me and explained everything and I would have listened. I might not have liked it, I may have shouted at you but I would have listened. You didn't even say good bye. Instead all you left me was some stupid letter that didn't even begin to explain what was going on."

So far he had kept his guardian mask on. But his eyes spoke more than words ever would have. They were so full of emotion that even his guardian mask couldn't over come it. There was love and pain and regret and disappointment. And, oh god, the tears that threatened to roll free.

"I never pinned you for a coward."

A solitary tear fell and his guardian mask crumpled. His whole body seemed to sag in, I don't know, defeat. I turned away so I wouldn't have to watch and walked away. Away from all the pain and heartache. I couldn't do this anymore.

He followed me. I quickened the pace. I didn't want to do this anymore. He'd broken my heart and I just didn't want to do this.

"Rose. Rose, wait. Rose." he caught my arms and made me face him. "I'm sorry. Truly, truly sorry. I caused you pain and I'm sorry. But you caused me pain too."

"Oh, so now this is all my fault? I'm not the one who left, Cowboy."

That last word spoke more than anything else I could have said. He flinched remembering the time I told him what I thought of cowboys. I'd said that they were people who moved around, robbed banks and made girls fall for them, took advantage of them and used them. And then just left never to be heard from again not caring who they hurt.

"Enough!" he snapped. "I'm not saying any of this is your fault because it's not – "

"So now you're doing it to ease your own pain?"

"I'm doing this because I love you, Roza."

As if just him using my Russian name wasn't enough I remembered he was holding my wrist in his iron tight grasp. Where our skin touched it burned and sizzled telling us we had to be together, that we were sole mates. But my soul along with my heart had been ripped in two and nothing, not even spirit, could fix that.

His hand came to touch my face, his thumb stroking my cheek.

"I love you."

"You've said that before." I looked way from his eyes. Away from him. "You lied to me after the lust charm, pushed me away and then took me back. At Christmas you almost left me for Tasha then took me back. Only to push me away again. I don't know that you won't do that again."

I stepped out of his reach and slowly walked away. I didn't get two steps away before he spoke.

"Roza."

In that one word was power. Raw, masculine power. More importantly love. His voice cracked when he said it betraying the fear within him. He was scared he was going to lose me.

"When I was in Baia I went to a friend, Oksana. She's a spirit user. I asked her to heal me and she did to an extent. As she did it your face, your beautiful face haunted me, Roza. I remembered what spirit did to you and I made her stop because the same was happening to her shadow kissed partner. That was before I even went home. When I did get home I cried, Rose. Just as I did when I wrote your letter. My mother held me and I cried all my unshed tears. I'd lost everything that was important to me. My independence, my job. You.
I didn't go back to St. Vladimir's not just because I couldn't be useful there but because I was afraid you wouldn't want me. Because I knew that if I did go back if you did still want me we still couldn't be together. And you'd look at me with that pained look you have looked at me with every time you've seen me. I didn't want that for you.
I thought I was protecting you. You'd be able to work better without me there. You'd move on and love someone else. But when I saw you fighting during your trials I knew that you still hadn't moved on." his voice hung in the air like lead weight.

"You thought I wouldn't love you?" I asked not even incredulous as I probably should have been. "You evidently don't know me very well."

I took another pace but Dimitri, tall, gorgeous, fierce Dimitri stopped me. He spun me round and pulled me close making me look up at him. I averted my eyes.

"What have I got to do to get you back, Roza? What have I got to do?" he shook me slightly as he said this. "What can I say? I made the biggest mistake of my life. I let Lissa heal me because I knew that was what you wanted even though it killed me inside. I never wanted to hurt you. I never meant for this. Look at me."

I didn't. I couldn't. Tears were streaming down my face and… I just couldn't.

He tilted my head towards him and it was like we were back in the gym before Christmas the last time we'd had a proper argument and I said he didn't love me. We were close, heat passing between us like a lake of fire. Our bodies moulded together, for better or worse.

"Damn it, Roza. I'm sorry. I made a stupid mistake and I regret it. I regret every moment I haven't spent with you. Even as they were passing I regretted them. Please answer me. I won't let you do this anymore, Roza."

And then I gave into the poetry, the poetry which had been filling me up and burning within me since the party after the trial. I burst into tears and threw my arms around his neck and just cried. He lifted me off the floor and held me tightly showering my hair and my cheeks in kisses and speaking to me in Russian, his voice like feathers against my skin. I was in the arms of my badass Russian jailor, my own personal sun, the centre of my universe. He was the one who I had instantly gravitated towards, the only one who could tell me he loved me and make everything alright.

He put me down but didn't let go. I could have stayed in that moment for ever and a day. We both could have. With his arms wrapped around me I felt untouchable. He was warm and soft and, oh how I'd missed this. His tears fell onto my hair and I pulled him closer if that was possible. In that moment I didn't know where he ended and I began. Which was how it was supposed to be.

All too soon my Dimitri pulled away from me and said:

"We have to tell your mother."

"She'll come round to it." I sniffed. Then I paled and my knees went weak. "Oh my God, what am I going to tell Eddie?" I whispered. And then babbled. "He doesn't even know about us, why I was so upset this whole time. He never knew. He didn't know that Mason came back because I told him I still hoped we could work us out. He doesn't know I lied to him. He still thinks that – "

"Rose – "

"He still thinks I loved him until the very end. He's going to hate me Dimitri. He's going to blame me and won't ever forgive me and I'll lose him too – "

"Rose!"

I looked into Dimitri's eyes and instantly felt calmer.

"I'll be with you. Always."

And with that his lips came crashing down to mine.

Okay so... THERE IT IS. Rose and Dimtri are together. Let me know what you think... go on you know you want to review!

This is almsot the last time I have to say that VA belongs to Richelle Mead and not me. I say almost becuase there's a little, short epilogue after this (: