I do not own Anastasia or the characters. Just the plot of this story!

Without giving the matter a second thought, the young man took off his suit's jacket and threw it away as he charged on the unknown but hideous man –who looked like a dead corpse. He put in his firm fist all of his force and will and punched the evil man right on the nose, earning a groan of pain out of his lips as he lost balance and tripped on the paved ground.

As soon as Dimitri made sure the, obviously, kidnapper of the Russian Princess was out of his way, he leaped into space and found himself sliding with his stomach down the piece of street that was hanging over the frozen (?) river of Seine. He extended his arms, not caring one bit for his expensive, white shirt getting torn and dirty, and managed to halt himself before Anastasia who was struggling to push herself up. She willing accepted his hold and gripped him around the wrists as if her life depended on them –which it actually did. "Dimitri, how did you-?"

"Later." He cut her off, guessing her question, though he couldn't see her point of asking him such a thing. She had coded a message in her letter, hadn't she? Didn't she remember?

Anya gritted her teeth as she struggled to push herself up as Dimitri tried to pull her with him. They would have almost succeeded if it weren't for that sorcerer's accursed magic. The same green cloud encircled Dimitri's chest and working like a hard rope, it pulled him away from her and on one of the massive, stony horses decorating the bridge's columns. But what was more shocking was that said horse actually got a life. Its eyes turned a bright, menacing red as it suddenly started galloping and riding hard with Dimitri on its back.

"No!" she heard a voice scream and realized it was filled with the same panic and agony that had overwhelmed her heart. Her screaming reminded Rasputin of the condition she was in and he started laughing viciously again, a laughter that she knew it would haunt her nightmares if she lived through his curse.

Dimitri was now thrown off the stony demon and was struggling against it with just a single piece of metal. She had managed to reach the very edge of the broken bridge the moment the wreck sank in the icy water. With an extended arm, she searched for help as she called out for him but the horse was succeeding in keeping him occupied and not letting him even catch a glimpse of her.

Her pleading call went answered by the living corpse of a man who pulled her up just a bit, grabbing her by the back of her torn dress and her neck and lifting her enough so that she was fully facing him as he was crouching before her. "Da svidaniya,Your Highness!" he whispered in that cunning malefic voice of his, before letting go of her and letting her fall into space. Luckily, thanks to her trained reflexes –when you grow up as an orphan, you've got plenty of time to practice with children younger than yourself- she managed to get hold of a metal piece sticking out of the broken bridge.

"Finally, the last Romanov dead!" she heard him exclaim in victory and pride, almost celebrating. She hoped he thought her dead. But judging by Dimitri's cry and probably running towards her –she couldn't see but she heard his hard, rushed footsteps against the pavement- they both had her dead. Which was a good sign, the element of surprise was the best tactic in one's plan, she always thought.

She managed to climb up on the bridge, right behind an elevated part of the paved bridge. She bit her lips as she watched Dimitri still struggling for her against that murderous, ungodly creature. She had to put an end to everything now; for the man who risked his life for her, for her dead family who deserved revenge and honour and for herself.

"Long live the Romanovs!" the shakily laughing voice of the impious man echoed again and she saw him holding up victoriously his reliquary, gazing at it almost thankfully. She stepped forward, determination and fury driving her every step. Her sweet face had turned into a mask of menace and hatred and had she not be wearing a dress she would surely have found herself in a fighting position, like a hunter locating her pray.

"Right!" she shouted out loud, poison dripping from her voice. His hearted laughter was cut short and he turned to face her in shock and disbelief. "I couldn't have said it better myself!" she found herself spitting out before she gathered her ripped skirts and raced towards him. Caught off guard as he was, he had no time to react as she charged and jumped on him, sending him flat on his back against the hard ground and knocking the reliquary out of his grasp.

She tried to reach it but surprisingly, another arm grasped it before her. "Dimitri?" she exclaimed in wonder, obviously he had managed to escape the demon's attention for a brief moment, but this time it was Rasputin's turn to surprise her by pushing her hard off of him and sending her several feet away from him. He stood on his feet and scanned the area for the source of his power which he located in the young conman's hand.

"Lost something… zombie?" he arched a cunning brow as he played with the item in his hand. A growl of fury boiled out of Rasputin's chest as he prepared himself to launch on Dimitri. The man, however, chuckled triumphantly. "Your Highness, please don't drop it! It's kind of important to the poor dead man." He threw the reliquary in the air just the moment the possessed horse landed behind him and knocked him down with its stony legs.

The item hit the ground without breaking and ended up under Anya's heel. Looking cleverly at Rasputin, Anya pressed lightly her heel on the item, making the glass crack a little. As the spell started being undone by that small cracking, the stony horse started shattering and breaking in pieces, one of which hit violently Dimitri on the head, leaving him lying on the ground unconsciously.

Anya gasped at the sight shocked. No matter how mad and hurt she was by the young conman, she had no intention whatsoever of seeing him getting hurt in anyway. "This is for Dimitri!" she yelled in anger and stepped with might on the item again, the glass cracking a bit more. Rasputin was on his knees by now before her, grabbing on her dress. "No! I'll tear you to pieces! Give it to me!"

He was the man who had ruined her happy life, hers and many other people's. But mostly, her family's. He didn't deserve pity or mercy and remorse would never visit her for as long as she lived for getting rid of him. "This is for my family!" she yelled again, stepping even harder with her heel on it, a bright glow which previously was green was darkening, getting blood-red. Taking another look at the man who showed no kindness or mercy to any loved one of hers, she gave the final blow. "And this, this is for you!" she was shouting at the top of her lungs now.

"Da svidaniya!" she spoke the same words he had spoken to her just moments ago. She pressed hard the reliquary, as if her own life depended on it. The moment she saw a green light descending from the dark heavens and landing mercilessly on Rasputin, sucking his life away, she rushed by Dimitri's side, knelt next to him and shielded his unconscious body with hers as broken pieces of pavement and magic forces were flying in the air.

For a moment, she couldn't see anything and she didn't care to see. All she cared about was that justice had been given. And Dimitri was unconscious. As soon as silence and calm took over, she sat up and rolled Dimitri on his back. She took his face in her hands gently and whispered his name. When receiving no reply, a soft sob escaped her lips and she buried her face in her dirty palms. She didn't even want to think that Dimitri might be dead and that she was the cause.

But she was saved from such thoughts when the man moaned in pain softly and raised a hand over his aching head. "Dimitri? Ah!" she exclaimed in surprised glee and threw herself on him, wrapping her arms around his neck. Her rushed actions, however, only caused him more pain and he had to push her away.

"Let go, let go, let go! Ugh!" he stood on his knees and with a hand over his stomach, doubled up. She stood up as well, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder which he probably interpreted falsely. "Yeah, I know… all men are babies…" he hurried to speak before she did and she rolled her eyes.

"Not what I meant to say but true nonetheless!" she replied and earned a frown from him as he finally got over the pain and was fully facing her. "How did you get here?"

"Didn't you leave a letter with a message?"

"I did." She simply said feeling foolish realizing her stupid mistake not remembering. But she had her ways to cover up her humiliation and to lighten up the mood. "I didn't think you'd be able to decipher my coded message though!"

"Uhh, same old Anya!" he observed and much to her surprise, he seemed content and happy with it. She couldn't not smile at that. "Now, will you explain to me, who was that... corpse and what the hell did he bring you in Paris for? To give us extra trouble and worries?"

"And will you explain to me what the hell you were doing at the ball?" she retorted and he huffed at how accusing she looked. He raised his hands in surrender and stood up.

"I was invited, one of the Empress's special guests in fact." He decided to answer first if he wished to get an explanation from her too. He had learned to know when to withdraw and when to insist with her. "Had it not been for Vlad, his... cream puff and your grandmother I would have never come! I swear! But looks like it was a good thing after all…"

"How so?" she inquired looking demanding.

"I don't think any other person in their senses would have gone the trouble of following you to Paris with the hope of saving your royal butt, would they now?"

"Any why did you go all this trouble to save my butt?" she snapped back at him and he suddenly found her standing close to him, too close to him, tapping an inquisitive finger on his chest. He opened his lips to speak but realized he could never tell her the truth. He could never tell her that he did everything because he loved her. Being a conman had made him an artist when it came down to lying. "Because you were feeling guilty about everything that has happened between us, huh? Say it! Admit it! You only came because you were feeling guilty!"

He sighed and rolled his eyes before pushing her aside and collecting his jacket from the ground. He shook the garment and was relieved to hear the merry tingling of money in his pockets. "What if we go and buy tickets to St. Petersburg and on the way we can… have…a… civilized conversation. Huh?"

So? :D Did you like it? :D I LOVE it! :D Yes, I got too excited because I reunited them! How crazy can a girl be? Anyway, I hope you liked my little twist and their little talk. They're going to have a real, great, satisfying chat in the next chapter, I promise! :D Till then, how about a little review? :D