Chapter 5: Repetitive Motion

"There are very few legitimate excuses for missing practice. I will be the judge of those. Freezing cold weather? Get used to it. You live in Montana now. Your leg is broken? That's an opportunity to focus on upper body strength." I strode back and forth, hands clasped behind my back. I had the four human novices lined up against the gym wall for dramatic effect. They stared back at me, petrified. Maybe I had gone a bit overboard with intimidation after the Polina incident.

"Speaking of injury," I continued. "Your risk is high. Humans—no offense—are usually not as sturdily built as dhampirs are. But that is no excuse to hold back when you fight each other. As long as you follow my instructions, you won't hurt each other beyond some minor bumps and bruises. You're not yet strong enough to do any real damage anyway.

"I've seen plenty of injuries develop outside of battle. We throw kicks and punches every day. We move our bodies in ways they are not necessarily meant to move. You absolutely must pay attention to your technique. If you swing your shoulder incorrectly whenever you throw a punch, day after day, you'll end up with tendonitis in your rotator cuff. Twist incorrectly when you kick? That's a hip flexor strain waiting to happen. Repetitive motion, people. I don't care how strong you are; if you hurt yourself every day, you will break down eventually. Nobody is invincible." Not even you, Rose, the voice intruded. It was a new and disturbing thought for me. I filed it away to think about later, or maybe to drink about later. "Don't make excuses, but do listen to your body, and do communicate with me. Okay?"

They stared at me, perhaps waiting for permission to speak. I just answered for them. "Okay. I hope you're all wearing good shoes, because today we're heading out to the track."

I didn't think they could look more scared than they already did, but apparently I was wrong. "I'll run with you," I offered. That didn't seem to make them feel better. Whatever. Making them feel better wasn't my job. I wanted nothing more, however, than to hug Sydney. I couldn't give her special treatment, but it was hard to see my friend feel so afraid and to be unable to comfort her.

"Guardian Hathaway?" The one male novice in the group spoke up tentatively as we all walked to the track. "Are we going to… fight, today?"

I looked over at him. 17-year-old Zachariah Novakovic had dark brown hair and an olive complexion much like my own. He was a bit thinner than I would have liked a novice to be, but I was sure he could bulk up during our training.

I gave him a genuine smile. "Never underestimate the importance of running." And those humans, bless their hearts, trusted me completely.

Ten minutes later, it became clear that this was going to be a struggle. Anna Lindholm, a blonde 16-year-old with a body like a Moroi, lagged behind. I was frustrated by how miserable she looked compared to how softly she was breathing. Anna may have believed that she was making a good effort, but I expected better. I wanted hearts racing, lungs burning, and muscles aching. Elodie McCarthy, also 16, was only a few paces in front of Anna. She was much shorter than Anna, with a striking combination of hazel eyes and reddish brown hair. Elodie was also quite skinny. I wondered what these people thought a guardian was supposed to look like and what kind of "preparation" for this program they had done by themselves.

I gave Zach and Sydney permission to break away from the other two. Sydney was lovely in motion, like a gazelle. I hoped that grace would translate into her training, though I suspected it would not be so simple. For the rest of the workout, I tried to gently coax Elodie and Anna into putting forth more effort, but I was at a loss. They truly believed they were trying. By the time morning practice was over, we were all frustrated.

Back in the gym, we all did some cool-down stretches while I talked to them. "Okay," I began, taking a deep breath and reminding myself that it was only day one. "That was a decent start. I won't lie to you and say it was great. My expectations for you are high, and they will only get higher. Get used to it. I'll see you back here this afternoon and we'll work on some very basic combat techniques. In the meantime, I need you to eat a solid lunch. I mean it. You don't need to go crazy, but you do need some nourishment. Okay?"

They stared blankly. I sighed. "Alright. Get going. And remember what I said about lunch!" I looked pointedly at Sydney. You are no exception to that rule, I told her silently. It was mostly created for you.

It was the middle of the week, and nearing midterms. My dhampir novices were a little sluggish too. "Miss Morena! Mr. Addison!" I barked at Haley and Dominic, who were chatting during warm-up. "Either get to work or find new partners." It worked like a charm. I half-wished all of them were secretly in love with each other.

By the end of practice, I mostly wished I didn't have to deal with them again for a good month or so. Several appeared unfocused and sloppy. "Watch your form, Ivanov!" I chastised Grant, who was getting his ass handed to him by Aria. "There's no reason you should be backing away from her like that. Block her properly and you'll be fine. I'm sure your ribcage and your ego are both a little sore right now, but you can't shy away like that."

I pretended I didn't hear the not-so-kind words he mumbled about me. After all, I had been a bit harsh. I was pushing them harder than any instructor ever had. After only two days, it was clear that they were out of shape by my standards. I remembered wanting to hate Dimitri when I began training with him, and resolved to be a little more patient without relaxing my standards. I forced a smile and a little pep talk after class. They looked like they wanted to murder me before limping to the locker rooms. I didn't take it personally.

Time limped along too, with Wednesday and Thursday giving me their fair share of hell. Polina was still insufferable whenever she opened her mouth. Thankfully, that was rare. I only saw her for two hours a day in detention, and when she ran out of nasty things to say to me, she stopped saying anything at all. I worked on grading while she completed whatever menial tasks I gave her. To her credit, she did them well. Polina Kachusova is not one to half-ass anything. When she actually sets out to do something, she works fiercely and intensely. I couldn't help but be fascinated by her. The human novices, on the other hand, were still failing to impress me. Fighting came even less naturally to them than running did. I wanted to add an hour of weight training to their afternoon practice, but I already had to let them out five minutes early so I could race across campus for Polina's detentions. Plus, I didn't want them skipping dinner. Or quitting the program.

On Friday, everyone seemed to have renewed energy. "Come on, Lindholm!" I yelled to Anna, who was picking up the pace for the last 100 meters of our morning run. Sydney high-fived her as she crossed the finish line, and her other classmates cheered. Well, Elodie was still bent over with her hands on her knees and her back to us, but that was excusable. Anna beamed, face flushed and hair tousled. In Theory class, Gabriel Ionescu and Justin O'Reilly gave a top-of-the-line demonstration of Carnegie's Quadrant Surveillance Method. My joy was slightly undercut by the fact that it was my last Polina-free class period, and I would be in hell again on Monday.

Scratch that. I would be in hell again at 5:00.

"So what kind of stupid bullshit do you have me doing today?" She stormed in the room with more gusto than usual and faced me with her hands on her hips.

"Watch it, Kachusova," I warned. "Let's not make this final day any harder than it has to be."

"Why?" she challenged. "What are you going to do? Send me back to Kirova? I'll be in class on Monday, you know. They can't expel me. I haven't really hurt you. Yet."

I couldn't help myself. I laughed. "Are you threatening me? Are you actually threatening me?" She reminded me of the pretty Moroi girls in my high school classes who thought they could mess with me. Maybe this little bitch got away with treating her classmates and other instructors this way, but I wouldn't have it. Come to think of it, though, I'm pretty sure she wasn't like this with everyone.

"Maybe I am!" she said hotly. "They can't kick me out. They can't." For a moment, her voice was quieter, almost desperate. The moment was short-lived. "We'll see how your creepy older boyfriend likes your pretty little face after I'm done with—"

Before she knew what was happening, I had crossed the room and thrown her up against the wall, pinning her by her wrists, my elbow ready to dig into her throat if necessary. "You were saying?" I prompted.

She stared back at me, wide-eyed. For a moment, I had caught her off-guard. Again, it was only a moment. "You can't do this!" she shrieked. "I'm a student! You can't hurt me! Let go of me, you psycho bitch! Somebody, help!"

I laughed again. "Well, unfortunately for you, I don't have a strong grasp of student/teacher boundaries. Isn't that right?" What a little drama queen, I thought. Polina could have broken free of my hold if she wanted to. She was breathing heavily now, even though I had never moved in to touch her throat. She started shaking too.

"Stop!" she choked. I stared. I was only holding her wrists. Was this some sort of ploy? Cautiously, I released my grip, knowing I could still grab her again if necessary. Polina sunk to the ground, sobbing.

"Polina?" I immediately crouched down to her level. "Talk to me. What's going on?"

She just covered her face and sobbed even harder. I glanced nervously at the door, careful not to lay a hand on her. "Okay. It's okay," I said, in what I hoped was a soothing voice. "I'm just going to close the door so you can have some privacy." As I pushed off the ground, I felt her hand clench around my wrist, and I whirled around, ready to strike her if she tried anything.

"Don't go," she cried, releasing my wrist.

I was dumbfounded. "I won't. I'm not going anywhere. I'm just going to close the door, and I'm coming right back. Okay?"

She nodded. I quickly shut the door and sat on the floor next to her again.

"They're going to send me back," she whispered. "If I get in any more trouble, or refuse to participate in any more classes, Kirova will kick me out and send me home. I can't go back there. I can't let them hurt me again. I know I deserve it. I know I'm bad and disgusting and deserve the pain, but I can't handle it anymore, Rose. I can't."

I stared at her. "Nobody is kicking you out of school," I began. "Because from this moment on, you will never give them any reason to."

She stared at me, transfixed, and my voice grew stronger.

"And nobody is ever going to hurt you again either. I don't know what happened, but I know you didn't deserve it. You want to end it? Fight back. You have people on your side, Polina. You need to trust us and do what we tell you to do." I regarded her carefully. "On the first day of detention, when you thought I was watching you? I was. But not for the reasons you think. I was watching you because you are a strong, beautiful dhampir with so much potential. You don't know your own strength. You don't see your potential like I do."

"Can you teach me?" she whispered. "I know I'm behind in my classes, but so were you, right? When you came back from Portland?"

Wow. She actually did know my life story. I sighed. "Yes. I was behind. But I had a stronger foundation than you do. And I cared."

"I care too," she said ferociously. "And it's not just about me. There's a Moroi I want to protect, more than anything in the world. Anything. But I'm not strong like you. I'm not—"

"Stop it," I commanded. "You're afraid? Fine. We all are."

"You're not afraid of anything," she said. It sounded as ridiculous as when I said it to Dimitri last year.

"I am," I insisted. "I'm afraid of many things. But I fight for the people I love."

"Teach me," she said. "Please. Whatever you want me to do, I'll do."

"I don't know if you understand what you're asking," I told her. "In addition to fully participating in your guardian classes, you will need to attend extra training sessions. These will not be private lessons. You will join a group of four human novices. Yes, humans. I hardly have time for them as it is. We start at 7:00 sharp. Be in the gym at 6:45. Afternoon practice starts at 3 and ends when I say it does. You will participate in all activities, and you will not complain. Do you understand?"

She nodded, intensity building behind those fierce blue eyes.

"We train five days a week, but you and I will start tomorrow morning. Saturday. Think of it as a continuation of your detention, seeing as you didn't really serve today's. Meet me at the track at 8:00 tomorrow. Bring your running shoes. Don't be late."

Like her first detention, I half-expected her not to show up. But she was on time, quiet, and ready to run. Watching her stride across the track, I couldn't help but swell with pride. I was right. Polina Kachusova was a natural.

Author's Note: Love Adrian? Miss Adrian? Want to read all about Sydney and Adrian? The next chapter will be from Sydney's point of view. As always, reviews would be much appreciated! I don't want to do the whole "the more reviews I get, the faster I write" thing, but I'm only human. Of course encouragement is going to help!