I laugh a lot when I type 'me' instead of 'my'. It's like everyone is suddenly a pirate.

Long chapter. Another tiny bit of M(?) rated stuff close to the bottom.

Christian's anger didn't subside for hours, even over dinner. He stabbed aggressively at his food, and ate less than usual – even for a Moroi. We'd tried taking him back to Lissa, but she'd been busy sorting out something for a council meeting that her aides would be attending tomorrow. I glared at Dimitri sitting opposite me and he shrugged an apology. I'd wanted to leave Christian with his wife, regardless of whether or not she was going to pay attention to him, but Dimitri had invited him to come eat with us.

The staff food hall was significantly better stocked that the student one I'd used to eat in, and Dimitri and I hadn't held back. At some point, balancing food had turned into a playful competition, one that Christian watched with irritation.

"Maybe you should visit the feeders," I mentioned casually, watching him push food around his plate.

"Are you saying I'm grumpy because I'm hungry?" he snapped.

I sipped the soda I'd grabbed from a vending machine and made more meaningful eye contact with Dimitri. He ducked his head and started on his potatoes.

"Just making an observation," I mumbled past the smile I was trying to hide.

"Well, I suggest you shove your observations up your fucki–"

"Hey, Rose!"

Christian finished his line of expletives as Austin Dombroski, one of the Guardian's I'd trained with, approached our table.

I looked up at him, dumbfounded. He'd always been a weedy kid for a dhampir, but in the last four years he'd grown. Damn, he'd grown. Where he used to be shorter than my five foot nine, he now easily cleared six feet, and it looked like he'd finally earned those muscles the rest of us barely had to work for.

We hadn't really been that close during highschool, but when I stood to greet him, he pulled me into a bear hug that left me stunned. It felt like being pressed up against a warm brick wall. I almost wanted to put my hands on his pecs to check if they were really that solid.

"Hi Austin, how are you?" I managed from within my cage in his arms.

"Great, how are you? I heard you got your posting with Lissa – Queen's guard, hey?" He released me and held me at an arms length. I felt like he could throw me into a wall with a casual flick of his wrist. Now that I could see his face, I could admire how he'd grown into that as well.

If he'd looked like this back in highschool, he wouldn't have had half as much trouble getting dates.

"Yeah, I am. You're posted at the Academy?"

He shrugged. "I didn't get the greatest marks in trials," he admitted. "But it turned out pretty great. I've just come back from a trip to Court – obviously I just missed you."

I was surprised that he'd apparently planned on looking me up – we'd really barely known each other. We'd sparred a few times in class, and I'd always wiped the floor with him.

"Yeah, I came down last week with Liss," I explained feebly, still trying to work through the shock of his transformation. I turned to Christian and Dimitri, both of whom were patiently waiting for their introduction. "You probably remember Christian Ozera, and Dimitri Belikov."

Austin shook both of their hands, and pulled up the spare chair. "Yeah, we had home ec. together," he mentioned to Christian. Christian looked doubtful. Austin turned to Dimitri. "And you're… well, you're Guardian Belikov, obviously." There was just a hint of childish excitement in his voice that he couldn't reign in. He shook Dimitri's hand vigorously. "I was always jealous that Rose got private sessions with you."

Christian snorted into his salad and I kicked him under the table.

"Maybe we could spar sometime?" he was asking hopefully.

"Of course," Dimitri answered congenially. "Any time."

For a moment I was concerned Austin was going to take him literally, and ask for a fight in the cafeteria, but it turned out he had a different kind of spar in mind. "Well, we're about to head to the rec room and play some pool." He gestured over his broad shoulder to another young Guardian that hovered by the salad, obviously waiting for Austin. "Do you guys want to tag along?"

"Oh, no thanks," Christian answered, even though the question obviously wasn't directed at him. "I've got to go spend some time with Lissa."

"Yeah, I heard you two got married, congrats." Austin turned his attention back to Dimitri and I. "What about you guys? We could play teams."

I smirked at Dimitri. "I don't know if you want to do that," I warned playfully, "we make a pretty great team."

"Perfect you might actually be a challenge." I'm sure Austin didn't mean to goad me on, but I straightened in my seat and watched the look of resignation steal over Dimitri's face.

"We're in," I told Austin, clambering to my feet. I hadn't finished my meal, which I looked at forlornly for only a moment, before sacrificing it for the glory of winning snooker. As much as it pained me to admit it, I probably couldn't have finished it anyway.

Christian and Dimitri stood as well, with Christian smirking as though he'd come out ahead in this conversation.

We said our goodbyes and followed Austin and his friend Ian to the staff rec room.

I hadn't realized that the staff area was as cool as it was. I'd been expecting something similar to the student rec rooms – an old, shabby couch, some beanbags and a T.V. But this room was on another level.

There were a few lounges (that didn't look like they'd seen a lifetime of randy, bare-assed teenagers), and a huge wall-mounted flat screen in the corner, a few arm chairs with side tables stacked with books in the centre of the room, and a well looked after pool table at the back.

I shot Dimitri an accusing look, and he shook his head indulgently.

The room only had a few people in it, including Stan, who was heavily immersed in a crime novel. Nobody looked up at our entrance, and we followed Austin and Ian to the back.

"You know how to play?" Austin checked.

I rolled my eyes. "I wouldn't have come up here if I didn't."

He threw a meek glance at Dimitri, who shrugged. "I've played once or twice."

I tried to keep a straight face. Two years ago he'd hustled Christian so badly that they didn't speak for three days, even after Dimitri gave him all his money back. Christian admitted it was a matter of pride, and had refused to play any game of skill with Dimitri ever since.

Not that I blamed him. Dimitri had been through a shady patch during his late teenage years, and as a result had a lot of morally dubious but useful skills. Like hot-wiring cars, picking locks and hustling pool.

He was yet to impart any of his wisdom to me, despite my constant nagging.

Austin set up the table for a game of 8-ball as we selected cues and chalked up.

"Your break?" he offered, gesturing to me.

I took up position at the head of the table and lined up my shot carefully. I hadn't been entirely truthful about Dimitri not imparting his fraudulent wisdom. He had taught me a few things about hustling pool after Christian had stormed out – things that had gotten out of control pretty quickly when we realized the table was the perfect height for a different kind of sinning.

I smiled, hoping Dimitri was thinking the same thing and enjoying the view of my ass.

I took the shot, dispersing the balls easily around the table and sinking the seven. I allowed myself a little victory fist pump and made my way around the table to take my second shot.

"You're going to regret this, boys," I warned them with a grin.

I made a call for eleven into the corner pocket because it was the easiest shot available, and sunk it without a problem. Austin and Ian didn't seem concerned as I took my next shot and missed.

Austin stepped up for his shot next and sank three balls in quick succession before he fouled by striking a ball from our group first.

I wanted Dimitri to end the game – I knew he probably could, given the cue ball was in a good position – but he was playing casually. There was no money on the table, and I knew it went against all of his pool-hustling instincts to win a game he wasn't betting on.

"This is only the beginning," I remembered him telling me, his hands burning as the brushed under my shirt. "You've got to lure them in."

"Not today, Comrade," I whispered to myself, clutching my cue tightly. "Just win the damn game…"

Where we both had that spark of competitiveness, Dimitri was also tempered with patience. He called his shot, and missed.

Austin grinned and offered him consolation. "If you haven't played that much, it can be tricky."

I made a noise of disgust.

While Ian and Austin gloated over the easy shot they were about to make, Dimitri moved over to where I stood. He reached for my waist, instinctively going to pull me against him, but caught himself just in time. We were in a casual setting, and it was too easy to forget that we weren't supposed to be touching each other the way we usually did.

I watched him slip his hand into his pocket with disappointment.

It seemed to take forever until it was my turn again, with Ian sinking every shot he called until they only had one ball left on the table before they could take shots at the 8 ball. Dimitri looked on, impressed. I was tempted to slap him.

"This is your fault," I hissed at him as I went to take my turn. His only answer was an expression of bewildered amusement.

We still had six balls on the table, and although that left our opponents in a tight spot with limited maneuverability, it also left us miles behind. Determined to clear the table, I called my shots without the good humour I'd possessed at the start of the game.

I sank two balls before I missed the fifteen, sending it ricocheting off the rail. I cursed, but Austin whooped. I'd left the cue ball in the perfect position for him to make his shot.

He stepped up to the table and waited for the fifteen to stop its lazy rotation, then sank their final ball. I thanked God that the 8 ball wasn't lined up with any pockets – if he was going to make this shot, it was going to be pure luck. I gave Dimitri a murderous look, and stalked over to his side.

"Win it," I hissed. There was no way I was losing anything to Austin Dombrosky.

Austin's luck didn't hold out, and he missed the 8 ball shot. Dimitri smiled at me. "There's no money on the table," he reminded me quietly.

I scowled. "Do I look like I give a damn?" I asked him as he moved to the other side of the table.

Austin and Ian exchanged a confused look, but overall they were pretty impressed with themselves. They thought they had this in the bag – after all, there was no reason for them to suspect that Dimitri was playing them more than the game. As far as they were concerned, he'd be lucky to sink one or two balls, and they would be free to take their final shot. The 8 ball was sitting inches away from the lip of a corner pocket, and they wold be hard pressed to miss.

Austin and Ian were standing behind Dimitri, so they couldn't see the easy smile on his face as he called the most difficult shot on the table.

I caught his attention, my arms crossed, and gave him a warning glare. Don't fuck this up.

He didn't. Maybe it was in fear of my wrath, but he sank the ball perfectly.

"Wow, what a… lucky shot," Ian commented doubtfully.

I held back my smile as Dimitri answered. "I've always been lucky."

I knew he was itching to make a bet on his next shots, but he didn't. In a few seconds, only the 8 ball was left in its corner, and the cue ball was cushioned against the same rail at the opposite end of the table. Ian and Austin were squinting down the table, lining up the shot themselves. It wasn't going to be an easy one, and I rolled my eyes thinking about how Dimitri had even put himself in this situation. His last shot had been a little showy.

With the boys crowded around one end of the table, I opted for the other side. Dimitri called his shot, lined it up, then caught my gaze. I narrowed my eyes, daring him to miss. With a smile and a cheeky wink, he took the shot without even looking.

My heart almost stopped, but true to form, Dimitri sank it.

I let out a whoop of excitement that was way overzealous for winning a game of pool and raced around the table to kiss him.

By the time I remembered that we were acting casual here, it was almost too late. There was a millisecond of hesitation, standing on my toes with my arms wrapped around his neck, before I adjusted my aim and planted the kiss on his cheek instead.

Austin and Ian didn't seem to notice, although Austin did watch the kiss a little more closely than his friend.

I hoped it just looked like two close friends – with maybe one who was a little over-affectionate when she won things.

Dimitri patted my back awkwardly, like you'd pat a dog's head. We pulled away from each other quickly.

"If you're offering kisses to the winner, maybe we should play again sometime," Austin joked. There was a flirty undertone to his words that made Dimitri's fingers tighten microscopically around his cue, and he turned to place it back on the rack.

"Maybe, but that was a pretty spectacular win," I bragged, careful to keep my tone casual. I'd flirted with everyone, back in the day. "You'd have to do something to impress me."

Stan had looked up from his book, and had obviously been watching the end of our raucous game. "Interesting victory lap you have, Hathaway," he commented slyly. He looked between Dimitri and I, just a hint of curious speculation in his eyes. "When's the wedding?"

My heart stuttered to a stop before I realised he was teasing - mostly. "August," I replied easily. "It'll be a simple affair, just the Queen and the royal court, maybe a few hundred peacocks."

Stan chuckled and turned back to his novel. Apparently any doubts about our strictly friendly relationship had been eased.

Dimitri shot me a wide eyed look while Austin and Ian re-racked the balls.

"I hope you were joking about the peacocks," he muttered.

"I hope I was joking about the court."

Ian offered us another game, his gaze fixed suspiciously on Dimitri, but I declined. "I think Lissa has something planned for tomorrow, so I'll probably be on duty again pretty early."

"No rest for the wicked," Stan shot over the top of his book.

I stuck my tongue out at him, pretty sure I was safe from his wrath if he couldn't see me. I'd made more obscene gestures in the past when his back was turned.

Dimitri managed to wiggle out of another game as well, but had to promise he was up for a rematch next week.

The sun was up by the time we made it outside, but it offered little warmth. We crunched through the snow in comfortable silence, making our meandering way back to the Guardian dorms.

"You up for a detour?" I asked, not ready to surrender the sunlight.

"Always."

I waited until we were in the trees, the dappled sunlight not as satisfying as it was in the open, but I'd traded it for privacy. "Lissa and Christian have a theory about the Mana," I began, slipping my hand into his. His fingers were rough and warm, and he tightened them encouragingly around mine. "They think there's a Spirit user behind it, compelling people to forget everything."

I expected him to brush it off like I had, but he walked in contemplative silence for a while. "Well that would make sense," he said at last.

I looked at him, bewildered. "How? The compulsion required isn't that strong."

"It's not about compelling people to forget a beating every two weeks," he said with a shake of his head. "That's pretty easy. What if there is a Spirit user, and they're not just compelling students, but the Guardians as well?"

"None of the Guardians have shown any sign of compulsion," I pointed out, annoyed that someone else was buying into this. "And why would the Mana need to compel them?"

"We haven't been looking for it. And it would make sense. We haven't been able to find a trace of the Mana, or link anyone to it. If there was someone using compulsion to make us overlook things, or forget a conversation here and there…"

"… then they wouldn't have to be Spirit users either," I finished stubbornly. "I know that some Moroi really suck at compulsion – like Christian – but most of the Mana last time were pretty good at it. I saw them to convince people to do all kinds of stuff for them."

"Compelling that many Guardians would be one hell of a task," he argued. "If they were all good at compulsion and only took on one guardian each, then maybe they could pull it off, but I think it would be more likely that there's a Spirit user here."

"We don't know that they're even using compulsion to interfere with the Guardians, maybe they're just good at covering their tracks." Dimitri looked unconvinced, so I huffed and changed tactics. "Fine, if there is a Spirit user, then how come we don't know about them? We've been watching kids that don't specialise. Kirova's probably got a list of them in her office, and those are sent to Lissa every six months. She hasn't received any reports of a kid in St Vlad's not specialising."

I prepared myself for the same argument that Lissa had presented me with – transfers, and schools not keeping proper records - even the possibility of a student too young to be registered as someone that hadn't specialised. I'd marshalled my arguments about advanced elemental classes, and the odds of a kid that young being in charge in anticipation, but what he said next left me speechless.

"Maybe it's not a student."

I gawked at him as the implication of his words hit me.

"There are plenty of new teachers here that I've never met," he said thoughtfully. "And we know that members of the Mana don't always grow out of it."

"You can't possibly think a teacher is telling students to torture each other?" I hissed, tugging his hand closer to my side.

He shrugged. "Anything is possible."

"That's insane," I breathed. But it made sense. "Well, we can rule out the elemental teachers. But we've seen with Avery how easily someone can hide Spirit." Dimitri nodded, even though he'd never met Avery. "It could be anyone."

"Not the old staff," Dimitri amended. "They saw what happened last time, and no one in their right mind would want that to happen again. Also, I watched plenty of them wield magic in the year I was here."

"But you're right," I said despairingly. "There's a buttload of new staff here. I don't even recognise half the guardians. When did this place get such a high staff turnover rate?"

"When Strigoi broke the wards and killed thirty of them."

I acknowledge his point with a quick squeeze of my hand. "How are we going to figure out who it is?"

"We'll just have to watch them," he answered, lifting his face to the sun as we walked under a clearing in the canopy. "Closely."

I shook my head and laughed at how cloak and dagger we were getting, and Dimitri smiled at the sound, pulling me to a stop. We were still in the sunlight, but the warmth was only slight, and I shivered in the stillness.

"Come here," Dimitri urged, wrapping his arms around me. We were obscured from the main campus by the trees, and I leaned against him to soak up his heat.

"You could offer me your coat," I chided lightheartedly.

A laughed rumbled in his chest. "But then I wouldn't have an excuse to hold you."

"You've always got an excuse to hold me," I reminded him. "You're marrying me."

"Without that ring on your finger, sometimes I forget," he teased.

"I promise once it goes back on it's never coming off."

"I don't think it would be hugely comfortable for either of us if you wore it while we sparred."

"You know what I mean," I accused, turning my face up to his. His eyes were bright with good humour, and his expression openly filled with affection. I'd been missing that look lately. "Kiss me."

He indulged me, dropping soft, sweet kisses onto my lips until I smiled under his attentions.

"Like this?" he asked lightly.

"No," I muttered, "like this."

I pulled his lips back down to mine and kissed him fiercely, my body shamelessly melting against him. He responded enthusiastically, his hands moving down my back to cup my ass and squeeze at my curves. He lifted me easily and I wrapped my legs around him, one hand working on the buttons of his shirt impatiently.

"We should move this somewhere more appropriate," he mumbled against my lips after a few more heated kisses.

"This is appropriate," I breathed back, nipping at his bottom lip gently. "Don't you think?"

He shuddered, and resumed kissing me feverishly, his arms locking around my waist and his tongue tracing my lips, begging entry that I granted him eagerly. The fingers of my free hand tunnelled into his silky hair, my whole body craving the feeling of him naked against me. Every part of me burned and ached for the pleasure we'd been denying ourselves, for something as simple as him gasping my name, and the feeling of his hot, silky skin against mine. I craved the feeling of his cock, heavy and throbbing in my hand while I teased him, the taste of him on my tongue. The sound of those careless moans, slipping from his lips into the heat around us... I wanted his pleasure under my control to repay the arrogant challenge he offered me with those beautiful smiles and subtle touches.

God, I wanted to tear his clothes of and fuck him in the snow.

I only had three buttons undone when he stopped me again, his breathing hot and uneven against my neck.

"You should come home with me," he whispered, smiling at his turn of phrase.

"But what will people think?" I asked playfully, his lips on my throat wreaking havoc with my pulse.

"Who knows, but I swear I'll marry you afterwards."

"All the boys say that."

He set me down on my feet, but we stayed impossibly close. His mischievous smile was infectious. "I'm not like the other boys."

He pressed another searing kiss to my lips and I caved. "Alright, Guardian Belikov, take me home."

He took my hand again and pulled me through the trees, heading in the general direction of the Guardian dorm. He was in quite a dishevelled state, between his half undone shirt and his tousled hair.

"You're gonna have to make yourself look less sexy," I told him when we reached the edge of the trees. "People will think we were up to something."

He smiled, but started rebuttoning his shirt. It was when he was on button two that we both heard the sounds coming from the woods behind us – it was soft, and carried to us on the wind, but there was no mistaking that we weren't alone in the trees.

We shared a quick look, and silently we started moving back under the canopy. Dimitri took the lead, hand on his stake, and I followed exactly in his footsteps.

The closer we moved, the more familiar the sound became. It was someone crying, and the sound was so full of fear that I had to tell myself rushing ahead might get us both killed. Not that it was likely, behind the wards, but it had happened before.

There were no obvious threats when we broke into the clearing – only a Moroi girl, hugging her knees to her chest as she lay in the snow, her clothes and hair soaked. Dimitri didn't take his hand of his stake, but we moved quickly to her side.

"Are you alright?" I asked the girl, dropping to my knees in front of her. She heaved an ugly sob into the snow and gasped for breath, but didn't answer. I placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, and almost pulled back when I felt how cold she was.

Dimitri helped me pull her into a sitting position, and she tightened her arms around her knees, her face hidden. The state of her clothing was worse than I'd first thought – her heavy winter clothes were torn and burned, buttons missing from her blouse to reveal the thin tank top she wore underneath. I wanted to hold her, to comfort her, my fierce instinct to protect the helpless kicking in.

Dimitri shed his duster, even though he only wore his button down underneath, and draped it over her shoulders.

"What's your name?" I asked gently, touching the back of her hand.

She flinched away from me and her sobs grew louder and more fearful. Frustrated, I pulled back.

"My name is Rose. I'm a Guardian. I'm here to help you."

That caught her attention. She didn't seem entirely convinced, but she lifted her head and cracked open her eyes to peer at me. Her face was covered in cuts and burns, and I hissed at the depth of one of the lacerations, running from her ear to her chin.

"I'm not going to hurt you," I reassured her, touching her hand again. "What's your name?"

"A-Anna," she sobbed, quietly now. I recognised her as the friend of the senior Novice, Maria.

"Anna, we've got to get you to the infirmary. Can you walk?"

She shook her head, her sobs hiccoughing from her lips in violent bursts.

"This is Dimitri," I told her softly, and she turned her head the tiniest amount to see him, crouched beside her. "He's a Guardian too. He's going to carry you. Is that alright?"

Anna sobbed for another moment then nodded once. Dimitri pulled her carefully into his arms, making sure his duster was wrapped around her tightly. She turned her face into his chest, and his eyes lingered on the same cut on her cheek that I'd seen.

He gave me a sombre look as we started quickly back through the trees, and I thought about the deal I'd made with Lissa. It looked like we'd be staying through Christmas break.

The Mana hadn't gone after all.