Adrian had been awakened way too early by someone knocking at his door. He tried to ignore it, but whoever it was seemed damned insistent. Grumbling he had rolled out of bed, staggering over to the door and throwing it open.

"What?" He growled, his eyes struggling to focus on the figure before him.

Princess Vasilisa Dragomir stood, her eyes wide with shock at his rudeness. Or perhaps she was shocked by the fact he had answered the door in a pair of silk boxer shorts.

"I'm sorry, I—" she turned to leave, her cheeks flushed with embarrassment.

He reached out, grabbing her wrist. "No, it's ok. Sorry. I'm always rude first thing in the morning. Come in cousin, have a seat while I make myself decent."

She sat, still blushing prettily, her eyes locked on the carpet. Her demure demeanor amused him. He threw on a pair of pants and a shirt, collapsing beside her on the sofa. His body was demanding a drink, but he was determined not to overdo it today. He hoped to spend some time with Rose, and he could tell she didn't approve of his normal behavior.

"What can I do for you?" He had to get the ball rolling, apparently she was content to stare at the carpet in silence all day.

"What was that last night? What I felt, when you touched me?"

He laughed. "That, Vasilisa, was like calling to like."

"Please, I'm Lissa."

He could tell his words had confused her, so he sat for a moment, waiting for her to figure out his meaning. He'd heard she was smart, surely she would—

She gasped, making him flinch. "You're a spirit user, like me!"

He stared at her. Apparently, it was his turn to be confused. Explaining what she and Rose had discovered, she seemed more relaxed. In turn, he felt himself relaxing as well, relieved to have finally found someone he could share his troubles with. He was about to ask her if she felt the black depression when she stood, announcing she had to go. He felt disappointed, but masked it. They'd have plenty of time to talk in the future.

He opened the door, shocked to find Rose standing on the other side. Damn it, he hadn't even had time to shower!

"Little dhampir," he said cordially, trying to regain his composure. "Didn't expect to see you here."

"I'm returning these." She shoved the box into his chest before he could open his mouth to protest. Clumsily, he caught it, staggering a under its sudden weight. Once he had a good grip, he took a few steps back and set it on the floor. Her reaction confused him. He had expected her to be pleased by his thoughtfulness, not… irritated.

"Didn't you like any of them?" he asked. "You want me to get you some more?" He'd gladly do it. Hell, he'd buy her a car if she wanted one.

"Don't send me any more gifts." Her voice held a warning, but he chose to ignore it.

"It isn't a gift. It's a public service. What woman doesn't own perfume?"

"Don't do it again," she repeated, her voice sounding firm.

Suddenly, a voice behind him asked, "Rose? Is that you?" He felt like groaning, knowing Rose would get the wrong idea. He was trying to win her, not drive her further away, Damn it.

She peered around him, staring at Lissa. "What are you doing here?"

"What are you doing here?" Lissa shot back.

Shit. This was definitely not helping matters. He thought perhaps a little humor would alleviate some of the tension he felt growing around them.

"Ladies, ladies," he teased. "No need to fight over me." He was pleased to notice the tiniest hint of green in Rose's aura. Hah! She was jealous!

Her glare quickly shot down his euphoria. "We're not. I just want to know what's going on here."

A deep, accented voice behind Rose echoed through the hallway. "Me too."

Adrian cursed internally. He should have known the cradle robber would show up. Belikov had probably been trailing Rose all morning, making sure Adrian didn't approach her.

Rose jumped, spinning around and staring at the irritated man. He stepped past her, entering the room uninvited. His jealousy was as obvious on his face as it was in his aura.

"Male and female students aren't supposed to be in each other's rooms."

Adrian smirked at the taller man, contemplating pointing out the obvious. He wasn't a student. Even if he were, the rules wouldn't really apply to him. They hadn't when he was an actual student, and he'd be damned if they were going to stop him now. Rose's next statement grabbed his attention.

"How do you keep doing this?" She demanded, frustrated.

He knew his face reflected his confusion. "Do what?"

"Keep making us look bad!"

He chuckled. "You guys are the ones who came here."

"You shouldn't have let them in. I'm sure you know the rules at St. Vladimir's." Belikov's voice was scornful.

Adrian felt his anger stir. How dare a dhampire attempt to scold an Ivashkov as if he were a naughty schoolboy. He bit back his initial response, determined to remain calm in Rose's presence. He wanted Belikov to lose his cool, not the other way around. He shrugged. "Yeah, but I don't have to follow any school's stupid rules."

"Perhaps not," Dimitri said coldly. "But I would have thought you'd still respect those rules."

Adrian rolled his eyes, deciding to take a jab at his competition. After what he'd witnessed last night, Belikov had some nerve judging him. "I'm kind of surprised to find you lecturing about underage girls."

The other man read the hidden message in his phrase—anger flashed in his dark eyes. For a moment, it seemed he might lose control. Rage shot through his aura, and his fists clenched tightly at his sides, showing how angry he was. Adrian smirked, knowing the man was remembering his interrupted dream.

"Besides," Adrian continued, "nothing sordid was going on. We were just hanging out.

"If you want to 'hang out' with young girls, do it at one of the public areas."

He was pleased to see Rose's aura flash with anger at being called a young girl. That's right, Belikov, just keep rubbing her age in her face. The man was an absolute moron when it came to women. It made him laugh. Unfortunately, he realized too late that his dream viewing had affected him more than usual. The laugh sounded strange and eerie, tinged with a hint of madness. He couldn't stop himself from uttering the first thing that crossed his mind.

"Young girls? Young girls? Sure. Young and old at the same time. They've barely seen anything in life, yet they've already seen too much. One's marked with life, and one's marked with death… but they're the ones you're worried about? Worry about yourself, dhampir. Worry about you, and worry about me. We're the ones who are young."

They stared at him, as if he were crazy. If they knew how closely he walked the line between madness and sanity every day of his life, they would probably run screaming from his presence. He forced back his dark thoughts, struggling to appear normal. Turning away he strolled toward the window, glancing casually back at his guests as he pulled out his clove cigarettes. He needed a fix, to keep the insanity at bay.

"You ladies should probably go. He's right. I am a bad influence."

The girls glanced at each other and left. He waited a few seconds before cracking the door and peering out, watching as they followed Dimitri down the hall toward the lobby. Tossing the cigarette in the crystal ashtray, he pulled on his power, cloaking himself as he slipped into the hallway. It was another talent of his, the ability to send power into his aura, somehow making himself less noticeable to those around him. It would hold until he either released it or some incompetent fool bumped into him. Trailing them down the hall, he leaned against the wall a few yards back, his superior Moroi hearing picking up their voices clearly. Rose started to follow Lissa, but Belikov wasn't quite ready to release her.

"Rose," he said. "Can I talk to you?"

She hesitated, finally crossing her arms and staring up at him. She was still noticeably angry, perhaps reliving his hurtful words the day before.

"That's Adrian Ivashkov." His voice was tense, his jealousy making his accent more pronounced. Adrian smirked, pleased to know the man was worried.

Rose stared at him with a look that screamed out 'no shit Sherlock'. "Yeah, I know."

"This is the second time I've seen you with him." His aura was slowly embracing hers, making Adrian wonder if somehow his subconscious affected it. The gold was flecked with worry and love, not to mention his ever growing jealousy.

"Yeah," she replied. "We hang out sometimes." He almost laughed at the tone she used. It was so wonderfully suggestive. He could see Belikov's body tense.

The tall man arched an eyebrow, then jerked his head back toward where we'd come from. "You hang out in his room a lot?"

"What happens between him and me is none of your business." Somehow, she managed to sound exactly the same way he had the day before, when he'd made a similar comment. Adrian grinned, pleased that his little dhampire was putting the pedophile in his place.

"Actually, as long as you're at the Academy, what you do is my business."

Good God, reminding her again he was her teacher, and that she was nothing more than a student in his eyes. This was going to be almost too easy. Adrian had thought the man was going to at least attempt to put up a fight.

"Not my personal life. You don't have any say in that." She shot back, her temper starting to grow.

"You're not an adult yet."

"I'm close enough. Besides, it's not like I'll magically become an adult on my eighteenth birthday."

"Clearly,"he said.

Adrian winced. Again with the age comments. Belikov clearly needed to get some new material.

She blushed, hurt at his thoughtless words. "That's not what I meant. I meant—"

"I know what you meant. And the technicalities don't matter right now. You're an Academy student. I'm your instructor. It's my job to help you and to keep you safe. Being in the bedroom of someone like him… well, that's not safe."

Hah! He wasn't safe? He wasn't the one who had ripped her dress off and—

"I can handle Adrian Ivashkov," Rose muttered. "He's weird— really weird, apparently—but harmless."

Ouch. Well, that was a shot to his ego. Still, he understood her words, she had, after all, had a ringside seat to his little detour into crazy town a short while ago.

"Speaking of personal lives … I suppose you were off visiting Tasha, huh?" Her voice sounded sad, and the colors flickering against the dark cloud around her reflected it. Adrian was pleased to note that the gold around her wasn't responding to Belikov in quite the same way as it had the day before. It was still there, still reaching for him, but today, his aura was the aggressive one, surrounding her almost as if it wanted to jerk her into his arms. The darkness had changes too, almost doubling in size, and the gold was doing nothing to diminish it.

"Actually, I was visiting your mother."

"You going to hook up with her too?"

Adrian chortled out loud, realizing almost too late that he was supposed to be discreet. Ducking into a door frame, he shook with silent laughter. Where the hell did she get her quips? He leaned his head against the wall, trying to control his mirth. By the time he had himself under control, he realized he had missed quite a bit of their conversation.

"Zen life lessons again," She sighed, running a hand through her long hair, tucking it behind her ears in a wonderful, feminine gesture. "Why'd you tell me this, anyway? This is guardian stuff. Not the kind of thing you let novices in on."

His face softened as he stared down at her. He was leaning down slightly, lessening the space between them. Adrian was willing to bet it was an unconscious movement. "I've said a few things…the other day and today…that I shouldn't have. Things that insulted your age. You're seventeen…but you're capable of handling and processing the same things those much older than you do."

"Really?" Rose asked her voice sounding slightly husky.

Shit. Shit shit shit. Her aura reflected her joy, and now it was rubbing against his. He was actually winning her over, making her forget the hurt he had caused her.

He nodded. "You're still really young in a lot of ways— and act young—but the only way to really change that is to treat you like an adult. I need to do that more. I know you'll take this information and understand how important it is and keep it to yourself."

Someone walked by, and when Adrian noticed who it was he bit his lip to contain his amusement. Too little, too late Belikov, he thought to himself. If the idiot had said his sweet words earlier, he might have pulled this one off. As it was, his little moment of sweetness was about to be blown sky high.

"Dimka," Natasha Ozera called as she approached them. She smiled at him for a moment, then turned her attention to the beautiful girl at his side. "Hello, Rose."

Both Dimitri and Rose's auras flooded with irritation at the interruption. Interesting. He had expected it from Rose, but not from Belikov. Not since he was considering becoming the woman's… Guardian.

"Hey," Rose's displeasure was evident in her voice.

Natasha placed a hand on Dimitri's forearm, sliding her fingers over the leather of his coat causing Rose's aura to flare with violence. Strange how the darkness almost doubled in size. Adrian made a mental not to ponder that fact at a later date.

"You've got that look," Natasha said, her voice attempting to be seductive. In Adrian's opinion, she failed miserably.

"What look?" he asked. There was a small, knowing smile on his lips. The tall man looked almost… playful.

"That look that says you're going to be on duty all day."

"Really? I have a look like that?" His voice was teasing and flirtatious, filling Adrian with conflicting emotions. On one hand, he was gleeful, pleased to see the Russian fuck up so badly. On the other, he knew how much pain it was causing his little dhampire to witness this.

Natasha nodded. "When does your shift technically end?"

"An hour ago."

"You can't keep doing this. You need a break."

"Well … if you consider that I'm always Lissa's guardian…"

"For now," she said knowingly. Rose looked like she might actually hurl on the carpet. "There's a big pool tournament going on upstairs."

"I can't," he said, but the flirtatious smile was still on his face. "Even though I haven't played in a long time …"

Rose's misery struck him like a physical blow. He was filled with an intense dislike for Belikov that had nothing to do with the fact they were competing for the same girl. How could he act that way, right in front of her? He was practically rubbing her face in it, treating her as if she had no feelings—as if nothing had ever happened between them. This was definitely not how not you should treat someone that you—

"Come on, then," Tasha begged. "Just one round! We could take them all."

"I can't," he sounded regretful. "Not with everything going on."

She sobered a little. "No. I suppose not." Glancing at over at Rose, Tasha teased the girl, making Adrian want to slap the shit out of the scar faced bitch. "I hope you realize what a hard-core role model you have here. He's never off duty."

"Well," Rose said, copying Tasha's lilting tone from earlier, "for now, at least."

Tasha looked puzzled, her aura flooding with unease. She didn't understand Rose's anger. Adrian watched as she struggled to figure out what was wrong. Dimitri shot Rose a dark look, and unfortunately for him, Tasha caught it. Her unease was rapidly being replaced with confusion and… shock. The man was the biggest fucking idiot on the planet. The look—he'd probably intended as a warning to behave—had not been the type of look a mentor would give his student. It had been more… possessive. The look a man might give a girlfriend or wife who was behaving in a spiteful manner. Adrian could almost see the wheels spinning in Natasha's head as she studied the two people beside her. Their eyes were still locked on each other, having a silent battle. Belikov finally broke the gaze.

"We're finished here, Rose. Remember what I said." Adrian shook his head, disgusted by the way the man dismissed her.

"Yeah," Rose shot back, giving Tasha a final evil look. "Definitely."

She stormed across the lobby, forcefully shoving several people out of her way. Belikov sighed, closing his eyes for a moment, a pained expression crossing his face as he bit down on his lower lip. Again, he appeared to forget there was someone at his side. Someone who was watching him like a hawk.

"Dimka?" Tasha tugged at his arm, her voice uncertain. "Are you alright?"

"No. I'm not. I have a bit of a headache. I need to lie down. I'll come find you in a bit Tasha, ok?" Without waiting for an answer he stalked after Rose, probably wanting to make sure she didn't kill anyone on her way to her room.

Adrian pulled his power in, sauntering down the hall towards the confused woman who was staring at Belikov's ass. This was going to be fun. He wasn't going to do anything too naughty. Maybe just a hint or two, to stir the woman up a bit.

"Lady Ozera." He said, nodding his head at her politely.

She jumped, startled by his sudden appearance. She regained her composure quickly. "Lord Ivashkov."

"Seems you… interrupted something there." He smiled, waiting for her to process his words.

"What? Oh," she forced a laugh. "You mean Dimitri and Rose? Yes. He was probably lecturing her. She's quite a handful, you know."

"Hmmm… No, actually, I wouldn't. Every time I try to spend time with her, he manages to show up and ruin it."

"Well, he is her mentor. It's his job to look after her." Her voice was icy. She didn't like where the conversation was headed.

"Mentor. Is that what they're calling it now days?" He laughed.

She glared at him, crossing her arms across her chest. "Exactly what are you implying, Adrian?"

Hah. She'd dropped his title. He was definitely getting under her skin. "I'm not implying anything. I'm merely stating what I've observed. Have you ever watched them together? The way their bodies lean towards each other? The soft looks they shoot back and forth?" He paused, pleased to see an angry flush rising on her pale cheeks. "I can't help but wonder what kind of dreams the man is having, when I wander by his room at night and hear him calling out Roza, Roza." He leaned against the wall, staring at her. "But I'm sure you're right. Perhaps he's just dreaming about being her mentor and… training her to his specifications."

Tasha spun around, stalking across the lobby. Adrian smiled to himself. Natasha was going to attach herself to Belikov like glue, demanding every minute of his free time. More importantly, she would keep the other man away from Rose. Mission accomplished. He headed back to his room for a drink, followed by a nap. He had a party to attend tonight, after all.