This idea has been bouncing around for a while. It's a bit of a mash-up between the Forbidden Game and Truth or Dare. Not sure how it will play out, but we'll see how it goes.

I let HiccupedStudio read the first draft and I thought she was going to croak she was so excited lol.

We thought it was a game, just a stupid, messed up board game. But as the taunts started to come, the five of us didn't know what to think.

"Isn't this like an Ouija board?" I asked as I sat down on the floor.

"Not really," Mia said as she pulled the lid off the box and pulled the pieces out. I sighed and tied my hair up as she set up the game. It looked like an Ouija board, the same layout was in the center, but it kind of looked like Monopoly around the edges.

"Where did you get this?" Eddie asked. Mia smirked at him. She was visiting the Academy for the weekend. It seemed odd that Court would allow a student to go to the Academy after the attacks, but she was granted permission to visit. So here we were, all congregated in Lissa's room, complete with every candle Mia and Lissa could find to make 'ambience' and 'atmosphere'.

It was nice to see her though. The rescue mission had done a real number on all of us, and it was nice to be able to do something as mundane as play a board game where the object of the game was to scare the shit out of each other.

I hadn't had a practice since the rescue, mostly because Dimitri was in worse shape than we had originally thought when we pulled him from the caves. But he was on the mend, thankfully.

I glanced at Lissa as Mia set the cards on the spots on the board, rolling my eyes at her. We were only playing the game to appease Mia. Mia read the instructions of the game, wiggling her fingers at us that we couldn't end the game until we all reached the finish line.

"And if we don't?" Christian drawled.

"I don't know. It just says dire secrets will come to light," Mia said with a shrug and tossed the instructions back in the empty box.

"It says we each have to make a game piece," she said and fished the things out of the box.

"Make a piece?" Christian asked with a furrowed brow.

Mia nodded and tossed a standing piece at all of us and then the markers in the box. I shrugged my shoulders and uncapped the marker, drawing a flower on it. It was easy enough for my piece, given my name. Once everyone else had made their pieces, I took the dice from Mia. It seemed basic enough, roll the dice, move the piece, read the card, and do what it says. I could see why it said you all had to make it to the finish, some cards would send you back to the beginning.

"To the person on your left; what is your worst fear?" Christian said, turning and looking at me. I shrugged slightly. I wasn't sure what my biggest fear was. Losing someone I loved?

"Spiders," I said with a roll of my eyes and picked up the dice again, rolling my turn. This time, we all had to move the planchette. Every time someone drew that card, we had to ask a question.

"Will I ever meet my father?

It was such a dump question, and I thoroughly blamed my friends when it slid over the yes. All of them claimed they didn't do it, but that's what happened with Ouija boards, someone was always fucking with you.

We were all about halfway through the board when a shrill noise made us all jump. For a second, I thought it was the warning klaxon, but then I realized it was the fire alarm. We all stood up, knowing we'd get in shit if we didn't evacuate for the drill.

When Lissa opened the door to her room, there was almost a groan-like noise that filled the room. It was eerie enough to set my hair on edge, and all the candles flickered out.

I shrugged it off, thinking it was because of the open window in the hallway, but I didn't think anything of the game again until the following day.

While three-quarters of the school were off campus, it was still liveley in the cafeteria the next morning. I trudged through the hall, heading toward where Lissa and Christian were sitting, setting my tray down on the table.

"Hey," Lissa said with a smile, but it didn't quite reach her eyes.

"Hey. What's wrong?" I asked, noticing that something was off through the bond.

"Just a really weird dream," she said with a wave of her hand.

"I had a messed up dream too last night," Christian said as he sipped his coffee. Judging by the lack of food in front of them aside from some granola and yogurt, they both went to the feeders before I sat down.

I looked at the two of them and bit my lip. I guess the game got the best of us. I had an odd dream last night too. Kind of scary, but I was hazy on the details. I just remembered the four of us were there, and a man that had eyes as black as charcoal.

"I had one too," I said after a moment when Mia and Eddie joined us.

"Had one what?" Eddie asked, barely sitting before he took a drink of his coffee. As I looked around the table, we all looked exhausted.

"A weird dream," Lissa said, "Mine was about a guy. He just stood there, smirking at me."

My spoon clattered in my cereal as Eddie sputtered on his coffee.

"With black eyes?" I asked. Eddie looked at me and the four of us exchanged glances.

"Yeah, how did you know that?" Lissa asked before realizing that we were bonded, and we shared dreams sometimes.

"I had the same dream," Eddie said quietly.

That definitely wasn't because of the bond.

"He was laughing, tell me we broke the rules," Mia whispered, pushing her breakfast away from her. I looked at her and shook my head.

"We probably were just thinking about the game," I brushed off, but I had an uneasy feeling about it all.

It couldn't be anything more than that. It was just a silly board game.

With the lull in classes, I decided that Dimitri was overdue for a visit. We had been trying to keep things quiet between us, but I knew that seeing him would make me feel better.

I hummed a tune under my breath as I walked through the hospital wing, the takeout box with a piece of chocolate cake from lunch in my hands. I rounded the corner into one of the long-term rooms and knocked on the open door.

Dimitri looked up from his book and smiled at me. I knew that the doctors had him on a lot of heavy medications, making him tired most of the time. But he needed to heal, and he couldn't do that if he was in pain.

A broken femur was painful, even for Dhampirs.

"Hey, Roza," Dimitri said, setting his book down in his lap. I walked in and pulled the chair up from beside the bed, moving it so I was right beside it.

"Hey, comrade. How are you feeling?" I asked, setting the cake on the table beside me. I glanced at his leg that was propped up. It pained me to see him like this, but being in here was the best place for him.

"I'm okay. The pain's not too bad today, they turned down my morphine which is nice. I don't feel so fuzzy. How are you?" he explained, brushing his fingers over mine that rested on the blanket.

I nodded my head.

"I'm okay. Glad that you're feeling better," I said softly, "How much longer will you be in here?"

"Dr. Olendzki is going to assess me today. There's a possibility that they are going to move me to the closest trauma center and I'll have to have surgery. That Strigoi did a real good job," he said dryly.

I frowned. "Tell me the truth, how much does it hurt?"

Dimitri sighed quietly and gripped my hand gently.

"It hurts, I don't remember feeling pain like this before," he said tiredly. I nodded and pulled my hand away as someone walked into the room, finding Dr. Olendzki there.

"I just need to adjust your leg. Rose, it may be best if you step outside," Dr. Olendzki said as she approached the bed. I looked at Dimitri and he sighed.

"Could she stay? It might help," he said and I could see that he was trying not to tense up already. Dr. Olendzki looked at me and frowned, but nodded her head. I stood up and moved the chair, waiting to see what I could do.

"It may be best if you face him with your back to me," Dr. Olendzki said. I nodded and sat on the edge of the bed, slipping my hand into his. If anyone said something, I would say it was simply for support.

"Ready?" she asked.

Dimitri took a deep breath and his eyes fluttered closed, a grimace on his face. I heard a click as the prop changed and he grunted, gritting his teeth.

"Squeeze my hand," I whispered encouragingly. I squeezed him gently and then he squeezed mine. I knew he was trying not to hurt me, but I knew that the shift in position would be painful. I soothed him quietly, rubbing my other hand on his arm to give him something else to think about.

His breath came out in sharp pants through his nose, and I wouldn't have been surprised if he cracked his teeth.

"And we're done," Dr. Olendzki said quietly. Dimitri let out a deep breath and opened his eyes. as much as he wanted to show he was strong enough, the femur was the strongest bone in the body. If he wasn't in a lot of pain, I'd be worried.

"I'm going to give you something to help with the discomfort," Dr. Olendzki said as she took her gloves off. I nodded and bit my lip, reaching out and tucking some of his hair behind his ear.

"You're okay," I whispered. Dimitri's eyes were closed again, trying to regain composure. I leaned forward and brushed a soft kiss against his lips, smiling softly at him when he opened his eyes.

"What's in the box?" Dimitri asked changing the topic.

"I brought you my lunch dessert," I said opening the box and resting the box on the bed, the fork tucked inside of it.

"You turned down chocolate for me?" he asked with a slight laugh. I nodded and took and bite before handing the rest to him. Dimitri smiled at me as he ate the cake, no doubt the best thing he'd eaten in the last few days. As he ate, he shifted uncomfortably.

"What is it?"

He shook his head. "My neck hurts a bit," he said and I leaned forward, adjusting the pillow behind his head. When he leaned back he nodded at me with a smile.

"Rose, I'm afraid once I give this to Guardian Belikov, he won't be able to have visitors," Dr. Olendzki said as she came back in. I nodded and stood up, leaning over him gently to hug him.

"I'll come see you later," I said as I pulled back, giving him a small smile.

Dimitri nodded and thanked me for the cake as I slipped out the door. Once I was around the corner I leaned against the wall before leaning forward, my hands on my knees. I blew out a breath and closed my eyes. I hated seeing him in pain like that.

"Rose? Are you okay?"

I looked up at Dr. Olendzki and nodded.

"Yeah. Just hate that he's in pain. He's sugar-coating it," I said with a shake of my head. "What are the chances that he's going to need surgery to reduce the break?"

She shook her head. "I shouldn't even tell you, but we will be transferring him later today to Missoula. His femoral shaft was broken in more than one place. "

I bit my lip. "And the recovery?"

She blew out a breath. Well for humans it's anywhere from four to six months, so I'd say two to five," she said, "Depending on how well the surgery goes."

I nodded and stood up straight. "Okay."

The following morning, I found Lissa in the library, anxiety flowing through the bond.

"Hey, what's up?" I asked her but she looked up at me and slid a piece of paper across the table to me.

"This was taped to my mirror this morning," Lissa whispered. I picked up the paper and read it, furrowing my brows together.

Do you know what your brother did to Rose?

I shook my head. "This was taped to your mirror?"

She nodded her head. "What does this mean?"

I bit my lip. I never breathed a word of what happened, and neither had Andre.

"Rose?"

I sat down at the table and looked at the paper, letting out a quiet sigh.

"Do you remember that party your brother threw when your parents went away? Right before they died?"

Lissa nodded and bit her lip. "The one where Andre got trashed?"

"Yeah," I whispered and shifted uncomfortably, "He came onto me."

Lissa cocked her head a little. "That's not funny."

"I never said it was."

"And you never said anything?"

I shrugged. "I don't know, I was sort of embarrassed by it. I mean, it was Andre. I was upstairs getting ready for bed and he came in. I was sleeping in your room and you had passed out on the couch. When he kissed me, I pushed him away-"

Lissa held her hand up. "I don't know what kind of joke you thought this would be, but it's not funny. Andre wouldn't have done that."

"Please, Andre was stringing Mia along," I returned and Lissa shook her head as she stood up.

"We aren't playing that game anymore, Rose. And the fact that you would do that hurts," she said as she walked away, leaving me in utter confusion at the table.

After a long day, I retreated to my room, dropping onto my bed with a quiet thud. I toyed with the new phone Alberta got me in my hand. She decided that I needed one now that I was eighteen, and it was a gift from her and my mom.

There were a few numbers programmed in it when I got it, and before Dimitri left, he put his in it too.

I clicked his icon and waited as it rang, opting for a video call instead of a regular one. I listened to it beep before the call connected, a very groggy-looking Dimitri on the other side.

"Hey," I said softly.

"Hi," he said as he laid back, his hair tied at the back of his neck. He was still in his hospital gown, and if I was being honest, he looked a little adorable.

"How are you feeling? Everything went okay?"

He nodded slowly. "Everything went well. I should be back by the end of the week. But we won't be training together for a while."

I smiled at him and got comfortable on the bed, pulling my hair out of the bun I had it in.

"That's fine. You can always watch me from the bench," I said with a wink. He laughed quietly and turned his head as someone came into the room.

"Can I get you anything?"

"Do you mind moving the table closer so I can get my water?" Dimitri asked. There were footsteps on his side of the call. A nurse appeared in the corner of the camera, moving things closer to him. She looked to be a few years older than him, and had a sweet look to her face.

"Oh, sorry, I didn't realize I was interrupting your call," she said when she caught me out of the corner of my eye.

"It's alright. This is who I was telling you about earlier," he said and the nurse laughed.

"Your boyfriend was asking for you when he woke up. Except nobody could understand him. He kind of forgot how to speak English for a good ten minutes," the nurse said with a smile and checked his vitals while she was there.

I smiled at the words. Your boyfriend. The fact that Dimitri didn't correct her either made my heart flutter a little.

"Were you one of the ones that Dimitri was evacuating?"

I looked at her confused, but Dimitri spoke up.

"Rose was helping me evacuate students when the tunnel collapsed. She dragged me out of the cave when I got hurt," Dimitri explained.

"Well, thank God for that," the nurse said with a smile, "I'll come back in an hour or so and change your bandages."

I waved at the camera as the nurse walked away, smirking at him when the door shut.

"Girlfriend, huh?"

He smirked. "I was very confused when I woke up," he admitted and I snickered.

"And she speaks Russian?"

"Ukrainian. But the languages are so similar that words are the same. She figured out what I was saying and made me understand I wasn't speaking English."

I smiled and propped my head up on my elbow. "I don't think I've ever heard you speak in Russian. I've heard you mutter to yourself, but never a full phrase or anything."

Dimitri smiled at me. "YA obeshchayu govorit' eto chashche dlya vas."

I smirked. "What does that mean?"

"I said I promise I'll speak it more often for you," he said and yawned, trying to cover his mouth.

"Are you tired? I can let you go?" I whispered.

"As much as I'd love to keep talking, I am tired. Switching to normal time is making it difficult."

"I'll let you go. I love you," I said softly.

Dimitri smiled a smile that I knew was just for me, the smile that I usually only ever saw when it was just the two of us.

"I love you. Sleep well, Roza," he said. I nodded and ended the call, laying back on the bed with a sigh. I tucked my arms under my pillow and furrowed my brows when my hands touched something rough. I pulled my pillow away and found a piece of paper under my pillow. It was almost like parchment, the same kind of paper Lissa had earlier.

What would your friends think if they knew you were in a relationship with your mentor?

It felt like a weight had dropped into my stomach. Nobody else could get in here, aside from the matron, Alberta, and Dimitri. I stood up and checked the window, despite being high enough that nobody would be ballsy enough to climb the wall. But it was still locked. I bit my lip and tucked the note into my bag and changed for bed, cuddling my pillow to my chest.

As I lulled myself to sleep, a face appeared in my mind, a voice that was almost a whisper.

"You didn't finish the game. Dire secrets will come to light. Finish the game or meet your demise."

When I walked into the cafeteria the next morning, I knew something was wrong. My friends were sitting in the farthest corner of the room, heads bent together as they spoke. When I sat down with my bagel, they looked up, all of them with worried eyes.

"What's up?" I asked.

They all looked at each other before Mia, Eddie, and Christian pushed pieces of paper toward me. I felt queasy as I looked at them.

Does your father know what you did?

Would you really trade places with Mason?

Would Lissa still love you if she knew what you dreamed about?

I shook my head and looked at them.

"I didn't write these!" I said but Lissa rested her hand on mine.

"I know," she said, "And I'm sorry for what I said yesterday in the library."

"It's fine," I whispered and looked at them, "Is this seriously the game?"

Mia shook her head. "I had another weird dream last night."

"You didn't finish the game. Dire secrets will come to light. Finish the game or meet your demise?"

Mia nodded and looked like she was going to vomit.

"Where did you find that game?" Christian asked.

"At some thrift store on the edge of Court," she said after a moment. "Did you get a note?"

Four sets of eyes turned to me.

"The secrets stay between us, no matter what?"

They all nodded. I blew out a breath and pulled mine out of my bag, setting it on the table next to the other. They all read it and thankfully didn't say anything.

"These are all secrets that we've never breathed before," Eddie said, running his hand through his hair and tugging on the end of them.

I nodded. "I have a bad feeling about that game," I whispered.