Extra long chapter to thank you guys for being so kind in your reviews, and to celebrate 200 people following this story. Thank you so much everyone! XOXO
Nothing could have ever prepared me for the welcome I received from Dimitri's family. As soon as his mothers opened the door she hugged him, and almost all of them started to cry. Paul wrapped himself around his leg and started asking him a lot of questions. When they noticed me, Dimitri introduced me. "This is Rose, Roza this is my family." The old lady I immediately identified as his grandmother. Starting muttering something in Russia, I didn't need to understand what she was saying, the look on her face showed she was not happy to see me. I blinked a few times when I heard someone say my name.
"Rose this is my sister Viktoria, Sonya, and Karolina, my mother, my nephew Paul," he pointed to the boy on his leg. They all hugged me, but the first to speak was his mother.
"Please call me Olena, come inside, Dimitri you shouldn't surprise us if you were bringing her with you, we had no time to prepare, and she's got a baby on the way for heavens sake." Dimitri apologized and it was funny watching him look fearful around a women even shorter than me. They next the introduce themselves was his sister Viktoria, she looked a little younger than me and had purple streaks in her hair, otherwise she had almost all the same features as Dimitri.
"I'm Viktoria, and oh my, Dimitri has told us so much about you, and you really are as beautiful as he said you were, and" she was cut off by her mother.
"Viktoria, give the girl some room, I'm sure she has had a hard time getting here. How about you come into the kitchen with me so we can finish dinner." She turned to Dimitri's other sister, "Why don't you watch Paul with Yeva? Dimitri can help Rose get settled, we can talk over dinner." Sonya shook her head and waddled off with Paul in tow. She was pregnant and looked about ready to pop. When they all left I whispered to Dimitri?
"Why didn't you tell me she was pregnant?" Dimitri shook his head.
"Around here, people don't ask about that stuff or congratulate you, because is almost always, well frowned upon by vampires outside of the community. People just keep to themselves, and their very family oriented." I followed Dimitri upstairs into his room, it was quite nice, with a bookshelf, a desk, and a single bed. Dimitri put my stuff in the dresser first. I'm gonna go unpack I'll be back in a second. I looked at him confused, before I realized what he was doing.
"No I want you to stay with me." He walked over and took my hands.
"Roza, I outgrew that bed before I was 16, there's no way we can both sleep in it." He was right but I wasn't going to steal his bed.
"Well I'll sleep on the couch, I'm not taking your bed from you." He stood there for a second pondering something.
"You'll sleep in my bed just for tonight and tomorrow we can go look for something bigger." I shook my head.
"There isn't enough room for that in here, just let me..."
"No, your not sleeping downstairs." Dimitri's voice turned into his no argue, mentoring voice instantly. "I don't need you freaking out in the middle of the night." I was worried by his tone.
"What are you not telling me? I would be fine downstairs, why wouldn't I be?" Dimitri sighed.
"There are no wards, or guardians patrolling at night, and with so many dhampir women, strigoi come here a lot." Okay he was right I was freaking out but, he should have told me before. Not now, I don't like surprises, and I like being prepared for these kinds of this if I can. I guess me not saying anything was enough of a sign for Dimitri to know I was upset. "I know I should have told you, but just yesterday, you wouldn't even talk. I couldn't just dump it on you." I hugged him, he rubbed my back while he thought. "I'll bring some couch cushions up and sleep on the floor tonight, tomorrow we can figure something else out." I sighed but agreed.
We went downstairs and were immediately greeted by everyone in the kitchen making last minute preparations for dinner. The Sonya, the heavily pregnant sister who never formally introduced her self was first to come up to me. "Hi, sorry I never talked to you earlier, I'm Sonya. Dimitri is my older brother. We haven't heard from him much recently, but I've heard so much about you." I smiled at her.
"Well I guess you know I'm Rose. I'm..." I was about to say Dimitri's girlfriend but I wasn't sure if that was exactly true, and he said people didn't use labels so I detoured. "Im so thankful for all of you welcoming, even though you don't really know me." She shook her head laughing.
"Oh nonsense, of course your welcome, based on what we've all heard Dimitri probably loves you more than us. Also, I'd be happy to talk about the baby anytime. I'm sure Karolina, and my mother, and Yeva could help you. Maybe not Viktoria though, she's only seventeen still has a little growing up to do." She smiled but I suddenly felt uncomfortable, I'm barely eighteen. I didn't say anything else because Dimitri's mother called her to take Paul away. I seen her take the little boys hand and walk him out the room to another women who was holding a baby that couldn't have been even a year old.
I clung to Dimitri's arm because I felt intimidated by everyone for some reason. There hospitality wasn't something I was not used to. I whispered into Dimitri's ear a question that was making me uncomfortable. "Do they know how old I am?"
He kissed my forehead before whispering back. "It doesn't matter."
"But."
"You heard my sister, I love you and that's all they care about." I felt only a little reassured, when they find out I'm only a few months older than his youngest sister that might change. "They don't but you don't have to tell them. You can sit down I'm going to help my mother." I didn't let go of him.
"Let me, it's the least I can do. Besides I think you have a certain nephew who is dying to see you." Dimitri kissed me on the cheek, before walking into the living room. Paul jumped right on him and I didn't notice I was staring at them until I heard someone call my name.
"Rose." Dimitri's mother was standing behind the counter smiling at me softly. There was no one left in the kitchen except the two of us. "Would you mind helping me?" I nodded my head and made my way over to her. She handed me a knife and I began cutting the vegetables in front of me. "You're exactly like what Dimitri described you as, I can tell your a strong little girl. " I smiled not quite sure what to say to her. "I mean just look at you, your baby is going to beautiful." I felt my cheeks turning red, and before I could stop myself I started taking.
"Thank you, but if I could have my way the baby would look just like it's father." I could read her expression, her smile was gone, but she didn't look upset.
"Dear don't think about him, think about the people who are here now. You know Dimitri will love your baby too, but how could he not, look at him." He pointed to him playing with Paul in the living room. "It's in his nature." I suddenly realized what I had said.
"Oh, I, um..." Olena up her hand and shook her head.
"No need to explain dear, I was just like you before. Dimitri and his sisters wouldn't even be here if I wasn't." I put down my knife and turned to her.
"But I do, this baby is...special." I wasn't sure how I was going to explain the theory I had come up with. "I can try to explain later, but this baby is Dimitri's. I know I'm a dhampir too, but it is." I couldn't read her expression again, but I quickly changes as she finished the soup and got out some bowls and spoons. I took them from her after a little protest and set the table while she cut some bread and put it in a basket. She brought the bread and put it in the center of the table, along with butter knife and some spread I didn't recognize.
Olena went back to stirring the soup. "Go ahead, I'll call everyone in when it's done."
"I'll try to explain after dinner." She simply nodded and I left. When I got in the living room, Paul had pinned Dimitri in the floor. He looked exactly like Dimitri, brown eyes, dark hair, tall for his age. I could tell Dimitri was letting him win because he was still twice his size and laughing, a genuine laugh that made my heart ache. He looked up at me and with ease picked Paul up and placed him on his feet. Paul huffed and went over to his mom. Dimitri walked over to me and smiled.
"Smells good." I thought I was smiling but still he read my mind and asked. "What's wrong?" I didn't say anything because I felt tears coming. Dimitri took my hand. "Let's go on a walk." We slid on some shoes and jackets before heading outside. The sun was going down so we stayed close to the house.
"Your mother thinks the baby is someone else. I think she was upset with me because of that." Dimitri squeezed my hand. "They say they know all about me, but Dimitri they don't. I'm not even a legal adult, Lissa and the bond, and so much stuff. They all keep saying they know me though, what have you been telling them?" We began walking back to the house.
"About you, how you act, what you look like, things you'd say. Around here, you running away from school doesn't matter, being the last Dragomir guardian doesn't matter, being shadow kissed doesn't matter. You matter Rose, not what you do, how you do it. I'll tell them how old you are if you want but it won't make a difference to them. Karolina, had Paul when I was fifteen, and she's only a little over a year older than me. People in Baia won't judge you or call you a blood whore." I winced, I had heard that name almost every time I went out in court before I left. "You are their normal, and I don't think you offended my mother, and she'll be more than a little excited when we explain to her." I wasn't completely happy with what he told me but I knew he was being honest.
We sat on the porch swing and watched the sun set. I played with Dimitri's hands while thinking. We were quiet, I liked being alone with him. Then I felt it the swirling feeling in my stomach and I jumped up. It went away as soon as it came, but it was different then what I normally felt. Dimitri watched me wide eyed. "Sorry, I just thought I felt, like one of..." Before I could finish my statement I felt it again, and I realized what happens. "It's moving!" I put my hand flat on stomach and felt a little nudge under my fingers. I smiled so widely my face hurt.
It was sad when I couldn't feel it anymore, but I turned to Dimitri and seen him watching me with a happy gaze. "It's times like this I wonder why you question your ability to be a mother." For the first time I truly believed him. A while later Viktoria came outside and cleared her throat.
"Uh, sorry, but a, dinner's ready." I stood, took Dimitri's hand, and walked into the house still smiling. During dinner Dimitri did most of talking. Normally I didn't let people speak for me, but he knew all the answers to the questions and I was still scared of talking to all these people In a group. I didn't feel like what I would say would be rude, but I felt whatever I said about myself might disappoint them. I mostly spent my time talking to Viktoria and Paul who were sitting closest to me and Dimitri. Viktoria asked a lot about school, and Paul asked a lot about killing strigoi.
After dinner Karolina was the first to say good night to everyone, she took her little girl, but let Paul stay because Dimitri promises to watch him.
Yeva said was the next to leave never taking her eyes off me when she said good night to everyone. The rest of us went into the living room. Once the table was cleared, I looked over to see Paul sleeping on Dimitri and smiled. "I'll take him to bed." Dimitri shook his head and whispered back at me. "Come with me, but you can't carry him." I knew he meant as a precaution and not an insult, so I just followed him into the little room he shared with his sister. Dimitri put I'm on the bed, and I watched from the door, as he tucked him in. I went over and knelt beside his bed. I kissed him on the forehead and whispered. "It's been so nice meeting you, sleep well." Paul kept his eyes closed but he smiled at me. Dimitri kneeled next to him and wished him a good night, but before he could get up. Paul called his name.
"Rose is just as nice as you said she was, I'm so glad you brought her here." My heart stopped, I had never heard anything so nice from anyone other than Lissa or Dimitri or Adrian. From such a innocent little boy, who could only go off our small conversation at dinner his opinion somehow seemed more valid to me. I let one little tear escape before wiping my eyes. I heard Dimitri whisper and I love you before getting up and closing the door behind us.
Dimitri was smiling again, like he was on the porch swing. "You don't even know the effect you have on people Roza." The happy feeling quickly returned as I followed him back to the living room. Olena, Viktoria, and Sonya were all sitting on the couches talking. Olena waved us in getting off the couch she was and joining her daughters. I sat next to Dimitri on the little love seat.
Yeva appeared in nightgown and sat in the rocking chair in the corner of the room. She seemed to make the yarn and knitting needles appear out of nowhere, and I could see where people calling her a witch came from. I realized while I was looking at her everyone was looking at me.
"Sorry, well I guess I just wanted to talk to you all, and introduced myself. But first I need to thank you, for letting me stay here and being so kind to me today." None of them interrupted me but I found Dimitri's hand and held it feeling my earlier nerves returning. "Well I guess you know I'm Rose Hathaway, and I met I Dimitri at Saint Vladimir while he was mentoring me." Surprisingly no one seemed weirded out until I got to explaining being shadow kissed.
"So Lissa, was undeclared for a while, but we found out she uses something called spirit. The first time she used it was in in a car crash where all of her family and me were killed. Somehow she used her healing to bring me back from the dead. It linked me to her, so now I hear he thoughts, see through her eyes, feels what she feels. I'm shadow kissed. I found out I was pregnant about five months ago, and I didn't really know what to do. I was just moving to court and Dimitri had already left. I know, it's crazy but I've never been with anyone else, so this baby it's mine and his Dimitri's." No one said anything for a while. Yeva was first and she onto said one word.
"Shadowkissed." I didn't know if it was a question but she knew the word before I said it so I took the bait.
"What?" She laughed.
"I know someone like you two. A moroi and a dhampir, they have the same connection." My jaw nearly hit the floor.
"You know someone like me?" The old lady nodded, but I did t say anything else. The way she was looking at me told me not to. Viktoria was next to ask me a question but she seemed embarrassed.
"Um so you graduated last year, so your 18 right?" I think I showed something in my face because she apologized immediately after.
"It's fine, I turned 18 last March. Your 17 right?" She relaxed a little and nodded.
"Base on everything I've heard about you I don't think I would believe you if you said you you if you said you were 80." I laughed.
"I guess I've been through a lot, but looking back there's only a few things I'd like to change." I began thinking of Mason, his death replaying in my mind. I shuddered. Yeva excused herself once again, heading to bead for the night. Sonya began asking me things like my due date, if I knew whether it was a boy or a girl, morning sickness, and other questions that reminded me of Lissa. I made a mental note to check in on her again. After a while I leaned into Dimitri and yawn I kept talking for a while. Olena was the next of the group to go to bed.
I dozed off but woke up when I felt myself moving. Dimitri was picking me up. I pushed against his chest and moaned but he carried me to bed, and tucked me in. He kissed me before leaving me for the night.
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