The rumour mill had died down pretty quickly after Jesse and Ralph recanted their statements. There was a lot of gossip about Jesse sporting a mark of a snake. Things had returned back to the usual degree that people said shit about me, which was fairly often, but I could handle that. Mia had been the new target of gossip after Aaron dumped her for cheating on him. I knew that she would lick her wounds for a while before her next strike.

Last night, I laid on my bed with the scent of my mate surrounding me and I woke up feeling refreshed. Dimitri's hoodies were due to arrive today and I planned to sleep in them before I gave them to him to mark it with my scent. I could feel myself becoming increasingly frustrated again, I couldn't seem to spend any time with Dimitri without aching for his touch and wanting more.

We were playing a dangerous game by having his scent on me, especially being around other alpha's like Pavel and Alberta. I still met Alberta regularly for tea, I would spray myself with deodorant prior to visiting, trying to mask any changes in my scent.

Lissa was full of energy, excited by our prospective shopping trip this weekend. I hadn't told her about my comments to Christian and I knew she was going to blow a gasket when she found out. I hoped that by Christian coming over it would help smooth things over.

Our biggest problem was the growing darkness between the two of us. We had both been taking on a lot, especially after her compulsion spree or "Diplomacy" as she called it. She had used a lot of spirit when she tried to sway the masses to stop calling me a whore. She should have known that my old man would fix the situation, not that I asked him too.

I didn't know how it happened, but somehow I was the one being protected by Moroi and not the other way around. My father being protective is understandable, he saw it as his job. But Lissa shouldn't be protecting me as it is my job to protect her. I am going to be her guardian after all, alongside my mate. Maybe Lissa thought I was too far behind everyone to become her guardian.

I pushed the thoughts out of my mind as I headed to afternoon practice. My eyes lit up as soon as I could sense my mate in the gym. He gave a soft growl as he buried his head into my neck and I purred back in response. Whenever I reached his arms, I felt like I was in my happy place or comfort zone.

He informed me of the rules of the shopping trip as per Kirova's orders. I was to attend the shopping trip as a make-up test while pair guarding with Dimitri. My father had negotiated, as per Lissa's request, for a half hour break so I could try on clothing. I had little interest in the shopping trip aside from getting out of school, eating different food than from the cafeteria and spending time with Dimitri.

"We will be guarding in pairs, you will almost always be the near guard as you are closer in age to the princess-"

"Lissa." He gave me a look and moved on. "Please describe the parameters of pair guarding."

"We remain in constant eye contact throughout this exercise while maintaining watch on our charge." That wouldn't be a problem as I had an innate ability to track him and Lissa in any room.

He nodded with approval and I beamed back at him. "Natalie doesn't have a personal guardian, she will be protected by a school guardian and I am coming because I am assigned to Vasilisa."

I sighed, at least he didn't call her a princess… Baby steps.

"Your father will be accompanied by his guardians and Prince Dashkov will have two guardians." I sighed, Baba's guardian Tad was likely to complain loudly the whole day.

We spent the rest of practice working on staking, first we perfected my technique working on the dummies. To my disappointment, he didn't guide my motion beside me but he watched a few meters away. He demonstrated a two stake technique and he got me staking with my left hand.

"You need to learn how to stake with your left hand, what if you injure your right arm, you would be helpless. You need to master both hands before you can learn the two handed technique."

I pouted, as usual he seemed to read my mind before I could ask my questions or apply my 'Rose logic'.

He then took swipes at me while I attacked the dummy, as a drill to practice for multiple attackers. After that we sparred with a practice stake. I got used to fighting with a stake in my hand. Dimitri was just what Mason said, a god in battle and the stake was an extension of himself.

"Training is cancelled for tomorrow so you can get some sleep before the shopping trip. We need to be careful tomorrow, we will have a couple of Alphas and your father watching us." He kissed my hand and walked me out of the gym.

Lissa, Natalie and I grabbed food from the cafeteria and brought our trays to my dorm. Lissa was arranging snacks by the couch as we were settling in for a movie. Ten minutes later there was a knock on my door.

I looked at Lissa, I felt guilty and my face was reflecting that. 'Who is it." She asked me through the bond. I strode across the room, averting my eyes from Lissa as I opened the door to reveal Christian.

I could feel the surprise, irritation and a little bit of jealousy through the bond. Christian had been avoiding her attempts at communication since I opened my big mouth.

"Come on in Christian." I turned to Lissa and Natalie who were staring at me with their mouths open. "When everyone thought I was a blood whore, he told me the truth and treated me as he normally does… So I thought he could hang out with us tonight."

Natalie gave an awkward "Hello."

Lissa stood there, rage slowly building as the darkness started creeping in. I quickly grabbed Lissa and pushed her towards the kitchenette. "Make yourself comfortable and look at the movie options." I called over my head.

"What is he doing here?" She had a scarily low voice. "He was such a jerk the other day."

I started focusing on my nails, not wanting to meet her eyes. "Rose!" she growled.

"I might have said something to him on the night of the queen's visit about you not liking him, which led to his actions the other day. I invited him as a peace offering to both of you."

"Psycho stalker… I should've known it came from your mouth." She fixed me with a hard look. "Why did you do that?"

"I was worried that he was a bad influence, but after he was one of the few people who was decent to me, I felt bad and thought that I should fix things."

"Oh really, Thank you so much for making decisions for me. I didn't know that I had to get your approval." she said sarcastically.

"I am really sorry Liss, which is why I am trying to fix this.. Besides, he is interesting, not like Aaron who is as dull as dishwater. I'm sorry Liss," I said, using my puppy dog face to sway her.

Lissa tilted her head in agreement and then gave out a huge sigh."I'll make you pay tomorrow… This isn't over!"

Lissa walked over to Natalie near my study nook. "Whose is that?" Natalie asked.

"God Rose, you are such a packrat. Is that Pavel's jumper? You still haven't given it back to him?" Lissa said. 'its a jumper with Cyrillic writing from St Basil's'

"Yeah I borrowed it and then threw it on the pile" I said. I quickly moved my stuff behind a cupboard door and then sat down in the single chair.

"This room is kind of messy… I thought girls were supposed to be tidy" Christian sneered. I flipped him off.

Why did I invite him again?

Natalie sat down on the other end of the couch, leaving Lissa to sit in the middle between Christian and Natalie. Lissa fixed me a look and I tried to look innocent. She sat down next to Christian and awkwardly said 'Hi'.

I made us watch a horror movie. I don't particularly like them and I knew that they made Lissa jumpy. I could feel through the bond that Christian had "Accidentally" brushed his arm past hers when reaching for a snack. In response, she turned to him to ask a question, resulting in her thigh pressing against his. When she turned back to the screen, she kept her leg touching his.

They kept glancing at each other when the other was looking at the screen. Natalie and I looked at each other and rolled our eyes. I could feel Lissa's heart fluttering through the bond and her cheeks blushing crimson. I'm probably going to regret extending this olive branch.

Suddenly, I was pulled into Lissa's head and I could feel a hand slipping into Lissa's. I wanted to vomit and get out of her head ASAP, especially if their hands started to do more exploring. I returned to my own head and looked over at Lissa and Christian making googly eyes at each other.

I kicked them all out well before curfew, reminding Lissa of the shopping trip before she started pouting. Christian offered his arms to escort the girls back. He might be a psycho stalker, but he made her happy and that was what mattered.

I got up late the next morning, knowing that we would have to leave at dawn for the shopping trip. I stripped off my clothes and put on one of the new hoodies. It was so soft and comfortable.

I moved around the room, rearranging my clothes in my study nook. I lay on a pile of Dimitri's things to feel closer to my mate. His scent made me feel like I was wrapped in his arms.

I lowered the zipper of the hoodie, exposing the curves of my breasts. I skimmed my peaks as I imagined my alphas rough fingers passing over them and the feel of his breath on my skin. I pictured my mate's hands moving up my body, worshiping every curve.

I moved my hand south towards my throbbing pearl. As my fingers worked my sensitive nub, I could almost feel his large member sliding between my folds, stretching me to my fullest. I could feel the heat building between my legs and I imagined the euphoria I would feel when he marked me.

All my senses exploded as I pictured him hip deep inside me as he released his seed and formed his knot. My chest was heaving and my brows were moist with sweat as my juices flooded between my legs.

I lay there panting with a smirk forming on my face, I couldn't wait to see his face when I gave him this hoodie. Would he know what I did when I was wearing it? I didn't know whether his sense of smell was that good, but I couldn't wait for a reaction.

I dressed in all black for the shopping trip. I was going to treat this excursion like I was a real guardian, so I had to look the part. I put my hair up in a high ponytail, chose a tight black activewear jacket for mobility, comfortable, stretchy jeans and flat combat boots. Tight jeans restricted movement, making it difficult to fight.

I walked down to the garage to see the mini bus waiting, Lissa and Natalie hadn't appeared, but my eyes found Dimitri immediately who was standing with Stan Alto. I groaned, why did they have to send Alto?

Victor, as always, was accompanied by his two guardians, Spiridon and Ben. My father arrived with Pavel and Tad in tow, as predicted, Tad looked like he was already pouting. I giggled and he fixed me with a glare.

Lissa and Natalie were briskly walking down the footpath. Lissa looked irritated, I knew how she hated to be late and Natalie was perpetually distracted. They reached me and both girls started jumping around me.

"Hey Rose, Are you ready to shop!" Lissa was practically frothing at the mouth with excitement.

"Hey Rose," Natalie gave me a quick hug before she ran over to greet her father.

"Sure am Liss. Are you ready?" I tried to feign excitement.

"I have every angle covered. Water to keep us moving, chocolate bars for when you start getting cranky, hand sanitiser for all those change room handles and I have a map of the stores I want to visit." She pulled her backpack from her back and opened it to show me her supplies. Inside her bag was a dove, looking like it had been stabbed making an awkward flapping motion.

Lissa dropped the bag in shock, then she moved towards it to heal the Dove. I grabbed her hand to stop her. "No Lissa, don't,"

We had piqued the curiosity of the rest of our crowd, Pavel and Dimitri in particular. They both reached the bag at the same time, smelling the blood from the Dove. The Dove had stopped flapping at this point. Dimitri was sniffing the bag looking confused, Pavel also looking concerned.

Lissa was glued to my side and crying as I was watching their assessment. "I doesn't make sense" Pavel murmured.

I caught eyes with Dimitri, he looked perturbed by the situation. It was very late in the Moroi night, most students would be sleeping. It was creepy to think that someone snuck into Lissa's dorm to leave that sick gift. It was weird that two Alpha's couldn't get a scent of this sicko.

Baba came up to Lissa and I, putting his arms around both of our shoulders. Alberta ran up to us from the staff dorms, she looked like she had quickly thrown on her clothes. She assessed the situation, Lissa was crying on Baba's shoulders and the guardians were talking in a small group surrounding her bag.

Alberta came over to the three of us. "I think we need to cancel this expedition. The princess is under threat."

Lissa's head jerked up, "Noooo."

"Come on Bertie, retail therapy is the only thing that will help Lissa feel better." I protested. I looked at Baba for support.

"Guardian Petrov, This is the third instance where Vasilisa has been threatened on campus. We are travelling in daylight, surrounded by six guardians, seven if you count Rose. I can arrange for my backup team to shadow us, and I have made other precautions to keep these girls safe. I can assure you, as a father with extensive resources, I will keep them safe."

Alberta looked at Abe for a minute, I could tell she was running over the facts in her head. "Alright, but we are keeping her safety arrangements strictly between us and I expect you back by 4pm sharp. I'm not taking any chances with a strigoi attack."

I could feel Lissa's excitement through the bond, but I kept my face neutral until Alberta turned to leave. Dimitri came over, respectfully addressing Lissa, but I could feel his eyes on me. "Are you okay Princess?"

Lissa smiled at him. "I'm fine thank you Guardian Belikov."

Baba turned to him, "Ahhh Belikov, long time no see. How's the family?"

Baba was using his friendly, yet very threatening voice. Baba gave Dimitri scrutinising look, he looked like a vulture ready to strike.

"Mr Mazur." He looked like a 16 year old boy meeting the father before he takes a girl on a first date. I never thought my big strong Alpha would let anyone make him feel insecure.

Lissa was staring at everyone, squinting her eyes to stare at our auras. She looked at me with eyes blazing. You definitely haven't told me everything

I silently pleaded with her while Baba continued to talk with Dimitri. "I understand that you have been very dedicated towards training my daughter. A lot of time spent together."

Lissa and I had finished our silent argument, she finished with. We will find the time to talk, because your aura is telling a lot!

I jumped in to save Dimitri. "And it's paid off! We just started staking and I'm a total pro at it. I think I'll get to learn the double stake technique soon."

I made some striking motions and the corners of Dimitri's mouth gave a slight twitch. "You are a very quick study, but it needs to become like second nature before we start that."

Dimitri offers his arm to Lissa as they walk towards the bus while I chatter with Baba. I could tell that my father was suspicious and I was doing my best to misdirect. Baba beamed at me when I was demonstrating my staking technique.

We hopped onto the bus, Baba sat with Victor and Natalie practically pounced on Lissa to sit together. I suspected she was going to grill Liss about the dove. I checked that Lissa was okay, then I made my way down the back of the bus with the guardians. Dimitri was talking across the aisle to Spiridon, Victor's alpha. He had spiky blonde hair and a southern drawl and was watching me and Dimitri with a little too much interest.

Spiridon was trying to get a rise out of Dimitri, offering me to sit next to him. I declined and took the window seat next to Dimitri. I position myself sideways in my seat, my knee just touching his thigh. Trying to be connected to my alpha find a small way for our bodies to make contact without being suspicious.

"Now Rose, Dimitri has to keep his eyes on you at all times, you are his partner. If you were my partner, I wouldn't be able to take my eyes off you, you are cuter than a sack of puppies."

He winks at me while Dimitri fixes him with a hard stare. I move across Dimitri's body pretending to get something from my bag, leaning in to make my scent stronger for him to calm down. "I am also dedicated to my charge, so while pair guarding I will simultaneously maintain eye contact with Lissa."

"Belikov you gave a star pupil there. "Dimitri gives me a nod of approval and we continue to run through evacuation procedures and scenarios with pair guarding. The far guard usually confronts any threats, while the near guard secures their moroi.

After half an hour on the road, conversation amongst the guardians died down. Dimitri started reading a western and I started relaxing into my seat. I had hooked my foot under his and he pressed his thigh against mine. I wanted to curl up in his arms or start teasing him like I did in training, but we had to remain professional surrounded by my father and guardians.

I tried to tune into Lissa, I could feel her on edge. I wasn't particularly sure whether it was because she was sitting next to Natalie who was talking her ear off or because of the Dove.

I couldn't tell whether the person leaving 'presents' wanted her to leave St Vlads or whether they wanted to test her powers. She said that she was feeling like she was being watched, just like before we left. Mia was the on the top of my suspect list and once and for all I was going to get to the bottom of this.

AN: Here's a longer chapter to make up for delays. We are getting close to the end of part one.