Hello again, everyone! Just wanted to give a quick note in response to a guest review about adding a disclaimer for any similarities to this story and the movie Mr. & Mrs.Smith. I have personally never seen it aside from maybe once many years ago so I have no intentions of taking anything from it aside from using the inspiration of the general premise of the main characters being "married" killers but also enemies. If there are any plot similarities within my story they are purely coincidental and unintentional as again I'm not very familiar with the movie. Thank you and I hope you all enjoy the double update this week!

The Next Day

"This is getting us nowhere," I grumbled deep in my throat. Boredom made me resort to hanging off the couch like a bat and seeing how long it took me to pass out. We'd been going over the ins and outs of both Abe and Galina's businesses, but we were no closer to finding out who the possible traitor(s) could be. Now that Dimitri knew about Galina's secret operation, but had absolutely no knowledge of its inner workings, it was glaringly obvious we were missing a pretty damn big piece of her puzzle.

So, long story short, I'm going to be stuck here with Captain Killjoy forever. Lovely.

The Russian cowboy had just been sitting with his hands locked in front of his mouth, staring off into nothingness for a while. His expression was completely blank, so I didn't even bother trying to decipher it. Not that I had enough mental energy left for a job like that anyway. I was starting to think he needed to be rebooted or something. Throwing a pillow to make sure he wasn't dead was the first thought that came to mind, but figured I shouldn't block my blessing if he was. We'd made some progress toward a...somewhat cordial relationship yesterday but rewriting years of hostility was going to take a lot longer than a day. Or probably even a few weeks. Being able to sit down and actually talk to him was something I never would've expected in a million years. Unless, of course, I was talking to his empty husk after finally killing him and losing the last bit of my sanity in the process. At times it felt good not having to worry about him waiting around any corner with a knife or waking up to a hulking figure leaning over my bed with a pillow, but at others it felt almost...wrong. What else could we be if not Rose Mazur and Dimitri Belikov: mortal enemies destined to kill one another?

An unwelcome suggestion sprang up in my mind as my eyes intuitively followed the natural curves and extensions in his muscles as they stretched within his arms and chest when he finally stood up to raise his arms above his head. A lump formed in my throat that I couldn't swallow down. I wanted to blame it on not being able to schedule an "appointment" with Adrian for almost a month because the more time we spent together, regardless of it being forced together, the more heated I found myself around him. I hated it. Granted I wasn't above just working something out of my system and being done with it, why'd it have to be him? I felt like the school's popular girl being pushed into seven minutes of heaven with a band geek. No offense to Dimitri, but boring tight ass wasn't exactly my type. Sure he was very physically attractive, that I couldn't deny, but what did we have in common aside from both killing people for a living?

"Ahem!" The loud throat clearing pulled me out of my racing thoughts, and the eyebrow he had raised told me I'd been unconsciously staring at him the whole time. Because I just loved embarrassing myself around him apparently.

"Should we take a break for now? Looks like you need some help staying focused," His voice was hard, but the look on his face said 'I'm internally laughing at your expense'. The only thing that made this worse, although the fact that it was even happening against my will was plenty, was the fact that he could always tell so easily. Like some spidey sense went off in him whenever I was...worked up, "We'll go over it again a little later."

"First of all, don't flatter yourself. Second of all, take a break and do what exactly? They didn't exactly stock this place with entertainment and we can't leave. So, unless you have Yahtzee stuffed up your ass, there's nothing to do." He shrugged grabbing a book from the side table to bury his face in, blocking out the waking world. Sure, they managed to stock his room with those damned Western novels, but I couldn't have gotten a Wii, a small gun range, or a secret Tequila stash. Obviously, the old man deeply considered my happiness and comfortability when he agreed to maroon us out here.

"Oh, come on you could at least tell me about one of your swashbuckling adventurer stories or something. Have a heart, I'm dying of boredom here." The corners of his full lips twitched in amusement, a smile threatening to grace them.

"Those are pirates, Rose. Not cowboys, and no. I'd rather not." I huffed in defeat, deciding it was better to pick another battle.

The only options I had were either roam around until I hopefully found something to do, or poke the Russian bear until he gave me some kind of reaction to work with. I decided to keep the latter as a backup, the further I could stay from him for the time being the better.

Starting with my bedroom I checked the closets, the drawers, behind the bed, under the rug, and just about everywhere else I could've possibly looked. No dice. Not only was it insulting, but it was also just hard to believe that Pavel would let my father pack me away without including something to keep me sane. Sure, the gym was nice but that wasn't nearly enough. At least I got a nice, in-depth tour of the whole place during my scavenger hunt. There was no question that the house was beautiful when we arrived, but the outside did not do it full justice. It reminded me of the getaway I'd always imagined my mother would've loved to escape to had she ever got the chance, only it would be seated in the center of a beautiful woodland meadow next to a waterfall or something magical like that. Somewhere she could be safe and free and just paint the days away. Everywhere you turned, even though there was still pretty much nothing but snow, the views were gorgeous. As much as I hated the cold, there was something serene about peering out into a still sea of powdered crystal. It looked the best in the daytime when the sun was at its highest, shining across every single snowflake making them glitter like diamonds. If we weren't forbidden to go outside I might've actually been willing to go on a hike up the snowy mountains.

I nearly gave up my search as I rounded back once again to my bedroom, still empty-handed. I mindlessly swung at the first thing I saw out of frustration, which happened to be a lamp seated on the drawer dresser, and waited for the satisfaction of porcelain ceramic crashing into ground. But, it never came. It landed with a thud more than a crash, the bottom base popping open on impact.

"Bingo." The smile that spread nearly popped my cheeks as I looked over the ancient mobile phone and the note attached to it.

Figures you'd go around breaking things sooner or later, vahşi Kız. (Wild girl)

Don't tell your father, and especially don't tell your other "house guest". This is not for everyday use,

you get ONCE a week and as soon as you're done remove the battery, and hide the two away separately somewhere safe. There are extras in the other lamp, but don't get greedy. It's not unlimited supply.

Don't say I've never done anything for you, kız evlat (daughter) and I'll be seeing you soon. Stay sharp up there.

-Your Shining Knight

If I didn't owe him before I definitely did now. Pavel was starting to become more of a father to me than the Old Man, and I couldn't have been more grateful to have him in my life. If there was no one else I could count on to always be looking out for me, literally, it was Pavel. I quickly shut the door, making sure not to slam it and alert Dimitri, and turned the relic on. The phone started to whir quietly and the dim green screen lit up as it eased into life. Who knows the last time this thing was seen let alone turned on. It had all the basics a phone needed; the numbers and letters buttons, a call and reject button, and the power and volume buttons cased in a pale blue hard plastic. No more, no less.

So much for beating my Candy Crush record.

I attempted to dial Lissa's number instantly but an output error kept popping up when I tried to call it. Not that she'd be too thrilled to hear from me anyway. I wouldn't be surprised if she just cut her losses, forgotten all about her shitty excuse for a best friend and got on with her life. It was what she deserved...but, I still at least wanted to know she was ok.

Apparently dialing out was a no-no, so I could only assume getting dialed in was a no-go as well. The hell was I supposed to do with it then? After fiddling with it for a little bit I finally managed to find one single number listed in the contacts, it wasn't recognizable. The only person I really wanted to talk to you was Lissa, so I was at a loss for guesses.

"Not like I've got anything better to do so...here we go." I psyched myself up for what could've been a blessing or it could've been a huge mistake. But Pavel never did anything that could cause harm to me, so I wasn't about to start doubting him now. I could only hope that he'd managed to find a way around Abe's disconnection of the nearest phone line to us or else the only use I'd be getting out of this was as a paperweight.

"Hello?-Hello?! Who is this? This better not be those damned boys I caught smoking out my garage, I told you little shits next time it's your ass." My heart stopped at the all too familiar but estranged voice I hadn't heard since I was a child.

"Aunt...aunt Alberta?" My voice was barely above a whisper, not for the sake of being discreet, but because I was truly in shock. It grew difficult to keep my voice steady as my heart rate quickened. From her labored breathing I could tell she was equally dazed.

"Rosemarie...is that really you?! I can't believe it, my sweet girl, how are you?" I ignored the use of my government name she knew very well I hated, feeling too elated to be upset over something so trivial. But, she wasn't going to get off scot free.

"Just fine, you old bat, what has it been ten years? Have they put you out the pasture yet?" She snorted very unladylike. I held back a chuckle.

"I'd like to see them try and you're lucky I'm not there that would earn you a smack in the mouth." I can't describe the happiness that was jolting through me just from hearing her voice again. It felt like back when I was a little kid bouncing on the tips of my toes at our front door as I waited for her bright red Mercedes to pull up into the driveway so I could fly out as fast as my little legs would carry me and meet her. Alberta was the only family I knew I had on my mothers side and in a way she was all I really had left of my mother too. She stopped coming around soon after mom died, I had a feeling Abe had everything to do with that, and I never knew how to contact her afterwards so I let it go.

"I can't tell you how good it is to talk to you. I missed you so much, where were you?!" Unintentional accusation overtook the longing in my voice, and I instantly felt remorse for it. I knew it wasn't her fault, but part of me still blamed her for not at least trying to stay in my life.

"I'm really sorry, Rose. Your father thought it best after-Janine and I wasn't exactly in my best state of mind to be the mother figure you needed. I'd just lost my sister, Rose, and I know you were just a child back then who needed a mother, but please try to understand now...you were so much like her. Even though you didn't get her fiery hair or unruly curls, you're just like her. Every time I saw you, I still saw her-" A stifled sob slipped out, and my heart broke for her. I was still angry, but I could understand her pain. I didn't have anything to remind me of her after she died, so I couldn't imagine what it would've been like knowing she was gone yet still seeing a copy of her everyday.

"Please trust me, I wanted to be there for you. I had my bags packed to move in for good and help raise you as long as needed but after I saw you at her funeral...I couldn't go through with it. At least not so soon. I talked to Abe about it a few months later, but he said you'd already moved on. He said you didn't need me. I know I should've heard it from you instead of just taking his word and I will never forgive myself for not fighting for you." The ache in my chest subsided, only to be replaced by the blazing pressure of unbridled fury. How dare he?!

"I thought about you every day...every single day. And I never stopped. I wrote letters to you to try and keep in touch but they were always returned in postage, so I gave up. I knew better than to try and fight your father's will."

"That old bastard I can't believe him! What gives him the right to decide that for me!" I tried to keep my voice low but the resentment was quickly sparking a wildfire within me. Alberta shushed trying to keep me calm and hummed an old Turkish lullaby she used to sing. It still worked like a charm.

"I'm sure he only wanted the best for you, Rose. Your father may be...brash a lot of the time, but he has your best interests at heart." I suppressed a fit of dark laughter. She really did not know my father at all. I wanted so bad to tell her the real reason he kept me away, but that would only put her in harms way.

Soon after my mom was murdered, Abe really picked up on my training. He couldn't afford to jeopardize my becoming his best asset to the business with making sure I had a happy, stable home life. I mean what good would I be as a killer if I had everything I needed in my life, right?

"None of that matters now, tell me how you've been. I can only imagine all the trouble you've gotten into over the years. As much as I regret not being there, I can't say I didn't dodge a bullet not having to deal with a teenage, Rose!" That got a much more joyful laugh out of me. Leave it to Pavel to know exactly what I needed, when I needed it.

Thank you, koruyucum. (My protector)

We talked only for a few hours, but it felt like an eternity. All the unspoken words, hidden memories, and lost stories from over the years came so naturally as if we'd never been apart to begin with. There were a few slip ups where I'd nearly given her a detail of my double life instead of the "real" one, but if she had caught on to anything she knew better than to question. Apparently a lot had happened in her life since then too, she met an army man named Stan Alto that rivaled Dimitri's stoicism and got married, reconnected with some old friends from her school days and even adopted a golden retriever. It made me happy to hear that life had been kind to her since our separation and I was a little ashamed of my selfishness to admit it was comforting that she still hadn't had any children of her own.

The phone let off a quiet beep that sounded almost like a life support machine to let me know this battery was nearly used up. I mentally kicked myself for being so careless.

"I'm sorry, Alberta, I have to go, but I promise I'll be calling you every week from now on. Same time?" I could practically hear her grin beaming through the speaker.

"I would love that. Talk to you soon, then. I love you, Rose." My heart swelled.

"I love you, too, Aunt Alberta."

"Kick your father in the ass for me, okay?" I laughed a very deep, guttural laugh that was not at all suited for a lady but I didn't care. It was refreshing that after all this time she was still just as hard-ass as I remembered her to be. I had her to thank for part of the awesome attitude I had now.

"Will do." With that I quickly snatched the battery from the back of the phone and hid them both somewhere I would hopefully remember later. I'd have to remind myself to find the others and keep them somewhere safe later. I wasn't expecting Dimtri to come digging around my room any time soon, but you never knew. For now, I was starving.

Heading back to the open kitchen and living space I was surprised not to see Dimitri still glued to the couch with that book molded into his hands. I rejoiced silently because I was not at all ready to start the boring strategizing over again. I understood why it was important for us to do and get through in the long run, but god was it tedious. We went round and round in the same circles just to constantly end right back at the beginning. There was something we were both missing, could've been related to the sex trafficking or not, and I was starting to think we'd never be able to figure it out with just the two of us. It would've been beneficial to be able to reach out to those on the inside we could trust from both sides, but thanks to the 'no outside communication' rule that was about as likely as me finding a chocolate donut bakery out on the mountain.

After searching around the kitchen I settled on a frozen pepperoni pizza and a coke for dinner. Thank God for whoever did the grocery shopping getting quick and easy meals because the last place I belonged was in a kitchen. Mom had tried to teach me how to cook when I was younger, but I was much more interested in being out in the dirt than sitting around cooking. My parents learned very quickly what kind of woman I was leaning towards becoming at a young age and it wasn't the ideal housewife.

"You know with all that crap you eat it's a wonder how you stay in shape." Dimitri's condescending voice called from around the corner behind me. I smirked slightly adjusting my arch over the counter so my lower curvature protruded more than normal as he approached.

"I didn't think you paid so much attention to notice my shape, Belikov." I sang, rolling my stomach and allowing the movement to naturally flow down into my hips swaying them side to side. Not unlike how you would see in a traditional belly dance, but a lot less accentuated without the exposed stomach and loose skirt. The sharp intake of breath behind me confirming I still achieved my desired outcome regardless. I glanced over my shoulder to shoot Dimitri a wink which only brightened the crimson flush in his cheeks. He immediately slipped his mask back on, but not before I caught the blackness engulfing his deep brown eyes. Quickly turning on his heel, he walked back in the direction he'd just come from.

"I don't." He managed to ground out through clenched teeth in his stormy retreat. I may have had my own carnal desires to fight but I sure as hell wasn't the only one, and I was going to use that as leverage every chance I got. He'd tried his best to hide the hunger, but every time we touched or got a little too close for comfort I knew he felt the same way I did from the way his tanned skin pricked up to meet mine, his chest started to heave and his eyes darkened while they shifted away from my own. Underneath that cold, emotionless shell was still inevitably just a man. No matter how deep he tried to bury it.

"I thought you wanted to go over the frameworks again!" I called down the hall toward his room. The splash of water running in the shower, undoubtedly ice cold, and a heavy door slam was his response only response.

—Δ—

"Ok so...Galina keeps all her operations separate. Smart, but a complication for us. Elena oversees the drug trade, Isaiah is in charge of weapon distributions, and there's a Nathan you've heard of but never knew what he headed so we can only assume he runs the sex trafficking ring. She has a conference meeting in Krasnoyarsk once a month, presumably with all three of them in attendance. While she's gone you're in charge of the estate's security and she puts all business on hold because she doesn't trust anyone but herself behind the wheel. She has a lot of political ties in Russia that are held under a false name and title that keep her as legitimate as possible, so she's virtually untouchable within the bounds of the law. She has no family, no friends, no beloved pets so there's no one she cares enough about to be used as a weakness. And she's an evil, perverted, old bitch that deserves to rot. Did I get all that right?" Dimitri had been eyeing me intently as I regurgitated all the information he'd been feeding me for the past hour. Surprise flickered across his face like he wasn't expecting me to actually get it all down so soon. I could be very studious when I wanted to be. It just so happened to be a very rare occurrence. Still surprises me that I managed to do so good in my EMT studies.

"Yes. There's more smaller details regarding how she actually handles all her product dispensation and what goes out when with who, but we can go through that later. Right now all we need to focus on is the general structure-" He paused as my hand shot up to signal I had a question to ask. He wanted to be a teacher so bad, so I might as well act like a proper student.

"Is this actually important?" I ignored his implication.

"How did you get into working with her? I'm assuming her estate isn't exactly a place you just walk into and ask for an application. And even if it is, I'm sure contracted killer isn't what you had in mind for what you wanted to be when you grew up." His jaw clenched at the inquiry. The mask held firm but I could tell from the way he started instinctively running his hands through his hair, the subject made him uncomfortable. All the more reason I wanted to know the answer.

"That's not what we're here to talk about."

"You want us to trust each other right? What better way to do that than share personal stuff. Besides I just aced that lesson so I think I deserve a reward and I choose this."

"Rose-" He started to object, but I was already well prepared.

"AND last I checked you still owe me a question. Said it yourself, Comrade. You wouldn't go back on your word, now, would you?" I grinned like a cheshire cat at the sight of him desperately try to sift through his mind for a possible loophole he could exploit, but we both knew there was none. Checkmate.

"Fine. But there will be no follow-up questions and we will never be talking about this again. Understood?" My head bobbed up and down eagerly in agreement as I made myself comfortable, pulling my legs up so I sat criss-cross on the couch across from him. Something told me this was going to be good. Had it not been certain to piss him off I would've popped myself a bowl of popcorn.

He inhaled deeply and kept his eyes pointed towards the floor, "I was thirteen years old at the time. My mother had just gotten back from the emergency room, for about the third time that month, thanks to multiple broken ribs and a ruptured blood vessel in her eye she'd suffered at the hands of my father. I was taking care of her for most of the day until my oldest sister, Karolina, got home from work. I decided that day that it was about time I did something about my father so he could never hurt her, or us, ever again," Already just as he started his story all excitement I'd had sunk. I couldn't imagine what it must've felt like having to watch the people you love be torn apart and broken down by someone meant to cherish and protect them, especially when being so young.

"Soon as she made it home, I left to go talk to a man named Hans Croft. He's known for being a very reliable 'word on the street' kind of guy. If you're looking for someone nine times out of ten he'll know where to find them, as long as you can afford the information. I'd heard he frequented one of the bars in town so I waited for him out back. It took about half an hour for him to show up and I asked him if he knew someone I could speak to about 'taking care' of someone bad. He was hesitant about talking to a child about that kind of stuff, but like I said all it took was the right price. He directed me towards an abandoned building on the outer edges of town that was well known to be a hangout spot for petty criminals and told me to ask for Boris. I did as instructed, nearly getting beat up in the process everyone thought I was a plant for the feds, and he took me up into the apartments. There was a lot I saw there that day; drugs, guns, women...just a lot of very illegal dealings and I could've gotten at least ten years just for stepping foot in there but I didn't let it bother me. I was doing what I had to for my family," A dampened smile adorned my face at the devotion to his family. I never knew Dimitri was a family man before recent events, but it was quickly becoming one of the prime qualities I deeply respected about him.

"He led me to a room decorated wall to wall with all kinds of guns and different firearms and told me to pick one and he'd give a price. I was confused at first I didn't want to buy a gun I wanted someone to get rid of my father. Make him leave for good, but he taught me a very important lesson that day. If you aren't strong enough to take care of your own problems, you'll never truly be rid of them. So, I picked a simple pocket pistol. He gave me a short how-to guide for aiming, getting rid of it and not leaving or keeping any traceable evidence afterwards and I went on my way. It wasn't a mystery where my dad went all the late nights he was gone so I knew exactly where to find him. He was at one of the more seedy gentlemen's bars in the area, fondling all over some woman out behind the dumpsters. I could've only hoped it was consensual behavior, but didn't last because I broke them up and threw her what money I had left so she'd leave. My dad was pissed and drunk, as usual, so he tried to fight me off and failed miserably. He'd tripped trying to get a swing on my chin and instantly I was on top of him, pounding at his face until there were hardly any recognizable features in the dark alley under all the blood. I had him by the collar and pulled the gun from my pocket pressing it against his temple. He goaded me to doing it calling me a pussy and a sad excuse of a man but I hesitated," A breath caught in my throat, coming out in a tight squeak. It was rare to see Dimitri hesitate now with the badass gunslinger he was. It was bittersweet to think this traumatic experience was where he learned it from.

"He pushed me off and promised he'd make me regret ever raising a weapon to him for the rest of my life. By taking it out on my mother, my sisters and sending the youngest of them, Viktoria, out on the streets to make money. I saw red and the next thing I knew he had a bullet in his head and I was sprinting home. I wiped and tossed the gun somewhere like Boris had showed me, got rid of my clothes and snuck back into the house through my window. Galina found me a few days later praising me for having the valor to do such a thing like kill my own father. I didn't know who she was at the time, only what I'd heard around town about her being a somewhat shady businesswoman. She offered me the job to come work for her and at the time didn't really get into what exactly that entailed, but she gave me a large cash advance to take care of my family so it was very hard to refuse. Not that she would've taken no for an answer regardless. With my mom out of work and my sisters working to the bone to make ends meet, one with an illegitimate baby on the way, I didn't see any other choice. I told my family I was taking an internship abroad and would send them money weekly and that I'd be back to visit, they were heartbroken but we all knew the money was desperately needed. I've been working for her ever since and I haven't seen my family in years. I write to them every now and again, but..." He ended with a huff, letting his body slump back against the couch. All his energy dissipating from having to rehash that dark past. I felt bad for bringing it up now, but I was also really glad he was willing to share this with me. I still wasn't ready to trust him completely, but this was a big jump towards maybe being able to eventually.

I gained the courage to get up and take the seat next to him. He stiffened at the sudden action, but didn't contend it. The couch he'd been sitting on was a bit on the smaller side, so it was a tight squeeze between fitting his large frame and the curves in my lower proportions within the same space. This time, neither of us flinched away when our legs brushed against one another, a jolt of electricity ping-ponging between them.

"Thank you for sharing all of this with me, Dimitri. I know it probably wasn't ideal, but I do truly appreciate the trust. I'm sorry you had to go through something so horrible as that so young. I know we've technically been trying to kill each other since we met, but even I wouldn't wish a past like that on you. You did, and still are doing, what's best for them and I commend you for that." I rested my hand on his sitting atop his knee to offer what comfort I could. He lowered his head to meet my eyes and my chest tightened at the sight. The last time I had seen so much tortured pain and anguish snuff the light from someone's eyes was in Baba on the first anniversary of my mom's death. I'd never seen Dimitri this raked with emotion and for some reason my heart ached for him. Maybe it was because we'd both lost parents or because we'd unfortunately been forced to accept that losing people you loved was just a part of the life in adolescence, I don't know. I unknowingly squeezed his hand in mine and you'd never guess it, but he returned the gesture. His turned up to lock with mine so we were basically holding hands. My body locked up, unsure of how to respond to this new development. He seemed to have a similar reaction as the muscles in the leg seated next to mine now tensed against the overstimulating contact. Neither of us could do anything but sit trapped in the uncertainty of what was happening which quickly spiraled into anxiety. At least for me it was anxiety. The high, sloped ceiling abruptly started to descend towards us, compressing what space was left until there was barely any air to breathe that wasn't our own. I struggled to bring my staggered breathing under control as my heart thumped wildly in my ears.

Come on, Rose, do something. Anything!

All five of my senses refused to obey any commands besides their own. Thankfully, Dimitri had a lot more authority over his own autonomy than I did and was able to free his hand from the paralyzing closeness. He stalked over to the other side of the room and leaned against the fridge, arms crossed over his chest. Even their enormity wasn't enough to hide the rapid rise and fall from underneath. With the new, safe distance my breathing returned to normal and all the 'code red' alarms sounding in my head were quieted.

"I gave you my word, it was the least I could do." Was all he said, locking any and all emotions away. For once I was actually thankful for his impassiveness, it gave me the mental space I needed to process my own conflicting feelings. Which I responsibly decided to put off until...forever. Whatever this was building between Dimitri and me it crossed the line over just trusted business partners into something else. Something gross to be frank. And it needed to be squashed as soon as possible. It would've been a lot more comforting if we could just sit down and mutually agree to quell it now before it grew too difficult, but I had a feeling Mr. blank slate would rather die before ever admitting he had any type of affectionate feelings for anyone outside his family. Especially me. And I wasn't going to look like the only wuss naively going soft on her biggest adversary. So there were only two options from what I could see; either tightly confine everything until it eventually just fades away or remind ourselves why we hate each other in the first place so nothing else has the chance to overwrite it. The latter sounded like a much more gratifying pursuit.

"Well I don't know about you, old timer," I drawled getting up to stretch away the last bit of tension constricting my movements. His eyes narrowed in disapproval of the new nickname but he didn't bother to justify it with a response knowing I was trying to egg him on, "but I could go for a spar."

The slight twitch in his eye said it just might be working.

Don't ask how I did but hey once the ball is rolling I can't stop it! From now on I will try to consistently update either Thursday or Friday afternoons/evenings (maybe both if you guys are lucky!) so you all have a better idea of when to expect new chapters. I want this story to at least hit 30 chapters so don't worry about it ending any time soon!

What do you think of Dimitri's backstory? I tried to keep it similar but little more realistic.

Also please let me know if you guys would like more Dimitri POV because I'm happy to split up the chapters that way, I'm just not as used to writing him but practice makes perfect after all. I know he's slightly OOC but I think it fits a little better for the AU.

Hope you all enjoyed this chapter and I can't wait to read your thoughts on it :). See you all next week!