Hello! This one was definitely inspired by the guardian's death watch/line dancing bit from the TV show and majority of this was written 3 years ago. If you want the "ultimate experience", listen to Play it Loud by The Venice Collection feat. Cillian Ivan Ho. It was the song they used in the TV show. Enjoy ~

Death Watch

Sophia's P.O.V

Summer before Senior Year - 17 years old

We were down to the last two weeks of summer. In fourteen days, we'd board the jet back to St. Vladimir's and I'd be starting my senior year officially. Tonight was the annual Death Watch. The Death Watch was never on the same date because it was organised by the guardians and timed when Court hosted the most amount of dhampirs/guardians it would in a year. Typically summertime was when Court was frequented by dhampirs and guardians alike. The Death Watch was originally a secret get-together for select elite royals only. They would dress up fancy, wear ridiculous masks and have special code names for entry.

When my mother was eighteen, Adrian snuck her and few other friends into the Death Watch. In recent times, my mother adopted the Death Watch and adapted it for guardians solely, with the help of Aunt Lissa. Since then, it was a yearly tradition for guardians to honour our fallen in the line of duty.

Though it was based off of a tragedy, the night turned out to be pretty fun. Usually the Death Watch was held in a bar and anyone was welcome. There was no specific dress code or secret names unlike the Moroi. All kinds of music was played, people drank and danced and yes—there was even a dhampir line dancing routine.

Because of the location of the Death Watch, minors were not typically allowed in. However, this was the one occasion they made an exception—the bartenders were extra cautious of who they handed out drinks to.

Mom and Dad brought the three of us along every year. They thought it was important we see this side to the guardian world and to respect and remember those that passed away during battle.

Last year we missed it completely because we were in Baia. This year we were obviously here. Aunt Lissa sometimes joined the Death Watch as a sign of respect as well as to show support from the monarch. Adrian and Sydney had even made it down from Maine. They were planning on hanging around Court for the next two weeks and send their kids up with us to St. Vladimir's.

I donned high waisted black jeans and ankle boots—a typical bottom attire for me—paired with a textured berry coloured bandeau top covered with a black denim jacket with white buttons. I buttoned the bottom few buttons to conceal my stomach a little more. I didn't want to look risqué for a—technically—mourning event.

Everyone was already at the bar. I was super slow at getting ready and as a result was late to every event I ever attended. It was a terrible habit I needed to knock considering in less than a year I'd be a guardian.

Strutting down to the dhampir bar once I was ready, I stuffed my hands in the pockets of my jacket as I walked. The music was blaring so loud, I could hear it from outside. Excitement swirled inside me. There was just something about loud music with a good beat playing. It made you feel a type of way. A way only music could bring out in you.

I pressed a palm against the wooden door and slipped inside. People were huddled into small groups, milling around. People were on the pool tables shooting balls and hitting pockets and hooting. Others were drinking or dancing or sitting on the lounges with shisha pipes. Judging from everyone's stoic stances, the callout hadn't begun yet.

The callout was when each guardian took a turn remembering someone they've lost. A couple of nice words were shared about said person before the guardian honouring them chugged the remainder of their drink and smashed their glass into the fire pit.

My family and extended 'relatives' were all around. There were easy to spot because there were so many of us and we were a social bunch. I avoided joining any circles that included a Belikov, Hathaway, or Mazur. To say I was pissed off with my blood relatives was an understatement.

So much had happened in the past few weeks with Damon and like I said to him, I felt suffocated. They still weren't happy about our friendship and I lied about us hanging out as much as I could. Him putting away four people who attacked me apparently didn't warrant redemption. I know that the problem was a lot bigger than Damon though. It was partly about Liam, too. Which bugged me even more. What was worse was Grandmama and Dede agreed with Mom and Dad. The only person who wasn't against him was Amra. All mentioned parties were present so I avoided that side of the room and headed over to the bar to grab a soda. I didn't bother trying to order alcohol. Everyone pretty much knew who I was and that I was well underage.

While I waited for my drink, I looked around the dark bar. The only lighting came from the fluorescent blue and pink lights overhead the pool tables. There was dull lighting over the bar itself but majority of the warm lighting came from the blazing fire at the front of the room.

The DJ turned down the music after the next song ended. Crowds gathered round, knowing the callout was about to begin. Grandmama started it off this year. Every year it was someone different. Grandmama hadn't done it in a while. She started with a few short words about why we gather here proceeded by her calling out someone's name, skulling her drink and throwing it in the fire. The person she honoured was no one I knew.

One by one guardians came up and called out a name. My mother and father each honoured someone—again, no one I really knew. They'd mourned Mason and Ivan in the past. They chose different people every time. I suppose, being some of the most highly-esteemed guardians came with knowing a lot of faces. The more people you know, the more you had to lose.

After the callout finished, the DJ turned the music up once more and people resumed smoking, drinking, playing pool, dancing, flirting etc. Life was a funny thing. One minute you're mourning the dead, the next second you're living it up. Meanwhile, the dead were completely oblivious to everything that just occurred. Well, in my opinion they were.

The traditional line dancing song played over the speakers and the crowd went wild with cheers and whoops. Almost everyone in the bar joined the dance floor. It was a fairly simple routine and lots of fun, I'll admit. I was surprised to find Aunt Lissa and Uncle Chris joining the group and hey, they were pretty good dancers. I couldn't help a small smile creep over my lips as I sat on the sidelines, watching people have fun. Aunt Sonya and Uncle Mikhail were killing it on the dance floor as well.

Nadya and Aliya beckoned me to join them. They were up front with Mom and Dad dancing altogether. Their wild gesturing alerted my parent's attention. They grinned at me and jerked their heads. I laughed and shook my head.

My father lifted up my mother and spun her around, their faces so light and content. He plopped her down, quickly kissed her as the segment of the group routine began. No more free styling or high lifts now. This was—mild—choreographed stuff.

"Surely the daughter of the founder of the Guardian Death Watch isn't going to sit there all night moping?"

I whirled around to spot Damon beside me, eyeing me with mischievous glint and a lopsided smile. I beamed at him, momentarily forgetting we were basically right in front of my family.

I had to make a decision then and there. To ignore him, or ignore my family. I went with the latter. They could suck it. I wanted to hang out with Damon and I was so sick and tired of sneaking around. We were only friends for goodness sake! Besides, it was possible they already knew on some level we were still hanging out.

"I ain't moping." I showed him a full smile to prove him wrong.

"Good. Come dance with me, BK." He grabbed my hand, swinging my elbow back and forth.

"No way." I tried to tug my hand out of his. It only made him clasp it tighter.

"Get up. You're probably a better dancer than me, anyway." He smiled broadly and with little effort, jerked me upright. He led us to the dance floor, not giving me much of a choice to run away.

We slid in easily at the back and followed the others, stepping to the right, then to the left, backwards and forwards. On the last step, people threw their arms in the air cheering and hooting in time with the beat. The partner dancing bit was coming up again.

Damon turned to me, a smoulder burning in his eyes. "You're not afraid of heights, are you?"

I rolled my eyes and half-smiled. His arms locked around my thighs as he thrust me high into the air. I squealed, arms instinctively closing over his shoulders at the speed he lifted me. He laughed as he returned me to earth. We began dancing in circles, spinning each other around, laughing and giggling all the while. He threw me in the air again, this time he grabbed my hips from behind. We circled each other once more, my fingers grazing the tops of his biceps. The song was coming to an end, so for the last time, partner's jumped into the other's arms. Damon supported my back and my legs as he carried me in his arms, spinning me round and round. I locked both my hands around his neck, bringing our faces closer together. He was still smiling wide and I had a feeling so was I.

He plopped me back down and we jumped around, dancing and having a good time until the end of the song.

"Told you: you're a better dancer than me," he said in my ear.

"What can I say? It's in the genes." I slapped the top of his pec. "You're not too bad yourself. You'd make a fantastic cheerleader one day."

He caught my wrist and pulled me closer. That smoulder in his eyes returned and suddenly, the breath was knocked out of me. His eyes tantalised me somehow. And right then and there, I finally understood why so many women had fallen prey to his charm. "It is a passion of mine. Lifting and throwing around pretty girls."

The double meaning in his voice coiled something inside me. Immediately, I cast out any romantic thoughts about my friend and redirected my attention to the fact that my family was somewhere here.

I cleared my throat. "Maybe you should find a cheer squad and sign up then." Geez, really, Sophia? You pretty much just told him to go sleep with every girl on a cheerleading team. Not that he hasn't already, a voice hissed in my head.

"It's first thing on the To Do List." He released my wrist. I wasn't sure if he was going along with my sarcasm or actually heard the double meaning in my comment. Either way, he played a good game.

"So, I need a favour," I started. I wasn't actually sure what my favour was, I was just suddenly desperate to change the topic. My eyes flicked over the room and settled on the bar. Bingo. Damon followed my gaze.

"Ah, so is this why you keep me around? To feed you illicit drugs?"

I turned my lips downwards and shrugged nonchalantly. "Of course. What other purpose do you serve?"

He sighed exasperatedly. "Women." He placed one palm on the small of my back nudging me towards the bar. As we moved to the bar, he noticed something beyond me. "Shit."

"What?" I asked.

The palm on my back tightened and I felt the rest of his body come up behind me, like he was shielding me. "Nothing. Just don't turn around." The firmness in his voice made me listen to him.

His head came down so he could speak closer to my ear. I felt his lips brush the top of my ear. "If looks could kill, your sister would've murdered me twice by now."

I frowned. "What are you talking about?" I moved to turn around but he wrapped his hands over my arms keeping me straight-forward.

"No looking, yet. Nadya and Co. are furious at my presence," he explained.

It was like someone burned me. I whipped my head around quicker than a Strigoi. I promptly made half a step before Damon clamped my shoulders and rooted me in the ground. Our bodies were facing each other but my eyes fell beyond him to my sister. She sat with Stasia, Adrian and Sydney's daughter, Grace, and Ali across the room. Stasia and Ali were notably less pissed than Nadya. Grace was a gentle angel—she probably had no idea what the big fuss was. She wasn't big on drama. A comical contrast to my sister who was in a category of ever own, titled Ferocious with a capital 'F'. Beside them, my parents and few uncles and aunts bore witness to the staring contest.

"I've had enough of this shit, Damon." I began to step around him. "I swear to God I'll—" There was a tiny struggle as he instantly refrained me from launching for my sister. Nadya saw and braced herself for a fight.

"Let it go, Soph."

I pushed him away. He pushed right back and held on to me, tightly. There was no escaping his death grip. He was ten times stronger than me.

"No. I won't let you start a fight with your sister." I glared up at him. "It is not worth it, Soph. We're guardians; trained to protect. Any one of us could die at any moment. It is not worth fighting with your sister or your parents. One minute they're here, the next they could be gone." My glare softened into sympathy. His words sobered me up. He wasn't solely talking about my family, or giving general life advice. He was talking about the loss of his family. How he'd give anything to have more time with them and wouldn't waste it quarrelling. "I know what they're doing is hurting you but can you please let it go, for now? No one's coming over here and demanding I leave you alone so please…let it go."

I looked straight into his bright blue eyes. They were striking even under the poorly lit bar.

"Okay," I agreed. He loosened his hold on me and spun me around.

"Now, let's get you that drink."

Damon held my drink in his hand, completely wary certain adults were keeping an eye on us. They already thought he was a terrible influence. The smoking situation a couple weeks ago hadn't done him any favours and I strongly suspect him buying alcohol for a minor wouldn't jazz up his resume.

We were semi-hiding in the shisha area of the bar with Damon's guardian friends. They were a cool bunch of guys and easy to get along with. Two of them were smoking. One of them offered me a pipe. I took it coolly and smoked. Cigarettes were my choice of preference but this'll do. I think shisha was a weak point for my father. It was sort of part of some cultures where even minors would smoke it. Shisha was more of a social activity rather than about taking drugs so I think he'd let it slide. Or at least, I hoped he would.

I had ordered a vodka soda. It looked exactly like regular soda so whenever I took a sip out of it, it concealed the fact it was laced with alcohol. Sliding my fingers through his, I wrapped the glass in my hands and stole it from Damon. I took a sip and slipped back into his palm. I think he was holding it more so to prevent it from getting spiked.

An RnB song came on then. Giddy, I asked Damon if he'd come and dance with me to which he agreed. The dance floor was still packed with people so it'd be kind of easy to conceal us. Damon's head was a bit of a problem considering he was taller than most. I shrugged off the concern. Damon was broad and tall enough to at least conceal me.

I was having more fun than I'd ever had at all the stupid parties my sister dragged me along to or my other friends from school. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed spending time with everyone but something about tonight was different.

Maybe it was the energy in the room. Maybe it was being in a new place, surrounded by mature people. Or maybe it was Damon's carefree attitude pressing in on me. Whatever it was, I felt…freer. Maybe that's what it was actually. The fact that I didn't have to look out for my siblings or cousins for once. I was here with a new friend who understood me perfectly, who actually listened to me and got me. He knew dark secrets that I hadn't been able to share with anyone.

I was happy.

An emotion I'd forgotten to feel for a while. I was so consumed with everything else—training, studying, doing some activity to aid me in moving past the events of the last two years—I'd forgotten what it felt like to be content in life. Everything had become so stark since I was fifteen.

Not anymore. I decided then and there I had to live.

"What's the cheery expression for?" asked Damon.

I shook my head and smiled. I felt nose crinkle at the top. When I was super happy or excited, my nose naturally did that. Another thing I'd forgotten about myself. "Nothing. I'm just having a good time." For once, I added silently.

"Splendid," he said grandly. "So am I."

We danced for a long time. I was completely lost in the feeling of the music, of dancing, of being with Damon. Damon's friends called for a dance break. There was pool table free which we raced to claim. I didn't bat an eyelash at anything else. I was having way too much fun.

Eventually, we had to call it quits and make tracks. The night was wrapping up and I'd expunged my energy. My family was nowhere to be found when I looked around for them. Glancing at my phone, I understood why. It was super late. They would've left ages ago.

Damon walked me home—as always—and when we reached the Palace, ready to say goodnight, I jumped into his arms. My arms flung around his neck and I squeezed him tightly.

"Thank you," I murmured. A pit of nostalgia furred in my stomach. Summer was ending in two weeks and I'd be back at the Academy. Damon would be here working. I clung to this moment. We had little time left until another few months.

He hugged me back. "What for?"

"For the best night. That was the most fun I've had in…well, a long time." I pulled away from him and kissed his cheek. "Good night."

He smiled at me warmly. He grabbed my hands and rubbed his thumbs over my knuckles. "Good night, BK. Remember—"

"I'll text you when I get up there," I finished for him. He squeezed my hands and let me go.

I was astonished to find a small stream of light in the living room and my parents still awake upon entering our apartment. Aside from their muffled voices, the rest of the house was quiet. Mom sat on the couch facing forwards and Dad sat next to her sideways, facing her.

He looked up at my arrival but didn't say anything. He regarded me warmly. That was odd, I thought. Usually they'd be chewing me out for the late hour. Not to mention, tonight earned me a double whammy. I'd just spent six hours with Damon Petrov. Their number one guy.

Being in here brought reality crashing down. I was reminded of why I was annoyed with everybody in this household in the first place.

I dragged my eyes away from them and charged for my bedroom, pointedly ignoring my parents. One word from them would make me blow this place up. I didn't need their pontificating to ruin my night.

"Soph," my mother said in a small voice once I passed the living room. I was halfway to my bedroom. Ugh. I could practically hear my mattress crying out for me.

I dropped my head back and sighed to the sky. "Mom, you can lecture me all you want tomorrow. I'm tired, just let me go to bed."

"That wasn't what I was going to say." She sniffled. I snapped my head around.

I was wordless at the sight laid out in front of me. My mother was in her sweats, curled up in a blanket and eyes teary. My father rested a hand over hers in a manner of comfort and support.

"Mom? Are you okay?" I'd never seen my parents let alone my mother like this. There was only one other time I'd seen my mother cry and that was when she and Dad had left the three of us to go on a raid.

"I—we wanted to tell you that…" She swiped under her eyes. "We don't mind if you're friends with Damon."

What in the world?

I nearly gaped. I couldn't believe my ears. Since when did she want me to be friends with Damon Petrov? She could hardly stand the man. And my father? He agreed to this as well? The only conclusion I could draw was that he was under strong compulsion.

"You want me to be friends with Damon? Did you hit your head on the way home? You hate Damon."

"I don't hate the way he makes you feel; what he brings out in you," she replied softly. I opened my mouth to protest I don't have feelings for him. She continued talking. "I saw how much fun you had tonight and how happy you were. You haven't smiled like that in years." She nodded to my father. "That's why we're both okay with it."

I closed my jaw. Astounded. That was one word for it.

"Right," I said glibly. "Now that we have your blessing we can go get married and run off into the sunset." I crossed my arms and tilted my head. "Just one question: what's with the crying? Damon is nobody to be upset over. There's plenty of fish in the sea, Mom."

My mother groaned. "Soph."

I grinned.

"I was upset. And felt guilty," she explained.

I frowned. "About what?"

"Because I didn't trust your judgement about Damon. I should've."

"We both should've," my father amended.

"Yeah, well, don't worry about it—"

"And," Mom continued, "because after seeing you tonight, forbidding you from from seeing him was almost like we were stopping you from being happy." I hadn't thought about it like that.

"But just friends only, Mila. No dating," Dad clarified.

"There it is." I sighed. "How many times do I have to say it? We're not interested in each other like that."

"Good. Keep it that way," said Dad with a tiny smile.

"I'm going to bed," I announced. I turned and headed to my room, texting Damon that I was home safely.

"You're what?!" Nadya exclaimed incredulously. "You're letting her hang out with Damon? Why?"

Groaning, I rolled over in my bed and stuffed a pillow over my ears to drown out her yelling.

"Ssh!" my mother said. "Be quiet. You'll wake her up."

"We're not saying we like him anymore than you but your sister has made it perfectly clear she doesn't intend on listening to us. Besides, she was having a good time last night and we owe some of that credit to Damon. When has your sister ever joined in at the Death Watch of her own will?" said Dad. It was true. Every other year, Nadya practically dragged me to the dance floor at the Death Watch. Last night, I did everything because I actually wanted to.

"Do you really think it's a good idea for her to hang around him? You know what he's like. You've heard the same stories I have! I'll be damned if he tries to sleep with her; she's already been through too much!" yelled Nadya. My bedroom door was sealed shut but it did nothing in muffling her voice. I could hear every word clearly.

"Why don't you just let her do what she wants?" asked Sacha tiredly. His question was directed at Nadya. "She's older than us, she knows what she's doing." Another one that was right. I am the older sibling and I do know what I'm doing. But Sacha didn't know what Nadya and my parents—and now Damon—knew.

"DOES SHE? If you knew what Liam did to her, I swear to God, you wouldn't even let her breathe around Chad or MJ!"

I shot out of my bed. No. There's no way he's finding out. Mom and Dad chastised Nadya for saying too much and Sacha began asking questions. I gritted my teeth. Thanks a lot, Nadya.

I swung open my door. It banged against the doorstop. I charged into the kitchen where they all sat eating breakfast. Sacha's brows jumped up at my presence.

"Soph," he said cautiously. "What is she talking about?"

I grabbed Nadya's arm and jerked her out of her chair. "Nothing."

I spoke sternly to Nadya in Russian. "You need to learn to shut your mouth."

"And you need to learn who's dangerous company," she responded in English.

Sacha stood up. "Can someone please tell me what the hell is going on? Why is Nadya freaking out?"

"Because she's a hypochondriac," I answered.

"Oh, fuck off. I am not. You're just stupid!"

"Whoa. Enough. Stop it, all of you!" shouted Mom. The three of us jerked our heads in her direction.

Mom regarded Sacha levelly. "Sach, if Soph doesn't want to tell you, she doesn't have to. All you need to know is that Liam hurt your sister very badly and Nadya is terrified of it happening again. That's why she's being overprotective."

Sacha glanced between Nadya and myself.

"Yeah, and smart," Nadya added through clenched teeth.

"We told you already, Nadya: it's fine. So let it be. We know how you feel but you need to accept what is," advised Dad.

Nayda turned to me. "I don't care if he's your best friend, boyfriend, a guy that sleeps with you and then dumps you straight after, I'm telling you now: I will never like him. So don't expect me to be okay with this!"

"Fine, Nads. It's your problem."

I was sitting at my vanity in my bathroom applying makeup. I'd left the door wide open so I can dash in and out of the bathroom to my bedroom. I was doing my contour and blush when Sacha appeared in the doorway, leaning tall against the frame. Sometimes it was hard to believe he was only twelve.

"What's up?" I asked him.

He stepped forward. "Can I ask you about Liam?"

I put my brush down and turned to him. He was concerned and curious. Trying to piece together what on earth could've happened that's gotten Nadya in a tizzy.

I swallowed. I wasn't sure if I wanted my little brother to know this or not.

"What do you want to know?" I slyly sidestepped the real question behind his words: What did Liam do to me?

"You know what," he said.

I didn't answer.

Sacha took a few more steps inside the bathroom and crouched down beside me.

"Soph, did he…abuse you?" he asked. "It's the only thing I can think of. The only reason why Mom and Dad were being so strict with you."

I looked away from him and twirled the makeup brush in my hand over and over. "Assault is more like it…" I answered in a low voice.

My younger brother's arms came around my shoulders. "I'm so sorry, Soph. I'm sorry that happened to you. I had no idea…You didn't have to tell me that."

I returned the hug. "It's fine. I wouldn't've said anything if I didn't want you to know…now you do, so…" I released him. He looked up at me earnestly, resembling our father so much.

He gave me a once-over. "Where are you going?"

"Out with Damon," I replied, dipping my brush into a pink shade and dusting it over my cheeks.

"Yeah, about that…" Sacha returned to his full height. "Is Damon really that good of a guy? I mean, I don't know him but the entire family seems so…uptight with him hanging out with you."

"Damon is…amazing. I wish everybody would stop judging him. He's nothing like everyone makes him out to be. One's actions doesn't always define one's personality. It's just his actions, some of them are not always so great."

Sacha nodded in perfect understanding. "I get it…I do but…please be careful around him?"

I smiled. This was how a protective family member should act. Not like a wildcat. "I will, Sach."

"What is this whole thing with Damon anyway? You guys sure hang out a lot. You've seen him more than Nadya's seen her friends."

"I don't know. I guess because this is really the only time we have before school starts, but there's something about him…He's a true friend. I can talk to him about anything. All my friends at school, I can't really talk to them the same way."

"Oh, well, that's cool." He moved towards the door. "I'll let you get ready."

"You can meet him if you want," I told him.

Sacha spun around. "Are…are you sure?"

"Of course."

Third Person P.O.V.

About an hour after Sophia began applying her makeup, a door knocked on the Belikov household door. Nadya was sitting in the kitchen eating a snack. She promptly stood up and walked to the front door, dusting crumbs off her hands on her pants.

She opened the heavy wooden slab, revealing the unwelcome guest. Immediately, she scowled. Not bothering to be polite, she demanded: "What the hell are you doing here?"

Damon took her rudeness well and played up her antics. With a special knowing smirk, he gave the younger sister a once-over. "Nice to see you too, Nadya. Is your sister around?"

"Nope," was the curt, blunt response and she began shutting the door in his face. Damon anticipated this and stuck his foot out. The door knocked his boot and bounced back at the sharp impact.

Right on cue, Sophia appeared from the hallway that led to the kids' bedroom. She traipsed through the open-floor plan of the living room and kitchen and joined her sister and Damon in the doorway with Sacha trailing behind her.

"Hi, Soph," said Damon, leaning against the doorframe.

Sophia rewarded him with a gentle smile. "Hi." She then flicked her eyes towards her sister. "You weren't being mean again, were you?"

Nadya formed a tight smile over her lips. "Of course not."

Sophia rolled her eyes, knowing full well that her sister was lying through her teeth.

"Um, Damon, I want you to properly meet my little brother, Sacha." Sophia pulled Sacha forward.

Sacha gave his eldest sister a look and in an undertone grunted, "Don't introduce me as your 'little' brother, it's embarrassing. Just say 'brother'."

Sophia hid a grin and said, "Okay, okay. Sorry."

Damon had no such qualms about hiding his laughter and chuckled softly. He stuck his hand out for Sacha to shake. He took it and as they shook hands, Damon said, "Hey man, how's it going? It's nice to officially meet you."

"Thanks, and likewise," replied Sacha politely. "So, where are you guys going?"

"Oh, nowhere special," answered Damon loftily. "Just to the arcade. Your sis and I have a competitive running streak going."

Sacha's jaw dropped a little. "Seriously?" He looked to Sophia, eyes pleading and excited. "Can I come?"

Sophia exchanged a glance with Damon who simply gave a casual shrug as way of saying 'Sure'.

"Yeah, if you really want to," said Sophia, unsure why her brother wanted to tag along.

Meanwhile, Nadya scoffed and narrowed her eyes at Sacha. "Are you serious right now, Sach?"

"You know, Nadya, I actually have something for you," interrupted Damon.

"What's that?" she asked.

"A truce."

"A what?" Nadya looked disgusted.

"A truce. You ever heard of that? It's when two parties come to a mutually civil agreement."

"I know what a truce is, Damon. I am not stupid," snapped Nadya.

Sophia glanced between the two in amusement and amazement. It was kind of funny to her, the way they interact with each other.

"Nadya." Sophia said her sister's name in a warning tone.

Sophia passed Nadya a meaningful look. To which, Nadya sighed loudly and said, "Fine. A truce. But if you ever hurt my sister or if she comes home with so much as one tiny scratch caused by you, I will rip your nutsack right off with my bare hands. And I'd be careful of that. I have claws sharper than a psi-hound." She was referring to her oddly sharp nails. Sophia and Sacha would know. They'd experienced it first hand from the amount of fights they had gotten into over the years.

Damon barked a laugh. "It's sweet you worry so much over her. But I'm not the person you should be concerned with hurting your sis."

Nadya's only response was a grunt and a sarcastic, "Yeah, sure," muttered under her breath.

Damon turned to the brother-sister pair. "Okay, Team Belikov, are you ready to go?"

"Yup," said Sacha, crossing over the threshold.

Sophia gave Nadya a parting squeeze and whispered in her sister's ear, "It'll be okay," and the three of them left.

And that's it for the 'Summer before Senior Year' segments (for now)! I know there are some gaps such as how Damon gets transferred to the academy, etc. which I might write one day but atm I have not. That's why I haven't uploaded this as one cohesive, chronological story but rather connected short stories.

Thank you for reading! Thank you for reviewing! I like to hear your thoughts, if you're liking it so far and also if there's anything you'd like to see in future uploads. It might strike some inspo in me.

I know there hasn't been as much Romitri, but I hope my future uploads will help balance it out a little.

Okay, see you in the next one! :)