The ownership of all characters related to and involving the novels of The Vampire Academy and Bloodlines Series remain the sole property of Richelle Mead, the Penguin Group and any affiliates.

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A/n: I know that I keep repeating myself, but you guys are AWESOME! Thank you so much for following and reviewing my version of Dimitri.

This FF is based on the events in Homecoming after Dimitri volunteers to kill the Blood King. It's my version of how Rose should have reacted with extra bits of fluff thrown in because I love the banter between these two. Still technically a one-shot, I've split it into three chapters. Enjoy!

Siberian Persuasion – Part one

Quietly opening the creaking wooden door leading out from the kitchen, I slipped out the back of the house and into the small garden as the stillness of the night air that greeted me was punctuated by the uncoordinated clinking of shot glasses and the sound of raucous cheers from inside the house.

Grinning in indulgent amusement at the revelry that was only now starting to wind down, I breathed deeply as I stood on the shallow stone steps; filling my lungs with the scent of the air I had been raised with…the air that I had been away from for far too long.

Tilting my head back, I gazed up at the full moon suspended high in the Siberian night and felt the nostalgia of my memories sweep over me.

I hadn't realised until this moment just how much I had missed everything about the land of my birth. Feeling a light breeze tug gently at my unbound hair, I brushed the strands aside; absently tucking them behind my ears as I looked out over the town and the mountainous range beyond, and thought back to my decision to return home.

Justifiably nervous about the return trip, I had been in two minds for days leading up to my final decision. Torn between wanting to see my family; the family I hadn't seen in years and the painful truth of the heinous deeds I had committed as a Strigoi, it had been acute homesickness that had eventually made the decision for me…that, and the unflinching support of the one person who knew me the best.

Rose knew what I struggled with…what I still fought to overcome every, single day. She had been the one to experience it with me and was the only one who could ever fully understand and identify with it.

With her constant reassurance that my family and the community would welcome me back with open arms – she had never doubted that this was for the best, despite the timing of the trip coming so soon after the coronation of the newly appointed Queen…a Queen who it seemed had just as many enemies as she did allies – I had taken Rose's advice, trusting that this was the right thing to do.

Flying into Moscow early yesterday, the drive to Baia had taken most of the day. Under normal circumstances, the trip should have been enjoyable as I showed Rose the wonder of my home…the home she had always mocked was covered in ice and snow, but with my mood fluctuating wildly between terror and anticipation, all it had been was long.

Arriving at the home I had been born in during the early part of the evening, I had felt the anxious energy I had been battling to contain since leaving Pennsylvania suddenly transform into a knot of dread deep in the pit of my stomach.

Rose – knowing instinctively that I was having second thoughts as my doubts turned into fear of rejection…of fear that my family would continue to see me as one of the evil, undead – had soothed my fear with her customary brand of tough love. It had given me the impetus I needed to get out the car and face whatever awaited me.

Encountering my baby sister first, Viktoria's unbridled joy and complete lack of fear at my arrival had instantly dispelled any uncertainties. Followed by the rest of my families' enthusiastic joy, I had allowed myself to push aside the remorse I could never shake and be happy for the moment to bask in their love and the euphoria of my homecoming.

As the news of my return spread quickly throughout the Dhampir community, most had been reticent and almost fearful of my arrival, but once they had seen for themselves that I was no longer one of what they feared, I had once again been accepted into the community.

The celebration that had followed – one that had produced enough food to feed the entire Siberian countryside and more vodka than any one person in their right mind could drink – had reunited me with those I had known since early childhood and would be talked about for decades.

Fearing that the conversation would revolve around the months of my life as a Strigoi…the months I would rather forget, some had raised a question or two over it, but most had been more interested to know about the process of my restoration. As I had told group after group of the feat of Magic that Vasilisa Dragomir had performed, the celebration of my return had turned into the celebration of our new Queen.

With the flow of vodka going unchecked throughout the night, most who were early risers would be anything but come the morning.

Wandering lazily away from the house, I crossed over Yeva's vegetable patch, around the fire-pit still smouldering from the fires lit earlier and headed towards the fence lining the back border of our property. Illuminated brightly by the white light of the moon, the grass-lined yard and shrubbery appeared pale and eerily ghostly.

My eyes didn't need its light to see the way as they adjusted automatically to the darkness…and I certainly didn't need its light to find the one that I was looking for.

Appearing almost motionless, Rose stood at the ramshackle fence with her back towards me and her hands lightly grasping the top plank. Loose hair cascading down her back in a tumble of dark locks, the lighter, whispering strands caught in the breeze and floating up and around her shoulders.

Feeling a sense of satisfaction at the sight of her; one that sank deeply into the very marrow of my bones, my eyes glided possessively over her slender frame…a frame that hid the true strength it held, not only physically, but mentally and emotionally. A frame that at the moment, was rigid and almost unapproachable.

Knowing that I was in for an argument, I mentally prepared myself as much as I ever could against an encounter with the often volatile Rosemarie Hathaway. Luckily, on this occasion – and it wasn't always the case – I knew exactly why she was angry.

During the course of the night, Henry – a human Alchemist trained to conceal the presence of not only the Dhampir, but the Moroi and Strigoi from humans – had interrupted the festivities seeking my mother's help.

Learning that a Strigoi known as the Blood King was killing off all those who were foolish enough to seek him out in the foothills found north-west of town, none who had gathered to hear his tale had been concerned enough to do anything about it…it had only been Yeva who had changed that opinion as she all but declared that it was my duty to end him.

Rose had been furious with not only Yeva's interference, but with Viktoria's insistence as I accepted the task. Making sure that I knew she was going with me – as if I would have thought anything else – she clearly hadn't been happy with my decision, but had let the matter drop whilst my attention had been diverted by the throng of well-wishers.

With the majority of my time monopolized, I had seen the frustration in the depth of her eyes intensify as she stewed but could never get me alone long enough to talk about it and for a time, I had lost track of her. It was only now as the majority of those who had been gathered were leaving that I was able to look for her.

The adage of don't borrow trouble came to mind as I closed in on her, but I knew that her anger was more fear based than anything else. Her natural instinct to protect those who could not had been very clearly reflected in her fierce brown eyes, but it was the fear that I so rarely saw that was the stronger of the emotions…her fear for me.

Since the restoration, my mental state had swung so violently from one day to the next that I knew she was still worried about me. Having conquered most of my demons with the aid of her love, faith and sheer stubbornness to never give up or give in, I had tried to live every day for itself.

There were still mornings when I woke to find that in the harsh light of day I couldn't stand to be within my own skin, but as I had Rose in my arms during most of those mornings, simply looking at her helped to keep the self-loathing at bay.

During those mornings and through any other darker day…she was my atonement.

Knowing that she could hear my approach, Rose's posture softened marginally, but her clear displeasure couldn't be overlooked. Curling my arms around her waist until my hands curved around the vaulting of her ribs, I pulled her backwards into the cradle of my body. She didn't fight the embrace, but neither did she return it.

Nuzzling into the dark mass of her hair, I buried my nose and inhaled until it felt as though the intoxicating scent of her had filtered through my lungs and outward as it invaded every cell with her essence. That scent had once been a trail leading to her death as I tracked her through the wilderness of Siberia, but now, it was as much my redemption as she was.

"Are Mark and Oksana still here?"

"Yes," I replied in a murmur muffled by her hair. Pulling loose from her tangled tresses, I rested my chin lightly on top of her head. "I don't think they'll stay for much longer though."

"Hmmm," she answered with a vague nod of her head, still making no move to release her grip on the top plank of the fence. Sighing against her, I decided to take the bull by the horns.

"What is it, Rose? What's on your mind?" I asked quietly, whilst all the while knowing exactly the type of reaction I was about to get. Feeling her softer posture stiffen one more as she became a rigid mass in my arms, Rose all but spat out between her gritted teeth.

"Really, Comrade? You just volunteered to go on a suicide mission against a Strigoi that's been killing for decades…one that is probably older, faster, smarter and stronger than any other you've ever encountered and you have to ask me that?!"

Turning swiftly on her heels in the circle of my arms with a move that was so smooth and fluid that my hold on her didn't move, just changed hands, Rose faced me with an expression on her beautiful face that would have made a weaker man shake in his boots as her fists clenched at her side.

Tightening my encircling arms, I crushed her gently to my chest as I looked beyond the anger on her face and saw to the fear that she wasn't able to fully mask.

"It's not a suicide mission," I reassured her gently, rubbing my thumbs lightly along a rib as a pacifying touch as stands of her hair blew over her face and she brushed them aside impatiently. "And what else could I do? What else could I say?"

"Anything! That's the problem. You just allowed Yeva and Viktoria to…to, I don't know; pressgang you into this, Dimitri!"

Arching my brows at her choice of wording, I smothered the grin that would only get me into more trouble. "I think that's a harsh expression, Roza…and you hate history; do you even know what pressgang means?"

"Okay, right now," she hissed as her rigid index finger dug into my chest. "This is so not the time to mock my academic record, Comrade. I'm serious."

"So am I, moye serdtse,' I reassured her softly as my fingers curled around the one still poking me in the chest. I spread her hand over my sternum and moved it to cover my beating heart…the heart that she and she alone would forever own.

"Apart from Mark, you and I are the only Dhampir in the community that have any combat training. There are others that know how to defend themselves in a group if they need to, but they would only be walking into certain death if they went looking for it. These are also my people, Rose; if they're being targeted, I need to know that I've done everything I can to remove that threat. Can you understand that?"

Digging her fingertips lightly into the wool cover my heart, as if she could anchor herself to me, Rose sighed dramatically and rolled her eyes. "Yes, of course I can. I just hate the fact that your grandmother thinks she has some divine right to command free will!"

"That's not what she does." I clarified as tucked the wayward strands of her hair behind her ear and lightly toyed with her lobe. "But she is taken very seriously by those in this community, Rose and you know already from when you were here before that without her help, you would never have learnt that Spirit could be used to restore Strigoi."

When Yeva had muttered'…only someone who has walked the road of death can kill the Blood King…' all eyes had instantly fallen to me. Even if I had wanted to decline, there was no chance to quietly bow out.

"Ughhhhh!" Rose groaned loudly in exasperation as she pulled her hand loose and threw them both up into the air. "So what Yeva Belikova says is just supposed to be taken as law around here? You're her grandson, for God's sake and she's sending you in to face a dangerous situation like you're going to the dentist, Dimitri! You know her supposed predictions are vague at best and bullshit at worst."

Never fully understanding the root of the antagonism between Rose and Yeva, I decided to switch tactic before she became so agitated that nothing I said or did would calm her down. "It's what we're trained for, Rose." I reminded her instead in a low, cajoling tone. "Besides, I'm not going in alone."

When Mark had volunteered to go with us, I had been secretly relieved.

Not doubting that together Rose and I could handle anything that came our way, I had still been concerned over the unfamiliarity of the situation we were walking into. It was one thing for me to approach a dangerous situation alone, but if I had Rose at my side, it wasn't something I was keen on doing.

Trained and recruited as a guardian, Mark's reputation – before he had chosen to leave the fraternity and live with his Moroi wife on the outskirts of society, away from those who judged them for their forbidden marriage – had been formidable amongst those of us who had known him.

Glad to have his experience, as it could only be an asset, there was something else that gave him an advantage…it was the same thing that gave Rose hers. They were both shadow kissed; they both had the ability to sense Strigoi before they were close enough to attack.

"I know it's what we're trained for, Dimitri," Rose muttered angrily as she stared at my chest and her fingers once again anchored over my heart. "And in any other situation, I wouldn't be making a big deal out of this, but it's not!"

Hearing her voice break slightly at the end, I frowned at her impassioned words. A passionate woman, Rose was prone to emotional outbursts, but this was different. Cupping her face with both hands, I tilted it upwards to meet her eyes as the moonlight reflected a glint of moisture she was quick to blink away.

"What is it then, Roza?" I asked forcefully, my concern for her leaving no room for argument or her customary evasions. "What difference does this time make when the other's before it were fine?"

Closing her eyes briefly, Rose inhaled deeply before she opened them again. As her lids and curling lashes revealed her eyes, they were suddenly a far darker brown than usual and the depths of them swam with anguished memories.

"He's in a cave, Dimitri…a cave." She uttered in a near whisper that quivered with the force of her emotion. "Do you remember what happened the last time you went into a cave? I do and it's all I can think about."

Aching to comfort her even as her words awoke the darker, deadened memory in my soul…the one I instinctively recoiled away from, I crushed her to my chest. Wrapping my arms around her with an unbreakable force, I hunched over her, crooning as we looked to comfort each other.

"It's not the same. We aren't going into the caves, Roza. We'll wait outside and spring a surprise attack. This isn't going to be like…like the last time. I promise you. We won't ever have to go through that again."

Reliving those memories was not something that I wanted to do right now…not when it meant that I would sink back into a deeper, murkier place; one that I had fought so hard against already to stay out of, but her fear couldn't be dealt with in any other way.

"You were the one that told me I had to let go of the past…of the guilt. If I let my fear or the memories get in the way of what I do, then it's essentially the same thing. I know that you're worried, but you'll be with me and so will Mark. It won't happen again."

Rubbing her face over the wool covering my chest, Rose sniffed before shaking her head, but did not raise it from my warmth. "I was with you last time too; Dimitri…and it didn't make any damn difference. I promised you in the cabin that I wouldn't let anything happen to you and less then twenty-four hours later I failed."

Hearing the self-condemnation as she blamed herself for what had happened to me, I realised that all though she was very vocal about convincing me to let go of the past, she was no better at it than I was.

"Roza, don't. You can't blame yourself for what happened to me; I won't let you. We all knew the risk when we went in there and none of us would have chosen to do it any differently if we were faced with that decision again. The situation here is very different; you know that. There's a single Strigoi, not an army of them."

"Yeah, I know, but still…."

"Do you trust me, Rose?"

Lifting her head from my chest, Rose peered up into my face; one side darker, the other light as indignation chased away her remorse. "Well that's a stupid question, Comrade. Of course I trust you."