Disclaimer:

I do not own Vampire Academy… awesome Richelle Mead Does. I hope you'll like this. No Flames please.

Chapter One

My dreams had always been dark ever since I found out Dimitri became a Strigoi. My dreams were either me standing on Dimitri's body with a stake pierced in his heart. Or worse I turned Strigoi with him by choice.

But this dream was different. It's too bright, happy and sort of realistic. I was walking barefooted on the sand watching the waves of the ocean. I was wearing a red tank top that showed my midriff, my nazar was hanging on my belly as a belly ring, again and was wearing really short pair of shorts that I never owed in my life. Boy, did I look hot.

Then I realized that this just wasn't my dream anymore.

I took a deep breath; I know I owe this guy a lot. He gave me money that would last me for at least two years. I didn't realize that that much amount of money was just little for him. So I had to be nice.

"Hello Adrian." I tried to sound calm but there was an edge to my voice that showed that I wasn't happy about this at all.

Adrian popped up from behind a tree a few feet away from me. He had a smug smile on his face, his emerald eyes shinning in the sun. He looked cute and different I might add. If he wasn't a chain smoker or an alcoholic I might find him attractive.

"Hello little dhampir."

I tried to smile, but my mouth barely moved and I'm sure it looked more like a snarl.

He walked towards me and made a sound that caused me to clench my fists.

I forgot how annoying he could be. But I had to remain calm. Be nice, Rose. I reminded myself. I relaxed a bit, trying to ignore my tensed muscles.

He raised an eyebrow; this made me look away because the action reminded me of Dimitri. "Come on Rose. Where is the girl that plays hard to get?"

I scowled at him, "I'm being nice." I snapped. Oh well, so much for trying to calm down. He always knows what buttons to hit.

He laughed, "That's the Rose I know and love." He sat down on the ground and patted on the space beside him, gesturing me to sit beside him.

I sighed fighting the urge to roll my eyes, if I was trying to be nice I might as well sit down beside him. Groaning, I added softly, "I know I owe you a lot Adrian, but please don't visit my dreams any time you want." Of course that's a lie. By that I mean this is the first time he visited my dream for awhile. I have been trying to block myself from Adrian and Lissa. I wanted my mind to be my own; I didn't want distractions at all.

He smiled and then rested his arm on his head. He didn't say anything for a few seconds and then he just laughed, "I haven't seen you in two weeks," he smiled, "I miss you." He tried to make it seem like he's joking but the look in his eyes said the opposite. "Lissa does," he added in a low hard voice now.

I looked away from him again, feeling guilty this time. Lissa and I didn't really part in great terms. I turned my back on her to get on my quest of killing Dimitri, to set him free from his immortality. She claimed that I loved Dimitri more than I love her. But I love them both, equally if that was possible. But I felt more obligated to Dimitri for now. And if I survive this I might come back, but I'm more scared that I might not take the fact that I killed Dimitri. I'm terrified that I might go insane.

"How is Lissa?" I sighed, distracting myself from my own demise.

He took my chin so I could look at him, "You tell me." He said, seriousness taking over his face.

I bit my bottom lip, of course he knows. When I slipped into Lissa's mind yesterday by accident I knew anytime that Adrian would visit too. The meditations I've been doing to keep myself from them was wearing out now.

My lips formed a shy smile, "That she shows she's fine, tells everyone she is. But deep inside…" I stopped. I didn't need to continue; he already knows what she's feeling… he could see it through her aura. Even though I feel horrible right now and if not for Dimitri I would run to her. But I have to this for Dimitri, especially for me. I had to be strong, no distractions. To destroy Dimitri is my only goal.

"She's getting good with that dream thing isn't she?" I asked. Knowing Lissa, if the only way to communicate with me is through our dreams then I'm positive that she's doing her best to be able to.

He snickered, "A little," he sighed, "Trying to hard for a fact… but for some reason she can't visit yours." He added when he noticed the look of worry on my face. He sighed an exasperated sigh, "I wasn't able to sense you for a while, either you sleep opposite time to ours or—." And then he finally realized why he was never able to visit my dreams until today. He narrowed his eyes, "You were trying to keep us out."

I smiled, "I can't be distracted. I need to focus." I said, but I more likely to myself reminding myself why I had to be strong.

"Well you know, if you ask Eddie, Lissa—hell, even Christian and me to come after you… We'd do it." Again his voce sounded like he was making a joke, but the seriousness in his eyes says that he's stating the truth. And that worried me too much.

I sighed, no matter how annoying Adrian is I have to remember that he is a very nice guy. "Thanks for the offer Adrian. But I can't be tied down to anyone. I'd want to do this myself." I rested my head on his side.

He patted my back softly in comfort. He was looking beyond the ocean as if someone was calling for him. He smiled at me before he finally disappeared and my dream was suddenly swallowed into darkness. Ah, my wonderful dreams.

My eyes opened in an instant and my head felt like it was going to explode. Oh no… not again!

My hotel room slowly started to fill with transparent dead people floating around my bed, surrounding me. Most of them are the ones that I saw the day after the court hearing and other new ones.

I'm used to this now, the more Strigoi I kill the more I see the ghosts. But an advantage of the number of Strigoi I kill the more I get control of seeing them, to have them completely disappear. They usually come when I wake up after a long sleep.

I sighed as I saw a new little girl there. Her face was sad and lost as if she knew that she wasn't ready to give up a life she barely experienced. She had the darkest shadow around her among the group.

I looked into her transparent eyes, "Don't worry, I'll join you—just let me finish my quest," with that statement the ghosts disappeared, but the little girl. She just stared at me and then raised her arm towards the window—the sun setting.

"Oh crap!" I cussed as I leaped from my bed to the ground. My eyes landed on the clock that stated it was a quarter till five.

"Double crap!" I cussed under my breath again, realizing that the plane to Russia is going to leave in an hour. I mean, I may be staying in a hotel around the airport premises. But I can't really abuse the fact that I'm close. I was supposed to leave thirty minutes ago at least. They always said, always be there an hour before your international flight.

And I also have a huge problem, how the hell am I going to hide my Stake so I can walk in airport security. Gosh, I wish Lissa was with me right now, she would use compulsion on them to let me through.

At that, I got sucked into Lissa's mind again.

I—she was sitting in the dinning hall that seemed a bit deserted. I mean the sun is setting, which means life at the academy might be too early for students to walk around.

She's reading the weather report and the main headlines. This made me curious… she never does that.

"Are you still reading that silly news?" Adrian asked in a bored tone as he sat across Lissa. He was holding a glass of water and drank it in one breath as if it was a shot of alcohol.

She lowered the paper a bit to glower at him, and then she continued reading the paper. "You just told me that you visited Rose's dream last night." She set the paper down and frowned, "Who knows maybe she is with me right now… I'd just want to let her know that it's going to be really cold or tell her about what is happening in the real world."

Adrian laughed, "By reading about three houses that burned down that is about three hours away from us?" he teased.

Eddie, who was sitting beside Lissa, tried his best not to laugh but was unsuccessful.

She glared at both at them, "Oh, leave me alone!" she groaned, she was about to start reading when Adrian stopped laughing and was staring at her differently.

She started back, eyebrows furrowing together confused. He was looking right though her, she almost had the urge to turn around and check who he's staring at, but she was positive no one was behind her because she is by the wall.

"What?" she demanded annoyed now. She was seriously thinking had gone insane because he just gave her a seductive smile and winked at her—winked at me.

Crap, Adrian knows I'm with Lissa. Flirty bastard can see my aura on Lissa's probably. He once mentioned to me that my aura was dark like Lissa's, but darker. So that would mean she would be surrounded by complete darkness.

"What are you doing?" Christian hissed through his teeth. He looked like he was about to tackle Adrian.

Adrian just rolled his eyes; he leaned back on his chair resting his head on his hands. He had that bored expression playing on his face again. "Easy lover boy…" he grinned, "I'm not flirting with your girlfriend." He said calmly. He winked at Lissa this time.

But before Lissa could figure it out I left her mind again.

And I spent the next fifteen minutes rushing, making up the time I wasted in Lissa's mind. And thinking about how and where I would hide my stake.

I dropped off my rent-a-car in the parking lot of the airport and called them, leaving a message where I left the car. When that twisting feeling in my stomach, the nauseating feeling devoured my body with shock.

I immediately became alert, searching. Strigoi are here. But why? And then that exact moment I heard cold voices that sent chills down my spine. Two Strigoi arguing… I traced the voices, with my stake firmly in my hand I was ready to attack.

I saw them. I was close enough that I can actually hear them, but I was far enough to where they can't sense me just yet. They are too preoccupied to trying not to kill each other. A tall blonde Strigoi was pinning a much shorter Strigoi on the wall, lifting him a few inches off the ground.

I felt my blood boil when I realized that the blonde Strigoi was him—the Strigoi that tackled Dimitri and bit Dimitri. The same Strigoi that vowed to kill the last Dragomir. My knees started to shake when I fought the urge to go there and kill him.

"Why do I have to go to Russia?!" The little Strigoi demanded through his teeth. He looked like he was chocking and was really close to attacking the blonde Strigoi.

When the blonde Strigoi spoke, his cold voice gave my insides a good quiver and the hair in my back stand. But his answered was mostly the cause to all of this.

"Because," he hissed menacingly though his teeth, "Dimitri's little dhampir thinks he's in Russia."

a/n:'

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