I'm UPDATING? Holy crap, it's a miracle! The sky must be falling!

Yes, I know, I seriously suck and there is no excuse good enough… But if you read my other story, you've heard a small amount of what I'm trying to juggle and deal with.

To all my anonymous reviewers, THANK YOU! It's hard for me to respond to all of you, but I really do love them just as much as I love the reviews I get from those with accounts.

.733455 deserves a seriously awesome round of applause as well. She reviewed my story 6 times in one day! And she brought up something I didn't even think about when I wrote this:

"this was a great chapter! i like how its like Dimitri is saving

her from her bad life and father instead of the spirit's

effects. i love this story!

xoxox

lexi"

Heh, I didn't even think about how Dimitri's protecting Rose from her past and her father instead of spirit, but to a point it's true :)

RPOV

There was no tag on the box; it was just a long box like one might put flowers in. I frowned slightly, not sure what to do. If it was from Dimitri surely he would have put a note on it, right?

My hand hovered over the box, uncertain. "Oh, to hell with it," I muttered to myself. After everything I'd been through, how could an unmarked box freak me out?

Quickly, before I could change my mind, I snatched up the box and shook it. A dry rustling sound came from inside, like the sound of dry leaves sweeping together on a windy autumn day. Just a harmless box of flowers. That was what I'd thought, but after receiving a call from your strange new foster mother begging you to be careful you could never be too sure.

Now that I knew what it was, I relaxed, laughing slightly at my own paranoia. This is a boarding school in the middle of nowhere, Montana. I reminded myself. Nothing weird is going on; there's nothing to be worried about.

Eagerly, I opened the box thinking the tag was inside. It took me a few moments to comprehend the contents of the box. I'd been expecting a flower or two, bright and vibrant, alive. But not this. This—this was disturbing.

It was a single dead rose. I flung the box onto the ground, feeling tears rise to my eyes. Who the hell had sent this and why?

A small slip of white paper caught my eye. It was just sitting on my bed, but I was a little afraid to read what it said; I really didn't have a good feeling about this whole situation.

Steeling myself, I picked it up and flipped it over.

"Roses are red

Violets are blue

Stick your nose where it doesn't belong

And I'll kill you

-A"

I closed my eyes tightly, clenching the paper in my hand. So clearly, the flower wasn't from Dimitri. It was from "A" and "A" was threatening me. I didn't even know what I was doing to upset the person, but clearly they didn't like it.

I sat down on my bed and stared at the small, crumpled paper in my hand. What was going on? Should I call Janine?

The door swung open and a smiling Lissa stepped inside, shutting the door quickly behind her. "Hi Rose!" she said brightly. "How was the rest of your day?"

"Um, it was okay" I slipped the piece of paper into my pocket and stood up quickly. "That chick from this morning apparently is not someone whose attention I want." I rolled my eyes.

Lissa frowned. "Why not? She was so helpful. Oh, what was her name?"

"Avery," I said. "She went all psycho-killer on me after you left. Apparently I'm not allowed to talk to her ex, Adrian. Avery's convinced they're still together." I sighed.

"Oh, that's the obsessed chick I keep hearing about?" Lissa looked astonished. "Wow yea, from what I've heard, she will skewer you for so much as looking at Adrian."

"Avery is totally harmless. She's just deranged, and likes to threaten people. I could totally take her." I crossed my arms defiantly. "Besides, it's not like Adrian and I are dating. We just talked like once-if you could call it talking. He was hitting on me the whole time."

Lissa laughed. "Well that'd be why. Avery doesn't like her man flirting with other women."

"If she had actually bothered to listen to the conversation, she would have known that I was telling him I wasn't interested in him."

"She's crazy—what's that?" Lissa saw the box on the floor by my feet and was now eying it with obvious curiosity.

I smiled nervously. "Um, what's what?" I really didn't want her knowing—it would just upset her and possibly bring back unwanted memories of our father.

"That." She was pointing now, taking a few steps closer. "Rose, what's going on?"

I stepped in front of her, blocking her view of the box. "Nothing. It's just something I got today. Hey, can you help me with my English homework?"

Lissa smiled impishly. "Something from Dimitri?" She wiggled her eyebrows. "What is it?"

"I, um, really need help with History." I said nervously. She was moving closer now, grinning widely.

"You just said it was English. Clearly it isn't that important if you can't even remember what subject you need help in. Now show me!" Lissa bounced on her feet eagerly.

I sighed, disappointed. She would not drop it until I told her now. Stepping aside, I gestured for her to pick the box up. Her smile faltered for a few seconds; I think she picked up that something was not right; but then her grin flickered back, as wide and mischievous as it had been before.

I sat on the bed and turned away from her. Drawing my feet up to my chest, I waited for her to explode. There was a rustling sound as she picked the box up and moved the paper away from the dead rose. Then, there was silence. My eyebrows rose as the silence continued. She wasn't responding. Was she okay? I wheeled around to face her just as she opened her mouth. Her large green eyes met mine, shocked and horrified.

"Who sent this, Rose?" she asked shakily. I could tell she was trying to keep it together and show me she was strong.

I shrugged and let my eyes wander down to the bed. "There was no note?" she persisted. I felt the bulge in my pocket and swallowed hard. This was where I drew the line on what I was telling her.

"Nope, no note. It was just some stupid kids' idea of a prank." I shrugged again, trying to look like the flower didn't bother me.

"Nothing at all?" Lissa looked skeptical.

"Look, there's nothing there. It's just a stupid dead flower, is all. You're just paranoid." I looked at her defiantly.

"But—don't you think it's strange? The choice of flowers? It's a rose, Rose!"

"It's just a prank, I told you!" I sighed in exasperation. The flower choice had struck me. This "A" person had sent me a note threatening to kill me and a dead rose. No, I didn't think it was coincidence.

"Are you going to tell someone?" Lissa crossed her arms over her chest and peered at me fearfully.

"No. And neither are you." I stared at her intently. "It's nothing. I'll handle it."

"What if it isn't nothing, Rose? What if someone is out to get you?" she cried. "You have to tell someone. They could hurt you Rose, and if you got hurt and I could have stopped it, or you could have, I'll never forgive myself! I-"

"Lissa!" I stood up quickly and touched her shoulder. "It's okay. We're safe here. Nobody will come anywhere you or me again. I promise. Nothing will happen." I looked into her eyes. "I'll protect us both, okay? He won't come anywhere near you again. He's locked up for life, remember?" I knew she wasn't worried that some random person was stalking me, she was worried our father had come looking for us just like he'd done all those years ago.

~~~~~FLASHBACK~~~~~

"I'll hunt you down if it's the last thing I do, bitch!" He screamed at me as the police handcuffed him. "You can't hide from me! I own you! And your fucking sister!"

I stood tall and kept a cool face even though his words scared me to death. "No you won't, daddy."

"There is nowhere on this earth you can hide from me, you hear? Nowhere! I'll find you, and I'll make you pay. Don't underestimate me." That was the last thing he said before the police forced him into the car, slamming the door shut.

Lissa, standing next to me, let out a little whimper. I looked over at her and saw tears rolling down her cheeks. "He doesn't mean it, Lissa. He can't get to us now. I won't let him." I said fiercely. Lissa's crying increased. She cried silently. If she hadn't whimpered, I would never have figured out that's what she was doing.

I drew her to me, hugging her tightly. "We're safe. It's over now. He can't hurt us anymore."

~~~~~END OF FLASHBACK~~~~~

Thirteen years later, as Lissa once again stood in front of me scared by the threat of our dad, I did the same thing. I put my arms around her and hugged her, feeling her shake against me.

"He's locked up. He won't hurt us. I'll be fine."

I AM SOOOOOOOO SORRY FOR TAKING LIKE A MONTH AND A HALF TO UPDATE!

I know this can't really make up for it, but there are some story ideas that have been running through my mind lately, and if you review, I'll give you an excerpt of one of them. I'm not posting what they're about, just the title. I'll give you a brief summary with the excerpt though

4-I'm Fine

3-Rose's Song

2-How It All Began (If you review but don't tell me what you want, this is the excerpt I'll give you as it is the one I will be posting first)

1-Bound To You, Maybe

Remember, I love you all!

The drama begins NOW! Lots of excitement coming up. The story will move quickly from here ;)