I woke up in the palace room Lissa was gracious enough to give me. The red and gold throughout the room dimmed in the dark but the lit candles gave it that eerie feel. It smelled like jasmine but Dimitri's soap lingered and nearly masked the sweet smell. I snuggled my face into his chest and breathed him in. What a perfect morning. I hoped everyday could be like this but I knew it was going to be short lived once we left back to campus.

"Hey". His hand stroked the curve of my shoulder and I tilted my head up to look at his face. His eyes caught the light and their color scattered where it caught. His smile was soft and sweet like his voice.

"Hey". I traced my fingers against his stomach and made my way to his chest. I splayed my fingers out and drank in the feel of him.

"How long have you been up?" He stifled a yawn and I felt him stretch just slightly.

I wrapped my arm over him and pulled him close. "Not long. Just a few seconds before you."

He hugged my body to him and kissed my forehead. "What time are we planning on getting up?"

"Never". I felt him laugh and I could picture his natural smile.

"That sounds good to me but you do know they will come looking for us eventually." He tilted my head up and swept some hair off my face. "Come on. Lissa needs you." He brought his lips to mine.

"How do you know Lissa needs me? You guys have some sort of bond?" I sat up and leaned over him.

His fingers found my wrist and he spread my arms out until the tips of our noses were touching. "No, but can you think of a time that she hasn't?"

Of course I could think of quite a few but I didn't care to mention times that Lissa didn't need me. It reminded me how useless I felt now that our bond was gone. I still felt like I should be helping her fight the darkness that came with the use of spirit. Like it was my duty to protect her from anything and everything. Dimitri must have sensed what I was thinking about because he frowned.

"Don't worry about me." I pulled back and sat up bringing my knees to my chest. "It's nothing."

His hand landed gently on my shoulder and I felt a huge burden fall from my chest. "You don't need to hold up that wall and close me off. You forget I know you too well." I could feel his breaths behind my ear.

I couldn't help but feel so useless though. I was so sure that if Lissa fell to the darkness that I would go tumbling after her. That I wouldn't be strong enough to watch my best friend fall into insanity and be powerless to save her. I hugged my knees and fought back tears that were trying to break through. "I'm fine." I said it trying to reassure myself more than I was trying to reassure Dimitri.

"Are you really?" He turned me to face him and cupped my face. "You say you trust me and yet here you are trying to hide something from me… again."

I looked him in the eye and saw hurt, disappointment, and his world was caving in all because I couldn't tell him. I just didn't want him to worry about me. "There's nothing to hide." I held his wrists and pulled him to me. Our lips met and I felt a tear escape and run down my cheek. I wiped it before he could pull away.

I felt him study my face and a smile finally revealed itself. His arms encircled me and he squeezed. "Ah, Roza. All I know is that you better tell me before it gets too bad."

He knew. He always knew. But he was trusting me enough to let him know when it was just too much for me to handle. For now I would be allowed to carry the burden on my own. "I will."

We walked out into the hallway and knocked on Lissa and Christian's door. I looked down each side of the hallway for any signs of life. None. There was absolutely nothing. It was nearly bare. Only the fake candles that lined the walls made for some decoration and the red and gold carpet that snaked its way from end to end. I looked back at the unanswered door and knocked again.

"Yea, yea! We hear you. Hold your damn horses…" Christian still sounded sleepy. I could hear him shuffling his feet to get to the door. It was obviously a great effort on his part since I could still hear him mumbling something about people waking up too early and disturbing others.

The door opened and Christian stood there with his black hair a neat mess on the top of his head. His blue boxer shorts and white shirt were wrinkled beyond comprehension. It was like he tried to look as messy as possible. "Morning, sunshine."

By the look on his face I could tell he wasn't amused. "What. Do. You. Want?" He ran his hand through his hair and I could feel the frustration leaking from his aura.

"As if I'm here for you. Where's Lissa?" I looked around inside the room and couldn't get a lock on her. I looked back at him expectantly.

"In the shower." His words were still heavy and tired. "Anything else, princess?"

I pushed past him and walked into the room. I could hear Dimitri and Christian making conversation behind me. Christian was saying something about Dimitri throwing me out. Then Dimitri said I'd probably end up putting up a fight that he just didn't want to deal with right now.

Lissa stepped out of the bathroom and smiled when she saw me. "Hey. Wake up call for me?" Her hair was straight and lay against her back. The green shirt was sleek and shiny and went well with her black slacks.

"Only for the best. Nice look, Liss." I couldn't believe just how mature she looked in that outfit.

"Thank you, Rose" she looked over at Dimitri, "Someone woke up in a good mood this morning." Her smile was a tad mischievous but it still held that regal look.

Dimitri nearly blushed. He wasn't use to being so out in the open with our love life. I walked over to him and pulled him into the room with me. I looked over to Christian "I'll give him back to you when he's needed."

"Wow. Just leave me out in the open, in danger, and helpless." His tone was flat but he acted like he might actually be hurt by my actions.

"Whatever. When have you ever been helpless?" I got a flashback of when we fought together at the school when the Strigoi attacked. He had held his own and took down nearly as many as I did. He had assisted me in some of my own kills as well.

"Yea, I guess I am pretty awesome." He puffed out his chest and posed. This made us all laugh. He slumped back and walked off towards the bathroom. "My turn. Shower time." He kissed Lissa as he passed. "I'll be out in a few."

Dimitri and I stood beside Lissa. "So what's on the schedule for today?" I looked at her suspiciously. "Any more surprises?"

She turned her face away. "None that I know of." She looked back at me and smiled "And don't act like you didn't enjoy that last one."

I looped my arm through Dimitri's "I loved it." I looked up admirably at him. I still couldn't believe he proposed just yesterday.

"Don't get your hopes up just yet". Dimitri's voice was low and timid. "Hans called me and he needs a hand with something". He pressed a kiss to my forehead. "I won't be long. I'll come find you when I'm done." Just like that I watched him walk out the room. The last vision of him was the tail of his duster leaving the doorframe.

I don't know why he had to leave. This was our time off. Well, it was my time off anyways. I sighed and could feel Lissa staring at me. "What?"

She smiled and looked away "You guys are so cute". She cupped her chin and sighed. "It's still kind of strange to me. You and Dimitri. I can't believe I didn't see it before."

"Hey, I don't think anyone saw it."

"I saw it."

Lissa and I jumped. Adrian suddenly appeared at the door. "Jesus! Can you knock?" He scared me off my feet. I didn't like feeling unprepared.

He raised his hands in surrender. "The door was open. Didn't mean to scare you." His smug smile said different. He was glad he got the jump on me. "I didn't expect to startle you" he said to Lissa. "Thought you would have sensed my aura." He walked passed her and straight to the kitchen. A strong smell of smoke lingered after him. My stomach curled.

"Why is he here?" I tried to keep my voice low but I wouldn't have minded if he did over hear me.

Lissa shrugged meekly and turned to follow him. "So, uh, what are you doing here so early?"

His voice was a little muffled through the kitchen door. "Looking for company." He was making noise so I could tell he was looking through the cabinets.

"You lose your bottle?" I felt my face flushing from irritation. He couldn't even wait until lunch time.

He joined us again. "Found what I was looking for." He lifted up a bottle of vodka and a satisfied smiled spread over his face. He unscrewed the top and took a swig.

I couldn't believe he was actually acting like this. A swirl of feelings began to creep into my chest. I felt disappointment, sadness, hurt, anger, and a small trace of pity. I knew he could be a better man but he would rather get drunk and sit in his usual cloud of smoke. I walked over and pulled the bottle from his hand. "That is for later. Sorry."

"No fair." He tucked his hands into his pockets. "I don't have any left at my place and nobody seems to want to share." He pouted and leaned his head on the wall. I would have almost felt bad for him if I didn't know any better.

Lissa walked over to his side and put a hand on his shoulder. "Rose and I are going shopping. If you're really as lonely as you claim to be, why don't you just come with us?"

Adrian and I were in unison. "What?" We traded glances at one another.

"It will be fun." She was trying to be convincing but the problem with that was that me and Adrian still weren't on the best of terms with one another.

"Yea, it can be just us girls."

I looked over to the door and discovered a new body that joined our party. "Doesn't anyone know how to knock anymore?"

Mia stepped back a bit shocked by my biting remark. "Sorry. Didn't mean to interrupt. The door was already kind of open." She stood just outside the door way.

Lissa stepped forward and beckoned her inside. "No, it's fine. Rose isn't in the best mood all of a sudden." She threw a sharp glance at me. I couldn't tell if she was upset with me or just disappointed. There was plenty of that going around today.

"Sorry, Mia." I ran my fingers through the ends of my hair. I felt like a child that had just been chastened.

She shook her head. "No need to apologize. So, what are we doing today?"

Why did everyone keep thinking that they could just join in on whatever Lissa and I had planned? I tilted my head back and stared at the ceiling. I was kind of hoping it could swallow me and magically transport me to wherever Dimitri was.

"I'm not in the mood to hang out with little girls today." Adrian started for the door but stopped abruptly before walking out. "Hope you have fun, little dhampir." And just like that he was gone.

Mia and Lissa stayed quiet. Suddenly the bathroom door opened. "So I was thinking we should go by…" He stopped and looked around at each of us. "What'd I miss?"

"Nothing. Adrian stopped by." Lissa walked over to him and kissed his cheek. "We are going shopping." She touched a damp strand of his hair and smiled. "Want to come?"

His eyebrows rose. "Am I going to be the only guy there?"

"No, Eddie can come with if Adrian doesn't need him." Mia spoke fast and nearly fell over her words.

I felt a small smile creep over my face as all the pieces fell into place. Mia liked Eddie. I could tell by the faces she made every time he came up in a conversation, how she walked awkwardly beside him at the spa, and every time she spoke about him she blushed and fumbled over her words. It was actually a pretty cute match. Mia was a doll, pretty and petite. Eddie was cute, tall, and fit. At least I thought they would make a cute couple or maybe I was reading too much into it. Maybe Eddie didn't feel the same. But why wouldn't he? Mia was a very pretty girl. I shook off the thoughts and returned back to the reality of the room. "And I need to get Ally from her room too. She will want to come with us to do some girl time."

"Speaking of spending some girl time together, I should get Jill to join us as well. She wanted to have some bonding time." Lissa's words were soft and shy. I could feel how unsure she was about the whole sister situation. Jill was starting to grow on her but it didn't change the fact that every time she saw Jill it reminded her that her father cheated on her mother. It hurt to now know that when he was gone. Regardless of the technicalities, she was her sister.

I tugged at Lissa's shirt. "Let's get going then. We're wasting time just standing around." I looked over to Christian. "Are you coming or what?"

"Is Dimitri coming too?" He wanted some guy company. I could tell he was getting fidgety from being surrounded by girls and only having Eddie as company.

I shook my head. "No. Hans has him helping with something." I thought about it. "But he did say he was going to join us later."

"Cool. I'm in." He shrugged his shoulders and stuck out his arm for Lissa to take.

Lissa gently placed her hand on his arm and nodded. "Let's go."

"Alright, I'm grabbing Ally." I look at Mia, "You grab Eddie." Then I turned the happy couple, "And you two grab Jill. We'll meet up at the runway." We all scattered and made our ways to gather the missing people.

When I found Ally in her room she was sitting in front of her mirror combing through her hair. Each brush made the softer red parts glimmer. The door was already cracked open so I just knocked on the inside of it. "Hello Miss Ally." I gave her a friendly smile.

She shot up from her seat "Oh, hello Rose." She blushed and flattened her hair over her shoulder the way Lissa did. "I didn't expect to see you so early in the morning. What's going on?"

I walked in and looked around the room. There were the same gold patterns in here as there were in my room only instead of red the room held a navy blue color. The smell was different as well. It smelled kind of fruity. Almost like a citrus smell. I just couldn't pin it down though. "We are going shopping. Want to come?" It sounded more like a demand rather than a request.

"Sure. That sounds fun. I haven't gone shopping in a while since my cousins came down from Romania. They have the best taste in clothes and they always treat me to something really expensive. Like ridiculously expensive." She stopped herself once she realized she was rambling on. "Sorry. I tend to talk a lot when I get nervous." She gently touched her lips as if that would help to stop the verbal diarrhea.

"No problem. Come on. Everyone's waiting for us on the runway." I signaled for her to follow me. She started to but then quickly stopped to grab something from the bed. It was a small hand bag that matched her purple dress. She tucked it under her arm and nodded to me.

"Ready."

We got to the runway and spotted Lissa, Christian, and Jill waiting for us. It was a bit of an awkward setting. Lissa and Jill were standing side by side trying to make idol conversation. I could see the wall made of tension sitting between them. It was a weird scene for sure. "Where are Mia and Eddie?" I asked Christian as we approached.

He shrugged "Not too sure. But I'm guessing they are on their way." He pointed at the two shadows in the distance walking towards us. "Oh, here they come."

"Awesome. We're all set to leave." But as the dark figures got closer we realized that they were Hans and Dimitri.

"Hey all done." Dimitri stood in front of me and I could still smell his fresh scent of soap.

Hans eyeballed me for an instant and then took in the rest of the group. "What are you all up to now?"

Lissa smiled sweetly. "We are going shopping as soon as Mia and Eddie get here."

"Shopping?" He looked at Dimitri. "You were in a hurry to go shopping?"

Dimitri's face flushed slightly but his face held that stone guardian look. "I really had no idea what we were doing exactly." He looked at me as if expecting me to back up his words.

"It was a last minute kind of thing." I said. I was wondering if he knew about me and Dimitri to the extent of us being engaged.

"Ah ha." Hans still sounded a bit unsure of the whole situation. "Well then I suppose you won't mind that a few more guardian's accompany you."

I jumped into defense mode. "Lissa has Dimitri, Eddie and me to watch her." I sounded like a child fighting for some independence. "Plus Christian and Mia have been training to defend themselves with magic."

Hans stared me down again. "Yes, but Queen Vasilisa Dragomir needs more protection than one personal royal guard."

He had definitely got me there. I was still use to it just being us. It was still unusual for both Lissa and I to have a crowd of people surrounding our personal space. Lissa looked at me and I felt like she wanted the bond to still be there just so that she could relay a message to me. But I could tell by the look on her face that she wanted me to stop fighting the system and just accept it as it is. "Fine". I felt defeated but I was still optimistic about the whole thing. Maybe we would get some cool guardians to join in on the fun.

Lissa spoke in her regal and confident tone. "Who shall be my escorts?"

Hans took a booklet out from under his arm and shuffled through the pages. He stopped and sighed. "The only ones available right now are Eddie, Mikhail, Serena, and Meredith." The last one sent a sudden shock of guilt through me. The last time I saw Meredith I had laid a pretty hard hook to the side of her jaw.

Lissa nodded in agreement to him. "That's perfect. Thank you, Hans." He bowed his head and sent a sly look of achievement my way. "And how fast can you get them here?"

His eyes shot straight back to her and went cold. "As soon as possible Queen Vasilisa". He turned and started towards one of the buildings that the guardians were in, I'm guessing. But then realization hit me.

"Where are Eddie and Mia at? What could be taking them so long?" I shot a side long glance at Dimitri. He knew what I meant and he nodded. I turned to the others. "We'll be right back. We're going to go see what's keeping them."

Lissa stepped forward, "We'll go with you."

Dimitri stopped her. "We can do it faster if it's just me and Rose." He caught his words and bowed his head. "I'm sorry but Rose can keep up with me and the sooner we get to them the sooner we get back."

Lissa nodded in agreement. "Okay. We'll be waiting here." She walked back over to Christian who wrapped his arms around her waist. They seemed content in their place so Dimitri and I ran in the direction of Eddie's apartment.

The door was open. Dimitri and I traded glances. I took a step forward and he grabbed my arm. I looked at him and he shook his head. He put himself in front of me and walked in. All the lights were off and I could barely make out the objects in the room even with my dhampir vision. We reached another door and light was seeping from the bottom. Dimitri opened it slowly. The door didn't even make a sound. He peered around the door and pulled his head back. His eyes were wide and he closed the door slowly. His hand covered his face and he signaled me to follow him back outside. It was like he was trying to hold his breath.

We reached outside and I stared at him puzzled. "What happened? What did you see?"

His face turned pink and he shook his head. "Maybe we should just go back and wait for them with the others."

The puzzled look never left my face. "What? Why?" I looked back at the door. The darkness was suddenly interrupted by someone turning on a light. I stepped away from the door and stood beside Dimitri.

Mia emerged in front of the door. "Hey!" She jumped up. She tried to smooth her unruly curls back behind her ears and began trying to put it all into a ponytail.

Eddie came up from behind her. His soft face was suddenly hardened into somewhat of shock. "Hey. We were just heading over to meet you all." He looked over to Dimitri. "Mia said you weren't going to make it. Change your mind?"

He smiled. "Yea. I made it back just in time." He cleared his throat. "Hans is actually assigning you to be one of Lissa's guardians for the trip."

"That's great". Mia tried to sound encouraging but I could hear disappointment. Maybe she wanted Eddie to herself, it would seem.

"It wouldn't be the first time Eddie has had to protect Lissa." I nudged his arm and laughed.

He smiled back at me "But it's the first time I'd have to do it outside of the wards and the first time since she became queen."

Dimitri stepped up. "Well, we should be getting back to everyone. Lissa wants to take off already."

Mia blushed. "Sorry. Eddie had to get ready." She looked at the ground and fiddled with her fingers. "How long have you all been waiting?"

"Not long." I looked down at my wrist and realized I wasn't wearing a watch. I covered my wrist and laughed to myself. "We actually came to see what was keeping you guys."

Eddie shrugged. "Just getting ready, like Mia said."

"Alright then, let's get going." I was tired of the weird things happening today and was actually looking forward to shopping.

The run back was slower than the one we had going over but we had to slow our pace so Mia could keep up. I really didn't care because Dimitri was with me and I was glad to have any time I could to spend with him before the weekend was over. Today and tomorrow were all that I had left until the next weekend came. And that was only if he and Christian came back too. It was times like these that I wished my life was less complicated. We reached the runway and once everyone got their bearings we boarded the plane and set off for a full day of fun at the mall. And what better place to shop than Missoula.

The fly over was long but I wouldn't have known. I slept most of the way. When I opened my eyes I saw Dimitri's face. He smiled once he realized I was awake. "Sleeping beauty awakens."

I rubbed my eyes a bit. "Are we there?" My voice sounded a bit drowsy even to me. I looked around and everyone was standing up to get off the plane.

"We landed just a few minutes ago. It took me a while to wake you up. You're a heavy sleeper." He pressed a kiss to my forehead.

His lips felt warm against my skin. At this point I just wanted to sneak away with him. Of course I knew better now that I was mature and stuff. "Where's Lissa?"

He looked up and pointed to where Christian was standing. "She just stepped off in front of Christian. Don't worry. I've been keeping an eye on them both." He offered his hand to help me up. I took it very willingly. I just wanted his touch.

We walked off the plane hand in hand. Lissa, Christian, Jill, and Ally were waiting for us on the bottom with the other guardians. Mia and Eddie followed close behind us. I turned to Lissa "So where to first, captain?"

She took in her surroundings and pointed towards the mall's clothing centers. "I want some new dresses and outfits."

Christian's smile grew. "You know being the queen you could have gotten some especially made for you at one of the shops at Court, right?"

Lissa elbowed his ribbed lightly. "Of course I knew that but they all seemed so busy dressing and fitting other royals. I didn't want to be a bother."

Serena stepped forward. "You're not a bother. You're the queen." She placed a gentle hand on Lissa shoulder. "We'd all drop anything for you just as you'd sacrifice anything for your people".

Our group grew silent as we all pondered on this revelation. Serena was right. Everyone in our world would give anything for Lissa now. She was the queen, the ruler, and last but not least, her bloodline was endangered. There were only two Dragomirs left and we were in their company. I'd always considered it a great honor to have Lissa as a friend and now it was even more than that. She was like a sister to me and even though our spiritual bond was gone we had a built a new stronger one out of our friendship, love, and trust.

I reached out and hugged her. This got a startled reaction out of her but then she quickly returned the hug. "Come on, Lissa." I held her wrists. "Let's go shopping."

She smiled and we threw our arms over each other's shoulders and walked in unison over to the clothing stores. We walked by a few windows and looked inside. Some had gorgeous gowns on display while others had blue jeans and T-shirts. Lissa pulled me into a dress shop with her. There were gown and dresses of every kind lining the walls and filling the racks.

"What colors did you want in your wedding?" I shot a glance to Lissa who held a smug smile on her face.

"Really? Are we really shopping for my wedding already?"

Dimitri laughed. "Well May is basically around the corner. We should get a start on things if we want to be ready."

"This May?" My jaw dropped and I could tell my reaction was entertainment for the whole group. "I figured we'd just do it next year."

Dimitri's smile dropped a little. "Oh, well if you want to wait until next year then…"

I cut him off, "Why wait, right?" I smiled and touch his arm reassuring him that I did want this. I wanted him. I wanted for us to be together in all and any way possible. "What colors, dear?"

Lissa grabbed a canary yellow gown off one rack, "Yellow is pretty." She pressed the dress against her body and twirled.

Jill grabbed a blue dress, "But blue is a pretty color too. It blends well with the white dress." She looked up at me suddenly, "Are you going to wear a white dress?"

I laughed. I hadn't really thought about it. I figured I was but now I was thinking ivory. Or maybe off white. My mind was running with details that I didn't realize that everyone started arguing that a bride had to wear white on the wedding day while others were saying that some brides like to wear an actual color. I put my hands up in the air. "Stop! Stop, please". The buzz died down. "Let's focus on the maids and escorts first and then we can jump into the deep end. Okay, kiddies?"

Dimitri's gazed showed that he was proud that I had been the one to do crowd control. I was usually the one who caused the outburst and drama. I guess I really was becoming more mature.

We walked from rack to wall and back again until we all agreed on a deep red color. The dresses that the girls picked out were elegant and beautiful. Lissa's had a v-neck line that stopped just above her breasts. The hemline reached down to her knees and it was cinched off at the waist with a white sash. It was satin underneath with a see-through sheath on top. Jill's dress was a bit more simple. It had a high neckline and it was knee length just like her sister's. It was cinched off under her breasts and had a big bow on the back. It seemed like a dress for a young girl so it suited her just fine. Mia picked out a dress that was a bit more revealing. It had a plunging line down the back but the front was a high neckline. It was sleek and ran down to her calves. It was still flowed a bit like the others but only when she walked. It came with a thick sash that went over her shoulders. This outfit really made her seem older. She no longer looked like a child, which was for sure. Meredith, Serena, and Ally tried on dresses just for the fun of it. We signed up to have the dresses altered to fit each girl perfectly. They would be ready and shipped off to Court at the end of this month.

The boys had a bit of fun when we went in to the next store to look at suits. Christian put on a powder blue suit with a ruffled white button up underneath. He could have walked straight out of a 70s magazine. We all laughed when Eddie's choice was super eloquent. It buttoned all the way up to his chin and the tail was ridiculously long. It nearly touched the ground. They even talked Mikhail into trying some suits on. He seemed shy about the whole thing at first but then joined in whole heartedly. His choice wasn't that bad. The only weird thing about it was that it came in navy blue and a baby blue button up underneath. We all laughed but then began to take the process seriously. The boys picked out all black suits and white button ups. Each came with a vest the color of the dresses and a tie. It was a cute photo opt if we could all just stop and take a picture.

Mikhail walked up to a mirror and sized himself up. He sighed and ran his hand through his hair. "Well, I need to be picking out a tuxedo soon anyway."

I quickly walked up to his side, "Oh my gosh, are you and Sonia getting married?"

He smiled wide. "Yea, and that's not the only new news we got either." He turned and faced everyone. "I got something big to tell you guys." Everyone stopped chatting and gave him their undivided attention. "Sonia and I are having a baby!"

I nearly dropped over. "Oh my God!" I gave him a huge hug. "Congratulations!"

All the girls ran up to him and gave him hugs while the guys did the more macho thing and gave him tough handshakes and 'way-to-go' speeches. All the girls retreated into a cloud of baby names. The boys were busy laughing it up and talking about the day that they would become dads. But then it hit me. I looked up to Dimitri. He was displaying a smile but I could see the pain behind his eyes.

I walked up to him and pulled him aside. We sat on a bench down the aisle and I clasped his hands in mine. "Are you alright?"

His gaze was on the floor. "I'm fine. It's just that…" He sucked in a deep breath before he continued. "I will never be able to give you that." I followed his gaze to Mikhail. It was a sad look. Like he was disappointed in himself that he didn't have that simplest power.

I touched his face and turned him to meet my eyes. "I don't need that. I have you. That's good enough for me."

He gently took my hand from his cheek. "Is that enough? Don't you want to have a family someday?"

I sighed and squeezed his hand. I knew no matter what that words weren't going to convince him. "I have my family. And if we want kids later we can always adopt." It was a stupid joke but at least it brought a smile to his face.

"I don't think many people in our part of the world put kids up for adoption". He forced a laugh and brushed his lips on my forehead.

"I'm sure if my parents knew how big of a handful I was going to be they would have put me up for adoption the day I was born."

This brought out a natural laugh from the both of us. His gaze deepened and burned into me. "I just want to give you everything." He kissed the back of my hand. "I want to make you happy."

My hand tingled where his lips had touched and sent a shock of electricity through me. I felt myself blush. "Just having you. That's all I need to be happy."

He smiled but I could still see the doubt floating through his eyes. It made my heart ache to see that sadness.

Lissa appeared beside us. "What are you guys doing by yourselves? Not planning on running away, are you?"

Although I knew it was a joke I still thought seriously about it. It wouldn't be such a bad idea. A nice get-away. Just Dimitri and me. We might even be able to escape to Siberia to see his family. I shook my head. "Not yet."

We both stood but he still towered over both Lissa and I. I was always amazed by his looks, his height, his touch, and the completion I felt from his presence. We walked over to the others. I was surprised that Lissa was able to sneak away from her guardians without being noticed. Maybe they figured they could keep an eye on her from a distance. It was a small store after all and there really wasn't anywhere to disappear.

Jill suddenly popped up in front of my face. "Rose!" She grabbed my hands. "Now is it wedding dress time?" I could tell she was anxious to help pick out the big dress. I still wasn't too sure what I was looking for but I knew I didn't want Dimitri to see it until our wedding day.

I turned to Dimitri. "Um, we are going to look at bride's dresses." I still felt a little aw struck from knowing I was the bride-to-be. "Tradition is…"

"I know. The groom can't see the bride in her dress until the big day". He leaned down and kissed my lips. "We will be at the food court." He brushed a loose strand of hair behind his ear.

Eddie stood up "I have to go where Lissa goes."

Lissa lifted her hand and shook her head. "Of course you don't. I have three girl guardians with me and Mia is pretty good with her magic and fighting skills." She gestured to all the girls. "I think I'm in pretty good hands. Don't you?"

Eddie hesitated at first but then nodded. "Okay." He shot a quick glance at Mia and smiled. "I guess we'll be in the food court."

I lifted my hand as if to declared victory. "Let's get going."

The store was filled with all sorts of wedding dresses. Some were super puffy while others were slim and sleek. One by one I tried each dress that the girls picked out for me. But they just didn't fit what I wanted for my wedding. It wasn't how I had pictured it. Then when I reached what felt like my millionth dress Meredith walked up to me with a dress that was breath-taking. It had a slight puff to it but it was strapless. The top was covered in pearls that ran down the side and down unto the back of the dress. The train was trimmed with a purple color which I later was told that it could be ordered to the color of my choosing. The veil was small. It attached to a barrette that had the same small pearls. It was beautiful.

I went to the back to try it on. It wasn't a perfect fit but the woman helping me took my measurements down to get the order ready. When I stepped out on the little platform all the girls gasped in awe. "How do I look?"

Meredith was still waiting where I had left her after she handed me the dress. "You look perfect."

I gave her an appreciative smile. "Thank you". I turned back to the others. Lissa walked up with tears in her eyes. "Well Liss?"

She wiped a tear off her face and smiled. "You look beautiful, Rose. Don't be surprised if Dimitri is speechless the day of the wedding."

We all laughed and Mia threw in "I guess Lissa can give him one of her fierce elbows." This drew more laughter.

Ally fluffed the back of the dress up and laid the train out along the floor to show its length. "Wow, Rose. I hardly know you and here I am helping you pick out your very own wedding dress." Her voice began to crack.

I touched her shoulder. "Are you alright?"

She waved her hand. "I'm fine. It's just that I'm not use to these kinds of things." She sniffled and Jill hugged her for comfort.

I stepped down and walked to Meredith who still seemed a bit standoffish. I put on a friendly smile. "Thank you for finding this dress." I cleared my throat. "And I never got to apologize about that punch I landed the day of my escape."

She let out a laugh. "No problem. I've gotten worse from you at the academy before. In fact, I think you might be losing your touch." She nudged my arm.

I laughed. "Hey, just be glad I was holding back." We hugged. It felt good getting that off my chest and clearing the air between the two of us. Even if it was in a bridal shop.

"I guess we can test out each other's skills once we get back to Court."

"You bet." I turned and walked back into the changing room. Once I was out of the gown I felt light. I hadn't realized just how heavy it was just to wear it and walk around in it. I figured it didn't matter. I was just going to wear it for one day.

Lissa burst through the door and tucked herself behind me. She closed the door quickly and quietly behind her. "Don't say a thing." Her voice was low and shaky.

"What are you…" Her hand clasped over my mouth and stopped me from speaking. I could hear movement out in the store. It was quick and soft like someone was trying not to be heard.

I looked down at Lissa and I could see the panic in her eyes. She was scared. Finally I came to the realization of what was happening. I was more than sure that if I still had been shadow-kissed that I would be getting that queasy feeling in my stomach. I would have been able to sense the Strigoi before they had ever gotten near us.

By Shadow-Kiss Mori