Authors: Richelle Mead
Ms. Kirova
tsk
ed at us both and paced the office, hands folded behind her narrow back.
"Miss Dragomir, you could have been the one who orchestrated the entire plan for all I know, but it was still
her
responsibility to make sure you didn't carry it out. If she'd done her duty, she would have notified someone. If she'd done her duty, she would have kept you safe.”
I snapped.
"I
did
do my duty!" I shouted, jumping up from my chair. Dimitri and Alberta both flinched but left me alone since I wasn't trying to hit anyone. Yet. "I did keep her safe! I kept her safe when none of
you"
—I made a sweeping gesture around the room—"could do it. I took her away to protect her. I did what I had to do. You certainly weren't going to.”
Through the bond, I felt Lissa trying to send me calming messages, again urging me not to let anger get the best of me. Too late.
Kirova stared at me, her face blank. "Miss Hathaway, forgive me if I fail to see the logic of how taking her out of a heavily guarded, magically secured environment is protecting her. Unless there's something you aren't telling us?”
I bit my lip.
"I see. Well, then. By my estimation, the only reason you left—aside from the novelty of it, no doubt—was to avoid the consequences of that horrible, destructive stunt you pulled just before your disappearance.”
"No, that's not—”
"And that only makes my decision that much easier. As a Moroi, the princess must continue on here at the Academy for her own safety, but we have no such obligations to you. You will be sent away as soon as possible.”
My cockiness dried up. "I…what?”
Lissa stood up beside me. "You can't do that! She's my guardian.”
"She is no such thing, particularly since she isn't even a guardian at all. She's still a novice.”
"But my parents—”
"I know what your parents wanted, God rest their souls, but things have changed. Miss Hathaway is expendable. She doesn't deserve to be a guardian, and she will leave.”
I stared at Kirova, unable to believe what I was hearing. "Where are you going to send me? To my mom in Nepal? Did she even know I was gone? Or maybe you'll send me off to my
father?”
Her eyes narrowed at the bite in that last word. When I spoke again, my voice was so cold, I barely recognized it.
"Or maybe you're going to try to send me off to be a blood whore. Try that, and we'll be gone by the end of the day.”
"Miss Hathaway," she hissed, "you are out of line.”
"They have a bond." Dimitri's low, accented voice broke the heavy tension, and we all turned toward him. I think Kirova had forgotten he was there, but I hadn't. His presence was way too powerful to ignore. He still stood against the wall, looking like some sort of cowboy sentry in that ridiculous long coat of his. He looked at me, not Lissa, his dark eyes staring straight through me. "Rose knows what Vasilisa is feeling. Don't you?”
I at least had the satisfaction of seeing Kirova caught off guard as she glanced between us and Dimitri. "No…that's impossible. That hasn't happened in centuries.”
"It's obvious," he said. "I suspected as soon as I started watching them.”
Neither Lissa nor I responded, and I averted my eyes from his.
"That is a gift," murmured Victor from his corner. "A
rare and wonderful thing.”
"The best guardians always had that bond,” added Dimitri. "In the stories.”
Kirova's outrage returned. "Stories that are centuries old," she exclaimed. "Surely you aren't suggesting we let her stay at the Academy after everything she's done?”
He shrugged. "She might be wild and disrespectful, but if she has potential—”
"Wild and disrespectful?" I interrupted. "Who the hell are you anyway? Outsourced help?”
"Guardian Belikov is the princess's guardian now," said Kirova. "Her
sanctioned
guardian.”
"You got cheap foreign labor to protect Lissa?”
That was pretty mean of me to say—particularly since most Moroi and their guardians were of Russian or Romanian descent—but the comment seemed cleverer at the time than it really was. And it wasn't like I was one to talk. I might have been raised in the U.S., but my parents were foreign-born. My dhampir mother was Scottish—red-haired, with a ridiculous accent—and I'd been told my Moroi dad was Turkish. That genetic combination had given me skin the same color as the inside of an almond, along with what I liked to think were semi-exotic desert-princess features: big dark eyes and hair so deep brown that it usually looked black. I wouldn't have minded inheriting the red hair, but we take what we get.
Kirova threw her hands up in exasperation and turned to him. "You see? Completely undisciplined! All the psychic bonds and
very
raw potential in the world can't make up for that. A guardian without discipline is worse than no guardian.”
"So teach her discipline. Classes just started. Put her back in and get her training again.”
"Impossible. She'll still be hopelessly behind her peers.”
"No, I won't," I argued. No one listened to me.
"Then give her extra training sessions," he said.
They continued on while the rest of us watched the exchange like it was a Ping-Pong game. My pride was still hurt over the ease with which Dimitri had tricked us, but it occurred to me that he might very well keep me here with Lissa. Better to stay at this hellhole than be without her. Through our bond, I could feel her trickle of hope.
"Who's going to put in the extra time?" demanded Kirova. "You?”
Dimitri's argument came to an abrupt stop. "Well, that's not what I—”
Kirova crossed her arms with satisfaction. "Yes. That's what I thought.”
Clearly at a loss, he frowned. His eyes flicked toward Lissa and me, and I wondered what he saw. Two pathetic girls, looking at him with big, pleading eyes? Or two runaways who'd broken out of a high-security school and swiped half of Lissa's inheritance?
"Yes," he said finally. "I can mentor Rose. I'll give her extra sessions along with her normal ones.”
"And then what?" retorted Kirova angrily. "She goes unpunished?”
"Find some other way to punish her," answered Dimitri. "Guardian numbers have gone down too much to risk losing another. A girl, in particular.”
His unspoken words made me shudder, reminding me of my earlier statement about "blood whores." Few dhampir girls became guardians anymore.
Victor suddenly spoke up from his corner. "I'm inclined to agree with Guardian Belikov. Sending Rose away would be a shame, a waste of talent.”
Ms. Kirova stared out her window. It was completely black outside. With the Academy's nocturnal schedule,
morning
and
afternoon
were relative terms. That, and they kept the windows tinted to block out excess light.
When she turned back around, Lissa met her eyes. "Please, Ms. Kirova. Let Rose stay.”
Oh, Lissa,
I thought.
Be careful.
Using compulsion on another Moroi was dangerous—particularly in front of witnesses. But Lissa was only using a tiny bit, and we needed all the help we could get. Fortunately, no one seemed to realize what was happening.
I don't even know if the compulsion made a difference, but finally, Kirova sighed.
"If Miss Hathaway stays, here's how it will be." She turned to me. "Your continued enrollment at St. Vladimir's is strictly probationary. Step out of line
once,
and you're gone. You will attend all classes and required trainings for novices your age. You will also train with Guardian Belikov in every spare moment you have—before
and
after classes. Other than that, you are banned from all social activities, except meals, and will stay in your dorm. Fail to comply with any of this, and you will be sent…away.”
I gave a harsh laugh. "Banned from all social activities? Are you trying to keep us apart?" I nodded toward Lissa. "Afraid we'll run away again?”
"I'm taking precautions. As I'm sure you recall, you were never properly punished for destroying school property. You have a lot to make up for." Her thin lips tightened into a straight line. "You are being offered a very generous deal. I suggest you don't let your attitude endanger it.”
I started to say it wasn't generous at all, but then I caught Dimitri's gaze. It was hard to read. He might have been telling me he believed in me. He might have been telling me I was an idiot to keep fighting with Kirova. I didn't know.
Looking away from him for the second time during the meeting, I stared at the floor, conscious of Lissa beside me and her own encouragement burning in our bond. At long last, I exhaled and glanced back up at the headmistress.
"Fine. I accept."
Three
SENDING US STRAIGHT TO CLASS after our meeting seemed beyond cruel, but that's exactly what Kirova did. Lissa was led away, and I watched her go, glad the bond would allow me to keep reading her emotional temperature.
They actually sent me to one of the guidance counselors first. He was an ancient Moroi guy, one I remembered from before I'd left. I honestly couldn't believe he was still around. The guy was so freaking old, he should have retired. Or died.
The visit took all of five minutes. He said nothing about my return and asked a few questions about what classes I'd taken in Chicago and Portland. He compared those against my old file and hastily scrawled out a new schedule. I took it sullenly and headed out to my first class.
1
st
Period Advanced Guardian Combat Techniques
2
nd
Period Bodyguard Theory and Personal Protection 3
3
rd
Period Weight Training and Conditioning
4
th
Period Senior Language Arts (Novices)
—Lunch—
5
th
Period Animal Behavior and Physiology
6
th
Period Pre-calculus
7
th
Period Moroi Culture 4
8
th
Period Slavic Art
Ugh. I'd forgotten how long the Academy's school day was. Novices and Moroi took separate classes during the first half of the day, which meant I wouldn't see Lissa until after lunch—if we had any afternoon classes together. Most of them were standard senior classes, so I felt my odds were pretty good. Slavic art struck me as the kind of elective no one signed up for, so hopefully they'd stuck her in there too.
Dimitri and Alberta escorted me to the guardians' gym for first period, neither one acknowledging my existence. Walking behind them, I saw how Alberta wore her hair in a short, pixie cut that showed her promise mark and
molnija
marks. A lot of female guardians did this. It didn't matter so much for me now, since my neck had no tattoos yet, but I didn't want to ever cut my hair.
She and Dimitri didn't say anything and walked along almost like it was any other day. When we arrived, the reactions of my peers indicated it was anything but. They were in the middle of setting up when we entered the gym, and just like in the commons, all eyes fell on me. I couldn't decide if I felt like a rock star or a circus freak.
All right, then. If I was going to be stuck here for a while, I wasn't going to act afraid of them all anymore. Lissa and I had once held this school's respect, and it was time to remind everyone of that. Scanning the staring, openmouthed novices, I looked for a familiar face. Most of them were guys. One caught my eye, and I could barely hold back my grin.
"Hey Mason, wipe the drool off your face. If you're going to think about me naked, do it on your own time.”
A few snorts and snickers broke the awed silence, and Mason Ashford snapped out of his haze, giving me a lopsided smile. With red hair that stuck up everywhere and a smattering of freckles, he was nice-looking, though not exactly hot. He was also one of the funniest guys I knew. We'd been good friends back in the day.
"This
is
my time, Hathaway. I'm leading today's session.”
"Oh yeah?" I retorted. "Huh. Well, I guess this is a good time to think about me naked, then.”
"It's
always
a good a time to think about you naked," added someone nearby, breaking the tension further. Eddie Castile. Another friend of mine.
Dimitri shook his head and walked off, muttering something in Russian that didn't sound complimentary. But as for me…well, just like that, I was one of the novices again. They were an easygoing bunch, less focused on pedigree and politics than the Moroi students.
The class engulfed me, and I found myself laughing and seeing those I'd nearly forgotten about. Everyone wanted to know where we'd been; apparently Lissa and I had become legends. I couldn't tell them why we'd left, of course, so I offered up a lot of taunts and wouldn't-you-like-to-knows that served just as well.
The happy reunion lasted a few more minutes before the adult guardian who oversaw the training came over and scolded Mason for neglecting his duties. Still grinning, he barked out orders to everyone, explaining what exercises to start with. Uneasily I realized I didn't know most of them.
"Come on, Hathaway," he said, taking my arm. "You can be my partner. Let's see what you've been doing all this time.”
An hour later, he had his answer.
"Not practicing, huh?”
"Ow,"
I groaned, momentarily incapable of normal speech.
He extended a hand and helped me up from the mat he'd knocked me down on—about fifty times.
"I hate you," I told him, rubbing a spot on my thigh that was going to have a wicked bruise tomorrow.
"You'd hate me more if I held back.”