To Be a Belikov (Vampire Academy Fan Fiction Book 3)

Chapter 1: A Normal Day

Chapter 1: A Normal Day

"Annessa!" I called up the staircase, my foot impatiently tapping against the hardwood floors of our hallway. "Annessa Belikov, hurry up!"

"I'm coming, Mama!" she yelled in return.

A blonde head of curls popped out of her bedroom doorway, followed by the rest of her petite body. She was dressed in her running gear which, at 11 years old, may have seemed extreme for ordinary parents, but Dimitri and I had never belonged to the "normal" category. She was 11, she could run five miles with ease, and she was going to be as great a Guardian as her father someday.

She pranced down the stairs to my side where she dutifully turned around so I could braid up her long mass of curls. I didn't know where she'd gotten them from, but I loved them nonetheless; they made her mane as wild as mine.

"Are we going the long way today?" she chirped, smoothing her leggings as my fingers worked.

"You have a reason not to?" I quipped back with a smirk, tying her hair and patting her shoulders to signal my completion. She turned around and shook her head. Smoothing the top of her head, I continued, "Then yes, young lady, we are."

She sighed a little too dramatically, but headed for the doors with a smile. I slid my phone and keys into my pocket, locking the door behind us as we set out on our daily run. We kept an easy pace while we enjoyed the sun slowly setting on the horizon. The sky was turning shades of pink and blue with violet quickly chasing them from the clouds, bringing the vampire daytime hours with the darkness.

Annessa kept up beside me, our sneakers hitting the pavement with quiet thuds. She'd been ours for seven years now, and every one of them had been wonderful. I had little experience in the mothering aspect of life, but she was turning out okay. She was disciplined and polite, with a heart as wide open as Dimitri's and a fire that matched the one in my own soul.

She really was our daughter, no matter what her genetics said.

"I'll race you down the next block," she piped up, grinning wickedly up at me. I was in my mid-thirties these days, but I still could outrun her on a good day and she knew it.

I mimicked her smile and, without answering, took off for the stop sign at the end of the street. She called after me as she worked to catch up, her shorter legs struggling as I labored to keep my breathing even. Sometimes I forgot that I wasn't 18 and young anymore.

Slowing to a walk, I stopped at the end of the pavement and used what breath I had left to laugh as she came slamming into my side with her arms wrapped tightly around my waist.

"No fair!" she squealed as I tickled her sides.

"I still beat you," I teased and released her so we could both continue on our way.

We ran in silence for a moment before she began talking once again.

"Mama," she said carefully.

"Annessa."

"When do I get to go to the Academy?" she asked, her voice innocent but her eyes wide with the knowledge of what she was asking.

We'd kept her home for so long because we couldn't stand to be apart from her. She was better trained than any of the Dhampir students at the school right now, but she was still being schooled at Court with a few select kids. Dimitri and I wanted her close; we were experts on the kind of antics people got away with at the Academy, and we didn't want our sweet baby girl exposed to them yet. That didn't mean she wasn't hungering for them, though.

With a deep breath, I said, "You know you're–"

"Getting the same education as they are," she grumbled in reply. "But I want to go to school, Mama! You went and so did Papa and Auntie Mia and Uncle Eddie and–"

"Annessa," I sighed, stopping to face her. She blinked up at me with her wide brown eyes, sweat dripping on her forehead and her lip trembling. She wanted this so badly, but I didn't want to leave her like my mother did to me. I didn't want her to end up like me. Pulling her into my side for a hug, I sighed, "Stop growing up, okay?"

She reluctantly allowed the hug before breaking away again. "Okay, Mama."

Sucking in another big breath, I chased after her down the block, wishing she could go back to being six years old again. Things were much easier when she was little.

When we arrived home, we both split to take showers in our respective bathrooms. She'd go study afterwards and I'd work on lunch, bringing it up to her as a quick break between lessons. She really was a good girl, and a smart one, at that. I was glad she'd picked up Dimitri's school habits rather than mine.

The routines were ones I knew well. I had chosen to stay home after the Strigoi Mafia drama; I chose my daughter over my career, a move I'd sworn to never make yet one that had become my reality. I needed the break and she needed a mother; the choice was clear. I homeschooled her in addition to the Court's small school's lessons and played housewife, maintaining my beautiful home and little family. I kept my Guardian credentials, though I hadn't been on duty for years now. If only my teenage self could see me now; I'm sure she'd have a heart attack.

Dimitri, however, returned to work. He was an analyst on a special ops unit for the Guardians and the Queen, working on tough cases and outing Strigoi nests that were popping up all over the world. He was still a God, just one that came home to his girls at night, and I had never seen him happier.

I dropped Annessa off for her afternoon dance lesson, a hobby brought about by Mia and one I still didn't entirely agree with but Dimitri fought for, and returned to the house again to start my dinner preparations. My cooking skills had progressed since becoming a mom and my doting husband had even shown me a few of his favorite Russian dishes; the Belikovs never starved these days.

Six o'clock and Dimitri came through the door with Annessa trailing behind him, her dance bag hanging from his shoulders. She came and pecked my cheek before flopping onto the living room couch, TV remote in hand.

Dimitri, set the bags on the stairs and came into the kitchen, a warm smile on his face as he walked up to my side and gave me a warm kiss.

"You look beautiful, my Roza," he said quietly as his lips brushed my temple before he sat down at the dining table, already engrossing himself in the newspaper set at his place.

I smiled at him and stirred my concoction on the stovetop. Over my shoulder, I asked, "How was work?"

With a sigh, he launched into another tale of coworkers and Queen tantrums. While he spoke, I couldn't help myself from smiling more.

This was my life, and I loved how completely, perfectly normal it'd become.