My Vampire Academy

Chapter 20

Locking myself in my room I shut the world out. Ignoring the shuffles outside of my door, the voices that lowered when passing and the knocks that sounded. They knocked up to four or five times before giving up and walking away. I moved my bed into a corner and hadn’t moved from my curled up position since. I saw the time ticking by till it neared the time where my training with Dimitri was supposed to start, yet I still didn’t move. I was broken and never to move ever again. It was the thing Dimitri had warned me about, the thing that every Dhampir and Moroi frowned down upon. Being labeled as a Blood whore. I was still spiraling down when I heard another knock. I stayed where I was and let my head rest on my knees that was pulled to my chest. The knock came again then a voice, deep and tinge with a Russian accent, “Rose? I know you’re in there. You missed training.” My head shot up at Dimitri’s voice, but I stayed where I was. After a long period of silence he gave a sigh, “You need to talk to someone, Roza. You can’t keep yourself locked away forever.”
“Watch me try,” I muttered to myself. Again silence before he spoke once more, “I am here for you. If you need me, don’t hesitate to ask. I will be in my room. Lissa will be in the communes, where the queen will be. Please, “ I heard the raw emotion in his words, “don’t shut me- us- out.” His footsteps echoed through the halls before slowly disappearing. The hall was quiet after all the other dhampir students had left to attend the queen’s visit, leaving me in an eerie silence.

I heard the queen’s arrival and the announcement, thanks to the music blaring through the whole school. I lay my head down with my pillow over my head, trying and failing to shut the music out. I knew Lissa would have wanted me to be there for her, to show her that no matter what I was always there for her. This was stopped by a selfish need to just look after myself first, to build myself back to the strong girl I thought I was. It was also the thought of having all the eyes on me, the whispered conversations that weren’t as quite as they thought. So wanting to get rid of this feeling, I did the best thing that could be done. Sleep it away. The sounds soon fell away, and I was thrown into pure darkness.

I felt a familiar shiver go through my body, one I feared of ever feeling ever again. It was pitch black, nothing could be seen, but a breeze so cold hit my face making me cringe. Then the sound, it was so quiet it made my ears ring, yet there was a sound so small that my ears perked at the sound. It was footsteps yet where it was coming from I didn’t know, it was echoing through the darkness making it hard to figure out its exact location.  I heard the chuckle, it echoing with the footsteps, making it sound like a hall full of people chuckling at once. Covering my ears to try and stop the sound, it was pounding inside of my head making my head scream in protest. When I opened my eyes I noticed that the pounding had stopped, I let my hand drop to my side my breathing labored. The eerie silence was back. “What do you want? You want some company?” I questioned. “If so this is not the right way, this gets you labeled as a creep. Come out and show yourself!” I demanded. The voice tsked me, like scolding a child, and it was as if the voice had amplified. “You shouldn’t let your big mouth get you into something you couldn’t handle, Rose.” I gave a harsh laugh, “Like a dream where it feels like I am starting in a one woman horror show? Yeah wouldn’t want that happening, now would we?" I asked my voice dripping with sarcasm. The voice grew louder making me wince, “You will treat me with respect!” at this I shut my mouth scared of what this voice was capable of. “That’s better. Now to answer you sarcastic question from before, I have brought you here for a reason. Something that is important to follow through.” My body responded on its own, it started walking aimlessly to something. I tried to make it stop, but my own body was like a traitor. “You’ll be key to my plan not failing, as you have shown to make my plans come to an abrupt stop. You and Belikov that is, so this,” a bright light made me cringe and a pedestal stood in the light with something on it, “is what will make sure you stay put. Wear this and it will help clear your mind, will help see the true desires of your heart.” It was a necklace, silver with a rose type of pendant and a red crystal as the rosebud. “Now, Rose. Put it on.” A frown was evident on my face, taking the rose pendant in. “Why?” I asked wanting to know what this voice had planned. I felt the sigh in my head, the voice was starting to get frustrated with me. “Just do it!” he demanded with a finality in his voice. My hand moved, without me really telling it to, toward the beautiful pendant. I saw that my hand was shaking, my mind was fighting it to not touch it, while some other force was making it work against my thoughts. Cold metal made me open my eyes, the pendant was in my palm gleaming in the light. My mind was fogged and I forgot what I was doing, where I was and why I was even here. I jumped at the voice, “Good. Now wake up and enjoy my gift to you.”
I woke with a start with something on my lips, a word or a name. Cold metal brushing my chest made me look down, and there I found the rose pendant. I took a deep breath and went to rinse my face with some cold water, to wake me up more and clear my head. A soft whisper made me turn around, looking for the culprit, only to find no one there. Frowning I turned back to the bathroom, only to hear the whisper again this time a little louder. I stopped and listened for it again. It came again growing in volume each time. When it said its hidden message again I gasped, it was in my head. The voice was inside of me, in my voice. Saying one thing and one thing only. Repeating it, trying to convey the message and urgency of the word. Of the name. The voice spoke once more at its loudest, saying the name louder and clearer. “Dimitri.”