Reading VA: Reading Vampire Academy (A VA fanfic)

Five

DPOV
How Rose and I ever untangled, dressed and removed ourselves from that room I will never know.

That time we made love it was like the cabin- slow, meaningful and powerful. I had earlier warned her that I was going to push her control later tonight, and I would hold true to it. But it would, just as I'd promised, be later on tonight. Now had been the time to let her know once more just what she meant to me, just how much I loved her and appreciated her. Later tonight would be the same, but I'd let my playful side come out and encourage hers to as well. Later tonight was the time to get creative.

We returned to the common room to find Lissa and Christian escaped. Unlike how I was feeling, Rose didn't look a tiny bit worried by her friend's (and hopefully charge's) absence. She probably knew what was going on thanks to the bond. I clicked when I noticed Abe and Janine were also nowhere to be seen. As was Adrian and Sydney. The first two sets of lovebirds were, clearly, love-birding as Rose and I had done. I would have been concerned Adrian was taking advantage of Sydney but the respectful way he looked at her, spoke to her and approached her was so out of character I realised I had nothing to worry about. Rose's indifference also told me she wasn't worried over her acquaintance's safety around her only just, not even a day old ex-boyfriend. Jill and Eddie were also disappeared. Those two had been eyeballing each other in a similar and familiar way the rest of the pairings in the room had been. So they'd clearly gone for a walk and talk, much like I assumed Adrian was doing with Sydney.

With the room cleared of other couples, Mia, Alberta, Rose and I all conversed with my family. Although nothing was directly said about Rose's time in Russia. Nor was anything after the point in the book mentioned. Even two year old Zoya seemed to realise she couldn't say anything yet.

After what felt like an eternity, everyone had regrouped. Sydney and Adrian surprised everyone by being the last to return. That Alchemist and Moroi were full of surprises... And secrets. Even I could detect the small cheeky smile the young businesswoman wore when she looked at Adrian. Had he really started wooing a human woman about Rose's age who was supposed to hate us? Man! This day was getting weirder, stranger and more interesting by the minute.

"Okay, who wants to read next?" Janine asked.
"I will," Mama volunteered. Yes, definitely getting stranger by the minute. Rose's mother handed the book over to mine. Mama opened to chapter five and started reading. "Or rather, they had been Strigoi. A regiment of guardians had hunted them down and killed them. If rumours were true, Christian had witnessed it all when he was very young."
"Yes. That rumour is true," bravely stated Christian.
"And although he wasn't Strigoi himself, some people thought he wasn't far off, with the way he always wore black and kept to himself." Mama continued.
"Ha!" scoffed the Moroi in question. "I'm far from it. I hate those idiots- the Moroi and dhampir who think I think like that and Strigoi!" Christian shot me a sympathetic look.
"It's fine, Lord Ozera. I hate them now more than ever. They stole what I valued most, my Roza. They ripped her heart into pieces and the nature of being a Strigoi, well... I'd better not be a spoiler," I tried to reassure.

I had managed to forgive myself for what I'd done to Rose, even though that felt like the worst part. But I was still struggling with overwhelming guilt over the hundreds, close to a thousand or more innocent lives I'd taken simply to survive, to exist.

"Strigoi or not, I didn't trust him." Mama eventually returned to reading, when all had calmed. "He was a jerk," Christian shot a glare Rose's way. One she returned, no doubt gleefully. Chalk and cheese those two were, far too similar in their attitude yet both cared for Lissa and, evidently, kept a truce for her sake. "And I silently screamed at Lissa to get out of there- not that my screaming did much good. Stupid one-way bond." Liss and Rose had a laugh about that. A number of the others joined in too. ""What are you doing here?" she asked.
""Taking in the sights, of course. That chair with the tarp on it is particularly lovely this time of year. Over there, we have an old box full of the writings of blessed and crazy St. Vladimir. And let's not forget that beautiful table with no legs in the corner."
""Whatever." She rolled her eyes and moved towards the door, wanting to leave, but he blocked her way." Snickers broke out at the mention of perfect Princess Dragomir handing Christian Ozera some Rose Hathaway attitude. ""Well, what about you?" he taunted." Mama continued reading through the interaction.