PRIM'S POV-
"I'm going along, it's final. Someone needs to restore her! There are no spirit users anywhere close to the location Clarisse gave us except me and Adrian, and since Adrian's on mood stabilizers his magics out of commission. So I have to go. I want to go." my mother's green eyes held a rage that I knew better than to argue with. Some of the royal guardians apparently didn't though.
"Your highness, it isn't safe! We can get a different spirit user to do it!" said a guardian named Meredith, who was basically my mothers second best guardian after Rose of course.
I allowed myself to cast a glance across the long table at Eddie. He'd came directly here after he'd heard the news, and he looked more alive than I'd ever seen him. This was an Eddie I'd never known, Jill had died when I was very young. This Eddie was a completely new person.
I couldn't wait to see how he was after she was restored. After Jillian Mastrano Dragomir, the true Dragomir Princess, came back from the dead.
For some people, having their title stripped away would bother them but for me I was just happy. The look on my mothers face, and Eddie's, and just everyone's was worth it. Jill had seen me when I'd been born, there was even a picture of her with me, but I'd never met her once I was old enough to remember. I wanted to meet my aunt.
I looked at my father, sitting next to my mother with Teddy in his lap, my two year old brother. Teddy had light brown hair and my mothers green eyes, and was a very handsome two year old with our fathers attitude.
"I'm going too." my father said, and that was when I decided to state my case. Rose gave me a warning glance as I stood up, but I ignored her. Dimitri thankfully wasn't here right now, he was off somewhere talking to Mason, because I don't think I could handle trying to argue with Dimitri.
"I want to come." the words were barely out of my mouth before the protests arose.
"Absolutely not!" My mother said, her tone shocked. "Prim, you can't seriously expect us to let you come? You haven't even graduated school yet!"
"Are you telling me Mason's going to stay home too? He hasn't graduated either." I tried to keep my tone light, but it was hard.
I saw all the adults look around at one another. Finally Rose spoke up.
"We're not letting Mason come either, Prim. He's still so worn out from all the magic he used restoring Clarisse, and you're right: he hasn't graduated either."
"I know you aren't just going to let him go. But he's your son, you think he isn't going to sneak out after you guys?"
"Dimitri is taking care of that right now, so he can't sneak out." My father spoke up, Teddy looking at me with his green eyes without a care in the world. He was so lucky he was too young to understand what was going on. "In fact, Prim, why don't you go hang out with Katie or some other friends, or go do something? This isn't something you should be worried about. Your Mother and I will find you before we go."
I swallowed down my retort, forcing myself to be calm. I knew arguing at this point wouldn't work. I left the room, but not to find Katie.
I went to find Mason.
-
"You want to do what?" Mason asked me after I'd found him.
"I want to go help restore Jill. You seriously don't have a plan?" I asked, giving him a look.
"Prim, I don't think you understand how hard this will be. One, I'm exhausted. I can't even touch my magic right now. Two, my parents have made sure it will be very difficult to find a way out of the academy. " he said, sounding defeated.
"So what? We just sit around and do nothing?" I tried to keep my anger out of my voice, but I couldn't erase all of it. A curious look crossed his features.
"Why do you want to go so badly? Whats in this for you? I mean, I know it's your aunt but you've never wanted to get into a fight so badly before. Whats going on, Primrose?" he asked somewhat cautiously as he examined my face.
I blushed, despite my best efforts. I wanted to go because of him. Because our midnight adventure to the mall had ignited something inside of me that I couldn't just turn off. Because I wanted more of his smiles, and I wanted to see him fight for me again. Because my emotions weren't listening to reason right now.
I gave him none of those answers. "I don't know, Mase. I just know I have to be there and I can go with or without you."
"Prim, look around the room. Really look." he told me, and I looked around the library we were in.
All of our parents had left about an hour ago, my parents telling me goodbye and telling me to help Adrian & Sydney with Teddy, who they were babysitting.
But as I gazed around the room I counted three guardians, and there weren't researching anything or doing anything.
They were watching Mason.
"They've got people babysitting you?" I asked, lowering my voice to a whisper. The guardians had probably heard me trying to convince Mason to break out with me.
He let out a laugh. "Yep. You predicted that I'd tried to go out after them, and so did they. But you wanna hear something funny? I actually didn't plan on leaving the academy to go find Jill." His brown eyes didn't match his laugh. They were sad, but mostly tired looking.
"What do you mean you don't plan on going after them?" I asked, struggling to keep my voice down.
He glared at me. "Are you serious? Did you not see the strigoi attack you and me were just a part of?" his voice was getting louder, and I saw two of the guardians glance over at us. "That was just two strigoi, Prim! Two of them, and I could barely handle it when I was at full strength with my magic and my guardian training. What makes you think they can't do this? They've got training, hell both my parents have lived through this kind of thing more than once. Yours too. Why are you so worried!"
"You don't want to go?" I asked, I could hear the defeat in my voice.
"Prim, I'm so tired of all of this. Of getting in trouble, of being looked down on. I'm already looked down on for being a Pure Dhampir. If I ditch the academy, I could get kicked out."
"Mason..." I started, not knowing what I wanted to say.
He snapped, his voice raising. "Just get out, Princess. I don't really feel like dealing with you trying to get me into trouble. Just leave, I already had to save your ass with the first strigoi attack. I've learned my lesson!" by the time he was finished I could feel tears running down my cheeks.
I turned to leave, but he grabbed my arm turning me around to face him. "I'm serious. Leave me alone. I don't care if we were childhood friends, that's over!"
When he released my hand there was something in my palm, but I didn't dare look at it.
With tears still falling down my face I fled the library.
-
Once I was back in my dorm, which thankfully Katie wasn't in, I unfolded the note he'd slipped into my hand.
Prim, I'm sorry for the theatrics. The guardians have been watching me since my parents left, and it'd be impossible to get away with you in the room. It's still going to be nearly impossible. Lucky for you, I have a plan. Find Tommy, he's probably training right around now in the novice gym. Tell him I need the favor he owes me and that he needs to cause a pretty big distraction in the library. Then meet me at Sydney and Adrian's place. Sorry I yelled at you. Hurry though, I can't keep pretending to do homework in the library for long. I'm usually not this good of a student. -Mason, who is insane for even thinking about running away with you again.
I had to read it twice.
Then I was moving, getting changed into jeans and a sturdy sweatshirt and my nikes, before hurtling out of the room right into Katie. She was still mad at me that I'd let Mason compel her into forgetting about us sneaking out. Mason had taken the compulsion off, and she hadn't told anymore about it, but she was still very angry at both of us.
"Where are you going?" she asked me, her eyes narrowing.
"It's not important." I said, moving to get past her and out of the room. She blocked me.
"Do you know what's going on? There are guardians crawling all over this place, the queen and king were here, and besides normal guardians being everywhere there are also royal guardians. Plus, you've got that weird look on your face." Katie's voice was cold.
"I can't tell you." I told her, trying to put sympathy into my voice. I hated when we fought.
"Oh, well at least you're telling me something instead of just compelling me this time." she said, and stormed past me into the room. A huge part of me wanted to turn back and work things out with her, but I didn't have time.
I ran out of the room, heading towards the novice gym to find Tommy.
-
"He wants me to what?" Tommy asked, him and one of Mason's other friends Derick were both staring at me like I was crazy.
"I told you what he told me. He's got guardians watching him and he wants you to cause a distraction so he can get away. That's all I know." I said, watching the two dhampirs faces carefully.
Derick spoke up "When did you become Belikov's errand girl anyways? Huh, Princess? I bet Illiana wouldn't like you hanging around him."
Tommy glared at Derick. "Give her a rest man. Why should I do this Prim?" he asked, his voice kinder than Derick's.
"Mason said you owed him a favor. A big one." I said, wondering what kind of favor Tommy could owe Mason.
Tommy paled, turning around his head in his hands. "Damnit."
Derick looked at Tommy. "Don't tell me you're going to do it, man!"
Tommy looked towards me. "I'll help. Mason's right, I owe him a huge favor." Tommy then looked down at a watch on his wrist. "The distraction will probably happen in the next half hour-ish. I need time to set it up."
Derick opened his mouth, but I just turned around, exiting the library and heading towards Sydney and Adrian's house which was on the property of the Academy.
We were really going to do this.
Soon I would no longer be Princess Primrose Ozera Dragomir.
I would just be me, and there would be a new Princess.
Or an old one if you thought about it.