Chapter 19:
Out on the runway, Christian stood near the entrance to the plane, along with a few of the other guardians. Lissa ran off to talk to him, leaving Rose and I alone. We hadn't said a word the entire way back from the spa. I was too occupied with the constant wonder of what my fortune had said.
Normally I didn't believe in such nonsense, but my grandmother had been a vrajitoare, she practiced the same arts that Rhonda had.
I remember, once I had asked my grandmother to read my future, she had predicted that I would be a very successful protector for a rare Moroi princess, and that I would become who I had feared most. Looking down at Rose, I knew my fortunes were becoming true. I never wanted to be a man in love, I never wanted to get distracted, and be faced with the choice of protecting the one I loved rather than the one I was assigned to.
"Are you thinking about what Rhonda said? That woman's a total scam." Rose interrupted my thoughts.
I looked down at her surprised, no one could read my mind like she could.
"Why do you say that?" I asked, stopping not far from where the others stood. A sharp wind blasted us all in the face, Rose shivered.
"Because she didn't tell us anything! You should have heard my future. It was, like, one sentence stating the obvious. Lissa had a better fortune, but it wasn't really anything that profound. Rhonda said she'd be a great leader. I mean, seriously, how hard is that to figure out?"
I treid not to laugh at the pout forming on her lip, I cracked a smile. "Would you be a believer if she'd given you a more interesting reading?"
"Maybe if it was good." When I finally caved to laughter Rose looked up at me with a serious face. "But you're taking it seriously. Why? You really believe in that kind of stuff?"
"It's not so much that I believe... or that I don't believe." I tugged my black knit cap down to better cover my ears. "I just resect people like her. They have access to knowledge other people don't."
"She's not a spirit user, though, so I'm not really sure where she's getting this knowledge. I still think she's a con artist."
"She's a vrajitoare, actually." I replied as I watched the snow fall heavier.
"A...a what? Is that Russian?" She asked confused.
"Romanian. It means... well, there's no real translation. 'Witch' is close, but that's not right. Their idea of a witch isn't the same as an American's." I explained, repeating what my grandmother had once confirmed with me when I was around Rose's age. "My grandmother was like Rhonda. That is, she practiced the same kind of arts. Personality-wise, they're very different."
Rose took a step back, a line formed between her perfect eyebrows. "Your grandmother was a...v-whatever?"
"It's called something else in Russian, but yes, the same meaning. She used to read cards and give advice too. It was how she made her living." I recalled watching my grandmother sit on a throne-like chair, placing cards on the table in front of her customer. I had sat in the corner of the room, amazed at how careful and practiced her hands worked around each card.
"Was she right? In her predictions?"
"Sometimes." Rose's eyes grew wide in confusion and suspicion, as her pretty pink colored lips parted with doubt. "Don't look at me like that."
"Like what?" She asked, her expression completely gone now.
"You've got this look on your face that says you think I'm delusional. But you're too nice to say anything."
"Delusional's kind of harsh. I'm just surprised, that's all. I never expected you to buy into this stuff."
The sounds of cards snapping against the table as my grandmother effortlessly laid them out on the ceder table came back to me. "Well, I grew up with it, so it doesn't seem that strange to me. And like I said, I'm not sure I buy into it 100 precent."
Adrian had joined the group by the plane and was protesting loudly about us not being able to board yet.
"I never thought of you as having a grandmother either." Rose told me. "I mean, obviously, you'd have to. But still... it's just weird to think about growing up with one." She paused for a moment, looking thoughtfully at the white ground. "Was it weird having a witch grandma?" She asked as she looked back up at me. "Scary? Was she always, like, threatening to cast spells if you were bad?"
I tried to hide my shock at her question. The way Rose's mind worked never failed to surprise me. "Most of the time she just threatened to send me to my room." After finding me sneaking around her work room, curious to hear the customer's fortunes.
"That doesn't sound so scary to me." Rose sounded disappointed.
"That's because you haven't met her."
"Is she still alive?"
I nodded, remembering my family and our small home back in Siberia made my heart ache. "Yeah. It'll take more than old age to kill her off. She's tough. She was actually a guardian for a while."
"Really?" Rose asked astonished. "So she gave it up to become a-uh, to stay with her kids?"
"She has very strong ideas about family-ideas that probably sound kind of sexist to you. She believes that all dhampirs should train and put in time as guardians, but that the woman should eventually return home to raise their children together."
"But not the men?"
"No," I said wryly. "She thinks men still need to stay out there and kill Strigoi."
"Wow." Rose said thoughtfully. I had been the only male in the house, the rest of my sisters were still either in school, or raising children of their own. I was the only one not home. "You were the only one who had to go." Rose mirrored my thoughts. "The women in your family kicked you out."
I laughed. "Hardly. My mother would take me back in a second if I wanted to come home." The thought of my mother made me homesick. The smells of freshly cut grass, and brewed coffee made my heart ache for that little house in Siberia for the second time today.
Wiping away the soreness, I composed myself, and turned around when Adrian started whooping about how we could finally board.
When we were settled on the plane, Alberta took the empty seat next to mine. She smiled at me, "this wasn't as bad a visit as I thought it was going to be. Victor was very cooperative."
I nodded. The sound of Victor's name made my skin crawl, and nausea built up from the pit of my stomach. The way he had treated Rose and I was bad, but what he had done to Lissa was worse. It was something I'd never forgive him for. And something I would always regret, I should have been there, protecting her, rather than taking Rose to bed.
Leaning back in my seat, I closed my eyes. It was the only time I could actually rest when around Moroi. There were no threats on a plane, and if I had the choice. I'd choose air time for Lissa's travels rather than driving. When I started to drift off, I sensed Alberta doing the same.
Hours passed by the time I woke up. It was almost time to arrive back to the Academy. One of the Moroi flight attendants walked down the aisle to our group, a frown on her face. Alberta instantly snapped to attention. It was amazing how fast we were able to respond to a situation, even from a groggy state. "What's wrong?"
"An ice storm just blew through the area," the flight attendant said. "We can't land at St. Vladimir's because the runway isn't accessible with the ice and the winds. We need fuel, however, so we're going to land at Martinville Regional. It's a small airport a few hours away by car, but they weren't as affected as much. Our plan is to land there, refuel, and then fly into the Academy once they've cleared the runway. It's less than an hour by air."
I relaxed a little, it wasn't that bad of news. Alberta sat back and relaxed as well, she placed a hand to her forehead and smiled up at the attendant. "Thank you very much Miss."
She looked both relieved and tired. As the attendant continued her way down the isle, I placed a hand on Alberta's arm. She smiled reassuringly at me and closed her eyes. Leaning back I closed mine as well, ready to welcome back my previous dream.
And that's when it happened.
As soon as we touched the ground, a God awful scream pierced the calm air of the plane.
Flashes of the Spokane house came back to me, nightmares I never wanted to relive again. Knowing those high pitched screams I bolted out of my chair and was halfway down the isle when I heard Alberta start after me.
At the front of the plane, I found Rose screaming at "them" to go away. She swung her arms around frantically, as if something was coming at her that she was trying to swat away.
"Make them go away!" She yelled. "Make them go away!"
She had that wild look in her eyes, as if her world was ending. The same look she had when we found her in Spokane laying over Mason. My heart broke at the sight of her. The smell of blood wafted my nose, as those nightmares came pouring back.
Rose unbuckled her seatbelt and tried to stand up. She waved her arms to fend "them" off, screaming for someone to help her and make it stop.
I reached Rose first. My heart pounding in my ears. She looked up at me, sweat beaded on her brow, and her dark eyes, if possible, turned darker. They were glassy, as if she had been momentary blinded.
Fear laced through my veins. "Rose!" I screamed with her. Not caring what anyone thought at this point. "Rose! What's wrong?" My heart sped up as I took her by the shoulders and shook her. "Roza, look at me."
Alberta asked behind my shoulder, "what's wrong with her?"
I shook my head, never taking my eyes off Rose. Her eyes fluttered shut as she went slack in my arms. For a second my heart sank, thinking the worst, but when I saw her chest rise and fall with the steady breathing of her lungs I almost cried. Falling to my knees I held her to my chest. Remembering how I had did the same thing when I had found her in the Spokane house. How scared I had been for her.
Now she was fighting off things I couldn't see, and all I wanted to do was keep her safe and away from anything that could harm her.
For the first time in my life, I didn't care who saw how much I cared for Rose, she needed me, and this time, I wasn't letting go.
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Okay, I feel like I didn't do such a great job with this chapter. Since I haven't written it in months, maybe that's why. But anyways tell me what you think! Hope you liked it and I'm proud to say that this story is taking notice and I'm so happy that many of you have been following Dimitri all this time.(: I don't know what I would do without you guys!
XOXO
<3 LittleDhampir18