You did what you did out of love. I can't be mad at you over that. It was stupid, but that's how love is. Do you have any idea what I'd do for you? To keep you safe?

You and me are going to have so much fun, Rose. Picking out curtains, doing each other's hair, telling ghost stories....

Look what we've done so far. We're pretty good at the impossible.

When we were almost to the other campus, I felt the weird nausea hit me. I called a warning to Christian, just as a Strigoi grabbed him. But Christian was fast. Flames wreathed the Strigoi's head. He screamed and released Christian, trying frantically to put the flames out. The Strigoi never saw me coming with the stake. The whole thing took under a minute. Christian and I exchanged looks.Yeah. We were badasses.

Don't worry know what you can't change. Rest when you can so you'll be ready for tomorrows battle.

We can't...' he told me.'I know,' I agreed.Then his mouth was on mine again, and this time, I knew there would be no turning back. There were no walls this time. Our bodies wrapped together as he tried to get my coat off, then his shirt, then my shirt. ... It really was a lot like when we'd fought out on the quad earlier-that same passion and heat. I think at the end of the day, the instincts that power fighting and sex aren't so different. They all come from an animal side of us. Yet, as more and more clothes came off, it went beyond just animal passion. It was sweet and wonderful at the same time. When I looked into his eyes, I could see without a doubt that he loved me more than anyone else in the world, that I was his salvation, the same way that he was mine. I'd never expected my first time to be in a cabin in the woods, but I realized the place didn't matter. The person did. With someone you loved, you could be anywhere, and it would be incredible. Being in the most luxurious bed in the world wouldn't matter if you were with someone you didn't love.

Other people spoke, and I tried to keep up with the translations. All the stories were about Dimitri's kindness and strength of character. Even when not out battling the undead, Dimitri had always been there to help those who needed it. Almost everyone could recall sometime that Dimitri had stepped up to help others, going out of his way to do what was right, even in situations that could put him at risk. That was no surprise to me. Dimitri always did the right thing.And it was that attitude that had made me love him so much. I had a similar nature. I too rushed in when others needed me, sometimes when I shouldn't have. Others called me crazy for it, but Dimitri had understood. He'd always understood me, and part of what we'd worked on was how to temper that impulsive need to run into danger with reason and calculation. I had a feeling no one else in this world would ever understand me like he did.

Everything's about my personal entertainment. The world is my stage. Keep it up- you're becoming a star performer in the show.

Dimitri is dead,' she said. It was a statement, not a question, but she was looking to me for confirmation. I wondered if I'd given away something, some hint that there was still more to the story. Or maybe she just needed the certainty of those words. And for a moment, I considered telling them that Dimitri was dead. It was what the Academy would tell them, what the guardians would tell them. It would be easier on them...But somehow, I couldn't stand to lie to them—even if it was a comforting lie. Dimitri would have wanted the whole truth, and his family would too. 'No,' I said, and for a heartbeat, hope sprang up in everyone's faces—at least until I spoke again. 'Dimitri's a Strigoi.

Dimitri's voice snapped my attention back to him. 'That's Adrian Ivashkov.' He said the name the same way everyone else did. 'Yeah, I know.'This is the second time I've seen you with him.'Yeah,' I replied glibly. 'We hang out sometimes.'Dimitri arched an eyebrow, then jerked his head back toward where we'd come from. 'You hang out in his room a lot?'Several retorts popped into my head, and then a golden one took precedence. 'What happens between him and me is none of your business.' I managed a tone very similar to the one he'd used on me when making a similar comment about him and Tasha. 'Actually, as long as you're at the Academy, what you do is my business.'Not my personal life. You don't have any say in that.