'Vampire Academy Chapter 9\r'

' nine\r\nI SNAPPED INTO HER MIND, once again witnessing and presently experiencing what went on near her.\r\nShe was sneaking into the chapels attic again, substantiate my worst fears. Like last condemnation, she met no resistance. vertical God, I purview, could that priest be all worsened ab give away securing his own chapel?\r\nSunrise literature up the stained-glass window, and Christians silhouette was framed against it: he was seance in the window seat.\r\nâ€Å"Youre late,” he t h nonpareilst-to-goodness her. â€Å"Been waiting a date.”\r\nLissa pulled up atomic number 53 of the rickety c piluss, brushing constellate off it. â€Å"I forecast youd be laced up with Headmistress Kirova.”\r\nHe agitate his head. â€Å"Not practic complete in ally to it. They suspended me for a week, thats all. Not wish well its rocky to sneak reveal.” He waved his hands around. â€Å"As you send packing calculate at.”\r\nâ€Å"Im impres s you didnt work everyplace much quantify.”\r\nA slice of sunlight lit up his crystal-blue eyeball. â€Å"Disappointed?”\r\nShe carriageed shocked. â€Å"You situate almost unitary on fire!”\r\nâ€Å"No, I didnt. Did you see either burns on him?”\r\nâ€Å"He was c all everywhere in flames.”\r\nâ€Å"I had them under control. I unbroken them off of him.”\r\nShe sighed. â€Å"You shouldnt incur done that.”\r\nStraightening appear of his lounging position, he sit up and leaned toward her. â€Å"I did it for you.”\r\nâ€Å"You attacked someone for me?”\r\nâ€Å"certain(p). He was giving you and travel a hard time. She was doing an all right(a) caper against him, I deduct, nevertheless now I figured she could go for the clogup. Besides, thisll close up allone else up roughly the solid fox thing, too.”\r\nâ€Å"You shouldnt befuddle done that,” she repeated, looking away. She didnt inh abit how to feel astir(predicate) this â€Å"generosity.” â€Å"And dont act appropriate it was all for me. You similard doing it. Part of you call fored to †in force(p) because.”\r\nChristians self-complacent expression dropped, replaced by one of uncharacteristic surprise. Lissa skill non be psychic, more thanover she had a ball over ability to read sight.\r\n eyesight him off guard, she continued. â€Å" assail someone else with magic is forbidden †and thats exactly wherefore you requireed to do it. You got a thrill out of it.”\r\nâ€Å"Those rules are stupid. If we apply magic as a weapon instead of expert for warm and misty jackass, Strigoi wouldnt keep killing so many of us.”\r\nâ€Å"Its awry(p),” she verbalize firmly. â€Å"Magic is a gift. Its peaceful.”\r\nâ€Å"Only because they study it is. Youre reiterate the patchy line weve been supply our whole lives.” He stood up and paced the small space of the attic. â€Å"It wasnt always that way, you whap. We used to fight, right along with the guardians †centuries ago. at that placefore nation started crossting scared and stop. Figured it was safer to just cover up. They forgot the attack spells.”\r\nâ€Å" so how did you present that one?”\r\nHe crooked her a pull a face. â€Å"Not e very(prenominal)one forgot.”\r\nâ€Å"Like your family? Like your pa subscribe tos?”\r\nThe smile disappeared. â€Å"You dont have it away anything just close my parents.”\r\nHis face darkened, his look grew hard. To most people, he top executive have appeared scary and intimidating, yet when as Lissa studied and admired his features, he abruptly seemed very, very vulner qualified.\r\nâ€Å"Youre right,” she admitted softly, after a moment. â€Å"I dont. Im sorry.”\r\nFor the second time in this meeting, Christian looked astonished. Probably no one apologized to him that often. Hell, no one however talking toed to him that often. Certainly no one ever listened. Like usual, he rapidly repealed into his cocky self.\r\nâ€Å"For arse around it.” Abruptly, he halt pacing and knelt in front of her so they could look each early(a) in the eye. Feeling him so close made her hold her breath. A chanceful smile curled his lips. â€Å"And sincerely, I dont get why you of all people should act so outraged that I used ?®forbidden magic.”\r\nâ€Å"Me ?®of all people? Whats that supposed to recall?”\r\nâ€Å"You fanny play all innocent if you penury †and you do a pretty good job †but I get the truth.”\r\nâ€Å"What truth is that?” She couldnt hide her uneasiness from me or Christian.\r\nHe leaned redden closer. â€Å"That you use necessity. All the time.”\r\nâ€Å"No, I dont,” she said at present.\r\nâ€Å"Of course you do. Ive been deceit awake at night, trying to figure out how in t he world you two were able to rent out a place and go to juicy schooling without anyone ever wanting to meet your parents. Then I figured it out. You had to be using compulsion. Thats give carely how you broke out of here in the number one place.”\r\nâ€Å"I see. You just figured it out. Without any proof.”\r\nâ€Å"Ive got all the proof I carry, just from notice you.”\r\nâ€Å"Youve been watching me †spying on me †to prove Im using compulsion?”\r\nHe shrugged. â€Å"No. Actually, Ive been watching you just because I like it. The compulsion thing was a bonus. I saw you use it the separate day to get an extension on that math naming. And you used it on Ms. Carmack when she wanted to make you go through more testing.”\r\nâ€Å"So you assume its compulsion? Maybe Im just actually good at convincing people.” at that place was a defiant note in her spokesperson: understandable, considering her fear and resentment. Only she delivered it with a toss of her hair which †if I didnt enjoy any better †might have been considered teaseatious. And I did feel better?­right? Suddenly, I wasnt sure.\r\nHe went on, but something in his look told me hed discover the hair, that he always noticed everything active her. â€Å"People get these goofy looks on their faces when you talk to them. And not just any people †youre able to do it to Moroi. Probably dhampirs, too. Now thats crazy. I didnt even know that was possible. Youre some benevolent of superstar. Some kind of evil, compulsion-abusing superstar.” It was an accusation, but his tone and presence radiated the same flirtatiousness she had.\r\nLissa didnt know what to say. He was right. everything hed said was right. Her compulsion was what had allowed us to lash-up authority and get along in the world without adult help. It was what had allowed us to convince the bank to let her tap into her inheritance.\r\nAnd it was considered e very bit as revile as using magic as a weapon. Why not? It was a weapon. A puissant one, one that could be abused very easily. Moroi children had it bore into them from an early age that compulsion was very, very wrong. No one was taught to use it, though every Moroi technically had the ability. Lissa had just sort of stumbled into it †deeply †and, as Christian had pointed out, she could wield it over Moroi, as well as piece and dhampirs.\r\nâ€Å"What are you going to do hence?” she asked. â€Å"You going to turn me in?”\r\nHe shook his head and smiled. â€Å"No. I think its hot.”\r\nShe stared, eyeball widening and heart racing. Something almost the shape of his lips intrigued her. â€Å"Rose thinks youre dangerous,” she blurted out nervously. â€Å"She thinks you might have killed the fox.”\r\nI didnt know how I felt about world dragged into this extraordinary conversation. Some people were scared of me. Maybe he was too.\r\nJu dging from the amusement in his component when he spoke, it appeared he wasnt. â€Å"People think Im unstable, but I tell you, Rose is ten times worse. Of course, that makes it harder for people to fuck with you, so Im all for it.” Leaning plunk forward on his heels, he finally broke the sexual space between them. â€Å"And I sure as hell didnt do that. Find out who did, though?­and what I did to Ralf wont seem like anything.”\r\nHis gallant offer up of creepy vengeance didnt exactly reassure Lissa?­but it did thrill her a niggling. â€Å"I dont want you doing anything like that. And I slake dont know who did it.”\r\nHe leaned bottom toward her and caught her wrists in his hands. He started to say something, then stopped and looked down in surprise, rill his thumbs over faint, and there scars. Looking back up at her, he had a strange †for him †kindness in his face.\r\nâ€Å"You might not know who did it. unless you know something. Som ething you arent talking about.”\r\nShe stared at him, a swirl of emotions play in her chest. â€Å"You cant know all my secrets,” she murmured.\r\nHe glanced back down at her wrists and then released them, that dry smile of his back on his face. â€Å"No. I guess not.”\r\nA feeling of peace settled over her, a feeling I thought whole I could bring. Returning to my own head and my room, I sat on the embellish staring at my math book. Then, for reasons I didnt really get, I slammed it shut and threw it against the wall.\r\nI spent the rest of the night brooding until the time I was supposed to meet Jesse came around. slipping downstairs, I went into the kitchen †a place I could higgle so long as I kept things brief †and caught his eye when I cut through the main visiting area.\r\nMoving past him, I paused and whispered, â€Å"Theres a lounge on the fourth floor that nobody uses. Take the stairs on the other side of the bathrooms and meet me there in flipper minutes. The lock on the threshold is broken.”\r\nHe complied to the second, and we install the lounge dark, dusty, and deserted. The drop in guardian add up over the years meant a galvanic pile of the hall stayed empty, a sad sign for Moroi society but terribly convenient right now.\r\nHe sat down on the assign, and I lay back on it, putting my feet in his lap. I was free annoyed after Lissa and Christians bizarre attic day-dream and wanted nothing more than to provide about it for a while.\r\nâ€Å"You really here to study, or was it just an excuse?” I asked.\r\nâ€Å"No. It was real. Had to do an assignment with Meredith.” The tone in his voice indicated he wasnt adroit about that.\r\nâ€Å"Oooh,” I teased. â€Å"Is working with a dhampir infra your royal rootage? Should I be offended?”\r\nHe smiled, showing a mouth safe of perfect white teeth and fangs. â€Å"Youre a lot hotter than she is.”\r\nâ€Å"Glad I mak e the cut.” There was a sort of a heat in his eyeball that was turning me on, as was his hand sliding up my stagecoach. merely I postulateed to do something origin. It was time for some vengeance. â€Å"Mia must too, since you guys let her hang out with you. Shes not royal.”\r\nHis finger playfully poked me in the calf. â€Å"Shes with Aaron. And Ive got dissever of friends who arent royal. And friends who are dhamps. Im not a total asshole.”\r\nâ€Å"Yeah, but did you know her parents are practically custodians for the Drozdovs?”\r\nThe hand on my leg stopped. Id exaggerated, but he was a fool for gossip †and he was notorious for spreading it.\r\nâ€Å" mischievously?”\r\nâ€Å"Yeah. Scrubbing floors and stuff like that.”\r\nâ€Å"Huh.”\r\nI could see the wheels turning in his dark blue eyes and had to hide a smile. The seed was planted.\r\nSitting up, I moved closer to him and draped a leg over his lap. I wrapped my arms around him, and without further delay, thoughts of Mia disappeared as his testosterone kicked in. He kissed me eagerly †sloppily, even †pushing me against the back of the couch, and I relaxed into what had to be the first enjoyable physical activity Id had in weeks.\r\nWe kissed like that for a long time, and I didnt stop him when he pulled off my shirt.\r\n â€Å"Im not having sex,” I warned between kisses. I had no intention of losing my virginity on a couch in a lounge.\r\nHe paused, opinion about this, and finally decided not to push it. â€Å"Okay.”\r\nBut he pushed me onto the couch, lying over me, still snuggling with that same fierceness. His lips traveled down to my neck, and when the sharp points of his fangs brushed against my fight, I couldnt help an insane gasp.\r\nHe embossed himself up, looking into my face with open surprise. For a moment, I could barely breathe, re concern that rush of pleasure that a vampire bite could fill me with, won dering what itd be like to feel that while making out. Then the old taboos kicked in. Even if we didnt have sex, giving blood while we did this was still wrong, still dirty.\r\nâ€Å"Dont,” I warned.\r\nâ€Å"You want to.” His voice held excited wonder. â€Å"I can tell.”\r\nâ€Å"No, I dont.”\r\nHis eyes lit up. â€Å"You do. How †hey, have you done it ahead?”\r\nâ€Å"No,” I scoffed. â€Å"Of course not.”\r\nThose gorgeous blue eyes watched me, and I could see the wheels spinning behind them. Jesse might flirt a lot and have a hulking mouth, but he wasnt stupid.\r\nâ€Å"You act like you have. You got excited when I was by your neck.”\r\nâ€Å"Youre a good kisser,” I countered, though it wasnt entirely true. He drooled a little more than I would have preferred. â€Å"Dont you think everyone would know if I was giving blood?”\r\nThe realization seized him. â€Å"Unless you werent doing it before you left. You did it while you were gone, didnt you? You fed Lissa.”\r\nâ€Å"Of course not,” I repeated.\r\nBut he was on to something, and he knew it. â€Å"It was the only way. You didnt have feeders. Oh, man.”\r\nâ€Å"She found some,” I lied. It was the same line wed fed Natalie, the one shed spread around and that no one †except Christian †had ever questioned. â€Å"Plenty of humans are into it.”\r\nâ€Å"Sure,” he said with a smile. He leaned his mouth back to my neck.\r\nâ€Å"Im not a blood whore,” I snapped, pulling away from him.\r\nâ€Å"But you want to. You like it. All you dhamp girls do.” His teeth were on my skin again. Sharp. Wonderful.\r\nI had a feeling hostility would only make things worse, so I defused the line with teasing. â€Å" wait it,” I said gently, running a fingertip over his lips. â€Å"I told you, Im not like that. But if you want something to do with your mouth, I can give you some ide as.”\r\nThat peaked his interest. â€Å"Yeah? Like wha †?”\r\nAnd that was when the door opened.\r\nWe sprang unconnected. I was ready to handle a ferociousow scholarly person or even possibly the matron. What I was not ready for was Dimitri.\r\nHe burst in the door like hed expected to find us, and in that august moment, with him raging like a storm, I knew why Mason had called him a god. In the blink of an eye, he crossed the room and jerked Jesse up by his shirt, close holding the Moroi off the ground.\r\nâ€Å"Whats your name?” barked Dimitri.\r\nâ€Å"J-Jesse, sir. Jesse Zeklos, sir.”\r\nâ€Å"Mr. Zeklos, do you have permission to be in this part of the dorm room?”\r\nâ€Å"No, sir.”\r\nâ€Å"Do you know the rules about male and effeminate interactions around here?”\r\nâ€Å"Yes, sir.”\r\nâ€Å"Then I suggest you get out of here as immobile as you can before I turn you over to someone who will punish you accor dingly. If I ever see you like this again” †Dimitri pointed to where I cowered, half-dressed, on the couch †â€Å"I will be the one to punish you. And it will hurt. A lot. Do you understand?”\r\nJesse swallowed, eyes wide. None of the bravado he normally showed was there. I guess there was â€Å"usually” and then there was being held in the enamour of a really ripped, really tall, and really pissed-off Russian guy â€Å"Yes, sir!”\r\nâ€Å"Then go.” Dimitri released him, and, if possible, Jesse got out of there quick than Dimitri had burst in. My mentor then turned to me, a dangerous glint in his eyes. He didnt say anything, but the angry, disapproving message came through thunderous and clear.\r\nAnd then it shifted.\r\nIt was almost like hed been taken by surprise, like hed never noticed me before. Had it been any other guy, I would have said he was checking me out. As it was, he was definitely studying me. Studying my face, my body. And I suddenly realized I was only in jeans and a bra †a black bra at that. I knew perfectly well that there werent a lot of girls at this school who looked as good in a bra as I did. Even a guy like Dimitri, one who seemed so focused on trade and training and all of that, had to appreciate that.\r\nAnd, finally, I noticed that a hot flush was spreading over me, and that the look in his eyes was doing more to me than Jesses kisses had. Dimitri was secretiveness and distant sometimes, but he also had a dedication and an intensity that Id never seen in any other person. I wondered how that kind of power and effectivity translated into?­well, sex. I wondered what itd be like for him to touch me and †shit!\r\nWhat was I thinking? Was I out of my point? Embarrassed, I covered my feelings with attitude.\r\nâ€Å"You see something you like?” I asked.\r\nâ€Å"Get dressed.”\r\nThe set of his mouth hardened, and whatever hed just felt was gone. That fierceness sobered me up and made me forget about my own troubling reaction. I immediately pulled my shirt back on, uneasy at visual perception his badass side.\r\nâ€Å"Howd you find me? You following me to make sure I dont run away?”\r\nâ€Å"Be quiet,” he snapped, angle of inclination down so that we were at eye level. â€Å"A janitor saw you and circulateed it. Do you have any idea how stupid this was?”\r\nâ€Å"I know, I know, the whole probation thing, right?”\r\nâ€Å"Not just that. Im talking about the stupidity of getting in that kind of situation in the first place.”\r\nâ€Å"I get in that kind of situation all the time, Comrade. Its not a big deal.” Anger replaced my fear. I didnt like being treated like a child.\r\nâ€Å"Stop calling me that. You dont know even know what youre talking about.”\r\nâ€Å"Sure I do. I had to do a report on Russia and the R.S.S.R. last year.”\r\nâ€Å"U.S.S.R. And it is a big deal for a Moroi t o be with a dhampir girl. They like to brag.”\r\nâ€Å"So?”\r\nâ€Å"So?” he looked disgusted. â€Å"So dont you have any respect? Think about Lissa. You make yourself look cheap. You live up to what a lot of people already think about dhampir girls, and it reflects back on her. And me.”\r\nâ€Å"Oh, I see. Is that what this is about? Am I hurt your big, bad male pride? Are you afeard(predicate) Ill ruin your reputation?”\r\nâ€Å"My reputation is already made, Rose. I set my standards and lived up to them long ago. What you do with yours cadaver to be seen.” His voice hardened again. â€Å"Now get back to your room †if you can manage it without throwing yourself at someone else.”\r\nâ€Å"Is that your subtle way of calling me a slut?”\r\nâ€Å"I hear the stories you guys tell. Ive heard stories about you.”\r\nOuch. I wanted to yell back that it was no(prenominal) of his business what I did with my body, but some thing about the anger and disappointment on his face made me falter. I didnt know what it was. â€Å"Disappointing” someone like Kirova was a non-event, but Dimitri??­I remembered how proud Id felt when he praised me the last few times in our practices. Seeing that disappear from him?­well, it suddenly made me feel as cheap as hed implied I was.\r\nSomething broke indoors of me. Blinking back tears, I said, â€Å"Why is it wrong to?­I dont know, have fun? Im seventeen, you know. I should be able to enjoy it.”\r\nâ€Å"Youre seventeen, and in less than a year, someones life and death will be in your hands.” His voice still sounded firm, but there was a gentleness there too. â€Å"If you were human or Moroi, you could have fun. You could do things other girls could.”\r\nâ€Å"But youre saying I cant.”\r\nHe glanced away, and his dark eyes went unfocused. He was thinking about something far away from here. â€Å"When I was seventeen, I met Ivan Zeklos. We werent like you and Lissa, but we became friends, and he requested me as his guardian when I graduated. I was the top student in my school. I paid attention to everything in my classes, but in the end, it wasnt enough. Thats how it is in this life. One slip, one distraction?­” He sighed. â€Å"And its too late.”\r\nA glob formed in my throat as I thought about one slip or one distraction costing Lissa her life.\r\nâ€Å"Jesses a Zeklos,” I said, suddenly realizing Dimitri had just thrown around a relative of his former friend and charge.\r\nâ€Å"I know.”\r\nâ€Å"Does it hustle you? Does he remind you of Ivan?”\r\nâ€Å"It doesnt exit how I feel. It doesnt consequence how any of us feel.”\r\nâ€Å"But it does bother you.” It suddenly became very obvious to me. I could read his pain, though he clear worked hard to hide it. â€Å"You hurt. Every day. Dont you? You miss him.”\r\nDimitri looked surprised, l ike he didnt want me to know that, like Id uncovered some secret part of him. Id been thinking he was some aloof, antisocial hooligan guy, but maybe he kept himself apart from other people so he wouldnt get hurt if he lost them. Ivans death had clearly left a permanent mark.\r\nI wondered if Dimitri was lonely.\r\nThe surprised look vanished, and his standard serious one returned. â€Å"It doesnt matter how I feel. They come first. Protecting them.”\r\nI thought about Lissa again. â€Å"Yeah. They do.”\r\nA long silence fell before he spoke again.\r\nâ€Å"You told me you want to fight, to really fight. Is that still true?”\r\nâ€Å"Yes. Absolutely.”\r\nâ€Å"Rose?­I can teach you, but I have to weigh youre dedicated. Really dedicated. I cant have you distracted by things like this.” He gestured around the lounge. â€Å"Can I trust you?”\r\nAgain, I felt like yell under that gaze, under the seriousness of what he asked. I didnt get how he could have such a powerful effect on me. Id never cared so much about what one person thought. â€Å"Yes. I promise.”\r\nâ€Å"All right. Ill teach you, but I need you strong. I know you hate the running, but it really is necessary. You have no idea what Strigoi are like. The school tries to prepare you, but until youve seen how strong they are and how turbulent?­well, you cant even imagine. So I cant stop the running and the conditioning. If you want to learn more about fighting, we need to add more trainings. Itll take up more of your time. You wont have much left for your homework or anything else. Youll be tired. A lot.”\r\nI thought about it, about him, and about Lissa. â€Å"It doesnt matter. If you tell me to do it, Ill do it.”\r\nHe studied me hard, like he was still trying to decide if he could believe me. at last satisfied, he gave me a sharp nod. â€Å"Well start tomorrow.”\r\n'