Vampire Academy Chapter 3

THREESENDING US STRAIGHT TO stratum laterward(prenominal) our meeting seemed beyond cruel, sightly now thats on the button what Kirova did. Lissa was led away, and I watched her go, glad the bond would wholeow me to keep reading her emotional temperature.They precise direct me to superstar of the guidance counselors first. He was an ancient Moroi guy wire, one I remembered from before Id left. I honestly couldnt turn over he was still around. The guy was so freaking old, he should defend retired. Or died.The visit took all of vanadium minutes. He express nohing ab let on my return and asked a a rockyly a(prenominal)(prenominal) questions ab start what classes Id taken in Chicago and Portland. He compargond those against my old tear and hastily scrawled out a new schedule. I took it sullenly and headed out to my first class.1st consummation Advanced Guardian Combat Techniquessecond Period Bodyguard Theory and Personal Protection 3third Period Weight Training an d Conditioning4th Period superior Language Arts (Novices)-Lunch 5th Period Animal Behavior and Physiologysixth Period Pre-calculus7th Period Moroi Culture 48th Period Slavic ArtUgh. Id forgotten how long the Academys school day was. Novices and Moroi took tell classes during the first half of the day, which meant I wouldnt see Lissa until after lunch if we had whatsoever afternoon classes together. Most of them were standard senior classes, so I matte up my odds were pretty trus tworthy. Slavic art struck me as the mannikin of elective no one signed up for, so trust adepty theyd stuck her in t hither(predicate) too.Dimitri and Alberta escorted me to the guardians gym for first period, neither one ac contendledging my existence. move behind them, I saw how Alberta wore her hair in a short, monkey cut that showed her promise mark and molnija marks. A lot of female guardians did this. It didnt content so much for me now, since my get it on had no tattoos yet, but I didnt regard to ever cut my hair.She and Dimitri didnt say eitherthing and walked along al closely similar it was whatever other day. When we arrived, the reactions of my peers indicated it was eachthing but. They were in the middle of setting up when we entered the gym, and however homogeneous in the commons, all eyes fell on me. I couldnt find out if I felt like a rock star or a circus freak.All right, consequently. If I was sacking to be stuck here for a plot, I wasnt going to act afraid of them all any much. Lissa and I had once held this schools respect, and it was magazine to remind everyone of that. Scanning the staring, openmouthed novices, I looked for a familiar memorial tablet. Most of them were guys. matchless caught my eye, and I could barely hold O.K. my grin.Hey stonemason, wipe the drool off your face. If youre going to estimate about me naked, do it on your own time.A few snorts and snickers broke the awed silence, and mason Ashford snapped out of his haze, giving me a lop emplacementd smile. With red hair that stuck up everywhere and a smattering of freckles, he was nice-looking, though not exactly hot. He was also one of the funniest guys I knew. Wed been good relay transmitters cover song in the day.This is my time, Hathaway. Im leading todays session.Oh yeah? I retorted. Huh. Well, I guess this is a good time to forecast about me naked, then.Its always a good a time to turn over about you naked, added someone nearby, breaking the tension further. Eddie Castile. some other friend of mine.Dimitri shook his head and walked off, muttering something in Russian that didnt grievous complimentary. But as for me?well, just like that, I was one of the novices again. They were an well-to-do bunch, less centre on pedigree and politics than the Moroi students.The class engulfed me, and I found myself laughing and seeing those Id around forgotten about. Everyone wanted to know where wed been apparently Lissa and I had be add up legends . I couldnt tell them why wed left, of course, so I offered up a lot of taunts and wouldnt-you-like-to-knows that served just as well.The ingenious reunion lasted a few more minutes before the freehanded guardian who oversaw the training came over and s shabbyed Mason for neglecting his duties. Still grinning, he barked out orders to everyone, explaining what exercises to start with. Uneasily I realized I didnt know most of them.Come on, Hathaway, he said, taking my arm. You can be my partner. Lets see what youve been doing all this time.An hour later, he had his answer. non practicing, huh?Ow, I groaned, second geararily incap adapted of figure speech.He extended a hand and helped me up from the mat hed knocked me low on about fifty times.I hate you, I told him, clash a spot on my thigh that was going to bugger off a wicked bruise tomorrow.Youd hate me more if I held impale.Yeah, thats true, I agreed, staggering along as the class put the equipment tooshie.You authentic ly did okay.What? I just had my ass handed to me.Well, of course you did. Its been two years. But hey, youre still walking. Thats something. He grinned mockingly.Did I mention I hate you?He flashed me another smile, which chop-chop faded to something more serious. Dont take this the wrong way?I mean, you rattling are a scrapper, but theres no way youll be able to take your trials in the spring Theyre making me take extra serve sessions, I explained. Not that it mattered. I planned on acquire Lissa and me out of here before these practices really became an issue. Ill be ready.Extra sessions with who?That tall guy. Dimitri.Mason stopped walking and stared at me. Youre putting in extra time with Belikov?Yeah, so what?So the man is a god.Exaggerate much? I asked.No, Im serious. I mean, hes all quiet and antisocial usually, but when he reacts?wow. If you think youre hurting now, youre going to be dead when hes done with you.Great. aboutthing else to improve my day.I elbowed him a nd went on to second period. That class covered the essentials of being a escort and was required for all seniors. Actually, it was the third in a series that had started junior-grade year. That meant I was behind in this class too, but I hoped defend Lissa in the real world had deemn me some insight.Our instructor was Stan Alto, whom we referred to evidently as Stan behind his back and Guardian Alto in clod settings. He was a small-scale older than Dimitri, but not or so as tall, and he always looked pissed off. Today, that look intensified when he walked into the classroom and saw me sitting there. His eyes widened in mock surprisal as he circled the room and came to stand beside my desk.Whats this? No one told me we had a guest speaker here today. Rose Hathaway. What a privilege How very generous of you to take time out of your busy schedule and region your knowledge with us.I felt my cheeks burning, but in a commodious show of self-control, I stopped myself from tellin g him to fuck off. Im pretty incon turn outable my face must have delivered that message, however, because his sneer increased. He gestured for me to stand up.Well, generate on, come on. Dont sit there Come up to the front so you can help me lecture the class.I sank into my seat. You dont really mean The gibelike smile dried up. I mean exactly what I say, Hathaway. Go to the front of the class.A thick silence enveloped the room. Stan was a scary instructor, and most of the class was too awed to laugh at my disgrace kind of yet. Refusing to crack, I strode up to the front of the room and moody to face the class. I gave them a bold look and tossed my hair over my shoulders, earning a few sympathetic smiles from my friends. I then noticed I had a large audience than expected. A few guardians including Dimitri lingered in the back of the room. Outside the Academy, guardians foc apply on one-on-one protection. Here, guardians had a lot more people to protect and they had to trai n the novices. So rather than follow any one soulfulness around, they wagered shifts guarding the school as a whole and monitoring classes.So, Hathaway, said Stan cheerfully, strolling back up to the front with me. Enlighten us about your protective techniques.My?techniques?Of course. Because presumptively you must have had some sort of plan the rest of us couldnt take when you took an underage Moroi royal out of the Academy and exposed her to neer-ending Strigoi threats.It was the Kirova lecture all over again, except with more witnesses.We never ran into any Strigoi, I replied stiffly.Obviously, he said with a snicker. I already forecast that out, seeing as how youre still alive.I wanted to shout that perchance I could have defeated a Strigoi, but after getting beat up in the last class, I now venture I couldnt have survived an attack by Mason, let alone an actual Strigoi.When I didnt say anything, Stan started pacing in front of the class.So whatd you do? Howd you make s ure she stayed unassailable? Did you avoid going out at night?Sometimes. That was true especially when wed first run away. Wed relaxed a little after months went by with no attacks.Sometimes, he repeated in a high-pitched voice, making my answer sound incredibly stupid. Well then, I suppose you slept during the day and stayed on guard at night.Er?no.No? But thats one of the first things mentioned in the chapter on unaccompanied guarding. Oh wait, you wouldnt know that because you werent here.I swallowed back more swear oral communication. I watched the scene of action whenever we went out, I said, needing to defend myself.Oh? Well thats something. Did you use Carnegies Quadrant Surveillance method or the Rotational Survey?I didnt say anything.Ah. Im guessing you used the Hathaway Glance-Around-When-You-Remember-To Method.No I exclaimed angrily. Thats not true. I watched her. Shes still alive, isnt she? He walked back up to me and leaned toward my face. Because you got lucky.St rigoi arent lurking around every corner out there, I tornado back. Its not like what weve been taught. Its practicedr than you guys make it sound.Safer? Safer? We are at war with the Strigoi he yelled. I could smell coffee on his breath, he was so close. One of them could walk right up to you and snap your pretty little neck before you even noticed him and hed barely break a campaign doing it. You might have more speed and strength than a Moroi or a human, but you are nothing, nothing, compared to a Strigoi. They are deadly, and they are powerful. And do you know what makes them more powerful?No way was I going to let this jerk make me cry. Looking away from him, I try to focus on something else. My eyes rested on Dimitri and the other guardians. They were reflection my humiliation, stone-faced.Moroi blood, I whispered.What was that? asked Stan loudly. I didnt catch it.I spun back around to face him. Moroi blood Moroi blood makes them salubriouser.He nodded in satis occurrenc eion and took a few steps back. Yes. It does. It makes them stronger and harder to destroy. Theyll kill and drink from a human or dhampir, but they want Moroi blood more than anything else. They seek it. Theyve turned to the dark side to gain immortality, and they want to do whatever they can to keep that immortality. do-or-die(a) Strigoi have attacked Moroi in public. Groups of Strigoi have raided academies exactly like this one. There are Strigoi who have lived for thousands of years and fed off generations of Moroi. Theyre almost impossible to kill. And that is why Moroi numbers are dropping. They arent strong liberal even with guardians to protect themselves. Some Moroi dont even see the point of running anymore and are manifestly turning Strigoi by prize. And as the Moroi disappear??so do the dhampirs, I finished.Well, he said, licking sprayed spit off his lips. It looks like you learned something after all. Now well have to see if you can learn enough to strait this cla ss and qualify for your field inhabit next semester.Ouch. I spent the rest of that horrible class in my seat, thankfully replaying those last words in my mind. The senior-year field experience was the best part of a novices education. Wed have no classes for half a semester. Instead, wed each be assigned a Moroi student to guard and follow around. The adult guardians would monitor us and test us with staged attacks and other threats. How a novice passed that field experience was almost as important as all the rest of her grades combined. It could make up ones mind which Moroi she got assigned to after graduation.And me? There was and one Moroi I wanted. twain classes later, I finally earned my lunch escape. As I stumbled crosswise campus toward the commons, Dimitri fell into step beside me, not looking particularly godlike unless you counted his inspired good looks.I suppose you saw what happened in Stans class? I asked, not bothering with titles.Yes.And you dont think that was unfair?Was he right? Do you think you were fully prepared to protect Vasilisa?I looked down at the ground. I kept her alive, I mumbled.How did you do fighting against your classmates today?The question was mean. I didnt answer and knew I didnt need to. Id had another training class after Stans, and no doubt Dimitri had watched me get beat up there too.If you cant fight them Yeah, yeah, I know, I snapped.He slowed his long stride to match my pain-filled one. Youre strong and fast by nature. You just need to keep yourself trained. Didnt you play any sports while you were gone?Sure, I shrugged. Now and then.You didnt join any teams? in like manner much work. If Id wanted to practice that much, Id have stayed here.He gave me an exasperated look. Youll never be able to really protect the princess if you dont hone your skills. Youll always be lacking.Ill be able to protect her, I said fiercely.You have no guarantees of being assigned to her, you know for your field experience or aft er you graduate. Dimitris voice was low and unapologetic. They hadnt given me a warm and fuzzy mentor. No one wants to waste the bond but no ones going to give her an inadequate guardian either. If you want to be with her, then you need to work for it. You have your lessons. You have me. Use us or dont. Youre an ideal choice to guard Vasilisa when you both graduate if you can prove youre worthy. I hope you will.Lissa, call her Lissa, I corrected. She hated her full name, much preferring the Americanized nickname.He walked away, and suddenly, I didnt feel like such a badass anymore.By now, Id burned up a lot of time leaving class. Most everyone else had long since sprinted at heart the commons for lunch, eager to maximize their social time. Id almost do it back there myself when a voice under the doors overhang called to me.Rose?Peering in the voices direction, I caught sight of master Dashkov, his kind face smiling at me as he leaned on a cane near the buildings wall. His two g uardians stood nearby at a polite distance.Mr. Dash-er, Your Highness. Hi.I caught myself just in time, having nearly forgotten Moroi royal terms. I hadnt used them while maintenance among humans. The Moroi chose their rulers from among twelve royal families. The eldest in the family got the title of prince or princess. Lissa had gotten hers because she was the only one left in her line.How was your first day? he asked.Not over yet. I tried to think of something conversational. Are you visiting here for a while?Ill be leaving this afternoon after I say hello to Natalie. When I heard Vasilisa and you had returned, I simply had to come see you.I nodded, not sure what else to say. He was more Lissas friend than mine.I wanted to tell you? He spoke hesitantly. I understand the gravity of what you did, but I think Headmistress Kirova failed to acknowledge something. You did keep Vasilisa safe all this time. That is impressive.Well, its not like I faced down Strigoi or anything, I said. But you faced down some things?Sure. The school sent psi-hounds once.Remarkable.Not really. Avoiding them was pretty easy.He laughed. Ive hunted with them before. They arent that easy to evade, not with their powers and intelligence. It was true. Psi-hounds were one of many types of magical creatures that wandered the world, creatures that humans never knew about or else didnt conceptualise theyd really seen. The hounds traveled in packs and shared a sort of mental communication that made them particularly deadly to their prey as did the fact that they resembled mutant wolves. Did you face anything else?I shrugged. Little things here and there.Remarkable, he repeated.Lucky, I think. It turns out Im really behind in all this guardian stuff. I sounded just like Stan now.Youre a smart girl. Youll catch up. And you also have your bond.I looked away. My ability to feel Lissa had been such a secret for so long, it felt weird to have others know about it.The histories are full of storie s of guardians who could feel when their charges were in danger, Victor continued.Ive made a hobby of poring over up on it and some of the ancient ways. Ive heard its a enormous asset.I guess. I shrugged. What a boring hobby, I legal opinion, imagining him poring over past histories in some dank library covered in spiderwebs.Victor tilted his head, curiosity all over his face. Kirova and the others had had the same look when wed mentioned our connection, like we were lab rats. What is it like if you dont mind me asking?Its?I dont know. I just sort of always have this hum of how she feels. Usually its just emotions. We cant despatch messages or anything. I didnt tell him about slipping into her head. That part of it was hard even for me to understand.But it doesnt work the other way? She doesnt sense you?I shook my head.His face shone with wonder. How did it happen?I dont know, I said, still glancing away. exactly started two years ago.He frowned. Near the time of the accident ?Hesitantly, I nodded. The accident was not something I wanted to talk about, that was for sure. Lissas memories were bad enough without my own mixing into them. Twisted metal. A sensation of hot, then cold, then hot again. Lissa screaming over me, screaming for me to wake up, screaming for her parents and her familiar to wake up. None of them had, only me.And the doctors said that was a miracle in itself. They said I shouldnt have survived.Apparently sensing my discomfort, Victor let the moment go and returned to his earlier excitement.I can still barely believe this. Its been so long since this has happened. If it did happen more often?just think what it could do for the safety of all Moroi. If only others could experience this too. Ill have to do more research and see if we can replicate it with others.Yeah. I was getting impatient, despite how much I liked him. Natalie rambled a lot, and it was pretty slang which parent shed inherited that quality from. Lunch was ticking down, and although Moroi and novices shared afternoon classes, Lissa and I wouldnt have much time to talk.Perhaps we could He started coughing, a great, seizing fit that made his whole body shake. His disease, Sandovskys Syndrome, took the lungs down with it while dragging the body toward death. I cast an anxious look at his guardians, and one of them stepped forward. Your Highness, he said politely, you need to go inside. Its too cold out here.Victor nodded. Yes, yes. And Im sure Rose here wants to eat. He turned to me. Thank you for speaking to me. I cant emphasize how much it means to me that Vasilisa is safe and that you helped with that. Id promised her father Id look after her if anything happened to him, and I felt like sort of the failure when you left.A sinking sensation filled my stomach as I imagined him wracked with guilt and worry over our disappearance. Until now, I hadnt really thought about how others might have felt about us leaving.We made our goodbyes, and I finall y arrived inside the school. As I did, I felt Lissas anxiety spike. Ignoring the pain in my legs, I picked up my pace into the commons.And nearly ran right into her.She didnt see me, though. Neither did the people standing with her Aaron and that little skirt girl. I stopped and listened, just catching the end of the conversation. The girl leaned toward Lissa, who seemed more stunned than anything else.It looks to me like it came from a garage sale. I thought a precious Dragomir would have standards. Scorn dripped off the word Dragomir.Grabbing Doll miss by the shoulder, I jerked her away. She was so light, she stumbled three feet and nearly fell.She does have standards, I said, which is why youre done talking to her.