[ there's not really any dimitri and mischa in this chapter, but the next one makes up for it. promise ]

☽︎

ROSE RESPECTS YOU — LISTENS TO YOU.

[ season 1 — episode 3 ]

The entire Dominion was in mourning. When the sun went down and everyone woke up to start their days, excited to talk about the Dragomir specializations, the headlines rocked their words. Somehow, a small army of Strigoi broke past the wards at St. Jude's Academy, which was a school just like St. Vladimir's. Given that the Guardians were unprepared, it was a massacre of Moroi, Guardians, and Novices. So many lives were lost before the remaining Strigoi escaped.

Now, everyone was crowded in the church, Moroi and Dhampir alike as High Priestess Irene led the memorial service. Mischa sat stiffly next to her sister, both unable to believe that something like this happened. More than anything, they wished Rose was next to them, but she had to sit on the other side with the Novices.

"The massacre at St. Jude's was unthinkable. All were taken too young. All will be mourned. As is custom, tomorrow, we will celebrate the traditional Death Watch for the fallen. We also mourn the loss of the Dhampir Guardians slain while doing their duty protecting our Moroi brothers and sisters," the High Priestess went on. Then she looked out over the crowd. "The Moroi and the Dhampir have a special relationship. Without Moroi, no Dhampir child can be born. Without Dhampir, no Moroi life can be safe. No Moroi man must hesitate to do his sacred duty for the greater good."

Mischa bit her lip in amusement and looked down at her lap. The church was quite literally telling them all to fuck more. It was a delicate matter, seeing as actual Dhampir-Moroi relationships were frowned upon. At the same time, it was still encouraged for Moroi men to impregnate Dhampir girls, as more Dhampir could only be born through one Moroi parent. Mischa didn't quite understand the biology of it, but two Dhampir couldn't have children, meaning Moroi were the only option.

A downside of actual romantic attachments being frowned upon meant many Moroi fathers wanted nothing to do with their Dhampir children — exhibit Rose's father. They often went on to marry respectable Moroi women and had a set of Moroi children to dote on. As for the mothers, Dhampir women either lived in Communes where their only purpose was to breed or they dropped their children off at an Academy to be raised while they continued to protect their Moroi — again, exhibit Rose's mother.

Of course, Moroi women could also have a child with a Dhampir father, but it was the rarest of things. Mischa supposed it was a mix between some archaic way of thinking and thinking less of Dhampir women. Now, she wasn't ready to rush off and get knocked up to produce more Dhampir, but she also didn't understand why Moroi men had the duty to become fathers so young while it wasn't expected of the women. No doubt, Jesse Zeklos' father was already thinking of arrangements to make so that he could have a visit with a woman from the Communes.

With the sermon over — and the clear instruction to start working on the next generation of Dhampir — the High Priestess led a chant in Old Moroi that each of them somberly repeated.

☾

When Mischa heard the news of who was on campus, she felt her blood rushing at an impossibly fast rate. The Princess booked it from her Moroi Culture class, which had just let out, and ran to the Dhampir training area, hoping to give her friend some kind of heads up.

Rose was just sitting down on the sidelines with Mason and Meredith. "Do either of you know how to get access to the Moroi library?"

"What do you want with a library?" Meredith asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Fuck off," Rose snapped, earning a chuckle from Mason, who was tying his boots. "I have to study... things."

Meredith let out a snarky laugh. "That's funny."

Then they were interrupted by a very frantic princess rushing up to them, slipping past other Novices and grabbing onto Rose's arm. "Rose, Rose, Rose—"

"Calm down, Mish," she said, letting out a giggle. "You know Alberta won't let you stay and watch if you cause a fuss."

"No, Rose, you don't understand. I just heard that your mother is—"

"Here," Rose interrupted, her eyes falling on a very familiar woman. "No way."

Janine Hathaway walked onto the sparring mat alongside Alberta. Her coily hair was cut short, showing off the row of Molnija marks on her neck that disappeared underneath her jacket. Despite her short stature, everyone knew she was a deadly force. It had been years since Rose saw her mother, who only ever communicated through chastising emails whenever she was disappointed in her daughter.

"Legend walking," Meredith said in disbelief. They'd grown up on stories of Janine. And Janine was one of the few Guardians to survive the recent attack at St. Jude's.

"Fuck," Rose muttered. All of them quickly stood at attention to greet the Guardians. "What is she doing here?"

Rose was the first to sit down, hating the sign of respect she was forced to show her mother. Everyone soon followed, and Mischa stayed next to Meredith, tucked behind Mason and Rose, out of sight for the most part. Janine didn't think highly of Rose's friendship with the Dragomir twins.

"The only way to deal with the massacre at St. Jude's is to learn from it and prevent it from ever happening here," Alberta told them all. "To walk us through what happened, I am honored to introduce our most decorated Guardian, Janine Hathaway."

"Your mom is such a badass," Mason whispered to Rose, who rolled her eyes. Mischa reached forward to rub her back comfortingly.

"The Strigoi attack on St. Jude's was unique, in my experience," Janine said. Then she pulled up a map of the wards on a screen. "There are exits here and here. Tell me what you see."

Meredith was the first to speak, raising her hand a bit. "The pattern of the bodies indicate that they were herding the victims and killing them in groups."

"The Strigoi are loners. They occasionally hunt in twos or threes, but they turn on each other as easily as they do on their victims. Your thesis would contradict centuries of behavioral analysis. Do you stand by it, Miss..."

"Meredith," she said while leaning forward. "You see, that's what's odd. Historically, Strigoi don't fight this way. But to me, it looks like the attack was coordinated."

Janine looked at her almost proudly. "Good. You're looking at the facts without bias, which is the only way to draw the right conclusion. Nice work, Meredith. In the past, the Strigoi's inability to cooperate has protected us. But these Strigoi, at least, seem to be working together."

"Nice," Mischa whispered to compliment Meredith. It was difficult to get a compliment from Janine Hathaway. Meredith smiled in appreciation at her.

"Princess Dragomir," Janine's sharp voice cut through the air. Mischa winced and looked back at the Guardian. "I believe you're a ways away from the Moroi classrooms."

Alberta knew it wasn't the time to explain how Mischa was often allowed to watch Novice training. She would do it later, especially since Challenge Day was coming up, and Mischa liked those especially. For now, Alberta simply shared a look with Mischa and nodded away from the training grounds.

"Right," Mischa said under her breath, getting to her feet. She shot a set of finger guns at Rose before leaving, knowing she'd be complaining about her mother later.

And complain, she did. As soon as Dhampir training was over, Rose sought out Mischa and Lissa. She did warn her sister that Rose's mother was in town, so she was expecting the rant that she went on as soon as they were all together.

"I mean, we get it. She's a badass. But it's very performative. And why is she here anyway? Is it to see if I'm okay or scared after the other school got attacked? No, she's here to show us all how smart she is," Rose grumbled.

"Okay, let's not let her get you distracted from research mode," Lissa insisted. This all couldn't have happened at a worse time. "We need you out of my head."

"And I need her out of mine," Rose said, raising her voice in frustration.

"My schedule is wall-to-wall leading up to the Death Watch tomorrow, but I talked to Christian, and he's gonna help us figure things out," Lissa went on. "Mish is a little more free, but not by much."

"Yeah. I'm more booked after the Death Watch, though," Mischa said, sighing. "My elemental tests got delayed because of the incident, but they won't push it back forever. But I do think Christian will be a good resource."

"I hope you're right about being able to trust him," Rose told them.

"I am," Lissa said, coming to a stop in the middle of the courtyard. "I know we only just met, but I feel like I know him and he knows me. Maybe it's the fact that we both lost our parents. Maybe it's just chemistry, but he's smart, and we don't need you passing out during practice. We can trust him. I know it. It's like a gut feeling."

"I would argue you on that, but I can feel it coming off of you," she admitted.

"Well, what does it feel like?" Mischa questioned, trying to understand this weird bond more.

"I don't know," she said, thinking about it for a bit. "Warm. Centered. A little gooey." Rose cringed, making the girls smile. "You like him."

"I do," Lissa confirmed, not wanting to hide it from them.

"You know I want you to be happy, but Christian is a non-starter for a lot of people if you want to be queen," Rose warned.

"She's been warned at length already," Mischa said, recalling Victor's reaction from the other night.

"Yeah, I know. I'll be discreet," Lissa promised. "Now that I've committed to this, I definitely don't want to screw it up."

☾

Mischa stood with Rose in the streets, an umbrella in one hand and a stack of old books in the other. Rose had her arms full as well. The first part of trying to figure out the bond was research, something both the girls hated. And though Mischa was a princess with lots of sway, Mason still ended up being the most helpful. It had something to do with one of the girls working security in the library had a crush on Mason. He was finishing up chatting with her while the girls waited outside.

While waiting, Rose kept anxiously watching the library door, waiting for Mason to come out. Mischa didn't say anything, but a part of her wondering if Rose might be jealous that Mason was giving his attention to someone else. She'd never admit to it though, not when she was the one to suggest she and Mason be just friends with benefits in the first place.

Meanwhile, Mischa was distracted too, but not by Mason. She spotted her Guardian going on a jog through the town, but he stopped when he saw a familiar face. The woman he was speaking with was pretty, but a little older and wearing a dress and bright red cardigan. It was clear they knew each other, but Mischa couldn't overhear them.

She watched as the woman got clearly upset with something. Dimitri quickly embraced her in a soft hug. Then, as they parted, an older woman brought a child over and gave it to the woman to hold. Clearly, she was the mother as she placed a kiss to the baby's head. But Dimitri also grinned at the infant, letting the baby grab his finger and wave it around.

Mischa was certainly intrigued, but it also wasn't her business. However, she wouldn't forget how soft the usually so terrifying Guardian looked with a baby suddenly in front of him.

"You owe me one, Hathaway," Mason said, finally coming from the library and breaking Mischa's concentration. "You too, Dragomir. Last time I charmed library security into an after-hours favor, I couldn't shake her for a month. I could think of a couple ways you could thank me."

Rose matched the smirk on Mason's face, stepping closer. "Don't worry, I'll find a way."

☾

Mischa watched from far away, leaning against the wall of the Dhampir dorms while biding time until she had to be at a Council meeting. She didn't want to get closer and risk Janine telling her to leave, even if Alberta explained Mischa was a frequent observer on Challenge Day. No one paid her much mind, other than Dimitri who would occasionally look her way.

Each time he did, he saw her attention fully focused on the training Novices. The Guardian could've sworn she was taking mental notes on each correction the teachers gave, holding back from mimicking the moves each Novice made. He'd rarely met Moroi so interested in their fighting techniques.

Rose was sparring with Mason, finding the perfect way to thank him for his help earlier. In a matter of seconds, she had him pinned and raised her fist, signifying a final punch. But she didn't give it, of course. In training, once your opponent was clearly down, you didn't keep beating on them. That was just cruel.

"I hate to intrude on the lovebirds, but I'm next on your dance card, Rose," Eddie said, a smirk on his face as he came over.

In response, Rose got to her feet and maneuvered behind him, missing a punch he threw her way. Then she hit the back of his knees and got him in a headlock. "Romantic enough for you, Eddie?" she asked teasingly as he groaned.

"Oh, come on, it's too early for this," he complained.

Mischa smiled as Eddie threw in the towel and went to get some water. She continued to look around the group, seeing how Janine, Alberta, and Dimitri gave instruction to the different students.

"Recover first, then strike."

"Watch your blind spot."

"Elbows in, lateral hip twist and follow through."

Dimitri had been right to assume Mischa was taking notes. After the attack on St. Jude's, she was even more determined to learn to defend herself. A few workouts with Mikhail didn't feel like enough. She didn't want to find herself unable to save her own life if she was caught in a situation like the ambush. All she needed was a Dhampir to agree to actually work with her.

Mikhail was a no-go. Dimitri wasn't an option either. While they wanted her safe, neither was open to her actually learning to fight. She was blaming it on internal misogyny or royal expectations or something equally as annoying. Really, though, Mischa and Mikhail were like siblings, and he couldn't stand to think of her going up against a Strigoi. And Dimitri made it clear he didn't want her fighting after she used her magic on that Strigoi at the wards.

So, Rose was probably Mischa's best bet. Unfortunately, the girl was a bit too preoccupied with her mother being in town and researching the weird bond. She also still needed to bring her ranking up, as she was only at third place under Mason and Meredith.

She was fighting Mason again, and now they had the attention of Janine. Which, honestly, made Rose's performance worse, as Janine was the one thing that could always mess with her head. Rose rushed at Mason, who threw her back, and she rolled back onto her feet.

"Nice, Mason," Janine complimented.

"Point to Mason," Alberta awarded, which went up on the scoreboard.

Rose let out an annoyed groan and got back up, moving to attack. Yet again, she was thrown off. "You have to open up. Let him come to you, use his momentum." Rose refused to take her mother's advice and didn't change her fighting stance, which again resulted in failure. "You need to calculate your speed. Again."

"You wanna show me, just show me!" Rose snapped, throwing her arms out and glaring at her mother.

"Have it your way," Janine said, narrowing her eyes. Almost immediately, everyone got off the sparring mat and watched from the sides. Mischa bit her lip nervously, worried that Janine would go too hard on her. "Come at me."

Rose let out a breath before rushing at Janine, only managing to throw one punch, which Janine easily dodged. Then she grabbed her daughter's arm and used all her strength to flip her over on her back. Instead of finishing the spar, she surprised them all by delivering a swift punch to Rose's left eye, making Mischa wince and shut her eyes. Even the Guardians and Novices turned away, not used to that kind of violence during training. Had a student pulled that, Alberta would be punishing them.

Then, Janine had the audacity to offer Rose her hand. She ignored it and got up on her own. "I'm fine," she muttered, stalking off.

Mischa ran off quickly, going to the section of the training facility where they kept bandages and ice packs for the frequent injuries that happened. When she turned around from the freezer, she practically ran into Dimitri, who'd had a similar idea.

"Princess," he greeted with a somber nod.

"Hi, Dimitri." She looked over his shoulder at a sulking Rose before glancing at her watch. "I, um, have to be at a Council meeting. Could you take this to Rose?"

"I'm sure she'd rather have it from you," he said, though he nodded and took the ice pack.

"You'd be surprised," she said, smiling. "Rose respects you — listens to you, which is a rare thing."

"I doubt that," Dimitri said, letting out a huff.

"You'd be surprised," Mischa repeated, softer this time. "I'll see you around."

☾

Usually, there were only twelve chairs at the table during Council meetings. But given that Mischa and Lissa were to share the Dragomir spot until they graduated, a thirteenth chair was pulled up. Now that Lissa was to be the next Queen, it still meant Mischa would be the head of house, as the Queen was not present for Council meetings.

The meeting — the first meeting for the Dragomir twins — was to discuss two things. The low Guardian and Dhampir numbers, and also concerns raised by Sonya, Mikhail, and Victor about the wards needing to be re-strengthened after the attack at St. Jude's.

"This is insanity. Ward-strengthening ceremonies take months to plan," Marie said, scoffing.

Dane Zeklos, Jesse's father, agreed. "And who's gonna perform this rite? The handful of monks who are capable are halfway around the world, prepping the next properly scheduled ceremony."

"That's true, but many of them were taught by High Monk Edward Junge. He's been practicing the rites all his life," Victor said, already having a backup plan.

They all looked at the ancient Moroi that was led over to them, using a wooden staff to walk and covered in a thick, fur cloak. He only spoke in Old Moroi, and whatever he said echoed around the Council chamber. Mischa suspected he was just agreeing to do the ceremony. To her understanding, the wards were created while additional Moroi worked together and used all four elements. It was the same way silver stakes were created for the Dhampir to kill Strigoi with.

"You know the Guardians aren't the only protection we have," Marie then said. Both Mischa and Lissa noticed how the mood darkened even further for everyone at the table.

Victor shook his head, seeming almost angry. "It's too dangerous. You remember how badly it went last time."

"They were still experimental then," Marie argued.

"And they haven't been tested since," he reminded her.

"While the monk prepares, we need to protect ourselves," she insisted. "Does anyone have a better idea?"

"Excuse us," Mischa said, raising a confused hand and getting their attention.

"I'm sorry, I know we're new here, but could someone please tell us what you all are talking about?" Lissa asked, raising an eyebrow. But if Victor didn't like it, the twins likely wouldn't either.

"Psi Hounds," Victor told them with a grave expression. "Guard dogs created to only obey Moroi commands. They patrol the wards for signs of Strigoi, except they don't know when to quit."

☾

After the Council meeting, where it was voted that Psi Hounds would be used, Mischa and Lissa were ushered to a shop that sold different masks and crowns for royals to buy. They needed to each wear a mask to the Death Watch event to symbolize them all mourning as one with hidden faces. Mischa thought it was bullshit, especially when non-royal Moroi couldn't even attend. They weren't included in the 'mourning as one.'

While there, Mia was telling the twins all she knew about the last Psi Hounds that were used. "It was awful. The last time they let the Psi Hounds out, they tore through an entire farming village outside the gates before wrangling them back into their cages."

"How could Maria Conta still want to use those?" Mischa asked in disbelief while browsing the masks.

"I tried to say something, but I'm new, so why would they listen to me?" Lissa asked, sighing.

"You're gonna have to navigate the council sooner or later, now that you're heads of family," Mia reminded them. She nodded to the mask Lissa was holding, which covered the top half of her face and had three sets of wings coming from it. "Is that the mask you're wearing to the Death Watch?"

Lissa nodded and set it on a pillow for the attendant to take to the register so she could package it. "Yeah. Which one do you want?"

"Liss," Mischa whispered, shaking her head at her sister's cluelessness.

"Must be nice, Lissa. Living by your own rules, oblivious to the real world," Mia said bitterly. "The Death Watch is for Royals only."

"Wait, what?" she asked in disbelief. Then, Mia got up to wait outside, not wanting to think about her status any longer. "Mia..."

"Don't let her get to you." Both twins turned to see a girl sitting on a couch, who'd remained silent up until then. "Girls like her only exist to make other people feel bad about themselves."

"I had no idea the Non-Royals were excluded. Non-Royals died at St. Jude's too," Lissa said, frowning.

"Hmm, this Dominion and its traditions," the woman said, standing up and joining them.

"You're Tatiana Vogel, right? I should know that. I'm sorry," Lissa said, looking down.

"No. I didn't grow up at court. My mother sent me here a few months ago to study religious studies with my aunt, High Priestess Irene," Tatiana explained.

"You knew Andre," Mischa couldn't help but say. She was the girl he'd gotten distracted by when telling the Queen happy birthday.

"Yes, I was a friend," she confirmed. "He knew the council needed to modernize or the young Moroi will never engage. That's why you are what we need, Lissa. You have the power to change things, even now."

"Not really," she said unconfidently.

"Even small actions can make a big difference. And whether you wear the crown now or later... you're either a queen or you're not," Tatiana said, holding out a tiara that was on display.

Lissa took it and looked down at the crown, contemplating it all. As she did that, Mischa eyed Tatiana, gaining her attention. "You don't carry yourself or talk like someone who wants to pursue religious studies," she couldn't help but note.

"And you don't carry yourself like an all-powerful princess who can wield all four elements without struggle," Tatiana replied without missing a beat. Then Tatiana took a casual glance around, looking at all the masks. "I quite think this mask would suit you, Princess."

She held out a cream-colored mask that covered the top half of her face. A sun was carved over the opening of the right eye while a moon decorated the left. Other than that, it was simple with just a few embellishments around the edges. "It's perfect, Tatiana. Thank you."

After purchasing their masks and getting away from Tatiana — though she did nothing wrong, she made Mischa's skin crawl for whatever reason — the twins headed back to the school. But of course, a horde of paparazzi was waiting for them in the streets. It was getting hard for Lissa to avoid them.

"Lissa! Over here! Princess Lissa!" the crowd called. They rushed right up to the sisters, and one woman put a microphone in Lissa's face. "We have a question. Princess Valilisa, are you looking forward to the Death Watch?"

Lissa set her jaw, thinking over Mia's reaction. "Not as much as I should be. Our whole community has been affected by the recent attack, Royals and Non-Royals alike. Tonight should be for all of us. And when I'm Queen, that will change. We are all a part of this Dominion. We mourn as one."

☾

Mischa was in a frenzy as the time for the Death Watch got nearer. In response to Lissa's very public statement, the Queen actually opened up the event to non-royal Moroi as a show of kindness. But really, she figured the Queen didn't want to look bad in the eyes of the media.

On top of that, Christian spoke with her and Rose earlier in the Moroi library. He'd finally found something while combing through all the books. He was convinced that Lissa could somehow control minds — he'd seen her do it with Mia when she found out they shared a kiss. But there was only one book that might contain more information on that kind of magic, and it was kept locked up in the High Priestess' archives.

But between Christian, who had a knack for slipping in and out of places unseen, a skilled Dhampir, and a Princess who could hopefully lessen the trouble they'd get in if caught, they figured they'd be able to get the book somehow. After Mischa made an appearance at the Death Watch held for the Moroi, she'd leave the castle and meet Rose at the Dhampir bar. Once the time was right, they'd slip out and go meet with Christian while most of the Guardians were too busy drinking and mourning to notice they were breaking some serious rules.

Until then, Mischa still had to be a princess. When she chose a gown to wear to the event, she kept in mind that she'd be sneaking around later. The long, sage green skirt hid away the silent sneakers she was wearing underneath. For a moment, she felt like Rose, who always wore her combat boots everywhere.

Lissa was wearing a black dress with roses embroidered on it. She glanced at Mia, who was silently putting on her earrings. She hadn't mentioned the non-royals being invited. "I'm glad the queen changed her mind about letting you come tonight."

"If you're digging for a thank you, I'm not in the mood," she muttered. A pity invite was nearly as bad as not being invited at all.

"No. Mia, I'm actually just trying to be a nice person," Lissa said, sighing in defeat. Then she picked up her ornate mask. "These masks weigh, like, twenty pounds."

"You didn't have to get such an extravagant one," Mischa said with a teasing smile. The wings added a lot of weight.

"It's tradition. In death, we have one face. Or whatever," Mia muttered while Lissa held the mask up. Then she looked at the princess and gave in a little. "You want some help?"

"Sure. Thank you."

As Mia got up to help tie the string on the mask, they heard a group of girls passing by their open door. And they weren't bothering to hide how they were gossiping about Lissa.

"The Queen will put her in her place."

"She overstepped big time."

"Let's get there early so we can watch it all go down."

Lissa looked back at the door with a frown. "Are they talking about me?" Mia hummed in confirmation. "Did I do something wrong?" she asked while holding the mask up.

"If you did, the Queen will most certainly let you know about it publicly. I'm sure everything will be fine," Mia told her, really just saying it to comfort the princess.

"Alright," Mischa said, grabbing her own mask. "No more worrying about the Queen. Whatever happens tonight, happens."

The three of them made their way to the castle, for once not escorted by Mikhail or Dimitri. Many of the Guardians were given time off to have their own mourning rituals. There were only a few at the entrance, checking royal status at the door. When Mia was denied entrance to the main chamber, anger flashed through Mischa for a moment. Even if they were invited, they still weren't allowed inside with the royals.

Once inside, even with the masks, everyone knew who Lissa was. And no one bothered to lower their voices as they gossiped about the scene she'd made with the media. Everyone was waiting excitedly for the Queen to arrive, hoping she'd put the princess in her place. They all thought she'd gone too far.

Finally, music began to play to welcome the Queen as she entered. She was the only one not wearing a mask to hide her face, which was expected. And she walked right up to Lissa with purpose. The only reason Mischa didn't immediately panic was because the Queen seemed to be smiling.

Lissa bowed respectfully to her. "Thank you, Your Majesty, for inviting the Non-Royal Moroi tonight. I was afraid I'd offended you."

"Not at all, Princess. Your sentiments do you proud. Now go and greet your admirers," she said, causing the crowd to murmur in disbelief.

But as soon as Lissa walked away, the Queen's smile fell. Victor came over to them and nodded to the Queen. "Very generously done, Your Majesty."

"Hmm. It was. Victor, I don't care to have my hand forced," she said sharply. "I am still Queen. No more surprises until I'm not?"

At that, her ancient eyes fell on Mischa, almost daring her to do anything she didn't like. All eyes were on the Dragomirs, Mischa included after her Specialization Ceremony. Lissa had gone too far with what she said, and she wouldn't stand for Mischa going too far with her magic use.

"Of course," Victor said, speaking for the girls. "Can I invite the Non-Royals in here with us?"

"It is a little stuffy in here. They'd be happier in the fresh air," the Queen said, shaking her head with a faux smile.

Mischa bit her tongue as Victor nodded in understanding. She took a deep breath and excused herself from the Queen's side before heading to the door. When she went outside, she saw Mia sitting on a bench on her own, looking miserable.

"I'm out of here," Mischa told her, ready to find Rose and Christian. "Seems like you'd rather be anywhere else too."