Vampire Academy Chapter 16

SIXTEENTHE NEXT DAY, IT FULLY hit me how much things had changed since the Jesse-and-Ralf rumors first started. For some population, I remained a nonstop source of whispers and express joyter. From Lissas converts, I received fri curiosityliness and occasional defense. Over alone, I realized, our classmates actu in anyy gave me precise little of their attention some(prenominal) more(prenominal). This became especi entirelyy true when something new distracted everyone.Lissa and Aaron.App bently, Mia had found active the vocalizationy and had winded up when she learned that Aaron had been there without her. Shed bitched at him and told him that if he wanted to be with her, he couldnt run nigh and hang out with Lissa. So Aaron had decided he didnt want to be with her. Hed broken up with her that cockcrowand moved on.Now he and Lissa were all over for each one other. They stood more or less in the hall and at lunch, arms wrapped around one a nonher, laughing and talk of the t own. Lissas bond feelings showed only if mild interest, despite her gazing at him as though he was the most fascinating thing on the planet. Most of this was for show, unbe fix a go at itnst to him. He learned as though he could thrust built a shrine at her feet at any moment.And me? I felt ill.My feelings were nothing, however, compared to Mias. At lunch, she sat on the far side of the room from us, eyeball set(p) pointedly ahead, ignoring the consolations of the friends near her. She had b crapperchy pink patches on her pale, round cheeks, and her eyes were red-rimmed. She offer nothing remember when I walked past. No smug jokes. No mocking glares. Lissa had destroyed her, middling as Mia had vowed to do us.The only person more miserable than Mia was Christian. Un ilk her, he had no qualms roughly studying the happy equalise while wearing an open look of hatred on his baptistery. As usual, no one yet me even noticed.After watching Lissa and Aaron make out for the ten th time, I leftover lunch first and went to gull Ms. Carmack, the teacher who taught elemental basics. Id been wanting to direct her something for a while. arise, salutary? She seemed impress to see me moreover not angry or annoyed give care half the other teachers did lately.Yeah. I learn a question about, um, magic.She raised an eyebrow. Novices didnt groom magic classes. Sure. What do you want to hit the sack?I was learning to the priest talk about St. Vladimir the other dayDo you know what element he specialized in? Vladimir, I correspond. Not the priest.She frowned. Odd. As famous as he is around here, Im surprised it neer comes up. Im no expert, but in all the stories Ive heard, he never did anything that Id say connects to any one of the elements. Either that or no one ever recorded it.What about his healings? I pushed further. Is there an element that lets you perform those?No, not that I know of. Her lips quirked into a small smile. People of faith would say he vulcanized finished the power of God, not any sort of elemental magic. After all, one thing the stories are authorized about is that he was ?full of spirit. Is it possible he didnt specialize?Her smile faded. Rose, is this rattling about St. Vladimir? Or is it about Lissa?Not exactly I stammered.I know its hard on her especially in front of all her classmates but she has to be patient, she explained gently. It will happen. It al carriages happens. barely sometimes it doesnt.Rarely. But I dont think shell be one of those. Shes got a higher-than-average aptitude in all four, even if she hasnt hit specialized levels. One of them will shoot up any day now.That gave me an idea. Is it possible to specialize in more than one element?She laughed and shook her head. No. Too much power. No one could handle all that magic, not without losing her mind.Oh. Great.Okay. Thanks. I started to leave, and so thought of something else. Hey, do you remember Ms. Karp? What did she specialize in?Ms. Carmack got that uncomfortable look other teachers did whenever anyone mentioned Ms. Karp. Actually What?I most forgot. I think she really was one of the rare ones who never specialized. She just always unplowed a very low control over all four.I spent the rest of my laternoon classes thinking about Ms. Carmacks words, trying to work them into my unified Lissa-Karp-Vladimir theory. I in any case watched Lissa. So many people wanted to talk to her now that she barely noticed my silence. Every so often, though, Id see her glance at me and smile, a tired look in her eyes. Laughing and gossiping all day with people she only sort of wish welld was taking its toll on her.The missions accomplished, I told her after school. We can stop Project Brainwash.We sat on benches in the courtyard, and she swung her legs back and forth. What do you mean?Youve make it. You stopped people from making my life horrible. You destroyed Mia. You stole Aaron. Play with him for another couple wee ks, then(prenominal) drop him and the other royals. Youll be happier.You dont think Im happy now?I know you arent. Some of the parties are fun, but you shun pretending to be friends with people you dont like and you dont like most of them. I know how much Xander pissed you off the other night.Hes a jerk, but I can deal with that. If I stop hanging out with them, everythingll go back to the way it was. Mia will just start up again. This way, she cant bother us.Its not worth it if everything else is bothering you.Nothings bothering me. She sounded a little defensive.Yeah? I asked meanly. Beca spend youre so in hunch over with Aaron? Beca persona you cant wait to have sex with him again?She glared at me. Have I mentioned you can be a huge bitch sometimes?I ignored that. Im just saying youve got enough shit to vexation about without all this. Youre burning yourself out with all the compulsion youre using.Rose She glanced anxiously around. Be quietenBut its true. Using it all the t ime is going to screw with your head. For real.Dont you think youre getting carried away?What about Ms. Karp?Lissas expression went very still. What about her?You. Youre just like her.No, Im not Outrage flashed in those green eyes.She healed too.Hearing me talk about this shocked her. This topic had weighed us down for so long, but wed almost never spoken about it.That doesnt mean anything.You dont think it does? Do you know anyone else who can do that? Or can use compulsion on dhampirs and Moroi?She never used compulsion like that, she argued.She did. She tried to use it on me the night she left. It started to work, but then they took her away before she finished. Or had they? After all, it was only a month later that Lissa and I had run away from the Academy. Id always thought that was my own idea, but mayhap Ms. Karps suggestion had been the true force behind it.Lissa crossed her arms. Her face looked defiant, but her emotions felt uneasy. Fine. So what? So shes a freak like me. That doesnt mean anything. She went crazy becausewell, that was just the way she was. Thats got nothing to do with anything else.But its not just her, I said slowly. Theres someone else like you guys, too. Someone I found. I hesitated. You know St. VladimirAnd thats when I finally let it all out. I told her everything. I told her about how she, Ms. Karp, and St. Vladimir could all heal and use super-compulsion. Although it do her squirm, I told her how they too grew easily upset and had tried to hurt themselves.He tried to drink down himself, I said, not meeting her eyes. And I used to notice marks on Ms. Karps skin like shed claw at her own face. She tried to hide it with her hair, but I could see the old scratches and declaim when she made new ones.It doesnt mean anything, insisted Lissa. It its all a coincidence.She sounded like she wanted to believe that, and inside, some part of her really did. But there was another part of her, a desperate part of her that had wanted for so long to know that she wasnt a freak, that she wasnt alone. Even if the news was bad, at least now she knew there were others like her.Is it a coincidence that neither of them seems to have specialized?I recounted my conversation with Ms. Carmack and explained my theory about specializing in all four elements. I also repeated Ms. Carmacks comment about how that would burn someone out.Lissa rubbed her eyes when I finished, smudging a little of her makeup. She gave me a weak smile. I dont know whats crazier what youre actually telling me or the fact that you actually enjoin something to find all this out.I grinned, relieved that shed actually moldinessered a joke. Hey, I know how to read too.I know you do. I also know it took you a year to read The Da Vinci Code. She laughed.That wasnt my fault And dont try to change the subject.Im not. She smiled, then sighed. I just dont know what to think about all this.Theres nothing to think about. Just dont do stuff thatll upset you. Remember coasting through the sum? Go back to that. Its a lot easier on you.She shook her head. I cant do that. Not yet. wherefore not? I already told you I stopped, wondering why I hadnt caught on before. Its not just Mia. Youre doing all this because you feel like youre supposed to. Youre still trying to be Andre.My parents would have wanted me to Your parents would have wanted you to be happy.Its not that easy, Rose. I cant ignore these people forever. Im royal too.Most of them suck. And a lot of them are going to ease rule the Moroi. Andre knew that. He wasnt like the others, but he did what he had to do because he knew how important they were.I leaned back against the bench. Well, maybe thats the problem. Were deciding whos ?important based on family alone, so we end up with these screwed-up people making decisions. Thats why Moroi numbers are dropping and bitches like Tatiana are queen. perhaps there needs to be a new royal system.Come on, Rose. This is the way it is thats the w ay its been for centuries. We have to live with that. I glared. Okay, how about this? she continued. Youre worried about me becoming like them like Ms. Karp and St. Vladimir right? Well, she said I shouldnt use the powers, that it would make things get worse if I did. What if I just stop? Compulsion, healing, everything.I narrowed my eyes. You could do that? The convenient compulsion aside, that was what Id wanted her to do the whole time. Her depression had started at the kindred time the powers emerged, just after the accident. I had to believe they were connected, particularly in light of the evidence and Ms. Karps warnings.Yes.Her face was perfectly composed, her expression serious and steady. With her pale hair woven into a neat French twine and a suede blazer over her dress, she looked like she could have taken her familys place on the council right now.Youd have to give up everything, I warned. No healing, no matter how cute and cuddly the animal. And no more compulsion t o dazzle the royals.She nodded seriously. I can do it. impart that make you feel bettor?Yeah, but Id feel even better if you stopped magic and went back to hanging out with Natalie.I know, I know. But I cant stop, not now at least.I couldnt get her to budge on that yet but knowing that she would avoid using her powers relieved me.All right, I said, picking up my backpack. I was late for practice. Again. You can moderate playing with the brat pack, so long as you keep the ?other stuff in check. I hesitated. And you know, you really have made your point with Aaron and Mia. You dont have to keep him around to keep hanging out with the royals. wherefore do I keep getting the feeling you dont like him anymore?I like him okay which is about as much as you like him. And I dont think you should get hot and sweaty with people you only like ?okay Lissa widened her eyes in pretend astonishment. Is this Rose Hathaway talking? Have you reformed? Or do you have someone you like ?more than o kay?Hey, I said uncomfortably, Im just looking out for you. That, and I never noticed how boring Aaron is before.She scoffed. You think everyones boring.Christian isnt.It slipped out before I could stop it. She quit smiling. Hes a jerk. He just stopped talking to me for no reason one day. She crossed her arms. And dont you hate him anyway?I can still hate him and think hes interesting.But I was also starting to think that I might have made a big mistake about Christian. He was creepy and dark and liked to set people on fire, true. On the other hand, he was smart and particular(a) in a twisted way and somehow had a calming effect on Lissa.But Id messed it all up. Id let my anger and jealousy get the best of me and ended up separating them. If Id let him go to her in the garden that night, maybe she wouldnt have gotten upset and cut herself. Maybe theyd be together now, away from all the school politics.Fate must have been thinking the same thing, because five minutes after I left Lissa, I passed Christian walking crosswise the quad. Our eyes locked for a moment before we passed each other. I nearly unbroken walking. Nearly. Taking a deep breath, I came to a stop. tolerateChristian. I called out to him. Damn, I was so late for training. Dimitri was going to kill me.Christian spun around to face me, hands stuffed in the pockets of his long lightlessness coat, his posture slumped and uncaring.Yeah?Thanks for the books. He didnt say anything. The ones you gave to Mason.Oh, I thought you meant the other books.Smartass. Arent you going to ask what they were for?Your business. Just figured you were bored being suspended.Id have to be pretty bored for that.He didnt laugh at my joke. What do you want, Rose? Ive got places to be.I knew he was lying, but my sarcasm no longer seemed as funny as usual. I want you to, uh, hang out with Lissa again.Are you serious? He canvass me closely, suspicion all over him. After what you said to me?Yeah, wellDidnt Mason tell you?Ch ristians lips turned up into a sneer. He told me something.And?And I dont want to hear it from Mason. His sneer cranked up when I glared. You sent him to excuse for you. Step up and do it yourself.Youre a jerk, I informed him.Yeah. And youre a liar. I want to see you eat your pride.Ive been eating my pride for two weeks, I growled.Shrugging, he turned around and started to walk away.Wait I called, putting my hand on his shoulder. He stopped and looked back at me. All right, all right. I lie about how she felt. She never said any of that stuff about you, okay? She likes you. I made it up because I dont like you.And yet you want me to talk to her.When the next words left my lips, I could barely believe it. I thinkyou might begood for her.We stared at each other for several heavy moments. His smirk dried up a little. Not much surprised him. This did.Im gamey. I didnt hear you. Can you repeat that? he finally asked.I almost punched him in the face. Will you stop it already? I want you to hang out with her again.No.Look, I told you, I lied Its not that. Its her. You think I can talk to her now? Shes Princess Lissa again. Venom dripped off his words. I cant go near her, not when shes surrounded by all those royals.Youre royal too, I said, more to myself than him. I kept forgetting the Ozeras were one of the twelve families.Doesnt mean much in a family full of Strigoi, huh?But youre not wait. Thats why she connects to you, I realized with a start.Because Im going to become a Strigoi? he asked snidely.Nobecause you lost your parents too. some(prenominal) of you saw them die.She saw hers die. I saw mine murdered.I flinched. I know. Im sorry, it must have beenwell, I dont have any idea what it was like.Those crystal-blue eyes went unfocused. It was like seeing an army of Death invade my house.You meanyour parents?He shook his head. The guardians who came to kill them. I mean, my parents were scary, yeah, but they still looked like my parents a little paler, I guess . Some red in their eyes. But they walked and talked the same way. I didnt know anything was wrong with them, but my aunty did. She was watching me when they came for me.Were they going to convert you? Id forgotten my original mission here, too caught up in the story. You were really little.I think they were going to keep me until I was older, then turn me. Aunt Tasha wouldnt let them take me. They tried to reason with her, convert her too, but when she wouldnt listen, they tried to take her by force. She fought them got really messed up and then the guardians showed up. His eyes drifted back to me. He smiled, but there was no happiness in it. Like I said, an army of Death. I think youre crazy, Rose, but if you turn out like the rest of them, youre going to be able to do some serious damage one day. Even I wont mess with you.I felt horrible. Hed had a miserable life, and Id taken away one of the few good things in it. Christian, Im sorry for screwing things up between you and Lis sa. It was stupid. She wanted to be with you. I think she still does now. If you could just I told you, I cant.Im worried about her. Shes into all this royal stuff because she thinks its going to get back at Mia shes doing it for me.And you arent grateful? The sarcasm returned.Im worried. She cant handle playing all these catty political games. It isnt good for her, but she wont listen to me. I couldI could use help.She could use help. Hey, dont look so surprised I know theres something funny going on with her. And Im not even talking about the wrist thing.I jumped. Did she tell you? Why not? Shed told him everything else.She didnt need to, he said. Ive got eyes. I must have looked pathetic, because he sighed and ran a hand through his hair. Look, if I catch Lissa aloneIll try to talk to her. But honestlyif you really want to help herwell, I know Im supposed to be all anti-establishment, but you might get the best help talking to somebody else. Kirova. Your guardian guy. I dont k now. Someone who knows something. Someone you trust.Lissa wouldnt like that. I considered. Neither would I.Yeah, well, we all have to do things we dont like. Thats life.My snarky switch flipped on. What are you, an after-school special?A ghostly smile flickered across his face. If you werent so psychotic, youd be fun to hang around.Funny, I feel that way about you too.He didnt say anything else, but the smile grew, and he walked away.