"Hey," I call, closing the door behind me and hanging up my keys.

It's been a long day, and I can't wait to get out of my uniform. I turn around, intending to go change, but Rose suddenly materialises in front of me.

"Don't be mad," she says, by way of greeting.

Her request has the exact opposite effect, and I'm instantly suspicious.

I narrow my eyes. "Do I have a reason I to be mad?"

She looks shiftily at the ground, and I supress a sigh. Apparently my long day isn't over yet. At least I can honestly say that life is never boring with Rose around.

"What did you do?"

"Why do you immediately assume it was me?"

I smile at her feigned indignance. "Because I know you."

That earns me an eye roll.

"This will go much faster if you just tell me."

In an exceedingly transparent gesture, she reaches out and rests her hand on my arms, obviously trying to distract me. I almost laugh. I know that she knows it won't work.

"Okay," she begins. "Theoretically, what would you think if I-"

A scuffling noise from our bedroom cuts her off, and I start forward. She seemed to be expecting this, however, and braces her arms against mine, holding me back.

"Wait, let me explain."

I continue to struggle forward, and it's honestly a little embarrassing how hard I have to work to push past her. But I succeed and open our bedroom door to find…

"Dimitri, wait!" Rose dodges in front of me again, cutting me off in the doorway, not that it's necessary.

I just stand there, staring at the ball of fur bounding forward to greet us in disbelief. This is the furthest thing from what I was expecting, but then again, Rose is anything but predictable.

"I put some newspaper down," she says.

I nod. "I see that."

"Are you mad?"

I glance from the tiny golden puppy on the floor-now occupied with attacking one corner of the paper- to my girlfriend who is gazing pleadingly up at me, widening her eyes and pouting.

I raise my eyebrow. "Laying it on a little thick, aren't you?"

She just grins, knowing defeat when she sees it.

"Of course," I continue, "you know that we aren't allowed pets in this building. And you also know that we don't have the time to take care of one because we have actual jobs."

"Well, yeah," she says, crouching down and picking the puppy up so it can lick her face. "But Dimitri, isn't he adorable?"

She holds him out to me, and he squirms in her grip, ridiculously tiny and excited. One particularly energised wriggle causes her to lose her hold on him, and I catch him reflexively, before he can come to any harm.

The puppy seems delighted at this new development, and does not hesitate to clamber out of my cupped hands, where he's small enough to fit comfortably. He claws his way up my jacket sleeve, and stands on my shoulder, placing two paws against my cheek to grab a tendril of my hair that's escaped its tie. He's incredibly nimble for a creature that's still learning how to properly use its legs. Of course, Rose thinks this is hilarious.

"Hey," I frown, reaching one hand up to snag the fuzzy guy before he can actually swallow my hair.

I crouch down to set him back on the floor, and as soon as his oversized paws touch the ground, he flops over, exposing his warm fuzzy belly. I can't help but smile and oblige him, inhaling that glorious smell unique to puppies. I look up at Rose, who's standing with her arms folded, and a gloating expression on her face.

"What?"

Her smile only widens. "You see, everyone thinks you're some badass Russian god, but I know the truth, Dimitri Belikov. You're just a big softie, aren't you?"

"You got me," I reply drily. "But, Rose…you know we can't keep him."

Her face falls. "What? Of course we can!"

I stand, and the puppy leaps up and starts attacking my shoes.

"Puppies need a lot of attention. We can't just leave him at home all day."

"But I've already named him and everything!"

"Roza, be reasonable. Can't you just take him back?"

"No. I found him outside, wandering around by himself. Look how skinny he is!" She sounds close to tears, and it breaks my heart.

I look down at the tiny mass of fur that is now entertaining itself with the corner of our sheets that trails of the end of the bed. It's true that his ribs stick out rather prominently.

"What are we going to do with him? He's not even allowed to be here."

"I've never seen you obey the speed limit once, and yet 'No pets allowed' is something you want to stick to?"

I sigh, and Rose moves closer to me.

"You want to know what I named him?"

"No."

She wraps her arms around my waist.

"Are you sure?" she wheedles.

I close my eyes. "Rose…"

"I can tell when you're about to cave, so I'll tell you anyway." I can tell that she's smiling, even with my eyes closed. "I named him Comrade."

My eyes spring open. "What?"

"Comrade," she repeats with a laugh.

As if he already knows his name, the puppy lets out a playful yip, and scrambles towards Rose, who picks him up.

"You poor bastard," I say as I appraise him. "She's enslaved us both."

I turn to Rose. "Fine. We can keep him."

An unspoken undercurrent sweeps through the palace over the next few weeks as the word spreads. Nobody ever says anything, but somehow I still get the feeling that everyone knows. Not that Rose is very subtle.

"Hathaway!" Hans barks, catching up to us as we escort the royal couple down the corridor. "Is that handbag regulation?"

"No Sir," she replies, with a cocky grin for good measure.

"It's mine, Guardian Croft," the Queen interjects. "Is there a problem?"

Hans looks suspicious, but lets it go. "No, Your Majesty."

Christian laughs as he walks away, and I swear Hans pauses as the handbag in question emits a muffled bark.

"Christian," Lissa says, "Rose and I have to go to a meeting now, but why don't you go for a walk in the park? It's a beautiful day."

He gives her a knowing smile. "Whatever you say, dear. Guardian Belikov, would you be so kind as to relieve Guardian Hathaway of her burden? The Queen can't take a handbag into her meeting."

"Of course, Your Highness."

I take the bag from Rose, feeling more than a little ridiculous as we two fully grown men head off to the park with a handbag.

"It's very fetching, Belikov," Christian sniggers. "The colour compliments your eyes."

I roll my eyes. "Seriously though, couldn't it be a little more inconspicuous? They could have just used a black canvas bag from the equipment room in HQ."

"I'm sure they could have. I'm also sure that the current choice of smuggling container has nothing to do with the fact that Rose enjoys messing with you."

I shoot him a look. "Sarcasm is the lowest form of wit."

He grins. "So I've been told."

We reach a secluded area in the park, obscured from prying eyes by a line of trees. Little Comrade, as I've taken to calling him, bounds right out of the bag once we set it down. After several minutes of exploring the long grass at the base of the trees, he returns to my side.

"What do you want?" I say in Russian, looking down at the imploring golden eyes.

Little Comrade delights at being spoken to, jumping up and yapping at me. Then he sits down at my feet, his adorably floppy ears quivering in anticipation. On the grass behind him, his tiny excuse for a tail goes mad.

"All right, fine. Here."

I dip my hand into my pocket and extract a treat, which causes Little Comrade to explode. I can't help but grin as the puppy falls upon the morsel with gusto, though it's nothing compared to Christian's grin.

"Damn, Belikov. You're fucking whipped."

While he couldn't understand my exchange with the dog, the fact that any exchange took place at all kind of proves his point. I turn back to Little Comrade, and point at Christian.

"Kill," I order him in Russian, but the puppy only finishes his treat and rolls over, causing Christian to double over laughing.

"We're working on it," I grumble.

Suddenly, there's the sound of approaching footsteps. The handbag lies open several feet away, and so I'm left with no choice but to swoop down on the puppy, and stuff him unceremoniously down the front of my duster. And in the nick of time, too, because Hans strolls around the edge of the trees, looking extremely curious

"Your Highness, Guardian Belikov," he addresses us. Christian is off to one side, wheezing with laughter. Beneath my jacket, I feel Little Comrade scrabbling around, fighting for freedom.

"Is everything okay over here?" Hans asks softly.

I keep my face completely blank. "Of course, Sir. It's a beautiful day. King Ozera merely wished to take a walk."

"I see. Are you aware that there is a suspicious bulge in the front of your jacket?"

Christian lets loose another almighty gale of laughter.

"Yes Sir."

"And are you also aware that said lump appears to be moving?"

Little Comrade's claws find the opening in my shirt, and I feel his sharp little talons break the skin.

"Yes Sir."

I swear, Hans nearly smiled. "Well okay then, I shall leave you to it."

An impatient yelp pierces the air, right next to my ear. Christian, who had been recovering up to that point, loses it all over again, but not before managing to force out a strained, "Bless you!"

Hans turns and walks away, but when he reaches the trees, he says over his shoulder, "That's a nasty cough, Guardian Belikov. Maybe you should get it looked at."

When he's finally out of sight, I unbutton my duster as fast as humanly possible, and the fuzzy nuisance leaps to the ground. He seems to have enjoyed the latest game immensely, and trots over to Christian to shamelessly beg for more attention. Christian bends down and picks him up, while I gingerly assess the damage.

The shallow cuts sting a little, but the bigger problem is my once pristine white shirt. I swear under my breath.

"Looks like you're going to need a fresh shirt," Christian smirks.

I look up, and find myself grinning back. "Looks like that makes two of us."

Christian feels the spreading warmth just a second too late, and drops the puppy to the ground in disgust.

"Eugh!" he exclaims, pulling the wet fabric away from his skin. "Man, that smells bad!"

Little Comrade heads back to me, and I inconspicuously reach into my pocket for another treat.

"Good boy," I tell him in Russian, while he chews along happily.

Author's Note

Thank you for reading! I hope you had as much fun reading it as I did writing it. Sorry about any mistakes you may come across, this fic hasn't been beta'd. If you see any, please let me know so I can correct them. If you liked it, please leave a review! And if you enjoy my other one shots too, feel free to follow or favourite. I tend to post these from time to time.

I just love the Dimitri/Christian dynamic, and I hope I did it justice. Plus, I feel like bringing home a puppy out of the blue is something that Rose would do, so...

I'm a fully invested dog person. I have two, (Emmi and Bronté) and they are adorable. Also, whenever I go to somebody's house, I tend to pay a ridiculous amount of attention to their dogs. I'll ask for their names, and then proceed to just call them 'Dog'. Like I'll just sit there stroking them and going, "Dog, dog, DOG, dog, doG, dOG," for ten minutes.

This is a celebration of sorts, because I HANDED IN ALL OF MY WORK! Yay for me! While now I have to wait and see if I passed or not, I have at least done everything I can, and can now do other things without feeling ridiculously guilty.

All credit for the VA universe and the characters therein goes to Richelle Mead.