"The doll just...it's weird. She listens a lot better to me. But she reacts more on her own around Vasilissa like a weird guard doll thing." Ileana laughed a little. "I'm pretty sure Stefan is about ten seconds away from sitting on me for the entire next full moon anyway to keep me out of trouble. The whole fable thing has kicked his over-protective big brother thing into high gear."
Ileana leaned her head on his shoulder and rolled her eyes skyward, "Please don't make a big deal. It's all I ask, okay? No big presents." She paused as the entered the lobby of Bellum and she smiled at him, "You okay with letting me get up to 1203 by myself?"