Nika Dimitrovich

 THIS PAGE CONTAINS SPOILERS 

Nika Dimitrovich (NEE-kah, dim-MEE-tro-vich) is a halfblood Nefili training to be a keeper of the Vigil. She is a public figure in Daemonstri society and considered as "the world's most infamous halfblood."

 Early Life
Nika is the only child of Minister Markos Dimitrovich, born out of wedlock to him and an unknown Nefili woman. The title "Halfblood Bastard" is used by the public to mock her for the scandal surrounding her birth, and also because Markos declared her to be a true member of the Dimitrovich family. Traditionally, Ministers do not publicly recognize their bastard children—especially not halfbloods.

Nika's mother abandoned her and Markos when she was a baby. Markos often put her in the care of Lu Lazarov's mom Patricia, and Nika considers herself a member of both families.

 Education
Nika was homeschooled in academics with Lu when they were young. She also took basic training and self defense lessons. At the age of 13, she went to the boarding school Konstantin Academy for full time training for the Vigil.

 Blood War
N/A — to be updated later.

 Physical Appearance
Nika is petite but athletic and stronger than she looks. She has bright green eyes with feathery lashes and golden/brownish hair that is slightly curled. Her skin is pale because of living on a nighttime schedule. She often wears her hair in two tight braids. She can often be seen wearing a red hoodie.

 Personality
Nika is a self-proclaimed troublemaker and tends not to play by the rules. She is quick to fight and argue and can sometimes be very belligerent. She also likes to get her way and doesn't like waiting around for people to do things, so she will do them herself.

She is deeply loyal and protective to the people she loves, and if they are in trouble/danger she will make reckless decisions to help them. She has incredible inner strength and perseverance even when she knows the odds are stacked against her, and nothing can stop her from achieving her goals.

Nika also has a soft side. She tends to avoid/ignore her pain and grief and bottle up these emotions, covering it up with lots of bravado. She doesn't like to ask for help even when she knows she needs it. She has been deeply affected by the negative way the public sees her and has moments of doubt and insecurity about herself. All she really wants is for people to see her as worthy of success and goodness, despite her blood status.

Blood War
Nika vaguely knew of Ren because he was Markos's keeper but they don't meet until after Lu gets kidnapped. Their relationship begins as a reluctant association. Ren secretly carries out Markos's orders to protect Nika, and they get in several spats when he drags her home so she stays out of trouble. During these incidents, Nika gets under Ren's skin and riles him up with innuendos and irreverent remarks. They constantly challenge each other, Nika testing his patience and making him look foolish, Ren proving himself physically superior to her.

When Nika learns that Markos assigned him as her keeper, she reminds Ren that it would bring shame on him because she is a halfblood and accused of treason. He tells her that he doesn't care about her blood status or the accusations, he only sees her as a girl who needs someone to look out for her.

Their relationship slowly develops from rivalry to alliance when they team up to fight Tatiana and rescue Lu, and from there it becomes an intimate bond.

Nika learns to trust Ren like no one else and he becomes a rock for her to lean on while she suffers from emotional turmoil and physical abuse. She begins to grow feelings because he's refreshingly honest, shows no fear and makes her feel safe. His devotion to being her keeper contrasts the opinions of Daemonstri society, who would rather leave her to the wolves.

Ren eventually realizes that Nika's defiance is a sign of fortitude instead of petty rebelliousness, and that she has the heart of a true warrior. But he also begins to notice her vulnerabilities and pain, and his dedication to duty turns into a special concern for Nika's emotional and physical wellbeing.

Their blossoming romance changes how they act and think, sometimes negatively. Ren makes the mistake of abandoning Elliot during a Volkari attack to follow Nika into the woods. Nika often gets distracted by the thought or sight of him and has to tell herself to focus on saving Lu. They both get frightened after realizing the effect they have on each other.

Their physical attraction begins when Nika drinks Ren's blood from the vein in order to heal extensive injuries. Not only do they both get aroused during the feeding, but Nika feels like "drinking his blood had given her access to his soul," and she sees flashes of his life. The same thing happens to Ren when he drinks her blood. Neither of them understands what the phenomenon means, but it brings a new sense of intimacy to their relationship, in more ways than one.

By the end of the book, they acknowledge what has grown between them and their feelings for each other, but nothing official is decided.

 Markos Dimitrovich
Nika's relationship with her father is complex. He loves her very much but cannot always show it because of his position in the Ministry. He doesn't want his enemies to target her in order to hurt him. But his attempts to protect her caused a strain to grow between them as Nika got older and went to Konstantin Academy.

The more Nika learned about how the public despised her for being a halfblood, the more she resented her father. She places the blame on him for her bullies both inside and outside school. Deep down, she understands that it's just as difficult for him as it is for her, but she still wants him to suffer for bringing the hate onto her. Markos understands her pain and doesn't punish her, even though he really wants to be close to her like they had been when she was little.

 Lu Lazarov
Nika considers Lu to be her one salvation in a world where she has no safe haven. Lu genuinely loves Nika and never lets her forget it. Sometimes, Lu can be a bit smothering and her concerns can go as far as trying to fix all of Nika's problems for her. Nika gets annoyed by this but she appreciates Lu's desire to help, since no one else seems to care.

Nika wants to protect Lu from everything because Lu is the one person who has never neglected or disappointed her, and she is afraid that she will be completely alone if Lu is gone. Sometimes, Nika gets carried away with her mission to protect Lu. She was quick to judge Elliot and didn't see that his intentions were pure until much later. When it comes to Lu, her emotions often blind her ability to be rational and she needs someone to knock some sense into her.