#anti alarkling

[aleksanderscult]

Alina: *has a good time in the Little Palace*

Mal:

[darklinaforever]

I really think Mal Oretsev is the worst endgame romantic interest in existence.

Really.

There are many canonical ships I disagree with, but Malina ? This is the worst of all for me.

Alina had so much potential, and it was all wasted on a stupid tracker ; When she could have had the Darkling or Nikolai !

As much as I will always wonder what could be wrong in Alina's head to prefer her childhood friend to these two, and also what could have been going on in Leigh Bardugo's head when she wrote the character of Mal and the Malina relationship.

Like... she didn't notice that the character and the relationship were catastrophic ? Is that the height of romance for her ?

It sucks...

[theweeklydiscourse]

I feel like any alternate ending of Shadow & Bone that involves Alina losing her powers is inherently flawed.

For example, I’ve see people say that they could accept the Ruin and Rising ending if Alina actually CHOSE to give up her powers as opposed to them being stripped away by as punishment for her “greed”. Another potential ending I’ve seen involved Alina undergoing an actual corruption arc before losing her powers as a consequence for her wrongdoings. But I can’t help but feel that these endings are still dissatisfying.

Having her powers, and by extension her status as a minority in Ravka, taken from her gives her the easy way out and does not actually challenge Alina in a meaningful way. Why go through the difficulties of embracing your differences in the face of an intolerant society when you can simply be cured of those differences and assimilate? Of course, Alina loses a great deal when she loses her powers but what gives her ending the illusion of happiness is the fact that she gets to abandon all responsibility she had to her community and blithely trot her way into a life of obscurity where she never has to do the work of embracing who she truly is.

But of course, because her powers are intertwined with the Darkling due the fact that they are symbolic opposites any ending where he dies would be unsatisfying. LB would have to change the Darkling’s character quite radically to justify an ending where he is killed and Alina lives. The Darkling’s attempts to sway Alina by telling her that he is her only equal might be manipulative exempt for the fact that his claims are absolutely true! The contrary dynamic of Alina and the Darkling must remain in order for the story to be balanced and that balance cannot be achieved unless both of them reconcile.

Alina keeping her powers would deprive LB of taking the easy way out and using the Darkling as a convenient scapegoat to pin the systemic problems of Ravka (THAT SHE WROTE) onto. The story should have taken the route of a journey of self acceptance and liberation instead of glorifying repression and passivity.

[iamstartraveller776]

Sleepy prompts: Darklina + 40

“I’m gonna carry you to bed if you keep arguing with me about not needing sleep.”

A/N: Thank you so much for the prompt! Here's a bit of a Modern Business AU. I hope you enjoy! [ao3]

INVOLUNTARY

Alina hadn't meant to fall asleep. No, actually she did. She hadn't meant to sleep through the alarm she set on her phone. Lately there weren't enough hours in the day between doing her job and helping Mal do his.

"This presentation could lead to a big promotion, Alina. That'll change everything for us."

Us. She should be glad that he's finally talking about their future, and she was. They'd been stuck in a holding pattern for years, the corporate climb always taking precedence. Right now, though, she'd be grateful to catch more than an hour or two of sleep at night. In few days, they'd be in the same timezone again—the six hour difference was not helping.

Until then, she'd just have to catch a power nap when she could.

"Miss Starkova."

That familiar baritone pulled her out of a dream where she was lounging on a white sand beach, and she wanted to groan. A furious blush followed in the next second when she remembered where she was: the small study in her boss's hotel suite.

"Mr. Morozov!" she exclaimed as she sat bolt upright. "I'm sorry. I was just—" She shuffled through the papers on the desk, cheeks burning brighter at the bit of drool on the quarterly financial report. Great.

Aleksander Morozov, CEO and president of Ravka Enterprises, leaned against the door jamb, arms crossed. She'd seen him out of his usual three-piece suits before, but somehow the dark grey slacks and black button-down, collar undone, sleeves rolled to his elbows, seemed more intimate. A sight reserved for a date rather than his harried assistant.

His expression was unreadable as he cocked his head. "You were just...what?"

Alina bit back a frustrated sigh. If she'd woken with the alarm, he wouldn't have caught her literally snoozing on the job. She would have been done with the reports, caught up on emails, and updated his schedule before he returned from drinks with—who was it, again? She ran a hand over her face.

She had at least another hour of work ahead of her, two more like, and Mal would be calling any minute. She could laugh, but she'd probably cry instead.

"I can take this to my room." She stood, gathering the files and printouts. "I'll have tomorrow's schedule in your inbox before you wake up, and—" She cut off at the soft press of his hand over hers.

He was behind her, so near she could feel the heat radiating from him. She resisted the urge to inhale the subtle mix of cologne and bourbon. God, she needed sleep.

"What's wrong?" He moved his hand to her shoulder, encouraged her to turn toward him.

She shook her head and tried to smile up at him. "I'm fine. Just tired is all."

He frowned, searching her face with those dark, lancing eyes. "Yes," he said. "I've noticed. You've been tired this entire trip. Why?"

Alina grimaced. Apparently she hadn't been keeping up appearances as well as she thought. "It's nothing." At his flat look, she admitted, "Mal has an important presentation coming up, and I've been helping him at night. It won't happen again." Sleeping at work, she meant. Of course she'd help Mal.

A good girlfriend was available whenever she was needed. A good girlfriend wasn't resentful. And a good girlfriend's stomach didn't flutter when her older, unfairly handsome employer stood close enough that she had to crane her neck to keep her gaze on his.

"Ah, Malyen." Aleksander said his name with what almost sounded like a note of derision. "And he can't manage this presentation without you?"

The question sent a spike of indignation through her. Worse, though, it pricked too close to her own three a.m. thoughts. "Of course he can."

"Good." The corner of Aleksander's mouth curved up a hair. "Then you can get some rest." He nodded toward the paperwork and laptop. "That can wait."

"Really, I'm fine." Her body betrayed her in that moment by yawning.

He raised his brow as if daring her to keep arguing.

She was pretty sure her cheeks were permanently red now. "Right." Her hand unconsciously reached for the pile of work, and she stopped herself. It felt strange leaving all of that undone. "I'll just head downstairs."

Her phone buzzed as she picked it up from the desk, and he plucked it out of her hands with a stern look. His expression soured further when he looked at the screen. She squeaked out an objection when he accepted the call, bringing the phone to his ear.

"Mr. Oretsev." He held up a finger as Alina opened her mouth again. "I'm afraid Miss Starkova is unavailable for the rest of the night. I need her to be at her best for tomorrow's meetings, and that means several hours of uninterrupted sleep."

Alina glared at him as he listened to Mal's reply. She set her jaw against another yawn, determined not to prove Aleksander right.

"Yes, I'm aware," he said coolly. "However, since I am the one paying her salary, I must insist that she is well rested and sharp when she is on the clock."

Mal's voice grew louder on the other end of the line, and though she couldn't make out the words, Alina could guess what was being said. Mal didn't like her boss, thought the man was too arrogant, too entitled—particularly of Alina's time. In her less charitable moments, she felt it was rather like the pot calling the kettle black.

Aleksander seemed unfazed by the tirade he was receiving, only hummed as if in agreement. "Then as her boyfriend, I assume you are even more invested in her well-being than her employer."

Alina rolled her eyes. She was going to get an earful from Mal about this later.

"Oh, and Mr. Oretsev," Aleksander said, " a word of caution. You may not work for me, but you'd do well to remember that Keramzin Capital is one of my subsidiaries." He ended the call without waiting for a response.

And now there was yet another fire for Alina to put out before she could catch any shut-eye. "Thanks for that." She glowered at him, holding out her hand expectantly.

He kept his eyes on hers as he slipped her phone into his pocket.

"You can't just take my phone!"

"Someone has to take care of you," he said. "Since neither you nor your boyfriend"—there was no mistaking the derision in his tone this time—"appear to be willing, the job falls to me."

She opened her mouth to balk, but it turned into another jaw-cracking yawn. She hated the vindication that flashed across his features. "Fine. I'm going." She tried to inch around him, but he wouldn't budge.

He held her gaze for a beat, and her exasperation gave way to a different kind of warmth. Embarrassingly, she swayed on her feet, the combination of acute exhaustion, whatever this odd moment was, and the impending drama with Mal entirely too much.

Aleksander grabbed her wrist and her heart leapt into her throat as he lifted her over his shoulder.

"What are you doing!?" she gasped.

"Putting you to bed."

She was mortified at the idea of being carried through the hotel corridors like a misbehaving child, but her breath caught when, a minute later, he dropped her onto a plush king-sized bed—his bed. She tried to sit up, but he pushed her gently back down into the pillows.

"This is where you belong," he said, and she was certain her fatigue-addled imagination was conjuring up an implication that wasn't there. "For the next eight hours, at least."

"But where will you sleep?" she asked around yet another yawn. The bed really was luxuriant. Her eyelids started drooping against her will.

He gave her one of his rare grins as he moved to the foot of the bed. "There's a sofa bed in the other room." He slipped off one of her shoes, then the other, fingers grazing across each ankle, sliding down each foot.

Or was that another figment of her crumbling consciousness?

He helped her get under the feather comforter, and she was glad that she'd chosen business casual as her attire today. Because there was no way she was getting up again.

"Rest as long as you need," he murmured with a tender expression that made her chest tight.

"But the meeting with—"

"I'm perfectly capable of handling things on my own," he said over her. She couldn't help but hear a throwback to his earlier disdainful question about Mal's capabilities. "Now, sleep. That's an order."

Her eyes were more than happy to obey even as she scoffed lightly. "Not on the clock anymore."

He breathed a quiet laugh. "And you won't be until I say so."

She heard him pad toward the doorway, and suddenly, she couldn't let him leave without recognizing his uncharacteristic kindness. "Thank you, Mr. Morozov." Because he was right; she desperately needed this.

He didn't respond, and she looked up, thinking he'd already left. He was still there, though, standing at the threshold, hand hovering over the light switch. He glanced back at her over his shoulder.

"Call me Sasha," he said, barely more than a whisper. He flicked off the light. "Goodnight, Alina."

Blessedly sleep overtook her before she could ruminate on his peculiar behavior.

~FIN~

[where-theres-smoak-2]

Ok I am in rant mode again, sorry, this blog just happens to be a place where I dump all my thoughts negative and positive both, unfortunately for all who follow me. But I have seen some bad and incorrect takes from anti darkling/darklinas. So here’s just a few things I want to say.

Firstly LB has never stated that she based the darkling on her ab*sive ex. This is misinformation that was spread by antis. The only thing she has ever said about an ab*sive relationship was that she wrote the first book, Shadow and Bone, at a dark time in her life right after she had got out of a bad relationship. She has said in the past that the darkling was inspired by every bad boy she’s had a crush on in fiction including david bowie’s the goblin king. 

So it seems from these comments like the character was supposed to emulate those types of characters that woman find attractive, the ones you would fall for. 

I’ve also seen the argument that LB clearly wrote the darkling as a villain, well LB might disagree with you there as she herself has said on multiple occasions that she doesn’t write villains: 

LB says that the darkling believes he is doing the right thing and that ‘you can make a case for most of the choices he makes, even the despicable ones.’ So if LB says that she doesn’t write villains and that you can make a case for his actions you can’t really blame darkling fans for doing the same. 

The truth is LB promoted the heck out of both the darkling and darklina (or as it was known back then Darlina and Alarkling) when she was writing the og trilogy, even admitting to ‘fanning the flames’ when talking about people shipping m*lina and darklina and was clearly encouraging the shipping of both ships: 

She also put out teases for the darkling and darklina:

And promoted darklina fan edits even using the ship tags: 

It was only post the release of book three that she changed her tune, likely because of all the backlash she got about the ending of the books. So no LB wasn’t always against fans shipping darklina or liking the darkling. All of this information is easily found with a simple google search, I wasn’t even in the fandom back then being a show watcher first and yet I was still able to learn all of this with minimal difficulty. 

Which brings me to the whole darklina being an allegory for a older man manipulating a younger girl and how the darklina fans ‘missed this’. Well if they did miss it then it was for a very good reason, but the truth is darklina’s didn’t miss it, we just didn’t think it made sense within the narrative, the darklina fandom have talked about it, myself included, in fact I’ve already posted a whole pretty much essay on the topic. But let me explain why some people may have ‘missed it’ and why it doesn’t work in the story or with darklina as the allegory. The first is because LB chose to use an immortal/immortal couple for this allegory. The thing with immortality in fiction, especially as love interests, is it makes age pretty much meaningless. The whole point of immortals is that they are ageless. Immortal ships have always been accepted within fiction and this whole age gap issue has never come up before. Nobody was going omg but the age gap yuck with Bella and Edward when twilight came out, or when Magnus and Alec got together in Shadowhunters or with any of the ships in Vampire Diaries. Yet now anti’s are trying to use the argument that the darkling is 100s of years older than Alina and that’s creepy all of a sudden. Sorry but not in my book, an immortal is always going to be significantly older than anyone else what’s the alternative they spend eternity alone, never knowing love? At least with darklina they are both immortal. Another reason why it doesn’t work is because of how the darkling is described in the book, he is said to not look much older than Alina, so in the books he looks like a teenager. So of course people weren’t going to pick up on the older guy/younger girl allegory because the darkling isn’t presented in the books as an older guy. He’s described the same way every other immortal being in every YA book at that time was. It’s also worth noting that I am not sure if LB ever actually said that darklina were supposed to represent a older guy with a younger girl or whether that was something the fandom came up with. I’m not saying she didn’t just that I myself have never seen a direct quote from her that I recall and I wasn’t able to find one. I think the first time I heard of it was when someone sent me an ask about the topic. I know that she has said it was meant to serve as a warning of attractive and charismatic men being able to manipulate young girls but I don’t know that she herself has ever talked about an age gap or specifically mentioned older men? 

Another thing that I have been seeing alot of are comments like darkling/darklina fans only like him because he is hot. What bothers me about this is firstly even if that were true and the only reason people liked him was because he is hot, so what? There’s nothing wrong with that, its fiction and fiction is used to escape for a bit, its for enjoyment and entertainment, so if that enjoyment and entertainment comes in the form of staring at the hot guy irregardless of whether they are the hero or villain, let them be. Why are you criticising the way someone enjoys fiction? Sometimes a gal just wants to look at the hot guy. Secondly its just a really irrelevant argument because the darkling is not the only hot, charismatic character in the books or show. M*l is also described as being attractive and charismatic with no shortage of friends and girls, Nikolai is another character that fits that description, so by this argument the only reason M*l fans like him is because he is hot, and the only reason Nikolai fans like him is because he is hot. Thirdly its just plainly not true, whilst I am sure there may be some fans who only like him because he is hot, again nothing wrong with that, most fans like him for a variety of different reasons because he is an interesting and complicated character. As someone who spends a fair bit of time in the darkling/darklina tags the most common reason I have seen for fans liking him is because of his dedication to the grisha, his willingness to fight for the grisha something that he has dedicated 100′s of years of his life too. Personally I like Aleksander/the darkling because he has a sympathetic backstory, because he is fighting for the grisha and when seeing that they had no place to go where they could be free from fear he vowed to make them a safe place, a sanctuary, of course I am going to root for that goal too. I like him because he is complicated and complex and despite being an immortal being who has become deeply effected by past traumas there is still something beautifully human about him, particularly in the show. I also like the connection he has with Alina, the whole yin/yang of it and them being each others balance. I love the complexity and angst of them having this deep connection and pull to each other but also having this anger and sense of betrayal, how they have to try and navigate around having different points of view and seeing the world in a different ways, it makes for a very compelling story and their chemistry in the show is electric. The fact that he is hot is merely a bonus, but even if he wasn’t a conventionally attractive person I would still like his character because of those complexities, because of that connection he has with Alina. But one thing this rant has done is make me curious as to what my other fellow darkling/darklina fans like about the darkling? What drew you to the character? Anyway that’s enough ranting for one day, again my apologies, I am going to go and rewatch season 1 of shadow and bone in preparation for season 2′s release tomorrow...sheepishly shuffles off my soapbox, waving awkwardly.   

[saintprivateer]

Alina’s Horror Series (part 1/?)

I’m excited to finally share this here! :D Since I’ve been on a bit of a break, I’ll cap this and share until I’ve got the next pieces up!

This series aims to depict Alina’s relationship with the Darkling in a way that highlights the horrors that unfold as the story progresses— including his detrimental impact on others— as his legacy lives on in the shadows of his victims’ minds.

Fear is cautionary. Cautionary tales are made with fear for those we love. Let’s never confuse the two, even if they’re close when dancing with each other! Because this isn’t a love story babey :)

I also have a playlist if anyone is interested! ٩( ᐛ )و

[comingoutofthecauldron]

this just in: twitter darklinas are talking about how mad they are that ben barnes looks so much older than jessie.........they're so close to self awareness guys this one's gonna be good

[beautydeathandwaffles]

Yes, Ben Barnes is attractive, but if you watched that season of SAB and saw the Darkling be manipulative and creepy on screen and still ship Darklina, you're wrong ✌️

[lilisouless]

Maybe twitter is fine after all

[thebookwormdaydreamer]

My contribution to Shadow and Bone shipping discourse is that making the Darkling a white man and Alina an Asian woman adds a creep factor to their relationship and I have no desire to see people shipping a white man with a woc he mutilated on my timeline.

Ship whoever you want to ship but I don’t like seeing this everywhere.

[bisexualgenya]

If I see one more shitty take-

[aleksanderscult]

Honestly, I have a strange suspicion that Mal isn't really “good” at sex, despite Alina insisting he is. The sex scene between him and Alina was so monotonous and boring that I almost fell asleep reading it.

The Darkling, on the other hand…

An awkward rhythm at first, then slow and steady as the beat of the rain.

The way I would have just called an Uber and leave the next morning if I was Alina.

He gloats of having many conquests and in the meantime his only sex scene that we read about is the most underwhelming moment in the trilogy (second perhaps to Alina's final battle against the Darkling). Alina just never had experience with it and ✨idealizes✨ Mal's image so she thinks he's good.

Just compare this shit to the Winter fete make out and the name reveal scene. And they didn't even fuck!

[darklinaforever]

Daemyra = I support pedophilia, grooming and physical abuse.

Zutara = I support colonizer x colonized relations.

Sylki = I support incest with oneself.

Charlastor / Radiobelle = I erase the canonical sexuality of the characters.

Reylo = I support the Nazis !

Darklina / Alarkling = I support a pedophile, a groomer, a pro-genocide and child killer in his spare time.

Sareth = I support pedophilia !

Sessrin / Sesshrin = I support pedophilia, and grooming.

Persades = I support kidnapping, rape and forced marriages.

Wyler / Weyler = I support psychopathic serial killers ! And grooming too ! (Because apparently for some Tyler is an adult and not a teenager as he is canonically in the series...)

This is usually what I get insulted about for loving these relationships... and it's just bullshit.

Daemyra is not grooming and pedophilia, book and show, I have already explained countless times why and I won't do it again here. And Daemon do not abuse physically Rhaenyra in Fire and Blood.

Zutara is not a relationship of a colonizer with a colonized person. Zuko himself is not a colonizer and the people of Katara were never colonized by the Fire Nation.

Sylki is not a true incestuous relationship, especially not with yourself. Sylki is not shown and characterized as truly the same person but as different people with the same role in the universe.

I'm not erasing the canonical sexuality of Charlastor / Radiobelle by shipping them into the context of fanon.

Kylo Ren / Ben Solo is not a Nazi, I also already explained why. Essentially he has no ideology of his own and has been manipulated since his fetus by hearing voices in his head 24/7 again today, and above all the defenders against grooming keep quiet this time ironically, since Kylo Ren / Ben Solo is actually a victim of grooming by Snoke / Palpatine.

The Darkling has not committed any genocide, he is not a pedophile or a groomer either and is even less a killer of childs specifically...

For Sareth basically... Everything that happens in the movie is essentially a representation of the desires / fantasies of teenage Sarah. Jareth is the reflection of her dreams, he literally acts according to her. He is the product of his fantasy. Please note, I'm not saying that what Sarah experiences in the film is literally a dream. No, I'm saying that the film, through its story and especially the character of Sarah, is in a way a representation of the adolescent's desire / dreams, and also a bit of hormones / sexual awakening. Without forgetting the fact of accepting to grow. That's why everything in the maze is in Sarah's room. That's why Jareth's universe is in this book, and also why the way to defeat Jareth there is. This is why Jareth is “in love” with Sarah. That's why he looks like a walking sexual fantasy with his tights on. Why there is a snake, a cane. Why does everyone at the ball wear masks with horns and long noses (= just falic / sexual symbols) Brief. There's nothing wrong with shipping Jareth with Sarah, since he's literally her personal fantasy and he's acting on that. (in the sense that he takes the role she gives him in the story)

Sessrin / Sesshrin is also not a relationship based on pedophilia. Sesshomaru clearly didn't feel anything romantic or sexual about Rin when she was a child. As for the accusations of grooming, they are unfounded because there is no proof. The fact that Rin gave birth to twins at 18 is not proof of this. Inuyasha takes place in the feudal era where a girl under 18 is seen as an adult. Essentially, Sesshomaru simply fell in love with Rin as she grew up. And he came to see her from time to time from the moment he left it with Kaede as a child. He was not responsible for her education. That was Kaede. He wasn't her father figure either, that was Jaken.

And Hades and Persephone must be read in the context of the time when the myth was written, otherwise you lose its true meaning. I have already reblogged excellent analyzes on the subject, I invite you to go and see them. Hades, essentially, is not the true villain in this myth.

No. I don't support psychopathic serial killers. The proof, I hate Laurel. The real psychopathic serial killer. Tyler is a teenager who she manipulated and enslaved for her cause. Literally, Tyler is a hyde, implying a personality disorder, but more than that, canonically, he must obey and approve of what his master does. Tyler is a victim. Not a bad guy. Moreover, once again, a real case of grooming under the arms. Yes, Laurel groomed Tyler, I've written lots of articles on this subject, you can go and see them. But once again, ironically, no one talks about it, and what's more, the antis will try to say that Tyler groomed Wednesday by inventing a new age for him...

[knives-drawn-pistols-blazing]

Gatekeeping fandoms is obviously bad, but if the Reylos start shipping Darklina/Alarkling and get into the Grishaverse fandom, I will Lose It

[maoist-mizer]

Welcome to my twisted mind 🖤 ⛓🥀

[a-deal-with-god]

i hope shadow and bone gets a third season so i can watch the darkling die onscreen