#this is just very. he died as aleksander but someone has to be the darkling | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

rose-sophia-isabella-rogers · 10 months ago

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A Steel That Went Through Hottest Fire: Chapter XIII - A Leap in the Dark

Chapter Summary: Time passes and you continue working on an antidote for jurda parem. But when one night you see something that was supposed to be kept a secret from you, you're pulled away from it. You travel once more to the place where Aleksander died, but this time with more companions. There you witness something extraordinary that may change everything you all know.

Pairing: Aleksander Kirigan/Reader

Characters: Reader, Zoya Nazyalensky, Nikolai Lantsov, Tolya Yul-Bataar, Yuri Vedenen, Tamar Kit-Bataar, Sankt Juris, Sankta Elizaveta, Sankt Grigori

Word Count: 4713

A/N: This chapter contains plot and excerpts from "King of Scars".

Tag list (let me know if you want to be added or removed):

@budugu

@intothesoul

@mizelophsun11

@pansexualwitchwhoneedstherapy

@zeeader

@marrymonrich

@wonderland2425

@chelseyyouraverageluigi

@thehufflepuffavenger1

@drinix

For some time now, David has been mostly busy with his new project. Sometimes, you can see he wants to talk to you about it and ask for your opinion. But you are allowed to work on only one thing. Which is nearly perfected. Thanks to you and Alkemi, with whom you have to work with, even though they whisper behind your back.

One day, Nikolai comes to your laboratory in Lazlayon. That's where you're working now. In an underground facility. You just love it.

'How can I help you, Your Highness?' you ask, not looking up from your work.

'You could give me an antidote, but I know you're doing the best you can,' Lantsov answers, stopping next to your table. 'Did you miss me, [L/N]?'

'My heart was dying from longing,' you reply sarcastically.

'Then it's a good thing I'm taking you back to Os Alta,' the King says. You look up at him, interested.

'Back to my cell?' you ask.

'Of course not,' Nikolay huffs. 'You'll live in your old room, as promised.'

'Why do you want me there?' you ask. Lantsov looks at you.

'I need David by my side,' he finally replies. 'And he made me promise I won't leave you here without him.'

'Sweet David,' you say, smiling softly. 'Very well, Your Highness. I shall go and pack.'

'And Zoya said you rarely follow orders,' the King says, as you clean your table. You snort.

'Only the stupid ones,' you say. Nikolai stares at you for a moment. Finally, he nods and walks away.

Together with Tolya, he brings you, David and Nadia back to the capital using an underground tunnel. There you work as usual. And take some breaks. Saints know you need them. Of course, you spend them alone. Kostyk and Zoya are always busy, and no one else is willing to be in your presence. Still, it's nothing new. It's always been like that. The only other person who wanted to be around you was… Aleksander. But now he's gone.

One day, you're walking through the corridor, when you almost bump into someone. A monk. But in black robes for some reason.

'I am so sorry,' you apologise to him. The man opens his mouth to probably accept your apology… but then his eyes fall on your kefta. Your last present from your General.

'You're [Y/N] [L/N],' he whispers in… awe? What a weird man.

'And you are…?' you ask, frowning. But before he can answer, Tolya, who's been here with him as well, takes him away. Thanks to you looking at them as they leave, you see the worried look the Heartrender casts your way.

'Hm,' you hum and go on your way. But you change your original course. You start eavesdropping. And you find out the monk is the leader of a new cult. They want to make your beloved a Saint. You almost laugh when you hear that. The Darkling? A Saint? Oh, you loved him, still do, but you know better than anyone that he was no saint. You spare no more thoughts to this cult.

At night, you sneak out for a ride. You still love the darkness and find comfort in it. Which you don't find this time, as you see Tolya, Tamar (Tolya's twin, also a Heartrender) and Zoya hurrying away somewhere. You don't hesitate. You're tired of secrets. You follow them until you reach Balakirev.

On the main square they split up. Tolya and Tamar enter a building. Zoya stays in the shadows. You hide in another ones. After a moment, the Squaller suddenly uses her powers to bring herself on top of a bell tower. You raise your eyebrows, surprised at her stupidity. But you're worried about your friend. So, you hurry to her, but use the stairs.

You hear her shouts and toiling of a bell. You speed up. You throw open the door to the bell tower.

'Zoya!' you shout, rushing forward, but then you stop, shocked. Holding the Squaller is something that looks closely like a nichevo. Nazyalensky looks at you with panic. The creature raises her higher.

'Let her go!' you cry, running to them. But then the monster freezes, so you stop again as well. It looks at you for a moment. Then… it lets Zoya go. She falls on the ground with a grunt.

'What-' you start, but you're cut off, when the monster seems to transform. Shadows disappear. It falls on the ground but no longer looking like a nichevo. It's a man a with golden hair. Bleeding and unconscious. But you still recognise him. Nikolai.

You stare at Zoya in shock, not even registering Tolya and Tamar showing up behind you. Your former friend is looking at you with wide eyes, her face pale. You were clearly not supposed to know this secret.

'What are you doing here?' Tolya asks harshly. You don't turn, just still stare at Zoya.

'I was sneaking out when I saw you leaving, so I followed you instead,' you explain, your voice flat. 'You've been acting suspicious and since I'm kept in the dark, I wanted to finally learn something. I didn't expect that, though. By how organised you seemed, I'm guessing it's not the first time.'

They don't answer. You exhale shakily.

'How?' you ask. 'I mean… Was he even hurt by one of them?'

'Just before the Darkling died,' Tamar answers. 'It left him with a wound.'

'Poisoned him with merzost,' you say quietly. Zoya perks up at that.

'Did you find a way to save him?' she asks. 'Did you find a way to get rid of it from his body?'

You look at her. Aleksander had no visible scars. During the fight they haven't even realised he's healed. You could lie… but what for?

'I did,' you admit but shake your head. 'But I don't think it will work here. Kirigan wasn't changing into a nichevo. Merzost was feeding on his body. I could… try, but I don't think it is going to help.'

'Try at least,' Tamar says. You bite your lip. You sigh and walk to Nikolai. You take out an alexandrite from your pocket. You kneel by the King's side and put the stone in his hand. You clasp it and close your eyes. You focus. You try to reach for merzost in Lantsov.

There. You try to grab it. But it slips away from you. You try again and again. Suddenly, there's a hand on your shoulder, shaking you harshly. You blink and look up. You see Zoya's wide eyes.

'You were shaking and your nose is bleeding,' she explains, her own voice shaking.

'I couldn't grab it,' you explain after a beat. Then, your eyes roll back and you fall on the ground. The Squaller's alarmed shouts are the last thing you hear before sleep takes you in its hold.

The next day, Nikolai finds you in a garden. You're looking at flowers, but there's no admiration in your eyes. Just the same look the King always sees when he talks to you. With no light in your eyes.

'I'm sorry,' you say after he stares at you for a moment. He shakes his head.

'You tried your best,' he says and stands next to you. 'Do you have any idea what's happening to me?'

'Merzost is… complicated,' you say. 'I've studied Morozova's journal but most of it was gibberish. And I've never really had a chance to study nichevoy'a. What's happening to you is different than Kirigan's pollution. It was killing him, while I think it's trying…'

'To take control of me,' Nikolay finishes when you trail off. You nod.

'Has it been happening since you were attacked?' you ask after a beat. Lantsov sighs.

'No,' he denies, shaking his head. 'Is started a few months ago. Coincidentally, around the same time "the miracles" started happening.'

'Bridge from bones etc.?' you ask and the King nods. 'You think they're connected.'

'To each other… and to the Darkling,' he confirms, his expression grim. Your eyes snap to him.

'When I turn… I seem to be always heading toward the Fold,' he explains. 'Same as the miracles. Do you know the story of Sankt Feliks?'

You look at him, surprised at this sudden change of topic. You nod slowly.

'Apparently, the place where he died was a holy place,' Nikolai says. 'Men came there to be purified.'

'The obisbaya,' you whisper. 'The Ritual of the Burning Thorn. I read about it. I don't remember the details. Is it what will you try to do?'

'I think it is my only hope,' Lantsov confirms. 'I plan to go to that place, visiting the miracles sites on my way there.'

'And where is… there?' you ask, but you already suspect the answer. He's silent for a moment.

'The Fold,' he finally answers. 'The centre of it.'

'Where he created the Fold,' you say. 'And then died. Maybe it all is really connected. I understand why you want to check it, though. What I don't understand… is that monk I saw yesterday. Why is he here?'

'I didn't want the Apparat to start a battle between his men and Yuri's pilgrims,' Nikolai explains. 'He's my guest. And now he will accompany me to the Fold. I learnt about the ritual from him. He needs to gets me the details of it. With Tolya.'

'What does he want in return?' you ask. The King's mouth twitch upward.

'He wants the Darkling to be made a saint,' he answers. 'He wants me to support it.'

'He's a fool,' you say after a beat. 'I loved him, but he definitely wasn't a saint. He didn't care about otkazat'sya. He received too much hatred from them. You're not going to fulfil his wish, are you?'

'He needs to believe I consider it,' Nikolai says. 'I do understand him a bit. The Darkling was a presence that drew people in. He needs an ideal to believe in.'

You hum. You look at the flowers again. The King observes you.

'I'd like you to come with us as well,' he says. You frown at him.

'What?' you ask. 'Why?'

'Because you stopped me from killing Zoya last night,' Nikolai answers. 'It listened to you. I have some precautions always taken at night. But if they fail, like they did last night… I want to be certain I am stopped before I hurt someone. And since it listened to you…'

You stare at each other for a long moment. You finally nod after a moment.

'Alright,' you agree. 'But let's hope it won't come to it.'

'Obviously,' Lantsov agrees, grinning, but then his look softens. 'Thank you, [Y/N]. Truly.'

'Don't thank me yet,' you say. 'I may kill that monk if he will annoy me too much.'

'I think Zoya would help you hide the body, so no one would ever find out,' the King says. Your lips twitch slightly. You turn your head back to the flowers. Taking his cue, Nikolai bids you farewell and walks away, leaving you alone with your thoughts.

When you set out, at first you travel with Tolya and Yuri in the coach, helping them deciphering the texts about the ritual. But after a day of getting awed glances from the monk, you threaten Nikolai that you'll leave if he doesn't let you travel on a horse.

You're not a fool, you know the couch was offered to you not because they need your help with those texts, but because they want as little people as possible to see you, the Darkling's most trusted Grisha. But seeing the fury in your eyes, the King relents. Under the condition you'll wear your old kefta. After glancing at Yuri, who's looking at you as if planning to start campaigning for you to become a saint as well, you agree.

At evenings, when you arrive at local noblemen's houses, you spend little time with everyone, not wanting anyone to realise who you are. You don't want Lantsov to have troubles because of you. Luckily, no one pays you much attention.

In towns you visit, you watch Nikolai using his charm on people, helping them. They love him. And he cares about them. You see that. Part of you wishes that Aleksander saw that young Lantsov can be a good king. You wish they had worked together, instead of fighting. You imagine they'd be unstoppable together and would accomplish great things. Like actually fix Ravka and win the war.

In Aden, you split from the group. You are nervous about entering the Fold. True, you've done it a few times in the past months, but this feels different. Zoya has noticed your state earlier and asked you about it. After a moment of silence, you answered her that it feels like you're going to say your final goodbye and you're not sure if you're ready. You saw the sympathy in her eyes and you suspect that's the reason they let you leave their side.

However, a scream causes you to turn around and hurry back. It's day, so you're surprised that Nikolai has turned, as they tell you he's always done it at night. But it's not the creature that has attacked them.

Khergud. Biologically augmented Shu Han soldiers designed to capture Grisha. Created by Fabrikators dosed with jurda parem, khergud are constructed from the bodies of those who have died. They are heavily modified, the most notable addition being rapid-beat wings made of metal and canvas, as well as increased senses and a layer of metal skin.

Metal.

You find your companions. You see Tamar and Tolya under some net. Nikolai is fighting with one khergud. Zoya is nowhere to be found.

You bring your hands together and focus. You see her widening her eyes in surprise. She's lifted in the air but not by her wings.

'Find Zoya!' you shout to the King, who's already noticed you running to them. Lantsov doesn't need to be told twice.

Your opponent is fighting back. But you're one with metals in her body. You control her now. And you make her stay still, as you slit her throat. Once she falls on the ground, dead, you help the twins.

In the meantime, Zoya saves herself using lightning, but falls. Nikolai changes into the monster and saves her, but she has no idea he's in control, so she shocks him as well. They fall but Zoya cushions their fall. The King is himself again.

Yuri is shocked as well. Nikolai promises to explain everything to him and asks him to keep silent. While they wake up the monk that was their guide and was hit during the attack, you focus on metals around you. But you don't feel more khergud.

Later, when they explain things to Yuri, you're not with them. You want to study the bodies of khergud. They're hidden now from the villagers, you don't want to spread panic after all, but it's not a problem for you. However, you don't find anything useful. Nothing you wouldn't already knew.

'The monk placated?' you ask Tamar when you return. You meet her in front of your room. She's going to watch you, no doubt.

'For now,' she answers, eyeing you. 'Why are you really here?'

You pause. You know the twins don't trust you. And they will not believe anything you say.

'I am planning to bring the Darkling back right under your noses,' you say flatly. Tamar glares at you. She almost growls. You scoff.

'I do care about this country, Tamar,' you say. 'And I believe Nikolai is a good king. I want to help.'

You walk past her and enter the room. You exhale slowly and prepare for bed. But you don't sleep. You can't. Not when you're so close to the Fold. You're in for yet another sleepless night.

You enter the Fold in disguises. You travel on the skiff you've built years ago. Other Durasts have repaired it after it was destroyed when the Darkling attempted to take Alina's power. They did good. You're proud of them.

You're on deck the whole time, staring ahead. You're to meet with pilgrims. You're not sure you can do it. To see people who worship a man you love. They think of him as the Starless Saint. To you he's just Aleksander.

'What is that?' you suddenly hear Nikolai ask. You frown and look at the sight ahead.

'A lake?' Zoya asks.

'No,' Yuri denies. 'A miracle.'

'If I pointed to a leaky faucet, you'd say it was a miracle,' Zoya says, annoyed. You barely manage to stop a smile forming on your lips. You focus on the dark mass. It is a gleaming black disk of stone, at least a mile across, perfectly round and shiny as a mirror. Around it are tents and shelters. The pilgrims.

'This is the place where the Starless One fell,' says Yuri with reverence. You don't hear more. Your mind recreates the scene. Aleksander on the ground. You on your knees. His last words to you. His lifeless look.

You turn sharply and march away, fighting back the tears and trying to calm down your breathing. You stop on the other end of the skiff. You're not ready. You can't say goodbye yet.

A moment later you turn. You watch Nikolai and Zoya leaving. You're glad you don't have to go yet. You don't want to face the pilgrims. The Squaller clearly didn't want either, as she returns fuming. You observe her, worried. A moment later Tolya and Tamar jump from the skiff. You walk to the remained three.

Zoya twists her wrist. You feel the change in the air. She sands shift, forming familiar and unfamiliar people. Wind howls. You look around with worry. The pilgrims are panicking down there. Nikolai tries to stop Zoya. Finally, she lets the sand drop.

You take a step toward her, but then you feel weird. A wave of dizziness strikes you. The world seems to flicker and warp. You fall hard on the floor, feeling like you're about to throw up. Others seem to have the same problems. Yuri does throw up.

'What just happened?' Zoya asks, pushing to her feet. 'Why-'

She stops, seeing that somehow everyone is gone. And everything, too, even the tents. The sky is different as well. No longer blue but a grey twilight.

'Where are Tolya and Tamar?' Nikolai asks.

'Where are they?' Yuri asks. 'What happened to them? What did you do?'

'I didn't do anything!' Zoya protests. 'It was a little storm. No one was in any danger.'

'Perhaps we are gone?' you suggest. But you have no idea how and where.

'Am I having some kind of episode?' Nikolai asks, staring into the distance. 'Or are you seeing this too?'

You turn. Above you looms a palace from sand. Or maybe more like a city. You marvel at the sight in front of you.

'Whoever did this, is a genius,' you say in awe. 'How-'

You're interrupted by a shriek. You look around, alarmed. Volcra?

'It's a miracle,' says Yuri, falling on his knees. Another shrieks. Dark shapes seem to break from the palace and move toward you at incredible speed.

'It's not a miracle,' Nikolai says, reaching for his revolvers. 'It's a trap.'

Bees. You see bees. And… something. Something that change shape. And also… a dragon. You finally went mad, then.

'Zoya, say something spiteful,' Nikolai pleads.

'Why?' Zoya asks faintly.

'Because I'm fairly certain I'm hallucinating and in my dreams you're much nicer,' the King explains.

'You're an idiot, Nikolai,' the Squaller says.

'Not your best work.'

'I'm sorry I can't deliver better wordplay right now. I seem to be paralysed with fear.'

'Okay… let's not panic and think,' you say, albeit also fearfully.

'Do something!' Zoya says to Nikolai.

'Like what?' the King asks.

'You have guns!' the Squaller points out.

'I'm not going to shoot at bees,' he protests.

'It would be hard,' you agree.

'Then shoot at that thing,' Zoya says. Nikolai opens fire at the grotesque. His bullets struck its shifting body. But they are absorbed in its body, then emerge a second later.

Above you, the dragon roars and spreads its wings. It fires flames at you. Luckily, Zoya creates a dome of air over your heads in time. But you still feal the heat. The dragon stops and shrikes.

'I think it's safe to say we're outgunned,' says Nikolai.

'Lay down your arms,' the grotesque says in a chorus of voices.

'You first,' you murmur.

'In a moment,' replies Nikolai. 'I'm finding them very reassuring right now. Yuri, get off your damned knees and at least try to look like you can fight.'

'Or at least defend yourself,' you add. 'Because certainly no one is in a mood to fight and look after you.'

'You don't understand,' Yuri says, his eyes full of tears.

'That is entirely correct, and I hate not understanding,' you say and threaten your enemies with your fist. 'Who are you?! What do you want?! Where are we?! And how did we get here?!'

'[Y/N], do try not to piss them off,' Nikolai says nervously. You look at him, fuming.

'Oh, and they can piss me off?' you huff.

'I'm going to raise the sands again,' says Zoya. 'If I bring a big enough storm, we'll have cover to get… somewhere. You'll need to work the sails. I won't be able to control the storm and direct the skiff.'

'Do it,' Nikolai says. He opens fire, trying to lend Zoya cover as she sweeps her arms forward and the sands rise with a whoosh. It forces the creatures back, giving you and Lantsov time to seize the lines, releasing the sail. The canvas snaps, filling the air, driving you toward what you all hope are the borders of the Fold.

Suddenly the ground beneath you seems to buckle. The skiff lists precariously starboard as one of its runners is peeled away from the sand. Zoya and Yuri lose their footing, but the Squaller does not falter and keeps the winds in motion. You and Nikolai try to use the storm to right the skiff. But it's like the sands are alive and the skiff tilts higher.

'We're going over!' you shout with alarm. You land in an unceremonious heap. The King somehow manages to quickly gather himself up and rolls you all to safety. But the skiff thumps harmlessly down to its other side and the sands instantly calm.

Shapes emerge out of the sand – a regiment of sand soldiers. Without faces but with detailed uniforms. Zoya raises her hands and sends a fierce gust of wind slamming into them, but they stand solid and unmoving.

'What are they?' she asks. The soldiers keep coming.

'I think we're being shown just how overmatched we are,' Lantsov says.

'By whom?' you ask. The sand soldiers take a step as one. You, Nikolai and Zoya stand back-to-back, surrounded. Next to you, Yuri remains on his knees, his face filled with a kind of manic elation.

'I don't know how to fight this,' the Squaller says. 'Is it the part where we die well?'

'No, this is the part where the king of Ravka surrenders himself and the love we never had lives on in ballads and songs,' Lantsov denies. You look at him, surprised.

'Nikolai,' snaps Zoya, 'don't you dare.'

'Give me another option, Nazyalensky. One of us needs to survive this,' the King says and lowers his voice. 'Get back to the capital and rally the Grisha.'

'I don't like this plan,' you say. Nikolai ignores you. He tosses his revolvers to the sand and raises his hands.

'I'm not sure who I'm surrendering to-' he starts. The dragon interrupts him, turning sharply in the air and diving for you.

'Zoya, [Y/N], get down!' Lantsov shouts, lunging at you two.

'Like hell,' your friend mutters. She knocks you and the King into the sands, bracing before him with her feet planted and her arms raised.

The dragon unleashes its fire and Nazyalensky lets loose the storm. For a moment they seem to be evenly matched. Then, she manages to take the air out of the creature's lungs. Lantsov lunges for his guns, ready to seize the opportunity, but the dragon releases a deafening roar. Another flames leave its mouth, this time blue, brighter and hotter.

'Zoya!' you and Nikolai shout, but the Squaller has already fisted her hands and raised them again, driving an icy wind against the dragon's onslaught. She screams, struggling to fight back. Next to you, Lantsov opens fire on the dragon, but the bullets melt before they even come near the creature's scales because of the temperature of the fire.

And then your friend collapses. The storm ends. You and Nikolai hurry to her, both of you relieved she's still alive. The dragon withdraws its fire. It hovers in the air, watching.

'Zoya,' you say softly, as the King takes her in his arms. The dragon lands before you, folding its wings. You put yourself in front of your friends, though you're terrified.

'Stay back,' you say, bringing your hands together. You have no idea how you could fight it. It would probably turn you to ashes, before your control of metal in its body could hurt it.

'The Durast girl,' says the dragon, causing you to widen your eyes. 'The traitor. The light in the darkness. And the boy king. The war hero. The prince with a demon curled inside his heart.'

'Saints,' you whisper, shocked it can talk. The dragon seems to laugh, as it leans forward.

'If I wanted to harm her, she would be ashes, girl,' it says. 'So would you all.'

'Then what, this was your version of a warm greeting?' you scoff. It rumbles with laugh again.

'I wanted to see what she could do,' it explains. Just then Zoya releases a howl of pure anguish. You and Nikolai stare at her, surprised.

'What is it?' he asks, looking for any wounds. But she casts him off, scrabbling in the sand, another wail of rage and pain tearing from her chest.

'For Saints' sake, Zoya, what's wrong?' you ask. She snatches up something that glints in her hand and clutch it to her chest, sobbing. It takes the King a moment to force her fingers open. Cradled in her palm, you see the broken halves of her silver cuff. Her amplifier shattered.

'No,' she sobs. 'No.'

'Yes,' hisses the dragon. You glare at him, but then look softly at your friend. You can try to mend it… but it may be even beyond your abilities.

'Juris, stop this,' says a woman, emerging from between the rows of soldiers. She wears a dress of blooming roses that blossom and die in curling vines around her body. Her golden hair is a buzzing mass of bees that swarm and cluster around her face.

'You got your battle,' she says to the dragon. 'They know what they are facing.'

'The first bit of excitement we've had in years, Elizaveta, and you seem determined to deny me my fun,' the creature says. 'Very well.'

It heaves its shoulders in a shrug and shifts and shrinks, becoming a towering man in finely wrought chainmail that glitters like black scales. The sand soldiers part to reveal the grotesque, his body still shifting and changing, now covered in eyes.

'What is it?' Nikolai demands, as your mouth forms an 'o' from shock. 'Who are you?'

'Do the people not pray for Saints?' asks the man called Juris, looking at you with amusement.

'At last,' weeps Yuri, steel kneeling. 'At last.'

'Come,' says Elizaveta, extending a hand. 'We will explain all.'

You and Nikolai understand at the same time. Sankta Lizabeta, who was martyred in a field of roses. Sankt Juris, who-

'So,' you say. 'I was right with the "Saints".'

'You slew the dragon,' the King says to Juris. 'It's… it's all in all of the stories.'

'Sometimes the stories are rough on the details,' says Juris with a gleaming smile. 'Come, boy king, Durast girl. It's time we talked.'

A/N: Thank you for reading! Let me know your thoughts! Reblog, like and comment if you could. Every comment makes my day!

This can also be found on Archive of Our Own: https://archiveofourown.org/works/52696933/chapters/134809147

42 notes · View notes

goblins-riddles-or-frocks · 6 months ago

Note

Viserys I found entirely boring but I suppose that might be a point of correlation for you 😂

not just boring but also stirs pure disgust. otto simply doesn't hold enough vomit inducing power.

I do think he comes from a very different place though. Like his character (and cruelty and volatility) hinges on never getting the power and respect he thinks is his birthright.

I do think Aleksander has similar themes going. He does think that by virtue of who he is: powerful, immortal; it is his right to be the King and he definitely feels disrespected by being under the king instead. He also thinks he has earned the right to be one through sheer effort and so does Viserys? He single-handedly raised his baby sister and feels incredibly entitled to her and to the throne because of all the sacrifices he made in keeping himself and her alive. He suffered for years just to keep the rightful heirs alive, surely he deserves the throne!

I think that’s just fundamentally different. He’s also just way too young.

I agree with the young thing definitely. An imaginary older Viserys then.

I also draw a parallel between him not being a dragon and his amplifier experiment failing so miserably. Hinging their entire identity on things that simply aren't true.

Selling Daenerys, pimping Genya. Then lashing out when the girls try to do something of their own and refuse to be pawns.

He does feel he was wronged and he certainly was! He was just a kid thrown in incredibly difficult circumstances through no fault of his own! He did hold genuine love for Daenerys for a while and then it died out as his own flaws grew to be more and more prominent.

I mean yeah Viserys being gross af goes without saying, but disgusting men are a dime a dozen in that series.

I just think being very much in power is an integral part of Aleksander’s character. Does he feel entitled to more? Yes, but that’s more in line imo with Tywin being outraged by Aerys refusing to marry Cersei to Rhaegar. He’s arguably the most powerful man in King’s Landing, even counting the king. But that’s not enough.

Being a scheming and greedy Hand of the King itself feels like a more similar experience than being a deposed prince in exile, begging other people for support and basic safety. These external factors aren’t character, but they shape character. And they do play a large part in narrative function!

Anyway in general I think how the Battle of Trident goes down— the opportunism, the lack of any real ideals or loyalties, the ruthlessness, feels pretty reminiscent. And the way Tywin controls those around him (his children) also feels way closer than Viserys just lashing out at any given moment with no real purpose beyond trying to soothe his own ego.

Like Tywin and Viserys’ cruelty and greed stem from different places. Viserys from having nothing, and Tywin from having far too much. The Darkling by TGT onwards leans towards the latter.

I also think Tywin’s fatal flaw as someone who’s actually bought his own hype— where he’s not actually as brilliant and cunning of a tactician as he has a reputation for, as opposed to his wealth and power buoying him through struggles, but he’s unable to see that and makes increasingly terrible choices— is way more relevant.

I disagree with other finer points you make, but we’d be here all day lol. But generally I think the comparisons you make are too broad to be salient. I’m also not sure I believe a hypothetically older Viserys is that possible! With his particular neuroses and complete lack of real power, I highly doubt he’d make it very long without getting himself killed.

#grishaverse #asoiaf #i ramble sometimes #all the bendy punctuations #a mysterious stranger has appeared

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dragon-kazansky · 3 years ago

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Shrouded in shadows | The Darkling

Gender neutral reader

[Masterlist]

[Previous chapter] - [Next chapter]

Part 35

"Where are we going?" You ask, trying to mind your step. You weren't in the mood for this right now. You were worried about Aleksander returning and finding you gone.

Baghra did not stop or answer you. You kept on following her, but told yourself if she took you much furtheryou would just turn around and go back.

She eventually slows to a stop.

You stand there, eyes on Baghra, waiting for her to say something. She seems to be contemplating something. You see the way she takes a deep breath before turning around to face you.

Her eyes look sad.

You furrow your brow and look at her with curiosity. Something heavy settles within you. A feeling you weren't going to like what she was about to say.

That's where the fear came from.

"What's happening?" You ask, keeping your voice to a whisper.

She reached for your hands and holds them in hers. She looks you in the eye with big sad eyes, lips tugging into a frown.

She was going to say something that would break your heart.

"You need to leave," she says.

You stare at her.

"If you follow this tunnel to your left, you can get out and leave the palace. There are some thieves here tonight. You can go with them. Give them this and they'll surely take you back to Ketterdam with them."

Baghra hands you a pouch full of foreign money. Kruga. Plenty of it.

You stare at the pouch and then back at her.

"Baghra?"

"Kirigan is a dangerous man and he will only use you for his gain. I had hoped to sway things before your heart got involved all over again, but there isn't much time left. If he finds the stag, he will use its power to expand the Fold," she tells you.

You stare at her, unimpressed.

"You need to leave. Be safe. Live out the rest of your days free of him."

You glare at her and let the pouch fall to the ground. The coins clatter together as they hit the ground.

"No."

She glares at you.

"No?"

"No."

Baghra lifts her head up a little higher.

"General Kirigan. Aleksander. The Darkling. Whatever you want to call him, is someone very dangerous. Because of what happened to you, something very bad happened. He is the Black Heretic, and you were his lover. He thought you had died because of him. He created the Fold when you were shot. Both of you are ancient and hold great power. With both you and the Sun Summoner gone, he has no power left."

You feel a headache coming on.

"Leave now before he goes any further. Your life is not worth his greed."

You shake your head. The pain feels worse. You place your hands on either side of your head and glare at Baghra some more.

"No!"

"Please! I never wanted this for you. You were so good to my son, but he is not the man he once was."

"Your son..." You fall to your knees as the headache becomes skull splitting. Dark spots appear in the corner of your vision

Yes. That's right. Baghra is Aleksander's mother. Those dreams... are memories. You have always known him. You were in live with him.

You are in love with him.

Baghra calls your name but you do not hear her. All you can feel is pain. Darkness closes in.

Darkness is your friend.

Baghra looks around at what you're doing. While you scream out in pain, the room grows dark.

You collapse in front of her.

"Saints!"

The echo of your name being called from above travels down the tunnel.

Aleksander is looking for you.

Baghra failed her task.

Footsteps echo. They're rapid. Frantic.

He is coming for you.

Of course he knows where the tunnels are.

Baghra stands there as Aleksander appears. He sees you and then glares at her.

"What did you do?" He asks, voice chillingly calm.

Baghra looks at him with a tear filled gaze.

Aleksander kneels down by your slumped body and gathers you in his arms. For a moment that day flashes across his gaze and his heart aches.

You're out like a light. He holds you to his chest and gazes up at his mother.

"What did you do?"

She still does not answer him.

His jaw clenched and he picks you up into a careful hold. He keeps you close to his chest and all the hatred he has is directed at the woman before him.

"You will pay for all you have done. Stop trying to take away my happiness," he warns her.

Baghra still says nothing.

Punishment comes swiftly to her before he leaves with you in his arms.

Aleksander returns to his chambers and places you in his bed. He gazes down at you with longing.

His fingers trace along your cheek.

So much for the perfect night.

He leaves your side quietly, needing to sort a few things out.

Aleksander was done playing games now.

He needed that stag. He was going to give it to you. Alina Starkov be damned.

You needed your powers back. No matter what.

@luciadiosa @fablesrose @mischief-siriusly-managed @aleksanderwh0r3 @charistory @messrsmoonee @edithsvoice @carlywhomever @ladyslytherclaw @paintlavillered @ohsorandomlyme @cathairchic @kamiiyou

#the darkling #the darkling x reader #general kirigan x reader #general kirigan #aleksander morozova #aleksander morozova x reader #shrouded in shadows

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darklesmylove · 4 years ago

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i’m sorry, but the ending to rule of wolves was so wrong in so many ways and i’m frustrated as hell.

to start—

more than anything, nina and hanne’s story makes me so fucking upset. hanne being coded as trans is amazing and i absolutely love it, but having to live under the face of another man for the rest of their life isn’t a good resolution to their dysphoria?? trans ftm individuals aren’t fine with suddenly becoming another person as long as they look male, they still want to be themselves, so that’s kind of bullshit to me and feels very transphobic. and nina having to live a lie as someone else wearing someone else’s face, and having to be stuck in a country that still would likely try and kill her if she was found out?? even worse, she is never going back to live in ravka when every book she’s been in she says how much she misses it and all of her actions are in service of saving her country. she’s never going back to be with the crows, her FRIENDS, and the only person she has is hanne. that’s not a romantic ending, i’m sorry but it’s really not, and they both deserved better.

you guys already know that i would be upset about aleksander’s ending too. his first pov was really promising to me, the banter with yuri was funny and there was so much depth to his thoughts, but afterwards it was just.... nothing. he didn’t add anything to the plot of the story, he sat around with his cult for the rest of his book, didn’t use his power, and then suddenly was fine to kneel to zoya in the middle of battle when the whole point of him waiting around was to make his dramatic return. literally the epitome of out of character considering he’s an immortal villain obsessed with dramatic entrance and being ravka’s savior. then after doing NOTHING the whole book, he essentially gets killed and tortured for all of eternity?? it felt so pointless and disingenuous and his first death scene in ruin and rising was so much more fitting and actually felt right. and the fact that suddenly no one gave a fuck that yuri was still conscious in his body and also would be tortured for all eternity was just gross. yes yuri wasn’t the most amazing person, but he didn’t deserve the same fate as aleksander, being punished for crimes and atrocities he didn’t commit. aleksander should never have been resurrected, and that’s coming from someone who likes his character.

genya was also done so fucking dirty, i absolutely hate that david died and it was completely pointless and had no affect on the plot whatsoever. genya deserves to be happy and i dont know leigh just fucks her over a thousand times for no reason. i feel like sometimes she kills people just for shock value, because harshaw and matthias’ death gave me the same exact feeling as david’s.

and then nikolai. i’m sorry but all of his life he was fighting for the throne and his place, trying to prove he was worthy for his country that he loved so much. suddenly giving that all up felt completely wrong and a terrible end to his character arc. zoya being queen i was ambivalent about, though her being an extremely powerful ruthless immortal on the throne is kind of hypocritical considering that’s the reason why the darkling was unfit to rule, for the literal exact same reasons (which i don’t disagree with by the way). i felt like nikolai was sidelined in his own book and had very little character development other than his relationship with zoya, and that sucks because this was supposed to be his duology.

i’m just upset because the first 3/4 of the book was so promising to me and then it fell apart, as i feel it did with ruin and rising as well. of course there were really amazing high points to this book but the end left a bad taste in my mouth with how wrong it was. all of these characters deserved better and that’s hard to come to terms with knowing this is the one of the last books she’s releasing in the grishaverse.

#i’m so disappointed #especially about nina and hanne #it physically hurts me #rule of wolves #row #row spoilers #rule of wolves spoilers #nina zenik #hanne brum #hannina #the darkling #aleksander morozova #nikolai lantsov #zoya nazyalensky #gv #tgv #grishaverse

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greensaplinggrace · 3 years ago

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What Is There To Celebrate About the Darkling? (Part 2)

1 2 3 4

He’s a musician. He plays the fiddle.

He’s the darkness to Alina’s light. He’s steeped in yin and yang symbolism. His banner is the eclipse.

The Starless Saint is a badass title.

Him and Alina are soulmates.

He’s eternal. He’s tragic. He has a vast and complex history that we can’t even begin to unravel, but one that would be so incredibly interesting to learn about.

He’s wicked smart. Very intelligent. A great tactician.

He sits as an equal with his men and treats his soldiers well.

He has a complex relationship with the Otkazat’sya. He doesn’t hate them as most would assume, and in fact trusts quite a few with his life and the lives of the Grisha

That entire scene in Demon in the Woods where Sylvi keeps asking to play with his shadows and he smiles while he makes shapes and lets her have fun with them.

His title is the Darkling, which is honestly just kind of pathetic and makes me think of tiny fluffy shadows. So whenever people refer to him as the Darkling I think of him as a baby shadow and that’s entirely Leigh Bardugo’s fault.

He’s a murderer and he looks sexy doing it.

Do I agree with him killing all of those ambassadors? No. Do I think it was funny? Yes. Did I hate the ambassadors with a burning passion? Also yes. Was I cheering when they died? Quite possibly.

Dumbass didn’t tell Alina about Marie or the Conductor, so every time he mentions how he’s doing this for her she literally has no idea wtf he’s talking about.

“Fine, make me your villain.”

Gave Alina the most elaborate and plush tent in the universe even though she was his prisoner.

The way he says “Mal” when they first meet like a scorned lover surprised to see his ex at a ball.

“Where is the boy? I have my Summoner. I want my tracker too.”

The way he kisses Alina in episode five like a man starved.

How surprised and enamored he is after she kisses him for the first time

“I used to come here as a child” he said, like a liar

His hair is perfect and beautiful.

He looks stunning even when he’s crawling out of the fold like a bat with rabies.

His face scars.

His entire bromance with Ivan.

“Ivan? My kefta!” Bro do you not have legs? Why is Ivan dressing you?

Literal walking disaster of an ancient being.

“I bEg YoUr PaRdOn?”

When the Little Palace is called quaint and he looks as if he’s about to commit a murder.

“After a long moment he said, ‘Aleksander.” A little laugh escaped me. He arched a brow, a smile tugging at his lips. ‘What?’ ‘It’s just so…common.’ Such an ordinary name, held by kings and peasants alike. I’d known two Aleksanders at Keramzin alone, three in the First Army. One of them had died on the Fold. His smile deepened and he cocked his head to the side. It almost hurt to see him this way. ‘Will you say it?’ he asked.”

He talks about how amazing Alina is and how much she matters constantly.

He can speak multiple languages.

Every time he uses the merzost is something to be celebrated because it legit just looks like porn.

“’Alina’s blade wrapped in my shadows and your blood.’ The Darkling’s voice was thoughtful, like he was remembering a favorite recipe.”

He’s very protective. He’s a protector.

He created the Little Palace.

Him looking absolutely feral in that entire fight scene with Mal in the fold. Also never really realized how long his legs were until I saw him get flipped on his ass.

Ben Barnes saying moya tsaritsa.

The mental bond with Alina only works when they’re both thinking about each other. Alina sees him when she’s kissing Mal.

He makes so many innuendos about his relationship with Alina for someone who barely even got past first base.

Gets reverse uno’d to shit and back by Alina when trying to seduce her. Catches feelings like an amateur. Tragically unable to think about literally anything else anymore.

Have I mentioned that he’s whipped as shit yet? Because he is.

The dramatic coat billow when he enters the stag scene like a classic fantasy villain. Only man on the planet who doesn’t need words to say “I’m the bad guy.”

He lets Mal get healed.

Wears all black even though his favorite color is every single other one on the planet.

Gives zero fucks about Mal escaping for someone who felt so threatened by the guy literally two seconds ago.

“I’m not going to kill you, Mal. I don’t need to. Time will do it for me.” Me, who knows how this is going to end: yeah it sure will buddy.

The way he wraps his legs around Alina in the name scene.

He created the fold.

He loved Luda and he loved Annika (as a friend) and he loved Alina. His feelings for them all were genuine and all encompassing, and that’s not talked about nearly enough.

He defends Annika and Sylvi from Lev.

He embodies the “that’s my wife” meme.

Height difference.

The way he speaks so softly. Idk if its my issues with men yelling, but the Darkling being soft-spoken was what made me really appreciate his character from the start.

But also, him pulling the knife out of his chest and screaming “it will take more than this!” 🥵

He’s bisexual as fuck.

He’s here, he’s queer, and he’s ready to murder an entire city.

Him going absolutely apeshit when Alina disappears. Convinced she’s been kidnapped.

He makes shadows go snip.

Alina loves him (despite the warning signs).

Oh, what’s that? It’s a tracker! *gets tackled over the edge of a skiff*

Unkillable. Will come back to life just to fuck with you. Gives zero shits about the way reality should work.

Would sell Alina’s and his own soul to the devil for a corn chip. But sike! He’s actually the devil. So now he’s got two souls and a corn chip.

He’s just plain amazing. 💖

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sellyoursoulforagoodfic · 4 years ago

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Day 29: Soulmates

Soulmates

The Darkling x reader

Word Count: 729

Everyone had a name scrawled across their wrist, one that belonged to the person with the other half of their soul or so the myth told, in a color that somehow represented that person. The name appeared on a person’s arm when they turned eighteen, whether or not the other person was even born yet. Granted, such cases were rare, but it’d still been recorded to happen. It was old news, something that everyone and their dog knew.

What was strange was the name that appeared on your wrist when you came of age. ‘Aleksander Morozova’. Such an odd name for someone. Especially when one considered the fabled Morozova’s stag. As far as you or anyone around you knew, no one had had that last name since the famous grisha, Ilya, died. Whenever anyone caught sight of the harsh black lettering of the odd name, it never failed to give you grief. Some were simply curious, after all no one you had ever heard of had a name in stark black. Some demanded answers you simply didn’t have, such as the location of that mythical stag. Others got oddly violent, though you never knew why. So you learned to wear a bracelet or sleeves to hide the name.

All of that changed when the grisha testers came, though. It was pretty obvious that you were an Inferni. You’d known it for years, but you hadn’t wanted to leave your family so you kept quiet about it. Still, you didn’t hide your gifts. Nor did you hide the name when it came to the whole ‘joining the second army’ thing. It was standard protocol for them to record everyone’s soulmate’s names in case a match showed up.

You, however, seemed to be a special case. Instead of being housed with the older grisha, you found yourself being led to a more secluded area of the Little Palace. A darker area. One that exuded opulence of a different nature than that of the Grand Palace.

“Where are we going?” you asked the servant that was carrying what few things you still had.

The skittish looking woman merely shook her head. Before long, you found yourself ushered into what looked to be a common area in these dark, strange chambers and quickly abandoned to wait alone.

It took several minutes, but eventually a cool, male voice broke the suffocating quiet, “I’ve been waiting a long time for you, Y/N.”

You could feel the fire licking at your fingertips as you started, head whipping to the side to see who had managed to sneak up on you. “Who’s there?” you demanded of the shadows at the edges of the room that hid whatever figure was speaking to you.

“An Inferni,” he mused, still hidden away. “I suppose that is fitting considering everything.”

“What the fuck are you talking about?”

“And with a personality to match.” A chuckle rumbled around you. “Nevertheless, you can relax, dearheart.” Your heart just about stopped when the Darkling himself casually waved a pale hand to dismiss the veil of darkness that’d been rendering him invisible. “You’ll never be in any danger from me.”

“Sir,” you greeted stiffly with an awkward little nod. You’d never been one for bowing, anyway, no reason to start now. “I didn’t realize it was you; I apologize for my tone. But I must ask: Why am I here?”

“That, at least, is simple.” He paused in order to pull off a leather cuff that was fastened to his wrist. Once it was gone, it was only the simple matter of tipping his hand up that sent his billowing sleeve up to his elbow and exposed the red, familiar script of your own name.

“Aleksander . . .” you breathed, eyes slowly dragging back up to meet his grey ones.

“No one has called me that in a very long time,” he murmured, stepping closer to you.

You were forced to tilt your head back in order to keep eye contact. “That’s what happens when you forge a position called the Darkling, I suppose.”

“And that’s just what I managed to do on my own.” A terrible, almost feral smile spread across his face much like the shadows that writhed around the two of you. “Imagine what we could do together.”

Your own grin tugged at your lips, yours equally cruel as his. “Color me interested.”

#the darkling x reader #the darkling imagine #aleksander morozova x reader #aleksander morozova imagine #reader insert #shadow and bone imagine #grishaverse imagine #fantober2020 #promptober 2020 #Octoberwritingchallenge2020

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malewife-darkling · 3 years ago

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Evil Father Darkling headcanons?

So, this is assuming that Alina still grows up thinking she's an orphan as per callstolike's post

The fact that he is both Her Dad tm and Hundreds of years older than her is definitely used against Alina.

Like, "little girl", "young lady", "*miss* Alina" - all his favorite names to call her.

I feel like any Dad Darkling's attempt at parenting is him trying to heal the inner child that was hurt by Baghra. Especially Show Darkling, who when we meet him in canon obviously despises her. I like to think that he would train Alina to use her powers personally. And like, he would definitely push her to her limits, but he would also give her lots of praise. And he definitely would NOT hit her. (If he got her when she was a younger child he would probably ruin her by spoiling her rotten. Just turn her into an absolute bratty monster)

There is definitely a turf war over Alina between Baghra and Aleksander, but the Darkling has the upper hand bc he'd actually be nice yknow? I could see Baghra being nice to try and manipulate Alina to her side but honestly i think she would be worse at it than him.

The Darkling definitely tries to make her hang out with David, bc David is his Son tm and it's only right for his daughter and son to interact. I could even see him trying to encourage a relationship between David and Alina, just for getting David both as like, an Official Son, and getting that much more power over Alina by having her be with someone who is very much in the Darkling's kefta pocket. (Literally everyone but the Darkling thinks this is a bad idea, for the record. David is still clearly in love w Genya)

Zoya would deeply despise Alina like in canon, bc what is this New Girl that is taking all of Darkling's attention (no it doesn't matter that she's literally his daughter), and she'd be dropped by him in a heartbeat. Ivan would try to be nicer than he is in canon, but I imagine Alina still kind of hates him. She also doesn't understand why he's being nice to her until someone (Genya) points out "Alina he's literally dating your dad"

Alina and Fedyor adore each other. He definitely takes on a more Dad role than in canon, and I could see her being almost as close to him, or maybe even closer to him, than she is to the Darkling.

There is no way Alina would call Darkling "Dad" right away and this fact crushes him.

Alina: I mean, Mr Kirigan. Mr General Kirigan sir. Isn't there something else I could call you than... Dad? Like for now?

Darkling, holding back tears: How about P-Papa?

Alina:

Darkling, sobbing into his soup: They took you from me before you could even call me Papa, Alina

Now, the thing about Mal:

On the one hand, he fucking hates him. He is non-Grisha, he’s like dust to them, and also Mal hates Grisha and I cannot imagine him standing for his Little Girl having to deal w that

And yet, Darkling knows the pain of having a parent push away and forbid a love interest.

So on the one hand, he might outright forbid her from seeing Mal... but on the other hand, I could see him allowing her to see him, but assuming they will fail bc Mal hates Grisha, and Mal is a mayfly compared to Alina. And she’ll love her Dearest Papa all the more for allowing her this choice

So, w the way this au is structured, it would work best w Cis Darkling, just so the pregnancy would be able to be an accidental one off thing, so Alina would be able to grow up thinking she's an orphan when her mom dies

But if this was trans Dad Darkling, there are a few spicy possibilities:

I can't see him ever willingly carrying a baby to term himself, bc it would leave him way too vulnerable. Like, I could possible see him willing to as part of some Grand Design for Grisha Good (a Noble Sacrifice, if u will) but not until Grisha are safer

So, this would have to be a very planned pregnancy. Im thinking he could do something with merzost to create the equivalent of a magical bone marrow pregnancy. He either Loves This Person Very Much or this Mom is a Very Powerful Grisha)

But during her pregnancy, two things could happen: either the mom is kidnapped... or the mom runs away. Im leaning towards runs away, for the drama of it all. Maybe something like in canon, where Baghra gives the mom cold feet (reveals the darkling's past, reveals his plans for her child), and so Mom flees to the middle of nowhere (maybe she stays in Ravka bc she figures Darkling will think she fled him for Shu Han?)

Trans Darkling would also use the fact that Baghra is transphobic towards him to his favor. "You know that she likes to lie about me, to spread such nasty rumors about me Alina. You have to take what she says with a grain of salt"

"Baghra humiliated me in front of everyone at the last winter fete, do you really think she's above using her own granddaughter to hurt her son?"

Dad Darkling would still want to use the stag on her, but I can see him bringing up the idea early on. Especially since in this au he’s her mentor-dad, so having a strong, capable Grisha guiding her power would make a lot of sense to her. He could even have her think she was agreeing to it of her own volition.

Or he could even float his idea of using the fold as a weapon to her, and get her in on his plan. He would spin some lie about his wife being kidnapped by Fjerdans or Shu (or maybe he himself thinks she was kidnapped and didn’t leave of her own volition)

------------------

Anyways thats my thoughts on this au for now. I probably have more. Thank u anon this was so much fun to answer

#ask #dad darkling daughter alina au #long post #shadow and bone #the darkling #aleksander morozova #alina starkov #baghra morozova #this is kind of cursed im sorry #transphobia cw

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where-theres-smoak-2 · 3 years ago

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Ben and Mairzee both referred to Aleksander as an "antagonist" rather than a villain. Jessie has also spoken of his positive qualities and how Darklina share many similarities just with different povs. His motivations aren't wrong, only his methods/extremist mindsets, which arose from an isolated immortal life where all he could cling to was his cause and how all his previous efforts didn't work. But with Alina, he's not fighting alone, and he has someone equally strong enough to balance him.

Thank the tv gods for Mairzee, Ben and Jessie, they really do understand Aleksander and the darklina relationship. I agree I do think he's more of an antagonist than a villain. To me villains are usually just cruel for the sake of being cruel and have no empathy. I do think in the books the darkling becomes this but it isn't written well and its very frustrating because he had the potential to be a very interesting complex character, as the show proved. His motivations aren't wrong at all in fact they are actually noble, one of the things that irritates me the most is when they try to push the narrative that Aleks is doing everything for his own gain which isn't true he's trying to elevate his people out of a position of oppression and prosecution. Yes he does have an extremist method at times, but as you said this comes from his isolation and because his previous more peaceful attempts were not successful and still ended with his people being hurt and killed. But I would also, having thought on it some more, say that a lot of actions could also be chalked up to him having to make those cold, hard military decisions. In regards to Novokribirsk for example, of course it was terrible for those innocent civilians who died in the city and for their families, there's no denying that their lives were important and them dying that way was tragic and just awful. But the situation Aleks was in was very difficult and one I don't think many people think about. At this time Aleks was fighting a war on two fronts. His military force had been split into two, half at the shu han border and half at the fjerdan border. We also know from his speech in episode 4 that they were running out of money, aleks says the coffers are running dry. We know from both Aleks saying he lost so many good soldiers and Ivan's casualty report in episode 3 that they are also sustaining quite heavy losses. Basically the situation couldn't get much worse, except it can because then they get word that West Ravka is planning to rebel and become an independent state. West Ravka is where they get all there supplies from so them becoming an independent state is practically a death knell for the East. Also I feel like Aleks' line about the noose tightening and the king's attitude at the demonstration in ep 3 indicates that the King was putting alot of pressure on Aleks to fix the problem. So now Aleks is faced with two choices, he can try to find enough men to send across the fold to fight against the rebels and attempt to bring them back in line, if he could even find enough soldiers to squash the rebellion then that leaves the two fronts (shu han and fjerda) vulnerable and weakened. Or, now that he has Alina, he could expand the fold into Novokribirsk which not only would it be guaranteed to take out the rebellion, it would also likely scare people into not wanting to restart the rebellion but also its a show of power to fjerda and shu han and might be enough to push them into submission too. And it wouldn't cost him a single one of his soldiers, it wouldn't cost money, one move and the problem is gone. The only downside are the civilian lives that would be lost. But I feel like Aleks would've weighed up the cost between losing alot of soldiers on both sides to a fight against the rebellion, plus because there would be less soldiers at the fronts more people will die there too, and the cost of a few hundred civilians who could very well end up being caught in harms way anyway if there was a war with the west and ultimately decided that the thousands of lives that would be saved from avoiding a war with the west ravkans was worth the sacrifice of hundreds of civilians. It came down to a numbers game and unfortunately a consequence of war is that innocents get caught in between, and civilians lose their lives. For me this makes it harder to judge whether this move by Aleks is him acting as a villain or just acting like an army general in a world based on imperial russia where hard decisions have to be made in order to win a war. Nobody is saying its morally right

he did a terrible thing but we don't know how he feels about the civilians that were lost and whether he feels any sorrow or guilt for them. We do get an indication that he feels guilt over the people who were lost to the fold so I could imagine that he would also feel some guilt about Novokribirsk but he rationalises it in his head. Anyway think I might have gone a bit off topic here so ramblings over.

Now that he has Alina maybe she can show him a different way and they can work together and he won't have to burden the weight of the wars their country are fighting by himself. I do wish he had confided in Alina before making the move but I feel like their relationship was just too new and he was still building trust with her. I'm still holding out hope that they may move away from the books in season 2 and maybe have Alina and Aleks work together in some way, but we'll have to wait and see.

#darklina #the darkling #answered

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stars-and-darkness · 3 years ago

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growing flowers, building coffins and the scars au!!! (i'm particularly curious about the first one)

hi, ana!!!

so, growing flowers, building coffins is something i've had an idea of for a couple of years now, and i finally decided to write it! it's going slowly, but eh. there's no rush. it's a thor:tdw divergence where it's thor and not loki who dies on svartalfheim--cue loki being the one who has to deal with malekith, etc ... i guess the vibe i'm going for in this one is rather ... bitter. thick grief at thor's passing combined with acerbic humour. and of course, the loki & jane brotp we were robbed of.

“Loki … please.” More blood, red as roses, red as death, falling from those beloved lips like petals. “It’s enough … brother.”

“Loki,” Jane echoes, the name she’d never yet dared to speak out loud in his presence, as if it would invite his wrath upon her more so than it already was, invite his sneers and that venomous, cutting wit that cut deep, deep, bone-deep.

Green eyes find her, and it’s not disdain that greets her. They’re wide and frightened and panicked, and it strikes her then, truly, that they are brothers.

the scars au doesn't have a name yet, obviously, but it's a darklina au in which every time someone hurls an insult at a person, it appears on their skin as a wound that quickly heals. enough times, and it scars. alina has just been called half-breed one too many times and it's left as a thin white scar on her hand when she meets the black general, who is covered up head to toe, but not even that's enough to hide the first letters of darkling on his throat and the rest disappearing behind his collar. the idea is of course that aleksander who's been alive and hated for a very long time is pretty much covered in those words.

Alexei gets that shit-eating look on his face that means trouble when they return to their own tent. He grins lazily at the rest of them, eyes darting towards Irena with a pointed look. “Ah, yes. Very inhuman. Inhumanly pretty, maybe.”

Irena, however, doesn’t snark back. She looks up at them all with a haunted look. “Haven’t you seen his eyes? No human has eyes as dark as that.”

“Now you’re just grasping at straws,” Alexei returns.

“Who cares about his eyes?” Liev demands. “Have you seen his neck? Have you ever seen scars as deep as that?”

“Well maybe they’d be more common if more people had over a century to collect them,” Alexei snaps.

“It’s unnatural,” Raisa shakes her head. “He’s unnatural.”

“They’re just scars.”

She doesn’t understand she’s spoken aloud until they all fall silent, staring, willing her to continue.

#ella originals #ella writes #tag game #ana tag 🖤#ella answers

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bigheartedbibliophile · 3 years ago

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Ruin and Rising by Leigh Bardurgo

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐.5

Summary: 😈☀✋🏻💔☠🐱‍👤☠☠☠😲😭

SPOILERS

I fucked around and got too attached to characters haha. Out of the three books, I think this one was my favorite overall. The way the setting was written, the way the “gang” worked together, etc.

And so much shit happens!!!!

Nikolai being turned into a monster by the Darkling was epic, even though it hurt my heart. I saw this floating around, how the Darkling took away what was most important to people. Genya’s ability to turn heads, but now for a different reason. Nikolai’s ability to talk his way out of everything and come up with plans almost immediately, to be turned into a monster who barely registers he’s human, let alone be able to communicate anything. (the scene when Alina shows the ring!)

Baghra! Was kind of badass, to be honest, but it seemed pointless. Obviously, she hurt Aleksander the deepest way she could, but overall I don’t think it did much.

I was SHOCKED to learn that Mal was the last amplifier. Looking back at everything, it makes sense, but at the moment I was like holy shit! I thought that was a cool idea, and it intertwined Mal and Alina even more. Best friends should bring out the best in you, and that’s kind of what the amplifier does, at least for Alina’s power.

HOWEVER, the ending was bullshit. Mal should have just stayed dead. I don’t hate him, I just think it makes more sense for Alina to be alone, eternally, like the Darkling. I did think that lots of her followers became sun summoners, so she wasn’t so responsible for the world anymore. But losing her powers completely? Bullshit. Tumblr user @kallypsowrites says it best, so I’m going to quote them, as I couldn’t figure out why I was so upset by the ending until I read it: “Alina’s ending does not provide her with the same growth [being compared to Katniss]. Put aside the fact that she has an extremely positive relationship with her powers and a real love for them. Put aside the fact that she has more ambitions with Katniss. The ending of Ruin and Rising leaves Alina exactly where she was–In Keramzin, without her powers, with Mal, in a country where very little has ultimately changed except for the Darkling being gone.

Basically, the only difference is that she and Mal are romantically involved. And if your heroine goes on a huge, epic journey over the three books and ends up basically the same person? Then that’s a poorly written character arc.

It comes down to want vs need. In the Hunger games on page 1, Katniss wants to survive day to day and keep her family safe. But she NEEDS the space and safety to live, not just survive–and the only way to get that is to make a new world.

In Shadow and Bone on page 1, Alina wants to be with Mal. And according to the ending she needs…to be with Mal. There’s no journey in her want and need. She gets what she wanted on page 1 and her desires and wants do not change/develop throughout the trilogy. They seem to develop, but then they revert back/don’t have any payoff at the trilogy’s conclusion

It’s just such a flat character arc in the end and very disappointing.”

Alina was AMAZING with her powers, and her wanting her powers made her naive and stupid to other people, especially Mal. So of course she loses her powers to end up with him.

I will just continue to read fanfiction of Alina and Aleksander/Darkling because I 100% believe that had she not been shamed for liking her powers and for liking someone that made her feel special (and loved, he loved her 10000%), she would have been an amazing leader. They would have made each other better - Aleksander more human, Alina more ruthless (in a good way) Even her and Nikolai’s relationship made sense to me because it would have been political, but he also respected her ideas and opinions and would have been amazing leaders together. For her to just end up with Mal as she wanted from day 1... like... what was the point of everything?

I’m bummed the Darkling died, but I like that Alina made sure he wasn’t alone. I also like that she had her fake body and Aleksander’s have the same funeral. She definitely cared about him, and even though she was rightfully upset about what he’d done, she knew there was silk some part of him that was human.

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destiniesfic · 3 years ago

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I'm interested in Baghra and Aleksander's relationship show-wise. They only had a little time together on screen, but I kind of love her whole 'I-think-I've-created-a-monster' energy.

Also Aleksander has the weariness of a grown man whose aged but stubborn mother has moved into his house and is interfering with things like his career and love-life.

I'd like for them to put kid Aleksander on screen the way they did with Mal and Alina. With the way she was willing to kill Mal I can see where he learned some of his ruthlessness.

Also, I kind of want to see his Dad. Lol. He doesn't look ALOT like Baghra so he probably took after his father. I mean what kind of father was he? Absent? Negligent? Loving but inadequate?

I was reading Demon in The Wood so this is probably what brought on this line of thinking. I can kind of tell that all Aleksander ever really wanted was a companion. And he seems to be one of those little boys that never thought girls have cooties.

There's evidence of lots of dumb things done for a girl. Swimming at night. Creating evil dimension of darkness. All the shady stuff he did to endear Alina to him.

He's a convoluted romantic that way.

P.S

I don't think he actually needed to be such a scheming psycho. I'm pretty sure if he'd just asked nicely Alina might've agreed to his evil schemes anyway. But that's just me <3

I love that energy from her too! That "I've created a monster energy" was also very present in the books. I wish we had gotten to see "The Demon in the Wood" because it lends such a delicious sense of irony to the whole situation. Ma'am, you raised him to believe that you guys were the only important people in the world and you're surprised he's a narcissistic tyrant? I know they wanted to adapt that short story but couldn't because of logistical constraints; maybe we will get to see kid Aleksander someday.

I also adore the idea that Baghra is living in Aleksander's house and messing with his life, lol. I want to see his dad too! I was thinking in the scene where he's trying to intimidate her about how much taller than her he is and thought his father must have been tall. We know Baghra had dark hair when she was younger, so maybe he inherited that from her.

The notion of Aleksander of a twisted romantic is very good, and he has done a lot of dumb stuff for girls, but I think you're right in that even more than romance, he wants companionship. (I feel like Leigh said somewhere that he would have run the same playbook on Alina if she were a man?) He wants someone who is not his mom to spend his very, very long life with, and again the inherent tragedy of Darklina is that by the time that companion comes along, the Darkling has regressed to a person who is not equipped to be a good partner.

And that's the thing — I don't think Alina would be complicit in mass murder no matter how he framed it, but I agree she might have been willing to go along with some of what he wanted if he was forthright. But the person who would be forthright, who would be willing to sacrifice control for Alina's agency, died a long time ago. Maybe even that night on the ice.

#the darkling #aleksander morozova #general kirigan #shadow and bone #grishaverse #anonymous #ask

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amiramorozova · 3 years ago

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Dual Summoner x The Darkling pt. 29

We stayed in that inn for a while keeping a low profile meaning no Grisha powers so that we didn't attract attention. We had a decent amount of money so we were there for a few days. A party was going on down the inn for one of the mornings and we all went down to get waffles. I loved the taste of them being different from what the little palace had to offer.

"Wow, these are good." Marie said

"yeah I know." I said

I saw people dancing. Among them were my parents and my grandparents that I had to enjoy that time. I was with my family but that was all this was time with them before he caught up to us. My smile faded as I finished my waffles knowing that there wouldn't be times like this if I got dragged back to the little palace. It wasn't safe for Grisha outside the little palace but these days of freedom were more than what I cared for in the little palace.

"You're upset?" Marie asked

"I'm torn between my heart and my freedom." I said

"Heart and freedom?" Nadia asked

"I do love Aleksander, but I don't think I can go back there. I won't go back willingly when we have all this we can do whatever we want." I said

We were just chatting while we were eating but when I said Aleksander's name I saw a girl look over at us. I took in her attire in seeing she didn't seem out of the ordinary as we finished as she approached our group. I was wearing gloves just to keep people from knowing about the Darkling and I.

"May I sit with you?" The woman asked

"sure." I said

She did but the moment she did I noticed Nico looked a little worried and I questioned if something was up. Then I remembered that he was easily affected by heartrenders being he was from the first army. Marie, Nadia and I became aware she was grisha but since I had taken extra cover I had to be very careful.

"Easy. I am not here to hurt any of you and if I wanted to knock out your friend here I could have done it any time." The woman said then she offered her hand to me, "Nina Zenik."

I hesitated because I didn't trust many people when it came to who I was but Adrian came over taking my arm. "Cousin come on, let's go." Adrian said

"In a minute." I said

"Do you have trust issues?" Nina asked

"No offense Nina, but I've had a rough couple of days and rough years over the last ten years." I said

"Amira, your wrist." Marie said

I looked at it seeing that it was just an outline of the letters but I knew I couldn't keep running from him forever. Nina seemed to be surprised when she heard my name and I knew it was coming. I got up and put a hand on Adrian's shoulder smiling at him knowing he was scared.

"Come on Cousin, I will walk with you." I said

I was about to lead my thirteen year old cousin away when men came in and I noticed the way they were dressed. I'd heard of such men from Aleksander during the week with the first army. I had my dagger by my side if I needed it but I knew there was a lot going on and Aleksander was too far to wait for.

I have to lead this group myself and we have to survive. I thought

"Fjerdans." Nico said

I started removing my gloves knowing I'd need to use my hands for this and not hide. My grandparents, parents and aunt started to notice as I kept my cousin behind me. I kept looking at them as they started to speak about collecting up the Grisha they referred to as witches.

"Adrian." I asid

"Yes, Amira?" Adrian said

"stay behind me unless they get close then use your fire the way I taught you." I told him

I saw him nod as everyone waited for my move but there were too many people in here so I took Adrian out the back knowing they'd follow and let my family go out the front where they met with me and we all stood facing them.

"You are ours now." Fjerdan leader said

"I don't think so." I said

We all got ready as a fight started to come out and we were able to fight one on one or two on two depending on how many were near us. We had more than they did as there were only five and we were a group of nine Grisha. I was doing the best I could in the fight using everything Botkin had taught me as I saw Marie and Nadia doing the same. Marie and Nadia used their small science to create steam and I used it to my advantage to grab my Grisha steel dagger and I lunged attacking the Fjerdan plunging the Dagger in him as he gasped. I Stood up but saw the shadow of someone behind me and I realized I had no time to get them out.

"mörd drüsje" The Fjerdan said as I heard everyone yell my name but just as I turned to try to defend from the attack I saw shadows cut through the man as he fell and split in half.

Breathing heavy I looked at everyone seeing that we all were covered in blood and I never wanted a shower more than I wanted right now. When I looked at where the shadows came from I saw him. Aleksander walked over to see everyone but I questioned just how long he'd been there as I was breathing heavily. Not a word had been said as we went back to the inn and I walked in my room to shower getting that blood out of my hair and my peasant clothes were ruined.

well he found me. I thought

I walked out in a towel figuring he'd waited but no he was right there as I blushed a bit. He seemed to be in thought but I looked, seeing he had my silk dress. I rolled my eyes a bit looking in the bag my grandma asked my back to him as he just seemed to stare at my back.

"I'm not wearing that." I said

"You would wear it back at the little palace." Aleksander said

"We're not there and I really hate to draw attention." I said, "Close your eyes, how could you just come in here without thinking?"

He seemed to work out and I found something out of the clothes we'd brought along to blend in. I was able to change quickly as I sighed a bit drying my hair knowing that it felt good not to have blood in my hair. Still, I needed to show some gratitude since I could have died.

"Thank you." I said as I walked over to him and put a hand on his cheek "you can open your eyes."

When he did I was reminded of our time alone, my heart was beating fast and I knew why as I almost forgot about the stag but then I did remember about it. Letting my hand fall I started to walk away but he grabbed my wrist and I wouldn't look at him.

"Amira, I just want to talk to you." Aleksander said

"If you want to talk about returning to the little palace, I refuse." I said

Aleksander pulled me to him and made me sit on his lap as his arms secured around me so I couldn't move. I was trying to keep my decision in my mind as I felt his lips meet mine and I kissed him back. I didn't realize how much I really wanted to be with him after everything until this moment. I was torn because I was ready to accept being his wife soon but I wanted to be out here with my family that I hadn't been around in years. When we pulled away I was breathing heavily as I looked at him.

"You said once the stag was found we would get married, was that a lie?" Aleksander asked

"No, it wasn't." I said as I looked him in the eyes, "I meant it, this time away from you has hurt me but it's also given me what I never had."

I knew I couldn't still say it to his face even with everything that had gone on between us. I took the advantage to get out of his arms and head for the door I needed to check on the others but as I opened the door he closed it. I knew we were going back and forth avoiding it, avoiding saying what we felt...him due to 400 years of losing those he cared about. Those friends who did not live as long as him. For me I was completely alone most of my time in the little palace and it was hard to open up but somehow I could be with him just not fully.

"Amira, please. You can't just leave when there is something clearly on your mind." Aleksander said

"I don't want to feel trapped and I want to know my family. If I had a choice back when I was eight I wouldn't have been dropped off at the little palace because of what I was." I said

"You hear your words you speak of, they caused most of how you feel right now. Yet you want to know these people and feel like you belong." Aleksander said, "I know what it's like to feel alone and isolated."

I closed my eyes knowing that he was right but then I looked at him as I had my back to the door. I knew I wasn't the only Dual Summoner now, that there were others like me. I knew he wanted to have them in the 2nd army.

"I deserve to know all of my family, but more importantly I want to protect the Dual summoners." I said my tone serious

I think my words caught him off guard as he didn't expect that but I knew that there were others. There was me and my cousin so the possibility of more out there was going to be what I had to work towards. For a second we stood there silent knowing that there was always the question of was there more Dual Summoners and now I knew there were somewhere.

"They won't want to be found, they'll run for now." I said, breaking the silence, "So when we get married, let me be their leader."

"You've met another Dual Summoner?" Aleksander asked

"I won't say, He should make his choice, not anyone else make it for him." I said

"He?" Aleksander asked and he seemed jealous by the words but I started to laugh which surprised him. "Don't look so threatened. He is family to me but to you he's no one." I said

There was a knock on my door and I had an idea who it was "Who is it?" I asked

"Cousin, everyone is waiting." Adrian said

"I'll be out there soon Adrian. I'm having a conversation with my fiancé." I said

I heard Adrian walk away and I looked at Aleksander knowing that Adrian was untested from others because my aunt hid him. I could only guess that my grandfather was an Inferni and my aunt was too for him to be an Inferni/Tidemaker. Aleksander seemed to be having a serious look on his face before realization dawned on him and he actually started to laugh.

"You, You found another Dual Summoner and have been training him." Aleksander said, "You are the only Dual Summoner that is Sun Summoner and Tidemaker. So what is he?"

"Tidemaker and Inferni." I said

I think Aleksander was in shock to hear about this but then he considered what my influence could do. He seemed to be questioning his decisions. I could see that clear as anyone because somehow I could read him better than any Grisha in the 2nd army.

"So what do you want?" Aleksander asked getting close to me, pinning me between him and the door. "Whatever you want, Amira, you can have it. I can assure it will happen."

"I want a location for Dual Summoners, I want to lead them. People are scared and intimidated by you so please." I said

"Let's get married and everything you ask for will happen." Aleksander said as I nod pulling him close and kissing him. When he kissed me back it felt like we were sealing our deal, our promise here of what was going to be the future.

#shadow and bone #shadow and bone fanfiction #grishaverse #darkling x reader #team darkling #darkling #the darkling #general kirigan #aleksander morovoza #fanfic

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nicollekidman · 3 years ago

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Thoughts on dark*lina/al*rkling as a ship? (censored as to not invite unwanted drama) I know it’s the most controversial pairing in that fandom and I always like your spn takes so I’d like to know what you think abt them if you’re willing to share

i think they’re too complicated and interesting to think about just as a “ship” and i think it’s a really good example of introducing dynamics that have more going on than the author is willing or able to really dig into. also i wrote this on my phone so it turned into a very long jumble of half formed thoughts, any of which i could expand on in more articulate detail if prodded but

do i think the alina on the page in the trilogy as we have her should’ve ended up romantically with the darkling? definitely not! but do i think leigh introduced a relationship which is absolutely scorching and fascinating in its Implications if not it’s execution? yes!

and if we’re talking canon trilogy, the way leigh has alina’s story end shows me she had no interest in really doing anything more with alina than having her be the chosen one (tm) and punishing her for her aspirations, so i don’t mind going in completely different directions than what she does. but even so…. having your protagonist be obsessed with the villain and sexually/spiritually attracted to him and the possibilities he represents is SUCH an interesting angle to take, especially when you factor in their singularity in both power and life span, but their total imbalance in knowledge. alina as a character is power-hungry, brash, longing for stability (to hand off control), and so eager for… everything. she’s barely getting started in life and she’s so used to living in a bubble where she doesn’t have to think about what she wants bc she’s just a nameless orphan, she’s just a mapmaker…. and suddenly she’s calling down the sun and she’s a saint and she’s a savior and it’s a RUSH and there he is. the personification of Death and everything she’s meant to hate except he’s looking at her and he’s seeing her and he’s saying. death will not come for you (us) but we will greet it (each other) as a lover, and that’s intoxicating. but they have roles to play….. i think alina wishing in canon to kill her self while murdering him is the truest expression of what was going on with them the whole time, namely that she wanted to be with him and she was deeply deeply ashamed of that want and the selfishness of it, so it couldn’t exist (bc she is the Good Heroic Protagonist of a YA series). leigh making alina live past that encounter as a powerless isolated no one is a CRIME but the fact remains that alina’s last words as a narrator in her books is his name. so. miss bardugo id like to talk.

the darkling’s side in all this is really fun bc i think show aleksander and book aleksander are very different in their initial reactions to alina, but ultimately this is a monster who was once a man who is after all still a man, and eternity is a long time to be striving towards a Singular goal on your own. it’s not so much that i think alina should Fix Him but it’s. if you’ve cast away your humanity and embraced the label of Villain for longer than you were a man, what does it mean to finally find someone who reflects you back to yourself. like… he’s an immortal (nearly) amplifier who’s spent hundreds of years with tunnel vision, forgetting the individual in the mad rush to protect the collective. he’s got complete control over DARKNESS and has no one his equal. he wants the power she can bring him but he wants to draw the power out of her as well, for both their benefits. she could make him a better man… and that’s both a threat and a prayer. together they could change the world and then live in the world they created forever…. but he also knows she’s perhaps his only weakness, and it’s so much easier to play the villain than it would be to admit this role you’ve played for hundreds of years is not who you are or rather, who you want to be. and like. he is a murderer who’s literally Fated to be connected to a saint for the rest of their lives and if that’s not good narrative shit idk what is.

in my adult trilogy in my head, we get full hero corruption arc, because dark alina is my favorite thing to daydream about. and i could go on and on about THAT but i just realized it’s midnight and i’ve written Paragraphs so TLDR i think they should’ve both died in the book, bc on a “ship” level they shouldn’t be together in the books as they are, but like calls to like, there’s no darkness without light, the one thing more powerful than him or her is the two of them together, and they were BONDED to each other. for the duration of their eternal lives! leigh was too cowardly to see their storyline to it’s conclusion bc she couldn’t even let alina live as she’d written her, but they are 100% the most compelling dynamic in the trilogy and if left to their own devices would’ve corrupted and healed each other in equal measure. i kind of view them as inevitable like….. it’s the moon and the sun of it all. they would’ve been in orbit around each other forever and eventually the time would’ve been right for them to come together.

#shadow and bone #this is just SOME of my thoughts bc i have a lot of thoughts but i gotta rewatch #basically i don’t SHIP them as they are but i think if given the chance they would’ve and should’ve been together #also sorry but i actually do think they should’ve fucked in canon at least once bc the lack of sex in those books was REALLY jarring #but THATS a totally different post bc i have a lot of thoughts about that alone

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