#kribirsk

[gracefulbumblebee]

Dark Blood And Light (Pt.2)

(Grishaverse, Aleksander Morozova / The Darkling x OC)

SUMMARY: Beginning a new life can be joyful and exiting but also turn for the worse in just the blink of an eye. Haunted by this Anna tries to live her life in peace, before it will shatter again.

TAGS: trauma, carnations, fear, food, friendship, dorks

PAIRING: Aleksander Morozova / The Darkling x OC

W/c: 6.5k

A/n: It’s honestly been so long since I have updated this story and I won’t lie I have finished the second chapter for a while now, but wasn’t happy with it until now. So I hope you will still enjoy reading it after so long :)

All translations at the end of the chapter are from an internet webside. I do not speak russian, so if I by accident said something inappropiate or insulting, please tell me immediantly!

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Part Two: A New Life

Time, a concept that could easily be misunderstood. For time itself has no limit, so why had your time suddenly run out? I never found the answer, for I could not accept your cruel fate, believing there had to be something I could have done to save you from your blazing end.

Would you have answered me if you were still there? I had screamed your name at the top my lungs, but I was never able to hear your angelic voice again. But in the end my most sorrow was brought upon daylight, when I had realized what your last words were to me. And I will, until the end of time, keep them locked within my heart that burns to avenge your death.

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Coldness enveloped me the moment I had taken a step towards the small, deserted city. Most of my limbs were burning and yelling desperately for me to take a small break. But I knew if I had listened to this sirens call, my body would have fallen into a never-ending sleep of nothingness. I had clung to my last piece of hope that kept me going through the icing winter storm. Tears had run down my once soft and rounded cheeks, but those tears had instantly frozen once making contact with the icy wind. Exhaustion had begun to settle within my acing bones, while I continued heaving my body forward towards a hopefully better place. My mind was barley hanging onto my last bit of consciousness the further I dragged myself away.

Questions had and still fill my mind every once in a while, dark thoughts I would have never dreamed I could develop. Thousand things coursed through my already weakened mind creating a never-ending turmoil of emotions, that begged me to stop and screamed at me to finally give in and let myself succumb to the bitterness of the winter coldness. But even then during the constant banging against my head, I had continued to walk along the path leading to the city, even though I knew I would never make it there.

The violent winds grew stronger each second and kept sweeping me away, pushing my body from left to right. Had it not been for the storm, I would have probably been mistaken for a drunkard that had just come from a local bar. And as the wind grew even rougher and viciously, my warmth began to disappear as well, filling every fiber of my being with coldness. In a last attempt to keep myself warm I had desperately rubbed my hand against my arms, although I knew it would never be enough.

The horrible weather, made it impossible to hear even the loudest noises and even worse took away my vision all in one. The ongoing whiteness of the landscape around me never ceased and soon brought me to the point of madness. I always remembered it as my very own walk through the abyss, the wind howling against my ears like hungry wolfs awaiting my demise and even then through all this pointless journey the sheer beauty of it all amazed me.

 One step… two steps… three ste-

 Stumbling over my own feet, my body had finally decided to give up, that this fight for survival was not worth it anymore. A heavy weight fell from my shoulder as I had fallen first face into the thick layer of snow.

It appears my body, other than me, had long since accepted the cruel reality that would  crush my mind beneath its gigantic weight as well, knocking the last bit of air out of my burning lungs.

Years prior to this I had already given up on believing in our Saints. That they were actually there and would protect us if we fall, but at this moment I had wished so much that they were actually real. They would have helped me. But there was no one in sight and I was left alone in this world once again. I knew, no one would come to my aid, rescuing the girl before it finally froze to death. No one except myself was insane enough to walk through this hazard snowstorm.

Slowly I had slightly turned my head to the side as the screaming in my head grew louder and louder. But as I watched the beautiful snowflakes falling from the darkened sky, its fragile body settling onto my hand I felt a sense of tranquility within me, banishing the voices inside my head completely. My heavy eyelids tried to close themselves and for a short while I had though, it’s okay to rest, you’ve pushed yourself far enough, a little break wouldn’t be so bad. But I knew better.

Once I’d close my eyes I would never open them again, never see the world with my own eyes. I would be far away from here, which didn’t seem so bad, yet I couldn’t stop thinking of Alina and Malyen, their small hands whipping across their snotty noses as they cried and cried upon hearing of my descending to the other side.

Although, how would they even get to know about it. No one here or somewhere else knew who I was, where I came from or what I had been doing here in the first place. I was just another child that had been stupid enough to walk into the worst snowstorm that Ravka had ever seen. Of course, that wasn’t the case at all, but for others it didn’t matter anyway, after all it’s not uncommon.

And though I knew a message of me taking my last breath would never reach the two children, the thought of them going through it broke something within my heart.

Building up my last piece of strength I heaved my body to lay on my back, face looking at the dark clouded sky, observing the entrancing snowflakes cascading from it down to earth. How could a fragile thing like this bring me down onto my knees? It was almost laughable seeing them now gently fall onto my hands, while the wide mass of them continued to wipe painfully harsh across my face as the storm raged around my lying body. Little by little I lifted my arm and reached out to the elegant ice crystals, only to watch them slowly melt within my hands. Normally it would have not taken so long for them to melt, but my once warm and rosy colored fingers had already begun turning blue almost white by now. They had once held a lovely contrast to the cold white snowflakes but seeing both my fingers and the snowflakes hold such cold lonely colors I swore it was a frighteningly beautiful sight to see. Especially once I saw the ice building itself around my blue finger. I had tried moving them, but aside from numbness reaching out to me there was nothing. Absolutely nothing. I couldn’t feel them anymore, couldn’t move them like I wanted to anymore, they only remained stuck in one place making them look like an exquisite painting.

Time and time again my vision became blurry, slowly losing touch with reality. From head to toe everything felt numb against the sharp winds. And as I continued gazing at the white horizon I thought of a fairy tale I was once told about by Ana Kuya.

The story of Snezhnaya Koroleva, the snow maiden. It might have been an old wife’s tale, but thinking that she had even helped a small boy, who became nasty through the mirror shard being stuck inside his heart, made me fantasize. I had probably never been as good as I thought I was, no one ever is. And so, I thought, what if the snow maiden dressed in pure white and beautiful shades of blue would come to my rescue as well? Maybe she’d warm me with her white fur coat, kiss my head with her cold lifeless lips and whisper soothing words into my ear. Maybe she would have spared me great kindness once she’d realize I was just as cold as she was feeling. Would she have taken me away with her even though her heart was cold as ice itself ? Maybe. I would have been sitting in her ice slight that would have been pulled by the most breathtaking white horses. The snow maiden as cold as she was would have freed me from this horrible storm one way or another.

And as I gazed at my finger, I though how exciting it would have been if the woman would have actually shown up to warm my fragile looking body. Because soon after, darkness had slowly clouded my vision as black dots had begun to appear around me. My mind had been quiet for a while, having accepted what was about to happen as my eyelids finally stopped struggling against the pull of closing my tried eyes. Maybe seeing something so beautiful before everything would forever stand still for me was something meant to be, something that was meant to happen in order for me to finally look at life differently and for me to understand what he had gone through all this time, slowly dying inside as everything around you kept moving on.

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Walking through the small city of Kribirsk had never been beautiful or the most welcoming. The majority of people had left the city to die eons ago and only a few selected had remained there. It was truly depressing as you stepped foot into the narrowed streets of the city. Not a single light illuminated the passages where the sun had long since abandoned them and everything had succumbed to a never fading black. Wind would howl against your sensitive ears as you’d walk further down the grey badly paved streets. Every once in a while you’d tumble over on the empty streets as you would step into an enormous pothole and then curse the saints for making you fall into it. And as you’d walk further and further into the center of Kribirsk the buildings that once represented the most beautiful colors, would fade more and more into a dull and dirty beige grey. Huge and small cracks decorated their façade, people had given up on pretending everything had been alright. They had all begun to let go over their last pieces which would soon crumble completely into an enormous pile of ash. So, it was definitely not uncommon for many facades to consist of many different things to keep it together, like hanging a huge blanket over a whole that had once been a window, Anna always tended to compare them to patchwork carpets.

But like many citizens, most buildings were still in no good shape and were basically held together by the mere faith that was slowly but surely disappearing too.

As for the people of Kribirsk themselves, they tended to be rather secluded when it came to newcomers. Although you’d guess they’d be more outgoing when it came to them by now, considering many travelers had come to stay there over the decades. But regarding the people you would have to out them in two different categories, maybe three. There were a good majority that lived far away from the border at the far outskirts, where light was still met with gratitude and joy. Consistent of staying at least friendly they’d gladly welcome anybody with open arms, that is if you didn’t belong to one of the Grisha orders. And even though you were welcome with open arms you’d still be able to recognize the antagonizing pain that hid beneath their friendly appearance. And as you would ascend further into the city the scenery would get duller as well. Anna would say many would clearly recognize thus by noticing the thick heavy air that was scattered by various scents. Dirty smelling smoke rose from old houses into the sky, then settled withing the narrowing streets and made place for an even more gruesome sent that had your nose scrunch up in disgust.

Tattered sometimes moldy cloths hung on frail bodies, sewn together with a lousy thick garden thread, many souls slurring down the streets tumbling over their own feet, barley being able to stand up straight, begging for a loaf of bread or something more pleasant, those were pictures you’d witness the further you had moved towards the inner circle of the tiny city. Those were the other people, the other side of Kribirsk, poor and hungry, trying to make ends meet with no hope left for change. Soldiers, merchants or just by passers wouldn’t take a second glance at those people, ignoring the city’s condition and focusing on the huge black mas ahead of them. And as the conditions grew worse the further you’d step forward, the more outsiders ignored the actuality before them, too blinded by their own fear. The fear that made every bone in your body shudder with fright. Maybe it had been this fear or the citizens of Kribirsk that made the way towards the harbor appear like walking towards your own death sentence.

Whatever it might have been it made the primal instinct to flee even more urgent than before.

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Heels clacked upon making contact with the distantly paved roads leading towards the inner circle of the city. Click! Clack! …. Click! Clack! The noise barely noticeable above the screeching voices of merchants trying to sell their goods to naïve tourists and newcomers. Like sea guls they’d gather around the only place where they knew they’d be able to still their nagging hunger. “Hey, you! Wouldn’t ya like bones? From Sankta Lizabetha, dug them out myself!” shouted one man, while another kept boasting about his great hunting skills and tried to foist one tiny rabbit worth fourteen times it’s actual value to a young blonde. The ginger haired woman could only roll her eyes at those antics, as if they thought they could fool every single one of them, she giggled at the thought. It was quite ridiculous to see people getting scammed so easily just to satisfy their own greedy needs. She knew it was bad, but it wasn’t exactly her responsibility to begin with, so she turned her gaze away from the stalls and continued with her walk.

After a near decade of a never endings cycle hearing the merchants endless ranting, the woman finally arrived at her destination … Click!...Clack! Her footsteps stopped. Soothing teal and rose wood greeted her eyes as they traveled towards her own booth. Slowly pacing she roamed towards it until taking notice of a shadow leaning against it. “What in heavens name are you doing here malenkiy krolik*?” demanded a harshly soft-spoken voice. “Just the usual. Waiting.” the shadow answered. Frowning the woman creased her eyebrows and testily asked why. “To annoy you, what else.” Answered a deepish amused voice. Sighing the ginger haired woman stepped forward flicking the shadow or rather the boy on his forehead. “Ow” he cried out dramatically “How cruel, and to your own friend! How will I live with this betrayal” as he balled both of his hands together into one giant fist. “Oh, the agony!” he laughingly wailed and moved his hands towards his chest imitating a knife stabbing him through his heart. Sinking down onto one knee and then falling onto his back, the boy closed his eyes and stuck his tongue out at the side of his mouth. “Goodbye cruel world”. No longer being able to hold it in any longer both burst into a fit of laughter that echoed through the streets. “You … idiot!” said the woman between laughter as she looked at him lying in a mixture of mud and soggy snow. Japing he propped himself up and stretched his arms wide “Well, won’t you give me your biggest bear hug?” he asked grinningly while slowly walking to said woman. “Oh no no no, you stay away.” “Now, come on! I heard mud is supposed to be good for the skin, don’t you want to try it out?” teased the man trying to catch the running ginger. Arms indulged the woman and heaved her up from the ground hugging her from behind. “Got you” he mockingly whispered into her ear shell.

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A few miles away from Kribirsk on the road Vy a young woman roamed around the landscape before her, taking in the sight of pure despair that had waltzed over this part of Ravka. The autumn breeze had swept through her long dark hair and the warm sun had warmed her in the steadily colder getting weather. Behind her a young man walked towards her and bumped his shoulder with hers, laughing he argued with the brunette who found it everything but funny, which only made his smile grow tenfold. Next thing she knew he had already disappeared into the huge crowd of soldier, caravans, carts, and wagons over the hill. Quickening her steps the young woman followed him, although she remained one of the last people to arrive in the valley leading straight to Kribirsk and thus to the shadow Fold.

Mesmerized she had stopped in her tracks and looked upon the shadow Fold, speechless she continued to study the shapeless cloud that she had seen on maps so many times. But nothing could have compared to the actual Fold in front of her, no map could have grasped its darkness and the fear that instantly occurred the longer you starred at it. Many had called it the “Unsea”, a name that should encourage even the weakest soldiers and merchants, but not her.

The young man came back and whispered something into her ear that made her turn around to his smiling face. It was obvious to those who looked close enough, that the woman was very much liking his attention, but never to the girls that interrupted them. Instantly the dark-haired woman’s mood turned sour, and both continued with their walk.

The woman dreaded going into the Fold and hereby maybe making one of her biggest nightmares come true. She could only hope her travel would not turn out to be disastrous.

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Pale hands softly stroked the lush petals of a bright yellow flowers only to lay them down onto the rose wood counter and to pick up the next flower in her reach. The soothing smell of various flowers blended together and brought forth a mesmerizing smile. Her hands worked quickly on cutting the stems, making sure her precious colorful friends would survive a little longer. “A-Achoo!” the loud sneeze brought her back from the world she had been in mere seconds ago. “Remind me, why can’t you sell something else? You know how I react to them.” the boy from earlier complained. Scoffing the ginger replied “Well, to be honest whose idea was it to begin with again malenkiy krolik **?”. A defeated look crossed upon his face as he began to mumble to himself how stupid and mean the woman in front of him was. This only made the ginger head laugh out loud and shake her head in the process. “Hey! No need to laugh! And to think I was so kind to bring you Pirozhki***. Guess it’s all for me then.” he said teasingly while slowly starting to walk away. Abruptly she stopped her laughter and stood still, unmoving before hastily sprinting after him. “Wait!” she called out and grabbed the back of his dark leather like jacket. “You know I didn’t mean it like that.” Humming the boy smiled while still having his back turned towards her. Staying in silence the girl decided to hug his back, searching with her eyes where he had hidden the amazing treat she craved. Freeing himself from her grasp he laughingly turned around and held the Pirozhki over her head, waving. “Where you perhaps looking for this?” he said mockingly and kept waving it closer and closer to her face. Pouting the woman jumped up and tried to snatch the treat from his grasp without success. After many fruitless attempts Anna only crossed her arms underneath her chest and stomped back towards her stall, seemingly angered. Perplexed the boy jogged after her until he stood beside her “Come on Anna, don’t pout.” Ignoring him she went behind her stall again and began working on her flower display. He absolutely hated it when she did that, just to get a rise out of him. Guiltily the brunette rubbed his head in frustration, knowing he had no other option “Fine. Here you can have mine too, just don’t ignore me.” He said while holding out both portions. Grinning to herself proudly she snatched them out of his cold hands and happily began to munch on the first one. “And that is how you make efficient business” she said grinning with a full mouth and began to tend to her shop once again. “Yeah, yeah you got what you wanted.” mumbled the boy under his breath, acting angry. From the corner of his eye, he saw Anna and a small smile traced his lips. Satisfied he quickly bid her goodbye and began to walk away. “I’ll see you later Yuri!” she called out to him as he waved his arm above his head gesturing his reply.

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Two young soldiers trying to distract themselves before their journey wandered through the dim market of Kribirsk. Their shoes had already sunken into the muddy roads as they made their way through the gathering crowd. In all honesty Kribirsk wasn’t much to look at in the first place, too many taverns and pubs passed by the two. Not many other shops that caught their interest, there were the occasional shops that sold weaponry to defend yourself in the fold, the bone sellers and Alina was sure along the way there were a few brothels as well. Probably the only two things that stood out from the city were the whitewashed church in the middle of the town square and a small flower shop at the end of the trail towards the harbor of skiffs. Well, maybe it had not been so surprising to see the church, praying before the crossover probably wasn’t such a bad idea. But Alina had never been an overly religious person, and she surely wouldn’t start now, even though praying sounded pretty tempting at the moment. She hadn’t been able to sleep for the last few days, and it only gotten worse the closer the crossover day neared. Dreading her journey however had only been partly reason for her anxiousness, she had a feeling she couldn’t quite place right and it scared her. Sensing her fear her companion Mal spoke “Stop worrying already. They won’t even notice you there, and if they attack maybe they’ll take a look a Mikhail and see that juicy belly of his and leave us alone.” he jokingly tried to lighten the mood. Disturbed Alina glanced at him “I was kidding no one will eat him” “I know, you’re hilarious, ha ha ha” she replied sarcastically. Gently he pulled her to his shoulder and whispered that she’ll never be alone in this mess, because she has him at her side. Pulling each other forward they made their way further through the growing crowd. Smiling she walked alongside him “Oh! Her majesties spirits have been restored” Mal called out dramatically. Ticked of by his comment Alina turned to give him a punch, until she heard the repeating sound of clattering hooves and the many joyful shouts around them. Mal quickly yanked Alina from the side of the road making her crash into the stall behind her, destroying it in during her fall. Disorientated Alina tried to get up, only to notice another woman beside her with fiery ginger hair, brushing of the dirt from her dress. Before Alina could even begin to apologize both women’s attention was captured by the by-passing carriage, neither caring about the stall anymore.

Large black horses as intimidating as the fold itself dragged an even larger carriage behind them. Both women swore they had never been so fascinated, as they saw the coal black coach quickly passing by and everyone immediately knew whom it belonged to. The Darkling. Everyone was obvious to the fact that THE darkling sat right behind these doors with his personal guards on his track. Anna sat unmoving, following the carriage with her eyes as it grew smaller in the distance. She could hear her rapid heartbeat amongst the others around her and an unsettling feeling grew in the pit of her stomach as she saw the carriage stop near the huge black mass they called the “Unsea”. A strange dark familiar pull made its way towards her heart and the pressure of a million rocks upon it returned to her after so many years. It had terrified her back then as it does now and as much as she tried to blend out the quiet heartbeats that came from the place she feared the most, she wasn’t able to do it now that she had felt this familiar pull again. The heartbeats drummed inside her head, and it only worsened the moment she laid eyes upon the second coach that passed by herself and the unknown woman. Crimson red, like blood. With wide opened eyes she starred at it, too frightened to do anything else. Subconsciously her mind blared at her to run for cover and get away from them as quickly as she could, but her body remained paralyzed. Annas ears throbbed blaring out any noise except their heartbeats. They were loud, far too loud now. Panic arose in her, numbing her mind. Her nail dug into her own arm, trying to find solid ground until red spilled out beneath her nails. It didn’t bother her, the aching pain distracted her. But the closer the crimson color moved towards her the more she began shivering, screaming inside her head for her body to move until it would be too late. But her own body had different plans and refused. Breathing began to become hard as if her lungs forgot how to breath for a minute. Anna held the air inside her lungs for longer than she had to, until they had moved away no air had escaped. And the moment her body listened to her again she ducked behind the strange girl that laid next to her, hoping to make herself look as small and invisible as possible. Only after the third coach arrived did she finally allow herself to breathe again, and her lungs inhaled a huge amount of air before blowing it out again. The refreshing air that filled her lungs once again broke her trance washing her worries away.

While still trying to recollect herself and focus on the upcoming coach, something caught Annas eye.

A young girl that leaned out of the blue window, whose curly black hair swayed with the wind behind her ears. The ebony color shone in the slight afternoon sun and framed the girls face at the same time. Although her mesmerizing hair was mostly kept in place by a silver fox hat, that appeared far too big on her head. Admittingly her face was one of true beauty considering most beauty standards, high cheek bones, luscious lips and those eyes, oh those eyes. They were by far the most beautiful thing Anna had every laid her eyes upon. Anna felt like drowning in the strangers deep blue eyes that told of a lifetime of struggle that had never been put into words. Beautiful wouldn’t bring the girl justice Anna thought. Unfortunately, she didn’t have much time admiring her, as Anna immediately noticed the proud arrogant look of the girl scanning the roaring crowd around the blue coach, which only stopped once they had laid eyes upon two individuals. Her eyes clearly lingered on two handsome boys I know why many look at him this way, so why shouldn’t she, a Grisha, do the same Alina thought devastated. It’s only natural to feel attracted to something that appears to be out of reach. The stranger smiled to herself as the coach drove off the Grisha camp down below, never letting both males out of her sight. Great, another one. Anna exhaled annoyed too occupied with her own little problem. “-- to keep my hand hanging forever” Yuri’s voice startled Anna as she looked at his outstretched hand. Grasping it she was pulled upwards but stumbled right into his chest from the near force he used. Turning his head sideways Yuri looked away and silently celebrated his small victory. Embarrassed Anna pulled away and glanced at her feet, mumbling a small thank you. That’s when it hit her, her stall. She had spent all morning to make it at least look descend to attract people, and now it was ruined. Cursing to herself she spun around looking if she could see the stupid girl that caused her dilemma, but she was nowhere to be seen. Just my luck Anna grumbled. “What’s up with you all of a sudden?” “Nothing. Just help me out a little would you” the ginger head asked letting a long sigh leave her mouth. To her surprise Yuri was able to build up the stall very quickly, the only sad thing were the flowers that she now had to dispose of. Sighing again to herself, she tried to at least pick up what could be saved and laid it out onto the rose wood. “By the way, did you see the way the girl looked at me.” Yuri gleefully exclaimed while looking at the Grisha camp in the distance. “No, I haven’t seen it. Or do you mean how she looked at you like a piece of meat.” “Piece of meat? No. I only saw those heart eyes of hers. Do you think I could trick her now into giving me that ugly fur hat of hers? ” “Hey, don’t get too cocky now.” “Cocky? Me? Never.” replied Yuri grinning. Anna could only shake her head at his antics. “Don’t you mister have a job to get to?” “Maybe. But I’d rather be here.” Rolling her eyes, the ginger smiled and against her friend’s protest ushered him away. That idiot.

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It had been several hours since the higher Grishas had arrived and the crowd around the tiny market had begun to be filled with other Grishas that probably came from the camp near the fold. Having Grisha around Kribirsk didn’t bother Anna as much as it used to, but she still refuses to directly interact with them, and it’s not like they ever really stopped by her stall to buy something, which she was glad about. Just watching as they held their chins far too high for their own good as they walked around the gloomy city, maybe that amused Anna to a certain extend too. The pure confusion when one salesman tried selling them something while having one of the worst accent she ever heard was highly laughable. She knew almost everybody that sold something here messed with them out of pure spite, not being able to stand that Grisha put themselves onto a higher position than they actually were. Pure arrogance was often a feature that was noticeable in their expression, but you know what they say pride comes before they fall. So, it was neither surprising nor exactly foreseeable that Grisha usually only came to stalk up on their food resources and nothing else, not wanting to interact with the locals longer than they actually had to.

That’s why Anna was even more startled when she saw a tall but thin blonde Grisha in a crimson red Kefta walking towards her. She said to herself, that he was probably walking to someone next to her, there are many popular stalls next to her after all. But to her dismay the blond continued his way to her and all she was able to focus on were his footsteps that grew louder as they neared her. Ba bump. Ba bump. Her heartbeat started to pick up as she felt sweat starting to form within her palms and on her forehead. Reacting to her own fear her body began to tremble, and her clammy hands could barely stop shaking. Overwhelmed small tears of frustration gathered within her eyes, waiting to spill out and drench her. How can I get out of this? The young woman watched the blonde man come to a stop right in front of her, looking at the plants she had left after the incident from this morning. Aware that he would be able to hear her heartbeat as well, as she did right now, she made the stupid mistake of trying to calm her it on her own. The blonde gently looked up at her and smiled, as if telling her, yes I know how your feeling. Sucking in her breath her heartbeat picked up again, hammering against her ribcage. What are you doing? The woman asked herself, feeling that she was frozen to the spot by her own fear once again “Hello… can, can I help you?” Anna timidly mumbled, not meeting the strangers’ eyes. Only silence followed her statement, so Anna tried again but a little bit louder, that caught the man’s attention. “Of course. I’m looking for something special for … someone” he gently and joyfully replied. Relaxing a bit seeing that he isn’t as intimidating as he appeared the ginger hesitantly answered him, asking what kind of someone he meant. Grinning he began to talk about a person and Anna could clearly tell the change in the man’s heartbeat as it picked up at the mention of his special someone. A small barely noticeable smile grazed her lips, no longer thinking about the crimson kefta that had frightened her, but starstruck by the loving words from the man in front of her. But the fear remained none the less as the back of her mind continued with feeding her with gruesome scenarios on how everything would play out if she seemed anything less than innocent to him. The horror scenarios caused her hands to tremble again as she picked up a bundle of Carnations. “Beautiful aren’t they?” she whispered to herself and looked at the Carnations color fading from red edges to a pure white. “They are.” came a sudden very loud reply, making Anna suddenly jump back a few inches.

Stumbling forward the woman slowly lifted her arm, only so much, that it wouldn’t be noticeable under the wooden board. Anna felt the veins in her hands pulsating, she could make out the blood rushing through them and pumping into her heart. Shaking like a leaf the ginger started up at the blond male in front of her scanning all of him for potential danger. But her rationality flew out the window when she caught eye of a second man striding towards her. Panicked red mist seeped out of her trembling hand forming into a small ball of red misty energy, swaying with the movements of her fingers. Slowly the mist crawled its way into the blonds ears and soon after made his once sky blue eyes turn into a deep red color. Anna moved her fingers, the blonds eyes began to give her a dazed look as his chest tensed and his breathing consistently became harder and rougher. The ginger woman moved nearer, no longer trembling but with her tears finally spilling from her eyes. Rapidly drawing her arms back towards her chest, the mist vanished into thin air What was I doing? She asked herself, slowly beginning to scratch at her skin again. Hastily trying to overplay her little slip she rambled under own breath “Carnations are a symbol of love. I th-think your partner might like them. The white re-represents luck and the pinkish red on the outside sh-shows your affection and admiration.” Opening his eyes, the Grisha looked at her confused What was it that I was doing here again? His gazes shifted from the flowers to her while his smile never faded and then his thin hand dropped a small number of coins into her palms. Gently the blonde took the flowers from her hands “… Thank you…” came the tired reply from said man.  And with that the strange Grisha left, sometimes tumbling over his own two feet, but steadily getting better.

Fear settled within Anna, what had she just done.

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Smiling to himself the blonde man made his way towards the huge black tent that stood in the middle of the field surrounded by his fellow Grishas. Holding the flowers in one hand he didn’t watch the path ahead and bumped into a huge mass of black. Startled he looked at the person he had run into and upon making eye contact quickly apologized before the man in black grabbed his writs in his hand and dragged him towards a black tent. Unsurprisingly the inside was the same as the outside, everything held in a never-ending black color. Saluting to the person in front of him, the blonde began to answer to the question that was harshly asked by the man in front of him. Carefully listening, the man walked around a wooden table until he stood right in front of the blonde again. “Raise your head Feydor. I thank you for this information. See to it, that she will be here tomorrow.” What would he want from her? “Of course, sir.” “And clean yourself before you go to Ivan with these.” pointing at the flowers in Feydor’s right hand. “Of course, sir. Goodbye.”

__________

Cursing her stupid self for exposing herself, Anna wandered around Kribirsk looking for Yuri in hopes he could help in hiding her for a while. She looked around every nook and cranny unconsciously wandered further and further away from the city center. Until she found herself standing in the first army’s camping ground. From far away her ears was able to her loud yelling as well as cheering, curious she moved towards the large thin brown tent in the middle and took a look inside. But to her disappointment they were all only gathered in a circle cheering on a fight if two men in the middle of the crowd. Deflated Anna turned her back on the sight and tried to make her way out again, but many soldiers pushed her aside. Loud screams blurred together and slowly made her head hurt. Pushing further towards the exit Anna kept rambling people earning her a furious glare. Well, I might as well look around  if I’m already here. Peeking through almost every open tent she passed by she soon discovered a tent filled with various maps from Kribirsk, to Ketterdam to a whole map of the world. The drawings were exceptionally breathtaking, so skillfully drawn and so detailed. Anna couldn’t help but let her hands glide upon them, looking for any kind of imperfection. The thread and the paint underneath her fingers felt so old and full of love for its art. Fascinated by the beauty before her she failed to notice the larger growing shadow building itself up behind her “What are you doing here?” demanded a scratchy but youthful voice.

* meaning: little rabbit

** meaning: little rabbit

*** piroshki, a common fast food in Armenia and Azerbaijan. In Armenia it often contains a potato or seasoned meat filling.

Written in 2023. Do not copy, translate and then repost without my permission.

#shadow and bone #shadow and bone fanfiction #alina starkov #ben barnes #the darkling #the darkling x oc #kribirsk #friendship #zoya nazyalensky #malyen oretsev #yuri belova #elisabeth olson #books #leigh bargudo #shadow and bone trilogy #grishaverse #darkbloodandlight #grisha #fantasy #flowers #scarlet witch

[marvelmusing]

In Another Life

Masterlist

Pairing: Aleksander Morozova x Alternate Universe!Reader

Summary: When the making at the heart of the world steals you from your own universe and drops you into the fictional country of Ravka you’re thoroughly bewildered. But this is an opportunity for you to right every wrong - and hopefully save one life in particular.

Word Count: 60.5K - COMPLETED

My Masterlist • Series Playlist

Read on AO3 HERE

Part One

One moment you’re going about your usual day, the next you’re in Ravka - the fictional country in a fictional universe. When you realise that the story you know by heart hasn’t even begun, there’s only one person you can think of going to.

Part Two

After a restless night of sleep, you wake with too many thoughts in your mind. The contents of the General’s war table provide an ample distraction, and soon the man himself joins you.

Part Three

You and Aleksander journey to Kribirsk, where everything starts to become real for you, as your plan is finally set in motion.

Part Four

Accompanied by your new recruits, you and Aleksander return to the Little Palace, and soon settle into a comfortable routine. But nothing ever stays the same for long.

Part Five

Alina is presented to the king as the sun summoner, and from that point onwards you and Aleksander become increasing busy - and apart.

Part Six

An unexpected visitor arrives with some good news, and Aleksander makes a earth-shattering discovery.

Bonus Scene

As your first interaction with Baghra occurs, a wounded Aleksander returns from a mission, and you have no chance to ponder over her opinion of you.

Part Seven

The search for the stag takes your group north into Fjerda, but it’s after you return to Os Alta that a surprising event occurs.

Part Eight

The Winter Fete goes smoothly, a perfect evening followed by a foiled assassination. A few days later, you and Aleksander journey into the Fold.

Part Nine

After a dramatic arrival into West Ravka, your group travels to Os Kervo, and you recruit a pirate privateer to join you in the search for the sea whip.

Part Ten

The hunt for the sea whip has begun, but a number of obstacles stand in your way, demanding more from you than you ever thought possible.

Part Eleven

Your near death experience has taken a toll on you, which forces Aleksander to come to a realisation.

Part Twelve

A successful return to Ravka prompts you to share warnings of the future with Aleksander, and a new (but not unfamiliar) character invites himself into your schemes.

Part Thirteen

Slowly the pieces of your plan for the Fold come into place, but thoughts and fears of the future continue to haunt you.

Part Fourteen

Ravka’s seat of power changes, and Aleksander makes a discovery that sends you both north in search of his sister.

Part Fifteen

As Alina is about to bring down the Fold, Aleksander suggests a theory that lifts your hopes.

Part Sixteen

Together, you and Aleksander journey to the monastery of Sankt Feliks. To mend the tear at the making, a sacrifice from one of you is required.

Part Seventeen

With the remains of the Fold vanquished, the people celebrate. Together, you and Aleksander work to establish peace in Ravka and a safe haven for your Grisha.

Bonus Scene

Alternate Ending

Until I Found You - IAL (Aleksander’s Version)

Aleksander isn’t expecting to find love in this lifetime, that is until you arrive. - A collection of scenes from In Another Life from Aleksander’s perspective, as well as a bonus scene.

-

Post-In Another Life

Future Uncertainty

Lingering insecurities rear their head now that everything has been resolved, and Aleksander encourages you to share your fears. (set mid-part seventeen)

The General’s Crown

In an attempt to escape the attention of being a living saint, you retreat into the fields and create flowers for the local children. It isn’t long before your husband finds you.

Christmas Eve

Its your second Christmas in Ravka, your first with the country at peace and Aleksander as your husband. Together, you have the perfect Christmas Eve.

The New Year

It’s New Years Eve, and the first time you’re celebrating with Aleksander as your husband.

What the Future Holds

Immortality suits you well, and your new life with Aleksander is better than you ever could have imagined.

#in another life au #aleksander morozova #aleksander morozova x reader #the darkling #the darkling x reader #the darkling au #shadow and bone au #shadow and bone x reader #shadow and bone

[myhairpintrigger]

Grieving for the Living (Aleksander Morozova x fem!reader) Part 4

The entirety of a capricious and treacherous marriage between the Darkling and the Lantsov princess.

read previous parts here!! part 1 part 2 part 3

-

word count: 11.7k

warnings: nothing really, everything is canon typical. examples of an unhealthy relationship

taglist: @il0vebeingdelulu @mellowarcadefun @budugu @eir964 @arwensloanebarnes @marytvirgin @chaoticcoffeequeen @claire-loves-music

-

“Look at her, with her chin held high. She sympathizes with the witches, you know.”

“I heard her husband tried to kill her and she only escaped because of the Sun Summoner.”

“No, you’ve got it all wrong- she’s only here to spy on her family. She’s the Darkling’s whore, now.”

“Someone told me that she was the one that orchestrated the Darkling’s death. But what can you expect? Poor girl. She’s a princess and she was forced to marry a monster.” 

“Rumor has it she’s carrying his demon child.”

People love rumors. Even “good” and “noble” people love them. Powerful men love them, proper ladies love them, everyone will indulge a rumor or an especially interesting piece of gossip. 

The only thing people love more than a good rumor is a very public fall from grace. 

You’d once been Ravka’s darling. The crown jewel of the Lantsov family. People loved you, they adored you. You hadn’t really kept up on public appearances after your wedding, but after that, there had been a steady decline in your popularity. 

No one wanted to see the promising young Lantsov daughter married off to the Darkling. 

Then of course after the mishap on the Fold that left Novokribirsk consumed by darkness, you had become hated. Feared. Despised. 

Most people thought that you had helped the Darkling organize the entire ordeal, and those who didn’t believed you to be spineless and foolish. 

Eyes were on you now. Narrowed eyes. Accusatory eyes. So many eyes. 

You grasped Vasily’s arm tightly as he led you through a crowd of Ravka’s nobles and their families. You weren’t entirely sure what everyone was doing here at the Grand Palace, but you knew that it was a political meeting of sorts. 

Your father had taken ill and Vasily was ruling in his place. An interim ruler of sorts. 

You weren’t supposed to be here, you were supposed to be in your bedroom, but you had tried to sneak out. You wanted to go riding, you wanted to clear your head. Unfortunately, your brother had found you before you even had a chance to make it to the stables. 

You and Vasily had never gotten along well, but since you had returned home after running for weeks and weeks, from town to town, he’d stunned you with kindness and concern. He believed every word you told him about the Darkling and about how you had to escape him, unlike your mother who strongly believed you would bear his “devil child”. 

The two of you made your way through the crowded room in silence, and you held his arm as if it were your lifeline. You had heard the same gossip since you returned home. You heard it from town to town when you were trying to get home from Kribirsk, and you heard it now, all around you. 

You had both nearly made a successful escape from the crowd when you heard someone call out your name. 

“Princess y/n!” 

You and Vasily both spun around to see a woman standing behind you. She held a glass of wine in one hand and the hand of a small child in the other. 

“Y-yes?” You asked softly. Vasily gave your arm a gentle tug, but you turned to him and gave him a pleading look. He relented and allowed you to talk to them, but he didn’t let you let go of his arm. 

“My husband. He was in Novokribirsk when the Fold swallowed it whole. When your husband murdered an entire city.” The woman deadpanned, swirling the red wine in her glass. 

You let out a dejected sigh and gathered the skirt of your lilac colored dress in your free hand and you gave her a sympathetic look, “I am sorry for your loss. I, too, am grieving the loss of the city of Novokribirsk.”

“You don’t look it.” She shot back.

“I assure you-“ 

You were cut off by the woman flicking her wrist and splashing the entire glass of red wine all over the bodice of your dress. You gasped and took a step back before Vasily dropped your arm and brought his fingers to his mouth. He let out a loud whistle and a few guards came running towards them. 

“This woman has just… assaulted my sister.” Vasily announced and pointed at her. 

The guards moved towards her, likely to detain her, and Vasily grabbed your arm and tugged you away. 

“It’s your fault! My child will never see her father again! You cannot silence me! There’s a thousand just like me!” She screamed and you could hear her grunt and struggle against the guards, but Vasily would not let you look back. 

Once you both had made it out of the grand hall and into the corridor leading to the staircase, Vasily let go of your arm and he pulled a handkerchief out of his breast pocket. He handed it to you and motioned to your exposed chest and neck. 

“You might want to wipe that off before it gets sticky.” 

You took the cloth from his hand and you dabbed off the droplets of wine that had made it to your chest. You let out a small sigh and looked up at your brother, offering his handkerchief back to him. He took it and stuffed it back in his pocket before he reached out and placed a hand on your shoulder. 

“Things will get worse before they get better. But they will get better. You’re here to stay, y/n. Let their tongues wag, sister. You are royalty. It doesn’t matter if they love you or hate you now, their opinions can be swayed. And they will be. Just not today.” Your brother said softly and you shrugged. 

“They have their minds made up. I’m only as good as my husband in their eyes.” You stated, motioning to your stained dress. 

“Y/n, their minds will change.”

“And then what? Tell me what then? I’ll be in their good graces until a man close to me screws up and then I’ll be cursed all over again. I am a woman, Vasily. I will always be blamed for a man’s poor choices,” You pointed out, wrapping your arms around yourself, “Our own mother thinks I am corrupted.”

“She’s just scared and confused, y/n. Father lays dying because of the Darkling. She’s just… naïve.  No one ever accused her of being the brightest. But she never had to be.” He explained, trying to set your mind at ease. 

You placed your left hand on your forehead and you sighed, “I just wish this past year had never happened, Vasily.” You breathed, shaking your head slowly. 

Your brother eyed the hand you had on your forehead suspiciously and then he reached out and grabbed your wrist, “You know, Mother might have an easier time believing you if you didn’t still wear your wedding ring.” 

You glanced down at your hand as your brother held your wrist and you frowned, “I don’t see it as a wedding ring. My friend made it. I think of it as a gift now. He’s the one that helped me escape, Vasily.” 

Your brother rubbed a hand over his face and then he lowered his hand and placed it on your shoulder, “Sister, what happened to you was awful, and I’m sure it’s going to stay with you for a long time, but I think the best way to begin to move past it is to let any and all Grisha go. They are a poison to our society.”

“Don’t marginalize an entire group just for the actions of a few bad people, Vasily.” You whispered, frowning. 

“Y/n. We aren’t going to talk about this right now. I must join the meeting. Go to your room and stay there. Get some rest, just… go.” He sighed. He patted your shoulder once and turned on his heel, making his way back into the hall. 

You watched him disappear into the crowded room and you rubbed your face exhaustedly. Grasping your skirt in your hand, you trudged up the stairs with a sigh. You made your way to your bedroom and you closed the door behind you. You stared at the door handle for a moment and then locked it. Ever since you’d run away from Aleksander, you couldn’t help but feel like he was only one step behind you everywhere you went, like he’d always find you one way or another. 

Everyone said he was dead, torn to pieces in the Fold, but deep down, you had your doubts. You couldn’t explain how or why, but you just felt like he was still out there. 

When you had begun your journey back to Os Alta from Kribirsk, you didn’t stop for more than an hour at a time, bouncing around from village to village, town to town, moving constantly. Then the news began to spread. The first time you heard that Aleksander was presumed dead was when you sat in a small inn, warming your hands by a fire. From then on out, you slowed down a bit. Then the rumors about you came, and you began to move much quicker again. 

You slowly pulled your dress off of your body and let it fall to the floor, kicking it aside. You’d pick it up later- you just wanted to lay down now. You grabbed the nightgown you’d worn last night off of the end of your bed and pulled it on before you laid down on your mattress and yanked the blankets up over your shoulders. 

It wasn’t overly late, but there was nothing else to do except sleep at this point. You didn’t want to see anyone. 

You lifted your hand up and held it over your face and you peered up at the delicate ring that you wore still. You’d had enough sense to take it off of your ring finger, and now wore it on your middle finger. As pathetic as it may seem, you didn’t feel right taking it off. 

Your husband’s words echoed in your brain for what seemed like the hundredth time this week as you lowered your hand and bit your bottom lip. 

“Your country will hate you. You will be cursed with the title of my wife for as long as you shall live. You’ll be treated no better than Grisha.”

You lowered your hand down onto your stomach and you looked up at the ceiling with a small sigh. Until today, it had only been rumors. Gossip. Today you’d had red wine thrown at you. What about tomorrow? Things couldn’t just keep getting worse. 

But you’d find that they could.

And they would. 

-

“Mother and I have been talking.” Vasily stated, setting his cup of tea on the table next to you. 

You looked over at your brother for a moment and then you shrugged, stirring a bit of honey into your tea. 

“What of?” You asked, looking back down at your tea. 

“Well, we think that perhaps, for the time being, we ought to send you to Ketterdam. To study at the university, or apprentice under a politician-“

“The Fold was hardly safe to cross a month ago. What makes you think that it is crossable now?” You asked and pulled your spoon out of your tea. You pointed the spoon at your brother and clicked your tongue a few times, “I’m not going to Ketterdam, Vasily. That’s silly.” 

“It’s not,” he reached out to push your spoon away and he sighed, “Sister, there have been threats made on your life. Last week you were attacked more or less. If we are going to take risks, I’d rather it be this one rather than just sitting here and wait for you to be attacked.”

You blinked a few times and looked over at your brother, “Come on, Vasily. This feels like a punishment.”

“It’s not a punishment, sister. Being in Ravka just… is not a great fit for you right now.” 

You laid your hands flat on the table and you ran your tongue along the backs of your teeth angrily. 

“And what does Father say of this?” You asked, drumming your fingers against the tabletop. 

“He agrees, y/n. You’re a sitting duck. For many reasons. One, there are people in this country who think you should be held responsible for the Darkling’s actions, we aren’t going to wait for someone to try to hurt you. Two…” Vasily trailed off and he let out a small sigh, “Mother and Father told me not to tell you. But I’m going to because you are bound to find out on your own regardless. Sister, the Darkling lives.”

It was as if your blood turned to stone and your heart had stopped beating. Your mouth felt dry and it became very difficult to swallow. Your vision came in and out of focus and you let out an unconvincing, incredulous laugh. 

“He disappeared in the Fold. He didn’t emerge. He lives not.” You weren’t sure who you were trying to convince; yourself or Vasily. 

Your brother shrugged and he took a sip of his tea, “I’m only relaying what I’ve been told.” He remarked, setting his teacup back down onto its saucer. 

The clink of ceramic made you jump slightly and you looked over at your brother, “He cannot be alive, Vasily. He will come for me. I ran from him. In his eyes, I betrayed him. He will come for me. He can’t be alive.” You pleaded, feeling sick as you glanced down at your own tea.  

“That’s precisely why we’d like to send you to Ketterdam, sister. With a full team of guards. There are smugglers that are very good at what they do that can safely get you across the Fold. Once you’re across, you can go straight to Ketterdam. You’ll be safe there.” Your brother explained, reaching out to touch the back of your hand, “We can’t afford to lose you. Not when we are faced with losing our father, Nikolai hasn’t been home in over seven years… please. Go willingly.” 

You felt shaky and lightheaded, as if you hadn’t eaten for days, panic filling your chest and your lungs as if it were a mere inhale. You looked away from Vasily and you stared at the wall for a long time before you gave your brother a very slight nod. 

“Do you promise that these smugglers can get me across the Fold safely?” You asked slowly, your voice sounding distant in your own ears. 

“We have had major success with them before, and they aren’t Grisha.” He insisted, placing his hand on your shoulder. 

“Okay.” You whispered and gave Vasily a small nod. 

“It’s for the best.” Vasily said softly and gave your shoulder a little squeeze before he stood up from the small table you two sat at, “Perhaps you should start thinking about packing.” He remarked and then walked away, likely going off to speak to your mother or whatever else he deemed important. 

You stayed seated at the table for a long time and you looked down at the ring that fit snugly on your middle finger. You bit your bottom lip and you shook your head once. Surely he was going to look for you at some point, you just didn’t know what point that would be. 

Maybe, just maybe, if you left as soon as possible, you could get ahead. Leave Ravka, get halfway to Ketterdam before he caught wind of it- if he caught wind of it at all, of course. You slowly rose from the table a few moments later and you shuffled out to the hallway. 

You glanced at the set of double doors at the end of the hall that led outside towards the Little Palace and you bit your lip. You checked over your shoulder briefly and then you quickly made your way outside. Once you were positive you hadn’t been seen or followed, you walked briskly towards the Little Palace. You swung the doors open and moved inside quickly before closing them again. 

You weren’t entirely sure why you were back here, you hadn’t been since you’d returned back to Os Alta. Vasily and your mother had forbidden it. As nice as Vasily had been, you had come to realize he was just as wary of you as your mother. 

Whatever. 

Nothing you could say would change their minds, and nothing short of being the one to remove and deliver Aleksander’s head to them would make them ever think that you weren’t somehow in on what he did. 

Of course that hurt, though. You had never felt loneliness like this before. 

You wandered through the halls silently until you reached your old shared bedroom and you pushed the doors open. 

The place had been ransacked. Likely by guards and probably your brother as well, looking for anything that might help them with the Fold. 

Your wardrobe hung ajar and some of your dresses had been tossed to the ground, but for the most part, your things had been untouched. You wandered around the room silently, feeling a small pang of guilt in the pit of your stomach. Feeling guilt for what happened was insane to you, yet there the feeling was. 

You glanced at the bed and almost felt tears rise to your eyes. You swallowed them back. 

Despite your husband’s perversion of Alina’s power and his endless chase for his own, sometimes when it was just you and the silence, you missed him. 

Not the power-hungry him. The version of him that remembered that you liked sunsets and took time out of his nights to show you them. The version of him that surprised you so excitedly with a dress that matched his own ensemble. The version of Aleksander that fussed over you being cold, that wrapped you in his cloaks and offered to carry you. 

Your relationship with Aleksander was complicated. It was up and down and there were a lot of things on his end that he never told you of. Loving him was so short, yet trying to forget him would last you a lifetime.

Some days you were convinced that your relationship was founded on lies and deception and that it wasn’t even healthy for either of you. Then, other days you were certain he was the love of your life, and it pained you that his drive for power made you collateral damage. 

You would have stayed forever if he had seen sense, chosen you over his want for power. But he didn’t, and that was a painful reality. 

You turned on your heel and took a step towards the door before your foot hit something on the ground. You looked down to see one of your husband’s large, thick cloaks and you sunk to your knees. You gathered some of the fabric up in your hands and you held it against your chest for a moment. You ran your fingers over the soft cloak and then you let out a long, sad sigh.  

You wondered if he ever thought of you the way you thought of him. Sweetly at times, scornfully at others. It was hard to imagine that he’d think of you fondly, though. Especially after you ran away. 

You did what you needed to do. 

That’s what everyone told you. Your mother, your father, Vasily. All of them. It was the right thing to do. You would have just been a little trophy that he got to show off as if to say “look at me. I’m so powerful that even the Ravkan princess would take my side.” 

That was his plan all along. You knew that. He’d all but admitted it. The luxury of love and care he offered was a reward for submitting. It was wrong. Everything was so wrong about his proposal to you the night he had planted the amplifiers in himself and Alina. He’d gotten one thing right, though. You had turned out to be hated and blamed by the masses, just as he had predicted. But it was the right thing to do, wasn’t it? 

Some days, for just brief seconds, you weren’t so sure. 

You shook the thought off as quickly as it had come and you stood up, dropping the cloak back to the ground. 

No, you did do what you had to do. To keep your freedom. 

You quickly left the room and you took up an unforgiving walking pace back to the Grand Palace. Once you’d gotten back inside of the Grand Palace, you slammed the doors behind you and you walked back to your room as if you’d been there the whole time. 

You approached the stairs and took one step up before you saw Vasily come barreling down the stairs. When he saw you, he shook his head and grabbed both of your arms. 

“Where were you?” He asked in a loud tone. 

“I just went back to the Little Palace to find my dress from Mother!” You lied, trying to pull away from Vasily. 

“Sister, something has happened.” He said sharply and then let go of you. 

You felt your stomach sink and you looked up at Vasily, urging him to continue with your stare. 

“I don’t have the time nor the patience to explain. We are leaving Os Alta. Tonight.” 

“Tonight?” You asked and looked up at him, shaking your head, “But what about Ketterdam? We just-“

“I know! But we must leave tonight. We will figure out other ways of getting you out of here but just go get yourself ready for travel.” He commanded and you found yourself reeling. 

He pushed past you and bolted down the hall, not saying another word to you. 

You stared after him for a moment before you walked up the stairs. You’d nearly made it to the top when your mother came around the corner and stood at the landing at the top of the stairs. When she saw you, her face paled. 

You stopped in your tracks and looked up at her. You gave her a small, watery smile and you took one step towards her. 

“Mother-“

“You reek of the darkness.” She spat and she walked down the stairs past you hurriedly, leaving you standing alone at the top of the stairs. 

You felt as if she had slapped you. You wished that was all she had done. 

Sounds of bustling and loud voices echoed from downstairs and you pressed your fingernails into your palms. Tears stung your eyes and you slowly dragged yourself down the hall to your bedroom. 

Coming home had likely been a mistake. You wished that you’d gone across the Fold with your husband, and then ran from there. Somewhere far away from here, perhaps to Ketterdam or even beyond, because as you stood there in your bedroom feeling an endless loneliness swirl in your chest, you couldn’t help but think that perhaps you’d traded one prison for another. 

-

Days upon days on the road had been torture. Only Vasily had spoken to you, and you stayed near the back of the group, perched on your horse. 

That was, until now. Vasily had summoned you up to the front of the group with him and he offered no explanation until about an hour of awkward silence had passed. Your brother turned to you and he gave you a small sigh, slowing his horse a bit so that he was right next to you while you rode yours. 

“Doing alright?” He asked, looking you up and down. 

You shrugged and kept your eyes ahead, watching the trees in the distance grow closer and closer, then finding new trees to watch; repeating this. 

“You’ve been a bit sour lately.” Vasily commented and you snorted once. 

“Our parents are disgusted by me and I was uprooted from my home within a matter of hours. Besides, you won’t even tell me where we’re going, Vasily.” You explained and shot him a look. 

“We are going somewhere very safe. A sanctuary.” He replied, giving you a shrug. He led his horse up a small hill and you were quick to follow. 

He stopped at the top of the hill and pointed at an old building nestled against a cliffside.

“That is where we are going…” He trailed off mid sentence and you watched him carefully. His eyes were fixed on a small group of people standing outside of the building, and you slowly turned your head to look, too. 

People in brightly colored coats stood in front of the building and a few other people were there too, in the drab colors of the First Army. There was Grisha down there, and First Army, evidently. You stared at them all for a moment and realized that these must be Grisha that didn’t side with Aleksander, or else they’d likely be locked in cages or dead, especially with members of the First Army with them. 

“Come on, then,” Vasily said in a hard tone, “let’s go see who they are and what they want.” He said slowly. You nodded once and followed him down the hill, holding the reins of your horse so tight that the leather of the reins left indents in your skin. 

The ride down the hill was easy and as you slowly approached the building, everyone’s heads turned to you and your brother. You recognized a few of the Grisha from your time at the Little Palace and you searched your brain for names but couldn’t come up with any. Next, you looked at the group of First Army men to the side and you widened your eyes with recognition. A blonde boy in a decorated army uniform stood speaking to a much older man in a similar uniform.

You gasped loudly and you clambered off of your horse as it still moved, ignoring Vasily’s protests. You ran the rest of the way to the group, pushing past a few of the Grisha. 

“Nikolai!” You cried, and the blonde boy turned his head to see you sprinting towards him. 

A warm, elated smile formed on Nikolai’s face and he stepped forward with his arms open. You ran straight into your brother’s arms and wrapped your own around his shoulders. His arms closed tightly around your torso and he gave you a tight squeeze, letting out a mirthful laugh. An excited smile of your own covered your face and you felt a sense of comfort that you hadn’t had for many months. 

“Oh, y/n!” Your brother exclaimed, pulling back. He placed his hands on your arms and he looked you up and down a few times before he let out another laugh, “Saints! Look at you! You’re so grown!” 

You felt giddy with delight as you stared up into the face of your brother and you reached up to mess up his blonde hair. 

“It’s been seven years, Nikolai!” You exclaimed, the smile on your face not fading even a bit, “Why on earth are you here? Where on earth have you even been? I-“

“That’s quite enough, sister.” You slowly turned your head around to see that Vasily stood behind you now, also off of his horse, “I’m sure the last thing Nikolai wants is for you to be yapping his ear off.”

“I don’t mind.” Nikolai interjected firmly, dropping his hands away from your arms, “I was actually really looking forward to seeing her. When I heard you were all heading this way, I started telling everyone about you.” He remarked and looked down at you with a smile. 

“Yes well, we didn’t expect you to be here. With company.” Vasily said stiffly, and you wondered what his problem was. 

“The more the merrier. That’s what they say, at least, and if it’s true, I’ve got a merry little sanctuary going on here.” Nikolai quipped back at Vasily. 

“I can see that.” Vasily murmured and then cleared his throat, “Why don’t you help us get everything inside, Nikolai? Have your… help aid us.”

You looked around for a moment before realizing that Vasily was less than thrilled to see Grisha here. You pressed your lips together and looked over at him with a frown. 

“The help? Oh no, brother. You’re mistaken. They’re here because they want to be. No one here is above or beneath anyone. We all help each other.” Nikolai’s voice was calm and friendly, but you could always tell when he was masking his sternness behind kindness. This was one of those times. 

Nikolai looked down at you and smiled, a real, genuine smile. You felt a little less lonely in that moment and he placed his hand on your shoulder. 

“We have much to catch up on, and we will, believe me. But I’m gonna help get everyone situated. Maybe you should go inside and meet everyone.” He suggested and you gave him a nod. 

You leaned forward and gave him another brief hug before you pulled back. You turned your head and gave Vasily a pointed look before you turned on your heel and walked inside of the large building. 

Once you stepped inside, you looked around. The room was bustling with Grisha in their brightly colored clothes. You took a few more steps into the building before you heard your name called. 

“Y/n?”

You turned to where the voice had come from, and you almost had to do a double take. 

Alina Starkov walked towards you with a tall, lanky boy behind her, who you vaguely recognized as Malyen. Both of them approached you swiftly and you looked up at Alina, a bit shocked. 

“You’re alive.” You breathed, looking her up and down a few times. 

“I am, and I’m so glad to say the same for you.” She said softly and reached out. 

She grabbed your hands gently in her own and she gave you a sympathetic smile. You smiled back at her and took a step closer to the girl, giving her hands a friendly squeeze. 

“What happened, Alina? How did it come to this?” You asked quietly. 

Her smile fell and she turned to look at the boy next to her and she gave him a little nod. 

“Let’s take her to a room. So we can speak privately.” She suggested and he nodded once. 

She let go of one of your hands, but kept ahold of one of them so that she could lead you through the halls of what was your supposed sanctuary. 

She led you to a room with double doors and the tracker boy with her pushed them open for the two of you and you followed her inside. Once the doors were closed, Alina brought you to the foot of the bed in the room and she sat down on it, tugging you down with her. 

She gave you a sad smile and then she sighed, letting go of your hand. 

“You were smart to disappear.” Alina remarked and you nodded once. 

“I gathered. What even happened? I know things have gotten bad-“

“Bad is an understatement.” The tracker boy, Mal, said from where he stood a few feet away. 

Alina nodded once in apparent agreement and she let out another sigh. 

“The day we went out into the Fold, Aleksander was… furious. He came and got me from my tent and he told me you’d be coming with us. Which, I was fearful about. He brought me to his tent, but when we arrived there, you were gone. I’ve never seen him lose composure like that,” she said, a distant look in her eye, “he was angry and he was shouting and he was commanding anyone that could hear him to go and find you. But you had just… vanished. It was like he’d lost his mind for a moment there. Some soldiers theorized that you’d been taken, and he nearly had accepted it, but Ivan wasn’t convinced. He told Aleksander that you likely ran deliberately. At that point, he didn’t want to waste any more time, so he continued with the voyage, and he said he’d ‘deal’ with you later. I don’t think he expected to lose.” She explained and then folded her hands in her lap. 

You blinked a few times and you looked down into your own lap. The ring on your middle finger seemed to burn into your skin and you bit the side of your cheek sharply. You stayed silent for a while and then looked back up at Alina, puffing out your cheeks slightly. 

“What happened to him? To you?” You asked, placing your hands down against the fabric of your riding pants. 

“Mal fought him off mostly. He was swarmed by volcra. Mal and I… we got across the Fold and ran. Went into hiding for a while.” She answered. 

“By volcra?” You said and perked your head up. If he was swarmed by volcra, there was no way that he would have survived. The rumors of his survival must have been just that: rumors. 

“Yes.”

You shuddered at the thought and then you looked up at Alina, giving her a small smile. You didn’t know if you should mention what Vasily told you about your husband being alive. You probably should have, but you didn’t.  

“I think… that’s for the best.” You remarked slowly and then laid your palms flat against your lap. 

There was a small silence in the room and you didn’t know how to fill it. You tapped your fingers against your lap quietly and puffed your cheeks out slightly. You’d never taken the time to speak to Alina, really. The two of you had exchanged words in the Little Palace a few times but nothing groundbreaking was ever said. To be honest, you never really wanted to converse with her. Not until now, at least.

Alina’s hand grasped your shoulder and you looked over at the girl next to you. She was giving you a small, sympathetic smile. 

“I’m really glad you’re okay. At least one of us made it out.” She remarked and you raised your eyebrow. 

“But did I really make it out?” You asked, thinking of what your husband had said to you, about how your country would hate you. You felt a bit resentful towards your parents and your brother, Vasily. You couldn’t help but believe you had only traded one bad scenario for another. 

“Yes, I can’t even imagine what would have happened if you’d gone into the Fold with us that day.” She said and you blinked a few times. 

You’d wondered that, too, a couple of times. You wondered if things would have turned out differently, you wondered if you’d be with Aleksander now, you wondered if your country would still despise you so. You thought you’d done the right thing but it seemed there was no right thing to do. Only the preferable one. The one to save face. You sighed and then gave Alina a small smile. 

“I think I’d like to be alone.” You whispered and Alina nodded. 

“Of course. I’m right next door- if you need anything.” She said, rising from your bed.

She gave you a small wave as she and Mal left the room and you flopped back onto your bed. 

Your mind raced upon being left alone and you tried to clear it by shaking your head a few times. You felt confused, angry, exasperated, and tired all at once. 

You closed your eyes and took deep breaths, trying to fight back the consuming thoughts of Aleksander.  

-

You sat between your two brothers at dinner that night, bouncing your knee anxiously. To your left, Nikolai sat sipping his wine next to Alina, and to your right, Vasily sat and picked at his food while your mother fussed over his hair as she sat next to him.

You had finished your first glass of wine and reached across the table for the bottle, only to have the back of your hand smacked by Vasily. 

“Sister, we will not have a repeat of the last time you had control over your wine intake.” He spoke, giving you a condescending smile. 

Nikolai reached across the table and grabbed the bottle of wine and poured some in your glass before he set the bottle back down and turned to Vasily with a grin. 

“No harm done, brother. This is fine wine, after all, she’s got good taste.” Nikolai remarked and then winked at you. 

You gave your blonde brother a small, appreciative smile and you grabbed the glass, taking a sip. 

Vasily snorted and your mother looked over at you and Nikolai before she shook her head with a small scoff. 

“Don’t defend her, Nikolai. The last time she was given wine she made a fool of herself.” Your mother snapped, but Nikolai only laughed and nudged your side. 

“If you cause a scene tonight, you’ll have my appreciation. Maybe even some new pearls.” He teased and you turned to look at Nikolai. You giggled softly at his offer and then you shook your head. 

“Mother and Father already covertly wish for my swift beheading. What makes you think they’ll not beat me with sticks?” You asked and took another sip of your wine. 

“I gathered that Mother wasn’t too pleased with you at the moment. Why?” He asked and took a bite of his food. 

You sighed and then shook your head once, glancing down at your own plate. 

“She thought I was expecting the Darkling’s child. But clearly I’m not pregnant, so now she just hates me for being his wife. But that’s odd, because,” you held up your finger and jabbed it towards your mother and father, “the marriage between the Darkling and I was their idea.” 

Nikolai rolled his eyes and he reached out for the bottle of wine for himself, grabbing hold of the neck of the bottle. 

“Yeah, I heard about that. Thought it was a bit of an odd pairing but what do I know? Alina told me that you escaped him. Is that not enough for our parents?” He asked and poured himself more wine. 

“Evidently not. I thought Vasily was on my side, but it seems not. But I mean, no one else is. The entire country hates me.” You remarked and then looked up at Nikolai, “you know people and their rumors.” You said and then gave your brother a weak smile. 

“I don’t hate you. And I am on your side,” Nikolai began, giving you a sympathetic smile, “you did the right thing, you shouldn’t be punished for it. Sometimes running is the brave thing. Sometimes you have to walk out, have to give up. It doesn’t always feel right, but it’s braver in the grand scheme of it all to have cut your losses and started over fresh.” He said and then placed his hand on your shoulder, “I think you’re brave. Braver than me, even. I’m proud of you.” He said softly and then squeezed your shoulder. 

You looked at your brother, surprised. You shook your head once and then you let out a sad laugh. 

“Oh, Nikolai. I’ve missed you more than you will ever know.” You murmured and then rubbed your eyes. 

You pulled your hands away from your eyes and it looked as if Nikolai was about to say something more, but Vasily’s loud voice stopped him. 

“Why must you always play the diplomat, Nikolai?” Vasily asked, holding his wine glass close to his lips. He shot a look at you and then one at Alina, “Grisha dining beside true Ravkan soldiers is a bit too much for all of our stomachs.”

You made a disgusted face at Vasily and opened your mouth to protest, but you were stopped by Alina’s voice. 

“We’re all Ravkan here.” She snapped

“Doesn’t have to be us versus them.” Nikolai added. 

“Your bigotry is rather outdated, Vasily.” You chimed in, earning a look of disdain from your mother. 

“General Kirigan should’ve thought of that before he tried to murder our father and stage a coup.” Vasily shot back and then gave you a nasty little smirk, “That said, absent their Darkling, the Grisha are rather easy to manage. Though, it seems our sister has become more difficult to manage in the lack of his presence. Why do you think that is?” He asked and kept his eyes on yours, accusingly. 

“By “manage” do you mean “execute”, moi tsarevich?” Alina asked, sharply, and this seemed to be enough to draw your brother’s accusatory eyes away from yours. 

“That fate is reserved for traitors to the Crown, Miss Starkov.” He answered and then looked back at you, lips curling upwards. 

“If the Second Army requires a leader loyal to the Crown to assure their fealty, then I will lead them.” Alina said calmly, leaning over the table to look at Vasily. 

Your oldest brother tore his gaze away from you and smiled at Alina. He laughed and took a long sip of his wine, glancing at your mother who was also giggling. 

“Why should I believe you have any loyalty to my family? I hardly have any within it.” He remarked and eyed you and Nikolai amusedly. 

Nikolai glanced at you for a second and then he looked at Alina. The two stared at each other for a moment and then Nikolai grabbed his wine glass and stood up. 

For a split second, you thought he might leave the table. He began speaking instead. 

“Today marks the start of a new era of cooperation between Lantsovs and the Grisha” he began and held his glass up in a toast, “I’m delighted to announce my engagement to Alina Starkov, the Sun Summoner and the new leader of the Second Army. Together we will build a better future for Ravka.” He finished. He shouted praise to Ravka in the native tongue and raised his glass higher before taking a sip and sitting back down. 

You gaped up at your brother and blinked a few times. Vasily muttered something in your mother’s ear and you whipped around to look at them. 

“You ought to be ashamed of yourselves.” You snapped, staring at the two of them, “you’re no better than the rest of the gossipers in this country. You just sit on pretty chairs.” You hissed and then stood up. 

You looked down at Nikolai and Alina and gave them a smile, “I’m happy for you both.” You said softly and then patted Nikolai’s shoulder before you pushed your chair in and left the dining hall. 

You walked out into the hallway without looking back, but you heard heavy footsteps behind you. You didn’t turn around, and you wouldn’t have either, if your brother’s clammy hand didn’t clamp itself around your wrist. He yanked you backwards and you found yourself face to face with a seething Vasily. 

“You wretched brat!” Vasily screamed. He lifted your wrist up and snatched the ring off of your middle finger and threw it down the hallway. 

You gasped loudly and tried to yank your arm away from his grip, but to no avail. 

“After all I have sacrificed for you-“ 

“Sacrificed for me? What have you sacrificed for me? You’ve sacrificed nothing of your own. You’ve sacrificed my reputation. My name. You’d sooner see me dragged through the mud before anyone blackens your name, Vasily.” You snapped back, reaching out to shove his chest as you yanked your wrist free of his grip. 

“You selfish-“ 

“I’m allowed to be fucking selfish!” You exclaimed and balled your fists up, “After everything that’s happened to me, I’m allowed to look out for myself! I was married off with no say to someone wicked and I am now blamed for that! Once again, another example of how a man’s poor choice becomes my fault! Father chose the Darkling for me, and now he’s angry at me for it? Please. He’s pathetic. You’re pathetic.”

Vasily seemed shocked by your words and he struggled to form any of his own, it seemed. His brows furrowed together and he looked as if he might reach out and strangle you at any second before you heard Nikolai behind him. 

“Vasily, I think it’s time to leave her alone and go back to the table.” Nikolai suggested, striding towards the two of you. 

Vasily only seemed to grow angrier and before you knew it, he was lunging for you. You shrieked and jumped backwards and Nikolai jolted forward and grabbed Vasily by the arms, yanking him backwards. 

“Enough! All three of you, enough!”

You all turned to see your father standing in the hallway with his hands on his hips and his brows furrowed angrily. Vasily shook himself free of Nikolai’s grip and he smoothed his hair back before going to join your father by his side. 

“There are wars being waged out there! There are battles to be fought! That is to be expected, but I will not have my own children causing turmoil!” He bellowed, “All of you, get back in there and sit down. Pretend to like each other if you must, but behave! I’ll not have you bring more shame into this family.” He spat and then eyed you and Nikolai. 

He turned around with Vasily and marched back into the dining hall. You inhaled deeply and turned around, scanning the hallway for your ring. 

“Y/n…” Nikolai began as you dropped to your knees and began to search the floor for your wedding ring. 

“Just go back to dinner, Nik. I’m going to my room.” You said with a small sigh as you continued to look for the little piece of jewelry. 

“What are you looking for?” He asked, lowering himself down to the ground with you. 

You let out a huff and turned your head around to face him. 

“A ring.”

“Your wedding ring.” He corrected and you blinked a few times. 

“I don’t think of it as a wedding ring.” You protested and continued crawling around the floor to find it. 

“It’s okay to miss him, you know.” Nikolai said softly and you froze. You didn’t turn around. 

“I don’t miss him.” You said flatly, but you knew it was a lie and so did Nikolai. 

Nikolai moved towards you and placed his hand on your back gently, sighing. 

“Y/n, it’s okay to miss him,” he repeated, hand still against your back, “he was your first real… suitor. I’m sure despite the arranged marriage aspect, you did come to love him, and that’s okay. You aren’t a monster for loving someone,”

He said softly and wrapped his arm around your shoulder, pulling you against his side, “our parents failed you, sister. Your husband failed you. This country failed you. You are young and you were taken advantage of in so many ways. Our parents took advantage of you, I’m sure the Darkling did as well. You can condemn what he’s done and not agree with what he believes and still miss him.” Your brother said softly. 

You felt tears spring to your eyes and you leaned against his side, sniffling once. 

“I feel so stupid, Nikolai,” you breathed and turned to look up at him, “I do miss him. I miss him dearly. I sometimes question whether or not I did the right thing when I ran. It’s so hard to accept that this is just how it is now. He said he loved me, Nikolai. He told me that he’d always protect me, and I believed him. I let him persuade me so many times with soft words and affectionate touches, I was weak. I was weak and now I’m paying for it.”

“You weren’t weak. You didn’t know better, little sister.” Nikolai whispered and then he pulled away from you. He stood up and walked down the hallway and crouched down. 

He picked something up and came back to you, kneeling in front of you. He held your wedding ring out towards you and gave you a small smile. 

“You did the right thing. You did the brave thing. Now let yourself grieve.” He said and you gently took the ring from his fingers. 

You slipped it back on and Nikolai offered you his hand. You took it gratefully and he pulled you to your feet. 

“Everything will turn out for the best, sister. I promise.” He said, giving you a kind smile. 

You returned his smile briefly but then let the smile fade from your face. 

Best for who?

-

The following weeks were hardly eventful and you found yourself bored in your so-called sanctuary. No one ever let you go far outside and when you did go outside- which was a rare occurrence- Nikolai or Alina and Mal accompanied you. 

With little to do, you’d taken to following Nikolai around. Most days, he’d entertain you by telling you stories of his time at sea as the two of you wandered the halls of the old building you occupied. 

Today, you hoped, wouldn’t be any different. You had risen from bed rather late in the morning and by the time you went to seek Nikolai out, he’d been gone for a while. You spent the morning in your room while you waited for Nikolai to return and you read through one of the three books you’d been able to pack up and bring. But you’d been at this now for hours, and you started to grow deathly bored of your own company.

With a long groan, you slowly rose from the bed and you shuffled out into the hallway. You heard people talking from further out in the hall and you made your way towards the voices curiously. 

You rounded a corner and saw Alina, Mal, two other Grisha, a man in shackles, and Nikolai all standing together. You padded towards them all, catching the last words out of Nikolai’s mouth. 

“He claims to have escaped from a very alive General Kirigan.” Nikolai said to Alina in a quiet voice. 

Not quiet enough, you thought. Because the words still reached your ears. 

“He gave himself up without a struggle. We found this on him.” Nikolai added and handed something to Alina, “He says it’s one of Morozova’s journals. I for one, am dying to know more, but he’s insisted he speak with you.”

You came closer and Nikolai caught sight of you and he let out a small sigh, slowly taking a step towards you.

“What’s happening?” You asked quietly, looking up at your brother. 

Nikolai swept his arm out towards the group in front of you, and you glanced over at the man in shackles. You were instantly hit with recognition.

The man in shackles had ragged hair and he was dirty, but you knew him from anywhere. It was David Kostyk. The Durast that helped you escape from Aleksander. 

You took a step forward but Nikolai grabbed your arm and shook his head, “No.” he said quietly. 

David seemingly hadn’t noticed you yet and he stepped towards Alina, only to be stopped by one of the large Grisha you recognized as a boy named Tolya. 

“Alina…” David began, “I know I wronged you. Please believe that I regret my role in that deeply. I know you have reason to distrust me, but I have no loyalty to General Kirigan.”

“He survived the Volcra?” Alina asked, almost shakily. 

“I’m afraid so,” David began and then he shook his head, “He also knows that you survived and you’re in East Ravka.”

“Tell us where he is.” Mal demanded. 

You moved to step forward again, but Nikolai stopped you once more and sent you a warning  look. 

“No, no, no. That would be a very bad idea.” David said, clearly afraid. 

“You can’t expect us to trust you unless you’re willing to share information.” Alina piped up. 

“Confronting him would be suicide. Kirigan used merzost to create something in the Fold. Creatures that do his bidding. The size of two men! Formed of pure shadow! They have no breath to take, no heart to stop, no blood to drain, yet they live. They live and they kill. They are nichevo'ya.” He said quietly. 

Nothings. Your Ravkan was weak, but you understood what he said. 

“Bullets, blades, fire, all simply pass through.” David breathed, “and they all walk freely in sunlight. I fear that merzost may be the only way to kill them.” David finished and then his eyes flickered over to you. You gave him a small smile.  

A look of surprise and then terror washed over his face and he blinked a few times. 

“So how did you manage to get away, then?” Mal asked. 

David struggled to answer Mal and he let out a tired sigh, “Genya. We tried to escape together, but the nichevo'ya… She sacrificed herself to get me out. I don’t know if she survived.” David said, on the verge of tears. 

You felt sadness for him and you gently grabbed Nikolai’s arm and looked up at him with a frown. He gave you a look of sympathy and then he let out a sigh, puffing his cheeks out. 

“A smart spy will always play the victim.” Tolya pointed out. 

“No, no.” David whispered desperately. 

“You make a valid point, Tolya.” Nikolai said and you pulled on his arm, “As leader of the Second Army, Alina, this is your call.” He said slowly. 

“I trust him. With my life.” You said quickly and suddenly all eyes were on you. 

You felt a bit nervous and your brother gave you a sharp look but you let out a sigh and shook your head.

“I wouldn’t be here right now if it weren’t for David. He helped me escape the Darkling.” You explained vaguely, looking over at the terrified Durast.

“Take him to a holding cell.” Alina finally said and you felt your face fall. 

“Alina-“ you began, but Nikolai gently grabbed your arm and he shook his head. 

“We can discuss this, but not here.” He said firmly, but the kindness in his voice never left. 

You met his eyes and stared at him for a while before you finally nodded. You knew you’d be able to talk some kind of sense into Nikolai, and in turn, he’d likely be able to talk some into Alina. David wasn’t a bad person, you knew this wholeheartedly, and you also knew indefinitely that if he claimed to not be here on the Darkling’s orders, then he certainly wasn’t. 

“We need a moment alone.” Mal piped up and you and your brother both turned to him. 

Nikolai’s eyes flickered between Mal and Alina for a moment and then he nodded. 

“Of course,” he said and offered his arm to you, “come, sister. You and I can also speak privately.” He remarked. 

You gently took your brother’s arm and he led you down the hall towards his makeshift office. Once the two of you were securely inside, he closed the door and he looked down at you. 

“Alright. Tell me everything you know about David Kostyk.” Nikolai said patiently and walked towards his desk. He sat down in the chair that was placed in front of the wooden desk and he folded his arms, looking up at you expectantly. 

“David is a friend. He is the one that created the collar for Alina and he did put the amplifiers in both my husband and her, but you must understand, he had no choice. He regretted that choice. He’s the one that aided me in my escape. He came to the Darkling’s tent and he gave me a disguise and he let me run.” You explained and wrung your hands together. 

Your brother seemed to consider this and then he gave you a little nod before he raised one eyebrow. 

“You’ve never mentioned this before.” He stated and leaned forward a bit in his chair. 

“I didn’t want it to get back to the Darkling. He would’ve hurt David.” You said and then walked to Nikolai’s desk. You laid your hands down  against the desk’s cold, wooden surface, and you let out a sigh, “Look, if he’s alive like David says, then we need everyone we can get. He’ll come for Alina.” 

Nikolai nodded once and then seemed to be lost in thought for a moment before speaking again. 

“He’ll likely come for you, too, you know.” Your brother remarked and slowly rose from his chair. 

“I disagree. I think he values Alina much more. I’m dead to him. He gave me an opportunity to join him and a promise that my life would be misery if I didn’t. He’s making good on the promise, reuniting with me would be nonsensical.” You reasoned. 

Nikolai shrugged and dragged a hand through his blonde hair, “You aren’t in the clear just because you ran, y/n.” He mused and then stood up, “I’m going to have a word with Alina about Mr. Kostyk. Why don’t you wait here for me?”

He suggested. 

You gave him a little nod and then you sat down in one of the armchairs near the desk. 

“Can I see him? I consider him a friend, Nik.” You murmured softly, feeling sadness grow in the pit of your stomach at the thought of David in a cell. 

“I… don’t see that being much of an issue eventually.” He answered and walked towards the door, patting your shoulder reassuringly as he passed you. He left the office and closed the door behind you, leaving you in the silence of the empty office. 

-

Nearly an hour and half had gone by according to the clock that sat on Nikolai’s desk, and no one had come back to the office. At first you spent your time rifling through papers in Nikolai’s desk, but you found nothing of interest, so you’d sat back down in the uncomfortable armchair you had initially been in. 

Now you sat, spinning your sparkling wedding ring around your middle finger. It was a band of thin rectangular diamonds framed in gold. It was missing one stone, and you assumed it had gotten lost when Vasily threw your ring across the hallway weeks ago. It wasn’t noticeable, though. You just wore the part with the missing stone on the back of your finger, hiding it from sight. 

You pulled the piece of glimmering jewelry off of your middle finger and slipped it on your ring finger, holding your hand up in front of your face to see. It fit much better around your ring finger, as it was intended to spend the rest of its days upon that specific finger. While it fit on your middle finger, it was slightly too tight and oftentimes you had to slip it off in the mornings when your hands were swollen. 

You admired the way the ring sparkled in the sunlight that filtered through the window and you smiled just a bit, wiggling your finger. 

Just then, the door swung open and you lowered your hand quickly before turning around to see Nikolai standing in the doorway. 

“I didn’t mean for that to take so long, my apologies, little sister.” He hummed and then let out a little laugh, “you could’ve left, you know.” He remarked. 

You rose from the uncomfortable armchair and walked over to your older brother, shaking your head. 

“Punctuality was never your strong suit.” You replied and smiled up at him. 

“Well, to be fair, I didn’t give you a time frame.” He quipped and then he smiled down at you, “Alina spoke to David. She’s deemed him trustworthy enough, which is good. If you still wish to speak with him still, I can take you to him.” Nikolai offered. 

You nodded vigorously at his offer and you gave him a small smile, “I’d really like that.”

Nikolai swept his arm towards the door and motioned for you to exit his office and you did so with a certain excitement. He led the way downstairs and through a few winding halls before he pushed open a door and stepped inside with you. 

You hadn’t been in this area before, and it was apparent why. The walls were shabby and there was dust everywhere, settling over everything. Nikolai walked towards a row of doors down a hallway that was in the same condition and he unlocked one and opened it up. 

As the door swung open, you shuffled into the doorway to be met with the disheveled face of David Kostyk inside. His eyes lit up when he saw you and you slowly turned around to look at Nikolai who stood behind you protectively.

“Nik, can we have a moment?” You asked softly and turned around to look up at your brother. 

He looked into the makeshift cell for a moment and then studied David and gave you a short nod. 

“Okay. I’m not leaving this wing though.”

You nodded and watched as he made his way back down the hall before you walked inside of the cell and gave David a little smile. 

The Durast gave you a small, awkward wave due to the shackles on his wrists that held his hands apart and he seemed to relax tenfold. 

“I didn’t expect to see you here,” he began, taking a step towards you, “I kind of hoped you would’ve ran somewhere besides Ravka.” He confessed and let out a very small laugh. 

“I didn’t really know where else to go.” You admitted and then shook your head, “But it’s really, really great to see you, David. I was worried that perhaps something happened to you. Or that you’d given your loyalty to the Darkling. Neither were necessarily preferable.” You said with a slight shake of your head. 

You turned around and slowly pushed the door closed so that it was only open about an inch and you turned back to David, letting out a quiet sigh. 

“He lives?” You asked, voice barely above a whisper. 

David eyed you with trepidation and finally nodded just once. 

“He does.” He confirmed, his lips tugging themselves downwards into a frown. 

“I don’t understand how that’s possible, Alina told me he was swarmed by volcra.” You folded your arms over your chest and looked up at David. 

David was never an overly confident presenting man to begin with, always holding himself with gracelessness and awkwardness, but he seemed smaller than usual now. He seemed almost fragile. He seemed much less awkward and instead afraid. He seemed to shrink back a bit at the topic and he pursed his lips and looked down into your eyes. 

“He used very dark forces to keep himself alive.” He said slowly, eyes shifting away from yours, “I really wish you would’ve run away. Out of Ravka, y/n. There isn’t a safe place in this country. Not anymore.” 

You kept your eyes on his face and you shook your head a couple of times, “I couldn’t abandon my family, David-“

“He’s not going to stop until he finds you.” He interjected sharply and then looked up at you with furrowed brows, “You were practically all he spoke about. If he wasn’t rambling on about his nichevo'ya or Alina, he was talking about you. He’s completely obsessed.” 

You blinked a few times and then shook your head, as if that would make what he said less true. 

“Let him obsess over finding me and delivering punishment for my ‘transgressions’ against him. It doesn’t mean he will.” You said in a small voice. You were unsure if you believed it, though. 

“No, it was nothing like that. He’s reached a state of limerence, Princess. It’s a madness that I never thought I’d see in him. He has himself convinced fully that he’s going to rescue you from your family and put you on a throne next to himself. He still wears his wedding ring.” David explained, leaning his back up against the wall behind him. 

Your ring seemed to burn through your skin when you heard this, and you realized you’d not moved it back onto your middle finger. Slowly, you clasped your hands behind your back, wanting to keep your hand out of sight now. 

“I don’t understand,” you whispered, “he said that if I didn’t take his side that I’d be a traitor.”

David seemed to hesitate as he looked up at you and he pressed his lips together until there was no trace of them on his face. He finally swore under his breath and fidgeted with his fingers. 

“I think that at one point, he loved you. But I think that love became… an obsession. Something he clung to in a way that simply cannot be healthy.” He said slowly, tapping on the wood that held his hands apart. 

You could tell this conversation was making him uncomfortable and you felt a bit guilty for bringing it up. 

“What does that mean, David?” You asked, despite a little voice in the back of your head telling you to drop it. 

“I think it means that you need to get out of Ravka before he comes searching,” he paused for a moment and then shook his head, “because I worry that if he does find you again, you won’t be able to say no to him.” He said reluctantly. 

You narrowed your eyes at David and you shook your head, “I’m very capable of resisting him. I ran from him once, I could do it again.” 

David very slowly shook his head and he nodded towards you, swallowing one time, nervously. 

“You still wear your ring, too.”

“Not because-“

“You don’t have to rationalize it to me, Princess. No one could blame you for missing the man you married. You relied upon him for comfort and protection for a while. You two had a very strange and unique bond. I’m sure that hasn’t been forgotten by you. While I don’t doubt your capabilities, Princess, I can’t in good conscience undermine his ability to crawl underneath your skin.” David stated in a shaky voice, as if he were afraid of your reaction.  

He had a point, and you couldn’t deny that. Many times he’d found a way to make you give in to him, always knowing what would make you soften. He always used kind words and gentle touches to persuade you to see things from his perspective, always saying just what you wanted to hear from him. He would promise you he loved you, assure you that you were safe with him, he’d give you the affection and adoration you had sought after, and time after time, it proved effective.  

He was a master of manipulation, you knew it. Everyone did. 

Your eyes flickered to David and he gave you a sympathetic look, chewing on the inside of his cheek anxiously. 

“I will not let him.” You finally answered, eyeing David with the same trepidation he had looked at you with earlier. 

David shrugged slightly and he shuffled his feet uncomfortably. 

“I’m not sure you’ll have a choice if he finds you.” He mumbled and then he looked around the room, avoiding your eyes, and just like that, you realized you’d lost another friend. 

Your nose twitched and you realized that you’d really lost everyone. Your mother, your father, Vasily- even if he was truly insufferable. You’d lost your country’s favor, you were sure to lose Nikolai at this rate, and you seemingly already had lost David. 

You lost Aleksander, too.

The thought hit you out of nowhere and you almost jumped by the way it had startled you. 

Everything he had said would happen if you didn’t take his side, was happening, and you weren’t too sure how to handle it.

On one hand, you wanted to let it all roll right off your shoulder, to come off as unbothered and in control. On the other hand, though, you wanted to lash out and condemn everyone who had turned their back on you just because of him. 

But the truth was, you weren’t in control, and you weren’t unbothered. Everyday became more difficult and everyday brought more accusatory stares. Some from Grisha, some from Mal Oretsev, most from your parents and Vasily, and some from a few of the First Army soldiers that came in and out. Now, you felt the same stare from David as he watched you from where he stood against the wall. 

It was almost as if he was hearing you work all of this out in your head. You didn’t think he’d ever say it but you wondered if he was thinking “I told you so”. 

What was the point of trying to prove everyone wrong when even the truth of the matter wouldn’t sway their convictions? Your case fell on a faulty jury, your judgment was passed by a thousand unjust judges. 

Your truth wasn’t the truth they had decided on for you, and to them, it was just a story. A way to save face. 

It didn’t matter what you said now, didn’t matter who you swore allegiance to. You were whatever they made you, and they made you more and more a villain everyday. No amount of reassurances and support from Nikolai could erase that. 

The realization that your reputation was now as tainted as your husband’s made your eyebrows knit together in frustration. You slowly lifted your eyes up to David and you gave him a disparaging frown.

“I best be going.” You mumbled, not waiting for a farewell from the boy. 

You turned on your heel and marched out of the cell, closing the door behind you with a force you didn’t fully intend on. You squared your shoulders and made your way back to the hallway where Nikolai stood and he gave you a small smile when he saw you. 

“That was a little bit more brief than I expected.” Nikolai noted, stuffing his hands into his coat pockets. 

“I heard all I needed to hear.” You replied, shortly. 

“I take it by your tone that it wasn’t exactly what you wanted to hear.” He prodded, taking a step towards you. 

You shrugged complacently.  

“It never is.” 

#grishaverse #shadow and bone imagine #shadow and bone #aleksander morozova imagine #aleksander morozova #aleksander morozova x reader #the darkling imagine #the darkling x you #the darkling imagine #the darkling #the darkling x reader #general kirigan imagine #general kirigan x reader #general kirigan #ben barnes x reader #ben barnes imagine

[happyhauntt]

stay, i pray you — nikolai lantsov.

series masterlist | writing masterlist | askbox

─── summary: nikolai has a decision to make. anya makes it for him.

─── pairing: nikolai lantsov & anya kamenev (original character.)

─── warnings: takes place during seige & storm just after sturmhond reveals himself to be nikolai. angst, hurt/no comfort, pre-established relationship. this one's gonna hurt.

─── word count: 2.1k.

     "I've had an idea."

     The military encampment at Kribirsk is as familiar to Anya as the freckles on Nikolai's nose, the garden of her father's estate, the brittle ache of her injured knee. Crashing the Hummingbird had not been part of the plan — and her body had certainly not appreciated the impromptu swim in the nearby lake — but the First Army officers had recognised her and Nikolai, affording them all the honours of their stations and escorting them to the commander's tent.

     Anya hadn't felt all that comfortable with it. She may have been Lieutenant Corporal before her discharge, but it has become increasingly difficult to love the army that raised her while it serves the country that abandoned her. General Raevsky had once been her commanding officer. She and Nikolai had served under him on the northern border, oh, how many years ago now?

They'd both been green as grass, infantry grunts who'd never handled a rifle, never fired a shot or seen a battlefield begin to bleed. Raevsky greeted her like an old friend when they stumbled onto shore, asked how she was fairing as if he hadn't seen her only a few months ago, before she helped the Sun Summoner flee Ravka by smuggling her onto a ship bound for Novyi Zem.

     The tent Anya finds herself in is small but serviceable, with clean, fresh clothes laid out on the bed and a small plate of food waiting on the table. Nikolai disappeared shortly after their arrival, most likely to offer up an explanation to the commanders, but when he finally reappears, he finds Anya combing out the knots of her damp hair with her fingers, changed into a clean, loose shirt and army-issue trousers. She feels as if she never left the army and the thought makes her nauseous.

     "You have an idea?" She raises an eyebrow at him as he steps tentatively inside, allowing the tent flap to fall closed behind him. A playful smirk dances over her face. "Given that your last idea sent us crash-landing into a lake, I must admit I feel a little apprehensive."

     He huffs at her, an almost-chuckle that sends alarm bells ringing in her mind. A jibe like that would usually send him on a ranting spiral, fussing all about how his invention hadn’t been the reason they crashed and had, actually, worked exactly as intended for the majority of their journey.

     Teasing him is easy, and the way he smiles when she does sends warmth pouring through her. Seeing him so subdued is… troubling, to say the least. He hangs up his sword and crosses the tent to perch on the edge of her bed. His eyes remain fixed on the floor the whole time.

     Kneeling in front of him, she allows her fingers to graze over the bruise blossoming on his cheek. His eyes fall closed for a moment. "She really got you, didn't she? Our dear Sun Summoner has a mean right hook."

     "Believe me, I know. Scrappy little thing." Nikolai flexes his jaw and opens his eyes, and all once, Anya knows. It's written in the tiny lines between his brows and the quirk of his mouth and the ache in his eyes.

     "What is it?" she murmurs. Her fingers linger on his face, and he leans into the warmth of her, just slightly. Her knee protests, but she doesn't dare try to stand up. "What's happened?"

     He swallows roughly. "I've told you before, haven't I, about coming back here and helping Ravka. About fixing it before it's too late."

     Whispered conversations in a dimly-lit cabin flutter through her mind. Wishes pressed against her skin with kisses, hopes and dreams caught up in a lover's embrace. I could be better than Vasily, he'd said, and she had believed that, the way she believed the sun would rise in the morning. I could save Ravka.

     She hadn't told him the truth, then. She'd taken his dreams and folded them up into her own chest, to keep safe beside her heart, but she hadn't wanted it the way he did. Anya would sooner see Ravka burn. She cannot bring herself to feel mercy, not where this Saints-forsaken country is concerned. Not after it abandoned her when she needed it most.

     Now, she nods. A damp tendril of hair falls past her eyes. "I remember. You said you... you would find a way to convince Vasily to step aside, and your father would make you the heir. But it wasn't a plan. You said you didn't know how you'd do it, yet. Just that you wished you could."

     She may never forget it. The panic that struck her, bone-deep. The way his ambitions have haunted her ever since. He may not have known it then, but a ticking clock had been set that day. Anya never knew when their time would run out. Only that she would never be ready for it.

     He smiles, now. A rueful thing. There is no need to hide with her, no need to put on that winsome devil-may-care act he wears like armour. She is not a politician he can sway to his side, nor a danger he can charm his way out of, and yet he smiles at her. She is so beautiful, and soft, and she's not wearing her armour, either. Not here, not with him. There is nothing to smile about, and in a few moments it will all be different, but right now she is his, so he has to smile. He has to.

     He may weep, otherwise.

     "Kolya." Her voice is so quiet, barely more than a whisper, and he is so sure that she knows, already, without him having to breathe a word.

     His throat goes horribly tight, an invisible hand wrapped tight around his windpipe, as if that will stop his confession. His eyes flit to the roof for a moment. They start to sting.

     "Alina's power is the key to Ravka's survival," he says. Every word feels like lead on his tongue. "The Apparat has turned her into a living Saint, and the people love her. If I'm to make a bid for the throne and convince Vasily to step aside, it can't just be that I'm the best man for the job. That won't matter. But an alliance with the Sun Summoner might sway the odds in my favour."

     Anya watches him for a long moment. He holds his breath as time stretches, and eternity seems to pass before she even blinks. She withdraws her hand, allowing it to rest lightly on his thigh. The absence of her touch lingering in his face burns like a fresh bullet wound.

     He wonders if you can die from missing someone who hasn't gone anywhere yet.

     "An alliance with Alina." Anya narrows her eyes as the pieces click together in her mind." You mean—"

     "I'm going to ask her to marry me." His throat feels rough as sandpaper. "A political marriage, in name only. The game has changed and Alina is the only one who can level the playing field."

     He keeps talking, but Anya can hardly hear him. Her brain began to buzz with white noise the moment she heard the word marriage, as if her skull is home to a thousand angry wasps and someone suddenly decided to shake the nest. She can feel her blood rushing in her ears, her heartbeat thudding in her throat, but she doesn't dare give herself away.

     Anya Kamenev is a soldier, but she is also a future duchess. Her mother would be proud to learn that all those etiquette lessons didn't go to waste. Summoning a decade of training, her old governess' instructions rattling through her mind, her face remains delicate and empty. Not a muscle twitch or a quiver of her lip, not a hint of sorrow flashing in her eyes. She might as well be carved from marble. Her heart sits in her chest like a stone.

     "Nastya." The nickname he gave her in their army days is salt in an open wound. Nikolai reaches for her, grasps her hands in his as if she is all that can anchor him to this world. "I don't know what to do."

     "Of course you do." Somehow her voice is gentle, even though she feels jagged at the edges, like touching her might make him bleed. An instinct tugs at her, to curl her fingers around his own and hold him just as tight, but she can't bring herself to move. "You wouldn't bring it up to me if you hadn't already thought it through. You're a clever man, Nikolai. The cleverest I know, and don't let that go to your head. You know what you have to do now. You just want my permission to do it."

     Is it crueller, somehow, to ask for permission? To hand over her heart, and the knife too, as if that will make it hurt less when he carves it from her chest?

     A wet laugh bubbles out of him. "Trust you to keep my ego in check even now, Anya."

     "Someone has to," she says. She heaves herself into a standing position, wincing as her knee cracks and tiny bolts of lightning spike up her leg. "Although I think Alina will do a brilliant job. I don't mind handing over that responsibility to her."

     "Don't." Nikolai is on his feet in a moment. One hand remains in hers, his grip tight as a vice, but the other curls around the back of her neck. His thumb brushes softly over her cheek. The warmth of it makes her shudder. "Don't say that like you're going anywhere. I'm not sure I can do any of this without you."

     "Of course you can," Anya murmurs. Saints, she isn't sure the torture she endured at the hands of Shu Han's scientists hurt this much. If she closes her eyes, she can almost believe he's taken a blade and gutted her right here, like a fish on the deck of his ship.

     A ragged breath tears out of him as he says, "Alright, perhaps I can. But I don't want to."

     When he kisses her, it doesn't feel like a kiss goodbye. It doesn't feel like their last kiss in a thousand. There's a ferocity to him as he clutches her, teeth clashing, but that doesn't change the truth of it. He can hold her as tightly as he wants, but they both know she has always been smoke in his hands.

     “I would give you anything,” he says against her mouth, pressed together like hands in prayer. She feels his breath stutter against her tongue, hitched with a sob he will not set free. “Name it. Palaces and jewels, the moon, a temple built in your name, the heads of every man who ever harmed you served on a silver platter. Name it and it’s yours. Just stay.”

     Your heart. The tear slides down her cheek unbidden, and he kisses it away as he has done a thousand times before. She catches his lips with her own and kisses him again, fingers tangled in tendrils of his hair, still rough with saltwater no matter how many times he washes it. Your heart, your hand, a life with you away from this Saints-forsaken country.

     She’ll stay. She will, because Anya is a soldier, and though she no longer has any loyalty to Ravka, she still believes in him. And there is no pain in the world that could hurt more than abandoning him now, no matter how much she wishes she could.

     “Anything.” His voice, barely a whisper, a plea to those forgotten saints who have never seen fit to bestow a miracle upon them. “Anything, my darling.”

     He sinks to his knees before her, presses his forehead to her stomach. She leans and kisses the crown of his scalp, lingering a moment to breathe in the salt and sea of him. Ravka will never know how lucky it is to have a prince so loyal. She doesn’t know what they’d done to earn such devotion.

     “I know.” Despite the tears, her voice is deceptively still. Your heart. But he had already sworn it to his country, long before he ever loved her. “I want the same as you, Nikolai; peace and prosperity for Ravka.”

     He snorts against her stomach. His arms wrap tightly around her middle. “Liar.”

     “Always.” Pushing him away would not be the worst torture she has endured, but she worries it will scar her far longer than any blade could.

#nikolai lantsov #nikolai lantsov x reader #nikolai lantsov fanfiction #nikolai lantsov fanfic #nikolai lantsov oc #grishaverse fanfic #shadow and bone fanfic #shadow and bone oc #six of crows fanfic #* fic: gold rush. #* chapter update.

[thebadgerclan]

Returned

Pairing: Aleksander Morozova x reader

Summary: Aleksander returns from Novyi Zem...

A/N: As per usual, the V-day teaser and the trailer set loose the writing bug, so voila!

I do wanna say that this is based on the V-day teaser, and after the trailer, I have no idea when that scene occurs, so this is just an excuse to write some angry, vengeful, protective Sasha

Have I mentioned how excited I am for season 2? 😂🤩

The scene before him was nothing short of terrifying.  His loyal Grisha chained and caged, their hands bound so they couldn’t use their power, the King’s soldiers patrolling around them.  Aleksander had wreathed himself in shadow, and he stepped forward, raising his hands as he did.  His nichevo’ya surged forth and killed the soldiers, snapping their neck and gouging their eyes out, which drew cries of shock from the imprisoned Grisha.

Aleksander took another step forward, bringing his hands up to draw the hood of his cloak back.  “I have returned!” he called.  “And I’ve made some new friends.”  His monsters came to flank him on either side, and at his command, the Grisha who hadn’t abandoned him aboard the whaler came forth to free their comrades.  Aleksander looked on as his men and women were freed, their wrists unbound, summoning and calling their power once more.

Just when the General was about to turn, when he thought his Grisha were free, he saw something move in a cage he’d thought was empty.  Its occupant was curled on the ground, barely covered by what looked like a torn burlap sack.  Then, she spoke, and Aleksander felt his blood turn to ice.  “Aleksander?  S-Sasha, is that you?”  In an instant, he was running, skidding to his knees before the cage in which you were locked.

“Y/N?” he said, his voice trembling.  “Y/N, oh my love.  Darling, what have they done to you?  Pashel!”  The Inferni hurried to his General’s side, eyes widening when he saw that it was you in the cage.  “Get her out of there.”  You hadn’t been on the Fold with him when all hell had broken loose, and when Aleksander had made his way to Kribirsk, he’d been so consumed with rage that it had been all he could do to heal before setting off to hunt the Sun Summoner.

In hindsight, he should have gone home, he should have gone straight to you.  Aleksander had written to you, telling you of his plans, but he’d never imagined you’d be taken, that you’d be imprisoned like this.  Guilt washed over him, but he pushed it aside.  You were his priority now, everything else could wait.  The cage was unlocked, and your husband moved to unlock your shackles, but as he moved aside the burlap you were draped in, he fought back the bile rising in his throat.

You were naked beneath your meager covering, and Aleksander unfastened his cloak and draped it over your body, scooping you into his arms.  “I’m here, my darling,” he whispered, rising to his feet.  “I’ve got you.”  His Grisha had been seen to, and Pashel was bringing Midnight around.  Aleksander mounted, keeping you secure in his arms, as he called out orders to his soldiers.  

There were safehouses, Ravkan nobility who had vowed to back Aleksander when the time came for him to overthrow the Lantsovs.  They would help him now, they would help you.  He rode hard and fast, clutching you to him, feeling you tremble against his body.  “I knew you weren’t dead,” you mumbled, and your husband looked down at you.  “What do you mean, sweetheart?”

“I knew you weren’t dead.  I just knew.”  You turned your face into your husband’s chest, and he tightened his grip on you, urging Midnight faster.  Aleksander couldn’t explain it, but he’d known you were alive too.  He hadn’t known you’d been kidnapped, starved, or imprisoned, but he’d known your heart still beat.  If you’d died…he’d have known.  He just would have known.  “I’m so sorry,” he said, tipping his head to kiss your forehead.  “I’m so sorry, Y/N.  I should have been here.”

“You’re here now,” you said, words slurring together.  “You saved me.”  “I always will.”  Nearly an hour later, you arrived at the estate of the Duchess of Adena; whose servant admitted your husband without question.  The Duchess asked no questions, only had her maids prepare a room for the two of you.  Aleksander would be in her debt forever, but he would come up with how to repay her later.

The Duchess’ personal Healer saw to your wounds, and soon, you were bathed, fed, and dressed in a borrowed nightdress, cradled reverently in Aleksander’s arms beneath the downy covers.  “Did you find her?” you asked, and your husband nodded.  “We did.  But Sturmhond turned traitor and helped her escape.  She’s likely claimed the Sea Whip by now and is on her way back to Ravka.”

You shifted in his embrace so you could look at him, at the scars that now resided on his face.  “What will we do?”  Aleksander took a deep breath, finding your hands beneath the covers and squeezing.  “The same thing we always do.  We fight.  And I swear to you, my darling, I will never let anything like this happen to you again.”  You snuggled closer, pressing a kiss to his jaw.  “I know you won’t, Aleksander.  And I’ll protect you, in any way I can.”

Your husband knew that to be true, he recalled how fiercely you’d defended him in the past, how you’d thrown yourself in front of a bullet for him (something he would have nightmares about for the rest of his eternal life).  “I love you so much, my precious Y/N,” Aleksander said, tilting your chin upwards to kiss you.  “I will always love you, moya dorogaya zhena.”  “And I love you, Sasha.”  You let your lips linger on his for several moments before you drifted off, and for nearly an hour, Aleksander remained awake, watching you slumber, needing to convince himself you were well.  Only when exhaustion tugged at him did he let himself sleep, but not before sending a nichevo’ya to stand guard at the door.

#aleksander morozova x reader #shadow and bone #the darkling x reader #general kirigan x reader #shadow and bone fanfiction

[stromuprisahat]

What changes would you give to the Six of Crow duology, to fit it into a continuity where Darklina reunited and ruled Ravka? Honestly, aside from Nina's backstory, and a few other little tweaks, I don't think the duology would have huge changes. After all, Darklina can't change society that fast. I also think Nikolai Zoya and Genya could have appeared just as well. Simply Nikolai wouldn't be the king, but that wouldn't stop him from working with/for Darklina. And honestly, I've always found it a bit stupid that the king of Ravka goes on the road himself with two grisha when he has his own country to take care of.

Well yes, Nina wouldn't be on the road, but there's very little Grisha after the war, so we can get her some speeded-up training outside of Little Palace. Not abroad, maybe some station nearer the borders, where she'd be able to practice her linguistic skills talking to refugees, or interrogating captives.

Suli was best for missions in the northwest. Shu meant you’d be stuck translating diplomatic papers.

Shadow and Bone- Chapter 9

As you said, even a couple of powerful Grisha won't make their enemies behave in a day. Raids are to be expected. She could've been captured on Ravkan soil.

When drüskelle almost killed Alina on her way from Kribirsk to Os Alta, Matthias could be in a group infiltrating Ravka near Ulensk for example. It's both near Fjerda and the (remains of the) Fold, but then again, unexpected shenanigans would have to ensure to get them to Ketterdam.

West Ravka would be an easier choice then. They're likely to be unhappy about re-connection with their poorer, differently-thinking sibling. Show had openly admitted Westerners are selling Grisha to their enemies. Nina could be among them, except this time she'd still be a hormonal teenager with unfinished education.

KoS MCs would be more complicated.

Genya is still a traitor, and Aleksander's hardly the forgiving type. A veeeery big AU I've been thinking about for a while would be faking her change of heart to double-cross Alina. Picture a politically-shrewd spy, bleaching her own face for years to help overthrow her rapist... only for the Coup to go to hell.

A new variable appears, putting a greater value on her own peace and quiet than necassary change, and force failed to make her co-oparate. Loyalists boarded ship captained by a suspicious character, likely with agenda of his own... so the spy comes up with a sneaky strategy as the plan B, should it be necessary. When it becomes obvious Alina will slip through their fingers once again, an order comes to "stop her".

... and once everything's ready to take the throne, the Darkling with his forces secures the capital and plants his spy once again. Alina has a knack for escaping after all and who would have suspected mutilated girl, cowering in shadows?

That's one way to give Genya the recognition she deserves. Enter Evgenia Safina, the spymaster and/or ruthless, cunning delegate she should have become.

Zoya doesn't have much to offer, but quite a beef with the Darkling. He'll be always the one, who "killed" her aunt. And she's still just a replacable Squaller. If I were the Darkling, I'd use her as deterrent example. Public trial and fitting punishment.

Nikolai... well, the wisest course of action would be killing him off too. He's a possible competitor for the Throne, and he IS ambitious by himself, not merely in love with Ravka like we're told by the narrative.

Even discredited, there would be those preferring a bastard with a crown to the Saint-enslaving Satan.

It's true Sturmhond was useful to Ravka once, and could be so again, but how would we ensure that's what he'll remain?

And honestly, I've always found it a bit stupid that the king of Ravka goes on the road himself with two grisha when he has his own country to take care of.

That's to show he's a man of people! The boring kingly stuff's being done by itself!

Back to the start- SoC plot could remain almost the same, although it would offer a new storyline about how is Ravka trying to deal with the threat of parem. Or a mention here and there. Or nothing at all, if we're sticking with Crows-only POV and all their info would be Kaz's deductions and hearsay.

The Ravkan delegates in CK would simply be lead by Genya (See: above), so Wylan would get his face back, and the rest was mostly about collecting points for "well-known character appearance" anyway.

#reply #Grishaverse #What if/AU/... #Six of Crows duology #grishanalyticritical #Darklina #Nina Zenik #Genya Safin #Zoya Nazyalensky #Nikolai Lantsov #S&B Chapter 9 #books #quotes #Leigh Bardugo #anti Zoya #because there are people I'd rather avoid.

[everythinggrishaversebxm1012]

(Not) Just A Healer Part II

Summary - Nikolai Lantsov has all the more to lose when he returns to Ravka having fallen in love with a certain Healer while on the True Sea

Part I II Part II

Things did change a lot, as you suspected. For one the openness you could have about your relationship with Nikolai dropped a lot. Someone might just commit regicide on a mass level if they learned their prince was dating a Grisha. On second thought that’s perhaps what Ravka needed. A Grisha beside their prince. An effort to represent a reunited front. It was one evening while you were laying in bed with Nikolai when you suggested an engagement to Alina Starkov.    

“Hear me out Nikolai. What better way to ally our forces than through a marriage? With the Sun Summoner married to you, that may rally the forces necessary. The people respect you Nikolai. And such a marriage might be the necessary push to unify the First Army and the Second Army against Kirigan.”      

You tried to ignore the look on his face when you suggested such a thing, though part of him knew you were right. “She will never be a love match for me, you understand that, don’t you, moi magpie?”  

“Simply a political alliance,” you said into his neck. While you knew the suggestion came from your mouth it still hurt to see how easy it seemed for him to go through with it and suggest it to Alina. Alina was no fool and she saw what you and Nikolai shared, and it was only under your persuasion that she agreed.      

And so it was, two days later at dinner. You sat next to Mal, watching Nikolai sitting between his brother and Alina, as Nikolai said something to make Alina laugh. You and Mal shared quick glances before you saw Nikolai mouthing, moi magpie in your direction. Yes he agreed to your suggestion, but that didn’t mean he had any attraction to Alina Starkov. You saw Vasily say something to his mother and then look over to Nikolai say something, then glancing at Alina. It was the look in Nikolai’s eyes that suggested Vasily had said something to really get to him.    

You chugged down the alcohol in your glass as he announced his engagement to Alina, trying to look the part of any other Grisha sitting and eating amongst others. A feat that proved difficult. Nikolai wasted no time in finding you that evening, ensuring you knew how he felt about you. Everything changed even more at the engagement party for Nikolai and Alina where Vasily was killed by one of Kirigan’s Nichevo’ya. More than anything it meant Nikolai was in line for the throne, and quite frankly you weren’t upset though you felt sorry for your boyfriend on some level.     

You were busy healing people when it appeared Kirigan’s Show Monster’s seemed to be reappearing. Nikolai immediately looked at you and Alina pulling out his pistol. “Gather all the wounded and get out of here. Go to the fort called Zvedya,” he then turned to look directly at you. “The one south of Kribirsk. Find–”   

You watched Baghra walk into the space below ground with a woman behind her. You recognized her from your time training, Genya. Baghra glanced over at Nikolai upon his comment that she was the Grisha tea. She looked like she wanted to scoff, “Ah, the prince. The Puppy Prince. But I do not care truthfully. What I care about is if you fix it. Right the wrongs.” You watched Genya standing there, timidly as Alina embraced her. “Oh Saints, Genya. Look what he did to you.”    

You took note of the scars across her face. You cringed. You knew what Kirigan was like, and you were glad Nikolai had pulled you along with him.   

You watched Nikolai approach Genya, looking almost angry. “Genya Safin? You’re the Grisha who poisoned the king! When I am crowned king you will stand trial for treason against your country.”     

“No she won’t. She did what she had to do, to survive ,” Alina pressed, growing more defensive of Genya every moment.     

You slowly nodded from behind Nikolai. “She won’t, Nikolai.” You watched him turn to face you as you shook your head. There was a beat of silence before Nikolai nodded at your silent conversation with him. Something the two of you had grown to be good at during your time at sea.   

“Did the king force you?”      

“I never asked for his attention,” Genya responded not daring to look anyone in the eye.    

Nikolai looked back to you silently asking if you think she can be trusted and you only nod, continuously noting her scarred face. He nods in return before turning to look at Genya. “As the future king, you have my word that you are safe here.” He felt you reach for his hand and he took it, holding onto, finding support in it. Nobody made a point of asking, nobody cared after what had just transpired. “If you can tell me where he is based I shall throw everything I have at him.” He then turned to face you, looking somewhat exhausted. He kissed your hand gently before walking away.        

About an hour later Nikolai found himself among the pews of the former monastery, staring somewhere into space, contemplating anything and everything, on the verge of tears, when he heard someone’s feet. He looked up to see you slowly approaching him and tried to subtly wipe away a tear that spilled over.     

He slid over to give you space, turning to face you in the pew. He let out a long sigh as you reached for his hand. He turned to face the candles once again, feeling some comfort, even if small from your touch. “I know that look, Nikolai. What’s on your mind?”     

He looked at you again, a pained expression on his face. Other than the fact that Kirigan found where we are located? Other than the fact that I am to become King? Other than finally facing He knew you were only asking out of courtesy. You knew how he was doing.            

“Everything,” he responded, half-heartedly, not letting go of your hand.       

You nodded, letting the silence linger, something that you certainly weren’t getting much of these days. It was interrupted when Alina entered and you stood, leaving a lingering kiss on Nikolai’s cheek so they could speak in private which made your heart ping with jealousy for just a moment.        

Soon after that you learned that Alina had given the Lantsov Emerald back to Nikolai formally ending the engagement to search for the Firebird. While you still thought the engagement was good for alliance you quietly were thankful. It was decided that the next best thing would be to truly try and unite the First and Second Army of Ravka. You traveled with Nikolai, David, and Genya to Zvedya. You found yourself growing closer to Genya and David on the way. At the fort you reunited with a number of the soldiers you had known when you agreed to become a healer for Nikolai’s regiment. You also reunited with Dominik who was your partner in teasing Nikolai.         

Brief introductions were made. David proved himself rather useful, helping improve the weaponry and Genya used her unrivaled tailor skills to help fix a woman’s arm and hand. It was after that when Nikolai pulled you to the side to speak with you briefly.          

You had assumed that he simply wanted to talk strategy with you first. You had healed so many of the First Army and Nikolai would often discuss strategy with you as he was healed at your hands. You had a clear knack for it, and that was only proven further out on the seas when in battles with any enemies you met out there. He reached for your hand and pulled you into one of the side rooms inside the large fort before shutting the door behind him. A number of maps and other papers were sprawled over a table in front of you. The only lighting came from the windows, which cast a dim light. Nikolai gently kissed the top of your hand before circling around the table.         

You slowly approached the maps, looking over them, recognizing the detailed works of certain parts of Ravka. You were too busy thinking through possible ideas to notice Nikolai pulling the Lantsov Emerald from somewhere inside his uniform slowly lifting it. It was when he placed it over the maps directly in your eyesight did you pay him any attention. You looked up at him and met his gaze, already deciding to protest what you knew was coming. Of course you wanted to marry him, but that didn’t mean you thought right now would be a better time than any to be engaged to Alina Starkov. You didn’t care if she had broken it off prior, surely she understood how much more alliance that could bring between the First and Second Army.          

“Save me the speech,” Nikolai said, knowing exactly what you were going to say. He leaned forward, placing a hand on either side of the ring which gave you your opportunity to share your two kruge on the matter.           

“Alina Starkov is not just a Grisha, she is the Grisha. I am just a healer, Nikolai.” That’s how simple it was to you. Maybe you were Grisha, but Alina was a Sun Summoner. The person who could tear down the Fold. Reunite Ravka once more.         

Nikolai looked both agitated and pained to hear you talk about yourself like that. “You are not just a Grisha. You are not just a healer, moi magpie ,” he insisted. “You are the healer who ran across yards of an active battleground to save a First Army soldier. You are the healer I would choose as my friend, my confidante, my spouse, my queen, Ravka’s queen. The people already respect you. ”      

His voice held this mix of passion, bordering on authorativeness. But you knew he didn’t want to cross that threshold afraid it might turn into something like a to-be king making a demand. Logically you wouldn’t think that, but considering he was proposing plus the circumstances logic was left at the door.       

“Nikolai…” was all you could muster.       

“I am asking you to be my friend, my confidante, my partner, and Ravka’s queen from now until the day I die,” Nikolai said. The passion was still there, though now it bends towards what most people would call begging. “Marry me. If we survive this, marry me. Be my healer.” The last part he whispered.     

You stood for a few moments, in silence, taking in his words, before nodding. “Yeah.” A slow smile spread across your face. “I’ll marry you, Nikolai Lantosv.”

#nikolai lantsov x reader #nikolai lantsov #alina starkov #mal oretsev #reader #x reader #reader is a healer #tv show plot

[riality-check]

more grishaverse au thoughts, continuing from this

If a person were on a quest to find the most boring place in Ravka, the dry docks at Kribirsk would more than satisfy them.

Eddie thinks this as he hauls yet another crate onto a skiff. Then another, then another. It’s slow, monotonous work, but Eddie supposes he should have been more careful about what he wished for. He wanted something different than the idleness and isolation of the Little Palace, and here he is, constantly busy and constantly surrounded by people.

Most people, he has learned in the two years he has been here, smell awful. 

“Munson! Work a little faster, will you?” Ivan, the man next to him, says, passing him another crate.

Are we hauling bricks? Eddie thinks, nearly staggering under its weight.

He doesn’t miss the way that Ivan laughs at him. Hell, if it were anyone else, Eddie would laugh with him. It’s been two years since he came into Kribirsk with three gold coins and no work experience and took a job on the docks because they were always hiring. Two years, and almost no muscle to show for it. Then again, Eddie had always been a little sickly.

Eddie loads the crate onto the skiff. As he lifts his straining arms up, he feels the sweat roll down his back underneath his shirt. 

He looks up at the sun, annoyingly cheerful and annoyingly hot in the bright blue sky. It can’t be any earlier than midafternoon, so he has at least five more hours of work. The same work, day in and day out.

What joy.

“Munson!”

Eddie fights to not roll his eyes and turns to see Dmitri, his boss, standing on the skiff and looking down on him in the condescending way he’s so fond of. Eddie wants to mouth off, say something to wipe that look off his face, but the last time he did that, he was mysteriously out of work for a week. He could barely afford the bread he made stretch through that week, and he shudders to think about how hungry he was.

So, he bites his tongue so hard he might be tasting blood.

“Yes, sir,” he grits.

“You’re on the skiff this time,” Dmitri says.

Eddie feels his heart drop in his chest.

It’s not uncommon for dockworkers to accompany cargo every once in a while. More valuable products need more protection going across the Fold, and sometimes the skiffs come into Kribirsk with less men than they started with.

Eddie tries to shake that thought out of his head, but it’s a little difficult when the Shadow Fold is right in front of him: a wall of roiling darkness stretching up to the sky and as wide as Eddie can see it. Going around means crossing the borders into brutally cold Fjerda or the brutally hot Shu Han. Going over is impossible: the darkness can’t be scaled in any way.

The only way to the coast and to West Ravka is through.

Eddie thinks about growing up near the coast. He remembers the smell of salt and the constant noise of the waves, remembers the way his hair curled up in the salt air, remembers days spent playing in the waves and lazing on the sand.

Hell, if he goes through the Fold, he’ll get a job in Os Kervo and stay near the sea. He’ll miss a letter from Steve, but he can always send a letter with his new address.

That sounds like a good idea, except for one thing: going through the damn Fold.

Eddie would rather freeze his toes off in Fjerda than go through. The darkness is unnerving and unnatural, chilling him to his bones in a way that real cold never has. He has heard every story about it, about the disorientation of it, about the long, long time spent there. He has seen corpses come out of it daily, bodies deposited on the dry docks of Kribirsk, and he has seen every sketch of the volcra that has ever been published.

He shudders to think of the volcra, of their sickly pale wings, of the sickening amount of teeth in their mouths.

“Did you hear me?” Dmitri asks.

“Yes, sir,” Eddie says, rather than voicing any of that. He’s a coward to be afraid of a little darkness, and they’re better defended against the volcra than they ever have been. Eddie has seen fewer bodies this month than he has in the past two years, so that must mean something good, right?

Eddie is a coward. He has known this since he was very young, but he won’t let anyone else find that out.

“Good,” Dmitri says. “Grab your things, then get on. We leave in ten minutes.”

He walks away before Eddie can ask anything about how many provisions he needs, if he should bring a weapon, before Eddie can ask anything at all.

Prick.

Eddie grabs his bag, the one he’s patched with various scraps of clothing, the one that has little bits of gold thread sewn into all of the patches. Every time he sees it, he smiles because that gold thread was Steve’s.

If you’re going to go, he had said, plucking some of the embroidery out of the cuff of his sleeve, then take me with you.

Eddie had wanted Steve to come with him, and Steve had wanted Eddie to stay, but they had moved past the screaming matches about that to not talking about it. Instead, they write letters. One a week, more if they have time. Eddie tells Steve about city life, the good and the bad because he is nothing if not honest, and Steve writes back about the happenings in the Little Palace.

From his letters, it seems like not much has changed since he left, except for the fact that Steve seems to talk to more people now. That’s good. They were both two lonely boys when Eddie left, and now they at least have friends outside of each other. Eddie has a group of guys he goes drinking with after the day’s work ends, a group that will happily accompany him on whatever he chooses to play that night.

Steve writes about other Grisha he’s friends with: an Alkemi named Robin, a Durast named Jonathan, and a Heartrender named Nancy. They seem to be wonderful in all of Steve’s letters, even Nancy, who he was seeing for a while. They’ve since broken up and seem to be good friends.

Eddie was deeply jealous of her, but he really had no reason to be. He’s been in love with Steve since he was sixteen years old, but it means nothing because he hasn’t told him. He doesn’t want to tell him in a letter, not when it’s unclear if Steve has someone else, not when Eddie still can’t make himself return to the Little Palace, not when Steve still can’t leave, for whatever reason.

It’s a paradox in the worst kind of way. Eddie Munson, long-distance lover with nothing to show for it.

He shakes himself out of those thoughts and climbs up onto the skiff. They’re strange structures, halfway between boat and sled. When he climbs on, he moves to right his feet, but he doesn’t need to. The sand might shift, but it is much steadier than the sea.

It’s so strange, and they haven’t even started moving.

He walks over to the stairs in the deck, but he’s pulled back by the strap of his bag.

“Nope,” a woman with dark hair says. She’s dressed in a blue kefta with red embroidery, so she must be an Inferni. “Can you fire a gun?”

“Yes,” Eddie says. He’s known how to do that since he was eight years old, thank you dad.

“Then you’re staying above deck.” The Inferni turns to walk to the bow of the skiff.

“Do guns fend off volcra?” Eddie finds himself asking.

She says, over her shoulder, “They don’t hurt. Grab one from the rack on deck if you don’t have one already.”

Eddie sighs and grabs a pistol. It seems woefully small and ineffective in his hand, but he loads it with ammunition and releases the safety.

He stares ahead at the Fold and tries to breathe.

“We’re off!” Dmitri calls.

Eddie turns back to see the ropes be untied from the docks, to see a blond man in a blue kefta, evidently a Squaller from how the sails billow when he moves his arms, push the skiff into the dark.

The Fold swallows them, blocking out Kribirsk - good riddance - much faster than Eddie expected.

And the Fold is much louder than Eddie expected.

He assumed that complete and utter darkness came with complete and utter silence, but it doesn’t. The Fold feels alive in a very awful way. Volcra shriek close by, shrill enough that Eddie nearly covers his ears, and the skiff hisses on the sand, a quiet rush that matches the louder one in Eddie’s ears.

People mill about on the deck, holding swords, guns, and, in the Inferni’s case, fire. The Squaller continues to man the sails, and they make their way through the Fold in eerie silence.

The fire in the Inferni’s hands glows orange. When she extends them, it billows out into beautiful shapes, fractals on fractals resembling snowflakes, until she curls her fingers, forces the fire to coalesce into a scene, that of a fox chasing a rabbit. It makes the people near her on deck laugh softly.

Eddie doesn’t miss much about the Little Palace, but he does miss seeing the extraordinary on an ordinary basis. He has long grown past wanting to be Grisha, though, so he watches with the rest of them and privately, and a little pettily, thinks that he has seen better from Wayne.

The fire makes him nervous before he remembers that the volcra are blind. The fire will do no harm. The laughter, however, sets him on edge.

The skiff continues to rush over the sand, and the laughter subsides, and the fire resumes a normal shape, and Eddie relaxes, just the tiniest bit.

And that, of course, is when it all goes wrong.

Even with the light of the fire, Eddie can’t see the volcra as it swoops down. He does, however, hear the ear-piercing shriek it lets out, followed by the scream of a man plucked off the deck like a piece of candy out of the bowl.

“Fucking idiot,” the woman next to Eddie swears, immediately raising her rifle. She uses the light from the Inferni to fire at the volcra. Her aim is true, and the volcra and man fall as one to the sand.

Eddie privately thinks that the gunshot might have been dumber than the scream because the scream was involuntary, but it doesn’t matter what he thinks, not when the whole deck erupts into chaos.

The Inferni’s flame grows bigger, lighting the whole deck. Eddie sees the way they all cluster around the Squaller, the way the Squaller doubles down his efforts on getting them through this cursed place, and the volcra swooping down. Gunshots ring out, as well as the shrieks of volcra and the screams of people taken or sliced open.

It’s madness, so Eddie does what he does best: he runs.

He runs to the bow of the skiff, where there are fewer volcra. The Inferni burns them with her fire, over and over again, but more swoop down near the Squaller. Eddie watches as she swears and runs toward the stern of the ship, largely leaving him alone.

And in the dark.

He shoots what he can manage to see and runs out of ammunition very quickly. He fumbles to reload his pistol, swearing as he drops bullets, and tries to tune out the sounds of people calling for more guns and ammunition, calling to the Saints, calling for their mothers.

As soon as Eddie reloads, there’s a volcra in front of his face.

He can smell its rotten breath, so he raises his pistol and fires where he thinks its mouth is.

The noise is deafening. Its corpse falls onto his legs, and Eddie scrambles away from it before the blood soaks into his pants.

Then, there’s another. And another. And another, and another, and another-

Eddie fires at every inhuman shriek he hears and runs out of bullets, for good this time, very quickly.

He makes his way over to the stern of the ship, surrounding the Squaller like everyone else, and hopes that the protection of other bodies is enough.

Something screeches in his ear, and something slimy and sharp grazes Eddie’s shoulder, drawing blood.

As soon as he realizes it’s a volcra, he throws up his hands and screams.

The world behind his eyelids grows very bright, his hands feel very warm, and then-

Everything.

Goes.

Silent.

Eddie can feel himself shaking, can feel the sweat all over his body and the buzz in his ears from the shots and the screaming, but he refuses to open his eyes.

Someone hauls him up by the arm.

“Look,” a woman’s voice hisses in his ear. The Inferni.

Eddie opens his eyes, and he sees the sky.

Did they make it to Novokribirsk already?

But then he lowers his gaze and sees that, on all sides of a perfect circle, the world is pitch black.

He looks down to see that same perfect circle on the ground, surrounding the skiff. The sand is awfully gray.

He looks back up to see everyone on deck staring at him. The Inferni’s grip on his arm is bruising.

“What are you?” the Inferni demands, shaking his arm.

“I’m not Grisha,” Eddie says because that is a fact he has known since he was nine and was sent to live in a place he did not belong.

“We’ll see about that,” she says. Then, she looks at the Squaller, and says, “Turn us around.”

So much for getting a job in Os Kervo, Eddie thinks.

The other people on deck brace themselves for the darkness. Eddie hopes he’s taken by the volcra.

Because he knows exactly where he’s going. Back to the Little Palace. Back to that feeling of suffocation he’s only just gotten rid of. Back to not belonging, to being something other, something less than.

But, the annoyingly optimistic voice in his head says, that means back to Steve.

And while that should definitely be a good thing, the thought makes Eddie want to check his hair and his clothes, two things he wouldn’t care about otherwise, in the pitch black.

Oh, Saints. He gets to see Steve again. He’s going to have to tell Steve he loves him because that’s what he promised himself he would do if he ever went back to the Little Palace.

He only ever thought he’d go back for Wayne’s funeral.

But now, he has to wrestle with the fact that he very well could be something neither otkazats’ya or Grisha, something entirely new, as well as brace himself for the likely possibility that Steve does not love him back.

After all, it’s been two years. It’s been two long years of letters, and Steve could have anyone in the world, since he’s the most beautiful person in it.

Why on this earth would he even consider picking Eddie?

#ria writes #grishaverse au #steddie #steddie ficlet #stranger things #stranger things ficlet #just finished drafting this now #and had the Urge to post #st #st ficlet #sun summoner eddie

[swanimagines]

Bastard and the Blood Princess

Chapter 7

Read it on AO3 | Read it on Wattpad

The first rays of the Ravkan sun barely peeked through the curtains, when you heard shuffling and rustling through your dream, and you groaned.

“Get up,” Kaz’s voice gruffed, and you heard the click of a cane against the wooden floor, accompanied with a loud creak from the floorboard you cracked. “We need to be at Rotrov by sunrise tomorrow if we want to make it in time for the winter fete.”

You opened your eyes to see Kaz passing your bed with a scowl. He had by no doubt been awake for a while now, judging by how his hair was neatly combed. You actually weren’t sure if he had slept after all.

“What’s the time?” you mumbled, stretching as you slowly sat up.

Kaz took in a long breath through his nose. “Enough.”

You glanced at the creaking floorboard and then swung your legs over the bedside, stretching again. You then took out your folded clothes and started dressing yourself. You glanced at Kaz, who stood in front of a mirror. “We should probably compensate the innkeeper for that floorboard.”

Kaz was quiet for a moment and then turned his head towards you ever so slightly. “I tipped him generously for the coffee because of that. Despite the coffee being average at most.”

You grinned. “Aww, you went to have a cup of coffee and let me sleep in?”

Kaz scoffed, but didn’t reply anything past that. He was quiet again for a moment, adjusting the collar of his shirt, staring at himself from the mirror. As soon as you finished dressing yourself, he spoke again, “Go wake up the driver.”

—

Your driver hadn’t been happy to be woken up, he would rather have slept beside the naked reception lady for a few hours longer. He had only gotten up after you threatened to take his carriage and sell it. And now, with the carriage swaying and shaking a lot more than yesterday, made you certain that the man had been deeply insulted and wanted to ensure you wouldn’t be able to sleep during the day.

Not that you had even intended to try.

Kaz sat there, looking even more pissed than yesterday. He wasn’t able to lean on his cane while sitting unless he wanted to repeatedly knock his jaw with the cane due to all the shaking, and you definitely knew he wasn’t in the mood to talk. Judging by how his leather gloves creaked as he squeezed his cane, he probably used it as a stress reliever when being in the same room with you.

You knew it wasn’t part of your mission, but you couldn’t deny the itch of wanting to know why exactly Kaz hated your father so much - why his whole demeanour screamed he wanted to hate you too, simply for being raised by Pekka. Sure, different gang members and gang leaders often hated each other, it would have been weird if they were all on good terms, but Kaz’s hatred for your father was something much more than that. Especially when your father had no idea what was the problem, he only knew Kaz had grown to be a major menace and needed to be taken out.

Kaz stared at the floor and clenched his jaw, and you turned your head to gaze out of the window. The landscape slowly changed - the city of Kribirsk slowly faded into the background, houses becoming more sparse, less fancy. You approached the countryside.

“Behave yourself,” your father called out to you after he saw you waddling towards a squirrel. “I didn’t take you along to clown around like a fool. You’re a Rollins, act like it.”

A faint memory passed, from the time you were barely four years old and your father had taken you along to visit some relatives. That little town southeast of Ketterdam had been a day and half away from Ketterdam, you had been bored to death while sitting in that carriage all alone - you didn’t have books, no toys, nothing else other than your imagination. Your father had said it will make your patience better. He said he didn’t believe children always need toys to entertain themselves, but then Alby had been a different case. You had really only had your first touch in actual toys when Alby was a toddler and your father had you watch him for a few hours. Playing felt foreign and stupid, but you did wonder if it would feel different if you had been able to play with real toys when you were a child yourself. You had only had some old, broken dolls that were missing limbs or heads. They were better than nothing, but it still felt weird when Alby had a large toy chest full of these shiny trains and expensive plushies, and he got any toys he desired if he only said he wanted them.

He was spoiled to an extent, but you still cared about him, somewhat even loved him. You had participated in raising him, even if your father took credit for it. His Kaelish Prince, he’d tell his closest gang members. He cherished and loved him, more than anything, but he had been discreet about it outside of this little circle he trusted.

He let you use Alby in your plan only because that was a major winning card you could use to get Kaz’s trust. Even when it was extremely risky, your father destroyed children’s lives, so why wouldn’t Kaz do something worse? Especially when considering Kaz’s mystery hatred towards your father.

“I’m not sure why you would take such a street rat in,” your father’s aunt said as she watched you look through the paintings and decorations. “You said she–”

Your father had raised his voice. “Was abandoned by her parents. I took her in out of pure kindness. She’ll learn to be a Rollins in time.”

Everyone turned silent, as if puzzled about something. The memory had stuck to you since that day, but you weren’t sure why.

Then, the carriage jumped and you flew from your seat to the other side, bumping your head with the wall. You cried out as you slid to the floor and clutched your head, feeling blood staining your fingers. Kaz grumbled as the carriage stopped and tipped slightly to the side. You heard the driver curse in Ravkan and the carriage swayed slightly again as he jumped down from the seat. He opened the door, and rubbed his neck.

“Um, change of plans,” he mumbled. “One of the wheels broke. I can’t take you any further.”

You scoffed. “If you wouldn’t have driven so violently, it wouldn’t have broken.”

The driver nodded. “Yes, I’m sorry about that. I didn’t sleep well and–”

You interrupted him, “We paid you for getting us in time to Rotrov village, not for fucking a barmaid.”

The driver scowled, his hands squeezing into fists. “Klasha is not a barmaid, she’s the daughter of the inn owner–”

Kaz stood up, and the man swallowed and shut up instantly. He took a step back to let Kaz out of the carriage, and soon Kaz was looming over him.

“How do you suggest we get to Rotrov now?” Kaz asked, pressing the beak of his cane to the man’s throat. “I paid you the full price beforehand.”

The man’s eyes widened. “I… I’m going to figure out something. Please, go back to the carriage, rest, I will walk back to Kribirsk–”

Kaz looked the man up and down, and hummed, removing the cane. “Make sure you come back, your horses will stay here as collateral.”

He nodded frantically and then took a few steps backwards. “I will! I promise.” Then, he turned around and started running back towards Kribirsk, looking over his shoulder a few times before disappearing behind a hill.

You sighed and groaned. “I can’t believe you just did that. He isn’t–”

Kaz shot you a glare, and then turned to the horses and started to undo their harnesses. “Of course he isn’t, I’m not stupid. The amount of money I gave him is enough for a new carriage, he has no reason to come back. I just wanted to scare him for wasting our time. We’re going to be riding the rest of the way.”

A memory of you riding a horse once more than a decade ago crossed your mind. How you were almost thrown off. “Ride?”

“Yes,” Kaz replied, and then looked at you for a moment. “You can ride, can’t you?”

You straightened up and nodded. “Of course I can. I was just surprised you can too.”

He cocked an eyebrow, and then turned to look his horse over. You glanced at his bad leg, and wondered if this would be the moment to take Kaz out. No witnesses. You’d easily be able to dump his body somewhere.

But on the other hand, you had given the knife to Kaz last night and you currently had no weapons. Kaz could easily smash your head in with his cane if you tried to take on him with your bare fists. He was incredibly skilled in fighting too - you weren’t able to risk it. You’d need to grow trust a little bit more before attacking.

It was just that you started to be in a hurry and riding was faster than sitting in a carriage - less time to plan, to prepare, to make him trust you. You internally cursed yourself about it.

Kaz hoisted himself up on the horse, which impressed you if you were honest. He was stronger than you thought, and you barely noticed him grimacing when he had to put pressure on his bad leg.

“How did you hurt your leg?” you asked as you hoisted yourself up to the horse. “People in Ketterdam have all kinds of stories about it, I’ve always been interested in hearing the actual story.”

Kaz merely cocked an eyebrow at you, and then took the reins. “We will ride north, down that hill. We’ll be at the outskirts of Rotrov by midnight, if we’re lucky.”

You sighed. “May Saints bless our way…”

Kaz laid a side glance at you as he squeezed his horse for a walk. “Didn’t think you’re a religious person.”

“I’m not,” you laughed, following his example. “But considering everything that’s happened lately, believing in fairytales may benefit us.”

Kaz narrowed his eyes at you and scoffed. “Waste of time.”

Then, total silence. Only leaves rustling in the wind, some birds singing. A cat laying on the road let out a meow before it sprinted into a bush, and a beam of rising sun filtered through a large oak in the distance. You rode in silence for about an hour, before you finally opened your mouth. “Does your leg hurt?”

Kaz clenched his jaw. “That’s not your concern.”

“Maybe you should–”

“No.”

“But–”

“No.”

You sighed and laid your eyes back into the road in front of you. You tried to go through all the scenarios that could happen in Rotrov. The guard warehouse was at the outskirts of it. You would probably stay the night, and leave towards Os Alta before sunrise.

This should be the night, tomorrow would be too late. You closed your eyes and inhaled, the air almost feeling bitter when it went down your throat. You should probably send a message to your father, just in case. It was risky, you knew it, but you needed to inform him, so he knew if you had failed.

You grinned at Kaz as you gave your horse a squeeze and she started going faster. “I need to use the bathroom, so here’s a little challenge. Last one at the next village will pay for dinner!”

You knew Kaz huffed and had no intention to follow you, and you could just hope he didn’t doubt your reasoning too much. Your reason was believable enough, and you didn’t have weapons and only a few coins of vlachki - so no way to set up a trap, and not really time either as Puvodsk was only ten minutes away, five minutes if you galloped there, and you weren’t skilled enough to gallop. At least you hoped he thought the same.

The moment you arrived, you tied up your horse and retreated to the bathroom at the nearby pub. You hurried to take your boot off and dug around it for a moment, before locating the little pouch and carefully pulled the piece of parchment wrapped around a pen and a tiny bottle of ink. You laid it on the counter and started scribbling quickly.

Dear Father,

We got to the other side of the Fold. Brekker isn’t quite trusting me, but I need to act quickly. A Sun Summoner has appeared and Brekker is intending to kidnap her tomorrow with the Sharpshooter and Wraith.

We’ve been alone with Brekker since yesterday as the plan includes Sharpshooter and Wraith travelling apart from us, and I may have a chance tonight. If I succeed, I will be back in Ketterdam within a week. If I won’t be back in Ketterdam by

A knock, which made you spill ink on the paper slightly and you barely contained a gasp.

“What’s taking you so long?!” someone roared from the other side of the door, and you started cleaning the mess you made.

“Twice as long now!” you exclaimed back, and cursed slightly when you noticed your shirt caught some ink. Definitely noticeable.

The man growled at the other side of the door and slammed the handle down a few times. You wiped the counter quickly, and tried to make the ink dry faster, even when it was little use when the ink had spread over half of the letter. You’d need to more ink from somewhere and preferably another parchment, and soon. When the ink had dried enough, you quickly stuck it back into your boot and opened the door. The man pushed past you that instant and you exited the bathroom before seeing anything more.

Kaz stood in front of the pub and took a look at you. His eyes lingered on the ink stain, and you chuckled. “Someone had left a bottle of ink in the bathroom, I accidentally knocked it over in a hurry."

He didn’t say anything to that, he narrowed his eyes slightly and then met your eyes. “Are you clear with our plan?” 

You nodded. “It’s a few hours until sunset and we’ll be at Rotrov in six hours at earliest. But you probably prefer to break in at night anyways, so it won’t be a problem.”

Kaz nodded, and then took a look at the pub sign. Snoring Tulip. “We should stop by for dinner before that. We won’t get food in Rotrov at that time of night, and we need to be sharp when breaking into the warehouse.”

You frowned. “You mean to say you’re–”

He rolled his eyes. “No, not because of your ‘challenge’. Because you don’t have money anyway. But I will not buy anything grand for you.”

You pouted playfully and then followed Kaz to the pub - food indeed would do good for your plans tonight.

#kaz brekker #kaz brekker x reader #kaz brekker x you #kaz brekker imagines #kaz brekker fanfic #kaz brekker imagine #shadow and bone x reader #shadow and bone fanfic #shadow and bone imagine #shadow and bone #six of crows imagine #six of crows x reader #six of crows #grishaverse imagine #grishaverse x reader #grishaverse fanfic #grishaverse #my works #six of crows fanfic #reader insert #batbp #the bastard and the blood princess

[mattmurdocksscars]

Congrats on reaching your milestones, babes! 🧡

I am in an angsty mood so I'll throw the Darkling, "this isn't what I wanted to happen." (angst, 41) and "I don’t see the same person I loved when I look at you anymore." (angst, 49) from the prompts list (150) into the blender 😵‍💫

I just fell for Ben Barnes a little too hard

CC, must you come for my heart like this?

This will be my first attempt at the Darkling, be gentle.

You'd like to pretend that you didn't know when Aleksander's attitude had shifted. However, you would be lying. You knew everything had shifted at the arrival of the Sun Summoner.

Her and Aleksander had arrived at the Little Palace astride his horse. He had broken from her to go speak to the Tsar and you'd managed to stop him long enough to ask what was going on and if he was alright. He'd promised to come to you later and explain everything. He never showed.

That was only the beginning.

Over the following weeks, he drifted further and further from you. He'd promise to meet with you only to never show and you'd later find out he was with Alina. Even when he was with you, he was distracted most of the time.

You tried not to be a jealous person, you really did. But it was hard when your partner began pushing you aside for another person. The worst part was that it seemed as if Aleksander had no idea of the pain he was causing you.

He still called you love, still kissed you, still slept by your side some nights. When you did have his attention, he was as reverent as he had been before.

It hurt. Saints, did it hurt. You could only suffer in silence for so long before you finally gathered the courage to do something.

You found him in his war room. While Aleksander didn't look up at your arrival, Ivan did. He nodded to you and seeing that you wished to speak with the General, slipped by you to leave the room. He gently squeezed your shoulder on the way out and you tried not to let your eyes water at the gesture. It seemed even others had picked up on Aleksander's distance.

You stood across the table from him and waited for him to acknowledge you. It took several minutes before he finally let out a frustrated sigh.

"If you're not going to say anything, then leave." You flinched at his sharp tone, sucking in a sharp breath, and that seemed to cause him to finally look up. You saw a brief flash of guilt cross his face before he was standing.

"Love, I didn't realize-"

"Don't. Just... it doesn't matter. I'm here to let you know I'm leaving in the morning."

"What? What do you mean? Where are you going?" His confusion caused you to look down at where your hands were pressed into the table. It was the only way to hide the shaking in them. You'd gone and done something reckless and you knew he wasn't going to be happy with you.

"I leave for Kribirsk in the morning. I'm to lead a crossing of the Fold." Because you were looking down, you missed the look of panic that crossed Aleksander's face.

"On whose orders?!"

"Yours." The silence that fell over the room was deafening. You noted absently that Aleksander still hadn't approached you and you tried not to let that hurt you more.

"That's impossible, I- I never would have signed off on that-"

"You did. Five days ago. I watched you do it." You finally looked at him and saw the confusion on his face that was quickly replaced with understanding.

"That document you had me sign..." You nodded. "Saints. Why would you do that? I never would have signed it if I'd realized-"

"And that's exactly the problem, General. If you'd spared me so much as a glance, you'd have known what I was handing you. Instead, you were once again occupied by your obsession with the Sun Summoner." You watched as a dark look crossed his face and you forced yourself to square your shoulders and brace yourself for the fight to come.

"That's what this is about? You're jealous and so you've gone and done something so stupid?" You scoffed out a laugh.

"Aleksander, if I was jealous, I would simply fawn over you until you gave me the attention I desired. I will not lie to you and say that your actions lately have not hurt me. You've made it very clear how little I mean to you and so I'm simply returning to my duties. I will not spend my days haunting the Little Palace and waiting for you to acknowledge my existence." Aleksander's face was shocked, you having never spoken to him this way before.

"You can't be serious... You have to know how much I care for you."

"Do I? I don’t see the same person I loved when I look at you anymore. You've let this obsession completely consume you. I'm not a toy you can play with at your convenience. I am a person and I deserve to be treated with respect."

"Love, please. Don't do this, don't go. This isn't what I wanted to happen." Aleksander pleaded, finally rounding the table and approaching you. You let him gently cup your face in your hands as his eyes searched yours desperately.

"Aleksander... I can't stay if you can't promise me that you'll let this obsession go." Your heart broke when you saw the hesitation in his eyes and you closed yours to hide the tears that welled. His hesitance was answer enough and so you reached up and gently removed his hands from your face, stepping back.

"Don't do this. It's just temporary, love, I swear! As soon as we get the Fold taken care of, it'll be back to the way things were." You shook your head and turned your back to him, walking to the door. You paused there before yanking the door open.

"Goodbye, Aleksander."

#the darkling x reader #i tried #hopefully it lives up #i also almost died because i thought i lost this #general kirigan x reader #aleksander kirigan x reader #aleksander morozova x reader

[marvelmusing]

In Another Life

Part Three

Pairing: Aleksander Morozova x Alternate Universe!Reader

Summary: You and Aleksander journey to Kribirsk, where everything starts to become real for you, as your plan is finally set in motion.

Warnings: canon level violence, brief nightmares, references to death.

My Masterlist • Series Masterlist • Next Part

It had taken some time for you to become accustomed to the rocking sway of the coach as it rattles down the Vy. The roads of Os Alta are smooth, so you are quite well adjusted by the time the wheels begin to turn over rough earth and grass.

Aleksander sits beside you, with Fedoyr in front of you and Ivan next to him. Ivan doesn’t speak unless directly spoken to, usually by his husband, and Aleksander seems rather content to watch you and Fedoyr interact with one another.

The heartrender is very easy to talk to, and his bright friendly personality puts you at ease, though you still need to concentrate on your words. Throughout your conversation, you realise how effortless you find lying. You answer his questions with a surprising number of half-truths, which you’re certain impresses Aleksander.

The two of you had come up with a simple story to explain your background, which you relay to Fedoyr. When he asks about your family you respond with the truth. That whilst you were close with them, you hadn’t seen them for a long stretch of time.

“Do they plan on visiting you sometime?” Again, you respond with the truth.

“I’m sure they would love to. Though I don’t think they’ll be able to any time soon.” The fact that they exist in another universe makes it highly unlikely.

“A shame.” You nod in agreement, and quickly redirect the conversation towards his family. He has a large collection of older brothers and sisters, and you’re smiling as he tells you about them.

Surrounded by new people, it’s easy for you to hide how your thoughts linger elsewhere. After an hour or so, you reach Balakriev. As the you pass through the town, your eyes remain fixed on the streets lined with people who turn to stare at the sight of the Darkling’s coach tearing by.

Once the coach reaches the outskirts of Balakriev, it slows to a stop in the courtyard of a well-maintained inn.

Aleksander offers you his hand as you follow him out of the coach, and you stretch your aching legs as he speaks with some of his oprichniki.

Aleksander doesn’t remove himself from his soldiers, staying with them as your small group eats an early lunch at the inn. Whilst he isn’t actively involved in the conversation, he gives whoever is speaking his full attention. You will admit that you spend plenty of your time looking over at him.

Once lunch is over, the majority of your group heads to the stables to change over the horses, which will hopefully mean that you will arrive at Kirbirsk earlier than expected.

Needing a moment to think, you sit down on a nearby bench. You can see into the courtyard where Fedoyr is preparing one of the horses alongside an oprichnik.

Aleksander surveys them intently, his brows furrowed as his eyes scan over the cobbled courtyard. His chin lifts, and he turns his head as if he’s searching for something. In a slow, smooth motion he continues to turn his head, until his eyes fix on you.

Offering him a small smile doesn’t appear to be enough reassurance for him, as he’s soon striding through the courtyard and crossing the grass towards you.

“Are you alright?” He asks, sitting down slowly beside you on the bench, the wood shifting once he finally makes contact with it.

“I’m fine.” You insist.

He waits as you stare down at the blade of grass being twirled absentmindedly between the pads of your fingers.

“It’s just… talking with Fedoyr made me realise that I might never see my world again. I’ll never hear my favourite music, or read my favourite books. Even the clothes are different. It’s all gone. It might sound silly…” He shakes his head insistently.

“It’s still a loss.”

Turning to him, there’s a startling amount of understanding in his eyes. But of course he understands.

“It is.” You agree quietly.

How much has he lost to time? So many things have changed since he was a boy. It must be hard, to mourn each and every familiar thing as it fades into nonexistence.

No more words are exchanged between the two of you after that moment. Every now and then, you feel the weight of Aleksander’s eyes on you but you don’t turn to look at him.

Once the new horses have been attached to the coach, you and Aleksander return to join the rest of your travelling party. The oprichniki don’t pay either of you any mind, as they simply follow their orders. But you can sense Fedoyr and Ivan looking over at you as they mount their horses.

With just the two of you left in the coach, you’re able to ask Aleksander questions about things he would never discuss in front of another person. His expression softens when you tell him how beautiful the Little Palace is, and then you ask him about when the palace was built.

There’s a sparkle in his eyes as he tells you about the designs he himself had made, and you laugh when he describes the tasteless and irritating Royal Architect that he was forced to work alongside.

Around an hour after sundown, your eyelids begin to grow heavy. But, with the unsteady rocking of the coach, and the lack of any sort of headrest means you have little chance of being comfortable enough to sleep.

Besides, you haven’t slept well since you arrived in Ravka as your dreams have been far from sweet. It’s only once your head lolls lightly against the window frame for the third time, that Aleksander decides to speak.

“Come here.” You blink at him as he moves closer to the side of his seat, and realise he means for you to sit beside him. Shaking your head immediately, you insist,

“I’m fine.”

“That wasn’t a request.”

You know he isn’t the kind of man that enjoys repeating himself, so despite your hesitation, you cross over to sit beside him. Aleksander leans back against the cushioned wall, one of his shoulders pressed against the edge of the window frame.

With a gentle motion, he encourages you to rest your head against his other shoulder and soon your eyes are fluttering closed. There’s a small frustrated huff that leaves your lips as you remain unable to relax.

“I can ask Fedoyr or Ivan to help you fall asleep.” He suggests.

“No, please don’t trouble them.” You insist, fingers curling around his sleeve as you turn your face further into his shoulder. The fabric of his kefta is surprisingly comfortable. “I just need to stay like this for a while, if that’s alright with you?”

“Of course.”

Hopefully with Aleksander so close to you, his presence will reassure you enough to lessen your nightmares. If not, then perhaps the jarring motion of the coach will prevent you from sleeping deep enough to dream properly.

Eventually you sleep. Your first dreamless night in Ravka.

»»---------------------►

When you wake sunlight is weaselling it’s way through a small crack between the dark curtains that Aleksander had drawn shut once night had begun to descend.

Shifting slightly, your eyes soon meet the man in question. Aleksander’s features are softened as he sleeps. The morning sun illuminates a few stray strands of his hair, shimmering flecks of gold amongst his dark locks. He looks so beautiful like this. Peaceful. Content.

Even as you notice his eyelashes beginning to flutter as he wakes, you can’t find the strength to look away from him. His eyes open, and meet yours immediately. Embarrassment warms your cheeks at being caught so quickly.

“Good morning.” He says softly, and something inside you shatters at the sound of his sleep heavy voice as that damned half smile tugs at his lips.

“Good morning.” You mumble, shuffling away from him as you reach towards the curtain lining the window.

Pulling the delicate fabric aside with a finger, you squint in the bright light as you attempt to survey your surroundings. Open fields of long grass, dried by a summer of heavy heat, stretch as far as you can see.

“Are we almost there?” You ask, turning towards Aleksander, only to find him leaning over, his face inches from yours as he looks out of the window.

For a moment you can only watch his face. His lips parted, eyes focused on the scenery as he searches for recognisable features. Then he nods, and you look away from him quickly.

“We should arrive some time within the next half an hour.” He informs you, and you nod in acknowledgement before you move back to take your place on the seat in front of him.

Kribirsk is a ramshackle of a town, made into a port over the centuries once people began using the town as a means to stop before any attempt at crossing the Fold. It certainly isn’t desolate. There’s plenty of ordinary civilians, and tradespeople clamouring about their produce, as well as First and Second Army soldiers wandering about.

The coach comes to a halt near what you assume is Aleksander’s tent. It’s black, which is the main giveaway, and much smaller than the Grisha tent beside it.

Aleksander climbs out first, and once again offers you his hand as you step onto the edge of the doorway. It’s once your feet are settled on the firm dirt ground that you get your first look at the Fold.

“It’s tall.” You remark, swallowing down the surge of fear at the sight of such a colossal wall of shadow with monsters lurking in its depths.

Aleksander nods, watching your expression carefully. Perhaps he’s waiting for you to change your mind about helping him, now that you’ve seen the Fold for yourself. Instead, you make a mental note to never ever go into the Fold, and nod resolutely at him as he steps backwards towards the tent. You follow him inside.

The inside of his tent isn’t dissimilar to his war room. There’s a large, circular table in the centre with a variety of maps and papers laid out over the dark wood. Around the edge of the tent there’s a few cabinets, chairs, stray flags and banners that bear his symbol - the sun in eclipse. Candles are strewn about, casting very little light, though you can see quite well due to a horizontal slit above the entrance to the tent, which allows a ray of sunlight to shine down onto the table.

Trailing behind Aleksander like one of his shadows, you observe who he talks to as he issues orders and makes demands. The older Grisha look at him with respect, and the younger ones have awe and fear in their eyes when they catch a glimpse of him.

Occasionally, Aleksander will explain your presence to a few Grisha after their curious eyes linger on you. In response you nod politely, and offer them a small smile.

After what feels like a long stretch of time, the two of you are finally alone. Aleksander sits down at the table, brows drawn together as he reads through a series of missives.

“Would you be able to fetch Miss Starkov and the tracker for a briefing?”

“Me?” Amusement sparks in his eyes, though his lips remain unmoving as he glances up from a report to look at you. He nods.

“You do know where they are currently. Don’t you?” There’s a pause as you take in his words. Then you realise you do know where they are.

“I’ll go get them.”

Whilst you theoretically know that Alina will be meeting up with Mal outside his tent before they cross the Fold, you don’t exactly know where his tent is.

For a good length of time, you wander through the First Army tents, dodging soldiers who barge by you as if you’re invisible. At one point you almost get knocked into a rather deep puddle, and you begin to worry that you’ll never find them.

Then you spot someone with a cartographer symbol stitched onto his shoulder, and you move towards him. From his appearance you can guess that he’s Alexei. There’s a pang of guilt in your chest as you realise that he will most likely be dragged off by the volcra in a few hours.

You can’t save everyone.

The group’s conversation is rather loud and a few of the boys are exchanging jokes boisterously.

Once you hear the mention of a black coach you realise they are talking about Aleksander. You remember the stories passed around by the First Army soldiers. Of a healer sealing a man’s mouth shut after he betrayed his country. Of heartrender’s bursting hearts and crushing lungs with a simple wave of a hand.

It’s only once you hear a particular remark that you stop walking.

“He’s not natural. None of them are.”

Of course you had read those words plenty of times before, but hearing them feels so much different. Especially now that you know Aleksander. Now that you’ve seen his hair tousled from sleep, and know how he takes his tea in the morning.

“Corporal Ortsev. Miss Starkov.” You call out.

The words come out sharper than you had intended, fuelled by their words about Aleksander and the Grisha. A boy turns sharply, tossing his towel onto his shoulder. Behind him, a young girl stands up. She’s small and thin, with dark hair pinned up underneath her standard First Army hat. Alina.

“General Kirigan has requested to speak with you both.”

“And who are you?” The boy, who you assume is Mal, asks.

“I’m the General’s assistant.” Another boy who sits nearby on a barrel leans forward to eye you with a smirk.

“Since when did the Black General have an assistant?” Lifting a brow at him, you fold your hands together casually.

“Since now, though I certainly don’t want to be the one to explain to him that we were delayed by people asking stupid questions.” Turning your attention back to Alina and Mal, you look between them both. “Shall we?”

In this moment, you’re insanely grateful that the Grisha tent is as large as it is, providing you with an easy route back to Aleksander’s tent. Mal and Alina exchange nervous glances with one another as you step inside, though they quickly follow you.

“Moi soverenyi.” Aleksander looks up at you, watching intently as you bow. “Corporal Ortsev, and Assistant Cartographer Starkov as requested.” He nods.

“You may leave us.”

You bow again, and turn on your heel. This is where you leave Aleksander to do what he does best. Convince people to do whatever he wants.

You decide to go in search of the bag you had packed. The only belongings you owned were what Aleksander had given you, but when you had been preparing for your trip to Kribirsk he asked if there was anything you wanted.

At the entrance to the Grisha tent, you find your bag. A medium sized cloth satchel that sits perfectly on your shoulder. Inside there’s a shawl, a notebook, and a collection of pencils.

Whatever clothes Aleksander had ordered for you had been packed alongside his things, in the large trunks currently sitting next to your bag. Adjusting the strap slightly as it settles on your shoulder, you head towards a pile of crates near Aleksander’s tent.

When you sit down, you realise you had chosen an opportune place to be able to see both the entrance to Aleksander’s tent, and a good proportion of the First Army’s encampment.

Pulling out your notebook, you begin to scribble down a makeshift map of Ravka, detailing travel times and observations about the landscape you had seen during your journey.

You’re in the middle of contemplating the width of the Fold when someone familiar walks by you. Alexei looks around nervously, keeping a large distance between himself and Aleksander’s tent.

“They’re still with the General.” You call out towards him when he nears you for the second time. He jumps a little, even though you weren’t particularly loud. He nods.

“Oh. Thanks.” He wrings his hands together, eyes scanning over the people around you. His frantic glances towards the Fold itself don’t escape your notice. You tell him your name, in an attempt to distract him from his obvious nerves.

“I’m Alexei.”

“How long have you been a cartographer?”

The two of you talk for a little, though his attention snaps towards the entrance to Aleksander’s tent as it flaps open. Alina and Mal both look bemused, and a little relieved.

Alexei heads over to them immediately.

“I’ve been reassigned.” You hear Alina tell him, and the tension returns to his shoulders.

Aleksander steps out from his tent, his cloak clasped around his throat, which sways dramatically in the breeze. Heads turn towards him, both Grisha and otkazat’sya. You snap your notebook shut and slide it back into your bag. Climbing down from your seat on the crates, you move towards Aleksander.

As you’re passing by the group, Alexei reaches towards you, prompting you to frown lightly and turn to face him. Out of the corner of your eye, you see Aleksander watching you. You’re certain he’s close enough to hear Alexei as he says,

“Thank you.” You swallow hard, nodding in response, and you walk with him as he moves towards the edge of the port.

“May the Saints protect you, Alexei.” You say, feeling the hollowness of your words in your chest as you stop by Aleksander’s side on a platform that overlooks the port. Alexei nods his thanks to you with a nervous smile, before he walks down towards the skiff.

As the sails fill with squaller winds, and the skiff begins to move, you grip tightly onto the railing at the edge of the port, nails digging into the battered wood.

“That boy is going to die today. Isn’t he?” Aleksander says quietly as you both stare into the Fold.

You nod.

“Though I hope I’m wrong.” Your voice is low, ensuring that he is the only one who hears you. “Who knows, Alina might have been what drew the volcra in. Without her on the skiff, they may be able to get through.”

Feeling the weight of Aleksander’s eyes on you, you turn to look at him. One glance at his face, and you breathe out sharply,

“You don’t believe me.”

“I believe you’re searching for hope.”

A small sigh falls from your lips, and the skiff disappears into the darkness.

“What else can I do?”

»»---------------------►

Aleksander, and in turn you, stay in Kribirsk for a week after the launch of the prototype sand-skiff. The skiff had actually managed to reach Novokribirsk but with heavy casualties.

A smaller skiff, carrying artillery, brings a missive a few days later, reporting the deaths. Aleksander glances over at you subtly as Ivan reads out Alexei’s name, but your face is perfectly collected.

That night, you dream of the Fold.

On every side of you, people are being torn apart by volcra. Screams and cries echo in your ears; the scent of blood hangs heavy in the air. Alina throws her hands out, failing to call the light.

There’s a sickening twist in your stomach. You were wrong about her. You had been wrong, and now you would all die because of your mistake.

Aleksander’s eyes meet yours, wide with horror, only for him to be ripped away from you. He disappears into the shadows, but you can hear his screams.

If Aleksander hears you crying into one of his pillows as he works late at his war table, he doesn’t acknowledge it.

At first you had protested against sleeping in his bed, after all, there was no threat to you within the camp. But when you wake in the middle of the night and are able to walk a few paces, lift a curtain aside, and join Aleksander as he works, you’re glad that you relented.

Seeing him alive and well is a comfort to you, especially after witnessing him being torn to pieces by the volcra in your dreams.

Neither of you talk. Occasionally he will glance over at you, meeting your eyes for a long moment before he continues with whatever he’s reading or writing. You keep your knees tucked against your chest, resting your chin against one of your kneecaps.

He works until the candles burn low, and he must reach a point in his work where he is satisfied to leave it. He casts out a hand, plunging the room into darkness.

Aleksander’s fingers curl around yours, urging you to stand and be lead through the darkness, back to bed.

»»---------------------►

Soon enough, you’re preparing to return to the Little Palace. Aleksander had been pulled into a last minute meeting with the Kaptain before you planned to leave.

Over the week, Grisha had soon learnt that your word was as good as their General’s and that you should be addressed accordingly. A few of them had even started bowing to you, which you had quickly assured them wasn’t necessary.

There were still some who didn’t accept your authority, after all you had appeared out of nowhere and suddenly had an important position beside the General. They have every right to be suspicious.

Aleksander had asked you to oversee the final preparations while he met with the Kaptain.

So, you had ordered for Aleksander’s tent to be dismantled, and all his important documents to be packed into the coach. This time the coach would travel along the Vy, whilst Aleksander and the rest of your party took the hunting trails by horseback. He had decided this was the best course of action, after you had warned him that Drüskelle would be travelling in the area.

As people begin to climb up onto their horses, you wring your hands awkwardly. Aleksander won’t have requested a horse for you, because he knows you can’t ride, but he hadn’t told you who you would be riding with on the journey back to Os Alta. Perhaps you could ask Fedoyr to help you.

At the sound of your name being called, you turn. Aleksander has mounted his horse, a large black steed that he manoeuvres effortlessly closer to you. He extends a hand, and your eyes widen when you realise he’s intending for you to ride with him.

“I’m sure someone else could take me. Why don’t you take Miss Starkov?” You suggest with a pointed look, brows raised hopefully.

He breathes out a small laugh as his eyes lift to something behind you. Alina has lifted herself up onto a grey mare, and though she looks far from confident, she’s faring much better than you would.

Her horse seems reluctant to move at first, and you pray that isn’t some sort of omen for you.

“It appears Miss Starkov knows how to ride.” Aleksander remarks drily, the corner of his mouth quirking as you narrow your eyes at him.

“You’re hilarious.” You deadpan, before accepting his hand with a sigh.

He hears the sharp inhale that catches in your throat as you land in the saddle in front of him.

“It’s quite high.” You observe with panic lacing your tone as you stare down at the ground. Aleksander’s palm settles on your thigh, squeezing lightly in reassurance.

“You’re alright.” He says calmly, his lips brushing against your temple. “I won’t let you fall.” You nod. Of course he would keep you from falling, he needs you alive and not trampled by a horse. “Squeeze your legs together. Not too tight.” He directs you. “And hold on here.” His fingers tap against the front of the saddle, and you hold on tightly.

With how close he is, you can feel every breath he takes. It’s comforting, even if the proximity flusters you a little.

Ivan’s expression is unreadable as usual, and you flush a little, feeling like a child as you observe that you’re the only one not riding alone. Then Fedoyr grins at you, as he no doubt observes your rapidly beating heart, due to Aleksander’s hand still lingering on your thigh.

It’s just to keep you balanced. That’s all.

Aleksander secures the reins in one of his hands, and urges the horse into moving forwards.

Back to the Little Palace. Now the real work begins.

»»---------------------►

marvelmusing Tag List: @dreamlandcreations @blanchedelioncourt @idaofinfinity @slytherheign @ellooo0ooo

In Another Life Tag List: @parabatai-winchester @dangerousbluebirdpoetry @jambolska-grozdova @modern-m-a-g-i-c

BB Characters Tag List: @rachlovesactors @noortsshift

#in another life au #aleksander morozova #aleksander morozova x reader #the darkling #the darkling x reader #the darkling au #shadow and bone au #shadow and bone x reader #shadow and bone #in another life chapters

[midwinterspringwrites]

for a further union

Rated T

Alexei / Aleksander / Alina

Duke Alexei, Aleksander's partner, visits the cartographers in Kribirsk and finds something unexpected. Or more precisely, someone.

(An Alexei/Aleksander/Alina marriage of convenience A/B/O fic)

Written for @jammerific for the @darklinaserver Secret Sankta Exchange.

Moodboard by me.

Read on AO3.

#shadow and bone #my fic #a/b/o #a/b/o dynamics #polyamory #alexei x aleksander x alina #alina starkov #aleksander morozova #alexei stepanov #alexei/aleksander/alina #shadow and bone fanfic #marriage of convenience

[ineffeblygay]

The following message is directed to darklina shippers, primarily those of which who have not read the books, those who excuse the actions of The Darkling in the books, and/or those who see the actions and simply accept/ignore them because “he’s morally grey tehe 🤭” or “he’s the same as Kaz Brekker” or “Ben Barnes is sooo hot”.

Let’s start this off strong: The Darkling is ABSOLUTELY, POSITIVELY, BEYOND A SHADOW (ha) OF A DOUBT nothing like Kaz ‘Dirtyhands’ Brekker, and here’s why.

Kaz is a criminal, there is no denying it, and we love him for it. Why, you may ask? That’s because Kaz has two things the Darkling doesn’t.

#1 lines he won’t cross. Kaz Brekker, a man who wants vengeance more than he wants oxygen, still has a hard limit. He’d never do *insert unspeakable things the darkling has done “for the greater good” (they were in fact NOT for the greater good but we’ll get into that later)*. And the reason for that is he actually cares about his friends, his crows. He CARES about their lives more than he cares about his vengeance. Even if he doesn’t show it, he’d never trade one of them for Pekka’s head. Instead, he’d work with them to kill him.

#2 he has an actual reason (now I know, I know: Kaz Brekker didn’t need a reason- but he has one). We all know his traumatic history and how it affects him to this day. We know what happened to Jordie and how Kaz vowed to avenge his big brother. We’ve all read the same chapters, the same Kaz POVs. He was wronged and ofc, it’s a YA fantasy novel so he’s gonna kill the bastard, duh. He’s getting his pound of flesh, and some for Jordie too, and he’ll build his empire off of Pekka.

Now I know what you may be thinking: “THIS SOUNDS JUST LIKE THE DARKLING!!” but does it really? Think about it here. Point #1, lines that won’t be crossed. Kaz has proven to have mercy even when it would have served his plan better to not (that part in CK when he threatened to kill a kid); but has the Darkling?

Let’s start a list:

the fold (and everyone inside). Sounds like genocide and world destruction to me.

Novo Kribirsk - again with that genocide.

Alina. Everything Alina. This includes, but is not limited to: grooming her, putting a collar around her neck to steal her powers and enslave her, torturing her and her partner, kidnapping her, sexually assaulting her, attacking her (x a bajillion times), threatening her, etc.

Genya - put a (I believe) 9 year old in the hands of a KNOWN pedophile to retrieve information, separated her from other grisha so she felt alone, manipulated and groomed her, mutilated her, etc.

Killed Botokin and Anna Kunya, and held orphans hostage.

These are specifics I know off the top of my head and I could get more if I did some research, but just rapid fire here: deaths of countless grisha who stood against him, what he did to Zoya, Fedyor, Sergi, Nikolai (not a grisha but he counts), etc.

All of these actions were supposedly to get to his goal of “a safe place for grisha” (We’ll talk about how that wasn’t what he actually cared about later) and he didn’t stop at anything. Never hesitated, nothing.

The real reason this was all for was because he has a MASSIVE savior complex. He may have wanted (past tense) a safe place for grisha but now, what matters more to him is being the hero. He wants more to be the one who saves everyone than to have everyone be safe. It really reinforces the whole “make me your villain” line bc he doesn’t believe he’s the villain, he wants to be the hero so bad- but he’s not. And he never will be, because somewhere along the line, he lost sight of the goal and started making bad decisions and now we’re here.

Another thing I’d like to add, you can like Ben Barnes and not like the Darkling. You have to remember that it’s a ROLE. I love Ben and hate the darkling. Simply bc they’re NOT THE SAME PERSON. It’s actually quite genius that he was casted bc a big part of his gig was seducing people to his side with his insane looks and charisma so clearly it worked a little too well.

Now to get to #2. He didn’t have an actual valid reason- not that any reason could warrant his behavior but he didn’t even have a fucking reason. He SAID he was doing it all “so grisha could be safe” but it’s a lie. It may have been his reason a few centuries ago but I guarantee it’s not his reason now. If that was his reasoning for ALL THIS, he would not HARM grisha to get what he wants. He wouldn’t KILL grisha for his goals.

In short, the Darkling does what he does because he has a MASSIVE savior complex. He wants more so to be the one who saves everyone, than to have everyone be safe.

#shadow and bone #seige and storm #ruin and rising #king of scars #rule of wolves #the darkling #aleksander kirigan #anti darkling #anti darklina #kaz brekker #kaz is NOT the darkling

[thebadgerclan]

What Are You?

Pairing: Aleksander Morozova x reader

Requested by Purple Heart Anon

Summary: “What are you?” is a difficult question...

Smut!

Y/G/O is your Grisha order, Y/G/T is type (Heartrender, Tidemaker, Alkemi, etc.)

If someone asked you “What are you?”, the answer was fairly simple:  A Grisha, a Y/G/O, Y/G/T, soldier of the Second Army.  But if someone asked you “What are you to the General?”, well, that was a different question entirely.  You were his lieutenant, his second in command, alongside Ivan, his friend…a friend you occasionally slept with.  It was bizarre, one evening you’d been plowing through a Zemini trade agreement, looking over Aleksander’s shoulder, the next thing you knew, you were under him in his bed.

The arrangement had spontaneously evolved from there: you weren’t dating, but when one of you needed release, the other was available.  It had been going on for a few months, and in the past few weeks, you felt your feelings for the General beginning to grow.  You found yourself anticipating when he might enter a room, feeling disappointed when he didn’t.  Your heart would pick up when you saw him, and when he smiled at you, oh Saints, you thought you might die.

There was little to be done at the moment, though.  Aleksander was in Kerch, his return date unknown, which left you to wait (not very patiently) for his return.  And a month, an entire month, after his departure, you caught wind of the General’s return.  In the month he’d been gone, your feelings and longing for Aleksander only grew.  And not only in the sexual sense; you missed his presence, his embrace, his smile, his voice.  It was hell not having him here, but when you heard a maid say something about “Kirigan’s horses needing re-shoed, after the hard journey from Kribirsk,”, your mood lifted immensely.

You hurried through the corridors of the Little Palace towards Aleksander’s chambers, intent on confessing your feelings when you arrived.  But when you slipped through the door, you were met with a wonderful sight.  “I came as soon as I heard–oh…sorry.”  Aleksander was shirtless, his pants unfastened and hanging low on his hips.  “Y/N,” he said, voice warm and sending shivers down your spine.  “I must say I wasn’t expecting you.”

You laughed softly.  “I can see that.”  He turned towards you, and you felt your heartbeat quicken.  Saints, he was handsome, and you felt desire pooling between your legs as he approached. “H-how was Kerch?”  “Alright, but I don’t want to talk about my trip right now.”  “You don’t?”  “Mmm, no.  There is something here that is far more interesting.”  You smirked, feeling laughter bubbling in your chest.  “And what might that be?”

“You.”  Aleksander lowered his face to yours, not letting his lips touch yours.  “I missed you,” you whispered, all you could bring to mind from your earlier planned discussion.  “Did you?” Aleksander said, cocking his head.  “How much did you miss me?”  Suddenly feeling bold, you smiled.  “Kiss me and you’ll find out.”  The General sighed, sealing his lips over yours, wrapping his arms around you, pulling you to his chest, one hand splayed over your shoulders, the other squeezing and kneading at your rear.

Your kefta and the rest of your clothes were quickly removed, and Aleksader lifted you up and tossed you gently on the bed.  “I need you,” he groaned.  “I want to taste you, but I can’t wait.”  You shook your head, threading your fingers through his hair and pulling him into a deep kiss.  “Then don’t.”  Aleksander moaned, shoving his pants off and positioning himself between your legs.

When he pushed his cock into you, you let out a long, desperate moan.  It had been too long, far too long, and you pulled him closer, kissing his jaw as he began rolling his hips.  “Y/N,” Aleksander moaned, shuddering as you kissed down his neck, your tongue darting out to lick at his skin.  “Oh, Y/N, I missed you so much.”  You moaned softly as Aleksander thrusted in and out of you, his cock dragging against your g-spot, his lips on your face.  “Aleksander, I missed you–fuck, yes!”

He’d shifted the angle of his hips, allowing him to fuck you deeper, and increased his pace as well.  Aleksander reached between your bodies to rub your clit, making you arch your back and cry out his name, pulling him closer to you.  Your lips found his in a messy, passionate kiss, and he moaned into your mouth, letting his forehead rest against yours.  “Y/N,” Aleksander breathed.  “Y/N, you feel so good around me.  So tight and wet.  Fuck, I lo–”  Aleksander cut himself off, but not soon enough.  You knew the three words that were about to leave his mouth, and a sharp pang of arousal shot through.

“Sasha,” you said, the diminutive of his name making him whimper.  “Sasha, say it.  Please, say it.”  Aleksander sucked in a breath, never slowing the thrusting of his hips.  “I love you,” he gasped.  “Y/N, my darling, I love you!”  You let out a keening moan, locking your ankles around his waist, forcing him deep within you.  “I love you too.”  Your words were his undoing.  Aleksander buried his face in your chest as he came, his cock twitching with hsi release.

He rubbed your clit until you came, and you sighed his name softly as you did.  When Aleksander pulled out, he laid at your side, pulling you into his arms.  “I didn’t mean for it to come out like that,” he said, but you shook your head.  “I came here today to tell you that I have feelings for you,” you said, and Aleksander laughed, tipping your chin up to kiss you.  “I know this is sudden, but say the word; say you want me and I’m yours.”

You kissed Aleksander deeply, cupping his face tenderly.  “I want you, Aleksander, of course I want you.  I love you, how could I not?”  He smiled, deepening the kiss, pulling you atop him.  From that day forward, if someone asked you “What are you”?, your answer was simple.  “General Kirigan’s girlfriend.”

#aleksander morozova x reader #shadow and bone fanfiction #general kirigan x reader #the darkling x reader #shadow and bone reader insert

[stromuprisahat]

An older man broke through the lines, wheeling his horse around to confront Sturmhond. With a start, I recognized Colonel Raevsky, the commander of the military encampment at Kribirsk. Had we crashed so close to town? Was that how the soldiers had gotten here so quickly? “Explain yourself, boy!” the colonel commanded. “State your name and business before I have you stripped of that uniform and strung up from a high tree.” Sturmhond seemed unconcerned. When he spoke, his voice had a quality I’d never heard in it before. “I am Nikolai Lantsov, Major of the Twenty-Second Regiment, Soldier of the King’s Army, Grand Duke of Udova, and second son to His Most Royal Majesty, King Alexander the Third, Ruler of the Double Eagle Throne, may his life and reign be long.” My jaw dropped. Shock passed like a wave through the row of soldiers. A nervous titter rose from somewhere in the ranks. I didn’t know what joke this madman thought he was making, but Raevsky did not look amused. He leapt from his horse, tossing the reins to a soldier. “You listen to me, you disrespectful whelp,” he said, his hand already on the hilt of his sword, his weathered features set in lines of fury as he strode directly up to Sturmhond. “Nikolai Lantsov served under me on the northern border and…” His voice faded away. He was nose to nose with the privateer now, but Sturmhond did not blink. The colonel opened his mouth, then closed it. He took a step back and scanned Sturmhond’s face. I watched his expression change from scorn to disbelief to what could only be recognition. Abruptly, he dropped to one knee and bent his head. “Forgive me, moi tsarevich,” he said, gaze trained on the ground before him. “Welcome home.” The soldiers exchanged confused glances. Sturmhond turned a cold and expectant eye on them. He radiated command. A pulse seemed to pass through the ranks. Then, one by one, they slipped from their horses and dropped to their knees, heads bent.

Siege and Storm- Chapter 8 (Leigh Bardugo)

Someone knows how to make an entrance!

I want to see him and Aleksander trying to outdo one another with their dramatic performances, then violently make out, when they're unable to agree which one did it better.

#Grishaverse #Siege and Storm #S&S Chapter 8 #grishanalyticritical #Nikolai Lantsov #Sturmhond #What if/AU/... #Darkolai #The Darkling #V #Grisha trilogy #books #quotes #Leigh Bardugo

[naushtheaspiringauthor]

~Child Of The Storm~

Nikolai Lantsov x OC

Image by - @brokendreamtale2

Warnings- slight mention of violence

A/N- Let me know if you'd like to be added or removed from the taglist!

Taglist- @pansexualwitchwhoneedstherapy @sirisuorionblack @nadeleine123n

Ch-30 ~Excruciating journey~

A bit of life seemed to return to Kribirsk as they moved farther away from the Fold. A few shops were open, and there were still merchants hawking their wares on the stretch of the Vy known as Peddlers’ Way. Rickety tables lined the road, their surfaces covered in brightly colored cloth and spread with a jumble of merchandise, boots and prayer shawls, wooden toys, shoddy knives in hand-tooled sheaths. Many of the tables were littered with what looked like bits of rock and chicken bones.

“Provin’ye osti!” the peddlers shouted. “Autchen’ye osti!”

Real bone. Genuine bone.

As Alina leaned over her horse’s head to get a better look, an old man called out, “Alina!”

She looked up in surprise. 

Nikolai hurried beside her. He nudged his horse close to hers and snatched her reins, giving them a hard yank to draw her away from the table.

“Net, spasibo,” he said to the old man.

“Alina!” the peddler cried. “Autchen’ye Alina!”

“Wait,” she said, twisting in her saddle, attempting to get a better look at the old man’s face. He was tidying the display on his table. Without the possibility of a sale, he seemed to have lost all interest in us.

“Wait,” she insisted. “He knew me.”

“No he didn’t.”

“He knew my name,” she said, angrily grabbing the reins back from him.

“He was trying to sell you relics. Finger bones. Genuine Sankta Alina.”

“Genuine Alina,” she repeated numbly.

Nikolai shifted uneasily. “There are rumors that you died on the Fold. People have been selling off parts of you all over Ravka and West Ravka for months. You’re quite the good luck charm.”

“Those are supposed to be my fingers?”

“Knuckles, toes, fragments of rib.” “Of course," Nikolai continued, “if half of those were really your toes, you’d have about a hundred feet. But superstition is a powerful thing.”

“So is faith,” Tolya spoke from behind

........................................................................................................

That night they stayed at an inn in the little village of Vernost, where they met up with a heavily armed group of soldiers from the First Army. They soon learned that many of them were from the Twenty-Second, the regiment Nikolai had served with and eventually helped lead in the northern campaign. Apparently, the prince wanted to be surrounded by friends when he entered Os Alta.

He seemed to be relaxed in their presence.

The soldiers had a lavish coach in tow. It was lacquered in pale Ravkan blue and emblazoned with the King’s double eagle on one side. Nikolai had ordered a golden sunburst added to the other, and it was drawn by a matched team of six white horses. The people from the Grand Palace really seemed to have a exaggerated taste.

Anaya wished to have dinner by herself in the room she'd been given. But Nikolai had insisted that they all dine together in the inn’s common room. So instead of relaxing by the fire in peace, they were jammed elbow to elbow at a noisy table packed with officers. Nikolai was talking enough for all of them.

As he dug into a dish of braised oxtail, he ran through a seemingly endless list of places he intended to stop on the way to Os Alta. 

“I didn’t realize ‘winning the people’ meant meeting every single one of them,” Alina  grumbled. “Aren’t we in a hurry?”

“Ravka needs to know its Sun Summoner has returned.”

“And its wayward prince?”

“Him too. Gossip will do more than royal pronouncements. And that reminds me,” he said, lowering his voice. “From

here on out, you need to behave as if someone is watching every minute.” He gestured between her and Mal with his fork. “What you do in private is your own affair. Just be discreet.”

I nearly choked on my wine. “What?” she sputtered.

“It’s one thing for you to be linked with a royal prince, quite another for people to think you’re tumbling a peasant.”

“I’m not, it’s nobody’s business!” she whispered furiously. Anaya glanced at Mal. His teeth were clenched, and he was gripping his knife a little too tightly.

“Power is alliance,” said Nikolai. “It’s everyone’s business.” He took another sip of wine as Alina glared at him in disbelief. “And you should be wearing your own colours.”

 “Now you’re choosing my clothes?” she shook her head

“If you intend to lead the Second Army and take the Darkling’s place, then you need to look the part.”

“Summoners wear blue,” she said irritably.

“Don’t underestimate the power of the grand gesture, Alina. The people like spectacle. The Darkling understood that.”

“I’ll think about it.”

“Might I suggest gold?” Nikolai went on. “Very regal, very appropriate—”

“Very tacky?”

“Gold and black would be best. Perfect symbolism and—”

“No black,” Mal said. He pushed back from the table and, without another word, disappeared into the crowded room.

The girl set down her fork. “I can’t tell if you’re deliberately making trouble or if you’re just an ass.”

The prince took another bite of his dinner. “He doesn’t like black?”

“It’s the color of the man who tried to kill him and regularly takes me hostage. My sworn enemy?”

“All the more reason to claim that color as your own.”

“No, no black.” she spoke in a stern voice

“As you like,” Nikolai replied. “But choose something for yourself and your guards.”

 “Do I really need guards?” she sighed

Nikolai leaned back in his chair and studied her , his face suddenly serious. “Do you know how I got the name Sturmhond?” he asked.

“I thought it was some kind of joke, a play on Sobachka.”

“No,” he said. “It’s a name I earned. The first enemy ship I ever boarded was a Fjerdan trader out of Djerholm. When I told the captain to lay down his sword, he laughed in my face and told me to run home to my mother. He said Fjerdan men make bread from the bones of skinny Ravkan boys.”

“So you killed him?”

“No. I told him foolish old captains weren’t fit meat for Ravkan men. Then I cut off his fingers and fed them to my dog while he watched.”

“You ... what?”

Anaya had to admit that the boy's words were something she hadn't anticipated. He truly had the wits of a captain and didn't just happened to be a charming prince wearing a guise. He very much had the power to be dangerous when he needed.

“You heard me. My enemies understood brutality. And so did my crew. After it was over, I drank with my men and divvied up the spoils. Then I went back to my cabin, vomited��up the very fine dinner my steward had prepared, and cried myself to sleep. But that was the day I became a real privateer, and that was the day Sturmhond was born.”

“So much for ‘puppy,’” Alina responded

“I was a boy trying to lead an undisciplined crew of thieves and rogues against enemies who were older, wiser, and tougher. I needed them to fear me. All of them. And if they hadn’t, more people would have died.”

Alina pushed her plate away. “Just whose fingers are you telling me to cut off?”

“I’m telling you that if you want to be a leader, it’s time you started thinking and acting like one.”

“I’ve heard this before, you know, from the Darkling and his supporters. Be brutal. Be cruel. More lives will be saved in the long run.”

“Do you think I’m like the Darkling?”

“No,” she spoke slowly. “I don’t think you are.” she rose from her seat. "But I’ve been wrong before.”

..........................................................................................

The journey to Os Alta was such an excruciating event that made Anaya want to desert them all and leave all by herself. They stopped at every town along the Vy, at farms, schools, churches, and dairies. Alina and the prince greeted local dignitaries and walked the wards of hospitals. They dined with war veterans and applauded girls’ choirs. It was hard not to notice that the villages were mostly populated by the very young and the very old. Every able body had been drafted to serve in the King’s Army and fight in Ravka’s endless wars. The cemeteries were as big as the towns.

Nikolai handed out gold coins and sacks of sugar. He accepted handshakes from merchants and kisses on the cheek from wrinkled matrons who called him Sobachka, and charmed anyone who came within two feet of him. He never seemed to tire, never seemed to flag. No matter how many miles they'd ridden or people they’d met, he was ready to meet another.

He always seemed to know what people wanted from him, when to be the laughing boy, the golden prince, the weary soldier. And he always attempted to time their arrivals at dawn or dusk, or he’d stop their procession in the deep shadows of a church or town square, all the better to show off the Sun Summoner.

Alina seemed to held her part of the bargain, she smiled graciously and called the light to shine over rooftops and steeples and bathe every awestruck face in warmth.

#grishaverse #shadow and bone #nikolai lantsov x reader #nikolai lantsov #nikolai lantsov fanfiction #nikolai lanstov #nikolai lanstov x reader #nikolai lantsov x oc