Natasha Van Doren is a shadow summoner. She bides her time and resides in darkness, feared and esteemed by Ketterdam's civilians, a ghost . She cons Kaz Brekker into joining a heist he can't refuse and with thirty million kruge on the line, the crow...
"In a room full of thousands, Kaz Brekker was the first and only person she'd look for. "
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
"Look at the stars, Natasha."
The young shadow summoner awoke with a gasp, her palms upturned. Darkness flickered like the flames of a candle. She crawled up onto her knees, the grass staining the stockings that curved around her slender legs.
"What stars, Kaz?"
She twisted her head around to the boy beside her. His jaw was sharp like the edge of a privateer's blade in the low hanging light of the moon. He kept his gloved palms tucked beneath his head. Kaz's smile was grim, he didn't smile much after the death of his brother, but his eyes were fond.
"The stars in the sky, you idiot,"
He motioned up towards the night with his elbow, lying back in the grass. She stuck out her tongue, shifting closer to his side.
He smelt like the earth - cold, smoky and fresh, but maybe that was just the scent of the dirt they were lazing beneath. Nevertheless, she liked it. Simply because it was him.
The side of her head grazed his clothed shoulder; they both stared up at the stars in silence, watching the balls of light streak across the sky before fading away with gentle bursts.
"They're beautiful," she breathed.
Natasha turned her head, her nose almost brushing against the nape of his neck. From her view, she could see the perfect slope of his nose and the edged brush of his jaw - 'so many things to pick from,' she thought, smiling to herself internally.
"What are you staring at?" Kaz sulked. He nudged her shoulder, pointing up to another star racing across the darkness. "The stars are up there, Van Doren, not on my lips," He pressed two tender fingertips beneath her chin, the leather warming her skin.
"Look up," he said. A red flush bit at Natasha's dark cheeks as she turned back towards the sky, watching a drizzle of stars scatter through the misty sky of Ketterdam.
"Jordie would always take me star-gazing," he hummed, his chin resting against the bone of her shoulder. He had turned onto his side, their lips inches apart.
She could feel the heat of his breath against her cheek, lighting her skin in flames. He's just a friend, Natasha repeated in her mind. Kaz went on about his trips with Jordie. "Natasha, are you listening?" His brow furrowed as he shook his hand across her face.
