Say That You Are Mine - A Darklina Fanfic

Chapter 10

Alina's POV

I asked Genya to walk me to the throne room in the Grand Palace instead of a servant. We were walking down a hallway after descending a flight of stairs, and I looked at Genya. In the middle of saying something to her, I walked straight into the Darkling's chest.

"Ow! Hey, watch-" Stopping abruptly, I looked up to see the General's amused face looking down at me. Grumpily, I mumbled, "Oh. It's you."

"Yes, Miss Starkov, it's me. And I must say, I do prefer you in just the robe, although the uniform isn't bad." I could feel my face turn pink. "It looks good, Genya." She looked down timidly and said meekly, "Thank you, General."

"I'll be taking her from here." With that, he turned on his heel and walked briskly down the hall, expecting me to follow. Before going, I whispered to Genya, "Thanks." Then I hurried down the corridor, trying to catch up.

I felt bad leaving Genya, but I couldn't think about that forever because the Darkling was walking fast. I gave up all pretense of walking and ran towards him. "Wait!" He stopped and turned around so suddenly I couldn't stop myself and barreled into his chest. Again.

"Alina, I'm shocked. Can't keep your hands off of me, can you? It's hardly proper, especially since we're about to see the king. If you're that desperate, I suppose I could make some time after this and we could go to my quarters. We would be completely alone." He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. "Much more comfortable than in the middle of a public corridor." Glaring at him, I tried to shove past him, but he caught my arm, laughing. "Wrong direction, Li." Scowling at the name, I playfully slapped the hand still on my arm, unable to stay mad at him for long.

He led me out double doors, and we walked through the gardens. It was the first time I had seen the gardens at the Little Palace, and I wasn't disappointed. The sloping branches of cherry trees arced gracefully above stone pathways, pink blossoms gently falling onto the stones beneath our feet. Carefully trimmed hedges lined the edges of the paths, and flowers grew here and there, giving it a natural look without seeming wild or not taken care of.

We talked as we walked. Suddenly, I stopped as I had an awful thought. "Why am I seeing the king?"

He looked at me, curious. "We're going to show him what you can do. He needs proof that I haven't brought him a fake Sun Summoner."

Nervously, I asked, "But I can't control it, so how am I going to summon the light?" I sat down on a nearby bench, starting to panic.

The Darkling sat next to me on the bench and put an arm around my shoulders. I turned to face him. Our faces close, he said in a low voice, "We. We are going to summon the light. It will never be you or me again. It is us. I didn't bring you here to make a fool out of you - or out of us." After a moment, he stood up, offering me an arm. We walked like that, arm-in-arm until we got to where someone might see us.

He was a completely different person when he was with me. When he was with me, he would open up. I was Alina, or now just Li. The sound of his laugh was deep and dark and rich, but he never laughed at me in mockery. He would laugh with me like we had known each other our whole lives. He would be honest and not try to tell me how to think or feel. When we were around other people, though, he would close himself off. He became the big bad General. I was Miss Starkov. He was scary, tough, and sinister. When he was like that, I could see why people he didn't open up to would fear him.

We walked into the Grand Palace. After ascending a flight of stairs and walking down an ornately decorated hallway, we finally reached the throne room. It was even bigger than I had thought. Nobles mingled together on one side and Grisha on the other.

The Darkling leaned down and said, "See how they can't even stand to be on the same side as one another? My whole life I've been trying to get rid of that separation. We've come a long way, from Grisha being hunted and killed, but there is still a long way to go."

It was sad to see how people discriminated against Grisha. Now that we were surrounded by people, we walked a good distance apart. Not so far that it looked like we weren't walking together, but far enough that it appeared that I was intimidated by him and that he was keeping his distance. As we approached the throne, I got a good look at the King and Queen. The King looked to be in his late forties, with a scraggly, mousey brown beard, and a receding hairline. He had watery blue eyes rimmed with red, and he kept licking his lips as if they were dry. Overall, I didn't think I would like him. The Queen was younger, not by much, but it was noticeable. She was probably in her late thirties, and it was obvious she had been Tailored. Her dark skin was too smooth, almost glowing, her hair too perfectly curled, and her eyes too wide. The queen was pretty, it just obviously wasn't natural. A man was standing to the left of the King's throne, who, in one word, was crusty.

We came up directly in front of the dais. The Darkling knelt stiffly, and hastily, I copied him.

"Oh, nonsense. Just show me the trick and be on your way." The king's voice was even more nasally than I expected. As I looked up, the Darkling rose, a controlled expression on his face, and I copied him. "Moi tsar, with all due respect, we must show you the honor you deserve. But, as you wish, Ms. Starkov will now summon the sun." His voice was as smooth as honey, authority seeping out around the edges.

The Darkling raised his arms. The shadows in the corners of the room darkened and stretched, almost appearing alive. They crept slowly across the room, all headed towards the Darkling. They crawled up his skin, seeping into his skin. Once there was not a single shadow left in the room that was not in him, he brought his hands together with a thunderous clap and the darkness exploded out of him, turning the room black. All of a sudden, I was reminded of the dream I had while we were traveling, and it gave me chills. I felt the Darkling's hand on my shoulder and his breath in my ear so only I could hear, "Let them wait a second. It builds their anticipation." After a few more seconds, he took my hand in his and I felt him amplify me. I could feel my power surging to the surface of my skin, and I held back only a second before letting it explode out of me.

There were gasps and claps, especially from the king. Everyone looked away, however, because I was glowing as bright as the sun.

Everyone except the Darkling. He looked down at me with a strange mix of pride and awe. "I think I might've said this already, but we are going to change the world."

That sent shivers down my spine. The good kind. Looking up at his dark eyes, I whispered, "Yes, we are. And I'll do anything I can to help." Not missing the flash of emotion that went through his eyes at this, I squeezed his hand. I was going to say more, but he let go of my hand and the light faded. The king stood and applauded vigorously, his chin jiggling and his mustache twitching with each clap. The Queen stayed sitting and looked mildly impressed.

"Bravo, bravo! At first, I thought you had brought me a fake, but I admit, that was better than I expected. She'll be staying-"

The Darkling interrupted, finishing the king's sentence smoothly, "At the Little Palace with me to begin training. This way she can train in all aspects, and I can monitor her progress closely and assist in her training if it proves necessary."

"Exactly what I was saying, as you well know." The king said the last part pointedly, not missing an opportunity to degrade the Darkling. "And, since you'll be assisting with her training, I presume she'll be ready by the winter fete?"

I looked at the Darkling, confused. "Da, moi soverenyi. Of course." The king nodded once, then waved his hand, dismissing us.

Word count - 1480