omg darklina is my favorite ship, i love them both so much, not just the guy. i loved that alina grew powerful and kinda dark and he was into it??? mal could never. i feel like the darkling would have been hyped for a dark domme alina lol. their power dynamic is so fascinating, in the first half he's in control, then it's alina, then it all unravels. they should have achieved balance... if only they were together. forever brokenhearted.
I absolutely love you anon this is exactly how I feel about it! The Darkling holds the power at first and Alina is like frightened of him and drawn to him but once she becomes more powerful the tables are turned, she’s making power moves in Ruin and Rising, he’s the one being vulnerable, revealing his name. All of it. And so many of their conversations are focused around that exact theme. This idea that Alina’s power isn’t something to fear or turn away from or regret, it’s something that is actually part of who she is. She’s at her most authentic when she embraces it. And it’s when she embraces her power that she seems the most honest with herself about her feelings for Aleksander, too.
The power couple we deserve but not the one the world was ready for yet, apparently lol. I just hope with all my heart that the show adaptation gives us good content. I don’t want them to flinch from showing Darklina the way it’s portrayed in the books. I want their hot moments. I want Alina being tempted by him in spite of his worst crimes. I want every problematic drop of it and it’s BEN BARNES!!!!!
