so i never would've thought when i read my first alarkling / darklina fanfic that SEVEN YEARS LATER i'd be 1. still reading them 2. making a fic rec list and 3. going to get a chance to see my ship in action on a television show with ben barnes as the darkling??? mindblown. so i've put together a list of all my favorite OG pre-show darklina fics for y'all to enjoy - i'm hoping the show draws more people to the ship so even more delicious content is created...basically i want more to read so i can do another fic rec list after the show's been out for a while HAHA p.s you can find the rest of my fic rec lists here.
*update* click for PART TWO of DARKLINA FIC RECS and also for MODERN AU DARKLINA FIC RECS!!!
multichapter (aka canon-divergence galore)
START A WAR by nymja
It takes three hundred years to love him.
A CURSE BETWEEN US by hanpersands
Theirs is a delicate balance. They work because they are eternal, and there is only two of them. (Or, Alina gets knocked up and disappears. The Darkling is less than pleased)
TIMELESS series by destinies
Alina Starkov expected to wake up on a ship sailing across the True Sea, one that would take her far from Ravka, far from the Darkling and his mad crusade. Instead, she awoke in Os Alta to a devastating truth: the war was won nearly a century ago, her first love was dead, and she remembered nothing. Not even that, as part of her surrender, she agreed to a political marriage.
SCARS OF LIGHT by kallypso
Alina Starkov knows what it is to lose. Then she meets the Darkling, the powerful and handsome Grisha in charge of the second army. A man she swears she has seen before in passing hallucinations. He has spent years searching for her since the first rumors of a girl who shone like a star rose from Keramzin, and now he has found her.
TO BE SEEN by larry_hystereks
Alina has spent her life knowing what it's like to be hunted for being Grisha. She uses her powers to hide herself, hide other Grisha, and forms the Invisible Army. her main focus is to free the Grisha until she meets him; the Darkling, commander of the Second Army, summoner of the shadows. (if alina knew she was Grisha her whole life and if her and the Darkling were truly equals)
STARLESS by opheliarose
They said the Darkling dwelt in a tower at the Little Palace, perched above the world like a dragon guarding its treasure. That treasure, as it so happened, was a girl. Yet when he selects an orphan girl with no past, a new future presents itself.
LONGER THAN LIFETIMES by moonburntmemory
Alina Starkov and the Darkling cannot help but fall victim to ties that bind them. Neither can break from the ruthless cycle of fate connecting them. He is the night that allows all to know the shine of her sun.
IT FOLLOWS by queen_haq
She isn't quite herself; neither is he. But when they come together, it's explosive. (“Our powers amplify when we’re physically connected.”)
A RAVEN AND A DOVE by amelia island
What if the Darkling had met Alina before she awoke as the Sun Summoner? What if it wasn't Mal's life she saved on the Fold?
alternate universe
MOST ARDENTLY by captaingriffin
Aleksander Morozova is handsome, rich, and not used to having romantic feelings for anybody, let alone mouthy orphan girls who are annoyingly endearing. Alina Starkov is quite comfortable being alone, and doesn't have much taste for the conceited, rude, and insensitive Mr. Morozova, which she makes sure to tell him constantly. pride&prejudice!AU
LONE CANDLES by nymja
They've lived four lives together. Only one ends happily. reincarnation!AU
IT'S A DANGEROUS GAME by ohwastelandbaby
Left as the only witness to a heist, Alina Starkov is in need of protection from a band of criminals out to get her. What Agent Kirigan offers her, is far more complicated. bodyguard!AU
THE WEIGHT OF WINGS by eosithe
In different times, in different places, Alina and Aleksander meet again and again. As the sum of a lifetime(s) of choices, their story is never the same twice.
SIEGING THE STORM AMONG THE RISING BONES OF RUINED SHADOWS by kara_luna
Alina doesn't go back to the day she met her greatest enemy or the day she stumbled into an orphanage. She wakes up in a time she's never lived surrounded by the village of a boy she once knew as a man who held shadows in his bare hands and commanded armies and entire nations... And he's a child who looks at her with eyes full of light. timetravel!AU
UNRAVEL ME by bananamilkis
Living most of her life in a whore house, can Alina free herself from the invisible chains that Ana has on her or can a mysterious man unravel the truth for her?
MAKE ME YOUR VILLAIN by elegygoldsmith
In which the destiny of Reylina Starkov, a scavenger and Omega sun summoner, becomes entwined with that of the Darkling, Alpha Emperor Kylo Ren.
oneshots
WHATEVER OUR SOULS ARE MADE OF by the_darkling 🌶️🌶️🌶️
This is the way it is between the two of them, an inexorable attraction that accompanies their every meeting. And if finally giving in means falling prey to his designs, then she’s happy to be devoured.
SEALED by the_darkling
Her dear husband’s moods were as changeable and unpredictable as the wind but his affection for her was constant and unfailing, and Alina liked his kisses best of all.
BETWEEN MIDNIGHTS by vuas 🌶️🌶️🌶️
“You’re my wife, my sun summoner,” he continues undeterred, hot breath fanning over her neck. “You’re mine. I can do whatever I please with you. Why shouldn’t I kiss you?”
THE SILENCE OF YOUR TOUCH by wellthatsood
After Alina first uses their connection, she wants more. Only this time, he isn’t alone - but that just makes it more fun. Or, “How to Frustrate (in more ways than one) Someone Who Can’t Talk Back: An Exploratory Study ft. Alina Starkov”
YOU LEFT ME IN THE DARK (NO DAWN, NO DAY) by cursebreakker
An exploration of Alina Starkov's life as she realizes she's not aging like her husband is. Meanwhile, the shadows in the corner of her room observe.
I certainly have a few! But first I want to clarify that I don’t really read fic when I’m writing it, and since I have so many fics in the works right now, I haven’t really been reading a lot of fanfiction. So this list probably won’t be as extensive as it could be.
Here are some other great fic recommendation posts, however:
DARKLINA FIC RECS by @vicioux
DARKLINA FIC RECS // part ii by @vicioux
Darklina Ruling the World Together Fic Recs by @clubofthestarlesssaint
Tumblr Ficlets
Aleksander’s First Memory by @kestrafagnor
Fivan Talk About Darklina by @jomiddlemarch
a little light in the great, big dark by @valkyrhys
Alina tells Mal she’s with Aleksander by @lorsanbitch
Darklina week day 5: intimacy & touch by @starlesscne
AO3 Fanfiction
if it ain’t me by larry_hystereks (Incomplete - 10/13 Chapters)
alina’s in her second year at Yale when she meets aleksander at one of his frat parties.
a hookup with the potential for more, only if alina wasn’t still struggling to piece herself together from last year’s breakup.
or: alina, zoya, their trust issues, and the men that fall for them
---
I’m only at about chapter 6 of this fic currently, but so far it’s one of my all time favorite Modern AUs. The characterization for Alina and Aleksander is incredibly well done, and the entire fic itself is so feminist and queer in such a refreshing way. Aleksander and Alina are bisexual as fuck, both with their own separate complex lives, and much of Alina’s own traumas and relationships are explored outside of Aleksander.
There’s some Zoyalina, with Nikolina friendship and endgame Zoyalai. There’s some mystery and some tension, but nothing too extreme, and a lot of the fic is merely an exploration in growth and overcoming one’s history and learning how to move on in healthy ways. I love it.
She Wears a Collar (With My Name) by Ceris_Malfoy (Complete)
She is immortal, and whatever lingering hints of humanity she may have once had have long been bleached from her heart.
I will grant you one wish, boy, if it is in my power to do so. What does a Shadow Smith most want?
"You," he answers.
Written for Darklina Week 2021 - Day 2: Role Reversal
---
This piece is just exquisite. This author’s writing style is one that I particularly enjoy. Their stuff is always so uniquely composed and crafted, and this one especially is a work of art. The way Darklina as a relationship is portrayed in particular is fascinating to me because it’s a role reversal but it’s still so complex. Aleksander’s character is nailed.
the bright sun was extinguish’d by athousandwinds (Complete)
Somewhere, deep in the dark forests of Ravka, a boy grows up on stories of Sankta Alina of the Wastes, the Sun-Scorched Saint.
---
This fic is just straight up magnificent. It’s so engaging and I love love love the way a role reversed Aleksander who joins the army is portrayed. He reminds me so much of Demon in the Woods Aleksander, as if he’s exactly what a grown version of that young boy would be. When I say I adore his characterization in this I’m not lying.
If I wanted any completed fic I’ve read to have a second chapter, it would be this one.
Winter in the Little Palace by redisxwing (Complete)
Written for Yuletide 2020.
Baghra and Alina's wildly different perspectives on the Darkling, and how things could have gone if nobody listened to Baghra.
Warning: Baghra is written as a harsh and arguably abusive parent, and this is darkfic about that relationship, with a side of shipping. Everything is terrible (except the parts that are pretty much okay).
Canon divergence pretty much as soon as Alina gets lessons in summoning.
This fic is likely not compatible with King of Scars (or any subsequent work).
---
As is said in the summary, this one makes Baghra a bit more extreme. If you’re a fan of Baghra, this fic probably isn’t for you. But since I’m not a fan of Baghra, I had no problems with it.
My biggest praise for this fic is in regards to the character interactions and the POVs. There’s a brilliant grasp of unique perspective and how to convey it, and that talent is carried over into the way character interactions are brought to life in the text. Also, there’s a scene where Alina gets kind of protective of the Darkling, which is one of my biggest weaknesses when it comes to Darklina.
Good Ideas by FelixRivers (Complete)
Alina Starkov had a very good idea. Aleksander Morozova would definitely agree. (or: Alina wants to go camping and Aleksander won't complain)
---
This fic is just straight up adorable and hilarious. They’re such a cute couple and Alina’s POV is great. It’s just pure fluff and humor 💕
I’m not a bad girl, but I do bad things with you by SanktaJenya - @sankta-arya (Complete)
Winter had been hard on Old Baghra and Ana Kuya was worried about her, so she decided that Alina should make the trip to her cottage on the other side of the woods to bring her some food and kvas. On her way there, Alina meets a stranger...
Darklina Red Riding Hood/Company of Wolves AU
Darklina Week, Day 4, Fairytales
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This fic has a splendid grasp of tension and atmosphere. It’s very enchanting and dark and intriguing, and it nails those aspects with absolute precision. I love the style and the way the fairytale is incorporated into the narrative. It’s truly a masterpiece.
The Wretched by @aceofnowhere (Complete)
“We are strangers, but I want to help.” He growls at her, mocking and mistrustful. “I understand,” she said. “You think I am one of them. I certainly look like one of them. But I want to help you. Will you let me?” Prompt: fairytale. Alina saves a dragon.
---
Okay so I’ve mentioned this one before as one of my Top 5 fics of all time and I still stand by that. I can’t even describe why I love this fic so much except that the pacing is amazing and the prose is stunning and the story is beautiful. Aleksander is a dragon and Alina is a witch, and their relationship is just so...interesting and fascinating and lovely. I would literally kill for this fic. There’s such a softness to it as well. Such a tenderness. Idk, I just really love it.
Show Me Who You Are (I Want To Know) by Ceris_Malfoy (Incomplete - 12/?)
Alina takes her future in her own hands and makes her own decisions.
---
This is a great “what if Alina had stuck around after the reveal” rewrite. It doesn’t have Mal bashing and in fact still writes them as close friends, which is something I’m fond of in Darklina fics. Aleksander is allowed to be soft and Alina is allowed to be powerful, and I really enjoyed the take on their dynamics as a power couple wherein Alina is given a lot of control.
There’s something to be said for the way Aleksander is written in the scenes where he must be honest and earnest with Alina. I really enjoy the way they both come to equal ground, and I’m even more fond of the way Alina is allowed to grow darker without losing her light. She also engages a lot with quite a few other characters, developing tons of friendships and alliances on her own that help strengthen her as an individual character.
on this bridge between starshine and clay by @rhea-imagined (Complete)
"His breath narrows for a moment, his fist clenched tight before he forces himself to loosen it. She is his only opportunity for salvation, but vulnerability is not a cape he wears easily. “In those days, there was less prejudice against Shadow Summoners. But everyone fears the dark, in one way or another.” He does not look at her as he waits for the penny to drop, half-hoping it stays suspended in the air."
In which Alexander comes clean to Alina and tells her about his true identity in hopes that this will help convince her to take down the Fold.
A rewrite of the fountain scene in episode four, with a good!Darkling that is trying to make amends.
---
This is my all-time favorite good!Aleksander AU. He’s kept in character despite the major changes made to his motivations, and Alina is given a lot more agency in her own story. It’s the first fic in what might become a series, but it can stand alone beautifully.
I love how Aleksander and Alina’s relationship is allowed to grow tense without breaking, and how it’s a clear sign of change but not abandonment. I love how both characters are able to think for themselves and become self-aware and are given the chance to think critically. I love the character interaction so much because it’s honest and fresh and engaging. Everything from the smallest action to the most off-hand thought is in character and meaningful and incorporated with an amazing style of writing. It’s a very refreshing piece, and the writing only makes it that much better.
Bunnies of a Feather Stitch Together by Ill_Ratte (Complete)
"Just as Alina called to the light, gathering and twisting it into a ball in her hands, the door swung open.
Kirigan blacked out the door frame. His appearance enough would have surprised Alina, but there was something clutched in his arm, something dark and floppy. It almost looked like the stuffed toys that had been passed around to the younger Orphans." - Alina and The Darkling bond over a love of soft things
---
Soft stuffed animal shenanigans. Bits of trans!Aleksander, which I’m very fond of, as well as just a lot of fluff with a bit of something bittersweet and sad in a good way.
Half Lie by Ill_Ratte (Complete)
"Baghra always talked of the demon that had stolen her daughter." Or, Alina learns the hard way that the Darkling isn't the only one who deals in half-truths
---
This one is trans!Aleksander, and it handles it in a very interesting way. It’s quite sad, and deals a lot with Baghra & Aleksander’s relationship through Alina’s POV. I want to give a warning for transphobia, because it does center around that a lot as the premise, but it really is worth the read if that isn’t a trigger for you. This is one of my favorite trans!Aleksander fics, and the way it handles emotion and grief and pain is quite extraordinary.
The CEO and Helioseismologist by mrthology (Complete)
Aleksander Morozova doesn't get sick. He's the CEO of one of the most successful companies in the world, one that he had built from the ground up with blood, sweat, and tears. He exercised daily (usually), maintained a healthy diet, and kept himself fit.
He wasn’t sick.
Too bad no one believed him. And too bad Genya decided to call Ivan to take him home before also calling Alina to take care of him.
Maybe, just maybe, being sick wasn't so bad. Especially not when he has such a wonderful girlfriend.
---
Both of the fics in this series are great, but I love this one in particular because I’m an absolute sucker for hurt/comfort. Anyone who’s been on my blog for a while knows that it’s my all time favorite trope to read, and this fic fits the hurt/comfort trope to a T in the best of ways. It’s very tender and in character, and Aleksander and Alina are so soft with each other. It’s adorable and really makes you feel for Aleksander, and the caretaking is done perfectly.
All the different layers of dark (thousand little suns) by Anuna (Complete)
One month after the Winter Fete, Aleksander returns to the Little Palace, and Alina has been missing him.
Or
Episode five canon divergence in which Alina had never left Os Alta.
---
This one is soft emotional hurt/comfort smut. They’re both so open and vulnerable with each other, and it’s so beautiful to read. I love the writing style and the emotion in this one. It makes my heart ache in the best way.
An Honourable Man by liviy695 (Complete)
A reimagining of the scene after the winter fete. Alina catches a glimpse of a caring Darkling after he returns from integrating the Conductor. Plus, no Baghra interference.
---
This one is what it says on the tin, in that Baghra doesn’t interfere and they’re allowed to talk after the Darkling interrogates the Conductor. But more than that, it’s a great imagining of how a scene where Aleksander reveals Marie’s death would have gone. There’s a sort of quiet to it that I appreciate, with grief and solemnity weighed against care and vulnerability.
I see the real you (even if you don’t, I do) by Anonymous (Incomplete - 8/?)
A series of questionable decisions lead Alina to meet the Black General a bit earlier. Butterfly effect ensues.
---
I’ve only read half so far (I hadn’t realized it had updated!! 👀👀) but I’m already in love with this fic. Alina’s dialogue and perspective is perfect, her relationship with Mal and the other cartographers is great, and I really enjoy how much personality she has. Aleksander is so smitten, but more than that, his characterization is soft but not weak. It feels almost as if he’s swept up by Alina, instead of the other way around, and I quite like that.
Of parenting by Anuna (Complete)
Alina finds out how her husband handled yet another parenting situation.
---
This is pure adorable Darklina parenting fluff and I live for it. Yet it doesn’t lack depth and in fact explored Alina and Aleksander’s relationship with parenting quite well.
i have a longing by LRCee - @ladylyannastark (Complete)
“So, Alina Starkov, risk-taker, how did you end up being editing’s newest wunderkind?”
Alina Starkov is rising in the publishing world. Singlehandedly responsible for editing (see: rewriting) the hottest book of the year, she lands a coveted spot at Morovoz Publishers. It's the position she's always wanted, at the biggest publishing house in the country. Life is perfect. That crush on her boss though, that's gotta go.
---
OKAY! I LOVE THIS ONE SO MUCH!! Let me tell you, as someone who is not too fond of Boss/Employee dynamics, I was very wary going into this fic. But boy did it deliver in a way that was perfect for me.
The relationship that develops between Aleksander and Alina is complex but healthy, and it never feels as if there’s too much of a power imbalance or anything that would make Alina feel forced or unhappy. The tension lies purely in how she fears others will perceive her, and not in how unhealthy her relationship with Aleksander is. For somebody who’s often attracted to unhealthy ships, I have to say that my favorite fics are usually ones that don’t have that type of dynamic between the characters. This fic delivers on that.
Also, Aleksander’s POV surrounding his struggle with his Russian heritage and his feelings for Alina is amazing, and has some of the best writing and characterization I’ve seen.
You receive: an evil demon; I receive: human souls by @aceofnowhere (Complete)
The next morning while she tried to tell herself it was a dream, that of course there wasn’t a fucking demon in her house, she found a note taped to her fridge.
“You might eat this shit,” it had written, “but I would like some fucking souls please.”
Darkling Week Prompt 7: free choice. Alina has a demon in her house.
This is absolute crack, and I have no idea what the fuck is wrong with me.
---
May I just say that this is the most fun I’ve ever had when reading a fic. It’s interesting with a bit of mystery, and Aleksander as a little shit of a demon is hilarious. Alina in this fic is great too. It’s such a unique take on her POV, especially when you reread it after knowing the ending. 10000/10, this fic is brilliant in every way and I love it.
I had been lost to you, Sunlight by BrytteMystere (Complete)
A Girl became a Woman, became a Sankta, became a Goddess.
Or: An Immortal Alina calls upon merzost to reunite with the Prince of Shadows she lost long ago. She may have lost herself in the process.
But then again, maybe time and endless wars did that instead.
---
You really just have to read this one to get it. It is utterly haunting and fascinating in the best of ways. The writing style is strange and novel and fits so well with the story being told. The composition of the fic as a whole is genius.
I Look Inside Myself (And See My Heart Is Black) by Ceris_Malfoy (Complete)
"When is a monster not a monster? Why, when you love it, of course."
Written for Darklina Week 2021 - Day 6: Favorite Quote • King & Queen • Monster
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Once more, this author comes through with an absolutely breathtaking writing style and story. The imagery is elegant yet brutal, simultaneously horrifying and glorious. There’s a certain way these stories are written, like fairytales, where the beautiful becomes the macabre and becomes ever more stunning because of it. It’s very dark but in a good way - an almost bewitching way.
Afterlife by @aceofnowhere (Complete)
“You are asking me to leave?”
“Not asking, shadow,” she said. “Telling. Time to get unlost, loser.”
Day 3 Darklina Week prompt: Modern AU (I mean, barely)
Alina expels ghosts from purgatory.
---
@aceofnowhere once again bringing the best of the paranormal to the Grishaverse. Literally everything you write is amazing idk why I’m even pointing out individual fics when I could just rec your whole page. But anyways!! This is fun and interesting and Alina is a badass. Aleksander is, of course, compelling and dark and kind of a little shit, and it’s all incorporated seamlessly into an existential paranormal narrative.
Once Upon a Shooting Star by Ceris_Malfoy (Complete)
"But most of all, she was drawn to a vast darkness that reached out above all of them, a void so hungry for companionship that she knew she could fulfill."
---
Let. Alina. Be. Feral!! Anyways, I clearly have a type when it comes to storytelling, and it’s whatever the fuck this person has got going on. Feral!Star!Alina is literally the light of my life. Her interactions with not only other people but the world in general are so well done, but my favorite parts about this fic are the numerous ways her relationship with Aleksander is described and depicted.
I love the dark and light imagery, especially with how it’s portrayed as them filling in the gaps of each other’s lives and supporting each other instead of trying to block each other out. There’s such clear passion and joy and love and devotion between them. The central focus of this fic is on her and Aleksander’s relationship, the interplay between them and their powers and the way her light fills his loneliness, the passing of adoration and trust and reliance between them. It’s very beautiful and I love it.
A Blaze of Light by Keira_63 (Complete)
They discover the Sun Summoner in the burnt-out remains of the Shu laboratory in which she has spent the last seven years of her life.
Or, the Darkling finds himself with a Sun Summoner whose greatest wish is to burn Shu Han to the ground. He is happy to oblige her.
---
👀👀 Badass Alina and Badass Aleksander. The ultimate power couple, and Alina burning a path through Shu Han before they both burn a path through the world together. The darkness and rage in this one are handled very well, and the way that rage turns to coldness and then resolve is done so well. This fic is very cathartic and also very furious, and reading it is certainly a trip down emotion lane.
One more for the Road by Rist (Complete)
He returns to the war room shaken, and finds an Alina that cannot leave without at least having tried.
---
This one hurts so much but its soooo gooood!!! Very smutty but also very tender and very bittersweet. Sad and soft all at once. I just... love the way Alina and Aleksander are written so much, and Alina’s complicated feelings for him are explored in such detail and depth. This one is truly worth the read.
A small, spiteful part of her envies Mal his easy sleep; if the cries woke him, at least they’d both be miserable. Instead, it’s just Alina, alone in the endless night.
Alina, and the twist of thwarted desire still curling in her belly.
Or: Alina is frustrated. The Darkling lends a hand.
Pairings: The Darkling | Aleksander Morozova/Alina Starkov
Rating: Explicit
Chapters: 1/1
@darklinastories on Twitter has daily one-word prompts for micro fics. Today's was "jealousy" and I came up with this to procrastinate packing ♥
Sometimes Alina drops in on him through the bond, standing at the periphery of this life he's leading without her, this war he's fighting against her.
She most often finds him alone and frazzled, sulking over a map in the war room, running those long fingers through unkempt hair.
But on some nights he's at supper, expressionless as he picks at a plate of herring. Other times, he's by the lake observing Second Army training exercises. Or at the stable, rubbing down his stallion until its ebony coat glistens like polished marble.
On such occasions Alina notes Ivan at his right hand, muttering news and observations into his ear, the Heartrender's trademark scowl firmly in place.
But it isn't just Ivan, no.
Increasingly, Aleksander is found the company of some willowy Inferni with green eyes and a ready smile. She might as well be a courtier for all her simpering, the way she touches his forearm when she speaks, her early arrival at meals to claim a seat beside him. Aleksander inclines his head to her politely in greeting. "Katya," he calls her.
This is what you wanted, Alina reminds herself fiercely. To be free of him.
So why do her fists clench at the tinkling sound of Katya's laughter, at the almost-smile on Aleksander's lips when the girl produces a shiny apple from her kefta pocket, a gift for his horse?
Ordinarily, Alina would hide from him on these impromptu visits, convincing herself they were some form of reconnaissance.
Today she appears squarely in his eye line, interrupting his afternoon chat in the barn with his Inferni lackey. Alina knows he sees her when he inhales sharply, dark eyes widening, his throat bobbing on a swallow. He holds her gaze as he offers Katya his arm, escorting her back to the palace. To a life Alina forsook.
It's Mal's voice that disturbs her reverie, the squeeze of his hand bringing her back to herself. It should be reassuring, grounding, a reminder of what she's fighting for. But his skin feels cold on hers, and the ridges of his scar against her newly-smooth palm make her shrink away.
He's saying something about Nikolai, and David's newest contraption. Something that could turn the tide in their favor.
But his words don't even register. Alina’s mind is still miles away, on the Darkling's scent, clean but masculine. Heady and strong.
She’d breathed him in the night of the fete, panting into the embroidered shoulder of his kefta as he trailed sucking kisses down her neck. The scratch of his beard, the press of the table behind her thighs as he shoved his body roughly against hers.
How many others had he kissed that way? Was he kissing that insipid Inferni right now? She's biting her lip hard enough to bleed.
"Alina!" The volume of Mal's exclamation is finally enough to cut into her awareness again. His face swims into focus, a disappointed frown creasing his forehead. He shakes his head at her, dropping her hand and backing away until she's alone again.
Alina takes a shuddery breath, eyeing her surroundings and finding that the shadows in the corners of the room have taken on an alluring quality.
She should go after Mal. She doesn't.
Jealousy, she thinks, is her most formidable opponent yet.
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Shadow and Bone (TV), The Grisha Trilogy
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: The Darkling | Aleksander Morozova/Alina Starkov
Characters: The Darkling | Aleksander Morozova, Alina Starkov, Mal Oretsev
Additional Tags: Episode: s01e05 Show Me Who You Are, Manipulation, Sexual Content, Walk Of Shame, The Winter Fete (The Grisha Trilogy), Jealousy, Manipulative The Darkling | Aleksander Morozova, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon - TV, One Shot, POV Alina Starkov, POV The Darkling | Aleksander Morozova, Darklina server bingo event
Summary:
“And what’s he then that says I play the villain?
When this advice is free I give and honest,”
(Othello, 2.3.245–246)
Although she had taken a moment in his bathroom to rinse between her legs, she wouldn’t feel truly fresh until she had time for a proper bath. She could still feel it with every hurried step, every brush of her thighs. Their brisk pace wasn’t doing anything to help the wobble in her legs, either.
Aleksander stopped abruptly by a door and took her hands, rubbing his thumbs across her knuckles. Her heart swooped at the motion. “I will not leave you,” he said. It took Alina’s mind a moment to catch up, to realize he meant in the room. “If there is any threat, if I think for one second that this person means to harm you—”
She nodded, resolute. “It’ll be fine.”
He pushed open the door without dropping her hands.
—
Or, A man of his word, he follows through on his promise to bring Alina to Mal in the morning.
domestic!darklina where aleks always comes up behind her and kisses her shoulder as comfort✨
A/N: I’ve never done fanfic prompts, but thanks anon, I’ll give this a try, so here it is, hope you like it :)
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The first time, she had been in the stables, stroking her white horse's mane, as she waited for him to join her for another of their riding sessions. She felt him leaning over her shoulder, before she had managed to register his presence.
And he should have known better than to walk up on her unannounced.
Shimmering light spread across the stone walls, her hand lifted in the air, summoning it from every last stroke of the sun on the twilight sky. Her reaction was instinctive, her body making a full turn.
For a moment, all she could see was the smooth planes of his face washed in her light, his dark eyes and hair set in beautiful contrast.
Aleksander didn't squint. He never squinted. Instead his eyes maintained a steady look on hers, with only a soft crease between his brows indicating some worry toward her reaction. It was the same bewildered look she had noticed on him during her demonstration at the winter fete.
She stopped her summoning and the shadows smoothed back into the stables.
"I'm sorry, you startled me," she uttered, her breath once again caught as she took in his appearance, a smile of wonder flickering on her lips.
He reached out with his hand and stroked her hair, the gentlest expression on his face.
"Never apologize for who you are," he'd said in his smooth, firm voice.
The second time, she had more control over her reaction. She'd been staring out her bedroom window and all of a sudden, his lips were on her shoulder and his strong arms wrapped around her. She let out a startled sound and then started laughing quietly. He left a kiss on her neck next--she felt the smile on his lips--then the side of her head and finally, his head came to rest on top of hers.
She raised her hands to hold his arms and leaned back into his embrace.
"You know, you have to be more careful," she teased. "One day I just might blind you."
She felt him shrugging. "What are healers for?"
She laughed. "Is that why you blatantly refuse to cover your eyes whenever I summon?"
He was silent for a moment, then he gently turned her around and held her hands into his.
"Your light doesn't bother me, Alina. I've... long forgotten the last time I felt this kind of warmth or... hope."
She was captivated by the intensity in his gaze, the firmness of his words. She thought of the boy he would have been, the boy that had spent too much time in the shadows.
She pulled her hand and placed it on his cheek, her fingers brushing his hair slightly. She held his gaze firmly, before she rose on her tiptoes and took his lips in hers.
He stayed still, just like that first time. And then, when it was over, the brightest smile conquered his face, a flash of mischief passing his eyes. Before she could guess at his intentions, he ducked down and lifted her up in his arms, a gasp escaping her lips, which quickly turned into laughter.
He laughed right along--that pleasing sound of his soul basking in joy.
And then he started kissing her, all joy subdued and passion taking over. He softly placed her on her bed and spent the night with her.
The third time, his hands reached from behind her and came to rest on her slightly showing tummy, before he leaned down to nuzzle her shoulder and kiss it softly.
