A:
A beautiful warmth was surrounding her. Something scratchy was near her ear and so was a little hot breeze.
Its calm and relaxing rhythm made her shortly fall asleep again.
He woke up with the light. He usually didn't sleep past dawn. The reason for his long sleep was right in from of him.
A sleeping beauty.
In his arms.
He was... spooning her? It seemed he was holding her for dear life.
He knew he moved a lot during sleep. He probably maneuvered her in her sleep and she didn't even flinch, because he would have sensed it and woke up.
He almost snorted, it all seemed a joke: even in their sleep habits they were complementary.
Her skin was not hot like he would expect from a sun summoner, but fresh, not cold, just fresh.
Now that he was awake, he didn't know what to do: he really hadn't thought he would have won her in so little time.
What should he do now? Live a perfect love story with a girl he tried to manipulate?
Well, it wasn't a bad option, it felt easy.
At that moment he remembered an argument with his mother a century ago. He couldn't recall what the argument had been about, but he was sure he told her she wasn't easy to love, and she retorted that that meant she wasn't easy to manipulate.
He thought there was at least a bit of truth in her words that time. Now he was still bearing those words in mind.
Was Alina easy to manipulate?
He had done pretty much nothing. It had been her who had kissed him first.
He still couldn't answer that question.
His hand wandered on her stomach. She was so small in his arms. How could such a little thing have such great power?
At that moment he felt like he was in paradise. There was neither cold nor hot. His head was light, no trouble in mind. He smelled her bath oils mixed with her scent, the scent of her skin. It was divine and absolutely not suffocating like other women's.
The fact that this woman... girl, was the sole cause of his mood, was infuriating. This bond that was bringing them together (because it was a bond, something that tied their souls together) was stronger than he had predicted. What if it gets stronger? Would he really fall madly in love with her? Love was something for fools. He didn't need it.
Still, he caressed her figure once more before he got up.
She turned to his side to seek him but he was already out of bed, running away from her.
When she woke up it took some time to understand where she was and the implications of it.
She tentatively sought out the space near her on the bed but it was empty.
Had she dreamed everything?
She instantly opened her eyes and found herself in the Darkling's bed. She let out a breath of relief.
Amusement.
She blinked and instantly looked to her left, lifting herself on her elbows.
Aleksander was leaning on a piece of furniture, arms crossed, and his beautiful smirk on his beautiful face.
"Why are you amused?" She asked without thinking. She was probably disheveled, with sleepy eyes and tangled hair.
She tried to smooth it out.
His lips slightly twitched but the smirk remained.
"Your relief when you realized you were actually here was tangible" he walked slowly to the bed, his kefta was already on.
She felt her cheeks warm and gulped in embarrassment.
"Tangible, you say..." she felt his amusement as if it were tangible, even before she could see him.
"That's what I said."
She uncovered herself from the blanket and put her covered feet on the ground.
She didn't know what to do. Not really. But something inside her just felt comfortable with him.
"You felt it, my relief, when I realized I was with you" it wasn't a question, if anything a challenge to say the contrary.
"Yes" he simply answered.
"And you felt it too, my amusement."
"Yes."
He held out his hand for me and I took it standing up.
His hand was warm, hers was fresh.
"Are you okay?" He asked looking intensely at her.
Was he avoiding the topic?
"Yes" she answered with some indecision, but found she was speaking the truth. She was fine even if she knew a friend of hers got killed because of her, just the night before.
She was fine. And it felt wrong.
She had to distract herself, it wasn't too difficult with him in front of her, though.
They watched each other intensely and she gathered the courage to say, "do you feel something else for me, now?"
He felt it in a rush: want, desire. She wanted to kiss him, at that precise moment.
He smirked. She was young but adapted quite fast to changes. She used this tether to her advantage in a short time. This girl really was something.
"Correct me if I'm wrong" he said hoarsely and got nearer to hold her cheek with his other hand.
He was so close when she closed her eyes, waiting for his touch. It never came.
Because at that moment someone knocked on the door.
Neither of them felt the irritation of the other, but his voice was clearly annoyed when he said "Come in."
When Ivan entered the room they had already parted. He was there to talk about some issues regarding some kind of expedition.
He looked at her briefly but stayed impassive. Alina blushed and felt the Darkling smirk, though his face was impassable.
She put on her kefta, glanced at him and after some interminable seconds of intense stare, she left the room.
Along the path to her room, she didn't really think about anything in particular, her head was full. She didn't even know where to start.
When she got to her room and opened the door, she saw that Genya was inside, waiting for her, seated at her vanity. She had her lips pressed together like she wanted to hold back something.
Alina didn't know if it was something good or not.
"Good morning, Genya" she greeted her, closing the doors behind her.
"Oh, certainly it is a good morning..." Genya stood up and strolled to her with raised eyebrows.
"I- I don't know what you're thinking but... Well, I know exactly what you're thinking but it's not that. Not- not after he told me what happened last night..." her expression went from embarrassed to sad and sorrowful.
Genya's beautiful lips parted "So you already know" she stretched out her hand to take Alina's.
"What happened? Tell me everything."
There was no such thing as issues about an expedition, Ivan came to him that morning because Mal was nowhere to be found.
The guards searched everywhere but it was like he had vanished. With all his things.
It wasn't a big deal for the stag's hunt. He already told him the particular area where to look for the creature. But what if he had lied?
"Send trackers for the Stag, I want some powerful Grisha. The boy said there were Drüskelle. Use heartrenders to sense the stag."
"Yes, general."
He looked out of the window. Always problems.
Where was the boy? Had he escaped? Had he contacted Alina?
He didn't know if he intended for the two to really meet. It would have been an obstacle for him. The two of them clearly loved each other. Thank Saints the boy had been too stupid to understand it before.
He wouldn't have abandoned Alina without talking to her. Had he talked to her? He couldn't know for sure without asking her. But doing that would mean putting the boy in her head again...
Genya was the answer.
Genya told her everything that happened.
"So you're alright?" Alina asked, her eyes were red for unshed tears.
"Yes, of course" Genya lightly smiled.
"Does anyone knows yet?"
"I think so. I got checked by a Healer to be sure and then got to bed. Though..." she blushed "David was quite preoccupied... he went after me to ask if I was okay and he was so sweet..." she said and lowered her gaze.
Genya was lost in her thoughts.
She didn't know that she would have a tough conversation with the Darkling later.