Saints and Sinners

Nineteen:

Nineteen:

"What should we look at first?" Alina asked. "I've only been here on school field trips. Then, you have to follow your chaperones and tour guides around. It's really only the two of us here?"

He nodded. "I did ask one of my best guides to stay, just in case. But I suspect that you know more."

"Where's your favorite room?" she asked.

He hesitated. "You'll think it's silly."

"Aleksander, I'd much rather think that there was something silly about you, then spend my entire time terrified of you. Come on. I've seen you at your worst. There's nothing you could do or say at this point that would make me think any less of you, yeah?"

He rubbed his beard and sighed. "Alright. I suppose I can show you, my favorite. But you just have to follow me, yeah?"

"Very mysterious." Her eyes were twinkling, and he liked seeing her this happy. The two of them walked up the staircase. "You know I always thought that it was very strange that the old Lantsov empire had two palaces. I never understood the reason for that."

"Well, the legend went that this is where Saints stayed," he said, "in the days of Old Ravka, Saints were rumored to have magic powers. There was a whole group of people who believed in it. People that could stop someone's heart, or raise a storm, or summon darkness or light at their will. The legend went that there was an old mystic, who happened to be a Morozova by the way, had convinced the Tsar and the Tsarina that they could offer them protection from those that would otherwise want to ruin them. His condition was that he build them this palace, for their safety."

Alina raised an eyebrow. "Is any of that true?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. But there was a time in old Ravka where they thought that soulmates were witches, they were hunted not only here but everywhere. I think my ancestor just wanted a place where people could be safe, and so he created the magic powers myth. People are less likely to kill you if they fear you."

"That's fascinating."

"Isn't it?" he said. "I think that's where the Saints came from. The old myths."

"So," she said, "your favorite part of the museum?"

"Come with me."

He walked her up the stairs of The Little Palace. The staircase was a grand thing, made of mahogany, and Alina could only imagine the types of secrets that were hidden within the walls of the place. He led her up stairways and down hallways and they didn't stop until they reached what was one of the largest rooms in the place.

"This used to be the grand ballroom," he said, "it's believed the Saints would perform their feats of magic here for the King and Queen. But it's the display that's important here." When they walked in, Alina let out a gasp.

She didn't remember ever making it this far in the museum. There were dozens upon dozens of cases with delicate, Faberge eggs. They were all lined with gold, and intricately hand painted.

"There's a whole collection of past Tsars and their families." He led her over to that case, and they looked at each of them. Some were even music boxes, with dancing figures in the center of them.

Out of the corner of her eye, Alina spotted the biggest one of them all. It was in the center of the room, and she had no idea how she had missed it. "Who is that one for?" Alina asked.

It was big, black and gold, and nearly took up the center of the room. "Ah. That was for my ancestor, the Saint responsible for building this place. It was a gift from the King and Queen. They believed that his powers saved their son from death, and so they gifted him with The Darkling in his honor."

"The Darkling?" Alina said.

Aleksander nodded. "That's what that monstrosity is called."

Alina walked over to the giant egg. There, in the center, was a painting of a man who looked remarkably like Aleksander. She smiled at him. "You could be twins."

"Good genes," he said, "at least you know we'll have very, very good-looking children when the time comes."

Alina turned bright red. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves. I've got to graduate first before I can even think about becoming a mother."

He smiled at her. "Of course. Just noting it for future reference, Sunshine."

"There's a gallery of Saint portraits," Alina said, "when I came here on school trips, I didn't get to spend much time there, but I found them completely fascinating."

Aleksander gripped her hand tighter. "Alright then, Alinochka. Let's go find your Saints."

They went back down the stairs, and when they got to the Saints gallery, Alina stared in reverence at each of the paintings. "What makes you believe in them so much?" he asked.

Alina had been staring at a portrait of a woman in a garden on her knees, with a swarm of bees overhead. She glanced over her shoulder back at Aleksander. "I like the idea that there's someone to watch over everyone. It makes me feel less alone. When I was at the orphanage, that was a comfort, because I didn't have anyone. This one here, for instance. That's Sankta Lizabeta of the Roses. She was a gardener, and she tended flowers. Because of her care for the flowers, when raiders came to her village, and she prayed to the Saints, the bees swarmed the raiders in response."

"Wasn't she also drawn and quartered because she couldn't save another town?" Aleksander asked, making a face.

Alina sighed. "That's not the point. The point is that she tried. She found herself near deaths door, and she didn't give up. She protected what was important to her. That's why I like the Saints. It feels like someone is always watching over me."

"Well, you do have someone. You've got me." He smiled, and kissed her, and they made their way through the museum.