Chapter 13

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After sending his daughter to bed, The Darkling sat at his desk trying to comprehend the new information he had gained. Both of his daughters could summon both light and shadow, and yet their weaker power would grow stronger when they were in contact, but it was not the same effect as that with an amplifier.

He suspected that this was once again because of the bond between him and Alina, the power wanting to be whole, had the twins not been twins and there was only one child, that single child would possess the full capacities of both the Shadows and the Light. 

As The Darkling began to think about this, he started to remember words he had spoken ears ago to Alina, right before he put the Stag's Antlers around her neck.

 You know the only thing stronger than me or you? The two of us. Together.

He was not lying when he said this, and this was clearly proven by his daughters. After this though, he allowed his mind to do something he would usually try not to, he let himself drift off, into thoughts of Alina, about how he should've kept a closer eye on her, that if Baghra hadn't gotten to her before he did, he might've been able to manipulate her further, get her to fully trust him, and perhaps. Perhaps he might have trusted her too, enough to not have to kill the stag himself, to take control of her power. 

If Baghra had not interfered, the king would have already been dead due to Genya's poison, allowing him to have already ascended to the throne. Perhaps he could have been there when his daughters were born. Maybe, he could have not been so lonely.

He closed his eyes in thought, continued thinking of Alina, what he would do once he had her, how he would distance her from her friends and get her to re-trust him, how he would make her his queen.

When he opened his eyes, he was no longer in the tent. He was somewhere else entirely. He looked around for a minute, his surrounding seeming vaguely familiar, but to blurry to identify where exactly he was. The Darkling tried focusing his eyes as much as possible, to try and make out at least vaguely where he was. 

The chamber was hexagonal, and dark, when he looked up, it was again dark, but blurry bits of white were blended in. A large rectangular shaped object was situated againt the far wall in the center. Finally, he realised where he was standing. The large rectangular object was a bed, these were sleeping chambers. Not any sleeping chambers, but his own sleeping chambers in the little palace. And that is when he saw her.

His sun summoner, at the side of the bed, running her hands over his black silk pillow. Alina was the only thing in focus, he could see everything clearly about her. The way she stood, slightly hunched over the bed, her eyes closed, taking in a large breath. She opened her eyes, she looked confused. It was at that moment, he decided to make himself known.

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Alina

"Alina."

I whirled. The Darkling was standing on the other side of the bed.

I clapped my hands over my mouth to stop my scream.

This isn't real, I told myself. It's just another hallucination. Just like on the Fold.

"My Alina," he said softly. His face was beautiful, unscarred. Perfect.

I will not scream, because this isn't real, and when they come running, there will be nothing to see.

He walked slowly around the bed. His footsteps made no sound.

I closed my eyes, pressed my palms against them, counted to three. But when I opened them again, he was standing right before me. I will not scream.

I took a step backward, felt the press of the wall behind me. A choked sound squeaked free of my throat.

I will not scream.

He reached out. He can't touch me, I told myself. His hand will just pass through me like a ghost. It's not real.

"You cannot run from me," he whispered.

His fingers brushed my cheek. Solid. Real. I felt them.

Terror shot through me. I threw up my hands, and light blazed over the room in a brilliant wave that shimmered with heat. The Darkling vanished.

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"Alina" The Darkling said.

Immediately she turned around, a look of surprise flashed on her face before being replaced with fear. Her eyes were wide, all the colour gone from her face. She looked as though she was going to scream, but she caught herself before she could let it out.

Alina pressed her hands to cover her mouth at lightning speed, the shock of seeing his here still fresh in her mind. She looked as if she was debating with herself, her yes moving frantically looking over The Darkling

"My Alina." He said softly, as if talking to a crying child, trying not to frighten them. She started shaking her head frantically, as if trying to convince herself he wasn't here.

Good. He thought. Let her think I am not real. She will let down her guard, she will not hide back any information she is saying, she will tell him everything, without even realising it.

The Darkling started walking towards her, slowly, watching her, his eyes an unwavering grey as he made his way over to her.

Alina covered her eyes with her hands, pressing against them, still trying to convince herself it wasn't real, trying to get him to disappear. When she removed them and saw he was still there, she stepped back, as if trying to get away. 

The Darkling found this slightly amusing, as if by stepping back, she could somehow get rid of him, as her back made contact with the wall, her face paled even further, as she realised, she could not go anywhere. She was trapped.

The darkling reached his hand out, trying to test the limits of this connection that seems to have appeared between him and Alina, could he touch her? 

"You cannot run from me." He whispered against the shell of her ear. His voice almost a caress, the tone intimate, to make it all the more meaningful.

Finally, his fingers made contact with her cheek, and he felt her soft skin, solid underneath his fingertips. He could touch her through this bond, and when he did, he noticed the room became more focused, this made it clear to him that these, were in fact, his chambers.

At the contact, Alina had finally broken, the last thing The Darkling saw on her face was terror, before a blinding light doused the room, and he was back in the dimly lit tent. 

Hi everyone, I know the twins weren't in this chapter but I wanted the first time with The Darkling visiting Alina through the bond to be just the two of them, because I felt like this was a very important moment in the books and I just wanted to explore that with only the two of them. Now this isn't to say the twins will not have some experiences with the bond, I just felt like the first time, since it is also new to Aleksander that he should experience this without having the twins there. The twins will be back next chapter I promise.

Also I just wanted to clear up the POV switches in the chapter. In the beginning it is how it has been this entire book, just in 3rd person but still exploring peoples thoughts and emotions, but near the middle, I switched to Alina in the first person, then I rewrote the scene again in the third person, but more revolving around The Darkling.

Also, last thing I promise, but in this fanfiction, Alina does not yet know the Darkling's name, for this particular part I'm going off the books where he doesn't tell her until Ruin and Rising, so just a heads up. 

Okay I'm done now, until next time dear readers.

-Anna

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