Shadows and The Sea - The Darkling

Meeting Mrs. O'Leary & The OG Sunshine BFF

Third POV

Aleksander's curiosity was left waiting as Percy said they had to wait until they were alone to fully elaborate on her crypticness. In response, he had the soldiers with them immediately make preparations to move out.

The following actions happened faster than Percy realized and before long, transportation had arrived respectively for Alina and Mal from the Palace to head towards Kirbersk. The soldiers, both Grisha and otkazat'sya, worked swiftly to pack the temporary camp and leave the dreadfully cold weather that came with being so far north in Ravka.

During the clean up however, Aleksander kept Percy away from Alina and Mal. He didn't want to risk the demigod becoming distraught once again and potentially having another draining argument with the Sun Summoner. He had Ivan keeping an eye on her so he could trust one of his most trusted Grisha to make sure she didn't escape.

Soon, everything and everyone were on their way and while a couple soldiers volunteered and insisted on waiting with their General, he reassured them that it was not necessary. It was not spoken but most of the soldiers thought it was a little peculiar that The Darkling was willing to stay behind, without a tent, in the snow but they weren't exactly in a position to question any judgment the man made.

Now alone, Aleksander turned to the woman beside him and took a moment to appreciate the image that he had all to himself. Small snowflakes had started to trickle from the clouds above and were sprinkled over Percy's long dark hair. There were even a couple hanging on her lashes and Aleks couldn't help thinking she could be a picture of perfection anywhere she went. Even though it was dark, he could clearly see her.

Shaking himself out of his stupor, Aleksander asked, "Alright, now that everyone is gone, what did you mean by there's someone you want to introduce me to? It seems highly unlikely that there's anyone out this far."

Percy gave the man in black a smirk as she took a couple steps away from his side and before he could ask, she released a whistle that echoed through the night.

Almost five seconds later, the Shadow Summoner could almost feel the darkness around them ripple like water being disturbed from underneath. He had only felt this sensation once before and realized what Percy meant by formally introducing him to someone.

The shadows from the trees surrounding the pair pooled in front of the daughter of Poseidon and before either of them could react, a blur of darkness shot out and tackled Percy to the snowy ground.

Aleksander surged forward, ready to defend his demigod but stopped a couple steps short as her cheerful laughter reached his ears. The laughter quickly changed to groans of defeat followed by, "Oh come on, girl! You know that doesn't wash out!"

After a couple moments, Percy was finally able to push the large figure that was now more identifiable as a dog and stand with a hand still running across her fur.

"Aleksander Morozova, I'd like to introduce you to Mrs. O'Leary," Percy said in a loving tone.

It was clear that Percy and the largest canine the Darkling had ever seen had a strong connection with each other. The tenderness in her eyes and the way she kept a hand on the canine's side were the most obvious signs. Aleksander's heart slowed when he quickly realized that the creature next to the woman he had grown to care for was not a threat and held no ill will towards him.

At her beckoning, the snow crunched under his dark boots as he slowly walked closer to the large dog. As he got closer, he realized that while it, or rather she, looked very similar to a mastiff dog but there were things that differed. For instance, he had never seen a dog with burning red eyes not dissimilar to the burning coals of a dying fire. Another feature of note was the fact that the dog towered over Percy by an intimidating height. For as long as he had lived, Aleksander had never seen any animal that tall.