He is the Black Heretic," she said furiously, her face mere inches from mine.

"Of course he is." With some effort, I pried her fingers loose and stepped past her to the door. "I'm going to find you a Healer and then I'm going to bed."

"Look at me, girl."

I took a deep breath and turned around, my patience at an end. I felt sorry for her, but this was just too much. "Baghra-"

The words died on my lips.

Darkness was pooling in Baghra's palms, the skeins of inky blackness floating into the air.

"You do not know him, Alina." It was the first time she had ever used my name. "But I do."

I stood there watching dark spirals unfurl around her, trying to comprehend what I was seeing. Searching Baghra's strange features, I saw the explanation clearly written there. I saw the ghost of what must have once been a beautiful woman, a beautiful woman who gave birth to a beautiful son.

"You're his mother," I whispered numbly.

She only nodded her head and the dark tendrils had disappeared.

"Now, you must go before disaster will happen," she said in an urgent voice but I did a double take. This woman who had trained me harshly and yelled at me and hurt me with her stick was telling me that the Darkling was the Black Heretic.

Why should I believe her? I had already told the Darkling that I trusted him.

I shook my head.

"No, you're insane. He wouldn't do that. I know he wouldn't. Even if you are his mother, he isn't a monster that you think he is," I hissed at her and she looked taken back.

"Don't act foolish, girl," she strictly said and I rolled my eyes.

"I think you really need a Healer," I said and I started to leave but she grabbed my arm.

"If you choose wrongly than whatever happens is your entire fault," she stared at me and I shook my head again. I yanked my arm from her grip and ran out of the secret passage way.

I ran to the domed room and I walked straight to the Darkling's quarter. I took a breath. Mal and the other trackers had left already, so I had nothing to worry about. The name of Mal gave my stomach a twist. I shook it off and opened the door and walked down the hallway that was familiar with me and opened another set of doors. I looked around and saw the Darkling at the end of the table having a talk with Ivan. He looked up when I had entered. He whispered something to Ivan and he got up and left, giving me and nod of acknowledgment.

"Alina is everything all right?" the Darkling asked me. I was going to tell him what happened but I couldn't help but glare at him.

"Why didn't you tell me?" I hissed.

"Tell you what?"

"That Baghra was your mother," I said and he stood up and walked towards me.

"So she told you," he said and I gave him a scowl.

"You're not answering my question." He sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

"It wasn't worth telling," he said softly and I saw something in his eyes that disappeared quickly.

I took a breath, "Baghra told me that you were the Black Heretic."

His eyes flickered to mine. "She told you that."

I nodded. He shook his head.

"I knew she was insane," he muttered.

"What?" I asked him. He sighed again.

"I'm not the Black Heretic, she is." I was taken back, Baghra the Black Heretic?

"How is that possible? She was the one who trained me to control my power," I told him and he put his hands on my shoulders.

"I think it's because she wanted to find your weakness," he said and I felt myself tense. A million things went through my mind but I was taken out of it when he pulled me in a hug. I was surprised for a moment but melted in his arms and hugged him back.

"Thank you," I heard him whisper.

"For what?" I asked.

"Trusting me; you could've believed her and left but you didn't."

"I told you I trusted you and I will always trust you," I murmured and I felt his hand lifting my chin to meet his eyes. He granite eyes were full of desire and care. He leaned in and kissed me ever so softly and I let out a groan in pleasure. I had actually missed his kisses, his touches. I didn't want to lose him. But a thought occurred to me.

"Wait," I pulled away and he gave me a confused look, "what about Baghra?"

"I'll get my men to find her. She must have left by now; old coward," he said and he let go of me. I felt my face blush and I saw him smirk.

"I'll take you to your room. You must be shaken on what had happened, I'll meet you there when I'm done," he said and grabbed my hand and led me to my room. We walked in silence but it was a good silence. The corridors were lighted by the moon and it shined down on us. In my point of view, it seemed romantic but in the current situation, it wasn't, with the so called 'Black Heretic' gone.

The Darkling opened my door and I entered.

"I'll be back," he whispered and I nodded and watched him go. I closed the door and I sat on my bed with a frustrated groan. I played with the lace of my kefta and then the charm. I smiled; he had given me this.

"Alina Starkov," a familiar voice said and I smelled the scent of a tomb. I stood up hastily and turned around. It was the Apparat; he was in my room but how.

"How did you get in here?" I asked him and took a step back when he walked towards me.

"Alina, you must go. It's happening too soon, too fast," he said. The words were almost exactly the words he was going to tell me earlier when I ditched him in the crowd.

"What are you talking about? I had enough nonsense for one day," I snarled and he took a few more steps. I backed up to the door.

"The Darkling," he started and I growled.

"Stop, I don't want to hear that he is the Black Heretic and those other damn unreasonable comments about him."

"But, Alina," he said and the door opened behind me and I fell into arms. The Darkling's arms; I felt them wrap around me and his arms were tense.

"What are you doing in here?" he asked; his voice smooth.

The Apparat looked at him and then his eyes flickered to me.

"Leave and leave Alina alone," the Darkling barked orders and the Apparat left without another glace.

"Are you okay?" his voice broke through me. I nodded and curled in his touch.

"Please don't leave," I whimpered. I didn't want another person coming to me and saying the exact same thing that the Apparat and Baghra had told me.

"I won't," he said and led me to my bed. We both lay facing each other, staring into each other's eyes. Then in a quick motion, he grabbed me into a fierce kiss and I groaned. One of his hands in my hair while the other rested on my waist; my hands on his chest, feeling the rapid beat of his heart.

I could feel the tension in his jaw, like he was holding back on something; holding back on giving me a real kiss or whatever he thought was a real kiss.

"What's wrong," I gasped against his lips.

"I should be with the others making plans to find Baghra," he whispered. I pulled back.

"Then if you have to, you can go," I said and embarrassment erupted on my face and I looked down.

"But you need me with you. I know you do. I'll make them tomorrow; right now, it's just me and you," he said and his lips rested on my neck.

It's just me and you, the words repeated in my head. I put my hand in his hair and moaned. The moonlight was the only source of light and his silhouette shone through the light. I could feel his fingers undoing the buttons of my black kefta and then his fingers on the bare skin of my waist. Uncontrollably, my hands unbuttoned his kefta and he shrugged the velvet material off and flung it to the ground. He had a white shirt underneath and my hands went under the shirt, feeling soft skin on top of hard muscles. His muscles contracted to my touch and his grip on my waist tightened.

He pushed the fabric off my shoulders until it was off, leaving me bare and vulnerable to him. His hands skimmed over my skin, making me shiver in response. The rest of our clothes were on the floor and the bed creaked from our weight.

We lay in the bed, it was late at night but we were both awake. I was in his protective arms and we looked at the ceiling, not talking. So I decided to start a conversation.

"What will happen when you find Baghra?" I asked him.

"I don't know; thrown in the cells, maybe be thrown in the Shadow Fold and be eaten by the volcra," he was in thought and I snorted.

"Eaten by volcra?" I asked him and he gave an involuntary shrug. I sighed and nestled in his arms.

"What's going to happen after this?" I whispered.

"Things will go back to normal, mostly, but when they have the amplifier for you, then we can destroy the Fold," he said but something passed over his eyes.

"Are you okay?"

"What makes you say that?" he gave me a confused look.

"You just seem uneasy," I commented and he smiled.

"It's good to know that you care. You're the only one who actually cares for me and not pretend to. Everyone fears me or hate me of some sort but you care when no one else did. Not even my own mother," he said the last sentence in disgust.

"Hey, don't worry about everyone else. If they hate you or fear you, then let them. The only important thing is that I care and that's all that matters now. I will always care for you," I said with his face in my hands.

He looked at me with surprise, "So you won't regret this?"

"What makes you think that?" my eyebrows furrowed.

"That tracker," he said simply and I felt the well of anger bubbling up in me. I remembered the argument we had.

"He's just my friend and nothing else," I mumbled.

"Is everything all right between you two?"

"We just had an argument," I answered him and sighed.

Then, he opened his hand and dark tendrils come from his palms and up into the air. I watched as they spiraled with one another and then, I held out my hand and a dim light flashed up and entwined with the darkness. It looked beautiful and it represented them; darkness and light together as one.

"I remembered the first time I saw you, or saw your coach," I said but I didn't stop the light and neither did he stop the darkness. He gave a smile.

"Really, I don't remember seeing you until I heard what you could do," he said.

"I remembered that your coach almost ran me over," I said to him and he gave a chuckle.

"How is that to laugh about? If I were to be run over, I would have been dead and you would have no Sun Summoner," I sneered at him and he stopped laughing but kept a smirk.

"Okay, I'm sorry, but you weren't run over, were you?" he asked and I rolled my eyes.

"Clearly I don't look like road kill."

"No, you look beautiful," he said softly and I looked up at him, the light and dark tendrils disappeared.

"No I don't," I said.

"Yes you do," he said and placed a kiss on my lips.

"Now, go to sleep," he whispered and I lay my head on his broad, bare chest and closed my eyes; waiting for tomorrow and the complications that were going to go on.

So i hope you like this and go check out my other stories. I will be updating as soon as possible so, review, please?