Disclaimer: I don't own the Grisha Trilogy and its characters – it belongs to Leigh Bardugo. I do not own the Shadow & Bone TV series, which was developed by Eric Heisserer for Netflix and based on Leigh Bardugo's books. Any recognisable dialogue is from the books or TV show – some lines may be included verbatim, others in an amended form.
This fic is from Fedyor's POV.
Set in an AU where the Darkling became king prior to Alina being discovered when she is 8.
Warnings for elements of grooming, although there is no Darklina romance until Alina is 17.
I got some of my inspiration for this chapter's Alina from one of PoetHrotsvitha's amazing drawings on Twitter - check it out at hrotsvitha_g / status / 1451663157630488582 (removing the spaces).
rebenok
It is an ordinary day when a messenger bursts into their meeting, breathless and red-faced, and announces that testers have found the Sun Summoner.
Outwardly, the king is as calm as ever. But Fedyor, and he is sure Ivan too, can detect the slightest change in his heartbeat. There is barely any difference, but from a man who can lie to a Heartrender with ease under normal circumstances, it is a clear sign.
The meeting is postponed, the king goes to his receiving room and Fedyor and Ivan are dispatched to the courtyard to meet the approaching carriage and escort the Sun Summoner.
Fedyor wonders what they'll be like. A child, he assumes, if they've been found by the testers. But whether they were a boy or girl, the messenger didn't seem to know.
When the carriage pulls up, a haggard-looking Heartrender hops out – Vladimir, Fedyor remembers.
"Well?" Ivan asks impatiently, "where are they?"
Vladimir tilts his head towards the carriage, "she's just waking up. We've had to keep her sedated for most of the trip."
Fedyor frowns. Their instructors always told them that using their power on a child like that for an extended period of time was an absolute last resort.
"If she wasn't unconscious then she was screaming like a banshee," Vladimir sighs, "the girl wasn't happy that her friend from the orphanage we found her in couldn't come with her. And, considering she's only eight, she can throw a mean punch."
Ivan rolls his eyes and climbs into the carriage. When he lets out a loud curse a few seconds later, Fedyor looks up in alarm.
"She bit me!" his husband scowls darkly as he rejoins Fedyor, "she's clearly a half-feral little monster."
"Why don't I try?" Fedyor suggests, when it looks like Ivan is steeling himself to go back in (which isn't likely to work out well for anyone involved).
The carriage is dark, the curtains still drawn closed and the door only slightly ajar.
The girl is curled up in the corner, watching him warily as he sits across from her.
He can't see her too well, but she's definitely waif-like, far too short and skinny for her age (looking closer to six than eight).
"What's your name?" he asks her gently.
She gazes at him suspiciously for a moment, but must decide that he isn't terrible, since she answers with a quiet "Alina Starkova."
A Ravkan name but Shu features. Likely the child of one of the mixed marriages that were quite common in the border villages, and probably orphaned by one of the raids by Shu soldiers that were also unfortunately common.
"This must be quite scary," he says conversationally, "I cried when I first came here, you know, for hours and hours. It's not very fun, coming to a new place.
Alina nods, "I want Mal."
"Is that your friend? The one you didn't want to leave?"
Another nod.
"You can always write to him," Fedyor suggests, "I can help you with that."
"Mal will be lonely," she says sadly, "who's going to look after him now?"
So, Alina is her friend's protector. He wouldn't expect it at first glance, but she's clearly scrappy and Ivan will attest to the fact that she can leave a mark.
"Why don't you come inside?" he coaxes, "you must be hungry, and the king wants to meet you."
Her eyes widen, "the king?"
She trembles slightly and then tenses. He gets the feeling that she would be out of the carriage and sprinting towards the gate if given half a chance.
"You don't need to worry, Alina. the king is very excited to meet you."
"But … why?"
"You're the Sun Summoner. We've all been waiting a long time for you."
"What … what if I don't want to be the Sun Summoner?"
He isn't sure how to react to that, but thinks she's perhaps just nervous and confused. It's a lot of pressure to put on a child, he supposes.
"You've been given a gift, Alina," he tells her, "your light is a part of you. Besides, it will make you ill if you don't use your power – we call it the wasting sickness – and we don't want that."
He holds out his hand, "will you come with me, please."
For a moment he wonders if she'll bite him too. He very much hopes not.
She doesn't, though. Instead, she takes his hand.
-x-x-x-
It goes well enough until they reach the king's receiving room and then Alina decides she absolutely does not want to go through the doors.
Fedyor isn't sure what has set her off. Perhaps the reality that she is about to meet the Black Tsar – he has a formidable reputation everywhere, and Fedyor knows that many of the superstitious otkazat'sya whisper horror stories about his shadows, so it is entirely possible that Alina has heard such tales.
She bursts into tears then, shaking her head and dragging her heels.
Vladimir gets a kick to the shin when he comes close, and she somehow manages to bite Ivan again, which Fedyor has to admit is impressive.
When the doors fly open, the king framed in the doorway, Fedyor is trying to comfort Alina, while Vladimir backs away and Ivan mutters mutinously about knocking her out again.
Fedyor expects Alina to cry even harder when she spots the king in his black kefta, which is always an intimidating sight.
Instead, she goes still, her expression curious as the king sends shadows to wind around her ankles.
Fedyor can't help the gasp that escapes him when Alina's hands begin to glow faintly.
When the king smiles, it is a startlingly genuine thing, "why don't you come in, solnyshko? There are plenty of cakes, if you're hungry."
Alina goes without protest, the light fading from her hands as she enters the receiving room.
The king turns to nod at them, a little amused as he glances at Ivan and Vladimir, and then shuts the door firmly.
Fedyor briefly wonders if it is wise to leave a small, probably traumatised, child alone with a king who has been known to reduce grown men and seasoned warriors to nervous wrecks. However, he knows the king won't tolerate any interruptions to this meeting he has been waiting so long for.
Anyway, there's clearly a connection there, shadow and light recognising each other. He thinks Alina will be just fine.
-x-x-x-
That evening, as Genya settles Alina into a suite of rooms next to the king's (the old queen's rooms, which were redecorated following the coup that placed the Darkling on the throne and have been waiting for the Sun Summoner), the king speaks with Fedyor and Ivan about the situation going forward.
"I do not want the news spreading into the city," he warns, "not for a few years at least, when Alina will at least be able to defend herself. Make sure everyone in both palaces knows that I'll have their head if they gossip."
From some, it would be an idle threat. Fedyor knows the king is deadly serious, though – he's sliced men in half for less, and this is the Sun Summoner they're trying to keep safe.
"Fedyor, I want you to be in charge of Alina's security. She seems to like you. Try not to let her run too wild."
"Of course, moi tsar."
As it turns out, keeping Alina from running wild is easier said than done.
Alina is not malicious. In fact, she's very kind and a lot of fun – full of energy and bursting with light.
Even when she isn't actively summoning, she often seems to glow, to lighten a room with her presence.
It's only … she really is rather feral.
Any time in the gardens requires a long bath afterwards to remove mud and other debris. Fedyor gets quite good at healing the small cuts and bruises that come from her adventures, saving the time he'd otherwise have to spend finding a free Healer. And he gives up his usual evening runs, far too exhausted from spending his days chasing his small charge around.
"She's tiny, Vanya," he says to his husband, "where does she get all this energy?"
"The girl is a demon, Fedya," Ivan answers grumpily, having never forgiven Alina for biting him on her arrival … or for the six other occasions she has bitten him in the month since she came to the palace.
Fedyor escorts her to Baghra when she has been at the palace for two months and managed to gain a little weight with regular and hearty meals.
Baghra spends fifteen minutes with her and he actually hears both her and Alina laughing, something that makes him wonder whether the apocalypse had arrived and the world is in fact going to end.
When the king arrives to see how Alina's lesson is going, Fedyor overhears Baghra speaking with him.
"I like this one. She'll be a match for you yet, boy."
He doesn't hear the king's response, too stupefied by what the palace's oldest resident has said. In his years at the palace, Fedyor has never heard Baghra be so complimentary.
When she isn't disguising their spies, Genya is assigned to assist Alina.
The two of them get on quite well, although Alina has very little patience for complicated hairstyles and fancy outfits. It becomes a fairly common occurrence to see her running through the halls with half-styled hair and an unbuttoned black and gold kefta, Genya chasing after her in an attempt to tidy her up.
The king doesn't seem to mind that his Sun Summoner is a little unkempt, but he is firm on her wearing her kefta properly so that she can be as fully protected as possible if by some miracle an assassin manages to get past the countless layers of security surrounding the palace.
Fedyor worries a little about Alina. She takes lessons in the Little Palace, but since her rooms are in the Grand Palace, she doesn't really get much chance to socialise with other children her own age.
He does ask the king, once, if maybe it would be better to have Alina moved to one of the Little Palace suites, so at least she can study and relax with some of the other students when she isn't in class.
"Absolutely not," the king responds, as if the very idea is absurd, "there is nowhere safer for her to be than in the suite she currently occupies."
It probably isn't the wisest thing he's ever done to question the king further, but Fedyor does so anyway, despite Ivan shaking his head in the background.
"I'm only concerned that she's set too far apart from the other students. She doesn't really have any friends."
"Of course she's set apart," the king shoots him a warning look, "she is the Sun Summoner. Besides, she has you and Genya to keep her company, and that little whirlwind she sometimes runs around with, the girl who likes to sneak into the kitchens and make waffles."
It is true that Alina and Nina Zenik, a Corporalki student who is almost a head taller than Alina despite being two years younger, are very friendly. But it still doesn't seem fair that Alina has so few friends.
The king's tone suggests his words are final, though.
For months, Alina writes to her friend Mal every week like clockwork.
Her letters aren't usually long and they can't ever say too much – Fedyor explains that for security reasons she has to be vague about her lessons and should never mention the fact that she is the Sun Summoner and stays in the Grand Palace rather than the Little Palace.
Still, she makes the effort, tries to include details she thinks her friend will like and let him know that, while she is beginning to enjoy her life at the palace, she still misses him.
Alina is conscientious enough to ask that paper, an envelope and a stamp be included in each of her letters. She's said enough about the poor state of the orphanage in Keramzin that she comes from for Fedyor to realise this is the only guaranteed way for Mal to be able to write back to her.
And, to begin with, he does.
Mal Oretsev's letters are not quite as regular as Alina's are, but he does send them. The first few put a wide smile on Alina's face. The next ones seem to trouble her, though. Still, he doesn't ask questions until the letters stop coming completely, about four months after she arrives at the palace.
"What's happened?"
His query is gentle. He is very aware of the dampness in the corner of Alina's eyes after the post comes once again with nothing for her.
"Mal doesn't like Grisha," she whispers, "he thinks they're freaky … he thinks I'm a freak."
It isn't surprising, really. The otkazat'sya spread awful stories about Grisha because of ignorance, prejudice and jealousy, and many of the children who arrive at the Little Palace do so estranged from their family.
"Well, that's his loss," Fedyor says, wrapping his arms around the Sun Summoner in a warm hug, "there's nothing wrong with you, Alina."
"I just … I thought I could change his mind. I told him all about how nice Master Botkin has been, telling me about Nehlu – that's where my mama was from – and how beautiful the palace gardens are, and how many waffles Nina can fit in her mouth all at once. But in his letters he just kept saying that we could run away when we both older, escape the war and go to Novyi Zem. And then, because I'm not allowed to tell him I'm the Sun Summoner, I couldn't explain why I wouldn't be able to leave like that."
There are a few tears trickling down her cheeks now and Fedyor feels a surge of anger towards the boy who has upset his little charge so much.
"He said I wouldn't need to use my power if we ran away," she continues, "but … I like my light, Fedyor. I don't want to stop using it."
She says the last sentence as if it is a guilty secret, like she should be sorry for enjoying the wonderful gift she's been given.
"Of course you should use your light," he tells her, furious inside but determined not to upset her by showing it, "and it isn't very nice of Mal to try and stop you. There's absolutely nothing wrong with finding joy in your talents. Besides, you know it would hurt you if you stopped summoning."
She nods. Her lessons have included details on the wasting sickness that is debilitating and eventually fatal to any Grisha suppressing or unable to use their powers for an extended period of time.
"He's not going to write again, is she?" she asks him quietly.
"Probably not," he tells her truthfully, "I'm sorry, dorogoy."
It is for the best really. But Fedyor truly is sorry that it hurts her like this.
He wishes things were different. After a few years with a Shadow Summoner on the throne, the position of Grisha in Ravka has been much improved, but so many of the otkazat'sya still fear and loathe them.
Maybe one day, when the Sun Summoner can be revealed to the world, then that will change.
For now, though, Fedyor can only comfort Alina as she mourns her broken friendship.
Fedyor and Alina lie on a woolen blanket on the grass, staring up at the night sky as Fedyor points out the stars and constellations and tells Alina their names.
"How do you know all of this?" she asks, after he's finished relating some of the legends relating to the constellations.
"Ivan told me most of them," he admits, "he's quite the astronomer."
"Really?"
She sounds sceptical but he only shrugs, "it's true."
"Huh. I never expected that."
Most people don't. They only see the stern, serious and ruthless Grisha who is the king's favourite personal aide and Heartrender.
"You could ask him to teach you more, if you want," Fedyor suggests.
Alina wrinkles her nose as she grimaces, "Ivan doesn't like me."
"Well," he laughs, "you do keep biting him."
She harrumphs, "he deserves it."
"Really?"
"… most of the time."
"Well, I'd appreciate if you could try and keep the biting to a minimum, dorogoy. It makes Ivan grumpy and then I have to deal with that."
"I'll behave if he does," Alina tells him primly.
He sighs. Alina's idea of Ivan 'behaving' isn't something that's likely to happen any time soon.
Fedyor supposes he'll just have to resign himself to the ridiculous ongoing feud between his husband and his little charge.
The servants soon start to call Alina malyenkaya koroleva and Fedyor …
Fedyor can't help but think of the implications.
It's not that there is anything official about the title, no talk about a betrothal or proxy marriage. The king, while certainly fond of Alina, is often busy with state matters. He sometimes goes for weeks at a time without seeing the Sun Summoner.
That's for the best, Fedyor thinks. Alina isn't going to have a normal childhood, not even by Grisha standards, but she deserves to grow up without politics and pressure for as long as it is possible.
Still, he hears the title the servants whisper (thankfully never within Alina's hearing, as far as he can tell) and he knows that surely it will one day be true.
After all, who but the Sun Summoner can equal their king, who except her can match his power?
Alina attends the usual lessons that the other students do, but there are more too, just for her.
Books on the history of Ravka delivered to her rooms to study. A tutor who teaches her about how royalty wield power, the way alliances are made and the art of war.
"What did you expect?" Ivan asks, "she needs to be prepared. And at least she's not an idiot, even if she is a hellion."
What Fedyor had expected was more time. Alina is so young and surely the king could be patient after waiting so long for the Sun Summoner (and Fedyor suspects he has been waiting far longer than they think – there is a look in his eyes sometimes that makes him sure the king is much older than he claims to be) and hold off until she's a teenager before he insists on lessons in statecraft.
As always, though, the king's word is law.
Oprichniki trail Alina everywhere, so familiar that Fedyor thinks she usually forgets they are there. He is required to account for her movements whenever he meets with the king and tries to be as succinct as possible, giving Alina what little privacy he can. Reports of her performance in lessons and combat training go straight to the king. Baghra refuses to give any details of her sessions with Alina, but she concedes when pressed that the Sun Summoner is adequate, which is high praise from her.
Still, Alina is untroubled by it all.
While her first few weeks at the palace had been an adjustment, she is used to it now, accepts the guards as a normal thing.
She doesn't mind the restrictions, although he knows she sometimes yearns to go beyond the palace walls and into the city below. For the moment, however, she is content with the palace gardens and the small forest enclosed within the palace walls. She is outside in rain or shine, hot or cold, and sometimes Fedyor has to persuade her back inside before she makes herself ill because her clothes are damp or she's forgotten her winter gloves and hat in the snow.
-x-x-x-
"What do you think of the king, dorogoy?" he asks her one day.
Alina only shrugs, "his shadows are cool. And he taught me a trick so that I could split my light. Here, look."
She demonstrates for him, summoning a light in her hands and then, biting her lips in concentration, separating it into two orbs.
He claps and ruffles her hair affectionately, dropping the subject of the king for now.
It isn't his place to ask her what she and the king talk about when he requests that she visit him. The meetings are usually only twenty minutes or so, and sometimes Fedyor wonders if they just spend most of their time arguing about the menu (Alina is a vocal advocate for the removal of herring from the dinner options, although this is one thing the king never indulges her in).
"Can we go and see the Prince of Darkness?" Alina asks after a few moments of quiet.
"His name is Maksim," Fedyor reminds her.
Maksim is the king's favourite horse, the product of centuries of careful breeding. Fedyor is only thankful that Alina has enough sense not to use the nickname she's given the horse when the king is in earshot.
"The Prince of Darkness probably misses me," she says, entirely ignoring his reminder, "I haven't seen him in ages."
"That's because you let three of the horses out of the stables the last time you were there, Alina."
She pouts, "it was an accident."
"It took the grooms four hours to round them up. And they trampled all over the flower beds."
"I'm older now," she insists, "almost grown up."
"You're nine, dorogoy," he says, "and the stables incident was two weeks ago."
"Pleaaaaaaassssseeee."
She looks up at, wide-eyed, bottom lip trembling slightly.
Saints, he finds it so hard to say no to that look. Where's Ivan and his total lack of susceptibility to Alina's puppy-dog eyes when Fedyor really needs him?
Fedyor shakes his head, "you have your lesson with Baghra in half an hour."
Alina looks near tears and Fedyor sighs.
"We'll go tomorrow, alright. As long as you promise to leave the other horses alone and only feed Maksim one carrot – he's on a strict diet, you know."
She beams at him and it's like the sun has come out, despite the drizzly, grey sky outside, "I promise. Thank you, Fedyor."
He really is too soft.
Fedyor tries to hide his amusement as Genya, standing next to him, winces at every puddle Alina jumps in and looks especially pained when the girl flops to the ground to roll around in the leaves.
"I told you not to bother with anything more complicated than a pair of braids," he tells her, "you know she likes to play in the gardens on rainy days.
Genya pouts, "but she looks so adorable with the waterfall braid and her hair all curled."
"I'm afraid your impeccable taste is rather wasted on our little hellion for the moment. Perhaps she might be more receptive in a few years."
"Oh, just wait until I get hold of her for all the balls. I'm sure she'll have to attend them after she's been announced as the Sun Summoner, and she'll need to look magnificent. I have so many ideas!"
Fedyor doesn't bother to remind her that the king hates balls. He understands the necessity of hosting them occasionally, but there are as few as possible.
"Well, why don't you go and sketch out your ideas," he tells her, "and I'll try and wrangle Alina inside. It's nearly time for her bath and the maids insist I allocate an extra fifteen minutes so that they have time to clean up when she's done splashing them all."
They part then, Genya to daydream about increasingly complicated hairstyles before her meeting to Tailor a few of their spies, Fedyor to the unenviable task of telling Alina she had to abandon her fun and return to the palace.
If he's lucky, he'll manage without getting soaked himself.
(spoiler … he's not that lucky).
"Starkova!" he hears Ivan's furious shout just before Alina rounds the corner, sliding a little on the marble floors, her socks making her slip precariously.
(if she doesn't fall and smash her head on one of the palace's many marble floors before she turns sixteen, then Fedyor will have done his job admirably).
He grabs hold of her as she tries to creep past him, "what have you done, Alina?"
"Nothing."
Her best innocent look doesn't fool him one little bit.
"Alina," he says, a little more forcefully this time.
"Me and Nina just thought Ivan might like a surprise for his birthday."
Fedyor's not entirely sure how she found out Ivan's birthday. His husband is notoriously private, disliking any celebration except the small cake he and Fedyor have in their room each year.
Before he can ask for more details, Ivan storms into view, covered in paint.
Alina lets out a little 'eep' and ducks behind Fedyor.
Ivan's hands are already starting to move in familiar motions and Fedyor knows what's going to happen unless he intervenes.
His own hands move even quicker, jolting Ivan's heart just enough that it ruins his concentration, "stop."
"Have you seen what she and Zenik did?" his husband fumes.
Fedyor rolls his eyes, "I can very clearly see what's happened, Vanya. I just don't think knocking her unconscious is going to do much good."
Ivan calls Alina something extremely rude under his breath. Unfortunately, he clearly hasn't been quiet enough because Alina gasps loudly.
"If she repeats that," he warns his husband, "then you can be the one to explain to the king exactly where she heard it."
"She. Is. A. Menace," Ivan insists, "I tried to grab her after she and Zenik dropped the paint on me and look what she did."
He holds out his hand, a clear bite mark on his skin.
"Alina," Fedyor sighs, turning to the little Sun Summoner, "what have we said about the biting?"
"That I shouldn't do it unless someone tries to kidnap me," she mumbles.
"So why did you bite Ivan?"
"He grabbed me and Master Botkin always tells me I should use every weapon at my disposal if someone does that."
"I don't think Master Botkin was talking about Ivan," Fedyor says.
"He was so," Alina protests, "he said anyone who grabs me."
There's really no reasoning with her sometimes. And Fedyor knows that it is important for Alina to heed Botkin's lessons, for the combat instructor's teachings have saved many Grisha over the years.
Besides, he's fairly sure the biting is an Ivan-specific thing for Alina. Excluding the Healer who had seen her on her initial arrival at the palace, and the maid who had made a comment about her eyes being too Shu (that particular servant had never been seen again), Ivan is the only one Alina ever bites.
Fedyor can't quite figure it out. It just seems like one of her quirks.
And the king never appears to be concerned. He seems more amused by it than anything else, clearly believing the two of them will just work it out between themselves. When Ivan complains, the king simply tells him that Alina will grow out of it. Fedyor is (fairly) sure that's true.
Once he's sent Alina back to her room with a stern warning not to leave it for the rest of the day, Fedyor manages to do a decent job of healing Ivan's hand. His husband refuses to go to see the Healers, since he'd then have to admit how he was injured, and, thanks to practice with Alina, Fedyor is now pretty good at healing minor injuries.
"I don't suppose you two can just declare a truce," he suggests.
"I'm not the one who goes around biting people," Ivan replies gruffly, "and she's got to learn some decorum. She can't be running around like a half-feral beast when she's queen."
"Alina's not a queen, Vanya," Fedyor says sharply, a warning in his voice, "she's a child. A little too wild, sometimes, but that's normal. No one should be putting ideas in her head about a crown – she's too young for that."
"Relax, Fedya, I wouldn't dare risk involving that girl in anything ceremonial or political right now – it would be an unmitigated disaster. And, obviously, the king has absolutely no interest in a child bride. Still, you cannot pretend this isn't happening at some point."
Oh, but Fedyor wishes he could. He understands intrigue – he is in charge of the king's spy network, after all – but he doesn't like the idea of Alina's future being planned out while she remains blissfully ignorant of it.
"It's such a burden to put on a child," Fedyor sighs.
"Some burdens are necessary," Ivan replies, "and however much I find Alina Starkova to be one of the most irritating people I've ever met, I also believe she is capable of carrying that burden."
It is probably the nicest thing his husband has ever said about Alina and Fedyor leans over to press a kiss to the corner of Ivan's mouth, "come on, let's get you cleaned up before someone sees and you lose all your dignity."
Fedyor just hopes Alina isn't feeling mischievous enough to spread the story around the Little Palace or he is definitely going to be mediating another argument.
It would be easy for a child to get spoiled, living as Alina does.
Her own suite, personal security, half a dozen maids and a king who, though distant, is generally inclined to indulge her whims (there is now an art studio next to her suite with huge windows that provide excellent light, blue irises fill a good quarter of the Grand Palace's flowerbeds and once a week the kitchens serve the dumplings that Alina had once mentioned her mother making before the border skirmish that had left Alina an orphan).
Fedyor is relieved to discover, though, that Alina does not really grow spoiled.
She's happy to share what she has with Fedyor, Nina and Genya, doesn't grow conceited or start issuing ridiculous orders, and never makes difficult demands that the servants would struggle to fulfil. She has an inkling of her position of power but thankfully she does not really abuse it.
Ivan, who tends towards pessimistic, reminds Fedyor that Alina is as wild as ever.
Her manners have improved but she still rolls on the grass when she's playing outside, laughs loudly and shrieks happily when she's running inside the palace, and giggles as she and Nina creep into the kitchen in between lessons to persuade the cooks to make them waffles.
It's lucky, really, that the Grand Palace is so huge. Alina keeps to one wing, where her suite and the king's personal rooms are, while any state business and War Room meetings are conducted in a wing on the opposite side of the palace, far enough away that no inquisitive general or noble can ever question who is making so much noise.
They all know that Ravka will eventually have to know that there is a Sun Summoner, but they are keen to keep the news private for as long as they possibly can. The last thing they want is the people trying to demand that an untrained and unprepared Alina enter the Fold.
For now, though, the secret holds, the Grisha and oprichniki loyal to their king and the servants fearful enough of what an indiscretion would cost them.
For the moment, Alina is able to run and play and learn in relative peace.
"Do I have to?" Alina asks, eyeing Ivan with some trepidation.
Baghra has apparently decreed that Alina should practice summoning while also dealing with distractions. It makes sense, really – she isn't likely to be on the battlefield anytime soon, but it useful for Alina to be able to use her abilities effectively even if there is fighting going on nearby.
Ivan has volunteered – with a suspicious amount of glee – to be the one to distract Alina by making noise, throwing small objects at her and using his own power to make her light-headed.
Fedyor is here to ensure his husband doesn't go too far.
"Gently, Vanya," he reminds Ivan, "I don't want you knocking her out."
"At least we might get some peace and quiet for five minutes," Ivan mutters.
Fedyor rolls his eyes and turns to Alina, "yes, you do have to, Alina. It's a good thing for you to learn."
"But can't you do it?" she protests.
That had been the plan and Fedyor still thinks things are likely to go far smoother if Ivan isn't here. Unfortunately, his husband clearly doesn't want to miss the opportunity to get a bit of payback for all the biting and has pulled rank.
"It's going to be fine," he insists, crossing his fingers behind his back.
In the end, Ivan knocks Alina out once, but she also bites him when he wakes her up, so Fedyor decides to call it a draw and separate the two of them before their snarling turns nastier.
"For you," Alina beams up at Fedyor, handing him a large sheet of paper.
He looks down, fully prepared to see another depiction of Ivan being eaten by a bear (Alina has drawn six of those so far, and she keeps gifting them to Ivan with a devious little smile).
"Oh," he lets out a surprised but happy little sigh.
It is a sketch, as expected, but the subject is far more pleasant than the one he has been imagining.
It is a view of the palace gardens, two figures in red keftas standing together by one of the pavilions. They aren't too detailed, being depicted at a distance, but they are very clearly him and Ivan.
"It's beautiful, Alina," he tells the girl, "thank you very much … but aren't you late for Baghra's lesson?"
Alina's eyes widen, "Saints!"
He chuckles a little. She'll be ok – if she runs (and she will, making her poor oprichniki sprint after her) then she'll get to Baghra's hut on time.
"Oh," she cries out as she turns to leave, "I forgot. I made this one for Ivan too."
She hands him another piece of paper. Lo and behold, the drawing depicts Ivan being eaten by a bear.
"Nina said she thought the blood was particularly realistic on this one," Alina tells him cheerfully.
"Err … yes," Fedyor tries not to laugh, "I'm sure Ivan will love it."
In fact, Ivan burns it two minutes after he receives it.
The picture of the two of them in the garden, however, is framed and put in pride of place on their wall.
Fedyor even catches Ivan smiling at it once or twice, though his husband denies it.
Fedyor might be in charge of Alina's security, but he also assists with the king's extensive spy network. He's so cheerful and friendly that people are more inclined to speak with him, and no one ever seems to expect a spy to be so openly affable.
He is reporting to the King when they are interrupted by a knock on the door.
Igor, one of the oprichniki assigned to the Sun Summoner, is standing there, face ashen. Since Fedyor has seen Igor tackle assassins without blinking an eye, he can only assume one thing.
Something has happened to Alina.
"The Sun Summoner is gone, moi tsar."
There is barely time to blink before the room is engulfed in oppressive shadows, tendrils winding tightly around Igor's limbs and throat.
"What happened," the king demands.
"She had one of her usual teams assigned to watch her," Igor chokes out, "four in close proximity, and two a little further away. They told me she was there one moment and gone the next."
"Throw them in one of the cells," the king's voice is soft, and that always means they have to worry, "and then find her."
The Black Tsar turns towards Fedyor as Igor hurries away, "Alina spoke about the Os Alta market a few days ago. Of course, I told her she couldn't possibly attend – there have been rumours of mercenaries from Shu Han seen in the city – but she's a stubborn little thing and may have snuck off to attend."
"I'll take some men and go and search, moi tsar," he says.
Maybe it's cowardly, but the look on the king's face is absolutely terrifying and he wants to get out of the still-dark room as soon as possible.
As he assembles a team, Fedyor prays to the saints that they will find Alina safe and sound.
-x-x-x-
Fedyor is the one who discovers Alina after nearly two hours of searching. She is on one of the city's side streets, with a potato and cheese pierogi in each hand.
She grimaces when she sees him, although at least she doesn't try to run away, "is he very angry?"
Yes, Fedyor thinks, furious enough that those six oprichniki in the dungeons might not live for much longer.
"He was worried, dorogoy," he says instead, "he thought you might get hurt."
"I was super careful, I promise," she tells him.
He sighs, "I'm sure you were, but you're still very young, Alina. Something might have happened."
"I just wanted to see the market," she pouts a little, "everyone else got to go last week, even Nina, and she's two years younger than me."
"You know why you couldn't go, dorogoy," Fedyor reminds her, "we have to keep you safe."
She goes quiet then, not quite sulky but simply grumpy and frustrated. While he can understand her irritation, it doesn't negate the fact that she deliberately disobeyed one of the most important rules they have given her.
Alina lets him help her into the carriage, snuggling into his side when he sits next to her.
She is mostly silent on the way back to the palace, although he manages to get her to explain how managed to purchase the pierogis when she has no money of her own.
Apparently, she'd asked an oprichnik for some coins so she could play a game, and had kept a few to herself when she returned them.
"I was gonna pay him back," she insists, "I was just trying to figure out what job I could do."
Fedyor rather thinks the man deserves to lose his money for getting tricked by an eleven-year-old. It'll really be the least of his problems, considering he faces the king's wrath.
A few more minutes of silence and then Alina's asks a question, quieter and more unsure than she usually is, "will … will he hate me now?"
He knows she's referring to the king and he almost laughs out loud, despite knowing that will upset her. The king might be distant and dangerous, but he is also susceptible to Alina's personal brand of charm – he's certainly not happy about his Sun Summoner's little escapade, but he'll forgive her soon enough. Fedyor rather thinks the king might forgive Alina anything, if it came to it.
"You broke a very important rule, Alina, and put yourself in danger. The king wants to talk to you about that to make sure it doesn't happen again. But I promise you, dorogoy, he could never hate you."
He isn't entirely sure that she believes him, with the way she trembles as he leads her out of the carriage and towards the king's receiving room.
"It will all be fine, I promise," he tells her as they reach the doors and the oprichniki step aside to let Alina enter, "I'll be right here when you're finished."
The poor girl looks terrified. He remembers being a child, where being caught for the smallest transgression seemed like the scariest thing in the world. Hopefully, she'll realise that they were all more panicked than angry.
When the door closes behind Alina, Fedyor leans against the wall and waits.
-x-x-x-
Ivan finds Fedyor as he is pacing anxiously outside the king's receiving room.
"Fedya?"
He looks up, "Vanya, I thought you were interrogating the oprichniki?"
They think that Alina managing to slip away from her guards is simply an issue of incompetence among her guards, but the king is taking no chances and has asked Ivan to ensure none of them are harbouring disloyal thoughts.
"We're finished. They're all idiots, but none of them are traitors."
"Right, well that's good."
"Why are you pacing, Fedya?"
Fedyor looks anxiously at the door. The room is entirely soundproofed, so he doesn't have a clue what has been going on inside, but he's a little troubled about how long it's been.
"They've been in there for almost an hour," he tells Ivan, "I'm just concerned."
Because he knows, he really does, that the king won't truly hurt Alina, but he's still worried – she's only eleven, after all, and the king's idea of problem solving can be a bit … severe.
"You're too soft about her, Fedya."
"She's just a child, Vanya, not a soldier. Is it wrong to want her to have some semblance of a normal childhood?"
Ivan shook his head, "she's the Sun Summoner. She'll never be normal."
Fedyor is about to respond when the door opens and Alina steps out, sniffling slightly, her red eyes a clear indication that she has been weeping.
He resists the urge to hug her, not wanting to interfere with any punishment the king has doled out.
"I'm sorry for running away, Fedyor," she mumbles.
He gives her a smile to show she's forgiven.
Her lip begins to tremble and he wonders if she's going to start crying again, but then the king puts his palm on her neck and she sways slightly, gaze unfocused.
"Moi tsar?" he asks, as the man gestures for Fedyor to pick Alina up before she falls over.
He is one of the few aware that their king is a living amplifier, but he's never seen him use his power this way before. It's a little disconcerting, even if he's clearly just trying to calm Alina.
"Bedtime, I think," the king suggests, "she's a little overwrought, but she understands not to try and run off on her own again."
Fedyor hefts Alina in his arms and she mumbles something under her breath that he can't understand before her eyes close completely and she begins to snore slightly.
"Come and see me later," the king orders, "once you've taken Miss Starkova to her room."
He nods. Alina is clearly repentant but he's sure the king will have a number of temporary restrictions for her, and Fedyor will need to know exactly what they are.
He agrees that it is the right thing to do. Fedyor has come to love Alina fiercely, wild behaviour and all, but her safety is something they cannot compromise on, not when she is so young and untrained.
Fedyor doesn't like to think about what the Black Tsar might do if anything happened to his Sun Summoner.
For a month after Alina's unauthorised trip to the Os Alta market, the door to her art studio remains locked and there are no visits from Nina or plates of waffles for dessert.
The Sun Summoner goes to her lessons in the Little Palace and then back to her rooms in the Grand Palace, although she is allowed into the gardens for a little while each day (her guards more vigilant than ever) for fresh air and exercise.
Alina is subdued, especially during the first week, but she seems to accept that her actions warrant a punishment and this is not a cruel one.
She asks after the guards who let her slip away and is sad but a little relieved to hear that they have been stripped of their rank as oprichniki and sent away. It is a harsh punishment, since it will be a struggle for them to find work because of the manner of their dismissal, but Alina, though young, knows it could have been much worse. After all, the king could well have decided to execute them, considering their negligence had put the Sun Summoner in danger.
Once the month has passed, however, the restrictions lift and Alina once again runs through the halls and gardens of the palace, making Fedyor laugh and Ivan sigh.
If she notices that she now has eight oprichniki following her rather than six, she doesn't say anything about it, and she never complains to him about how close a watch is kept on her, although he sometimes sees her whispering with Nina, rolling her eyes as she glances at the guards.
In the end, Alina makes the most of the increased security. She ropes the oprichniki into games with her, makes Ivan spend hours searching for her in the Grand Palace under the guise of training (she hides, promising to remain within the palace, until he can find her), and asks one of the chefs to give all of the guards assigned to her cooking lessons so that she and Nina can badger them for waffles rather than disturbing the kitchen staff.
Fedyor can't help but admire her ingenuity, even if it does drive Ivan crazy.
Besides, it turns out that Pavel, one of the oprichniki, has a knack for making waffles, and Fedyor certainly isn't going to complain about improved breakfast options.
Herring might be one of Ivan's favourites, but Fedyor will choose waffles drenched in syrup every time.
"Slow down, Alina," Fedyor warns her as she pushes her horse to go faster.
Saints, he really doesn't enjoy going riding with the Sun Summoner. He is perfectly adequate on a horse, but Alina rides like a demon, with seemingly no fear that she might fall and break her neck (which, naturally, would be likely to lead to Fedyor's painful death at the hands of the king's shadows).
Fedyor, on the other hand, is aware of every single way something could go wrong, giving himself a headache trying to keep an eye on Alina even as he makes sure he isn't going to crash into a tree himself.
She looks over at one of the paddocks, which has a number of obstacles and jumps, "hey, Fedyor, can I –"
"Absolutely not," he interrupts her, "definitely not until you're older."
"That's what you said last year," she protests.
"And I'll keep saying it until you're old enough."
"You're no fun. Tomek let me do one of the jumps last week."
Fedyor turns the full force of his glare on the oprichnik next to him. Tomek only shrugs sheepishly in a 'what can you do?' sort of way.
"Well, Tomek won't be letting you do that again anytime soon."
Alina frowns as she realises she's shot herself in the foot by revealing Tomek's leniency. She knows Fedyor will be even more vigilant now to make sure she isn't trying anything she shouldn't be.
He doesn't like to be the bad guy. Ivan is usually the stricter one, more likely to insist on extra lessons or more restrictions for Alina, but Fedyor has a responsibility and he isn't about to fail.
Alina is a good rider, he knows, but she's still only twelve years old.
They've all been waiting for so long for the Sun Summoner. If something were to happen to her …
Well, he doesn't like to think about that scenario.
"We'll talk about it again when you're thirteen," Fedyor promises her, "and see if you can try a few of the easier obstacles."
It's a decent compromise. Her birthday isn't for another nine months, which gives him some time to ensure there are stringent safety measures in place.
Still, he makes a mental note to see if someone else can take over riding with her at that point. He's not sure his blood pressure can cope with watching her jump ditches and obstacles.
One evening, when Fedyor is walking with Alina back to her rooms after her dinner with the king, she asks him what he thinks about the Shadow Fold.
"Well, it separates us from West Ravka," he tells her, "and there are some there who want to be independent from Ravka. If the Fold was gone then it would be much easier to unite the country. And perhaps it would make people less afraid of Grisha, if a Grisha got rid of the Fold."
"But couldn't the Fold protect us if we were able to control it?" she asks, "we could move it so it's all around us and then the soldiers from Shu Han and Fjerda wouldn't be able to get in. And I could make a tunnel from Kribirsk to Novokribirsk so that we can travel safely to West Ravka."
Alina sounds cheerful, as if it is a perfectly normal thing to suggest that the Fold could be moved to engulf settlements, towns and cities, despite its borders having remained the same in the centuries since its creation.
"Where did you hear that idea?" he asks her, careful to keep his voice calm.
It can't have been in her lessons, after all. He knows exactly what she is learning and this certainly isn't on the curriculum.
She goes suddenly quiet.
"Alina," he presses her gently, "where did you hear that?"
She looks guilty and worried now, "the king said I wasn't supposed to talk about it. He's gonna be mad that I told you."
And now Fedyor has a dilemma. The things Alina is saying are strange, at odds with what he has been taught, but the king knows more about the Shadow Fold than anyone else and if he believes it is possible to move it, then Fedyor thinks he is likely to be right. Still, the ethical considerations alone could take years to debate …
"Well," he tells Alina, plastering a smile on his face that he hopes will fool her, "why don't we pretend I didn't hear any of that. I won't tell the king that you mentioned it."
She nods, clearly relieved, "thanks, Fedyor."
She begins to chatter then about the apple cake she and the king had for dessert, and the painting of Nina she is planning to do in the morning.
Fedyor only half-listens, most of his thoughts still on the information Alina had given away.
As promised, he won't say anything out loud. However, he can't help his thoughts.
All these years, they've all assumed the king's plan is for the Sun Summoner to destroy the Shadow Fold completely.
Now, Fedyor is starting to think those assumptions are very wrong.
He's not entirely sure how he feels about that.
Thanks for reading. Hope you enjoyed it.