The True Saint

A Game Of Dominance

Sorry, my posting schedule is so inconsistent :'( I will most likely be posting every Tuesday and Friday from now on. Special thanks for my readers that have stuck with me so far! As always, enjoy the next chapter!
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I ᗩᗰ ᕼᗩᑭᑭY to see familiar faces. I wish I could talk to Lily and Coraline about everything that has happened in the last few days, but they are undoubtedly spies for the Darkling, just as Genya was. I just go along with the dreary conversation about the season turning from fall to winter and the guard that got a divorce with his wife over the handmaiden. I start to zone out of the discussions.

"Are you okay? You seem distant," Coraline says hesitantly.

"I'm fine." That is the farthest from the truth of how I am feeling and it is clear to them both, but they don't question me further. I am not ready to talk about Mal's death yet. Every time I so much as think of him, my complexion glows and my skin gives off dangerous heat as if I was being amplified.

"Well, you certainly look like a future queen now. You inevitably will go down in history as the most beautiful and powerful queen of Ravka," Coraline compliments while she ties the corset of my dress, which is the Darkling's color, black, again. It is also backless with thin straps crisscrossing behind it. My newly white hair is tightly curled by the work of the tailor. I hardly recognize myself in the mirror.

I don't understand why I have to wear these dresses before I am technically the queen. This makes me realize how comfortable Keftas we're compared to all of the gowns I've been dressed in.

"Will I be the best for representing the population as a Grisha? Will they not fear me for being powerful?"

Lily pipes in with her soft, timid voice, "by saying that you want to represent the public shows that you would be a good leader. There are some monarchs that want to rule without taking responsibility, but you are not like that, Miss Starkov."

***

        My dress's elegant, short train trails behind me as I am led to a conference room. The room is large and open with a long table in the center. There, I meet the eyes of the Darkling followed by ten or so planners for the wedding. They all stop talking as I enter.

A servant rushes to pull out a seat alongside the Darkling at the head of the table. His eyes do not leave mine for a considerable amount of time. When I am seated, the Darkling places a hand on my back and says, "it is nice of you to join us. We were just discussing what you will need to do in order to become a queen consort."

"A queen consort?" I ask, trying to ignore his palm on the small of my back. I know nothing about political terms, which puts me at a disadvantage.

A short man with an upright nose and mouse-like features speaks in a nasally voice, "a queen consort is someone such as yourself that marries an established reigning king. This grants you the same rank as the king, but with... restrictions."

This gets my attention and I question him with concern. "What restrictions?"

He ignores my question and continues talking with the Darkling, dismissing my existence entirely. "Once Miss Starkov has walked down the aisle, you will both need to sign the binding papers of marriage and talk with the chairmen of parliament to finalize details after the union."

The Darkling has a colossal advantage over me when it comes to politics. Before his rule, he was a general for a long time. He had many years to learn about government policies and loopholes.

The Darkling has a naturally alluring voice. He could persuade anyone with his diplomatic tone. "Yes, I would like a meeting as soon as possible with the chairmen to discuss plans for the future."

I may not know much about politics, but the chairmen are something I am familiar with. They are the only people who are above the crown when it comes to royalty in the public eye. They vote in special circumstances such as which heir inherits the throne, but that will not be an issue given we are both eternal and do not need heirs to keep the bloodline.

I notice that the Darkling's hand is still hovering over my back as the planners take turns speaking. I would think nothing of it if my dress was not open in the back. My skin is fairly exposed for a gown that Aleksander most likely chose. It becomes hard to listen as the Darkling starts to trace circles on my exposed back. He moves from my shoulder blades to my lower back, making me flinch from the sensitivity of the exposed skin. When I move away from his touch, he holds me closer to him and continues to trace shapes into my skin.

He knows that I have no options left and there is no escaping him now. He is taunting me. This is a game of dominance and possession for him. My back arches as he finds sensitive spots on my skin. He leaves a trail of warm tingling from his amplification. I wish I could find the young boy in him that I fell for when we first met. Perhaps there was never an innocent boy in him and he was created to be possessive and evil, but I still have naive hope that I can convince him to do the right thing. There is no need to cause suffering to make progress. This is his biggest flaw, and when I become queen, I will make sure he understands this.

A woman with bright red hair and brown eyes stands up and says, "well, I think we have covered all that we need before the wedding. I will arrange a meeting with the chairman for you and Miss Starkov, moi tzar." She bows and leads the others out. I quickly stand up from my chair to move from the Darkling's touch. Mostly, I was ashamed for liking the feeling.

For the rest of the morning, I walk through the halls, deep in thought. I am still in denial that this wedding is even happening. I thought I was going to escape before the wedding. I am marrying the Darkling, my enemy who took everything from me. My friends. My freedom. My love. The one good thing to come out of this is my ability to help save innocent civilians from Aleksander, as queen of Ravka. If he decides to use the fold again, I can challenge his actions as treason to the country since I will be considered the same rank as him. Hopefully, that will be enough to protect the people he threatens to harm in his collateral damage.