𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐏 𝐈𝐍 𝐀 𝐁𝐎𝐓𝐓𝐋𝐄 | 𝔫𝔦𝔨𝔬𝔩𝔞𝔦 𝔩𝔞𝔫𝔱𝔰𝔬𝔳

𝐅𝐈𝐅𝐓𝐄𝐄𝐍

my darling sister

Valeriya was going to throw up. All the burning alcohol she'd downed bubbled in her stomach.

If Yalie was alive, then that meant... That meant that Valeriya had left her. She'd abandoned her in Kribirsk. Valeriya's thoughts stopped. How had she gotten across the Fold? Valeriya was taken by the Grisha over the fold and even then it was fucking terrifying and half of them didn't make it.

Her face was still the same, round with brown eyes, and Valeriya was sure that her brown hair was tucked into that hideous hat.

"Vale, you okay?" Feydor asked, tapping her elbow and making her jump out of her skin.

"What, why?" She quickly said in an accusatory tone. Feydor raised his arms in a surrender position.

"You looked upset," he replied with a shrug.

"I'm fine."

She glanced back over at where Yalie was standing to notice her gone.

"I just need some air." Valeriya stated, turning on her heel and swiftly walking through the door. Her dress trailed behind her, flowing in her movements. She didn't stop until she'd reached the outside of the palace.

She was just seeing things. That's all. Yalie, Mama, and Papa were all with the Saints, watching over her... as she fucked up her life. She cringed at the direction her thought turned.

At the chapel to her left, she saw movement. Her eyes snapped up and she saw the guard from before. The boy with the limp had removed his hat and entered the chapel, looking at his surroundings before entering. An Inferni followed him from far behind, staying out of his line of sight.

Valeriya stood, her stomach twisting. She had a really bad feeling about this. Her ankles shook in her heels, so she took them off and threw them to the side. She didn't need shoes to kick ass.

Upon entering the chapel, chaos ensued. Valeriya watched from the doorway as the Inferni approached the boy. She could not remember the Inferni's name for the life of her, but she indeed recognized him. Like most Grisha men, he was a cocky bastard.

"You're not supposed to be here, are you, limping man?" The Inferni asked, his tone mocking.

Valeryia could no longer see the boy. He most likely hid at the sound of the Inferni. The Inferni's glances into each pew as he walked by accepted her theory.

"You're like a wounded spider in my house," the Inferni taunted again, stepping onto the tops of the pews to get a better look, "You know what my sister and I do to spiders?"

Valeriya was tempted to do it herself if the boy didn't wack this guy soon. He needed to shut up. Valeriya didn't know why she didn't go in to help the Inferni find the boy, but she felt it in her gut that she needed to let the boy be. Maybe it was seeing him with the mirage of Yalie back in the ballroom.

The Inferni's hand lit up in flames. Suddenly, his legs were swept from underneath him by what appeared to be a pedestal. Valeriya covered her mouth to hide her gasp. This boy could hold his own.

The boy smashed the pedestal down on the Inferni. "Unlike a spider, I only need one good leg," the boy taunted. He raised the pedestal and smashed it down on the Inferni's foot. "However, you...." the boy trailed off.

"Look like you need both hands," the boy finished smashing the Inferni's hands and swiped the pedestal across his face, either knocking him out or killing him. Valeriya wasn't sure and she didn't want to force herself to try and find his heartbeat. The boy began limping back towards the exit Valeriya was hiding in.

The Inferni rapidly stood up, "Wrong," he said, igniting his hand with a candle.

Before he could do anything else, a knife came down from the rafters and lodged itself in his skull. Valeriya glanced up and saw a person. That person jumped down from the rafters with grace. She looked to be around the same age as the boy and with Suli heritage. They both met at the end of the pews, most likely where the body was. The Suli girl looked upset, which confused Valeriya. How could someone with such skill be afraid of killing?

He whispered something to the girl, but all Valeriya could hear was the opening of the chapel doors and the sound of boots clanking on the tile floor. Valeriya rushed through the door, catching the attention of the other two.

"If you miscreants want to keep your heads, follow me," she said, rushing past the two towards the exit behind the altar. She was careful to stay far enough not to spook them and get a blade in her skin. She didn't hear their footsteps immediately, but as soon as the guards' boots became louder, they followed her.

When they reached the end, the duo moved passed her and rushed towards a carriage under a street light. They walked up to another boy of Zemini descent and Valeriya followed behind them. From behind the boy, a girl moved and ran over to the limping boy.

"Kaz, what happened?" she asked, keeping her distance from the limping boy - who was named Kaz.

Valeriya looked at the girl's face, ignoring the shouts of guards behind her.

"Yalie? Is that you?" She whispered, unsure if the girl in front of her was a figment of her imagination.

The girl looked at her with wide eyes and stepped away from Kaz and towards Valeriya.

"Sissy?"

introducing liana liberato as yalie alferova

author's note !

Hi guys!!  It's been 1 year of Ship in a Bottle!!  I meant to publish this last week on the anniversary, but I've been super drained lately.  Sorry about that!  I'm doing work, competitive swimming, and school all at the same time and it's overwhelming.  

Anyway, what do you think about the cliffhanger? ;)  Love you guys!

Let me know what you think and if you have any suggestions for things you want to see!

For ship names, what do you think of niya or nika based on nik and riya for the nicknames?