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ohsaiints​:

𝐀𝐋𝐄𝐊𝐒𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐑  𝐒𝐀𝐖  the  shudders  of  some  as  the  words  echoed  off  the  walls  of  the  basement  .  it  didn’t  seem  as  though  noise  bothered  the  .  .  .  creatures  .  aleksander  wasn’t  sure  if  it  was  just  volcra  or  a  mixture  of  volcra  and  something  else  .  it  had  .  .  .  been  so  dark  .  too  dark  for  even  the  evening  .  he  wondered  if  the  darkling  was  close  and  just  hadn’t  shown  their  face  .  coward  .

he  felt  someone  fall  in  line  behind  him  as  aleksander  took  down  the  halls  and  looked  at  his  wounded  .  god  ,  it  was  a  planned  attack  .  he  was  going  to  murder  whoever  did  not  ring  the  warning  bell  ,  if  they  were  not  already  gone  .  

he  listened  to  his  kaptain  ,  thankful  that  at  least  one  survived  .  aleksander  tried  to  reach  out  ,  taking  note  of  the  heartbeats  but  he  couldn’t  .  he  himself  felt  weak  .  the  news  made  aleksander  dizzy  .  they  were  loosing  grisha  because  of  the  north  and  south  .  this  was  not  in  the  plan  .  he  turned  to  his  kaptain  and  nodded  .  “  i  don’t  know  if  its  the  darkling  or  .  .  .  something  else  .  ”  he  paused  .  “  where  are  the  worst  that  are  wounded  ?  ”  he  had  been  years  since  he  picked  heartrendering  but  aleksander  did  attend  with  healers  from  time  to  time  .

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leyla’s eyes tremble as aleksander voices his suspicions, but she lowers them so he would not see her own — she had thought of it, of course. who else could produce such darkness other than those of the lineage of the black heretic ? and the darkling had disappeared, but he was their ultimate commander, he valued and protected grisha. why would he try to cause them harm ? “nikita sergeyevich was in charge of the warning bell, sir. he was likely the first one to be taken by the creatures.” it was an assumption, but with the situation they were in, it was clear that was all that they could rely on for now ( and she hated it. if aleksander, technically the most powerful heartrender in the grounds, could not organize their kind and put an end to this horror, who else could ? ). 

“with soldiers brangiskaya and yuriy, sir.” his sister. at least she was here, and leyla had seen irina, too. the man under the armor would be glad to see them, just as leyla had been glad to see her husband and her sister, but, and it felt wrong to even think of it, this was no time for sentimentalism. “aleksander, the healers have it under control. they’re right for it. we’re different.” it would be a lie to say she had not considered staying and helping the healers, to keep herself busy, even if she was less than excellent at it. “we should go out there.” perhaps she is talking out of turn, but she can’t help but to finally voice her thoughts. “we can’t leave our own with the monsters.”

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good morning (or evening since we have quite a few ppl on the other side of the world) friends ! just wanted to let you know things have been a lil slow on my end because of my classes but i intend on coming here tomorrow or wednesday at the latest to work on my replies and get to my ims so please if you want a new thread or plotting with leyla please drop a ♡ !

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empyrcals​:

“I don’t purposefully sell the war hero act anymore than I have to to help others” He sighed gesturing to the crowd, adjusting his kefta again. Giving a deep breath he smiled at the thought of the toddler lighting things on fire and it did give him a strange twinge of pleasure watching the child run around with her grandmother trying to catch her. He would’ve loved to have children to grow up with his friends’ children. He would’ve loved to have Shura there and her sister Meera naturally near by. It was hard to talk to her now knowing how much the Ahuja surely despised him. Giving Leyla a smile he held out her hand. “Trying to up my value on the market I see. Well you are no Damla but I can make an exception for a good friend. Dance with me Leyla”

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 “fine, then empovishered hero.” she jabs, the smile in her lips almost becoming a laugh. as his mind wanders, leyla believes she knows where he went — shura had become a bride before herself and leyla was privy to her friend’s dreams of motherhood, even when those brought a grimace to her own facade. now, so many years later, she wonders if these sort of dreams remain in his own thoughts, but, however clever her mouth usually was, this was a subject she still could not touch on, so instead she brings herself closer, taking the hand offered and swinging it. “i won’t make you beg, don’t worry about it ! ” her tone is mocking again, but she guides them suit to the dancing floor, throwing her arms around his neck lazily. “should i keep you for the rest of the evening instead ? at least we won’t be busy mooning at each other like these other fools and we can focus on what matters.” he was not a captain ( why not she could not fathom ) but he was inclined to the military life enough to catch the meaning of her words, of the tension in her spine even as she tries ( and fails ) to ease up in his arms.

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dvndelicns​:

it was easy talking to leyla things that even yuliya didn’t want to acknowledge. they had been together through so much, seen the horrors of the war together. matters of the heart seemed to be foolish things in comparison of what they had gone through. but it was excruciating how sacha was a present figure in all her thoughts, how she longed to see him and at the same time wanted him to disappear from her life. yuliya wondered if leyla felt the same things with ismail — in yuliya’s eyes and judgment, they were perfect for each other and always had been. it was almost a heresy to think leyla experienced the same feelings as her. “ i feel it has been ages since we talked for the last time. ” yuliya confessed, a sad smile adorning her lips. it had been her choice to leave the fronts, but she wondered if she did the right thing. “ it’s sacha. ” she whispered, as if she was telling the saints her sins. but it was, wasn’t it ? to have feelings — romantic feelings — for someone you once saw as family couldn’t be considered normal. but leyla knew everything she went through with him, making it easier to talk to her than with anyone else. 

only the mention of leyla’s children always managed to bright up yuliya’s mood. they were precious little things and, if she ever managed to have a child of her own — to give life to a child that wouldn’t have a choice of future scared yuliya — she wished they could be as adorable as her friend’s ones. “ mikail is a bright child, that’s why i think he remembers last year’s fête. ” she laughed softly as the thought of damla’s whines, fond of both terzi children. “ my mother used to say that she knew what was better for me and brother, so i think your judgment is right. especially giving damla’s future path as an inferni. i don’t think the flowers would like to be on her company. ” yuliya’s voice was light and held a hint of playfulness reserved for her dear ones. 

the more her friend lingered, the more worried she became. since they had not talked for a while, indeed, many were the options, and in leyla’s mind they went from a possible disturbing event from the younger's time away to the likely presence of another brangiskaya in the fête — a not entirely improbable happening, since they were still rather influent around os alta, even if yuliya had kept away from them. when the healer does voice her grievance, leyla almost deflates. of course. she, too, had been anxious before and during a spring festivity, over a decade ago, when she was concerned about being too forward or too convincing with her then boyfriend ismail, but, then, she had been a teenager, while yuliya was grown and sacha was...sacha. leyla did not trust that firecracker, especially not with yuliya’s affections, however  she was also a heartrender, and, as such, she could notice the tell tale signs from both individuals when they were around each other — but then, lust and endearment could be similar, even more so when that idiot was always burning himself up. “has he done something to you ? ” leyla wants to believe she sounds neutral enough for her displeasure over this match to be heard as, as much as she does not care for the man near her best friend, she knows better than to infect the other with her preconceived notions before knowing all the information. 

the sharing of the rememberance calls to memory of her own mother, and the corner of leyla’s lips tremble, as if unsure if to smile or to frown — she certainly hoped she was doing the better for her children, even if she was becoming more bordeline hypocritical and more like elanur aksinya by the day. “psssh, quieter now. kirigan has eyes and ears even on the walls.” as much as she, as any high - ranking soldier of the second army, knew to respect the darkling, if she was to believe all the myth about him, she also was fairly sure he would not hesitate in sticking her children in keftas and making them march around the little palace and into the fold. “ha, you’re right, though. i do pity all that she touches these days, i feel like ismail has to fortify any toy she gets. was it similar to you ? i mean...with him ? ” she doesn’t mean to, but they’re back on the sacha subject, though, this time, she is but harmlessly curious about how he had been as a boy before becoming an inferno himself.

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“and there is.” as captains, the two of them had designed countless plans of attack and defense, and, though this situation differed in almost every way from what they were used to, the importance of a rescue strategy was only heightened by those poignant differences. it was far too easy to be overwhelmed by emotions, by the despair by the unknown that made every bit of her body ache as if she was the one between the sharp teeth of the shadow monsters, but they had to be smarter than this. she had to be smarter. “we would need to adjust a standart rescue plan to the plants of the little palace, and few know it as well as we do.” leyla lived in these grounds for nearly twenty years, and lelyah’s experience was not much shorter than her own either, if she could recall it well. “we would need a couple of mine, and some of yours to light the way as we find the people whose heart still beats. maybe a healer, as well. a few willing inferni,” she tests the plan in her mind, running her gaze through the people already trapped in the basement ; her eyes scrutinize her fellow kaptain with an uncharacteristic rigor, attentive to the detail of scarlet staining her arm. “preferably an inferni who isn’t bleeding out and weakened by a fresh wound.” if running into danger was reckless, doing so with an injured partner was much worse, for it could give them no better outcome.

basement / plot drop one

“we can’t ignore it.” lelyah’s voice drifted out, standing near the door the basement as she fought every urge to leave. to fight the beast that threatened the home she’d built. the beast that was taking too many lives and injuring countless more. her own arm was hurt, a deep gash on her left forearm where the volcra had tried to carry her off. “there has to be something we can do.” her voice threatened to break, but the kaptain refused. she had to seem calm, she had to be brave for the people terrified. but she wanted to save more people, and defeat the beast that loomed above.

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the voice of the general of the second army is a well familiar one after years of close contact, and immediately leyla is drawn to the figurehead — like many of them, the man had not gone unscathed, and all the splendor of his clothing was gone, much like the party’s. “a precise assessment is difficult to compile at the moment, sir,” she parrots prettily, even if it almost hurts to bite her tongue and hold herself in place when this is not where she is supposed to be. “healers are making rounds to attend to the injured, i have heard from their kaptain that the number of those is at least a dozen, but there may be way more outside.” we need to go out there and count for ourselves, and save our own, is a passionate speech that tingles to be said, but it remains unsaid; she swallows her impertinence and looks at the man, then the door behind him. “is the upstairs still engulfed in darkness, sir ? ”

𝐀𝐋𝐄𝐊𝐒𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐑’𝐒  𝐁𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐃  boiled  .  he  was  sure  ,  very  sure  ,  if  you  dropped  some  of  his  blood  onto  the  pavement  it  would  sizzle  .  his  shoulder  was  cut  from  an  attack  ,  his  pants’s  hem  was  no  longer  tailored  to  perfection  and  his  face  was  covered  in  dirt  .  he  stayed  above  ,  his  powers  proofed  useful  .  but  even  has  the  monsters  drew  closer  to  him  he  knew  .  he  also  needed  to  flee  .  he  wasn’t  good  to  his  army  dead  .    

his  years  of  training  allowed  aleksander  to  move  ,  attack  and  get  to  the  door  ,  open  in  and  close  it  behind  him  .  “  numbers  !  ”  he  shouted  ,  moved  down  deeper  into  the  ground  .  “  how  many  have  we  lost  ,  how  many  are  injuried  and  who  the  fuck  didn’t  ring  the  alarm  bell  !  ”

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dvndelicns​:

“ leyla, ” yuliya started, her voice calm. she knew her best friend and why she was so worried — she was too, for the same reasons. the children, the young pupils, the newly graduates. yuliya thought of all of them; but mostly important, she thought of her loved ones. that included leyla and her family, too. and yuliya knew that agitation and impulsivity do not lead to anything — just for a tragedy. “ i’m no heartrender, but you need to breathe. we can’t think about a rescuing plan for them if our head is not in the right place. ” yuliya wasn’t feeling so calm as she looked to be. she was used to working under pressure, but she was terrified. she felt like someone put a curse on her — every time she experienced a little moment of happiness, something horrible happened. “ i’ll go with you to whatever place you want to. ”

leyla has often prized herself on her ability to keep a cool mind ahead of turmoil — sangfroid was a necessary asset in the battle field, to think and act objectively as a weapon — but things were different here; while she had been on edge throughout the night, all but waiting for the ball to drop, she had not expected for something so traumatic, so suddenly dangerous, while she was in such long distance from her children. it made her hands tremble and burn with the anxiety and the jitters of readiness, fingers flexing to cause damage in a way she had not been enthusiastic about for years ; her view was red, but the other’s voice serves to ground her, to bring her back to this horrible situation. she does not blink as she stares at her best friend, impatiently grazing her nails against the skin of her palm. 

“the plan is to kill whatever is out there — i can’t breathe here,” her throat felt dry and her voice hoarse as she spoke so, but even through the heaviness of her feelings, that cloud that sought to suffocate her akin to a green girl’s impulsivity, she knows maybe it’s best to listen — after all, yuliya has just returned from a tour around kribirsk, while leyla can hardly remember the last time she has seen the unsea. “did you see what was out there ? it was it, right ? a fucking volkra ?” she was hardly one for profanities, ever knowing how to stop and cool down, but this was an atypical situation, and so her friend got to see the extreme. 

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she knew there was something wrong — she had mocked of an assassination attempt on the darkling with that young guard, of how no human with the right mind could do it, and now, it seemed she was being proven right : it was no human being terrorizing the otherwise peaceful spring fête. but leyla could not care less who the wrongdoer was ; all she could think of were her three very young children within the little palace's walls, likely trapped in a dormitory with her mother - in - law, possibly under very imminent danger. "get in or get the fuck out of my way already," she spats at no one in particular, every muscle in her body itching to make her run upstairs.

@ravkastarters​

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GRISHA ORDERS AND POWERS In Shadow and Bone Season One

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iterzi​:

there  was  a  delicate  art  to  his  craft  that  so  few  could  begin  to  understand  ─  putting  something  together  was  much  simpler  than  taking  it  apart  and  it  was  his  responsibility  to  be  certain  that  his  students  were  adequately  prepared  for  the  final  years  of  their  training,  where  they  would  exchange  the  wood  dust  and  metal  shavings  of  the  laboratories  for  the  actual  field  of  battle.  like  most  things,  he  took  the  role  of  educator  with  great  severity,  harsher  on  the  older  pupils  who  pushed  at  his  boundaries,  trying  to  test  their  luck  with  authority,  but  ismail  was  not  without  some  softness,  always  willing  to  stay  behind  with  anyone  who  seemed  to  be  struggling.  it  was  where  he  could  be  found  now,  watching  intently  as  the  younger  durast  struggles  to  mend  a  splintered  beam  in  the  makeshift  wall  without  bringing  down  the  entire  thing  ─  something  that  was  easier  said  than  done.

swallowing  an  irritated  sigh  at  the  pointless  efforts,  he  was  almost  inclined  to  tell  the  pupil  to  keep  practicing  on  their  own,  when  a  distraction  allows  him  for  a  way  out  in  the  form  of  his  wife,  imperious  order  ringing  through  the  workshop.  it  takes  all  of  his  strength  to  stifle  a  grin  as  his  student  spares  an  informal  wave  before  scurrying  away  and  he  does  not  bother  to  turn  around,  humming  lightly  when  her  arms  come  to  wrap  around  him.   ❝  i  have  never  known  you  to  try  to  be  cute  …  it  is  something  that  comes  naturally  to  you,  terrifying  kefta  and  all.  ❞  though  perhaps  he  was  the  only  one  that  felt  that  way.  he  allows  the  kiss,  rubbing  the  bearded  swell  of  his  cheek  against  her  soft  skin  for  a  moment  longer  in  a  show  of  quiet  relief  before  he  turns  in  her  arms,  ducking  down  so  that  the  embrace  does  not  break.

❝  well  …  i  was  trying  to  help  that  poor  kid  with  isolation  and  reparations  but  you  came  to  my  rescue  just  in  time.  ❞  patting  her  arms  in  a  non - verbal  gesture  for  her  to  hold  on  tighter,  he  grips  her  waist  assuredly,  lifting  her  off  the  ground  in  a  quick  motion  before  setting  her  on  the  table  that  had  just  been  used  by  the  aforementioned  student,  heedless  to  their  surroundings  when  he  presses  an  indulgent  kiss  to  her  forehead,  eyes  drifting  shut  serenely.  the  scent  of  her  soap  floods  his  sinuses,  pleasantly  mild  yet  comforting  after  a  day  spent  apart.  ❝  if  the  kefta  bothers  you  so  much,  why  don’t  you  take  it  off  ?  ❞  he  does  not  mean  for  it  to  sound  so  suggestive,  large  fingers  rubbing  idle  circles  against  her  fleshy  hips  but  a  laugh  is  punched  from  his  throat  nonetheless,  short  and  breathless.  ❝  how  was  your  meeting,  kalbim  ?  has  there  been  any  news  from  the  front  ?  ❞

there is familiarity in the manner they move around each other, and she is more than willing to meet up his actions, intertwining her fingers behind his head so he may lift her — as she shuts her eyes momentarily, she is easy brought back to the countless times they’ve done just this, when she welcomed him between her thighs, careless of the presence of his fellow durast for as long as she could annoy be with him. “hmm, you’re cheeky today.” to be fair, he was always flattering, most times more than she believed herself deserving of. his next quip, however, makes her snort out a cackling laugh, breathy as it dies and she shakes her head, putting some distance between them. “i’m tied with kaynana, one boy and two girls. are you trying to change that here ?” it wouldn’t be far fetched for them, but by the deadpan manner of her speech, followed by the big grin that covers her face, she is but enjoying messing with him, from her words to the way she deliberately paces herself as she unbuttons the scarlet kefta, only to reveal a plain white shirt. “don’t you get any ideas,” she threatens as a jest, setting aside the kefta and placing her hands behind herself to support her sitting position. 

“nothing extraordinary. death,” truly, leyla loathed that such a grim topic was banalized, but there were not many humane ways to treat life and death in the high numbers she had just received. “one of the ambassadors seemed interested in a cease fire for the spring festivities, at least with fjerda. i’m not sure how successful they will be when killing us honors djel more than anything else for those oafs.” it became increasingly hard to humanize the fjerdans the souther they trailed into ravkan territory and she often felt herself grasp not to be unfair and judge the lot just based on the druskelle. 

leaning back, she worries her bottom lip between her teeth, stifling a sigh and letting her fingers trail over the books now hidden by her kefta. as much as she wanted, theoretical knowledge over materialki’s realm of learning did not come easy to her. “is teaching your lot very difficult these days, hayatım ?” though she asks because she cares, there is a hint of self - interest in the curiosity; trading her captaincy for a permanent teaching position in the little palace’s grounds would be seen as a rather dishonorable step down for those who prided themselves in their abilities during active duty, and, if leyla was to swallow her pride to do that, she would rather be good at it, and enjoy it, even if despite her feelings about it, this could be a necessary change for them.

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dvndelicns​:

breastfeed. how could he interrupt such sacred moment between mother and child ? he couldn’t help but feel jealous of the child. why his mother had to be killed ? she wasn’t a fighter, and have a newborn child on her arms when the drüsjes took her life away. every time hannes closed his eyes he saw the corpses of his family, especially mother and brother — still felt their blood on his hands, still felt the hatred of that day on burning in his veins. that was what kept him living and doing his job with perfection. he was only giving back the grishas what they gave him many years ago. death would be paid with death but, unlike them, hannes wouldn’t kill mother and son.  he could not. 

“ i’m sorry then, ma’am. it wasn’t on my intentions to disturb you. ” ivan apologized, but it was hannes who chose the words. he almost scoffed at the woman’s words. it was naivety to think guards had fun on their lives — the drüsjes, as powerful as they claimed to be, relayed on otkazat'sya to protect them. hannes found that quite ironic, and would say so if someone asked his opinion. “ unfortunately we can not, ma’am. on events like this one, there is always a rumour of an enemy attack, and we need to be more alert than ever. ” like if hannes actually cared about someone trying to murder the darkling. “ i can escort you yo your chambers, if it is of your liking. ”

she was well acquainted with the change of tone brought by recognition of who she was, but in a flashy dress, she was but another guest — did he even know she was grisha ? she certainly could not recollect of his name. her eyes squint slightly, but it seems she must spend longer trying to get to know the non - grisha workers around the little palace. “is that so ? tell me, who is about to get murdered tonight ? not the darkling, please. it must be the tenth time this year.” she had once been as in awe of the commander as any one, but even if she would, from time to time, meet him for work purposes alone, leyla would rather steer away — how come these otkazat'sya have not her sense ? 

“that is kind of you.” for some reason, she is intrigued by this young guard, and though she has the certainty he does work in the palace, that is not enough and even a small walk could reveal more pertinent information, so she guides him her way, purposefully slower not to disturb his step. “my children are with my mother - in - law, actually, but i believe we have enough butter cookies to spare some to you. even a guard in alert must have something to fill his stomach — it wouldn’t be a very good impression if one of us attacked with a grumbling belly rather than sword. or...whatever you use.” when she first arrived to os alta, nearly twenty years ago, she was surprised to know there were non - grisha serving in the palace, and as she rose in ranking, it became each time easier to let them blend in their surroundings. a dangerous move, mayhaps; as much as she knew some of her own diminished otkazat'sya, leyla had killed enough fjerdan to know it was best not to underestimate those without the inkling to small science. “do you serve him ? you look young to be an oprichniki.” but then, havva’s boy had been even younger when he joined the ranks.

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empyrcals​:

When Kolya took a look at two particular friends of his they did remind him the most of the days he had shared with them and a face he’d missed all these years. Who could forget being young lovers together and the times that Lelya would allow him to have time with Shura? He could also vividly recall the verbal lashing she had given him on his wedding day making him promise to the saints and everything else they believed in protect her always. Kolya had promised and fully intended to keep that promise made to Leyla who at the time had still been an Aksinya but that would prove untrue with the absence of the one who’d been the bride that day. “I do not look sloppy and you have more important problems to handle that happen to affectionately call Uncle Nikolai. If Damla was here I would accept all dances from her and points of criticism” Kolya defended brushing off the shoulder of his jacket looking over at leyla, raising his brow at her insinuation before shaking his head. It hadn’t been a thought that crossed his mind to bother his good friends to stich a sleeve or to bother them for much. His duties pulled him in many directions and he had time for little and other friends were more monopolizing which he was thankful for. “I do plan on drinking but if you were to ask I might dance with you, my friend.”

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she rolls her eyes, nudging at his chest. “you don’t have to tell me what i already know. i’m pretty sure she would have set these flowers on fire had them not been fabrikator made.” the corner of her lips twists in annoyance at the memory as she brushes on the, thankfully, untarnished florals on her stomacher — the flames in her toddler’s tiny fingers had only been put out as her grandmother, a very talented inferni herself, caught the girl. “even if i was burned, i would look finer than you do. a kefta ? you’re already rugged enough, you can’t sell the war hero thing any more, dear.” the pursing in her mouth now serves to conceal a trembling smile, a poor attempt to not laugh as she teases him. leyla hums at his response. she could not nor would not blame him for drinking — alcohol did make this display of bad timed opulence more sufferable, and were she careless, perhaps she would join him. “well, i’m no miss damla, but i will dance with you. you will get stepped on less, and you may even receive better offers for future partners.”

[akslnya]

she gravitates towards her best friend with an easy smile, but a look at the other has her own dropping, replaced by a furrowed down mouth and knitted eyebrows. for all of her inner turmoil, yuliya was fairly competent in keeping a good facade — perhaps she should be glad they were close enough for her to be able to peek at the vulnerabilities past her friend’s kind persona, but worry comes naturally to someone as sensitive as she. “and i you, my love. don’t tease me like this — tell me, what is wrong ? you look far too pretty to be gloomy about anything.” gently, the eldest squeezes the other’s hand between her own, scanning her face for signs of plight. yuliya was, begrudgingly or not, a soldier, but she had first been a patrician of one of the finest bloodlines in ravka and even leyla, who had been born and raised far from the world of nobles and thrones, could see that, maybe if their life had taken a different turn, yuliya would be but one of the nobles the grisha have to enchant and pander to tonight. 

“oh, not here. this is not a suitable place for children. mine, at least.” she pauses, glancing at the passing visitors. “mikail was telling damla about last year’s — honestly, no clue how he still remembers it — and she whined to come, but...best not to risk it.” she thought it was far too likely the night would prove to be too exciting for her middle child for it to be uneventful for a tiny grisha that did not control her powers as she should — as one of her closest friends, yuliya was privy to most of leyla’s worries about her children, so she felt comfortable confessing this to her.

the courtyard, ft. @akslnya​

the last ball yuliya attended as the granddaughter of an earl was still a fresh, and cherished, memory. it was the last time she saw her family reunited — parents, brother, grandfather, uncle & cousins — because of a happy occasion. she still remembered the way she laughed with her brother while watching her eldest cousin stepping on the foot of the lady he was dancing, and the way her parents looked at each other. they were a sight for sore eyes — her father tall and elegant, his blond hair shining below the crystal lights, and her mother almost ethereal, with her blue dress and dark curls. but what caught yuliya’s attention wasn’t only their looks, but they way they looked at each other. she knew what love was from only observing them — and yuliya craved that. she always wanted to find a love that would swipe her off her feet, but what she found only gave her headaches. 

she smiled when she spotted leyla. she was one of yuliya’s oldest friends, and probably the only who could help her. and besides that, yuliya was missing leyla’s company — they had been through so many things together, that was almost a heresy to not spend time with her on the fête. “ oh leyla, i missed you. ” yuliya confessed when she got closer to her friend, a sad smile on her lips. being without the ones dear to her heart was the only bad thing about staying at the little palace instead of the warfare. “ we need to talk. but first, how are the children ? are they here ? ” as the godmother of leyla’s firstborn, yuliya always wanted to be near him and watch him grown. she enjoyed being a present figure on the terzi children’s life. 

[akslnya]

leyla has not been able to escape this invitation, nor the colors of her kefta  ━ only the scarlet uniform has been replaced by a striking carmine gown because, in her own words, pastels and such light colors are for brides and young girls, both of which she has already been. still, the floral details ensure she does not run entirely from the theme, and leaves her with a stunning dress that is both elegant and comfortable, allowing her to move as she wishes.

[akslnya]

leyla has never been shy in admitting she did miss living in the little palace but it was a rarity she did not wish to go straight to her own crowded bed whenever a meeting ran long enough she was advised to stay in her former chambers. this was the case tonight — she had been able to doze off, but the sleep did not last long, and she rose from bed longing for the familiar feeling of her children’s feet nudging her ribs or tugging at her hair, and the warm hold of her husband, none of which are attainable if she remained in the rooms reserved for the captain. 

perhaps she would not get far, but she must try anyways, and that is what she is doing when she runs into someone on the way to the kitchen, one of the best inconspicuous ways out of the palace. “and i almost gave you a heart attack, tuya,” the youngest shakes her head, bringing the hand she had held in an offensive stance to run through her dark locks. “apparently i can’t sleep if i’m not home — i’m a toddler again, if you’ll believe it.” leyla tsks, clicking her tongue before pursing her lips; curiously, she approaches the other, intimate enough to know tuya and night snacking were a close enough synonym. “what did you get tonight ? ” she queries, mischief bringing a twinkle to her eyes as if she was truly younger than she seemed.

location: the kitchens // @ravkastarters​

tuya’s midnight trips to the kitchens were well known amongst the staff of the little palace. she had been stealing into the stashes of sweets in the dead of night ever since she was twelve. her technique had improved over the years but it was generally accepted that if she was having a hard time or stressed over something she could found stockpiling sweets like a bear hibernating for winter. her bare feet pattered on the cold, ornate floors of the little palace. she swept like a ghost through the room, all inky black hair and pale-faced. when she had finished stuffing cakes into the pockets of her nightgown she turned back to the door and jumped. a figure stood blocking her way back to a night filled with ravkan history books and the treats in her pockets. “saints! you scared me.” she hurriedly tried to wipe the frosting from her mouth to no avail. “what are you doing up so late?”

[akslnya]

leyla was, unmistakably, a people’s person ━ she liked talking, she liked observing and she liked feeling them, learning each particularity that made one who they were ; it was easy to turn herself off now, when she was face to face with someone ( and it was also easier to focus on them, if necessary, even if she was not overly fond of doing that ), but it was the opposite when she was surrounded by too many people to count, when their pulses almost disappeared in the crowd. to be so out of her depth made her want to grasp for control, only intensifying the unease feeling that cooled in the end of her back, making her simply unable to stand still and enjoy herself as others do.

it was during one of these laps around the courtyard that she becomes the rescue team to her sister, and, before even understanding the situation, leyla is more than glad to cling and let herself be clung on to by the younger aksinya, her own rigid posture thawing slightly, though her gaze remains hard as she looks back at the one who bothered her baby. “can’t this hag see you’re far too young and too good to be tied down to her brat of a whatever ? ” usually, she was not as sharp, especially to madame chmerkovskiy who was annoying albeit harmless, but she has little patience tonight ━ nevermind also that by the time she was twenty six, she had already two young children; havva was a different case, she was better, and leyla would never allow her to do anything she did not want to do, especially in this matter ( plus, they did not speak of it anymore, but the wandering in her sister’s voice seeks someone they can not name ). “i shall speak to her to leave you alone. she is old fashioned enough to be put off by a senior of the family refusing the courtship, right ? ” she wonders if she could send ismail, who was massive enough to put the fear of the saints in anyone reasonable, but whoever big her husband was, leyla had never been one to hide behind him.

“mother aybüke has them, my lamb, and i have a good inkling my dear husband is already trailing behind them,” as much as her sister was right, that being with ismail could ease her even more into his arms, their priorities for years now were first to their children, then to themselves, and she could not blame him for being anxious in a celebration like this when she was also a bundle of nerves. “so, you truly have no date ? i would have thought you would come with lidiya. is she a bad dancer ? a sweet girl like that must have a flaw or two, after all.”

Havva desperately searched for a polite way to dismiss herself from an untenable conversation. She was sure that the older grisha meant no harm by inquiring when she would find a suitable partner like her sister had found with designs to introduce her to their great nephew whom Havva had already expressed she had no desire in dating rather politely to Dima Chmerkovskiy himself not that his great aunt understood Havva’s polite refusal was a most definite rejection. One could see the struggle on the young alkemi’s face searching for a face in the crowd to save her from the rest of this conversation. After a moment she saw her sisters face and bid farewell to the elder grisha slipinig through a swirling mass of fabric to appear at her sister’s side with a deep breath exhaled. “Rescue me Lele, Madame Chmerkovskiy is quite determined to fix me up with her great nephew. Dima is a sweet boy but…” Havva breathed not knowing how to end that sentence where she could’ve easily put someone’s name. Shaking her head she took a deep breath before holding her hands out to her elder sister. “Where are the little ones? I can free whoever is sitting with them for a while and you can go find Ismail and dance with your love. I have no problem sitting out the next dance or two” / @akslnya​