#Kaz would get tired of it and threaten him but Jesper would say he's actually helping him by removing the negativity from his life

[jazzkrebber]

Jesper and Inej would be crystal girlies but in wildly different ways. Inej wouldn't actually believe they can do anything, but she would collect them because they're pretty. whereas Jesper would claim crystals have lots of spiritual properties, then would cleanse Kaz's your aura by chucking the rocks at your head

[swanimagines]

SAVE YOU | MATTHIAS HELVAR

Summary: Imagine Matthias Helvar saving you from drowning.

You not knowing to swim and being part of the Dregs were two things that could get destructive together. You knew that when you joined. So in a way, you deserved the situation you were in now - Ketterdam took out the weak, and now you had pulled the short straw. 

The canal water threatened to drag you under, the current having taken you to the sea, and now you were drifting farther and farther away. If you had known how to swim, it would take just a few strokes and you’d be able to push yourself up, but struggling to keep yourself up took all your strength. You couldn’t even scream for help.

You didn’t know for how long you were there - if others knew where you were. You knew Kaz was tapping his foot while looking at the time, you wouldn’t have had time to be late.

You didn’t hear when your name was called, nor you saw the Fjerdan diving into the water, rushing towards you. Your vision was going out already, but then you faintly felt yourself being pulled - maybe Death had come to claim you. Your consciousness went in and out as you were pushed up on the street, and you heard some running steps coming up towards you. You were rolled over to the pavement, turned to your side. Your vision was blurry, and you were tired - oh so very tired. You felt acid on your throat, seawater making its way out of you in a form of vomit. You coughed and gagged as it just kept coming, before it calmed down, leaving you shaking slightly.

“Saints,” you heard a voice say, but it echoed, sounding like it came from behind a wall. The walls at the Slat were something you had always cursed - listening to your neighboring Dreg having a one night’s stand wasn’t something you enjoyed hearing. But right now, you would have done anything to be in your own bed, under covers, dry and warm. Even if it meant listening to your neighbor’s bedpost rhythmically slamming against the wall.

Suddenly, you felt a a pair of hands on your chest and you started to warm up immediately. Your vision started to clear, your tiredness started to diminish. You groaned, seeing Nina kneeling beside you and managed to muster a small smile for her, closing your eyes.

Then, the seawater decided to make itself known once more and you abruptly lunged to the side, throwing up onto the pavement again. Gasping for air, you felt a large hand stroking your back, and finally decided to look at your savior.

Matthias.

You blinked at him, a trace of fluid still dripping off your cheek. You had not expected him to jump after you like that. But at the same time, you knew he wouldn’t just stand there and look as you drowned, you were friends with him after all. Or, you wanted him to be more than a friend actually, but still - you didn’t expect to find yourself in a situation like this, him being so caring with you after he saved you. You saw Nina turn her eyes away, biting her lip as if to hide a smirk - this would be something she’d tease you about for weeks.

More steps approached, and you saw the rest of the Crows walking up to you. Kaz looked like a stormcloud over a job gone wrong, but judging by how Inej looked at him, he wouldn’t chastise you about ruining the job, at least not now. They all knew you couldn’t swim. Jesper and Wylan ran up the moment they saw you, as well as Inej a few seconds later, her hand brushing against Kaz’s arm as she passed him. Kaz stopped and stood a little farther away from the rest of them doting over at you, Matthias helping you to sit up and a moment later, hoisting you up against him. You started walking towards the Slat with Matthias’s arm around you and you couldn’t help but think, maybe there would be more to how Matthias felt about you. Nina had teased you about it and kept hinting that way, but you didn’t believe it being true, thinking it’s just Nina’s hopeless romantic side talking. But the way Matthias looked at you, the way he held you - it spoke about something deeper.

Maybe you’d talk to him about it in a few days. Maybe confessions would be made, maybe one of your greatest dreams would come true.

---

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[violets-and-books]

Crows WWII AU because I'm feeling inspired. God, it would give me so many good historical fiction moments 👀

Kaz - (Army) Colonel who somehow managed not to get discharged back home after his leg.

Inej - (Army) She was a Women's Air Force Service Pilot for the British, but then she emigrated to America, met Kaz while he was recovering WIA, and she went back to Europe with him as a nurse/medic to make sure he didn't get himself killed. Also because she was sick and tired of the way she was being treated as a south asian, female pilot, because as we know, Inej is more than her relationship status, and she is a badass <3

Jesper - (Army) Private 1st class. He's been fighting long enough to know the ropes, and he's grown decently close with both Kaz and Inej (Kaz will not admit to this and acts annoyed by just about every one of his soldiers). Jesper always carries an extra hand gun, and he's really good with metal and parts and building because he was obsessed with Industrial Arts class back home even though his Dad wanted him to go to uni and study English.

Nina - (Army) Nurse in America, then became a translator. She and Inej met during their training. Nina gets a lot of shit because her primary job is translator, because most of the men don't speak many languages. She speaks almost all the languages in Europe, she studied linguistics in school, and she went to nursing school and immediately joined the Army after she saw wounded soldiers coming back home. She does a lot of "🖕" to numerous soldiers (justifiably) and is deemed "lewd" but she's also respected enough by Kaz that no one can get away with doing anything about it.

Wylan - (Civilian turned enlisted)(This one is long)(So is Matthias' hehe) After liberating a town, the Crows (that are in battle) see all these people who helped/interacted with the Nazis being dragged to the center of the square and beaten, shaved, or humiliated in some form by the townspeople. Most of them are women who slept with Nazis, and Jesper sees this guy (Wylan) getting dragged over and asks someone what he did and asks Nina what he's yelling (because he is obviously distressed). The guy tells him that he was caught giving the germans supplies and information, and Nina says that he's insisting he didn't want to do those things and that he was coerced. Jesper, to Kaz's annoyance, goes and questions a man dragging Wylan about this. Turns out the Germans killed Jan and threatened Alys and Wylan's newborn half-brother if he didn't supply them with the chemicals he had for his university work (that he had since dropped out of because, well, there's a war). Jesper convinces the man to leave Wylan alone. Turns out Wylan (who is Dutch), speaks enough English to thank him and ask how he can repay them. Jesper is like "we need a new medic" and Kaz is like "absolutely not" and they argue and then Nina is like "Are you certified?" And Wylan is like "No", so Jesper is like "he can make us bombs" and Kaz is like "I'd like to see someone just make a bomb without a lab, Jes" and he does indeed because Wylan shows him a disturbing collection (he was saving them for liberation to help the soldiers but they got trapped inside by a body) of homemade bombs and Kaz is like "Okay, he can come" and while he's there Nina convinces Kaz to let her teach Wylan medicine and more English since she's not an operating nurse anymore and so eventually Wylan becomes a medic (because he's a man and can actually go out into battle as opposed to Inej who has to wait for soldiers to be brought to her)

Matthias - Matthias is a Swede who was conscripted by the Germans upon living in Germany for some years after WWI because his family decided to go back to the "Fatherland" as the Nazis were fond of calling it. Matthias didn't want to fight with the Germans but he was loyal to his commanding officer (brain washing), Jarl Brum, or General Brum, and he is eventually taken as a POW, and there he meets Nina, who has to translate everything. They meet when Wylan and Jesper are on a patrol (which Wylan shouldn't have been on but he gets away with a lot because of Kaz) and they stumble upon the remains of a recent battle (they weren't in) and one of the "German" soldiers is alive. Matthias insists he's a conscript but Jesper doesn't understand, and Wylan does his best to translate. They take him back as a prisoner and there, of course, he meets Nina (and they don't like each other but the sexual tension goes from but a wave to very thick). She translates everything to Kaz, Kaz decides Matthias gets to live, specifically because he's not German but he still thinks he's an asshole, and they put him with a few other prisoners they have. Originally they were supposed to leave all of them at a base, but Kaz requests to recruit Matthias. And his commanding officer (Per Haskell) is like "FUCK no" and Kaz is like "But allow me to explain" and through the powers of Kazzle Dazzle, the crows are finally assembled.

And so, the crows fight together for a while, I nerd out historically, have some period-typical attitude moments that are now looked down upon but I think relevant to the characters in this AU, and then I wrap it up.

They all get discharged and sent home around the same time (about two months apart from Wylan to Kaz):

Wylan is first. He gets shot in battle (he lives but he couldn't fight anymore).

Inej gets ill and they find out she has an STI (from her past, so she's had it for a while) and they send her home (she gets cured eventually but it made her two sick to work and they didn't want anyone else to get it).

Jesper gets his leg broken (and treated, unlike Kaz), but he has to go home because it's a nasty break.

Nina gets attacked by a prisoner and is injured and sent home.

Matthias (idk if I'm going to kill him or not 😔 It was war after all, but I love Helnik soooo?) currently is scheduled to be shot in battle and sent home.

Kaz applies for honorable discharge because of his leg getting worse (but truly it's because he needed to be with his crows)

In a series of tiring immigration processes (and some Kazzle Dazzle) Wylan, Nina (French), Matthias, all get American green cards and go live in America because it's deemed the safest place to be at the moment out of where all of them are from.

Wesper live happily ever after (in secret because homophobia), Helnik eventually get married and settle down and have a few kids, and Kanej go to city Hall and get married but live separately for a while and their relationship is slow and safe and healthy and we love them being happy together 🤗🥰

They all have annual Christmas parties and usually meet whenever they can (they live near-ish each other but not close enough to see each other everyday) and their kids get along quite well and they build their own little families from the one they found during the war. The end.

Thoughts 👀 (this was a long ass ask I'm sorry bestie 😅🙈)

Bestie, I am a decrepit little Victorian child and this is like the scriptures from Heaven

I am FROTHING at the mouth, BESTIE!!!!!! please let me find you some music for this oh please oh please oh please i beg i will get down on my knees and beg ww2 music is everything to me

Colonel Kaz!!!! Very impressive, sir, should I curtsey? (omg, please let either Wylan or mattie snark at him like that when they first meet)

Kaz deciding to keep fighting the Nazis even though he's a dumbass and has a broken leg, we love a hero

Inej!!!!!!!! My beloved, in the WRAF!!! Kind of like my great grandpa except not really cos he was a bloke!!!!

I would trust Inej to be a nurse for me. I really, really would

Inej 👏 is 👏 more 👏 than 👏 her 👏 relationship 👏 status 👏 👏

Engineer Jesper!!!!! Ajsiskrbgnamqosnffh!!!!!!!!

Jesper being good with metal and guns!!!!! Hehehehehehehehehehehe, I love how you've included his Grisha powers in the au so well!

Jesper would be good to have as a sniper during sweeps through occupied cities. Never misses and all

PLEASE let him and Wylan have little nerdy talks!!! Please oh please oh pleeeeaaaassssseeeee!!!!! I desperately need them to be nerds together, for my SURVIVAL

Nina nurse and translator, now I should definitely curtsey!

JESUS CHRIST SHE SPEAKS A LOT OF LANGUAGES, I CAN BARELY SPEAK ENGLISH AND IM VAGUELY GRASPING SPANISH. NINA, MY QUEEN, THOU ART A GODDESS

Some random soldier: That nurse Nina is so rude!

Kaz: I like her

Some random soldier, sensing the end is nigh: Well, um, I mean, she's, uh, she... *clears throat* she alright. I suppose. For a woman

Jesper seeing Wylan being dragged out to have his hair shaved off and thinking "but his hair's so pretty, they can't do that". Cos Jesper is OBSESSED with Wylan's hair, I swear

Wylan with the homemade bombs, we love an entrepreneur

Oh nooo, the Germans killed Jannnnn, how truly awfulllll, he didn't deserve that at allllllllll

Dutch Wylan, ooooooo!!! I like that! (fun fact, me and my friend were trying to find Holland cos we wanted to work out where it was for soc reasons and cos we both do History rather than Geography, we didn't know Holland was also The Netherlands. So we spent about 15 minutes staring at a map of Europe, passing over the Netherlands quite a bit, and going "but where's Holland")

I want to learn Dutch. I think it really suits Wylan, awesome!

Ah ha, Jarls Brum, so nice to see you again *sharpens blade*

New achievement unlocked: Matthias Helvar has reached status Prisoner. Again.

Kaz: Hey, can we let this Swedish conscript guy we took prisoner fight with us?

Haskell: WTF, no, that's a terrible idea

Kaz: I see. But also *presents Haskell with a small piece of paper* this might change your mind

Haskell: This is just 'I can do what I want' written on the back of a leave permission slip

Kaz: 🖕Exactly

Nerdy history facts!!!!!! Gimme gimme gimme!!!!

Poor Wylan 😔😔😔 I hope he threw a bomb at whoever shot him

POOR INEJ!!!! OMG, poor love!

Jesper, in his letters back to the front: Hey, Kaz, we match now

Kaz: Absolutely fuck you, I will strip you of your title

Jesper: What title, you never promoted me

Kaz: I will promote you just to strip you of your title

Jesper: Can I be a general?

Kaz: No.

Nina noooo!

Matthias could be shot kinda bad and then you can include the shit about blood transfusions being experimental in ww2. But OBVIOUSLY he survives (even though the survival rate for blood transfusion was maddeningly low when they were first invented) and then he gets to go to America to recoverrrrrr

French Nina, I like it!!!!

Secret wesper secret wesper secret wesper secret wesper secret wesper secret wesper secret wesper secret wesper

History books years later: Wylan Van Eck and Jesper Fahey were both discharged from the army at similar times. After a short recovery period, they bought a house together in [whatever US state]. Wylan Van Eck at the time did not have an American Green Card so this was the only way he could continue living in Ally territory. They were often seen out together in public and neither of them ever married, despite Jesper Fahey having been quite a flirt in his youth. They were described by close friends as "joined at the hip" and are one of WW2s most enduring friendships

Bestie, I'm fucking OBSESSED

Annual Christmas parties, love it. And all the kiddos!!!!

Bestie, bestie, bestie. Do not apologise for this MASTERPIECE. I have been fed enough to last throughout the winter

[verdisaster]

The Great Kerch Bake Off Fic

First of all I want to say a massive thankyou to @solarpqwer for all their help and support with Beta-ing this fic, this would have honestly been shambles without them. Also please go check out @ciph3rrr and their absolutely stunning art inspired by this fic , it was a joy to work with them again!

Without further ado, here’s my fic for the Six of Crows Mini Bang~

The First Bake

Kaz’s leather clad fingers drum across the top of the counter as he slowly assesses his fellow bakers. They’re all standing ramrod straight, looking various degrees of nervous in anticipation of the competition that's about to start. He’s pretty certain if he squints he can actually see a small bead of sweat trickling down the side of the young ginger man's face on the bench in front of him.

Amateurs.

A quiet but pointed cough coming from one of the camera men just out of sight reminds him he's also supposed to be standing still and, not wanting to draw too much attention to himself off the bat, he slides his hands down to his sides and schools his expression into something neutral rather than the mild boredom he was displaying before.

—

He’d spent the morning with his fellow contestants answering questions on camera, ready to be spliced into the intro of the show so the viewers could really ‘get to know the contestants and start rooting for you’ according to Anika, the tired looking lady with the half shaved hair and clipboard tasked with corralling the contestants between each shoot.

Kaz had remained impassive as people crowded around, fixing his hair and attaching mic packs to the inside of his suit. He sat still, even as the waters threatened to lap at his ankles and one hand straying a bit too close to his ear caused a small stone of dread to settle in the pit of his stomach.

He was here for a reason and he could get through this.

After about twenty minutes of spinning lies about his back story- “Yes I grew up absolutely adoring baking, my Pa could barely get me out of the kitchen,” and “I was so excited to get accepted, I called my friends right away when I found out.” He was allowed to leave, barely brushing past the small shadow of a girl that was on her way to be interviewed next. It made him pause because he hadn’t even realised she'd been standing there, probably for at least a couple minutes given the way her eyes seemed to question him as he went by.

He was a good liar on all accounts but something in her gaze made him feel seen. He wasn't sure if he liked it.

Making his way back to Anika for his next task, he passed by a couple others giving their interviews.

A beautiful lady in a very figure hugging dress chatted animatedly, “It doesn’t seem real, I'm looking forward to it, I’m ready for the Darkling to make me cry.” Her good natured laugh followed and it caused a few other crew members to smile alongside her.

In the next room over there was Jesper who also seemed to be winning his camera crew over.

“Oh yeah I achieve things, but I achieve them in the way one can achieve a hangover.” He smiled in a mischievous way that reached his eyes and as he saw Kaz watching him he shot him a subtle wink.

Kaz scowled in response and Jesper chuckled, swiftly returning to answer the next question that had been thrown at him.

—-

The interviews had been annoying but Kaz understood it was a necessary part of the show; they needed to sell the contestants so that viewers would keep coming back.

Kaz himself had made sure to do as much research as he could on the 12 other contestants, he didn't like to be surprised.

Now they were just waiting for the judges to appear and as the sound of footsteps got louder the energy in the tent shifted, the air somehow grew electric. Even Kaz got drawn into the anticipation of seeing some of the best Bakers of their generation in the flesh.

Slowly they came into view, walking as if they had all the time in the world which, Kaz supposed, they probably did. It was no secret that even though Aleksander Kirigan didn’t technically own the show, his presence held a weight that was probably only matched by his co-host and protégé Alina Starkov.

The Darkling, as Kirigan was so popularly referred to, was well dressed in his signature all black attire while Alina wore a more casual outfit of jeans and an embellished blue jacket.

Flanking the two on either sides was the shows presenters, the ever flawless Genya whose fiery red hair had been twisted into an immaculate braid for the first episode and David, a much quieter presence in the tent but could spew facts about the technicalities of baking till the sun set.

Ever so quietly Kaz heard a soft “Oh” from the bench next to him.

His gaze snapped over to the lady from the interview earlier, Inej. She looked enraptured, her entire focus centred on the judges.

He tried to pull his attention away but there was something about her small smile and warm brown eyes staring in adoration ahead while the brilliant light from the summer sun painted a halo around her that made him pause.

He could hear them announcing the first challenge as a fruitcake and Nina's hushed comment of “is it possible to be TOO fruity?” followed by a snicker from Jesper but he still couldn't look away.

She lifted one delicate hand and shifted her long dark braid from her shoulder so it fell behind her back, clearly preparing herself for the challenge ahead. He swallowed and with effort turned to face the front.

No distractions.

The first challenge had begun.

—

Kaz’s hands flew across the ingredients, deftly checking inventory before getting to work. For a moment his focus narrowed and he surveyed his little world of the bench in front of him, a game he could twist to his own design. He had everything he needed to create a masterpiece.

Slowly the rest of the tent trickled into his awareness and he started listening to what his fellow contestants were doing.

He was acutely aware of Inej and the way her hands expertly unrolled a bag containing an impressively large collection of different knives. She wasted no time in picking up a small one and dicing fruits like the utensil was an extension of her own being. It spoke of a familiarity borne of years practising. She glanced up and met Kaz’s gaze and instead of looking concerned at his stare she held the ornately handled knife up so he could get a better view.

“It’s called Sankta Alina, after.. You know.” She said, her melted chocolate eyes flicking over to where the famous cook was currently interviewing a very gruff looking blonde man in a grey jumper- Matthias, Kaz’s brain supplied.

She was looking at him again now, her look seeming to penetrate straight through the carefully constructed image he held up, reading him like an old book.

He considered her words before responding, “She’s not a saint you know.”

“She is to me.” She contended his statement with the tiredness of someone who has made this argument a few times before.

He hummed noncommittally in response and she scoffed, seeming to view his lack of response as exactly what it was- a disagreement. In Kaz’s opinion, no saint ever helped him in the kitchen- everything he learnt was through hard work and the inability to stop when a plan for a recipe started to form.

They returned to their signature bakes, Kaz focusing on soaking his fruits in Brandy before moving on to the batter and Inej dropping her delicately sliced fruit into a bowl with some aromatic smelling tea.

—--

They were thirty minutes into the challenge before the first disaster struck. One of the benches a couple rows down let out a colourful string of expletives definitely not appropriate for a family friendly show and Kaz had to appreciate the extent of the lady’s vocabulary.

A mass of wavy brown hair popped up above the view of the counter from where it had previously been hidden, the strands irritably pushed back with an oven mitt to reveal Nina Zenik’s scowling face.

It took her no time to find Matthias and scowl at him. “You distracted me,” she huffed and even though they were separated by two benches, Kaz couldn’t help but be a little grateful the cutting words weren't directed at him.

The man accused stood as tall as a mountain, his grey jumper sleeves pushed up to avoid being dipped in the flour currently decorating his hands and forearms. He leant forward so he was practically bent over his immaculately organised bench to look down on Nina as he replied. “I didn’t do anything, witch. It’s not my fault you barely glanced at your instructions.”

“If you hadn’t spent five minutes reading yours to yourself aloud, I might’ve had enough peace and quiet to read them and remember to turn the bloody oven on!” Nina seethed. She was standing to her full height now, practically nose to nose with the Fjerdan as they stared daggers at each other.

If the heat of their anger could cook a cake, they’d be golden. Kaz mused.

After a few more choice jabs and a brief warning from Anika off camera, they were eventually broken up by Jesper calling over to them, “Nina darling, if you want to use my oven to bake those biscuit thingies while yours heats up it’s all yours.”

Nina ended the argument by sticking her tongue out at Matthias for good measure.

He didn’t know what possessed him but he took a step closer to Inej’s bench, and once he had her attention quietly muttered, “I’d keep an eye on where you leave your knives with those two around.” He drew a gloved finger across his neck pointedly.

The laugh that followed sounded like he’d surprised it out of her, a sharp exhale followed by the most beautiful chime he’d ever heard. If Kaz could bottle that sound he would, surely nothing he could bake would ever compare to the warmth that bloomed unexpectedly in their shared space.

Fuck, that’s not a thought he was supposed to be having, it’s literally 40 minutes into the competition and he’s already losing it. Get a grip, Brekker.

Despite that, he was already trying to think of what to say that would bring that laugh out again.

They lapsed into silence, occasionally Inej would angle a comment his way or ask a question but mostly they just comfortably worked on their own things while chaos ensued around them.

—--

For the most part Kaz was pretty methodical with his baking, his steady hands lent well into the complex designs of the patisserie he was previously known for and he fully intended to use those to his advantage when decorating his alcoholic spiced fruit cake now. Meticulously he piped silky white ribbons of icing in intricate loops over the top of the cake, listening to the background noise of the judges interviewing contestants.

Jesper tried to goad the Darkling into betting five kruge that he couldn't balance his sugar crusted orange peel in a gravity defying tower on his first attempt. He succeeded with neither and almost knocked Wylan’s bake off the bench in his attempt to catch some orange peel as it fell.

Wylan’s interview was interesting. He didn’t have a recipe written on paper in front of them, but he happily chirped away to David about the balance of ingredients and techniques needed to add small pockets of sherbet into his primarily lemon and blueberry fruit cake. Kaz filed away this more niche knowledge for a later date.

Alina was charmed instantly by Nina and from what Kaz could make out they shared very similar approaches to baking, both with incredible intuition for good flavour combos and no fear of changing the recipe to match their ideas.

Their interview was cut short though as Wylan let out a bit of a shriek and pulled his hand to his chest. With some detached interest Kaz watched as cameras swivelled towards the action, like sharks smelling fresh blood in the water. The young red head had managed to slice his finger with a knife and had to take a two minute pause to see the medics and be given a bright blue plaster.

Kaz was re-evaluating how much inspiration he should be taking from Wylan’s baking techniques.

—---

It wasn’t long before The Darkling and Inej’s shining saint, Alina, made their way to his table. He was momentarily grateful his bench was closer to the back as it meant by the time they’d made their way to him he’d already completed the majority of the bake and now just needed to continue decorating.

“Good afternoon Kaz, I’m excited to see how your bake is going. What's that?” Alina opened up the questioning with a cheery smile and a gesture towards the bowl he had in his gloved hands that he was stirring diligently.

Genya arrived at that moment behind Alina and poked her head over the judges’ shoulder. Alina made no move to push her away so Kaz assumed this familiarity was normal between them.

“Look’s kind of like that weird cocktail I had last week.” The red head commented contemplatively and Alina nodded in understanding.

Off camera Kaz could make out Anika animatedly gesturing for him to show the camera so he angled the bowl accordingly before replying “Pineapple soaked in brandy and rum.”

The Darkling narrowed his eyes at the mix and Kaz could see him mentally picking apart the flavour combination and looking for flaws.

“Oh it looks delicious, can I smell it?” Alina asked politely, and Kaz wasted no time passing it over to her.

Genya also inhaled deeply and smiled. “I haven’t tried spiced rum in quite a while.” Her voice took on a wistful tone.

“Do you want some?” He offered and picked up the bottle. Genya shrugged and nodded for him to go ahead.

“Oh I can't drink alone.” Her perfect face crumpled slightly as she seemed conflicted.

He was distinctly aware of the clock ticking down as he scanned his eyes across the bench for a cup of sorts. Finding nothing, he just thought fuck it, and grabbed 2 measuring cups he’d used for water earlier placing them down with a clunk. His nimble fingers spun the top of the bottle off with ease and he poured two shots out for himself and Genya.

With a brief cheers they both tilted their heads back and downed the brown liquid in one fluid motion.

Alina’s dark eyes sparkled with amusement at them as she asked Genya how the flavour was. Kaz suspected if it weren’t for her strict tutelage under the Darkling restricting drinking in the kitchen, she’d be right alongside them.

Clearly neither of the judges had ever worked in a kitchen in The Barrel.

Kaz neatly placed the cups to the side and the Darkling took this moment to turn the questioning in a different direction. He seemed at a loss for words at Kaz’s behaviour, clearly it was not the norm for contestants to be taking shots mid interview and he wanted to steer it in a different direction.

“So why the gloves? The outfit is an interesting choice in general, but surely it’d be easier to bake without them?” He enquired, his deep voice cutting straight to the point. Kaz stilled, his hand reaching to straighten the front of his suit jacket as he weighed up his answer.

“Old habits, I guess. I used to work in an outdoor kitchen and we wore them to keep our hands warm while we cooked.” Every word was a lie, of course, but the Darkling didn’t need to know that.

Kaz saw his look of disbelief and felt more lies build up in the back of his throat, ready to answer whatever the judge threw at him next.

The next question never came. A plume of white powder shot up from the bench next to him and Kaz’s audience turned to face the new problem.

Inej and Nina stood, both frantically waving their hands around a mixer that was beating icing sugar like its very existence depended on it. A fine white mist filled the air and delicately coated the two women.

“What are you two doing over there?” Shock and confusion coloured the Darkling’s voice as he surveyed the carnage.

“Nothing.” Nina hastily responded, trying and failing to subtly cover the still whirring machine with a tea towel in some absurd attempt to hide it from view.

The judges and their entourage of cameras shuffled over and Kaz quickly returned to his bake, but not before catching the small smile Inej turned in his direction.

—---

“Baker’s your time is up!” David announced clearly from the front of the tent.

There was scattered applause and moans from amongst the bakers as they placed down anything they were holding. Kaz watched Jesper go through the five stages of grief in about 10 seconds as he took his hand away from his fruit cake and the edge he’d been trying to stick back on slumped down the side rather pathetically.

When they called Jesper’s bake up for judging Kaz saw Wylan enthusiastically hurry over to help carry it. He heard Jesper jokingly mutter, “Now is not the time to re-enact Ghost with me,” which caused Wylan’s face to do an impressive imitation of the cherry’s he’d used to decorate his cake. He only barely caught the “You wish” that was hissed back but Kaz was sure the cameras caught every second of it.

The judges then proceeded to verbally rip apart his bake.

Then the next.

And the next.

Kaz was pretty certain he saw the smoke coming out of Matthias’ ears when the Darkling slapped down a slice of his cake on the table to reveal a stodgy grey mess on the inside and declared it to be “the worst cake ever baked in this tent.”

Nina gleefully called over, “Don't worry we've still got a few more rounds to go! I’m sure it can get worse.”

They moved on to Nina next who, despite having a bit of difficulty with the decoration, somehow managed to hit it out of the park with her candied fruit cake that left even the Darkling struggling for criticism and Alina positively overjoyed.

The next three bakers were pretty unremarkable and before long the judges drew up to the bench a row in front of him that Wylan stood nervously behind.

Wylan had somehow managed to cut himself another two times and Kaz was starting to question how likely it was he was going to get to the end of the first episode with all ten fingers still attached.

The first bite of his cake had both the judges flinching back and screwing up their faces against the onslaught of flavour.

“It’s… sour? And what’s that on top?”

Wylan straightened up and despite his earlier hesitation managed to respond clearly. “It’s popping candy. I thought it’d really add to the experience.”

“It’s certainly explosive alright,” Alina mused but she seemed intrigued enough to try a second bite. “It’s a bit much at first when you’re not expecting it but it does grow on you.”

The Darkling didn’t seem to agree and poked the sponge. “It looks like slime.”

“Oh yeah in Ketterdam we have slime all the time, it's actually an important part of our culture.” Wylan humorously countered, rolling with the critique, and Kaz had to respect his tenacity.

The judges agreed to disagree on their love of the cake and moved on.

Inej was next and she proudly presented a delicious smelling cake. She'd gone for a simple decoration of a tea infused glaze and candied lemons. She enthusiastically told Alina about her Suli heritage and how the recipe was one passed down through generations and eventually taught to her by her mother. The pride she held for her roots was evident in every word.

Kaz thought he saw her expression slip momentarily into a small look of sadness when she mentioned her parents and he made a mental note to ask her about it later when the cameras weren’t around.

Anika leant in frame briefly and whispered something to Alina who turned to Inej mid cutting up the cake and gently spoke, “Earlier you mentioned making an icing to go with this? Why did you decide to leave it out?”

Inej’s hands gripped her apron awkwardly as she replied, “I cooked the icing.”

The Darkling paused mid chew to look at her with concern. “You cooked the icing?”

“Yeah, by mistake. I was stressed.” She defended.

Alina looked between the two and tried to ease the tension by placing a comforting hand on Inej’s arm. “Well, I don’t think it needs it. This is superb without it.”

The beaming smile that broke across her face left Kaz speechless at his bench.

It was like experiencing the full force of an eclipse: one second he’s admiring sheer joy on Inej’s face and the next he’s being overshadowed by The Darkling’s looming figure.

Judgement time was here.

His fruitcake stood proud on a stand in front of him, he’d used pineapple pieces set in the cake to look like flowers that he’d only enhanced by delicately piping icing around them. It was some of his best work, a mix of traditional fruit cake and an upside down cake.

Silently the Darkling cut into the cake and offered a slice to his co-judge. He may have been silent but Alina’s bright excitement over his decorating skills and use of some of her favourite spices from growing up (intentionally chosen, of course) caused her to rattle off a small series of compliments.

“I really like the mix of flavours here, the alcohol to fruit ratio is really well balanced so it’s not too dense. Aleksander, what do you think?” Alina turned her attention to her co-host who was still looking at the bake critically.

“It’s a bit dry,” The Darkling conceded and then scowled as if the next words he was going to say tasted bitter in his mouth. ”Barely though, aside from that it’s pretty faultless.”

Kaz couldn’t help the smirk that curled up the corners of his mouth and when The Darkling grudgingly held a hand out for him to shake. He looked down at the outstretched hand and momentarily allowed himself to feel the small sliver of disgust that crept down his spine before taking it and shaking firmly.

One down, two more challenges to go.

Thankyou so much for reading!

[triptuckers]

Drunken words - Kaz Brekker

Request: yes "Hi, I have just binge read almost all of your shadow and bone one shots and was wondering if you could do one where f!reader goes out drinking with Nina and when she comes back drunk she accidentally confesses her love for Kaz but doesn’t remember it when she wakes up and Kaz doesn’t mention it but he also loves her?" Pairing: Kaz Brekker x reader Summary: You wake up with a pounding headache and some very vague memories of the night before. Luckily Nina is there to help you remember Warnings:  mentions of alcohol/drinking, language Word count: A/N: mmm see this? this request right here? I like it 😌 thanks for requesting it! TAG LIST (grishaverse): @ayushmitadutta @mrs-brekker15 @dancingwith-sunflowers @thegirlwiththeimpala @parker-natasha @story-scribbler @romanoffstarkovs @daliareads @meiitanoia @itsnotquimey @sanktaesperanza @whymyparentscheckmyphone @aleksanderwh0r3 @ilovemarvelanne1 @marlenaisnthappy @brekker-zenik @just-deka @graceknxwlson @the-very-tired-mess TAG LIST (kaz brekker): @mufnasa @Janesofia7 @stairscortana @parker-natasha @illicitghosts @brick-by-brick553 add yourself to my tag lists here

Every last Friday of the month, you go out for drinks with Nina. It's a tradition you started a while back. You'd gotten back from a particular rough job, and Nina suggested to go and have a drink. The others were tired, so you were the only one to accompany her. Ever since, the two of you go out every last Friday of the month.

Sometimes you both make it back in time, sometimes you don't show up til morning. And sometimes you're leaning heavily on each other, giggling and laughing.

The crows didn't mind now, though they were a bit concerned at the beginning. But after you showed them that even drunk, Jesper is only a slightly better shot than you are, they trusted you to come back home alright.

On one Friday night, you and Nina stumble into the kitchen of the Slat somewhere around 2 am. You're surprised to see it's not empty.

Kaz is sitting in one of the chairs, and he looks up when you and Nina try to silently enter the building. You fail when you stumble and squeal as you hold on to Nina's arm to prevent yourself from falling.

Nina seemed to be less drunk than you are. At least she can stand on her own feet.

Kaz' eyes follow you as Nina drags you to the kitchen to get you a glass of water, hoping it would sober you up a little.

You hop on the counter and take the glass from Nina without protest. When you look at Kaz, you see he's turned his gaze away from you.

'Aren't you going to ask if we had fun?' you say, pouting slightly.

Kaz looks at you. You're wearing a dress that's only reserved for nights out with Nina. You're also wearing heels and though you'd styled your hair nicely before you went out, it's now messy as it falls over your shoulders.

'You look like you had fun.' says Kaz. 'But I'll ask anyway. Did you have fun?'

'Yesss.' you say, dragging out the word. You don't look up when Nina puts a new glass of water in your hand.

'You should come sometimes.' you say to Kaz.

He merely raises an eyebrow, and doesn't answer you.

'I don't think Kaz is the type of person who goes out a lot.' says Nina.

'But it's fun!' you say somewhat offendedly. 'If anyone needs to let loose every once in a while, it's Kaz.'

'How so?' says Nina, chuckling.

'His jaw is always clenched.' you point out.

'No it's not.' says Kaz.

You nod, smiling happily. 'Yea it is! Don't think I wouldn't notice, I look at you a lot.' you say.

'Do you, now?' says Kaz, not paying much attention to you, as you're drunk and probably not aware of what you're saying.

'Most of the time. All of the time.' you say. 'Just a lot, really.'

'You're drunk, Y/N.' says Kaz. 'You should go to bed.'

'Night's not over yet!' you say and you jump off the counter, spilling some of the water on yourself. 'We could still go out! You should join us, Kaz.'

'I think you should go to bed, Y/N.' says Nina.

You glare at her over your shoulder. 'Buzz killer.' you say.

Nina puts up her hands in defence. 'I'm just saying tonight I'm not going out anymore, I'm going to bed. And you should too.' she says.

When she walks past you, she gives you a new glass of water. You're not aware of taking it, but you drink half of it anyway.

'Nina, you should stay.' you say when she walks to the door. 'Don't leave me alone with Kaz!'

'Why not?' says Kaz immediately, his curiosity getting the better of him.

You turn to him, then back to Nina. 'Nina! Don't leave me alone with Kaz, you know I say stupid shit when I'm drunk!' you say.

She looks over her shoulder. 'You say a lot of things when you're drunk, Y/N. At least drunk words are sober thoughts.' she says as she walks away.

'Nina come back! I might end up exposing myself!' you say.

This makes Nina stop and turn around. She looks at you and frowns.

'Expose yourself how?' she says.

'I might tell Kaz I love him.' you whisper, loud enough for everyone to hear.

You see Nina's eyes go wide. Before you can say anything, or turn around to look at Kaz, Nina's marched up to you, grabbed a hold of your arm and is pulling you up the stairs.

In the doorway, you look over your shoulder at Kaz.

There's an odd expression on his face you can't quite read, you've never seen it before. He doesn't look at you as you start to walk up the stairs with Nina's help.

You barely register anything after that moment, the exhaustion suddenly kicking in. You fall down on your bed without even taking your heels off.

The next morning, you wake with a pounding headache despite all the water Nina made you drink. You push yourself up in a sitting position and rub your head.

None of the crows had been so stupid to wake you. Everyone knew the last Friday of the month was spent drinking, and the morning after it would be unwise to wake you or Nina before noon.

After stripping off your tight dress and heels, you take a hot bath, scrubbing all of the sweat of last night off of your skin.

You get dressed in comfortable clothes and head downstairs to get a big cup of coffee.

But when you want to enter the kitchen, you are met by Nina standing in the doorway.

'Oh good, you're up.' she says.

'Morning.' you say. 'How's your headache?'

'Almost over.' she says. 'Don't go into the kitchen.'

'Why not?' you say, frowning.

'Because Kaz is there.' says Nina.

'What, is he in a bad mood or something?' you say.

'No. But he hasn't said anything all morning.' she says.

'So he's normal.' you say, pushing past Nina.

She attempts to stop you, but you walk away from her, straight to the fresh pot of coffee. You pour yourself a generous amount of it, and then sit at the same table Kaz is sitting at.

He looks at you, but doesn't say anything.

'You good?' you say after a while. 'I'm sure that's the longest you've ever looked at me. Have I got something on my face?'

Kaz shakes his head.

'Then why are you looking at me like that?' you say.

'Do you remember anything from last night?' asks Kaz.

You squint your eyes, trying to remember.

'Nina and I played card games with some Zemeni tourists. They lost. Then we lost. Then we lost again. I don't think I threw up, though. I remember walking back to the Slat and going to bed.' you say.

'That's all?' says Kaz.

'Yeah, I think that's it.' you say. 'Why?'

'Just curious.' says Kaz.

'You're never just curious, Kaz, you always have a reason. What's this all about?' you say.

'Fine.' he says. 'I have a bet with Jesper, how much you would remember. It appears he needs to pay me.'

He gets up and without another word, he leaves the room. Your eye catches Nina's gaze and you shrug, turning back to your coffee.

'Did I do something stupid last night?' you say. Most of the times when you got drunk, you did stupid stuff. You wonder if last night would have been any different.

'Well.' says Nina as she sits down in front of you. 'That depends.'

'On what?' you say as you finish your coffee.

'You should talk to Kaz about that.' says Nina. 'He doesn't have a bet with Jesper.'

'Then why would he leave like that?' you say.

'Again, you should talk to him about that.' says Nina.

'What aren't you telling me, Nina?' you say.

You see her debating wether or not she should tell you.

'Tell me or I'll tell everything how horrible you dance when you get drunk.' you threaten.

'You told kaz you love him.' she blurts out.

Your eyes widen. 'Oh no.' you say. 'No, no, no, I did not. Fuck.'

'Well, you didn't exactly tell him. You told me not to leave you alone because you might end up telling him.' says Nina

You bury your face in your hands. 'Oh, Saints, this is bad.' you say. 'This is really fucking bad.'

'How so?' says Nina.

'He's still technically our boss, Nina. And there's no way he has the same feelings for me.' you say.

'You won't know unless you ask him.' says Nina.

'What would I even say to him?' you say.

Nina shrugs. 'Well you could sit here thinking about it, or go up to his office and talk to him.' she says.

You shake your head and rub a hand over your face. 'Fuck.' you mutter. 'You're probably right.'

'I always am, darling.' says Nina.

You finish your cup of coffee and get up. Nina gestures for you to start walking. You head to the stairs and walk them as slowly as you can.

Would he be mad? What if things would forever be awkward between the two of you? Maybe if you were fast, you could still take it back. You were drunk, you could tell him you didn't mean it.

You stop in front of the door to Kaz' office. You determinedly raise a hand to knock on it, but your fist only hovers mid-air.

'It helps if you actually knock.'

You jump slightly at the sound of a voice. When you turn around, you see Kaz standing behind you.

'Or you could just go in if you have a key.' he says, walking up to the door and pulling out his key.

You're at loss for words, watching as Kaz opens the door and head inside. You're still standing in the doorway when Kaz looks up.

'You can come in, you know.' he says.

You enter his office and slowly close the door. He did not seem bothered by last night at all.

'We need to talk.' you say.

Kaz looks at you and merely raises an eyebrow at you. He gestures to the chair in front of his desk and you sit down.

'About last night.' you say. 'Nina told me what I said. I didn't say it to you, but, well I might as well have. I was drunk and it was stupid, and I'm here to apologise.'

He looks at you and then he starts to smile. Your eyes widen a bit, you'd never seen Kaz smile. Let alone smile at you.

'Are you okay?' you say hesitantly.

'Y/N, I wasn't in my office when you got here because I was at your door.' says Kaz, his words taking you by surprise.

'Why?' you wonder out loud.

'I was going to bring you a glass of water, Nina once told me it helps when you're hungover.' says Kaz.

Your lips part in surprise. 'You were?' you say.

'That saying Nina said last night, drunken words are sober thoughts? Well, I'm glad your drunken self decided to speak the truth last night.' says Kaz.

You stare at him, not sure you heard it correctly. Kaz pulls a stack of papers toward him and begins to read through them. He doesn't tell you that you need to go, so you decide to keep him company while he works.

Who knew a night out with Nina could lead to something like this?

A/N: If you want to request something, make sure to read my house rules Here’s the list of characters I write for. Everything that I have written can be found on my masterlist. Please don’t repost my work, as I spend much time and effort on it!! Thank you for reading! Much love, Marit

[sanktagenyas]

ok so i finally watched those last three episodes. i said buckle up it’s time to suffer and by the saints did i ever suffer. i just knew the darklina scenes were gonna be rough to watch. it was already rough reading the scenes as they were written in book one. i mean the darkling just shines with his intelligence in that chapter, doesn’t he? threaten the man she loves? well the other man she loves? check! tell her she betrayed you when the reality is you’ve been telling half truths all along and didn’t trust her to make her choices? check! 

buddy this isn’t how you apologize. in the show itself it’s pretty much the same back and forth that leads nowhere. you lied to me! you ran off because my mother told you i’m not who i say i am without giving me a chance to explain! you’ve been lying or bending the truth since we met! YOU TURNED YOUR BACK ON YOUR COUNTRY!

by that point i was just like chill the fuck out man you’re about to decimate many many countrymen and you know it. i loved that the stop they made was all about him getting revenge on the man who attempted on alina’s life, that was very unhinged of him and i was HERE for that shit but everyone else in that port? every other woman and child and man on that port? not all of them played a hand and he just went ahead and had them slaughtered without batting an eye. and it’s not like he has some kind of safeguard for grishas does he? how does he know there’s no grisha wherever he’s expanding the fold? some could be in hiding because they fled, because they didn’t want to serve the king. oh well he doesn’t really care about those people does he? we all saw how he spoke about those deserters to arken.

also he could NOT handle alina’s harsh truths about how his own actions are harming grisha close to him even though he claims that every choice he’s made was to protect them and empower them. when she brought up genya i was like yes you better look down you motherfucker! you did this to her, you delivered to her abuser over and over. 

we saw his backstory, some of it and he acted out of grief and rage. he toyed with magic he did not understand and of course he didn’t intend this but his reaction to the fold once it was all said and done was definitely foreshadowing what he was to become. i created something he said defiantly. you created something you don’t have control over. and now he’s done it again somehow, he’s got brand new creatures following him at the end.

i actually felt for young aleksander for losing the woman he loved but the arrogance and the recklessness he showed there is still the same arrogance he has now. he thinks he has thought his plan through but that’s just working off the assumption that no one opposes him ever otherwise he went ahead and put a target on grisha’s backs. he definitely put a target on alina’s back although i know that was never the plan. the fact that when he has a perfectly good remedy to the fold, a chance to actually fix his mistakes once and for all he turns its back and decides to make it ten times worse, chooses ruling via fear over hope is jusr a sign of how far he’s gone. and he didn’t waver once not even when alina was pleading with him that he could have made her his equal, that they could have stayed together and made ravka safe together if only he gave her a choice, he was still manipulative and lied to her face.

at this point i just don’t think his love for her outweighs his belief that he knows what’s best for ravka, what’s the best way to protect grisha. because he doesn’t care about anyone who isn’t grisha at all. he was persecuted like so many others. he won a war for a king centuries and that king turned on him. i’m sure he’s looking at the current one knowing that once grisha have exhausted their uses that king will turn on him too. the fold is just a different kind of war and if he wins that one for the king the darkling already knows what the outcome will be. 

so to summarize this whole darkling commentary here i understand where he is coming from, i understand the fear and the rage and the desperation. it’s not working out for him though. he’s feared but he’s alone. for every ivan there’s a zoya. for every man who’s blindly loyal to him there’ll be someone rising up to oppose him eventually. and if it’s not his own people it’ll be non grisha folks. he has the second army working for him still, but he is alone. and that’s no one’s fault but his own because alina was willing to work with him. 

speaking of alina i loved every second of her rising up to oppose him telling him she never needed him. she may have fallen in love with him but she never actually needed him to be powerful, she only needed to free herself of the restraints she’d put on her powers out of fear. i also thought that the way she freed herself of his control made more sense than it did in the books. 

i have hope for darklina still despite all that’s happened despite how positively full of rage ans resentment she is because she still loves him, she still listened when he pleaded with her that they needed each other if they wanted to deal with the fold. of course there’s the slight issue of him lying directly and manipulating her to do his bidding and of course the fact that he took her power from her. the only thing that was her and he perverted it for his own gain. i think it just might take more than a year for her to forgive him i’m afraid. i don’t necessarily see a path to redemption right now but reconciliation? alina can be merciful, she can be forgiving. i think all it would really take is just one selfless act, one show of good faith. if he keeps pursuing her and mal and keep trying to rob her of her agency however i don’t see them ever having any kind of closure.

i don’t think i need to expand much more on my thoughts on malina. i’m not feeling what the show wants me to feel. i’m not seeing them as these soulmates that belong together. to me they’d be better of as best friends. the darkling didn’t make her strong he tried to steal her strength for his own use but mal doesn’t make her strong either, she relies too much on him. mal actually was pretty damn resourceful when left on his own. i unfortunately couldn’t say the same for alina. co-dependant love is not better than toxic love and darklina’s toxicity (most of it) comes from the lies and from the darkling repeatedly choosing for alina. he’s not brave enough to just tell her what he intends to do and let her decide whether to align herself with him so he lies and he deceives instead. not much he can do to undo it now but he could help actually destroy the fold if he wanted to. i don’t know if he’ll ever come around to it though.

the darkling visiting mal with the sole purpose to rub it in his face that alina and he are immortal and so eventually mal will die and then he could just swoop in was just peak comedy. the way he delivered that line too you’d think he was talking to an insect not another human being. it was brilliant. mal echoing that same line but ending it with “the past will do it for me” was pretty good, nice quip i’ll give mal that but also terribly ironic when you see the ending.

team crows remains the highlight for me. kaz and inej and their unspoken love for each other is just killing me. i can tell there are personal traumas there that i don’t know about (gotta read those damn books and quick) what with kaz not being able to help tend to her wounds and the fact that there were moments were i could see there was maybe a kiss about to happen or an embrace (at the end when kaz let alina go free and made a deal not to rat her out) and it just didn’t happen. there’s a story there about kaz and his distaste for being touched/touching others. jesper is just here to look pretty, shoot shit and be the most charming person in any crowd. i’m in love. also someone give him his goat back for the love of god.

nina and mathias were entertaining for sure. with all that banter and all these jabs i should have really seen them falling for one another coming. i felt like it was perhaps a bit rushed but i guess there’s nothing like almost freezing to death together to make you reconsider your views. you know the whole saving of lives thing can really bond you. the waffle date was adorable. was not expecting nina to just brand herself a traitor for him and she’s damn lucky fyedor came on that mission because i’m pretty sure ivan wouldn’t even have offered to keep her name out of the report. she and mathias ended their story both heartbroken and separated. i really hate that he thinks this was all intentional. really hope she’ll join the crows on their next con job. and i also cannot wait to see the look on heleen’s face when kaz buys inej’s freedom.

i was not at all expecting zoya to turn against the darkling. that’s what happens when you turned down one of your fuck buddies, aleksander they get bitter and then they leave you to be eaten alive by volcras. ok but in all seriousness she did the right thing and i hope she finds her family even if they’re not alive so she can say her goodbyes. 

oh and completely unrelated but since i talked about heights of comedy before i really need more sassy! darkling in my life. he is everything. that quip about his speech. the way he said adorable like he was gagging on the word. him just letting david be his dorkiest self and raise his hand before speaking, that little put upon sigh. i love sassy! darkling almost as much as jealous and petty darkling which is saying a lot. just more of that. it humanizes him, i’m tired of villains who are forever stoic and stone face. 

i think i about covered everyone and everything that happened in those remaining episodes. all in all shadow and bone is an amazing adaptation, really faithful to the first book. they made some changes to the characters which in turn changed some dynamics (alina actually admitted she wanted to be with the darkling. out loud. to his face. book!alina would never and book!darkling would never cry in front of her.) but it made for surprising viewing. it also made me become even more attached to some characters (the darkling let’s be real) which made me care more which is why i was livid when they started making a lot of terrible no good choices.

i was just really blown away by this show and the way the grishaverse was brought to life and above all major props to the actors who all just seemed to be born to play their respective roles.