#also playing fast and loose with the six of crows/shadow and bone timeline here

[criminalgays]

sun summoner!kaz au where he was exposed on a job with the crows after they got separated.

of course the ravkans send someone for him, and to prevent inej and jesper from getting hurt, he goes with them. he orders them to stay in ketterdam and make sure the dregs stay in control of the Barrel while he figures out how to get home.

he befriends genya at the little palace, and a very clever girl called nina who speaks kerch. they tell him to keep a low profile and do what the Darkling wants before going home. Kaz takes their advice. for the most part.

he insists on wearing a white kefta, matching with genya. he tells the Darkling it’s because he’s a servant of Ravka, here to make the world a better place. he uses the color to slip unnoticed most everywhere on the palace grounds.

his sessions with Baghra are spent learning about the Darkling and the Ravkan throne just as much as they’re spent teaching him how to control the light he produces.

he’s still no closer to getting back to ketterdam.

nina tells him about a first army unit that’s arrived to the palace, one that’s supposed to track an amplifier for him. he thanks her then sheds his kefta and picks up a rifle.

it’s harder to blend into the unit than he thought. malyen oretsev does not leave him alone, and will not take his suggestions to head west towards the sea. alina starkov agrees with malyen on every turn.

the Darkling sends a search party for him. it was inevitable, he thinks. it’s not everyday the supposed “servant of Ravka” disappears from the palace. Kaz is just lucky no one has seen his face yet.

eventually, the unit he’s running with finds Morozova’s stag, the amplifier they’re tracking. it’s harder to explain where the new necklace he’s acquired came from and where the stag has gone the next morning, but he’s not the bastard of the barrel for nothing.

(i’ve run out of steam here. if anyone would like to finish this feel free!)