Chapter 9: Ali

Ali returns to his long-abandoned quarters and finds them preserved as if frozen in time. On his bed lies his zulfiqar and the contracts he signed to free a shafit father and daughter—now legally nullified. Realizing King Ghassan reversed his act to punish him, Ali fears further defiance will endanger others.

Rejecting passivity, Ali straps on Darayavahoush’s dagger—stolen by Ghassan—and heads toward the infirmary intending to pass it to Nahri via Nisreen. In the misty palace gardens, his uncontrolled water affinity stirs around him, alarming him about hiding his marid-touched abilities in Daevabad.

Ali instead discovers a secluded orange-grove garden where Nahri reads alone. When Nahri sees the zulfiqar, she lashes out, ensnaring Ali’s leg with a root and condemning him for intruding on her sole private refuge. She refuses to hear Arabic from him, accuses him of complicity in Dara’s death, and recounts Ghassan’s coercion that forced her to publicly lie about the marid.

Ali apologizes and insists he acted to prevent war, but Nahri rejects his defense, hurt that he stayed silent as Ghassan’s ambush unfolded. She notes the strange water presence around Ali and accuses him of striking a bargain with the marid; Ali denies it and, shaken, describes the marid’s mental torment and the physical scars they left.

When Nahri spots Darayavahoush’s dagger at Ali’s waist, she seizes it, overcome with emotion. Ali offers no justification that can bridge their rift. Switching to Arabic, Nahri orders Ali to leave her garden immediately, threatening violence if he stays. Ali departs, their relationship further fractured even as the dagger is finally returned.