“I'm the Sun Summoner. It gets dark when I say it does.”
This quote is said by Alina, the protagonist of the text who is a "Sun Summoner." This is an incredibly rare kind of person, who is able to harness the power of light. As such, Alina is a powerful character, who has control over the natural elements of light.
"I know I'm supposed to say something noble--I want a united Ravka free from the Fold. I want the Darkling in the ground, where he can never hurt you or anyone else again."
He gave a rueful shake of his head.
"But I guess I'm the same selfish ass I've always been. For all my talk of vows and honor, what I really want is to put you up against that wall and kiss you until you forget you ever knew another man's name. So tell me to go, Alina. Because I can't give you a title or an army or any of the things you need.”
In this passage, Mal reveals his love for Alina. He states that he isn't motivated by "nobel" aims, but is instead motivated by his desire for Alina. Throughout the novel, we see that Mal has strong feelings for Alina, even sacrificing himself at the end of the novel. In line with this, many fans support the potential relationship between Alina and Mal.
"I felt that rush of hunger, the steady, longing beat of desire that neither of us wanted, but that gripped us anyway. We were alone in the world, unique. We were bound together and always would be."
Here, Alina struggles with her unconscious desires for The Darkling. In a sense, they are both drawn together by the fact they possess unique powers and are therefore isolated from other people. Light and dark are opposites, but they are also heavily associated with each other, meaning that Alina is drawn in some way to The Darkling.
