Hakon looked at me from the corner of his eye. Chains wrapped around his wrists clanking against the wooden walls.
I hugged my body as tight as I could under his stare, "I often think back to when we were children," the tone of his voice startled m...
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The world blurred around me as the fire engulfed my father. The town had come just to see his final moments on this Earth. With any hope, he would be accepted into Valhalla.
Small cries left my lips in sharp breaths as I rushed into my cabin.
I slammed open the door and ran over to the washroom. I dropped to my knees in front of the barrel and scrubbed furiously at my hands to rid myself of my father's blood.
My eyes wandered up and across the flames. Harvardr looked deep into the fire. The smell of burning flesh entered my nostrils and I scrunched my nose up at the putrid essence. My glare was senseless toward him.
The door creaked open from behind me and I turned slightly and saw Harvardr come in at a snail's pace.
I clutched a wooden cup and threw it at him as hard as I could.
He quickly ducked and fell to the ground in front of me while grabbing my wrists. I tried yanking away from him and pushing him off of me but to no avail. Harvardr shook me slightly with a wave of great anger in his eyes.
"Toril, enough!" He yelled in my face.
I pulled my hand free and pushed him in the jaw causing him to jerk back, "You killed him!"
His hands swiftly came back at me and grabbed my arms under an unbearable strength, "If I wouldn't have done what I did you would be dead."
"Then at least I am no longer your concern!" I screamed and kneed him in the thigh which in turn made him turn over on his side.
His eyes found mine through the flames. A small glint of shame crossed his features but promptly diminished. Harvardr nodded his head with ease and wavered before returning the gesture.
I quickly turned my head to the side and looked away from my brothers and away from the crowd and burning body in front of me. The saliva in my mouth harshly slid down my throat.
Harvardrclutched his leg and groaned out in pain. He struggled to sit back up into a sitting position and took the fabric of my pants in his hands.
In his eyes, I could see the disappointment. Whether or not that disappointment was directed towards me or himself seemed unclear. But with his recent actions, I decided to choose the latter option.
"Get your hands off of me," I growled down at him.
He continued to cling onto me and I stammered under his grip.
Harvardr gritted his teeth and pulled himself off of the ground. I rasped while he pulled on me but stood tall
He let out a breath and towered over me. I let out a surprised gust while my brother clamped my shoulders roughly.
I turned my head away from him. Harvardr clutched my chin and stared deep into my eyes, "I did what I had to to make sure you survived."
My head turned to the side and my brows creased in the center of my forehead, "At the expense of our father? Our own family?"
He removed his hand from my jaw and held onto the back of my arm, "You and I, we have to trust one another."
A hand rounded on my shoulder and I looked back and saw Leif with his regular cold eyes. He motioned his head back to the Great Hall. His eyes wandered back over to Harvardr who continued his stance behind the fire. Leif narrowed his eyes accusingly and full of hatred before walking back in the direction of the hall. Stian and Hakon followed closely behind.
"Our brothers will turn against you. . ." I said just above a whisper and took a step back.
He nodded vigorously, "Yes, they will. But we cannot turn on each other." He stepped closer to me, "The only way to stop this war is to be involved in it."
Harvard nodded and walked away off in another direction. I watched as he made his way to the docks to help prepare the ships.
I began my way back to the hall.
Inside the hall, my older brothers, minus Harvardr, all sat around the head table. They watched me closely as I took my seat cautiously. I kept my eyes down on the table not daring to look up. My hands fiddled with the seams of my tunic and pants.
Silence took out over all of us before Leif leaned forward ready for battle with words if his hand was forced to do so.
He looked around at our brothers before stopping his gaze on me, "Harvardr cannot be trusted." He spoke, "In which case, we must know Toril. . ."
I like back up and saw Stain take initiative, "Will you fight with us?"
My breath was caught in my throat at the idea of betraying my brother. My mind raced back to the blood that coated my skin. My father's blood. My nose tingled and I pushed away any emotion that wanted to flood to the surface of my being.
I tightened my jaw and lifted my head. My lips parted and I strained my voice to speak, "I will fight with you."
Hakon stood follows by the rest of us. He narrowed his eyes at me and I stared deep into his soul.
His nostrils flared before storing out of the room. Stian bowed his head before excusing himself.
Leif walked over to me and placed his hand on my shoulder and gave me an emotionless smile before walking after our brothers.
I straightened my back and looked forward at the throne.
"You must agree to help them." Harvard spoke gently, "You must fight alongside them. Leave me to handle our brothers."
I drew out the quiet and thought about the demise of our family. I would be the reason they would end up dead and Harvardr wasn't thinking clearly.
But if we did not go through with this, they would up killing the both of us because we would be defined as traitors.
With that thought, I nodded my head having agreed to the terms.
The throne of my brother was empty. It was stained with the blood of any past king before him. And it would soon be stained with his blood.
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Hey guys, this chapter is kind of in the spur of the moment. I had an idea and I just went for it.
It's short, I just didn't want to put too much because I think that establishing that alliance is important and needs its own kind of thing.
