The Saxon princess Vanya is forced by her family to marry Ivar as a peace offering. She slowly turns from a meek girl to a confident woman and falls for him.
In the morning, when Margrethe came to help her get dressed, Vanya knew what she wanted to wear. The blue dress she made two years ago for her father's name day. Blue had always been his favorite color, and now she understood the appeal.
The dark blue fabric complimented her figure. Silas always said it was too provocative. But mother said that if she looks pretty, that he won't hurt her. Even if Ivar promised to protect her, it wouldn't hurt to secure her safety.
The thralls kept complimenting her as they did her hair. Margrethe especially looked pleased with how she looked. Vanya did not care for the reason behind as much as she should. She wanted to charm the youngest son of Ragnar.
So she left her room, working up as much confidence as she could. Yet the moment she entered the Great hall, all eyes turned on her, and she stopped. All confidence is gone and replaced with a blush on her cheeks. "Good morning." She greeted, clearing her throat and walking to her designed spot next to Ivar.
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All the boys looked at her, shocked. Her favorite reaction is Ivar, who stared at her as she was an angel. The other eyes made her a little bit squeamish, especially when Hvitserk stopped eating with the spoon resting in his open mouth.
Aslaug looked at her proudly, which made her happy. Her goal may have been to charm her son, but she liked the Queen's attention too. She admired the woman's beauty and strength for raising so many sons alone.
"You look great this morning, Vanya." Ubbe complimented her, making her smile proudly.
"I agree, the dress is beautiful. Whoever did it know the craft well." Aslaug smirked from behind her cup of mead.
Vanya returned the kind gesture with a smile of her own and twiddled with her fingers underneath the table. "Thank you very much, My Queen. I did it myself."
This surprised the older woman. She commented on how Vanya could make her a dress too. The young Princess, of course, agreed. Ivar still kept looking at her with wonder in his eyes. He wanted to take back his comment about sewing being tedious. The dress is anything but boring.
The brothers conversed between themselves during the meal in their language. They also kept giving Ivar meaningful glances, that Vanya had no idea what they meant.
After breakfast, the boys went hunting while Aslaug spent time with Vanya. The two talked about the upcoming wedding and what dress she should wear. The Queen of Kattegat had a lot of ideas. It was nice talking to her. It reminded her of the peasant girls talking to their mothers back home. She always wanted to have that with her mother.
But queen Sifflæd never spends much time with either of her children. She married her husband when she was 16 to save her kingdom from poverty. When they were kids, Silas mocked Vanya that their mother cared for him when he was a child. But she didn't bother to care for Vanya. Wet nurses and teachers raised them more than Sifflæd did.
