Through life comes death. Through war comes heartache and destruction. The gods work in mysterious ways and it is up to you to follow the path they have laid for you, but you don't always have to do it alone.
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Everyone was gathered in the Great Hall of Kattegat, it was much different to ours. Ubbe and Sigurd placed me between themselves as others couldn't help but stare, shifting in my position all of their eyes left my figure moving towards the doors opening as Lagertha entered. She was beautiful, her hair was braided with precision and you could feel how strong she was just by the way she walked. Everyone respected her and clapped as she entered, except for Ubbe and Sigurd. Lagertha began speaking about the fate of Ragnar as she cast her gaze towards me and then over the rest of the crowd. It was clear Kattegat was a major trading centre in Norway and others would want to over throw Lagertha and take over. As Lagertha continued to speak a banging sound echoed in my ears. Turning around I could see Ivar crawling, with his axes aiding him, towards Lagertha. He was furious which was understandable.
Ivar demanded justice for his mothers murder at the hands of Lagertha, "I refuse... I refuse to fight you" Lagertha calmly spoke. Soon enough Ivar left, annoyed that Lagertha would not fight him. All attention was back on Lagertha and unfortunately her gaze was back on me once more. "Child, step forward," she demanded, not in mean or vicious way. I didn't feel scared she made me feel safe, reminding me of Elizabeth. Ubbe gently placed a hand on the small of my back, reassuring me I would be okay just before I slowly made my way to Lagertha. She had two fierce women on each side of her, one with short black hair and the other with long blonde braids. "What is your name child?" Lagertha asked. "My name is Arini" I bowed my head and slowly gazed back up as she smiled. "We shall have a feast tonight, to welcome our guests to Kattegat" Lagertha exclaimed as everyone cheered.
As everyone began to leave Lagertha called out, "Arini I would like to speak to you." I stayed as Ubbe and Sigurd hesitated before leaving, "head to the place we were before" Ubbe whispered before he left. I turned back around to Lagertha and the other two women and waited for her to speak. "This is Torvi and Astrid," she pointed to each of the women. "It is nice to meet you Arini but may I ask why you travelled with Ivar?" Lagertha spoke in my language. "I was told to accompany Ivar to ensure he returned home safely," I stated in their native tongue. I was on their land it was only right I spoke their language. Raising her brow she was impressed, "so you will be returning home?" She questioned. Staring down I took a deep breath, "I am not allowed to return to Wessex." She quietly took in what I had said, "what use could you be here, in Kattegat?" This was something I had not yet thought about, my eyebrows knitted together as I was lost in thought, trying to find an answer. "In all honesty I am not sure, I can cook and clean that is what I did in Wessex" I replied with truth. "Can you fight?" Her question took me by surprise. I can fight, Benji taught me everything I needed to know. He taught me how to hold my ground, how to swing a sword and shoot an arrow in the right spot every time. "Yes I can, I was never allowed to fight in Wessex but that didn't stop me" I said proudly. "One last question, why can you not go back to Wessex?" Lagertha was curious. "My brother should be king of Wessex, not Ecbert and he knows that. That is why I am not allowed to return he knows in the end I would fight for my family," I stated. "You can stay, but you must work hard. When you are needed you will be there and I would advise not to practice your religion in public, the people of Kattegat would not approve," Lagertha smiled, offering me sound advice.
I left the great hall and headed towards the shore, taking in the view and breathing in the fresh air. I made my way back to the small home where Ubbe, Sigurd and another woman were, Ivar was still not back. "Great you're back, Arini this is Margrethe," Ubbe introduced us as Margrethe engulfed me in a warm embrace which I returned. "Ubbe...Sigurd...both of you can leave. She needs to relax before the feast," Margrethe instructed as she motioned towards me. She wasn't wrong, I haven't had a proper bathe in a long while. Margrethe boiled the water and told me to hop in, I was hesitant. She was still in the room and I wasn't sure I wanted to undress in front of her, it was frowned upon in my country. "Oh don't worry about me, I'm a woman too. You should feel proud of your body, just get in and relax," she smiled. I wasn't sure why but these people made me feel comfortable, I felt welcomed by people I had just met whereas back in Wessex I felt like an outsider all my life.
I slipped off my dress and slowly lowered into the water. It warmed my bones and relieved my aching muscles, I was glad to relax even if it was for a few minutes. Margrethe was fumbling in the kitchen talking about her time as a slave and her connections to all of the sons of Ragnar. Once she was busy focusing on other tasks I slipped beneath the water. I stayed under with the rush of water sounding through my ears I felt at peace. Hopping out of the bath Margrethe handed me a cloth to dry with and began to help me fit into a dress that she had chosen for me to wear tonight. We sat next to the fire as she braided my long chestnut brown hair, it was littered with braids of different sizes and loose waves cascaded down my back. All three boys came in just as Margrethe was finishing, "you two look beautiful," Sigurd said as he entered behind Ubbe and Ivar. "You should wear your hair like that more often, Arini, it suits you," Ivar whispered as he sat next to me. "I am here if you ever want to talk," I whispered back to Ivar and he smiled in response. "We should head to the great hall, Lagertha won't want us to be late," Ubbe instructed as we left, my heart began to pound.
