Virago - Ivar The Boneless

Weakness

Little Bear sat upon a horse, the horse was beside Hvitserk's. The two young people looked to each other as Ivar sat upon his chariot. She didn't need to be close to Ivar for him to know she supported him. 

Her eyes landed on her mother. Little Bear noticed that Lagertha had stayed back as her son started towards the middle of the grounds. She wondered what her mother might be thinking, she wondered if she missed her. She then looked at Ubbe. She missed him so much. They had been friends for so long, they had always been good for each other. Now she stood on the opposite side to him. Then there was her brother, he had changed, aged. He was as good as any brother could be, but she didn't miss him, not one bit. Seeing how headstrong and opposed he was to Ivar made her doubt everything. 

 As Bjorn and Halfdan approached the middle, Iona tilted her head to the right, her eyes narrowed as she watched Ivar and Harold exchange looks. The wind played in their hair before Harold looked at Hvitserk, they nodded at each other before he moved away on his horse. She filled the gap, moving her horse closer to Ivar's chariot as she watched her friend so to the middle with Harold.

Ivar watched on, he knew that hostages would be exchanged, almost as a way of speaking.

All four from the middle looked back at Iona, she looked to Ivar who simply shook his head. She knew what was being said. She knew if she was with Lagertha then Bjorn thought Ivar would be less likely to be underhand in his tactics. 

She wondered what they might be saying, she wondered as she watched Hvitserk ride off with Bjorn if she would even see him again. It was nice to see Halfdan again, but he was a nobody when compared to Hvitserk. She watched as Hvitserk left with the opposing side, she hoped he would do the right thing, that he would back Ivar all the way. 

XOXOX

Ivar sat with his back to Halfdan, Harold, Astrid and Iona. Although it was mainly Harold and Halfdan talking, Ivar piped up if required. Astrid and Iona exchanged looks, the two of them wondering if this exchanging of hostages was worth their time really. 

As Ivar crawled off, she watched before turning her attention to Heahmund who started to speak. She stared up at him, her eyes watching widely as she listened to him speak. She might not have understood what he was saying, but it intrigued her, then he walked off, following Ivar. 

Little Bear wondered if she should have followed him too but she couldn't help but wait for Harold and Astrid to be done with the hostage before leaving her alone with him. 

"I have missed you, child," he said as he looked at the young blonde. 

Smiling, Little Bear nodded at him. "I have missed you too," she told him. "They will not harm Hvitserk, right?" She was worried about her friend. 

"He will not be harmed as long as I am not. Ubbe would never let anything happen to Hvitserk, he loves him too much." Halfdan spoke wisely to the girl. "Your mother, she misses you." 

"She has spoken about me?" Iona asked, she was confused by this. "She had been away from me for so long, she has disappointed me over and over."

"She does not want to fight, not if it can be avoided. Ivar just wants to fight, either way, he doesn't need a reason to fight, child." Halfdan hoped to reach someone, he had struggled to reach out to both his brother or Ivar. "You will end up like him, I know your relationship with him has changed. You might be the only one to convince him to stop this war."

Little Bear thought about his words. She knew Ivar's mind was made up. "I don't want to stop him."

Halfdan looked shocked at the words that spilled from the mouth of Iona. He leaned forward in his seat, he wanted to let her know the consequences of her actions. "If you cannot try to stop this then there is only three options that await you." She tilted her head to the side as she waited for his words, a smirk on her lips. "Your death, you will die." She didn't look phased by his words. "You will find yourself without with family, all of them murdered." Again he noticed she kept the same smirk on her lips. It seemed he underestimated how she might react. "Or you'll watch Ivar die," he spoke, the smirk leaving her lips as she watched him closely. "You will see him brutally murdered on the battlefield, leaving you alone in this world."

She placed her hands on the table and grinned. Little Bear did not want to imagine her life without Ivar, he was the only one who seemed to be her constant. Whether he was arguing with her, making her life hell or loving her, she couldn't stand to be without him. "You don't know him like I do. It is everyone else that should be worried about their lives."

He shook his head at the young woman, he wondered if she was in denial. "One day, you will realise he doesn't love you like that. Your mother and Bjorn will always be there for you. You should be by their sides. Following Ivar is a not what you should be doing, Little Bear."

"Your brother follows him," she reminded him as she crossed her arms over her chest and leaned over the table. "I will follow him to the end of the earth if I have to. I will be with him in Valhalla, fight against Harold, fight against Ivar and you won't eat with us at that table, you won't be there with Odin. Fighting against us isn't going to bring you peace." 

Halfdan reached over, he took the hand of the young woman. "One day, I will see you again, child." He gave her hand a little squeeze. "You are the daughter of Lagertha, the one of many tales. You must know you are worth million times more than what you think you seek. You are the chosen one, Iona." 

She pulled her hand away as a shiver fell down her spine. "You don't know me!" Her voice was a snap as she got up from the table. 

"I know you think you need him," Halfdan spoke calmly. "You are more than him."

The blonde looked at the man in front of her, she had once looked up to him, thought of him as a friend. She shook her head as she smiled at him. She looked away, her eyes landing on Ivar who was sitting with Harold, she knew they were discussing the upcoming battle and how it might plan out. 

The love she felt for him was like nothing she had ever felt before. She hadn't had much love in her life but what she felt with Ivar was different. Being close to him was something which was perfect. She didn't care if they brought out the worst in each other, in fact, she loved every second of it. 

"We have something you will never have," she was quick to get the words out.

Halfdan laughed, he knew something she didn't. "Whilst you two are in love, whilst he loves you and you love him, you both have a weakness. Everyone knows that, you need to decide whether that weakness is enough for you."