The Forgotten Princess | Avery x Leofric x Uhtred | The Last Kingdom

A new Princess

The following days Avery had been like a shadow of her former self. An empty shell if you would. Iseult had seemed to pick up on her heartbreak and her hidden pain, she started brewing herbs for her. The brew helped to eliminate her pains, but she grew curious at the hidden powers the woman seemed to be hiding. Uhtred approached the two women, but Avery had been avoiding him since their kiss that night, so she grabbed Iseult's hand and lead her away from the male.

"I was wondering about that tea you make for me. Is there one that could stop me ever falling pregnant again?" Avery's words were barely a whisper. If she was going to continue her secret relationship with Leofric then she couldn't risk this happening again. Not until they were married. To save them both the punishment they would face.

"I could show you. But you can never tell anyone. They would call you a witch, punish you as an example. But come with me." Iseult was one of the nicest people that Avery had ever met. She grieved almost as much as her for the lost child. So, when the older woman pulled her into one of the huts, she followed her without question. Iseult showed her step by step to brew a tea that would protect her in the future. Explained what each herb was and where she could find them in the future.

After a few more days hiding in the swampland's rumours started to swirl about a great army forming under the reign of King Alfred. She knew that it would mean that Leofric would be leaving soon, Uhtred too. Her heart was already starting to hurt. Although she was avoiding both of them, she enjoyed just being close to them and now they would both be going to fight. She might never see them again.

As soon as the sun had set, and the camp had settled down for the night she left her hut. She was heading to find Leofric, but she encountered the Dane instead. Uhtred had grabbed a hold of her wrist, stopping her in her tracks and forcing her to look at him.

"I might die on the battlefield." There was a certain look in his eyes, one she had seen from nearly every man that looked her way and already she was rolling her eyes at his words.

"Then I hope you keep a tight grip on your blade, you deserve to reach Valhalla." She forced a smile, her eyes scanning the empty camp and looking for an escape but everyone else seemed to be sleeping already. Her eyes finally looking back to Uhtred. "What do you want from me?"

"For you to stop avoiding me. Stop pretending the moment we had didn't exist." His hand moved from her wrist now, to rest against the side of her face which made her sigh softly. She hated to admit how his touch seemed to make her feel. He seemed to know exactly what she was thinking in that moment, sensing that she must have felt something too because he leaned down to kiss her. Her lips finally responding as she kissed him back, but then she realised what she was doing and pulled away quickly.

"Do not die." She mumbled before pushing him away from her, running from him as he laughed to himself. She was confused about what she was feeling. She knew she loved Leofric, but she found herself drawn to Uhtred too. She never expected to feel this way.

She wandered around the camp, finally finding Leofric sitting beside one of the fires and having a drink before he went to sleep to ready himself for the battle. She sat down beside him, reaching over to take a sip of his ale before she let her head rest against his shoulder. She felt him tense, he always hated these public displays and she understood. But Uhtred had just kissed her – out in the open where anyone could have seen them. And he held no fear in showing it. She instantly moved her head from his shoulder and stared out at the empty camp.

"You've been avoiding me." He finally spoke, he assumed him admitting how he truly felt had scared her away. Not that she was grieving for their lost child because he could never know.