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Skade hummed quietly as she combed out the tangled in her sister's hair. Skade couldn't help but admire her sleeping twin, she looked too peaceful. Unlike the seer, Skaldi's face was free of tattoos and allowed her natural beauty to be seen. She looked so innocent as she rested and Skade felt dread fill her stomach when she realized how many men would take advantage of this situation.
Skade placed the comb down as she sat on the bed, she reached out hesitantly to caress Skaldi's cheek. Skade traced her twin's cheekbone and moved the fallen strands from her face. For years now, she had made it a routine to feed her sister broth to keep her healthy and brush her hair to avoid it becoming unsightly.
"Her hair is so long, like something from a fairytale." Bloodhair spoke softly as he leaned against the uneven cave wall, Skade ignored his smile as she gazed down at her sister.
"She always loathed long hair, she would grab the nearest blade when father looked away and cut it off. She looked beautiful regardless but short hair suited her." Skade smiled at the memory. Their father had locked Skaldi away for the night as punishment so Skade spent the night making a flower crown for her twin, it was a little lackluster in Skade's opinion. The flowers had wilted under her harshness and the stems had spilt her fingers open with its hidden thorns. But Skaldi adored it anyway, she refused to take it off until the flowers turned brown.
"Will you cut it?"
"I will not do anything she has not consented to. Enough of her life has been taken from her with no choice. Even if you see it as a mere detail in the grand scheme of things, I do not. Every little detail matters, especially now." Skade hissed out and Bloodhair held his hand up in surrender. He knew Skaldi was a sensitive topic and often pushed the limits. Bloodhair moved next to the twins and rested his hand on Skade's shoulder.
"I cannot promise much but if your vision is true, I will do everything in my power to help her. When I kill Alfred, I will send men to every village in Wessex and find the person with those mismatched eyes. You will get your sister back." Skade clenched her jaw as Bloodhair used his knuckles to caress Skaldi's cheek. Skade knew he meant every word he spoke but she failed to believe he could promise her anything but pain.
Meanwhile, Skaldi was having the time of her life. In her mind, she had created a world to escape the void of darkness and the numb coldness that followed. She walked barefoot in the field of dandelions, the beauty of nature was always something she enjoyed.
She let her finger skim the petals as she weaved in between each flower, she smiled as bees and butterflies hovered around her curiously. She waved at the insects with a bright smile that stunned them for a moment before they continued their duties, Skaldi reached her destination.
Skaldi lit up when she noticed Skade was already sitting on the blanket and menacingly carving runes into a nearby apple. Skaldi always loved the differences between them, it made her feel safe knowing her twin would go to great lengths to protect her.
"Sister!" She shouted with glee and crawled onto the blanket as Skade flicked her nose. Skaldi made a noise of complaint while rubbing her sore nose before looking around, it was always nice to experience the livelihood of nature with Skade, it was comforting.
Skaldi was unaware that the entire place was an illusion, that the two twelve-year-olds were now in their twenties, and that her last memory of Skade had shaped this into a haven to forget the pain she endured.
"Why do you always draw those?" Skade questioned as she propped her chin on Skaldi's shoulder, she looked at her in confusion before realizing her hand was drawing a set of eyes again. She furrowed her brows as her hand continued to map out the eyes even with her trying to stop. She had left a trail of parchment paper everywhere she went, each had a set of eyes that she had known intimately.
Those eyes haunted her dreams since the age of eight, she never knew why, just knew that the person was meant to find her. To become her destiny. Skaldi watched as her hand finally paused and she admired the art before her, the eyes were beautiful.
The right eye was a beautiful brown, she had used a light layer of mud, with a hint of green bleeding through, and she stained the paper with grass that she had rubbed into nothing. She had even managed to color in the gold flecks with some amber from the willow tree she slept under. On the left eye was a piercing blue eye that she used barely ripe berries to get the exact color and used a flower petal to add the grey that balanced the color out.
She had spent endless hours creating these eyes she knew how to make them with her eyes closed, and she could pinpoint each little detail with hesitation. She only wished to know who that belonged to, to see if they were half as beautiful as their eyes.
"They are my destiny, sister. I do not know why, it makes no sense." She mumbled as she let her finger trail lightly over the eyes looking back at her.
"Maybe, but why would they ever help someone so pathetic?" Skaldi quickly covered her ears and curled her knees to her chest, she began to mumble a spell Skade had taught her.
These evil versions of Skade were appearing more and more lately, sometimes even as the creatures in this paradise. And on more daunting days, they would hurt her. She could still feel evil! Skade's hands were around her throat as she struggled to breathe.
She kept her eyes closed as the darkness faded away and left her alone once again, she hadn't noticed that she kept the picture clutched to her chest for protection.
Skaldi opened her eyes slowly and frantically looked around for any sign of danger, instead she found a cluster of baby bunnies nibbling at her toes. She giggled quietly and rubbed their tummies when they let her, she had seemingly forgotten all about the dangers closing in on her and focused on the bunnies hopping around.
Once again, she was unaware that Skade had cast a new spell to block the darkness and remove any negativity that she held in her heart. She was protected for now, but Skade wasn't sure how long her twin could survive.
