The Cripple and The Shieldmaiden II

// 2 //

The sunlight slipped to the cracks of the wood, warming her skin while she laid in the curve of Hvitserk his arms. Torhild opened her eyes and looked to his chest, the steady breathing of his chest that came up and down. She turned her head a little to look to his face, peacefull and still far away. For a couple of minuts she just looked at him, hoping that last night would give her something that he secretly always wanted. He was a good father for Raynor but she was sure he wanted one of his own. 'You're staring.' He murmured.
'Admiring beauty.' She corrected him. He opened his eyes with that charming smile on his lips, but she didn't smiled back.
'What where you thinking of?' He asked, running his finger over her back. He held still on that spot, she still had the scars from years ago, when a soldier stabbed her and she almost lost her life.
'You. And what I can't give you.' Her eyes traveled away from his, not wanting to see the reaction in his eyes. He pushed her over, pressing her with her back in the bed, hovering over her. She pushed his braid over his shoulder and looked up to him.
'If the gods don't want this it is for a reason. Besides,' he came closer, pressing that softness of his lips against hers. 'I have a son.' He said. Torhild runned her fingers over his chest, looking to him with all the love she had.
'We should get dressed, I think that son missed his father.' She said just before he pressed his lips on her skin again. She started to laugh and knocked him away.
'You still train?' He asked surpriced.
'I'm still a shieldmaiden.' She reacted dishonored.
'Mine.'
'Yes, yours.' She promised him. A promise she gave someone else years ago but he fealled that promise to her so she could do nothing more than break hers to him.

Raynor was fighting with a wooden stick when she and Hvitserk walked in the great hall. 'Father!' He yelled. Hvitserk lifted him in the air and smiled before he turned to Torhild. 'Mother.' Raynor greeted her with a tender smile. She greeted him with a kiss before she walked over to the others.
'And? How much childeren did you make?' Ubbe joked. Torhild slapped him against his head and sat down aside her brother. Eira and Freyr, the childeren from Ubbe ran through the great hall and Lagertha had to avoid them while she walked over.
'Eira.' Margrethe tried to get her daughter under controle because she almost ran over the queen.
'Don't mind, I love all this young life.' Lagertha smiled. Hvitserk sat down besides his brother with Raynor still on his lap.
'We did good.' Ubbe nodded approvingly.
'The gods were very generous with all of you.' Lagertha smiled looking up to Björn his two sons he had with Torvi. The eldest one was ready for his first raid aside his father.
'When we gonna raid?' Raynor asked curious.
'When you that big and strong.' Torhild pointed towards her own brother. Raynor picked up his wooden sword and jumped away from his father running after the sons of Björn. He always leveled himself with the older boys, they had more challenge for him, or at least that was what he though.
'How was the raid?' Torhild asked curious while taking some bread over from Margrethe. Björn looked aside to Hvitserk.
'Good, more lands, more to win. Lot like England, stone walls, the temples are different, langruage to.' Björn said. There walked a viking by, dragging a slave behind him.
'A lot of treasure?'
'Enough to keep us warm this winter.' Hvitserk winked. She was planning on making a observation on that one but she didn't. A slave filled her cup and she drank a couple of sips before all heads turned to a Ase walking in.
'We have company.' She announched.
'Who?'
'Our friend from England.' She answered.
'Many?' Lagertha asked a little concerned. It was a long time ago that some vikings from the settlement came by.
'One ship.'
'Bring them in if docked. Thank you Ase.' Lagertha said. Ase bowed and walked out. Torhild turned to her bread, looking outside to be sure Raynor would be safe. It didn't took long for Ase came back with to vikings after her. Torhild stood up and walked over to her mother who sat on the throne. As a adviser she had a little say in what news there would be offered. 'Did the gods gifted you a good travel?' Lagertha asked them friendly.
'Yes my queen. Princess.' They bowed for the two of them. Torhild nodded and looked aside to her mother.
'What news do you bring?' Lagertha asked. The others where still, even the childeren looked curious.
'We are here in name of Ivar The Boneless.' And that name pushed the shivers down her spine. After four years this was the first time somebody came in his name. Normally Halfdan would send man but now it was Ivar and Torhild didn't know how to react on this.
'What does he want?' Lagertha looked aside to her daughter but Torhild didn't react. Her gaze froze a little, trying to let his name not be a influence to her body or mind.
'We discovered a legacy during a raid.'
'From?' Torhild asked confused. Raynor walked over and stood besides his mother, the two men looked at the little man. Raynor had already a lot of power in certain ways of looking, no doubt he was just as intimidating as Ivar could be.
'King Ecbert.' The left one said. Torhild her jaws clenshed a little with the sound of that name.
'And what does that have to do with uss?' Lagertha asked uninterest. When they sailed home four years ago Torhild demanded an answer, only was the answer not that bright. In fact ... Torhild hated the idea, being half saxon because her mother had something with a king. Nobody knew, except for the people present in the room now.
'I had to say, Ivar his words,' the vikings swallowed. They changed uncertain looks with each other. 'If you think that he is an idiot you should know better.'
'He knows.' Torhild hissed. She walked away from her mothers side.
'He is demanding your presents.' The one said after Torhild. Torhild turned around and looked back at the both of them.
'Tell Ivar that if he wants me to come he just can come get me himself.' She forced a smile on her lips, walking further.
'Love.' Hvitserk came after her, telling Raynor to stay behind. When she was outside she turned around to Hvitserk.
'I'm not claiming a throne in England, I'm still viking.'
'And we know that but there are a lot of our people over there who could benefit from this. Besides, we don't know exactly what that legacy holds.' He tried to calm her down. Torhild looked away, to the sea who she could see from this paticular point.
'After four years.' She whispered. 'And he has the courage to demand my presents.'
'It's Ivar, who knows what he had already done in that time.' How could he stay so relaxed under this. Torhild looked up to him, to his steady calm eyes.
'I'm not going. I'm not leaving Raynor.' She comfirmed for her own. She laid her hand shortly on his chest before walking away.

It was dark when somebody finally found her. 'I knew you where here.' Ase smiled softly. Torhild looked up in a short moment before she looked back to the steady waves. On the other side of this living water layed England and she hated the country. The only thing she had in a good way there was love but even that broke down in thousand pieces. Ase sat down besides her, looking in the same direction, wandering in her own thoughts for a moment.
'What had that legacy to say?' Torhild asked after a couple of minuts.
'To his still living son or daughter, a kingdom of two and rights to the throne, the army, a lot.'
'I killed my own halfbrother in cold blood and my mother just stood there and watched it happen.' Torhild whispered. When her mother told her she was a daughter of King Ecbert she ran of in first instinct. Her body didn't want to except that she was half a christian princess. Maybe that was the reason England was so fond of her the first time she went there.
 'You could do a lot of good Torhild.'
'And a lot of bad. Certain kingdoms won't accept my claim, nobody can prove that I'm the daughter of Ecbert, I don't even know the man.' She sighed. Why did this had to happen on a moment she just figured everything out.
'Your mother has prove apparently.'
'Always prepared.' Torhild murmured. Ase fell silent for a moment, giving Torhild time to overthink this. She had to go, she didn't had a choise. It was good for her people, claiming a throne would involve a battle maybe but she had an army, two kingdoms, she had it all if she just ... claim her place as an heir. What meant she had to tell everybody who her father was.
'You don't have to do this alone, I'm going with you, Ubbe volenteert to.'
'And Hvitserk?' She asked softly.
'He follows you everywhere, you know that.' She smiled gentle.
'I rather have him staying with Raynor.' Torhild whispered, looking away from the waves to her friend.
'Don't he has a right, to know his true father?' Ase asked carefull. Torhild shook her head in her own struggles, looking back to the sea.
'I don't know if Ivar can handle that. I can't hide it, Raynor is just him, even Ivar will figure that out when he sees him. If I come to shore with my son there is no going back. He can hate me for keeping Raynor away from him or,'
'You can bring him home again.' Ase worked further on that sentence. Torhild nodded slowly. Was she willing to risk everything for Ivar again, her happiness, her love, her son? Ivar didn't said a word when she left and after four years he would maybe see her again, meet his son for the first time. How could do that any good to an all troubled mind like his?