We are all blind

Family-bonds

It has been a week since the confessions at the beach. Helga had been ecstatic when the news of the new couple broke. Floki was as well but Aslaug seemed to be the happiest of them all. She had actually squealed in excitement. Finally, the alliance would be stronger than ever. Ivar had not proposed marriage yet but that didn't matter to the queen. She knew it was only a matter of a short time before they would be husband and wife so she had already started preparations. Floki was even building a boat for the ceremony on Aslaug's order. 

Sidsel was still unsure of the whole marriage thing and she had voiced her concerns to Ivar of course, letting him know that she wasn't sure if she could fulfill the duties of a wife and grant him, children. He had just scoffed at her and told her that he didn't care about such things. He also told her that she was being silly for thinking he only wanted to be with her to reproduce. 

Ivar seemed happy but annoyed at his mother's fussing. His brothers seemed happy for them, except Sigurd, but since when was he ever happy when something good happened to Ivar?

Sidsel had come with the Ragnarssons to a fishing place outside of town. She had been laying on a fur curled up to Ivar's side and felt the sun caressing her face while she heard the other brothers in the background, fishing and splashing each other with water once in a while. They were talking about everything and nothing as they would have before but the difference this time was that Ivar would steal some kisses from her lips and hug her closer than ever before. Every time he did, her heart started to beat faster.

She sat up once Ivar told her he had to go and relieve himself. When he was gone she could hear someone else approach her from the water. She waited for the person to let her know who it was before speaking to him but when she heard his deep sigh as he sat down a few feet from her she knew it was non-other than Sigurd.

"You know, you're probably scaring away the fishes when you splash around like that", she started. 

"How would you know?" he sounded very rude, Sidsel thought. She shrugged. "I'm blind Sigurd, not a fool", she simply replied. An uncomfortable silence started and Sidsel wanted it to go away even if her next question would make the situation worse.

"Why are you so angry at Ivar all the time?" 

"Why are you with him? He's crazy", he answered quickly. 

"No, he is not", Sidsel insisted. "I think you are crazy. You don't treat him like a brother, you treat him as if he were a burden". 

"He is", Sigurd's voice was almost hateful. He despised his younger brother, something Sidsel would never ever understand. 

"My siblings have never treated me like I was a burden", she whispered. 

"Well, my family is not like yours. I don't even have a real mother, she only has eyes for Ivar", he sounded so bitter. 

"Why do you despise your brother for your mother's neglect? It wasn't his fault that no one else loved him or believed in him and you should be happy that your mother is still alive. You can still try and mend your relationship with her and with Ivar. Stop pushing them away Sigurd".

He grunted and muttered something under his breath that Sidsel couldn't hear. 

Maybe she was biased since she clearly liked Ivar more than anyone else. She never liked how people would talk about him. Like he was a lesser man than anyone else just because his legs didn't function the way they should. She didn't like how his brother treated him either. 

Maybe she didn't understand what Sigurd went through. She had lost her mother when she was only a young ten-year-old but at the same time, she had felt the love from her mother. She still did even though she was in Fólkvangr with Freyja. Her father was another story entirely. 

"I still can't believe that you want to be with him instead of any of us other", Sigurd muttered. 

"Why are you so jealous?" she asked in annoyance and heard him stand up. 

"I'm not jealous, I pity him". With that said he stormed off. Where Sidsel couldn't tell because she found herself feeling angry at her future brother-in-law. I pity you, Sigurd, she thought to herself and turned her face to the direction of the sun so she could distract herself with the feeling of its rays against her skin. 

She sat by herself for a few minutes before she felt the presence of Ivar by her side again, making her smile and lean in to his touch when she felt his and on her cheek. 

"Sidsel?" She hummed in response as his thumb slowly caressed her cheek. There was a long pause before he continued;

"Marry me".

She stopped breathing for a second and her heart skipped several beats. 

"I already talked to Royd since your father is not present and he said if you wanted it, he would gladly accept on your father's behalf. And we both know how my mother feels about it". 

The thought of marrying Ivar scared her. Everything had come so soon, but yet, not soon enough. They had spent almost every day together for the last couple of years.

"I-Ivar, I want to but-"

"No but's", he cut in. "I don't care if you can't give me a child, or that you can't cook or do things as smoothly as another wife can. That is not why I want to marry you", he continued. "Just know that I will protect you and never let anything bad happen to you - ever", he cupped her face in a firm grip and just looked at her impatiently. 

She bit her lip in thought and put her hand on top of his and traced it until she reached his arm, his shoulder and then his face. She stroked his jawline softly, feeling the stubble of his nonexisting beard. Everything moved painfully slowly for Ivar before the answer came.

"Yes", she finally said and gave him a reassuring smile. "Yes, I will marry you". 

She felt his lips crash against her own in a heated kiss that took her breath away. 

Sidsel suddenly started to laugh when they broke the kiss. "What is so funny?" Ivar wondered. She fell back against the fur as her laughing fit continued. "It's just the fact that a blind woman and a crippled man are getting married."

He joined into her laughter.

"Oh, how they're going to underestimate us, future wife."