Virago - Ivar The Boneless

Ivar Notices

Iona watched on from the sidelines as Floki approached the youngest of the Ragnarssons. As she watched she noticed the interactions between the two men. Floki gave Ivar something which Floki helped attach to the crippled legs of the young man. 

"What are you doing?" Hvitserk's voice made her jump before he sat next to her on the large rock she sat on. 

Turning her head, she looked at the dirty blonde man. "I was just watching," she kept it short as she looked at his hair which was falling out of the braids he kept it in. Returning her gaze to his she sighed as she pulled her knees up before leaning against him then staring back ahead again. "So, you're going with Bjorn?"

He groaned as he realised she knew the truth. "Yes, but it won't be for long."

A cold laugh left the lips of the young woman as she watched Ivar get to his feet before using a crutch to take his first unaided step. "My mother said she wouldn't be gone for long either." Lagertha had hurt her daughter by leaving and not taking her along. No matter how much Iona could have taken care of herself at the time, she felt sad not being with her. 

Hvitserk moved his arm making Iona sit up straight before he used his right hand to gently move her face so they were looking at each other. He stared into her eyes, the colour seeming to change from icy blue to a haunting green as he kept his hand under her chin. "I promise," he knew she was scared of being alone but she would have Ubbe and Sigurd here in Kattegat. He also knew that if the time came and it was required, Ivar would defend her too, so he hoped anyway.

She pushed his hand away before she looked down, "Don't make promises you can't keep, Hvitserk." Her attention went back Ivar who seemed to be enjoying his newfound freedom on the brace that had been put on his legs. "Whatever happens, I want you to come home though." She didn't make eye contact with him as she spoke her caring words. It wasn't like Iona to say caring things so when she did it was hard for her to look at whoever she was speaking to. 

"I'll be back," he told her slowly before he placed his hand on her knee, a friendly gesture which made her look up at him giving him a smile. "If you like," he laughed as he took his hand away from her leg, "When I get back we can get married. Maybe you will stop acting so strange then," he nudged her shoulder before he got to his feet and gave her a wink. 

Iona raised her eyebrows at his words. "We wouldn't work out," she laughed before he walked away leaving her alone. 

Returning her gaze to the youngest of the four brothers, she watched him as he stopped to speak to Floki, the older man treating the cripple with the same respect a father did for their sons. A few minutes passed before she realised those ocean blue eyes were staring back at her. Her eyes widened but she couldn't tear her eyes away from him. 

Ivar stopped listening and talking to Floki as he kept his gaze on the blonde daughter of Lagertha. She intrigued him but he couldn't work out why. He didn't want to be the first one to look away but the more he stared the more he realised she wasn't going to look away first either. 

The contact was broken when Floki stood in front of the young man, putting his hands on his shoulders. Iona's eyes flashed as she shook her head. Pushing herself up from where she was sat, Little Bear headed away from the where she had been. The sun had not heated her well but luckily she had her cloak on which did keep her warm and as she walked along she felt the wind against her face. 

XOXOX

A few days passed by, no one had left yet, apart from Ragnar but he said he'd be back shortly. He'd told Lagertha's daughter that he would say goodbye before he left but for now, he was just going to see a friend. She was sure that he wasn't going to go as he promised. Although Ragnar had not been in her life very long, she had a good feeling about him. 

As Little Bear threw her axe, she watched as it buried into the tree trunk. She was determined that she wouldn't find herself back in the same position she was in when she was in the forest. She couldn't let herself be vulnerable, she couldn't show her weakness and if that meant pushing herself to the limit then she'd be okay. 

Walking to the tree, she ripped the axe from the trunk before she ploughed it into the trunk again, ripping it out and hitting it over and over as the sweat dripped down her forehead due to the repeated blows she was delivering. Slipping her cloak from her shoulders, she let it fall around her feet before she continued with her angry strikes into the wood, the sound echoing and the hitting causing a vibration on the trunk. 

A chilling snigger behind stopped her as she put the axe into the wood one last time. Looking in the direction it had come from, she narrowed her eyes at the person who was watching her. 

"What do you want?" She asked spitefully as she put her hands on her hips and looked at the young man who was watching her. 

His right hand was wrapped around the end of the crutch which he'd been using to help keep himself upright on his crippled legs. Stopping near to a tree, he used it to steady himself as he watched the blonde before him. "You're weak, Iona."

She hated his words, she hated how she let him get to her even though he meant nothing to her. Ripping her axe out of the tree, she moved it between her hands as she decided on her next words. "As are you," she told him as she swiftly threw the axe in his direction narrowly missing his head, the blade taking a few strands of his loose chocolate hair out. 

He didn't flinch, he simply let the axe glide past him before he let out a sigh and shook his head. "If I am so weak, tell me why my father has asked me to go to England with me."

Iona raised her eyebrows as she walked towards him, she kept eye contact with the blue-eyed wonder whose stare was intense. "It does not matter where you go, it does not matter who you are with, you will always be the same. You will always be bitter, self-obsessed and a cripple." The words that were spat from her mouth were cruel and uncalled for. 

Ivar gripped her cloak tightly dragging her close to him, she watched as the rage distorted his face but she let him think he had the upper hand, a smirk appearing on her lips. "You will never be more than my brother's whore. Your mother might be the great Lagertha but you will never be anything like her." 

She had listened to enough, using her hands she pushed herself away from him. She fell down on the cold earth below her as she glared up at him. Pushing herself up from the floor, she narrowed her eyes as she stood up to him. "You won't be known for anything, the only claim you have is being Ragnar's son." 

The hairs on the back of her neck stood up as he moved his right arm back, her eyes catching the sun glint off his war pick. Stepping back from him, she watched wide-eyed as he laughed coldly at her. "I know you're scared," his voice was calm as he let his arm fall at his side. 

"I am not," she snapped back quickly as she tried to cover her true feelings. 

It wasn't so much that she was scared, she was not scared for her life, she was scared about how his actions made her feel. The hostility and anger stirred a feeling inside of her which she had not felt for a long time. 

"When you're scared," he told her as he stepped towards her. The step was small but made him close enough that he could hear her jagged breathing and watch the colour changes in her eyes. "The colour of your eyes change."

She watched him carefully, she didn't want to tell him too much about herself. "And what colour are they now?" 

His ocean eyes were almost blinding as he examined her, the smirk that crossed his lips caught her off guard before he spoke. "Black."

Little Bear swallowed hard closing her eyes and listening. She heard her own breathing alongside Ivar's, hers was deep and quick, his was calm and collected. Opening her eyes, she stared into the piercing eyes on the youngest Ragnarsson, she started to feel a little light-headed as the stood in front of each other. She didn't speak back to him, his lips were still curled up as he watched her. She had to get away from him, walking past him, her shoulder bumping into his abruptly as she stalked off, grabbing her axe from the floor as she went. 

"See you tonight, Iona." His voice was the thing of nightmares as he bided her goodbye. 

Shivers ran down her spine as she ignored him, walking away, her heartbeat not slowing as she headed home.