The Nephilim & The Maiden

T r u s t

The sun was just peaking up over the mountain tops when I made it back into town. The rumbling in my stomach grew even more uncomfortable as the smells of smoked meats and spices wafted passed my nose. I looked down at Vidar who trotted next to me, panting happily. I wondered when it was the last time he had anything to eat. Sticking my hand into the coin pouch tied to my belt, I found two coins and hoped it would do to get enough for the both of us.

After some haggling, I managed to get two nice sized smoked fish as well as half a loaf fo bread. Escaping the now bustling market, I took Vidar to a quiet place by the sand and we both dug in. The pup hungrily devoured his food before I had a chance to even pick at my fish. When he finished, he licked at the crumbs around his mouth and then looked up at me with his striking amber eyes. I reached out a scratched at his ear, "That's enough, don't want to get an upset belly."

"Are you talking to that animal?" Ivar asked, his tone a teasing one as he crawled up next to me, moving his legs around to the front of him so he was sitting as comfortably as he could get.

The pups' tail stopped wagging as he saw Ivar next to me. I turned and watched Ivars' lips turn down for a moment in a scowl before he reached out to the wolf and grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and brought him up so that the two were face to face. Ivar examined the animal, turning him from left to right before he finally put Vidar back onto the ground. "Hmm, so this is why you didn't come home last night."

Home? That word seemed like such a foreign concept to me. I haven't felt at home since the death of my father. And to hear Ivar imply that his home is mine and where I belong left me even more confused, particularly because of the events at the feast.

"Home?" I questioned.

Vidar nipped at Ivar's fingers as he reached out to me. He pushed the pup away from the two of us, angry that the animal had tried to bite him. "Yes, home. You know, where you live?" He spoke mockingly. "You did not return after the feast."

"To be honest with you, Ivar," I spat, "I didn't know if I was even welcome."

Ivar furrowed his brows. "And what makes you feel so unwelcome, hmm?"

"Don't play stupid with me. You and Ubbe planned your revenge on Lagertha and not only did you not speak to me for days before hand, you didn't bother to tell me. And when you had your men detain the ones you knew were loyal to Lagertha you had me captured as well!" My voice was loud as I yelled but I didn't care who heard. I was sick of his mind games.

"So you think that I don't trust you?"

In that moment, everything made sense. "I never once said that I thought you didn't trust me. You were the one who said it. And honestly, now I know that you don't." I sighed loudly in frustration, "Loki! I was an idiot to believe you the other night."

The fire lit behind his eyes and I knew that I must have struck a nerve. "Believe me about what, because I said a lot of things to you." Ivar moved so that he was almost on top of me. His chest was pressed against my shoulder as he looked down at me making me feel impossibly small beside him. My heart was racing in my chest and I could already feel my body tensing, waiting for whatever physical assault was about to take place.

Ivar's hand moved to the back of my neck, he used his fingers to move my head so that I was not only looking him in the eyes but also so that I couldn't escape. "You don't believe me when I said that I thought about you every day I was away from you? Or don't you believe that I love you?" His grip grew tighter and I moved uncomfortably under him. "Which is it, Briet?"

"I-I didn't mean that,"

"Well then what did you mean?" He snarled. Vidar started growling, his hair on the back of his neck standing at attention as he saw Ivar hurting me.