He was the conqueror. She was the sacrifice.
He was powerful. She was unexpected.
He was certain. She was uncertainty.
He formed a nation. She formed his world.
Together they would make history.
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xiii. The Confines of Dishonesty
"What did he say?"
Kari looked up from her meal with a questioning expression, her eyebrows furrowing in confusion. "What?"
"The Saxon king. What did he say to you?" Harald clarified, his arms crossed over his chest as he placed both his feet atop the table.
As he asked her that, she could not help but recall the words that the old king said to her, how she looked so much like her father. It reminded her that this new world that she had joined, she would have to navigate this one carefully too.
To make matters worse, Harald did not seem too fond of her father or her half-brothers. He was only there for pride and loyalty to his fellow men. It had nothing to do with the man itself but rather the legacy that they would all be leaving behind.
Especially since they had defeated kings and armies alike. It was no easy feat and would be counted amongst other stories that would be retold.
"Nothing. He was mad. Just some things that didn't make any sense." She shrugged noncommittal, spooning some stew into her mouth.
"What did he say then?" He challenged, raising a disbelieving brow.
"He was spurting out nonsense. I don't know." She retorted, glaring at him angrily for trying to force the topic at hand. With her short temper, she pushed his feet off the table and attempted to leave.
He clutched her arm, beckoning her to look at him. "I want the truth, Kari. I know you heard something, something that must have struck a chord for you to react the way that you did."
She exhaled, somehow calming down from the feeling of his large encompassing hand on her arm. "Why do you want to know so badly? Is it that important to you?"
"Yes! It is." He exclaimed, wanting to make it clear that he wanted to know what it was that was bothering her so that he could put a stop to it, not so he would have his daily taste of gossip.
"Why then?" She asked, wanting to understand why he wanted to make such a thing be his business. It was not his problem to address. The last thing he needed was another girl's issues.
"Because it affected you and I-I wish to help." He said, finally letting go of her arm as if he had only just realized that he held her.
She had a certain effect on him that no one else had. Somehow she could make the rest of the world feel like nothing, feel useless in comparison to her. Every time he was near her, it was as though she was the only thing that mattered.
It was similar to how he made her feel. Stubborn as they were, none of them dare address it but being in each other's presence made them have their own world.
That was the reason why Kari found herself telling him the truth of what King Ecbert had said. "He said I looked like my father, that I had his eyes."
