A Ballot of the Wolf and Merc | Ubbe Ragnarsson FanFic

War and Mead

Roaring drunk past the point of a giddy tipsy. Not a single pair of lips in the grand Longhouse room hadn't at least slurped down three separate horns of mead. Intermixed with the shots of spirits going around. Far more potent than a heady draft, all of the young drunkards, and singled out middle aged one, were going to have hangovers their forefathers would feel.

The later happened when a shared drink amongst the sons, Eleri included, turned into an all out fracas of liquor down the nearest gullet. The late Queen Aslaug's youngest servant, Margrethe, even partaking halfway in when Hvitserk insisted with a kind smile she join.As she was just as much kin to them. The female servant sheepish to the invite until Ubbe and Bjorn both clearly were happy to have her join.

With as much liquor that'd past Eleri's lips as well as Ivar's, so much bubbly even deafened the stiff competitiveness the viking and varagain normally held. Leaving nothing but giggles, unbecoming jokes and well oiled lips talking over one another equally as loud before bursting into snickers around the room.

Draped like wet furs all over the room, even Bjorn reclined back in a well padded wicker chair with nearly empty stein hanging from one hand only by a few fingers hooked onto the handle. Nothing but the dredges of a fourth poorly drawn horn of mead in the bottom of it. Ivar, torso over the arm of a larger seat, unexpectedly facing Eleri. The woman herself planted on a sunken down padded stool. Sigurd between her propped up and splayed knees like a large inebriated mutt right on his bum on the floor. Ubbe lumped in with the two as he sat behind Eleri. Cock-eyed in his chair with a leg resting on the arm of his seat and the other on the ground. Giving Eleri the backing to lean against while still being partially held down by a very shit faced Sigurd. Hvitserk across from Ivar with his arm swung behind Margrethe as she relaxed back against and beside him in their shared seat. Surges of laughter the only thing causing the group to move but each time they'd settle back into their drunken little slumps.

"B-hic-But no no no-" Eleri proclaimed against Bjorn's recent idea about the grandness he was bringing together of vikings never done before, not to mention the ego going along with it. The varagain slumped into Sigurd;s back and waggled her finger at the eldest, "No no listen hear-" the varagain paused to cover her mouth with her forearm mid burp, "-You two have been down furthest! Further than anyone else here!" Eleri motioned to Hvitserk and Bjorn being the only ones that'd gone so far south, then to the rest of the room with no experience thus far, herself partially included, "Y-Yoou've been that far...that far and- and hah that one's actually got the best idea!"

Alcohol having done stranger things in the world, it was Eleri's undiscerning agreement with Ivar's tactical change in Bjorn's endeavor that stunned the gaggle drunk vikings in the room.

"We are not going around, waste of time!" Bjorn not even undraping the arm from his eyes, the thirty year old not sure how he wasn't suffering from alcohol poisoning this far into it. Age the devil's advocate for losing the edge to drink like he use to, "That's just stupid to-"

"Go around and completely surprise them!" Ivar no less loud or intense drunk only pounded away on his point, "Stupid is going with that strategic-"

"And if we don't then we lost our advantage!" Bjorn barked.

"But if we go around, Aelle won't expect it," Hvitserk, eerily unfazed as he drained fifth thing of mead, tossed his cents into the ring now that it opened up past just Ivar and Bjorn nittering at each other.

"We no idea of his fortress," newly voiced Ubbe shook his head and the thin blond brows on his forehead pinched together, "Ivar does not recall enough to know which side, such a gamble would be-"

"Would worth it!" Ivar's face that of general disgust with Ubbe advocating their half brother instead. A much more pleasant look towards Hvitserk when the youngest's blue eyes moved to his second oldest brother, "We would win, we would take what is rightfully ours!"