Vikings-The Trick Of The Gods

Three.

Perched upon an ornate wooden chair, she peered down at me. Her soft caring eyes were nestled into her strong powerful features and seemed almost out of place. They put me more at ease than the hungry eyes scanning me from the sidelines. Wild and untameable, much like the fire in her eyes, her icy blonde hair fell down either side of her neck and trailed down her chest. It was braided intricately forming a thicket upon her crown and plaits framed her face, hanging by her ears. Her eyes were bright and almost bore into my soul, accentuated by the dark eyeliner around them, yet the feeling was comforting as if the gaze from this woman was come form of protection and, by the way the others seemed to look to her now, perhaps it was.

The man who carried me here began to talk to her. I watched carefully knowing not what they were saying even though it was clear I was the subject. They both spoke with a thick accent that was foreign to me and they enunciated in ways I have never heard before often leaving pauses in strange parts on the sentences.

Suddenly, the woman gestured to me waving her hands her voice questioning and the man looked around at me too. Whatever she said cause uproar in all the onlookers and I glanced down to what they were all looking at.

My small frame was covered by a night dress my mother had bought me. It stopped short just above my knees. From under it I could see my thin pale legs and my feet were bare. I felt embarrassed by how I was dressed all of a sudden and curled my toes under feeling self conscious. The dress itself was a dark purple with golden writing on it though I never actually knew what it said as the font was so perplexing.

I balled my tiny hands into fists in front of me, intertwining my fingers. A subtle creaking sound brought my eyes upward and I saw the woman had risen from her chair and began walking towards me. I looked to the man who found me for comfort, though I don't know why; he still frightened me a little. Cold but reassuring, he nodded at me. He trusted this woman. As she finally reached me her voice got softer. Speaking only to me now, she knelt down in front of me and said several things of which I understood none yet for some reason one word stood out.

She looked deep into my eyes and placed her hand on her heart in between the furs resting over her shoulders.

"Lagertha"

It must have been her name and as she said it she looked back at me expectantly expecting me to give my name in return but I couldn't bring myself to speak. Lagertha sighed and stood placing her hand gently on my shoulder. She addressed the crowd and whatever she said was met with discontent. Eyes from every part of the room bore into my skull as the onlookers muttered to one another shuffling and twisting around to whisper to those behind him. Lagertha's voice grew suddenly into a storm and all voices stopped though I could see the anger in their eyes.

"Bjorn..." Lagertha started followed by other words that bounced around in my head failing to collide with any part that could make sense of them.

It was the same word that was said as the man walked in with me... perhaps that was his name? Whatever Lagertha said spurred movement in the man and he walked towards me resting his hand on my protectively, replacing Lagertha's. Gently he guided me out of the building, returning the stares of the others with a protective fury in his eye.