In which Ragnar Lothbrok raids England for the first time and in the process, he not only spares a monk named Athelstan, but a slave girl he ends up naming Tova. However, he soon learns that things involving the girl are not what they seem and she i...
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Hours had passed and Tova found herself sitting in front of the fire, shivering.
Bjorn sighed, walking over to her before he placed his cloak around her. He affectionately rubbed her shoulders for a brief moment before walking away.
Tova sighed and turned, watching him curiously. "Why are you not yelling at me?" She asked, a confused look on her face.
"What reason do I have to yell?" Bjorn retorted, earning a puzzled look from Tova.
"You told me yesterday that you wanted to be with me, that you wanted to marry me. I agreed yet this morning you found me trying to kill myself," Tova reminded him and Bjorn rolled his eyes at her.
"What am I supposed to say?" He argued, sighing in frustration, "I have no right to tell you what you're going through is not reason enough to kill yourself. I don't know what you're going through. I've never endured such pain before. I've never had to result to crawling around just to avoid using my legs because they hurt too much. I've never woken up to find my legs completely numb almost every morning," He paused, moving toward Tova before he knelt before her, "But you were found by me for a reason. The Gods willed it. If that isn't reason enough for you to continue living, then I don't know what is."
"You think the gods wanted you to find me?" Tova asked, frowning in confusion.
"You were miles away from this cabin. The only tracks I found in the woods were only a few feet from where you sat on the ground. I could have searched in any direction, yet I chose to head east. How could I have known you had traveled in that direction? There were no tracks. It was the will of the gods. They wanted me to find you. They want you to live. So you must not try it again," He insisted, cupping her face in his hands, "Promise me you will not do it again."
As Bjorn continued to hold her face in his hands, Tova remained silent, avoiding eye contact with him. "Promise me, Tova," He demanded and Tova sighed in defeat.
"I promise," Tova replied, an uneasy look on her face.
"You have much to live for these days. You will break the hearts of thousands if you were to die. Mine most of all," He confessed, causing them both to smile softly, "I love you and I want to spend my life with you, Tova. Don't take that away from us by killing yourself. We could be happy together."
"You would be happy with a cripple for a wife?" Tova asked, letting a loud scoff.
"When that cripple is you, most definitely," Bjorn replied as he smiled jokingly, "I have loved you since I was just a boy and didn't even know what love was, Tova. I loved you then and I love you still and I shall love you no matter what."
"Promise?" Tova questioned, smiling softly.
"Only if you promise not to try to kill yourself again," He demanded and Tova began to glare at him while he smiled innocently.
