The cripple and the shieldmaiden

// 5 //

Torhild loved to watch her mother fight, she was the main reason that Torhild wanted to be a shieldmaiden. Her mother looked fierce, whole in black, her blond hair braided so it wouldn't get in the way of the exercise. Nobody was as good as Lagertha and she prooved that by tackeling Astrid to the ground. Torhild couldn't keep a little smile behind. She looked at her brother for a moment who stared intensly towards Astrid. Torhild shook her head, focusing all her concentration on the training she all had on a plane field. Her mother showed everyone how it's done before she let Torhild train against one of her shieldmaidens. Torhild took the wooden sparring stick and stood opposite of the woman she didn't really knew. In the past two years she had trained so hard, was never really nervous but now ... it was the first time she could prove herself to her mother, her brother, half the village that came to watch. The woman bow shortly and Torhild nodded only, turning her polse so that the stick found his balance in her hand. And than the woman attacked, Torhild parried the first blow and pushed the woman two steps back again. The most important thing she had learned was to be in control of your emotions. She couldn't let her anger or frustrations go, she couldn't be sad or act out. She couldn't give attention to everyone who stood watching. Every move the woman maked came against a wall from Torhild. Her fellow shieldmaiden couldn't find a weak point in Torhild her defens and that brought a little grinn on her lips. 'Attack sister.' Björn said. Torhild maked a diversion with her stick, turning half before smaching her stick on the weak points in the back of her knies. There was so much power in the action that the woman her legs flew underneath her body and she fell with her back against the ground. Torhild turned her stick and pointed it to the woman her throat. She looked up to her brother who nodded approvingly. Her mother stood besided the fire and smiled proudly. 'Can you handle your big brother?' Björn asked while pulling his sword. Torhild tilted her head and took a big breath.
'Sure want to try.' She gave in. She turned to some friends, saw Ivar lurking from over a rock. She looked for a moment to him before she took a sword and axe.
'Two weapons?' Asked her brother curious.
'I'm more in balance with two.' She answered him. Björn was a whole lot bigger than she was but she didn't let herself get intimidated by that. But Björn was ruthless, his power took more energy in the battle than she thought it would. She could hit him one time ... he could hit her a lot more.
'Your shoulders are a weak point.' He said after hitting her there again. Torhild started to sweat, breathing heavy but didn't gave up until she supriced her brother at least once by almost slitting his stomach. But the attack back forced her on the ground, she dropped her weapons and gave herself over. 'I'm proud of you sister.'
'You beat me.' She panted. He smiled and helped her up.
'You rule with your head, what makes you a good warrior.' He said while gaving her a good shoulder pet, what really hurted. Her mother took her in an embrace.
'You have grown so much my daughter. Go raid with your brother, one day you will be as great as he is.' She smiled tenderly. Torhild nodded and cachted her breath for a moment, looking for Ivar but like she though he was already gone.

Her brother left two big bruises on her schoulder. She looked at it throught the mirror and pulled her dress over it before getting the braids out of her hair. Her long dark hair felt over her shoulders and covered all what was left to see from those bruises. The great hall was filled with a handfull earls and distant kings. Her mother sat on her throne, Björn stood with his brothers. Only Ivar sat a little further. 'Still mad?' Torhild asked him while sitting a little further from him. He didn't look at her, he looked at Lagertha. His gaze was so strong, so angry that Torhild almost was willing to asked to keep his anger for himself. But her attention leaded towards Ubbe and Hvitserk who wher wathing her, Hvitserk said something and they both looked kind of impressed.
'I heard you kicked some serious ass.' Ubbe grinned.
'I lost from my brother.' She replied while looking at the other people. Some of them she knew, others not.
'Everyone looses from Björn.' Hvitserk said. She looked at him, one eyebrown up.
'I don't need you comfort.' She smiled. He chuckled and sat beside her, shoulder against shoulder, like she was just to it from him.
'The great heathen army turns back to Engeland, because I think we have not seen it all.' Her brother began loudly. Half the men started to bawl, the other half nodded intensly. 'Thanks to King Ecbert we have a settlement there, what we gonna use. I know others want to raid further.' Björn went on, his gaze fell over Ivar for a moment and Torhild followed that gaze towards the youngest son of Ragnar.
'Didn't you want to go back to Paris and beyond?' One of the earls asked. Björn nodded, started to walk around between the leaders there were.
'Some of my men are still in Engeland, if we go there first we can assamble the army again and sail to Paris.'
'Will uncle Rollo give you save passage again?' Hvitserk asked. Torhild looked to him before she looked at Björn. It was nice to be in this kind of meetings again. She didn't respond much of what was said but it was good to hear the plans.
'He will.' Björn nodded. There was that grinn on Hvitserk his lips while he leaned back again, his hand against the small of her back. Torhild frowned her eyesbrows and gave him a look, he only gave a promessing look back.
'My son, I want you to bring King Harland back from Engeland, he has to pay for his act of war against Kattegat.' Lagertha began. There felled a silent that Torhild didn't quite understand. 'King Harald his men attacked Kattegat while we were in Engeland.' Hvisterk explained.
'How bad?'
'Bad enough. It got Torvi killed, she lost a lot of shieldmaidens.' He asnwered quietly. Torhild looked back at her mother but like always she sat there with a straight face.
'King Harald has his ambitions in Engeland for now.' Björn began against his mother.
'He should die.'
'I will punish him mother.' Björn said. Lagertha looked away from her son to Torhild.
'Will you go to Engeland?' She asked her daughter. Torhild felt all eyes on her now.
'If you want me to go.' Torhild said slowly.
'Than Torhild will punish King Harald, if she's up to it.' Lagertha decided. Torhild bow her head a little as a sign she understanded it. She never had punished someone before but if it was so bad as Hvitserk said it was than it couldn't be that hard to do. Besides, she never liked King Harald much.
'Are my brothers coming?' Björn asked looking towards his three brothers.
'I will.' Hvitserk agreed. He did it because Torhild went to, she wasn't that stupid.
'I will join you.' Ubbe nodded. Torhild looked towards Ivar who looked at Lagertha before looking at Björn and nodded.
'Good, we sail over a week.' Björn decided. Torhild felt a schivering from excitement down her spine. Her first raid and that in the company of the sons of Ragnar. Torhild looked at Ivar who crawled outside without anybody noticing him leaving. She waited a couple of minutes before she stood up and walked out of the great hall. She looked into the dark but nowhere she found those bleu sharp eyes. Torhild sighed and leaned against a wooden pole outside the builing. They were pratcical best friends and now he didn't wanted to talk to her. She turned her head a little when she heared someone walking outside. She felt two hands around her waist, his breath against her ear.
'Can I have you now?' Hvitserk asked quietly. Torhild smiled and let her head rest against his shoulder.
'You always had me Hvitserk.' She replied wispering.
'No, you were always out of reach.' Hvitserk never gave up on her. Björn was always so protective about Torhild, but she were a woman now and Hvitserk knew that her brother couldn't protect her anymore. It wasn't that bad, Torhild always had a weak heart for Hvitserk. She turned around in his arms and looked up to him, his eyes so intens and bright, his embrace almost safe. 'Can I take you home with me?' His fingers stroke her cheek and she closed her eyes a little before she nodded and looked back at him. He pressed his lips against hers and she trew her arms around him. Hvitserk pushed her backwards the little stairs off and she started to laugh by the tight grip he held on her. Hvitserk had a talent of making everything so easy, like there was nothing other on the world than just him and her. He brought her to his home, a new place for her. She walked the house in and looked around but the only thing he could look at was her. She felt his body against her back again, his lips against her bruiced shoulder.
'Carefull.' She said. Hvitserk almost tenderly stroke her hair over one shoulder so he could she half the bruice on her shoulder.
'Did Björn did this?' He asked, his fingers on the knot that held her dress together. She looked over her shoulder, looking at the bruice that covered half her colarbone before nodding. He untied the knot on the back and pushed her dress over her shoulder. 'It will heal.' He wispered, pressing gently kisses over the bruice. Torhild turned around and kissed him like she never had before. 'I really missed you my love.' He wispered against her lips. Yes, she did to and she showed him that now.