The Prophetess *COMPLETED*

Chapter 9

That night, we ate and drank well.

The village repairs were finally done, the crops were on time, the dead were buried with honour and everything was well again after the harsh winter. 

Except for the little knowing looks Thora was giving me. Throst was bound to notice them soon, no matter how much I glared at her, upset, she wouldn't stop. By the hundredth time she gave me a look, my temper was so frayed I growled, earning everybody's  surprise. She shook her head with a tiny smile on her face and after we finished washing the plates, she went to bed, taking her son with her.

Since arriving, I had changed the main room, to have more furs and pillows all over the floor near the fire, so that in cold nights we could all lay down near warmth and be comfortable. 

Throst was sitting in the furs with a horn full of mead when I came out drying my hands. He was wearing a brown tunic over dark trousers and his feet were bare, pointed towards the fire. I kneeled next to him and he pulled me against his hard body, hugging me against him. My heart beat very fast, and I was sure he could listen to it. The roar of blood in my ears  was louder than the sound from the fire!

"Why are you so nervous?"

"Because I have something to reveal to you, my Lord Throst." Once again, I reverted back to english courtesy when nervous.

"Well? Do say." He prodded me.

I took a very deep breath. "I'm..." the words got stuck in my throat so I had to take another deep breath, "I'm pregnant, my lord."

"Pregnant?" He asked me, dazed.

"With child." I confirmed. Then added softly. "You are going to be a father."

I found myself flat on my back, Throst leaning on his elbows on either side of me before I could even discern the emotions in his face.

"Are you sure?"

"I did not even know until today, my Lord. It was your sister that revealed it to me. I have had no show of blood for two months, and my body is already changing. You have noticed that yourself, my Lord."

He kissed me passionately, his hands on my body. Then, he stopped with a tortured look in his eyes. "Is it safe?"

"If you are gentle, my Lord, it is.' He kissed me more gently, his hands revering my body as if I was the Goddess Freya Herself. Before I noticed it, we were in his bed, no garments between us, our bodies entwined beneath the furs. His hands constantly touched my belly were his child was nestling itself, growing. His mouth kissed my neck, where he had learned it gives me the most pleasure, and his hands roamed my body freely, with no boundaries. He poised himself on top of me, his manhood already touching my center, but then he stopped and looked at me intently.

"Marry me."

"What? Are you jesting me?"

"No. Marry me." Upset, I struggled to sit up, and he allowed me, thinking about the babe.

"Are you daft? I am your slave, I'm from another culture."

"You integrated yourself in the community very well, and slaves can be freed. There is naught to worry about." He said sensibly.

"You thought I was a spy to your brother." I said, my voice sounding hurt, which is something I wished he did not know.

"And you have since then proved you are not. Marry me. Make our child a legitimate one. Be happy with me." He insisted. I, however, noticed how he said be happy with me as opposed to let me be happy with you, or let us be happy together. The rose coloured glass fell then, and I realized that if I did not marry him, my child would be a bastard, illegitimate and vulnerable. I did not want to. He spoke no words of love and there was still his distance, but I had no choice now.

"I will." He pulled me back to him, and entered my body with a hiss of passion. I lost myself in our coupling, and long after he fell asleep, I kept thinking, how had my life come to this point.

In another village, very near from them, a hooded figure spoke with a group of mercenaries, it's hands full with bags of coin. It was evil, beneath a facade of civility. Nobody supected the hate for ThrostArdwynson so badly as to pay someone to kill him. But not yet. His sister had to die first. Then his little foreign slave. Throst Ardwynson would be a broken man, and then, the figure would reveal itself, letting him know who was responsible for his misfortune in the last breath of life.

No one was near, and no one could hear what was said. If someone had looked inside the old barn where the group was conversing, they would have only seen a dark cloaked figure and a group of roughly twelve men. There were no remarking characteristics from any figure, and even in daylight someone would be hard pressed to recognize them. The agreement was struck, the monies were exchanged, and the men departed, each to their own holdings. There were no witnesses to report what had transpired.

In Throst's bed I woke up with a very bad feeling. I did not know what was wrong, but I felt danger. Like something bad was about to happen. I tried to focus, to break past my unruly mind, to see what was wrong, but I saw only darkness ahead. I decided to talk to Thora in the morning,to tell her what I felt. Throst moved during his sleep and pulled me closer to him so I dismissed the omens for the night, certain that there was nothing that could be done until the sun rose.

That afternoon, me and Thora went to collect wild berries in the woods. Brye was with me, but Thora had let Thurin at home, to be cared by the nanny. The woods were calm, the animals peeking at us from a long way, but not fearing us. The bushes were full of flowers and berries, and the light from the sun, peeking from the tree tops made everything seem magical. Like something out of a fairy tale. 

We were quiet today, each lost in our own thoughts. I kept thinking about Throst marrying me, and his tactic to get me to agree. It was cheating, getting me so aroused to then stop unless I agreed to marry him without throught. And to my shame, he had succeed, I had agreed.

We picked the berries, and I used it as a lesson to Brye, teaching her which were poisonous. which were not, and I laughed at her antics. She was still a bit sad from her parent's passing, but she was budding day to day and I was happy because of that. I cared very much about her, and wanted her to be a child once again. I did not want her grief to transform her in an adult overnight. Yes, she was traumatized and she would never be the little girl again, but at least she was getting as much of a childhood as she could.

Grey shadows showed between the trees, but I felt they were peaceful and meant us no harm so I let Brye go with Thora ahead and purposefully set back, by myself. I felt their message, as a source-less voice in my head.

We are those with no voice, the ones lost between the land and the veil. Wrongs have been done, and wrongs have to be made right. Make the truth come to life, Ailith of Ainsley, now Tyra, and you will make your own life greater.

"How can I help." One does not deny the spirits and comes out unscathed.

Make truth light the darkness of wrong. There are those who seek to destroy you, and they are the ones who made this injustice. Care for yourself. We will be watching. And the voice ceased, leaving me alone. I heard Thora and Brye's laughter and hastened to go to them, pale faced. 

"What is wrong, sister?" Thora asked, but I couldn't tell her. Her words from the day I arrived echoed in my mind.

Her husband was dead in an accident very similar to the one who almost killed Throst as child. Could that be the key? Was it about Throst? How could I know for sure?