Bildsfell Village, May 12th, 991 AD
Everything is hot and stifling. I keep my eyes open for as long as I can in fear they might change their mind about me and drag me out of my bed in my sleep and hang me as one of their sacrifices.
I had heard them talking about sacrifices yesterday when I was out doing the chores set for me. They spoke of who was going first and when it would be and how they needed more of something. More of what? I wonder. People?
My eyes stare at the red fabric strung between the beds, and my eyelids grow heavy. I want to sleep, but my mind keeps wandering back to yesterday when they swung an ax down on the hen’s head, who could no longer give them eggs. She was considered useless, so they ate her for dinner.
The scene keeps replaying over and over and sometimes when I start to doze, I dream for a few seconds, maybe longer, that I will be their next chicken when they no longer want me for that man’s wife and will get beheaded by the very ax that killed the beautiful hen.
I keep tossing and turning in fear. When I get restless, the man sleeping next to me too becomes so. I turn on the bed and he shifts, his arm hitting my stomach hard, knocking the wind out of me. I move to my side, fully awake by the blond brute who snores loudly, ruining my sleep. This is a recurring problem I face every night.
It seems the older woman, who is deemed as the two brutes’ mother, doesn’t like the idea of the man known as Frey near me for too long or I being completely alone with him. She doesn’t trust him, and I am worried about that. So, in the end, I am made to sleep next to the blond, who I later learn is Leif.
It’s been a couple of days, perhaps more, but everything has been a blur since I arrived here. The first night when that man who marked me arrived home, I couldn’t help but become defensive and immediately pushed myself away from him, going to the far corner where my back wasn’t open for any attack. They laughed at me. The only one who didn’t laugh was the man I puked on. He sat silently, eating his stew by the fire. Occasionally, he glared at me but hardly spoke during the meal.
When the man, Frey, drew near me, his mother got involved and made him sit far away from me to eat his dinner. She later informed me that it was too dangerous to leave us alone, especially with me being so young and Frey probably not knowing his bounds and according to her, would do more harm than good.
So, most of my days are spent with the woman trying to teach me things like weaving baskets or farm work which I am not used to at all. Usually, I become frightened by their methods and get frequently laughed at, especially when the rooster tried to chase me when I was cleaning the chicken coop, and all I could do was scream and run.
At night, most of my time is spent with the blond man in bed who, like I said, is not someone you can sleep next to in peace. I am used to having my own bedroom, but here I am not granted any privacy. They all slept in the same room, their beds pushed together, with very little space in between. The only privacy is the red blankets strung between the beds.
Leif and I sleep at the very far end against the wall, then in the middle is the older man and woman, then at the end, having a bed to himself, is Frey, who I am not supposed to go near until I come of age. A rule made by the older woman.
The first night I slept next to Leif I felt awkward and weird, but now it is just plain annoying, and he irks me. I was told never to sleep in the same bed with a man whom I am not married to, and I am doing just that. I bet if mother or father were here, they’d smack me for it, but I don’t really have a choice...
I grab the blond’s arm, tossing it off me, then sit up slightly, pushing the fur off my body. The first night I was too scared to run, the second, not so much, and I tried escaping when everyone slept, nestled into their beds.
Somehow, Frey knew, and before I could even take a few steps outside the door, he was there, behind me. His blue eyes eerily watching me, he kept saying something to me, and I was dragged back inside the house. If I am to guess, he was lecturing me...about something.
The second night, I was forced to sleep on the wooden bench instead of the bed, and across from me was Frey who didn’t take his eyes off me until morning, not even for a second.
I now slide out of the bed, the memory not pleasant in my eyes, and I just know he has already heard me as the wooden floorboard creaks. I quickly walk past all the beds, trying not to look at any of them. A pressure in my lower abdomen is telling me I have to pee and for that, I need to go outside, despite my hatred for the dark.
To my luck, none of them sit up, and I quietly open the door, escaping the indoors to properly relieve myself in peace. I still can't believe they don’t have chamber pots...animals, I tell you. Digging holes in the ground to pee and do other things...something I don’t want to think about too often.
I look around after shutting the door and instantly travel toward the wooded area for some privacy. I swallow once before going a bit further in and immediately think how everything looks so different in the night compared to the day. A lot quieter...and scarier.
The farther I go, the darker it gets and the harder it is for me to see. I startle when I hear an owl hooting in the distance.
Finally, I just want to get it over with and relieve myself, so I lift my dress and as I am about to bend down, I hear a twig snapping not too far from where I am, somewhere in front of me. I whip my head in the direction of the sound and call out, dropping my crumpled dress, “Who’s there?!”
No one answers and my breathing quickens. I back away, taking care to be silent, not wanting the thing to grab or chase after me too quickly, at least not before I can get further out of his reach.
I hear another noise really close to me and see a large shadow-like being emerge from the darkness. I scream at the top of my lungs, knowing what I’ve seen is the devil. I find my inner strength and run as fast as the wind.
As I sprint out of the forest, I notice someone come dashing out from within the large home, and it is none other than the dark-haired man with the moon on his forehead – Frey.
I usually avoid him, but fearing what is behind me in the dark more at the moment, I run toward him for the first time and instinctively latch on to him, throwing my arms around his waist.
I feel him jerk back slightly with the force I smash into him and as I hold on to him, shaking, I do not let go. There is something there! I know it. It looked bigger than anything I have seen before. And if I am going to be eaten, he also is going to get eaten.
But wait, isn’t he a devil too? Would they fight each other?
“What in Loki’s name got you so damn scared?” He says something, but I still don’t understand his words. He stands still and doesn’t touch or try to comfort me. Better off that way, anyway.
“There’s something in the woods,” I tell him, pointing toward the forest, hoping he would understand my fear, even though I know he isn’t fluent in English or doesn’t even comprehend a few basic words.
He looks at the woods, seeming to get most of what I said, then he pushes me away from him and looks down at me.
He crinkles his nose slightly and points to my dress. “You pissed yourself.”
I stare at him in confusion, and as the fear wanes and I seemingly forget about the devil in the woods. I feel something warm trickle down my legs, and my dress suddenly gets damp. I look down, and my cheeks heat after seeing the wet and darkened fabric below my waist.
I then pull further away from him, feeling uncomfortable in my own skin, and lift my dress slightly away from my legs.
I squirm and avert my gaze, and I hear another voice this time, Leif, as he pushes past his elder brother and speaks to him. “What scared her so badly for her to piss herself?”
Frey responds to whatever he has said. “I don’t know. Something in the woods, I think.”
The blond chuckles and smirks at me, then the woman pushes past her two sons and speaks to me in English, “Oh, what happened? Did you have an accident? Don’t worry, we can find you another dress and get you cleaned up.”
If the heat in my cheeks could get any worse, they would have by now. I grab the fabric of my dress tightly, not knowing what to do or where to clean myself, and I keep my eyes trained on the grass.
She makes her way toward me and holds my shoulders. I am about to follow her when I hear another sound emerge from the forest and whip my head toward it. I stiffen in fear.
“The devil is back! I just heard it!” I yell, pointing to the woods. The blond Viking and the woman look up as something begins to reveal itself from the darkness.
I move closer to the woman; my humiliation disappears as my fear returns. I hate this place so much... Back home I would just use my chamber pot, and this wouldn’t be happening to me. I would also have mother for protection... I wish she were here with me.
Then the devil reveals itself. It turns out it isn’t so much of a devil to them, just the man they call chieftain and father.
He sneers, and the mother sighs. The man says something to the family, his voice sounding annoyed and fed up. “Does the thing always have to embarrass itself when it sees me? What did you even bring home, Frey? It is a disgrace to this family.”
“Arvid,” the woman growls at the man in their native tongue. She seems to be disputing with him. “If you don’t keep on scaring her, maybe she won’t do those things. What were you even doing out so late at night?”
Are they fighting about me? I think, panicking slightly, my breath quickening.
He scowls, walking toward them. Frey too is scowling at the man. His father replies, dragging something as he responds to the woman. “Hunting for tonight’s dinner.”
He drops a large deer a few feet away from everyone, then Leif starts laughing, and looking towards his elder brother, he mocks, “Yeah Frey, what did you even bring home? You know it isn’t too late to get rid of it.”
Before I or anyone else could react, Frey’s eyes look fiercely at the blond. He raises a fist and punches his brother as hard as he can.
Leif stumbles back, holding his jaw, his expression between shock and anger as he stares angrily at his older brother, his eyes flickering to a lighter and brighter blue.
The dark-haired man storms back into the house and before the blond can even think about hitting him back, the woman growls. “Boys! Don’t even think about fighting!”
“Mother, he hit me first!” replies Leif.
“Then don’t provoke him next time. That’s his mate you’re talking about,” she responds, her voice sounding sharp.
“But you let him get away with everything,” the blond whines before he “tsks” and storms off into the woods, complaining about something. “You know what, forget it. I’m leaving! I will just go to the mead hall, then sleep in the barn.”
The mother scowls even more and glares at her husband. “See what you caused! Now our boys are fighting.”
“They always fight.” The man responds uncaringly, his snarl worsening.
She just glares and says something as she grabs my shoulder tightly, pulling me back to the house. “You know what, Arvid. Stay outside with your deer. Let it keep your bed warm.”
She then says in English as she focuses her attention on me, “Now, let’s get you cleaned up and into dry clothes. I have some fresh water inside.”
I can only nod as she pushes me into the house, slamming the door shut behind her, leaving her husband outside. But at least with Leif gone, I can have his bed to myself and maybe forget this embarrassing night. Or like everything else, perhaps it will haunt me forever.
Comments (1)
See all