"Run!" Yelled Vidkun, the current ruler of Vanaheim, to his wife who was holding newborn daughter. Vanaheim was under attack from Jotunheim.
Idony looked at her husband with fear in her eyes, "To where do you propose I go?" she said while holding their daughter, Astrid, closer to her chest.
Vidkun walked up to them and he grasped Idony's arms tightly. "Take the Bifrost to Earth. Take up earth names. Make sure none would be able to tell who you are. I will come get you when it is safe to come home." Idony looked in her husbands eyes with tears in her own. "I love you both, but you must run for it is not safe. I will see you soon."
With that Vidkun ran off to defend Vanaheim and Idony ran in the other direction tword the Bifrost with baby Astrid in her thin arms.
Vanaheim was pure chaos, and the palace where the royals lived was no exception. Idony was pushing past the people running in her direction, she needed to get to the Bifrost as soon as possible for if she took too long, her and baby Astrid may not survive the attack. People were running in every way possible, trying to get away. A rather large woman ran straight into the queen and knocked her over in her frenzied panic.
When Idony fell, Astrid flew from her arms and landed amonst the civilians in the crowded halway. "Somebody! Please!" She yelled from the floor. But no one could hear her above the panicd shouts.
A man with brown hair, a beard, and kind brown eyes rushed to Idony's aid and helped her up. He instantly noted that Astrid was not with the queen. "My lady, where is your daughter?" He asked in a panic. She just pointed to the crowd trying to explain but all that could come out was a muffled cry. The man looked down to a 6 year old boy at his side, "Go find Astrid! She is somewhere in the crowd."
The boy nodded quickly and got on his hands and knees and crawled through the masses of people to find the tiny baby lying on the floor crying. A woman nearby had people move out of the way so the boy could carefully deliver the baby to her majesty. "I found your baby Lady Idony!" The boy said when he brought Astrid back to her mom.
"Thank you!" She exclaimed. A huge bang came from at the end of the long hall, and the noise level increased greatly when everyone noticed that the Frost Giants had found their way into the palace. "Quickly, we must go!" Idony grabbed the hands of her new friends as they ran with the crowd.
The boy quickly veered to the right into a play room filled with toys for Astrid. "This way! Through the servants quarters!" He said as he appeared to open a hole in the wall. The big burly man went first and once inside turned waiting for Idony.
Idony's grey eyes frantically looked around the room. "Take Astrid." She said handing her only child to a man she had just met. "Take her to the Bifrost. You all must go there and then go to Earth. Get 'normal' names while you are there. We will get you when it is safe to come home. I must stay here, I'm the queen and it's my duty."
The man grabbed her arm and pulled her into the tunnel. The frost giants were comming into the room so the boy quickly closed the door so it looked like a normal wall once more so they wouldnt be able to tell it was anything but. "Fine. But, you must stay in this tunnel until it is safe for you to come out of hiding. When the palace is secure."
Idony looked once more at her daughter with tears in her eyes. "Alright." She then moved to take off a gold necklace from her own neck and place it on Astrid's. "Please, keep my baby safe. The kingdom needs her."
"I will do my best mam." He said. And with that, he turned and ran down the tunnel, 6 year old boy at his side, and Astrid, the future of Vanaheim, in his arms.
"Valo!" Yelled the tiny girl with the golden pigtails from the over-sized bed that practicially engulfed her tiny body. "Valo!" She cried again.
The man that saved her 4 years ago soon rushed in. "Ashlynn, what is it?" He asked worried.
The toddler looked at him, green eyes brimmed with tears. "The thunder and lightning is so loud.. It's scaring me Valo.." She cried.
"Oh," He smiled, "It's only Thor. He must be playing in the clouds again." He then sat on the bed and pulled Ashlynn into his lap. "You see, Thor is the god of thunder. He's a young boy, about your age in fact. So, because he is young, he knows not yet what he is doing. Little boys like to play and make messes and noise, and that is simply what he is doing. There is nothing to be scared of." He said while hugging Ashlynn tightly.
"Why is Thor in the clouds?" Asked the girl.
"Because Thor is the god of thunder. And, like all gods, he stays in the clouds. Gods are supposed to stay in the clouds. It's their home, where they belong." Valo smiled down at the little girl who felt like his own. "Go to sleep now, Ashlynn. I love you."
Ashlynn looked up at her protector with her big green eyes and smiled. "I love you Valo. Nightnight." She held her arms out for one last hug before she laid her head on the pillow and listened to the thunder. "Silly Thor," she said to herself with a smile, "it's night time, go to sleep little god." And with that, the secret princess of Vanaheim closed her eyes and fell asleep.
It would be nearly 14 years before she learned that not all gods are supposed to stay in the clouds.