"Ívarr" Esther yelp out after turning around to see the tall boy sitting right behind her. "When did you get so quiet?" She chuckles with a fond smile on her lips.
"I wasn't quiet" The boy reply with a confused look on his face. "Maybe you are just getting old" He teased the older woman.
"And you won't be getting any older if you play with the wrong people" Esther retort with a grin but there was hint of a warning hidden in her words, Ívarr had a bad habitat of mouthing off to anybody he came across if they did anything he didn't like. "Now what brings the prince of Kattegatt out here in the middle of nowhere"
"I met a girl-" He began but was quickly interrupted by Esther.
"A girl? You've finally met a girl? I must tell Floki, you must bring her down here soon" She squeals happily at the thought of Ívarr finally meeting someone, she had been waiting for someone who could put up with his mood swings.
"As I was saying, I met a girl and she refused to tell me her name" He complained with a groan at the end. "Does she not know who I am? But she said she does, so why would she not tell me her name? It is just a name"
Esther suddenly sniffs the air and Ívarr look at her strangely. "What are you doing, you crazy woman"
"Oh don't mind me, it's just that there's love in the air" She mischievously grin and wiggle her eyebrows. "Maybe finally you can become a man, oh Floki will be so happy. "
"Esther!" The cripple snap with an irritated look on his face. "I'm not marrying the damn girl, I just want her name, we have... unfinished business"
The previously happy and giddy look on Esther's face drops immediately at his words and a glare form in her eyes. "What did she do?" Esther knew that sometimes Ívarr was the one that started things but she would never tolerate someone treating her darling Ívarr badly despite whatever mess he had gotten himself into. Something that sometimes got on his nerves, that she sometimes got involved personally in his business instead of letting him handle it, but he appreciated it. He needed someone that loved him, someone that supported him and would always stand besides him through whatever the gods threw his way. Yes, he would be lost without Esther, the kind woman that meant everything to him. He couldn't remember how many people he had hurt for doing something, he thought, was wrong towards her. His loyalty would always be towards her, she could do nothing wrong in his eyes.
"She fell on me, it hurt" He replied after a few seconds of tense silence. "As you can see by my eyes, they are very blue, she could have broken one of my bones"
"And did you hurt her?" Came Esther's immediate response.
"No, she ran away. She does not fear me" He confess with a slight downtilt of his head, looking up at the blonde woman through his long lashes. "I caught up to her and asked her name, she would not give it to me"
Esther hummed, patting him once on the head and then skipping away. Ívarr stared stunned after her, even after all these years he have known the woman and her husband they still manage to surprise him. He had expected her to at least comment on the fact that someone could have potentially broken one of his very fragile bones, brought him excruciating pain and even hurt his feelings. So her walking away as if he had only told her the sun was shining was strange, almost too strange.
"You sneaky woman" Ívarr grin to himself, that girl better watch herself for she had no idea what was coming for her.
Atla was currently sitting on a large boulder in the middle of the busy trading streets of Kattegat, a fresh loaf of bread in her hand and a horn full of warm mead. Her dress was full off grass green stains after looking for nice worms for her chickens to eat, and her feet were cold and sore. She would have to go home soon, but she wanted to enjoy the for once warm and nice weather. It was not often that the days were as sunny as this, nor as warm or without rain.
"Hi" A soft voice greet her and she turns around confused and alert.
A beautiful pale blonde woman dressed in a long pale green dress was standing just a few meters away from her. A warm smile on her lips, and a cupped over her eyes to protect her eyes from the sun. Her eyes were surrounded by a thin coat of kohl and her hair was braiding in a lot of small intricate braids.
"Hello" Atla greet back with suspicion painted all over her face. "Who are you?"
"I'm Esther" The woman greet her with a small joking curtsy at the end. "Who are you?"
"I am At-nobody important" Atla respond, scolding herself for almost telling the strange woman her name. "Why are you here Esther?"
"You are just full of questions" Esther giggle, a light melodious sound, relaxing Atla's tense shoulders. Surely someone as pure-looking as Esther couldn't be there to harm her. "I am here simply because I wish it so"
This intrigued the shy girl sitting on the boulder. " Did you come for me?" Normally the girl's ego wouldn't dare assume that such a beautiful woman such as Esther could possibly have been looking for her but the show down with Ívarr earlier brought a sudden ego boost. It's not like she hasn't seen Esther around before, on the contrary, she sees her a lot. Often in company of the sons of Ragnar or a man, Floki, that she assumed was her husband. "Are you here because of Ívarr?"
"Smart girl" Esther compliment her, though there is no sincerity behind her words. "I heard a very interesting story from him today, about a girl that fell on him and then ran away"
"He is so dramatic" Atla huffed and rolled her eyes. "All I did was stumble and he happened to be there, he chased me and so I ran"
"You ran from a crippled boy? Are you aware of his... condition?" Esther ask, her face and eyes hardened. She was in protective mode.
"I know that he is a cripple" Atla said plainly. "Not anything more than that"
"There has been rumors for years, some true and some not. I will not be the one to tell you the details about his condition, that is his choice" Esther sat down besides her on the rock with fluid, graceful movements. The movements of both a dancer and a fighter, the strength could be seen in her every move. "I am here because you hurt him, and no one hurts my Ívarr"
" I didn't know he had women fighting his battles, I thought him man enough to confront me himself. I find myself disappointed that it is not so" Atla was very worried how this was going to end, Esther was a very famous shield-maiden and she had previously not had a face to match the name but now she did, and yet she continued to provoke the woman that was clearly only looking out for who she thought of as a son. Atla knew that if Esther wanted her dead she would be dead before she could even blink, but Esther was not only famous because of her skills but for her gentleness and kindness, and her... uniqueness.
Esther cackle at this, as if the words meant nothing to her. As if the meaning and insult behind it did not bother her. "You really think that's an insult, being a woman? By the gods girl that is ridiculous. I could knock every one of those men out with my pinky if I so wished. As for Ívarr not being man enough to do this, he does not know I'm here. I look out for my own, and this is but one of the things I would do for that boy. Believe me, you should be happy that I'm the one confronting you and not him, he is much more prone to anger than I."
"It was an accident" Atla finally force out, intimidated by the harsh glare from Esther. " I didn't mean it, and then I got scared and ran"
"And that is all I needed to know." Esther gets up on her feet and brushes off invisible dust from her dress. "You're a smart girl, you know what will happen if I find out you've done anything to harm my Ívarr."
Atla nodded with a tense smile. "Atla"
Esther abruptly stops and swings back around to face the girl with a confused look on her face. "What is Atla?"
"My name" The girl responded, her shoulders dropping. "You'll tell Ívarr it as soon as you see him, won't you?"
"No" Esther giggle. "A bit of a challenge is good for the boy and I think you will give him that"
Atla watch as the strange woman walks away, or in her opinion, glides away. She was so confused, was she to be punished for this or did Esther just come here to scold her and give her a warning. Though there wasn't much scolding, or promises of punishments. It seemed almost as if Esther was testing her, especially with that last sentence. Maybe Esther hadn't come to see her to threaten her, maybe she had come to test her. Yes, Atla conclude, it must have been a test. A test she hoped she had passed.