Good Morning, Little Ones! I know still lots of questions, but answers will come I promise.
Thank you to Mel and Jill.
.: Sjau :.
The world is too bright, and for a moment, it leaves me completely and utterly blind. I reach out to steady myself against the thick wood of the building that I've just slipped out of, blinking desperately so that my eyes adjust faster. There is an urgency spurring me on, and I take a step before my eyes have fully focused.
I take in my surroundings as I step away from the heavy door.
The building beside me is small, with a grassy roof and strange carvings around the wood frame door. There is a larger building down the path—a house, maybe. My eyes roam the area, taking in the carefully corralled livestock a ways away and the neat patches of plants growing in what looks like a well-maintained garden.
I have no idea where I am because despite the height and depth of color in the trees surrounding the area, not a single corner of the scene in front of me looks like it's Washington.
Willing my feet to move, I start toward the nearest treeline. If I can stick to the edge of the forest, maybe I can follow it somewhere safe.
My bare feet slip in the tall grass as I step off the worn path, and the moment I start running, I can't stop. My heart is thundering in my ears: run, run, RUN!
I'm nearly within grasping distance of a large tree when I hear the heavy footfalls telling me I'm being chased. My heart rate picks up, my pulse beating so hard I can feel it in my eyes. I don't know what I expect from the forest, but right now it's the only safety I can picture.
I pour everything I have into my sprint, and my hand reaches out, the pads of my fingertips brushing rough bark before a massive weight collides into me, tackling me to the ground. Every gasp of air is expelled from my lungs as I slam down into the soft earth.
For a moment, my body is in too much shock to feel pain, but then it comes, and I gasp, struggling to get air back in my lungs. Somehow, I landed on my back despite the fact that I was certain I was falling face first. The weight of a fully grown man is on top of me, crushing me like a mountain sitting on a flower.
I am so small and he is so much more than massive.
My heart seizes in my chest.
This is closer than I've ever been to anyone. I can't feel parts of him, because I don't know what to be feeling for, but he is long and heavy and completely surrounding me.
I don't know what to do, and belatedly, reflexes start to kick in. I push at his chest, trying to tell him without words that I cannot breathe.
Above me, Edvard shifts onto his elbow, and that frees my chest enough to suck in a deep breath.
Copper strands of hair are tickling my face as he looks down at me, and I'm caught in the perfect evergreen of his eyes. It steals what little breath I have away.
He smells like woodsmoke and leather and honey.
He is even more beautiful and terrifying in the light of day.
"Get off me," I whisper, my words shaking as I become trapped in his gaze. Now that I'm this close to him and seeing him in proper light, I wonder if maybe he is younger than I originally thought.
He blinks, long black lashes brushing against his tanned cheeks, and the spell is broken. He shakes his head, muttering something that sounds like a complaint as he starts to lift himself off me. He looks down at me as he pulls himself further onto his elbows, scowling. I swallow hard and glare back at him, feeling a little stronger now that he's not so close.
He mutters something to me, and my eyes get trapped, watching his mouth form the unfamiliar words.
When he stops speaking, I look up at him, swallowing hard. "I'll knee you in the balls," I threaten. I get the feeling he doesn't understand my language, but there must be something in my eyes that tells him exactly what my intentions are, because he shifts his pelvis away from me, lifting more of his considerable weight from pressing me into the soft grass.
He shakes his head at me, a few more words falling from his mouth as he stands.
I'm still lying in the grass, staring up at him in a mesmerized silence. He's tall and heavily muscled, which scares me as much as it thrills me. He's obviously lived a hard life; I can see it in his stance, in the scars on his arms and strong hands.
He's wearing a simple green tunic and brown trousers. He's not carrying the terrifying battle axe, but it makes him no less formidable.
He says something to me, and I can hear my name slip out from between his lips. He holds his hand out to me, and I hesitate. He huffs and bends over, taking my small hands in his and hauling me to my feet. I go flying, and he has to steady me so I don't collapse again.
"I need to get home," I tell him, pleading. He frowns, and I wonder how much he can understand me through only my facial expressions.
A voice calls out across the fields, and Edvard looks up, his heavy brow furrowing even more. I look up too and gasp when I see two men watching us from across the farm. I can't see the men clearly from my distance, but I can see that both are huge, one slightly leaner than the other, but still bigger than any man I've ever seen in my life.
I swallow thickly as Edvard's hand wraps around my upper arm. He turns me toward the small house I ran out from and I shake my head. "No, please, no. I need to go home. Please!"
My cries fall on deaf ears as he hauls me back to the small house. Eydís is standing outside the door, her eyes boring heavily into me. She says something to Edvard, who shakes his head. I can see in the daylight that Eydís is a little older than I initially suspected, with the same bronze hair as Edvard. I wonder if they might be related by blood rather than marriage.
Eydís barks something out and holds up what looks like rope. I don't know what has been said, but immediately, my body freezes. "Don't tie me up!" I beg, turning to Edvard who I hope can be reasoned with more than the hard woman glaring at me. "Please! I won't run again, I promise."
My small hands fist the front of his tunic, and he looks down at me, one heavy brow raising in surprise. "Please," I beg, my pride utterly abandoning me. I'm about ready to grovel at his feet. I'll go along with anything, so long as they don't tie me up.
Edvard looks up at Eydís, shaking his head slightly before speaking. The older woman lets out a heavy breath and I look back at her.
"Koma á," she says, motioning to me. The word sounds enough like come for me to hope I understand the meaning.
Willing my fingers to unclench from Edvard's tunic, I turn toward Eydís and suck in a deep breath, straightening my back. I move to Eydís's side, and the older woman takes a moment to examine me. She has pale green eyes, different from Edvard's, but similar enough that I now certainly believe they are related. I'm not sure if Eydís is his mother, or older sister though.
I meet Eydís's gaze, and the older woman's glare bores into me. We are locked in a silent, furious battle, and something in me tells me I cannot flinch, cannot back down.
Finally, Eydís sucks in a big breath, nodding her head slightly. She turns back to the small house, and I follow her back inside, casting one last glance at Edvard over my shoulder.