Good Morning, Little Ones!
Thank you to Mel and Jill!
.: Tólf :.
My eyes connect with the blonde's again, and I'm surprised to see her pass her baby off to the large man and stand from the table. She walks around the room, and instinctively I know she's coming to see me. I climb to my feet, taking a deep breath to make sure my eyes are clear of any tears.
When she's in front of me, she pauses. She's taller than me, and even more lovely up close, though I can also see signs of a difficult life in the calluses on her palms and the tightness around her eyes.
She stands there, appraising me for a moment before she nods. "Rúna," she says, holding a hand to her chest. I swallow hard.
"Bella," I whisper, understanding her. Rúna gives me a small smile.
"Foli," she says, turning to point across the room where the boy is sitting with his father at the table. She turns back to me and I nod, showing her I'm following her. "Hugi," she says, holding her arms up, and miming the act of rocking a baby. I nod again. She turns and points to the large man sitting with her children. "Arni." She turns back to me to make sure I'm still following her. The kindness she is offering me makes me want to cry again. It's a relief to be introduced to people, though of course, I still cannot communicate with them. "Koma á," she says, and I move to follow her, familiar with the command. Rúna points to the table, motioning for me to sit, and I hesitantly sink down onto the fur-covered bench. Down the table, Eydís lets out an aggressive string of words, and I glance at Rúna who seems not to care about the other woman's complaints.
Rúna goes to retrieve food for me, and my eyes flicker down the table, too afraid to make eye contact directly. Josurr smiles at me, but I look away from him too quickly to smile back. Instead, I focus my attention on the children settling in to eat.
Arni says something that makes the table laugh. I feel Rúna's hand on my back as she returns to the table, and even though I don't expect her to harm me, I still flinch.
She frowns slightly when I look up at her and I immediately feel bad. She sets a plate in front of me and I look down at it. I don't eat a lot of meat, though it would be near impossible for me to abstain from fish. Fishing is my father's favorite hobby, and I've been gutting and descaling fish for as long as I can remember.
I'm relieved to see the flakey slice of white fish on the plate beside some flat round bread.
I look for utensils, but everyone else is using the bread as the primary utensil, so I tear a piece off and scoop up some fish.
The seasoning is unfamiliar to me but the freshness of the fish is utterly undeniable.
Much to my mortification, I moan, drawing eyes to me.
I may die of blushing.
Someone says something down the table, and all the adults burst into laughter, even Eydís.
I tilt my head down, shoving food into my mouth and willing my body to enjoy it silently.
I'm still hungry when I've cleared my plate, but not sure of etiquette here, I sit silently.
Edvard says something, and I look up at him. At once, the men all stand. Josurr offers me a small smile, which I hesitate to return. Edvard doesn't look my way as they all leave.
Once they are outside, Eydís sighs, muttering something to Rúna who smiles, rocking the baby in her arms. They both look at me, and I automatically blush from the attention.
Rúna is lovely, even in the low light of the house. She is full figured, with sloping curves that speak to her motherhood and long hair that glistens in the firelight. There is a sturdiness about her that brings me a degree of comfort.
She leans forward, shifting the child in her arms as she taps the cup beside me. "Kopp," she says gently.
I understand the game almost immediately, and I smile in relief. "Cup," I repeat. It's almost the same word, and finding the similarity makes me want to cry all over again. Rúna smiles encouragingly.
We spend a few minutes at the table, her pointing to objects and saying words slowly to me. Eydís is unimpressed with my ability to repeat the words, but it makes me feel better. I may be abhorrently butchering their language, but at least I'm trying.
Rúna is patient, and she doesn't make me feel overly self-conscious for messing up the words she tries to teach me, which makes her easily my favorite teacher. We continue our game until her children start to yawn. When she turns to ready them for bed, I take a deep breath, gathering the plates left on the table in an attempt to help Eydís. She gives me a weary look but then nods for me to follow her through the house.
I don't know what I have to do to earn Eydís' respect, but some competitive part of me that I've never noticed before speaks up, demanding attention and the opportunity to be heard.
One day, she will respect me. One day, I'll earn it.