It has been five years since Beowulf was named King of the Geats. Peace, a word that was only used while dreaming and praying, was accomplished. Beowulf and his knights had brutally defeated the Swedes, and after that all other Villages were terrified of him. No one dared to challenge him.
Yet, even in the midst of his success Beowulf was unhappy. He had won more fame than he could have ever imagined, but fame was meant for after this life, so that you are always remembered. Yet, suddenly he wondered what the meaning of this life was, now that he had achieved his fame.
He returned home to his hall, and put on a good face for the sake of his friends. They had dinner in the hall, and people sang once again of how Beowulf had slain Grendel. Beside the pride that came from hearing this story, Beowulf felt discontent. No one noticed this, except Hygd. She was still respected as queen among the Geats since Beowulf did not have a wife. Hygd knew Beowulf too well to be fooled by his act.
It was another normal day, eat breakfast, open the store, get orders, fill the orders, and then at last, be free. Everything was always the same, and Frea liked it that way. She loved her life, and all the joy she got from sewing dresses and suits for young and old, rich and poor. She met with all kinds of people, because everyone knew she was one of the most talented in the village, even if she was a bit odd. She didn't really belong to this village, her grandfather was from Germania, and those people are wild. Although Frea was beautiful with blond hair and blue eyes, she was far too wild for anyone to really fancy her.
To be honest, no one really understood her. They recognized her talent as a seamstress, but she really didn't have any friends. She usually spent her free hours in the woods, or the fields, singing or humming. She would draw pictures of everything and anything, on whatever she could find. Her own shop was covered with pictures she had painted on the walls of the mountains, flowers, and the ocean. Frea knew that she was different, and she was perfectly content with it. She loved being free, and being alone.
Frea knew full well what kind of man was their King. She had heard the songs of Beowulf being sung, as she passed the hall. She never went into the hall; that was not the place for her. Although not a day went by when the local girls came into her shop to look at her dresses and fabrics and talk endlessly about how incredible he was. Frea just rolled her eyes, and continued sewing. Frea didn't really like the fact that her town seemed always at war with someone else. She didn't really like fighting men either, which is why she is still single, even though she was already 22.
This day, when the girls came in after lunch as usually, they were strangely excited and giggly. Frea was slightly overwhelmed by their presence. She suddenly became very interested in what they were saying.
"He's coming! He's coming today!" Lina said, a tall girl with dark hair and dark eyes.
"I know, I know! I can't wait, oh, Frea! Please hurry and make me a cloak of this red fabric. This will make my white dress stand out beautifully! And it will make my green eyes shine out!" Tellea ordered, a girl with brown hair and green eyes, an unusually combo.
"For goodness sake, you two, stop shaking like nervous lambs to be sheered and tell me why all the excitement!" Frea replied to their agitated and excited manner, as she began to sew a cape for Tellea.
"You don't know?" Tellea said, "Beowulf has been spending a day with his people! He said he wanted to know all of their own struggles and accomplishments, to be one of the people so that he can rule us the best." She giggled with delight, "Oh I hope he stops by my father's house. When I see him at the great hall I can hardly breathe!"
"Oh yes, he is wonderful!" Lina said, "I saw him at the great hall yesterday night, and he danced with almost every girl, including me and Tellea! Oh Frea, you should have been there! He was so powerful and magnificent!"
"I'm glad I was not there." Frea said as she lifted the needle to make sure the cape puckered at the top the way Tellea like it.
"Oh Frea, why are you so silly?" Tellea asked as she looked in a glass at her reflection with a blue fabric to see how it looked on her.
"I guess its just the way I am" Frea replied as she finished the cape. She presented it to Tellea who put it on in excitement, and looked at the glass again. She seemed pleased with the results and plopped a purse onto the counter. Frea put it in her money box, which was always kept full thanks to Tellea and Lina's faithful service.
"Its beautiful!" Lina said, looking at it.
"Yes it is, thank you Frea! You always know exactly how to make them fit me!" Tellea said excited.
"Look! Look! He is coming! He's coming down the street!" Lina said, looking out the window. She and Tellea rushed out the door and stood outside gazing and waving at him. Then he came. Beowulf. Frea had never seen him before. She was immediately overcome by how tall, handsome, and powerful he was. Looking at him gave her a sensation she had never felt before, warmth of her heart. She tried to shake this feeling off, and look at something else, he pictures on the wall, but her eyes turned once again to the strong man outside her shop. At that moment, he turned from Tellea and looked into the shop.
Beowulf had never seen a woman like her before. He saw that she was different from the start, she didn't look like anyone else, and she was so beautiful. He at once forgot the fact that Lina and Tellea were there, and stared at her in wonder. Frea met his glance and stopped and stared as well. Yet after a moment Tellea quickly got in between their gaze, in an attempt for more attention. Frea quickly turned away and out the door in the back of the shop to escape from him. He made her short of breathe and made her heart beat faster. She hoped this feeling would pass quickly. She knew the desires of the heart, she had heard much of them from Tellea and Lina, and knew that they only satisfied for a moment. Her parents had taught her not to judge from pleasantness of face, but in gentleness of spirit.
Yet this feeling that was stirred within her did not depart in a few minutes, it stayed. She knew she could not leave her shop open like this, and reentered it. She was relieved to see that Beowulf had passed on, and so did Lina and Tellea thankfully. Frea had grown weary of them coming into her shop everyday. She sat in her chair and just stared at the walls of her shop covered by paintings she had done. She sat there and saw not the paintings, but the face of Beowulf.
Beowulf could not forget that beautiful girl he had seen yesterday. He was in the hall, hearing the singing and the giggles of the girls on the side at the sight of him. He didn't really hear anything, and the girls had always been tiring and flirtatious. He only endured them as a King should.
This night his heart was so full he thought he could not contain it. His mind was solely focused on that one glance he got of the girl in the shop. He was not at all in the hall. Although he cleared himself enough to give gifts to men in order to keep their favor. That night he could not sleep, although he tried. He looked at the ceiling, just staring...and thinking, of her. He wished she did not flee to the back of her shop and that he had had a chance to speak with her. He wished that that tall girl, whatever her name was, hadn't stepped in front of him.
In the morning Beowulf walked into the hall and to the window. The sun was just beginning to rise. He stared at its beauty, enjoying the distraction for a moment, but the bright sun reminded him of the girl in the shop. He looked down and smiled at the memory, then he looked up, and what he saw made him think he was dreaming. There in a tree, sat the girl. Beowulf was so overwhelmed with emotion at the sight of her, that he didn't even notice how odd it was that she was sitting in a tree early in the morning. He stared at her and noticed that she was drawing a picture. He suddenly wondered what she would draw, and wanted a closer look at it.
Beowulf left the hall, in pretence to go to the stables. He walked across the yard and tried not to watch her, but couldn't help but watch and see if she noticed him. Frea did not; she was so focused on her drawing, that she was only focused on that. Beowulf was dismayed by this, but he continued to walk to the stables, and leaned against the barn to watch her. No one else was around, except one person, the queen Hygd. She could never sleep well, since her son had died, and so she went to her window. She saw Beowulf gazing at something; she followed his gaze and saw Frea. Hygd knew Frea, because she had made several of her dress. Hygd went back into her chambers with an idea.
Beowulf continued to stare at her. She seemed perfect in every way. Her swift and precise movements as she continued to sketch, the way the gentle breeze blew her hair from her face, everything about her awed him. He did not realize that an hour had already passed. Frea then finished her drawing and began to climb down the tree. In order to do this she tossed it down onto the ground to free her hands. At this time Beowulf got a glimpse at the picture. It is a picture of the mountains with a flower from the tree at the edge of it. Beowulf thought that it was the most beautiful picture he had ever seen. It was so talented and beautiful. He was sad when she picked it up and began to walk into the town. He watched her go to a well and proceeds to wash her face and hands. She then walked into the village and was headed for her little shop. He watched her until she had passed from his vision. He was sad to see her leave, but his heart was warmed by the few precious minutes he had to look at her.
Frea was extremely surprised when a Queen Hygd's handmaiden arrived and gave her one of her necklaces as well as an invitation to sit with her in the hall for dinner tonight. Frea didn't know how to respond to this. She decided she could not refuse the kind queen, but did not look forward to the idea of randomly coming into the hall after years of never entering it. She looked at the necklace that she had received. It had a gold chain with a diamond in the middle. She looked at it for a moment, and went to the back of her shop where she kept dresses she saved for special occasions, and found a red one with gold embroidering on it. It was simple yet elegant, and brought out the necklace.
Frea was somewhat apprehensive about the evening. She knew that Beowulf would be there, and she still felt a strange surge of emotion whenever she thought of that one moment when they were looking into each other's eyes. Frea thought it was just because he was so handsome, because she didn't really know him so there was really no reason to like him. True, she had heard of his deeds, but what could she learn from that? Frea knew there was truly no chance that Beowulf would ever take an interest in her and she tried to dismiss it, but found that she could not, and the thought of Beowulf ending up with Tellea or Lina infuriated her for some reason.
Frea felt very strange and out of place when she walked to the hall for dinner. She felt like everyone was watching her, and everyone was. No one had ever expect her to ever come to dine in the great hall with the rest of the town. Tellea quickly rushed up to her and exclaimed how excited she was to finally see her come to the great hall. This made Frea more at ease, but she still didn't feel comfortable here. When she entered Hygd's handmaiden came up to her and told Frea to follow her to where the queen sat. The girls always sat to the edges of the room, and the men took the middle, but Hygd sat to the direct right of Beowulf's chair, at the head of the girls' tables. Frea sat to the right of her, and Tellea and Lina sat across from her. She felt more comfortable because she was surrounded by people she knew. All these people she knew because they have ordered from her before.
"Thank you for accepting my invitation" Hygd said as she sat gracefully down next to Frea.
"It was very kind of you to invite me, since I usually don't eat here."
"A fact that saddens me," Hygd replied, "You must come and sit with us more often."
"Oh yes Frea, we do enjoy your company!" Tellea chimed in.
"Tell us stories of your grandfather Frea, you know we love them! Perhaps Hygd would even be amused by them." Lina said.
"Oh yes, your grandfather was a German was he not? I remember hearing songs of how he fought with my husband's father, and how he finally gave up, and surrendered to us. And after 10 years in prison he finally appealed to the King and asked if he could remain here. A very strange situation, but it is good that it resulted in you becoming part of our community."
"Thank you my lady." Frea responded. "It is indeed strange, I remember my father telling me stories of Germania tales." Frea sat back with a smile at the memory of her father. He was such a strong yet loving man, and she missed him dearly.
At that time, Beowulf entered the hall. Everyone immediately stood up and waited for him to sit at his throne. Once everyone was seated the meal was set before everyone. The men were rough and rowdy, which slightly disturbed Frea. She noticed how freely the beer flowed, and made a note to ignore it if it was ever passed to her. She wanted to maintain whatever sense she had left. After that instruments were brought out, and the tables were cleared and many men and women began dancing. Frea continued to sit with Hygd, although Tellea and Lina were dancing.
Beowulf had not noticed the fact that she was there until after Tellea dropped her goblet and bent down to pick it up. After she bent down he could finally see her, and he thought that he was hallucinating, she was so beautiful. He found himself glancing her way often, and Frea noticed this, and whenever they caught each other's gaze she felt such a fluttering in her heart.
Once the dancing had begun, Beowulf sat at his throne and watched the first dance. It was an intricate pattern of lifts and steps that was all around the fire, so if you were off slightly, something might catch on fire. It was odd, but it added an extra thrill to it, which the Geats liked. After the first dance was done Beowulf got up, and all the girls stared at him, with hopeful eyes, all except Frea. She and Hygd were in an interesting discussion on treasure giving Kings and on how it was so necessary in order to rule a kingdom well. Beowulf walked over to Hygd, and looked at her with a pleading expression that she understood.
"Hello Beowulf," Hygd said as the music started up again, "would you care to join us, we are having a discussion on how it is good to give gifts to the people."
"I would love to join you." Beowulf said as he sat in the chair Lina had previously occupied, "but first tell me this lady's name, and why I have not seen her at the hall before."
"This is Frea, and why don't you join us at the hall."
"I'm sorry my lady, but I feel out of place here among these people."
"Nonsense, you are always welcome here."
"Thank you my lady." Frea said and looked blushed slightly, she noticed that Beowulf was staring at her.
"Beowulf I am feeling tired this evening, I believe I shall retire early." Hygd said, although this was not true.
"Rest well my queen." He said and stood as she left the room. He sat down again and noticed how Frea looked slightly uncomfortable; he wanted to find a way to ease her. "So tell me Frea, what you do in the village."
"I own a small shop bear the center of town where I make and repair clothing, the Lady Hygd has ordered from me before, and I have made several dresses for her."
"You must have extreme talent if Hygd has taken notice of you." At this she blushed and felt she had bragged, and wished she had been more humble.
"Thank you for your compliments," she said, "but it is a late night and I woke up early this morning so I think I should go home as well." Frea just wanted to leave this hall, this whole evening had just been awkward for her, and now that Beowulf was talking with her, she felt like everyone was staring, she just wanted to get out of there.
"Of course," Beowulf said with dismay at her withdrawal, and tried to find some way to keep her here. "But first would you dance with me?"
"I cannot deny my King," she said, and he was dismayed by that. Beowulf didn't want her to accept because he was King. Beowulf then led her to the dance floor, and he signaled the musicians to start up again. Frea was nervous, although she knew how to dance; she had never actually done it by the fire before, and the fact that Beowulf's hand was in her made her tremble. Beowulf sensed this, and tried to find a way to make more comfortable. So when they began to dance, he made sure to keep a distance from the fire, so as not to put her anywhere near it. Frea seemed slightly focused mainly on the steps, and Beowulf was intensely focused on her eyes and how the fire made them shimmer. He hadn't realized that they were close to the fire, and Frea at that exact moment tripped and the hem of her skirt caught on fire. She immediately screamed and grabbed a cup of water and put it out, she was not harmed, but everyone was staring at her and laughing. Frea began to cry and ran out of the hall; Beowulf began to follow her, to make sure she was alright.
Once outside in the night he looked around to try and see her. He heard the sound of weeping and followed that. Beowulf went over a hill and saw her trembling against a tree in the moonlight. He ran up to her, but she heard him coming and quickly went behind the tree, and then swiftly climbed it and hid in its branches. Once Beowulf reached the tree, he could not see her. Frea didn't want to see him or anyone after that humiliating scene.
"Frea!" Beowulf called, he sounded concerned, but he probably just came out to laugh at her. "Frea, are you alright? Please Frea, where did you go?"
Frea sat in the tree for a moment, looking at him, and decided to see what he would do. "Up here," she said. Beowulf jumped at hearing her voice and looked up and saw her sitting against the trunk of the tree on a branch. He wondered at the fact that she had climbed up there so swiftly.
"Are you alright? Did you get burned at all?"
"No, I'm fine," she said, although her pride had been burnt along with her dress. "Thank you for your concern, but if you don't mind," she said as she jumped down, "I would prefer to go home, and I don't want to see anyone in that hall ever again!" She said and began to weep again and run away. "Including you!" She knew the chance she took at shouting this at the king, but her emotions were in such turmoil over the humiliation that she didn't really care.
"Don't say that," he said sincerely.
"Please, just go away!" She said and ran off into the town, and was dismayed to hear Beowulf's heavy footsteps as he followed her.
"Please Frea, I don't blame you for what happened, It was my fault that you tripped over my foot, I should have been watching out for you!" He cried out after her. This made her stop by the well.
"Why are you so concerned about a singed dress of a poor seamstress?" She asked with sincere curiosity, she wondered if he felt the same thing she did whenever they locked eyes. Beowulf paused at this question, and debated on how to answer it.
"All my people concern me," he said.
"So you would come chasing after Tellea if she burned her dress and ran home?"
"…No" he answered honestly.
"Then why come after me, you don't even know me."
"Because…because Tellea is just another one of the normal girls of this town, but you, you are so strange." Frea's expression dropped, and Beowulf realized what a blunder he had made, "strange in a good way!" he said hastily. "You are more graceful than anyone else I've ever seen. You keep to yourself which is what no one ever does, it seems now at days everyone has to meddle in everyone else's business."
"I know I am different, but why would that make you come after me?" Beowulf had never found himself at a loose of courage ever in his life. He had a moment to tell her what he truly thought about her and how beautiful she was, and how he wished to be with her and protect her always, yet he found that he could not.
"I'm glad that you are well," he said, dodging the question, "I hope this does not dampen your opinion of the great hall, I hope to see you there again tomorrow."
"I'd rather not, but thank you for your concern" Frea said politely, and then ran off into the night back to her small shop and to the quiet privacy of her own home where she could truly weep over her humiliation and embarrassment. She couldn't believe that Beowulf had finally taken notice of her, and what does she do? She trips and sets her dress on fire! Frea cried all night long, and into the next day, so that when Tellea and Lina came to the shop again the next day, they found the doors locked and it dark inside, and the room in the back where Frea slept closed tight.