"Very well Valkyries, line up!" Sigrùn sent the order to their network. To outsiders, it was nothing more than a stern glance that got them to move in one of the many gardens of Asgard, under a starry sky adorned by the roots of the World Tree.
Thrùd positioned herself between Eir and Geirdriful. The Valkyries held their stance straight, heads facing towards the two gods in front of them.
Their father, Odin, and his son Thor. In theory, he was their brother. However, his status was so far above them that in comparison the girls might as well be common servants.
Odin had his one eye half closed, looking at his tall, broad son with some disdain.
"Alright. You had your chance for a daughter, but you failed," his croaked yet incomprehensibly loud voice resonated through the area, shaking the Valkyries to their core. It was in their system after all, to be afraid of the Allfather's ire. "Now take your pick."
Despite the seeming insult, Thor simply crossed his arms.
"Very well."
She didn't remember much after that, but one set of words repeated in her mind whenever she slept, splitting her head open like a migraine.
"I like this one. She's stronger than the others."
She wasn't like Brynhildr.
She wasn't as strong, she wasn't as wise.
She also wasn't as free willed or emotional as her.
She was Thrùd, a proud and calm Valkyrie.
She didn't know about love. Even when some other summoning of her did, she wasn't that shadow.
Repeating all of that in her head like a mantra didn't stop her fast heartbeat or the feeling chest that reminded her of a void.
She experienced all of this while waiting patiently outside the simulator, dressed in her usual battle attire.
She let out a breath.
How she wished she could consult her sisters, but they had agreed to remain off the network until each had delivered their gift.
Not that she needed to be comforted. She was the one that comforted others, as the elder sister after Brynhildr and Sigrùn.
She clutched the envelope her gift was in, thinking about giving it to him, imagining his appreciation or flustering or disdain like she would analyze a battle.
It made her head hot, thinking about the good results, and cold thinking about the bad results.
As a Servant, she could not foretell fate. Not like her living self. Thus, the future was an unknown. Well, the path was an unknown, because the end result would be the same always. Valkyrie Thrúd would become–
The door she was sitting next to opened, making her heart nearly stop.
She chastised herself for such a weak display.
Out exited Emiya. He didn't seem to notice his surroundings.
"Emiya," she said. He turned his head, eyes widened.
"Thrùd. You're here too," he said.
She nodded. "Affirmative. Each one of us agreed to give you a gift."
She said all of that with confidence, in a straight tone of voice with no hesitation. In response, Emiya smiled warmly.
Thrùd felt her cheeks heat up.
"Well then," she said, keeping her composure. She would show no weakness. "Come."
"Roger that," Shirou said in that laid back tone that seemed to cut through her Valkyrie shell.
Not like there was anything inside it.
So they walked through the halls, dodging Servants and humans that would come and go. They didn't say a word to each other. That was fine with Thrùd, warriors spoke with actions after all. Or so Brynhildr had told her long ago.
Still, Emiya's expression from when he left the simulator worried her, since that's where Ortlinde wanted to give him his gift.
Worrying about her sisters, now that was something she excelled at.
"Tell me, Emiya. Did Ortlinde's plan proceed correctly?" She asked. Shirou turned to her, raising an eyebrow before processing what she asked of him.
"Oh. That. Yeah… we… we did some talking. Cleared some stuff up," he said, closing his eyes for a moment.
"Cleared?" She asked.
"Nothing important, you know… everything's good. At least I think so, I hope so. Ortlinde was smiling a little as I left. She said she would clean up," he said, a faint smile returning.
Thrùd swallowed. Ortlinde had done well, so her elder sister could do no less.
"Understood. What about your satisfaction?" She asked. Shirou raised an eyebrow at her.
And here she thought she knew humans well, yet Shirou continued to defy that logic.
Humans wanted pleasure and satisfaction, yet he seemed more concerned about others. His priorities were not on himself, to the point they almost seemed like they were imposed by something other than his human soul. Maybe a person, or an ideal.
Much like herself.
"I… I liked the food, I guess. It doesn't matter that much, really," he said. Thrùd frowned in response.
"The objective was your satisfaction, though," she said.
Shirou shrugged. "Well, she accomplished it. It was good, really good. But honestly, anything would satisfy me if I were to do it with you."
That sentence, said so easily, with no hesitation, made her heart stop for a second.
Emiya stopped, and Thrùd noticed she had stopped before him.
"I… Emiya! Surely you know the weight those words hold!" She said, trying to fight down the heat going to her head.
She couldn't malfunction, not now. But the thought of… someone… enjoying her presence… just her presence without any pretext or reward was… it made her feel strange.
"I'm aware. But it's the truth, plain and simple," he said. The tone only made her more flustered.
But she fought it all back, regaining her composure.
"Still. You should not," she replied. Then, she straightened and made her expression one of iron. "You will not."
"Yes I will," he replied casually. They had both stopped, but while she faced him fully, he only looked at her with half his body turned.
Her eye twitched. "You will not. It's embarrassing for you."
"Yes I will. I'm expressing a fact," he said.
"And you will not express it. That is my order," she replied, one hand balling into a fist. He behaved like an irrational younger Valkyrie, sticking to her basic and strict programming and refusing to enter into adaptation mode.
"Why should I follow an order I disagree with?" He asked now, tone between genuine curiosity and annoyance.
"Because it's not good, because…" it made her feel things. It made her malfunction. But he couldn't know that. "... You will not give up, will you?" She asked. He would keep fighting her over something so simple.
Her mind calculated at least forty seven attempts until he would back down, and while she was ready for that, time was short.
He looked at her for a moment before smiling. "I'll stop if it really bothers you. But I won't take it back."
She almost laughed at that. He was backing down for her sake, but still not giving up his stance.
"Thrùd? You're… smiling," he noted. Immediately, the Valkyrie forced her mouth into a thin line, while walking past him.
"Regardless," a meter ahead of him, she turned and gripped his gift. "It took a long processing power to figure out what to give you, that would match your gift and would… would…"
As Shirou looked at her with widened eyes, a voice rang in her head.
How cowardly. Be bold. Take what you-!
She cut it off. That wasn't her.
She couldn't ruminate on that. Shirou was taking up all her priorities.
"... Would?" He asked. She sucked in air. They were just words, and nothing more. They couldn't affect an automaton like her.
"... Would express my feelings. In the end, I settled for something meaningful and utilitarian. I hope it is of your liking."
She maintained her composure, and gave him the gift, a small white box closed with a blue ribbon.
Slowly, Emiya took it from her. He opened it with care. Thrùd thought of nothing, waiting for the end result as if on duty, waiting for her orders.
We put all of our effort in it. He better like it.
A burst of static, a gap in her thoughts. The next moment, Shirou was looking at what he had gotten.
A long, blue scarf rested on his arms.
"Thrùd… this is…"
"A simple scarf, made of divine weave. It was… difficult to procure, but I did it," she said. She felt nothing, even as Shirou looked it over and over.
"It feels… really good," he told her, immediately draping it around his neck, contrasting with the white of his Swan Mystic Code.
"Yes. You could say it's almost a Mystic Code," she said. He looked at her with a raised eyebrow.
"Almost?" He asked.
"Yes. It has no strictly protective value, but it is warm and durable. On top of that, well…" she looked away for a second. "I made it with my Fateweaver skill, an imitation of when I used to weave looms."
"You used to weave?" Shirou asked, a hint of a smile on his lips.
Thrùd closed her eyes for a moment. "All Valkyries are able to do it. And when we do, shall we tear the article, we can alter the course of a battle, as if manipulating fate itself, as long as it stays within the Norns' domain."
Shirou fell silent, the power of what he had now dawning upon him.
"I see. But why… for me?" He asked.
Thrùd put her hands on her hips. "I already explained it. But also because… well…" she looked away, towards one of the Windows that gave way to the unending rain outside the Wandering Sea. "... You never give up. You know your fate, and yet you face it head on without care. So many warriors, heroes, brothers and sisters… many tried to avert their fate and met it on the way."
Her hand balled into a fist.
Those thoughts shouldn't cause her pain, but they did. Somehow, they did. They invaded her at every turn if she dwelt on them. She was weak, maybe that was why…
When we left, he had turned us into–
"Our meeting was a miracle," she whispered. She still observed the rain. "I don't know if it can be repeated. So… if I can protect this, protect you, and your relationship with Hildr and Ortlinde, I'll do it in a heartbeat," she said, looking back at Shirou.
Emiya stared back, eyes glinting. "Understood. But don't forget about yourself."
He closed the distance in a second. Without flight, he was taller than her. He put a warm hand on her shoulder.
The touch felt strange, but… she didn't mind it.
Our body is sacred! If anyone touches or harms it, I will-!
"It's alright. I already…" she turned around, fully looking towards the rain. "I already know were I'll end up, despite the path itself being uncertain."
Silence fell upon them.
Thrùd felt something empty in her chest. A hole in her.
"I know how you feel," he said. Emiya had moved beside her, their shoulders almost touching. He also looked at the rain. "But that's why you gave me this, so that I'll be able to persevere in my path."
He smiled at her, and she nodded.
"Correct," then, she felt something warm encircle her hand.
"So… let's do it together. Make use of this miracle, right?" He asked. Thrùd, speechless, simply nodded.
She already knew where she would end up.
She once had been Thrùd, Valkyrie.
Then, she was another.
But for now, she was a Valkyrie.
Emiya was her master.
That's what mattered. That was the warmth she felt.
So, she grasped his hand as well, fingers intertwining.
They were there, experiencing a miracle.
Being in each other's company, and maybe… one day… walking side by side.
A big hand clasped her shoulder, it's weight hard to support.
"Alright then, little one. Are you ready?"
"I'm always at your service."
"Hmph. None of that. I want to see your boldness, your true self."
"I have none."
"We'll see. In a few weeks, I hope we'll all be able to enjoy the new you, including yourself."
A/N: Well, this took a while. It's hard, but I always like the end result, mostly. Only Hildr left now, and then… maybe something with Thrúd once again. Something that's been rotting my brain for some time now. Also Immortal Decline, cause I really want to write Ophelia again.
That is all for now. Chaio!