[Astride and Johanna] Seeds of Power

[Astride Schevlok]

So we'd retreated, and I was still seething that we'd given in to the D'Angeline scum. I knew it was the sane thing to do – we were losing, true. We were also showing them weakness.

Retaliation had to come, and it had to come swiftly.

After Falki had ordered me out of battle, I'd ended up escorting the wounded back to the cave, then to that D'Angeline whelp's clan's stead. There were others about, tending the wounded, hunting, gathering, seeking to make the best of it.

Meanwhile, I was seething, plotting. Thinking.

I wanted revenge for this, and I wanted it best served.

And so I paced and paced in the hall, ignoring the call of reason and trying to work off my anger by glaring at whatever (or whoever) came about.

[Johanna Reyksol]

I'd spent too much time today with the dead, and we did not even have the bodies of those who had fallen on the field. The D'angelines had materialized like evil spirits, murdering us for what, some small raids along the border? It seemed harsh to me, as I watched another man succumb to his wounds. My voice was hoarse from singing, and finally I needed to be free for a bit.

I walked to the hall and was given something hot to drink, and look though I might for my brother, I saw him nowhere. I saw Astride though, and I wondered if he knew where Eirik might be.

"Astride," I said, my voice raw but still soft and gentle. "You're all right, I am glad to see it." I offered a tired small, though his anger fairly blazed from his eyes. Ah, men, quick to wrath while we women curled in on ourselves with sadness.

[Astride Schevlok]

When someone entered, my first reaction was to glare, but there was Johanna, and I forced myself to put on a veneer of calm over my irrepressible hatred of all that was D'Angeline.

“Johanna,” I said, and I cut the distance, offering her my hands. “I'm fine, thank you for your concern.”

I found a smile for her, and tried to make it reassuring. “I'm glad to see that you are safe as well. If anyone of those D'Angeline monsters touch you....” I gritted my teeth, tried to still myself, to reign in my temper.

“But you're well, that is good.”

[Johanna Reyksol]

It gratified me to see his concern, most of the men were preoccupied right now. I squeezed his hand and smiled gently. His anger was apparent, as was everyone's, it permeated the hall and I knew that though this battle was lost, it was war, and the men of our clans would not permit this to stand.

"Yes, fortunately we had enough warning to at least get the women and children to the cave... well, most of them." Sadly, I had seen some women cut down in the heat of battle, older women who could not get out as fast. It was one more thing for the D'angelines to answer for.

"I wonder what could have provoked this..." I said aloud, though mostly to myself. It was difficult to bury so many and not want to scream at the heavens and beg for an answer that made any sense out of this.

[Astride Schevlok]

That some of the women got cut down, possibly babes, that angered me more – and I gritted my teeth, taking a deep breath to settle my temper until I was calm once more.

Save it for battle, Astride. Let your wrath be known then.

“The D'Angelines are ruthless savages in their own right, and think us little less than animals,” I said quietly. “There is no need for greater justification than that.”

I crinkled my nose, and following my plan to seduce Eirik's sister, I offered her my arm. “But we should speak of other things – walk with me? Tell me how you feel.”

[Johanna Reyksol]

"Yes, of course," I said, pleased to be asked. Astride was handsome, and in my brother's favor, something I had to consider in any interaction with a man. I had no idea what my brother had planned for me, but I knew that he had to have thought of it, especially now, when I was of a marrying age.

"How I feel? Tired, afraid..." I looked toward our home, now a battlefield, where surely lay wounded that we could not get to. "I don't understand why this is happening."

[Astride Schevlok]

“They think us lesser than we are,” I said slowly. “That is all. Leave that to your brother, and to me – I'd die in your defense, Johanna. Don't be afraid.”

I gave her a small smile, glancing a her, assessing the power of my words over her. Did the promise make her blush? Or would it make her uncomfortable?

Though Eirik was the one to have the final say, I reckoned – if his sister favored me over another, he might well choose me. He cared enough for her, I suspected, to pick the one she preferred, out of two candidates.

[Johanna Reyksol]

My smile bloomed at his words, and I considered myself lucky to be in his company, though his vow to die in my defense made me shiver a bit.

"Let us hope that it does not come to that," I said, my thoughts back on the battlefield, and the dead. I gave his arm a squeeze and tried to keep my smile from faltering. "I do not wish anyone else to die, least of all for me." Lest he think that I did not appreciate the offer, I continued, "Perhaps you would wear my token in the next battle? For good luck?" It was a bit forward of a move, but I was moved by his words. I wore a carved necklace of bone that had been our fathers, and I paused in our walk to fish it from between my breasts to show it to him.

[Astride Schevlok]

She was biting, rising to the bait, and I smiled a little more, summoning what boyish charm I could find somewhere deep in my youth years.

She paused and so did I, and having released her arm, my eyes followed her hand to her chest, then to a place I imagined was soft, warm and silky, under her shirt, to produce a bone necklace. It was old – and I could see it for being a chief's token indeed. It would do more than bring me luck.

“I'll try not to die, then, if you request it,” I teased. “Though with your token for luck, I'll do better yet, than I did in the past battle, lovely Johanna.”

[Johanna Reyksol]

I blushed again at his words, truly noticing him anew. I knew everyone in the clan, of course, but Astride and I had never spoken much, and I know of him more than I knew the man himself. I had not expected him to be so charming and when he teased me, I couldn't help the smile that formed on my lips. I wondered suddenly where he stood in my brother's esteem.

"I am sure you will do even better this time, being prepared," I said, handing him the pendant and hoping that such a display would not anger my brother. "And not that you need luck, I have heard tell that you are a mighty warrior without it." That much was truth, Astride was looked upon with favor by most in the clan, and that said something about him as well.

"Do you think there will be another battle soon, or will we have time to recover?" I asked him, a slight frown creasing my brows. "I worry for the injured, and the women and children."

[Astride Schevlok]

“The next battle will not be at their initiative,” I replied firmly, “I doubt your brother will let this pass, and I am with him in this. Retaliation will come, swift and merciless, and safely away from those who need protection.”

Accepting the pendant, I let my hands clasp around hers, making sure that we were pausing just at the right moment, and I gave her a reassuring smile just as I held her gaze in mine.

“You will have all the time you need, Johanna, it's a promise, and I keep my promises.” I released her hands, then, and turned away. “Even if the cost will be dire, I expect.” A breath, and looking back at her, I said, “But I will return. That too, is a promise.”

[Johanna Reyksol]

I realized that I was holding my breath as he spoke, my heart pounding wildly in my chest, and I wondered that I had never been this close to him before. Was I imagining it, or was there something more than friendship in his eyes? I had thought of love before, of meeting a man who took my breath away, and I had never expected it to come from my own clan.

He let go of my hands and I expelled a breath, trying to regain my wits. Was that all it took, a look, a touch, and then I was lost? I prayed that I was more discriminating than that. Still...

"I believe you," I breathed, looking up at him with wide gray eyes. "I know that you and my brother and all of our warriors won't let this pass, and I know you will return. I know it." And I did, I could feel it in my breast, in the beat of my heart and the heated blood that flowed in my veins. I thought suddenly that I could not bear it now if Astride did not return: now I had two men to fear for.

"I can't say I won't worry though," I said, smiling a little and trying to get my breathing back to normal, not wanting Astride to think that I was a silly girl.

[Astride Schevlok]

Oh, she was falling so easily for it, it was a charm. I'd have been endeared, if I'd not been calculating my next move, if I'd not been, as well, angry from the attack and the loss of a captive, and frustrated by the retreat.

I smiled, though, and noting how pretty she was when she was short of breath and flushed, I felt a twang of desire – a passing thought that if I indeed succeeded in making Johanna my wife, it would suit both my desire for power and my personal needs. I wondered if her breath would catch the same way, if I kissed the hollow of her throat.

For her praise and concern, I gave her a ruefully embarrassed smile, looking down. “Don't worry too much, Johanna, lest you make yourself too ill to celebrate my return.” The necklace was still in my hand, and I looked at it a moment as it lay in my outstretched palm, then up at her.

“Will you put it around my neck?” I asked, with what I hoped was adequate timidity.

[Johanna Reyksol]

I laughed softly at that, though my cheeks were flushed.

"Of course," I said, at his request. I plucked the necklace from his outstretched palm, my fingers trembling slightly as I raised them up, stepping closer to him so that I could tie it in the back.

Every place our skin brushed felt so warm to me, so soft, electric and .... I pulled my thoughts away, wondering what had gotten into me. My arms lingered around his neck for a moment before I dropped them back down, shying away slightly.

"There, now I know you will come back safe," I said, hiding my confusion behind a smile and a quip.

[Astride Schevlok]

I enjoyed having her arms around my neck much more than I should have, and had to remind myself that this was business and not pleasure, ere I let myself get attached to the broad. In fact, I was relieved when she moved away from me, though by all accounts, the manoeuver had proven worth it.

“Good,” I said, and my smile was still warm and reassuring. “Of course I will come back safe. I have the token of your favor, and now further incentive to return.”

I took her hand, brought it to my lips, only to graze her knuckles with them. “Unless I've read you wrong, Johanna. In which case, it would be merciful to tell me now.”

What could I say for myself? Nothing, aside from the fact that confirmation was always a nice stroke to the ego.

[Johanna Reyksol]

My heart had begun to pound wildly in my chest, and when his fingers brushed my knuckles, it skipped a beat, an erratic pace that made it hard to breathe.

"N-no," I said, my voice so soft I barely heard it, and I forced myself to speak up, though my cheeks were warm and my hands trembling. "No, you haven't read me wrong."

I wasn't sure how this had happened - mere hours ago Astride had been nothing to me but a man of the tribe. It occurred to me that this could be a play to curry favor with Eirik, but I pushed that thought aside, because I didn't like it, and I wanted to believe the soft touch of Astride's hand and the warmth of his lips.

[Astride Schevlok]

Oh, but she was such a doe, and so sweet! It was almost a shame. Not quite, though: I would treat her well, if all went according to plan.

“Good,” I whispered, and kept my eyes locked in hers a moment, making it meaningful. “Now I know my next battle will bring you glory, Johanna.”

I smiled, then, and it was half sweet, half sharp, but it was my best smile. It was easy to conjure, in truth: I was rather satisfied.

[Johanna Reyksol]

I wasn't sure what to say, because I had never really felt this way before. Certainly I had looked at men, thought about them in a way that made my cheeks burn, but I had never thought that anyone would look at me in such a light. I was Eirik's baby sister, always underfoot, tolerated for her oddities because of who her brother was.

Astride, though, his voice was suddenly like music and his smile pulled at the strings of my heart, and how had I never noticed how easy it was to fall into his eyes?

"I'm glad you will be returning safely," I said, as if it were a fact, because if one phrased it that way, it was good luck. Like many Skaldi, I was somewhat superstitious. "When my brother makes his plans, before you go, perhaps a kiss for good luck?" My cheeks were burning as I spoke, and I said the words quickly, before I lost my nerve.

[Astride Schevlok]

The deal was sealed, and I was pleased. I looked down, made a show of scuffing my foot with some embarrassment, then smiled wider, if at all possible.

“I didn't dare ask,” I said quietly, “but if you grant it, it would be shameful and a terrible waste of a good omen, Johanna.”

I drew her name out a bit longer, on purpose, as if I was not only tasting it, but enjoying it and refusing to let go.

“I will come for you – will your brother allow it?”

Of course: I had to make sure that propriety was on the agenda, not because I cared for it, no. Rather, it made me a yet more respectable suitor. Not to mention that it might stir Johanna to attach herself to me more. Not a bad perspective.

[Johanna Reyksol]

Would he? It was a good question, but I did not wish to gamble on my brother's good graces.

"What he does not know will not hurt him," I said instead, smiling impishly and hoping that Astride would not be a stickler for getting my brother's permission. He did not strike me as the type, but then again I did not know him overly well. Still, Eirik was more than passing fond of me and I generally managed to get what I wanted out of him, though I could not be certain that would extend to something like this. "Big brothers can be overprotective sometimes," I added, trying to remember if Astride had any siblings to speak of.

[Astride Schevlok]

So she had a devious streak – interesting. I found myself having an additional interest in her suddenly – what if her apparent innocence was a thin veil? Perhaps there was something... ah, but I shouldn't make myself weak, now, should I?

“I will come,” I replied, and leaning a little bit closer, so that I could smell her sweet scent, and murmured, “nothing and no-one would prevent me from seeing you before the next battle.” I returned her smile, impish twice over. “I'll see you through a window if I must.”

It was all very chivalrous and terribly romantic – something I suspected women enjoyed hearing. It didn't mean I wouldn't do it, though. It had its advantages.

And having made my impression, I bowed lightly, and excused myself.

_{[OOC: And end scene. <3 ]}