The wedding
Chapter 8: The wedding
A whole month. A whole damning month you had spent with the bride and groom even though you were only supposed to stay for a week or two. You thanked your lucky stars however when you received your first monthly break after the first two weeks with the couple to go home for a whole week. Your mother and father seemed to be somewhat happy to see you, but then again they had always been some sort of distant. At least they had become that way after the accident. Your brother had been angry with you for a full day, before giving into his desire to play around with his big sister. You had bought him a little stjarna to place on his bedside table to light up his room in the dark. He was over the moon by it and hid it from your parents, only having told his sister of his fear of the dark.
The goodbye on the last day hadn’t been as heart-breaking as the last one, because now your brother knew you were definitely coming back and no one lied to him this time. You however still felt horrible leaving him behind, especially after you had told him about Egil the Einherjar, the warriors three and the princes. His poor head was filled with hopes and dreams of one day meeting them all and if you were being honest with yourself, you dreamt of seeing your brother’s eyes widen at the sight of the palace and the brave princes and soldiers protecting it all. As soon as you had gotten on the skift back to the palace and you saw your village disappear, you had felt a great dread knowing your days with the couple were not over yet. And here you were, two weeks later and finally the wedding would be over soon. After that you would be free to return back to lord Blekk and all your books and trinkets you had come to love so dearly.
“Svinnr?! Where did you put that jewellery box with the Elessar necklace and earrings?!” Lady Svala screamed from her bathroom while an army of bridesmaids and servants surrounded her to get her dressed and ready for her wedding. You sighed and got up to tell her once again that the box was waiting for her in the bottom drawer of her vanity table. You too were dressed as the personal servants that were now busy fashioning their lady’s hair. Even though you absolutely hated the harsh colours that the bride had chosen for her bridesmaids, you felt rather comfortable in your dress of a lighter pink colour. Your hair had also been styled into a long braid with little sparkling jewels entwined into it, just like the other servants. You felt rather bad that you were being put on display as a servant to the house of Aevalur when you were in fact under the service of lord Blekk who would also be attending the feast.
He had told you beforehand that he didn’t mind that much, not after you had told him of the non-matching colours and having to wear something similar. He and Egil had even laughed at your sour mood. You did however decide to slightly bend the rules on the otherwise strict rules on attire and attach a brooch in the form of a book. Egil had had it made for you especially as a sort of apology for laughing at your expensive. It had been silly, you both knew it, but the brooch was in fact incredibly thoughtful and so you would wear it for Egil, lord Blekk and yourself. Your confidence and courage had received a boost in the last few weeks and it had all to do with the various rumours that were being spread.
Djúpvitr and you kept laughing at some of them while others even made your skin crawl. The effect was the same nonetheless. Most of the other servants, male or female, stayed out of your way and stopped harassing you. It had everything to do with the mystery of why prince Loki had stepped in and helped a mere servant. One rumour said you had bewitched him and now the prince was at your beck and call. Another said prince Loki wasn’t actually there and you had tricked lord Fandral in hurting the other girl. But the rumour that was the most popular nowadays was the one where Loki became so jealous of lord Fandral’s request of making you his new chambermaid, that he latched out on the other servant and punished her for not only attacking what was his, but also for suggesting his plaything would betray him in such a vile way.
No one wanted to hear the story from you so the rumours would always exist and the prince either ignored them, refused to indulge in them or he simply didn’t know they existed. Either way the prince remained silent and every time you ran into him when you were on your way carrying plates of lunch or dinner for lord Skírnir, his wife or yourself, the prince simply smiled at you but never said a thing other than a “good day” and a “good evening”. And even though that was all he did, the servants who had seen him do so told everyone about it with the needed exaggerations of course. One servant claimed to have seen the prince whisper dirty thoughts into your ear while another swore to have seen him brush against you to quickly caress your breast. All of these rumours resulted in you being considered dangerous as well as the biggest whore of the serving staff, even though you were probably one of the only virgins still among said staff.
“Alright! Is everyone ready?” Lady Svala said and woke you up from your daydreaming. “Hrefna! Pull up your dress! You’re not going out there with me while you’re looking like that!” Lady Hrefna’s cheeks reddened as she quickly adjusted her dress and took her place among the other bridesmaids. A moment later a knock on the door was heard and Svala’s father walked in. He was also dressed in green, but not the mint-green colour that lord Skírnir was planning on wearing, no, he wore a dark forest green tunic with silver details and armour.
“It’s time, my dear to meet your husband.” The father said and the bride beamed a big smile at him. You were sure that lady Svala and lord Skírnir were a bit more acquainted than her father seemed to think, nevertheless was this an arranged marriage between two noble households to solidify an agreement, wealth or an alliance.
“I’m ready father.” Lady Svala said and took his arm to guide her out of her own apartments and into the corridors in the direction of the throne room where the allfather would solidify their union. The bride was followed by her army of bridesmaids and behind them came the servants. Their job would consist of smiling and throwing little flowers when the bride would take that long walk down the aisle to join her husband in the front, at the bottom steps of the throne. You were actually quite excited. Not only was this the very first wedding you would attend to, but you would also meet so many different beings from all over the realm. Elves, Vanir, Æsir and even some dwarves from Svartalfheim. The one you were looking most forward to see, was prince Frey.
In the weeks you had spent with lord Skírnir, you had send and received various letters from the prince. He had actually listened to you and had now in his possession a real Mirkwood longbow which he was going to bring along to the feast. He had asked how the wedding was going along and if he needed help arranging it. That’s when you had told him lord Skírnir already had an assistant to help him out, without really revealing that said assistant was actually writing him the letters instead of lord Skírnir himself. The last letter you had received from him told you about all his plans to throw the biggest Ostara feast the nine had ever seen. He even went so far as to say he was going to invite some Jotnar over. Mountain giants and storm giants only of course, although it sounded more of a question the way he said it as if he was still debating whether bringing frost giants and rock giants would be considered as a bad idea.
When you all finally arrived at the throne room and the doors opened up for you, you were greeted with the biggest mass of people you had ever seen gathered into one place. The throne room itself was huge! You knew that the allfather, the queen, the princes and the groom were waiting at the end of the room, but as far as you could see, there simply was no end. Soft music started playing as lady Svala and her father slowly crept through the path between the mass. You and the other maids threw flowers from your little baskets after the bride. You tried with all your might to look for a familiar face among the crowd, but you didn’t really know that many people and there might as well be thousands of others between them. You wondered if lord Blekk would also be dressed in green. The closer you got to the throne the more vibrant the colour scheme became. Men and women here wore blues, reds, yellows and purples to create a pretty rainbow as you walked passed them. You were just questioning if they had gotten the memo for the greens and pinks, when you realised that most of them had pointy ears and long platina hair.
“The light elves!” You thought excitedly. When you looked up to see how far the throne still was, you were met with the most brilliant of all sights. The royal family standing on the goldens steps of the throne of Asgard, the throne of all the nine realms. The Allfather was clad in gold armour with a crimson red cape and a golden helmet. In his hand he had the great golden staff Gungnir. The queen was a step down from him, wearing a deep blue dress with a silver breastplate and silver vambraces. On top of her head she wore a silver band filled with little diamonds that caught the light with every move she made. The princes too were wearing their best. Prince Thor was clad in a simpler version of the allfather’s attire. Instead of gold, Thor’s armour was mostly silver and his helmet had smaller feathers than his father’s. Prince Loki however was wearing gold armour, but not the crimson red that both his father and his brother seemed to prefer. He wore an emerald green cape and a golden horned helmet that added a few inches to his height.
“As if he wasn’t big enough already.” You mused to yourself. They simply looked royal, there was no question about that. Lord Skírnir wasn’t looking bad either, even though you didn’t necessarily like the mint-green of his tunic, it actually seemed to suit him beautifully. When Lady Svala had kissed her father on the cheeks and climbed the steps to her husband alone, the whole room went silent. Your job was now over as you followed the other servants to the side. You did however catch prince Loki’s eye and felt your cheeks flush hot when he winked at you with a smirk plastered on his face.
“We have gathered here to unite these two people in marriage. Their decision to marry has not been entered into lightly and today they publicly declare their private devotion to each other. The essence of this commitment is the acceptance of each other in entirety, as lover, companion, and friend. A good and balanced relationship is one in which neither person is overpowered nor absorbed by the other, one in which neither person is possessive of the other, one in which both give their love freely and without jealousy. Marriage, ideally, is a sharing of responsibilities, hopes, and dreams. It takes a special effort to grow together, survive hard times, and be loving and unselfish.” The allfather began with a booming voice that filled the entire room and then paused for a moment.
“Do you both pledge to share your lives openly with one another, and to speak the truth in love? Do you promise to honour and tenderly care for one another, cherish and encourage each other, stand together, through sorrows and joys, hardships and triumphs for all the days of your lives?” The allfather asked as he took one hand from the groom and one hand from the bride to place them together in his own.
“We do.” Lord Skírnir and lady Svala said together.
“Do you pledge to share your love and the joys of your marriage with all those around you, so that they may learn from your love and be encouraged to grow in their own lives?” The allfather asked as he bound their hands together with silk that seemed to be glowing.
“We do.” The couple said again and the silk shone brighter, before disappearing altogether and leaving behind two rings.
“May these rings be blessed as a symbol of your union. As often as either of you look upon these rings, may you not only be reminded of this moment, but also of the vows you have made and the strength of your commitment to each other.” The allfather spoke as he gave the couple each of the rings. Lord Skírnir grabbed lady Svala’s hand and slipped the ring on her finger. After that lady Svala did the same with lord Skírnir. “Go now in peace and live in love, sharing the most precious gifts you have the gifts of your lives united. And may your days be long in this universe. I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride.” Odin declared and Skírnir did not wait one moment to seal his wife’s lips with his own. The whole room busted with loud applause and cheering as the two showed their love for each other in full view of all the realms. And now came what everyone was actually waiting for, the wedding feast. The bride and groom went back to their now shared apartments (which were actually lord Skírnir’s apartments), to change outfits and freshen up to join everyone at the dining hall.
“Are you Svinnr?” A woman clad in a red dress asked as she stepped towards you. She had gorgeous blond hair fashioned into a complicated braid on top of her head.
“I am, my lady.” You said as you curtsied for her.
“Good. Now if you would please follow me, the queen has demanded your presence.” The woman said and before you could utter a “what”, she turned around and walked away. You quickly followed behind her as you were curious to see what the queen would want from you. “Don’t be nervous, girl. The queen seemed quite taken with you at one of her the tea-gatherings. I’m lady Fulla by the way, but you can call me by my name only.” The woman said with a warm smile that mimicked the queen’s.
“Oh,… are you sure? I know it’s not proper for a ser-“
“I’m a lady in waiting to the queen. In a sense that makes me a servant too. Even the queen and king serve the realms, so don’t tell me it’s not proper for a servant to call another servant by name.” Lady Fulla said with a smirk. You smirked too. Fulla seemed every bit as wild as Djúpvitr and you loved it.
“Is this your first wedding?” Fulla asked.
“It is, yes. I really tried to look out for the dwarves from Svartalfheim, but there were so many people!” You said in wonder which earned you a chuckle from Fulla.
“You’ll see them soon enough, but let me tell you a little secret.” She said as she started to whisper so you had to come closer. “They’re only dwarves in name. They are of the exact height as ourselves.” Fulla said with a laugh as she saw your bewildered face.
“But, then why are they called that?” You asked.
“They were given that name by both the rock giants and the light elves. Rock giants, well, they’re giant and the light elves are also bigger than your average Asgardian or Midgardian. They simply named them so, because they were smaller than them.” She said, but then quickly added something else. “They also hate them, so it was meant to disgrace them, only the rest of the realm took over the name and now it’s considered an honour to have it.” You were just thinking to remember to read a new book on the dwarves from Svartalfheim when you arrived at the queen’s chambers. Fulla pushed open the doors and trotted inside as if these were her own rooms.
“Ah, Fulla!” The queen called as she spotted the both of you. “And you have brought Svinnr with you.” She beamed as she came to greet you. “You look lovely, my dear.” The queen said as she kissed you on the cheeks which instantly reddened.
“My queen, it is you who is truly lovely. Your presence brightens every room you walk into.” You replied with the deepest curtsy you could master. The queen chuckled.
“You see, Fulla? Now that’s a compliment.” She told her with a bright smile. Fulla only rolled her eyes, but she too kept her smile plastered on her face.
“Oh, please. The girl is new and therefor needs to say nice things.” Fulla replied.
“Speaking of new. Was this your first wedding, Svinnr?”
“It was, your majesty.”
“And what were your thoughts on it?” She asked as she guided you towards a table in one of her side rooms.
“She was busy looking around for dwarves.” Fulla supplied as she sat herself down on the queen’s right, to leave the left open for you.
“Oh? And what did you think of them?” The queen asked.
“I didn’t see any. I also didn’t know they were the same size as us, not until Fulla told me so.” You said honestly. “The wedding ceremony was very lovely though.”
“Yes and I see you have broken protocol by wearing that brooch.” The queen said as she pointed to your chest. Once again you felt your cheeks redden.
“I… I thought it was a nice touch. I might have helped lord Skírnir and his wife out with this wedding, but I’m still lord Blekk’s help.” You said nervously, not really knowing whether you were in trouble or not.
“That you are. Lord Blekk seemed rather pleased when he saw you wearing it.” The queen said and instantly your spirits were lifted. “Now, tell me, have you got anything to wear for the feast?”
“I… I thought I wasn’t allowed to attend the-“
“Oh, no, you’re not.” Fulla said.
“I thought as much. That’s why I have had a dress made for you.” The queen said. “Fulla, dear, will you please get the dress?” The queen asked and Fulla left the table only to come back with a sapphire blue dress that perfectly matched the colour of your eyes. “What do you think, dear?” The queen asked after a moment of silence. You were speechless. You hardly ever got presents and this dress must have cost more than your parent’s house! More importantly it was gifted to you by the queen herself! A servant being gifted by the queen?!
“It is beautiful, your majesty.” You said with a voice full of raw emotion as a single tear rolled down your cheek. You were so fixated by the dress that you missed the warm look the queen was shooting you.