Ýdalir, the great hall of Ullr
Chapter 22: Ýdalir, the great hall of Ullr
“Come with me.” Prince Loki whispered to you as everyone started to leave to find their beds after they had filled their bellies with the warm stew.
“Where to?” You whispered back, but he ignored you, got up from the log and walked away. You quickly placed your bowl on the ground and left to follow the prince. It was hard to keep up with his strides given that your legs were half the size of his. Eventually he left the camping site and summoned up an orb of light to illuminate the path you were taking. It took another minute or so for prince Loki to finally come to a stop and turn to you.
“This must be far enough.” He muttered and then waved his hand to let the orb float into the air. He was giving you an expectant look, but you had no idea what he wanted so you simply looked back at him awkwardly. “Go on.”
“Go on with what?” You asked and he rolled his eyes.
“Show me your seidr.” Oh.
“What do you want me to do?” He sighed and rubbed a hand over his face.
“Are you always this difficult? Show me what you can do, how you work with you seidr.” You bit your lip and then took a deep breath. You could do this, after all you had been practicing on your own for years. Yet, it made you nervous that you were going to be judged by a man who was known as the greatest seidr-wielder of Asgard, possibly the nine. You spoke the runes and waved your hand to make the orb of light descend, only to make it levitate once more. Then you concentrated hard and a second later golden and purple sparks popped up around you like fireworks. A snap of your fingers earned you a small flickering illusion of a squirrel running in the air. You were happy to see you could clearly make out what kind of animal it was, but as you lifted your eyes to meet Loki’s, he didn’t seem that impressed at all. His brow was even raised as if he was waiting for you to truly do something mind-blowing. Well, if he wanted a show then you could give him one. You clasped your hands together, felt your seidr gathering inside your heart and took a deep breath before you unclasped your hands and pointed them to the sky. A jet of fire instantly rose from your fingertips to touch the stars with such power and such noise that you were certain it could be seen and be heard from Asgard.
“STOP!” Loki yelled, but you couldn’t. There was simply too much power that you had unleashed all at once. You suddenly felt a hand on your shoulder and warmth a second later that seemed to be draining you from your powers. Eventually you collapsed onto the ground and the beam of hot fire that had scourged some of the trees was gone. A darkness enveloped you and an empty feeling settled inside your heart. “ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND?!” Prince Loki roared beside you. He was breathing heavily and his eyes seemed to be bulging out of their sockets.
“W-what did you do?” His eyes widened even more if that was possible.
“What did I do? WHAT DID I DO?!” He was screeching now like a madman. “I STOPPED YOU FROM SETTING THE WHOLE DAMNED FOREST ABLAZE, YOU STUPID GIRL!”
“I’m sorry. I-I didn’t mean to.” You felt so weak, as if all the energy had been drained out of your body. Even speaking seemed to become too much of a burden.
“Svinnr?” Prince Loki sounded a little worried, but everything was getting blurry. Even the noise of the forest and his voice started to mix into this unworldly sort of sound. You felt a hand on you and then you felt as if you were being shaken, but nothing mattered anymore. There simply was nothing. Only darkness.
“I don’t understand why you have to treat her as thus.” You recognized that loud voice. Prince Thor. You tried to open your eyes or to move, but your body refused to listen to you.
“It was a harmless trick.” That was most definitely prince Loki who spoke.
“Harmless?” Thor’s voice started to get louder. “You carried the girl back to the camp, unconscious! What in all of Yggdrasil did you do, Loki? We all saw that jet of flames rising up to the sky out of nowhere!”
“I don’t have to answer to you, Thor!”
“But you do, Loki! I was appointed as the leader of this party and as such you are under my command!” A hard silence followed in which you had stopped to try and move altogether. You wanted to let them know you were awake, but right at that moment, drawing attention to yourself was the last thing on your mind. Someone sighed heavily and you heard the rustling sound of fabric. “I want to understand you, Loki, I really do, but if you keep shutting me out and leave me in the dark, then I’m afraid I never will.” You had never heard prince Thor’s voice being so soft and full of raw emotion before. There was no doubt in your mind that he was telling the truth.
“I never asked for your understanding, Thor. Just as I have never asked to be this way.” Prince Loki pretty much hissed that last part before you could hear footsteps and the rustling of fabric and then everything went quiet again. You tried to move once more and managed to shift onto your back, before you opened your eyes. By the Norns, you had a headache! It felt like Thor had struck you in the head with his mighty hammer. Your whole body ached as well and the small movement you had made was draining whatever bit of energy you had.
“Svinnr?” Prince Thor asked and you tried to turn your head towards him, but the pain in your head forced you to stay as you were.
“My head is going to explode.” You said and were glad to hear that your voice was at least alright, same for your throat.
“Here.” He said as he knelt down at your side and gave you his waterskin to drink from. You took a few gulps, before thanking him. You then took in your surroundings. You were lying under a pile of furs in the middle of a beautiful crimson tent. The princes’ tent, you realized.
“W-what happened?” You asked him next and when his face came into your line of vision you could see the worry in his eyes, but there was also a small smile on his lips.
“I should be the one asking you that.” He said with amusement laced into his voice.
“I… I don’t-“
“Shh, it’s alright. Loki told me everything.” You stopped breathing as you felt your heart sink into your stomach. Prince Loki had told him everything. You couldn’t help it, you just started to sob. “Oh, no, Svinnr. Don’t cry. It’s alright. It won’t happen again. Shhh now.” What the hell was he doing, comforting you? He was supposed to reprimand you and put you in chains, so why wasn’t he? “I’m sure my brother didn’t want you to get hurt. He just sometimes doesn’t know what he’s capable off.” Now he was truly not making any sense.
“Can I… can I speak with him?” You asked him and he gently pushed you out of his embrace to look at you.
“I would not advise to do so now given that he’s not in the best of moods, but when he’s calmed down enough you should be alright to talk to him.” You nodded your head and quickly regretted that as a white flash of pain shot behind your eyes. “Can you stand?” You didn’t want to disappoint him, so you tried to get up, but you failed miserably. Your limbs were shaking and in no state to support your weight. What in all of Yggdrasil was wrong with you? You tried again, but it had the same results. Eventually you had to suffer through the embarrassment of prince Thor having to carry you outside of his tent in full view of the rest of the travel party. There was no sign of prince Loki, but you did see that the first light of day was creeping through the trees that almost had a molten look of silver to them. Prince Thor carried you all the way to the queen’s carriage where he laid you down on the ground and tucked you under some skins to make you warm and comfortable. You fought so hard to tell him not to forget Léttfeti, but the words remained stuck in your throat as your eyes dropped shut.
Your whole body was shaking and your back was hurting. You could hear a horse neighing somewhere behind you and voices softly speaking, but you couldn’t make out the words. It was also incredibly hot under your furs and light was shining through your eyelids. Reluctantly you opened them and quickly screeched in pain as the sun blinded you. It took all your power to flip yourself towards the other side to get away from the scorching sun that you now felt burning on your back. A hand brushed the hairs out of your face and behind your ear, then a warmth spread over your cheek as the hand came to rest there. You were slowly starting to feel your energy gaining, but the ever-present feeling of your seidr coursing through your veins was absent.
You felt much better when you awoke again and even more so when you looked out of the window to see a massive structure that was build out of the wood of the silver trees that grew in this very forest. It was simply breath-taking how the light shone upon it and made it sparkle.
“Seems like someone is finally awake.” Fulla said which took your attention away from the structure that must be Ýdalir, the great hall of Ullr.
“I’m sorry if I have been an inconvenience.” That made her chuckle, but the queen was shooting you a worried look.
“Are you alright, dear?” You nodded your head and were glad that it felt less painful this time. “I would still advise you to rest when you are shown to your room.” You nodded again, thanked her for her concern and then the carriage was lead under an arc and onto a square where it came to a stop. Fulla helped you onto your feet and out of the carriage before tending to the queen. A few people that you didn’t know where beaming at the three of you and the rest of the travel party. A bulky elf with a pink scar above his eye stepped forward.
“Good afternoon to you all and welcome to Ýdalir! Your rooms have been readied and the baths below have been waiting for your arrival! My people will show you to your rooms and a feast has been prepared for tonight! For your arrival to my great hall needs to be celebrated just as the journey towards Andlang needs to be blessed!”
“Right you are, Ullr, old friend!” Thor beamed as he stepped forward to give the man a warm, brotherly hug. The queen spoke some pleasantries with Ullr as well while several servants busied themselves with getting the horses to the stables, noble men and einherjar to their rooms and transporting their belongings there. You watched them silently on shaky legs before you felt a hand on the small of your back, pushing you to walk forward. When you looked up you were met with the emerald green eyes of prince Loki. Once again you couldn’t read what his eyes were telling you, but you couldn’t tear your eyes away from them.
“Show me to my room, servant.” He suddenly spoke and you were confused before a trembling voice spoke.
“Of course, my prince. Right this way, my prince.” You looked at the girl’s back as prince Loki and you followed her inside. Even though outside it had been incredibly hot, inside of the hall it was cool and the walls were decorated with various tapestries of hunting scenes. You assumed lord Ullr was an active hunter then as you pretty much spotted him on every tapestry you passed. Eventually you came to a stop at a door that was also carved out of the silver wood from the forest. Now that you came to think of it, everything was carved out of the wood. The floors, the ceiling, the walls, the doors, ….
“Here you are, my prince. The baths are down this hall to the right.” The girl said before she dropped down into a curtsy for the prince. She then turned to you. “Can I show you to your rooms too, my lady?” She asked and before you could answer her, prince Loki had beaten you to it.
“That won’t be necessary. Make sure my belongings are brought here in one piece, same as hers.” He said and then waved her away. It took the girl a moment to move, but eventually she left a very confused you behind with the prince. He pushed the door open and ushered you inside by gently pushing the small of your back.
“W-what?” You asked as you sat yourself down on a coach by the fireplace, not really sure yourself what exactly you were asking.
“You are my squire, remember?” He said with a smirk, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes.
“I wish to thank you, my prince for-
“Loki.” He interrupted and he gave you such a piercing glance that you couldn’t look away.
“Loki.” You repeated and this time his smirk did reach his eyes.
“I wish to thank you for… for not telling Thor about my secret.” He snorted at that.
“You must be the only person I have ever met to thank me for lying.” He chuckled.
“Well the truth would be a death sentence for me.” You whispered to yourself as you watched your hands in your lap, but when you lifted your gaze and met his eyes you could see that he had heard you loud and clearly.
“How are you feeling?” He eventually asked as he sat himself down beside you.
“I feel as if all the energy has leaked out of me and I can’t feel my seidr like I normally can.” You answered honestly.
“Don’t worry, that’s normal.”
“Normal?”
“Yes. You see, when you decided to give the whole world a lightshow, you poured all of your seidr into it. I tried to tell you to stop, because such a powerful force of power needs to be fed more energy in order to survive and when your seidr was reaching its limits, it began feasting upon your natural energy. If I hadn’t severed the connection it would have consumed you completely and you would have perished.” He said and then sighed heavily. “That was a terribly foolish thing to do, Svinnr. What urged you to act so carelessly?” You looked back at your hands as they were playing with a loose string of your shirt.
“I was trying to impress you.” You finally managed to get out. A beat and then Loki began to laugh loudly. You were embarrassed and angry for being made fun off, but above all you were tired.
“Oh, girl! You must be the most amusing little thing I have ever met!” He said before he lost himself in laughter again. You were done. It was one thing nearly dying, but another to be mocked for it. You shot up from the cough and marched over to the bathroom with angry paces before slamming the door shut behind you with all the force you could muster, which in all honesty, wasn’t all that much. You locked it and worked the taps to fill up the bathtub. You were already emerged into the hot water when a knock came to the door.
“Svinnr?” Prince Loki asked through the door. “Come now, don’t be ridiculous. I wasn’t laughing at you, I was merely laughing at the situation.” You huffed but gave him no answer otherwise. “I am flattered you would look to impress me, but you really didn’t need to. Afterall it was only to see how you handled your seidr, not what tricks you could do.” A silence followed in which you kept your lips glued shut. “Svinnr? Would you please talk to me or let me in?” Another silence followed. “Svinnr?” And then all of a sudden he appeared at the edge of the bathtub and you screamed.
“WHAT ARE YOU DOING!” You yelled at him as you tried to cover yourself with the bubbles that had formed after you had poured some kind of liquid into the bathtub. He looked to be frozen in place as his widened eyes fell upon you. “GET OUT!” You screeched which snapped him back to attention. The look on his face was that of pure shock and then all of a sudden, he disappeared without as much as a word.
When you had been washed and the water had been drained, you found a dress hanging in front of a closet. It was emerald green which immediately told you who must have send it, but you put it on anyway. Afterall you couldn’t dress back into your dirty clothes, now could you? You left the bathroom to find the rest of your shared room with Loki being empty. You found a note however on the table in the living quarters.
Dear Svinnr,
I’m sorry for having barged in on your privacy, but I believed you to have fallen asleep while bathing and it worried me. Furthermore I wish to apologise for making you feel embarrassed for telling me the truth. I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings nor did I mean to laugh at you, dearest. I hope this won’t affect our friendship and that you will still find it in your heart to confine in me.
I have left a dress for you in the bathroom to wear to the feast tonight and I would be honoured if you wore it. I have gone to join my brother and mother in lord Ullr’s private chambers and will return later this afternoon. For now I believe it to be wise if you rested until then.
Your prince
Well, … that was a lot. He was right though. It would be wise for you to rest before having to attend the feast later tonight. You sighed and got out of your dress before hanging it up inside the closet in the bedroom. Surely it wouldn’t be a crime if you slept in the massive bed, right? It was simply calling to you and your eyes were already threatening to close. You stopped yourself however from simply crashing down upon it. You were still in your underwear, so you quickly dashed through the room in search of your bag and nightgown. Once you had located them both, you put it on and slipped beneath the covers. Your head hadn’t even touched the pillow before you drifted off into a dreamless sleep.
“Svinnr.” A voice spoke and a hand was shaking your arm. You growled and shifted to lie on your other side, but the hand kept shaking you, urging you to wake up. Reluctantly you opened your eyes and were met with a smirking Loki. “You are in my bed, little one.” You shot up and quickly looked away in embarrassment. Prince Loki however chuckled. “I have come to wake you to get ready for the feast.”
“Thank you.” You mumbled in a thick morning voice.
“You’re welcome.” A silence followed in which he stayed seated on the side of the bed and you tucked under the covers with your back on the headboard. You lifted your eyes to meet his with a confused look.
“Could you… turn around or give me some privacy?” Again he chuckled.
“Why? Are you naked underneath the covers?” Your cheeks flushed bright red. “May I remind you, dear, that I am your prince and you cannot order me out of my own bedroom.” You started fidgeting with the fabric of the covers in your hands. “Nevertheless I will indulge your command, but only this once.” He then got up from the bed, left the bedroom and closed the door behind him. You shot up from the bed and quickly walked over to the closet to pull your dress on. You didn’t want to risk prince Loki suddenly coming in again, so you quickly made work of the bodice and loosened the laces in the front of it, to allow your ribs to breath. When you opened the door you were greeted by the prince who was standing just outside of it, looking you up and down and undressing you with his eyes. You felt more than uncomfortable and shifted on your feet.
“The laces, they are not done properly.”
“Yes, well, lady Eir told me not to wear anything restricting to allow my ribs to heal.” He nodded and then went quiet again.
“You…” He started, but a moment later he shook his head and dropped whatever it was that he had wanted to say. He gave you his arm, which you took, and lead you out of the room and into the corridors. You didn’t know whether he knew the way nor did you ask, but it wasn’t necessary anyway given that you could simply hear where the feast would take place. When you arrived at the dining hall you figured out why there was already so much noise. You were late. There were already a few men who had a little too much to drink and when you spotted lord Volstagg you could see that he had already finished three plates of some sort of poultry. You weren’t just late, you were very late. Prince Loki didn’t seem to mind as he guided you towards the high table with a smug air about him.
“What are you doing?” You whispered to him and tried to slow him down. He gave you a quizzical look. “I can’t sit there. That’s where the royals sit or the highest of the nobles.” That made him laugh.
“Am I not a royal, little one?” You rolled your eyes at that.
“Yes, you are, but I certainly am not.” You hissed back at him.
“You’re right, but you are my squire, are you not?” That was a horrible excuse given that you had never seen any personal servant or squire sit at the high table back on Asgard. He was giving you a determined look as if to say ‘go on, argue. See where it gets you.’ So you kept your mouth shut and followed him all the way up the dais to sit by his side at a table that was full of lords and ladies that you hoped weren’t going to figure out that you were but a commoner.
“Ah, Svinnr!” Prince Thor said with his booming voice that made several heads turn your way. “Are you feeling better?” Damn. You were hoping you could simply endure this feast without having to talk to anyone, for you didn’t speak the same language as they did! You weren’t sophisticated like them and you had no idea whether you should try to be or just admit that you were nothing more but a commoner.
“I am feeling much recovered. Thank you, my prince, for inquiring after my wellbeing.” You said and felt your cheeks flush as prince Thor looked at you quizzingly.
“You’re most welcome, my lady.” He said with a raised brow, but quickly recovered as he flashed you a smile. “I do hope you’re well enough for a dance?” You wanted to open your mouth, but fell silent when a hand covered your own.
“Though I’m sure she would love to indulge you, brother, I’m afraid she can’t overexert herself at the moment.”
You were left alone most of the night and even though you actually wanted to dance, because this was your very first feast on Alfheim, prince Loki kept you from doing so. The food was nice though with dishes you had never heard of before and unworldly tastes. It was much lighter than the food on Asgard, but also less spiced. You were just finishing your dessert (some kind of fluffy mouse with a berry sauce) when prince Loki excused himself from the table and looked at you expectantly. You sighed to yourself and rose from your seat to follow him out of the dining hall and back to his room.
“I was still eating, you know.” You couldn’t help but complain.
“I noticed, but then again you’re such a slow eater.”
“I also very much wished to dance.” That really got his attention as he glared at you.
“Yes, I’m sure you would have loved to have my brother twirl you around in his arms for everyone to see.” Where was this coming from?
“Did I say I wished to dance with him?” You told him defensively. “I only wanted to dance and he was the first to offer it.” He kept glaring at you, but you ignored him. You weren’t in the wrong here. He was the one who decided to accuse you of something, innocent at that. Why would it even matter if you had wanted to dance with his brother? You walked on in silence after that and you could simply feel the anger radiate from prince Loki, but he kept quiet. Eventually you reached his room and he let you inside before slipping in behind you and closing the door.
“You will sleep on the couch.” He said icy and before you could open your mouth to say something, he had walked away and closed the bedroom door with a loud slam.