MADNESS
— 26. Cruelty

  In their chambers, Ivar and Freya were both drunk. Ivar was sitting on the edge of the bed while Freya knelt behind him, helping him braid his hair.

"Ouch!" Ivar yelped in pain and Freya playfully rolled her eyes as she lightly slapped his head.

They both laughed, only to be cut off when Hvitserk entered, looking unhappy. "What happened to him?" He suddenly asked, much to Freya's confusion.

"What?" Ivar replied, smiling as he watched his older brother walk over to him and Freya.

"What happened to the Seer?" He asked and by the way Ivar's smile faded at the question, Freya knew she was missing something.

"The Seer?" Ivar replied, purposely acting as though he didn't know what Hvitserk was talking about, "They told me he had gone."

"There was fresh blood on the ground," Hvitserk informed them, causing Freya's eyes to widen in shock.

"What?" She gasped, shocked by the revelation.

"Well, he must have made a sacrifice. What do I know?" Ivar replied, but Freya could tell he was lying.

"You're drunk," Hvitserk complained, glaring at Ivar, who chuckled in response, "If he's gone, we need to find him. And if somebody has tried to kill him, we need to know who, and why. Otherwise, the gods are not—"

"You cannot speak on behalf of the gods, Hvitserk," Ivar complained in an aggravated tone, "Only I can."

Hvitserk turned, exchanging an annoyed look with Freya.

Ivar stood up, using his crutch to move past them while Freya remained seated. "And I will," He continued to tell Hvitserk, "When I choose. Understand?"

Hvitserk scoffed, turning to face Ivar. He leaned closer to him. "I know," He whispered in a soft tone, "I know."

With that, Hvitserk walked away and Freya's smile faded, realizing what he meant. She walked over to Ivar, who looked absolutely terrified.

"Tell me the truth of it," Freya spoke up and Ivar sighed, trying to hide his uneasiness, "Was it you?"

"Was what me?" Ivar asked her in confusion.

"The Seer, did you kill him?" Freya responded, eying him suspiciously as she walked toward him.

Ivar sighed deeply and turned to face her. He remained silent, giving her a knowing look.

Freya's face fell at the revelation and she began to glare at Ivar. "Now, why would you go and do that?" She complained in a low growl.

"Only I can speak for the gods!" He snapped at her in a low tone, "No one else."

"Are you trying to make people hate you?" She asked him in disbelief, beginning to glare at him, "I can't even look at you."

She scoffed, beginning to walk past him when Ivar roughly grabbed her by the arm. "Don't walk away from me! You have no right!" He shouted at her and Freya winced at the tight grip he had on her arm.

There was a long moment of silence between them until Ivar's eyes widened, realizing that he was hurting her. He quickly let go of her, giving her an apologetic look. "Freya, I'm sorry. I did not mean to—"

"I need some air," Freya replied in a low tone. She shot him a glare and with that, she left the room with Ivar calling out to her.

____

  Freya found herself returning to her family home after the incident with Ivar. She winced, rubbing her wrist, which was already beginning to bruise. She made her way to Halig's room. The moment she stepped into the doorway of the room, she watched Halig gasp loudly as she shot up from the bed.

He glanced around, only to sigh when his eyes locked on Freya. "What are you doing here?" He asked her in an annoyed tone.

"Well, hello to you, too. Sleepyhead. Are you just waking up?" She replied, a teasing smile on her face, "You do realize it's already midday?"

"You do realize I'm not allowed to go outside. Usually, I don't even know what time of day it is," Halig retorted with an attitude, but after a moment of silence, they both began to smile.

Freya laughed softly and walked over to him. She sighed, wasting no time taking a seat on his bed. "Did you have a nightmare?" She asked and Halig looked down at the ground as he nodded his head in response, "What happened in this dream?"

"It was nothing," Halig lied as he shook his head in response.

"You're lying. I can always tell when you're lying," Freya reminded him. She remained silent, watching as Halig lifted his head to look her in the eyes.

"I had a dream that Ivar killed you," Halig informed her, causing Freya to feel uneasy, "He strangled you with a piece of rope."

"And why was that a bad dream for you?" Freya replied with an attitude, "I thought you hated me."

"Hvitserk spoke to me. He told me I should be grateful that you saved me," Halig admitted in a calm tone, "And if everything that has happened around her has proven anything, it's that you didn't really have a choice. You had to marry Ivar and betray our mother. You saved me, too, even when it risked your life. You've protected me. I might be angry with you, but I don't hate you. I could never hate you."

Freya smiled at Halig's words and nodded. "I'll take you out of here in a few days, I promise. We'll even spar," She suggested and Halig smiled at the thought.

"Will I ever get to see my mother again?" Halig found himself asking Freya in a whisper.

"I hope so," Freya admitted softly, "I'll do everything within my power to make sure it happens. I promise."

____

Later that day, Freya was still at her family home, refusing to return to Ivar anytime soon after what he did. She knew him well enough to know that he would act like nothing happened, hoping she was over it. She needed him to realize what he did was wrong or she'd have to worry about him laying a hand on her again.

She was sitting in a chair in one of the numerous rooms when the door opened. She turned, smiling when she saw Hvitserk enter the room.

"How are you?" He asked her and Freya shrugged, "What about the child?"

"Kicking more than I can bear," Freya admitted, placing a hand on her belly.

Hvitserk walked closer to her, a curious look on his face. "May I...?" He awkwardly trailed off and Freya smiled, nodding her head.

Hvitserk knelt in front of Freya. He slowly lifted his head and placed it over her belly. He waited a moment, only to have a small gasp escape his lips at the feeling of the child inside of her kicking.

He looked back up at Freya, who was smiling at him. "Do you feel that?" She asked him and Hvitserk quietly laughed as he nodded his head.

"He is strong," Hvitserk commented and Freya continued to smile at him.

"Like his father," She remarked, only to have both of their smiles fade at the thought, "I'm sorry. I know all of this must break your heart. I know how much you want to be a father. But one day..." She trailed off, leaning forward as she grabbed his hand, "One day, you will. I promise. I will tell this child stories of you and it will all be worth it because one day, we will be together without Ivar here to ruin it."

"What do you mean?" Hvitserk questioned, raising a brow at her.

"It won't be long before Ivar wants to raid England again. He'll want King Olaf or some other king or Earl to join us. He won't go to ask them himself. He'll ask someone else to do it for him. If we're lucky, that person will be you," She explained with a smile forming on her lips, "If you see King Olaf, I don't want you to tell him to side with Ivar, I want you to tell him to side against him."

"You want to overthrow Ivar?" Hvitserk asked, his eyes widening in shock.

"He is getting worse by the day. My hold on him is weakening. Now that he thinks he is a god, he thinks himself higher than everyone. He listens to no one but himself. Soon enough, he won't listen to anything I say. If that happens, not only us but the whole of Kattegat and Ashton will be doomed," Freya explained and Hvitserk was shocked to see genuine fear in her eyes.

He began to wonder what had suddenly made her need to get rid of Ivar greater than ever before. He suddenly froze, looking down to notice the purple bruise on her wrist.

"Who did this to you?" He asked and Freya quickly yanked her hand away, "Was it Ivar?"

"Do you think any sane man would lay a hand on the Queen of Kattegat? Of course, it was Ivar. He is growing restless with me because I don't always agree with him. You know how he gets when he doesn't get his way. If I'm not careful, he'll do much worse to me once this child is born," She explained to him in a low tone, "I made a mistake siding with me. You and I should have run when we had the chance. Now, I must clean up the mess I made. And I hope you'll help me."

"Of course I will," Hvitserk replied without hesitation. He cupped her face in his hands and with that, he kissed her.

_____

  In Great Hall, Freya sat on her throne quietly, listening as Ivar addressed the crowd around then. "My people, we have suffered a terrible loss. All of us. The Seer has been taken from us. Believe me, we are doing everything that we can to find out what has happened to him. We need him. No one can remember Kattegat without the Seer. He knows everything about us. All about our past. And everything about what the future holds for us," He explained, walking around the Great Hall.

Freya listened, finding herself rolling her eyes.

"I will find whoever did this and make him pay in blood for what he has done to us," Ivar declared in a venomous tone, "In the meantime, do not be afraid that I have been revealed to be a god. The gods have always lived amongst us. It will not affect your lives. It will not change anything. Except that you are all entitled to be proud that are ruled over by a god."

Turning his head, Hvitserk rolled his eyes as he looked over at Freya. They exchanged a look with each other, knowing Ivar's declarations of being a god were only getting worse. He truly believed it with all his heart.

Ivar smiled and turned to look directly at Freya, causing her to immediately look away from Hvitserk. "And that soon my wife will provide us with a divine child," He announced and Hvitserk shifted uncomfortably where he stood.

"Hail Ivar! Hail Ivar! Hail Ivar!" The crowd shouted loudly and Freya felt uneasy.

Ivar turned to face Hvitserk, smiling when he saw his brother looked almost afraid.

_____

  Outside the Great Hall of Kattegat, Hvitserk and Freya pushed through the larger crowd to find men setting up a statue of Ivar, a statue only meant to be made for gods.

"Hail Ivar!" The men shouted out and Hvitserk rolled his eyes as he turned to Freya.

"What in Odin's name is this fool up to now?" He asked in an aggravated tone.

"Who knows," Freya replied, letting out a large scoff, "And in truth, I don't think I want to know."

"This is all your doing, you know," Hvitserk complained, pointing his finger at the statue.

"I didn't think it would get this bad. Now, it is too late to take it back," Freya admitted, sighing in defeat as she looked downwards.

"Many people have killed by my brother for not following him. Those deaths are your hands," Hvitserk reminded her and Freya turned to face him.

"I know, but there's nothing we can do about that now. But you needn't worry because I shall die before I left him lay a hand on you," She assured him in a soft tone.

Hvitserk's and her hand brushed against each other. Hvitserk sighed and looked downwards, the two of them wanting so desperately to hold each other's hand in public, but they knew they couldn't.

Freya sighed, pulling her hand away from his. "I should return to Ivar," She informed in an uneasy tone.

"I'll see you later?" Hvitserk asked and Freya smiled up at him.

"Perhaps," She answered, a playful look on her face.

"I hope so," He whispered as he leaned closer to her.

"As do I," Freya chuckled softly, lighting patting him on the arm before she walked away.