WORSHIPPING HANDS, FINAN
synopsis.

E: WORSHIP ME THE WAY YOU
WORSHIP THE LORD.
F: GLADLY, PRINCESS.

ELVINA WAS BORN underneath a full moon to a dying Mother who joined the afterlife shortly after her labors ended.  The young child had a head of hair that was as pale as the moon she was birthed under and eyes as blue as the clearest seas.  Her personality was as warm as the sun and as kind as her Mothers once was.  Her smile was the first thing many people noticed as she did it often,  greeting the servants as she walked down the halls of her Fathers castle.  Elvina had been a loving girl that loved life itself,  until her Uncle Alfred took his brothers throne and the Danes began to push further in their attempts to claim the lands around Wessex.  Her then bubbly personality turned cold and sour as she witnessed the atrocities of war and the power hungry men that only wished to take her for the titles and silver they'd receive in return. 

          ELVINA HAD ONLY ever known her Father,  King Æthelred.  He had doted after her for the years he was present in her life. She reminded him so much of her Mother and it hurt his heart to see her pout her lips at him whenever she wasn't able to get her way. So he treated her like a true Princess and often never said no to his only daughter. Her elder brother, Æthelwold, often despised her because of this. He was convinced that if given the chance, their Father would give his crown to her and then the entirety of Wessex would go to shit because a woman sat the throne.  Æthelwold treated his sister the way he treated other women,  like an object that was only made for one thing.  His sharp tongue often spat horrid words at her,  his hands quickly following.  After the death of their King Father,  he was the one to whisper in the ear of Alfred that she should be married off to a wealthy Lord to help lengthen Wessex's influence.  For years he didn't listen to his Nephew,  marrying off his Niece not being something that he was solely focused on.  But as the days grew shorter and the ever growing threat of Danes declaring war on Wessex,  Alfred thought it best to betroth her to the Nephew of a close friend of his.  And with the eventual agreement of his sisters hand in marriage,  Æthelwold could continue his quest on becoming King of England without her there to object.

ELVINA GREW COLD-HEARTED after the death of her Father,  no longer smiling at the serving girls as she walked passed them in the halls.  Her warm personality grew dull and her heart hardened at the fact that yet another person close to her had perished.  She loved her Father dearly and wished for him to make a speedy recovery but his wounds from battle were too great to recover from.  Elvina prayed and prayed to the God she was taught to worship but He never answered.  With her cries left unanswered by the one who's supposed to be all mighty,  she grew to hate the omnipotent being that all around her praised.  The young girl began to question all that she was taught from the nuns and all that she knew about destiny,  life,  and her purpose.  She often found herself going to church when it was empty to confess her feelings,  not expecting anyone to answer her doubts.  Until one day an Irish voice became her saving grace.

ELVINA HAD NEVER felt what she had felt for Uhtred's right hand man before in her life.  She developed this tingly sensation within her stomach when she saw Finan wonder the walls of her Uncle's castle.  Her breathing quickened and sweat gathered at her palms whenever he sat by her in the empty pews of the void church.  Her own eyes struggled to meet his during conversations,  butterflies erupting inside her stomach every time she managed to hold eye contact for longer than a few seconds.  Finan offered her great comfort during a time of struggle,  patiently showing her how there is meaning to the life one lives and that God loves all his children,  even those who doubt their beliefs.  He eventually broke her shell and weaseled his way into the Princess' heart,  something that not many were able to do.  Eventually,  the line between friends and other blurred together when one night Elvina had visited Finan's temporary home in Wessex seeking his comfort.  But nothing ever goes according to what one hopes for as everything good needs to come to an end sooner or later.

FINAN HAD PRAISED the ground Elvina walked on. He considered it blessed even. He had never seen someone so ethereal and graceful as she. When he first saw her, he thought that she was an angel sent from above. He had just returned from his battle at Durham, Uhtred and Ragnar successfully gaining their revenge of killing Kjartan based on the murder of their family. Elvina kept herself hidden away in her room most of the time, only coming out when her Aunt, Ælswith, needed her company or to visit the empty church at night. Alfred had ordered her to come out in order to greet her brother back from battle, hiding behind her family and the various of serving workers established at the castle. She didn't see him from her settled place but he saw her. He basically committed the first sight he caught of her to memory. Her long, pale blonde hair was put back into one singular braid, a few of her baby hairs had managed to escape from the confines of the hairstyle. Her bright blue eyes jumped from figure to figure until they finally settled on her brother. Her lips were a light pink color, either their natural color or she had painted it with a tinted balm, either way Finan didn't care. His heart nearly leaped out of his chest when she saw her starting to approach, a smile unconsciously spreading on his lips as his eyes followed her striding figure. He knew that from the moment he saw her that he would find no one else that compared. From that day forth, selfishness had made its way into his heart and body, longing only for her.

FINAN HAD BEEN the only one to see young Elvina sneak out of her chambers and into the empty church of Winchester one night. He had followed the Princess in curiosity, wondering what a young lady like her would be walking out late at night and sneak into a church. It had been a harmless thing at first–listening into her whispered confessions and talk aloud of doubt. He felt bad for the girl for going through such horrible things at a young age. Finan couldn't imagine that it was easy to lose such a loving Father and then be casted aside as her Aunts close confidant and continuously question your faith and where one's destiny lie. He hadn't meant to speak up and offer up his own advice to the girl, but his mouth often worked faster than his brain.
Elvina thought it weird at first. An unknown man listening into her private confessions and offering a solution or two in response threw her off. It was unexpected to say the least. But not unwelcomed. Eventually their frequent nightly visits turned into seeing each other in passing during the day and then shifted into Elvina visiting Finan's home in Winchester whenever she needed to speak her mind. This had lead to a relationship that was to last the ages, but Aethelwold's plan of getting rid of his sister had finally been put into motion once Alfred had agreed to gain more allies for Wessex's goal of expansion. His plan is what caused the inevitable downfall of the Princess' and the warriors relationship, not to see each other again for nearly a handful of years. Until Elvina is invited to her cousins, Æthelflæd, wedding where some old bridges are mended and others shatter from undiscovered secrets.

F: SAY IT.
E: WHAT?
F: SAY IT. ASK ME TO BE YOUR
SECRET LOVER. ASK ME TO BE YOUR
WHORE, YOUR PARAMOUR. ASK
ME AND I'LL BE YOURS IN ANY WAY
THAT YOU'LL HAVE ME.

playlist! —
work song (hozier).
mary on a cross (ghost).
stay with me (sam smith).
chance with you (mehro).
shameless (camila cabello).
more than friends (isabel larosa).
wildest dreams (taylor swift).
what was i made for? (billie eilish).
die first (nessa barrett).
francesca (hozier).
i'm yours (isabel larosa).
someone you loved (lewis capaldi).
hello my old heart (the oh hellos).
cinnamon girl (lana del rey).

dedications! —
YourRoyalWh0reness nqzyalensky Inspirationqueen kwhyuk infantwomanro songbrds ooTsty vintagechaosxx wdwschickee & everyone else reading this!

authors note!
— a finan fic??? i just can't help myself
can i 🧍🏻
i may or may not have been inspired by harwin x
rhaenyra x laenor's dynamic from house
of the dragon & based it entirely on this
plot 👀 do with that what you will 🤭