Married to The Jarl of Dragons

Three

Three

         Eira was tired. Drangar was a big town and she was able to check out everything around there. The marketplace to the sleeping quarters. The last thing she needed to do was meet the ladies of Drangar. That was what she was not prepared for since she already encountered them when she first arrived.

        "We cook, clean our houses, bear children for our husbands." Eydis went on as they walked back to the area where they first met. "Can you make clothing?"

        "I know how." Eira told her. 

        "Great. That's a part of the job as well. We make sure our family has clothes."

        They stopped in front of the building and Eydis opened the door and the two of them walked in. The women inside were talking and they made warm clothing from fur. Alva walked over and stood in front of Eydis and Eira with her hand on her hips.

        "Why'd you bring her in?" She asked Eydis. "She has no right to be here."

        "She'll be apart of this clan after the wedding tonight."

        "I can't believe you're okay with this."

         Eydis crossed her arms over her chest and stared Alva down. Alva huffed and rolled her eyes at her.

        "We're making clothing for the raid." Alva told her. "Go join them."

        Without a word, Eira joined the other women. She picked up a sew kit and some fur. Then, she began making clothing for Brynjar and himself.

         While she was busy with work, Brynjar was busy planning for the raid they were going to do on Frejadir. 

        "That's a long trip." Sigurd told his brother. "Will we have enough food for it?"

        "We need to hunt after the wedding." Brynjar told him. 

        "Weddings are a long ceremony." Destin stated. "Then, there's the intimacy part."

        "That can wait." Brynjar told them.

        "That part has never been delayed." Gunbrand told his son. "Are you sure about that?"

        Brynjar looked up from the map and stared at his father, giving him a simple nod. Gunbrand sighed and glanced at the map.

       "We can always stop in Eyrarfell." Destin said. "That's the halfway mark before we get to Frejadir."

       "Give our clan a break and a good rest for a few hours before we head back out to the waters."

       Brynjar nodded in agreement and leaned up, stretching his arms in the air. He glanced out the window as his mind went to Eira. He wondered what she was doing and if she was okay. 

       "Stop worrying." Sigurd said. "She's with our sister."

       "Probably in the presence of your bitter wife." Brynjar huffed.

       Sigurd laughed, nudging his brother in the process. 

        "She probably wasn't wrong, either." Gunbrand said. 

        "Of course you would think that." Brynjar said. 

        "Weren't you to marry her sister, Hilda?" 

        Brynjar turned back to the map, not trying to think about the girl. Hilda was cute, but similar to her sister. He wanted nothing to remind him of Alva.

        "Why didn't you want to marry her?" Destin asked. "She was a cute girl."

        Brynjar slammed his hand on the wooden table and glanced up at them.

       "Because I wanted different." He told them. "Yeah, Hilda was a cute girl, but remember, she gave it to me before we wed. I didn't want that." 

        "Calm down, Brynjar." Sigurd said. "They just asked."

         Brynjar shook his head and walked away from the table. He left the room and descended a flight of stairs. Rushing out the building, he went to the women's area. He wanted to see her and make sure she was not dealing with Alva's wrath. 

         "Wait up!" Sigurd shouted at his brother from behind. 

         Brynjar came to a halt and turned around. He watched as Sigurd and Destin rushed to his brother's side.

         "We didn't mean to upset you." Destin said.

         "You two didn't." Brynjar told his brothers. "I just want to check on her."

         "Then, let's go." Destin said.

         The three of them raced to the women's building. They got to the building and Eydis was already outside, waiting for them.

       "You guys think loud." She told her brothers. "Couldn't be away for more than an hour, could you?"

       Brynjar walked up to his sister and shoved her, playfully. Eydis laughed before she shoved him back.

      "How is she?" Brynjar asked once they calmed down.

      "She's fine." Eydis said. "You can go see."

      Brynjar did just that. He walked into the house and saw that Eira was working on clothing. Feeling his presence, Eira looked up from her work and stared at Brynjar. She was happy to see him. 

        "See, she's fine." Eydis said.

        "She shouldn't be working until the next day." Sigurd told Eydis. "She needs to be getting ready for her wedding tonight."

        Right when Sigurd said that, the door behind them flew open and Iona, Ceidra's servant, walked in. She gasped and rushed over to Eira. Eira dropped the clothes as she was snatched up and pulled towards the door. Iona stopped in front of Brynjar and sighed.

        "Brynjar, you need to get ready!" She exclaimed. "The weddings been moved up!"

        "By who?" Brynjar asked her. 

        "Your mother! Now go!"

       Brynjar and his brothers rushed out and Iona followed with Eira on her trail. She was taken to another house. Iona opened the door and Eira walked in. She scanned the place until she saw Ceidra standing near a long blueish-green gown that had jewels all over it. A few feet away from the gown warm was a tub filled with warm water.

       "Remove your clothes and get in the bath." Ceidra told her. "We only have a couple hours to get you prepared. So please, don't waste my time."

      Eira removed her clothing as she was told and walked over to the tub. She hopped in and sat down, covered up to her collarbone with water. Iona walked to the tub and removed Eira's hair from the braided ponytail it was in. While Iona washed her up, Ceidra decided to conversate with her future daughter.

      "How old are you?" Ceidra asked as she took a seat at the table. 

      "17." Eira answered.

      "Hm… Why so late?"

      "My parents' decision."

      Iona poured soap on Eira's hair and began scrubbing the dirt from it. 

      "Been with a man or woman?" Ceidra asked Eira.

       Eira looked up at her fiance's mother and shook her head.

       "Don't lie to me." Ceidra told her. "Women are always intimate before 17."

       "I never been with anyone before." Eira told her. "Your son will be the first."

       "And last." 

       Eira nodded her head. Ceidra pushed her golden brown locks behind her ear and turned back to Eira.

      "After the wedding, there won't be any intimacy between you and Brynjar. He will be off for a hunt for food since they will be off to raid. The trip will be two weeks long. You are going to accompany him everywhere he goes. Each trip he goes on, you'll go on as well."

       Eira listened to Ceidra explain everything to her as Eira was prepared for her wedding. Two hours later, Eira was standing in front of Ceidra's mirror, checking herself out in her wedding gown. Ceidra walked behind Eira and glanced at her with a smile on her face.

      "Nervous?" Ceidra asked her.

      "Extremely." Eira told her.

      Ceidra admired the girl's beauty. She could see why her son chose her. She was gorgeous young lady and she was different and she knew Brynjar loved that about her. 

       "She's so beautiful." Iona said. "I've never seen beauty like that in my life."

      "This what happens when a Wiccan and Dragon produce. Their children become more beautiful than others. I knew Brynjar would run into Wiccan, but not one that possesses dragon blood like us. Her father and mother created something special."

        Eira turned around and faced Ceidra. 

        "Your wedding is about to start." Ceidra told her. "Are you ready?"

        Eira took a deep breath in and exhaled slowly. 

        "Yes." She answered. 

        Ceidra walked to Eira's side and placed her arm in hers, then guided Eira out of the building. 

        "This is your night." Ceidra said to Eira. "Enjoy it."

        "How can I when I'm hated here?" Eira asked her as they walked towards the hall. 

      Ceidra stopped. Eira slowed down as well, waiting for the woman to say something. 

       "This was something that I had to go through as the fourth wife. But, I proved myself to be worthy of them. It took some time, but I was able to earn their respect a few years down the line."

        Eira nodded as she continued listening to Ceidra's tale as they walked over to the dining hall. She could not focus, though. Eira was nervous about the whole wedding. In just a few moments, she was going to marry Brynjar, the Jarl of Dragons. Just thinking about it, made her want to run and hide somewhere. Ceidra must have read her mind because she laughed out of nowhere.

    “I understand how you feel.” She told Eira. “This was a rush of the moment and you feel unprepared, right?”

    Eira nodded, gulping as she saw the dining hall in full view. She stopped in her tracks and glanced over at Ceidra. She shook her head, trying to back away.

    “I can’t do this.” Eira told her. "What if I disappointment him?”

    Ceidra stood in front of Eira an placed her hands on both of Eira’s shoulders. 

    “Your fear is going to get the best of you.” She told Eira. “Think of something positive for once.”

    “How? All I could think about is me being a failure as a wife. What if I can’t give him what he wants?”

    Ceidra removed one of her hands off of Eira’s shoulder and placed it over Eira’s mouth, cutting her off completely. 

    “Take a deep breath.” Ceidra told Eira. 

    Eira took a deep breath, then slowly blew out. She did that a couple more times before she had gotten better and they proceeded the walk. They made it outside of the hall and Eira stood there at the door, waiting for Ceidra’s instructions.

    “Once you leave from here, you are a married woman.” Ceidra told her, grabbing the door handle.

    Eira nodded her head and Ceidra opened the door to the hall. Eira took a deep breath and walked inside, ready for this event to end.