The Arctic

Eira~ (Ay-ra)

This is my first attempt at writing something of this sort. Go easy on me and enjoy.

* * *

Eira stared out her bedroom window and into the snowy courtyard. Frost edged the panes of glass, kept at bay only by the heat of the fire roaring in the hearth. There looked to be at least a few inches of snowfall and it didn't look to be letting up anytime soon. A few dozen Elves stood in the snow, bundled in their furs and boots while they waited patiently to witness history.

"Princess Eira, it's time." Eira turned to Runa who stood patiently just inside her room and sighed. She pushed away from the window and straightened her dress. It was white, strapless with silver lace lined with fur shoulder cover. The skirt of the dress flowed just past her ankles and her long chestnut brown hair was down and fanned out.

"Am I doing the right thing Runa? What would my father say if he were here?" Runa flushed but she answered quickly.

"He would be proud of you. The sacrifice you're about make, the love you have for your people. It does not go unnoticed Princess." Runa was the closest thing to family Eira had left, she found solace and comfort in her words now. She took a deep breath, straightened her shoulders and nodded. Her people didn't stand a chance against the savages, especially after they killed her father and stole his ring. The ring was magically enchanted to fit the wearer; it displayed a silver wolf, representing the legendary Fenrir, and the center of the ring was the sun represented by a bloodstone.

It was a blood stone created by Sol herself, making it one of the more powerful bloodstones. It gave the bearer access to the power of the sun but it required the sacrifice from a descendant of Sol. Not of life, that was one Eira would have found so much easier to live with. Instead it required one of matrimony, she would have to marry Nicholas; only then would he stop the killing of her people, stop the beatings and rape of villagers. Matrimony required a magical contract, which was binding beyond just words and would give him access to her magic, making him stronger and more powerful than everyone else, including his own people. That is how Kings were decided among their people; suitors from other kingdoms would gather once a year in an attempt to court her and win her heart for the honor to be King.

Her people had fought bravely, but there had just been too many and Nicholas's men fought like wild animals, savage, almost numb to pain when they charged into battle, controlled by only their bloodlust.. Eira saw a man take 12 arrows to the chest and keep charging. Once Nicholas had taken her hostage, her people surrendered.

"Princess Eira, he's waiting." She nodded, focusing her mind back to the present. She followed Runa out of her room and down the stone corridor towards the courtyard balcony. She froze as she approached the doorway, her stomach dropping at the sight of Nicholas standing there facing their guests below. Jerrik tapped him on the shoulder and he turned, he wore a clean black tunic, making the white streaks in his light blue hair pop. A small silver flower was pinned to his chest, the ties were loose to reveal his broad slightly hairy chest. Beside him stood his second in command Jerrik. Jerrik kept his back to the stone doorway to increase his field of vision. He sneered as he watched her approach, her soft green eyes downcast as she joined Nicholas's side.

Tiny delicate snowflakes kissed her skin and melted. The air held a slight crisp chill but she closed her eyes and enjoyed the feel of it. It was her favorite part about living in the Mountains, all the snow. Decades passed but her love of snow hadn't dimmed in the slightest. Nicholas enclosed her hands and she curtsied. He brought her hand up to his lips and kissed her knuckles.

"Princess Eira," he greeted while bowing his head. His grip was the only thing keeping her from pulling her hand away. Her jaw clenched as she locked gazes with his gray blue eyes.

"Do not think you can bestow affections upon me and all will be forgiven!" He jerked her against him, brushing the tip of her ear with his lips.

"Do not forget you promised me an heir, I shall bestow any affections I so choose." Jerrik chuckled. Nicholas barely spoke above a whisper but when everyone around had a supernatural sense of hearing, there were no secrets. Nicholas reached up and caressed the tip of her pointy ear.

"Princess I do believe you are blushing," he teased softly. She finally jerked her hand free and glared, hating him for making her burn so red. She felt like she was betraying her people even though she knew she was doing this to save them.

"It is blasphemy! I will not do it!" protested a shrill voice from down the corridor. Ingrid, one of the clan Elders was being carried by two of Nicholas's men. One holding a thick leather bound book in his hands. Her people's recorded history book.

"You will do it or you will join the others in death," the guard snarled.

"What does he mean death, what have you done?" Eira demanded. His men deposited Ingrid in front of Eira and Nicholas

"They refuse to pledge loyalty to their new King."

"Princess, your father would never approve...you cannot marry this abomination." Ingrid protested.

"I am your Queen now Ingrid. As such, my word is law. You will do as I say or you will see yourself banished."

"You wouldn't dare," Ingrid argued, she stood tall, but her voice wavered.

Her long gray hair was pulled into a tight bun but there were a few strands loose.

"A good ruler does whatever is necessary for her people. I need you to trust me Ingrid."

"I'd rather be executed than stay a prisoner a moment longer. Are you aware he has all the Elders in the dungeons? We are given little food, filthy water.."

"This was NOT part of our agreement."

"Our contract said no harm, it did not state I had to give them their freedom." Eira noticed a slight red mark around Ingrid's neck, hidden beneath her robe.

"You will free our Elders or I will not finish this ceremony."

"That was not our original contract Eira, but I am willing to negotiate with you."

"What is it you want?" She had already agreed to the original contract, to go back on her word now would ruin everything she was sacrificing for.

"Another heir in exchange for the Elder's freedom." Eira glanced at Ingrid, really studying her Elder. She had bruise marks around her wrists that were peeking from the sleeves of her robe. She looked thinner than usual, and had rings under her navy blue eyes.

"Add it to the contract now before we proceed." Ingrid tried to protest but Eira held her hand up and shook her head. Once the provision was added she nodded at Ingrid to proceed with the ceremony. The book was shoved into her hands and she placed it onto the table just beside them.

"We call out to the Goddess Freyja, making this sacrifice to the Goddess of marriage and fertility, to witness the union between Nicholas, Alpha of the Arctic Wolf Clan and Princess Eira, descendant of Sol. We pray to you to bless this union with strength, prosperity and fertility. May we exchange the swords now."

"Not this time Ingrid, we shall pass and go straight to exchanging the rings."

"Your highness, it is not wise to pass such steps in such an important ceremony."

"Those are your superstitions, not mine!" Nicholas growled. Ingrid looked taken aback but she nodded in understanding and held her hand out for the rings. Jerrik set them onto her palm and she placed them inside a wooden bowl, intricate designs etched carefully into the side. Ingrid held out a bowl and Nicholas pulled a small dagger from his belt. Holding his hand out over the bowl, he dragged the blade down his palm, bleeding onto the rings. He held out his hand to be bandaged while Eira offered her hand, struggling to keep it from shaking. Her heart was pounding in her chest as she knew once their blood mixed, only death could break their bond. This would be for the rest of their lives and their people lived for hundreds of years.

"By binding yourself to the descendent of Sol, you vow to protect her from the darkness that threatens to consume the light." She met his eyes as he brought his blade down across her palm. Eira bit the inside of her cheek to prevent from showing him any reaction. When enough of her blood joined with his, he grabbed her hand and brought it to his mouth, she gasped in surprise and slight pain as the tip of his tongue was dragged slightly into the wound all while locking gazes with her. She shivered and blushed, the corner of his mouth twitched in amusement as he took a bandage and began to wrap her hand while Ingrid began muttering words from an old language, long since dead. The air around her felt electrically charged and Eira wasn't sure if it was the magic or if it was the effect of Nicholas's actions.

Nicholas dipped his fingers into the the chalice, pulling out the pair of rings, the bloodstone glowing a vibrant red. He took her ring and gently slid it on her finger, then handed his to her. Eira stared down at the tiny glowing orb of magic, captivated by the sight. This entire attack had been about this small thing resting in the palm of her hand.

"Eira!" His voice snapped her back into the present and she slid it onto his finger. His body flashed a bright red briefly as it absorbed the magic from the ring. The power seemed to radiate from him and she felt drawn to it. Ingrid grabbed a small twig and dipped in their mixed blood, using the twig to sprinkle it over them, covering the bride and groom and nearby guests with blood.Nicholas pulled her against him, surprising her with a deep passionate kiss. A kiss that made her weak in the knees as it reminded her of a simpler time, before Nicholas had been banished. Before he killed hundreds of her people, including her father.

Nicholas had been a Lord once, he had courted her and they had even been engaged for at one time. Until the night his dormant genetics kicked in and he shifted for the first time, in the middle of large Yule feast, killing several noblemen. It was only because of Eira's love did Nicholas escape a beheading. It didn't matter that he hadn't known about his hidden genes, or that it turned out he was the product of a horrible rape. Eira had been restrained by the Elders the day they mutilated his ears. They had cut the tips of his ears off so that he resembled the human form of his other half. Nicholas's lips were just as soft as she remembered. He pressed forward, drawing just the tip of his tongue across hers, tempting her to play. Her body began to lean into his as he pulled away and she stopped. What was she doing? Eira shook her head and pushed herself away and slapped him. He grabbed her hand and spun her around, pulling her back against his chest.

"Now wife, that is no way to treat your mate..." he scolded, his hot breath warming the back of her neck as she tried to keep herself calm. Fighting against him would not bring peace among their people.

"You must sign the book," Ingrid reminded. NIcholas reached over and grabbed the feather, dipping it into blood before signing his name into the history book. He handed it to Eira and her hand trembled as she dipped it into the bowl as well. She took a deep breath, steadying her nerves.

"Having second thoughts, snowflake?" Her eyes threatened to tear at the sound of her old nickname. Only he had ever called her that as a term of endearment. Nicholas cupped her hand gently to steady it.

"For my people, nothing more," she muttered as she pulled away and quickly signed the book. The letters glowed as the page absorbed the blood until nothing but a dry page was left. Without another word Eira left the balcony and re-entered the corridor, rushing to room as fast as she could without it appearing as though she was running. She hated him for stirring up old feelings, for the way she felt whenever he was near. She burst into her chamber and closed the door, falling back against it, letting the tears run their course. She had never stopped thinking about him all these years; she often looked to the forest and wondered if he was out there, if he survived that harsh winter. She had threatened once to join him, and her father locked her in her room for the rest of the winter.

"Lady Eira?" a voice called out through the door. She stood and opened the door to see Runa standing there fidgeting.

"Nicholas has requested I assist you in preparation for the feast. He says you are to join him immediately after."

"Of course he did. Would you undo this please?" Runa nodded as she shut the door behind her and moved to assist Eira with her wedding dress. She unbuttoned the corset that cinched her waist in just enough to fit her into the wedding dress. She let out a sigh of relief as she could fully breathe once again.

"I wish I could just retire for the evening," Eira confessed as she moved behind the privacy screen to remove the rest of her clothes. She tossed it over the side as she grabbed the one Runa held out to her. Nicholas had given the specifics to the seamstress himself for both this dress as well as the dress she'd worn for the ceremony and when she pulled it down over her head she saw just exactly what he had made. It was made of red silk, complementary in the fact it was also strapless, but where the other was well past her ankles this one was much shorter, stopping just above her knees.

"There is no way I will go out dressed like...like a concubine," she shouted angrily.

"I'm sorry Lady Eira, but his Majesty says you are to go without a corset as well." Her face flushed red with rage and embarrassment as she started pacing her room thinking of a way to get out of doing what Nicholas demanded. She was his wife, whether she liked it or not, but there was no chance she was going to let him treat her like a tramp.

"I refuse to go dressed this way, he will just have to celebrate without me." Eira decided, crossing her arms over her chest. Her nightgowns were longer than this dress. She moved closer to the fire, feeling the cold creeping in from the stones themselves.

"His Majesty thought you would say that; he instructed me to inform you that he will come and carry you there himself if you refuse to come out of your chambers." Eira drew in a quick breath at the thought.

She knew he would do it too; it had once been an annoying but charming quality, his refusal to back down. A quality she now found infuriating, she paced a little longer, trying to calm herself down.

"A washrag please." Runa hurried to oblige and Eira pressed it against her face.

"He may wear the ring Eira, but we follow you Milady; you only have to say the word and we would follow you to the ends of the earth." Eira brought Runa into an embrace, her heart-warming from the love of her people.

"Thank you Runa, you mean more to me than I fear you will ever know." Eira grabbed her cloak from her armoire. She tied it around her neck and wrapped it around herself before she made her way to the long hall where they were celebrating their union with a large feast and barrels of sweet honey mead were finally broke open. The entire hall went silent as she approached the doorway, all eyes on her, bowing their heads as she waited for Nicholas to approach her.

"My Queen Eira, how kind of you to finally join us." Nicholas announced, bowing at

the waist. Eira curtsied in response.

"Sorry to keep you waiting husband, I had some trouble with my dress." She spoke the last word through gritted teeth. Nicholas lifted his eyebrows in question as he pointed to her cloak.

"Are you naked under there then?" Eira's cheeks turned a furious red as she looked around the room.

"Of course not!" she scoffed.

"Then remove your cloak please, let us get on with the celebration." Her fingers fumbled as she pulled the strings loose, the cloaking dropping onto the floor and revealing the scandalous outfit he had made for her.

Nicholas smiled as he looked her up and down, his eyes drinking in the very sight of her. He didn't bother to hide how aroused he was by the dress, instead he lifted his head and howled, his entire clan following suit.

"Come closer, my queen." Eira left her cloak and approached the doorway. Nicholas leaned forward and with a smooth sweep of his arms, he lifted her off her feet and into the air as he carried her over the threshold, signifying her shedding her old title as maiden and into her new title as wife. He carried her to the end of the table and set her on her feet where she adjusted her dress and blushed furiously at flashing the entire dining hall. Then he stabbed the sword that was awarded him through marriage, deep into the support beam. He sat down in his chair that faced the guests and Eira took the traditional pitcher of bridal ale. She poured it into ceremonial cup to which she handed to Nicholas. He grinned as he took it, and made the sign of a T over it before raising it above his head.

"To Odin!" he toasted as he took a long deep drink and passed the cup back to Eira.

"To Freyja!" Eira toasted then brought it to her lips and before she could think twice about it. After drinking her share of the Ale she she set the cup down and sat in the chair beside Nicholas. As was tradition, Nicholas produced a hammer and rested it upon her lap, this was to bless her reproductive organs. Eira nodded and watched Nicholas pour the two of them a cup of mead.

"A toast to our ancestors, to my beautiful wife, to the future of our Kingdom; may the gods bless us, our future children and all of our people." Everyone raised their glass and drank. Eira finished half her glass before pausing to breathe. Plates began to fill with boiled muskox meat, solaeg, fresh warm walnut bread, fresh buttermilk cheese, and Arctic Hare stew.

Eira picked at her food as she watched the celebration commence, there was eating, drinking, she witnessed the telling of some common Saga's, a few men began sparring in their drunken haze. It did not take long for Eira to lose interest, she wasn't exactly in the mood to celebrate the loss of her Kingdom. She watched her people sit quietly, overwhelmed by the number of wolves in the hall. They were all watching her, looking to her for what reaction was appropriate.

"Celebrate wife, unless you are prepared to retire early?" He lifted an eyebrow suggestively and she felt her stomach roll at the thought of being alone with him.

"If you continue to look miserable, your people are never going to accept my leadership Eira. What good is that for the Kingdom?" Eira clenched her hand into a fist, rage boiling.

"If you were so worried about the Kingdom, perhaps you should not have killed my father. It is hard to look happy when I am the farthest from it." A strange look crossed Nicholas's face, but disappeared just as quickly.

"I am sorry it had to be this way Eira, sometimes battle is necessary. You know Kris as your father, but he wasn't the great man you portray him to be. He had a cruel side to him Eira. Maybe you didn't know, maybe you chose to bury your head in the dirt like all the other nobles in this room or maybe you do know and refuse to admit it. But whatever the reason is, I will not tolerate you speaking to me that way again, do I make myself clear?" Eira clenched her fists, then took a deep breath and nodded. Fighting with Nicholas would not keep her people safe, if anything they could riot and she didn't want any more bloodshed on her hands. The music suddenly changed, the strings of the lyre thrummed a beautiful melody. It was an old song, the sweet notes broke through the hall, calling to her. She smiled wistfully, it had been her mother's favorite song.

"Come, dance with me." Nicholas stood, holding his hand out to her. She stared at it for the longest time, studying each line across his palm. She didn't want to touch him, she didn't want him to touch her, but Eira knew what she wanted held no meaning anymore. What she did, she did for her people. She placed her hand in his and allowed him to pull her into the dance floor. As the music started to pick up they danced faster. Eira found herself unable to stay mad as she fell into rhythm with the sounds of the harp. Nicholas moved with grace as he led her across the dance floor, gazing into her eyes.