Faint Of Heart [Ivar x Reader]

Chapter 9

The following days had to be the most difficult days you'd ever gone through, and that included the first time you'd arrived in Kattegat. Each day you pretended as if nothing was wrong, said over and over again how devastated you were over not being able to share a bed with Ivar, even made sure that you looked sad-

Well. It didn't take much pretending, that one.

And each night, you tossed and turned in bed, remembering over and over again the time you and Ivar spoke to each other before you moved out of his bedchamber.

He did not look that sad though.

If anything, he seemed to spend more time with Arna, even if he had claimed was not interesting earlier. Every time you saw her talking to him, you felt like a cold knife was going through the skin of your stomach, freezing everything inside.

"My queen?" You heard Gala knock on your door after a long, very long night of you crying yourself to sleep and you opened your eyes, your head hurting way too bad the moment you did so. You groaned and pulled the heavy covers over your head.

"I'm very sick still," You called out, "I think I will stay here for a while, I feel way too faint."

There was a shuffling on the other side of the door before you heard the door being opened and someone poked you over the sheets.

"Gala-"

"Wrong," Hvitserk's voice reached your ears, "I should've known this whole sickness was merely pretense."

You frowned and pushed the covers off a bit, so that you could see him. Hvitserk looked almost amused at the way you looked and grinned.

"This is highly inappropriate," You reminded him, and as if on cue, the memory flooded your brain.

You had been crying for hours. Even Bree's sweet coaxing could not console you, not when you were going to be married off to the leader of the Great Heathen Army. Your brother's ears were deaf to your pleas, your mother refused to listen and the Queen seemed to support whatever your brother decided on.

Your head snapped up when you heard a soft knock on the door and you wiped your eyes with the back of your hand, pushing the covers off you.

"Bree, for heaven's sake..." you mumbled as you walked to the door, "Go to sle-"

Your sentence got caught in your throat the moment you pulled the door open. The hall –along with your bedchambers- were poorly lighted with the candles, seeing that it was very late at night and no one wandered in the halls, besides the guards.

But it wasn't a guard at your door.

You didn't even need to see his crutches, or his outfit which was very different than the men in the court wore, to know who he was. Lady Lester's words on his appearance crossed your mind as you stared at his face under the soft candle light.

He was handsome, like Bree had assured you. In fact, he was more handsome –and taller- than any man in your brother's court or your suitors so far, but his piercing blue eyes gave you an uncomfortable feeling, as if he could indeed read your mind if he wished to do so.

"We haven't officially met, princess." The words rolled off his lips in a soft accent, a bit similar to Hvitserk's, whom you had met earlier.

"King Ivar," You dropped a small curtsy, which he looked like he had no idea how to react to. "While your visit is much appreciated, it is very late."

"You were not asleep, I heard you weeping." He motioned at you, "May I?"

You pulled your brows together, "You- you wish to enter my chambers?"