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That night, Alvina dreamt of snakes.
She dreamt that they surrounded her, their jaws clenching together as if to bite venom into her body. They surrounded her and there was no escape.
The she felt her crown fall from her bead and hit the dirty ground with a harsh thud. As she stepped back, she slipped down and the snakes smothered here, beginning to inject her with their poison.
Her heart raced, breathing unsteady. It all felt so very real.
She could feel her limbs twitch, eyeballs rolling back into her skull as blood trailed down from her nose. Her back arched off the ground as she muffled agonizing cries with small grunts and clenched fists. But, as the poison began to consume her, her hands could not remain tightly closed, she simply didn't have the strength. Slowly, the world began to grow dark and cold. The feeling of snake bites on her skin was all she could feel as she slipped into the abyss.
When Alvin's light green eyes shot open like a dewy meadow on a misty morning, she felt a pounding in her chest as though it might explode.
"In nomine patris et filii et spiritus sancti" She muttered quietly through deep breaths over and over, her fingers tracing the symbol of the cross upon her body as she tried her hardest to forget the dreadful dream.
Since her mother had died, it had been like this many nights. All of her dreams had been similar.
At first, she dreamed strange things that she knew must be a lie. She dreamt that Judith, of all people, killed her mother in King Ecbert's bed. As a child it felt so real, but Judith had always comforted her and told her it was just a dream. As she grew, those dreams went away. Instead, she dreamt of new people and places. She'd seen a woman in a crown with long golden hair. She'd seen a boy with an axe in his chest, and York burning. She'd seen an eagle with blood dripping from its wings, and her very home reduced to ash and rubble.
But the dream she had dreamt the most for many nights was a dream of snakes. No matter her position, they always killed her and stole away her crown. She still knew not what her dream meant, only that she knew the snakes were coming. It was hard to explain, very hard indeed. Few had ever believed her about her dreams. Only Ecbert had taken her seriously. He said that the dreams were a gift from God in recompense for her mother's untimely demise. But the look in his eye told him that there was more to it than just that.
When Alvina woke, she could not sleep again. The night had always been the hardest for her, constantly wandering in a sleepless haze.
Slowly, she pulled a cloak around her white nightgown and made her way out into the dark corridors of the Villa. She held no candle to provide light for she had always found something comforting in the darkness. Perhaps it was a freedom of expression that one could not possess in the light. In the light, many stared and judged. In the dark, no one could watch you sin. And Alvina had a sin that she had always held quite highly.
In the darkness, she would often creep through the halls until she reached a small room filled with books and scrolls. Ecbert had ensured she could read from a young age and so she would often use her skill.
Stories of heathens were her sin.
There were Romans, Celts, Greeks, Vikings, Egyptians, all manner of men. She enjoyed hearing of Boudicca, the queen who took revenge upon the Romans. She adored great shieldmaiden like Brunhilde, whom was said to be the first of the Valkyries. Then there was Cleopatra and Nefititi in Egypt. In Greece she adored the Spartans, and in Rome the Caesars. Augustus was her favourite.
To men of God, it was abhorrent that she could read and acquire knowledge. To know that she used her skill to read of ungodly men and powerful women would surely damn her further. So, instead, she simply read in the darkness of night in the hopes that even God himself could not see her.
As the girl made her way through the many rooms she stopped upon hearing her grandfather, the King, and a man she knew to be Ragnar Lothbrok himself. Oh she'd read much about him. She knew of all his ploys and tactics. She particularly enjoyed his plot to enter Francia in a coffin, as did King Ecbert.
When she pressed her ear against the door, it was to her horror that she found it open. With a large stumble, she fell through the huge wooden door right onto the floor between the Great Viking and her grandfather.
Her head lifted slowly and shamefully, not daring to turn towards King Ragnar as she looked towards her own King for guidance. He smiled at the girl and her characteristic boldness. She'd taken after her mother in so many ways. They only differed in the fact that Alvina had never been exposed to the travesties that Queen Kwenthrith had been put through from such a young age.
"Ah, Ragnar, this is my granddaughter, Alvina." Ecbert introduced as the Princess slowly found her feet again, dusting off her dress as she clung to her dark purple cloak for dear life. "I believe you know her mother."
"Does she claim to be my daughter as well." The Vikings asked with an amused expression that told her all she needed to know. Poor sweet Magnus, he was still her brother after all.
"I am the daughter of Prince Aethelwulf, your grace." She reacted calmly but with a certain firm confidence that never appeared to shift from her demeanor.
The old men both smiled at her upon hearing her unwavering confidence.
"Grandfather," She spoke after a while, earning a nod from Ecbert. Her blood ran cold as she looked back to Ragnar, and soon her confidence held a small edge of something unfamiliar. "I dreamt of a pit of snakes." The two men looked over at eachother, but Alvin's eyes did not shift from the heathen warlord. "Is that how King Ragnar will die?"
Ecbert fell silent, his eyes moving down to the ground to avoid his friend. She knew he didn't want this, everyone knew. And yet, it appeared he had no choice.
"I don't know." He answered, in a tone that she wasn't used to. With a nod, she understood that it was time she departed again. A small smile crossed her lips as she bid goodnight to the two men and continued her trip into the vast darkness.
