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Alvina had been following Æthelred all day. Their father had been refusing to teach her to fight for as long as she could remember. Now that Æthelred was becoming a skilled warrior in his own right, she had prayed to God above that he would teach her. Of course, her brother was not as easy to manipulate as she would've hoped.
"Give me a reason, brother!" She pleaded, still chasing him through the corridors of the Villa as he tried to escape her persistence.
"Your soul." He shrugged as though it were obvious.
Alvina folded her arms, foot stomping against the ground as though she were a petulant child and not in fact a princess. Her pout set firmly upon her lips, brows furrowed into a sulky frown. "Heathen women fight just like men."
At this, Æthelred turned with a sigh, a final submission to her stubbornness. "They are heathens, sister." He reminded her.
Alvina shrugged, and the words that followed were words she would come to regret deeply. "Perhaps we should be more like them."
Of course, Æthelred stared at her with wide eyes. Her own eyes grew shocked at her very words. Both siblings looked at one another in disbelief, not exactly sure what to say or do in response.
How could she say such a thing? They could not be like these heathens. They were savages with false gods and they were the eternal enemy of all whom dwelled in England. Alvina knew they were foul, that they pillaged her towns and her home. She knew that they had turned from God and worshipped these false idols who lit up the sky with cheer and battle over penitence. They held no good, that is what she had always been told.
And yet, her mother seemed to appreciate them. Alfred's father lived among them! How awful could they be?
"Alvina," The girl was dragged from her thoughts by the kind voice of her little brother, Alfred. "Will you come to the dungeons with me?"
Æthelred still looked between them, utterly unsure on what to do and how to deal with his sister's immoral words. Still, he remained silent as she nodded with a smile towards Alfred and took his hand in her own to walk with him.
The whole way there, Alvina could not remove her thoughts of repentance from herself. She had to see a priest, he would set her upon the right path. But perhaps this was the right path. Perhaps this was what God wanted from her. Perhaps she could learn from these heathens.
"Are you alright?" Alfred, once again, pulled her from her thoughts.
Alvina smiled, nodding her head fervently. "Of course," She placed a hand on his cheek, making him smile back towards her. "Are you planning to see that pagan?"
Alfred looked towards the ground coyly before nodding, only making his sister chuckle. He seemed just as guilty as she felt and that made her fears subside ever so. After all, Alfred was the most godly of anyone she knew.
