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 Posted: Thu Apr 10, 2014 11:38 am
They'd think the thrall was stealing if she went for food or trying to escape if she was left alone. Niklas nodded to himself, fully comprehending this now. That Freyja conceded she would leave her did away with any inhibitions. Everything made sense, so he no longer felt threatened something was amiss. Not on her end.
Captain Kondo was notoriously arrogant, just as stubborn, and it was said neither of his wives were spared his ire. Niklas heard the rumors he'd killed his daughters and thrown his son to the rogues -- the latter confirmed when Meshindi returned to prove it. The more he thought about it, the more agitated he became.
As far as he was concerned, Kondo's only solid reasoning for this -- other than being petty -- was that he'd planned to return within the same day. That wasn't anymore acceptable when Niklas considered what kind of ego one must have to feel a day's journey warranted a homecoming on the borders.
They could be attacked by enemy rogues or challenged by those wishing to join. A thousand other things could go wrong and for what? What was the point?
"You should return instead." Niklas didn't demand it, just... suggested it with a force greater than maybe. He glanced Sheska's way. "And your thrall," he added. "The captain can see me if he takes issue. There's no reason for any female to be loitering here."
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Posted: Thu Apr 10, 2014 1:19 pm
Freyja's eyes widened slightly, her swaying tail coming to a still. The cogs in her mind began to work overtime. Kondo would take issue, but would he care enough to bring it up with Niklas? Would Freyja even be able to speak to him to plead before he murdered her thrall?
Perhaps he would after, simply because. Freyja's brows furrowed and her head dropped. The lioness swallowed, and opened her mouth to pull in a bit more air.
"Thank you." Freyja bowed her head, and then the front part of her body. Respect where respect was due. "Your offer is appreciated." And it was. The wife was not sure whether to feel exhilaration or be humbled.
It did not stop the nervous roll through her shoulders as Freyja stepped back, turning her shoulder so that she stood between Niklas and Sheska but could look at them both. The best option would be to travel with Sheska back, and wait here herself. Then Sheska would be out of sight and mind when Kondo returned, and Freyja could tell him the Warlord's son had over-ruled his decision. But, in the end, it was not hers to make.
"Sheska, do you wish to return to the pride or continue to wait for Kondo?"
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Posted: Sat Apr 12, 2014 2:11 pm
Niklas' seemingly palpable authority would have been enough to sway Sheska into following had Freyja not asked. Doubt was more contagious than hope, and her reluctance had her thrall thinking twice. She couldn't be sure Freyja's intentions weren't some nefarious plot to foist all the blame on her should Kondo be wroth to see their assigned locations at the borders vacant. Why strike and violate his wife when there was a lovely captive like her to make an example of, no stigma attached? "I'm..."
She didn't have all the time in the world to spend staring incredulously at Freyja and what little the situation afforded her wasn't enough to divulge any potential schemes. Her breath was haggard and audible. It burned more than completely denying her lungs air would have. In the end, she could only say what she'd been thinking all along: "He'll kill us if we're not here."
"Kill you?"
Sheska hadn't dared sustain eye contact longer than it took her to speak, so she didn't see Niklas turn from her and to Freyja. Obviously, he expected either confirmation or denial and didn't look the least bit willing to accept anything short of certainty one way or the other.
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Posted: Sat Apr 12, 2014 2:21 pm
Sheska's statement was raw, and Freyja's body went rigid. A heavy swallow did not alleviate her already dry mouth. Niklas answer was simply a widened stare while Freyja fumbled with her tongue.
"I--we--" She took a long breath inwards, contemplating for the first time that Kondo might see fit to kill her as well. Thinking it seemed like a preposterous notion, but was it truly?
"He was very insistent we remain here." Try as she might, Freyja could not put the vigor behind it that had graced her face moments before. Her own eyes dropped and her tail began to swish while agitated thoughts flooded her mind.
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Posted: Sat Apr 12, 2014 3:33 pm
Freyja hadn't appeased Niklas' yes-or-no method of problem solving. She didn't need to.
Kill them? For refusing to starve out here?
He subconsciously took to guarding his personal space, stepping back and widening his stance. There wasn't enough room for the three of them and his thoughts. Niklas was engrossed in them, trying to separate speculation from fact, eyes centered on Freyja throughout. Slaying one's own wife for superficial trespass went beyond reasonable expectations of savagery from their kind. The question was if that was indeed what the captain would do.
Until it happened, Niklas couldn't prove it, yet he was inclined to believe some manner of harm would befall one or both of them if they feared him enough to stay. If it were only the thrall, perhaps he could have decided it wasn't his place to meddle after all. Maybe it still wasn't.
"Why?" Niklas queried. He shook his head, looking to the left. "Why did he order this?" he asked.
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Posted: Sat Apr 12, 2014 3:56 pm
Had he not been a Warlord's son, Freyja would have found a clever way to not answer. Already, this conversation was trying. So much time had been spent debating the repercussions of the offense, that the wife herself could not even remember what had been said to wound Kondo so greatly.
While a carefully crafted lie might have been easier, certainly less nerve-wracking, Niklas had proven himself to be not only unnecessarily nosy, but in an intelligent way. The stormborn doubted he would let the matter fall to the wayside, even if she begged. And Sheska's subtly needed more than refinement.
"I said something to which he took offense." Steeling her wavering breath, Freyja held on desperately to her status of a good wife. "It was wrong of me."
Freyja would have liked the answer to suffice. Instead, she waited for more questions.
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Posted: Wed Apr 16, 2014 1:13 pm
"What was it you said?" Niklas asked.
If Freyja was a good wife had yet to be determined. No one could argue she was at the very least an obedient one. He'd made assumptions her words were worthy of brash reprimand, but he didn't heed them to the point of feeling it unnecessary to acquire specifics.
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Posted: Sat Apr 19, 2014 10:23 pm
One ear flicked back, the right edge of Freyja's nose jerking. Though the question had been expected, it did not make the effort of answering it any less trying. He was the Warlords son, he deserved to know. He was the Warlord's son, and he did as he pleased.
"I don't remember."
Kondo and Freyja exchanged unpleasantness constantly. They rarely remembered offenses, only the anger, distrust, and sometimes lust that came with them. This was the case now.
The lioness' feet itched, and she glanced towards Sheska. Suddenly, the idea of lying next to her, though sour of personality, was far preferable than answering questions to which Freyja could see no other end than abandonment at the border. Back where they started.
She would not ask the slave's opinion again. She was pretty, but terribly daft.
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Posted: Sat Apr 26, 2014 12:25 pm
He was the Warlord's son. It didn't afford him much beyond the occasional envy of his peers or resentment from those in opposition of his father's ideals. He had no retinue of thralls, no suitors to speak of, and same as the others, his rank would be earned when he grew into his mane.
There were times, almost exclusively unintentional, he assumed himself able to do things that he had no means or right to do. The captain could see him, he'd said, if he took issue. Niklas wondered if he was speaking as Njal's son or... just as himself.
"Go back," Niklas repeated. "Go back for the day. I'll stand watch here. If he doesn't return by time the sun sets, we'll... go from there."
Sheska, who appeared willing to obey this time, looked to Freyja yet again.
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Posted: Sat Apr 26, 2014 12:33 pm
The gods may well have shouted down at her. Freyja's widened eyes looked at Niklas, but they did not focus. But, she was not rendered dumb long. By the second 'Go back', Freyja was nodding her head respectfully.
"In your debt," she repeated, almost breathless. The excitement of escape bubbled into her throat, making it hard to speak. Sheska looked towards Freyja, and Freyja looked back. A curt dip of her nose was her affirmation. "Let's go."
It was hard to keep the anxious, excited spring in her step from taking over her body. Freyja frowned, deeply, though her muzzle quirked and twitched. It was easiest to make her face sour, for the desire to smile like a giddy cub just out of religious lessons was quickly taking over.
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