Sleeping Dragon i'll be right by your side till 3005

@Hvitserk

 

It had been long since Freyja had taken the time to spend quality time with her brother. Despite them sleeping under the same roof, the young hatchlings were often separated and involved with their interests.

But, today, Freyja’s interests involved seeing her brother and catching up.

She was near the densite with a rabbit in her mouth and the evidence of her successful hunt splattered around her dark lips. Dropping the meal, Freyja called for her brother with a strongly-bellowed howl and hoped that he was around to meet.

When Hvit had been roused earlier that day, he’d set out to wander around the territory. There’d been little to see, save for the changing of the leaves overhead, but he’d continued anyways until a point was reached at which he’d circled around and headed back towards the densite. He’d been too far off to see his sister as she’d approached, but he’d definitely heard her. The moment she’d called for him, the viking’s pace was picked up so that more ground was covered in less time, a smile having already spread across his face. Then, immediately after he'd seen her, it grew so wide that it looked as if the corners of his mouth might tear.

It was not with words that he’d greeted Freyja, but actions. Slowing down, any remaining distance between them had been closed by his quickened walk. The rabbit was ignored as his attention was given to her alone, muzzle finding its way to her cheek where he’d planted a quick kiss. “Missed you,” he’d murmured soon after, tail wagging the entire time. It had definitely been too long since they’d had a moment to themselves.

Freyja turned the moment she heard the hurried pawsteps from her brother, a large grew growing as she laid eyes on the warrior. Her tail wagged as she watched on and happily received his affections once they were given. “Missed you more,” she replied, reaching forward to place a kiss upon her brother’s snout.

As she pulled back, her eyes dropped to the meal at her paws and she pushed it forward with a heavy jerk of her paw. “Here,” she instructed, her eyes to meet her brother’s sea-like eyes. “Eat.” She would find out everything after her had gotten his fill.

The affections were returned, as was his statement. He was glad that he’d been missed, believing that the feeling would ensure that she always came back to him. Though he loved each of his sisters dearly, Freyja was, without a doubt, his favourite; this was something that anyone could see just by observing him around them all. He didn’t mind that she went out on adventures, just as long as she always returned—alive—at the end of each one.

As it was mentioned, he’d looked towards the rabbit. He did as he was told and ate, but made sure to leave enough for her. It was then nudged back in her direction, seafoam gaze seeking out her chestnut one before flickering back down towards the carcass. Not another bite would be taken as he plopped his butt down on the ground, waiting for her to finish it off, and then to hear all about her journey.

When Freyja was offered her portion she smiled kindly at her brother and accepted the offer. There was no hesitation about her as she leaned over and tucked into the meal. She cleaned up the rest of the meat easily, not leaving a single bite for any near-by scavengers. When was was done, and licked clean any stray pieces, the child looked to her brother and sat down, settling in for the story.

Despite the fact that he did not talk often, Freyja was often able to understand him in ways that she didn’t even understand. Perhaps it was due to the fact that she cared so deeply for him and watched ever so carefully to his every move.

“It was fun,” she began with excitement. “Dad, Wildfire, and I all tracked some Mule deer? Do you know what those are?” She didn’t wait for his answer, assuming that he didn’t know like she had. “They’re these really ugly deer! So, we tracked them forever and ever and went so far away from home. We also met this weird lookin’ wolf-- he knew Wildfire, somehow.” She contemplated this again, but then moved on.

“Next time you have to come-- it’ll be even better with you.” Her words were sincere and she looked up to him with a softened expression. She did not want her brother feeling left out of the fun and knew that he would have to come along.

As usual, Hvitserk remained silent whilst his sister ate, the time being used to then lick his muzzle clean. Once he’d finished, it wasn’t exactly perfect, but it’d been good enough. Besides, he’d not had enough of room within his mind to care about such trivial things, for his time was better spent focusing on something else: Freyja’s story.

Every ounce of his attention had been given to her, ears fully erect atop his head so that he’d be less likely to miss out on anything shared. And, as he listened, his tail swept across the ground behind him, excited to hear all about her journey away from home. In the process of listening to her tale, he’d even learned something new! Whilst the viking was well aware of regular deer and how they appeared, he couldn’t recall having ever even heard about a mule deer. He wondered just how ugly they were, but mostly about how they tasted—was it the same sort of flavour as a regular deer, or entirely different? The question was not asked, but, this time, it wasn’t because he didn’t wish to speak. Instead, it was due to his want to taste one himself someday and be surprised by it.

She spoke of having met a stranger, and immediately had he felt glad over the fact that Wildfire had known the male. Not all of those beyond the pack were nice, he knew, and so he felt the need to watch out for her. Hearing then that he was invited along for their next adventure gave him the perfect opportunity to do so, which he was extra happy about. “I’ll come,” he told her, unable to stop smiling. “We’ll have fun.” And maybe she could even show him a mule deer!

She was tickled pink by his reaction and to show her delight she wagged her tail. “Oh, I was hoping that you would say that!” she said happily in her rare moment of giddiness. She normally did not express herself so easily, but in Hvitserk’s company she felt that she could truly be herself. She trusted her brother more than anybody and felt that he would never betray her or her trust. 

“If you want I can talk to Wildfire…” the cogs in her mind began to turn as excitement for their expedition churned into concrete plans in her mind. “You could come and be our Gona,” she assigned. “And then I can show you everything!”

Just as Freyja could be herself around Hvit, he believed the same to be true for himself. She was, by far, the one that he was closest to. Not only out of his siblings, but out of the entirety of the pack—the world, even. Around her, he felt more comfortable speaking and showing every little bit of his excitement exactly as it was felt. Caution did not need to be exercised around her, nor did he feel that he might ever have to worry about her turning on him. She was his reason for wanting to become a great warrior, for she was the one that he wished to always be capable of protecting.

When she’d suggested speaking to Wildfire, the boy nodded. It was a good idea, and would save him from having to seek the near stranger out and attempt to communicate with her. Each of her statements that followed had received a nod of their own, every one of them being more enthusiastic than the last. “And I’ll protect you!” Hvit added, the words spoken with far more certainty than he’d ever been able to muster up in the past. Should anyone hurt her, he’d get them back for it somehow.

“And I’ll protect you!”

Her smile brightened and she nodded to this. “Yes!” She was quick to agree with what he had to offer, knowing that she wouldn’t have it any other way. Hvitserk, from what she had heard, was training hard to reach his goals and the Feisripa couldn’t have been more proud in her brother. As she thought of his progress, her mind began to wander of what he had been up to since they had gotten the chance to sit down.

“How is your training going?” she asked after she had taken a moment to pause, her eyes finding his easily as she spoke. She had gotten her time to speak and now, if he wished to do so, it was his turn.

The viking child had given his word, and so he’d honour it. When the time came for his sister to venture out on another journey, he would join her, and he would protect her. He was far from being the best, and certainly had a long road of training ahead of him, but there wasn’t anything in the world that he wouldn’t do for her—and that included giving his life, should it ever come down to that. Surely, though, should such a drastic moment ever occur, he would not go down alone. With him he would carry the life of the attacker, if only to ensure that they might never try to harm his sister again. But, such thoughts were purely theoretical, as the boy was meant to live a lengthy life.

Over to him had the conversation been directed, and, at first, he’d not known how to proceed. The answer was a simple one, and yet he’d taken a moment or two longer than what was necessary before having given it to her. “Good,” he had succeeding in saying. “Will train harder for you.” The sooner he completed his training, the sooner they could go out on a trip together. He wanted to see everything that she had seen, and then some. Hvit wanted to set his sights on so much more than the mountain, and felt as if nothing could stop him from doing so except for himself.

She smiled in response to what her brother offer and her tail waved. She knew that he would achieve great things in his lifetime and she could not wait to watch on. “I know you will,” she said with a nod, taking a stand so that she could clear the distance between them to nudge his cheek.

“So, tell me.” She said suddenly, drawing back from her embrace so that she could look into his ocean-like eyes. “How many bad guys have you beat up?” she was confident that it was many.

Hearing her confidence in him served as a great deal of inspiration. If Freyja thought he could do something, then he could do it. She was very smart, after all, having seen more in life than the boy. It was not something that he held against her, either, but something that made him feel glad. He took pride in the fact that his sister was as great as she was, and intended to follow right behind her for as long as he remained capable of doing so. Her nudge was leaned in towards, but he’d caught himself so as not to fall before she’d pulled away. His ears perked as he’d done so, listening closely to what it was that she'd had to say.

Hvitserk had shaken his head in response to her query, right before adding, “None.” Truth be told, he’d yet to even encounter any bad guys—unless Lucia could be counted.

With his response, Freyja nodded quickly as the cogs in her mind began the churn. Though she too hadn’t seen anybody that was truly bad, she had crossed paths all too often with a packmate that she deemed to be the closest to “bad” that she had ever met. “I haven’t either,” she replied then with a smile, thankful that she hadn’t.

“But, there is a packmate that you should be aware of.” She grew serious in this instant, her features growing dark. “There's this packmate of out, Goliath, who is really mean. You should watch out for him. He tried to steal from the cache and I caught him!” Her eyes widened at the memory. “We need to make sure he doesn't do it again.” And Freyja needed her brother’s help in ensuring this.

It came as a great relief to know that Freyja hadn’t needed to beat anyone up yet, especially since he couldn’t remember having ever been called to help her out. Fighting was dangerous, as anyone knew, and so he was happy to know that she’d not been made to do so. It would be different if he was there to have her back throughout such an ordeal, but unless something like that happened, he didn’t want her being forced to fight any types of battle. From his perspective, she didn’t deserve to be put into said position.

As she grew serious, his ears perked up, intent on hearing every little bit that she had to say. He was especially interested when Goliath was mentioned, for the name was one that he recognized. “The giant…” he muttered, easily recalling his first time having ever seen the beast. To learn that the male had tried to steal irked him, and he vowed—to himself, of course—that he’d get him back for what he’d done the next time he saw him. Despite how large the wolf was, he was a simpleton, which made him vulnerable. “He’ll never do it again,” assured the boy, his tone resolute. If ever he tried to, and Hvit saw him, there’d be hell to pay for sure.

“The giant…”

Frejya nodded immediately to Hvitserk’s muttered, her frown deepening. “I know that the cache is for everybody, but, he literally attacked it and began trying to eat everything!” She could feel herself grow angry in this moment, her body tensing and a few hairs along her nape rising. How could he have been so selfish?! How had she not gotten to him quickly enough?! These questions settled heavily in her mind until Hvitserk spoke.

All instantly seemed to be better once her brother promised that it would be taken care of. She relaxed instantly at his words and a small smile spread quickly. “I knew that I could trust you,” and with her sentiments expressed, the child reached forward so that she could nudge his cheek in way of showing her appreciation.

Attacking a cache? Surely the giant was just as insane as he was a fool, for who in their right mind would attack a cache? It made little to no sense at all, even to the boy; Hvit had spent much of his life keeping silent and assessing the world around him, so it could be considered a rare occurrence for him to be totally lost in regards to something. His brows furrowed, but he did not grow frustrated. Perhaps he would be made aware of what drove Goliath once he eventually confronted him, and then he could use that knowledge to keep the brute away from all of the caches in the future. Freyja seemed to put a lot of work into ensuring that everyone was fed and that their stocks were maintained, so he couldn’t just sit back and let some stranger ruin everything that she has done thus far.

“Can always trust me,” said the viking. He remained still as she reached out to nudge him, allowing for her to do so and then leaning into it. “I will get rid of the fjándmaðr for you.” And if he couldn’t do it all by himself, he’d get their dad to help him out. Gavriel wouldn’t just let some stranger terrorize his kids, would he?

The memory of Goliath attempting to destroy all that she had gathered for the pack was not a fond memory and one that she personally felt the need to avenge. But, despite these inner feelings, she knew that she was not the best warrior and knew that she would need help. Thankfully, as always, Hvitserk was there.

She smiled at his words, feeling a sense of pure happiness, Freyja nodded to his promise. She knew that he would be able to do whatever he set his heart to-- even bringing down the giant of their mountain pack. “I’ll go with you,” she replied suddenly with a lash of her tail and a determined glint in her eye. “I know where he lives,” she had done her research and would be able to use this to their advantage.

Just as he’d been expecting, Freyja offered her assistance. For any other task, he’d be eager to complete it with her, but this time it was different. He didn’t want for her to get hurt, and so he knew that he couldn’t just rush into battle right then and there. A well thought out plan needed to be pieced together before any actions could be taken, that way he’d know for sure that there was no possibility of his sister falling into harm’s way.

It was with a shake of his head that the boy said, “Not yet.” As much as he wanted to get rid of the giant, it was important that he refrain from rushing into things. “We need a plan so he can’t hurt us,” Hvit continued. He knew that he’d need to get an adult to accompany them, just in case things got out of hand. Though their mother had once ruled the mountain alongside the Heda, she was a leader no longer, and so there existed not a single individual that would have to obey the children’s words out of fear for her wrath—which meant that someone bigger than the both of them was necessary, as a safety precaution.

Despite the feelings that she felt, she saw the logic in what he had to offer. Pausing her ambitions momentarily, Freyja mulled over the thought before reacting. “You’re right,” she offered, sighing gently. It would not do them well to jump into it while still heated. They-- read: Hvitserk-- would plan the ambush and hopefully through that they would be able to teach him a lesson.

“It isn’t smart to just jump into it,” she elaborated, feeling the her hostility melting away. “But, I know what you’ll what to do,” she had all the confidence in the world about her brother and his abilities.

Want to fade? ^^

It came as a relief to know that he wasn’t just being too cautious. His statement was agreed with, which supported his belief that planning an attack was better than running in with guns blazing. As long as everything played out as it was supposed to, neither of them would leave with any serious injuries. He’d keep her safe whilst also fending off an enemy; a promise was made to do so, though silent had it been.

“Need time to think,” he told her, touching his nose to her cheek afterwards. “Will tell you the plan when I have one.” If he could come up with one that was good enough, that is. There was only so far that his thoughts could go, but he’d use every part of his mind that he was able to just to get rid of Goliath.

Yup! Great thread (as always)!

 

With Hvitserk’s plan promised and Freyja’s happiness restored, the Fesiripa leaned into her brother’s embrace before pulling away, her eyes shining. “Now, let’s go do something fun,” she said, attempting to gather about some sort of happiness between them. Their subject matter hadn’t been the most jubilant, ut Freyja would ensure that her brother would be happy no matter what.

Nudging him, the pair started off to nowhere in particular, simply enjoying each other’s company for the rest of the day.