OOM - part two

[gods_that_haunt_me]

[Part One]

Early in the morning, Helga wakes up and carefully slips out of bed, not wanting to disturb Floki. She cooks breakfast for the both of them, porridge, as it's the only thing Floki can eat at the moment. Gently waking him, she helps him sit up, and she spoonfeeds him, sharing the porridge out of the same bowl.

Later, with the assistance of a servant, Helga changes Floki's bandages and applies a fresh healing paste to his wounds. The gouges in his side still ooze blood, but they don't seem infected. Helga only worries that they're too deep to close up properly.

For Floki, sitting up to have the bandages removed and the clean ones wrapped around him is painful, as his ribs still feel as if they're stabbing his lungs with every breath he takes. But he is determined to do some things on his own. Like standing. With the help of a wooden staff, of course. But not for too long because the bed is really quite comfortable and lying down is good.

Sometimes, with a silent plea to the gods, he tries to move the fingers of his right hand. And tries not to panic when he finds that he can't.

He would truly go out of his mind if not for Helga. And this idea of Athelstan's is the next best thing to divine intervention.

Comments

[athelstanthescribe]

"I've been face to face with Rollo", he says quietly. "You could hardly have called it a battle, but I know what it's like to know he'd kill you without a second thought if he could - and only Ragnar prevented him."

[gods_that_haunt_me]

Floki glances at him, an eyebrow raised.

Then turns back to concentrating on his walking.

click, step, step. click, step, step.

"Ragnar," he murmurs after some silence. "Always Ragnar."

He's sure that Rollo would have finished him in the fight. Jarl Borg would certainly have wanted him to.

But through the madness Floki heard Ragnar call his name, and the gods saw to it that it was not his time.

[athelstanthescribe]

"Always Ragnar", he echoes. "Luck was with me that he found me first."

[gods_that_haunt_me]

Floki is not going to allow this to turn into a bonding moment.

But he is not going to say that Rollo should have killed Athelstan either.

"Luck? Luck has nothing to do with anything. Do you not thank your Christ god for sparing you?"

[athelstanthescribe]

"I can't say which god it was, any more." He shrugs, and his voice is neutral. "I haven't felt the presence of mine since Lindisfarne - so perhaps it was His plan, but perhaps it wasn't."

[gods_that_haunt_me]

"You doubt your own god," he says, "and you doubt ours as well."

The Uppsala incident made that clear enough.

"Careful, priest. Should you suddenly die, you won't find yourself in either Heaven or Helheim."

That wasn't ominous at all!

[athelstanthescribe]

"I know", he says softly. "But I can't change what's in my heart. I can't make myself believe."

[gods_that_haunt_me]

click, step, step. click, step, step.

"The true gods will prevail. And then you will see how foolish you were to believe in anything else."

They reach the door.

"You see, priest? I didn't fall!"

(Except now after all this activity he just wants to fall into bed and sleep.)

[athelstanthescribe]

"You didn't", Athelstan agrees. "Very good. Now to get you back in bed before Helga returns."

[gods_that_haunt_me]

"You go first and make sure that no one is around," he says, leaning heavily on the staff.

[athelstanthescribe]

Athelstan nods and slips through the door.

A minute later, he's back, keeping it open, to report "All clear."

[gods_that_haunt_me]

Floki hobbles through as quick as he can, heading straight for the bed. Once there, he leaves the staff against the wall within reach and throws off his cloak, before slowly sitting down with and exhausted groan.

"Well, that was an adventure."

[athelstanthescribe]

"A successful one", Athelstan says, satisfied. "And now you can rest with that worry taken away."

[gods_that_haunt_me]

"I can indeed," he says as he eases himself back to lie down.

"I must only remember to not use my right hand to scratch my nose when Helga is around."

[athelstanthescribe]

Athelstan chuckles.

"Hopefully the sling will remind you."

[gods_that_haunt_me]

"It will have to work."

He closes his eyes and sighs, lightly drumming his right hand's fingers against his chest.

"I can feel the restlessness creeping in. I would sleep, but my body wants to run about and do things that it cannot possibly do yet."

[athelstanthescribe]

"Is there anything that helps you sleep when you're like that", Athelstan asks, "that isn't impossible right now?"

[gods_that_haunt_me]

"Helga makes something for me to sleep," he replies. "She'll know what to do with me. She always does."

[athelstanthescribe]

"Then I'll stay until she comes back - I shouldn't think it'll be long."

[bigarmy_strangepants]

There is somebody at the door this moment, and then Ragnar peers in.

"Athelstan," he says. "Fancy seeing you here."

He winks, and then Björn pushes past him into the hut.

[gods_that_haunt_me]

Floki is laying still, even almost starting to drift off with exhaustion. But he hears Ragnar's voice, and he opens one eye, and then the other. And he finds himself looking up into the face of a very worried boy.

He grins.

"I'm not dead yet, Björn," he assures him, his tone lighter and more mischievous than when he had told Athelstan the same thing.

He looks over to the boy's father.

"No thanks to you, Ragnar."

Of course it's said in affectionate jest, because he wouldn't be alive if not for Ragnar. But did he send the priest to take him to Milliways instead?

[bigarmy_strangepants]

"Are you any better yet?" Ragnar asks; Björn's presence means he can't ask directly.

But Athelstan being here might indicate they've already been and got him healed.

[gods_that_haunt_me]

"A little bit," he says with a smile, and a flick of his eyes from Ragnar, to Athelstan, to Björn, who looks relieved.

"I am in the hands of the gods. And Helga."

A beat.

"With whom Athelstan conspired while I was asleep that he should visit more often, so that he would annoy me into healing faster. One would argue that it's working, as I want nothing more to get away from him. We've already spent too much time together. People might think we're friends."

This is all said without much of his usual bite. But that could only be because of his drowsiness.

[bigarmy_strangepants]

"That would never do," Ragnar says. "But he can be friends with Helga, can't he?"

He turns around and winks at Athelstan. He might even make a vestigial thumbs-up sign so neither Floki nor Björn can see it.

Well done, little monk!

[gods_that_haunt_me]

"Only until I'm completely better!"

Not so fast, little monk!

It's then that Helga returns from a quick meal and few errands. She pauses at the door, surprised to see everyone.

"I must be lucky," she says. "It seems as if the handsomest men in Kattegat are in this one room."

She brushes past Athelstan and Ragnar with smiles for each of them, before making her way to Björn and lightly ruffling his hair. Then she leans down and kisses Floki's forehead.