84Authors Note
It's been a while! I've spent the last...year and a half, easily, rewriting this completely from the ground up. Honestly, I don't know how active the fandom even is now, but I still love Loki, and have really enjoyed picking this story back up again. I'm going to post the first 8 chapters now, to rewrite what was already out, and i'll put a disclaimer on there to make sure to start at the beginning for any old readers - though after that many years I imagine you'll start at chapter 1 again just to have an idea as to what the hell this story was about.
Aela felt like the wind itself as she rode, laying flat against the muscular back of the bear beneath her. At the unnatural speed they were travelling, the soft flutter of snow became unrelenting beads of ice that tore into the exposed skin of her cheeks. A native beast of Niflheim, Gorik were known to be a challenge - but with challenge, came small squad were an adventurous, experienced team; and their laughter and excited screams echoed through the stark white landscape; followed by the crashing of the herd leaders behind as they lead them through the dense snow.
Their trips were usually leisurely, relaxed affairs; where the group would take days trekking the wilds, mapping out new areas of interest and hunting as they went, but today was different. They had been focused and prepared, moving through the glade of trees with purpose towards the herd of Gorik she'd scouted days before - their large horn and tough hides valuable; their meat delicious.
Normally three or four hunters would chase the protectors of the pack away, leaving the young and weak defenceless to an attack. The hunting party would take oh, one or two, and let the others live- an essential part of hunting; especially in such an unforgiving climate. Today though, oh today was different. Today they weren't just hunting for food, or fun, but for a trophy. It was a crucial part of the Autumn games, where each hunting pack vied for the best kill to bring; to honour their house. She was determined that this year was to be hers once more. She had the best gear, the most sought after hunting companions in the land, and quite honestly, in her opinion, skills that couldn't be bested.
It felt like her entire life was working towards this moment; where within her final games she would take the title for the best hunt. The festival dominated the latter end of their Autumn period- before the true blizzards hit, and the noble houses met each year to prove themselves, make bets, marriage ties, and enjoy the fruits of a profitable summer. It was always a grand event, opened by the great hunts; where different ages competed together to bring pride to her houses, in an ever changing selection of challenges. Nothing went to waste, the returned kills used for their meat and hides, for wall trophies and scrimshaws.
Aela loved the festival. She loved the amazing scents of fatty, sizzling meats; of washing them down with the many family home brewed ales and meads that were on offer - of vibrant music filling the streets and taverns, lutes and drums creating the perfect environment for fun. It was an honour to host this year, and she would further her family's status by winning once again; and claiming this year's prize.
She held up a hand to slow the group as they reached the clearing, ensuring they separated to better cover the escape route of their prey. Close to a cliff side, it was the perfect spot for their ambush; and they tensed as the enormous Gorik battered through the trees and skidded to a stop before them. "Good, three followed us" she muttered under her breath, pulling her intricately carved bow from her back and notching an arrow. "Their mistake I suppose!" she shouted, a wide smile gracing her features as her group roared in agreement, racing towards the trio. She headed for the bull of the pack, his single horn curving upwards; the eye below it trained on her as she sprinted forwards, twisting at the last second to face its side and letting the arrow fly. As expected, it hit home in the creatures temple, but she knew this wouldn't be enough to bring it down. She wished she could simply aim for the centre of the eye; but intact it would make for a much finer trophy; the value ruined if the cornea were destroyed. It spun towards her, horn crashing down into the snow like a hammer, raising a great wave of cold - but she was already gone, diving into the powdery snow and rolling away.
She raised into a crouching stance, dappled furs masking her against the landscape, and watched as her target sought her out. Her companions were faring well, she determined with a glance, leading the beasts into a tiring chase, swiping at the Gorik's feet with claws and teeth.
Her own Gorik wasn't slowing, the arrow barely making an impact to it's balance. A testament to the creature's strength and endurance, she would enjoy overcoming it, knowing she had bested a foe with such harsh will to survive. She ran swiftly into the trees behind the beast; making her way to the rear of the creature before roaring loud enough to scare the resident birds from their perches. She was smug to see that she had managed to confuse all three as they turned to seek the source of the warcry; and she proudly noted that her party were taking full advantage of the distraction- their training drills had been well utilised. Pulling a dagger from the strap on her boot she sprinted towards one of the smaller beasts, shouting for Jorik as she approached. He watched her intently, and angled his bear form perfectly, standing firm as she jumped onto his back, using him as a perch to leap onto the side of the creature - easily burying the long dagger into its weak, fleshy temple. Her bears bellowed with pride as her strike found its target, and she sprung away as the beast quickly became unbalanced, lashing out as it died and almost Injuring Isla, had her reflexes not been as sharp as they were
She turned, and quickly let loose another arrow, cursing as it hit the neck of her target, merely bouncing off the impenetrable hide beneath the short fur. She needed to be closer...She steeled herself and darted forwards once more, using both her speed and her small size compared to the bears and the beasts to her advantage to get into his blind spot and fire another two arrows in quick succession. She sighed with relief as they both landed square in the other temple of the beast. It's enormous, yellowing eye squared on her, and she narrowly missed a fierce blow from it's hefty horn, feeling the reverberations of the ground beneath her as the appendage hit a hair's breadth to the left of her body. Eirik used his enormous size to his advantage, slamming into its back leg, large canines easily sinking into it's thick flesh-protecting the lady of the realm at all costs; and bringing the enormous creature down into a crouch.
Beside her, the remaining smaller gorik were being handled with relative ease, the bears obviously enjoying themselves now as they taunted the beast, exhausting it and laying thick swipes of tooth and claw into its mottled grey fur.
The angry stomping of a hoof in her peripheral brought her attention back to the bull, desperately shaking its head as it's balance began to fail. Often avoided by other, and thereby- lesser hunters, goriks were a nasty adversary. If they stomped you, gored you, or charged you and you weren't fast enough you were destined to meet Hel, but strike them in their small, weak temples and they immediately begin to falter. To kill them required precise aim, and confidence that bordered on narcissism. She moved again, timing herself perfectly to roll under the great creature before one of it's large hooves caught her. It's underbelly was a mottled pink, bare and hairless. An easy landing place for her sword.
She slid her sword from its sheath, raising up into a crouch and thrusting it upwards into its soft underbelly. It bellowed with pain, creating great plumes of steam as it's hot breath met the frigid air. Gathering her strength, she ran forwards, using all her might to pull the sword with her, relishing in the burning feeling in her arms as blood poured onto the snow behind her, boiling hot and melting the ground into slush. This was hunting. This was true power, and it sang to the dragons-blood contained within her veins. She rolled to the left as it fell to the right, the ground wet and sticky beneath her, and crouched, watching her enemy for any sign of movement.
Standing, Aela flicked her arms in the air, chuffing laughter at the sticky blood that fell from her leathers. Her comrades padded forwards, much less gore drenched, and Eirik shifted; shadows dripping from his bear form as he almost stepped out of it, moving towards her in his mortal form to clap her on the back, laughing at her gore-drenched state. The other three remained as bears, licking their paws clean as they rested beside the two smaller kills.
"What do you think?" she asked, gesturing to the carnage behind them. Eirik went to sling an arm around her shoulder but hesitated, pulling it back with a grimace. "I think you need to clean off" he answered, turning his head away in disgust as he pulled clothing from the now baggy pack that fastened around his hips and shoulders, snug on his bear form and loose on his mortal one. "But, I also think unless someone brings in a dragon, we've definitely won"
Aela choked on her water. "Bringing down a god? impossible"
Isla's voice called through her mind, and the minds of the party So my lady; reckon we should get you cleared up and strap these onto a raft, eh?
She nodded, cleaning quickly, rubbing snow over her skin and armour to rub off the grime; knowing it would be a long and uncomfortable journey if she didn't; as she would definitely not be allowed to ride Eirik for any stretch of their travels whilst covered in gorik blood, no matter how close the two were. Her dark plait was damp, the loose hairs icy cold against her neck - the cold biting into any piece of exposed skin, but it was a sensation she was familiar with after so many years living in a land of deep ice and snow.
Transporting their kills would be far more difficult. Isla and Jorik went forward, sprinting into the distance to fetch their team of elks to help pull the load, as Aela, Saf and Eirik remained to keep an eye on their kills. She inspected her prize, overwhelmingly relieved by the lack of noticeable marks and scratches, and it's impressive size. Only a single bite mark marred it's back leg, but she bet that as long as the eye was intact, they wouldn't mind. She hoped the underbelly slit wouldn't be a problem, but knew the judging would be harsh for such an important prize.
They settled on their furs, and Saf began using wood from their packs to begin a fire, staving off the cold as they waited for their companions to return. Aela stretched out, re-lacing her boots and grinning over at Eirik, the three alone now in the woods. The expression was returned before her friend removed his clothes to shift once more, shadows wrapping his form as it changed. "Honestly I don't know why you bothered shifting back to your mortal form" Saf queried, moving forwards to fold his discarded clothes back into his pack, tight across his now much larger body. "And you need to learn to shift whilst wearing clothes" she laughed, fastening the pack closed.
He snorted, not bothering to reply. His bear form was warm and soft against her back as she leant on him, crossing her legs at the ankle and relaxing into his fur.
His voice echoed in her mind. Rest now, for there likely won't be much time tomorrow.
It had taken her some time as a youngling to get used to interrupting voices of the Bjornlings within her mind, but it was commonplace now, and even in their mortal forms they often used it to hold private conversations, or to simply annoy her, knowing how difficult and draining she found it to respond within their minds in turn - instead of out loud.
She tried to wave him off, but she'd barely slept the night before from excitement; and with her companions natural body heat and soft fur it wasn't long til her head became heavy, resting against her chest as she snored lightly.
It was some time before the others returned, and Aela stood, slightly groggy from her nap, leaning upon her old friend as she waved.
"Proper young lady you are, sleeping whilst we do all the hard work!" Isla shouted across, her grin betraying her tone.
"You wound me!"
"I rather believe you'll get over it" the woman snorted, flicking one of Aela's horns affectionately as she passed. Many higher ups would discipline their companions for the level of teasing hers did, but Aela honestly enjoyed the comfortable familiarity, happily allowing her underlings to become friends in a way that wasn't unheard of, but was uncommon.
They strapped the enormous carcass onto their raft of logs, and used their elk to pull it back to the keep, it taking four to comfortably pull the bull, and two for each of the smaller animals. The air was crisp and cold, and the clouds behind them dropped into a mist; they needed to get out of the area fast before they ended up stuck for the night. Aela pulled her fur lined cape, fresh from Eiriks pack, tighter around her, it's soft ends brushing her tracks from the snow as she walked. The group were excited and full of life, conversing about the possibility of the prize they hoped she'd easily win. In the past she competed for pride, but in this years event she competed for her future, as the prize wasn't finery, jewells or mounts; but marriage.
"It could be the eldest Jorsenson son?" Saf enquired
"That would be acceptable, they do control the fishing trade of the northern areas"
"The smell of fish though…constantly surrounding you…surely you'd rather someone a little less odorous" Eirik countered, face scrunched in disgust. "Remember Aela, we have to live there too"
"You don't have to live with me, and anyway - you think I'd settle for the constant stench of fish?" she laughed. "He'd need to learn importance of hygiene if he wished to be my partner"
"You'd keep the bath oil industry afloat!" Isla snorted
"It doesn't take much to keep bath oil afloat" Jorik muttered with a smirk, and the group groaned at the joke, throwing pine cones at the older man.
"It would be worth it to expand our influence in such a way" she laughed, her friends eyebrow raised. "No, you are correct, a better match would be pleasant. Can you imagine father's excitement if it was a truly high up lord? I could be a lady of a most vast manor!" she giggled mockingly, putting on her most ladylike voice before ruining it with a violent snort of laughter as Isla poked a finger into her side before shifting, obviously tiring of walking as a human. Jorik followed suit, catching up with Saf as she raced ahead toward Isla.
Eirik looked confused, smiling at his friend's mocking behaviour "but you're already the lady of a vast manor"
Her face stilled, a smirk gracing her full lips. "Not as vast as it could be"
Asgard was warm, the sunset casting its golden structures a russet gold as the day came to an end. To Thor, this would be the perfect time for a ride, and he'd originally been rather confused as to the summons; though not as confused as he was now by the subject matter coming from his mother's lips. "What do you mean you have yet to know who will be arriving to be my betrothed?" the blond asked, practically spraying his ale in shock, coughing and smacking his chest with large, callused hands.
"Easy brother, or she'll have no betrothed to arrive to" his brother laughed with ease, foot balanced leisurely on his other knee as he leaned back in his chair, goblet in hand. A servant appeared behind him, refilling the wine silently and slipping away.
Their mother laughed, smiling at her sons. They were so different, so unique, and she loved them endlessly; though their reactions and attitudes did often need some careful consideration before speaking. She knew she needed to word her next proclamation...delicately. "It is tradition, for the nobles of Niflheim to...compete for the honour of such a fortuitous pairing"
The two men's eyebrows raised, almost in unison. "Compete?"
"Yes Thor, it is a great honour"
His voice raised in shock and he repeated "Compete?!"
Loki almost shook in silent mirth. "You thought yourself such a ladies man brother, yet mother here has had to resort to giving you away as one would a prized horse! Are you ready to stud for the sake of your homeland?"
Their eyes met, Thor's glaring but full of warmth as he swigged from the large flagon. "So this is it is it mother, have you been forced into this? I'm sure I could have provided a suitable woman of my own choosing"
"Thor Odinson this is an honour, to both our own house and theirs. She will have fought hard for the reward of your hand and you will accept that, welcome her into the family and provide many heirs" she stood, smiling as she bent, placing a kiss on each of her son's cheeks "and that's the last I'll hear of it." She began to walk away, pausing in the doorway of the chamber.
He downed the rest of the drink, rested his head in his hands for a moment, and then turned to his raven haired brother, hope in his eyes. "Do you want a wife brother? It will be less of an honour to her family I'm certain, but perhaps a warrior bride is enough to keep even you safe in battle?"
"I'll leave the joy of that union to you, oh future king" Loki smirked, returning to the sweet wine in his goblet and the enthralling tome in his lap.
It had been hard going, moving through their unforgiving homeland, watching and waiting for the thick, impenetrable doors to appear ahead of them. Glad for the magical warmth of her ancestors coursing through her veins, Aela enjoyed the scenery that passed; thankful as always for the beauty that was Neflheim. She had heard the words of visitors over the years, naming it dark, misty and cold, dreary, depressing and harsh; but they were wrong.
It was serene. Peaceful and demanding of respect, a land that was unforgiving of the ill-prepared but bountiful for those who knew her. She loved the gentle capping of snow on the mountainsides, the soft shades of nature, foxes and rabbits in whites and greys, honing the skills of their hunters since birth.
Tall, powerful trees gave way each year to the snow, rebirthing in the spring. A true cycle of resilience and life in the face of adversity, and she loved to ride out here on Eirik even as a girl, climbing up into the heights and simply enjoying the splendor of the views ahead. Of the great swathes of white and grey, of lakes, frozen solid and perfect for skating, of the oceanside, ripe for the cutting and fishing, great, beautiful icebergs floating within its depths. When she dove, she loved to trace their bases, so much hidden beneath the surface.
Her lands were as large a part of her as she was them, but she did welcome the sight of the large doors, excitement burning through her at the prospect of the days to come. The guards pulled their bows taut as the party approached, quickly dropping them at the distinctive visage of their lady and her party. They whistled at the sight of their kills, and their captain greeted them as the doors were opened fully.
"Men! Come collect the horses, put the beasts on ice in the storage hall" he shouted, rushing forwards to bow in greeting. The young men and women crowded the large palettes.
"Mistress, when your companions requested the three sleds, I admit, we wondered…" he laughed, affection in his eyes. "We wouldn't expect anything less of you, of course, but this is impressive I have to say. I've witnessed many hunts in my time and i'm not sure i've ever seen three gorik in such good condition"
She smiled widely, taking his arm, the persona of 'lady' more firmly locked in place than when she was in the wilds, but still loose amongst her own people. "You flatter me Gyin". The two moved towards the main house, striding up the stairs with ease.
"No, my lady, visiting lords flatter you; I only speak the truth"
She chuckled.
"If I may be so bold my lady, we of course, all pray to the elder to grant you the boon you wish tomorrow, though you will also be greatly missed by the region"
"You talk as if I have already been granted my prize Gyin"
"I believe, my lady, we both know you have"
"And yet it would be presumptuous of me to assume"
He shook his head, laughing. She would never admit to it so readily in the open, not in the way she, and the entire family in fact, joked privately.
"Allow us to be patriotic then"
"The men's well wishes mean the world" she admitted, bowing before entering her family home, ready to enjoy all that the festival had to offer.