(no subject)

[thewidewideworld]

{From here}

Sinric walks calmly till he is away from the bar and then runs. Something about Eric terrified him. Or thrilled him. Neither of which was good.

He ran till he came to a familiar door, Athelstan's. Having no place of his own and feeling that he owed Athelstan for interceding with Eric, he let himself in, meaning to wait for Athelstan's return to thank him.

He finds himself drawn to the window, sitting on the sill with his feet drawn up under him. He rests his head on his knee as he looks out over the lake, singing the elven song he learn this morning. The sound of it is soothing and he eases himself into a half doze.

Comments

[bigarmy_strangepants]

"He's not in danger," Ragnar says. "I just don't like the idea of Athelstan being food to that self-important snake."

He keeps holding Sinric, gently stroking his long blond hair.

[athelstanthescribe]

And at that moment, Athelstan himself walks in, looking a little paler but otherwise fine.

[bigarmy_strangepants]

"Athelstan!" Ragnar says, holding out his other arm for him.

[thewidewideworld]

Sinric ducks out of the way, letting Ragnar go to Athelstan. He frets silently, chewing his lip for fear of what he has cost Athelstan.

[athelstanthescribe]

Athelstan reaches out for him, even as he moves into Ragnar's arms.

"Are you all right, Oriens?"

[thewidewideworld]

He nods minutely. "He didn't hurt me." He chews his lip again. " You should not have suffered him because of me. I'm sorry."

[bigarmy_strangepants]

Ragnar reaches out for Sinric at the same moment, pulling him back into the three-ways embrace that Athelstan had started.

In fact, he wraps himself around them both, pulling Sinric into the middle so they're both holding him, and Ragnar is holding them both.

[athelstanthescribe]

"Oh, Oriens... Eric and I have had an arrangement for a long time", Athelstan says quietly. "Nothing that happened today was your fault."

[thewidewideworld]

"I wanted to run when I felt his eyes on me. I should have run but he..." He shakes his head, burying his face in Athelstan's tunic, afraid to face the strange attraction he felt in that moment.

[bigarmy_strangepants]

Ragnar holds them both; he still doesn't like the idea of them being food.

"I hear it gives intense pleasure," he volunteers. "But he shouldn't make or persuade you."

Either of them, really.

[athelstanthescribe]

"It does", Athelstan agrees, stroking the back of Sinric's head. "But I didn't think you were ready for that yet."

[thewidewideworld]

"Is that why you... took my place? What power does he hold over you?"

[bigarmy_strangepants]

Ragnar says nothing, just holding them.

This might become awkward, for other reasons.

[athelstanthescribe]

"A debt I incurred years ago", Athelstan says simply. "At least by his reckoning, and he hasn't asked for more than I can afford to give. But you owe him nothing."

[thewidewideworld]

"How do we free you of this debt?" He asks at once.

[bigarmy_strangepants]

"You own him nothing," Ragnar says. "That debt wouldn't stand before any law-speaker, even one that takes no bribes at all! If you like to go with him, you are a free man, but if you only do because you think you must: - you don not!"

He holds them close.

[athelstanthescribe]

"It isn't so bad", Athelstan says softly. "He makes sure I come out of it with no lasting harm."

[thewidewideworld]

Sinric pulls away, confused. "He hurt you doing this? He claimed it brought pleasure?" The snake does lie.

[bigarmy_strangepants]

Ragnar looks daggers at nobody in particular.

"He did??" he says. "No pleasure? He had you come with him because you owed him, nothing else?"

He could argue that's already a breech of their deal.

"We need a law-speaker to appeal to. This is an uncivilised place not to have any!" he grumbles.

Vikings are proud of their laws and things.

[athelstanthescribe]

"Listen, both of you." His voice is firmer now. "There is pleasure. But there must by necessity be a little pain from the bite, and weakness from loss of blood. In the past he's paid for fortifying meals afterwards."

The other thing Eric does to strengthen him will stay between them.

[thewidewideworld]

Mention of weakness and Athelstan's pale features shift Sinric away from his own fears and onto the impulse of service. "You should rest? I can fetch food for you?"

[bigarmy_strangepants]

"Something to drink, too," Ragnar muses. "Hot mead? Milk and honey? Chocolate, maybe?"

He sounds worried.

"And he shouldn't have called in his claim on you at all," he continues. "It's dishonest. He had no right to Oriens to start with. He has no right to anybody who doesn't freely volunteer to be fed on."

Beat.

"Especially not anybody I care about or love."

[athelstanthescribe]

"Consider them separate matters", Athelstan says firmly. "I intervened, Oriens left, and then since we were there, I made him a payment. But I ought to eat and drink something."

[thewidewideworld]

"I will go to the bar and prepare you a meal." Sinric promises. It is the very least he can do and he's glad to serve.

And Ragnar's comment about caring for requires time to digest.

[bigarmy_strangepants]

Ragnar gives him a short, playful kiss. "Do that," he says. "Thank you, Orien, that's nice of you."

Pause.

"But you shouldn't make any payments at all, Athelstan."