Chapter 15: Kattegat III
Later that day...
(Lagertha POV)
After meeting with Ace earlier and receiving a supposedly miracle medicine for my mother, I made my way home, deciding that Ace wouldn't do anything to harm me or my family and that he would not lie to me. Reaching the front door, I paused for a moment before opening the door, being greeted by the coughs of my mother from her bedroom.
"Ma, Pa, I'm home," I announced as I walked inside, my dad walking out from the bedroom shortly after.
"Welcome back, Lagertha; I hope you had fun when you were out." my dad replied, greeting me back.
"I guess, Pa, I have something to tell you," I said, looking at my father while clutching the medicine bottle.
"What is it, Lagertha?"
"If I had a medicine to cure Mom of her sickness, would you believe me?" I asked nervously, knowing it was a bit of a farfetched idea since even the healer in town could not cure Mother.
My father pauses his movements when he hears my words. "Lagertha, this is not the time for jokes on the matter," he spoke with a stern tone in his voice.
"I know, Dad, I'm still skeptical myself, but the person who gave the medicine to me is trustworthy and has no reason to hurt us, and I believe in him," I told him, choosing to believe that the medicine would work.
Father stayed silent for a few minutes, probably thinking over all the options before finally saying, "Do you truly believe that this medicine will work?"
"I do; I believe that it will work."
"Okay then, we'll try it and pray to the gods that it works."
Both agreeing to try the medicine, we go to the room where Mother is lying in bed, looking pale and in pain. Walking over to the side of the bed, I opened the cork to the medicine bottle and helped my mother sit up a bit, bringing the mixture to her lips to allow her to drink it better. After getting her to drink the whole bottle, I gently laid her back on the bed and left the room to allow her to rest.
"I hope you were telling the truth, Ace," I said softly, staring at the now-empty bottle in my hand.
(Ace POV)
After getting back to the inn and meeting up with the rest of the group, we continued to brainstorm ideas for the mark and the name of our group.
"Alright, gentlemen, what ideas do we have?" I asked, walking into the room to see the other guys drinking meed.
"I think I might have an idea," Floki replied while carving something with a piece of wood and placing it on the table for us all to see.
(Image here)
"Well done, Floki!" Eric shouted while picking up the carving.
"yes, it does look good." Lief voiced his agreement.
"I have no quarrels with it," Ragnar said, agreeing.
"Well, it would seem that we have found our group marking; then later this week, when we get confirmation on whether the last member of our group will be joining us or not, I will place the markings on each of our backs," I said, having no objections with the marking done by Floki.
"It would seem that our usually cold-hearted Lord has taken a fancy to the beautiful shield maiden, hahaha," Eric said while laughing.
"Shut it, Eric," I hissed back at him, causing him to shrink and the others to laugh. "Tch, I'm going to get some sleep; see you guys in the morning," I said before returning to my room.
(Lagertha POV)
Since I gave Mom the medicine Ace gave me, I stayed by her side to care for her and see if the treatment would work. The morning after I gave it to her, I noticed that her breathing relaxed, and she was no longer coughing as much as she used to. From there, she continued to improve; the coughing went away, her fever broke, and her body temperature finally returned to normal. By the fourth day, she was able to retain her consciousness without it being a burden on her.
Seeing how well the medicine worked in such a short time left me stunned and with many questions about how and where Ace got this medicine. He said he made it, but how did he make such a miracle remedy to heal a sickness like this in just a few days?
"Lagertha, what have you in a daze so much today?" suddenly, I heard my mother's voice coming from beside me and a hand touching my shoulder.
"Mother! You're standing and walking!" I exclaimed because it had been weeks since my mom lost the ability to stand or walk on her own without help.
"Yes, I know, sweetie; I just felt like I had my strength back this morning and decided to try it," she said, smiling back at me.
I hugged her with tears ready to fall from my eyes. "I'm so happy you are better," I said with relief.
"yes, I am, too." I heard my father say as he walked into the room with a big smile. "Whatever medicine your friend gave you was the miracle we were praying to the gods for, and I thank Odin it worked." He said with relief as well.
"Alright, you two, I am feeling better, and Lagertha, you should make sure to thank your friend for what he has done for our family and let him know that he will always be welcome here." my mom said, smiling at the both of us.
"yes, Mother, I will, and there is something I should tell the two of you," I said, looking at my parents nervously.
"What is it, Lagertha?" My father asked
"My friend invited me to join his group on their journey through the lands and maybe even outside of them to others we haven't even stepped foot on yet," I said with a look of longing for the outside world.
"Then why don't you accept? Me and your father will be fine; it's time you start a life of your own and have your adventures." my mother said while caressing my face with a look of love.
"Also, it is not like you will be gone forever; you're always welcome to come home anytime you'd like." my father added from the side, still smiling.
I smiled and hugged both of them. "Thank you so much for letting me do this."
"We will always support you, Lagertha, and we can't keep you trapped in this small fishing town forever; you have your own life to live." my mom said reassuringly.
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A.N: So most likely i will not get to write chapters except for on the weekends as i do have work Monday - Friday and we are heading back into the busy season.