Page 62 of A Spark So Bright
"Magnus or Gunnar?" He tapped the parchment in his hand and then grinned at her. "I volunteered to help with the bridal games."
"Why would you do that?"
"Because I like to be part of the drama. Please make a choice, or I cannot go to the next person, and I have a very long list." He tapped the parchment again. "Gunnar or Magnus?"
She opened the door a little wider to show him the venimoss caterpillar that was currently crawling all over her cot. The little creature was quite interested in exploring the confines of its new home, although it had been very calm for the most part while she had slept. For that, she was very appreciative because she’d needed to sleep.
Maia had come over last night and would be collecting it sometime this afternoon. The darling creature had been so much fun, but it really deserved to live free and in the wild. The gardens were a perfect spot for it. Not to mention the pleasure they took in knowing it would anger Birgir.
"Gunnar," she blurted before he could ask her the question again. "Clearly it was Gunnar, Torbin."
"Perfect." He used his claw to etch something onto the parchment, then rolled it back up. "You have about half an hour then before he's going to come collect you for your date."
"Our what?"
"Date. The hunting was just the precursor. Because you chose him, you get an afternoon with him. It's a very big honor for the ol' boy, so maybe put on something nicer." Torbin grimaced. "And brush your hair. It doesn't have to be in a nest all the time, you know?"
Then he meandered away, as if none of that was all that big of a deal.
She had never moved so fast. A date, Rose thought as she yanked on a dress that was at least a little clean. A date with Gunnar. She didn't even remotely know what to do with herself.
Brush her hair?
Casting a frantic glance at the little caterpillar she had not yet named, she had a moment of fear that she didn't actually own a brush. She didn't have time to go get Astrid. Her sister and Bjorn lived so far up the mountain that there was no way Rose would be back in time and then Gunnar would think she hadn't wanted to go, but also...
No, she had a brush. It was underneath the venimoss right now, but she had used it to brush the little creature last night. She'd probably somehow get caterpillar in her hair and smell funny, but it was better than the nest on her head. Just like Torbin had said.
Frantically, she yanked the brush through her long strands until they were ripping out of her head. She had just about finished when another knock came at her door. Firm. Unyielding. The kind of knock she knew better than to question because he wasn't going away.
She flung the door open, standing there in her prettiest white dress and with her pale hair wild around her face. "I'm ready."
He looked her over. "That's what you're wearing?"
Rose wanted to slap him. There’d been a time when she might have cowered back in a corner at the thought that she had displeased him, but she knew now he was just being an ass. "This is what I'm wearing," she replied.
"It won't work for where we are going. Put on the clothes that you wore when we escorted Magnus."
"I don't want to wear those. Besides, they are dirty."
"You're going to get dirtier with what we're doing." Gunnar reached out, his claws just barely ghosting the cloth over her hip before he let his hand fall again. She could feel the static electricity that touch left behind though. As though he had actually touched her. "This is too pretty, Rose. I can't let you damage it."
Well, that was all right, she supposed.
Rose closed the door and got into the other outfit as quickly as she could. With one last pat on top of the venimoss's head, she slipped out of her bedroom door and followed him through the barracks.
There weren't a lot of people in here today. Surprising, considering most people had alternating days off. A few warriors were wearily in the back corner of the dining hall, all of them so tired they could barely lift their heads.
"Where is everyone?" she asked.
"There was a fire in the gardens. A lot of warriors were sent to help put it out."
She put her hands over her mouth in shock, still trailing along behind him. Maia loved the gardens. A lot of people relied on those gardens for food throughout the year.
"Is everyone all right?" she asked, although her voice was a little high.
"Yes," he replied. "But Birgir now has a whole army of men there, and he has been putting them to work. Not a single one of them has been able to escape, even after realizing that the fire wasn't that much of a concern. Truly, the man knows how to trap grown trolls."
Now that she could believe. Rose had found herself stuck in the gardens more times than she could count.
