The funeral had been a solemn affair.

Ever since Ivar the Boneless threw the ax that killed his brother, Sigurd, a tense atmosphere overcame their whole camp. Once filled with the sounds of celebration, now was surrounded by an eerie quiet.

Harald watched as the band of brothers, who had been close on the battlefield, become distant from one another. He, along with the rest of the others, could see that they were now close to strangers.

He had spoken to his own brother of the end of the sons of Ragnar but only now did he see that the key to that would not be from his own actions, rather from the brothers' own misdeeds.

It was ironic. How they fought so hard for their father's legacy only to fight each other off to create their own mark in the world. Luckily, he did not have the same problem.

Harald and Halfdan had been close to each other as any two brothers could be. Born to a father who made them strong and taught them the art of warfare, the two did not spend moments apart.

Strong apart but stronger together. Their ambitions had never clashed, their dreams one and the same. Until now. Now, his brother was leaving him.

"You are sure?" Harald approached his brother slowly, his brows furrowed. "I don't understand why you want to split with me. We're brothers. We belong together. We've always had the same dream."

Halfdan continued to twine the rope meant for the sail. "No. It's your dream. You want to be King of Norway. I don't have a dream about being the brother of the King of Norway."

"Then what is your dream?" Harald found himself asking, wondering within himself how he did not know such a thing about him.

A sigh escaped Halfdan's lips. "I want to travel."

Harald corrected. "I mean, what is your ambition?"

Halfdan chuckled, looking at his brother knowingly. "You have ambition enough for the both of us, brother. I'm a simple fellow. Traveling to the ends of the known world, that's enough for me."

For a few precious moments, it was silent between the two. This would be the first time they were going to go to different paths, diverge their own way. But hopefully, in the end, they would find their way back to each other.

"I will miss you." Harald mused, his eyes full of emotion. He may have been a cold-blooded killer but not to his brother, never to the person he truly loved. He clasped his brother's shoulder. "Everyone needs a brother to cover their back."

"I'll still do that. Wherever I am." Halfdan responded, his hand reaching over to pull his brother into a loose embrace. "Besides, I'm not leaving you alone, am I?"

"What are you talking about?" Harald questioned, gazing at him suspiciously.

"I leave you in the care of a beautiful woman. Someone who I know will beat you up when you need to be beaten." Halfdan smirked, enjoying the flush that spread across the other Viking's face at the mere mention of the girl.

"Very funny." Harald muttered, shoving him away.

Halfdan chortled, giving some advice. "Kari is a good woman, a bright one. You'll be a fool not to think of having a future with that one."

Harald rolled his eyes, gesturing to the distance where his eyes had not left. "Really? Surely, you see how she is with Ironside. Look."

Sure enough, the two brothers were in sight to see Kari speaking with Bjorn Ironside, the two of them laughing and enjoying each other's company. Harald had known that they had gotten close and it only brought him anger.

Halfdan, on the other hand, could see plain as day that Kari did not see Bjorn that way nor did he see her that way. They spoke to each other like siblings did, so different from how she speaks to Harald.

"You're an idiot, you know that?" Halfdan indicated, looking at the two. "She looks at him differently from how she looks at you."

"What do you mean?" Harald found himself articulating his question. If his brother could see something he did not then he should say it.

"She looks at Bjorn like he gave her a new pet." Halfdan began before smiling. "She looks at you like you gave her hope."

Harald felt warm spread across his chest at that, finding comfort and perhaps a bit of satisfaction from what his brother said.

"Alright! Go on! Go to your new boyfriend! Be happy together!" Harald exclaimed, not wanting him to know how much his words affected him.

His brother made his way to Bjorn Ironside before embracing Kari and exchanging their own farewells.

All Harald could think about was how his other half would be sailing away to distant lands to make his own way in the world.

He wondered if it was the end of their great journey.

Yet as his eyes fell upon Kari, he could not help but hope that there would be something more.

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Kari did not have a family before.

She had a mother who was so incapacitated by grief that she could not process anything her daughter could say to her. A mere husk of a woman whose sole dream was to leave a place she was trapped in.

In the end, she did. She left behind her daughter just as the father did. Kari had been an orphan for the longest time that she had forgotten what it was like to say goodbye.

Despite only knowing Bjorn for a short time, he had treated her kindly. The most understanding brother she could have asked for. If she had not already decided, she would have chosen to go with him.

"The Mediterranean?" Kari piped up, handing her brother his shield. "And what do you hope to find there?"

"New things, I hope. Places, people, culture. I wish to see it all. I've had enough of this weather. Sunny places would bring a good change." Bjorn answered, taking the shield from her and planting it on the group. "Why don't you come with me?"

She shook her head, a small smile on her lips. "Maybe one day. I still have much to learn from our father's land before I go exploring new ones."

"You're going to Kattegat then?" He asked, peering at her curiously.

"Yes, I suppose that's a good place to start." She nodded, trying to imagine what her father's land will look like.

Travelers had described the place to her and the other children of her old village but she was sure that nothing would compare to when she sees it for the first time.

"I couldn't agree more. If you're looking for a place to get to know him, that's the one. My mother, Lagertha is there. She knew him the longest. I'm sure she can help you." He counseled, thinking of ways to help his sister.

"Your mother, Lagertha?" She repeated, having heard of the name once before.

Lagertha was almost as famous as Ragnar. How lucky Bjorn is to have such legendary figures be his parents. Then again, she already felt so much pressure from being Ragnar's daughter, she wonders how he must feel having to grow up in their presence.

He ruffled her hair playfully. "Do not worry. Once she sees you, I'm sure she will know that you are the daughter of Ragnar."

"You say that but you did not even see it at first." She teased, fixing her hair and slapping his hand away.

"Alright, you're already having too much fun. Go on, get ready for your journey with King Harald." He said, pointing to the man in the distance.

Her eyes widened when he did that, wishing he could just be a bit quieter before they catch a certain Viking's attention. "What is the matter with you?"

He crossed his arms, his height proving to be intimidating to all but his sister. "Do you really want to go to Kattegat to get to know who our father was or because King Harald is going there?"

She peered at him suspiciously, not backing down. "Do you really want to go to the Meditteranean for the culture or for the women?"

Bjorn let out a guffaw, pulling the smaller girl into a hug. "I will miss you, sister. Give my mother my regards."

Kari grinned, attempting to wrap her arms around her brother's bigger form. "I will miss you too, brother."

"When I return, we shall talk of all we've accomplished. I promise we'll see each other again." He pulled away, already counting down the moments when they would meet again.

"I believe you and I will see you then." She said, stepping back to wave him off.

"Tides are turning. We have to leave." Bjorn said as Halfdan approached the two of them.

Halfdan nodded at Bjorn's retreating form before turning to the young girl with a somber smile and an extended hand. "Goodbye, sweet Kari."

Kari returned, shaking the hand of one of the few friends she had made in this new world. "Goodbye, Halfdan. Thank you for everything."

He leaned forward to whisper conspiratorially. "Take care of my brother, will you?"

She let out a small laugh. "I'll do my best though you've always been the kinder brother."

She was thankful for both Harald and Halfdan and whilst Harald had always been the one to incite chaos and unfamiliarity in her, it was Halfdan who made sure that she was alright.

"I trust you both to care for one another." He assured her, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"How do you know?" She asked, looking up at him.

"I'm never wrong." His face took on a mischievous expression before he went off on his merry way to their boat.

Kari watched as he joined her brother, preparing themselves for the journey to the Meditteranean. She waved at them as they untied the rope tying them to the bank of the river, her eyes not leaving their boat until they were nothing more than a speck in the distance.

Not long after, she felt an imposing figure behind her. A hand was placed on her lower back, making her turn to see none other than the Viking who occupied her mind most days.

"Shall we?" Harald said, offering her his hand just as he did the moment when he asked her to leave the world she knew behind.

And just as she did then, Kari placed her hand in his.

With no hesitations this time.

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