136 A Second Studen

One afternoon, Freyr came in for his routine visit with Macha. Although Tyr was away, he continued his monthly visits so he could make sure she was doing all right. Since his cousin's departure, he tried to keep his affections stifled. He did not want to seem as if he took advantage of the situation while Tyr served in the war.

The door to the office hung open, and he heard Macha speaking in her native tongue. It was a beautiful language where the words flowed together almost musically. He only had the opportunity to enjoy it a few times before, but he always remembered their conversations with clarity. Those moments remained the highlights of his months.

As he rounded the entryway, he spotted Lord Rosenkrantz talking with her. He inquired about something she just said. Ullr leaned a little closer than would be considered acceptable and his arm rested on the backrest of Macha's chair. She tilted back slightly to put some distance between them.

Warnings flashed in Freyr's mind and he stopped in the doorway, stunned for a moment. He was not aware that Ullr even liked women. From all the rumors, it sounded like the man was asexual. When Macha's gaze drifted to him, he composed himself. He ran his long fingers through his dark brown hair. Giving her one of his brilliant smiles he made his way to her. "Macha, how have you been?"

Macha stood up immediately walked around the desk to allow Freyr to kiss her hand. "I've been good. Do you know Ullr? I have been teaching him my language in exchange for help with some of the Valois documents. Hrod insisted that he assist me." It relieved her to see Freyr because Ullr was making her feel warm inside.

Freyr nodded to greet Lord Rosenkrantz, "Yes, we are acquainted. How often do you conduct these lessons?" Now he worried on behalf of his cousin. He remembered that Ullr had previously tutored Macha, but Tyr mentioned firing him at some point. He never explained why, but after seeing their interaction just now, it was easy to guess the reason.

Since the King entered the room, Ullr stood upright and gave a bow. "Your Majesty, we're practicing daily. Macha once promised to teach me her native tongue. The language is quite beautiful, but I'm afraid my accent is horrible." He offered her a gentle smile.

Without hesitation, Freyr announced, "I would like to join the lessons if you would be so kind as to allow me to become your humble student. You recall I once said I wished to learn English." He hated being so formal with Macha, but Lord Rosenkrantz was in the room, so he had to keep up appearances.

Only over his decimated honor would he allow Ullr to weasel in on her while Tyr was gone. Although tutoring sessions would eat into his busy schedule, he could just get a little less sleep. He had been the one who requested that his cousin go off to Kochi, so he would ensure nothing happened while he was away.

Hearing King Freyr demand to join the lessons caused Ullr's smile to flatten out. It was well known amongst the nobility that the King had feelings for Macha and it would be difficult to woo her if another person was present.

The request sounded like a choir of angels singing in Macha's ears. She grabbed his hand and beamed, "Yes, yes! I think that's a wonderful idea. Not once have I forgotten you wanted to learn English. This is the perfect chance."

Right now, she wished she could hug Freyr. It always felt dangerous being alone with Ullr and she needed another person around to ease the tension that ended up forming between them. She recognized he flirted with her but did not want someone she did not trust to be in the room. If rumors started to circulate about Ullr's attention, she worried the guild would think she was cheating on Tyr.

While Freyr's flirtation remained light and playful, Ullr's had a sexual and mysterious nature to it. It was not the type of environment she wanted to be in.

Another reason she craved Freyr's company was that last week she reminded Ullr that she was still very dedicated to Tyr. She worried that she might have given him the wrong signals. While she was attracted to him, she did not want to pursue their relationship further than friendship.

Her words did not seem to deter his affections. Instead, he countered that the feelings of the heart could change. He also reminded her that Tyr might not come back the same person he was before. He later questioned why she rarely received messages from the man she loved. All of these comments already weighed down on her mind and only increased her anxieties.

Freyr gave a satisfied smile to Ullr. He knew he ruined the man's plans.

As the afternoon progressed, he realized he should bring his daily paperwork which needed to be looked at with him. This would allow him to execute his work while standing watch over Macha.

Eventually, Ullr left and Macha leaned back in her chair. Being around him was always exhausting and she had to keep her mind prepared to counter any flirtation he made. Her gaze fell on Freyr, who was making a pot of tea for them. "You don't need to do that. Let me finish it." She moved to stand up.

Now that Lord Rosenkrantz was gone, he could relax. "It's fine. So, Hrod asked Ullr to help you?" While he was waiting in the office, he remembered Hrod had originally peaked his interest in Macha before they first met. The warm steam from the tea clung to his face as he inhaled the flowery aroma.

Macha walked to a sofa and settled into the soft cushions, "Yeah. I really wish she didn't though." She took the cup and saucer from him and sat up.

Freyr gazed at her and thought, "How odd. Some things are too strange to be coincidences."

He did not understand why his aunt would request Ullr to help with the documents. He also could not explain the man's sudden interest in Macha, but Freyr did not mention that.

"I was wondering, what do you want my payment to be for the lessons?" Macha made a motion to deny him, but he interrupted her, "I insist. Is there anything you have been lacking since Tyr left? I told him I would watch over you while he was away. You know my feelings well, but I won't act on them while he's gone. I ask this as a friend."

Freyr's offer caused her to sigh. She did miss her personal training sessions. Since Tyr left, she felt her progress slowed down drastically.

She did have to admit that Freyr treated her differently ever since Tyr went to Kochi. He had dialed back his affections and compliments quite a bit. Sometimes he slipped up, but he really did respect his cousin's absence. "I wouldn't mind training with you if you have time. I know you're really busy though."

Hearing her ask for something made Freyr happy. He was unsure if she would admit to needing anything or not. "I can help you with that. I train daily anyway, so it isn't an issue."

****

Later that night, when Freyr reported his plans to Sierra and some of the other advisors, they all congratulated him on his decision. Everyone hoped it would be a step towards Macha accepting him, but Sierra suspected something was amiss. She had seen him interact with the woman since Tyr departed and understood he would not do such a thing to his cousin.

After adjustments were made to his daily routine, the advisors left and Sierra stayed behind. She crossed her arms and eyed the King. "What is this really about? I know you aren't just doing this to learn her language and get closer to her."

Freyr looked up at his Captain of the Guard and laughed. Shaking a finger at her, he shook his head, "You certainly do see through me sometimes. I bet Peata has a hard time pulling a fast one on you." He met Sierra's wife, Peata, a few times and found that Sierra was the dominant one in the relationship.

After a long pause, he realized she would not leave and he explained, "I think Ullr Rosenkrantz is pursuing Macha. I want to ensure nothing happens while my cousin is away. It isn't a big deal to me because I wanted to learn Macha's language anyway." He paused, "Don't worry about it, that's all it is."

Satisfied with his explanation she nodded. She needed to be informed if it was anything dangerous. The changes he requested to implement in his daily routine put his life in greater danger and she did not approve of them.

A few families held on to their anger regarding Jarnvid's trial and this was a bad time for him to be leaving the palace. She wanted to find out the real reason behind his motives before she had to overhaul their security procedures.

When she retired, he flopped down into his chair. He kept repeating to everyone and himself that it was because of Ullr, but he had trouble lying to his own heart. He loved Macha and saw this as an excuse to be near her. The anticipation of spending every day with her left him full of anticipation.

He hung his head in his hands, ashamed of how pitiful he was. "Why must I be so desperate just to have a moment with her?" he mumbled to himself.