Rose sucked in a breath and replied, "He's too busy watching over me, I guess. I'm a full time job to keep alive."
"No," Vidgis drew out the word for a long time. "I think it's for another reason entirely."
With one more saucy wink, she headed over to a few other troll women. They all gestured for Vidgis to join them with quickhands, and Rose could hear them all filling her in on what the competitors had said to each of them.
But Rose’s mind was stuck on the thought that Gunnar had stayed with her for reasons beyond his vow. Beyond feeling like he had a duty to keep her alive.
Did he like her? It seemed as though that was what he'd been trying to say for a little while now. It was just... unfathomable.
"Rose?" Astrid called from the crowd. They wouldn't let her through because obviously they weren't going to do that. No one was allowed in the clearing who wasn't part of the competition.
Rose hadn't even spoken to her sister about any of this. That was stupid. But Astrid was very used to Rose not talking, and besides, she had her own life and husband to deal with. Bjorn wasn't anywhere near as bad as Rose, but the man wasn't in good shape, that was for sure.
None of them from the labyrinth were.
Rose sighed and headed over to the fence. Everyone was being surprisingly polite, probably because Magnus was no longer within touching distance. But the moment she stopped in front of her sister, Astrid reached through the wooden slats for her.
And Rose... flinched.
She flinched back because the thought of those fingers touching her made her skin crawl. She hadn't with Gunnar, though. The man had grabbed onto her hand, and she hadn't even reacted at all.
She'd have to poke at that a bit.
Astrid immediately withdrew her hands, realizing a little too late that she'd almost lunged. "What are you doing?"
"You saw me enter the clearing."
"I did. But I didn't think you'd keep going with it!" Astrid shook her head. "You aren't ready for this. You need to comehome. I'll have Bjorn talk to the king, and I'm certain it will be fine if you just gracefully bow out."
"Gunnar already had that talk with the king."
"But Gunnar isn't Bjorn. I'm sure if we got the two of them to, then things will be fixed. It's just that this might be rushing things, Rose. You shouldn't feel rushed. Gunnar knows better!"
That anger burned in Rose’s chest. She'd enjoyed existing without it for a little while, but her sister's words made it burst to life again. She wasn't a child. She didn't need someone to look after her!
"Astrid," she said, trying to make her voice sound firm even though she knew damn well it didn't. "If I want your help on this matter, I will ask for it. Thank you for your concern. It is unwarranted."
Astrid's jaw dropped open for a moment. She stared into Rose's eyes, searching for something that wasn't there anymore. Maybe it was a hint of that little girl that she had once loved, but that little girl had died years ago. The first time a king had taken her by the hand and torn her apart.
Rose nodded at her one more time and then returned to the others to wait. She watched many of the competitors return. Some of them had rather interesting prizes, most of them with creatures that she knew were quite tasty.
Over half returned with what looked like hogs. They were much smaller though, usually only feeding two or three people. They had the smallest eyes because they didn't actually need them to see in the caverns where they lived. They used their massive snouts to find the algae that they ate in abundance, which made their flesh very tasty.
Some trolls returned with massive snakes that Rose knew were abundant in the farther reaches of Trollveggen. They must have run very fast to get those massive beasts that were longer than a troll was tall.
And then Magnus came back with what looked like a gigantic cat draped across his shoulders. It was an impressive beast, with pitch black fur and paws that were nearly as big as her head.
Huge.
Sleek.
Must have been beautiful when it had been alive.
The trolls went wild, cheering about how their prince was a warrior unlike any they had seen before. Their thunderous applause was made even wilder when they saw that he had a fierce cut down his cheek, all the way down his neck, and onto his now bare chest. Rippling muscles shifted and moved as he lifted the beast over his head and laid it at her feet.
"My lady," he said with a smooth grin. "This is a skarn. They live only in the deepest caves, and they are known for hunting any trolls that come into their territory. It is a great gift to be given. Their claws are used in only the most special of jewelry."
He pressed down onto the paw and she watched as what looked like a sapphire claw extended out of the soft pad.
