The Druid and the Barbarian

Odin entered the forest. It was an unknown area for him as he'd grown up across the mountain ridge still faintly visible on the horizon. As a freelance sword (or axe) for hire, he had little choice in where he went. He usually did a job, claimed his reward and looked for the next job right away. The last weeks he'd found himself travelling west. 
The forest was lush with a rich moist smell of the end of summer. The leaves were turning yellow, orange or red. Fallen leaves were busy obscuring the game trails that crisscrossed the ground. But Odin was following a human trail and it was pretty easy to follow. For a thief, the person he was following wasn't very careful. Must be a petty theft then. Still he was tasked with bringing back the culprit. 
Frigg was pruning the tree branches in a very tightly grown thicket when the warrior emerged from the forest. She looked up without worry since people knew who she was and wouldn't harm her. But her breath caught in her throat when she saw that it was a stranger who had ventured close. She'd been so engrossed in her work that she hadn't even heard him approach until he was right on top of her.
"Good day miss druid." Odin said as he easily identified her robes for what they were.
"Greetings." Frigg returned. 
"Have you maybe seen a thief come through here? A person you haven't seen before?"
Frigg shook her head, "Everything's been quiet though I must admit I wasn't paying that much attention."
Odin nodded and thought about continuing his journey until he noticed the ba of runes the druid was carrying.
"Do you have the sight?" he asked, "Might I ask you for a reading."
Frigg paused and got the feeling she needed to do his bidding. She honestly didn't need the runes to tell a fortune but people expected her to use the aids of the trade. Somehow though, she knew her fate was tied to this stranger.  She beckoned him to follow her to her hut which was set a little distance from the actual village, as if the druid needed their rest from daily life. In fact Frigg enjoyed being among people. She liked to give a little show and feel people marvel at her words. But this stranger hadn't mentioned paying. he'd get the basic reading and nothing more. 
Inside the hut, Odin noticed a table and chair, a cot set to the side and a small fireplace where the druid cooked her meals and made her tea. Making himself at home, he heated water for tea and set himself down on a chair.
"My name is Odin. I'll pay you for your reading." he said.
Frigg snorted and decided she'd give him a little show after all.
"Pour the tea in the cups and I'll read the tealeaves after we've drunk it." she told him.
"And what do we do in between?" Odin asked.
"We can talk. Or you can let me do my work. Whatever." Frigg shrugged.
After a short pause, the druid figured she could start working on dinner since he sure wasn't talking. A short while later though, he surprised her by calling out that he'd finished drinking. Frigg returned to the table and drank her own tea. 
"Let me see." she said and held out her hand for his cup.
"Hmm, You will not complete the task at hand, but the loss will bring a success in a different area. The leaves tell me you should head north and you'll reach where you need to be."
Frigg kept quiet about the fact that the message to venture north was also in her own cup. Fate might want to meddle with her life but Frigg wasn't entirely sure she wanted to leave her village. She was happy here. 
Odin listened to the young woman and decided that she might be the real deal but that he didn't want to follow her advice anyway. He'd never been one to leave a task unfinished. Failure just wasn't in his dictionary. So without much further thoughts, he got up, grabbed and threw the druid over his shoulder.
"I think I might like another reading later in the day. But I'm going to chase my prey further west first so I'm taking you with me."
Frigg struggled but she was no match for his strength. She could call for the people of the village but they were farmers and would get hurt when confronting the fighter. Deciding to go along with fate since she was being a bitch, Frigg grunted.
"If you're going to kidnap me I'd like to at least know your name."
Odin grinned and gave his name, asking for hers in return, which she grudgingly gave. Frigg watched her house disappear and wondered if she'd see it again. Fate seemed to think she'd be gone for a long time. And Fate gave her little time to adjust when the two of them entered a magic circle that had been broken her entire life but somehow still flashed into life. Frigg thought she saw a small figure in the distance, like one of the rumoured fae but she wasn't certain because the next thing she knew they were standing on a beach.
Odin nearly dropped Frigg but managed to hold on, mostly because she'd stopped struggling. 
"Where are we?" he asked.
"Halfway to our destiny." Frigg answered dryly.

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[STORY]  *  [FRIGG]  [ODIN]

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Lantessama Isle
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