Pre-wedding Rituals
Ulf exited the bath clean and refreshed from this morning's hunt that he and his men went on. He grabbed a rag that was left by one of the servants to the king, he dried himself off and then began to get dressed. He wore dark brown trousers that he tied and placed the strings inside so they did not show, and then he placed his tunic on and kept it loosely tied. As he grabbed his sword, he wondered if they would still exchange swords along with the rings. King Trahaearn gave him a small, silver ring with an intricate design, and a small gemstone called an opal. Ulf remembered when he asked where the King retrieved it, and Trahaearn stated it was from traders from the Silk road who gave them fabric and jewels.
Ulf did not ask why he wanted to give it to his daughter because he did not care, he was the one that gets to give it to her. He strapped his sword to his side and grabbed the hammer that Sigurd brought by a little while ago for him. It had runes on the hilt of the hammer and is intended to look like Thor's hammer Mjölnir. This hammer represents Ulf's manhood as well as Thor's and soon his wife will have the hammer in her possession. He exited the bath house and went past the castle walls and to the makeshift archway that was near the forest. There were flowers everywhere and covered the archway. He knew that the shield maidens and his warriors worked hard on the decorations. Everyone in the kingdom were prepping the feast and getting ready for the sacrifices.
Ulf started walking towards the archway as everyone began to follow him to sit in attendance. Sigurd who had black paint on his brow and down to his chin and carrying a bowl of dark liquid; walked to the front along with Bishop Brannock behind him to witness the union commence. The bishop looked wearily at the Vikings as well as Ulf who was taller than the man and looked very intimidating. Then again, a lot of the Vikings are intimidating and some have been said to have a very short temper. Once Sigurd stood in front of Ulf, he gave the signal for some of the warriors to bring the sacrifices; then everyone became quiet as they waited patiently for the royal family to arrive.
"Bróðir, ekki vera kvíðinn." (Brother, do not be nervous.) Sigurd chuckled lightly with a smirk on his face. Ulf scoffed before replying to his friend, "Ég er ekki stressaður. Fylgstu með tungunni." (I am not nervous. Watch your tongue.) Sigurd continued to snicker at Ulf's behavior. Bishop Brannock looked between the two not understanding what they were saying. Before he could inquire, he noticed that Prince Brioc was walking towards the front with his mother Queen Alaw by his side. "Your highness and your majesty." "Your Excellency." Queen Alaw replied with a small smile on her face as she and her son continued to stand next to the Bishop.