#bergen_county

"It feels like.. it..."

A frown.

"More? Like friendship isn't the right word."

"Mm." A nod. "Perhaps...devotion?"

She nods. "Maybe?"

"I said brother, but maybe that wasn't right, either."

"Hm. Perhaps not for him. Consider his brother."

Blink.

"...huh."

"You have a point."

"I believe he and Dirk have come to an agreement of sorts, but...I do not think that is the sort of relationship he sees with you, if he is requesting Clasped Hands."

A pause. "You two may have to develop your own language to express this."

"I don't have the right word for it."

"You do not need to come up with the right word alone."

Another lip bite and a small nod.

"The mortal term for the equivalent of Clasped Hands, when I was young, was 'Blood Brother.'"

"I do not know if that helps...."

"Hm. I did not ask: do you know the words of the Oath?"

"Not exactly. I was going to look it up."

She nods. "I know it is in a text on the shelf by the Mountain's desk. Or I could tell it to you."

A nod. "That.. I'd appreciate that."

She nods and clears her throat. "It is not an oath until you clasp each other's hand around a double-edged blade, letting your blood mix. As you do this, the words are so: Blood for blood, bone for bone, life for life, until only we stride the earth. My life is in your hands, my blood is in your veins. Hold me well and I will lend you my strength; break your bond and may we both perish. Friendship I swear to you; an oath of clasped hands and shared heart."

She says the words slowly and clearly, so that Dagmar can think about them.

She closes her eyes, considering.

"That sounds more like... like more than one life, possibly."

Brekke considers for a few minutes. "I...have never heard it said so. But I suppose it is possible. That would be a question for the Mountain."

"It'd be nice to find Symon again."

Brekke grins slightly.

"That may tell you something about your thoughts on this."

"Point."

Brekke sighs and stands, stretching a bit. Oak, who had curled up and taken a nap nearby, gets to his feet and shakes straw bits out of his coat.

"I do not know if I have helped. I hope so."

"It did. Thank you, Chief."

She nods. "I hope to know what you decide. Do not forget about Jarnbryn, at the DeBukes."

A brief Norse word to Oak, and she heads back to the Lodge.

Oak pauses long enough to give Dagmar's hand a lick (and accept an ear rub!) before trotting along with the Chieftain.

"I won't." A wave, and she gets back to her carving.

(End Scene)