‘Oh, no?’ the first one said. ‘Who do you think broke JP’s wrist? It sure wasn’t Daisy. He was too busy crying and begging for his pathetic life.’
‘Yeah, it was the invisible creature. She did it,’ claimed the other bully.
The boys searched the yard for signs of Archie. When they moved close, Freya tensed to fight again.
‘I’ll tell you one thing,’ the first boy said. ‘Daisy had better hope that creature does take him away. I ain’t never seen JP so mad. He says he’s gonna put Daisy in the ground on Monday. Even I’m feeling sorry for him.’
Archie started to tremble in Freya’s arms. Fear was pouring from him in heavy waves. She realized that by saving him today, she’d caused him even more trouble.
When the group of boys gave up the search and left the yard, Freya stood with Archie for several minutes.
‘Where do you live?’ she asked, as he gradually calmed down.
‘Not far,’ he said softly. ‘But I don’t think I can make it.’
‘You can. I will help you.’
‘Freya, what are you doing?’ Orus whispered. ‘It is unfortunate, but you can’t help him. That awful boy is going to get him no matter what you do. You are here to save Tyrone’s family. You don’t have time to help everyone you meet.’
Freya shot him a look, but said nothing as she supported Archie.
It was a long walk to his home along tree-lined streets. As this was late autumn, the leaves were falling. There was a crisp smell of winter coming on. It wouldn’t be long until there was snow.
They walked in silence, but Freya could still feel the fear coming from Archie.
They arrived before a small house and Archie carefully led them up the front steps. Freya looked up at the door.
‘Do you have family here who can help you?’
Archie was hesitant to answer. ‘I’ll be OK. Thank you again . . .’ He paused. ‘I don’t even know your name.’
‘I can’t tell you,’ Freya said. ‘It’s a rule.’
‘Well, thank you anyway,’ he said softly as he approached the front door.
Freya watched him pause before the door and she felt something more than fear. Something much worse – resignation. Archie knew he was going to receive a worse beating on Monday. But he wasn’t going to do anything about it.
‘I could teach you,’ Freya finally offered.
Archie pulled his key from his pocket and put it in the lock. ‘Teach me what?’
‘How to fight and defend yourself against those boys.’
‘What?’ Orus cried. ‘Have you lost your mind?’
‘You would do that?’ Archie asked.
Freya ignored the screaming raven at her shoulder. ‘I have been around battlefields all my life. I would do it in exchange for your assistance.’
A spark of life began to glow in Archie’s eyes. ‘What can I do?’
‘I need to find a family,’ Freya said. ‘I came here to help them.’
For the first time, Archie smiled. It was a beautiful smile. ‘Is that what Valkyries do?’ he asked. ‘They help people?’
‘Not quite,’ Freya answered. ‘But I do want to help them.’
‘And me?’
Freya looked long and hard at Archie. This was madness. She had run away from Asgard to protect one family, and now she was going to take on more? But with all the hope she felt coming from him, how could she say no?
‘Yes, Archie, I am here to help you too.’
Archie unlocked the front door and held it wide as he welcomed her into his home.
CHAPTER SIX
While Archie showered and changed his clothes, Freya looked around the small house. This was the first human home she had ever been in and it was nothing like her home in Asgard. It was a fraction of the size and the furnishings were very different.
Though they were old and very tired, all the furniture and objects were clean and well ordered. As she wandered round the living room, Freya discovered things she’d never seen before and was anxious for Archie to finish bathing so he could explain what they were.
Freya and Orus started to explore the rest of the house. Down a short hall she opened a door and saw a bedroom that seemed very out of place with the rest of the well-cleaned house.
In fact, it was a filthy mess. Clothes were thrown all over the floor and empty drink bottles covered every surface. The bed was unmade and the sheets were stained and smelly.
Freya didn’t linger but moved on and found another bedroom unlike anything she’d ever seen before. The walls were covered in colourful posters and there were hundreds of figurines on shelves. Hanging on the back of the door was a long, floor-length, burgundy-coloured velvet coat, while the closet was filled with strange clothes that had chains and cogs and levers all over them.
‘This is my brother’s room.’
Freya jumped at Archie’s quiet arrival behind her. Her wings flew open in alarm and knocked several figurines off a shelf.
‘Brian is really into Steampunk.’ As Archie bent down to pick up the figurines, Freya noticed he was wearing yellow rubber gloves on his hands and extra layers of clothing. The only skin exposed was his face.
‘You said be careful,’ Archie said. He held up his gloved hands. ‘I’m being extra careful.’
Freya was still wearing his gloves and held up her hands. ‘Me too. What is Steampunk?’
Archie picked up a figurine and handed it to her. It was of a woman in a top hat that had goggles on them. She was wearing a long, open coat. Tiny cogs were on the lapels of the coat and in her hands. Under the coat she wore a corset and a long, layered skirt. ‘It’s a kind of style,’ Archie explained. ‘Where people imagine what the world would have been like without electricity, with steam still powering everything. There are lots of cogs and gears and stuff mixed with Victorian styles.’
Archie was speaking, but the words meant nothing to Freya. She continued to explore the room in fascination. ‘So where is your brother?’
Archie dropped his eyes. ‘He’s in jail.’
‘For what?’
‘I bet it was murder,’ Orus said. ‘Looking at this strange bedroom, it has to be murder!’
Freya swatted the raven as Archie said, ‘It was for breaking and entering and auto theft. He’s a thief. He’ll be in jail for another eight months.’ Archie paused and kicked at a spot on the floor. ‘Um, while you’re here, you can stay in his room if you like. I mean, unless you’ve got somewhere else to go. Do they have hotels for Valkyries?’
‘I don’t know,’ Freya admitted. ‘Actually, I hadn’t thought that far ahead. But how would you explain it to your parents?’
Archie wouldn’t meet her eyes. ‘That’s not a problem.’ He paused and seemed hesitant. ‘My father left years ago. I haven’t heard from him since.’
‘What about your mother? Is she here?’
The pause was longer this time. ‘Sort of,’ he said. ‘I mean, she does live here, but she’s gone for a while.’
Freya could feel there was a lot more to this, but she didn’t want to press. Instead, she looked around the room again. ‘I like it here. I will stay.’
At her shoulder, Orus was having a fit. ‘Freya, you can’t stay here! If Odin finds out, he’ll send a Dark Searcher after us! We must find Tyrone’s family and then return to Asgard before we’re missed. It doesn’t matter how much you like this place, you just can’t stay!’
‘What’s he saying?’ Archie asked as he watched Orus rage.
‘Not much,’ Freya answered. ‘Just how much he likes this room. Who is that?’ She pointed at one of the posters on the wall. It showed a squat little girl dressed in the Steampunk style. She had a crooked mouth and jet-black hair with a red stripe. There was an even smaller boy with her. His eyes looked madly demented. Beside them was a brightly coloured caterpillar on a lead, wearing military boots on his many feet.
‘That’s Gruesome Greta,’ Archie said. ‘She’s my brother’s all-time favourite character.??
? He crossed the room and reached for a thin book on a shelf. Freya’s eyes glowed as she leafed through the colourful pages, filled with lots of little pictures.
‘This is wonderful,’ she said. ‘I’ve never seen anything like it!’
‘It’s just a comic book,’ Archie said. ‘Don’t they have comics where you come from?’
Freya couldn’t draw her eyes from the pages. ‘We have a few books, but they are all about war. We have nothing like this. May I keep it?’
Archie shrugged. ‘Sure, my brother has lots of them. I don’t think he’d miss that one.’ He stepped closer and pointed at a picture. ‘That’s Greta’s little brother, Scott, and his pet caterpillar, Cecil. I really like Cecil.’
Archie walked over to the closet. ‘I bet you can find some things to wear in here. I mean, if you don’t mind wearing men’s clothes. It might even help hide your wings.’
Archie pulled the long, heavy velvet coat off the door. ‘Here, try this on.’
Freya removed her sword, dagger, gauntlets and breastplate. She folded in her wings as tight as they would go and pulled on the coat.
It hung down past the top of her sheepskin boots and was several sizes too big for her. The arms draped down past her gloved hands. But the fullness of the back fit perfectly over her wings.
‘Here, let me help.’ Archie stepped forward and rolled up the sleeves. Then he lifted the collar so that it stood up around her neck. He stepped back and considered his work. ‘Not bad, not bad at all. Turn around.’
Freya turned slowly and raised her hands high over her head. ‘Well? Can you see my wings?’
Archie shook his head. ‘Nope. You just look like you’ve got a hunched back. No one would ever suspect you had wings.’
Freya looked down at herself. ‘Do I look Steampunk?’
Archie laughed too. ‘A Steampunk angel? Why not!’
Freya lifted a finger. ‘No, Archie, a Steampunk Valkyrie.’
Hours later, Freya sat in Archie’s kitchen as he made them salad and macaroni with cheese. She watched him in fascination as he prepared the food with the confidence of one who had done it many times before.
‘Are you always alone?’
Archie nodded. ‘My brother has been away two years already and my mom is rarely here. Even when she is home, it’s like she’s not.’
‘I don’t understand.’
Archie stopped what he was doing and sat at the table with her. ‘It’s like this,’ he started awkwardly. ‘My mom drinks, a lot. When it’s really bad she disappears, sometimes for weeks. She doesn’t call and won’t tell me where she’s going. But she always comes home. But sometimes, that’s even worse than when she’s gone.’
‘How can you live like this?’ Freya asked. ‘Don’t you have other family?’
Archie shook his head. ‘I’m doing all right,’ he said. ‘I earn extra money by delivering newspapers in the mornings before school. And my mother gets assistance. I use her bank card to buy food and pay the bills. A social worker visits, but not very often and she doesn’t seem to care that my mom is a drunk.’
Freya watched Archie as he rose and got back to work. His words were brave, but his inner feelings betrayed him. He was very lonely.
‘I understand, Archie. I have seen what drink can do to humans.’
Archie turned to her, inviting her to say more.
‘Where I come from, we have a place called Valhalla. Human warriors spend all day fighting, and then drink all night. My father is there, somewhere. But I’ve never met him. After seeing what drink does to them, I don’t want to.’
‘Your father is human?’ Archie asked in shock.
Freya nodded.
‘Wow,’ he said softly. ‘We’ve both got parents with drink problems.’
Freya had never thought of it that way, but he was right. They weren’t so different after all.
Eating human food was something she had never experienced before. Orus was beside her, picking at his own bowl full of the cheesy macaroni and getting it all over his smooth black feathers.
When she finished, Freya sighed contentedly.
‘Does it hurt having them?’ Archie asked as his eyes lingered on her semi-open wings. The way she sat meant the bottom, flight-feathers rested on the floor.
Freya shrugged. ‘Not really. I’ve always had wings, so I don’t know what it’s like not to have them.’
‘But you can’t sleep on your back or sit properly.’ He pointed to the way she had to sit with the chair turned back to front to avoid leaning against her wings.
‘No, I guess not. But I can fly, and that makes up for it. There is nothing better than flying really high and pulling in your wings to dive. Right before you hit the ground you open your wings and soar.’
Archie sighed wistfully. ‘That sounds amazing. I wish I had wings. Then I could fly away from here too.’
‘Where would you go?’
‘I don’t know, just away.’ Archie pulled open his laptop computer. He paused. ‘You said you can’t tell me your name. But I have to call you something.’
Freya considered.
‘Don’t do it, Freya,’ Orus warned. ‘Don’t give him your true name.’
She looked at the raven. ‘I’m not going to. I’m just thinking.’ Finally she nodded. ‘I know. Archie, you can call me Greta, just like in the comic.’
‘Greta?’ Archie cried. ‘Are you serious? Did you look at her? She’s . . . she’s . . .’
‘She’s what?’
‘Well, she’s not you. You’re pretty – Gruesome Greta is definitely not.’
For the first time in her long life, Freya blushed. She had never thought of herself as even remotely pretty. All she was known for in Asgard was being a great flyer. It was her sisters who held all the beauty in the family. ‘You really think I’m pretty?’
‘Of course you are,’ Archie said.
His comment was so unexpected, Freya was lost for words.
‘How many times have I said the same thing,’ Orus remarked.
‘But, but I’m not,’ Freya said, flushing. ‘My sisters are the beautiful ones, not me.’
‘Well, you are,’ Archie said. ‘So I can’t call you Greta.’
‘But I like that name.’
‘How about I call you Gee? It’s the first letter of the name, but not actually Greta.’
‘Gee,’ Freya repeated. ‘All right, you can call me Gee.’
Archie tilted his head to the side. ‘OK, Gee, if you are a Valkyrie, let’s see what the Internet says about you.’
Archie started to type on his keyboard. Freya leaned forward to see what the laptop would do.
‘OK, here we go,’ Archie said as he started to read aloud. ‘In Norse mythology, a Valkyrie – from Old Norse valkyrja, “chooser of the slain” – is one of a host of winged female figures who decide who dies and wins in battle . . .’ His voice tapered off as he continued to read in stunned silence.
Freya could feel a mix of doubt and confusion coming from him. ‘We aren’t myths and we don’t always choose who lives or dies. We just collect the souls of the valiant dead and take them to Valhalla.’
‘But you do go to battlefields and reap the dying soldiers?’
‘That is why I am here.’ Freya explained about her life in Asgard and her First Day Ceremony. She told Archie how she had reaped the soldier, Tyrone Johnson, and how he’d begged her to help his family.
‘Can Valkyries do that?’ Archie asked. ‘Can they come here to help people?’
Orus was still on the table and cawed loudly. ‘Go on, Freya, tell him how you are breaking the rules to be here and what will happen if Odin finds out.’
‘What did he say?’ Archie asked, watching the cawing raven.
Freya sighed. ‘He told me to tell you how I’m breaking the rules by being here. Valkyries are not allowed in Midgard unless it’s to reap warriors’ souls. We aren’t supposed to get involved in human lives. We deal with the dead, not the living.’
‘What’s Midgard?’ Archie asked.
‘This is,’ Freya explained. ‘I come from Asgard. Here – Earth – is Midgard and then there is Utgard, the land of the demons and frost giants.’
‘Midgard,’ Archie repeated. ‘What will happen if you are caught out of Asgard?’
Freya hesitated. ‘Odin will be very angry. It won’t be good.’
Archie reached out a rubber-gloved hand and touched Freya’s hand. He leaned closer to her. ‘Then you must go back. I don’t want you to get into trouble because of me.’
‘He is intelligent!’ Orus cried in shock. ‘Listen to the boy, Freya. We must return to Asgard right now.’
Freya shook her head. ‘Not yet. Not until I have seen Tyrone’s family and found out how I can help them.’ Her deep-blue eyes settled on Archie. ‘And made sure those boys leave you alone.’
‘Don’t worry about me,’ Archie said. ‘I’ve always been picked on and beaten up. It will always be that way, even after you go. But if helping your soldier’s family will get you home sooner, let’s go.’
‘You wish to help me?’ Freya asked in wonder. ‘Why would you do that?’
Archie grinned in excitement. ‘Because that’s what friends do.’
CHAPTER SEVEN
‘Because that’s what friends do . . .’ Archie’s few words affected Freya more deeply than she imagined possible. After spending most of her life looking for a friend, she had found one by complete accident. Archie knew who she was, what she did and where she came from and yet, after all that, he still wanted to be her friend.
Archie had searched for Tyrone Johnson’s address.
‘It’s really not too far from here,’ he said, looking at the map on screen. ‘We could walk there in ten minutes. I bet Tamika goes to my school. I’ve probably walked past her in the hall a hundred times.’ He looked up at Freya. ‘What do you want to do first?’
‘I’m not sure. I guess just take a look and see if we can discover what the trouble is.’ Freya pulled on her armour and weapons.
‘Are you going to let them see you?’