Freya wakes in an unfamiliar bed in Halsar and discovers that Liv's healing moss has done its work—her burned hand is scarred but functional. Jarl Snorri removes the dead moss himself and orders her to make a fist, pronouncing the hand ugly but strong enough for battle. His callous remark about her appearance stings Freya deeply, though she hides her pain. He then demands she prove she can summon Hlin's magic at will. Freya invokes Hlin and successfully coats a shield in silver light, rendering it weightless. Snorri is elated, declaring she will be a force on the battlefield and that his skald Steinunn is already composing songs to spread word of their strength.

When Freya questions how her power truly makes a difference and whether the seer's prophecy really meant Snorri, Ylva appears and rebukes her as an ignorant farmer's daughter. Ylva insists the wedding take place that very day rather than waiting for Frigg's Day, arguing Snorri must claim Freya before a rival does. Snorri reluctantly agrees after Ylva appeals to their shared need to unite Skaland against the threat of Harald across the strait. Freya observes a tender, genuine exchange between Snorri and Ylva, feeling a pang of guilt for not recognizing their higher purpose, but she drops the shield loudly to break up their increasingly intimate embrace.

Servants then strip and bathe Freya, and during the long grooming process she reflects on her past. She recalls how her magic was discovered at age seven during a childhood game with Geir, and how her father reacted with terror, shaking her and ordering both children to keep the secret. Years later, her father explained that she was the only living child of Hlin, born under a blood moon, and that powerful men would use and fight over her if the truth were known. Freya now realizes her father must have known about the seer's prophecy from his time as one of Snorri's warriors, which is why he was so desperate to hide her magic.

Freya's thoughts also turn to Bjorn, and she is mortified recalling her drug-loosened admissions of attraction in front of Liv. She tries to banish him from her mind but fails, her fantasies only broken when the servants bring her a fine white dress, silver and gold jewelry, and a bridal crown of twisted wire and amber that Ylva herself fastens to Freya's braids. Ylva declares her at last worthy of looking like a child of the gods but insists on white gloves to conceal the scarred hand. Staring at her transformed reflection, Freya steels herself for the marriage, reminding herself that compliance is necessary to protect her family from Snorri's power.