#vikingsimagines

You were running through a field, laughing into the air. The sun shining, in the lush Nordic summertime. You turned you head back to see Ubbe, chasing you. He laughed as he gained speed. Finally he tackled you, and the two of you crashed into the ground. You both groaned as the wind left your lungs for a moment before collapsing into another round of giggles. You were a tangle of arms and legs, laying together, in the tall grass. He cradled your head in one hand, keeping it from the dirt. As you both quieted down, he lifted his other hand hand to the hair that framed your face and stroked it, staring into your eyes. His hands were rough from his scars and calluses, signs of hard work. And yet, it was the most gentle sensation in the world. He caressed you so delicately, like you were the most important thing in the world. It felt so real. So tactile. So… there.

You gasped awake and went to reach for the knife under your pillow, but before you could move, those blue eyes stopped you in your tracks. Ubbe sat on the edge of the bed, his hand caressing the side of your head and he whispered, “I missed you.”

In shock, you reached out your arms and pulled him down to hug you. You held him against your chest for a long moment, wrapping your arms around his neck.

“I missed you so much, my love,” you sighed.

You felt him smile, his cheek pressed flush to yours as his beard tickled your neck. “Every day, I thought of you. Every night, I wished you were with me.”

You both laid like that, together only lit by a quickly burning candle in the corner, for a long time. You felt hot tears spring to your eyes and spill out as you cried, “I love you, Ubbe.”

He rose out of your hug and looked you in the eyes, one hand on either side of your face. “Why these tears?”

“I don’t know, I just missed you so badly. My days are not the same when you are gone.”

“Mine either.” He leaned his forehead against yours. “But I am here now.”

He sat up, kicking off his boots and quickly stripped his outer layers and crawled over you to climb under the furs. He pulled you flush against him, face to face, arms encircling your waist.

“I am here now, with you. And I will not go for a very long time.”

You both drifted into an easy, deep sleep, waking to find one another again in the morning.

in the theatre of these lush green woods, under the canopy of trees, they put on shows for me with their wooden swords and blunt axes

he is lithe, bending and ducking away from his brothers’ swings. but when he strikes, it is considered and thoughtful but not careful - no, there is nothing careful about it

the force. swords collide like a thunderclap, the sound making me and whatever other mice who roam in this forest flinch

the boys laugh at me for some of my timidness but ubbe says, in private moments, that i am stronger than all of his brothers combined- “quiet strength,” he says, cupping my cheeks in his hands, “they know nothing about quietness” and we laugh because it is true

these are my favorite moments - the private ones when he stares into my eyes - because my pupils blow out and my face becomes like the moon - lit up, reflecting the sun’s beams.

today is a private moment. we are walking in the woods - it is spring and he picks berries as he walks, gathering handfuls and giving them to me to eat. sweet.

eventually we reach a calm riverbank and rest, sitting on the grass in front of each other

“you are beautiful today,” he says to me.

i smile, “what, am i not beautiful every day?”

“you know what i mean,” he tucks a stray hair behind my ear. his fingertips linger on the side of my head and i lean into his palm, humming at his touch. i close my eyes for a moment in peaceful bliss but only for a second, for i cannot bear to not look at him. his face.

his dark eyebrows that quirk in electric conversation, furrow in confusion, rise in amusement, harden in frustration

they frame his eyes. his special eyes. they are blue like rolling tides, and they are revealing. all one need do to peer into the emotional world of him is look into his oceanic orbs - they harbor his pain, confusion, sadness, anger, disillusionment. but today they are calm like a roman bath, and i wish to float them, suspended in weightlessness

he has sloping cheekbones, and gravity pulls my eyes down towards his lips

his eyes trace my movements, burning a path of desire across my face and he stares at my mouth too

and then, in this forest of calm sunshine, to the sound of a babbling brook, his soft lips meet mine. he knows when to push and pull, softly biting my lower lip and suckling as if he were pulling all of the juice out of a fruit. i melt into him, a pool of water at his touch. his tongue enters my mouth and gently dances with mine, teasing and joyous. his hands cradle my face and pull me even closer to him. we are so close that we are breathing in sync, the molecules of air divide into an atom for each of us before we exhale in gentle liveliness. we pull away only just to let in room for more air and his forehead rests against mine. there is a string of delicate spittle between our mouths, like a golden line drawn through the air, tracing our kiss, reluctant to part.

he sighs contentedly. “what are you thinking?” he asks me. “hm?”

“i think i love you.”