Work Text:
NORWAY (AU) - LATE WINTER - 978 AD
“Father, father!” the little girl yelled as she ran toward the man working on building them a new garden. She was waving her hands toward him to get his attention as he was engrossed in his work. He had returned from battle a fortnight before and jumped straight into preparing their land for the spring.
The man looked up at his daughter as she ran toward him, frowning as he could not tell if her calls for him were in distress or something else.
“Yes, Freya?” he called, moving away from the spot of land he was working on to meet his daughter just outside the half-built fence that he’d been working on. The little girl was pulling on his hands as if to move him forward. There was no one on Earth that tugged at his supposedly frozen heart like the girl in front of him.
“Come, come! The baby is here!” she was practically bouncing in place, vibrating with electricity and excitement. “Elijah is here!”
And this news made the man smile, finally allowing young Freya to start pulling him back toward the homestead. Once they were closer, he could hear the cries of a newborn infant inside their home. He swelled with pride as he heard the strong, healthy cries of another son. He ruffled Freya’s hair before ducking inside the hut, to see his wife cradling the bundle to her breast, wrapped in blankets.
The woman looked up, looking exhausted as the midwife rushed around to clean things up after the long birth. “Husband, come meet our son,” she said with a bright smile as Mikael moved closer. He got down on his knees beside her and looked at the bundle in her arms.
Not wanting to disturb him, Mikael reached out and slid a large hand over the back of the baby’s head, full of dark hair. “Welcome, my son. May great Thor protect you with his strong arm and mighty hammer, may the good mother Holle hold and comfort you and may all blessings be upon you, small and holy one.” He looked at his wife and smiled, pressing a kiss to her lips. “Thank you for this gift, wife. He is most beautiful.”
He looked toward the door where he could hear Freya and Finn chattering. “Come, children, meet your new brother.”