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Opening the front door of his home, Theo stepped out into the frigid snow. Locking up his home, he set off in the direction of where he and their leader agreed to meet.
The snow swirled around him in a flurry of white, making it very difficult to see, but Theo waved his hand and whispered a warming charm into the wind. Theo grinned. The snow continued to whip around him, but there was now a buffer between him and the elements.
This wasn’t his first winter in New Asgard, in fact, he had been living here for nearly two decades now. When he first moved to Norway, the small coastal town was called Tønsberg, but that all changed about six years ago when their population dwindled in the blink of an eye.
Those who had been left behind, Theo among them, were left in confusion until the arrival of the Asgardians.
Now, sis years later, their world had returned to relative normalcy, and Theo was meeting with the leader and a few other townsfolk for a trip to one of the lakes to the north. A spot of ice fishing was on the docket today, and Theo loved nothing better than freshly caught Arctic Char cooked over an open fire.
Seeing the edge of the town start to appear through the snowflakes, Theo quickened his pace. He could tell that there were a couple of people already waiting at the meeting point, but he knew he was early.
“Theo! There you are!” A voice called out.
He grinned, recognizing the voice. Once he was close enough, Theo returned her greeting, “How is our illustrious leader doing on this brisk morning?”
Brunnhilde shook her head but pulled Theo into a fierce embrace. “I am well. How are you fairing?”
“I’m well myself,” Theo replied as they separated.
Looking at the other person that he had seen waiting with Brunnhilde, he realized he didn’t recognize her.
Brunnhilde realized Theo was looking at the other woman. “May I introduce Darcy Lewis? She is an old friend of Thor’s, and she has just moved to New Asgard after needing a fresh start.” Gesturing to Theo, she added, “Darcy, this is Theo Nott, our resident chemist and wizard.”
Theo could see the surprise in Darcy’s expression even with her scarf and hat covering most of her face. He held out his glove-covered hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Ms Lewis.”
Her laugh was carried on wind and snow to his ears. “Please, just call me Darcy.” She reached for his hand with her own mitten protected one. “It’s a pleasure to meet you too, Mister Nott.”
Now it was Theo’s turn to chuckle as his large hand dwarfed her much smaller one. “My father was Mister Nott, I’m Theo.”
“Theo, it is,” Darcy said with a nod of her head.
“How have you found our little town so far?” He realized that her hand was still in his and he didn’t mind one bit. In fact, he rather enjoyed it.
Darcy stepped closer to him. “Much more inviting now.”
Theo grinned behind his own heavy scarf.
“It looks like the rest of our party is right behind you, Theo,” Brunnhilde said, reminding the two that they were not alone.
The two of them slowly put distance between themselves, but he didn’t let go of her hand. From the smile that reached Darcy’s eyes, she didn’t seem to mind.
Calling out greetings to the rest of their little expedition, he noticed that everyone was accounted for now.
“Are we ready?” Brunnhilde asked, looking around at those assembled.
A chorus of yeses answered her.
Brunnhilde looked at Theo. “All yours.”
Finally releasing Darcy’s hand, he stepped forward. Theo pulled another stocking cap from his pocket. “We’ve got thirty seconds. Everyone, place your hand on the hat. Remember, no gloves.”
“What’s going on?” Darcy asked as she stepped up between Brunnhilde and Theo.
“Just wait,” Brunnhilde replied with a grin, tugging off a glove.
Darcy followed suit but looked at Brunnhilde skeptically. “I dunno ab—”
“Now, Darcy!” Theo called out as he grabbed her wrist and placed her fingers on a part of the hat.
A second later, Darcy felt a yank behind her navel, and the town disappeared. And the group was spinning through the air. Yelping, Darcy latched onto Brunnhilde with her free hand.
The ground came rushing up towards the group. Theo called out, “Let go!”
Darcy pulled her hand back with the rest. She screamed when Brunnhilde was ripped from her grasp, and Darcy quickly realized that the ground was closing in fast. Inches from the blanket of white below, Darcy stopped in midair. She hovered for a split second before dropping the last few inches to land in the snow.
Groaning, Darcy struggled to roll over in the deep powder.
Two pairs of hands grabbed the back of Darcy’s coat and hauled her out of the snow.
With her face no longer buried, Darcy spat out the snow that had melted in her mouth.
“Thank you,” she croaked.
Theo stepped in front of her, pushing her wet hair out of her face. As he did, warmth seeped into her skin, and she felt her damp hair and close dry instantly. “Are you okay? I know that the first time Portkeying can be a little bit disorienting.”
Darcy snorted. “That’s a bit of an understatement. What was that?”
“A Portkey,” Theo replied. “It’s a form of magical transportation. If you stay around here long enough, you’ll get used to it.”
“I highly doubt that,” Darcy muttered as she pulled her mitten back on.
Theo chuckled. “As Brunnhilde said, just wait.”
“Okay, everyone, spread out! We’ll meet back here as darkness falls.”
“Come me with me,” Theo said, grasping her hand.
“But, Brunnhil—” Darcy whispered as she glanced at the other woman over her shoulder.
Brunnhilde shook her head with a smile. “Go have fun.”
“Thank you.” Darcy looked at Theo. “Lead the way.”
The two disappeared towards the massive lake they had landed near.
Darcy had never been ice fishing before, but the excitement on Brunnhilde’s and Theo’s faces had her excited for the experience.
That excitement waned slightly as they sat around waiting for the fish to bite, but the company made the wait worth it. Plus, he easily kept the two of them warm with a flick of his wrist and a murmured warming charm. And after listening to Theo talk about how delicious freshly caught Arctic Char was, she was looking forward to trying it later that night.
“Come on,” Theo said as he stood up. “Let’s clean up and go meet the rest. We have enough fish to last for quite a while.”
Darcy watched in awe as Theo waved his hand and everything he had used to fish shrunk down and jumped into a second bag he had brought with him. The first bag he brought was filled to the brim with the fish they had caught. Well if Darcy was honest, most of the fish had been captured by Theo. She had never been good with fishing.
As they made their way back to where they had left the others, Theo continued to tell Darcy about his past. Including how the Statute of Secrecy had been disbanded when the magical world had been revealed after the Chitauri visit over ten years ago.
By the time the two of them had arrived where they had left everyone earlier, they were the last to arrive. There was a fire blazing merrily in the middle of the group, and Darcy could see Brunnhilde’s trusty sword sitting beside her. Darcy knew she had lost her sword while battling Hela on Asgard, but when the surviving Asgardians landed here, it had turned up in Theo’s home. When Darcy asked him about it, he said he had found it while ice fishing one time at this very lake and brought it home.
The small group had been sitting around the warmth of the fire for a couple of hours, eating and talking and enjoying each other’s company when she felt a hand on her shoulder.
“Come with me,” Theo whispered.
“Where are we going?” Darcy’s voice was just as quiet as Theo’s as she stood up.
“I want to show you something,” Theo replied his eyes sparkled in the light of the fire.
Darcy grinned at him and followed Theo away from the group. As she did, they both missed the eyes following them.
Brunnhilde smiled to herself.
When they were far enough from the group that the light of the fire was far enough away, Theo stopped her and turned her towards the frozen lake.
“What is it?” Darcy asked.
“Give your eyes a few moments to adjust,” Theo explained.
Darcy followed Theo’s instructions and quietly stood there as her eyes adjusted to the darkness. It didn’t take long before she could see ribbons of light in the sky.
Her eyes widened. “Is that what I think it is?”
Theo stepped behind her and wrapped his arms around her. “If you think it’s the Aurora Borealis then you’re right. Enjoy.”
The two of them stood there in silence and watched as the lights play across the sky.
Darcy sighed and turned in Theo’s arms. She looked up at him. “Thank you.”
“My pleasure.” Theo reached up and brushed the tips of his fingers against her cheek. He leaned down towards her but stopped a couple of inches away, giving her a chance to back out if she wanted to.
Not even hesitating, Darcy closed the distance between the two of them in a soft but firm kiss.
The first of many to come.