Approach the newly-weds.

Tjorvi decided that he should get right to the point. He had traveled all the way to Yogsta so he could swear an oath to the newly-weds and their fathers. Promise his loyalty to this new alliance and get a spot in one of their raiding parties. He wanted nothing more than to explore new lands, just like so many Scandinavian legends had been doing before him. He didn’t want to get distracted from that goal, and so he started making his way across the large hall. Pushing through a group of Vikings who had gathered around a barrel of mead, while sliding down the hood of his cloak to reveal his long reddish hair.

The young man ended up right in front of the thrones, his head up high as he looked in the direction of Natasja and Bjor. While the two older men were the Jarls of the two villages, Tjorvi heard that it would be Bjor who’d lead the raiding parties to England. His mouth opened as he wanted to speak up, still unclear of what words he was going to use. Everything depended on this.

“…”

“Tjorvi?” The sweet voice of Natasja Tryggdottir was faster than his own. She had really grown into a fine woman, but some things didn’t change. Her voice was one of those things – while it had obviously matured, it still had that same sweet ring to it. The kindness was clear, and she was known for it as well. It had already given her some sort of resistance as well, from Vikings who didn’t believe such a woman could rule over a town bigger than the huts and farms of her birthplace. Even with Bjor by her side, there were some people who’d rather have a shieldmaiden on that throne. “I wasn’t expecting to see you here! Welcome.” The blonde smiled widely as she greeted Tjorvi.

“I – It’s great to see you as well, Natasja. I wanted to congratulate you, in name of myself and my family.” Tjorvi spoke up, hoping his voice would sound firm and deep even though it was a little shaky. His hand reached down to pull his rusty axe from his belt, and with one smooth movement he had knelt down in front of the recently married couple. “And I wanted to offer you my axe. I want to join your raiding parties next season, and make a name for myself. That is, if you would allow it.”

There seemed to be visible confusion on the faces of Natasja and Bjor. Sure, there were plenty of men who were looking for adventure and fame. However, a lot of farmers decided to stay to their own craft, and the young rulers never had to deal with anything like this before.

“Why do you think we’d let a farmer come along on our raids, boy?” Erling Trygg spoke up with his bouldering voice, causing the entire hall to go silent.

“Father!” Natasja spoke up as she looked to the side, but there was some truth in the older jarl’s words. They had plenty of Vikings, and they didn’t need an extra axe, especially if that axe was rusty like that.

“Anyone deserves the chance to prove himself, don’t you think, my Jarl?” A feminine voice spoke up, and Tjorvi looked back to see a gorgeous shieldmaiden standing right behind him. Her full breasts stood out and managed to grasp his attention for a second, as a pair of grey eyes staring right into his like she was trying to read his mind. There was a mischievous smirk on her beautiful face, light spots of ink tattooed over it, and luscious brown hair falling down to a skimpy top. Armor that was merely covering up her chest, but the confidence flickering in her eyes said more than enough.

“Maybe if there was a duel between one of us, and the newcomer.. He’d have a chance to show us that he can handle more than some wheat and cattle.” The woman named Gyda continued, laying out her plan with the farmer’s son. Coincidentally, she claimed that his opponent should be herself.

“I can take down most of the men here when there are weapons involved, but since there won’t be any swords and shields around – it might be a fair fight if he’s worth anything,” The woman smirked as she looked over at Tjorvi challengingly. It was clear that everyone thought it was a good idea, and most Vikings just wanted to see the fight between their favorite shieldmaiden and the newcomer…