of magic, but then it was gone, and the hut was a normal, if strangely tidy for being so long out of use, place.
Home.
I bundled up in a blanket, grabbed some fishing line off the shelf, and went to catch some dinner.
The wind nipped my skin, but I didn’t see the use in wearing one of the dresses. Not until I could be sure a certain warrior wouldn’t tear them with clumsy claws. Besides, he’d be naked too, unless the magic gave him some clothes.
A long strip of rocks stretched from the hut’s doorstep out to sea. I clambered over the dark, wet shape until I came to the end of the spit. There I cast out my fishing line and tried not to stare too often at the horizon. I lost my fight and ended up climbing the tallest stone where I shaded my eyes and waited for a white-furred shape to appear.
It was a long, lonely watch. I’d caught three fish and strung them up before a figure broke the serene line where sea met sky. The Sea Wolf had done it. He was almost home.
I whispered the name that beat in my heart. Ægir. The sound must have carried, for the warrior seemed to swim faster. As he came closer, I saw he was no longer a white-furred monster but a man with a tawny head and tanned arms. The white pelt clinging to his shoulders was just that—a pelt, not part of his body.
When he finally reached the end of the rocky spit, I was waiting.
“Come, my love,” I called and reached out my hand. He hesitated before climbing up the rocks to where I stood, well out of the water. I tugged his fingers and he took his first steps on land as a man, his legs as shaky as a babe’s.
When he was on solid ground, he sank to his knees and put his wet head against my belly.
“It’s all right,” I laughed and tugged the blanket around us both. “I’ll teach you to walk. I’ll teach you to live as a man again.”
“M-m-m…”
I put two fingers against his lips. “Muireann. ‘Tis a strange name for Northman to say. I’ll teach you how to speak it, too.”
I started to turn away, wanting to get him inside. But he pulled me back and kissed me. His lips burned on mine, transferring the taste of salt, of water, of need. My skin tingled and my feet left the ground. The Sea Wolf had picked me up, lips still locked on mine. He drank of me and I him, inhaling the scent of each other in great gulps. Finally, I pulled away, laughing as he kissed down the column of my throat, his stubble tickling me. I threaded my fingers in his wet hair and drew him up. His eyes flared with an unearthly light, then the glow died, leaving them more ordinary, if tawny brown with hints of gold was ordinary.
“Muireann,” he whispered as if my kiss had reminded him how to speak. If that was true, we would have to spend more time kissing.
“Welcome, Ægir. The sea’s your home no longer.”
He started walking, ignoring my request for him to put me down. He carried me all the way to the hut. Sure enough, he had to duck to get through the door. Once inside, surprise flashed over his features.
“It was my mother’s,” I explained, pulling out of his hold. He let me go and I stepped back and held the blanket around me, suddenly shy. “She built it and kept it for me. For us.” I turned to flash him a smile, but he looked so sober my mirth died.
Clearing my throat, I hustled to tend the fire. “There’s enough wood for the night, but we’ll have to find more tomorrow. Nothing but fish for food, until we can slaughter a sheep.”
Ægir knelt by the hearth, and I whirled away, my hands fluttering like little birds. “I best go get the fish then—”
With a grunt, he stalked outside. The door slammed behind him. I sank onto the bed, wondering why this was so hard. Did he not want me? Was I not the one he would’ve chosen? The curse chose for us, I reflected as I left the hut to find water. My mother was smart enough to find a source of water before building a haven.
Sure enough, I found a stream of sweet water and a bucket besides. The door scraped when I opened