2

MIA

Slowly regaining movement in her arms and legs, she desperately hoped her last terrifying memories of the crazy man were just a dream. This time as she woke, she felt fur under her instead of snow. Opening her eyes, she saw she was on a bed with furs underneath her. Seeing the man in front of her seated at the bedside, she started to scream. He leaped forward and put his hand over her mouth. Her pulse skyrocketed, and she was sure he was going to kill her. Scrambling with her hands to pull his away from her mouth, she found he was significantly stronger than her. That didn't stop her from trying. He was quietly saying phrases to her in a language she didn't understand. This man must be with the other one who she saw in the woods.

He rolled his eyes as he shifted so that he was hovering over her on the bed. His hand still over her mouth, he used the other to restrain her hand from scratching him. In her horror-filled frenzy, she noticed that he too was dressed in weird clothes. His hair was cut on the sides, and went over the top of his head and was secured in some sort of braid in back. He had a beard and piercing blue eyes.

Eventually she stopped struggling. Her eyes darted around the room and noted how different it looked. It was almost as if she was in a different time. Everything from the furniture, walls, structure, bed, and especially the man on top of her indicated she was not in the 21st century. This can't be happening. It's not possible.

Making eye contact with the azure eyes staring down at her, she saw him take his other hand and hold a finger to his lips. He wanted her to be quiet. He said another phrase in the foreign language, which she of course did not comprehend. She narrowed her eyes at him in irritation. Slowly, he started to move his hand away from her mouth. She did not scream, fearful of what he would do to her if she did. He once again spoke in his language, and she huffed out in frustration, "I have no idea what you're saying."

Recognition flitted across his face and he smirked. "Can you understand me now?" he asked in a sly voice. He smirked and sat back on top of her knees, with his legs still straddling hers. She was surprised to hear him speak English, yet grateful that someone understood her.

"You speak English?"

"Apparently."

"Where am I? Who are you people? I want to go home."

"You're awfully demanding, aren't you?" his eyes widened at her words. "Your English sounds different than people from England."

"That's because I'm not from England," she glared at him and tried to move away. He didn't budge, not letting her get very far. "Let me go."

"No," he said simply with his famous smirk.

"Where am I?" she asked once more.

"Kattegat."

"What? Why? How did I get here?" she wondered out loud. Last she remembered she was in the library back in Bergen. The image of the shaking book and being sucked in to the page made her cringe. "That's impossible," she muttered more to herself than to the man straddling her knees.

"Yes, well I was hoping you would enlighten me on your origins. You say you are not from England, then where are you from?" he questioned. She took note that he was very careful with his words, staring at her like an animal did its prey.

"Fort Myers, Florida."

"Fort Myers, Florida?" he questioned in his strange accent.

"Yeah, like in the United States?" she sarcastically questioned.

"Where is that?" he was dead serious. She saw no humor in his face, and the reality that she may have actually traveled through time hit her like a freight train. Or at the very least, she was far from civilization.

"You don't know where the U.S. is?" she asked in disbelief.

"No, why, is it famous where you are from?" he inquired. His head was tilted to the side again, and once more she felt inferior to him. His entire demeanor held power, from the way he looked, spoke, and acted.

"It's well known. Are you going to get off me yet?"

"Are you going to behave?" he challenged. She wanted to run, kick, fight, try any which way to escape. However, from the sounds she heard not far away, she assumed there were many of these strange men nearby. Laughter and shouting echoed through the building. She probably wouldn't make it very far. Her best bet would be to escape at night.

"Fine, if you tell me who you are and where I am," she demanded.

"I've already told you, you are in Kattegat," he explained as he stood up and moved a few paces back. "My name is Ragnar, you are in my home. What is your name?"

"Mia. Wait, Ragnar?" she questioned, and the name sounded odd to her, yet somewhat familiar from her studies. She couldn't place the memory of reading about it, but faintly remembered the name being associated with the Vikings. "This isn't the year 2013, is it?" she asked with a shaky voice. Her breathing increased, and she wondered if another panic attack was on its way.

"2013? That year does not even exist," he laughed at her with amused eyes. Her fears confirmed, she bit her lip to hold back tears. He must have noticed, because he took a step forward with his eyebrows furrowed. "You are not from this time? Is 2013 where you are from?" he asked in wild amazement. She shakily nodded her head up and down. "Maybe the gods did send you," he mumbled quietly. She didn't pay attention much to his words, and was instead trying to process that she had literally traveled back in time.

While still trying to comprehend her current situation, the sound of footsteps was heard to their right. A boy with blonde hair entered the living quarters, carrying a wooden bucket full of liquid. Noticing that she was awake, his eyes grew wide with curiosity. Ragnar briefly acknowledged him, and held out a horn-like cup. The boy filled it with what looked like some sort of beer or amber liquid. Ragnar said something to him in their language, and the boy quickly exited. "Who is that?" she questioned with her gaze remaining on the horn.

"My son. Björn." He took a sip from the horn, and then offered it to her. She shook her head in refusal, and he shrugged. Indifferent about her not accepting the drink, he continued to have his fill. "If you are from a different time, there is much to learn from you," he stated matter-of-factly. She wondered if that made her valuable enough to keep alive.

"Mr. Ragnar, I assure you we can have a conversation about the future while you help me find a way to get home. Yet, for right now I really would like to know how the hell you expect me to calmly talk with you about such irrelevant things? I need to get back home to my time. I can't stay here. I have winter break and travel plans," she quickly spat out. She understood her words mimicked pure denial.

"Well, Mia, I must be honest with you. I have no idea how you came to be in our time, or how to return you. Perhaps the gods wish for you to live here instead of the 2013 you are from." He dismissed her concerns with a shrug of his shoulders.

"How are you so calm about this?" she raised her voice at him. Wordlessly, he put his finger to his mouth in sign of silence again.

"Do not shout at me," he grumbled lowly. "There is nothing I can do for you. Perhaps our Seer may help you, or at least provide some answers." She sensed she was pushing her luck with his patience.

"Okay, where is this 'Seer?'" she held up her fingers in mock quotation marks.

"We will visit him tomorrow." The two remained silent for a few uninterrupted seconds, until the boy returned. Björn held a wooden tray adorned with food. Setting it on the table, he stared at Mia as his father moved towards the food. "For now, you need to eat," he gestured for her to join him at the table. She pulled legs over the side of the bed, but did not make a move to stand. Ragnar sighed and said something to Björn she did not understand. As the boy once again left them alone, he moved towards her and held out his hand.

"I don't need your help," she scoffed and shot him a glare. Stripped of all control, and for the foreseeable future was stuck with him, she decided to not comply easily. He held his hands up in mock surrender, and then placed them on his hips. Frustrated and angry, Mia made to stand up on her own. However, with being in the cold woods for god knows how long, and having not eaten, her body was not as reliable as she'd thought. She made it to a standing position, but upon taking one step forward she started to go down. As the floor got closer and closer to her, she closed her eyes in preparation to hit the ground. Strong arms held her up, albeit not gently.

"Apparently you do." His voice was mocking to her, and she roughly shoved him as hard as she could. He barely stumbled back, and to her surprise quickly pinned her against the wall the head of the bed was anchored to. Her eyes wide, she looked into his tantalizing blue ones in fear. His body had hers flattened against the wall, and his right arm was under her neck. "Do not mistake my kindness for weakness. I understand you are scared. I understand you are in a place that is not familiar to you. But that gives you no right to disrespect me." His tone left no room for argument, and his face was mere inches from hers.

Once she started to tremble, he released her. "Come, eat," he instructed and held his hand out towards the table. She timidly followed him, and each step she took was a sign that she was stepping further and further away from the world she knew. She was lost to the 21st century, and would have to play along to find her way home. Realizing that he once again had the upper hand, she took a seat at the large table in front of her.

"What is it?" she asked as she pointed at the cooked meat on the tray.

"It is meat, what does it look like?" he countered with amusement lighting his eyes.

"I see that. What kind of meat?" she warily eyed the food. There was no silverware laid out, and no napkins. She quickly reminded herself that if she was in fact in the age of the Vikings, which she was pretty sure the time she'd landed in, they didn't have the same mealtime etiquette they did back home.

"It is from a deer. Just eat it, I promise it's not poisoned," he tried to joke. She didn't find it funny, and refused to make eye contact with him as she picked at the food. They sat in silence while she ate, and he casually drank from his horn of ale. She began to formulate an escape plan. Maybe if she could sneak out at night when they all were sleeping, she could find her way back to the woods. If she was transported in time and landed in the woods, surely that was the way home. Ragnar hadn't tied her up yet, so if she went along with his requests hopefully he would not tie her up to sleep. If she lucked out, she'd be able to escape that night.

After she'd eaten, Ragnar quickly disappeared out into the other part of the large house. He was only gone a few seconds before returning with his son, Björn. The blonde boy grabbed the empty tray, and gave Mia a wary smile. Ragnar called instructions after his son once more before she was left alone with him again. He then grabbed multiple blankets and furs from the side of the room, laying them out on the floor. They were placed against the wall furthest from the exit. She knew he had to have done that on purpose, figuring if that was where she was to sleep he would be between her and the exit.

Sure enough, he motioned for her to lay down in the corner on the floor. "I have to relieve myself," she stated, hoping he'd let her go alone to use the restroom. Ragnar was not a stupid man, and nodded in acknowledgement before moving forward to grab her arm. "Where are we going?"

"You need to go, we will go," he stated and before they exited his living quarters he abruptly turned her to face him. "We leave this room, you do not talk to anyone, you do not look at anyone. If you are truly from the future, we do not need others to know. You will pose as a traveler from this land here to visit. Do you understand Mia?" he said very seriously.

"Fine," she grumbled and looked towards the exit. He paused, considering her answer, before finally moving out into the great open room. Her senses were overstimulated as she took in the scene. There were various Vikings placed throughout the room. Many of them were drinking, some more obvious than others. A few heads turned to look her way in wonder, but with one stern look from Ragnar they returned to their own business. Mia saw Björn sitting with the man who'd captured her in the woods, and she scowled at the man. He noticed her and Ragnar, and simply raised his horn in a toast to them before taking a drink. She narrowed her eyes before being drug along by Ragnar. They went through the main entrance to the building and stepped into the snow. "I don't have any shoes," she said as her bare toes hit the cool snow.

"Then you better go quickly," he said. Her mouth hung open in surprise at his lack of concern. "Hurry up now," he nudged her towards a small shack that was connected to the longhouse. She eyed it warily, assuming it was some sort of outhouse. He smirked at her and gestured for her to go.

"This is gross," she mumbled and entered the small shack.

"This is Kattegat," he said loud enough for her to hear.