"Hello little one, to what do I owe this pleasure?" Trick smiled at Sif in her white party dress as we walked to the bar. "Well, Sif wanted to come by and say happy birthday to her favourite great-grandpa." I smiled, kissing Trick on the cheek.
Sif baby babbled away as Tamsin took her out of the pushchair, before she wrapped her little fist in her mama's long blond hair. "Ew, sticky baby hands - take her Bo." Tamsin scowled, running her fingers through her hair to check for baby slobber as I rolled my eyes and plucked the little girl from her hip. "What? You're her mother too - you know exactly what kind of places she gets her little baby hands into." she added.
"And what can I get you to drink little madam?" Trick asked, his voice high and playful as he tickled Sif's sides, forcing her to fill the bar with that infectious baby laugh that seems to make all your problems disappear.
"I'll take a stiff vodka on the rocks thanks." Tamsin smiled, sitting herself on a stool as she checked her phone. "Dyson, Kenz and Hale should be here in ten babe." she told me, showing me the text message.
"Well I was actually asking Sif but one vodka on the rocks coming up, Bo what are you drinking?" Trick asked me, placing empty glasses on the bar.
"Oh I can't drink, not with her here." I politely declined, pointing to the infant sat on my hips.
"And Tamsin can?" Trick raised his eyebrows, glancing to my wife who stared googly-eyed at our daughter before she turned to respond to his judgemental gaze.
"Firstly I'm Scandinavian and secondly I'm a valkyrie, Acacia used to put mead in my baby bottle when I was little. Valkyrie's don't get drunk." she explained, wrinkling her nose into a smile as Trick placed the vodka in front of her. "But god we sure do love to try." she sighed, raising the glass to my grandfather.
"I'll drink to that." I instantly recognised the voice before I even turned to see who had joined us. "Bo, how is my favourite daughter in law?" Acacia asked as she leaned for a hug, placing a kiss on my cheek as I hugged her back.
"Acacia she's your only daughter in law." Tamsin rolled her eyes, kissing her mother on her cheek as the older red headed woman pulled up a stool to join us.
"Well if I had more than one, she would still be my favourite - and if I had more than one daughter, you would still be my favourite." she wryly smiled, patting Tamsin's knee.
"You did have more than one daughter." Tamsin lowered her voice, clearly trying to hide an angry fire behind her eyes as Acacia shrugged.
"The dead don't tend to call their mothers to see how they're doing, and apparently neither do you considering Trick had to call me to tell me about the little birthday party you guys are having." she explained, before drumming her hands on the table. "Can I get one of whatever she's having Trick." she asked.
"Wait - you called her?" Tamsin turned to Trick as he poured another vodka on the rocks.
"Wouldn't be a family party without your side of the family too Tamsin." he pointed out.
"It's a shame your father couldn't be here, he sends his love - he's reenacting the battle of Asgard with his friends this weekend." Acacia added, clinking Tamsin's glass with her own.
"Mom!" Tamsin sulked, embarrassed by the admission that her dad, Tyr - the great God of War liked to reenact battles in his spare time.
"Where's my little granddaughter anyway? I brought her a gift." she grinned, turning to me as she opened her arms to cuddle the baby.
"Here you go Bestemor." I laughed, passing her a drooling Sif as she shot me a look not too dissimilar to one of Tamsin's own.
"Sweetheart it doesn't matter if you say it in Norwegian or not, 'Grandma' still makes me sound old as Hell." she laughed.
"Mom you literally are as old as Hell, you were there at the grand opening." Tamsin shot back, taking another big gulp of her drink.
"So were you dear." she cattily replied, causing Tamsin's eyes to open in horror at the hint of how old she really was.
I read the tension in the room and decided it was for the best to change the subject before a fight ensued between the two valkyries, with my daughter caught in the middle no less. "What did you get Sif? She's in love with the baby swing you brought last time, she loves it when Tamsin pushes her." I smiled, thinking how sweet it was seeing my big bad valkyrie pulling silly faces for Sif in the swing.
Acacia softened her posture slightly, bouncing our eight month old baby on her hip as she pulled out something wrapped in purple silk from the inner pocket of her jacket.
"This was my mother's, and then mine, and then Tamsin's - call it a family heirloom or whatever." she grinned, passing me the object as I looked to Tamsin for a clue as to what might be under the silk as she sat as perplexed as me.
"Should I open it now?" I asked them as Acacia nodded, playing with Sif's tightly squeezed fist. I unfolded the material, touching the object underneath as I tried to make out what it was, it kind of looked like an oddly shaped rattle, encrusted with jewels - it looked far too old and delicate to be a child's plaything.
"Oh look Tamsin, it's an antique rattle - how adorable?" I smiled, showing her the object as her face soured, clearly unhappy with her mother's gift.
"Babe that's not a rattle-" she quietly whispered.
"What is it?" I asked, perplexion crossing my face as Trick leaned across the bar to get a closer look.
"That's Odin's dagger." he explained, taking it from my hand to unsheath it and reveal the battered blade. "Legend has it that when he slayed the last ice giant he used that very blade to cut its throat - people say that whoever holds Odin's blade will have his blessing." he continued, holding the blade to the light for closer examination.
"Pretty cool, huh?" Acacia smirked as Sif held her hands out to play with the shiny thing in her grandpa's hand.
"Of all the things to give my daughter, you gave her a knife? That knife specifically no less?" Tamsin stared at her mother, pushing her glass back across the bar. "Trick I'm seriously gonna need another drink before I kill her." she finished.
"Tamsin, whether you like it or not she is a Princess of Asgard - just like you are, just like I am. It would of been hers anyway one day." Acacia leveled as I thought of the best way to defuse the rapidly growing tension.
"Screw it, Trick can I get a beer?" I asked quietly, finally surrendering defeat that I will never be able to keep Tamsin and her mom from each others throats for more than two minutes at a time, I made the sensible decision to pluck Sif from Acacia's arms and put her back in the pushchair - away from any trouble.
"I will never raise my daughter the way we were raised, look at what happened to Sif." she whispered before a slap resonated throughout the room as Acacia backhanded Tamsin across the cheek.
"Don't you ever fucking mention her again." Acacia growled whilst Tamsin clutched her cheek in shock rather than pain.
My blood boiled, I tried to stay out of their disputes telling myself it wasn't my place to speak but I couldn't just sit and watch my wife be physically attacked.
"If you ever raise your hand to her again Acacia, I'll cut off your fucking head. I'd like to see Massimo try and grow you a new one of those." I lowered my voice, my eyes flashing blue as rage coursed through my veins. Acacia's posture tightened, ready to fight me if need be.
"Guys, do you think we could knock it off just for today? It's my birthday after all." Trick pleaded, putting my beer on the bar as we both backed off.
"Sorry old man." Acacia laughed, before turning to Tamsin. "Always great to see you babydoll, me and your father will call you later." she unapologetically stated, finishing her drink in a gulp and placing a kiss on Sif's forehead before leaving the Dal, just as Dyson, Kenzi and Hale entered.
Our three friends immediately went to the bar to wish Trick a happy birthday, giving me enough time to quiz Tamsin.
"What the hell happened to Sif? Did something happen?" I asked, recalling what she had said to her mother to merit the strike.
"Babe - let's not talk about it." Tamsin sulked, the corners of her lips turning into a frown.
"No Tamsin, I'm your wife - you don't get to keep things from me concerning our child." I repeated adamantly, scooting closer to hear what happened.
"I wasn't referring to Sif as in our daughter, I was referring to Sif as in my sister." she sadly replied, finishing her drink in a gulp just like her mother.
"Wait- what? You have a sister?" I asked. "Why have I never met her?" I wondered aloud, confused by the admittance.
"I had a sister, she died. She betrayed us and turned on Asgard during the great war and joined the Light. She nearly won them the war too, ironically enough because of that dagger right there." she explained, pointing to the knife Trick had placed back down on the bar. "My mothe- Acacia" she corrected. "Acacia and I had a meeting with her on the eve of total war, in the hope we could bring her back to the Dark but she turned on us, her own family." she finished, the ending of her story clear enough without elaboration.
"So Acacia had to kill her own daughter?" I concluded - screwing my face, immediately wondering how a mother could do such a thing, aware that I would never be able to harm Sif regardless of her actions.
"No Bo, I killed her." Tamsin quietly frowned as my eyes widened in shock. "Acacia couldn't bring herself to fight back, so I killed her, with that very dagger no less." she wiped a tear from the corner of her eye as I looked back at the blade on the bar.
"Oh honey." I softened, pulling Tamsin into my arms but her body stayed stiff, a clear sign that she needed a little space right now.
"The blade can't be destroyed, it's a family heirloom, an heirloom for all the wrong reasons but an heirloom no less." the blond sighed. "But I don't want Sif near that damn thing." she finished.
"Hey, listen to me - this is your call, if you want me to give it back to your mom I will do." I offered, pushing my hair behind my ears before kissing Tamsin on the cheek.
"I don't want anyone to have it, I just want it to be hidden away and grow old somewhere until it's forgotten about - just like Sif's legacy." she sniffed, before the giggles and babbles of our Sif brought her back from the dark place she was visiting. "That's right isn't it baby girl? You don't need a dagger anyway, not when you've got a hot badass mama like me right?" she tried to smile, reaching down to the pushchair to tickle her foot.
"I know just what to do." I assured her, running my hand over her white blonde locks. "You take Sif over to the gang - I'll be over in a second, okay?" I reassuringly smiled as she picked our daughter up and sat her on her hip.
"What are you going to do Bo?" she queried.
"Don't worry about it, don't ever think about that dagger again - I'm going to take care of it, okay?" I answered, leaning in to kiss the side of her neck before she nodded in approval, clearly not wanting to talk anymore on the subject.
I watched her stroll over to our friends and show off our daughter like she was the most precious thing in the world, it made my heart swell. I barely even noticed Trick approach me until his cough gained my attention.
"I assume there is a reason why you're sat here alone?" he asked as I raised the beer bottle to my lips.
"I was hoping you'd see the signal and come over, I need a favour." I asked, leaning in a little so no one could overhear us.
"Bo you don't have to ask, you know I'll always babysit Sif if you and Tamsin want some adult time." he brushed my request off, ready to walk back towards the group until I stopped him.
"No, no Trick that's sweet and I'll definitely bare it in mind but I was hoping for something else." I added, picking up the sheathed dagger. "I was hoping you could hide this in the vault, somewhere where no one will find it." I handed it to him.
"Bo this is one of the most powerful blades in Fae history, are you sure?" he asked, delicately handling the blade - wrapping it back in the purple silk.
"Yes, hide it somewhere where it can't ever hurt anyone again." I replied as he nodded his head, placing it in his back pocket.
"Consider it taken care of, now come enjoy the party with us - everyone else should be here soon." he laughed, before I grabbed his hand.
"I got you a present by the way." I added, giving him the gift wrapped waist coat he mentioned he liked from last time we went to the fae market. "Happy birthday grandpa." I grinned, leaning over to kiss his cheek as he thanked me, placing the gift under the bar.
"It's very kind of you Bo, but Sif is the best present you've ever given me - I don't know if anything can top that." he toothily grinned as we both looked down the bar at the little girl in Tamsin's arms, giggling and waving her hands as everyone cooed over her.