(See the A/N at the end for Disclaimers and such like)
980 AD
Morrigan grinned as she chased her twin around the meadow, glancing backwards she watched as Finn ran after her, his cheeks puffed out in frustration, Mother sat nearby folding the laundry as Elijah sat upon her lap. The sun was warm, looking down on them benevolently as they ran barefoot in the soft grass and played the day away.
Morrigan's life at four years old was wonderful, she had a loving mother who cared for her, a father who was a strong and powerful warrior, a twin who understood her better than anyone and two younger brothers that she could dote on and spoil. Morrigan felt very important to have little brothers, yes, she had Freya as well but she was her twin. Morrigan couldn't baby her twin like she could her little brothers. Father had told her that her younger siblings were her honour and duty and so she took it seriously, her chest puffing out in pride when she was their first word when their first steps were to her.
Just as she reached out to grab her sister, she was blown back by some wind causing her to fall onto her back.
"Hey! No fair, we agreed no magic" Morrigan pouted pushing herself up onto her elbows and shooting a narrowed eye look at Freya. Their magic by and large was accidental, working out when their desire or emotions got too much and Morrigan was glad for the island they lived on. Ashildr had told them horror stories of those with divine gifts being hated outside their island, apparently, these new Christians were even condemning it as the 'Devil's work'
Morrigan had been a little scared admittedly but when she remembered that if they wanted to get at her or her siblings they would have to go through Father, she was unconcerned. Father would never allow anything to happen to them. And no one could beat Father they called him ᛒᛚᛖᛋᛋᛖᛞ ᚹᚨᚱᚱᛁᛟᚱ, blessed warrior, because no matter how bad it got. The Gods answered his calls and he always came home from battle.
"I didn't use magic it was just the wind" Freya argued bringing Morrigan out of her thoughts and so she did the mature thing and tattle to Mama while Finn finally caught up to them. It was sometimes frustrating to have to wait for him as he was so slow but Morrigan was a good big sister and so wait she would, for however long she had to.
"Mama! Freya's cheating" Morrigan cried wrapping an arm around Finn who snuggled up against her, tongue sticking out at Freya. A plus was that Finn always took her side which was nice.
"Freya don't use magic on your sister you agreed" Her mother chastised in a monotone as she folded one of their father's shirts, Elijah squealed in delight clapping his hands.
"Yes mama" Freya laughed her green eyes twinkling with mischief, what did it matter if their Mama wasn't interested? She rarely was unless Papa was there watching over them. Freya scrunched her nose, it was stupid grown-up stuff so she wouldn't worry herself over it.
"Can I be the runner now, Mori? I can run real fast I promise!" Finn piped up his hazel-green eyes were bright with adoration as he looked at his sister.
"Sure, little bear cub" Morrigan agreed, starting to tickle her brother, the pair gave him a head start before chasing after him, the autumn was fun for her, the world exploded into colour and they didn't have to worry about food or shelter, Morrigan had been born into a strong family and a strong community so they didn't have to worry, unlike the tales her father brought home of distant lands.
Morrigan and Finn continued to chase each other while Freya took a break sitting beside Mother and attempting to copy the easy spells that her mother was showing her. Mother rarely showed them spells, only doing so on orders from Father but she preferred to have nothing to do with it.
Morrigan, Freya and even Finn had shown talent when it came to magic, her mother was gratified in a way that made her eyes gleam and made Morrigan feel a bit uneasy but their father saw it as a sign from the gods that they were blessed. Morrigan could see that their pride for them was different in a fundamental way but still hadn't figured out just what the difference was.
"The hunting party is back" came the the cry later in the day, Freya and Morrigan both ran as quickly as their legs could carry them to be the first to greet their father. Elijah and Finn were knackered from the day of play and so were sleeping.
They saw him leading the hunting party back, taller than others and powerfully built his sword was wrapped around his tanned breeches, a dagger placed in his boots and bow, and arrows slung over his thick furred coat, a green tunic underneath. Father truly looked like a King in these moments and Morrigan felt incredibly proud that Mikael Agnarsson was her Papa.
"FATHER" they cried gleefully running towards him, his ice-blue eyes softened slightly, and he bent down to scoop his children up.
"My Lady and My Queen" he greeted them, his voice as rough as always but soothing instead of intimidating, he was always different around his firstborns.
"Hello papa" they chimed together sweetly
"How was the hunt father?" Freya asked eagerly as Morrigan looked over his shoulder to stare at the massive stag and other animals that had been taken down. They'd be eating well as usual, her Papa had once mentioned that he never wanted his children to feel the pang of hunger like he had and so he always ensured they had enough to go around, game was plentiful on the island and the sea would always provide fish, mussels, eels and plenty more.
"It was good, I got the prize of the hunt of course which means fur boots and blankets for your birthday next week" Their father had a satisfied smirk on his face as they strode further into the village, the hunts being hauled off for processing.
"of course, you did Papa you're the best hunter in the village" Morrigan stated pride shining in her eyes as if there was any doubt about their father's prowess.
"And the best warrior" Freya added gleefully, they were popular amongst the other children thanks to their father, the children in awe of his strength.
"We're going to be the best as well" Morrigan stated firmly.
"You're my daughters blessed by the gods; you could be no less," her father crooned to them a smile crossing his face, familiar to the girls who didn't realise what a rare sight it was but it faded when he spotted his wife.
"Husband, I hope you had a pleasant hunt?" she questioned as she turned the stew she had made for dinner; Finn was now playing with some toys while Elijah continued to nap in his cot.
"It was acceptable," Papa said shortly as he sat down, keeping his girls on his lap, both captivated by the braids in his hair, marking his accomplishments. He had carefully woven stories for them as he showed them the different hairstyles that were so revered in their culture. Papa had even given Finn some braids now that his hair was long enough.
"And the wolves?" her mother continued seemingly more interested in their comings and goings.
"They brought down more" her father grunted displeased with the question but their skill couldn't be denied, not that he wouldn't get his own jabs in.
"But of course, those mongrels have the upper hand" There was a community of wolves that lived on the other side of the island they were part of the Sámi people who were seminomadic, while most of their village had gone off herding reindeer which was quite profitable, some remained as they had young children, so they could enjoy the bounty that could be found on their island.
The Sámi and the Vikings did a lot of trade together and coexisted because of that and the fact they were equally matched, the Vikings were fierce warriors and her mother was a powerful witch but they had their shamans and the wolf spirits where once a month they would shift into wolves.
Her father disliked them because they were stronger, faster and had better senses and he was a prideful man.
"Are we going to see the lights tonight Papa?" Morrigan requested, it was a tradition between them that whenever possible they would go, and he would tell her stories.
"Of course, daughter" he replied, with Freya he had a different tradition where they would go to watch the waves crash against the cliffs on the island.
"Can we see the waves tomorrow, Papa?" Freya made her own request and he nodded
"Yes, we'll go to the beach and play in the sea, perhaps catch some mussels?" Papa mused thoughtfully and Freya nodded happily, she loved food brought in from the sea while Morrigan had a preference for bloody meat.
Later that night, with Esther taking care of Freya and Finn while Elijah slept, Morrigan squirmed while her father tied the deerskin cloak around her.
"Calm down little Queen" he chided softly a fond glint in his eyes "You've seen the lights a thousand times"
"But there magical papa and you tell the best stories" She grinned as her father pulled the hood over her, obscuring half her face and she huffed in frustration, her father chuckling. His Little Queen was just so cute.
"ah, sweet one, never lose your light" Mikael instructed as he grabbed her, holding her tight on his left hip, she sat just above his sword pommel which he kept his right hand on ready to pull out at a moment's notice, he moved through the darkening forest, his footsteps swift and sure, moving silently.
Morrigan kept quiet as her father walked the path to their spot, the best place on the island, and in her opinion, the world to see the lights. She had to keep quiet as she didn't want to give their position away or attract unwanted attention. They had always been safe on their island, but her father was a warrior and paranoid, he had been on many raids and it had left its mark.
Mikael knew what would happen to his family if he let his guard down. After all, He'd done it to others without remorse.
Two hours later, Papa had moved through the forest and climbed up Blåmannen, Morrigan was especially excited to see the lights as this was the first time since the start of summer they could see them properly, during the summer the lights couldn't be seen due to the midnight sun, where the sun would always shine. It was a very pretty sight even if it messed with her sleep but Morrigan will forever claim the lights to be the most beautiful of all.
Once Papa had found their spot and placed her down while he set up the bedroll, Papa had found this place a long time ago and only shared it with his firstborn daughter. Their spot was an overhang in the mountain which provided shelter but when you sat on the edge, during the night it was like floating amongst the stars, surrounded on all sides. It brought Morrigan and immense amount of peace and filled her with an unknown longing, as if fulfilment was but a moment away.
Once Papa was certain it was safe he gestured her over, she went happily and curled up on his lap, glancing out into the night, a soothing blackness where the stars shined lovingly and the moon hung heavy.
"Any time now" Mikael assured his daughter, who was fidgeting lightly, she always did before the lights came but he wasn't staring towards the sky but at his daughter's small face filled with so many emotions...eagerness, longing, impatience, love...making her green eyes shine while her normally honey-coloured haired was washed white by the moonlight.
Morrigan waited with bated breath that was let out in a big whoosh as the sky suddenly exploded into a rainbow of colours stretching out across the sky, it had always been the most amazing sight she had seen, here she sat in the safety and comfort of her father's arms; resting amongst the stars with the lights flickering above her in ethereal beauty.
After a few moments, Morrigan broke the serenity, speaking with a soft reverence "Tell me again"
Mikael pressed a loving kiss to the crown of her head and happily obliged.
"The lights above are the reflections of the Valkyries' armour as they lead chosen warriors to Odin, the chief God and ruler of Asgard, they are crossing the Bifrost and leading the warriors to join Odin in Valhalla, he needs the best and the bravest in order to prepare for Ragnarök – a series of events that will precipitate the end of the gods and begin the world anew, it will be Odin's greatest battle and eventually he will die amongst other gods and the world will sink in water but will surface once again.
The world will surface, fertile and the remaining Gods and two human survivors will repopulate" Her father finished his story as Morrigan listened intently, she'd been told this a thousand times already but every retelling was just as enthralling as the first time she heard the story.
Her hand- as it always did- reached out to try and touch the lights of the stars, Morrigan always felt if she just reached out she would be able to touch a star, never to capture, just to revere and touch.
"You will go to Valhalla one day won't you papa? You're the strongest warrior in the village" she stated leaning back to stare up at the underside of her father's sharp jaw.
"I hope to have that honour one day" her father mused thoughtfully "But it will not be for many, many years yet not until I am a white beard, have seen you married and met my grandchildren"
"Will you tell me of Tyr?" she asked "Of our forefather?"
Papa was always proud of their bloodline to have been beget by a God.
"The dreadful wolf Fenrir was only a pup, but he was growing quickly. The gods feared for their lives, so they endeavoured to tie up Fenrir in fetters from which he couldn't escape. When Fenrir laid eyes on the chain that would eventually bind him, he was suspicious and declared that he would only allow the gods to put it around him if one of them would stick an arm in his mouth as a pledge of good faith. Only Tyr was willing to do so. When the wolf found himself unable to break free, he bit off Tyr's arm.
It was declared with his sacrifice... not only procures the salvation of the gods but also regularizes it: he renders legal that which, without him, would have been pure fraud.
Odin showed himself to be the foremost god of wisdom by sacrificing one of his eyes in its pursuit, so Tyr showed himself to be the foremost god of law by sacrificing one of his arms to uphold it." Her father told her one of her favourite stories of Tyr, he was one of her favourite Gods- being her divine ancestor, but she held a secret love of Loki. He might have been naughty but he was rather fun.
"Why am I named after a different Goddess?" Morrigan questioned randomly, it had been something she'd always been curious about.
"The Morrigan was a great Queen who is associated with war and fate, especially with foretelling doom, death or victory in battle. She is a guardian of territory and its people. She is a sorceress as is the Goddess Freya
She also encourages warriors to do brave deeds, when I held you in my arms for the first time, I wanted to be brave and when I go into battle it is you that keeps me brave, Freya is the Goddess of Love and she is my love but you are my courage and my bravery" her father told her gently, he wasn't an emotional man, but he oftentimes found himself confessing to his daughter when she was a babe, and he did so again now.
For someone so young, her eyes were old.
Morrigan smiled up at her father and he smiled back before she turned back to stare at the beauty of the night, her father telling her stories as the night passed and she eventually fell into a deep slumber.
It would be the last time her family was whole.
A/N: 1) I DO NOT OWN THE VAMPIRE DIARIES OR DOCTOR WHO
2) I have been absolutely inspired by the author NicholasFlamelFan, they are a fantastic author and I adore their stories, I highly suggest you go read their books as there far superior to my own.
3) while I will happily admit to being inspired by the above Author and their story, I have zero intention of plagiarising, the premise is similar but that is as far as it will go, such like the lion king is hamlet with fur and hamlet is essentially Cain and Abel a little jazzed up.
4) I'm back! but I don't know how long, Life is busy, I promise I'm working on things, but I've finally edited this chapter! :D I have 100+ chapters to edit, oh god
Right so the timeline- we will be starting in 2005 with the episode Rose but the next couple of chapters will be brief flashes of the thousand years together, there will be changes to canon. I have always been confused by the timeline of the vampire diaries. as the sources are conflicting and honestly don't really make sense so I made my own:
Morrigan/Morgana- physical age 26 born 975 turned 1001AD- 1,030 years old as of 2005, twin to Freya, Freya was taken when they were five 980AD
Finn- physical age 25 born 976- turned 1001AD 1,029 years old as of 2005
Elijah-physical age 23 born 978- turned 1001AD 1,027 years old as of 2005
Klaus=physical age 20 born 981-turned 1001AD 1,024 years old as of 2005
Kol=physical age 19 born 982-turned 1001AD 1,023 years old as of 2005
Rebekah-physical 17- born 984-turned 1001AD 1,021years old as of 2005
Henrik born in 990 AD- Died in 1001 AD, 11 years old caused his siblings to become Originals
Cool story, Males in that time period where roughly 5'7 or 175cm tall, Sebastian Roché the actor who plays Mikael is 180cm tall or 5'9 so he would have been taller than most of that time period.
Finn (Caspar Zafer) and Kol (Nathaniel Buzolic) are both 6'1 or 185cm so they would tower in that time period, similarly Elijah (Daniel Gillies) and Niklaus (Joseph Morgan) are both 5'11 or 180cm so were both tall for that time period.
Also, all the normal height for a woman was 5'1 or 158cm so Esther whose roughly 5'6 or 170cm was a veritable giant, same goes for Rebekah whose 5'7 or 173cm tall.
The Sami people were real people who were seminomadic and did a lot of trade with Vikings, they had similar cultures and had a lot of livelihoods but what they're most known for is seminomadic reindeer herding, really fascinating actually.
the midnight sun is another real thing that occurs, honestly, Norway is a beautiful place and I want to visit it so bad. The midnight sun is a natural phenomenon that occurs during the summer in places south of the Antarctic Circle and north of the Arctic Circle – including Northern Norway. The earth is rotating at a tilted axis relative to the sun, and during the summer months, the North Pole is angled towards our star.
the island that I picked for where they lived is Kvaløya, it is an island in Tromsø Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. the mountain is called Blammen, it can take 4-6hours when I tried to look up duration.
The story I put in about the valkyrie amour is also true, some Vikings believed that it was the light shining off valkyrie armour as they crossed the Bifrost to Odin and Valhalla, the Tyr story is another belief, that because he sacrificed to hold up the law, he should be the primary God of it.
The Morrigan is not Viking belief but Celtic, they were around at roughly the same time and did sometimes trade, so sometimes their culture would blend. I'm of Irish descent and I adore these kinds of Stories, The Morrigan being one of my favourite Goddesses and Cuchulainn one of my favourite warriors, he told the Morrigan to shove it and had very witty come back's, his death is a cool story some of my favourite lines 'The first son of Calatan asked him for a spear, and threatened to satirize Cuchulain if he did not hand it over. Cuchulainn narrowed his eyes and said, "Never let it be said that I am not a generous person," and he flung the spear straight through the head of the first son of Calatan' he goes on to kill the next two, but I think I've bored you enough.
can you tell I did my research?
I hope you enjoyed this taster chapter, please tell me what you think/if you would want more.