The Last Kingdom- Preferences and Imagines | actors + characters

Ragnar Imagine- 1.2 (book series)

By early morning time, the hall was already awake. As I stirred from my sleep, I heard Thyra speaking on the main floor of the hall, just below where I slept. As I woke up more, I became aware of the fact that there were arms wrapped around me and the feeling of stubble and breath against my neck.
"Good morning, Y/N." Ragnar smiled against the back of my neck. I placed my hands on top of his and held them for a moment, the feeling of him being so close to me was enjoyable and also made me feel safe.
"Good morning, Ragnar." I greeted him kindly, resting my head back more so it lay against the side of his chest. "I'm sorry for falling asleep on you."
"Do not worry, Y/N." He smirked. "You looked far to beautiful to disturb and I was too tired to move you." I blushed. He flashed me a sweet smile before he sat up and rubbed his eyes, and then stood up. He held his hand out for me to take.
    We both made our way down the ladder towards the bottom floor, where his mother and father were sat around the fire, eating. His father looked up to us both, as we walked together toward them, and smirked slightly.
    "Good morning. Sleep well, did we?" Earl Ragnar asked, almost teasingly. I blushed with embarrassment- his family must have seen us together. "My son has never taken to a woman before, I did not expect him to take to you so quickly-"
    "He was telling me stories of the Gods, Lord and we both fell asleep." I rushed out, my voice still soft, however. His mother chuckled to herself.
    "Ragnar, do not tease the poor girl." She said, handing food to her daughter. The woman looked to the both of us and motioned for us to sit down, preparing food for us, too. "They have clearly taken to each other but I don't believe that much so fast." She stated, pouring ale into cups and pulling bread apart for us.
    "Even so," the man said between sips of ale, "if Ragnar and Y/N do then they may." Sigrid went to interject but he husband continued, "I see no reason why they should not, my dear." Ragnar and I stayed quiet as we watched their parents discuss our 'relationship' as if we were not in the room. The blond chuckled quietly to himself before he took my hand and we slipped out for the room, just as his parents began to argue, his fathers voice beginning to become raised.
    He ran with me, his hand in mine, down from the hall towards the valley below, down through the fields, and towards the river, which was wild and rushing, due to all the rain during the night. Once we got there, we both began to laugh loudly.
     "I'm sorry about both of them." He apologised. "My mother is right, my father shouldn't have embarrassed you like that."
    "No," I shook my head, "it's okay, really." I explained, placing my hand over his. "Your father was just trying to make us feel better and your mother was trying to protect our virtue."
    "Virtue?" He furrowed his eyebrows together in confusion. I giggled softly at him and sat down on a rock, motioning for him to do the same. He put his hand on top of mine and smiled at me.
    "A virtue is something that is good and dignified." I explained, to which, he chuckled. "What?" I asked, a slight giggle in my tone.
     "So you mean keeping you," he paused, trying to think of a word, "untouched."
    "Are you not- you know?"
    "A virgin?" I nodded and he smirked. "No, I must confess I am not." He shrugged. "I assume you are, though-"
     "Yes." I interjected. He smirked again at me, blushing and awkward. "Do your people not believe in virtue?" I asked, curiously. He laughed.
    "You like to ask questions don't you?" I playfully hit his arm. "But to answer your question yes and no." He explained. "There is a desire for women to be a virgin if they are young when they marry but it's not really and expectation anymore, especially for women who are a little older." I nodded, quietly, listening to him speaking.
    We spent most of the morning by the river, walking and playing around. The river was deep and clean and ran through the valley, meeting another river further along stream. I learned that was where the men and women of the close by village bathed everyday.
   In an attempt to impress me, the young man began to hop skilfully along several rocks, allowing him to cross the river easily. I smiled at him from where I sat, watching him weave along the bank and back again. Then he fell in, making the water splash in a large wave everywhere. Ragnar reappeared at the surface, still smiling like nothing had happened.
     "Can you please help me out?" He asked, innocently. Rolling my eyes, I slipped off the rock and carefully made my way over the first three stepping stones to where the boy was floating in the water. Carefully, I held my hand out to him but instead of using me to help pull himself out, he instead pulled me in.
     "You bastard." I cursed at him, my body hitting the freezing cold water. He chucked smugly. "You're in for it now." I threatened, splashing water up his face. He laughed and did the same back, causing us to commence a very childish, and yet very fun, water fight. It must have lasted an hour or so because, by the time we clambered out of the water, the sun was high in the sky.
"It's freezing." I muttered to myself as we made it back into the river bank, my dress soaked through, as well as Ragnar' clothes, with the cold river water. His shirt was clinging to his chest and he swiftly removed it, showing off his toned stomach and chest, and wrung it out in an attempt to dry it quicker.
"Enjoying the view?" He teasing asked. I must have been staring at him and I mentally cursed myself. He chuckled under his breath as I hid my blushing face. "Don't worry," I looked at him, "I was enjoying the view last night." My dress was rather low cut and a little tight, and so it hugged and accentuated certain parts of my body and, when I lay down, it fell loose around the neckline, allowing the young man to easily see most of my breasts while we slept. That should have disturbed me- after all, I am a lady and am unmarried to him- but it instead made me playful, as I knew exactly how to tease him back. And I did, many times throughout the day, as the day after that, and so on.