A Ballot of the Wolf and Merc | Ubbe Ragnarsson FanFic

Hide 'n Seek

Only between the umbra of each tree could the two silhouettes be seen frolicking in the dim fall moonlight. Faint shoestring lines of moonlight cascaded down through the evergreen canopy to illuminate the setting dew on everything from blades of grass to hewn logs left to rot or leafy branches of each bush calling the forrest floor home.

Snickering, Ubbe tried without success to grab even a sparse inch of Eleri's cloak to conclude their game of chase.

"Too slow Ragnarsson~" Eleri's teasing coo was accompanied by a glimmer of a smirk when she whirled around, "Vikings are so slow, it's almost cute." Winking to the man catching his breath from the trot over, Eleri side stepped between a row of trees, "Almost that is." A insidious grin and Eleri absconded behind the closest tree.

"Cute huh?" Bent down, propping his palms on his slightly bent knees, Ubbe laughed between slow breathes. The heavy riding boots and shall of skins not very effective in this game that ensued after slinking out of the main streets of Kattegat, "You must have drank quite a bit before I saved you to say such things."

"Taking me for a lightweight again eh?" Eleri's voice echoed around him. Standing erect Ubbe crept towards the tree she'd disappeared behind. Jumping to it the viking expected to see her smiling behind it, there wasn't a trace, "Guess again Ragnarsson~"

Inept to deny the giddiness she instilled in him, even when Ubbe came up empty handed the man couldn't help smile, "Let's make a deal." Speaking out to the night air Ubbe stepped back into the clearing and looked up. Surveying around trying to calculate where the devilish woman may have gone, "I find you, you owe me as many questions as I have."

"And if I win Ragnarsson?" the reverberation of her coy voice came to Ubbe softly through the pine needles.

Pondering that a moment Ubbe reached up and mulled it over while drawing his fingers through his beard, "If you win Varagain, I will let you take any of my pelts, as well as broad sword, when you depart."

"The axe." Eleri's voice answered.

"Axe?" Scrunching his eyebrows Ubbe tried to connect what she meant.

"The axe, near your mother's thrown. Crafted of sterling silver engraved with the blackened raven crest, he is what I want,"

Lifting his head up to the east, where Ubbe thought he'd pinpointed Eleri's voice, the man offered a sassy snort, "The axe? I doubt you could even-"

"I think I'll name him Pax," a hum from the disembodied voice Ubbe sought, "You can have that worn cutlass of mine, I think it even has a bit of your beard left on it." The trickery obvious in her cooing tone.

"Pax? First off you're not even going to win Myf," Astute Ubbe didn't care if Eleri could see his grin in the moonlight as he tracked through the bottom layer of forrest, "Bluffing, it must be the con artist in you Varagain."

Guileful stillness swept through the stand of trees. Hyper aware Ubbe sensed his stance instinctively lower and he turned his ear up towards the branch line above him.

Crack.

Snapping around Ubbe eagerness to seize the woman before she could lay a hand on him ended up being his out doing. Only a falling dead branch from above distracted his attention twenty or so feet ahead of him. A mix up in senses making him too slow to react to the rushing figure hurl its entire body weight into the standing viking.

"Oof!" Grunting the slug knocked all the air out of Ubbe as he was sent to the ground with a heavy thud. A throaty groan from him as Ubbe reeled back too shortly to have a firm pressure on his throat.

"I win Ooo-baa~" Eleri's taunting smirk looming over the thrashed viking laying on the forrest ground, "Ehehe," that snicker sent a minute shiver down Ubbe's spine but helped him focus in on the beaming smile that greeted him. Eleri's right forearm pinned across his neck holding a firm position on her prey.