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thanks for all the great reviews. Sorry its been a while since i updated, and the only way i could get her to write was to promise reviews.
The shortening days and chill winds that had signalled the arrival of winter were kept at bay by the laughter and storytelling that happened in the new hall, the stout walls repaying all the work that had been put into making them by keeping out the wind and rain. Buffy was getting huge, and tended to stay on her bench near the fire. Nordlys played on the sheepskins that covered the floor near the centre bench, had her doll in a basket, was chewing on her rattle and was pushing her ball towards her friend Andrew who seemed to delight in the child’s presence. The two of them played for hours with the felt ball that the man had made from the combings from the fleeces the women had been working on.

The great doors had been shut against a miserable evening and the clearing up done. The hall had settled itself down to their evening pursuits. The men and women were spinning the fleece on their drop spindles, while William was entertaining them all by reciting Beowulf. Buffy loved the story of Grendel, his mother and their fight with the eponymous hero. They had just got to the part when Beowulf was approaching the hall for the first time and William spoke of horns being blown… when they could hear those horns for real.

William looked at Buffy and picked up his sword from where it hung near his seat. Loosening it in its scabbard he lit a torch from the fire and ordered the other men to accompany him outside.

The wind and rain made visibility low, but the shouts from the great gate seemed friendly and they called for William by name. He sent one of the men forward to see who was travelling in such awful weather; the gate swung open to reveal a bedraggled sight. To William’s delight Brother Giles and Lady Anne came through the entrance, riding on two horses. The water was streaming off of their cloaks but Lady Anne was smiling broadly as she saw her son waiting for her.

He looked so different from the young boy who had left her side to head to the monastery at Lindisfarne: now he looked every inch the proud Thane, standing with his men around him, guarding what was his.

Brother Giles slid down from his ride and handed the reins over to some thrall who led the beast away, before turning to the lady Anne. Before he could reach up to help her, William had lifted his mother down and was escorting her into the house; he removed his cloak before helping Anne out of hers and handing them both to Sara who was waiting to hang them on a peg by the doorway, where they dripped onto the rushes on the newly laid floor. Giles added his to the pile in the woman’s arms and turned to face his host.
William was giving his mother a kiss on both cheeks before leading her to the left side of his seat. Brother Giles smiled as Buffy tried to stand up by herself before pulling on a proffered arm. She picked up a cup and quickly filled it with ale, which she gave to the cold and wet man before she greeted him with a peck on the cheek turning and greeting her mother-in-law.

‘It is so good to see you, but what are you doing travelling in this dreadful weather?’

Anne smiled at Buffy. She looked amazing, her hair shone and caught every flame in its reflections, making it look like she was surrounded by a halo.

‘We thought you might like a few more familiar faces around you when you’re brought to bed… we knew you have no kin here, and I hoped I might be a good substitute,’ Lady Anne explained as she straightened her wimple.

‘Thank you so much, it will be wonderful to have you close when my time comes.’ Buffy was delighted at their thoughtfulness. ‘But you are wrong about one thing: I do have family here.’ Buffy smiled as she signalled to someone behind her. When she stepped aside to reveal Tara standing behind her the look on the Lady Anne’s face was priceless.

‘Tara! My darling Tara, you look just like your sainted mother,’ Anne said as she held out her arms to her niece. ‘What are you doing here, child, and how??’

‘Connor brought me aboard his ship, same way I got to the north lands,’ she laughed, ‘though I must admit the journey this time was a lot more pleasant.’ Connor smiled down at his wife and put an arm around her waist, holding her tight.

‘Only cause I could do what I really wanted to do last time, only this time I had your permission to have my evil way with you.’ Connor said laughingly, kissing Tara on her cheek as she started to blush. Tara hit him gently on the arm.

‘We’re getting to be a tangled family; legally Connor is your nephew and you grandson,’ she grimaced, ‘this is getting worse! Because Willow and I were with Helga when Nordlys came into the world, William thought it would be a kindness to Buffy to have women she knew well with her when her time came.’

‘Seems we all had the same thought.’ Anne didn’t want to let go of her niece’s hand and sat next to her that evening, sharing all the news of the last few years.

The hall soon settled down into its winter regime. Anne enjoyed her place as the eldest woman in a Norse hall, given the deference due her age and position and Buffy loved having her gentle wisdom to rely on when William got too overbearing and protective.

The warm autumn days shortened into winter: the snows fell, leaving the new hall cut off from the outside world. William spent his days either hunting or carving bone and wood, his other skills little needed with no guests arriving with complaints or problems for him to solve.

Buffy and the other women had prepared a huge amount of clothes for the new arrival: long dresses and swaddling bands. Kuddy had made the most beautiful cradle for the new arrival and Buffy had lined it and the matching doll’s cradle with a newly tanned sheepskin. The soft wool of a yearling lamb made a soft lining for the baby to sleep on, and the soft lambswool blankets and sheets turned wood into something luxurious.

William watched in wonder as Buffy blossomed and grew over the months that followed his mother’s arrival, and even the midwinter fest seemed subdued in expectation of the monumental events that the late winter was to bring.





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