A Viking's love: and other tales of the North

by Ottilie A. Liljencrantz

Then Rodny answered him well and straightforwardly, and said: “From what I have seen of you so far, I think I could love you well; but you must see my foster-father, Lambi, about it; though it will go as I say in the end.”

After that they left off speaking together.

But the next day Hallvard came to Lambi’s booth, and all his shipmates with him to show him honor, though they had gibed much when they first heard what he had it in mind to do.

Skapti sat in front of the booth entertaining himself with the antics of a tumbling-girl, that cut capers there while an old man played on a fiddle. The man’s name was Kol, and his nickname was Fiddling Kol. Jofried was the name of the girl, and she was Fiddling Kol’s daughter. She had on a man’s kirtle, and she was well-shaped and not ugly of face, though one could tell by her mouth that she was determined in disposition. They were vagabond folk, that went from house to house and lodged where they could. Skapti always talked with the girl because she had the greatest store of gossip at her tongue’s end; while on her side it could be seen that she set a value on every look he gave her.

Hallvard greeted Skapti kindly, and his mates did the same, for when they saw his deformity they thought that there was more than enough that was wanting in his life; and Skapti took their greeting well because it seemed to him that they could not but be envious of the fairness of his face. And so they talked together smoothly, for a while, and Skapti offered to give them his help about their errand—whatever it might be—and sent a man to call Lambi out, when he heard that that was what they wanted; but he himself went back to his sport with the tumbling-girl.

Lambi came out of the booth at once, and gave them a good welcome. After that they fell to talking, and Hallvard asked for Rodny, and added that he had spoken to her about it and the match was not as far from her mind as might have been expected.

Now Lambi had long had it at heart to wed Rodny to his son, and there was no bargain that he would not have been more willing to make than this one. And at the same time he knew that it would be pulling an oar against a strong current to go against Rodny’s will. So he held his peace for a while, and after that he answered in this way:

“Every Spring since you have been able to stretch your hand over a sword, Hallvard, you have fared abroad; and for all that we in Iceland can tell, you may have wooed a maiden in every land your ship has touched. It is said that the sea’s own fickleness soaks into the bones of them who live on her, and many a man has done such things and been thought no less of. But with Rodny I will not have it so, and these are the terms I lay down. You shall sail abroad as you had the intention to do, and there shall be no betrothal between you; but if you think of her often enough while you are gone so that four times during the summer you send a man out to Iceland to greet her from you, then when you come home in the Autumn the bargain shall be made. But if you do not think of her that often, it is unlikely that she would get any pleasure out of her love even if she were wedded to you, and you shall not get her.”

Hallvard said at once: “I agree to those terms. And now let us take witnesses.”

So they stood up and shook hands, and the bargain was struck; though Hallvard’s friends murmured among themselves and said that such terms ought not to be laid down for a man like Hallvard.