I watch in wonder as Mormor puts her shawl around the girl’s shoulders and takes her hands. ‘What do you hear?’ she asks. The girl closes her eyes. She doesn’t see the raven that circles above, then lands on a branch to watch her. Nor does she see the three women that hold hands in a circle. But Mormor does. She sees them like she always does, and it makes her smile.

The girl opens her eyes and Mormor tells her, ‘The fates have a special purpose for you, my child. Keep listening and one day you shall hear them.’

I pull my hand away and open my eyes. Mormor said her bunad would be mine one day. Now seems like the right time. I change into the outfit and a feeling of comfort and warmth envelops me, as if Mormor is hugging me through the material. I plait my hair how Mormor used to wear hers, then put a dab of her perfume on my neck.

I stand and appraise myself in the mirror, turning this way and that, looking at my slim waist in the tight-fitting bodice and feeling the skirt swish around my legs. The only thing missing is my necklace. I feel sad for a moment, but then I realise that I don’t need it; Odin’s power is in my veins, not in a charm – and besides, I can always make another. I smile at myself and a pretty girl smiles back.

Peering into the chest, I see a single notebook. I pick it up and sit with it on my lap, thinking about all the women with the same gift as me who have written journals, telling their stories for the next generation of women to find.

Inside the book, the pages are blank. I reach for the pocket of my rucksack and take out a pen. Hel is right – it’s time for me to write my own story.

To be continued …

Author’s Note

Choosing names for my characters is one of my favourite jobs as an author. I love researching the meaning behind them and can’t start writing until I find one that feels just right. In case you’re wondering, here’s why I chose the names I did.

Aslaug is a queen consort in Norse mythology. Derived from Old Norse (prefix áss-, meaning ‘god’, and suffix-laug, meaning ‘betrothed woman’), the regal name seemed a fitting choice for the woman who started such a magical ancestral line.

Gandalf is a nod to Odin, via The Lord of the Rings. Gandalf the wizard was very much inspired by the Norse god of magic. In a letter dated 1946, Tolkien writes that he thought of Gandalf as an Odinic wanderer – a man who bore a spear or staff and wore a cloak and a wide-brimmed hat. Odin, of course, wore his hat with one side pulled low to disguise his missing eye.