#Näcken

[kykyhich]

Näck - are humanoid, and often shapeshifting water spirits in Swedish mythology and folklore. Male water spirits who played enchanted songs on the violin, luring women and children to drown in lakes or streams.

[natalieff]

Nøkken

[xlownenbemy]

He is free, and you thought it was a good idea to steal what is his.. to take the object of his power away from him.

But now.....Now he has found it. And you are not safe.

[weministertomonsters]

The Näcken

This story is dedicated to House_Sparrow on Wattpad, who gave the suggestion. <3

➤ Wordcount - 1.8k

Nøkken/Nykkjen/Näcken is a sinister male freshwater spirit from Norwegian and Swedish folklore, his first mention dating all the way back to the Viking age. He is said to dwell in dark ponds, lakes, or rivers. Nøkken is a shapeshifter but is most known to take the shape of a handsome man with long hair (Swedish), a monster of twigs and seaweed with glowing eyes (Norwegian), or a white horse.

Nøkken plays a fiddle, or in some stories a harp, and he is said to be the best musician in the world. In many stories, Nøkken uses his beautiful violin music to put people in a trance to lure them into the water and drown them. In other stories, Nøkken may play a more active role in pulling them into the depths.

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"Papa is back!" Your six-year-old niece, Eloise, announces as she comes barging into the tavern with a big smile.

She's been playing outside and has a smudge on her button nose and two dirty spots on her skirt from where she's been kneeling in the dirt, digging for worms. She pauses to pet the ginger cat asleep in the corner and skips up to you, proceeding to slingshot her body against your leg, nearly knocking you off balance. Her chin digs into your thigh as she looks up at you adoringly.

"What are we having for dinner?" She asks.

"Vegetable soup, and the bread I baked fresh this morning," you reply, giving the counter one last pass with your dishcloth to make sure it's all clean for the busy night.

"And fried skipper?" Her eyes grow wide.

"Why don't you go see if your Papa caught some?" You suggest.

You can't help but smile as she goes charging outside to give her father the same tackle-treatment. Usually, he laughs and grabs her and spins her around, but you don't hear any laughter today. You hang the dishcloth out to dry and walk outside to find them.

Eloise is gaping up at her father and although you can't see her face, you know she's never this quiet unless something is wrong. Your barrel-chested brother is soaking wet, standing with his head low and hair plastered to his face, clutching an empty net in one hand. There's no fish. Even the worst fishing days still turn out a small catch.

"Eloise, how about you go inside and clean up for supper?" You tell her.

Surprisingly she goes the first time you ask, wide-eyed as she scampers inside.

"What happened?" You ask, and then you spot what he's holding in his other hand. "Is that... A fiddle?"

"Yeah." He drops the net and rolls his shoulders.

"You didn't buy that with your fish, did you?" You ask suspiciously.

"I wouldn't do that," he huffs and starts into the little cottage beside the tavern that you share.

"It wasn't long ago now that you spent your entire day's worth of fishing on beer," you remind him, but your tone is gentle.

You both know why he drank so much. When his wife died he'd shut down, and it took the power of god and one very determined little girl to dig him out of the dark hole he'd retreated into.

"I didn't buy this," he says, setting it on the kitchen table with a thump.

"Be careful of that, will you? It looks well made," you murmur, eyeing it. "Will you tell me what happened then? And tell me why you've got a fiddle."

"I was out fishing by the river when I heard music," he begins, peeling off his vest and hanging it by the fire to dry. "It was coming from the middle of the river, where that big willow grows. I was curious, so I got my boat closer."

"Change first, you can continue after you're dry," you tell him, beginning to warm up the vegetable soup and slice the bread.

He heads upstairs to change and comes down a few minutes later with Eloise. She clambers into a chair, thanking you when you give her a bowl of soup and a generous slice of bread. She's a real trooper and doesn't complain about the lack of her favorite fried fish.

"I thought they were things of legend, but there it sat," your brother picks up the story from where he left off. "A Näcken. Would've thought it was just some man off his rocker but he had this air to him. And he was naked as a baby and pale as a river stone. Hard to unsee that."

"Ahem." You raise your eyebrows and gesture to his daughter, who is so engrossed in the story that her bread is going soggy in the soup.

"Did it have big teeth, Papa?" She asks. "Did it try to eat you?"

"I wouldn't know, Pumpkin. I got pulled in the water 'fore I could get a good look," he stares at his bowl, frowning. "I'm a good swimmer, but there I was, about to drown in just a couple feet of water."

"Then what?" Eloise pipes up. "Did you scare it away?"

"Shouted at him to stop playing the bloody thing but he just kept at it. So I grabbed a rock and threw it as hard as I could. Bam! I got him right across the face." He smacks his hand against the table and the dishes rattle.

Eloise laughs in delight and looks adoringly at her father, the "monster slayer" but you're far from impressed.

"So you thought taking his fiddle would fix it, did you?" Your voice is cool as your eyes narrow.

"Well, it means he can't play," he shrugs. "Serves him right for trying to drown a good man, I say. Let's see him try his tricks now."

For Eloise's sake, you drop the matter, but your gaze keeps turning to the fiddle leaning against the wall, dripping water to the floor. Once dinner is over and Eloise is tucked into bed, you confront him.

"Brother, that creature is going to be very unhappy that you took something of his. What do you think will happen the next time you go out to the river?"

"Let him try. I'm taking my hunting knife with me tomorrow," he says, his huge body lit by the dancing flames from the fireplace.

Your brother is a sturdy man and can take care of himself. But the look in his eyes... It's been a long time since you've seen him look like this.

"But—"

"Relax, sister. I'll give the damn thing back eventually," he rumbles. "You know, I... I thought I wasn't going to make it back today. All I could think of was you and Eloise ending up on your own."

You squeeze his shoulder and settle down to knit for a few minutes before it's time to open up the tavern. You're making a new coat for Eloise to wear on cold days. As you knit, you keep glancing at the fiddle, its gleaming surface reflecting the flames from the fireplace. You have some doubts, but you trust your brother when he says he'll give the instrument back, so you let it be.

A few days go by, and you were correct in your assumption that the näcken would be displeased. Your brother doesn't catch a single fish and comes home each day, seething. One afternoon, you decide you've had enough.

"I'm sending it back," you announce as you hang the last of the laundry. "I can't contend with your sulking."

Your brother is sitting on the porch, drinking his third tankard of beer.

"I used to be one of the best fishermen, sister. Now look at me. Reduced to a lout who can't catch a fish to save his life," he groans.

"You can't hope to battle against the supernatural and win," you reply. "I say you're lucky he hasn't drowned you yet."

"I've seen him a few more times. Just sits on the rocks and laughs at me. I ought to—"

"You stay put." You grab the fiddle from the shelf where you had placed it to keep it safe.

"I can give it myself, you know," your brother says, but he doesn't move from his spot.

"Ha, I doubt you can walk in a straight line, insufferable fool." You ruffle his hair like you're kids again. "I'll be back."

"Be careful, sister," he calls after you. "If he tries to lure him in, hit him with a rock. It worked for me."

You roll your eyes and start for the river. It doesn't take long to reach, even on foot. The water is framed by grassy banks and spotted with lily pads that float on the surface, brightening the scene with their pink flowers. You can see the willow growing on the small island in the center of the river, but there's no water spirit in sight. You stand at the bank of the river and look around.

"I brought your fiddle back," you call out. "My brother was wrong to take it."

The quiet hum of nature answers you. Birds chirping in the trees and the soft sound of running water. You lift your skirt and wade as far into the water as you dare, clutching the fiddle tightly. The water comes up to your shins and you pause.

"I'll just leave it here for you. Please let my brother fish in your river. My family needs the extra income."

You wait another beat, but you don't see or hear anything out of the ordinary, so you place the fiddle in the water and give it a little push, so it floats away from you. As you turn to trudge out of the river, something rises out of the water right next to you. Your shoe slides on the slimy rocks and you tumble into the water with a little scream. For a moment you don't know up from down���the water is suddenly so deep—but then you're pulled up by a firm grasp on your elbow.

"Thank you," you gasp at how cold the water is, your teeth already beginning to chatter.

The Näcken stands before you, tall and thin, with stringy green hair so long and plentiful that it covers his nakedness. His eyes are the color of bracken water, a murky blue. You can see your surprised face reflected in them.

"Thank you," he says simply. "For bringing back my fiddle."

"It's no trouble. My brother should have never taken it," you reply a little breathlessly.

After all, it's not every day you speak with a supernatural being. He backs away from you and you hastily reach for his forearm. His skin is slippery-smooth and your hand just slides off. He looks at his arm and then at you, his hair falling in his face.

"Can my brother fish again?" You ask timidly.

"I'll think about it," the Näcken replies, tucking his hair behind one pointed ear.

"Well, all he did was take your fiddle, and I have returned it in one piece," you say slowly.

"He threw rocks at me," the Näcken says. "I do not abide any harm attempted on my face."

"I'll tell him to apologize," you say desperately. "Please?"

"Hmmm. You should go now," he says, sinking halfway into the water. "I am about to play."

You know not to press your luck, so you turn to leave. You're already out of the water when the Näcken calls out to you.

"Come back tomorrow, and I will give you my answer," he says.

You turn to look at him, but he's disappeared. You can hear the beginnings of a tune, and it's an alluring sound. But the effect is dampened because he keeps stopping to twang at the strings and tune them. You leave before he can begin to properly play.

[fishyfishyfishtimes]

My take on the näkki, or nøkken, näcken, nixe, nixie, depends on what you call it when there's a spirit who lures people into the water to drown them! Näkki is often shown to be a humanlike creature, I wanted to do something similar but with a little twist of what a person might think is a human or a humanlike being as they glance behind themselves while running away. In a way, "just" an animal mistaken to be a malicious magical force, although still aggressive and a very good reason to stay away from unknown waters. I based it off of the first nightmare I remember having: I was sitting on the edge of a small stream and when I looked into the water my reflection was replaced with that of a wolf. I heard a disembodied whisper, "I will find you," and then I woke up.

If the näkki was a real animal, I think it would be similarly persecuted to other predator animals like wolves, perhaps even more strongly due to their extreme territoriality towards their home waters. The näkki is likely endangered in the modern day due to habitat loss and overhunting of the past and present.

[afangirlsmanicextraveganza]

Saw Näcken’s interpretation for Bramble and I had to pull out my license 😏…

[druvjelly]

As someone who’s Swedish, I wish Näcken was a bit more conventionally hot but like

This works too

He looks like a 40 year old who sells snus to a bunch of teens outside the ICA that’s too close to a school

[t-the-ring-master]

Näcken with human!SO hc.

Request: by Circus guest Anon.

Requests open.

I decided to do two separate posts for this. One for Näcken and then one for Nøkken, since my sister informed me Nøkken is the female version.

Hope you enjoy! I decided to do this in an X reader style since that’s what I’m assuming they wanted.

If you want a mini story based off this, just let me know and give me a scenario!

Part 2

Music. That is what you heard when you wandered through the fog.

A sad melancholy song being played from a violin. You didn’t expect to hear something like it when you wandered into the woods late at night despite every warning from every story from your parents.

You had come into the woods looking for your brother, who decided to leave the house during dark. That’s how you met Näcken, who oddly didn’t kill you the first moment he saw you.

You didn’t know you looked strangely similar to the woman he had fallen in love with, his ill mind tricking him into thinking you were her.

Every night you and your brother snuck out after that, him running off to do his own thing while you went and met Näcken. The more time you spent together the more he understood you weren’t really her, you were just yourself.

He won’t let you into the water, his many years in it made him learn that there’s more in there than just him… they just aren’t alive and you’re more likely get a disease rather than drown.

Since he’s met you, he’s been playing more cheerful songs, no longer as depressed as he once was.

Don’t get me wrong, he still kills people that come to his lake when given the chance, but he’s learned not to do it after he almost killed your brother.

Yeah he didn’t see you for a little bit after that. He cried when you visited him again, he was playing pretty depressingly for those few days… he’s very dramatic.

Turns out you were just helping your brother get some rest after he caught a cold from the water. He didn’t really blame Näcken, but you don’t think they’ll be friends for a while.

He has tried to teach you violin when you asked… you almost broke the string but he wasn’t too mad about it.

If you play an instrument, definitely bring it with you the next time you see him. He really would love to play with you.

If you sing, he would love to play along to your voice.

And if you dance, he’ll happily play while you do so.

Don’t bring up his past lover, the wound is still very much there, and the only reason you actually managed to live was because he had tricked himself you were her. It’s best to not bring it up unless he does. By the time he brings it up, he’ll be over her and only really care about you.

He does wish you had met him as a human. He wasn’t the most handsome guy, but he does feel like he was better looking than he is now.

If you like any kind of spice… don’t give it to him. This man is white. One grain of pepper and this man seeing the reaper.

I also feel like he would have a sweet tooth… so many years stuck to the lake, I feel like he’d go feral for a chocolate chip.

If you bake and bring him some kind of pastry, he’s keeping you just for them at that point.

Give this man some kind of baked good or just soul food… this man hasn’t tasted flavor in his undead or living life.

He came from a small village and was just a pretty poor musician, so any kind of spice would have been considered a luxury.

If he sees someone hit on you… yeah you’re not seeing that person again, and he’s definitely not letting you into the water now. It’s not even about the diseases at that point, he just doesn’t want you to see the guys body.

He does wish to be human again. He wishes to get married, have a family and feel normal again.

With all the crazy stuff in these woods, I wouldn’t be surprised if he did manage to find someone who could at the very least make him be able to at least leave the lake. But I doubt anyone would be able to turn him into a human…. I also feel like even if they did, he couldn’t do it since it’s been like what? 200 years as the lake creature? He’d probably turn to dust if he did become human again.

But let’s say he did find a way to leave the lake, and can in fact go back into land. He’d go to his old village and fix up his old house. He’d lure a priest there, and have him marry you guys…. Maybe even adopt -totally not kidnap- a child maybe.

Your brother likes him enough for you…. Great Näcken is trying to drown him again-

Kid get the pepper, we gotta give your father an aneurysm to save your uncle-

[hysteriak]

🪷🐸 NÄCKEN 🫧🍀

[thatpinkweirdo]

The fact that in Bramble The Mountain King the concept art for Näcken gives him CLOTHING! But in the game the Skogsrå doesn't is sooo funny to me beacuse ive always thought of them as:

Skogsrå: PUT ON SOME CLOTHING!

Näcken: I would rather die.

[radioactive-boba]

im kind of in love w him have a quick painting about it

[19eyebrows]

Okay I'm so relieved that I'm not the only one who has their hots for the Trolls, Näcken and the Skogsrå from the game Bramble the mountain king.

My fellow monsterlovers never disappoint.

[xlownenbemy]

Nicklas!!!

Finally made a proper pose for him😁😁😁

[finngualart]

näcken, acrylics on A3 watercolour paper

[sunshine-and-moonshine]

might fuck around and write for Näcken cause I wanna smooch his face

[afangirlsmanicextraveganza]

Need this to put over my bed while I let Näcken gimme those mad back shots 😩 💦. Let’s gooooo!!!