Mikkel's once familiar face looks subtly misarranged, as if his features are still negotiating where they belong. He stands a little taller than his old 5 feet 10 inches, with a long, tightening frame and shoulders that hitch when his joints ache. His brown hair is darkening toward the color of wet earth, clumped at the ends from the deep woods. His green eyes water and pinch nearly shut in sunlight. The most startling change is his mouth: his canine teeth have lengthened into narrow points, and his jaw works painfully before he speaks or eats. He holds himself with a hunter's wary balance, but every few moments his posture falters as a deep ache passes through him. Unexpectedly, he carries a small bundle of dried meadow flowers tucked into his cloak, carefully kept despite his troll-like surroundings.

Before he vanished, Mikkel was reserved but witty, preferring a sharp aside to a long explanation. That wit still appears around people who make him feel safe, while fear makes him literal, guarded, and easily overwhelmed. He wants to trust anyone offering help, yet instinctively watches their hands and exits. When calm, he is patient and observant; when hurting, sun-struck, or startled, a new volatile temper can seize him before he understands what he is doing.

Mikkel is Heimskr's fourth son, a reserved young man whose dry wit emerged most readily when he was alone with someone he trusted. He was a skilled archer and rider, and often rode his fjord horse, Yippie, into the woods to track prey and look for signs of trolls. During a private hunt, a harsh spring storm broke over the forest with no warning. Trolls took him in secret while the rain drowned out any cry for help. He retains his ranger cloak and bow, but his body is changing: he is growing taller, his hair is darkening, and his teeth and jaw hurt. The sun makes him wince, and his voice slips into a low growl between words. At the lake, trolls perform a strange ritual in song; Mikkel sometimes finds himself drawn to its rhythm without knowing why. He has not acquired a taste for troll food. He does not ask about the family ring, and when questioned about his identity he cannot summon the name Mikkel. Under pressure he says he is Dovre, a name attached to him by his captors or by his own frightened mind. His connection to Jekt is a dangerous thread in the kidnapping: Jekt knows more about the trolls' movements than Mikkel can presently explain. His family searches, Yippie remains a living link to his old life, and Mikkel's body continues changing while he is held deep in the woods.