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   Alec Five

   "Glen let's get started," Elsin guided.  Glen picked up the book and
laughed.  It was a children's book.

   The petite girl scolded her with her eyes and pointed to the book.  Glen
frowned and flatly read all of the words on each page.  Alec's fiance had
been nothing but mean.  It wasn't Glen's fault that she didn't know how to
walk right or talk right.  Reading was the only area she was confident
about, and Elsin didn't take her word for it.  Jason came into the room. 
He laughed out loud at the site of the book.

   "I thought they burned that thing after me!"

   "I can read, Elsin," Glen snapped.  Then thought, `Possibly, better than
you.'

   "Jason, explain to her that we all had to read the book," Elsin smiled
tensely.

   "Here," Jason picked up a book and put it on the table next to Glen and
said, "read this."

   "Anatomy and Physiology?"

   "The study of the parts and components of the human body," Jason
explained.  "There's a section that I think you should read."

   "Jason, I don't think you should..." Elsin tried, but Jason would have
none of her entreaty.

   "Page 403," he instructed.

   Glen opened the book to the requested page.  It said female anatomy.  It
had pictures of women cut into pieces.

   "I refuse to read this," she erupted, "this filth."

   "She can read just fine, Elsin.  Maybe you should brush up." Jason
laughed as he left the room, "Try some algebra on her."

   He was always in the mood to insult her.  She was growing to dislike
this man greatly.  Alec and Jason didn't treat her with kid gloves the way
the others did.  They actually invited her to be testy.  She had taken to
eating with the stablehands to avoid them, and they felt more like what she
was used to, though they did say "pardon me, lady" a lot.  She barely saw
Elsin and Alec anymore.  It didn't matter.  They were set to wed soon. 
They didn't need an extra person on the honeymoon.  When she got up from
the table after dinner, Alec tapped her arm.

   "You avoiding me?" She allowed him to watch her fidget nervously.  He
grinned slightly and touched her arm.

   "No, just busy.  Tired, and busy." She hated the way she sounded.

   Alec smoothly said, "Well, the festival is coming up, and I was
wondering if anyone asked you?"

   "I don't dance," she shook her head.

   "You need to start.  You have one dance with me, then one with Jason. 
Try to dress up some, too.  Elsin said she's some pretty combs you can
borrow.  Who knows, you may get a catch out of this."

   Alec went back to Elsin and Jason.  Glen's dread rose as she saw the big
man look over at her.  He smiled that toothy grin at her and she went to
her room.  She jumped onto the bed and screamed into the pillow.  `Get a
catch, indeed.' She turned over and realized it was her turn to help with
the dishes.  She rose slowly.  The trip down to the kitchen seemed arduous.
She helped as she should and then checked on her horses.  They had been
integrated into the herd, but they were the little ones.  Nugget seemed a
bit slower.  Glen whistled and her bunch came to her.  Nugget heaved in a
bit more slowly than usual.

   "I'd say she's due come winter," Jason said from right behind her.  He
had been standing there for some time, but didn't want her to run away
again.  "You rode her here in foal?  You probably wouldn't have known
before you left.  She's quite a steady and strong horse for so small."

   Glen rubbed the horses' ears in turn and handed them some carrot pieces.

   "You know, last harvest is coming up.  I'd lay off the carrots.  I know
they love `em, but we need to eat too."

   She looked up at him and scowled, "These are cooked carrots off of my
own plate.  I can give them away if I want."

   She dropped them over the side of the fence and moved away.  He saw her
beautiful frown.

   "You know, you could say nice things from time to time, just to mix
things up.  Unless you really like that Amanda drawl," he soothed.

   She couldn't help but smile cautiously.

   "There it is," he smiled back at her.  "I thought I'd never see a real
one up close."

   Glen made the smile disappear and closed her cloak from the cold.  A
good sleep might rid her of his nicety.  When she went up to her room, he
was waiting for her sprawled out on the bed.  She pointed to the door.  He
refused to get out of her bed.  She thought of punching him, but she
remembered it wasn't right.

   "Look, you are in my bed.  What if someone came in here?"

   "I'd say I wasn't feeling well, and you were kind enough to get me to
bed."

   "No one will choose me if they hear of this," she screamed at him.

   "Hear of what?" Elsin walked into the room, "Oh, hi, Jason.  Not feeling
well?"

   He couldn't help but smile at Glen's frustration.

   "He won't get out!"

   "Oh, don't worry, Glen.  He does this sometimes.  He loves this room. 
You can sleep in the room next door.  I'm sure he'll be better soon."

   "Why did you tell her that?" Jason's mock anger showed.

   "She's not to be toyed with.  We know you are waiting to go to Jagged
Rock."

   He hadn't told Glen he was to go.  It was meant to be at the end of the
game.  She grabbed up her clothes for the next day and thanked Elsin for
her combs.  They really were pretty.  She opened the door to the next room
and opened the heat tubes.  He wasn't going to say good-bye.  As if it
mattered to her whether he married one of them.  Why was she mean to him
again?  Oh yeah, she wasn't good enough for him.  Someone needed to remind
her why she left Jagged Cove.  At least, he would have been just a visitor
in a long line.  An appealing curiosity in the ever whirling wheel of
selection.  Here, men were sizing her up like a prize heifer.  She settled
into sleep, dreaming of her mares, heavy with foal and grazing contentedly
on an endless pasture of green.  *



   She braided her short hair and placed the pearlescent combs above each
ear.  Elsin said a bath in rose oil was very relaxing.  It made her feel
like the whores back home.  They would wash themselves with gallons of the
stuff.  She went down to the kitchen and stole a cookie.  She was clad only
in her robe, but who would notice.  She rushed back to her own room by
mistake and saw him.  He was still sleeping soundly.  She closed the door
and went to the other room.  He opened his eyes just wide enough to see her
silhouetted in the doorway and a pain rose in his chest.  He sat upright.
He couldn't stop this stupid game.  He'd promised to keep his options open,
but he knew he'd wanted her from the instant she spoke to him.  It was the
thrill of the chase after that.  He wasn't sure, but she didn't hate him.

   Alec stood at the door and knocked.

   "Come in," she responded quickly to the light tap.

   She stiffened visibly as she saw his entry and pulled the combs from her
hair.  "Sir Alec," she flustered and clutched her hands together over
Elsin`s gift.

   "Elsin told me you were here.  I thought you might want to wear your
ring to the dance."

   He let the thin gold chain dangle from his fingers as he approached.

   "Oh, thank you.  It's very nice.  I'll put my ring on it in the
morning," she softly said as she set down the combs and reached for it.

   "You've been trying the combs, right," he smiled as he ran a finger down
one of her braids and picked up the shimmering things.  "I'm sure you'll
look fine."

   She resented the warmth of his easy smile as he looked at the combs and
the other sparse items at her table.  She picked at the strands of hair
that had been pulled out by the combs.

   "You should get another brush when your hair's grown out more.  This
one's missing bristles.  It wouldn't do to have those quills poking from
your braids."

   His smile subsided as he looked over at her and he sighed, "You're
nervous?  Don't take him seriously.  He's too impulsive to think about what
could happen to you.  You're a game.  He'll stop.  I'll see to it."

   "No," popped out of her before she knew what she was doing.  "It would
cause trouble."

   "Don't," he stopped her from the obvious self deprecation.  "I know
you're not quite settled here, but you need to understand that there are
certain things a man can and can't do.  He's not your intended, he can't
talk to you in a certain way or touch you...  or..."

   He forced her to look into his eyes with a hand on her shoulder. 
"Unless, you want to be his.  Don't want that.  I don't want that for you.
He's my brother, but he grows bored easily."

   She looked away from him, "Master Alec, you of all people should know
that I don't have any interest in any man."

   His hand slid down her arm and back to her shoulder.  "You wouldn't
blush like that if what you just said was true."

   He raised the chain to eye level and said, "Glen, you deserve more.  You
may not enjoy these pretty things, but once you accept your place here, you
may grow to tolerate them."

   "Yes, sir," she said as she raised her hand for the chain.

   He dropped it to her palm and pressed her fingers briefly in his.  He
sighed.  "You know what my name is."

   Copyright UM 2004-- Do not copy or redistribute unless for personal
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