Being single bothered me more than it should have because I had always thought that I would be the first of my school friends to marry. I was always p...pular at school, with boys constantly fighting for my attention.It was time for a change. I left work a little early. I just couldn't find the enthusiasm to start something new at 4.45pm. On the bus home, my gaze floated over the other passengers, wondering who else felt frustrated with their life.I dawdled, in no rush to get home after I got off. In the eight or nine months since I had last seen her, she had filled out very nicely. She had been a tall, thin girl with dark hair and braces, seemingly a little awkward, even though she was a respectable soccer player. Now, she was even more attractive, having grown up a little more. She had been very self- conscious of her braces, but now, without them, she smiled much more easily, and when she smiled, her whole face lit up.We started hauling their gear over by the fields. "I thought you'd. It had to be a hard life, though, shielding the land against the incessant attacks of the angry North Sea. From what Joerg had recounted, his father was an outsider in that land, in permanent feud with a wealthy neighbour.Reinhardt sat up straight in his saddle when the idea came to him. Of course! Reinhardt owned land enough. If he offered some of it, Joerg's family could settle in Reinhardt's lands as freeholders. He could install the elder Isebrand as leader of the local militia, given his. This includes a lot of mental training, so that they come to accept that this is their lot in life. Still, I am not sure how they remain so calm. I think it would be a bit scary to be on display, but they are treated well. For every four hours they are standing we let them rest for an hour. They receive three meals a day and the holding pen is quite nice. Their silence is a bit tedious, even for me, but things liven up when a customer is interested in one of them and especially when the slave.