I Will Work Hard Ch. 01

Placidus, the eldest son, spoke to Hulda with gentle words, as he did to all the other women, but when he spoke to the other men, he had more loftiness. The only man he had any politeness for was his father. His face stood out to Hulda, because he had four scars across his cheek, as if something had clawed at him very deeply.

As all of this went on, Johnan moved about the house, performing basic housework, while he checked up on Dagny whenever he could. All the adults kept eyes on the baby too, in case of an emergency, but Johnan seemed to be the primary caregiver at the moment. When all of the men had their brushing done, Hulda was asked to brush Johnan while Danuta went to the baby.

"Do the men enjoy the grooming?" Hulda whispered to Johnan. She had been so busy with the grooming that she hadn't paid attention to any of the men's faces or gestures.

"Of course, Auntie Hulda," Johnan said, looking at Hulda with his adorably crooked grin. "It keeps us clean and it feels first-rate. We have brushes and combs with long handles, so we can do it all ourselves, but it's much nicer to have someone do it for you."

Hulda imagined that was true. When she was a small child, she had loved having someone comb her hair for her, even when the tangles and knots were painful. As she brushed up dirt from Johnan's coat, she considered her new husband. Ehlov did have blond hair, as she had imagined. It felt and smelled just like any other man's hair. The tall centaur had to let his horse-like body lie down, and he had to bend his torso over, for Hulda to reach his head.

Ehlov's hair wasn't very long. The ends reached a bit below his earlobes. It was about as clean as Hulda imagined a man of his class would be, meaning that it had a bit of natural oil and a few bugs, which she had to pinch and flick away. The hair was much cleaner when she had finished combing it out.

As she went on with taking care of Johnan's needs, she tried to discreetly look up at Ehlov. He chatted with his brothers and his father for a few minutes. Then, he went to the room the cow was kept in while the other men left the building. Some time later, Hulda heard a great MOO and then her husband's voice. "Don't grouse like you don't have anything to look forward to!"

Soon, Ehlov was leading the cow out of her room, through the common room, and out of the house. The cow likely needed to graze. Johnan told Hulda then that she could stop grooming him and help the rest of the women with housework. Hulda ended up patching up old clothing as she chatted with the other women. Meanwhile, Johnan went outside. Maybe he was going to help the men out?

"Do you have a vegetable garden?" Hulda asked Danuta.

Wiping the baby's drool away with her apron, Danuta said, "Of course. It's behind the house."

"What sort of fertilizer do people in Breden use?"

With a short giggle, Danuta told her, "There's a small shed near the vegetable garden where the centaurs keep their shit so it can compost."

"Oh." Hulda took in the information without much difficulty. She changed the subject very smoothly. "Are there many festivals in this area?"

Sasha was the one who answered. "There are plenty. Each family donates a pinch of cash, or some needed labor, for them The temples usually give money too."

Hulda nearly pricked her finger because she was paying a bit less attention to her sewing than she needed to. She used her thoughts to silently yell at herself, pouting and narrowing her eyes at her fingers. Then, she asked, "What of the temple's tithes?"

"Hm?" Lili gave her a confused look. Her green and brown eyes blinked at Hulda very slowly. "What's a tithe?"

"It's a fee you have to pay the temples every year," Hulda explained.

Sasha laughed at her. It was a thick laugh that had hints of a cough in it. Her shoulders quivered and her foot stomped onto the earth. When she sucked her breath back into herself and quieted down, Sasha said, "You have to? Have to? That's not how it is here. The lord of long ago funded the building of the temple. As for the upkeep, we are asked to donate whenever we can, but nobody's going to make us. Besides, priests have other ways to make money. You can buy charms from them, holy food, or a special prayer, and if you really have some cash, you can rent the temple for a big, fancy dinner party. Some priests are also learned teachers, and they sell that sort of clever teaching stuff."

"Oh." Hulda put herself into her mind, considering the sort of world where you didn't have to give a temple a large amount of your income every year. It seemed much more ... relaxed. In fact, the more she thought about it, the calmer she became, imagining that she just might not need to work as hard as she had to in her homeland.

There was still work, though, as the day went on. There were snails and insects to drive away, scarecrows to be re-stuffed and patched, plants to water, and repairs to the building to be made. Sometimes, some of the women had to climb ladders to work on something high up. However, Hulda learned of a peculiar folding, wood and metal thing that the centaurs used to get to higher levels, and if a woman wasn't available, they could do the work.

Basically, the devices were staircases with long platforms, but they could be taken apart and folded whenever they needed to be stored. The men had horse-like legs, but as far as Hulda knew, even a horse could be caught how to go up and down ordinary stairs. With their brains, centaurs would be able to figure it out even better, and Hulda saw that these men had clearly learned at a young age.

The middle son, Dobromil, was particularly cheerful as the day went on. His wife was Danuta, and he loved to talk about her as if she was the prettiest woman to ever walk on a field. Hulda thought his most defining physical feature was the large brown mole on his big nose. It reminded her of a pebble. She didn't care, though, and she was happy to listen to the man go on and on about how Daunta was the best spinner, made the best clothes, and had the best overall attitude.

"So, I think you should stay close to Danuta," the man had said with red cheeks, "because she'll teach you how to be a fine Breden girl." He waved his hand back and forth then, as if he was trying to pacify her, but Hulda wasn't angry. "Now, don't think I'm being nasty to you. You're mighty pretty, and you work good, but I want my little brother to be happy. You understand, right? So don't be sore at me, please."

When it was time to cook again, it was late in the day. Hulda was told by Sasha to go inside and help Johnan prepare the meal. Once everyone had finished eating that meal, the women had to brush and comb the men again. And not only that, they had to dig out the dirt that was caking up in their hooves.

The sky turned darker, and candles were lit in several places.

Sasha climbed up the bed and planted her backside down on the mattress. Her fingers waved at Hulda. "Come on, Girl, it's time to rest."

"Are we meant to sleep?" Hulda asked as she put her palms against her lower back, rubbing at an aching spot. She looked Johnan. The boy was rubbing one of his eyes, but he left the building, possibly to get the cow.

"Not yet," Lili said, taking a seat beside her mother-in-law. "We're just going to let our bones melt for a twinkle."

As Hulda took her own spot on the bed, she saw Danuta sit down too, holding onto little Dagny, who was squirming and smiling. Then she saw Johnan come in, leading the cow back to her room.

And something interesting happened, something that had Hulda blushing and holding her breath whenever she could.

Each husband approached their wife and removed their caps and wraps. Then they started loosening and combing their hair for them. Hulda's eyes went to the floor, where she saw her the horse-like legs and hooves of Ehlov, firm on the earth. She also saw her dark toes hanging in the air. The bed really was taller than she thought she could ever become accustomed to. When she moved her eyes up, she saw what would normally be called a horse's chest, but it wasn't. It was just another part of a centaur, partially covered by the coarse tunic of her husband.

Hulda was as quiet as a sunny cloud, but nowhere near as bright. In fact, she felt rather dim. The other women were happy to chat as their hair was combed. Hulda merely sat there, not listening, feeling odd heat bloom and spread from her face, to her bosom, and even to her belly. Her scalp tingled at the strength of a strong man's hands being used to gently care for her hair.

Johnan walked up to the bed, and he laid down against a pile of straw, yawning and making little smacking noises with his lips.

The men tied the women's hair back with simple strings, and they went to find some water to pour into wooden bowls and some cloths. When they had their water, they went to their women and they lowered their horse-like bodies.

Ehlov took one of Hulda's feet in his great hand. The peculiar sensation shocked her. She immediately yanked her foot away. "What in the world?" she said, almost panicking.

Lili's long blond hair made a hush of a sound against her back as she turned to look at Hulda. "He's going to wipe your feet. He can't get all the dirt off. Life stains the flesh. Still, he's going to do what he can."

Hulda's uncertain gaze went back to Ehlov's hand, which rather mechanically went back to her foot, uncaring about how it trembled. Her fingers cramped as they gathered up some of the blankets on the bed. Her teeth pressed together. The cloth against her skin sounded abrasive. The water trickled and splashed. Dagny's sudden bawling rang out in the room.

"Hush, oh hush, Child," Danuta's voice was a loving coo. "This is a restful time."

When Ehlov told Hulda he was finished, relief had her snatching her feet up and tucking them under her thighs. She didn't care how wet they were.

She heard the rustling of fabric. She felt a bounce in the mattress. A turn of her head had her noticing that the other women were turning their backs to the men, kneeling and sighing. Danuta had placed the baby on the bed, a little bit in front of her knees.

Unsure, but not wanting to disrespect anyone, Hulda mimicked the other women. Then she felt Ehlov's fingertips slide against her nape as he moved her black hair over her shoulder. A shudder ran down and up her frame.

Hot palms and thick fingers were sinking into the areas between her neck and shoulders, one hand under the bit of hair. Hulda gulped down a thick mass of dubiety.

Then a massage, a strong stroking, was on her shoulders and a bit on her back. Her muscles were suddenly aware of a kneading, twisting, burning feeling that was completely new. A kitten-like mewl burst out of her throat, but she tried to stop it, pressing her fist against her mouth.

But she endured, too afraid to offend anyone. She heard the other women talking with their husbands in sweet tones, and their husbands talked back in even sweeter tones. Hulda wasn't making any conversation, and likely because of that, Ehlov was more quiet than she was.

And even though she wasn't speaking to him, he continued to rub the most delicious feelings into her muscles, especially in the middle of her back, his determined thumbs making circles in her sore body.

Dagny was gurgling and sighing in her spot before her mother. She was a cute little baby. Ehlov would want her to have a baby, wouldn't he? Hulda closed her eyes and put her palm against her belly. Her rough dress felt so foreign, even though it was the same dress she had on before she left her homeland.

Being a practical, farm girl, Hulda knew exactly how a man and woman got together to make a baby. She grew up thinking that she'd eventually have a human husband, and they'd wrestle together in the woods, or in a ditch, or even behind a house. She couldn't imagine "wrestling" with a centaur. All she could imagine was being put against something, like a boulder, and then being mounted without much care.

And with what was likely a horse-like cock, to boot!

The concept was horrible! Hulda wasn't some deviant thing who went wild for animals. So, she had always looked at horses as if they were ... well ... horses. And, whenever she looked at a centaur's lower body, all she could think of was a horse. Maybe it wasn't fair. Centaurs weren't horses. They thought like men. The acted like men. They even partially dressed like men.

But ... they had horse bottoms!

Gross!

The features of her face squeezed and pressed together as if she had eaten something bitter. Her hands were tight on her lap.

And yet ... and yet ...

Ehlov was so kindly rubbing her back.

She couldn't remember a time when a man had ever done this for her.

Eventually, though, it had to end. When Ehlov stopped massaging her, she turned her body around and gave a weak thank you, looking down at her hands.

Lili spoke up then, saying to anyone who would listen. "Placidus and I are going to have a chat."

"Alright," Sasha said, running her fingers through her thinning hair. The candlelight gave it a golden tint, but Hulda imagined it was naturally white or silver. "Don't stay out too long. Secrets should be given quickly."

Hulda watched as Placidus gathered up the folded platforms and staircases. Then he belted them them to his body. When that was done, he helped Lili to arrange her harness. Then he let her climb onto his second back. As they left the building, Sasha bent over and looked at Hulda with piercing eyes. "Hulda, when you want to have a secret chat with your husband, you could go to the woods with him, or anywhere else you two like. Then you can say anything you want to him that you don't want to say in front of anyone else."

Hulda's eyelids almost closed as she nodded and said she understood.

Placidus and Lili were likely going to have a little fuck.

She decided it was best to keep her personal judgments hidden.

The family spent the rest of the evening chatting, while Hulda remained mostly silent. Even the sleepy Johnan spoke more often than she did. It was almost completely dark when Placidus and Lili returned. The eldest son didn't wipe his wife's feet again, which signaled to Hulda that Lili's toes probably didn't touch the ground during their chat.

That was when Sasha announced that they'd better get some sleep.

The males all stayed close to the bed, the husbands stayed close to their wives. Johnan didn't have a wife to be close to, but he still had a place. Hulda noticed that the males all remained standing sideways, their barrels facing the sides of the bed, as if they were trying to shield the females from something. Then Hulda watched as the women laid down to rest. Dobromil had handed his wife, Danuta, a small box of straw to put the baby in. Then the temporary little bed was placed near Danuta's side.

Hulda gathered up the pillows the women left for her, and then she put one of the blankets over her body. As she lay down, she took in all the warm smells. The earthy, wool and linen smells of the women, the musk and dust smells of the centaur's coats, the mud, the wood, the chickens, the cow, everything was being breathed in.

And she thought she'd cry. She really thought she should cry.

But for some reason, she didn't.

She merely ... fell asleep.

She did wake up at one point, and she noticed that Ehlov was lying down then, resting his head and arm on the bed, lightly touching her in a way that suggested he didn't really mean to touch her. How long he had been in that state, Hulda didn't know.

For a few more minutes, she watched his dark figure. There wasn't a pressing reason as to why she watched him. Impulse was probably what made her do it.

At one point, Ehlov rustled and jerked, rising and groaning. He got up, returning to his standing position, and he seemed to go back to sleep just like that. Even his humanoid torso was straight. His head lowered, but that was it, really.

Hulda imagined that he had first slept standing up, then went down, and then got back up again.

Centaurs were weird.

She closed her eyes and waited for the slumber to come.

***