The Concubine - (currently Revising, Complete)

Chapter One:

Eydis

"Clean the chamber pot." Torstein towered over me. The long blonde hair draped his shoulders in matted locks.  "And then prep with the other slaves for night meal." He was not a good owner. He passed me and tossed his fur onto the great chair in the hall. We were to have company today, a King.
I moved quickly through the house and did as he directed.  I retrieved the chamber pots and tossed them outside, near the edge of the woods. The longhouse was the only one for one mile and then there was the city. No one of this stature had ever visited our hall.
I walked back to the house with an ill regard for the winter planted in my head. Every day the winds grew harsher and colder. I longed for spring. Upon reentering the warm longhouse, I take to my room and change into better clothes. Slaves were to be treated with care, how Torstein's slaves were a direct reflection of himself as the master. We were to be clean and respectful. I mustered the courage to clean and respect was given, or punishments were thrown out in its place.
"Eydis!" I hated the name given to me. "You are to be a servant of the guests. Place the food on the table and remember to not make eye contact with them unless you are spoken to." The oldest slave in the house, Alva, was one of the few to not be married and it was told that her punishment was to always be a servant. She had cursed the gods, it was a wonder she was even alive.
The gods these Norsemen served were not my gods, but to be a defiant slave could end worse than being a silent one. I carried the platter of salted pork and potatoes to the floor. The smell was divine as the spice hit my nose, I took a whiff before heading back into the kitchen for the bread and ale.
"He has arrived, Jarl Torstein." The bearded man said entering the hall. "He has brought no one with him but his guardsmen."
Torstein does not respond, he simply takes his seat in the middle of the table, his scrawny wife beside him and awaits the arrival of the new King. There had been rumors of this King, he was cruel. He ruled as a loveable King but also with a swift blow to any transgressor. Jarl Torstein did not want to be on the depraved side of his ruling. Welcoming him and pledging his men if needed was the first step to get in his good graces.
The door clanged against the timbered walls of the Hall. He was here and unmistakably younger than Jarl Torstein. I looked only for a moment and then my eyes were back on the ground. He was the highest-ranking man in Denmark.
"King Meili." Torstein said with a smile. "I welcome you to my home, hearth and night meal."
His wandering eyes look around at the hall. And it's obvious he is observing everything, from the slaves to his wife. "Thank you, Jarl Torstein." He takes a few strides to meet Torstein. "Your home is lovely."
"Thank you, this is my wife Brynhildr."
Brynhildr takes a step to the King. "It is a great honor to meet you young King. Your tales of chivalry and battle have been told all over."
I had only heard bad things told about him from this hall, tales of jealousy and hate. I swallow and await our directions. My stomach however was not silent, the low growl of my hunger flooded the hall and immediately all eyes were on me.
"We should eat." King Meili said with a smile towards me. "And who is she?"
"A slave who has forgotten to eat." Torstein states, his face flushed red, in anger no doubt. "I will send her to be fed."
"Nonsense, she is fine." Meili's brilliant green eyes meet mine and the flood of nerves overtake me as he walks closer. "She will eat next to me. Come." He extends his hand to me and we walk to the table. I stand beside him. I place the items on his plate and then step back allowing the dinner to take place from me.
"I heard that you are in search of a young bride?"
"A bed servant." He corrects. "My wife and I have bore one child, a girl. Esme." His face is soft at the mention of her name. Meili takes a sip of the mead and places his cup back on the table. "I need an heir. For years we have been trying to have more children and nothing has come to pass, the healer says that she is unable." He cleared his throat. "I wish to have a bed servant, and if she bears me two sons, I will make her my second wife."
A concubine. The thought of it sounded scandalous, while enslaved in England it was the norm to see the Thanes and Lords take a woman under the thumb of their wives, they were concubines, but they dare not get one pregnant."
"Oh, I understand. Are you here to ask for my daughter?" He gestured towards the young brunette. Her cheeks rosy with embarrassment and eyes wide with curiosity. These women and men looked nothing like me. My cheeks were so brown the thought of them changing to red was humorous and my coiled hair draped to my shoulders only when the rain did not draw it back up to my chin.
Meili dips his bread in the gravy of the stew. "No, I could not do you the dishonor." He said simply and his daughter's eyes deflated and were back hooked to the wooden plate in front of her. "And she is too young."
"I understand." He paused. "Then why are you here?"
"I have heard wonders of your slaves. Well behaved and well kept. I would like to purchase one from you in the morning, let the night be filled with festivities before I leave in the morning."
We serve them. And when they started the festivities, we cleaned. I gathered the leftover scraps from the table and brought more mead for them. They were loud, roaring with laughter as they talked about past battles and future raids. The Norsemen were always on their way to their next raid. It was their way of life. I take to the kitchen with the other slaves.
I had not made many friends in my seven months of serving here. I talked to some of the women and men but there truly was only Audhild. She was the fairest of all slaves, desired by every man that visited and kept under Torstein's thumb. He did not bed her, he was far too dedicated to his wife. But Audhild was a woman who served as great bargaining chip and he was beginning to know her worth. It was my opinion that she was the woman the King desired.
I was no bed servant and by the grace of my gods I had not been taken by any man. I blamed it on my appearance, I was exotic and strange. I might have not been what they wanted anyhow. It served me well. I sat at the wooden table with what remained of the salted pork and a few veggies on my plate. We were always served the leftovers. But the cooks did so well I didn't complain.
Audhild took her seat beside me. Her long blond hair pulled to the back and a smile on her face. "It appears King Meili is taken with you." She grinned.
"I did not see that." I laughed. "He simply saved me from a thrashing and likely a punishment." It was not in my likes to forget to eat but the day had been busy.
"Blind." She laughed. "But either way, this visit from the King makes us shine, he said that we were well known. Is that not a good thing?"
"It depends on your consideration of good."
"The chances of freedom are greater when a warrior and King such as Meili shares his graces, then more men will come to see us. Marry us."
"I am not sure marrying a Norsemen is in my future." Not with the past I had, my family traded me to them for peace and gold. And I'd served them for over three years. There was nothing appealing about their lifestyle, only when I was in England were they slightly civilized.
"They are not Norsemen, they are Danes." She corrected. Audhild, though a slave, enjoyed her status, hoped to grow from it. "Finish your food, we have to sleep. Tomorrow we are expected to get all of the chores assigned to us done before noon."

My bed was not a bed, just a pile of hay, one fur and a blanket in the western corner of the room I shared with Audhild. I stared at the straw-packed roof and exhaled. Sleep usually found me easily with my mind and body both being worn from the hard work of the day. My dreams were the only place that I found peace. My eyes closed and I could feel the warm blows of the African air that drifted across the green and yellow planes of grass.  I dreamed of the lions prowling on the edge of the village, rolling with their cubs. I even heard my brother say my actual name, Kali, not the name given to me by my captors. For the night I was home.
I awake in the morning before the other slaves and gather my things. I liked to bathe alone. We were not permitted to stray far from the longhouse but living on the edge of sea served its advantages.  I strip down from my clothes and admire the fade of the night sky to a purple and then to a brilliant orange. The sunrise was perfect, even with cold water rushing over my body. I sink down in the water and it completely wakes me up. I douse my kinked curls in the water and scrub myself with the soap. The suds wash off into the water and I dive under again allowing it to completely rinse me and head to the beach. Torstein would wake us soon and the last thing I needed was to encounter an angry Torstein.
I climb to the shore, the water cascades down my back and I take the towel from my small basket and wipe down my body. I do not notice the man on the shore at first. But after taking a second glace, it appears that I am not alone. King Meili rests on his elbows, his sudden gaze on me as I scrambled to cover myself. The small towel did me no justice.
"What is your name?"
"Eydis," I swallowed.
"Are you worthy of being called a goddess, Eydis?" He twiddled the bark between his teeth and looked up to me. His brown hair was a rarity amongst these people. It draped long down his back.
"I am not." I answer.
"I would say you were, pity." He stands and hands me the heavy woolen dress. "You should make certain to dry off. I would hate to see you sick. The wind is chilly here."
"Aye King Meili." I take the dress and he turns to my disbelief and allows me to dress without his wandering eyes over my body. I dress quickly and head back to the longhouse, our chores awaited us before day meal.

I make it back and start on my first chore of gathering the eggs and meat for the meal. I was no good in the kitchen, only to watch and hand the other slaves whatever they needed. The day meal consisted of porridge, eggs and salted pork from the night before. I worked with them to prep the meal and then head into the hall where they awaited their food. I placed the food before them quickly in hopes that nothing was done wrong.
"Eydis!" Torstein yelled from behind me.
I stop walking in my tracks and turn to the Jarl. "Yes, Jarl Torstein."
"You are to Jutland with King Meili." He gestured but his face was not happy. "Gather your clothes."
My eyes widen and jolt over to King Meili. No.
"Did you hear your Jarl, pack your things!" Brynhildr snapped at me, her beady eyes narrowed. "It is decided you are to be the King's Bed Servant."

Please let me know your thoughts! Vote/Comment!!! Thanks in advance!