Chapter 11 Scramble some more

Once Penelope rejoined us, I hefted her things myself, which shocked both of them. “I’m not going to make you carry anything, when I have strength for days, and stamina to last for a full speed run to the Capitol in a single day. That’s not a Joke, I can really do that. Let’s go, I expect you’ll want to have your parents visit the new Mill today, or tomorrow at the latest. We need to stop by that grain farm before we hit home.” So saying we left at a decent enough speed. Harmony and Penelope seemed a little like they were struggling with the speed, but didn’t want me to slow down, understanding our urgency to get to the kids sooner. I however spotted Veronica in the distance, and she looked a little torn, at first happy to see me, then not so happy I wasn’t alone. “Hello Mark, I was told by my Father you were interested in me, but now I see tow other Women with you. What’s going on?!” She had a somewhat Icy smile on her face. “Let me guess, you heard the word interested, and ran out without hearing what I was interested in.” I smirked.

Veronica’s face flushed, and it deepened when Penelope chimed in. “Mom basically told Mark that She and my Father both agree to me being Mark’s wife. I have never been so embarrassed in my life, even if the idea itself is a good one. Be so much easier if Mark was willing to have more than one wife, that would solve everything.” Lightning struck my spine. “UM,…not sure I’m ready for marriage at all just yet, but what do you mean IF I was willing to take multiple wives? Isn’t it usually the women who don’t want to share?” All three girls looked at me like I was an idiot. “Mark women everywhere dream of sharing a Man, it’s Men who only want a single wife. Where have you been living?” Veronica said baffling me. Harmony then spoke. “Truly Mark, I’d marry you too, if you were willing to take more than one wife. Seriously, you’ve already proven to be a very honest, and genuinely caring man. These two clearly want a wife position, and I’d love sharing with them if it were an option.” I truly felt like an asteroid had slammed into my very soul at this revelation. “You girls aren’t just messing with me are you? You’d seriously want to share me, with each other, and anyone else who came along?!” All three nodded with a slight twinkle in their eyes.

“Ok, I need to let you three in on a Family secret. It might surprise you to learn this, it truly shocked my parents, but,…I’m a reincarnated soul, with memories of my past life.” All three looked at me with utter shock. “Now that in itself is shocking enough, but the life I lived before, things are kind of the other way around. Men dream about having a Harem of loving Women, but it wasn’t allowed at all, and most Women wouldn’t have stood for it. So if you were planning on fighting over me, don’t. Just agree to share, and when I’m ready for Marriage, which isn’t right now, we can make it official then ok, assuming you still like the idea.” I was plastered with three eager hugs. “I’m sure we can wait in that case. We have enough daughters to deal with already. That’s why Mom was so supportive of me moving onto your land, and this works great, though I suppose I’ll have to get someone to stay in the Mill when I want to sleep in your bed.” Harmony chuckled. “Guess the same is true for me and the Pottery Shed, I agree about needing someone to keep the little ones from playing where they shouldn’t Don’t want anything happening to my future daughters, or sisters after all.” Veronica piped up again. “Didn’t I hear you bought a Slave Girl a while back? That she’s been in your house for a while now?” I nodded. “Yeah, but her Collar is gone now. I left to the Capitol for that purpose, and ended up adopting the Orphans on the way back, and bringing them home early because the Orphanage was attacked by Jarreth while we were there. Moron used Monster Bait to try and destroy the place, just to try and hurt me emotionally. Now he’s a Slave on his way to the Salt Mine, you know the one.” Harmony was clueless, but both Penelope, and Veronica paled, and giggled. “Serves him right!” They both replied, as we all moved onwards.

Harmony had to ask. “What’s the deal with the Salt Mine, I know that’s a rough life, but something tells me there’s more to it than that.” We chuckled with evil mirth. “The supervisor at this particular salt mine, like taking young boys into his room at night, if you get the idea. Jarreth isn’t going to enjoy one second of his new life, and he brought it all on himself. Karma is a real Bitch.” All three looked curious at me, and Penelope asked. “What’s Karma?” I looked stunned. “Ok, first, it’s a superstition, no basis in fact, but the idea is that what goes around, comes around. If you’re mean to someone, then someone will be mean to you. Even if they’re unrelated to what you did. The original myth, is that there’s a deity involved, named Karma, and she makes everything balance out. You do something bad, you get it back ten fold, do something good, and get that back a hundred fold. Don’t put too much stock in it, but it makes for a good saying.” Stunned disbelief at the thought of a deity who’s sole duty is to balance the world. “””I don’t believe in Karma””” All three spoke at once. I laughed. “Nor should you, but at times like that, it’s almost plausible when the evil doing person gets exactly what they deserved seemingly from nowhere.”

At this point, we had reached the neighbor’s Farm, and I saw a fully loaded wagon of Grain Sacks. Also an irate Farmer’s Wife scolding her husband for wasted effort. “There’s no way they can handle another wagon this soon! The Boys could have done almost anything else, and been more productive. Honestly what are you thinking?” I coughed loudly to get both their attention. “Sorry Mrs Daniels, but as it happens, he’s fortunate to have that Wagon already loaded with grain. I assume it’s mostly wheat?” Stanley nodded. “Yes, with four sacks of Corn, and one of Rye why do you ask?” I smiled huge. “That’s perfect, I need some Corn for a food I’m going to make, and that’s the right amount, I’m also going to try planting some of the Wheat myself, as I suspect my new land will grow it better, then I’m going to need to do business with you, if that pans out. The rest, I’m going to use as test batches for my new Mill, if I made it right, then it will be where you’ll take all your grain for milling in future, and if my fields are better for wheat to grow, then I’ll basically trade fields. You’ll grow the wheat on what is technically my land, while I use your fields for stuff that will grow better here, and say ten percent of the crops goes to the land owner, while the rest is the growers?”

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Scratching his chin in contemplation, he eventually nodded. “I can accept that, if I get better yields using your land, plus ten percent of what you grow on mine, I think we’ll both come out ahead in that situation. A little odd why one piece of land would do better than another, but maybe some truth to it. As to the wagon of grain, I can’t let you take it for less than a Gold, I know it’s a lot, but Farming isn’t cheap.” I handed him two gold, stunning his wife. “The second Gold is to have you bring it over to my place. You know the old abandoned farm next to my Father’s? I own that now, and it’s been rebuilt, and has irrigation canals, and that is why I think it will grow wheat better, among some other details that we can discuss later. Having an easy, and equal method to water the entire crop will make a huge difference, since you won’t rely solely on rain.” Now he had an understanding of at least one reason I thought I could do better with wheat than him, but that sparked another question. “If that’s true, then what could grow better here, than there?” I chuckled. “I’m thinking Sugar Beets, you know, the kind you can’t eat, because of how woody they are.” Now he was befuddled. “What good do those do?” “They’re called sugar beets for a reason, making crystallized sugar from them is much easier than you’d imagine. If you have any growing around, I could make a small batch with like ten beets, just as a test.” His wife eager for this info, piped up. “I just pulled about twenty today, and they’re just sitting beside the trash pile, hadn’t tossed them in just yet. What do we need to test?”

We spent almost an hour to grind the beets, boil out the sugar, and set the trays to cool, and evaporate. “I’ll come back later to see how you like the sugar, and teach you some recipes that use it. Every other house will be jealous when they find out about this.” The girls and I went on to the Farm, followed by Mr. Daniels on his wagon. As we approached, I could tell something seemed off. “What’s wrong?” I asked as soon as I came into talking range. “We signed adoption papers for one more daughter than we count here, and we’re not understanding the mistake.” The headmistress looked equally confused. I hadn’t appraised any of the other kids, so I quickly scanned all my new daughters, and realized the problem, one of what I thought was a daughter, was actually a sister, and she wasn’t human. I smiled widely, knowing I was going to shock her. “Rose, would you mind coming here?” The girl in question came over, just as energetic as she should be. “So, dear Sister, how did a Gnome end up in a Human orphanage hmmm?” Her eyes bulged in shock. Everyone was stunned. “I didn’t lie, I left race blank, and you’re my Brother now, you can’t take it back!” She was clearly panicked. “Calm down Sis, I’m not mad, I’m sure the Headmistress was just too overworked to see your age on the paper when you were taken in. I also understand wanting to hide from certain types of Men, I imagine those kinds, who would take you because of how you look, that being specifically looking like a child even though you’re actually older than almost everyone here, wouldn’t be the kind of Men you want anywhere near you.” She looked a little sheepish at this. “How did you know I was a Gnome?” I smiled as I gave her a side hug. “Appraisal skill, and pretty high. Mom and Dad were in a Panic because they didn’t know you were adopted by them, and thought you were included with my daughters instead. You’re home, no matter if you want to stay with the younger ones, or stay with my folks.”

Marie came up, looking suspiciously at the three girls who had come home with me. “You all look particularly happy with yourselves, mind telling us why?” Instead of an instant answer, the three simply gave her a joint bear hug. Penelope then whispered into her ear, and Marie looked at me, determined. “Me too, and no arguments.” I was stunned. “Am I THAT oblivious?!” She grinned at me. “Duh, stupid head, I haven’t been subtle about it at night you know. The more the merrier, if I knew you’d go for it, I wouldn’t have waited.” With that, she planted her lips on mine in a rather passionate kiss, surprising my parents, and myself. “Wait, Son, are you seriously taking all of them? I’m not complaining, but SERIOUSLY?!” I laughed, as I saw Mom with a prideful tearing eye. “I couldn’t be happier, well unless your Father was willing to take a few more wives that is. Have you set a Limit, or just seeing who wants in, and can fit with who you’ve already agreed to take?” Shaking my head in befuddlement I answered. “Mom, in my other life, Men dreamed of this, I never thought I COULD have it, let alone would. So I’ll let the current people choose if they want someone else to join, that way I won’t have any trouble at home later.”

Having failed to notice another wagon coming in I was startled when Blanche’s daughter spoke out, from behind me. “If that’s the case, me too please!” I turned in shock, and before I could even process what she had said, the four who had chosen this all said in unison. “”””OF COURSE!”””” (I’m doomed) “Wow”, was all I could say, at my now fifth betrothed woman. Blanch on the other hand couldn’t have been happier. “Now I know my Baby girl has a bright future, what about her Sisters? They’re not much older, and rather pretty?” “NO SIBLINGS! Sorry, that’s just too weird, and it begs for trouble with children maybe falling for their half siblings later on. That would be TOO close, bad things can happen that way. Better to spread things out more, and that’s assuming any more come into the picture. Here I thought I was just hiring experts who happened to be Women, to protect my girls from any potentially unwanted interactions in life.” *Sigh*