Lys: Horse Blankets

Aithne was impressed. In a span of minutes, Wulf had just uttered more words than she'd heard the whole day before.

"I suppose that's true. But it is not so much the servitude as the lack of freedom to choose whether to serve, I think." She stood by as he worked the latch, thinking quietly for a moment. "As a woman I am used to serving the needs of others. But as Scotti it grates to have the duty forced on me. Better I do it out of my own wish to please and help. ...It seems to cheapen it, somehow."

And that was why she would enjoy serving Master Lucius. He made her feel as though she was free to obey or disobey, even if it wasn't true. She hoped someday, if she was not freed, that he would allow her to serve him more directly. She doubted Wulf or even the Guttersnipe did much in the way of cooking, and it seemed to her it would be dangerous for him to accept food from Vortigern's tables.

First things first, Aithne. It's horse blankets for you.

...And they'll be the best horse blankets in the Empire.