several items in stock," said the fellow from the house, who was first among those of the house. "You may examine them, if you wish, more so than you have already done.
Nonetheless I really think that this item is the one best for your purposes. It should well satisfy your needs. I conjecture that it should do quite nicely." He added, "I am quite familiar with our current inventory.”
"You could examine items at another house," said another fellow of the house.
There was silence.
"Are you interested only in an item which satisfies the criteria you have made clear to me?”
asked he who was first of those of the house.
"I do not understand," said a man.
"I might, with your permission," said the first fellow, "mention that this particular item has certain qualities to recommend it, should you be interested in them, beyond being intelligent, an outworlder, having developed, in a short time, a modest command of the language, and being ignorant of political intricacies.”
"Other qualities?" asked a fellow.
"Other than those which are quite evident to your senses, other than those which you could detect by merely laying eyes upon her," said the fellow from the house, first among those of the house.
There was laughter.
I lay there, before them.
"Are such things also of interest to you?" asked he who was first among those of the house, first, at any rate, among those present.
"Are they not always of interest?" asked a fellow.
There was more laughter.
"More importantly," said one of the strangers, "should she not be such as to appear plausibly to have been purchased for the typical reasons for which such an item might be obtained?”
"Yes," mused another man.
"I assure you," said the fellow from the house, "that she could be excellently, and judiciously, purchased for just such typical reasons.”
"She fulfills such criteria, independently?”
"Assuredly," said the fellow from the house.
"Let her perform," said he who, I took it, was first among the strangers.
"Prepare," said he who was first among those of the house.
I rose lightly to my feet, and turned, and, head down, put my hand to my left shoulder. I was unclothed, of course, but had I been silked the disrobing loop would have been at the left shoulder.
I had learned how to remove the silk gracefully. Now, of course, I must merely pretend to do so. I moved my hand as though loosening the disrobing loop, and then, gracefully, stepped away from the silk which had supposedly fallen about my ankles. I then, facing the strangers, the newcomers, knelt before them, in a position of obeisance, my head down to the floor, the palms of my hands on the floor, too.
"She looks well in such a position," said a man, "They all do," said another.
I had known, of course, for years, even before puberty, that such deferences, obeisances, and such, were owed to men, but I had never expected, except perhaps in dreams, to find myself in my present position, one in which I was subject to, and must behave in accordance with, such appropriatenesses.
"Begin," said he who was first among those of the house.
I rose to my feet, and, obedient to the injunction under which I had been placed, began to move. I moved first before one man and then another. I began, of course, with he whom I immediately sensed was first among the strangers. I sensed this from his position, central and prominent among them, and from the nature of his gaze upon me, which I could meet only for an instant. I moved before the men, first before one and then before another, approaching, withdrawing, sometimes as if unwilling, or shy, sometimes almost as if daring to be insolent or rebellious, but not quite, or not really, of course, for if such things are misunderstood one may quickly feel the lash. It is more as though a token challenge were offered but one which is clearly understood as, and is presented as, no more than that, for one knows that even such tokens may be swept away, and crushed, and one may find
Nonetheless I really think that this item is the one best for your purposes. It should well satisfy your needs. I conjecture that it should do quite nicely." He added, "I am quite familiar with our current inventory.”
"You could examine items at another house," said another fellow of the house.
There was silence.
"Are you interested only in an item which satisfies the criteria you have made clear to me?”
asked he who was first of those of the house.
"I do not understand," said a man.
"I might, with your permission," said the first fellow, "mention that this particular item has certain qualities to recommend it, should you be interested in them, beyond being intelligent, an outworlder, having developed, in a short time, a modest command of the language, and being ignorant of political intricacies.”
"Other qualities?" asked a fellow.
"Other than those which are quite evident to your senses, other than those which you could detect by merely laying eyes upon her," said the fellow from the house, first among those of the house.
There was laughter.
I lay there, before them.
"Are such things also of interest to you?" asked he who was first among those of the house, first, at any rate, among those present.
"Are they not always of interest?" asked a fellow.
There was more laughter.
"More importantly," said one of the strangers, "should she not be such as to appear plausibly to have been purchased for the typical reasons for which such an item might be obtained?”
"Yes," mused another man.
"I assure you," said the fellow from the house, "that she could be excellently, and judiciously, purchased for just such typical reasons.”
"She fulfills such criteria, independently?”
"Assuredly," said the fellow from the house.
"Let her perform," said he who, I took it, was first among the strangers.
"Prepare," said he who was first among those of the house.
I rose lightly to my feet, and turned, and, head down, put my hand to my left shoulder. I was unclothed, of course, but had I been silked the disrobing loop would have been at the left shoulder.
I had learned how to remove the silk gracefully. Now, of course, I must merely pretend to do so. I moved my hand as though loosening the disrobing loop, and then, gracefully, stepped away from the silk which had supposedly fallen about my ankles. I then, facing the strangers, the newcomers, knelt before them, in a position of obeisance, my head down to the floor, the palms of my hands on the floor, too.
"She looks well in such a position," said a man, "They all do," said another.
I had known, of course, for years, even before puberty, that such deferences, obeisances, and such, were owed to men, but I had never expected, except perhaps in dreams, to find myself in my present position, one in which I was subject to, and must behave in accordance with, such appropriatenesses.
"Begin," said he who was first among those of the house.
I rose to my feet, and, obedient to the injunction under which I had been placed, began to move. I moved first before one man and then another. I began, of course, with he whom I immediately sensed was first among the strangers. I sensed this from his position, central and prominent among them, and from the nature of his gaze upon me, which I could meet only for an instant. I moved before the men, first before one and then before another, approaching, withdrawing, sometimes as if unwilling, or shy, sometimes almost as if daring to be insolent or rebellious, but not quite, or not really, of course, for if such things are misunderstood one may quickly feel the lash. It is more as though a token challenge were offered but one which is clearly understood as, and is presented as, no more than that, for one knows that even such tokens may be swept away, and crushed, and one may find
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