And she turned to wreak vengeance on him , but he and his brothers were far away . They rode all day till they got to the town where their real uncle lived , and inquired the way to his house . ` Why have you been so long in coming ? ' asked he , when they had found him . ` Oh , dear uncle , we were very nearly not coming at all ! ' replied they . ` We fell in with an ogress who took us home and would have killed us if it had not been for Halfman . He knew what was in her mind and saved us , and here we are . Now give us each a daughter to wife , and let us return whence we came . ' ` Take them ! ' said the uncle ; ` the eldest for the eldest , the second for the second , and so on to the youngest . ' But the wife of Halfman was the prettiest of them all , and the other brothers were jealous and said to each other : ` What , is he who is only half a man to get the best ? Let us put him to death and give his wife to our eldest brother ! ' And they waited for a chance . After they had all ridden , in company with their brides , for some distance , they arrived at a brook , and one of them asked , ` Now , who will go and fetch water from the brook ? ' ` Halfman is the youngest , ' said the elder brother , ` he must go . ' So Halfman got down and filled a skin with water , and they drew it up by a rope and drank . When they had done drinking , Halfman , who was standing in the middle of the stream , called out : ` Throw me the rope and draw me up , for I can not get out alone . ' And the brothers threw him a rope to draw him up the steep bank ; but when he was half-way up they cut the rope , and he fell back into the stream . Then the brothers rode away as fast as they could , with his bride .
Halfman sank down under the water from the force XXXXX the fall , but before he touched the bottom a fish came and said to him , ` Fear nothing , Halfman ; I will help you . '
After as at by for in of till to with