Curse that festering old wound, which constantly throbbed no matter what he did. No matter what he was doing, whether it be working in his field, tending to his horses, or playing a friendly game of catch with his friend. Whatever it might bay, that leg made him limp like an injured dog; and made him feel as useless as a lame horse.

He could, at least, thank the gods that he could somewhat walk. After the gruelling march north of the Hadrian's Wall, he had been sure he would never walk again. Of course, Esca would never allow for that to happen. Not if it meant he was stuck with all the farm work.

Marcus sighed. He rolled back,his shoulders, hefting the pitchfork into his hand. The horses would not feed themselves.

"Uncle Marcus!"

Marcus paused, hay halfway over the horses' fence. The two stallions, and the steed, snorted at him, as if to scold him for pausing in his chore to feed them.

"Hmmmmm…" Marcus hummed, scratching his chin. "Did I hear a little voice call my name?"

A giggle, and a rustle in the pile of hay beside him. "Noooooo."

Marcus smiled. He narrowed his eyes, silently leaning the pitchfork against the wooden wall of the stable.

"Well, if no one called for me, I guess I'll just leave…." He reached into the pouch hanging from his waist, pulling from it a fresh apple. "...and let the horses eat this delicious, succulent apple."

The giggling pursued. Marcus set the apple on the stump he used to chop firewood, and grinned. With silent feet, he tiptoed behind the crates of eggs, and waited.

A wild head of red curls popped out of the hay. The amber eyes of a little girl looked around, checking that there was no Marcus in sight. She stepped from the hay, reaching for the apple.

"Raaaaah!"

The little girl squealed as Marcus sprang at her, scooping her into his arms. She laughed and screeched, wriggling in his gasp.

"Were you trying to steal my apple?" Marcus asked with a grin.

"Noo!" The little girl laughed, finally wriggling free. "Not meeee!"

"Huh." Marcus scratched his chin. "I could have sworn you were about to snatch my apple from the stump. But, certainly, you'd never do something like that to me, right?"

She shook her head. "Oh no, Uncle Marcus. I never would."

Before Marcus could reply, a blur of motion passed his sight. The apple, which had been on the stump, was now in the hands of his long-time friend, Esca.

"But I would." Esca said with a grin. He bit into the apple with a juicy crunch.

Marcus gave his friend a playful glare. "Is it you she gets it from, my friend?"

"Maybe." Esca mumbled with his mouth full. He swallowed. "Or maybe her mother, I don't know."

"A bit of both?" Marcus asked, a smirk across his face.

"More her mother."

"What did you give me, Uncle Marcus?" The little girl was clinging to her father, looking up at her uncle.

Marcus smiled. He knelt in front of her, wincing at the twang in his leg. "Protection. A place to live. A future, Ari. A future that will see you grow strong, safe behind the Wall, in the loving arms of your father and mother, and beneath the protection of my blade."

Ari's eyes widened with wonder. She looked up at her father. "Is this true?"

Esca ran his fingers through her wild hair. "This is true; and for it, we are grateful. But, only,for a moment."

Marcus frowned. "A moment?"

Silence. Esca knelt beside his daughter, moving the hair from her ear. He whispered. "Go to your mother, Ari. Uncle Marcus and I must talk."

"Awww! Can't I stay with you and him, Father?" Ari whined.

"I'm afraid not, little one."

"I could hide in the hay!"

Esca sighed, gently laying his hands on her shoulders. "Why don't you ask your mother if you can help make breakfast? I think we would both like that. What do you think, Marcus?"

Marcus, who had been submerged by his thoughts, quickly looked up. "What?"

"Food, Marcus."

Marcus smirked, albeit forced. "That would be divine, considering the fate of my apple."

Esca looked down at the apple at his feet. He kicked it into the horse pen.

"Okay!" With a giggle, Ari raced away, around the barn and into the small villa.

Marcus watched her as she ran off, a warm feeling in his heart. Although she was not his child, he loved her like his own. She was the child he wished he could have one day; but that would never happen. Not with his leg. He had learned long ago that no one wants a crippled, disgraced soldier.

Since there was no chance of having a family,of his own, Ari, her mother Catia, and her father had become his family. They were all he needed.

He sighed. "Your family, Esca...it is beautiful. I can only dream of one such as yours."

"It isn't too late, Marcus." Esca patted his friend's shoulder. "You can still have one."

"No." Marcus shook his head with a sigh. "You know I can't, Esca."

"Why not?"

Marcus gazed at his friend, sharing a weary look. "I just can't do it. No woman would want me- and why would they? Look at me, Esca," He lifted his arms, gesturing to himself. "Look at me and tell me what you see."

"I see a brave, noble, handsome Roman, who is compassionate, if not a little too serious, and who loves those he cares for fiercely enough to die for them. I see a man who can stand up to injustice, who defies all the evils a Roman is meant to stand for. But most of all, Marcus, I see a man who is willing to trust, and to forgive, and to open his home to likes of me. Any woman who can not see that is either dead or blind."

Marcus shook his head. He understood what his friend was saying, but he could not be convinced otherwise. "Even if I could have a family of my own, I could not support them. I can scarce support you and yours. In fact-"

"That is what we need to discuss." Esca interrupted him.

Marcus frowned. "What is there to be discussed? We struggle, yes, but we still live."

"I know, but…" Esca sighed. He bowed his head, refusing to meet his friend's gaze. "Marcus, sit."

"I'll stand."

Esca sighed again. There was no easy way to put what he was about to say. He hoped Marcus would understand- he had to.

"Marcus," He began, shuffling his feet. "Do you remember Halosaurus, my father-in-law?"

Marcus made a huffing sound, crossing his arms. "Yes, I remember him. He spent the entire evening meal talking about his tribe's glory days and how he has been leading his people away from Rome- I think he forgot I was there."

Esca winced. "Marcus, he offered us a home- a place amongst the tribe, to call our own." He paused. He watched his friend, waiting for him to speak. Instead, Marcus said nothing. "Marcus...Catia and I want Ari to grow up among her own kind. We want her to learn the ways of the tribes, to discover her roots. We want her to be the master of her own fate, not a citizen of Rome."

Marcus was silent. He stared at Esca, his disbelief growing inside of him. How could this be? How could Esca want to leave him?

"Marcus…"

"No," Marcus raised his hand, cutting him off. "I understand. You want to leave me, for people you claim to be your own but who are no blood of yours."

Esca winced. "No, Marcus, it's not that. I want to raise my family in a familiar climate. Ari deserves a better future than what she will have here."

"You want to take her away to the tribes? To those dangerous lands?"

"Halosaurus lives within the Wall-"

"And you want her to grow up without knowing Rome, without reaping its benefits, without me?"

"No, that's not what I-"

Marcus narrowed his eyes, a bitter feeling rising in his gut. "You want to be a savage again?"

"Silence!" Esca's shout split the morning air. "I am no savage!"

Marcus fell silent, turning sharply away. Perhaps that was the wrong thing to say. Maybe he was being selfish. But without Esca and his family, what was left for him to live for?

"I am taking my family and leaving to a place where we can live free!" Esca continued to shout, despite his friend's clear reluctance to fight.

"If you take them there, one day, they will rise." Marcus whispered. "As a tribe, they will be crushed- they will live a much freer life where they are now." He looked at him. "I can not let you leave."

Esca grabbed Marcus by his collar, glaring into his eyes. "You are not my master, and I am not your slave! I am a free man who can make his own decisions! You have no say!"

"Then why would you bring it up!?" Marcus finally snapped, nearly throwing Esca off of him. "Just go- GO! Go and leave behind everything I have done for you, everything I have tried to provide for you, everything I have sacrificed to ensure that you and your family lived the best possible life! I gave up everything- everything, Esca!- and you know damn well how much I've sacrificed for you. And for what? For you to take advantage of me and leave? For you to take the only family I have ever had?"

"They are MY family!" Esca snarled, crouching as if to attack. "Not yours!"

"I'm not talking about your family, Esca, I'm talking about you!"

If Esca were to listen, he would have heard the feeling behind his friend's desperate shout. But, in his anger, he was too proud to hear anything he had to say. Instead, he stalked out of the barn, leaving Marcus to fall onto the stump, his head in his hands, betrayed.