The Fall of Rome by Melanie Adlich:

I grunted, trying to lift a heavy leather and wood saddle onto the back of my Father's horse, Chaos.

"Need help?" my sister yelled from the padlock, where she was walking the other horses that had been entrusted to us by Roman soldiers, as well as citizens. My sister, Rose, and I worked for our Father, Hercules, at his Stables. Even though the economy had been falling lately, our business was still strong. Neptune, our family's patron god, had been kind to us and we were known all over the land for our magnificent beasts. All horses bred in our care had become famous steeds for mighty Olympian champions or choragus war heroes.

"Sure!" I replied. I wiped some sweat from my brow and rested the heavy riding saddle on my leg to wait. Rose closed the gait behind her, locking it firmly, and then came to my aid. Together we lifted the gear up high, then placed (A.K.A. dropped) it firmly onto the horse's back. He snorted as the weight was transferred, side-stepping to maintain his balance. He seemed to glare at us for the rough treatment. I just rolled my eyes, fishing around in my pocket for a treat as my sister tightened and checked the saddle's rigging. I handed Chaos an apple and patted his midnight colored flank. He nodded, messily crunching his treat. We laughed at his human-like actions.

"He's worse than Sander!" Rose chuckled, referring to our older brother. I grinned. Indeed, Sander and Chaos could have been twins, in fact father had offered to give him the horse when he went to join the Royal Army, but Sander had refused, saying 'I don't want him to get hurt. Besides, the Army will provide excellent steeds.'

I led Chaos to the field to wait for Father as Rose led the rest of the horses into the stable's where she would feed them and give them a good rub-down. I let go of Chaos and he trotted away, stopping to munch on some grass along the fence. Suddenly a loud thump sounded by the gate. I flinched and started to pull a hidden dagger from my boot, but stopped, remembering Father's warning: "Girl's aren't supposed to know how to fight. By the silver bow of Artemis, it's all I can do to teach you this much, so keep your abilities hidden until you really need them!"

I grimaced. Stupid boys. I could fight as well as anyone, with a little more training. Hiding the dagger, I turned to plan B: acting like a wimpy little cry baby. Pulling loose fold of my dress over my face and gasping, I pretended to flinch and shake uncontrollably. I turned towards the sound while backing away and whimpering pitifully. I glanced around.

A familiar figure sat up, muttering and glaring at the high gate while rubbing his shoulder. His brownish-blond hair was messy from his apparent fall, and his cloths were covered in dirt, but his bright blue eye's gave him away easily. It was Alfred, one of my friends. I decided to mess with him for a little while.

I cried out and yelled, "Help! Brother, there is a ruffian here to steal our belongings and take us away! Help!" I heard a commotion from the stable, then, after a pause, two quick caws that made me think of a raven's call. Good, Rose had gotten the code.

Alfred jumped as if just now noticing my presence. He panicked, glancing around franticly and put a finger to his lip's to shush me. Laughing inwardly at his panic, I wailed harder. Alfred had known me since I was a kid; he should know my acting well enough by now. He took two quick steps and grabbed my shoulders, shaking me slightly and whispering "Hey, calm down! It's me! Aora, it's me Alfred!"

My fake sobs turned into laughter. I couldn't help myself, Alfred was just so naïve, even for a solider. He looked at me with a puzzled expression. Laughing harder, I pushed his hands from my shoulders and yelled to the stables, "I broke character, Rose! Might as well come out!" The stable door opened and out came my sister.

She came over to us and curtsied to Alfred. He nodded to her and she stood up, asking, "So I'm guessing Arthur is with you?"

Alfred grinned slyly, "Ivan too~!" Rose flushed a deep pink at the mention of Ivan's name.

"So I'm guessing they're outside?" I smiled and asked Alfred, fingering the latch on the fence gate.

He nodded, "Yeah; they teamed up on me and tossed me over!"

Opening the latch, I let the two soldiers waiting outside into the field, curtsying and saying, "Welcome Arthur; Ivan."

The shorter blonde bowed and kissed my hand, his green eye's sparkling happily. I giggled shyly. He stood and turned to Alfred, "Sorry about the rough lift, brother." He glanced back at me, "With all the Vandals and Angels running around, we didn't think you two ladies would open up to simple knock at your door!"

Running a hand through his oddly colorless hair, Ivan grinned innocently, "Also, it was fun to throw Al over the fence." Alfred glared at the tall, purple-eyed warrior, but seeing as Ivan was twice his size, he wisely chose to ignore the comment.

Rose petted Chaos, who had come while we were talking. "Why don't you three come in for dinner? I'm sure father wouldn't mind."

"Yeah!" Alfred exclaimed.

"Why not?" Ivan chuckled.

"Of course," Arthur agreed.

"Well that settle's that!" Rose said. "Just let me put up Chaos, and then I'll join you. Aora, why don't you take them inside and ask the cooks to make something up?"

I led the boys into the living room, and then hurried to the kitchens. Stopping one of the household slaves, I asked, "We'll be having extra guest, so please inform Miss Hungary to make some extra stuffed dormouse." The little boy nodded and hurried off to relay the information and I returned to the guests. The sight I returned to was amusing to say the least. Ivan had put Alfred in a headlock and was grinning happily while Alfred called "Uncle! Uncle! Hades curse you, I said uncle!" On the other side of the room, directly across from me, Arthur was apologizing to Rose and Father, who had just come from the library.

I tapped Ivan's shoulder, "He did say uncle." He pouted, but let go of the smaller boy's neck. Immediately, Alfred attacked him, trying to bend back his arm or hit some pressure-point. Ivan just smiled and blocked every one of Alfred's blows like he was shooing away a pesky fly. Finally, Alfred gave up, falling onto a couch with a humph. Father came over, followed by an embarrassed Arthur.

Soon afterwards, we made our offering to the gods. After some music, we were all lounging on couches and eating the main course of dinner. The slaves had brought out a wide variety, everything from bread and honey to roast boar and cinnamon. They had even brought out 50 stuffed door mice covered in lemon and butter, which Arthur and Alfred had all demolished. We munched on biscuits with slices of pheasant, lots of cheeses, fruits and watered down wine (Father says we're still too young for the strong stuff, and after seeing some off the drunks that came from the pubs, I had to agree.) After we finished the slaves took the dishes and we laughed and told stories till late in the night.

It was late and we were all drowsy when the attack came, and though we still had our weapons, we were outnumbered and outwitted. We were still on the couches, Rose and Ivan asleep on one, Father by himself, and Arthur, Alfred, and I dozing off on the other. Arthur was snoring on my shoulder; his long sword sheathed across his lap, Alfred had his feet dangling over the arm rest and hugging a spear, and I still had my dagger in my boot. There was a sudden crash followed by bangs and many rough footstepsfrom the kitchen and we woke with a start, Arthur and Ivan immediately unsheathing their swords and taking up defensive positions. Screaming, a young slave, a boy of about 6, ran through the doorway and cried into my skirts "WHHHAAAAHHHH! They're here! Vandal's! There here!"

I shared a look with Father. He smiled wearily and the message was clear: "If we were going down, we were going to fight." I nodded.

Leaning down, I grabbed the little boy's shoulders and said, "Go round up everyone you can and tell Miss Hungry thi s: Have someone go to the stables and prepare 5 horses, then let the rest go. Bring back as many weapons as possible then go to the cellar, there will be a tunnel behind the 8th wine barrel. Get everyone who can't fight out of here then bring back as many fighters as you can. Got it?" The little boy sobbed, but nodded. I watched him run off then pulled out my dagger, "Ready to defend our home?" I asked with a dark smile. Everyone nodded and prepared to fight the invaders.

They burst through the door like a green and silver wave, loud and fierce. Most had long blond hair and thick beards tied into braids, though I caught a glimpse of black and brown, and even silver not unlike Ivan's colorless hair. They wore a random assortment of chain mail and furs though three had Roman armor, which they had probably taken from fallen victims for spoils. They were like bears, rough and wild, but strong all the same, terrifying to behold. With a roar, they leaped at us and we fought a long, hard struggle.

I quickly lost sight of my sister and Ivan amid the fighting, but Arthur, Alfred, and I stayed standing fighting back to back, slashing cutting, and blocking. Many fell to our blades, but there were just too many. As I stabbed a Vandal, another stepped forward to take his place and I fought on and on with no rest. Oh Artemis, If only I could have trained more, I wouldn't be so tired!

Finally, when I was soaked to the bone with blood, both my own and my enemies, I sank to the ground, to weary to keep fighting. The battle had slowed, and now only 30 or so Vandals remained. Quickly seeing I was exhausted, a warrior, the silver haired one I had noticed earlier, grabbed me roughly and took my dagger, turning its blood-soaked blade against me and pinning my arms to my side. I struggled weakly, but was too tired to do much but annoy him. He laughed and yelled out, "Brother! It seems I've caught myself a little mare! Shall we stop this fighting, less her blood be spilled?" A rough cheer went up from the Vandals and my friends stopped fighting, shocked that I had been caught so easily. A tall man with slicked-back blond hair and icy blue eyes stepped forward from the crowd surrounding my father. With a dismissive wave of his hand, the remaining warriors circled tied up my friends. Ivan tried to bite one of them, but was punched roughly in the jaw for his troubles. He growled and glared at his captors, but did not try to again.

The blue-eyed man waved for his apparent brother to bring me forward. My captor did so and the man's icy stare looked me up and down. Slowly, he smiled a flash of his sharp white teeth that reminded me of a wolf's grin. I shivered.

"What do we have here? A little girl playing warrior?" He said, his voice rough and his accent heavy. He turned to my father, "You will not struggle and you will let us do as we please and take what we want. Break any of these rules and my brother here will kill the little mare. Do you understand?" Father nodded reluctantly. The man gave a curt nod, and then turned to address the Vandals. Too late, I saw the knife coming. Father had managed to get a dagger out of his boot and had jumped up and, before his guard could do anything, he slashed at the leader of the Vandals. Before he could make contact, a knife flew through the air. It was like time had slowed down as I watched the blade tear through my Father's ribs, impaling him straight though his heart. I screamed and fought to reach my Father, suddenly finding new energy. I stomped on my captor's foot, making him yowl in pain and let me go. Breaking free, I ran to Father's motionless form, sobbing. He couldn't be gone, He couldn't! I turned to the blue-eyed man, my fury tripling as I saw the look on his face. He was frowning slightly, like my father's death meant as little as a beetle crushed under his foot.

"May you rot in the deepest part of Hades and may Pluto see over your agony in the Fields of Punishment! May Cerberus use you as a toy and rip your skin from your bone even as you burn in the hottest flames of hell and may all your family to come suffer the plague!" I spat even as I prayed to Mercury for the safe travel of my father's soul to the Isle of the Blessed.

The blue eyed man's frown turned into a smirk, "I'm afraid we don't share the same gods, little mare. If it means anything though, your father is sure to join Odin in Valhalla and enjoy the Never-Ending Feast, for he died a warrior's death."

I growled, but said nothing. Again the silver-haired man locked my arms behind my back and pressed the dagger to my neck. I did not struggle, just kept my eyes to the floor, not willing to meet the gaze of my friends, or even accept my sister's sobs. We were led outside, where 5 of our horses where waiting. I almost smiled. At least the slaves had – Wait! The slaves! We still had a chance! I whistled, low and soft. Two raven calls answered almost immediately. I caught my sister's eye and she smiled, straitening slightly as though filled with new strength. Yes, we still had hope! This time Rose whistled, sharp and piercing.

It seemed as though the plants came alive around us as 60 or more slaves stepped from the foliage, all armed to the teeth, light from the lanterns flashing off metal. I spotted Miss Hungary, in the front. Meeting my eye, she cawed like a raven then tossed all of us weapons. I looked to Arthur, who had been bound to me, "Ready to fight?" I whispered.

"Ready as ever," He grinned.

"Good," I said. "Just let me have the boss!"

Yelling our battle cries, our army rushed forward, killing many Vandals before they knew what hit them. Rose and Alfred had managed to take horses, Rose on Chaos and Alfred on a large mare called Storm, and were trampling their enemies even as they slashed with their swords. I fought with a pike-sword Arthur and Ivan on either side of me, and we made quick work of the Vandal's in our way as we sliced and jabbed a clear path through the ranks. Soon, the only Vandals left were the blue eye leader and his colorless brother. We formed a circle around them, blocking off any escape. I stepped forward.

"It seems this little mare has concerned the big bears." I said. Pointing at the blond, I barked, "What are your names?"

He paused, eyeing me wearily, ". . . I am Ludwig Beilschmidt. My brother is Gilbert,"

I waved to Rose and she stepped forward. "What should we do with them?" I asked. Rose thought for a moment then sighed.

"I honestly can't bring myself to kill them. Too many have died already."

Arthur stepped forward, "If I may, I think I have an idea. Why don't you keep them as slaves? We've lost a few, and this way there strength won't be wasted," He suggested.

"That's a great idea, Arthur!" I smiled. "They're first job will be to clean up this mess." I motioned at the blood-soaked ground around us.

Ivan, Alfred, and Miss Hungary walked up. "Miss Hungary, if you will, please take these two and lock them in the stables until we're ready for them," Rose asked.

"Of course Mistress," Miss Hungary said, then left to do here assigned task, having Antonio, one of the stronger slaves, tie the ex-Vandals up.

Suddenly I slumped to the ground, tired out of my mind. Rose crouched down next to me, as well as Arthur. I looked up at Rose. "What are we supposed to do now? The house is a mess, and even though we can still work here and own the stables, all the money will go to Uncle Matthew and we'll be in his custody now that. . . now that Fathers gone." I nearly choked, fighting back tears. Even though Uncle Matthew was kind, he wouldn't allow the kind of freedom father had allowed.

Rose stayed quiet for a moment. "Really don't know sis. I guess we'll just have to fix things the best we can. . ."

I caught the three boys sharing a look. My suspicion tripled as Ivan leaned down and took my sisters hands in his own.

"I know these aren't the best of circumstances but . . . Rose, I've loved you for a while now and. . . I've just been too much of a wimp to say this but . . . Rose Venn Gorgon, Daughter of Hercules, will you marry me?" He asked.

Rose nearly cried in delight, "Oh Ivan! Of course I'll marry you!" She kissed him and hugged him tight.

Grinning Mischievously, Alfred Started to walk off saying, "It seems Venus has graced us tonight, but I think Apollo is in need of my services. I'm 'gonna go see if I can help the doctors~!"

Above me, Arthur coughed and looked away, though I caught a hint of a blush, "Why don't we leave these two alone."

I nodded and he took my hand, helping me up. We walked to the garden and sat on a bench under the old willow tree, the moonlight dappling us with silver splotches as it filtered through the leaves.

"So . . ." Arthur started, tracing the lines on my palm.

"So?" I asked. He blushed fiercely and before I knew what was happening, his lips crashed into mine. I yelped, shocked at his suddenness, and the fact that the force he had created from crashing into me had knocked us off the bench and to the ground. He had landed on top of me, his hands on either side of my head and his knees straddling my hips.

"Ow. . . That wasn't smart," He moaned, rubbing the back of his head.

"I'll say," I laughed, it was just too funny.

He gasped and opened his eyes, "Oh! Are you hurt I'm so sorry! You probably hate me now. . . I'm sorry, I'll leave. . ."

I shook my head, "No, It was just a little unexpected, that's all."

"Oh. . ." he said again. We stayed like that awkwardly for a few minutes, not meeting each other's eye. Suddenly laughter rang from the bushes behind the willow.

"Arthur! Either ask her out and kiss her or get off the poor girl! Don't just sit on her like a lump of coal!" Alfred and Miss Hungary stepped out from the plants, laughing and giggling. Arthur and I blushed bright red and Arthur tossed a rock at the two onlookers. They dogged and ran away, still laughing.

Arthur looked back down at me and grinned shyly. "Should we follow their advice?" he asked.

"Yeah; you should get off me," I replied knowing full well what he meant.

He shook his head, a little confidence returning, "Nuh-uh. I'm not letting you up till you agree to be my girlfriend!"

I rolled my eyes, but smiled, "Fine." I kissed him quickly then pushed him off me. He stood up, grinning stupidly, then took my hand as we walked back to the house.

"You know, I'm really surprised no one herd the fighting"

"That is odd, isn't it?"

"Must have been the gods. . ."

"Must have been."

In the stables:

There was a flash of light as the copies of Alfred and Miss Hungary returned to their true forms. Venus smiled, "We did a good job here tonight."

"Yes," Neptune replied, "But the loss of the father was a heavy price."

"All is fair in love and war!" She grinned.

"Sometimes I am not so sure. . ."

"What is done is done and like Ludwig said, 'he died a warrior's death'. We can put in a word with Pluto for the Isle. Now, let's get back to Mt. Olympus before Jupiter notices and the mortals wake up." With another flash of light, the gods were gone.

Alfred walked groggily out of the stable, "Did I just miss something?"

WARNING: AU, Blood, and cheeseiness
This was a assingment for History class, it was suposed to be 150 words. This is more than 150 words.
This went from comedy to horror to romance, all my favriote genras, and I'm acttuly very proud. Aora is actully from one of my other stories, and a diffrent character altogether, but I didn't want to make another OC for just one short story.

If you don't know the real names:
Russia: Ivan ^J^
Arthur: England/Britan/Iggy/UK/This-guy-has-to-many-names-mabye-thats-why-he's-such-a-good-spy
Alfred: America!
Father/Hercules: A more war-like Greece
Ludwig/The blue-eyed man: Germany
Gillbert: Prussia
Miss Hungary: Hungary
Little slave boy: Chibi Italy
Antonio: Spain
Uncle Matthew: Canada
(c) Hetalia

If you don't know your Roman/Greek gods, shame on you! Go read Percy Jackson! Greece will refuse to come to your drawing/ writings if you don't!

Rose and Aora (c) Me