Disclaimer - Ecce Romani isn't mine. If it were, it would be less about the Cornelii and more about Davus, of course!

I tried to keep this as historically accurate as possible, but I did have to take liberties in some places. Historical notes are at the end, to provide some explanations and whatnot. Enjoy!

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Part I - Arrival

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The wheels of the cart bumped over the semi-flattened stones sticking up from the road leading to the villa. Davus sat in the back of it, looking out at the fields which passed by slowly. "If I see one more field, I'll go mad," he grumbled.

The Greek man who sat next to him smiled. "You'll go mad then; this type of place is nothing but fields and the odd villa."

Davus replied with a grunt, and stared out across yet another field at the red roof of the villa at the end of it. Although it was past midday, the day was hotter than the hottest day of the year back in Britain; sweat rolled down Davus's back and he felt his skin prickle like it had done many summers before when he and his sister had played naked outdoors. He had been a free Briton then; now, he was a slave in Italy, newly owned by a short, olive-skinned aristocrat named Titus Cornelius.

Davus would have been happy to sit in silence for the ride, but the Greek man kept talking to him, asking him questions about his name, his age, his birthplace, and his education.

Despite Davus's curt answers, the Greek wouldn't give up. "Ah, so you're from the wild parts of Britain then. A true Celt," he said, beaming as if this information were a valuable treasure that had been bestowed on him. "Personally, I'm from Rhodes. My name is Eucleides. I'm a teacher… Or, I was a teacher before I was taken. Not that I mind much; the merchant told me I will probably become a tutor for a wealthy family. Eh, I was never much of a worker or fighter anyway."

Davus glanced at Eucleides's untoned arms and gesturing hands. "You can say that again," he muttered.

Eucleides chattered on and Davus did his best to ignore him.

Eventually, the cart clattered up the path to a large, yellow villa. It stopped in front of it, where a few chickens scrambled away from it squawking. David's new owner, Titus Cornelius, dismounted from the front of the cart. The aging bald man who had been driving the cart got down too. He ushered down Davus, Eucleides, and the seven Thracian slaves that had been bought too, and made them stand in a line in front of the villa's outside wall.

He began to inspect the slaves, carefully feeling their muscles, looking at their teeth, and asking them about their skills. The Thracians were all able-bodied and good farmers; Davus had been trained as a warrior, but he had often grown food for his family back in Britain. The man inspecting him laughed hearing this, and told Davus that if he could grow anything up there in the North, he would find farming here in the fertile South child's play.

As the man moved on to interrogate Eucleides, a young woman slipped out of the main entrance and came to stand next to Titus Cornelius. Davus couldn't help but look at her; she was small, graceful, and delicate, with large, dark eyes, tiny feet, and plump, curved lips. Her tunic and stola hid her body for the most part, but he could tell from his previous experience with women that despite her smallness, she had an hourglass figure and perfectly formed breasts. She, like most Roman women, was strange to him; the fine ladies of Rome were the opposite of the thick-boned, physically powerful women Davus was used to seeing in Britain. Yet, while he preferred the women of his native land, Davus couldn't help but think that this fragile creature was, in her own way, beautiful. For one heart-stopping second, her gaze met his. Then, as he stood there shocked, she smiled and looked away, entwining her little fingers with Gaius Cornelius's for a second before turning and going back into the villa. Davus exhaled slowly. So, this lady was his master's wife, then.

His thoughts were interrupted by the investigating man finishing with Eucleides, turning to Cornelius, and announcing, "Sir, they are all in fine health. These can go straight out to the fields." He signaled to the Thracians, before turning to Davus. "This one is inexperienced, but he is strong and intelligent. You could keep him for the house or send him to the fields as you desire." Lastly, he turned to Eucleides, and said, "This one is, of course, a scholar. He seems well equipped to teach young masters Titus and Gaius, but you'll have to investigate further, Sir."

Titus Cornelius nodded approvingly. "Thank you, Acacius. Get someone to find tunics for those seven and take them to the fields." As Acacius set off with the Thracians in tow, Titus Cornelius turned to Davus and Eucleides. He considered them for a few minutes before pointing at Davus. "You. How well can you read? How good is your Latin?"

Davus looked straight at him, unintimidated. "I can read well enough, and my Latin is sufficient for taking orders in the field," he said.

Titus shook his head. "You are too modest. Your Latin is quite good. In any case, you weren't cheap. I'm not wasting you in the fields all day." He tapped the fingers of his left hand against his chin in thought. "Acacius, my overseer, has been looking for younger men to train as his successors, and he seems to have taken a shine to you," he said. "Stay here in the courtyard. When Acacius comes back, tell him that I said to show you around the villa and farm before setting you to work." Being done with Davus, he turned to Eucleides. "As for you, follow me." He set off into the house.

NOTES:

* To give you an idea of how much Davus and Eucleides cost, I worked out a simple dollar to sestersius conversion rate. I used the price of bread as a base. What I got was that there should be about five sestersii to the dollar. So, Davus, who cost 5,000 sestersii is worth about $1,000, and Eucleides, who cost 30,000 sestersii is worth about $6,000.I couldn't find any well-sourced information on what happens when a new slave arrives at his master's place, so I had to use my imagination a little.

* Acacius is unnamed in Ecce Romani, and is only referred to once or twice as Titus's vilicus. Not that Ecce Romani even says a lot about Titus, as the story there is really about Gaius's family.

Keep reading for Part 2 of Chapter 1. Please let me know how you think things are going so far! Concrit is love.

Also, if you review this for me, I'll gladly review anything of yours in return. Because I love my readers more than Aurelia loves dormice! (Ecce Romani II anyone? No?)