"G-Gott, this thing is…" he stopped himself from finishing going to kill me, left with a cut off sentence as he wiped away the remains of his emptied breakfast, frowning at the mess he'd made in the atrium and calling a slave to deal with it. His sense of balance was hopelessly lost at this point, Aldrick carefully made his way back out to the garden, barely able to see his feet anymore. These days were passing too slowly. He yearned to be done with this nightmare.

It wasn't that the idea of having a child with Rome was that horrible. It was that the actual having of this parasite was horrible.

Germania understood why men weren't meant to go through this, now. Their bodies just couldn't handle the stress of it; his hips ached and knees faltered. He sat on a bench amongst the trees and wished he had the courage to leave this place and go back to his own men. Surely they were lost without him… but Aldrick would be lost without the bastard responsible for this, if he left. He couldn't be without Romulus anymore than he already was, patiently waiting for him to deal with his daily duties as the embodiment of an organized Nation.

It was lucky for him that this villa had such nice trees, it felt like home if he just closed his eyes and forgot what was going on. He fell asleep. Rome found him there a few hours later, finding the gall to sketch a picture of him on parchment before waking him up.

"Carissime, you shouldn't sleep out here…"

The blonde's face remained peaceful in sleep, barely rousing as his lover scooped him into his arms and carried him to the cot in his cubiculo. Rome doted for longer than he should've before leaving a note ("Smile when you wake up, I'm home") and going to finish up some work in the tablino. Aldrick did smile, if you could call it that, when he woke. He didn't need anything too… drastic, but his hormones were driving him up a wall. Germania thought of just waiting for Rome to come back to get him when it was dinnertime, but fidgeted uncomfortably only a few minutes into that plan.

The sky oranged with the falling sun, Aldrick hurried to the study and wrapped his arms around Rome from behind, resting his head on the nearest shoulder, "I did smile…" he murmured, not smiling anymore.

"Did you? I'm glad…" Romulus turned to catch his lips, oddly quiet, "Did you miss me?" Aldrick released him, walking to his front and sitting in his lap without a word, answering the question with another kiss. Rome was always one for more of that, returning the passion and pulling the blonde hair out of the way, "You did miss me, then?"

Germania frowned at him, but then leaned into him, grateful for something warm to hold onto (as irksome as physical contact was, he couldn't help but love the Roman's warmth), "…just a little…"

Kissing his hair softly, Rome grinned, "That's more than yesterday, love," he grabbed from his desktop a silken bit of fabric, pulling his hair back into a loose ponytail before there could be any protests, tying it with a decent level of skill, "…yesterday, you threatened me with my own gladius…"

Blinking up at him, not having seen the pretty ribbon-esque cloth, Germania scowled even more, "…nh, you're lucky I didn't threaten your gladius with your gladius…" And reached to press his fingers against that particular appendage through the folds of his tunica and toga, watching his face for a reaction, a little smirk (almost vengeful, but too affectionate for that) played at his lips.

"Hn…" Rome squirmed, easily reacting to the touch, "H-hormones, yes?" He queried. This forwardness was something he'd been slowly getting used to.

Aldrick leaned up to latch onto the Roman's lip, biting harshly in affirmation. He didn't think he needed to say anything more, really, with someone like Rome. Gods, he didn't even really want to be ravished. He just wanted friction and release and he wanted it as soon as he could get it.

In retrospect, Rome really was the best one to handle him like this.

It was pitiful, how Germania let himself come to a state like this. He whined through his teeth as Rome took him on the desk, knocking tabulae and stili off and all over. They didn't even send the servi away, but they knew their master well enough to just block their ears. A few of the ancilla were just sad it wasn't them.

"Dinner," Aldrick demanded, sated but not fully satisfied, still half-clung to his lover's bare back. Rome huffed.

"You think only of yourself, 'rissime…" Germania nodded in response, trying to extricate his legs from the bizarre position they'd ended up in, "Your cries were lovely, but they probably deterred dinner…" The legs kicked at him, a little childishly, but luckily there was no strength left into them.

"Go tell them to start it, then, or I'll eat you," He growled. Romulus sighed, picking upself up off and away from the mess of their bodies, tugging his tunica back on and wandering off to the culina.

Germania sat up and shuffled a little. That sigh from Rome was no good, he thought, and it made him feel just the teensiest bit guilty. But the Roman was the inventor of orgies (well, that's what he'd been told, anyway, and he was inclined to believe it)! Surely he could handle some forceful come-ons? Aldrick sighed, covering himself up and testing his feet on the bench, not sure if his knees could hold him.

Maybe he should ask the Roman about it…? He didn't really want to. At all.

He ate all of the dinner, again, instead.

Note: I have no idea.