Marcus inhaled deeply. Leaning forward to plant a kiss on Esca's forehead he whispered, "I love you, lead and I will follow." Esca could see that the

concession was hard for Marcus. He really is the perfect Roman, the wiry man thought with a mixture of disappointment and fondness. The clearing of a

throat alerted the men to Keita's presence. Shooting them a curious look, Keita spoke in heavily accented Latin. "Thank you for the meat, if you could

point any followers in the wrong direction? I'll be on my way." Marcus grunted, "We can do better than that, come on chit, we'll escort you to your home."

Eyes flashing, Keita looked as if she was about to refuse when she paused. "Thank you, that would be helpful," she said thoughtfully. "My sisters will repay

you two when we reach my home." If they do not kill us all first, she thought. Esca smiled and said to her in Pictish, "As Marcus' horse is burdened enough

already you may share my saddle." Keita smiled and looked inquisitively between the two men. "Esca...You say you are not a slave? How then do you end

up with the Roman and a clipped ear?" Keita wondered, jumping as Marcus replied in Pictish, "It is a long tale and we have far to go if we are to journey

back to our farm to prepare and then reach the far north. We shall tell you on the way home as long as you, in turn, tell us your story." Keita laughed to

herself, she should've known the hulking Roman would surprise her. "By the way, I prefer Marcus to 'that Roman'."

The three set out, horses trotting in the cool midday sun. Marcus pulled up next to Esca and Keita, "Esca I believe the story starts with you," he said,

looking carefully into Esca's face to try and make sure his love was okay. Esca smiled at Marcus and nodded subtly.

"My father was the chief, Lord of Five Hundred Spears, in a village just south of the Wall. I was the youngest son, my older brother and father's spear

bearer and chariot driver. I was 17 summers when I was taken. My village had only just recovered from the salted fields of the first revolt. My aunt had

been raped by soldiers and my grandfather led the led the men in retaliation. We were stronger then and took out a good many of their men but we would

have eventually broken under their never-ending, well disciplined hosts. We managed to bargain with them and they did not slaughter those men that

lived. There was a bad harvest that year, a false spring during planting and an early frost. Still the Romans taxed and when we could not pay they

demanded our sons as soldiers and daughters as servants. The elders questioned the men's manhood for giving up their children and recounted their

almost victory years ago. My father knew that hungry and weakened as we were there would be no chance of winning but the clan would not listen. We

prepared as best we could but the Gods were not watching that day, the day my village was slaughtered. I was knocked unconscious by a shield to the

head along with a side wound but I lived and was taken captive by the romans. The screams of the women as the men had their way with them and the

sobs of the children watching nearly drove me mad but I had no room for pity or thoughts of suicide, soldiers are not picky in their choice of bed mates,

especially with so few of us left alive. The road to Calleva was a long one. I was sold as a farm-hand to a man outside the village but my rebellion and

attempted escape quickly won me a lashing to near death and a sale to the coliseum there. I would have died at the hands of a gladiator had Marcus not

turned the will of the crowd. I was sure the circus master, Beppo would sell me to the mines but he got a better offer from Marcus, who needed a body

slave because of his injured leg."

-"My leg was injured in battle at the fort I commanded in Isca Dumnoniorum," Marcus put in. "I didn't know what in Esca called out to me that day but for

some reason I had an inexplicable urge to save him."

"I would have ran away but I owed him my life now, my honor would not allow me to forsake that bond. I hated him. Not for who he was and what he

was a part of, that I could have handled, but for making me feel in ways I knew I shouldn't feel. Not for this...Roman, a man who owned me, at that. But

Branwyn does not care for such worldly bonds and titles. Marcus treated me as an equal, a friend, in a place and position when he did not have to. It

wasn't love at first sight, it started out merely as respect, except for a few lustful imaginings. And then it turned to friendship and then on the moors of

Briton, a now freed man, with the excitement of the hunt in my heart, it turned to love." Esca paused and looked mischievously at Marcus' blushing

cheeks. "It took him a while to realize it though." Marcus bit the inside of his lip and shook his head, butting in,

"I am sorry, my friend has no skill at story telling, he has completely skipped all the important parts of the story. Let me see if I can do a better job, where

were we? You know the tales of the ninth legion? My father was a commander with them when their eagle and men were lost to your tribes. While that

battle brought your people great honor, My family was shamed at the loss of Rome's honor when my father was supposed to be protecting it. When I

heard the rumors that the eagle had been spotted north of wall I knew this was my only chance to regain my family's honor. With Esca accompanying me

as my guide and friend we found a man who could tell us more, Guern. He pointed us to the village where the eagle was kept. We befriended the chief of

the clan and soon found our chance to regain the eagle. I did not want to betray our friendship but I like to think they understood it wasn't personal. So

when I saw our chance we stole it and ran. We barely escaped but escape we did. As for Esca, our story took a bit longer to develop. I had loved him since

I saw him in the arena, so proud and fierce, so alive. I did not think that Esca could ever feel the same about a roman and so I kept my feelings a secret,

denied them. I told myself that I would marry a nice girl, our neighbor, Cottia, and I would come to forget these foolish feelings. Cottia was very young and

infatuated, but it only took her a couple of days to realize what i was trying so hard to hide. She had no wish to be married off to some other roman and

give up what little freedom she possessed, so she ran off without a word except a note, saying not to worry she would be fine, there was a friend of hers in

her old village who would not betray her. Rome awarded me with land and money and Esca with Roman citizenship. It was one night in a tent on our new

farm that I tried to tell him how I felt."

"He was stuttering on and on about how he meant no disrespect and just forget it, he was drunk. He shut up eventually," Esca teased. Marcus smiled,

"Well, Ketia, now you know our story, what is yours."

"Well," began Ketia and she would have continued if a massive wolf hound had not bounded up, circling Marcus' horse excitedly. The horse merely snorted

and stamped a foot, as if use to such foolish antics by fully grown wolves. "Sa, sa, Cub, you are startling our guest," Esca admonished while Marcus tried to

push Cub away from the trampling hooves of the horse. Ketia smiled, "that is no cub, that is a wolf." She broke off when the horses crested the hill,

revealing rolling hills of farmland, crops newly harvested. In a nearby corral beautiful horses cantered around, nosing the adolescents away from the

stream running through it when they had more than their fill. "Welcome to our home," Marcus said and rode ahead towards the modest villa looking out

over it all.

Okay well that's it. I know it's not the most interesting chapter but oh well. I decided to switch the tense because I thought this flowed better also look

what I found online, .com/p/27004-X/I know this is book verse but it is interesting to see that Cottia and Cradoc were originally in the movie, hope you

enjoy, I was feeling that I was making Esca too talkative but towards the end of the book he was whistling and light hearted so maybe he's a changed

man :) let me know what you think sorry for the delay

*Branwyn-celtic love goddess