A/N So, I know it's been a long time since I wrote any of this, but because I got a few reviews (you guys are awesome and the main reason I write!) I got another chapter done for you! I have to warn you though, I am typically a very slow writer...snails are outstripping me constantly! And (ironically) with the end of the semester coming up, I'll probably have less time to write (because my family always wants me to spend time with them over breaks) so I probably won't get the next chapter up till some time after break. But I hope you enjoy it, and, as always, let me know what you think!
Disgustedly, Lucilla slit one eye open as the blinding sun streamed through the curtains around her bed. She had been having a delightful dream but the cursed sun had ruined it and now she could not remember it. She sighed, stretched her arms, and yawned. Now for another dull day in Hispania. Then, with a sudden thrill, she remembered last night and a brilliant smile filled her face. She sprang out of bed and spun about in giddy circles. She proceeded to throw the curtains open and bask in the warm light. When her slave entered she spun about,
"Ah, there you are! I've been waiting forever! Quickly, I must get dressed."
"Yes my Lady." The slave had come prepared, carrying a simple white tunic, that fastened at the shoulder with a bronze broach. Lucilla's face clouded over in dismay,
"Oh no! That will never do. Bring my purple silk."
"Yes my Lady. Although I don't believe your father is having anyone over today." Lucilla smirked coyly,
"I know he's not. But who said I'm not?" The slave's eyes opened with wonder.
"Is it that Lieutenant?"
"It may or may not be," Lucilla chuckled.
"You know I don't like this my Lady. It feels wrong you know, and without even telling your father."
"Be quiet slave! Who are you to tell me what I can or cannot do? I am a Princess of Rome!"
"Mea Culpa," The girl bowed in a posture of humility.
"Oh, stop sniveling and get the dress already." The slave wasted no time. When Lucilla was ready, she idled down to breakfast where she found her father.
"Good morning, Lucilla." Then, noticing her gown, he added, "Are you going somewhere today?"
"Good morning. No, I'm not going anywhere."
"Well, I hope you don't mind, I'm going to be out most of the day, at a meeting with some Senators." Lucilla smiled a little secret smile.
"Oh that's alright, after all, you are the Emperor." She replied, trying to sound as if she minded his absence terribly. Of course nothing was more pleasing to her.
"Very good."
Her father left soon after. She watched from the window in the front room as his litter departed. After that moment, the seconds dragged by like hours. She tried to sit but found herself unable to for more than a few minutes. She paced, but having her back to the window for any length of time was unendurable. She ended up settling for standing at the widow, while drumming her fingers rhythmically against the pane. The sun traveled high into the crystal blue dome of the Hispanian sky and her slave urged her to eat something but still Lucilla refused to leave her post at the window. One, two, then three more hours slid by and a sinking disappointment began to creep in.
"And he said he'd come today," she murmured, nearly in tears. Her head ached and the sun was uncomfortably warm on her face. And of course, that was the moment he decided to appear. Riding up the road on one of the most beautiful black stallions she had ever seen and leading and equally exquisite chestnut mare beside him. Instantly, all imagined transgressions of tardiness were forgotten. She wondered if it was improper to run out and greet him, even as her feet were hastening toward the door. She made a compromise and walked slowly out. However, she could not resist letting a musical laugh ring out and calling,
"You know, I'd nearly given up on you coming!" He grinned and closed the gap between them before swinging easily out of the saddle.
"I'm sorry if I kept you waiting." He bowed gallantly and kissed her hand.
"Don't worry, it's not like I didn't have other occupations." She almost couldn't resist laughing at the absurdity of the lie. "But who is this lovely lady?" She asked, stroking the mare's nose, effectively changing the subject before he could ask her what had kept her so occupied all day. He beamed with pride,
"That is Velox. You will not find a faster mare in the empire."
"I don't doubt it, she's lovely. And what about him? Is he faster?" He smiled,
"Only a little, but we will make sure you can keep up, won't we Immitis?" He addressed the horse and it nickered and stamped its agreement.
"Oh ho! You may know the horses, Lieutenant, but you do not known this rider. I challenge you to a race!" She grinned defiantly.
"I dare not refuse!" He laughed. The sound made something in her chest tie into a tight knot that radiated warmth to everything in her being. And when he took her hand in his to help her into her saddle, it was like his touch was magnetic and her hand had been made to fit into his. She let her small, delicate fingers linger in his calloused hand a moment longer than she should have, reveling in the roughness and strength. He mounted Immitis and asked with mock ceremony, "The challenger must declare the ground rules. Where is the finish line?" She giggled.
"Do you see that willow over there?"
"The one across the wheat field?"
"Yes, by the stream. That's where we'll finish."
"Alright. Three...two..." She sprang forward. "One! You cheated!" He yelled, as he spurred his horse into motion. Lucillia could only giggle more then she was forced to hold her breath, awed at the speed of the animal she was flying with. The golden wheat rushed by like a breeze. It was a few moments before she even thought about Maximus, but when the wheat to her left was mowed down by a great set of thundering hooves she was alerted to his presence.
"Cheating never pays princess!" He smiled wickedly as his horse began pulling ahead of hers. Even the fact that Lucilla was madly in love with him did not dull her desire to beat him, and beat him definitively. So instead of wasting energy on an answer, she leaned forward further and whispered,
"Faster!" In Velox's ear. And if she thought she had been going fast before, now the horse accelerated so her hooves seemed barely to skim the ground. The willow was only one hundred yards away, now fifty, now twenty-five, now she was even with Maximus, now she was passing him...the tree...she had won! He came in a split second behind her. She smiled, breathless but happy, cheeks red and hair an absolute mess. She didn't known it, but he thought she must be the most perfect woman he'd ever seen.
"Well fought," he extended his hand, with just a hint of admiration in his voice. She took it, coloring a bit more with pleasure and beaming.
"Why thank you!" He couldn't resist a barb though,
"Although I won't forget what happened at the beginning." She tried to look offended,
"How impertinent! I can hardly help that I have quick reflexes." He grinned wryly,
"Perhaps too quick."
"I'm hot, let's rest here a while." So he tethered the horses to the tree and they strolled in the shade along the bank of the stream. "So Lieutenant, tell me about yourself, I hardly know anything about you, except that you own the loveliest horses I have ever seen."
"There isn't much to tell. I was born here, as the son the the governor, I've lived here all my life until I joined the army several years ago and I have a farm here..." he trailed off, unsure of what else to say.
"Do you like it in my father's regiment? I think it must be an exciting life."
"Yes it is, and I very much like the campaigns and seeing other parts of the world, but if I've been gone long I begin to miss this place." She took in the scene in all its beauty, the green and silvery-white birch trees swaying the the breeze, the crystal clear stream stumbling and tripping over the red stones, and the strands of wheat tossing their heads like so many tiny golden horses. And the sun, smiling down on it all and wringing earthy fragrance out of everything.
"I can see why," she breathed with reverence. Then, thinking more she asked, "But what's it like before a battle? I've often wondered. Are you frightened?"
"Only a little. The funny thing is, the moment before a battle is always very still. And in that moment the fear and the nerves disappear, and you're thinking of your family, and your home and wondering how you ended up in all this carnage and bloodshed. But then you think of the enemy, and you think of your home and your family being destroyed and you know exactly why you're there. And not you're not there for yourself only, but for your emperor, and country and the glory of Rome. And then you're eager to fight, either to win renown or die in the attempt and your only fear is that you will fall short in some way." His eyes shone and the passion in his voice, when he spoke of Rome, thrilled her to her core.
"Oh what I would give to be there." They walked in silence for a while, both lost in their own world. The sun was Westering when he finally said,
"I must go, but I must thank you for one of the pleasantest afternoons I have spent in weeks." She smiled broadly,
"No, I must thank you! And the horses," she added, chuckling. They mounted and road back to the villa. As he rode off, she stood waving her hand, until he disappeared down the road.