Sorry for the wait! Oh and sorry if the formatting on this is weird.. FF is messed up I guess. I'll fix it later

They sat on a hill where they could see the lights in the house windows, and waited until all the lights were gone. And then waited a little more, just for good measure. Esca spent the hours pacing, and now was stumbling tiredly with a noticeable limp.

Esca had had a chance to explain the plan to Tanca, and now the boy was waiting for them exactly as expected. He sat, silent as a shadow, and only Esca's indication told Marcus he was there at all. Marcus found himself wondering again at the stealth of these people. They are hunters first and foremost, after all, like wolves that strike quickly and deadly; not blundering soldiers with brute force, like himself and his people.

Esca's shadow joined Tanca's, and they conspired in British for a few moments while Marcus only half listened, keeping watch.

From what he caught of the conversation, Esca was telling Tanca that he himself was to be the one to go get the dagger. It was a matter of pride, and, if he got caught, he would be glad to "slit those fat blubbering Roman throats". Meanwhile, Tanca and Marcus should meet him around the back. Tanca had tried to convince Esca he should go with him and help, and Marcus had demanded from Esca that he go with him and help, but Esca would have none of it.

Armed with the whereabouts of the dagger, Esca shimmied up the wall, through a window and out of sight. Marcus's gaze followed after him, anger and worry warring in him. Tanca watched him watch Esca with a strange look in his eye.

"Are you still my brother's slave?"

Marcus looked back at him, distracted. "Yeah."

Tanca regarded him thoughtfully for a moment longer. "You don't act like it."

Esca crept along the hallway, eyes darting to every shadow and play of light. The walls were lined with exotic looking things—rich, foreign, proud, stolen. The last in the long line of objects was his knife, resting on a small pillow atop a painted pedestal. The paintings were new—Esca could tell because the subject was a new one, and Esca shook with anger as he looked at it. It was of figures clashing in battle, and it was very clear which of the figures were Roman and which were British: the Romans still had heads on and guts inside.

Esca grabbed the dagger and fought the urge to shove the pedestal out a window.

Marcus and Tanca had already brought the horses up to the back of the house and were waiting for him when he came out. Tanca slid further back on Esca's horse so that his brother could hop up behind it's withers; the two of them being lighter than Marcus.

Marcus met Esca's gaze. "Did you get it?"

Esca grinned manically and flipped it between his fingers quickly before putting it away and kicking his horse on. Marcus followed after, thinking of how little he'd seen Esca smile lately and shocked himself realizing what he'd do to see more.

At a canter or even fast trot, depending on how the horses last, it would take them at least a whole day to get back to the Wall, and that was without stopping for anything. He looked up, judging the time, and didn't want to think how much harder it would be in the daylight. He thought they must have at least four more hours of darkness, but that would still put them with almost a whole day tomorrow.

Two hours later, Marcus realized he'd been expecting way too much from their horses: they were already huffing at a trot, and walking as much as their riders allowed. As much as it frustrated them, there really was no helping it, unless they wanted to abandon the animals. So they trudged into the dawn, and watched over their shoulders as the sun rose and the town came alive.

By midmorning they hadn't stopped or been stopped by anyone. They found that riding intently and quietly, and not interacting with anyone made them seem like they were on a mission and not to be interrupted, and for the most part, people left them alone. No one had recognized them yet, and Marcus was counting their luck. He knew it wouldn't last too long; it was still very early in the morning and their particular pursuers would probably have slept in, and be just nearly awakening, with horrible hangovers, Marcus hoped.

They'd wake up and, probably the first thing to notice would be Tanca's absence, which the other slaves would find first. Depending on their loyalty, it might not be very long at all before one of them told their masters about it. Then, again it would most likely be a slave that first found the empty pedestal where the dagger should have been. Connecting the two, Gavrus would think Tanca had run off with it, but if he were smart at all he would, unfortunately, connect it to Esca and Marcus as well. After all, Tanca had been there for who knows how long and he hadn't taken it, but the night that his brother shows up, and they have an obvious reunion, it gets stolen. Yes, they will be on their tails before noon, Marcus thought grimly.

An hour later, he knew he'd been right. They had made it to the outskirts of Calleva, and their horses were drooping, but a commotion could be heard from the hills behind them. As they stopped to look back, they had a view of the town and could barely (but clearly) make out a loud band of men on galloping horses came barreling through the crowd, which parted quickly in confusion.

Esca cursed, and wheeled his horse around, digging in his heels and leaning in as the animal gave a leap forward. Marcus followed, and they raced as far as their adrenaline fueled mounts would take them at that pace, but they'd been riding non-stop for near seven hours, and the horses just couldn't do it.

Esca was kicking his animal in frustration, to no avail, when Marcus stopped him.

"It's no use, Esca. You'll beat it to death. We have to try something else."

"What else, Marcus?" Esca rounded on him in anger. "Do you suggest we stand and fight?"

"Of course not. We're too outnumbered." He thought quickly, running a hand through his hair and trying not to panic. "Come on, follow me. They still have to make it through the whole town and they haven't spotted us. We'll hide."

He made their way to a small inn, trying to be as nonchalant and normal looking as possible. They tied the horses at the front and hustled inside as fast as they could without bursting through the front doors in desperation.

The inn was just a small dining room with a few rooms for guests' sleeping quarters upstairs. Marcus told Esca and Tanca to sit and wait for him as he went to get a room, and to not let anyone get a good look at them in case they were asked after.

Unfortunately, Marcus realized too late that they no longer had any money. The tired looking man at the counter looked unimpressed and made it clear they'd be given no breaks. Marcus cursed mentally; he could easily pull the Centurion card and get them rooms, but of course he didn't want to do that.

The innkeeper finally agreed to give them a room and hot meals in exchange for one of the horses. Marcus knew they were being horribly cheated, and, more so, it was a bad move. There'd be no way to outrun them without both horses: one could never carry all three of them. But this hideaway was also necessary. It was the lesser of two evils, and they had no choice. He told the man they'd take their meals up to the room, not wanting to chance being caught eating in the dining hall if Gavrus showed up looking for them.

They trudged up the stairs, carrying all their bags and gear (and all the luggage from Marcus's horse, which would be staying), and collapsed into the room. They were all more tired than they realized, having finally slowed down enough to feel it, and no on even complained when the room only had one bed.

They sat by the fire Marcus made and ate their meals. The food was good, though it could have been raw rat and they probably would have eaten it, they were so drained.

Within the hour, Tanca was asleep on the floor, curled in their bags and the heat from the fireplace. Marcus went out while Esca finished eating and crept to the top of the stair landing. He'd thought he'd heard something, and, to his dismay, he'd been right. Hidden from behind the stair wall, he watched as Gavrus and his men clambered into the inn, demanding information. As they went up to the counter and the innkeeper, Marcus knew they were doomed; this wasn't that big of a city and surely they would be remembered. He was just about to turn back, gather up Esca and Tanca, and slip out a window or something, when something caught his attention.

From his angle he couldn't see the counter, but the voice of the innkeeper was different. He risked a glance further and saw that it wasn't the innkeeper at all. It was a younger man, a boy really, attending the counter now. It must be the innkeeper's son, and the boy was stammering confusedly at their questions, assuring them he hadn't seen anyone they were looking for come in that he'd seen. Marcus thanked the gods, and couldn't help the grin that split his face as he watched Gavrus and his men leave.

As he walked back to their room, Marcus felt happy; stupidly happy, and he distantly realized it was probably because he was so tired. He shouldn't be this happy; they weren't out of the clear. Gavrus would be searching the town and waiting for them. But for once, it seemed they had been thrown a scrap of luck, and it meant they could rest in relative peace.

He came in to find both brothers asleep, Esca on the bed. He closed the door and walked in as quietly as he could. After looking around in vain for a blanket, or even a bag to sleep on as a pillow, (Tanca had claimed them all), he curled up on the floor beside the bed, shivering and hoping sleep would find him quickly. It didn't. But soon he heard a shuffle and Esca's hand on his shoulder.

"What are you doing? Come up." Esca whispered, beckoning him. "It's cold on that floor, and you're not a child."

Marcus felt like he should argue, but felt more strongly that he just really, really didn't want to. Esca made room for him in the bed, which was going to be a tight fit, but after a few moments of turning and shuffling, they slotted together and there was enough room and warmth to send them off within minutes. The last thing Marcus remembered was the smell of Esca's hair and the thought that he was still stupidly happy.

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