Something has gone wrong. Very wrong! Five of the Sailor Soldiers are in...Ancient Rome?!
And now we shall see the Roman adventures of Ami and Hotaru...
Sailor Moon belongs to Naoko Takeuchi, Toei Animation, DiC, and Cloverway, in that
order. I make no money by this. More's the pity.
All other characters _not_ taken from History are mine, and you must ask permission to
use them, if you can find a way of using them outside this.
_This_ is emphasis. *This* is thought.
Kudos to the movie Gladiator, which was the inspiration for this.
This chapter was originally to be titled "Rape", but as I wrote it, it didn't quite pan out the
way I meant it to, and the scene it would have cliffhanged on originally can be found in
it's entirety in the next chapter, which gets the original name.
And now, Scorpinac Fanfic Productions presents:
******************************************************************************
Sailor Moon
Roman Legends
by Scorpinac
Chapter 4: Hrisoula
When the light faded, the first thing Ami noticed was that it was suddenly daylight again,
when it had been early evening only moments before! The next thing was that she was sitting in
what appeared to be a small field of flowers. Finally, the only other person around was Hotaru,
looking as surprised as she was. Where were they? How did they get here? And how were they
going to get back? As those questions ran through her mind, Ami pulled herself back to a
standing position.
"Ami, where are we?" Hotaru asked aloud as she stood up herself.
"I'm not sure," Ami replied. "We could be anywhere. I wish I knew what that flash did."
"So what do we do?" Hotaru asked again.
"We start looking for help, I guess," Ami answered, and the two picked a direction and
started walking. After what felt like an hour, the two girls came up to what appeared to be a
small farm. Several stout men were hard at work in the fields, and some small children were
working with horses and cows and other assorted farm animals. The eldest child present, who
couldn't have been more than ten at best, saw them and handed the horse he was tending off to
the girl next to him, and walked up to them.
Ami felt herself begin to sweat bullets. The grown men were wearing shorts only, but the
children were all dressed in ancient Roman togas! The boy came up and stared at them curiously,
then spoke.
"Who are you?" he asked.
"Travelers," Ami said. "We're a little lost, could you tell us what part of the Empire
we're currently in?" *May as well confirm the theory now,* she thought.
"You're in the Estonian Province," the boy told them.
"Uh, Empire?" Hotaru quipped.
"Yes, Hotaru, Empire. As in the _Roman_ Empire, where we are _right now_," Ami told
her, inflecting key words. Hotaru's eyes went wide, and she turned on the young boy.
"Are we really in the Roman Empire?" she asked, incredulous.
"Yes, why are you so surprised?" he asked.
"Uh... no reason," Hotaru stumbled out, and Ami grabbed her and pulled her away. A few
moments later, the boy returned to tending his horse, and Ami turned to Hotaru.
"Okay, we've somehow been blown back in time almost two thousand years, and halfway
across the globe! How do you propose we get home?" Ami stated.
"Um, we could transform and try to contact Sailor Pluto," Hotaru suggested.
"Maybe, but right now the Time Gate would probably be guarded by one of Trista's
forebears, not Trista. So how would we explain ourselves to her?" Ami mused.
"Don't you think she'd believe the truth?" Hotaru asked.
"She might, but she might also think we're some sort of imposters who _stole_ the current
Mercury and Saturn's wands for their own ends! And that brings up another thought - if we
transform, what if that attracts the attention of the current Sailor Mercury and Sailor Saturn?
How would we convince _them_ we're their descendants without getting bombarded with a lot
questions we _can't_ and _shouldn't_ answer?!" Ami thought it out.
"So what do you think we should do?" Hotaru said.
"For now, we should probably wait, see if the others notice we're gone and come looking
for us, or figure out how to reverse whatever that machine did!" Ami answered. "And we should
get some period clothing before someone tries anything funny. In fact, I should probably hide my
hair."
"Your hair?"
"Blue hair isn't common in this time and country, Hotaru. I need to cover it up before
some slave trader turns me into a collector's item!" Ami explained.
"Oh, I didn't think of that. Slavery is legal in this time, isn't it?" Hotaru fretted.
"Come on," Ami said. The two moved around the farm until they saw a small house, and
found a path near it. They followed it for what felt like another two hours, then came upon a
small city. The buildings were all made of stone, ranging from one to four stories in height.
Some were white washed, others weren't, and from the distance it seemed to be bustling.
Being cautious, they moved around to the back of the nearest buildings, and scanned the
main road. Several tenders were selling their wares at stands up and down the road. The one that
caught Ami's eye most significantly was a small stand with several dresses and togas on it. Also
present were some bags.
"Okay, this goes against our principles, but, we're going to steal some clothes," Ami told
Hotaru.
"Steal? But what if we get caught?" Hotaru asked.
"Then we're in big trouble. Come on," Ami answered her. She then lead the way around
onto the street, and they quietly kept to the shadows until they were near the clothing stand, and
then they slipped into a nearby alley. The cart was run by a man roughly in his mid-thirties with
dark brown, nearly black, hair and deep, coal black eyes.
Ami watched carefully, and crept up close to the cart. When the tender turned to talk to a
young woman, she reached forward, scanned the stand, and grabbed a violet toga and a light blue
toga about the right sizes, as well as a bag, and ducked back into the alley. She then lead Hotaru
back several paces where they were more heavily enshadowed, and quickly began to strip down.
"Hurry, Hotaru," Ami said as she pulled her school uniform up and over her head, then
shoved it in the bag. Hotaru nodded and quickly did the same as Ami took the blue toga and set it
against her. It had only one shoulder strap, which would leave her other shoulder uncovered. Ami
quickly took off her bra, stuck it in the bag, and pulled on the toga, adjusting it so it would sit on
her correctly. Meanwhile, Hotaru removed her pink shirt and magenta skirt and shoved them in
the bag as well, then pulled on the purple toga, which covered her bra completely. The togas
reached down to their knees, and had gold colored lacings.
They tightened each other's lacings, then, not wanting to get spotted because of them,
they plucked off their shoes and socks and tossed those into the bag as well. Ami scooped up
their new bag and put it on her shoulder, and the two walked out into the crowd in full daylight.
As they moved along, Ami spotted a stand selling shawls and handkerchiefs, as well as some fine
pottery and other arts and crafts items, some of it rather expensive looking jewelry. Craftily, Ami
navigated close to it, and when the lady selling them turned away for a split second, she snagged a
shawl and tucked it into her bag. The lady watched them for a moment as they continued to
glance over the other wares. Ami gawked at some of the prices - fifty gold coins up to as much
as three hundred!
"See anything you like?" she asked. The woman looked to be around forty or so, with
raven hair down to her shoulders and dark violet eyes, in a simple-yet-elegant magenta dress with
silver and blue lining. She also wore a simple necklace with a small emerald in a clasp on the
bottom of it.
"Um, they're all nice, but we don't really have any money," Hotaru admitted blushingly.
"Oh?" the woman said. "There's a brothel six doors down where you could make
some fast gold in only a few hours."
"Thanks, but we'll pass," Ami said.
"Yeah," Hotaru agreed. "We're not that desperate." Hotaru knew full well what that
meant - a house where people paid women to have sex with them. No way was she losing her
virginity that way!
"Are you sure? There aren't that many other ways for young ladies like yourselves to get
quick cash short of stealing it," she pushed.
"Yes, we're sure," Ami and Hotaru chorused. She stared at them a moment longer, then a
man of about twenty five to thirty with short brown hair and green eyes in a yellow toga came up
and whispered something to her.
"Thank you, Iosif. I'll take care of it. And I'll be lunching at Belen's Tavern today, so
don't bring me anything," she told him, and he nodded and turned to leave, stopping briefly to
glance at Ami and Hotaru, mostly Ami. He then walked off. "A servant of mine," the woman
told them. "Apparently there's some trouble at my home that I shall have to attend to when I
return."
"Well, we'll be going now," Ami said politely, and she and Hotaru walked off. When they
were a few doors down, Ami pulled out the shawl and wrapped it around her head to hide her hair
from view, but made sure to leave her face uncovered.
"A Brothel? Sailor Soldiers lowering themselves to prostitution?! Hmm! Indeed!"
Hotaru spat indignantly. "I can't believe she even suggested it!"
"Well, we do have very low options in regards to how we're going to get money to live
on while we're here," Ami reminded her. She was guiding the two of them towards the edge of
town, generally planning to leave it before someone realized the clothes they were wearing were
stolen. But sometimes, fate...is cruel.
"Hey! Stop him!" a voice screamed, and a five year old boy shot forth from the crowd.
In his arms was a load of food, and he looked panicked. Just behind him was a tall man with a
nasty look in his eye, brandishing a knife, looking ready to kill the child. Ami didn't even stop to
think. She caught the child and passed him into Hotaru's arms, then shot up a hand and caught
the man's arm and used her other hand to smack him in the ribs, knocking the wind out of him.
*Yep, Lita's rubbing off on me,* she thought as he coughed for a moment.
The boy began to wiggle, trying to get out of Hotaru's arms. Hotaru reaffirmed her grip
and glanced down at him.
"Lemme go!" he screamed.
"What's wrong?" Hotaru asked, though she already had a suspicion.
"He's crazy! He wants to kill me!" the boy screamed, still trying to squirm out of
Hotaru's grip.
"Does he have a reason to be mad at you?" Ami asked, her hand indicating the food in the
boy's arms.
"Hey! I paid for this, fair and square!" the boy snapped back.
"Honestly?" Ami asked further.
"No," the man finally found his breath. "He grabbed them off my stand. Now give them
back! I barely make enough as is without stinking thieves!"
"But I need'em! My mom's gonna die if she doesn't get food soon!" the boy shrieked in
despair.
"Ask me if I care," the man retorted. Ami began to sweat. On the one hand, she wanted
to help the boy, but on the other she didn't want to get caught in a legal struggle, especially when
she and Hotaru were technically in the same boat as the kid! And then...things got decidedly...
worse.
"Hey! Those are Tertius's! I knew I saw someone swipe a bag and a pair of dresses from
his stall!" a voice snapped behind them. Hotaru glanced back, and saw a young girl about her
own age with bright green eyes and long red hair past her shoulders by several inches -- pointing
right at them!
"So, Ami, what's the standard punishment for theft in this time?" Hotaru asked.
"If we're lucky, we'll be tossed in a jail, and/or sold as slaves. If we're unlucky, they'll
either torture us, kill us, or both," Ami replied, not needing to look.
"In this time?" the man looked at them quizzically. As if to make things even worse, a
quartet of big, strong, and downright mean looking guards stomped forward, two of them with
swords drawn. This time, Ami glanced at them, and felt her stomach flip flop.
*Jadeite? Nephrite? Zoicite? Malachite? It can't be! But, they do look like them, well,
a little, sort of, kind of... their ancestors, maybe?* her mind raced as she stared at the seemingly
familiar yet not quite identical faces that came forward.
"So, a trio of thieves, huh?" the first one, who sort of looked like Malachite but didn't
look like him, sneered. "We'll take care of these. It's the slave auction for them!"
"Okay, on three we run for it," Ami whispered. But before she could start counting,
another voice stepped in.
"That won't be necessary, Khambis. I'll pay for all the goods, and buy the three of them
right now," a familiar female voice said. Ami and Hotaru glanced back, and saw it was the
woman from whom's stand they'd nicked the shawl! Without a word she stepped up to the man
in front of Ami and handed him a small bag of money. "This should cover the food, Phthisis."
Phthisis quickly checked the contents, then looked back up.
"More than cover, Hrisoula. Thank you," Phthisis told her, then glanced to the boy.
Hrisoula then turned and handed a medium sized bag of gold to the head guard, Khambis.
"Will that cover payment for these three?" she inquired. Khambis glanced at the amount,
and nodded. Hrisoula then turned to the boy. "You I set free for now. Go, before I change my
mind," she told him. Hotaru released him, and he bolted away at top speed. Hotaru hoped
quietly he'd reach his mother in time. Hrisoula then guided her and Ami back through the crowd
to Tertius's stand, Khambis and his posse close behind. As soon as they reached it, Tertius
looked up and his eyes went red.
"So that's where they went! I'd recognize those anywhere! Kalie was right, I was
robbed! Guards, I want them sent to the galley slaves!" he roared. Hotaru and Ami felt sweat
bead them all over again, but Hrisoula just took out another bag of money. Tertius just looked at
it for a moment, and then Kalie reappeared.
"See, Master! I told you I saw someone swipe them!" she told him, clearly proud that she
had caught a pair of thieves in the act. Hrisoula simply handed the bag to Tertius.
"I believe this will amply pay you for the togas _and_ the bag," she said. Tertius
examined the coins, and nodded his head.
"Yes, that it will. But it won't save them from the galleys!" Tertius replied. Ami and
Hotaru glanced back at the guards, expecting to be seized at any moment.
"No, Tertius, I am. They shall work off this debt to me, as well as the shawl they took, as
my property. I have already purchased them from the guards Now, if you don't mind," Hrisoula
said, and turned and lead Ami and Hotaru away. The guards watched them for a moment, then
went about their business, Tertius returning to his wares and Kalie to her own business under him.
It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out Kalie was a slave herself, belonging to Tertius. As
the crowd settled and the three returned to Hrisoula's stand, Hotaru spoke up, slightly timidly.
"Um, Hrisoula?" she said.
"Yes, dear?" Hrisoula asked.
"Why are you doing this?" Hotaru asked.
"You were obviously trying to avoid attention, so I knew something was up. It only took
me a moment to notice the absence of the shawl, so I followed after you. I was going to have you
arrested myself, but then you stood up for that boy and tried to calm Phthisis down before he
made a dreadful mistake," Hrisoula replied. "He's not a violent man by nature, but he does
sometimes have a problem with his temper. I could sort of tell you didn't want to take those
things without paying for them, but it seems as though you had little choice."
"Yeah, we're totally flat broke," Hotaru said. "We're really sorry."
"If we could have paid, we would have," Ami said.
"Yes, well, you'll pay for it now. Here we are," Hrisoula replied as they reached her
stand. They stepped behind it, and Hrisoula directed them to help with the sales. Ami quickly
stowed their new bag against the wall the stand stood in front of, and went to work.
"Oh, I almost forgot. What are your names, dears?" Hrisoula asked.
"I'm Ami, and this is Hotaru," Ami introduced them. Hrisoula's eyes widened slightly.
"What interesting names."
The next several hours were spent selling the various wares -- shawls, pots, small statues
of various persons and animals, real and mythical, and the various jewelries on the stand. The
total yield for the day was something in the neighborhood of fifteen hundred gold and six hundred
silver. About midday, when Ami and Hotaru had gotten the hang of it, Hrisoula left to take care
of the affair that Iosif had come to inform her about.
Apparently a slave girl had run off, leaving her short a servant. And she'd only had three
to begin with. So she had gone to post a wanted poster for the girl to have her returned if found,
reward given only if she was still alive. Shortly after she returned, they closed briefly, and went to
a small restaurant for lunch, and then returned to work. The work day finally ended as the sun set
and street torches were lit to light the paths and walkways.
As they finished, Hrisoula closed up shop and stored the unsold items in a medium sized
chest below the stand, with a heavy six pound lock on it for good measure. The money she
locked into a small box to take home with her. Ami got their bag, and she and Hotaru got ready
to leave.
"Alright, you'll be coming home with me, now," Hrisoula told them.
"Huh? But we paid off the debt, didn't we?" Ami asked.
"Aren't we free now?" Hotaru asked.
"Oh, no, dearies. When I purchase a slave, I generally keep them, and I do need to
replace Damris until someone finds and returns her. Do not worry, I have more than enough
room for the both of you, and as you already know, I treat my people well," Hrisoula stated.
"Unless, of course, you _want_ me to sell you off to Adele's Brothel?" Ami and Hotaru
gulped nervously.
"Uh, just a moment," Ami said, and pulled Hotaru aside. "What do you think?"
"Well, it's better than the whore house," Hotaru said.
"And it'll get us through this period until the others find us," Ami added.
"We gotta find somewhere to stay, right?" Hotaru asked.
"Alright then," Ami said decidedly, then turned back to Hrisoula. "We humbly accept
your offer, Hrisoula. Uh, where do you live?"
"Just follow me," Hrisoula said. She turned and lead them once again through the city.
By this time the sun had completely set, and the only light in the street came from the intermittent
torches along the row of buildings.
This time, Ami and Hotaru took a good look around as they walked, noting certain
establishments as they passed them -- restaurants, a pair of inns, a bar, the aforementioned
whore house which they both mentally decided to avoid like the plague itself, the various houses
of the notable residents of the city like the mayor and the militia, until finally they came to a
medium sized, three story house.
It was white washed, as were several around it, and looked fairly well kept up, and slightly
expensive. Hrisoula apparently did really good business! She turned as they approached it.
"My late husband was a stout politician, until he got into a brawl at Nikos's bar.
Considering how much time he spent drunk, it was no great surprise it finally happened that way,
though I did hope he might clean up eventually," Hrisoula told them. "He left me everything, and
I run it my own way." She then lead them inside, where Iosif met them, along with the other
servant, a man of about twenty to twenty five, with light brown hair and sharp emerald eyes,
wearing a simple baize toga. This man took a brief glance at Ami, then focused squarely on
Hotaru. Despite the shininess of his eyes, Hotaru felt suddenly cold. Iosif, meanwhile, looked
with interest at the arrivals with his lady.
"The ones from this afternoon? Why are they here?" he asked.
"They are officially replacing the slave girl who ran off, may the gods protect her soul
until her return," Hrisoula explained. "This is Ami, and Hotaru."
"Hello," Ami and Hotaru greeted them. Iosif moved up and took Ami's hand in his own,
holding it gently.
"The pleasure, is mine," he said. Ami smiled politely.
"Thank you, Iosif wasn't it? And this is?" she replied, then indicated the other man
present.
"This is my brother, Eleutherios," Iosif introduced him. Eleutherios then moved up and
took Hotaru's hand in his, and gave it a gentle kiss.
"It is a pleasure and an honor to meet one as fair as you, Hotaru," he said, a broad smile
on his face.
"Uh, thanks, Eleutherios. Um, where will we sleep?" Hotaru turned back to Hrisoula.
"Ah, yes. Iosif, take them up to their rooms. Give Hotaru the one recently vacated by
Damris. Ami can have the vacant one next to it," Hrisoula instructed. Without releasing her
hand, Iosif gently drew Ami into the house. Beyond the main entry hall was a fairly large visiting
room on the right, an enormous dining room with a six meter long dining table to the left, and off
to the rear just behind the dining area was a medium sized kitchen area, a single door connecting
the two rooms. A few statues adorned the area, and a couple of simple, yet rich, paintings of the
landscape hung upon the walls.
Iosif lead her up a winding stairwell in the right rear corner of the hall leading to the
second floor. Hotaru quickly extricated herself from Eleutherios's grip and sped after them up
the stairs. Eleutherios watched them leave, and started to follow after when Hrisoula stopped
him.
"Eleutherios, has dinner been prepared?" she asked.
"Yes, my lady. Shall I bring it up to your chambers as usual?" he replied.
"Yes, and have your brother take something to Ami and Hotaru when he comes back
down, would you? They must be famished by now. And if you haven't already, do have
something yourself," she instructed.
"As you wish, my lady."
* * *
The second floor held six small servant quarters, and eight twenty meters squared guest
rooms. The division was simple, the eight guest rooms were on the right, two in the rear, two in
the front, and four in the middle, two hallways allowing access to all of them, one near the rear
and one near the front. The servant quarters were on the left, a hallway at the front of the
building allowing access to the two rooms there, and another fifteen meters from that allowing
access to the other four, and seven and a half meters past that was a small sitting space with a few
more statues and paintings and what looked to be a couple of trophies. The stairs continued
upward to what was presumably the master bedroom and who knew what else.
Iosif lead them down to the hallway at the front of the building, and guided them to the
two doors in the inside wall. He turned to Hotaru and pointed to the door nearer the main hall.
"That one's yours, Ms. Hotaru. And this one," he stated, then moved his hand to indicate
the further door while moving his eyes to Ami, "is yours, Mrs. Ami."
"Oh, I'm not married, Iosif," Ami corrected him.
"You're not? A beauty such as yourself?" he inquired. Hotaru quietly began to snicker.
"I'm only fifteen!" Ami stated.
"That's more than old enough," Iosif said.
"Uh, we'd like to be alone now for a little while," Ami floundered. "Please?"
"Very well," Iosif replied. "Good evening." He turned and walked off, heading back to
the stairs. Ami released a breath of air in utter relief.
"I think he likes you, Ami," Hotaru said.
"That's what I'm worried about," Ami replied. "I have no idea how far he wants or
intends to go."
"I guess that's a point," Hotaru agreed. "Am I the only one who got the creeps when we
met Eleutherios?"
"Can't say as I did. Why?" Ami asked.
"Well, I can't place my finger on it, but, something about him felt wrong," Hotaru told
her. "It felt like he was checking me out like a wild beast does its prey before it pounces and
feeds on it."
"Really? I didn't notice. Are you sure?" Ami asked.
"I felt nervous the whole time we were with him. I was glad for the excuse to slip away,"
Hotaru stated, wrapping her arms around herself. "Ami, maybe we should have run for it and just
gone on our way."
"Well, until they actually try something, we should at least give them the benefit of the
doubt," Ami said.
"I guess so," Hotaru agreed, though her tone said anything but.
"Well, let's check out our rooms, hmm?" Ami suggested.
"Okay," Hotaru said, and opened the door to her new private room. Within was a simple
bed with a brown wool blanket and a goose feather pillow. Near the bed was a small table with a
single lit candle on it, giving the only light in the room. A small rug sat upon the floor, and a
simple tapestry was upon the north wall, depicting a farm scene. A small chest sat against the east
wall of the room, and looked as though it still held a few items of clothes.
Hotaru walked over and leaned down to look in the chest. To her surprise, all the
remaining clothes left by the missing Damris looked to be about the right size for her, or at least
within reason. But if Damris had been the same age as her, why had she run away from Hrisoula,
who had yet to come off as even remotely vicious to her servants. Unless... Eleutherios...
"Something wrong, Hotaru?" Ami asked, noting the girl's deepening nervousness. She
then glanced idly at the clothes in the chest. *That's odd,* she thought.
"Huh? Oh, uh, nothing, just wandering thoughts," Hotaru replied. A rumbling sound then
echoed through the room. "I guess I could use some food, though," Hotaru admitted shyly. Ami
blushed as well as her own stomach made its desires known.
"Yeah, me too," she said, and the two chuckled lightly. Just then, Iosif returned, holding
two trays with food on them. Each held a plate with a small slab of steak and some bread and
peas, as well as a glass of fluid. He handed one to Ami, and then took the other to Hotaru.
"Hrisoula asked for this to be sent up to you. Do enjoy," he told them. Ami glanced at
the liquid in her glass.
"Uh, Iosif, what is this?" she asked.
"Hotaru has been given Prune Juice," he said, "But I thought you might like a glass of
wine, seeing as you are a woman."
"Uh, thank you, but so you know, I don't really drink wine," Ami told him. "Or beer. Or
whiskey. Or anything with alcohol, for that matter."
"Oh? I can replace it if you like," he offered.
"That's okay, I'll have this one since it's here, but I'd rather not have any more," Ami
replied. Iosif nodded, and left the room. Ami and Hotaru moved over to the bed and dug into
their meal. The food tasted pretty good, and they soon downed it all. While Hotaru had no
problem with her prune juice, Ami slowly took in her glass of wine, not wanting to mess herself
up by accident.
"So, now what?" Hotaru asked.
"We turn in for the night, unless Hrisoula wants us for something," Ami said, and stood
up, taking both trays. As she started to move toward the door, she suddenly felt a little tipsy.
Hotaru jumped up and grabbed the trays from her.
"Why don't we take these down in the morning after you're sober?" she suggested.
"Alright, good idea," Ami said, as she felt herself swoon slightly. *One glass? I didn't
think I'd have this low a tolerance,* she thought to herself.
Hotaru placed the trays down on the floor, and then helped Ami out of the room and over
to the one next door which had been assigned to her. Within, the room looked the same as
Hotaru's, save that the chest was clearly empty, the tapestry showed a slightly different farm
scene, and the bed had clearly not been slept in for some time, if ever.
Hotaru carefully guided Ami over to the bed, and sat her down. Then she left for a
moment and came back with their new bag, which had been left in her room, and set it down on
Ami's chest.
"Will you be okay?" she asked Ami.
"With rest, yes," Ami replied. "Why don't you go get some, too."
"Okay, I'll try," Hotaru said, and returned to her room. Ami laid down, and considered
for a moment. She then sat back up, undid her lacings, and slipped off the toga. It seemed silly to
sleep in the one item of clothing she possessed that was in period, and it wasn't like pajamas were
really used in this period. She slipped under her covers, blew out her candle, and let herself drift
off. *I hope it doesn't take Serena and the others long to figure out what happened to us,* she
thought as she drifted into sleep.
* * *
Hotaru glanced through the clothes in the chest, and found one that looked sort of like a
sleeping gown. She laid the item down on the bed, then stepped back out of the room. Stepping
over to Ami's room, she glanced in and noticed the elder girl had already passed out. *Is wine
really that effective?* she thought. Hotaru walked down the hall and listened at the stairs for a
moment, then dove aside as Eleutherios came down to the landing with a third plate.
"Why, hello, Ms. Hotaru. Can I help you?" he asked. Hotaru gulped. This was the _last_
person she wanted to see right now!
"Uh, well, I was wondering if Hrisoula wanted us to do anything else this evening, or if
we're free to go to bed for the night," she explained to him quickly, wanting to end this meeting
quickly.
"Unless she calls for us, after dinner we're generally free to do as we wish for the
remainder of the evening," Eleutherios said. "Are you really tired so soon? The sun can only
have been down for maybe an hour or so."
"Really? Feels a lot longer to us. Well, good night, Eleutherios," Hotaru replied, and
back stepped away for a moment, then turned and walked back to her room, leaning against the
wall lightly as she released her breath slowly.
*Yeah, he still feels creepy. Why did he make me so nervous, though? Was it something
in his eyes?* she thought to herself quietly. She shook her head mildly, dismissing the quandary
for now as she moved into the room.
She quickly undid the lacings on her toga and took the clothing off, setting it atop the
chest for now. She then removed her bra and placed that upon the chest as well, then slipped on
the evening gown. The fit was a little snug, but it turned out that Damris wasn't that much
smaller than her, though it did pinch her a little in a few spots.
Hotaru then slipped into her bed and blew out the candle. As she lay there, she thought
over the day - or had it been two days? - and how her life had suddenly been knocked topsy turvy
five times worse than when she first became Sailor Saturn. For the most point, it hadn't been too
bad, and they had found a kind soul to take them in and give them shelter, so they were relatively
protected until the other Sailors could figure out where they were and get them both back home
again.
*And Ami even got an admirer,* she thought. *I just wish Eleutherios didn't come off so
creepy like that. I'd bet good money he's the reason Damris ran off. He must have spooked her
bad.* At that moment, Hotaru turned over, and faced the door to her room, which she'd left
open.
And for a moment, she could swear someone was standing there, staring at her...
* * *
Iosif had just finished cleaning the kitchen and putting away the spare dishes used for
dinner by him and his brother, when Eleutherios entered with the used plate from Hrisoula.
Eleutherios handed it to him, and Iosif quickly cleaned it and returned it to it's proper place in the
cupboard.
"So, brother, what do you think?" Eleutherios asked him as he worked.
"If you are referring to the new girls, I think Ms. Ami is quite beautiful. She would be a
fine wife to any man lucky enough to win her," Iosif replied.
"And Ms. Hotaru?" Eleutherios arched his eyebrow.
"She's a cute kid, not unlike Damris. I do wish I knew why she ran off, I really enjoyed
her company," Iosif stated. "Why?"
"Like you said, she's cute. Very cute," Eleutherios answered. "I imagine she'll make a
lovely bride herself one day."
"Not to you, brother. I think Hotaru finds you a little overbearing, as I believe Damris
once did, did she not?" Iosif stated.
"Overbearing? Me? Hf! Perish the thought," Eleutherios retorted.
"You do not give yourself nearly enough credit, my brother," Iosif said.
"Oh, really?" Eleutherios asked.
"Not by half," Iosif turned to face him. "I believe, short of Hrisoula having one of her
'whims' again, it was time I retired to my room for the night."
"So soon?" Eleutherios's eyes widened as a smile covered his face.
"You know full well I've been wanting to finish that scroll for weeks," Iosif retorted.
"A literate son of a whore. Who'd have thought it," Eleutherios grinned teasingly.
"What our mother did," Iosif stared at him hard, "has nothing to do with what we are."
"Oh, no," Eleutherios said. "She was a worthless whore. And us... Well, we're just
slightly more valuable house slaves, owned by an eccentric old woman who has us do the most
mundane of chores each day while she's living in the clouds!"
"You'd rather be in the galleys, then?! Or an arena?!" Iosif snapped.
"Oh, of course not! Why risk death through murderous labor or simple murder when one
can be killed by boredom instead?" Eleutherios responded.
"At least it won't be utterly pointless," Iosif said, and turned away and left the room,
heading for the stairwell. "Douse the first floor lights on your way up," he called back.
"Of course," Eleutherios said. After a few moments of puttering and checking the
placement of the dishes in the cupboard, he moved around and blew out the few candles used on
the floor, and then used the torch cone, a handle with a medium metal cone on the end, to put out
the four torches in the main hall, then headed up the stairs, briefly going through the guest rooms
and the two unused servant quarters, and dousing the candles within those as well before moving
to the foot of the second story stairwell.
"Oh, my lady," he called up. "Will there be anything else this evening?" A few moments
of quiet followed, as Hrisoula was obviously thinking it over.
"No, I think not. Feel free to go to bed, Eleutherios," Hrisoula's voice called down to
him.
"Thank you, my lady," Eleutherios replied, and proceeded to put out the second story
torches, then entered his room, the one closest the stairs. Iosif's was across the hall from his, the
one on the other side of the wall from Hotaru's, formerly used by Damris.
Along with the servant's chest, bed, and candle table, Eleutherios's room held a small
writing table, which Hrisoula had allowed him to have when he'd politely asked for one six years
prior. The tapestry here showed a small city scene.
Eleutherios closed the door, and walked over to the desk. He picked up a long match
stick and lit it on the candle on the candle table, and used that to light his desk candle, then blew it
out. He then sat down at the desk and stared at the drawings he'd drawn over the last few
months.
Drawings of a young girl with long gray-black hair in a braid and quiet hazel eyes...
* * *
The next morning, Ami awoke early, and rousted Hotaru, who'd had a restless night after
seeing the unidentified peeper. Behind the kitchen in a small yard open to the air was a roman
bath, which they used quickly, then dried off, and got dressed. Hotaru noted, though, that Ami
seemed a little off her game all morning, every now and then placing a hand to her forehead as
though she were in mild pain.
The yard also held a pair of trees, one sporting apples and another flowering fresh
peaches, off to the right of the bath, and a small vegetable garden in the upper left hand corner. A
small, nine meter square extension hung from the back of the house from the kitchen against the
property wall, as well.
After they dressed, they went into the kitchen to see what they could have for breakfast,
but before they could start looking, Iosif and Eleutherios entered the room as well. Ami sat down
at the servants table, deciding to let the men show them where the spare food was kept. She once
again wore her blue toga from the previous day, and Hotaru had slipped on a red one of Damris's,
which of course was a slightly snug fit.
"Good morning, Iosif, Eleutherios," Ami said as she sat down.
"Good morning, Ami," Iosif replied, and his brother nodded. Hotaru stood there,
watching them for the moment, Eleutherios especially.
"So what do you have to eat around here?" Ami asked.
"Well, normally we lowly slaves have to prepare a few fresh eggs and vegetables, along
with the option of a piece of meat or two, from the food cupboard for our meals," Iosif explained,
indicating a door to one side, which lead to the extension in the yard. "And there's the apples and
peaches on the trees in back," he commented.
"Okay, what does breakfast usually consist of around here?" Ami asked, then felt her
forehead again.
"Something wrong?" Iosif inquired.
"I think I may be a bit hung over," Ami admitted, glancing at the dishes they'd used just
last night. They'd brought them down and placed them in the clay sink built into the back wall on
their way to the bath, so they were still visible.
"From one glass of wine?" Eleutherios blinked. Hotaru noted he was a little too close to
her for her taste, and stepped quietly back a couple steps.
"My tolerance is basically nil, okay? Now, about breakfast?" Ami replied.
"Usually we have a couple of eggs and some oats ground into whole meal and boiled in
water for a little while," Iosif told her.
"Ah, eggs and oatmeal. Okay, I can go for that," Ami said. "How about you, Hotaru?"
"Sounds good," Hotaru said.
"I'll get started then. Eleutherios, fetch some eggs. Hotaru, would you give me a hand?"
Iosif said, turning briefly to his brother, then Hotaru, then moving to the clay stove next to the
clay oven, both of which were built into the left wall of the room, fetching a couple of pans and a
medium sized pot from the large cupboard as he went. Hotaru walked over and joined him at the
stove while Eleutherios opened the door to the food cupboard.
"Want me to do anything?" Ami asked.
"Uh..." Iosif glanced back at her. *If her head really hurts, we shouldn't push her right
now,* he thought.
"Yes, you can go up and wake Hrisoula. She likes to bathe while breakfast is being
prepared," Eleutherios said as he went into the cupboard.. Hotaru stiffened a little at the thought
of being without Ami within earshot, but then reminded herself that Iosif was also here, and it was
doubtful Eleutherios would do anything while he was in the room.
"Oh, okay, I'll take care of it," Ami said and stood up. She then walked over to the door
and went to the stairs and ascended them. Hotaru watched her as Iosif fetched some matches,
scooped in some coal from a pile in the corner, and lit the stove. Eleutherios then returned with
the eggs, and stood next to his brother as he took some lard from a barrel and greased the pans
with it. Hotaru watched the fire, quietly making sure it didn't go out and that it didn't suddenly
get out of control.
"Hotaru," Eleutherios said.
"Yes?" Hotaru lightly jumped.
"Relax," Eleutherios said calmly. "I just wanted to know, is that one of Damris's togas
you're wearing?"
"Huh? Oh, yes. Most of the clothes she left behind are about my size, though a little
small, and I figured there was no reason to wear the one I did yesterday if there were others that
more or less fit me available," Hotaru explained, quietly forcing her nerves to stay still.
Iosif then took the eggs and began breaking them open, placing them in the pans one by
one, nine in all. He then got a wooden spatula and began tending them.
"Well, I'll get started on the oatmeal," Eleutherios said, and went back into the cupboard.
As he left, Hotaru sighed in relief.
"Is there something the matter, Hotaru?" Iosif asked as he continued to mind the eggs.
"Well," Hotaru said, "Don't take this the wrong way, but, your brother sort of creeps me
out."
"Really?" he blinked.
"Uh, huh," Hotaru nodded. "I'm not sure why, he just does."
"Funny," Iosif said.
"What?"
"Damris told me the same thing once..."
* * *
Ami arrived on the third and top floor, and glanced around. She was in a small library of
scrolls, at least six or seven wooden rows of shelves deep! There was even a small area to the
side near a window with a table for reading, and a desk on the opposite side for writing. A few
small tapestries of mythological scenes, Hercules on one of his twelve labors, Perseus beheading
the Medusa, Theseus working through the Minoan Labyrinth to face the Minotaur, and a couple
of busts added decoration to the room. About twenty four meters away sat the only door here,
and she went to it.
Opening it she found that the rest of the landing was devoted to the master bedroom,
dominated by the biggest king sized bed she'd ever seen! It had to be at least six meters wide,
and about twelve meters long! The rest of the room was richly decorated in tapestries, statues,
and more busts, another writing desk off in one corner of the room, and a candle table on either
side of the bed. A full on wardrobe sat against the wall on her left, made of what looked like
redwood and painted with extravagant colors.
Ami moved over to the bed, spotted Hrisoula asleep upon it, and moved over to her. As
she drew close, she took in a deep breath, and leaned forward quietly, laying a hand upon the
woman and lightly shaking.
"Ms. Hrisoula? It's morning. Iosif and the others are preparing breakfast now," she said
softly. Hrisoula began to stir, and Ami shook a little harder. "Ms. Hrisoula, it's time to get up,"
she said.
"Is it, Eleutherios?" Hrisoula mumbled. "You're a little early today, I think."
"Uh, I'm Ami. Eleutherios is downstairs with his brother making breakfast," Ami quietly
corrected her. Hrisoula blinked her eyes, staring up at the young face above her.
"Ami? Oh, yes, one of the girls I bought yesterday," she mumbled. "Very well, tell
Eleutherios to have the bath ready, and I'll be down shortly," she said, then yawned and stretched.
Ami nodded, and quietly back peddled out of the room, pulling the door closed as she passed
through it.
"Well, this will definitely be interesting," Ami sighed as she headed to the stairs to carry out
her orders.
* * *
Arriving back in the kitchen, Ami found Hotaru and Iosif working away at the eggs, and
Eleutherios preparing a pot of roman oatmeal. She moved over and whispered to Eleutherios,
and he handed the spoon he was stirring the pot with to her and went out to the garden to prepare
the bath as ordered.
Ami quietly stirred the pot while Iosif continued to prepare the eggs. After a few minutes,
Eleutherios returned as Hrisoula emerged into the kitchen, dressed in what looked to be a robe of
sorts.
"Ami, dear, please come with me," she said as she went through the door. Ami followed
while Eleutherios reclaimed his place with the pot.
Ami followed Hrisoula out to the bath, and Hrisoula disrobed, handing her the garment as
she stepped into the water. Ami quietly folded the item and placed it on the small stone table to
the side where she and Hotaru had placed their things earlier when they had used the bath. Now,
though, Ami noted a sort of flowery scent in the air, and noticed that a few oils had been mixed
into the water.
"Normally Damris attends me in the morning, but since she's missing, you'll have to do,"
Hrisoula said.
"Oh, it's no problem, really," Ami said. "What exactly am I supposed to do, out of
curiosity?"
"You shall use the spare oils to massage me when I emerge. Until then, just stand there,"
Hrisoula responded.
"Okay," Ami said. After watching Hrisoula bathe for a little while, she decided it was
worth the trouble, and spoke again. "Um, Hrisoula?"
"Yes, Ami?"
"It's, um, about my wardrobe..."
"Yes? What about it?"
"These are the only clothes I own. And Hotaru only has the one outfit as well, not
counting what was left by Damris..."
"Yes, I see. Hmm. I suppose you wish for me to purchase you a few more garments
each?" Hrisoula questioned her.
"Uh, yes," Ami answered slowly. Had she been too abrupt?
"Nothing simpler," Hrisoula said. "We can get you some things before we open the shop
today."
"Thank you, Hrisoula," Ami replied.
"Not a problem. Now, prepare the oils," Hrisoula stated, and rose from the bath, moved
her robe to the ground, and laid down upon the massaging table. Ami quickly got some oil and
rubbed it on her hands, then carefully masseused the woman's back, rubbing well upon the
shoulders and neck. After a short while, she got a little more oil and massaged her further. Then
a small thought occurred to her.
"Um, do I have to do your front, too?" she asked timidly.
"No, dear, I can handle that myself," Hrisoula answered. "Mm, you know, my dear, I do
believe you're a better masseuse than Damris."
"Am I?" Ami asked.
"Oh, yes. You certainly are."
A few moments later, Ami concluded the massage, and Hrisoula stood up. Ami fetched her
robe and helped Hrisoula into it. They then returned to the kitchen, and Hrisoula asked that Ami
bring her breakfast to the main hall, then rejoin the others for her own. Ami complied, taking
Hrisoula her meal before joining Hotaru and the others for hers.
Shortly after breakfast, Hrisoula departed with Ami and Hotaru, and returned two hours
later, having purchased the girls nine additional outfits to the ones they'd gotten yesterday each,
as well as a pair a sandals for both of them. Afterwards, Hrisoula took Ami back to the stand and
started business for the day, leaving Hotaru home with Iosif and Eleutherios.
Originally, Damris and Eleutherios ran the house while Hrisoula handled the stand, Iosif
ferrying messages as needed between them, as well as taking messages from others who came to
the house. Since she had a servant outstanding, Hrisoula had decided to have Ami assist her at
the stand, since she never did like working it alone.
Actually, she'd been planning to buy one servant more for weeks for that very reason, but
had simply never really gotten around to it. Now the problem had been solved. The only person
who didn't feel comfortable with the arrangement...was Hotaru.
******************************************************************************
From here it gets a little dark, people! You have been warned... Next time - chapter 5:
Rape.
Wanna chat? Wanna scream? Wanna just bite my ear off for no good reason? Send me
an e-mail! I'm at Scorpinac@sa-tech.com!
And now we shall see the Roman adventures of Ami and Hotaru...
Sailor Moon belongs to Naoko Takeuchi, Toei Animation, DiC, and Cloverway, in that
order. I make no money by this. More's the pity.
All other characters _not_ taken from History are mine, and you must ask permission to
use them, if you can find a way of using them outside this.
_This_ is emphasis. *This* is thought.
Kudos to the movie Gladiator, which was the inspiration for this.
This chapter was originally to be titled "Rape", but as I wrote it, it didn't quite pan out the
way I meant it to, and the scene it would have cliffhanged on originally can be found in
it's entirety in the next chapter, which gets the original name.
And now, Scorpinac Fanfic Productions presents:
******************************************************************************
Sailor Moon
Roman Legends
by Scorpinac
Chapter 4: Hrisoula
When the light faded, the first thing Ami noticed was that it was suddenly daylight again,
when it had been early evening only moments before! The next thing was that she was sitting in
what appeared to be a small field of flowers. Finally, the only other person around was Hotaru,
looking as surprised as she was. Where were they? How did they get here? And how were they
going to get back? As those questions ran through her mind, Ami pulled herself back to a
standing position.
"Ami, where are we?" Hotaru asked aloud as she stood up herself.
"I'm not sure," Ami replied. "We could be anywhere. I wish I knew what that flash did."
"So what do we do?" Hotaru asked again.
"We start looking for help, I guess," Ami answered, and the two picked a direction and
started walking. After what felt like an hour, the two girls came up to what appeared to be a
small farm. Several stout men were hard at work in the fields, and some small children were
working with horses and cows and other assorted farm animals. The eldest child present, who
couldn't have been more than ten at best, saw them and handed the horse he was tending off to
the girl next to him, and walked up to them.
Ami felt herself begin to sweat bullets. The grown men were wearing shorts only, but the
children were all dressed in ancient Roman togas! The boy came up and stared at them curiously,
then spoke.
"Who are you?" he asked.
"Travelers," Ami said. "We're a little lost, could you tell us what part of the Empire
we're currently in?" *May as well confirm the theory now,* she thought.
"You're in the Estonian Province," the boy told them.
"Uh, Empire?" Hotaru quipped.
"Yes, Hotaru, Empire. As in the _Roman_ Empire, where we are _right now_," Ami told
her, inflecting key words. Hotaru's eyes went wide, and she turned on the young boy.
"Are we really in the Roman Empire?" she asked, incredulous.
"Yes, why are you so surprised?" he asked.
"Uh... no reason," Hotaru stumbled out, and Ami grabbed her and pulled her away. A few
moments later, the boy returned to tending his horse, and Ami turned to Hotaru.
"Okay, we've somehow been blown back in time almost two thousand years, and halfway
across the globe! How do you propose we get home?" Ami stated.
"Um, we could transform and try to contact Sailor Pluto," Hotaru suggested.
"Maybe, but right now the Time Gate would probably be guarded by one of Trista's
forebears, not Trista. So how would we explain ourselves to her?" Ami mused.
"Don't you think she'd believe the truth?" Hotaru asked.
"She might, but she might also think we're some sort of imposters who _stole_ the current
Mercury and Saturn's wands for their own ends! And that brings up another thought - if we
transform, what if that attracts the attention of the current Sailor Mercury and Sailor Saturn?
How would we convince _them_ we're their descendants without getting bombarded with a lot
questions we _can't_ and _shouldn't_ answer?!" Ami thought it out.
"So what do you think we should do?" Hotaru said.
"For now, we should probably wait, see if the others notice we're gone and come looking
for us, or figure out how to reverse whatever that machine did!" Ami answered. "And we should
get some period clothing before someone tries anything funny. In fact, I should probably hide my
hair."
"Your hair?"
"Blue hair isn't common in this time and country, Hotaru. I need to cover it up before
some slave trader turns me into a collector's item!" Ami explained.
"Oh, I didn't think of that. Slavery is legal in this time, isn't it?" Hotaru fretted.
"Come on," Ami said. The two moved around the farm until they saw a small house, and
found a path near it. They followed it for what felt like another two hours, then came upon a
small city. The buildings were all made of stone, ranging from one to four stories in height.
Some were white washed, others weren't, and from the distance it seemed to be bustling.
Being cautious, they moved around to the back of the nearest buildings, and scanned the
main road. Several tenders were selling their wares at stands up and down the road. The one that
caught Ami's eye most significantly was a small stand with several dresses and togas on it. Also
present were some bags.
"Okay, this goes against our principles, but, we're going to steal some clothes," Ami told
Hotaru.
"Steal? But what if we get caught?" Hotaru asked.
"Then we're in big trouble. Come on," Ami answered her. She then lead the way around
onto the street, and they quietly kept to the shadows until they were near the clothing stand, and
then they slipped into a nearby alley. The cart was run by a man roughly in his mid-thirties with
dark brown, nearly black, hair and deep, coal black eyes.
Ami watched carefully, and crept up close to the cart. When the tender turned to talk to a
young woman, she reached forward, scanned the stand, and grabbed a violet toga and a light blue
toga about the right sizes, as well as a bag, and ducked back into the alley. She then lead Hotaru
back several paces where they were more heavily enshadowed, and quickly began to strip down.
"Hurry, Hotaru," Ami said as she pulled her school uniform up and over her head, then
shoved it in the bag. Hotaru nodded and quickly did the same as Ami took the blue toga and set it
against her. It had only one shoulder strap, which would leave her other shoulder uncovered. Ami
quickly took off her bra, stuck it in the bag, and pulled on the toga, adjusting it so it would sit on
her correctly. Meanwhile, Hotaru removed her pink shirt and magenta skirt and shoved them in
the bag as well, then pulled on the purple toga, which covered her bra completely. The togas
reached down to their knees, and had gold colored lacings.
They tightened each other's lacings, then, not wanting to get spotted because of them,
they plucked off their shoes and socks and tossed those into the bag as well. Ami scooped up
their new bag and put it on her shoulder, and the two walked out into the crowd in full daylight.
As they moved along, Ami spotted a stand selling shawls and handkerchiefs, as well as some fine
pottery and other arts and crafts items, some of it rather expensive looking jewelry. Craftily, Ami
navigated close to it, and when the lady selling them turned away for a split second, she snagged a
shawl and tucked it into her bag. The lady watched them for a moment as they continued to
glance over the other wares. Ami gawked at some of the prices - fifty gold coins up to as much
as three hundred!
"See anything you like?" she asked. The woman looked to be around forty or so, with
raven hair down to her shoulders and dark violet eyes, in a simple-yet-elegant magenta dress with
silver and blue lining. She also wore a simple necklace with a small emerald in a clasp on the
bottom of it.
"Um, they're all nice, but we don't really have any money," Hotaru admitted blushingly.
"Oh?" the woman said. "There's a brothel six doors down where you could make
some fast gold in only a few hours."
"Thanks, but we'll pass," Ami said.
"Yeah," Hotaru agreed. "We're not that desperate." Hotaru knew full well what that
meant - a house where people paid women to have sex with them. No way was she losing her
virginity that way!
"Are you sure? There aren't that many other ways for young ladies like yourselves to get
quick cash short of stealing it," she pushed.
"Yes, we're sure," Ami and Hotaru chorused. She stared at them a moment longer, then a
man of about twenty five to thirty with short brown hair and green eyes in a yellow toga came up
and whispered something to her.
"Thank you, Iosif. I'll take care of it. And I'll be lunching at Belen's Tavern today, so
don't bring me anything," she told him, and he nodded and turned to leave, stopping briefly to
glance at Ami and Hotaru, mostly Ami. He then walked off. "A servant of mine," the woman
told them. "Apparently there's some trouble at my home that I shall have to attend to when I
return."
"Well, we'll be going now," Ami said politely, and she and Hotaru walked off. When they
were a few doors down, Ami pulled out the shawl and wrapped it around her head to hide her hair
from view, but made sure to leave her face uncovered.
"A Brothel? Sailor Soldiers lowering themselves to prostitution?! Hmm! Indeed!"
Hotaru spat indignantly. "I can't believe she even suggested it!"
"Well, we do have very low options in regards to how we're going to get money to live
on while we're here," Ami reminded her. She was guiding the two of them towards the edge of
town, generally planning to leave it before someone realized the clothes they were wearing were
stolen. But sometimes, fate...is cruel.
"Hey! Stop him!" a voice screamed, and a five year old boy shot forth from the crowd.
In his arms was a load of food, and he looked panicked. Just behind him was a tall man with a
nasty look in his eye, brandishing a knife, looking ready to kill the child. Ami didn't even stop to
think. She caught the child and passed him into Hotaru's arms, then shot up a hand and caught
the man's arm and used her other hand to smack him in the ribs, knocking the wind out of him.
*Yep, Lita's rubbing off on me,* she thought as he coughed for a moment.
The boy began to wiggle, trying to get out of Hotaru's arms. Hotaru reaffirmed her grip
and glanced down at him.
"Lemme go!" he screamed.
"What's wrong?" Hotaru asked, though she already had a suspicion.
"He's crazy! He wants to kill me!" the boy screamed, still trying to squirm out of
Hotaru's grip.
"Does he have a reason to be mad at you?" Ami asked, her hand indicating the food in the
boy's arms.
"Hey! I paid for this, fair and square!" the boy snapped back.
"Honestly?" Ami asked further.
"No," the man finally found his breath. "He grabbed them off my stand. Now give them
back! I barely make enough as is without stinking thieves!"
"But I need'em! My mom's gonna die if she doesn't get food soon!" the boy shrieked in
despair.
"Ask me if I care," the man retorted. Ami began to sweat. On the one hand, she wanted
to help the boy, but on the other she didn't want to get caught in a legal struggle, especially when
she and Hotaru were technically in the same boat as the kid! And then...things got decidedly...
worse.
"Hey! Those are Tertius's! I knew I saw someone swipe a bag and a pair of dresses from
his stall!" a voice snapped behind them. Hotaru glanced back, and saw a young girl about her
own age with bright green eyes and long red hair past her shoulders by several inches -- pointing
right at them!
"So, Ami, what's the standard punishment for theft in this time?" Hotaru asked.
"If we're lucky, we'll be tossed in a jail, and/or sold as slaves. If we're unlucky, they'll
either torture us, kill us, or both," Ami replied, not needing to look.
"In this time?" the man looked at them quizzically. As if to make things even worse, a
quartet of big, strong, and downright mean looking guards stomped forward, two of them with
swords drawn. This time, Ami glanced at them, and felt her stomach flip flop.
*Jadeite? Nephrite? Zoicite? Malachite? It can't be! But, they do look like them, well,
a little, sort of, kind of... their ancestors, maybe?* her mind raced as she stared at the seemingly
familiar yet not quite identical faces that came forward.
"So, a trio of thieves, huh?" the first one, who sort of looked like Malachite but didn't
look like him, sneered. "We'll take care of these. It's the slave auction for them!"
"Okay, on three we run for it," Ami whispered. But before she could start counting,
another voice stepped in.
"That won't be necessary, Khambis. I'll pay for all the goods, and buy the three of them
right now," a familiar female voice said. Ami and Hotaru glanced back, and saw it was the
woman from whom's stand they'd nicked the shawl! Without a word she stepped up to the man
in front of Ami and handed him a small bag of money. "This should cover the food, Phthisis."
Phthisis quickly checked the contents, then looked back up.
"More than cover, Hrisoula. Thank you," Phthisis told her, then glanced to the boy.
Hrisoula then turned and handed a medium sized bag of gold to the head guard, Khambis.
"Will that cover payment for these three?" she inquired. Khambis glanced at the amount,
and nodded. Hrisoula then turned to the boy. "You I set free for now. Go, before I change my
mind," she told him. Hotaru released him, and he bolted away at top speed. Hotaru hoped
quietly he'd reach his mother in time. Hrisoula then guided her and Ami back through the crowd
to Tertius's stand, Khambis and his posse close behind. As soon as they reached it, Tertius
looked up and his eyes went red.
"So that's where they went! I'd recognize those anywhere! Kalie was right, I was
robbed! Guards, I want them sent to the galley slaves!" he roared. Hotaru and Ami felt sweat
bead them all over again, but Hrisoula just took out another bag of money. Tertius just looked at
it for a moment, and then Kalie reappeared.
"See, Master! I told you I saw someone swipe them!" she told him, clearly proud that she
had caught a pair of thieves in the act. Hrisoula simply handed the bag to Tertius.
"I believe this will amply pay you for the togas _and_ the bag," she said. Tertius
examined the coins, and nodded his head.
"Yes, that it will. But it won't save them from the galleys!" Tertius replied. Ami and
Hotaru glanced back at the guards, expecting to be seized at any moment.
"No, Tertius, I am. They shall work off this debt to me, as well as the shawl they took, as
my property. I have already purchased them from the guards Now, if you don't mind," Hrisoula
said, and turned and lead Ami and Hotaru away. The guards watched them for a moment, then
went about their business, Tertius returning to his wares and Kalie to her own business under him.
It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out Kalie was a slave herself, belonging to Tertius. As
the crowd settled and the three returned to Hrisoula's stand, Hotaru spoke up, slightly timidly.
"Um, Hrisoula?" she said.
"Yes, dear?" Hrisoula asked.
"Why are you doing this?" Hotaru asked.
"You were obviously trying to avoid attention, so I knew something was up. It only took
me a moment to notice the absence of the shawl, so I followed after you. I was going to have you
arrested myself, but then you stood up for that boy and tried to calm Phthisis down before he
made a dreadful mistake," Hrisoula replied. "He's not a violent man by nature, but he does
sometimes have a problem with his temper. I could sort of tell you didn't want to take those
things without paying for them, but it seems as though you had little choice."
"Yeah, we're totally flat broke," Hotaru said. "We're really sorry."
"If we could have paid, we would have," Ami said.
"Yes, well, you'll pay for it now. Here we are," Hrisoula replied as they reached her
stand. They stepped behind it, and Hrisoula directed them to help with the sales. Ami quickly
stowed their new bag against the wall the stand stood in front of, and went to work.
"Oh, I almost forgot. What are your names, dears?" Hrisoula asked.
"I'm Ami, and this is Hotaru," Ami introduced them. Hrisoula's eyes widened slightly.
"What interesting names."
The next several hours were spent selling the various wares -- shawls, pots, small statues
of various persons and animals, real and mythical, and the various jewelries on the stand. The
total yield for the day was something in the neighborhood of fifteen hundred gold and six hundred
silver. About midday, when Ami and Hotaru had gotten the hang of it, Hrisoula left to take care
of the affair that Iosif had come to inform her about.
Apparently a slave girl had run off, leaving her short a servant. And she'd only had three
to begin with. So she had gone to post a wanted poster for the girl to have her returned if found,
reward given only if she was still alive. Shortly after she returned, they closed briefly, and went to
a small restaurant for lunch, and then returned to work. The work day finally ended as the sun set
and street torches were lit to light the paths and walkways.
As they finished, Hrisoula closed up shop and stored the unsold items in a medium sized
chest below the stand, with a heavy six pound lock on it for good measure. The money she
locked into a small box to take home with her. Ami got their bag, and she and Hotaru got ready
to leave.
"Alright, you'll be coming home with me, now," Hrisoula told them.
"Huh? But we paid off the debt, didn't we?" Ami asked.
"Aren't we free now?" Hotaru asked.
"Oh, no, dearies. When I purchase a slave, I generally keep them, and I do need to
replace Damris until someone finds and returns her. Do not worry, I have more than enough
room for the both of you, and as you already know, I treat my people well," Hrisoula stated.
"Unless, of course, you _want_ me to sell you off to Adele's Brothel?" Ami and Hotaru
gulped nervously.
"Uh, just a moment," Ami said, and pulled Hotaru aside. "What do you think?"
"Well, it's better than the whore house," Hotaru said.
"And it'll get us through this period until the others find us," Ami added.
"We gotta find somewhere to stay, right?" Hotaru asked.
"Alright then," Ami said decidedly, then turned back to Hrisoula. "We humbly accept
your offer, Hrisoula. Uh, where do you live?"
"Just follow me," Hrisoula said. She turned and lead them once again through the city.
By this time the sun had completely set, and the only light in the street came from the intermittent
torches along the row of buildings.
This time, Ami and Hotaru took a good look around as they walked, noting certain
establishments as they passed them -- restaurants, a pair of inns, a bar, the aforementioned
whore house which they both mentally decided to avoid like the plague itself, the various houses
of the notable residents of the city like the mayor and the militia, until finally they came to a
medium sized, three story house.
It was white washed, as were several around it, and looked fairly well kept up, and slightly
expensive. Hrisoula apparently did really good business! She turned as they approached it.
"My late husband was a stout politician, until he got into a brawl at Nikos's bar.
Considering how much time he spent drunk, it was no great surprise it finally happened that way,
though I did hope he might clean up eventually," Hrisoula told them. "He left me everything, and
I run it my own way." She then lead them inside, where Iosif met them, along with the other
servant, a man of about twenty to twenty five, with light brown hair and sharp emerald eyes,
wearing a simple baize toga. This man took a brief glance at Ami, then focused squarely on
Hotaru. Despite the shininess of his eyes, Hotaru felt suddenly cold. Iosif, meanwhile, looked
with interest at the arrivals with his lady.
"The ones from this afternoon? Why are they here?" he asked.
"They are officially replacing the slave girl who ran off, may the gods protect her soul
until her return," Hrisoula explained. "This is Ami, and Hotaru."
"Hello," Ami and Hotaru greeted them. Iosif moved up and took Ami's hand in his own,
holding it gently.
"The pleasure, is mine," he said. Ami smiled politely.
"Thank you, Iosif wasn't it? And this is?" she replied, then indicated the other man
present.
"This is my brother, Eleutherios," Iosif introduced him. Eleutherios then moved up and
took Hotaru's hand in his, and gave it a gentle kiss.
"It is a pleasure and an honor to meet one as fair as you, Hotaru," he said, a broad smile
on his face.
"Uh, thanks, Eleutherios. Um, where will we sleep?" Hotaru turned back to Hrisoula.
"Ah, yes. Iosif, take them up to their rooms. Give Hotaru the one recently vacated by
Damris. Ami can have the vacant one next to it," Hrisoula instructed. Without releasing her
hand, Iosif gently drew Ami into the house. Beyond the main entry hall was a fairly large visiting
room on the right, an enormous dining room with a six meter long dining table to the left, and off
to the rear just behind the dining area was a medium sized kitchen area, a single door connecting
the two rooms. A few statues adorned the area, and a couple of simple, yet rich, paintings of the
landscape hung upon the walls.
Iosif lead her up a winding stairwell in the right rear corner of the hall leading to the
second floor. Hotaru quickly extricated herself from Eleutherios's grip and sped after them up
the stairs. Eleutherios watched them leave, and started to follow after when Hrisoula stopped
him.
"Eleutherios, has dinner been prepared?" she asked.
"Yes, my lady. Shall I bring it up to your chambers as usual?" he replied.
"Yes, and have your brother take something to Ami and Hotaru when he comes back
down, would you? They must be famished by now. And if you haven't already, do have
something yourself," she instructed.
"As you wish, my lady."
* * *
The second floor held six small servant quarters, and eight twenty meters squared guest
rooms. The division was simple, the eight guest rooms were on the right, two in the rear, two in
the front, and four in the middle, two hallways allowing access to all of them, one near the rear
and one near the front. The servant quarters were on the left, a hallway at the front of the
building allowing access to the two rooms there, and another fifteen meters from that allowing
access to the other four, and seven and a half meters past that was a small sitting space with a few
more statues and paintings and what looked to be a couple of trophies. The stairs continued
upward to what was presumably the master bedroom and who knew what else.
Iosif lead them down to the hallway at the front of the building, and guided them to the
two doors in the inside wall. He turned to Hotaru and pointed to the door nearer the main hall.
"That one's yours, Ms. Hotaru. And this one," he stated, then moved his hand to indicate
the further door while moving his eyes to Ami, "is yours, Mrs. Ami."
"Oh, I'm not married, Iosif," Ami corrected him.
"You're not? A beauty such as yourself?" he inquired. Hotaru quietly began to snicker.
"I'm only fifteen!" Ami stated.
"That's more than old enough," Iosif said.
"Uh, we'd like to be alone now for a little while," Ami floundered. "Please?"
"Very well," Iosif replied. "Good evening." He turned and walked off, heading back to
the stairs. Ami released a breath of air in utter relief.
"I think he likes you, Ami," Hotaru said.
"That's what I'm worried about," Ami replied. "I have no idea how far he wants or
intends to go."
"I guess that's a point," Hotaru agreed. "Am I the only one who got the creeps when we
met Eleutherios?"
"Can't say as I did. Why?" Ami asked.
"Well, I can't place my finger on it, but, something about him felt wrong," Hotaru told
her. "It felt like he was checking me out like a wild beast does its prey before it pounces and
feeds on it."
"Really? I didn't notice. Are you sure?" Ami asked.
"I felt nervous the whole time we were with him. I was glad for the excuse to slip away,"
Hotaru stated, wrapping her arms around herself. "Ami, maybe we should have run for it and just
gone on our way."
"Well, until they actually try something, we should at least give them the benefit of the
doubt," Ami said.
"I guess so," Hotaru agreed, though her tone said anything but.
"Well, let's check out our rooms, hmm?" Ami suggested.
"Okay," Hotaru said, and opened the door to her new private room. Within was a simple
bed with a brown wool blanket and a goose feather pillow. Near the bed was a small table with a
single lit candle on it, giving the only light in the room. A small rug sat upon the floor, and a
simple tapestry was upon the north wall, depicting a farm scene. A small chest sat against the east
wall of the room, and looked as though it still held a few items of clothes.
Hotaru walked over and leaned down to look in the chest. To her surprise, all the
remaining clothes left by the missing Damris looked to be about the right size for her, or at least
within reason. But if Damris had been the same age as her, why had she run away from Hrisoula,
who had yet to come off as even remotely vicious to her servants. Unless... Eleutherios...
"Something wrong, Hotaru?" Ami asked, noting the girl's deepening nervousness. She
then glanced idly at the clothes in the chest. *That's odd,* she thought.
"Huh? Oh, uh, nothing, just wandering thoughts," Hotaru replied. A rumbling sound then
echoed through the room. "I guess I could use some food, though," Hotaru admitted shyly. Ami
blushed as well as her own stomach made its desires known.
"Yeah, me too," she said, and the two chuckled lightly. Just then, Iosif returned, holding
two trays with food on them. Each held a plate with a small slab of steak and some bread and
peas, as well as a glass of fluid. He handed one to Ami, and then took the other to Hotaru.
"Hrisoula asked for this to be sent up to you. Do enjoy," he told them. Ami glanced at
the liquid in her glass.
"Uh, Iosif, what is this?" she asked.
"Hotaru has been given Prune Juice," he said, "But I thought you might like a glass of
wine, seeing as you are a woman."
"Uh, thank you, but so you know, I don't really drink wine," Ami told him. "Or beer. Or
whiskey. Or anything with alcohol, for that matter."
"Oh? I can replace it if you like," he offered.
"That's okay, I'll have this one since it's here, but I'd rather not have any more," Ami
replied. Iosif nodded, and left the room. Ami and Hotaru moved over to the bed and dug into
their meal. The food tasted pretty good, and they soon downed it all. While Hotaru had no
problem with her prune juice, Ami slowly took in her glass of wine, not wanting to mess herself
up by accident.
"So, now what?" Hotaru asked.
"We turn in for the night, unless Hrisoula wants us for something," Ami said, and stood
up, taking both trays. As she started to move toward the door, she suddenly felt a little tipsy.
Hotaru jumped up and grabbed the trays from her.
"Why don't we take these down in the morning after you're sober?" she suggested.
"Alright, good idea," Ami said, as she felt herself swoon slightly. *One glass? I didn't
think I'd have this low a tolerance,* she thought to herself.
Hotaru placed the trays down on the floor, and then helped Ami out of the room and over
to the one next door which had been assigned to her. Within, the room looked the same as
Hotaru's, save that the chest was clearly empty, the tapestry showed a slightly different farm
scene, and the bed had clearly not been slept in for some time, if ever.
Hotaru carefully guided Ami over to the bed, and sat her down. Then she left for a
moment and came back with their new bag, which had been left in her room, and set it down on
Ami's chest.
"Will you be okay?" she asked Ami.
"With rest, yes," Ami replied. "Why don't you go get some, too."
"Okay, I'll try," Hotaru said, and returned to her room. Ami laid down, and considered
for a moment. She then sat back up, undid her lacings, and slipped off the toga. It seemed silly to
sleep in the one item of clothing she possessed that was in period, and it wasn't like pajamas were
really used in this period. She slipped under her covers, blew out her candle, and let herself drift
off. *I hope it doesn't take Serena and the others long to figure out what happened to us,* she
thought as she drifted into sleep.
* * *
Hotaru glanced through the clothes in the chest, and found one that looked sort of like a
sleeping gown. She laid the item down on the bed, then stepped back out of the room. Stepping
over to Ami's room, she glanced in and noticed the elder girl had already passed out. *Is wine
really that effective?* she thought. Hotaru walked down the hall and listened at the stairs for a
moment, then dove aside as Eleutherios came down to the landing with a third plate.
"Why, hello, Ms. Hotaru. Can I help you?" he asked. Hotaru gulped. This was the _last_
person she wanted to see right now!
"Uh, well, I was wondering if Hrisoula wanted us to do anything else this evening, or if
we're free to go to bed for the night," she explained to him quickly, wanting to end this meeting
quickly.
"Unless she calls for us, after dinner we're generally free to do as we wish for the
remainder of the evening," Eleutherios said. "Are you really tired so soon? The sun can only
have been down for maybe an hour or so."
"Really? Feels a lot longer to us. Well, good night, Eleutherios," Hotaru replied, and
back stepped away for a moment, then turned and walked back to her room, leaning against the
wall lightly as she released her breath slowly.
*Yeah, he still feels creepy. Why did he make me so nervous, though? Was it something
in his eyes?* she thought to herself quietly. She shook her head mildly, dismissing the quandary
for now as she moved into the room.
She quickly undid the lacings on her toga and took the clothing off, setting it atop the
chest for now. She then removed her bra and placed that upon the chest as well, then slipped on
the evening gown. The fit was a little snug, but it turned out that Damris wasn't that much
smaller than her, though it did pinch her a little in a few spots.
Hotaru then slipped into her bed and blew out the candle. As she lay there, she thought
over the day - or had it been two days? - and how her life had suddenly been knocked topsy turvy
five times worse than when she first became Sailor Saturn. For the most point, it hadn't been too
bad, and they had found a kind soul to take them in and give them shelter, so they were relatively
protected until the other Sailors could figure out where they were and get them both back home
again.
*And Ami even got an admirer,* she thought. *I just wish Eleutherios didn't come off so
creepy like that. I'd bet good money he's the reason Damris ran off. He must have spooked her
bad.* At that moment, Hotaru turned over, and faced the door to her room, which she'd left
open.
And for a moment, she could swear someone was standing there, staring at her...
* * *
Iosif had just finished cleaning the kitchen and putting away the spare dishes used for
dinner by him and his brother, when Eleutherios entered with the used plate from Hrisoula.
Eleutherios handed it to him, and Iosif quickly cleaned it and returned it to it's proper place in the
cupboard.
"So, brother, what do you think?" Eleutherios asked him as he worked.
"If you are referring to the new girls, I think Ms. Ami is quite beautiful. She would be a
fine wife to any man lucky enough to win her," Iosif replied.
"And Ms. Hotaru?" Eleutherios arched his eyebrow.
"She's a cute kid, not unlike Damris. I do wish I knew why she ran off, I really enjoyed
her company," Iosif stated. "Why?"
"Like you said, she's cute. Very cute," Eleutherios answered. "I imagine she'll make a
lovely bride herself one day."
"Not to you, brother. I think Hotaru finds you a little overbearing, as I believe Damris
once did, did she not?" Iosif stated.
"Overbearing? Me? Hf! Perish the thought," Eleutherios retorted.
"You do not give yourself nearly enough credit, my brother," Iosif said.
"Oh, really?" Eleutherios asked.
"Not by half," Iosif turned to face him. "I believe, short of Hrisoula having one of her
'whims' again, it was time I retired to my room for the night."
"So soon?" Eleutherios's eyes widened as a smile covered his face.
"You know full well I've been wanting to finish that scroll for weeks," Iosif retorted.
"A literate son of a whore. Who'd have thought it," Eleutherios grinned teasingly.
"What our mother did," Iosif stared at him hard, "has nothing to do with what we are."
"Oh, no," Eleutherios said. "She was a worthless whore. And us... Well, we're just
slightly more valuable house slaves, owned by an eccentric old woman who has us do the most
mundane of chores each day while she's living in the clouds!"
"You'd rather be in the galleys, then?! Or an arena?!" Iosif snapped.
"Oh, of course not! Why risk death through murderous labor or simple murder when one
can be killed by boredom instead?" Eleutherios responded.
"At least it won't be utterly pointless," Iosif said, and turned away and left the room,
heading for the stairwell. "Douse the first floor lights on your way up," he called back.
"Of course," Eleutherios said. After a few moments of puttering and checking the
placement of the dishes in the cupboard, he moved around and blew out the few candles used on
the floor, and then used the torch cone, a handle with a medium metal cone on the end, to put out
the four torches in the main hall, then headed up the stairs, briefly going through the guest rooms
and the two unused servant quarters, and dousing the candles within those as well before moving
to the foot of the second story stairwell.
"Oh, my lady," he called up. "Will there be anything else this evening?" A few moments
of quiet followed, as Hrisoula was obviously thinking it over.
"No, I think not. Feel free to go to bed, Eleutherios," Hrisoula's voice called down to
him.
"Thank you, my lady," Eleutherios replied, and proceeded to put out the second story
torches, then entered his room, the one closest the stairs. Iosif's was across the hall from his, the
one on the other side of the wall from Hotaru's, formerly used by Damris.
Along with the servant's chest, bed, and candle table, Eleutherios's room held a small
writing table, which Hrisoula had allowed him to have when he'd politely asked for one six years
prior. The tapestry here showed a small city scene.
Eleutherios closed the door, and walked over to the desk. He picked up a long match
stick and lit it on the candle on the candle table, and used that to light his desk candle, then blew it
out. He then sat down at the desk and stared at the drawings he'd drawn over the last few
months.
Drawings of a young girl with long gray-black hair in a braid and quiet hazel eyes...
* * *
The next morning, Ami awoke early, and rousted Hotaru, who'd had a restless night after
seeing the unidentified peeper. Behind the kitchen in a small yard open to the air was a roman
bath, which they used quickly, then dried off, and got dressed. Hotaru noted, though, that Ami
seemed a little off her game all morning, every now and then placing a hand to her forehead as
though she were in mild pain.
The yard also held a pair of trees, one sporting apples and another flowering fresh
peaches, off to the right of the bath, and a small vegetable garden in the upper left hand corner. A
small, nine meter square extension hung from the back of the house from the kitchen against the
property wall, as well.
After they dressed, they went into the kitchen to see what they could have for breakfast,
but before they could start looking, Iosif and Eleutherios entered the room as well. Ami sat down
at the servants table, deciding to let the men show them where the spare food was kept. She once
again wore her blue toga from the previous day, and Hotaru had slipped on a red one of Damris's,
which of course was a slightly snug fit.
"Good morning, Iosif, Eleutherios," Ami said as she sat down.
"Good morning, Ami," Iosif replied, and his brother nodded. Hotaru stood there,
watching them for the moment, Eleutherios especially.
"So what do you have to eat around here?" Ami asked.
"Well, normally we lowly slaves have to prepare a few fresh eggs and vegetables, along
with the option of a piece of meat or two, from the food cupboard for our meals," Iosif explained,
indicating a door to one side, which lead to the extension in the yard. "And there's the apples and
peaches on the trees in back," he commented.
"Okay, what does breakfast usually consist of around here?" Ami asked, then felt her
forehead again.
"Something wrong?" Iosif inquired.
"I think I may be a bit hung over," Ami admitted, glancing at the dishes they'd used just
last night. They'd brought them down and placed them in the clay sink built into the back wall on
their way to the bath, so they were still visible.
"From one glass of wine?" Eleutherios blinked. Hotaru noted he was a little too close to
her for her taste, and stepped quietly back a couple steps.
"My tolerance is basically nil, okay? Now, about breakfast?" Ami replied.
"Usually we have a couple of eggs and some oats ground into whole meal and boiled in
water for a little while," Iosif told her.
"Ah, eggs and oatmeal. Okay, I can go for that," Ami said. "How about you, Hotaru?"
"Sounds good," Hotaru said.
"I'll get started then. Eleutherios, fetch some eggs. Hotaru, would you give me a hand?"
Iosif said, turning briefly to his brother, then Hotaru, then moving to the clay stove next to the
clay oven, both of which were built into the left wall of the room, fetching a couple of pans and a
medium sized pot from the large cupboard as he went. Hotaru walked over and joined him at the
stove while Eleutherios opened the door to the food cupboard.
"Want me to do anything?" Ami asked.
"Uh..." Iosif glanced back at her. *If her head really hurts, we shouldn't push her right
now,* he thought.
"Yes, you can go up and wake Hrisoula. She likes to bathe while breakfast is being
prepared," Eleutherios said as he went into the cupboard.. Hotaru stiffened a little at the thought
of being without Ami within earshot, but then reminded herself that Iosif was also here, and it was
doubtful Eleutherios would do anything while he was in the room.
"Oh, okay, I'll take care of it," Ami said and stood up. She then walked over to the door
and went to the stairs and ascended them. Hotaru watched her as Iosif fetched some matches,
scooped in some coal from a pile in the corner, and lit the stove. Eleutherios then returned with
the eggs, and stood next to his brother as he took some lard from a barrel and greased the pans
with it. Hotaru watched the fire, quietly making sure it didn't go out and that it didn't suddenly
get out of control.
"Hotaru," Eleutherios said.
"Yes?" Hotaru lightly jumped.
"Relax," Eleutherios said calmly. "I just wanted to know, is that one of Damris's togas
you're wearing?"
"Huh? Oh, yes. Most of the clothes she left behind are about my size, though a little
small, and I figured there was no reason to wear the one I did yesterday if there were others that
more or less fit me available," Hotaru explained, quietly forcing her nerves to stay still.
Iosif then took the eggs and began breaking them open, placing them in the pans one by
one, nine in all. He then got a wooden spatula and began tending them.
"Well, I'll get started on the oatmeal," Eleutherios said, and went back into the cupboard.
As he left, Hotaru sighed in relief.
"Is there something the matter, Hotaru?" Iosif asked as he continued to mind the eggs.
"Well," Hotaru said, "Don't take this the wrong way, but, your brother sort of creeps me
out."
"Really?" he blinked.
"Uh, huh," Hotaru nodded. "I'm not sure why, he just does."
"Funny," Iosif said.
"What?"
"Damris told me the same thing once..."
* * *
Ami arrived on the third and top floor, and glanced around. She was in a small library of
scrolls, at least six or seven wooden rows of shelves deep! There was even a small area to the
side near a window with a table for reading, and a desk on the opposite side for writing. A few
small tapestries of mythological scenes, Hercules on one of his twelve labors, Perseus beheading
the Medusa, Theseus working through the Minoan Labyrinth to face the Minotaur, and a couple
of busts added decoration to the room. About twenty four meters away sat the only door here,
and she went to it.
Opening it she found that the rest of the landing was devoted to the master bedroom,
dominated by the biggest king sized bed she'd ever seen! It had to be at least six meters wide,
and about twelve meters long! The rest of the room was richly decorated in tapestries, statues,
and more busts, another writing desk off in one corner of the room, and a candle table on either
side of the bed. A full on wardrobe sat against the wall on her left, made of what looked like
redwood and painted with extravagant colors.
Ami moved over to the bed, spotted Hrisoula asleep upon it, and moved over to her. As
she drew close, she took in a deep breath, and leaned forward quietly, laying a hand upon the
woman and lightly shaking.
"Ms. Hrisoula? It's morning. Iosif and the others are preparing breakfast now," she said
softly. Hrisoula began to stir, and Ami shook a little harder. "Ms. Hrisoula, it's time to get up,"
she said.
"Is it, Eleutherios?" Hrisoula mumbled. "You're a little early today, I think."
"Uh, I'm Ami. Eleutherios is downstairs with his brother making breakfast," Ami quietly
corrected her. Hrisoula blinked her eyes, staring up at the young face above her.
"Ami? Oh, yes, one of the girls I bought yesterday," she mumbled. "Very well, tell
Eleutherios to have the bath ready, and I'll be down shortly," she said, then yawned and stretched.
Ami nodded, and quietly back peddled out of the room, pulling the door closed as she passed
through it.
"Well, this will definitely be interesting," Ami sighed as she headed to the stairs to carry out
her orders.
* * *
Arriving back in the kitchen, Ami found Hotaru and Iosif working away at the eggs, and
Eleutherios preparing a pot of roman oatmeal. She moved over and whispered to Eleutherios,
and he handed the spoon he was stirring the pot with to her and went out to the garden to prepare
the bath as ordered.
Ami quietly stirred the pot while Iosif continued to prepare the eggs. After a few minutes,
Eleutherios returned as Hrisoula emerged into the kitchen, dressed in what looked to be a robe of
sorts.
"Ami, dear, please come with me," she said as she went through the door. Ami followed
while Eleutherios reclaimed his place with the pot.
Ami followed Hrisoula out to the bath, and Hrisoula disrobed, handing her the garment as
she stepped into the water. Ami quietly folded the item and placed it on the small stone table to
the side where she and Hotaru had placed their things earlier when they had used the bath. Now,
though, Ami noted a sort of flowery scent in the air, and noticed that a few oils had been mixed
into the water.
"Normally Damris attends me in the morning, but since she's missing, you'll have to do,"
Hrisoula said.
"Oh, it's no problem, really," Ami said. "What exactly am I supposed to do, out of
curiosity?"
"You shall use the spare oils to massage me when I emerge. Until then, just stand there,"
Hrisoula responded.
"Okay," Ami said. After watching Hrisoula bathe for a little while, she decided it was
worth the trouble, and spoke again. "Um, Hrisoula?"
"Yes, Ami?"
"It's, um, about my wardrobe..."
"Yes? What about it?"
"These are the only clothes I own. And Hotaru only has the one outfit as well, not
counting what was left by Damris..."
"Yes, I see. Hmm. I suppose you wish for me to purchase you a few more garments
each?" Hrisoula questioned her.
"Uh, yes," Ami answered slowly. Had she been too abrupt?
"Nothing simpler," Hrisoula said. "We can get you some things before we open the shop
today."
"Thank you, Hrisoula," Ami replied.
"Not a problem. Now, prepare the oils," Hrisoula stated, and rose from the bath, moved
her robe to the ground, and laid down upon the massaging table. Ami quickly got some oil and
rubbed it on her hands, then carefully masseused the woman's back, rubbing well upon the
shoulders and neck. After a short while, she got a little more oil and massaged her further. Then
a small thought occurred to her.
"Um, do I have to do your front, too?" she asked timidly.
"No, dear, I can handle that myself," Hrisoula answered. "Mm, you know, my dear, I do
believe you're a better masseuse than Damris."
"Am I?" Ami asked.
"Oh, yes. You certainly are."
A few moments later, Ami concluded the massage, and Hrisoula stood up. Ami fetched her
robe and helped Hrisoula into it. They then returned to the kitchen, and Hrisoula asked that Ami
bring her breakfast to the main hall, then rejoin the others for her own. Ami complied, taking
Hrisoula her meal before joining Hotaru and the others for hers.
Shortly after breakfast, Hrisoula departed with Ami and Hotaru, and returned two hours
later, having purchased the girls nine additional outfits to the ones they'd gotten yesterday each,
as well as a pair a sandals for both of them. Afterwards, Hrisoula took Ami back to the stand and
started business for the day, leaving Hotaru home with Iosif and Eleutherios.
Originally, Damris and Eleutherios ran the house while Hrisoula handled the stand, Iosif
ferrying messages as needed between them, as well as taking messages from others who came to
the house. Since she had a servant outstanding, Hrisoula had decided to have Ami assist her at
the stand, since she never did like working it alone.
Actually, she'd been planning to buy one servant more for weeks for that very reason, but
had simply never really gotten around to it. Now the problem had been solved. The only person
who didn't feel comfortable with the arrangement...was Hotaru.
******************************************************************************
From here it gets a little dark, people! You have been warned... Next time - chapter 5:
Rape.
Wanna chat? Wanna scream? Wanna just bite my ear off for no good reason? Send me
an e-mail! I'm at Scorpinac@sa-tech.com!
