Authors Note:

All right guys, you win….ok? This story was meant to be a one-shot, but if you go through and read my reviews, nearly every single one tells me to continue on…so here it is. Just to let you know, it probably isn't going to go very far, so don't expect it to be updated every three seconds. Get it, Got it, Good…now, on with the story:

Chapter 2:

Devastation

"Lucille wants to see you." A guard stood at the doorway of Commodus' chambers, bowing and adding the annoying, yet somewhat satisfactory 'Caesar' at the end of his sentence. However, the young emperor did not look up from the papers on which he was so focused on.

"How is she?" He did not look up.

"Still devastated, sir." The young praetorian was roughly the age of twenty, and Commodus was reminded irritably of Gracchus in his presence.

"I believe I told no one to enter her chambers." Commodus' tone remained calm, almost placid as he signed off a few of the papers, and still refused to look up.

"You did, Caesar."

"Then what were you doing there!" He now slammed the papers on his desk, overturning an ink jar that thankfully spread its contents away from his forms. His icy cold gaze fell on the much smaller guard as he rose to his feet, a look of fury spreading over his face.

"She begged from t he other side…" The guard cowered away, knowing how quickly the emperor executed people these days.

"You're sure." It came out more of a statement than a question, but his gaze did not lower.

"Absolutely, sir."

"…Fine." He dismissed after a moment of contemplation. He pushed past the young guard, evidently named Tiberius, and made his way towards Lucille's room.

It'd been nearly a week since he'd stained his hands with Maximus' blood, and still Lucille remained distraught. He refused to let her see anyone but himself for a while, punishment for what'd she'd planned against him. Even Lucius was locked in a different room, for he knew this also struck her with a fierce blow.

He opened her door and walked in for the second time since she'd been imprisoned. And as the same time as before, she was on her bed, tears rolling down her cheeks. The last visit, he'd walked out when she'd started talking about Maximus. He got the feeling that was about to do the same right now.

"Commodus…" She sobbed, looking up at him, tears readily racing down her cheeks and falling onto a puddle on the floor. She rose, still staring at the ground (he caught a fleeting glimpse of her crying when father had died), and let the drops steadily hit the ground in a pattern. Pat…Pat…Pat….Pat…

The emperor walked towards his sister, arms open in an attempt at a comforting embrace for her. To his satisfaction, she fell into it, arms tucked to her chest as he hugged her, still crying into his shoulder.

Commodus found the silence between himself and his sister unnerving, and felt he had to say something. The problem was what to say. Talking with her was like walking on shattered glass, you'd say one thing and boom, she was hysterical. He might've said two words last time, and she was sobbing her eyes out all over again.

"I…er—"

"When will this punishment end, brother?" Lucille cut him off as soon as she heard him begin to speak. She turned her reddened gaze up to him. "Have I not been punished enough? The one man I could ever love is dead, and –"

It was Commodus' turn to cut her off as he pushed her away, angered by her comment. He knew she would never love him, but to openly declare this in his presence was unjustifiable.

She looked up at him, knowing why he'd turned her away. The look on his face was of hurt, yet at the same time anger.

"The only man you shall ever have a chance at loving stands before you." His voice was a bit shaky, but this was to be expected after every rejection from his sister. What was it in his mind that made him so attracted to her?

"You killed him!" She flew into a rage, lunging at Commodus. He remained where he was, knowing she could do nothing to hurt him. In a desperate attempt to make him pay, she beat on his chest with the bottom of her fists, hitting his armor twice before collapsing on him in sobs. He expressed disapproval of his behavior only in his expression, and held her close, knowing that her depression was reasonable, but at the same time waiting for her to stop. "You killed Maximus…" she cried, her body wracked with the sobs that shook her body.

"It's something that had to be done, Lucille." He said simply, walking her over to the bed and sitting down, letting her lean into him and continue her seemingly infinite sobs.

"Its allright, my sister….it's allright…."