A/N: More fluff. But a plot arc is starting soon! Historically-minded readers may notice that I referred to Esca's language as Gaelic, not Pictish as it would have been during that time. However, as Gaelic is what is used in the movie, and no living record of Pictish survives to this day, I'm using Gaelic instead. Credit to Sineala for help with Latin. Disclaimer: I don't own these characters. If I did, there would be much more making out and much more hot man lovins in the movie.

Love, Requited

Chapter Two: Thirst for New Adventure

Tlump tlump tlump tlump...

The muffled sound of hooves sprinting through grass sounded down the hillside. The wind blew through the grasses as two men raced to the bottom.

The blond man, riding atop his white stallion, shouted as loud as he could in Gaelic, "Níos tapúla, Tapaidh! Ní mór an bua againn!" The blond man's hair blew wildly in the wind and his teeth were barred as he leaned close to Tapaidh, his steed. Tapaidh's hooves pounded the ground quickly and with much force as the hillside began to bottom out, leading into a grassy moor. Ahead lay a forest, its wall of trees advancing closer and closer with extreme speed.

The blond man whipped his head backwards. Only a couple yards behind him, another man with black hair and a mahogany stallion was gaining speed. The blond cried out, switching to Latin, "First one to the forest wins, remember?"

The black-haired man smiled and cried back, "Dearly!" He whipped the reins of his horse and a loud crack pounded through the air. "Faster, Audaculus!" The horse whinnied and its hooves pounded the ground twice as fast.

The two riders were neck-and-neck as the wall of forest slid over them. The sun in the sky had disappeared. They had entered the twilight world of the trees, where the sunbeams were dappled against the ground in yellows and greens. Both men slowed their horses to a near stop, clopping along slowly through the forest.

"I definitely won," the black-haired man said. "Good work, Audaculus!"

The blond smirked. "Marcus, the day you beat me at a horse race will be the day I die."

"Well, it seems you're quite well despite being dead, then, Esca," Marcus, said, chuckling. Both men slid from their horses, and led them to the creek they spotted ahead.

"It was a tie," Esca said, laughing as he tied Tapaidh's reins to a nearby tree. The white horse drank thirstily from the creek, as did Audaculus next to him.

"Oh!" Marcus twisted his face, feigning surprise. "Well, regardless, I know an easy way to get rid of you now, should I ever need it."

Esca wrapped his arms around Marcus' shoulders as they stood on the creek's edge, facing each other, held together again by that magnetic force. "And why would you want to be rid of me?" Esca said, pushing out his lower lip in fake sadness.

"I wouldn't."

"I'd hope not." Esca's lip still bulged out, and Marcus, as though by instinct, tilted his head forward and touched it with his own lips.

It's like it's on fire… Marcus thought, sucking along the warmth of Esca's lip. Suddenly he felt something hotter touch him. Esca's tongue prodded along his upper lip, and Marcus opened his mouth.

I want to know what you really taste like, Esca thought. But that was the last of his coherent thoughts for now. He searched through Marcus' mouth with fervor, and his face flooded with warmth as pure pleasure spread from his tongue and lips through his entire body.

Marcus exhaled, and Esca sucked the outgoing breath in. It tasted indescribably good, and no longer addled with wine. Instead, it was sweeter than any fruit but reserved and subtle at the same time. The same sweet breath passed between them several times before Esca pulled away, desperate for air. He usually loved the scent of the outdoors, but now it seemed disgusting compared to Marcus' sweetness.

"I love you," Marcus managed to whisper quickly before they fell back into the kiss again. Esca felt a shiver in his spine… he hadn't built up the courage to say the same yet. Briefly, guilt washed over him, making him wish he hadn't been so timid before. He knew his feelings, and he knew Marcus shared the same feelings with him, so why hadn't he found the words?

But then he felt Marcus' hands drifting through his soft locks and the guilt washed away again.

"When you were coming down the hill, you yelled something in Gaelic. What did it mean?" Marcus asked as he walked through the forest with Esca, walking together on the narrow, rocky bed between the forest proper and the creek.

Esca screwed up his face in thought. "I don't quite remember… do you remember any specific words?"

"Well, I'm pretty sure you yelled 'Tapaidh' somewhere in there. So was it something with your horse?"

Esca's mind clicked into place. "Ah yes. Níos tapúla, Tapaidh! Ní mór an bua againn!" He looked up at Marcus. "It means 'Faster, Tapaidh! We must win!'"

Marcus chuckled. "Let's not forget who actually won the race, Esca."

Esca playfully punched his shoulder. "It was a tie!"

But suddenly, Marcus' smile went from playful to inquisitive. "Do you think I could learn Gaelic?"

Esca cocked his head as he replied. "What use would it serve you?"

"Talking to you natively, number one. We could run away together, find a house in the countryside and you'd never have to be troubled by speaking Latin again. Like a lighter form of Roman life." He paused, and Esca looked intrigued. "Don't you ever get tired of Latin?" Marcus aked.

"I suppose, sometimes. However… no offense, but I've met some Romans who spoke Gaelic with a thick accent. Warriors, of course. I guess they wanted to try and intimidate us, like they knew everything about us. But honestly, they sounded extremely stupid. We took them prisoner, but then gave them back in a prisoner exchange out of pity. Trust me, best trade ever. Got some good men back." Esca paused and laughed to himself at the memory. "So unless you want me to laugh constantly while you speak, with my memory of them, I don't think learning Gaelic would be a good idea."

"Aw, come on, Esca. Who says I'd have a thick accent?"

"I'm living proof of the power of thick accents, Marcus."

"But you don't sound stupid."

"Then how do I sound?"

"Strange, exotic, but in a nice way. Eloquent. Brave and bold too," Marcus said, honestly. He stopped and held out his hand to Esca, who took it. "And truthfully… extremely sexy." Marcus made his cheesiest-possible romantic-seduction face, his teeth in a small, tight smile and his eyebrow raised. He knelt down to the ground and kissed Esca's hand.

Esca was deep red and laughing in fits. "Bhfuil tú ró-greannmhar, mo ghaol - you are too much." He bent down and gave Marcus a chasté peck on the cheek. "Oh, I'm glad I have you."

"I wouldn't take anyone else. Come on, let's get back to Cavella before we miss dinner."

They turned back and set off down the creekbed to their horses, hand-in-hand, as the sun's light turned orange at the start of sunset. For several minutes, they walked through the forest, admiring nature, joking, enjoying each other's presence and revelling the warmth of each other's hands.

Esca opened his mouth, but his voice faltered. Marcus looked at him pryingly. Esca started again. "Did you mean what you said before? About moving to the countryside with me?"

Marcus nodded. "Would you like that?" They reached the horses, and Marcus began to untie Audaculus as Esca untied Tapaidh.

Esca climbed onto Tapaidh's back. "I would," he said, leaning close and kissing Marcus quickly on the lips. They began to trot out of the forest. "Back in my days as a Brigante I remember much talk about a land to the south and west, from which we got many visitors. Traders mostly. They said it was a land like ours, with big mountains and forests and trees and plains and rivers just like Alba, mo bhaile… er, Caledonia, my native land."

"I've heard of somewhere like that, to the west. It's called Cambria… the native name is similar… something like 'Kum-rih'… 'Kem-ree'…" Marcus tried his best imitations of the rough Brythonic name before giving up.

Esca couldn't help but chuckle, reminded of the Roman captives. "Cymru! Rwy'n gallu siarad ychydig Cymraeg; I speak a little of their tongue, picked it up from the traders." He faltered and his smile fell a bit. "Honestly, don't you think we're taking this a bit too fast? Just yesterday we had our first kiss and already we're talking about," 'eloping' was the word that almost escaped his lips, but he stopped himself, "running away together."

Marcus thought pensively for a moment, and they reached the forest's edge. "Do you think we are?" he asked.

Esca thought for a moment as well. "No."

"Then neither do I."

Esca breathed in deep. "I love you."

"I know," Marcus said casually, but caringly.

"I have for a long time."

"So have I."

Esca sighed. "I wish I could have said that to you a lot earlier. Months."

Marcus was quieter than before, his tone more serious, but still loving. "As do I."

"I want to spend the rest of my life with you."

Marcus turned his head to Esca, who was smiling. He stared deeply, again, into his steely eyes before speaking. "I wouldn't mind that at all."

And with a mutual, loving smile they set off across the darkening moor for Cavella.

Three men sat together at the round table, cross-legged and relaxing on the pillows that lay on the floor of the villa's dining room. Plates of fish, sausages, vegetables and greens sat in front of them. Unusually, Marcus' uncle hadn't invited any 'special guest' to dine with them. It was only he, Marcus and Esca eating in the torchlit dining room as the velvety blackness of night smothered the last orange rays of the sun.

There wasn't any conversation. It was dull and awkward at these dinners when no guest was present, and even when a visitor was present it wasn't much fun, as the subject often turned to Esca's Brigantine background and stayed there for quite a while. It had taken a few weeks for Marcus to coax Esca to sit and eat with Romans besides himself, and even now more often than not Esca had stormed off by the end of dinner, scowling at each visitor's probing ways. When they were unaccompanied he usually stayed through until the end, but seldom spoke. He didn't like Marcus' uncle and was not afraid to show it, either.

Several minutes passed and the course had been finished. Stephanos took their plates away and filled them again with fruits and nuts.

"Uncle," Marcus asked, "you're well-connected… do you have any ins in, say, Cambria? Esca and I have been thinking about…" he paused, "a new adventure. And a place to stay. For ourselves." Esca looked surprised for a moment at the sudden conversation, the use of his name lulling him out of his spaciness, but then quickly smiled slyly at Marcus as he chewed the last of a fig. He then returned to his stony scowl as he sat up on the pillows.

Marcus clinched suddenly. Would his uncle be offended? Would he think they were rejecting his hospitality? Uncle opened and closed his mouth several times, like fish out of water. Finally, he spoke. "Well, where are you thinking about? There are lots of new towns being built, many villas needing people to live in them. You've got tons of choice."

Marcus glanced to Esca and then back to his uncle. "We were talking after our horse race, and Esca mentioned Cambria."

"Ahh…" Uncle smiled. "Cambria. Yes, I've been there a few times. Quite full of mountains and wilderness, but we're taming it as best we can. I suppose it'll be nice to you, m'boy," Uncle said, jabbing his finger in the Brtion's direction. Esca flinched at being called 'm'boy' and scowled a bit harder.

"Esca said he can speak the language too," Marcus turned to Esca, eyes expectant. Esca's expression seemed to say Kill me even more than was usual at dinner.

Rolling his eyes and sighing, Esca spoke. "Ydy. Rwy'n gallu siarad rhywfaint o Gymraeg. Dylai fod… yn ddigon i gyfathrebu â'r brodorion." He smiled when he saw Marcus' uncle's puzzled look. It was clear that he understood none of what was just said.

"But that's just perfect then," Uncle said, is eyes getting wider, taking a sip of wine. "If you two go there, you're still deep in Roman territory, so you should be safe from raids. Most of the Cambrian tribes have decided to cooperate with us, because as it turns out they're faring better under Roman rule, so that shouldn't be a problem. And if it is you'll have an interpreter to negotiate through, eh?"

Marcus was smiling wide. This is starting to sound too good to be true. "Are there any towns there?"

"Well, my good friend Opulentus has a son… I forget his name, of course, but he's one of the people that plans out these new towns and builds and sells some of the villas for the first residents. His newest one is somewhat close by, in the southern part Cambria, on the southern coast and on the foothills of the first set of mountains. Unfortunately some of the villas are a bit expensive, even to someone from a family of old money, like you, Marcus." Marcus looked crestfallen. "However, I can put in a good word. I'll see if I can get them to negotiate a lower price for you."

Marcus smiled again. "A thousand thankyous, Uncle. What is this town called?"

"Lucus Argentus," Uncle said, "Meaning silver groves, of course. There's a forest right by and it's filled with silver birches, appropriately enough. It's two leagues or so from the beach and a bit further to the mountains to the north. Opulentus says it's a beauty." He smiled wide. "When do you boys plan on leaving?"

Marcus fell silent and glanced at Esca again. Truthfully, they wanted to leave as soon as possible, perhaps even the next morning.

Uncle laughed, "Don't be modest, now. It's no secret that sooner is better for you two. You're craving adventure, having just come back from your travels for the Eagle. I'll send word to Opulentus right away." He stood up and began to leave the dining room to write his note, but halfway through the arch he turned back. "You two have been acting funny lately and… it's time I asked. Sleeping in, when you're normally both up before daybreak, and you're a lot more smiley than usual, too. And now plans of adventure in Cambria. Did it finally happen?"

Marcus looked both shocked and confused, and stammered. "Wha- What do y- you mean?"

Uncle laughed. "Oh, I've seen the way you two looked at each other, stealing glances while the other looked away. There was always something there. And now it's more blatant than ever before. So I ask, are you two together?"

Silence filled the room.

"You know…" Uncle turned around in the archway, his back to Esca and Marcus, and he wrapped his arms around himself, so it looked as if some hidden figure was hugging him. He made loud smooching noises. It was clear what he meant. He made himself laugh even louder than before, and turned back around again.

Marcus finally stood up and started, "Uncle…" Esca looked up at him furtively, and Marcus offered his hand. Esca grasped it and pulled himself up, and stood next to the Roman. Marcus spoke. "Yes. I love Esca. He is my world and I want to spend the rest of my days by his side."

Esca felt tingles in his spine as the warm fuzziness filled his chest. He gave a loving smile, but quickly returned to his stony gaze.

Marcus' uncle clapped his hands and smiled. "It's about time, you two! But you don't need the theatrics." Marcus smiled feebly at that comment, and Esca twitched in sudden anger. The pair shuffled into the kitchen, following Marcus' uncle. He bent down over the table in the kitchen and quickly scribbled a note. "Stephanos?" The slave appeared from behind another archway. "I need you to take this to Opulentus. Be back as soon as possible." He rolled up the note and handed it to the slave, who curtly nodded, grabbed a torch, and set off through the door.

"And now, it looks like it's time for bed." Marcus' uncle started to walk off to his own bedroom, but continued to speak loudly as he went. "Two young lovers, alone together in the same room, with a door that locks, in an isolated wing with the night so young." He fell silent as he rounded the corner to his bedroom.

Marcus froze, his face a deep pink. Esca glanced at him, his face blushed the same way and his teeth chattering with rage. A muffled shout came through the walls, "I'm jealous!" Hearty laughter followed it.

Esca cursed under his breath and Marcus placed a hand on his shoulder. "I know. He's an obnoxious idiot."

"There's no way he really… I'm going to fucking kill that bastard!" Esca's his anger burned bright as the sun. He closed the door to their bedroom with a slam. A door that locks… he thought. He glanced back to Marcus, who sat on the edge of his bed. No, Esca thought, It's our bed now. He made sure Marcus wasn't looking and silently slipped the bolt into place.

Marcus looked at Esca as the Briton sat down next to him, his face still red and twisted, but to a lesser degree. Marcus was still blushed. "You don't think he actually expects us to-"

"No, Marcus, I think he thinks we already have." They awkwardly looked at each other for several still seconds.

"It's ridiculous," Marcus said. "We never would, not with that old pervert in the same house."

It's an isolated wing, Esca thought. "And with the risk of him finding out..."

"Besides, I'm sure his right hand is keeping him good company," Marcus said. He winced, playfully. "Oooh, bad images."

My right hand is too, for me. Maybe it's time to stop that, Esca thought, his palms starting to sweat. "And neither of us even have done that before…"

"Of course," Marcus paused. "But I know how to do that."

Show me, then.

"You learn a lot of things in the Roman army. I never got involved in that, though, because there's heavy penalties for it if you're found out."

At least we're on equal ground as virgins. Esca cleared his throat. His face was its normal pale color, but his mind was swimming and he felt the warm fuzziness slowly spread throughout him. "We wouldn't even… not at that point… I think…" His voice broke and fell away. The two men stared at each other deeply again, Esca's blue eyes filled with need. Marcus' soft, brown ones seemed to read Esca's like a book.

"We're just making excuses." Marcus lay down, chuckling. "Whatever happened to 'to hell with borders'?"

Esca laid back next to Marcus, and breathed deeply and exhaled several times, his chest even heavier. "Marcus, if you're willing to…" He exhaled again, and the next words were much quieter, "I think I'm ready to- to have sex with you."

Marcus chuckled. "No, Esca, I don't think I'm ready for that yet. I honestly don't think either of us are. We need to slow down." He gathered his thoughts and then spoke again. "I like where we are right now. And I'd like to do that with you, too, but I want to let our relationship grow and take shape a bit more. We're finally together and I want to do this right. Step-by-step."

Esca felt strange at Marcus' words. The warm fuzziness was still inside him, but his palms began to dry and his mind became clearer. The sense of Marcus' words trickled down through his body like some tonic, bringing back his calm demeanor. He chuckled. "You're right. I was…" he trailed off, unable to think of something to say that wouldn't make him look like an uptight bastard. "It's funny, Mr. Step-by-step, that your next step is to run away with me." He smiled cheekily.

Marcus wrapped an arm around him as he chortled at Esca's joke. He smiled but his nextwords were firm. "Are you okay? Seriously. Like I said, I don't want to mess this up."

"I'm alright. And I don't mind taking an IOU for now."

"Good," Marcus said. Esca pulled away slightly, but Marcus felt the motion and resisted it. He pulled the Briton closer, so their noses nearly touched. "Hey... just because we're abstaining for now doesn't mean we can't make out."

Esca's wide, loving smile filled his face. "I know." He moved slowly forward and Marcus matched his movement, and their lips exploded with the lightning of love as they brushed together for the first of many times that night.

A/N: Nope. There is no knife strong enough to cut through all this sexual tension and not break. Sorry for making Esca look like a horny little bitch! Review please! Also… do I smell an actual plot in the future? Cambria? Hmmm… ?

Translations: (NOTE: these come from a translator so I have no idea of their accuracy. If you spot any problems please tell me!) "Tapaidh" means speedy. "Audaculus" means bold. "Ydy. Rwy'n gallu siarad rhywfaint o Gymraeg. Dylai fod… yn ddigon i gyfathrebu â'r brodorion" means "Yes. I can speak some Welsh. It should be enough to communicate with the natives". "Opulentus" means rich.