Won't You?, January 67 BCE, Alaric Stilicho

[Gothic]

Alaric had wanted to for a long time, too. Although he never thought that this could have happened. To even have her in his arms was a strange concept. A part of him wondered whether all of this was real or a dream. Perhaps she politely declined him at the market instead? Or he never got the courage to ask in the first place?

He chuckled and smiled when she placed a gentle kiss on his normally furrowed brow. Alaric lowered himself down to help her to reach. "Yes, you can and perhaps it will become less prominent with your regular kisses?" He suggested, already he had begun to feel more at ease. More at peace with the world. Although his eyebrows had been furrowed for much of his adult life, still, it was pleasant to think about.

"And I," Alaric began, pulled her against him and smiled down at her. "Can kiss the tip of your nose whenever I want." He said, revealed a more gentle side of himself and lowered his head down to place a soft kiss on the tip of her nose.

[Renna]

"That's the goal," Seia laughed, lifting her fingers again to press over his brow, caressing it fondly. She actually giggled when Alaric pulled her to him and planted a kiss on her nose, her eyes disappearing as they crinkled with her smile. "Seriously, my nose? That's what you wanted to kiss?"

She laughed again, delighted, then moved her hands from his forehead to lock around his neck, smiling up into his face. "Well, it's yours to kiss, as often as you like. All of me is yours."

[Gothic]

Alaric could not help but give a friendly grumble. There were many places he desired to kiss although he did not want to be too forward by saying so. They were going to be married, and he was not sure whether that would happen. "Well, there were many other areas," He murmured, a tad playfully defensive about it and then chuckled. Not that he had dreamed of it at night or anything.

Alaric was not a possessive man by nature. He did not necessarily believe that he would 'own' his wife although many Romans thought this way with their wives. "Mmm... I will enjoy this, I will enjoy this a lot," He said, "as I am yours." He added, before he leaned in close to passionately kiss her lips once more.

[Renna]

"You grumbled!" Seia fairly shrieked it, laughing. She'd completely forgotten their wager in the more important happening of his proposal, but that didn't mean she couldn't tease him about it. Her smile radiated at him, though, and when she felt him coming close again her body stilled, yielding to the kiss, and then returning it, just as fiercely. When they finally parted her breath was ragged, but her smile was still on her mouth. If anything, it was brighter than ever, and she turned her face to whisper to him. "Your bed," she commanded in his ear. "Now."

She hadn't meant to do this, just in case he changed his mind and left her in disgrace, but the way he was looking at her, how happy he was - he wouldn't change his mind. They were both aroused, and in her opinion, they'd also waited long enough. Seia could remember that one kiss, so long ago, how she'd needed to extract herself from his lap and give him time to recover. It was a mark in his favor that he'd restrained himself, and she knew that if he refused him now, he would do it again...but if she was being honest, she'd much rather repay him a hundred times over. "You said that if I lost the wager, I had to accept a gift. I have the ring..." She flashed it for him, along with a dimpled smile, "But I can think of something else I'm ready to receive."

It had been so long. So very long, and Seia could think of no one else she would rather share such pleasures with, and he would be her husband. She could call him that, if she wanted - if it would please him - and the thought delighted her. All these dreams made real.

[Gothic]

Alaric now could not help but grumble more at her laughter. The kiss was always excellent, how long had he waited to do this? His eyes widened at her command. He was no stranger to lust nor of carnal acts, yet this had taken him by (pleasant!) surprise. It certainly was not the proper way to do things. It did not take anymore for him to know exactly what she wanted from him. A gift he was more than happy to oblige.

Yet..... he took her by the hand and led her back into the home, he waved his hand and murmured, "generic excuse," to the slaves who asked for his assistance.

Alaric opened the door and hoped Seia was not put off by the room. It had been barely decorated since he had been married to Suetonia. Otherwise, it was clean and Spartan with few trinkets or signs of comfort. Something he had never grown accustomed to. Alaric drew her close to him again, held her in his strong arms and passionate kissed her again. A hand moved upwards to run through her dark hair, everything felt perfect -- like a dream that had finally come true.

"And I am more than happy to give it to you," He whispered back, when his kisses traveled along her jawline towards her earlobe and kissed along her neck.

[Renna]

“Wait.” This was sighed against him, her hands slipping into his hair. Seia backed him out the door, still lost in his kisses, then whispered in his ear. “My husband should carry me over the threshold, even if right now the marriage is only between us. It’s good fortune.”

[Gothic]

Alaric was more than happy to oblige. He wrapped one arm around her, lifted her up and held her in his arms. While Seia was certainly not weightless, he felt it in his back and arms. "Of course, hm, good fortune between us." He said, although already felt he had good fortune by meeting her, and being able to marry her.

Despite how tender the moment was. He could not resist it. Alaric playfully groaned as he walked towards the bed with her. To add to the effect, he pretended to stumble, too. A trait of Alaric's was the fact that he would only joke with those who he considered to be his friends. While with everyone else? He was firm and businesslike.

Gently, Alaric placed her down on the bed and smiled at her. It all still felt like a dream. Was he dreaming? "There we made it," He teased.

[Renna]

Alaric's fiance rolled her eyes at him from the pillow. Men and their constant need to tease! "It isn't too early," Seia informed him, "For me to banish you to sleep on a couch. If we're committed enough to have sex, we're committed enough for me to command you." It was fine, though, two could play at this game. "I'll choose to believe that you weren't daring to suggest that your new wife was fat, Alaric, only that you need to spend another hour or two every day refining your arm strength."

Her voice was sweet as honey, sly. "I think it was very brave to admit to me that you are actually a weakling."

Seia flashed a grin at him, wickedness touching the expression. This was, of course, not true; she loved the strength in his arms, his solidness. But he'd started on this road and Seia firmly believed in giving as good as she got.

[Gothic]

Alaric believed a man should always respect his wife -- and expect it in turn. That did not mean he would not be cheeky on occasion, there was no harm in jesting between partners. He chuckled at her retort, shifted his weight off her and rested on his elbow to look at her. It may have been more than cheeky to imply it was a struggle. Alaric had been in Rome for a long time now, and fortunately he had learned some tricks of wordplay.

"Alas, my poor aching arms," He answered with a deadpan face and clutched one as though it is cramping from the 'strain'.

"I did not realise your desires moved solely towards physical prowess, a vanity?" Alaric added, tried not to smile and all that showed were dimples. He reached out and playfully gave her a poke on the arm.

[Renna]

This time she laughed, again with a good-natured roll of her eyes, but she smiled and answered the question seriously. “I like good, kind men,” Seia told him, “With handsome faces and easy smiles, who make me laugh, who are generous and honest. Physical prowess is not a requirement... but it is something I greatly enjoy. It helps things last longer. And it makes me
feel sheltered. Safe.”

She would not speak ill of Titus, not here, not ever. He had been strong for his age, surprisingly so, but her desire for him had never been solely for his body. It would not be that way with Alaric either, but ... in that sense there was more.

Seia had been trailing a hand lightly over Alaric’s arm as she spoke, getting a feel for the muscles below the skin, but a sudden flash of guilt made her pause. Was she being unjust to Titus, to have found another so soon, and to be so completely happy? She missed him, of course, wedding again would not change that, but would he be ...insulted? If he knew?

No. Surely not.

Her hand began moving again, more slowly this time, a tender caress from wrist to shoulder and back again, and then up his arm once more to dip below his tunic, massaging his chest. If Titus was aware of any of this, he would want protection for his daughter, and comfort for the wife who still wept herself to sleep every now and then out of sheer loneliness and weariness and grief. He would not grudge her this.

And what of Alaric? Was it wrong to have thoughts of someone else, when she was with him?

“...I love you, Alaricus.” This was not spoken with any hint of jesting, but with a quiet solemnity that only traveled as far as his ears. Not even the walls could hear these whispers. “I would give you anything.”

Seia hesitated, her hand stilling again, then asked the question rather than letting it fester. He had lost wives many times over, even a child, and thinking of that made her heart ache for him as well as be more willing to ask. "Alric? Is it....is it all right, to still miss Titus, and to think of him, even when I'm happy with you?"

Her face took on a worried look, one she could not quite help. "I thought it might be, but I felt a little ...strange, just now, like maybe I was betraying him or you, or both at the same time, and I just...I could never."

[Gothic]

Alaric smiled and leaned closer as she answered him, this time seriously. He was not surprised by her answer. He nodded although his tastes with women were different. He enjoyed the soft curves of their form, yet enjoyed strength in both character and body. He was not sure of the thoughts that ran through her mind nor did he know exactly how she felt. His hand reached out to rest on her arm then drew her close to his body, held her and would always keep her safe. He felt her hand traveling along his body and rested on his chest.

Alaricus. A name he had yet was often attributed to his half-Roman son. Still, it was not something he would ever reject from her. "I love you, Seia.... the same, " He whispered back, a rare moment of vulnerability for him. He had loved all the women he was with yet Seia, there was something different about her.

There would have been many men who would have been angry or jealous at the mention of her late husband. Alaric was not. He thought for a moment, his forehead close to hers as the tip of his nose rested nearby. "You loved him and he was both a friend, even a father figure to you," He answered honestly, Alaric knew of her husband's Republican ideals and trusted Seia when she said he was innocent. It was not an honourable way to die, especially to cover up another man's crimes and that would have been upsetting.

He had his own confessions to make.

"I miss Gertrude, and Gala," He said, mentioning her friend, "And Suetonia, they were all good women. It is natural to miss and grieve for those you cared about, and still love those still living," Alaric added, ever practical this was something on his mind. He was not the younger man he once was. There would be a time when he would pass into the next life. "If, or, when... I go, I want you to find happiness and security."

[Renna]

"I hope the same for you." She relaxed, seeming comforted, and moved to curl up in the circle of his arm. "And I don't blame you for missing the others. Good people are so precious it makes sense to miss them when they leave us. I won't blame you if you don't blame me." 

Seia was quiet, thinking, then her eyes fell on the ring on her finger and she flashed into a smile, cheered up just by the sight of it. She lifted her hand for him to see, showing it off. "Look, someone wonderful gave me this today! I've never felt so fortunate." The widow kissed him, but couldn't resist giving him a teasing whisper as her spirits recovered. "But once I move in, I'm doing something about this boring room."

[Gothic]

Alaric smiled, happy and silent holding her. His thoughts kept him comfortable, happy in the knowledge that the spirits of his late wives would be happy in knowing he and Seia found each other. Then the last thing hit him. The room. Every so often, Barbara would make comments about the house looking more like a Barracks rather than a family home. Alaric never particularly noticed. 

"Oh! Oh I see!" He exclaimed, his body rocked as he laughed and placed a tender kiss on her forehead. "When you move in, you are welcome to decorate the house however you like," Alaric said, there were tokens of the Aetii-Stilichii that still remained within the home. "I would like you keep certain items. Otherwise, the place is yours to decorate," He added, his breathing slow and steady. 

"What else would you like in the house?"

[Renna]

“I don’t want to remove anything,” Seia assured him. “You don’t have many things in here; I assume that all of them are important. It just needs more color. Codices. Paintings on the wall, things to look at and learn from. And my tradition is to have a stone and a bench in the garden, so we can sit together and ... also have a place to think of people we miss.” 

She was glad to make him laugh, it was such a nice change from the stern demeanor he gave to everyone else. 

[Gothic]

Alaric listened when she answered him. Relieved that she did not wish to remove remnants of the past as they lived here. There were plenty of people in their lives that had already passed on that they would like to remember. "Mmm, I like that idea, the garden is also another area that needs work," He said, his duties called him elsewhere and regularly he found himself without a green thumb. It was basic, a water fountain, and nothing particularly interesting or of note. 

"Hmm, what else?" He asked, although the question was just as much to him as it was to her. Alaric thought back to the home that she would have shared with Titus, her late and wrongly convicted husband, and now it had been taken over and was an asset of the state. Alaric didn't presume that he knew or understood her pain. Yet, he admired her bravely and determination to clear his name. 

"We need to make sure that the children each get their own room," He added, not including Barbara as she would marry soon.

[Renna]

"The garden needs help, yes," Seia agreed, "Although I don't know how to plant anything. We'll have to hire someone. It will be worth it, though, green places are good for the spirit." She reached out to brush the hair dipping onto his forehead, smoothing it away between her fingers. "And I'll need somewhere for my horses, although I suspect you knew that, Master Oh-look-I-found-this-codex-about-Parthian-horses." She laughed, quietly, then sobered. "And yes, rooms for the children...with maybe one or two left empty, just in case." 

She wondered if he would give her more, and the thought of it warmed her so fully from the inside out that she went very still. A moment later she was kissing him. "Just in case, Alaric," Seia whispered. "Can you imagine that?" 
 

[Gothic]

Alaric smiled gently at the feel of her fingertips caressing his face, then laughed at her jest and answered more seriously. "There is not a lot of space for the horses, I have a farm outside Rome with room for them to roam and run freely," He added, personally, he thought that codex was an amazing find. His hand reached up and softly caressed her cheek, his hands were calloused from war and work, yet were still able to be tender and gentle with the woman he loved. 

"Oh yes, just in case," He answered with a smile, returned her kiss and could only imagine children between the pair of them. "It would be a blessing from the Gods," He murmured softly, kissed first her forehead and then the tip of her nose. Alaric did not think he would have more children. A part of him always worried about the pain and loss during childbirth. Although now was not the time, he was on a natural high and rested his forehead against hers. 

[Renna]

"Which gods?" Seia wanted to know, not missing that he'd claimed the kiss to her nose he'd confessed to wanting so badly. "Roman, or from your homeland?" 

She didn't care which he believed in, she didn't suppose that it really mattered one way or the other. At least not to her, so uncertain of her own faith and beliefs, even though she was a favorite at several temples throughout the city for her devotions. Desperation and devotion, Seia knew, were not quite the same things. She'd become pious only because there was nowhere else to go, and it felt like doing something, to pray. It was better than doing nothing, pacing up and down waiting for the city to give Titus the justice he deserved. It kept her from losing her mind. 

Seia closed her eyes as his brow met hers, savoring having him this close at last, and slipped her arms around his neck to keep him close to her. "You're a good father," she informed him. "You love the children you have, and I love you for it." If she was going to have more, she wanted to know that they would be loved, and safe, and treasured. Part of her could, to some point, understand not liking children, but bringing them into the world was so dangerous, such an impossible battle, she was certain that whatever higher power ordered the affairs of men had intended them to be cherished. Wasn't that the way of things? Anything worth having was worth struggling for, and every woman who gave birth was risking her life to do so. There were men out there who abandoned their babies, after all of that. 

The thought made her shiver, and she tightened her hold on Alaric as if holding him would be a shield strong enough to keep such ideas at bay. "...You have a big heart." This was murmured against his face, and punctuated by a kiss. "You love easily. Alaric, when do you think you fell in love with me?" 

Seia's eyes were still closed, her expression peaceful now. "I'm not sure when it was love, for you, but that first time at the market, when I was trying to sell things...You kept coming into my mind." There was a sudden laugh. "And then you kissed me and it only got worse. That was cruel of you." 

[Gothic]

He paused when Seia asked which Gods. To him, the different Gods had each taken on parts of the other and they were similar. Alaric shrugged. "Both? Our children worship the Roman Gods though." He added. Seia had always accepted and supported his foreign ancestry. 

Seia's words of praise meant a lot to him. Alaric always tried to do his best by his children (and that includes his step-children) and he knew the risks of childbirth. He had heard of the plant that women would take to prevent any unwanted pregnancies. Alaric did not want to press it. "And you love your daughter, any child would be fortunate to have you as a mother." He murmured in response, peaceful and relaxed. The lines in his face began to soften, his usual neutral expression or a scowl was replaced with a more at ease one. Alaric was so comfortable that he nearly drifted off to sleep. 

He blinked a couple of times as his eyelids became heavy, when she tightened her hold on him he instinctively pulled her closer to him and held her close. He murmured in agreement about him having a big heart. Instinctually, he returned the kiss and his eyes opened to gaze at her. They had known each other for many years before they knew each other well. He had either Suetonia or Galla, and she had Titus. 

"It was when I saw you walking towards the courts to clear Titus' name," He said, paused and remembered the sight. It did not end in victory. Alaric admired and loved strength in others. Alaric chuckled, gave her a teasing smirk, and playfully nibbled the tip of her nose. "I know, I imagine that you did not expect me to be quite so passionate?" 

@Renna

[Renna]

Alaric's praise of her as a mother warmed Seia's heart. "You don't know how much that means to me," she confessed to him. "I didn't want to be a mother, ever. One of my playmates, when I was a girl -- her mater died having her little brother. That terrified me, and I had nightmares, and my own mother was just ...unreasonably cruel. Not just strict, I mean cruel. I was sure I would either die, or have a baby and turn out to be just like her toward it. I don't know which frightened me more. But the way Titus spoke of children, and parenthood, made me wonder if maybe there was something lovely in it, and then Imperia came and my world fell in on her. I didn't know it was possible to love so much. She is my life." 

And the little girl had her father's eyes, so even with his absence Seia was able to see part of him, living near her still. Thriving. 

There was a silence, Seia's fingers caressing gently into Alaric's hair, but after some moments she smiled at him and made a pleased sound in the back of her throat. "This was what I hoped for," she said. "Your face just now. You look calm, comforted...at peace. I wanted so badly to be the one to make your face change this way." She'd done it. The wish was granted, and how beautiful it was to see! His comment made her blush, however, her tan skin washing bronze. He'd loved her while she was going to the courts? Why - that was even before they'd spoken in the market. That was so early! That was - 

Her thoughts derailed when Alaric turned his attentions back to her nose, both making her laugh and blush again. "Well, it was hardly proper of you." It hadn't been proper of her either, in point of fact. "I was rather expecting a softer, just-getting-to-know you sort of kiss. Instead..." He knew what he'd done instead. He was very guilty. "Actually, I find I've forgotten exactly how it happened." Seia kissed him, slowly. "You'll have to show me again." 

[Gothic]

Alaric listened when Seia began to explain what had happened to her. Her knew that her mother was not kind towards other people, especially her own daughter and pulled her close. He had heard his previous wife's screams during childbirth. It had been frightening, all one could do was sacrifice and pray that the Gods would be merciful. Titus was a good man, at least, he was towards Seia. "Your mother was cruel and most unkind towards you. I can see why you defended Titus so fiercely, especially when your parents abandoned you," He answered, his tone and facial expressions darkened at the sound of the betrayal. Her parents would never be welcome in their home. Not after everything they had willing put Seia through. 

However, it did not take long for him to relax once more. 

He could not help but smile at her words. "I have a suspicion that you will always be able to make me feel this way." He responded, his job had not been an easy one. Being forced to serve a man  that he despised and serve underneath fools. His focus was on protecting the last princess, Rufia Flavia, and trying to keep her as safe from Clemens as possible. Flavia was not weak and reminded him of her mother, and in a way, of Seia too. 

He chuckled and gave a boyish shrug, Alaric was about to comment once more and drew her close again. The first part of the kiss was soft, tender, and the latter part needed no more encouragement from him. He kissed her passionately, his arms pulled her close to feel her feminine curves against his body, and again he was in bliss.