Trading words

[Chevi]

Britannia, 71 CE

After years of struggle, resistance, and constant fighting, Britannia was slowly coming under stable Roman rule. One of the most obvious signs of this were the Briton traders that kept showing up outside the camps, offering their wares and paying fair prices for the goods of the Roman merchants. Had things gone in a different way years ago, Aius would have been out there with her father, making deals, selling and buying, and watching Britannia turn into a province from the sidelines. Instead, things had gone wrong, and here she was, dressed as a man, interprex to the legions, wandering out of the camp in her spare time. Or so it would seem.

While she was not a rank-and-file soldier, Aius was an important part of Rome's armies. In the past years, she had gotten good at talking in various Briton dialects, and gathering information from the people - traveling merchants, captives, local farmers. Sure, she had a friendly nature and she liked talking to people in general, but her superiors also saw the value in her abilities: as someone who looked like a civilian, she could troll out into the markets, talk, and gather information without gaining too much attention. That was what she was doing now, in fact: combining her few hours off duty with a short trip to the newly arrived merchants. 

Maybe they had interesting stories to tell.

@Sara

[Sara]

Erea* grinned at her younger brother, rolling her eyes as he attempted to perfect the line of daggers and shortswords they had brought. "If you do that for much longer, the Romans will have been and gone from here and I'll be long dead and with the Gods." Turi only flashed his sister a glare, the sort of one a teenager always gave, and went back to his task. Laughing, Erea nudged the small wooden table with her foot, enough to send the daggers clattering to the floor, and the fourteen year old Turi to mutter what she knew were swears, under his breath. 

She didn't much like coming out here, to speak or trade with the legions but since the battle at Petuar nine years ago, things had been different and the Romans had indelibly imprinted themselves onto the fabric of their lives. Immin hated it, and consistently warned her not to go, but with his poor leg, he couldn't physically stop her and so that morning she and her younger brother had hitched a ride on a cart heading to Petuar with their wares. Since the loss of her father, their once flourishing industry had suffered, even with the attempts of her eldest brother and husband to revive it, and any sale made today (at a marked up price, of course) would help. 

Glancing cautiously at the men who circled the various merchants, she shrugged the thick fur tighter around her shoulders. At seventeen, she felt as if she was a wizened old woman from all life had dealt her (a pity, given what was still to come), and her irritation at even needing to do this, to be here, was plain to see on her face. Still, Erea was nothing if not pragmatic. Even if her other family members couldn't see why she'd want to trade with the men and army that enslaved their people and taken her father, she knew it was a necessity she had to suffer. 

Nodding her head to Turi, as if to signal him to stand up straight, as a young lad approached, she arched a brow and spoke confidently in her own dialect. If the Romans wanted to be here, then they could bloody well learn her words. Latin was like a drunkards gibberish to her mostly, although she had picked up a few phrases and words. "Are you looking to buy, or just looking to gawk?" This one was dressed down, as a civilian, not as a soldier. It gave her renewed confidence to speak plainly; "We don't earn money from people staring."

 

TAG: @Chevi

* Charis' Briton name was Erea. 

Edited July 22, 2019 by Sara

[Chevi]

The weather was already turning for the cold, the way it could only do so in Britannia. Aius wrapped herself in her woolen cloak as she walked over to the merchants. Some of them were wearing furs. She wished she had the money for a nice fur cloak, but one probably wasn't in her immediate future, unless she miraculously jumped up several ranks in the legions. Like, to proconsul or some shit.

"Are you looking to buy, or just looking to gawk?"

"Hm?" Aius blinked. She had been eyeing the weapons on display. A few short years ago it would have been unimaginable for Britons to sell weapons to the Romans, but these ones looked well made. The girl, on the other hand, had more edge in her voice than the swords.

"We don't earn money from people staring."

"Well you don't earn money from hurrying me either" Aius smirked, replying in the Briton dialect (or a close approximation of) that she was speaking. The Britons were colonized, but in no way tamed yet. She could respect that. And she had no problem speaking the language. The girl was pretty, even if it was a bit unusual to see someone her age and gender selling weaponry. "Are you looking to sell, or are you looking to stab me with one?"

@Sara

[Sara]

Erea rolled her eyes at the man. She couldn't be sure of his age. She was at least grateful he didn't try to mumble in their Latin, but spoke to her in her own dialect. Small mercies, she supposed. She watched with intrigue as he surveyed the wares on their small, haphazard table. She couldn't, however, help the impish grin. "It depends if you try anything." She cocked her head to the side, "But then you'd just get me back and our work," She gestured to the haphazard assortment of knives and short swords, "Doesn't bend or break on bone so I'd be a goner." She never brought ornate swords, axes or spears. They were reserved for her people. 

Turi stood uneasily behind his sister. He was already a head and a bit taller than her, and built like a house but his strength belied a sensitivity of character that Erea herself didn't have. She'd always been too forthright for her own good. It's what made her a good tradeswoman, something her family sorely needed. 

With a smirk, she picked up a knife from the table. It was crafted with great attention so its small hilt matched the weight of the blade. Unsheathing it, and holding it out, only at the last minute did she flip it around so the man (or at least, what she presumed was a man), could take it in his hands for himself. Shrugging her shoulders, she glanced at passers by who eyed her, and the scene with intrigue. "A lot of the legions come by, buy one as a souvenir." She rolled her eyes, as if it was ridiculous. They didn't understand the skill or work it took to make what was on her table, nor the hours her family slaved at the forge for them. Nor did they understand that British steel and iron were superior to their own weaponry, at least in her opinion. 

With a hand on her hip, she arched a brow at Aius, "You don't look much like a soldier."

 

TAG: @Chevi

[Chevi]

The girl was unfazed, taking the banter in stride. Briton women were less shy than the average Roman matron or maiden, and Aius had to admit, she liked them for it. Especially if they were selling weaponry. Sure, there was also the big guy, giving her the side eye in a way that expertly walked the line between innocent and menacing.

"It depends if you try anything. But then you'd just get me back and our work, Doesn't bend or break on bone so I'd be a goner." 

"I'll take that as an assurance of quality" Aius nodded with a smirk, and took the offered knife, testing out the balance and taking a closer look at the workmanship. It really was well done. She did not need a new knife, but if she was going to buy one, this would be a good purchase. Maybe, she thought, she'd buy it just as a thank you if she learned anything useful from the merchants.  Not that they needed to know that.

"A lot of the legions come by, buy one as a souvenir." 

"Well, that is an improvement from the time when you were handing them out for free" Aius noted with a deadpan look. A few years ago swords and knives were flying their way free of charge, but usually point first. But that was in the past now. As long as the Britons thought the same.

"You don't look much like a soldier."

"Interprex" Aius admitted with a half-shrug "Not a soldier, but also not a civilian." For all intents and purposes, someone in-between. As usual. "You don't look much like a blacksmith either."

@Sara

[Sara]

Erea only arched her brow at his comment, but said through gritted teeth; "At least these don't have our family members attached," She narrowed her big blue eyes; "Nor are they skewered through a Roman." If that's how this man, boy...whatever wanted to play it, Erea would give as good as she got. She always had Turi with her. She glanced over her shoulder to reassure herself that he was still here.

Tilting her head and holding her palm out for the knife back, she asked, genuinely intrigued; "You learn our languages so you can do what?" An impish smile crossed her face. She wanted to continue with; 'learn our secrets? give us orders? take our women?' but didn't want to push it. This person wasn't a solider but they weren't Briton either, and she'd seen what happened to those that spoke out too openly. Only last week, one man from her settlement had been taken, never to be heard from again. His charge? Spitting at a Roman. She would stick to light sarcasm.

With a light grin, she shrugged her shoulders. "My strength is deceptive." Before she laughed and gestured to Turi, behind her. "The rest of my family are built like my brother...they man the forge, I do the numbers and the trade," Since my father is no longer here to do it himself, she mused darkly. Trying to lighten the mood, she offered her company another knife, larger, and a little less decorative but just as fine in quality; "The Gods blessed them with looks but not intelligence."

"Erea!" Her brother tutted, irritated behind her. Ignoring him, she narrowed her eyes on Aius, "Where did you learn them? Our words?" She cast a lingering glance over her figure, "You're not a Briton...are you?"

 

TAG: @Chevi

Edited July 22, 2019 by Sara

[Chevi]

 "At least these don't have our family members attached. Nor are they skewered through a Roman."

Aius arched an eyebrow at the daring comeback. Allusions were one thing, open statements were another, even if as a joke. The girl had more opinions than she let one, and it made the young interprex smirk. Not skewered through a Roman until some dumb shit starts a fight over drinks at camp...

"You learn our languages so you can do what?" 

"Earn my wages and chat with pretty women" Aius responded without missing a beat. Neither of those statements was false. The look she got from the brother, well, that was another story. Aius, to show she was genuinely interested in the trade, accepted the other knife, inspecting the craftsmanship a little too eagerly.

"My strength is deceptive. The rest of my family are built like my brother...they man the forge, I do the numbers and the trade. The Gods blessed them with looks but not intelligence."

"We can't all be that lucky" Aius grinned, hading the knife back. Here they were, two unusual women, one dressed as a man and one running a business in an occupied province. The gods were funny sometimes.

"Where did you learn them? Our words? You're not a Briton...are you?"

"Do I pass as one?" Aius grinned, running a hand through her short-cropped red hair, taking the question as a compliment on her language skills, but then she shook her head "Gaul. Believe it or not, my father was a trader as well."

@Sara

[Sara]

Erea rolled her eyes with a gentle laugh. "Pretty married women." Enough of the soldiers had tried their luck. She now just found it amusing, rather than annoying. Mostly. Some of them were more forceful than others, but she had Turi with her most days now, and his brute strength even for a lad of fourteen, was enough to dissuade most men from trying anything. 

Taking back the knife with narrowed eyes and laying it down on the table, she placed both hands on her hips. "A pict maybe, with that hair." She smirked, although she had always found the fiery colouring of their northern neighbours rather alluring. Still, she looked surprised as this man affirmed he was Gaulish. Whilst her family didn't trade that extensively, she knew of several other merchants that had links with their neighbours over the sea. She also knew the Romans had taken those people's freedom as well. 

Moving to cross her arms over her chest defensively, she regarded the man with an arched brow. "Your father was a trader?" Turi placed a warning hand on his sister's shoulder, evidently sensing her irritation, "And yet you decided to join the people that subjugate yours?" She knew she was a hypocrite, given she was out here selling knives and goods to the very legions that kept them under their thumb, but she needed to do this for her survival. This Gaul didn't, did he? 

Swallowing, and realising she might have even a touch too forthright she sighed, and held her hands up as if admitting defeat. "This is all...still quite new for us, in Britannia...I'm sorry." No she wasn't.  "Maybe in a few decades my children or grandchildren will be interprexes." She bloody hoped not, but she didn't wish to get herself or her brother in trouble. 

 

TAG: @Chevi

[Chevi]

"Pretty married women."

Aius held her hands up in surrender. The last thing she needed was some half-mad Briton husband coming to hunt her down. Harmless banter was one thing, but the peace between their people was still more fragile than Aquileian glassware. No need to start trouble.

"A pict maybe, with that hair... Your father was a trader? And yet you decided to join the people that subjugate yours?"

Oh, the girl had fire. Aius noted the hand on her shoulder, but apparently she had a mind of her own. She must have realized too a moment later, because she saw a flash of worry in her eyes. Strangely enough, she had never thought of Gaul as a subjugated province. He father was a citizen of the empire, even if not a full Roman citizen. Aius thought of herself as Roman.

"It was more than a century ago" she shrugged. Some people got taken over by Rome. They usually benefited from it.

"This is all...still quite new for us, in Britannia...I'm sorry. Maybe in a few decades my children or grandchildren will be interprexes." 

Aius chuckled, noting the hidden sting in the comment. She was right, this whole thing was new. She had not been lying when she said that it was strange, seeing a knife in a Briton's hand without trying to deflect it.

In a few decades, your children will be speaking Latin.

"No harm done." she smiled "We are lucky you are selling your excellent wares here. May I ask where you come from?"

@Sara

[Sara]

"A century isn't that long, not for people that were once free." Her view would no doubt be construed as naive, but for somebody as proud of her heritage and tribe, Erea couldn't fathom the thought of being subsumed into another great state. Let alone one that stole and killed her people. She cast a quick glance up at the fort beyond them, where her father had drawn his last breath, and wrapped her fur tighter around her shoulders. 

Narrowing her eyes at him, she shrugged her shoulders but was relieved he had not taken offence. Her eldest brother had suffered a whipping for similar comments not a month ago, but then again he was a great lumbering brute...the Romans seemed more agreeable to barbs coming from pretty young women. 

"You're curious, aren't you?" She  grinned, running slender fingers over the goods on display and offering gentle smiles to the legionaries that wandered past.  "We're Parisii...so this is our land." Her grin stretched mischievously, "But our home is a few hours ride from here but the trade is better, even if the company is not." She heard Turi's snigger of a laugh behind her, and she gestured with her head for him to to try and tempt a few of the soldiers milling a little way off. Dutifully, but not without hesitation, he left Erea and Aius alone. 

"I have a question." She posed, eyes narrowed and intrigued. "Where did you learn our words? And...why join them?" She gestured with a wave of her hand to the fort behind her. She shrugged nonetheless, "It seems an odd choice for a traders son but...I suppose that's two questions..."

 

TAG: @Chevi

[Chevi]

"A century isn't that long, not for people that were once free." 

And there it was, the unbroken Briton pride. Aius vaguely remembered stories about Vercingetorix, who was once the chief of her people. Pride did him a lot of good when he was strangled in Rome. Neither of them was old enough yet to have perspective, but Aius had a feeling this girl was not going to change her views on Romans any time soon.

"You're curious, aren't you? We're Parisii...so this is our land. But our home is a few hours ride from here but the trade is better, even if the company is not." 

Aius chuckled. She really was going to get into trouble if she talked like that with any Romans less forgiving then Aius. And the fact that she was here, on the former land of her tribe trading, could mean two things: she was either more practical than patriotic... or she was up to no good.

"I have a question. Where did you learn our words? And...why join them? It seems an odd choice for a traders son but...I suppose that's two questions..."

"I learned while my father was trading" Aius admitted with a shrug "I have an ear for languages. And after my father... died, there was really nowhere else to go. I honestly have no skill for trading. But I am good at talking to people." she smirked "Usually." 

Why did she join the legions? It could easily be answered... but not one she had ever been asked before.

"I grew up in Roman Gaul. I don't know about free kingdoms, but living in a province was not bad at all, at least for someone like me.."

@Sara

[Sara]

Erea couldn't help but be a little impressed. She had always thought she herself had a good ear for languages, but she had only managed to pick up a few words and phrases of their Latin. To be a Gaul, and speak Latin and Brittonic as fluently as this one did, was a skill. And the young Briton woman was begrudgingly impressed. Narrowing her eyes nonetheless, she considered her next words carefully. "And what does an...interprex do? Do you give us orders in our languages so we can understand them? Or do you just try and find things out?" She arched a brow, studying her face. 

It was not that he had presented any suggestion of malicious intent but she had learnt to be wary around strangers, especially those that voluntarily enjoyed the subjugation of her people (as she saw it). 

Hands on her hips, she tilted her head to the side, genuinely interested. "You didn't mind it?" She supposed if he had never experienced freedom, then he didn't know what he was missing. "Not even when you heard stories of what it was like...before they came? Of the people that were lost in that fight? Your people?" She couldn't imagine her family, her friends, her tribe ever willingly forgetting their history and their fight. But not wishing to speak too boldly she grinned. "I should ask you for tips, how to be a better citizen for our Roman friends."

 

TAG: @Chevi

[Chevi]

"And what does an...interprex do? Do you give us orders in our languages so we can understand them? Or do you just try and find things out?" 

She was not wrong on either, even though she was clearly saying them our of sarcasm. Aius smirked at the suggestion. The girl was smart, and she was not about to trust someone who worked for the Romans. So much about gathering information. She was not going to say anything useful, but talking to her was fun anyway. It was rare to meet a Briton, especially a woman, sharp enough to have a conversation like this, and one willing to talk instead of getting straight to the stabbing part.

"I translate when your people negotiate with my people, mostly."

They moved on to the topic of provinces. Aius did not have to hide the truth there: growing up in Gaul did not feel like growing up in an occupied kingdom. And since merchants thrived on peace, because peace was good for trade - and Rome was good for trade - her parents never really complained about the Romans either.

"You didn't mind it? Not even when you heard stories of what it was like...before they came? Of the people that were lost in that fight? Your people?... I should ask you for tips, how to be a better citizen for our Roman friends."

Aius chuckled and shook her head at the spirit of the young woman. Some officers would have had her arrested already for this much talk against the empire. But what was the point? Punishing people for complaining would not make anyone like the Romans any more. 

"Well, step one: Be born a hundred years after the Roman conquest." she said, matching the woman's sarcasm with her own, but with a good-natured smile "It helps if you have a family of merchants, because merchants like peace, and the Romans are good buyers. Usually."

@Sara

[Sara]

Erea laughed, genuinely. She doubted a hundred years would do for her people, but she liked this man's wit. It was refreshing - her home had been tense and morose for years, but particularly so over the last couple of months. A larger Roman military presence and the scarcity of food in the winter months always sapped people's happiness. It was nice to laugh. "Noted. I'll ask my Gods tonight to transport me into the future, shall I?"

Still, her eyes narrowed at his suggestions. "We're trying to expand where we sell but it's hard." She admitted, quite candidly, with a little shrug. "They," She gestured over Aius' shoulder to a few legionaries milling about, "Get nervous seeing us with knives and axes for sale and trade...and they think their steel is superior." She'd even had one remark it must be so, given the Romans had conquered their people. Erea had had to bite her tongue to stop herself retorting that hundreds, if not thousands more men had probably helped them more than the quality of their weapons. 

Wrapping thin arms around herself to pull the fur tighter she considered the person in front of her. "I'm sure being able to speak their language would help as well." The young Briton's grasp of Latin was about as good as her grasp of reading; almost nonexistent. With a sly grin, she arched a brow. "Perhaps you should offer lessons to us poor savages...try and educate us?" She didn't say that she actually would like lessons, that would be humiliating. 

 

TAG: @Chevi

[Chevi]

"Noted. I'll ask my Gods tonight to transport me into the future, shall I?"

She took the joke as intended, and Aius chuckled at the idea. If the myths were real as told, asking something like that of the gods would be a double edged sword at best.

"Careful what you wish for. Maybe they will drop you in some future moment when, dunno, fire is raining from the sky or something."

In the here any now, at least, the province was officially settled, and merchants like her were trying to make the best of it.

"We're trying to expand where we sell but it's hard. They... Get nervous seeing us with knives and axes for sale and trade...and they think their steel is superior."

Aius could not argue with the first part - she too was nervous when she saw an armed Briton up close. Old habits tended to die harder than the Briton resistance. The second part, though? She clicked her tongue and shook her head.

"Yeah, well, honestly, can't say all of them are from the top of the Roman crop." she smirked, glancing in the direction of the soldiers. If the Britons knew anything well other than killing Romans, it was making weapons. 

"I'm sure being able to speak their language would help as well. Perhaps you should offer lessons to us poor savages...try and educate us?" 

"Teach you Latin?" Aius arched an eyebrow. What a novel idea. It was one thing to learn their language as an interprex, but it was a whole other thing to start giving out lessons. She chuckled at the idea. "I might work for the legions, but I don't torture people." the joke might have gone a tad too far, so she put on a sheepish face to mitigate it. "I'm sorry. Bad joke. You'd really want to learn?"

@Sara

[Sara]

Erea grit her jaw and placed a hand on her hip, looking markedly unimpressed. "You're funny, you are, aren't you?" Rolling her eyes, she shrugged her shoulders. She glanced and saw Turi a little way off, pleased at least that he wasn't privy to this conversation. 

"I don't know, it might be useful." Loathed as she was to admit it, it didn't look like the Romans would be out of her homeland any time soon and the family's business would suffer, badly, unless they could expand where they traded. And to do that meant talking to Romans. And one could only do that if one could actually speak to them. "But they'll think I'm deranged," She gestured to her brother, standing a little way apart, sheepishly glaring at the soldiers. "And that it's pointless. I'm...more practical." 

Practical or not, the thought of learning their tongue sat uncomfortably on her. But then she looked back over her shoulder to the table; still full of wares, and felt the meagre weight of the coin purse at her hip. If her family were to prosper, they needed every advantage they could get. Still, there was only a snag. Narrowing her eyes, she held the other woman in a firm glare; "But I can't pay. We barely have enough and winter's going to get worse soon. My company will have to suffice as payment." She quickly shook her head, "But not in that way." She blushed a little, despite willing herself not to. 

"What do you say?"

 

TAG: @Chevi

[Chevi]

 "You're funny, you are, aren't you?" 

"I deserved that" Aius admitted. It was easier to joke about things when you were on the winning side.

"I don't know, it might be useful. But they'll think I'm deranged. And that it's pointless. I'm...more practical." 

Aius followed her glance at her brother. She did seem like the smarter one of the family. And Aius did not need to be a philosopher to imagine how it would go over if she proposed to take language lessons from someone in the legions. Practical? Yes. Plausible? Definitely not.

"But I can't pay. We barely have enough and winter's going to get worse soon. My company will have to suffice as payment... But not in that way. What do you say?"

Aius noted the blush. Oh, she did have some of her innocence left. Some soldiers would have taken advantage of that, enemy or not. Aius, on the other hand, was a practical person too. 

"Well, maybe we can come to an agreement" she noted, folding her arms "I mean, your company is lovely - don't tell your brother I said that, please, we just got a handle on this peace thing over here - but I could also use the practice. With your language. And talking to the locals... it's a good thing. We can't be a ruling army forever."

@Sara

[Sara]

"It's my husband more than my brothers you'll have to worry about." She remarked with a sly grin, although it was a bare faced lie. Immin was far more reserved than her young teenaged sibling, and the wound in his leg which had never healed right marked him out as easy picking for somebody in the legions. Nonetheless, this man didn't need to know the intricacies of her marital life. 

Still, ever the astute business woman, Erea narrowed her eyes as if working over a trading problem. "All you'll gain out of it is practice. You sure that'll suffice?" She didn't trust this one as far as she could throw him (and given her diminutive stature, that wasn't far at all). "I don't have very many interesting secrets for you to try and coax out of me, unfortunately, so you'll have to genuinely just be content with practicing your Brittonic." She did have a few secrets up her sleeve, but this one didn't need to know that. 

Glancing around to make sure they weren't overheard, she took half a step forward. "I can't come here more than once every other week on business, but my siblings come with me when I do." She chewed on her lip, trying to figure out a way to make it work. She ideally wanted him alone. That way, anything went wrong or he was even less trustworthy than she suspected, her family wouldn't be caught out with her. "I don't want them to know." She admitted. It would embarrass her, and them. Fraternising, openly, with a Roman. It was enough to earn her more than a glare from those that fought at Petuar. 

"Any suggested solutions, Gaul?"

 

TAG: @Chevi

[Chevi]

"It's my husband more than my brothers you'll have to worry about." 

It was not a big surprise that she was married. Any man would have had to be crazy not to marry her, and besides, if she was a maiden, there was no way in Tartarus her family would have allowed her to go anywhere near the Romans to trade. Aius pictured her husband as one of the great, tall, bearded Briton warriors she'd seen, and somehow she was still more intimidating. 

"All you'll gain out of it is practice. You sure that'll suffice? I don't have very many interesting secrets for you to try and coax out of me, unfortunately, so you'll have to genuinely just be content with practicing your Brittonic." 

She was not easily fooled, this one. Aius smirked. She would meet with her just for the fun of it, honestly, and it was enough if her superiors thought that she was gathering information. Or trying to. And who knew, maybe she would give away things without noticing it? She probably was too smart for that, but even the smartest people had their blind spots.

"It works for me. Maybe you can teach me some better words for 'knife' and 'sword.'"

"I can't come here more than once every other week on business, but my siblings come with me when I do. I don't want them to know. Any suggested solutions, Gaul?"

Aius thought about that for a moment, then shrugged.

"Not really, no. But I'll be here two weeks from now, and the rest is up to you." she said with a grin "You seem like a clever woman. I'm sure you will figure it out."

@Sara