Family reunion (M)

[Sharpie]

Aulus had no idea of the importance, or otherwise, of faeries in the life of a girl as young as his daughter, and merely watched Calpurnia as she chattered away, before turning to his son.

"Your mama tells me that you like visiting temples," he said eventually, trying not to be too intimidating - and surely someone reclining at table in a tunic could not be as intimidating as someone standing full height and wearing a toga? "Is there somewhere you would like to see, that you haven't yet?"

There could well be places that the children might like to visit that they had not been able to with their mother unless their grandfather went too, and Aulus found himself a little jealous at the thought (realisation!) that his father had a relationship with Aulus' own children that he himself did not. Well, he hoped that would change, though naturally it would take time, and he had been home for mere hours at this point.

Titus chewed a thumbnail and wriggled a little closer to his grandfather. "We've been to the Temple of Diana, an' Mercury an' Bona Dea an'... an'..." He trailed off uncertainly and looked at his mother.

 

@Sara

 

 

[Sara]

Horatia smoothed the hair from Calpurnia's forehead as she continued to chatter away, but by this time Aulus had already engaged his son and so poor Caplurnia was talking to the two women of the house. Horatia did her best to listen and laid a kiss on the top of her head as she finally finished running through the names of the faeries (remarkably similar to the names of their slaves) and their occupations. Trying to include her daughter in this conversation as Titus glanced across at her for reassurance, Horatia nodded; "We also went to see the temples of Isis and Serapis, didn't we?" And Titus nodded, adding; "Though they're not proper Gods." And she had to hide her sly smile behind her daughters blonde head. 

Seeing an opening to engage the children she pointed at Aulus for Calpurnia's benefit and squeezed her arm with her other hand, still wrapping her in a hug; "Your tata is going to take us all to the Gardens of Sallust tomorrow, and maybe a temple or two." She glanced across at him for affirmation before looking at Titus who seemed a little boosted by the news. 

"And if you're lucky, perhaps he'll show you where he liked to go Titus, when he was a boy in Rome. I'm sure he knows all the best places." She smiled slyly and Titus blinked up at his father with those mirror-image blue eyes, uncertainly, but intrigued; "Really? W...where is fun to go...tata?" This was good, she thought. He was actually engaging with his father, although she knew it would take time to build up trust for her children and for herself. She let Calpurnia go as she wriggled to reach the food as she ran sticky hands over most of what was on offer. Horatia only grinned lightly, and suspected her husband was not used to the company of children who, for all a parent's chiding, were often out of control.

 

TAG: @Sharpie

Edited March 14, 2020 by Sara

[Sharpie]

Aulus leaned forward on his elbow to say to his son confidentially, "Don't let the Egyptians hear you say Isis and Serapis aren't real gods! Most of their gods are even stranger than them, though - with animal heads. I don't know if any of their other gods have temples here in Rome, though."

He hadn't heard of any before he'd left Italia, but who knew what temples had been built during his absence.

"Oh, what places did I like to go to when I was your age? Well, I liked the Campus Martius, especially when the Praetorians had a parade or training. And the Gardens of Sallust, of course, and the Forum, because it's always interesting to see all the people." There were other places as well, but Aulus wasn't sure how interesting (or suitable) they would be for small people like Titus and Calpurnia. He smiled at his daughter, doing his best to look as non-threatening as he could. "And where do you like to go?" he asked, wanting to draw her out a little, if he could.

 

@Sara

[Sara]

Titus' eyes widened, evidently pleased by what his father was saying. She'd never taken Titus to the Campus Martius - and had left that job to Tiberius, thinking it a much more appropriate place for a man and his son...or grandson, than a mother and son. But even then, when she thought about it, Titus must have only been once or twice - if that. Hopefully Aulus would rectify that, but before she could say anything on the matter, her husband posed a question to his daughter. 

Pleased that she was being included, but knowing Calpurnia as she did, she was not surprised when the girl sunk back with her hands full of sticky cakes to her mothers lap and blinked up at her, shy. 

Squeezing her little shoulder she spoke quietly, "Why don't you tell Tata what we did last week, hmm?" And Calpurnia, willed on by her mother, shyly spoke; "Mama and Grandtata t-took me to s-ee the horsies. I...I like them." She looked to her grandfather for reassurance who raised a hand as if to pre-empt Aulus' question, "Not the races, she's far too young, we took her to the stables of a friend. I suspect you'll have a keen rider on your hand when she gets older, judging by the way she was eyeing them up." Horatia smiled, "And the way she cried when we said she couldn't have one herself yet." Calpurnia, oblivious to the story, ate her cake quietly and shifted against her mother. 

Horatia glanced up at Aulus and arched a brow, speaking quietly as Tiberius and Aurelia engaged Titus in conversation, and Calpurnia sat oblivious beneath her; "That was not a suggestion to buy her a horse, you'd have to deal with her chattering about it all day and night if you did..." She smiled slyly. 

 

TAG: @Sharpie

[Sharpie]

Maybe when she was older, but buying a horse meant a deal of trouble - and more, for those living in the city. Aulus was not about to make any promises yet, although he would not rule out buying nice things for the children. Just age-appropriate things that they could appreciate right now, rather than things that would be expensive and only rarely touched.

"And was that fun?" he asked, speaking gently. His soldiers wouldn't recognise him, he was sure of that (and neither would Lucius Cassius Longinus, or Titus Sulpicius Rufus - if they ever caught wind of it, he'd never hear the end of it).

A trip to the Campus Martius for his son, and a trip to... somewhere, for his daughter. What did five-year-old girls like, he wondered. Calpurnia was the first he'd ever really needed to think about in that way - he was a few years older than his sister and naturally all that had been up to his own parents. He would talk with Horatia about it all, when they had time.

"We'll have to do some fun things together, I think," he said. Like the temple trips (which were bound to be more fun for the children than for himself and Horatia - although his enjoyment would come from his family's enjoyment, of course.

"What do you think Mama would like to do?" he asked, addressing both of the children, though whether either of  them would have any ideas at all remained to be seen.

 

@Sara

[Sara]

Titus looked confused at the question and glanced at his mother and then back down at his hands, evidently oblivious what she liked to do to spend her time. He managed to mutter a; "Mama likes to go places with us." Which made Horatia smile wryly, but only until Calpurnia chipped in very unhelpfully with; "A-and! She l-likes to see tha' man a lot!"  The horror on her face couldn't accurately be described by any great poet, dead or alive and she quickly blinked down at her daughter; "What man?" 

Tiberius and Aurelia's interest were suitably piqued by this great omission and she felt her chest rise and fall with anxiety as Calpurnia swallowed a mouthful of cake, oblivious to the urgency of clarifying what she meant. 

"Tha...tha' man with the blonde hair Mama, who t-took Titus and me for globuli!" She let out a breath she didn't realise she'd been holding and shook her head with a laugh although it was hoarse, "You mean your Uncle Publius?" Calpurnia nodded happily as she picked off pieces of cake to eat, completely unaware of the insinuation of previous statement, "Mmhmm, Uncle Publius! He's a nice man, he bought me a pretty bead for my hair, didn't he?" Horatia could only nod mutely and sip her wine. 

Well this was fantastic, her husband had been back in her life for only a few hours and her daughter had insinuated she'd been having an affair. Excellent. With flushed cheeks she looked up to Aulus and said quietly, just for him. "There is no man." 

 

TAG: @Sharpie

[Sharpie]

Aulus felt himself freeze. It was not exactly expected that he should have kept himself chaste during the past few years, but he had hoped that his wife would have... And then he caught himself. Horatia sounded as shocked as he felt. And if she had done anything with anyone, she would hardly have been so indiscreet that a five-year-old would have picked up on it when nobody else had.

Uncle Publius - the man who had first introduced him to Horatia. That was as far from suspicious as it was possible to be, and Aulus settled down. He had not stirred a muscle, but felt himself relax a little, and went back to rubbing Horatia's hand.

"You like globuli?" he said, striving for a casual tone. He was not suspicious of Horatia, there was absolutely no need for him to be - Publius must be only slightly less a stranger to the children than he was himself, hence Calpurnia's very natural description of him as 'that man'. And of course they liked globuli - what child didn't?

"He gave me a sword," Titus announced, his mouth full.

 

@Sara

Edited March 25, 2020 by Sharpie

[Sara]

Horatia still felt anxious, even if Aulus didn't seem to be and resumed stroking her hand tenderly. Tiberius and Aurelia seemed to find the whole thing amusing rather than mortifying and chuckled, indulging Titus by asking about the sword. She felt her cheeks burn with embarrassment, even after the confusion had been cleared up. She had not spent over five years of her youth, her prime as a woman, alone without a man to touch her, let alone sleep with her, for her daughter to innocently suggest she'd taken a lover. That Aulus didn't respond to her insistence that there was no 'man' likewise ate at her, but she tried to brush it off.

Feigning normalcy, she said; "You...you will have to get your Tata to show you how to use it, Titus." And the boy warmed to that idea, evidently, by glancing up at his father with those big blue eyes and asking; "Will you?" in a voice so sweet and hopeful it made Horatia smile, despite herself.

The children for their part seemed to have relaxed a touch around Aulus but this evening - full of missteps - had made her more nervous if anything. She lightly withdrew her hand from his and moved it to stroke down Calpurnia's mussed curls before settling it in her lap away from his reach. She arched a brow down as Calpurnia dropped a handful of cake to stifle a yawn (her priorities amusing her mother) and Tiberius cast a discerning eye at the little girl, "Time for bed young mistress?" Calpurnia shook her head and reached for her mother's hand, "Mama has to read me story first!" 

 

TAG: @Sharpie

[Sharpie]

"Of course," Aulus replied to his son's request, surprised by the love and pride that swept over him as the child looked up with such a hopeful expression in his blue eyes. "We'll have to get you a shield to go with the sword, too, I think. Like a proper soldier has. And something for your sister, and for Mama." He looked across to Calpurnia, who seemed suddenly to be very tired, though defiantly still awake.

"I think it is time you went to get ready for bed, both of you, and then we will do something fun tomorrow," he said, and looked at Horatia. His return had disrupted the household routine enough, and he had no wish to disrupt it further if he did not need to. "Whatever you normally do in the evening is what you should do," he told her quietly. "I will talk with my father and mother for a little longer, and join you in a while, if that is all right?"

The routine of a household with children was not the routine of a military camp, and he felt somewhat at a loss for how this should all work.

 

@Sara

[Sara]

Titus looked delighted by the prospect and enthusiastically bobbed his head at the mention of a shield. How quickly trust could be bought by baubles and playthings for children! Unfortunately for Aulus, Horatia herself could not be so easily swayed. At his instruction to the children they both turned up their faces to look at her. Titus mumbled a; "But I'm not tired." Whilst Calpurnia simply yawned in response. Horatia looked at her son and smiled gently, encouragingly; "But if you sleep now we can be up early for our adventure tomorrow." That seemed to do the trick and she gently eased herself up from the couch, taking Calpurnia by the hand. 

At Aulus' instruction she only smiled nervously and inclined her head, "I'll be in my room." And nudging Titus up, she left the dining room with a kiss on Tiberius' cheek and a good night to Aurelia. 

Letting the slaves dress the children for bed, she flicked through the various stories that littered Titus' bed and took one through into Calpurnia's room as he son busied himself with the little wooden sword. Curling up next to her daughter who was already half asleep, she laid a kiss on her forehead and began to read. "This is one of your favourites, it's about Jupiter and the little Bee." Calpurnia giggled and nodded her head that she was content with the choice. Horatia read a little while but before she could get far into the story, Calpurnia was snoring softly and whilst she was reluctant to leave her sleeping daughter, she could hear her son in the next room. Leaving another kiss on her forehead she gently uncurled herself from her embrace and moved through to Titus' cubiculum with an arched brow. "Do you want a story? I don't think playing soldiers is very conducive to sleep." She grinned and Titus frowned; "Con...du...cive?" He shook his head regardless, "I don't want a story I want to practice for tomorrow with Tata." Sighing, Horatia nodded and moved to leave but not without a warning glance to her son; "I'll send Mirella to check on you in half an hour and you had better be asleep in bed, hmm?" Which was met with a grumbling agreement.

Finally moving back through the house she heard the laughter of her parents in law and Aulus as she withdrew alone to her room. Callista was waiting for her and offered a breezy smile; "Is there anything I can do for you domina?" and Horatia blinked. To undress into the shift she wore at night would be presumptive, surely? But to stay in her stola seemed formal, almost combative. Biting her lip she jerked her head; "Take down my hair and I'll stay in my tunica." Callista dutifully unclipped the fine broaches that pinned her stola and removed the garment, leaving Horatia in her plain blue tunica. She then turned her attention to her hair and before long it was over her shoulders in loose waves having been kept up in braids all day. Satisfied she moved to sit on her bed and ordered; "Wine, please." Which was handed to her. She sat there, awkwardly sipping, unsure of what to do.

 

TAG: @Sharpie

Edited March 15, 2020 by Sara

[Sharpie]

The conversation turned to more adult thing once the children had left, with both his mother and father sharing stories and anecdotes about the children and various other things that had happened over the years, and Aulus sharing some of the more family-friendly tales from his time in Britannia. Eventually, however, his parents both retired for bed and Aulus found his steps turning towards the cubiculum that was pointed out to his as being his wife's room.

He was still wearing the purple-striped tunic that he had been wearing under his toga earlier, with a leather belt at his waist. Not a look really designed to catch anyone's eye, he thought to himself as he paused in the doorway to watch her. She looked unsure of herself, somehow, seated on her bed, wearing a blue tunica, her bare feet and loose hair somehow making her seem more vulnerable. Her hair gleamed in the golden light of the oil-lamps.

"You look beautiful," he said quietly. "It brings out the colour of your eyes."

If his face had taken on a fond expression and he had a soft look in his eyes, he was unaware of it.

 

@Sarah

 

[Sara]

Startled by him, as she hadn't heard his soft-soled indoor sandals on the floor drawing near, she blinked up in surprise. Glancing down at herself, assuming he meant the tunica, she smiled a little, nervously. "Thank you." She said awkwardly, unsure of what else to say but the soft expression on his face warmed her heart a little and settled her nerves a touch. 

She inclined her head to Callista who dutifully produced a cup of wine for Aulus, holding it out. Horatia then dismissed her with a slight smile and; "You can leave us Callista, make sure my husband's body slave Felix knows where he's sleeping and has had plenty to eat." The young woman bobbed her head dutifully and quietly left the room, shutting the door behind her discretely. Now they were truly alone she felt the thump of her heart against her ribs and sipped her wine to dull it as best she could. She certainly didn't want to be drunk, but perhaps lightly tipsy would get rid of some of this horrid awkwardness that she felt? She didn't remember it being like this before he had left, although she was pointedly blocking out their wedding night from those memories. 

She sat in silence, completely unsure of what to say and not willing to fill the void with mindless chatter about the children - she supposed he was bored to death of hearing about them by now.

 

TAG: @Sharpie

Edited March 15, 2020 by Sara

[Sharpie]

Aulus stepped forward into the cubiculum to allow the girl room to leave. He was not inclined to nervous chatter. "Titus and Calpurnia are very fine children, a credit to their mother," he said, crossing the room and taking her hands to draw her to her feet so that he could embrace her as he had not really been able to since he had entered the house. "Though perhaps Calpurnia should be taught to remember to refer to people by name in the future? But then, her Uncle Publius is probably only a little less a complete stranger to her than I am."

"I have missed you," he said, liking the apple-blossom scent of her hair. "I am sorry I have been away so long."

 

@Sara

[Sara]

She let herself be pulled to her feet, setting her wine down at the foot of the bed. When stood and wrapped in his embrace, she couldn't help the embarrassment creep over her face and she withdrew her hands and body from his, groaning into her palms; "I thought I was going to have a heart attack." She chuckled at the ludicrous nature of what had happened and finally cracked her fingers to look up at him through her hands. She finally withdrew them and wrapped her arms around herself; "There really is no man. But I'll have a word with Calpurnia." She managed a wry half smile. That he was taking it in good humour was something, she suspected most men would retain some suspicion after a statement like that from their daughter. 

Moving a hand to rest on his shoulder again she arched a brow up at him; "I have missed you too." She didn't say he didn't need to apologise for leaving, because he knew he didn't need to. That he did, was comforting. Playing with the trim of his tunica she smiled a little. "I can't believe it's been so long, though. I've...forgotten how to be a wife I think," She admitted candidly, "A mother, yes. A daughter, yes. A daughter in law, yes. But a wife?" She chuckled and moved to look him directly in the eye, arching a brow. "It might take me some time." And you might have to show me, went unsaid.

 

TAG: @Sharpie

 

[Sharpie]

Aulus smiled down at his wife's face. 

"I think it will come to you easily enough, my dove," he told her, lifting her free hand to his lips to kiss the back of it before turning it to kiss the inside of her wrist. "We shall have to find time together, just us two. Where in Rome would you like to visit - we shall leave the children with their grandparents and the slaves for the day."

The next kiss was a little further up her arm. "And if I am buying shields and beads for Titus and Calpurnia, what would you like? Bangles, necklaces, silks from the far corners of the earth?"

@Sara

[Sara]

Horatia felt a shiver run the length of her spine at the kiss on the inside of her wrist. It felt so intimate, and in an odd way...forbidden. It had been a long five and a bit years, and it had made such intimacy between husband wife feel alien to her. She tried to snap herself out of it by responding to his question with a half-smile - confidence returning a little. "I have simple pleasures, a walk to the Lamian Gardens maybe? They're quieter than the Gardens of Sullust and..." She felt the shudder again as his kiss worked up her arm and trailed off. 

She moved her other hand to gently stroke the side of his face, "And I don't need baubles," She grinned - genuinely now and shook her head with a laugh, "Just having you back is enough. But..." She narrowed her eyes on him, "Maybe we should go to the villa - once you've had time to settle and make arrangements and reintroductions in the senate. Just the two of us, just for a few days and then the children could join us." It occurred to her that now her life would have to be arranged around the importance of his work and there was a significant chance he couldn't find the time, or would want to take such time out so immediately after his return. Still, feeling newfound confidence, it was worth an ask. She knew well that it would take her time to get used to him, to this intimacy, but she was trying. She was not some simpering girl, she reminded herself, she could handle this. 

Still stroking his face, and feeling emboldened by the conversation and the wine, she leant up on the tip of her toes to leave a gentle kiss on his lips.

 

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[Sharpie]

"Mmm. That would be nice," Aulus replied, already thinking about it. He'd just returned from several years abroad, there was nothing truly urgent for him here in Rome, nothing that required his immediate presence - things would have waited a little longer if his journey had taken longer, after all. Surely he could find a week or two to spend with his wife at the villa? The children might fuss, but surely they were old enough to be left in their relatives' care for a week or so.

He smiled as she reached up to kiss him, bending his head to make it easier for her.

"You might not need baubles, sweet, but you might like something," he told her once the kiss ended, pressing his forehead to hers. "It would be little enough, and why should I not indulge you in buying you pretty things? Amber beads from the far north, perhaps, or a pair of pretty zebras for a small carriage to roam around the villa estate? A set of Nubian slaves for your litter? I am sorry to say that Britannia does not offer so many beautiful and exotic things, which is unfortunate."

He put his arms around her and pulled her close, the thin fabric of their clothing the only thing between them.

 

@Sara

[Sara]

She grinned with pleasure as he assented. Lazy days in the villa without the continual, somehow piercing cries of 'Mama! Mama!' sounded like bliss to her. She might have taken to motherhood naturally, and loved her children more dearly than anything else in the world, but sometimes she felt as if that was all she could offer nowadays. When she had been a girl she had dreams of marrying well and having a family, of course, but also dreams to travel to the provinces and to read everything she could; to influence larger things and have conversations that did not revolve around faeries and toy soldiers. It occurred to her that her world had shrunk significantly whilst Aulus' had grown immeasurably. Maybe that was why things were so different now, so awkward. A trip - even a week - in the villa would be a start to remedy it.

she chuckled at his offer and shook her head against his, "I'll have to think - but really," She ran her hand across his jaw, "I have simple tastes and don't expect anything." Which was true. Gifts she did receive were always cherished, but mostly because people had actually thought of her and found a gift. She often enjoyed the sentiment behind the gift rather than the thing itself. 

She grinned against his neck as he wrapped her in an embrace, speaking close against his ear; "But if you do wish to find me something, you shouldn't grumble about cost. Britannia might not be full of exotic slaves and jewels, but I have no doubt that it has left my husband a very rich man." Not that he wasn't already, but she'd learned from her father and then her eldest brother that a turn as a legate could be immensely profitable for the man concerned. She was teasing him and gently lowered herself back from her tip toes, settling a good half a head shorter than her husband. She felt nerves flutter in her chest as well as attraction tugging at her but tried to deflect, glancing around the room for a distraction; "W-would you like some more wine?" 

 

TAG: @Sharpie

[Sharpie]

What he would do, he had already decided, was to watch her as they strolled out over the next few days, or weeks, and see what caught her eye, what she might like but would not buy for herself. He had no doubt that she did not spend much money at all on herself, so he would do it for her.

"Indeed. The slaves are useful enough labourers and quite good gladiators and the like, and there is tin and silver. Parts of the island promise to be good sheep-grazing country, so there is wool, and the south is warm enough for vines, and excellent arable land for wheat and the like." He would indulge her, and even if he bought everything he had suggested purchasing for her, it would still leave him very wealthy. There was no need at all to grumble about the cost of anything he bought her.

She seemed nervous - understandable, he thought. It had been five years since they had seen one another, and prior to that, they had been married for only eighteen months or so. Was it any wonder that tonight seemed like their wedding night all over again?

"Yes," he said, in reply to her query about wine and sat down on the bed, watching her as she moved gracefully (and nervously) around the room. "Pour yourself some, too, and come and sit here," he said, patting the bed beside him and striving not to sound commanding, as though she were a soldier or a slave when she was most assuredly neither.

 

@Sara

[Sara]

At his agreement she deftly side stepped him and bit her lip, searching out the jug Callista had left behind. She scooped up her own wine cup, deposited on the foot of the bed and moved to the side, back to Aulus, as she took a breath and refilled her own and poured a fresh one for her husband. She lingered for a moment, chastising herself; you're not some silly girl, Horatia, he's your husband, pull yourself together, but it didn't do much to lessen her anxiety. 

Five years without touch was a long time, and not to mention the changes to her figure owed to two children.  What if he had been envisaging the nymph-like nineteen year old he'd left behind and found the tired, womanly mother here now, repulsive? She had been some moments, musing panicked to herself, before she finally turned around with feigned confidence and padded over to him. She held a cup aloft for him to take and then did as she was bidden and took a seat next to him at the edge of her bed.

She didn't say anything and simply sat there, sipping her wine.

 

TAG: @Sharpie

[Sharpie]

"You're beautiful," he told her, and took the cup she held out to him. She was obviously nervous, but doing her best not to show it. He wasn't going to do anything to hurt her, but she didn't know that, of course she didn't. She barely knew him any more, after five years apart, despite the letters they had written.

"I won't hurt you," he told her. "I would rather you enjoyed yourself. I'm not going to do anything to hurt you, or make you not want to be near me. Or with me." He smiled at her, winding a strand of her hair around a finger. "It should be fun, after all, even between a husband and wife."

And the gods knew he found her even more beautiful now than that day in the garden in Greece. She was more mature, and her figure under the loose blue tunica promised to have womanly curves in all the right places. She had grown more beautiful as she had found her place as a mother, and he hoped that she would also find her place as his wife and grow just as comfortable with it. To have such a woman as Horatia accompany him as he reacquainted himself with Rome - he could anticipate the envious looks he would receive, but what lay beneath the simple blue tunica was for nobody else to know but him.

"I would show you, if you are willing," he told her, still aware that she was about as innocent as a virgin despite the fact that she had borne two healthy children.

 

@Sara

[Sara]

She kept her eyes forward, not looking at him as she sipped her wine and smiled a little at his compliment. She wondered, for a second, how hard this was for him - to sink back being an attentive lover and gentle when he had spent years in a distinctly...masculine environment where surely such shows of affection were limited, or actively mocked. 

His statement surprised her though, and she blinked up at him - evidently looking startled. That he'd hurt her hadn't even crossed her mind, and the insinuation that her nerves around the unfamiliarity of all of this must have been that obvious to make him say something like that embarrassed her. She flushed and swallowed the lump in her throat, offering a wry smile as he twisted a strand of auburn hair around his finger and offered to show her. "Of course I'm willing, I'm your wife." Which was a deflection if she'd ever heard one. She shook her head, shuffling around a little so she was facing him, reaching a tentative hand to rest on his thigh, "I've...waited five years," She swallowed and hastily took a sip of her wine, feeling unbelievably...embarrassed and awkward, "I've wanted to..." Oh gods why was this so hard?! "I mean, I've been looking forward to...it, to you, for five years but now you're  home I feel like I did on our wedding night, all full of nerves, it's silly..." She shook her head and sipped her wine again. 

 

TAG: @Sharpie

[Sharpie]

"It isn't silly at all," he told her. "It's been five years, after all." He bent to set his wine-cup down - if the truth were known, he hadn't needed it at all, but had rather thought that Horatia had needed to give it to him. "Five years where we haven't spoken to one another, haven't seen one another... it's no wonder this feels like our wedding night over again. Here, may I?"

He reached to take her wine-cup and put it with his, before pressing his mouth to hers, winding one hand into her hair and cupping her breast with the other, the fine linen of her tunica smooth under his hand. He gently urged her to lie down on the covers, going with her and removing his hand from her breast to lace his fingers through hers once she was lying there.

"You are very beautiful," he told her once the kiss broke, looking down into eyes that were as blue as the summer sky. "If you would like me to stop, or to do something else, say so." You are a free woman and my wife, after all.

He was going to have to ask her to sit up again to remove the tunica, but that could wait for a few minutes longer - and he was still dressed himself.

 

@Sara

[Sara]

She silently let him take her wine away, and blinked in surprise at his kiss but urged herself to relax into it. The hand on her breasts was welcome but an unusual feeling and she had to consciously stay with the pleasurable feeling tugging her stomach. She wound an arm round his neck and allowed herself to be pushed to lie on the bed, breaking the kiss breathlessly. This all felt wrong, so wrong - as if she was doing something illicit and she had to shake herself that this was the husband who she'd been saving herself for all these years. This was't wrong, it was right. 

She smiled a little at him, wryly, "I will..." She moved  her fingers to lightly, tenderly trace the muscles on his arm and arched a brow, a coy expression gracing her face; "But at least I'm not completely innocent this time, and know a little." And with that and a gentle grin she moved to kiss him deeply, winding an arm around his neck before moving to shuffle up the bed. She pulled back breathlessly and swallowing her nerves, attempted to undress.

 

TAG: @Sharpie

[Sharpie]

For some reason, Aulus couldn't help laughing, though it very much was not at Horatia. He had to sit up himself to unfasten his belt. His tunic and subligaculum ended up in an untidy tangle on the floor, and he turned to Horatia to offer to help with her own tunica.

She was not the willowy teen bride he had married. She had matured and developed womanly curves which looked far more attractive. Even the pale webbing of stretch-marks from her pregnancies was beautiful to him, because it showed visibly that she had brought two healthy children into the world.

"I was right, that day," he told her. "You could easily be the model for Helen of Troy, for whose beauty a thousand ship were launched, to wage a ten-year war."

He leaned in for another kiss and his hand found the smooth skin of her breast - he would be unsurprised to learn that she had had a wet-nurse for Calpurnia, as he vaguely thought she had had for Titus.

 

@Sara