Sharpie Posted January 18, 2022 Share Posted January 18, 2022 He rolled his eyes right back at her. He knew he wouldn't get far - what on earth did she think he'd meant? He probably wouldn't get as far as the door, if the truth were known. If she didn't catch him, Longinus would, and either one of them - if not both! - would string him up by the balls. "You'll get tired of saying no one day and say yes just to shut me up," he told her. "I'm not that bad, am I - no, don't answer that, I probably don't want to hear the answer." He heaved a sigh and tossed the pillow aside. "Let's go and 'fess up. You think he'll send me back to Sulpicius Rufus again? Though he never said he minded us doing, you know..." @Chevi @Chevi 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chevi Posted January 20, 2022 Author Share Posted January 20, 2022 "You'll get tired of saying no one day and say yes just to shut me up. I'm not that bad, am I - no, don't answer that, I probably don't want to hear the answer." Metella had rolled her eyes about his claim, but couldn't help but chuckle a little when he walked it back. Attis was sweet in his own way, even if she did not want to admit it. She would not have taken him to her bed otherwise. But being married... that was a whole other thing. She could only deal with one life-changing event at a time. "Let's go and 'fess up. You think he'll send me back to Sulpicius Rufus again? Though he never said he minded us doing, you know..." "If he sends you, he'll send me too." Metella muttered, getting up from the bed. Although Sulpicius Rufus probably did not want a pregnant slave around either. But Attis was right, might as well get this part over with. "Let's go." @Sharpie @Sara 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharpie Posted January 20, 2022 Share Posted January 20, 2022 (edited) "At least we'd be together," Attis replied, getting to his feet. "I'll do the talking if you want," he added, feeling that he really should make the offer, seeing as he was the master's body slave and this was half his fault anyway. The walk from the slave quarters to the tablinum was entirely too short, even for a senator's domus, and Attis steeled himself before clearing his throat to announce their presence. Saying they should tell the master and actually telling the master were two very different things indeed. "Domine? Are you busy? We... have something we need to tell you." He couldn't help the mental plea. Please be busy... @Sara @Chevi Edited January 20, 2022 by Sharpie 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sara Posted January 20, 2022 Share Posted January 20, 2022 (edited) Longinus actually was busy for once, and doing something he enjoyed; correspondence from friends posted to the ends of the Empire. He had a few who had sought new postings in far off lands and he awaited their letters like a child waiting for a present at Saturnalia. None were in Britannia, currently, but he still lived vicariously through their missives as he idled in Rome, trying to fill his days and forge a path through life. When Atis cleared his throat, he didn't flick his eyes up but waited for him to speak. We? He glanced up then to the sight of his body slave, and a pale looking Metella standing beside him. He narrowed his eyes, irritated to be interrupted but amused at the sight of them standing there like schoolchildren who'd been chided for putting a frog in a classmate's cup of water. "What have you two done?" He pondered aloud and narrowed his gaze, glancing between the pair of them, "And how much is it going to cost me to fix?" TAG: @Chevi @Sharpie Edited January 20, 2022 by Sara 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chevi Posted January 21, 2022 Author Share Posted January 21, 2022 The dominus looked busy. And Metella felt like they were children, about to confess to some serious mischief they had done. She rarely ever was on dominus' bad side, and she did not like this feeling at all. It was clear that dominus was annoyed at the interruption, but now they were here, and they could not back out. "What have you two done? And how much is it going to cost me to fix?" Quite a lot... Metella took a deep breath. In the end, it was better if he heard it from her. "Domine, it appears that I am pregnant." @Sharpie @Sara 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharpie Posted January 21, 2022 Share Posted January 21, 2022 Shit, Longinus was busy. He almost retreated, and then their master looked up. "What have you two done? And how much is it going to cost me to fix?" Oh, of course he'd assume the worst. The problem was, in this case, the worst was probably even worse than he thought it was. Attis opened his mouth but was forestalled by Metella. "Domine, it appears that I am pregnant." His protective instincts kicked in then and he shifted his position without thinking, putting himself just a fraction between the two of them and reached for Metella's hand, squeezing it in reassurance. Not that it would do any good; their master was under absolutely no obligation to allow them to raise a slave baby in his household. He tried to think of something to say but in the face of the enormity of this, his usual flippancy deserted him. @Sara @Chevi 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sara Posted January 25, 2022 Share Posted January 25, 2022 Whatever he was expecting...that was not it. He blinked and glanced between the pair of them, struck dumb for a moment. He'd always like Metella and her forthrightness but for the moment it had rendered him speechless. Attis' protective step forward, likewise, didn't go unnoticed and it prompted a frown from him. Realising he'd been silent for longer than he necessarily intended, he managed to summon a single word. "Right." And he cleared his throat, shuffling the papers on his desk out of the way. There hadn't been a child in the house since Cassia was a girl; none of his slaves seemed inclined to families or if they did, they'd knocked up some poor girls in other households. He glanced again between the two of them; they really were a good match both in temperament and aims, as far as he was aware. It was why he'd added the provision for Metella's own manumission in his will, alongside Attis. And their farm - which he new they'd loathe, but the thought of them cursing him after he was long into dust made him smile. That rosy picture didn't change the practicalities of now though, and he was still too silent. "You can speak to Vitus about an allowance for midwives or..." He wrinkled his nose, knowing nothing about it, "Other women you need to see." He nodded at Metella and finally cracked a smile. "But if it comes out looking like him," He gestured with an eye roll to Attis, "You have my sympathies." TAG: @Chevi @Sharpie 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chevi Posted January 26, 2022 Author Share Posted January 26, 2022 Attis took a step forward, although Metella was not sure what the idiot thought he'd do if Longinus was angered. Still, it was a touching gesture. She kept her eyes on the dominus, who was quiet for an unusually long time. "Right." Metella swallowed. Longinus looked surprised, and none too pleased about the news. But mostly surprised. The silence stretched into eternity before he spoke again. "You can speak to Vitus about an allowance for midwives or... Other women you need to see." Metella sighed. No thunder and lightning. Longinus even managed to crack a smile with his next comment. "But if it comes out looking like him. You have my sympathies." She chuckled too, although she felt a little weak all of a sudden, with the relief of avoiding disaster. She held Attis' hand, and managed to roll her eyes, although it did not come out as sarcastic as usual. "It's bound to, Attis is definitely the father..." @Sharpie @Sara 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharpie Posted January 29, 2022 Share Posted January 29, 2022 "Hey - we can't all be as good-looking as your friend the Consul, Domine," Attis managed, a little stung, though mostly relieved that Longinus had repaid his faith in him. He hadn't expected that the master would be generous enough to grant Metella an allowance to consult with a midwife. "If it looks like Metella, it'll be the prettiest baby you've ever seen," he added, recognising Metella's relief for what it was. "And thank you, Domine." He glanced at the pile of papers on the master's desk. "We didn't mean to interrupt, we'll let you get back to it." @Sara @Chevi 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sara Posted January 30, 2022 Share Posted January 30, 2022 Longinus chuckled, shaking his head, "A small red-headed, squalling hellion in my house? It'll be just like being back in Britannia." He commented with a smile, oblivious to how insensitive that might be for Metella. Although she had been in Rome for as long as she had ever been in her homeland, so maybe it wasn't so bad. As Attis offered his thanks, he waved his hand and nodded, happy to dismiss them although he spoke just before they left the room. "I won't sell the child." He didn't look up from his papers as he spoke, but he could tell with the tensity of the pair of them when they'd entered his office, that had evidently been on their minds. "I wouldn't do that. This house deserves to have some sort of family living in it, and it's not like I have one of my own." He smiled to himself. TAG: @Chevi @Sharpie 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chevi Posted February 3, 2022 Author Share Posted February 3, 2022 "Hey - we can't all be as good-looking as your friend the Consul, Domine," Metella shot Attis a look. His big mouth had gotten him into trouble before, and this would have been an especially awful time to repeat the experience. He must have realized he was on dangerous territory, because he decided to flatter her. "If it looks like Metella, it'll be the prettiest baby you've ever seen," "A small red-headed, squalling hellion in my house? It'll be just like being back in Britannia." Metella smiled a little, but felt a pang somewhere deep down. She had not thought much about Britannia, or her family, in recent years. It was easier not to. But now that it was dawning on her that she would be a mother... "I won't sell the child. I wouldn't do that. This house deserves to have some sort of family living in it, and it's not like I have one of my own." "Thank you, domine." Metella nodded. She meant it. Longinus was strict sometimes, but he did keep his promises. And it was a little sad, that he'd not think of his home as a family. Maybe with a new wife, that would change. "I'll still take care of Cassia, of course." @Sara @Sharpie 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharpie Posted February 4, 2022 Share Posted February 4, 2022 "I won't sell the child." Attis couldn't help sagging with relief. Despite all his words and reassurances to Metella, there was always the worry that this time he might be wrong, this time Longinus would do it. Gods knew Longinus joked about selling Attis, or made other pointed comments that threw their difference in status into sharp relief. What might be a joke to Longinus carried just enough of a real threat that Attis, despite everything, still had the worry in the back of his mind so that he couldn't ever quite relax, not fully. "Thank you, domine," he said, vowing that Longinus wouldn't even know there was a child in the slave quarters if he didn't want to, that he'd never be disturbed by it if possible. There would be as little disruption to Longinus' life and lifestyle as possible. "We didn't mean to disturb you," he said again, feeling for the doorpost so that he could retreat and let Longinus return to his work. @Sara @Chevi 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chevi Posted February 5, 2022 Author Share Posted February 5, 2022 Metella left the room along with Attis, still reeling. That... could have been worse. For now, Longinus did not seem angry, although it remained to be seen whether he would change his mind once the baby started crying throuhg the nights. The baby. They were going to have a baby. Metella paled again as the tension left her, and the world spun around. She caught herself against one of the columns of the atrium, breathing heavily. Shit. How was she going to do this?... @Sharpie 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharpie Posted February 5, 2022 Share Posted February 5, 2022 Attis followed Metella out into the atrium. She sagged against a pillar and he rubbed her shoulder, his expression one of concern. "Do you need to lie down again?" he asked, trying to find something that he could do in the face of everything he couldn't. He would do what he could for her but she was the one who was going to have the baby and ultimately he could only really be a bystander. At least Longinus was a good master. And Metella was young - and without any family here. Well, Attis would just have to do his best. @Chevi 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chevi Posted February 5, 2022 Author Share Posted February 5, 2022 Metella took deep breaths, trying to hold back the panic that was bubbling up. Now that they had talked to the dominus, she'd assumed the worst fear would be over. But it wasn't. Instead, it was replaced by the reality of what she was about to go through. Pregnancy, birth, motherhood. She suddenly felt the absence of a family like she had not felt it for many years. Attis rubbed her shoulder. He probably didn't really know what to do either. "Do you need to lie down again?" "I don't know" Metella gaped, trying to stop the world from spinning "I don't know what I need... Gods, how am I going to do any of this?..." @Sharpie 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharpie Posted February 5, 2022 Share Posted February 5, 2022 "Not on your own, for one thing," Attis said bracingly. "You've got us, all of us," he added - they weren't the only two slaves in the household by a long way, and the others had experience of caring for children, or childbirth, all the things Attis and Metella didn't have. "It's going to be all right." He gently pulled her away from the column and into his arms. He might be the jokester of the house but he could be serious when he needed to be. "We'll figure it out, together." @Chevi 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chevi Posted February 5, 2022 Author Share Posted February 5, 2022 Not alone. Not alone. Metella was panicking, so it was hard to put meaning to the words. She did feel alone. With a baby in her body, and the both of them at the gods' mercy from here on out. She tried to breathe, because it was embarrassing to melt down in the atrium like this. Finally, Attis pulled her into a hug, and somehow, that worked. "We'll figure it out, together." Attis, with all his flaws and annoying sense of humor, was a good man. Metella had always known that. She burrowed into his arms. "I'm scared" she admitted in a small voice. That was new, for her. @Sharpie 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharpie Posted February 5, 2022 Share Posted February 5, 2022 She wriggled deeper into his embrace and Attis tightened his arms around her. "It's going to be all right," he told her. They had their master's reassurance that it would be, at least after the child's birth, but that was nine whole months away and anything might happen before then. He raised his hand to stroke her soft red hair, wishing he could come up with the right sort of comforting words she obviously needed. This was the sort of emotional moment that always led to him running his mouth and that would be supremely unhelpful right now. "It's all right," he told her. "You're strong - you've always been strong. And you'll be a really good mother." She'd be a far better mother than he would be as a father, there was no doubt of that at all, though he'd do his best. @Chevi 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chevi Posted February 20, 2022 Author Share Posted February 20, 2022 Attis hugged Metella, and she let him hold her. She was suddenly afraid of a whole lot of things; pregnancy, birth, raising a baby in the household. Mostly the first two. Which gods did Romans even pray to in times like this? Would they even help someone like her?... "It's all right. You're strong - you've always been strong. And you'll be a really good mother." "Oh, I know." she muttered, sniffling. "But this whole thing is going to be a pain..." Both literally and figuratively. @Sharpie 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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