Slave Girl Ch. 74-84

"We're so close." She then giggles as she looks down at her new dress. "I can't believe I walked halfway across Italy in those short shorts!"

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Very unladylike. So unbecoming." I tease and I am instantly punished with a pinch and twist to my nipple. "Ah!"

"Behave."

"Ooo. Yes my Lady." I say rubbing my chest, all smiles.

The mountains get lower and more rounded, the forests thin out, the traffic along the road gradually increases, and more and more we see homes and settlements along the way. It is just past midday when round the peak of a hill to see a wondrous sight unfurl before us.

Under a cerulean sky painted with white wisps of cloud stretches a vast bucolic valley. Surrounded by hills and mountains on three sides it stretches off out of sight to the Southeast. The flat floor of the valley is painted greens and ambers with farms and fields and forests and through the center winds a sinuous river fed by the Appenines. Huts and villas and tiny villages speckle the pastoral landscape. That old martyr we met on the road spoke to me about heaven. If this wasn't it I don't know what was.

"Home." I sigh.

Rosa hugs my arm tight and presses in close as she takes in the incredible valley.

"Come on." I say, hurrying forward. Rosa follows me off of the road across a rocky expanse so that we could look around an outcropping that blocked our view to the Southeast. Once we clear the obstruction I stop and point to the city in the distance that sat upon a hill along the river. "Grumentum!"

"Oh Quin!"

"Ha ha!" I grab my Lady at the hips and lift her high into the air and start to spin around. "HA HA HA!"

"HEEEEE!" Rosa extends her body and spreads her arms like a bird and laughs with me as she twirls through the air.

I let go of her hips and let her slide down into my embrace. We kiss and laugh and share this monumental moment. "There's the Aciris." I point along the twisting river. "I wonder if we can see our place from here?"

"Home!" Rosa cheers. Slipping from my arms she runs to the edge of a steep drop off and throws her arms in the air as she cries out. "WE MADE IT!"

I glance over my shoulder to see that we were getting a few looks from the road. Not that I cared. I chuckle and call after her. "We're not there yet."

Onward we push, following the road down into the rich valley with its crops of grain and plum trees and olives. Herds of goats and sheep dapple the dry hills that surround us. We greet the people that pass us by a bit more attentively now as any one of them may prove to be a neighbor or a future friend. We look at the villas as we walk by and take in the streets and businesses of the smaller communities we pass through. There is much of interest but our stride never slows, we were too close now to dally.

We reach the river Aciris and follow a road that wended along its stony bank. Aciris. It wasn't just a word anymore, or a squiggly line on a map. It was real. This was all real. After dreaming about it for so long I was still having trouble believing this place really existed. Rosa seems to sense my dumbfounded feeling as she reaches over to take my hand, helping to anchor me to this wonderful moment.

Our feet aching, our legs weary, our bodies sweaty from the summer heat, we cross a stone bridge to arrive at the foot of the hill upon which sat the raised city of Grumentum. We look up the slope to the pale stone walls part way up and the buildings beyond. At the highest point stood the grand columns of the city's forum. I nod. This place had a good feeling about it. Like Beneventum did. A city big enough for anything we may want without being overwhelming to my rural sensibilities. I look to the South, my eyes following the twisting ribbon that marked the river's path. I prayed the land was close. I look back up to the city above us and nod.

Turning to the right we follow the road along the base of the hill then turn again to start climbing the grade that lead to Grumentum's Southern gate. Once there we pause yet again just to take in the bustling activity moving in and out of the city. Rosa's eyes are wide with excitement as she peers through the wide gate. Brimming with nervous joy I step forward, my slave girl falling in just behind me.

Chapter 77

I nod to one of the city guards stationed at the gate as we move through with the rest of the traffic. He grins and waves me over. A bit trepidatious at the attention I swerve to meet him.

"Good day to you Officer." I say.

"Good day citizen!" He says jovially. "I do not believe I've seen you before."

"No Sir, I am new here." I pat my pack. "I've inherited some land in the area and we've come to settle down."

He holds his hand out. "Well then! Welcome to Grumentum." I shake his hand. The man was tall, though not as tall as me, and slender with long blonde, almost golden, hair. His too large eyes are a pale silver and his tanned skin had a brassy sheen to it. He was a handsome man even through there was something slightly unnerving about his features.

"This is my slave Rosa." I pause. "I am her master Quintus." Rosa bows her heads in greeting.

"Your slave's cute little horned head is what drew my attention." He says as he motions us to step to the side to allow other travelers to flow in and out. We move into a shallow hollow on the inside of the city walls. "It is always a welcoming sight to see another non-human."

"You are a Jinn?" Rosa says, a hint of surprise evident in her polite tone.

He laughs, a deep hearty laugh. "Jinn, angel, call me what you will." He says. "The name is Amadeus. City guard and cohort of Consul Fulgentius, one of the corulers of the city." He shoots me a wink. "The consul sure would appreciate your vote in the next election good citizen."

"Er...yeah." I say. I had never voted before. "Well, I'm not sure how close we'll be."

"Keep him in mind. He's a good friend to have for people like me and Rosa. People like us need every friend we can get."

"Indeed. Are there many like you here?"

"Not so many but we're around." He says. "A couple of angels, a few demons, and a small ghetto of kobalos too."

"Kobalos? Goblins! You have goblins living in the city?"

"Yep, I wouldn't call them that word to their face though. The hills around this valley used to be crawling with them in the old Republic days. Don't worry, they aren't a threat anymore. Do be careful with them. They're not all bad but many are...light fingered."

"Thanks for the heads up."

"Any...amazons?" Rosa asks with cautious hope.

The angel looks at Rosa curiously before understanding washes over him. "No, I'm afraid not." He says with no enmity. "You would be the first that I know of, and I know most of our type around here."

"I see." Her ears dip ever so slightly.

"You are a rare one, aren't you?"

"One of a kind." I say warmly, looking back to my beautiful companion.

"Your wings?" Rosa says softly as she steps up at my side.

He nods, expecting the question. He extends his neck and brings his hand to it to trace along an old well healed scar that ran around it. "I am an ex-slave. I only bought my freedom five years ago. Unfortunately my ex-master was...a merciless woman." He rolls his shoulders. "Chopped them right off first day. Flight risk you know, literally. Ha!"

"I am so sorry."

He chuckles, this was all old news to him. "Having my freedom again is even better than soaring through the sky." He glances to me then back to her. "Perhaps fate will be so kind to you as well."

"There is no such fate for my kind."

"True." He says sadly.

"It's okay." Rosa presses in beside me to take my arm. "I've found my freedom."

"Fair enough." His already kind expression looks at me with a new respect.

"And what about your halo?" Rosa asks. "If you don't mind me asking."

"Muted." He says with a grin, then a moment later a golden light shines out from his crown. Around us there are mutters and grumbles as the people passing by give us a wider berth.

"Amadeus. Amadeus!" A guard from the other side of the gate barks. "Gods damn it!"

"Sorry sir!" He calls back and the golden light dims. He laughs. "As I said, muted."

"I hate to cut this short." I say. "But I've business to attend to and only so many hours to do it."

"Of course." He says. "Well if you ever need a local to show you around I am here at the South gate most days." His words were mostly directed to Rosa, but I was included as well. "And remember what I said about the Consul. In Grumentum it is good to know who your friends are and are not."

"I see. Well, thank you Amadeus."

"Good day." Rosa adds. "Perhaps we'll meet again."

"I look forward to it." He bows and returns to watching the traffic coming in and out of his gate.

Rosa and I walk into the city proper. Despite having been to the grandest city in all the world just two weeks ago we gawp and point and let out excited exclamations like a couple of tourists straight in from the sticks.

"There's the theater!" Rosa says gaily looking toward the large stone building a block to the East of us. "It looks nice. I hope they allow slaves."

"That's a temple." I point to the building beside. "I wonder to which god?"

Walking along the paved main central street of the thrumming and thriving city there are posters advertising upcoming blood games at the amphitheater and a sign inviting us to enjoy the heated public bath. Aqueducts ran this way and that and around us there are stalls and carts with local business people trying to draw our attention. The smells of delicious fare mingles with the acrid smoke of a nearby smith. People dine and shop and debate and hurry about their business all around us. Without slowing too much we soak it all in. It might be a far cry from the capital or even exotic Alexandria, but it was a proper city alright.

"I love it!" Rosa says, her eyes alight with excitement.

"This is awesome!"

It isn't long before the main street intersects with the one that climbed the hill to the forum and the government buildings. I straighten my pack and take breath. This was all so real all of a sudden. This was it. Time to embrace my destiny! With my slave just behind me but right at my side I stride forward with all of the confidence I could muster.

An hour later Rosa and I are sat upon a wooden bench in an oppressively silent windowless hallway at the very back of one of the Imperial buildings. Our two packs are piled beside us. Across from us is a door leading into the office of an officer of the local bureaucracy. I had walked in here with a fire in my belly, now I was just bored.

"What do you think is taking so long?" I say at a volume I thought quiet but it ends up echoing off of the polished marble floor and piercing the silence like a ringing bell. Down the hall a magistrate writing upon a tablet at a small desk in an alcove gives me a vitriolic scowl.

"Patience Master." Rosa says. "It won't be long now."

Another hour passes. All I could think about is the vibrant city beyond these bland white walls and my farm that waited for us somewhere out there in the countryside. Rosa and I couldn't even enjoy a conversation as the writing man would shush us every time we spoke even a whisper. People had come and gone from the door in front of us as we still sat waiting. Not able to hold back I mutter.

"I was hoping we could see our place today."

"Me too." Rosa says, placing her hand over mine. "I was hoping tonight would be the night."

"I hear ya."

"Shhhh!"

Rosa ignores the glowering man. "That's not what I mean."

"Mmm?"

Leaning in and up Rosa gets right in close to my ear. "I want you. I want you my boy. Tonight."

"Want...me?" I swallow.

"You've been so good my boy. So good." She licks my tender earlobe and says in a voice just loud enough for me to hear it. "I'm gonna fuck you so good baby."

"Ohhh." I swoon back against the wall

"You've had my fingers, you've had my tongue, you've had your own hard cock." She continues, her hot breath tickling my flesh. "I think you're ready for your Lady's love."

"I'm ready!" I gasp. "Ohhhhh gods!"

"I'm gonna take you baby. I'm gonna make you howl. I can't wait to feeeeel youuuuu."

"Ohhh yesss!" I am melting.

"He he he." Rosa nips my shoulder. "I'm getting hard just thinking about..."

"SHHHHH!"

"Shh yourself!" I bark back, my unintentionally 'boyishly' high voice reverberating off the walls. I clear my throat and deepen my tone. "Leave us be old man."

"Old man!?" He sits up indignantly.

Uh oh. Given the quality of his toga it was plain to see that he was my social better. I may have just made a terrible mistake. He was just about to say something when the door opens and a young man looks to us. "Quintus?"

"Yes!" I say, springing up out of my seat and grabbing my pack. I give the irate magistrate a cringing smile as an apology and hurry into the office with Rosa close behind.

Inside we find a gray haired fellow in a toga similar to the one the man in the hallway wore behind a long desk. Upon the desk he already had my paperwork laid out. I didn't know what I expected this to be like, momentous in some way or at the very least notable, instead the dreary energy in the room sucks the life out of the moment.

"Quintus Quintilianus." He says in a monotone voice.

"Yes, that's me your honor." I clear my throat and shift nervously.

"Pfff!" Rosa's giggle is a stark contrast with the sober tone of this office. "Your last name is Quintilianus?"

"You didn't know that?"

"No!" She titters. The official harumphs and Rosa bows her head. "Apologies your honor."

I can't help but smile despite the hard glare bearing down on me.

"You bring a demon slave with you, here. An amazon no less. An amazon!" His words drip with disgust, his face twists as if the word tasted bitter in his mouth. I let the insulting tone slide, there was little I could say in this situation. After all I'd been through I didn't want to mess anything up now. "The nerve you have. I can see you have too much of your uncle in you."

"I n-never actually met my uncle Paullus."

"And I met him more times than I wished to." His eyes narrow. "His reputation precedes you. Keep that in mind young man." I got the distinct impression that was a veiled threat.

"I am only here to settle down and farm sir. I am a good boy....errr...I mean, I am a good man." Rosa grips my arm from behind at my stutter, lending me some courage. "You'll have no trouble from me. From us. We just want a quiet life."

"Mmm." He grumbles, unconvinced, and looks back down to the papers. "Your citizenship, your property, and your...slave girl..." He looks at Rosa with open contempt and distrust. "...have been found to be in order."

I let out a sigh of relief, Rosa's breath echoes mine.

He brings a sheet to the top. Upon it is a drawing of a wild rose, a near exact copy of the symbol on Rosa's hand. "And you wish to register this as the Quintilianus symbol? It is...unconventional."

"But allowable?"

"Mmm, yes." It was the most reluctant yes I'd ever heard but it was still a yes and that is all that mattered. There was no other symbol I could imagine using. Rolling up the papers he pushes them across to me. "Welcome to Grumentum citizen."

"That's...that's it?" I say. After weeks of travel and two hours of waiting the meeting had barely lasted a couple of minutes. He does not reply as he was already reading another contract from the pile by his desk. "Thank you sir, thank you! So...my plot is close then?"

The younger man who stood off to the side steps forward. "Your plot borders the river on the North side, follow it East and watch the marker stones. You'll find it easy enough."

"How many hours?" I ask, trying to keep my enthusiasm contained in front of the stuffy old official.

"Hours?" He says. "One, a bit more probably. If you hit the tributary you've gone too far."

"One? One hour!?" I rush forward to shake the young man's hand as if he had personally placed the plot. "Thank you! Oh, thank you sir!"

He smiles and shakes my hand back...until his boss gives him the same glower he had given us. "Erm. I think you should go now."

Chapter 78

The moment we are out of the building Rosa and I come together. Under the fluttering banner of the Empire we hug each other tight. All the hurdles had been cleared. All the legalities done. We had made it. We were here. For good or for ill this valley was our place in the world now.

I look to the sky. Sol was much lower in the West than when we'd walked in but we still had some time left. We had already done a full day's march but being this close to the end things as trifling as tired legs and sore feet weren't about to stop me now. Our eagerness and our zeal to see our final destination gives us focus as we walk back through the city. We make a few quick targeted stops just to grab a couple of immediate necessities, among them is a used wooden handcart that was hardly more than a flat slab with squeaky wheels. We pile our belongings onto it. I lift the handle to level the bed then reach a hand out to help Rosa up onto it.

"I can walk." She says.

"My Lady ought to ride in style." I say with a smile as I patiently wait for her to decide. If my legs were tired hers would be worse.

She hesitates a moment then nods with a little grin. She gets up onto the cart and sits at the front lip, her feet dangling off the front just behind where I would be pulling. "A grand chariot it is." She says as she wiggles into place. "Fit for an Empress."

"Let us go see your empire your Majesty."

I grip the cross beam and push. I make my way back through dusty bustling streets to the South gate. We give a friendly wave to Amadeus but continue straight on through. Back down the hill, back across the bridge, and continuing further along the road we had taken here that ran roughly parallel to the river. Traveling generally East the road splits further from the Aciris with a mixture of agricultural and wooded areas now bordering the road on both sides. The clunking clattering wheels and the incessant squeak of the axle bring to mind our short time with Drusilla. Along the way we greet any of our new neighbors with a jovial smile and a few kind words, but never once stop to chat. There would be time for that later.

Whether it was the wagon, my weary legs, or an assumption on the young civil servants part that we owned a horse or chariot it was well over an hour, pushing towards two, and we still hadn't come to our plot. We pass one boundary stone after another but none had the information I was on the look out for. It would have been so much easier if they just numbered them somehow so I at least knew how close were getting instead of detailing the Emperor, local Consul, and date of when the plot was established. The shadows were getting longer and my excitement now bordered on impatience. We hadn't hit the tributary though so I push on with an ever growing need to see my land while it was still light enough to see it.

We are coming down from a wooded rise when I see another marker stone ahead just to the right of the road. I carefully control the cart down the slope and get close enough to read the etchings. I nearly stumble as I see the words I had been waiting for come into view.

"This is it!" I exclaim and bring the cart off of the road to set it down. "We're here!"

Rosa hops off and rushes to the stone. "Oh Quin!"

I hurry up to stand beside her and put my arm around her shoulders as we peer out over our little piece of the Empire. The sight was beyond even my wildest dreams. From this rise we look down over a vast waving field of healthy amber wheat. In the distance, halfway between the road and the river, sat a white red-roofed villa with out buildings gleaming in the evening sun like a pieces of fine ceramic art. I could not have imagined a more perfect plot.