A/N: Minors DNI. The chapters of this fanfic are based on and/or inspired by Gladiator I and II.
Chapter VIII: A Certainty // <Previous
Tonight felt surreal to Geta as he walked to the Palace room where he would meet his date, Reina.
Replacing concubine nights with Reina date nights, sure. But poetry night?
It was a huge, and previously unthinkable, shift for him but then, he thought, perhaps the poet Vergil spoke truth when he said that love conquers all.
He scoffed at himself as he remembered those three words written by Vergil, but quickly thought about how much alike he and his mother might be.
The entrance to the room was guarded and led to a short and narrow passageway that was as warmly lit as the room.
Small but spacious enough, the room had a balcony providing a view of the city and starry evening sky as well as cool, fresh air.
"I won't wish you luck because I know you can do it", Caracalla told Geta.
"Be a gentleman", he reminded his elder brother. Geta replied, "I know. You sound like mother."
"And be yourself", Caracalla added.
At this, Geta took a step closer to his brother, leaned in, and whispered, "You mean, my dumb self?"
Caracalla looked revolted.
"She's smart. She works in a library. She disapproves of the games", Geta continued to whisper.
"Shh, shh. She agreed to more dates with you, correct? Then there must be something", Caracalla reassured him.
"What if that something isn't enough?" Geta said, his nervousness now more overt.
"What if it is?" Caracalla innocently said.
Their conversation was cut off when Reina arrived, giving both emperors a graceful bow.
Her dress was modest and matched his clothing: Hers was as red as the roses he held behind him, his clothes had a red theme.
She had her dark brown hair let down, and it contrasted with the fair skin it covered. Geta, while not wearing laurels because he wanted to just be himself with her, imagined a crown of laurels on her and thought she would look even more beautiful with it.
"Emperor Caracalla, it is lovely to meet you again", Reina said in her soft and soothing voice.
"Same from me to you. Dondus says hi", he said.
"Please tell him hello for me", she said and Geta was pleasantly surprised at how well she was getting along with his beloved younger brother.
"I will", Caracalla gleefully said, leaving the two lovebirds.
"Geta", he replied with a warm smile.
"Geta, I am so happy to see you", she told him with a smile as joyful and warm as her gaze on him.
Geta felt that she was hesitating to hug him so he closed the gap between them and embraced her. Relief and calm coursed through him when he felt her embrace him as well.
"I am happy to be with you too", he told her, gently resting his right cheek on the side of her head and taking in her lovely, natural scent. He felt Reina's arms tighten a bit around him and felt her head gently nuzzle against him.
It felt strange to them both how they did not feel like each other was a stranger at all.
When Geta pulled away, he offered her the bouquet of red roses. Smiling, she accepted it. "Thank you", she said, a little shyly.
She smelled the flowers and thought them lovely but longed to breathe in Geta's scent again, as he led her to sit with him on what seemed to be half a bed.
It had cushions and was level with a wall surrounding it where various snacks were laid out.
Geta tried not to show he was nervous as he assisted Reina onto it, thinking about what she might be thinking about this intimate setup because he was not after her body, or at least not tonight.
Reina sat on his right side.
The way the candles lit the room made it feel warm but Geta noticed that Reina felt cold.
He immediately removed his cape then draped it around her.
Reina, a bit stunned, smelled Geta's scent all around her. Her heart became filled with even more joy and even more warmth at his gesture, and because she realized that she got her wish to breathe him in again.
"Thank you, Geta. Do you not feel cold?" she said.
"A little. It's fine", he replied, but not before she started draping part of his cape over his shoulders.
Geta's heart felt even more joy and more warmth at her gesture. He then hooked an arm around her waist and pulled her closer to him.
She fell onto his chest and placed her hand above his heart as he kept his arm around her.
The couple soon started to dine, with Geta and Reina taking turns to reach for a plate they would share.
At times, they fed each otherโnot without shy smiles and fluttering hearts.
Soon, it was time for Hanno to recite poetry.
He entered the room, his hands cuffed behind him and with praetorian guards accompanying him.
Hanno did not waste time and began to recite poems, not particularly enjoying what he was doing as the couple listened and ate.
When he finished, Geta and Reina clapped for him.
"Do you read a lot of these poems at the library?" Geta said to Reina as Hanno was being escorted out of the room.
"Not a lot, I read more prose. I'm making more copies of the late emperor Marcus Aurelius' 'Meditations'", she said, prompting Hanno to do a double take.
"I read him to relax", she added.
"You and mother would get along", Geta said as the footsteps faded.
"Tell me about her", Reina said, looking up at him with a hand over his heart.
Geta smiled at Reina and began to tell her his fond memories of his mother.
The candles burned and the night deepened as Geta told her more, including about his and Caracalla's childhood.
"It's not your fault", Geta replied, then placed a kiss on her forehead.
Reina still looked concerned and Geta chuckled. Cupping her face, he leaned closer to her and reassured her, "He can't hurt us anymore."
She thought about it and said, "Still, healing is something that takes time."
"Thank you for treating me and my brother kindly", Geta told Reina.
"You both deserve nothing less. No one deserves nothing less", she said.
"Not even someone who did you wrong?" he said.
"Yes", she answered, "You can stand up for yourself and still be kind."
"Marcus Aurelius said that the best revenge is to be unlike the one who did you wrong", she said.
Geta thought about it as his fingers caressed Reina's back, the silence between them a comfortable one.
He looked down at Reina as he began caressing her hair.
Looking Geta in the eye, she told him, "I admire you a lot for always protecting your brother."
He appreciated and loved the compliment but he did not really know how to respond so he opted to tell her, "You find that more admirable than the poet Hanno?"
Reina very seriously replied, "He's not my type."
Geta leaned down and passionately yet tenderly kissed her lips, which to her was as if the stars fell down to grace the earth.
Reina kissed him back, sending a wave of relief and joy that washed over his heart.
Soon, his other hand was cupping and tenderly stroking her cheek and her hands were holding on to his shoulders and caressing his hair and the back of his neck.
Geta's other hand and thumb continued to caress her back and as their kiss deepened and intensified, Reina began to feel rising within her, a fire that, to her, threatened to engulf the both of them.
Geta, a little surprised at her boldness, felt it too; one move from her and he would not stop.
Their lips parted and, breathless and their foreheads shimmering, they stared into each other's eyes.
"I'm scared", Reina said.
But love was stronger than fear.
Reina, who could not contain the fire any longer, captured Geta's lips in a passionate kiss.
A pleasantly surprised Geta closed his eyes and kissed her back with a matching, even competitive, fire.
For the first time in her life, Reina swiftly decided to let go.
And Geta, with his tender care and unbridled passion, made love with Reina for the first time of many times.
