#bartrios

Listed alphabetically by author name. The summaries are exactly as the authors themselves described. I won’t list any TWs here, so just be careful to read any warnings when you click a link.

1. Desperate Games by Aldiara

Summary: In a life that requires deception to survive, Pietros is ever bent on truth, and Barca fears every day it might mark their undoing.

Why I loved it: This is a glimpse of one moment in Pietros and Barca’s lives inside the ludus, the danger and treachery they face and the love they share. It absolutely feels like it was ripped from an episode of the show, had the show focused on them. Also –hot!

2. Journeyman by Azarias

Summary:  So Barca got his money from Ashur or wherever, and bought himself and Pietros free, and then ...

Why I loved it: This one might just be the very best.  There’s a reason why it has 320 kudos and two pages of comments. It breaks your heart only to build it back up. It is filled with nuance and moments of astonishment. I have re-read it many times. Side note: the ending line is hilarious.

3. As Freemen by GayGreekGladiator

Summary: Barca and Pietros earn their freedom and return to Barca’s homeland. However, Carthage holds painful memories that may drive a rift between them.

Why I love it: Complete with an art prompt, this story is just so beautifully imaginative! We get Barca’s backstory and the couple dealing with conflict as they return to Carthage, and all written in a way that gives me goosebumps.

4. Not a Kind Man by Pegasus Eridana

Summary: Barca is not a kind man

Why I loved it: The writer just gets Barca and his feelings perfectly, capturing him in all of his beautiful and horrible contradictions. Each scene feels fully real and within canon, and the ending lines provide a perfect little twist and some hope.

5. The Taste of Freedom by Shirasade

Summary: The magistrate came just in time.

Why I loved it: Not only is it a fix-it for Season 1, but it also contains a beautiful flashback showing how Barca/Pietros got together the first time.

6. Sweet Wines and Lost Minds by SteeleStingray

Summary: Spartacus has arranged for wine to be brought to the Rebel temple in hopes of fostering friendships in their group. But it also causes Agron and Barca to neglect their lovers in favor of friendly scuffles.

Pietros and Nasir must take their desire into their own hands...

Why I love it: So every fic rec list needs at least one fic that makes the cut mostly due to smut. NGL the smut here is first-class. Bonus Nagron if you love them too, as I do. (And we get the Nasir-Pietros friendship that we were deprived of in canon). And despite what I just said, the story is good too.

7. I Do What I Must by Stormkpr

Summary: A series of Barca/Pietros one-shots, with each chapter standing alone.

Why I loved it: I feel funny reccing my own stuff, but I asked the fandom beforehand and I got the go ahead! This one has the most kudos of all my Barca/Pietros works, so I picked this one. I will say there is something for everyone here, with its one-shot format. Whether you want a fic showing how they might have first gotten together, or you want to read about the couple successfully purchasing their freedom and flying the ludus, or you prefer an angsty piece on how they handle it when Pietros is forced to ‘entertain’ a guest of Batiatus, it’s all here.

8. let love be the water - strawb3rryshake

Summary: "He thinks of Pietros, of his sweet face and the upturn of his nose and the tiny curls like perfect corkscrews that hide at the nape of his neck. A vision of Pietros is before him now, clucking his tongue like he does when the birds sulk. You fool, he says as he takes a knee in front of Barca and cradles his face in tender hands, again you leave without words."