Price of Love-Slave!GreecexRoman!Reader part 14

Reader's POV

You stared at the river, wondering how in the world you could possibly hope to cross. Heracles stood next to you on the bank, watching the pair of unusual Germanics wading into the water. Gilbert strode in with all the arrogant confidence of a Roman centurion, while his father walked in behind him, keeping a wary eye on the Romans down-stream. They obviously knew how to swim, and you had to fight to keep from being angry that Gilbert could swim and you couldn’t. Of course, he was a boy and you were a woman so you weren’t supposed to be able to swim anyway, but you really wanted to hang on to the little pride you had left. Sadly, you could already feel it slipping away.

Suddenly you noticed Heracles was as unmoving as you were. You prayed he could swim.
“You can swim, can’t you?” you asked, more than a little afraid the answer would not be what you wanted to hear.

“I can… a little. Another slave showed me once when I was sent to the countryside, but I only did it a few times before…” he trailed off and stared up at the pink sky then looked back down to the dark river. “I can do it.” He seemed to make his mind up. There was no choice and he knew it. He waded into the water then turned and looked at you expectantly. You looked down, feeling ashamed, even though you couldn’t figure out why.

“I can’t swim,” you muttered, drawing in the dirt with your sandal. Heracles’ eyebrows went up then back down. Of course you couldn’t. Very few women could. In fact, you had never heard of a woman who could swim. You looked out at the water. Gilbert was joyfully paddling around his father, on whom the water barely reached his chest. You sighed. Heracles frowned.

“Come on,” he finally said, turning around. “Climb onto my back and I’ll take you across.”
You wanted to protest. Heracles himself barely knew how to swim. But once again there was no choice. Miserably, you waded into the water and Heracles knelt down so you could reach his back. Tentatively, you grabbed his shoulders then tightly wrapped your legs around his middle. He stood up, and leaned forward slightly. It looked like he would have had no problem at all in carrying you this way on land. He reflexively reached to hold you up, then paused and let his arms drop again. Hanging on would be up to you. He needed to focus on swimming.

Once the water was up to Heracles’ chest he was clearly about to have to start actually swimming. Unintentionally, you gripped him tighter as you felt the sturdiness of standing on the ground disappear. Heracles’ swimming wasn’t anywhere near as graceful and effortless looking as Albrecht and Gilbert’s. You could feel his body moving beneath you, struggling against the current of the river and struggling to stay afloat. You closed your eyes tight, and prayed to the gods for safety.

You were quickly certain that Heracles was nowhere near as excellent a swimmer as the Germanics that were currently pulling themselves out on the other side of the river.  The river seemed to pitch you and Heracles back and forth and up and down much more violently than it had Albrecht and Gilbert. You clung tightly to Heracles and closed your eyes, inwardly panicking every time your head accidently bobbed underwater. You were afraid you might be cutting off the blood circulation in Heracles’ shoulders, but you quickly stopped your worrying for him and began worrying more for your own survival. Heracles was struggling a great deal and you found yourself submersed several times, each time you came back up spluttering and coughing.

After what felt like hours of the agonizing up and down of Heracles’ unsteady swimming you suddenly felt the cold air begin to touch your back and Heracles got considerably steadier. It appeared you had reached the other side. You remained clinging to his back just as you clothes clung to your dripping body. You slowly began releasing him and you dropped down into the knee-height water, your shaking legs unable to hold your weight. You knelt in the water for a few seconds, your dripping hair hanging in strands around your face. You could feel Heracles beside you. When you looked up he was offering his hand. You took it, and he pulled you up.

“Y-You did very well,” you stuttered, trying to regain your steadiness.

“Not really, but we are across. That’s all that matters.” He smiled ruefully.
Across the river the Romans were busily marching down the shore, their hob-nailed boots still causing their horse-like sound despite the ground being dirt. It wasn’t near as loud as it was on the roads in Rome though. You shivered, caused by a combination of the cold wind on your wet body and fear of the Roman century on the other side of the river.
“We should follow them,” Heracles said quietly, looking toward the two who were quickly disappearing into the forest. You nodded slowly, and took his hand as you followed the two men and one boy into the wilds of the Germanic country.

Glancing back you suddenly realized this could be the last time you ever saw your homeland. You stopped. Suddenly you wanted to stare forever and memorize every last tree and rock. This was goodbye. Heracles squeezed your hand and looked at you earnestly. He seemed to realize what you were thinking and was now silently thanking you for your sacrifice.

You smiled, put on the bravest face you could manage, and turned away from Rome. You made your decision the moment you had kissed him on the roof. You gave away your home and your family, your citizenship in Rome and all of your wealth because you love Heracles. If you could change your decision now you wouldn’t. You had chosen this life and wanted no other.
Once again Heracles led you into the forest, and this time you didn’t look back.


>~time skip~<


You were feeling thoroughly ridiculous for the images of a wild land crawling with huge, brutish men just itching to kill you that you had had for most of your life. In fact, you hadn’t seen a single other human being for the entire time you’d been in Germania.
This particular morning Gilbert seemed excited. He was jumping around and shouting and pulling his father, trying desperately to make him go faster. Of course, Gilbert’s efforts not only didn’t speed things up at all, but actually slowed Albrecht’s meticulous packing. It earned him several glares as well.

“Come on Vati! Hurry, hurry, hurry!”

“What’s the rush this morning?” you asked. You still hadn’t shaken the uneasy feeling that Gilbert’s looks gave you. They were quite unfortunate. Frightening and unnerving to you still, though you had long decided he couldn’t be anything more than an unusual looking little boy.

“We will reach our home by noon hopefully,” he shot a pointed glare at Gilbert, who did
not seem to notice at all.

“I can’t wait to see Mutti and Luddy!”

“Ja,” Albrecht said, getting a faraway look in his eye and an uncharacteristically soft look on his face.

“And I can tell bruders how awesome a hunter I am!” Gilbert puffed out his chest. At this Albrecht sighed and returned and picked up the pack, signaling that it was time to move.

“How many brothers do you have?” you asked as you began walking. Gilbert turned around to face you, walking backwards and looking very excited.

“Seven, and I have a schwester too!”

“Are they older or younger than you?” You were surprised. He had a huge family, at least compared to you. Albrecht and his wife had nine children, and only one of them was a girl. He seemed to be a good father for Gilbert at least. Though he showed it in a different way, he clearly cared about the boy at least as much as your father cared about you.

“All of them are older except my little bruders.” Gilbert backed into a tree and yelped loudly. You distinctly heard Heracles snicker.


>~time skip~<


It was mid-day when you reached a small meadow. Situated nicely in the center was a small wooden structure. It was really a very picturesque place. You could hear little birds chirping and the wind blowing through the trees. There were pretty little yellow, blue, pink, and even a few red flowers interspersed throughout the grass. There was also a small clear stream that cut its way from one side of the meadow to the other. If you looked up above the trees you could also see the grand snow covered slopes of dark purple mountains. Certainly Rome was beautiful and magnificent, but this was breathtaking.
The instant you stepped onto the grass Gilbert took off in a full sprint towards what you assumed was their home. He was also yelling something or another, but you really didn’t know what it was. You could speak their language fairly well, and you had been getting lots of practice since joining up with them, but you still missed things sometimes. A face appeared then disappeared again from a hole in the wall that seemed to be a window. The door opened and a woman practically flew out towards the four of you.

“Albrecht! Gilbert! You’re home!”

Albrecht’s pace quickened almost to a jog and they met in the middle of the field, instantly embracing. You squeezed Heracles’ hand and he squeezed yours back. You wondered if one day the two of you would be something like the Germanic couple.
Gilbert hopped around Albrecht and his wife, yelling for his Mutti to pay attention to him. A girl was slowly walking out of the house, her eyes on you. Apparently, she was the only one of the women who had noticed your presence.

Reluctantly, Albrecht released his wife and she quickly turned to Gilbert and hugged him tightly.

“Did my little Bärchen enjoy his first trip?” she said, smiling widely.

“Ja! I killed lots of giant monsters, and me and Vati picked up some strange people too!”

“People?” she questioned, then looked up and saw you for the first time. She slowly stood back up and looked at Albrecht questioningly before smiling at you.

“This is Heracles and this is _____.” Albrecht stated facts bluntly and quickly. “We ran into them in the woods on the other side of the river. They claim to be refugees from Rome.” The woman’s face cleared of all confusion and a quiet “ah” escaped her mouth.
“Welcome to both of you! You are welcome in our home. I am Irmgard.” Irmgard was a slender woman with blonde hair as long and thick as her husband’s pulled into a long braid behind her back. Her shoulders were broader than most of the women you knew in Rome and she also was much tanner. Clearly, she was much more accustomed to hard work than you were. She was clothed in the strange clothing of the Germanic people. The material was much rougher than the togas from Rome, and she wore only one layer. The dress was long and brown, and she had a leather belt tied around her middle. In short, she seemed a perfect match, at least physically, for her husband.

“Trude,” the younger girl said. You guessed she was probably around fourteen and looked exactly like her mother, from the long blonde hair and green eyes to the brown dress. She had a much more guarded look than her mother though.
Two small boys emerged from the house next. They looked identical in every way except their facial expressions and their age. One appeared to be roughly nine while the other couldn’t be more than two or three years younger. The thing was, as well as looking identical to each other, they looked identical to their father, only differing in their hair length.

The smallest one spotted Gilbert and suddenly they were together, Gilbert whirling the happy little boy around in circles. Gilbert was pretty strong for a ten-year-old.
“Did you miss your awesome big bruder Luddy?” Gilbert said smugly, setting the little blond on the ground. He nodded enthusiastically, smiling. You wondered if that was what
Albrecht would look like if he smiled. Minus the baby fat of course.

“This is Lutz,” Irmgard said proudly, pushing the older boy forward some, “And that is Ludwig.” Irmgard’s chest was puffed out a bit and her face practically shone with pride. The older boy smiled and nodded while the smaller one just gave you a suspicious look and then plastered the same emotionless mask his father had onto his face and nodded curtly. You almost laughed. Instead you smiled while Heracles introduced the two of you to the boys. You were trying to let Heracles take the position a normal man would have. It would take considerable time and effort to completely brake him of the slave mentality, but he was already coming along nicely.

Suddenly you noticed Albrecht had disappeared, leaving his family and you and Heracles completely alone. Either you had gained his trust at least a little or he thought that his wife could take care of his family. Most likely it was a bit of both.

“Come inside,” Irmgard said happily, snatching Gilbert’s arm. He struggled fiercely but to no avail. The woman had an iron grip it seemed. “I’m sure you’re tired and would like to get cleaned up.”

Heracles pulled you into the house behind the family and you resisted wrinkling your nose. The building, if you could call it that, was small and packed with all sorts of strange things, including animal skins and weapons of all shapes and sizes. It smelled strange too. It was surprisingly neat though. Everything gave the appearance of having a spot to go in and no other place was acceptable. Albrecht was already inside, placing his weapons and the little pack that held their tent and Gilbert’s small prizes in the places they seemed to belong. The only light were the bright rays of sun that came through the windows.

While you were sizing up the room Irmgard was sizing up you. She was staring critically at your every angle before doing the same to Heracles. You shifted uncomfortably but Heracles didn’t really even seem to notice. You were once again forced to remember the differences between you and the man you loved. As a slave, every time he was put into market he was completely stripped of all clothing and pride as people placed their bids on him. Being scrutinized by this Germanic woman was nothing to him.

“I believe one of Trude’s old dresses might fit you,” she said suddenly, and turned to one of the neat stacks of material in one of the corners of the home.

“What?” you said, not exactly sure what she was meaning.

“You are dirty and uncomfortable, are you not? You are Roman and Romans consider themselves above all others in all things including cleanliness, ja?” For a moment the usually bad relations between Romans and Germanics was showing its ugly head in Irmgard’s tone. It was only slight, and you made up in your mind to do everything you could to make Irmgard like you.

“Well…” It was true that the first thoughts you had had when you came into this shack-type house was how pathetic it was. Certainly it was nothing compared to Rome. And you did feel very dirty.

“We will take a swim to clean ourselves and put on clean clothes. You would like that wouldn’t you?” Irmgard was now holding a brown dress that looked similar to the ones she and Trude were wearing up to you. You nodded helplessly. She smiled and nodded, pleased with her choice for you. She placed the dress in your hands and jumped back into the stack. Shortly after she stood up and held a neatly folded pair of clothes. She frowned as she looked Heracles up and down.

“You’re smaller than Deiter and bigger than Wolfgang, but these should fit you fairly well,” she said, and placed the bundle in Heracles’ hands.


>~time skip~<


Apparently, the little stream that ran through the meadow grew in size as it continued down the incline. The spot Irmgard and Trude took you to was a fairly good distance into the trees. The river flowed gently here as the sun shone through the trees and reflected off the water. Birds were chirping happily above you somewhere. It was a very peaceful place.

Irmgard and Trude stripped quickly and climbed into the water, undoing their braids as they went. You stared at the water, a strange fear clenching in your chest. Surely you hadn’t picked up a fear of water in your little journey across the Danube. Irmgard smiled and waved you towards the water while Trude stared at you, a slightly less than trusting look on her face.

You removed your toga, sighed, took a deep breath, and plunged into the water. You gasped as the cold water pricked your skin. It didn’t really feel bad at all. In fact it felt rather good. The cool water massaged your aching body, which was still unused to so much physical labor. The grime slowly loosened itself from your hair as you tilted your head back. You would not allow your face to go underwater. Not anymore.

You were beginning to feel almost clean again. It was wonderful. Sighing contentedly, you slowly moved through the water, watching the little ripples that formed as you went.


>~time skip~<


The brown dress was, inevitably, too big for you. Trude had the broad bone structure of the Germanic women while your own frame was smaller than most Roman women. The hem of the dress was obviously too long, reaching close to the ground, and the shoulders of the dress drooped from your too narrow shoulders. However, it was clean and it covered you well so you didn’t complain. Irmgard did though, and told you that she would get to work sizing down the few dresses of Trude’s that they had kept when she had outgrown them. She also told you she would take the dirt stains out of your toga, if it was possible.

Heracles’ clothes fit him much better. He had a dark green colored shirt and a pair of brown trousers as well as the strange animal skin shoes of the Germanics. You had opted to keep your sandals. In short, Heracles fit in with the Germanic family fairly well, if you ignored his slightly darker skin and brown hair. His green eyes fit in, at least with the women. You were pleased that his hair now covered the brand on his forehead very well.

He didn’t look like he felt any more at ease than he had before though. The men (and boys) had also bathed in the river. You wondered what kind of strange things happened between Gilbert, Lutz and Ludwig during the time you were separated. Albrecht looked unfazed. He was used to it, whatever might have happened.

The second he came into sight you ran to him and firmly latched yourself to his arm. You hadn’t realized how accustomed you had grown to having him with you at all times. You were thoroughly relieved to be with him again. Irmgard chuckled, a nostalgic smile on her face as she watched you hug Heracles’ arm tightly, then her eyes wandered up to her husband and her smile warmed. Suddenly you wondered if the older woman herself had once felt the way you now did, or if maybe, deep inside, hidden beneath years of hard work and children, she still felt that way. Heracles smiled at you and as you slowly released his arm he placed it around your shoulders and pulled you close.

Suddenly everything was in a whirlwind as Irmgard swooped in and pulled you away, snatching Trude as well, and began the difficult task of teaching you how to build a fire. Never had you realized that something that seemed so simple could be so difficult. You did everything the exact way Irmgard did. Or at least you thought you did. But apparently you didn’t since no little flames ever showed up. Trude hid her giggles behind her hand and started to give you pointers. As you twisted the stick then pushed it back and forth quickly, then tried twisting again, you let your mind wander to where Heracles had gone to. He most likely had been taken off by Albrecht and the other males to learn one thing or another about survival. Just because Albrecht was gruff and sometimes very harsh didn’t mean that he was a bad man.

You squeaked with joy at the first sign of light from your pile of sticks.

“Irmgard! Irmgard look! I did it!” you yelped, dropping the little stick you’d been using.

“Wunderbar! Now quickly, blow on it, but gently. We don’t want to kill the little guy.” Irmgard moved to stand over your shoulder and watch your progress.

As carefully as you could you blew on the tiny spots of light and they slowly grew. Irmgard instructed you on how to place more kindling and wood on the fire so that it would grow and not smother. Pretty soon there was a small, but full-fledged, fire.

“Praise Vulcan!” You cried loudly, hopping to your feet and raising your hand into the air happily. If you had anything you could sacrifice you would gladly pay homage to the fire god to thank him. Sadly you had nothing.

Irmgard looked at you strangely then smiled and nodded. In her eyes you were undoubtedly a very strange girl.