Aurelia || SERIES ROMANA I

Chapter 46 ~ The Good Goddess

Hand already placed on the handle, Agrippina paused, trying to prepare herself for what would await her behind that door. She placed her other hand protectively on her swollen belly. She had chosen a side and now she would do everything she could to make sure they won. She opened the door calmly, but the sight of it still stung her heart.
The white curtains blowing in the light breeze let in a warm strip of sunlight, bathing the scene in shallow light. On the gigantic bed lay closely intertwined her brother Gaius and Aurelia. Aurelia gazed lovingly at her sleeping husband and when Agrippina stepped quietly into the room, she turned her gaze to her with great reluctance. Agrippina opened her mouth, but immediately Aurelia put a finger to her lips in concern and pointed silently at Gaius with reproachful eyes. Agrippina's heart warmed. The love and happiness in the room confirmed to her that she had made the right decision. Macro didn't love her that way, and Agrippina longed too much to settle for anything else. She wanted a love that created something and didn't consume everything.
With an urgent wave of her hand, Agrippina motioned for her friend to join her. Aurelia nodded and gently began to disengage herself from Gaius' embrace. No sooner had she sat up on the edge of the bed and placed one foot on the floor than Gaius' arm wrapped around her and pulled her back down beside him on the bed. A delicate blush rose Aurelia's cheeks. Questioningly, she returned Agrippina's gaze, who only rolled her eyes and formed with her lips that she should hurry. With a heavy heart, Aurelia tried to push Gaius away from her, but he only growled in his sleep and pulled her closer.
"Let me go," Aurelia whispered so softly that Agrippina barely understood her. "Then you can go back to sleep in peace."
Gaius just grumbled and slid his eyes open lazily.
"And if I don't want you to go already?" he murmured, and Aurelia's cheeks darkened a shade. Confused, Gaius eyed her red cheeks and then looked searchingly around the room until he spotted his sister on the doorstep. Annoyed, he buried his face in Aurelia's hair and tightened his grip on her body.
"Tell her to go away," Gaius whined like a little child and Aurelia gently stroked his hair with her hand. Then she whispered something in his ear, whereupon he looked her in the eye and murmured something back, which made Aurelia laugh softly. Uneasily Agrippina stepped from one foot to the other. Never in her life had she felt so much like an intruder. Reminded of her presence by the noise, Gaius raised his head. Without taking his eyes off Aurelia, he ordered his sister, "Wait for us in the atrium, Agrippina!"
Then, tenderly, he brushed Aurelia's hair from her face with both hands and lifted it. Like a drowning man finally breaking the saving surface of the water, he kissed her. Aurelia's lids lowered fluttering and she forgot the world around her. Silently, Agrippina turned away and fled her brother's chambers.

As Aurelia slipped into her clothes, her thoughts began to circle around Agrippina's strange visit, and she immediately felt guilty for letting Gaius distract her. Her eyes darted to him, who was having his toga put on, and a smile spread across her face. Never in her life had she been so happy as with him.
As if sensing her gaze, he lifted his head and returned her smile with a wry grin. Aurelia's heart did a little skip. Nara pinned Aurelia's hair up into an elaborate knot and draped a veil on her head. Aurelia fiddled with the fabric uneasily, examining herself in the mirror. She did not recognize herself. While she looked like a Roman woman in a documentary, she did not feel like herself. Gaius stepped behind her and plucked a few short strands of hair into her face, making her hairstyle lose its severity.
"Are you ready?" he asked her softly, Aurelia squeezed his hand gently and nodded. Grinning, he pulled her from her chair and led her through the palace. In the atrium, several clients had already gathered and were now turning their attention to the arriving couple. Mixed in with those waiting had been Gaius' sisters, who were dressed just as formally as they were. However, the lewd smirk on Drusilla's lips contrasted with her pious getup and Aurelia felt herself blushing again. At the foot of the stairs, Gaius bade Aurelia farewell with a fleeting kiss on the forehead and then turned his full attention to his clients. With a shy smile, Aurelia made her way to Drusilla, Agrippina, and Julia. As Drusilla opened her mouth, Julia unobtrusively nudged her elbow into her side and subtly pointed at the senators near her, ears pricked greedily for gossip. Drusilla quickly folded her mouth shut again and her face took on a seriousness Aurelia had never seen on her before.
"Let's get going," Agrippina requested, raking in a wink at Aurelia. Shortly, each of them was seated in a gently swaying sedan chair. They stopped in front of a wrought-iron gate. Curious, Aurelia tried to catch a glimpse of the property as they exited, but the high walls forced her to wait. Julia stepped up beside her and tugged her veil into place.
"Are you ready?" she asked softly, and Aurelia shrugged. Julia smiled at her, then pushed open the gate and one by one they entered a lovely, terraced garden with beautiful sculptures. Unruly plants bloomed despite the colder temperatures. A narrow staircase led up to an elegant temple, near which several women were already engrossed in prayer.
A hissing sound reached Aurelia's ear, and worried, she looked around in all directions. But because she could not find the cause of the noise, she hurriedly followed her sisters-in-law up the stairs. The hissing grew louder. Jerking to a halt, Aurelia spotted a small, hazel-coloured snake at the base of a statue of a woman, stretching toward the sun. Fascinated, Aurelia watched the snake. As if sensing her gaze, the snake lifted its head languidly and looked intently into her eyes.
"Go on," a familiar voice murmured in her ear, and a warm hand settled on her arm. Reluctantly, Aurelia turned to face the speaker. Good-naturedly, Antonia smiled up at her. Together they strode towards the gawking women and Aurelia spotted more and more snakes on the grounds.
"Are they dangerous?" asked Aurelia softly, and the old lady chuckled softly.
"Who do you mean, my dear?", Antonia wanted to know, and Aurelia avoided her piercing gaze.
"The snakes possess no poison," Antonia explained quietly. "They are the beasts of the good goddess and symbolize fertility above all. You should be careful of the women up there. Ennia has gathered her vulgar and stupid friends around her. No doubt they're here spying for their husbands. Since you are now head of our community, you may choose the women who accompany you to the temple. As long as you do not invite them in, they must say their prayers out here before the statues of the good goddess. Although Ennia will need more than a few prayers to save her marriage"
Before Aurelia could ask what Antonia meant by that, they had already approached within earshot of the other women and so she swallowed her questions and put on a bright smile. Also smiling, Ennia joined them. Drusilla, Julia and Agrippina deliberately stayed in the background.
"Would you like to attend to your prayers undisturbed today?" asked Ennia formally, lowering her eyes in surrender. Gently, Antonia squeezed her arm briefly and then took a step back.
"Yes," Aurelia said in a firm voice. "My sisters-in-law and their grandmother shall accompany me."
Without paying any further attention to the other women, Aurelia climbed the last twelve steps to the temple and curiously entered the sanctuary whose secrets she wanted to finally discover.
Her footsteps echoed off the walls. Before the altar she knelt humbly as Antonia had taught her and dared to look up at the marble face of the Bona Dea smiling graciously down at her.
"Your secrets are safe with me," she promised, closing her eyes, and breathing deeply of the mixture of incense and wine that filled the air. Behind her, she heard the rustle of robes as her mentor and her three friends knelt before the goddess. Sudden warmth flooded through Aurelia, and she knew she could do it. They were not alone.