I hated traveling through Rome's market place before dawn but I had little other choice.
Most of the slave traders had surely not woken from their wine induced stupors yet. Except for Garius. He was always open for business and he knew exactly what I wanted.
By Juno! The stink was unbearable! Were we there yet? I felt my carriage be put down, very carefully.
I had four strong men carry me around everywhere and in return they lived a very good life on my estate.
The concept of slavery was abhorrent to me but I had to play along to avoid attracting too much attention. My kind were not understood by the people that ruled this particular Empire.
"Welcome back," Garius said, giving me an elaborate bow. He knew never to use my name.
"Any new stock?" I asked, detesting the word. I always remembered the civilised times in these moments.
"I have just the thing!" he said, his eyes sparkling with greed. I paid very well and he knew it.
He brought out a young man who could only recently grow a beard. Long, grime crusted hair covered his face.
"One of Emperor's men brought this one from the North," Garius said, lifting the boy's mop of hair. A beautiful pair of azure blue eyes stared back at me in defiance.
"Don't worry, a good whipping will set this one straight!" Garius snarled as he pulled the boy's hair further backward.
My skin crawled. I wondered how much whipping he had already received.
"I'll take him," I said, holding out my hand. Felix handed me my coin purse. Nobody dared rob my bodyguard, he could easily snap a person's neck with his bare hands.
Looking into the leather pouch, I mentally counted the gold pieces. I had come prepared to haggle but this place had already soured my mood.
"Have him prepared to leave by the end of the day," I said, handing Garius the whole bag. He felt it's weight and smiled broadly.
***
The moment we arrived at my villa, I had the young man's restraints removed. I spoke to him in the common tongue but he did not reply.
Luckily, I had learned many idioms during my lifetime, so I tried a few words in each of the Northern dialects.
After four attempts, he suddenly cried, "You have my tongue!"
"I do," I said with my best smile. He needed to feel safe, if he was going to trust me.
He pushed his hair out of his face and I caught another glimpse of his beautiful eyes. "I have some conquerer's tongue," he said softly.
"What is your name, young man?" I asked, reaching out to touch his arm comfortingly. He flinched away, a clear indicator of his previous treatment.
"Flos is my chain name," he grumbled.
Flower? What an odd name.
"What is your real name?" I asked with a smile. This caught his attention.
"Yann is my free name!" he said, this time with pride.
"Welcome to my home, Yann. You are free to be yourself here, except for when I have guests."
"Why is there such kindness for your property?" he asked, cocking his head.
"People don't really own anything, especially not other people," I gave my usual reply.
"Your Roman is not real," he said puzzled.
