The Battlefield

Wishes and Explanations

After shutting the door, Luca dragged Miriam further down the corridor and outdoor. There was an orange coloured cloth, held up by wooden posts. Surrounding them were tables lined with vases, and many medications such as: vials of herbal oils, herbs and gladiator blood, as well as crosses and fighting equipment.

No one was present in this make-do shop for the gladiators. Miriam's only assumption was that the fighting had already started.

"What in the world are you doing here?" Luca asked her aggressively while clutching her shoulders. He was intimidating, he knew that by the amount of times girls ran away as soon he glared at them. Miriam looked right into his eyes, showing him that she wasn't as scared as he might've thought.

But Miriam knew the truth. If Luca hadn't held her, she might've fallen to his feet after everything that just happened. "I came to watch you fight," at her reply, Luca's eyes softened slightly, before he sighed impatiently.

Slowly Luca loosened his hold on her shoulders but didn't remove his hands. "No, I know that. What are you doing lurking in the corridors?"

"Well, your mum and I wanted to give you some motivation through your sister's words and wish you good luck." Miriam had chosen her words carefully, knowing that it was only them three who needed to wish him. She had heard Julian boasting to Luca about his son's strength which matched his own. Luca, at the end was Julian's speech shook his head amused, and then challenged his father to a warm up duel, to which Julian quickly amended his words so to say that his own strength might be lower that Luca's because if his age.
The two men hugged before they went their own way in a horse and cart. Miriam had witnessed this episode from her bedroom window.

Luca examined her face, knowing that she wasn't making up some crazy excuse. "Alright, what have you got to say?" He asked while crossing his arms over his chest.

"Well, in behalf of all of us, I'd like to say this. You're a beautiful young man, both inside and out, and it would bring us immense pain if something terrible happened to you. This is you're first tournament and with the Lord's mercy, I hope you, and I quote your sister, 'thrash' your competitor and bring your family pride." Miriam started inching closer.
"You might not know it but the people you see, they believe they're ordinary people, but I know they're not. They are Gods gift to you as much as you are to them. So prove yourself to those people out there that you can do it."

When she was less than half an arms length away from him, she reached forward and lightly placed her lips on his cheek. "From your mother," she explained her actions. She then kissed him on his right cheek and noticed how stiff he was, and then said "From your sister," before she hurried away into the stadium leaving a shell-shocked Luca behind her.

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Hey everybody,
I hope you're well and truly enjoying this book. I absolutely love writing it, if you're wondering. And the one of the reasons for loving to write this book is: I didn't write down the historically accurate information. I'm deliberately manipulating the history of the Roman Times in this book so it flows towards the destination I have in mind and not towards the facts. If by any chance my words, description or actions of the characters in this book are offensive to your culture or to your heritage, please let me know so I can change it. If I feel that, the book would be better how it originally was, I might not change it.

But just putting it out there folks, I'm sorry in advance of my book offends you guys but just keep in mind that this is a fiction and a source of my imagination. It's how I'd like to imagine the Roman Times to be and is completely made up, such as people travelling in a horse and cart.

Also, no one is allowed to post negative comments on the characters or their life style if it is dissimilar yours because most of it is based on the general and well-known history of Rome. One of the facts (that I got from Horrible Histories) is- Gladiator blood was considered medicinal.
Just a heads up that I'm publishing an already finished book. It beneficial for you guys so you don't have to weeks (for a crappy chapter that probably wasn't worth the wait) and it'll also give me a chance to be organised and publish consistently.

Enough of my rant,
Kessa