Our Love Is A Tragedy I Wouldn't Miss/When In Rome

I Left My Life For Pathian

Keith had been told time and time again that working was beneath people of Keith's social status but he didn't know what else he would call talking to the rich, important people about things Keith didn't care about usually and he wanted even less to do with them that day.

He had chosen to work in the military at 17, of course with his father's blessing, but he had found himself disinterested that day. Maybe it would have helped if he was one of the soldiers dedicating 25 years of their lives as a part of the army, but that wasn't an option for Keith. Technically he had been an adult at that time but Roman men weren't allowed to handle business deals and other important decisions before they turned 25 and there were simply different options and rules for different classes.

"You're gonna tell me what's this about?" Lance asked as he and Keith were sitting right outside the border to the city. It was a wonder that Lance hadn't questioned Keith as soon as Keith came to him the moment Keith was done the day.

Keith could feel Lance's eyes on him but he refused to move his eyes away from his feet.

Keith licked his bottom lip and bit it as he inhaled deeply. "Aspasia was pregnant."

"Was?"

Keith's eyes closed as he nodded.

Lance tried to put an arm around Keith but pulled it away when Keith tensed as the first touch.

"Are you okay?" Lance asked instead. Keith was still not looking at him but he could almost taste the heaviness of his stare and the seriousness of his face.

"I have to be," Keith sighed. He breathed heavily and wasn't even sure why he was bothered at all. Why he had been bothered all day and why it was so much worse now that he was alone with Lance.

"That's not what I asked."

"It's just-, "Keith started and finally found the strength to look at Lance. "It was just so small. And ugly."

Lance's eyebrows were tilted trying to reach high up to the center of his forehead and trying to reach as far down in the other end. His mouth was shut tight but his eyes told much more than his mouth would have been capable of.

"I just- I didn't even like it, but it didn't-" Keith was breathing heavily and the hair on his arms had risen in a response to his distress. "It was just so small."

"I know," Lance mumbled. Lance couldn't have known. He hadn't been there. He hadn't seen its lifeless, black eyes or little hands with small fingers curled up in tiny fists. He hadn't seen how it had looked covered in both new and old blood or felt how hard it had turned after a night outside the womb.

"Do you want to stay at my place today?" Lance asked. It seemed both out of the blue and perfect.

"Yes-no... I don't know. I miss Leon." Keith realized his eyes were full of tears. "Is that weird?"

"No." Lance moved a piece of Keith's hair behind his ear. "It's not."

-----

Keith looked down at Aspasia's child. The baby was born less than a year after the end of Aspasia's last pregnancy and wasn't his blood. The question of 'if' wasn't present as Keith hadn't tried to sleep with Aspasia since the gods took her last baby and Aspasia hadn't tried to make him but he wouldn't say anything.

This child looked enough like him that it would hopefully not awaken any questions later on and she already had a half-black brother so Keith assumed that it couldn't get worse than it already was.

"Papa?" Leon called.

Keith went down to his knees awkwardly in fear of dropping the baby girl in his arms. This was the first time he touched the baby since she was born and he refused to drop her. He hadn't even held her at her dies lustricius, only told everyone present her name. "Yes, Leon?"