140AD - The Rise to Empress || [GxG] ||

Chapter 9

There wasn't much talk between the three women on their walk to the stables. It mostly just consisted of Lexa and Octavia chatting with one another about recent events as well as the battle they had in the Colosseum and how they could possibly improve for their next few fights. They were set for a few individual battles in the coming weeks and they could only hope that they wouldn't find themselves in the arena simultaneously, forced to fight one another for the hungry crowd's entertainment.

However, if that were the case, they obviously agreed that they would still fight in an alliance with one another even if it's all Gladiators for themselves. They would fight together until the end and would then lay their swords down. It would definitely upset and anger the mobs of spectators but it was just something they would have to accept. It would be an exciting spectacle to see the two Gladiatrix go head to head but they refused to. These fights were about honouring Maximus, and nobody else.

Furthermore, Octavia had also told Lexa about the guard Lincoln that she had grown rather fond of; her words being that she had never met such a humble man. She didn't know him for very long but she could certainly tell that they had a connection of sort that would potentially grow into something beautiful. It made Lexa happy that her friend had found someone that she could potentially have a future with; Octavia wasn't much of the romantic type but she had her fair share of affairs at the academy.

Along the way, Lexa's thigh had started to ache greatly but she didn't bother to say anything. All she managed to do was only barely decrease her pace. She lingered close to Clarke when they walked the short distance in the streets from the palace toward the stables. The Empress however didn't bother to hide her identity. She walked openly and even friendly addressed the settlers that greeted her honorably. Lexa could already tell that she wasn't normal royalty, she really considered and cared for her people.

At the stables, Clarke immediately approached her horse Liberius. Lexa was curious about the name since she knew that it was of Roman tradition to name one's horse a name that meant something personal. Clarke explained that Liberius meant 'free', a single word that meant everything to her.

Lexa kept Clarke in the corner of her eye, as she herself attended to her own horse Vitus. It would be strange to say but it almost seemed like he was glad to see her. As Lexa interacted with him, the Empress gazed at her too, just not as conspicuously. She knew Lexa was a killer but the way she interacted with her animal and every other horse, showed Clarke that the ruthless killer may have a kind heart after all.

After spending hours at the stables and in the market forum, Lexa had to return Clarke back to the palace, since it seemed that she had inadvertently forgotten to mention to the brunette that her training in healing was also a key part of her routine. On their way back to the palace, more crowds of people surrounded them, and once again, Clarke greeted each one, uncaring that she was already late.

Confidently, the Empress had said something over her shoulder to Lexa and up until now, the words stuck in her head as she was making her way to Clarke's quarters, ready to attend the banquet. "My father might be the Emperor, but it is my reign." Were her words and Lexa couldn't quite understand what she had meant by it at first.

But as she rummaged through the words, their meaning became more obvious. She had meant that even though he held the title, she was the one that controlled and held most if not all of the power.

Lexa was about to knock on the door when it opened and like in the market, Clarke bumped into her again and once again she caught her forearms. After a mere two seconds, the brunette retracted her hands from the Empress and took a few steps back, clasping her hands behind her back. "My apologies, I wasn't expecting you to be ready to leave." Embarrassed that she had walked directly into Lexa again, Clarke nervously chuckles waving her hand in acknowledgment. "No need to apologize, I should start looking where I'm walking."