Marc Antony’s Woman
By Misha
Disclaimer- Not mine.
Author’s Notes- This is the last section of Chapter 17 and the last originally planned part of “Marc Antony’s Woman”, but if there is interest, I will cover the finale chapters as well. This one took a little longer to write because life got busy, but I have enjoyed getting into Portia’s head and examining how she felt during those key moments and the way she personally views Antony.
Pairing- Marc Antony/MC
Rating- PG-13
Summary- Portia finally asks Antony for that favor and he asks one of her in return, while putting everything she’s ever wanted within reach.
Chapter Five: What We Do For Love
It was quite some time before we looked up again, both of us sated.
Antony glances out a window and then stood up with a grimace, calling for his armor as he did so. “It’s late,” he explained as he dressed. “I need to be at the arena to open the games.”
The games. Where my father and Syphax would fight for their lives. I had not yet had a chance to ask Antony to spare them, I opened my mouth to do so now, but he cut me off, leaning forward to press a quick kiss against my lips.
“Come with me,” he invited, “I could use the most beautiful woman in Rome by my side.”
“You aren’t going to send for Xanthe?” I asked lightly, letting my hurt show.
“I doubt she’d come,” Antony replied with a grin, then his expression softened into something sweeter, “besides you are the only one I want by my side.”
It was as close to as an apology as I would ever get from Antony and I took it, lifting my face to his for another kiss.
All too soon he pulled away. “Later,” he promised, before striding to the door, motioning for me to follow him to the waiting litter.
During the ride, I kept looking for the moment to ask Antony for the favor I needed, but he was preoccupied, his hands and lips claiming my attention. Words were kept to a minimum and as worried as I was, it was far too easy to get lost in Antony’s kiss.
When we arrived at the Coliseum, there was only time for a brief pause to straighten our clothes and then we hurried to Antony’s box. It was easy to see that the crowd was restless, eager for the games to begin. Bread and circus. It was the citizens wanted and what Antony was so good at giving them.
The crowd cheered at the sight of Antony.
“Give us some blood!”
The cries no longer produced any reaction in me. I had become immune to them, to the blood-thirstiness of Rome, though they did remind me of the favor I had to ask Antony.
He stood and addressed the crowd. “Our first fight today is Euthymios the Greek versus Sadalas the Thracian!”
Antony took his seat next to me as the gladiators began to fight and the crowd called for their blood.
I let a moment or two pass, Antony’s hand resting familiarly on my thigh, and then turned to him, running my tongue over my lower lip as I chose my words carefully. I noticed Antony’s gaze was immediately drawn to the movement, a familiar heat lighting his eyes.
“So… I was hoping to ask a book of you today…” I began but I was cut off by a gasp from the crowd as Euthymios captured the Thracian in his net, bringing him sprawling to the ground before standing over him, trident at his opponent’s throat. “Yield!”
“Yield! I yield” The Thracian called desperately.
“Boo!” The crowd called out, obviously craving blood for this first fight, “finish him!”
Antony stood then, drawing all eyes to him, including mine.
Was he in a merciful mood or not?
“In honor of Caesar’s victory against Pompey, all fights will be to the death!” He declared and my heart sank. No, no, no.
I could barely hear the cheers from the crowd, I was overwhelmed with panic. I had been worried about Antony’s reaction before, when the decision rested only on his whims, but now I needed him to go back on his own declaration. I believed he truly cared for me, but did he care enough?
I had given Antony my body and my heart, would that be enough to save my father or Syphax?
I was so caught up in my thoughts that I was barely aware of Euthymios ending the Thracian’s life, much to the delight of the crowd. It wasn’t until Antony turned to me, that I forced myself to focus.
“It looks like Syphax is up after this,” he commented, his voice casual but his eyes calculating. He knew. He knew what favor I would ask of him. “Is that why you came to me today? Did you want to ask me to spare your guard’s life?”
“All right. But I’ll warn you, I don’t like to share.” Antony’s words from the first time I asked him to aid Syphax came back to me. Somehow I doubted he would appreciate me asking a second time, especially when I was fresh from his bed.
But I had another path I could take.
“I have another whose life I am pleading for,” I told him honestly, gazing up at him pleadingly, “Syphax fights my father today.”
I knew the news would not come as surprise to Antony and indeed, he just nodded. “Ah, of course. The Conquered King.” He looked at me carefully. “I assume you are going to ask that I save them both?”
“Would you not want the same?” I asked quietly, watching him carefully. He did not seem angry or necessarily opposed to the idea, but Antony wasn’t always the easiest man to read.
He stood as my father and Syphex entered the ring, each giving him a formal salute. I smiled at the sight of my father’s new armor, it truly was fit for a king.
“We who are about to die, salute you!” They both chanted to the delight of the crowd, but the words sent a shiver through me. I could not lose either of them.
“Please…” I whispered, though whether I was talking to Antony or the gods I wasn’t quite sure.
“Next up is Syphax the Slayer, fighting the terror of Gaul, the Conquered King!” He announced before taking his seat as my father and Syphax circled each other warily, I knew that neither of them wanted this. I wonder which of them had agreed to make the sacrifice.
Hopefully, I would never know.
Antony turned his attention back to me. “Fine. You want my help, then tell me the truth. Why you do you care so much about saving Syphax? Is he your lover?”
There was no disguising the jealousy in his voice. He cared. Thankfully, I could be honest with him. “Syphax is not who I’m asking you to save.” It was mostly the truth. I was concerned about Syphax’s life, but only because I was the reason he was a gladiator in the first place. He was my guard and my friend, but he had never had my heart.
Antony visibly relaxed at my words. “I told Xanthe she was wrong about you two.”
I fought to conceal my irritation. Of course, Xanthe had spread her lies to Antony as well as Cassius. I shouldn’t be surprised, I knew she would stop at nothing to bring me down, though it hadn’t done her much good, I remembered with a smile.
I was so distracted by the memory of Xanthe’s face that morning that I almost missed Antony’s next question.
“And Cassius? Do you owe him your loyalty? Or any other patron?”
“I give myself only to you,” I told him honestly, “You are the only one I love.”
Antony’s eyes softened, probably at the memory of my earlier confession. “I can almost believe you when you say that.” He pulled me close to him, his arm wrapping around my bare shoulders as his lips nuzzled my earlobe. “I would not care to see you suffer from the death of either your father or your loyal guard.”
Yes! I concealed my satisfaction and instead bit my lip demurely. “I didn’t expect you to say ‘yes’.”
“I find it hard to say anything else to you,” Antony admitted, his lips trailing across my jaw.
I shivered at his touch, before my eyes darted to the arena below where Syphax’s gladius clanged loudly against my father’s shining longsword, reminding me that this was not the time to get distracted by Antony’s touch.
He seemed to realize that too, pulling back slightly, though he kept his arm around me. “But if I do this for you, then I have to ask something in return.”
His face was serious, no trace of the adoring lover to be seen and I had a feeling that he was not going to ask for sexual favors or anything else I would wish to grant. Yet, as Syphax’s drew first blood and the crowd clamored for more, I knew I didn’t really have an option.
“What do you ask of me?”
“Caesar is returning to Rome soon,” Antony told me and I tried not to flinch at the name, “but rumor says he has fallen for the Egyptian queen and she will be with him.”
Rumor, not Caesar himself, that was interesting. I filed it away, even as I tilted my head towards Antony and asked, “what can I do about that?”
“If Cleopatra is whispering in his ear, I can’t assume Caesar will be as loyal to me as I have been to him,” Antony said quietly. I kept my expression impassive, but internally I couldn’t help but feel surprise, in all the months I had known Antony I had never heard him once express anything but loyalty and faith in Caesar.
“I will need someone I trust to be my eyes and ear in his intimate circles,” Antony continued, his hand running up and down my back as he spoke, “Will you let me present you as tribute to Caesar? A gift to remind him that Rome should be his priority, not Egypt.”
I gasped, not just because of his request but because of the meaning behind it. “You want me to… spy on Caesar for you?” It was dangerous and foolish and yet… It was the best opportunity I would ever have to bring him down and more than that, if Antony was asking it mean that he might not be as blindly loyal to Caesar as I feared.
Antony winced at the word ‘spy’. “I want you to… keep me informed,” he corrected, pulling me into his lap, his arms fastened around me tenderly.
I could see the crowd watching us, whispering amongst themselves, but I didn’t care. Let them speculate, all that mattered to me was that I was exactly where I wanted to be.
“It will be painful for me to watch you play to him,” Antony assured me, his lips trailing across my neck, “but you are the only one in the whole Republic I trust to do this for me.”
Maybe it was a pretty lie to get me to do what he wanted, but I didn’t think so. There was something very sincere about his words, about the way he held me as he made his request. Or maybe I just wanted there to be.
“I can’t promise it will be without danger,” Antony continued, “But… you have never seemed overly concerned with staying safe.”
I let a little laugh at that, but it died on my lips with the sounds coming from the arena and the cheers of the crowd. I tore my gaze away from Antony in time to see my father attack Syphax from behind.
Antony followed my gaze, his expression dispassionate. “Will you do it?”
A life for a life… No, that wasn’t fair. Antony didn’t want my life. He wanted my body, my wits, and wiles… And if I was smart, perhaps I could use this to my advantage, saving us all in the process.
“I would do that for you and more,” I assured him, my hand reaching up to caress his face, “though it will pain me to offer my attention to Caesar and not you.” It was true. I could barely think of Caesar without revulsion, I wasn’t sure how I would charm him, but… I had managed with Aquila and if I couldn’t, all my training, everything I had done these last eight years would be for nothing.
Antony kissed my hand. “Not nearly so painful as it will be for me,” he replied, running his hand down my back before kissing me lightly. “I will kick myself the first night my bed is cold and you are holding court with Caesar.”
“So long as you never bring Xanthe to warm it,” I warned. I didn’t care who else shared his bed, I knew Antony too well to assume I’d be his only lover, but the thought of it being Xanthe was too much to bear. Not that I thought she’d be up for a second round of humiliation.
“I shall lie alone in my cold sheets and dream of you,” Antony promised, making my heart leap. I wasn’t sure I believed him, but I wanted too.
But as intoxicating as his words were, I couldn’t get swept away by them, not yet. Not while my father and Syphax’s lives were still on the line. A glance towards the arena made my blood run cold because my father was about to raise his sword for the killing blow. “Oh, please, now!” I begged.
Antony nodded, gently dislodging me and getting to his feet, the movement enough to draw the attention of both my father and Syphax.
“It looks like another victory for the Unconquered King,” Antony announced, “and a first defeat in the ring for the newcomer Syphax the Slayer. Both men fought like champions and perhaps have earned mercy, should we let him live?”
The crowd booed, chanting, “Kill… Kill…”
I held my breath as Antony held his fist out over the side of the box, the crowd stilling with the movement, everyone watching him carefully. Slowly, agonizingly so, he tilted his thumb upward.
“In great Caesar’s name let mercy be done today!” He announced.
“Caesar! Caesar!” The crowd chanted.
In the ring, my father and Syphax took a shaky step apart, and I could see the sweat and blood even from where I was sitting.
“In Caesar’s name, we thank you!” Syphax called out.
I met my father’s eyes, shooting him a warning glance, this was not the time for defiance.
“…Praise Antony!” My father shouted. I guess that was more palatable for him than praising his enemy.
“Praise Antony!” The crowd chanted in agreement.
I shot a look at Antony as he announced the next match, wondering if I could use the crowd’s love for him and his sudden distrust of Caesar to my advantage. I had always known Antony was my best way of getting close to Caesar, but also knew that his loyalty put us at odds, but maybe that didn’t have to be the case? Maybe I could have both my revenge and Antony if I played my cards right.
That thought was still present as Antony took his seat again, pulling me back onto his lap, burying his head in my neck. “There, it is done,” he commented, his hands settling on my waist.
I wrapped my arms around his neck, bringing my lips to his. “And I am very grateful.”
I was sure the crowd was watching us and making assumptions over why Antony had gone back on his declaration, why he had spared Syphax, but I didn’t care. Let them speculate. Let them know what Antony would do for me.
I also knew that the weeks ahead would be dangerous, that there would be many risks, but I was so close to having it all and I wasn’t going to let it slip out of my fingers. Besides, I was Marc Antony’s woman, Rome was destined to be mine. To be ours.
**
