The Life of the Nomad

The life of the nomad (a story of the Spartans)

This book, "The life of the nomad," is the third using the same mythos originally created for the series "Spartan" and used later in "Sons of Sparta". In order to fully appreciate the details behind this story it would be advisable for readers to have some familiarity with both earlier works, which can be found in the gay/scifi section on Nifty. The mythos was originally created by the author CF.

Note that this story series is based in Western and Central Europe at around the time of the collapse of the Roman Empire and the start of what is colloquially known as the 'dark ages'. However I beg any experts out there not to point out my failings or deficiencies in my knowledge of the period - I am not a historian and make no claims whatsoever to authenticity.

Part 2

Character list (ages are as at the start of part 2):

1.Gaia - oldest in group, 94 years old, surname Melonson

2.Elis Gaiason, 70 summers old, son of Gaia and a deceased human 3.Tito Teleklosson, partner of Elis, 62 summers 4.Marcus Elisson, 38 summers, son of Elis and Tito, brother to Clio 5.Clio Titoson, 34, son of Elis and Tito, brother to Marcus

6.Hyacinth Gaiason Elis's younger brother aged 62, son of Gaia and a deceased human 7.Alexander (HUMAN), Hyacinth's partner, 59 8.Jason Hyacinthson, son of Hyacinth and Alexander 30 9.Cleopas Hyacinthson son of Hyacinth and Alexander 23

10.Philip (HUMAN) partner of Marcus, 29 11.Socra Marcusson aged 5, son of Marcus and Philip 12.Maia Marcusson, 3 weeks old son of Marcus and Philip

13.Aeson Elpison, partner of Clio, aged 29 14.Demaratos Aesonson aged 7, son of Clio and Aeson 15.Konon Clioson aged 2, son of Clio and Aeson

16.Simon the monk (HUMAN) aged 29, partner of Jason 17.Ethelred/Red (HUMAN), aged 12, partner of Cleopas

18.Nabis Platoson, son of Plato Melonson (the deceased older brother of Gaia), father of Demeter and nephew of Gaia, aged 79 19.Jocasta Kirkeson, partner of Nabis, aged 81

20.Demeter Nabisson, 49, only surviving son of Nabis and Jocasta 21.Rhea Larisason, 52 partner of Demeter

22.Kalliope Demeterson, son of Demeter and Rhea, father of Ajax and Carme, aged 37 23.Leander Rheason, brother of Kalliope, aged 29, father of Evander 24.Acantha Demeterson brother of Leander, father of Xanthe aged 22 25.Lykurgos Rheason, brother of Acantha, aged 11 youngest son of Demeter and Rhea

26.Mark (HUMAN), partner of Kalliope, sire to and Ajax and Carme, aged 37 27.Ajax Kalliopeson aged 10 son of Kalliope and Mark and brother of Carme 28.Carme Kalliopeson, aged 14 son of Mark and Kalliope, brother of Ajax

29.Joseph (HUMAN) partner of Leander, aged 28, father of Evander 30.Evander Leanderson aged 3 son of Leander and Joseph

31.Charon Pallasson partner of Acantha, sire of Xanthe aged 23 32.Xanthe Acanthason aged 10 months son of Acantha and Charon

From part 1 . . .

The churchman stared and suddenly got a calculating glare. "Guards!" he shouted. Six mail-shirted, well armed men came up. "Seize this man for crimes against the church! He will be brought before the bishop!"

The mail shirted men and Spartans alike froze, unable to believe what they were hearing. The priest shouted again, "SEIZE HIM!"

. . .

They ran through the streets as the churchman who'd demanded Simon's arrest stood shouting behind them. His guards and the monks were trying to make him see sense and realise that both their former brother, Simon, and the barbarians who accompanied him, were too well armed to tangle with, but the Spartans didn't want to hang around in case he won the argument and managed to get the guards to acquiesce to his demands.

Simon's lungs and leg muscles were both burning but he didn't slow down, rather he wanted to push himself even faster so as to escape what could easily turn into his worst nightmare. He ran beside Jason and the pair clattered into the inn yard immediately behind Kalliope.

"To arms! To arms! We leave immediately!" Kalliope cried.

"Why, what's happened, what's going on?" a clamour of voices rose even as people's hands went to their sword hilts.

"Simon was recognised, someone demanded his arrest. We're going to leave in a quarter of an hour, we pack at once!" Kalliope said and with the gravity of the news no one argued, but with quick, efficient actions repacked horses, collected belongings and mounted up.

It was actually more like twenty five minutes before they left, after all, fifty horses and two wagons cannot be manoeuvred out of a small space very quickly. To avoid any difficulties with gate guards, young Red was hidden in one of the wagons. All the new foodstuffs had been stacked in the wagons also, making it easy to hide the boy.

They rode quickly but cautiously through the town and exited through the east gate but had not gone more than fifty yards from the town wall before a shout rose up behind them. Gaia and Nabis, who were back riders, turned and saw a patrol of foot soldiers jogging down the road towards them. "We're being pursued, ride!" Nabis shouted. They picked up the pace, going as fast as the wagon horses could maintain, and moved several more of their best fighters to the rear of their caravan.

"Simon, darling, come on, to the front, you'll be safer" Jason gasped. He and his lover galloped forwards and joined Carme, who was their single outrider, since most of the fighters were at the rear.

They clattered through the forest for an hour before the foot troops, clearly exhausted at keeping up a dead run to match the horses, fell behind. But they didn't slow down until yet another hour had passed and there were no signs of pursuers.

"Well?" Gaia asked Charon and Aeson, who'd hung back and climbed up a ridgeline to try and spy out the road before catching up with the family.

"Nothing, we've out ridden them, I think" Charon replied.

"I don't think that matters, look at our tracks" Jocasta said. "Even a blind man could follow behind us and just keep plodding." It was true. The road was rutted with the wagon tracks and the hooves of many horses.

"We could go into the forest" Mark suggested. Kalliope, his lover, leaned over from his horse to reach Mark and kiss him before shaking his head. "Nice idea, lover, but we can't, not with the wagons, this part is largely virgin, we wouldn't get more than twenty yards back from the road before the wagon wheels would snare up completely."

"So what do we do then?"Acantha asked his brother.

"First of all we get the attention of the outriders and stop for a few minutes to discuss this as a family" Kalliope said. Acantha nodded and kicked his horse to a gallop and shortly everyone had caught up to Simon, Jason, Carme and Acantha, who were still mounted but who were waiting at the roadside.

"What's so important that we stop?"Jason asked. He was still nervous at the prospect of his love being arrested and didn't really want to slow down.

"We need to decide what we are to do" Kalliope replied. He turned to Gaia. "Uncle, you said this road is uninhabited for the best part of a month?"

"About that, yes" Gaia answered.

"And it takes us over the mountains?" he continued.

"Yes it does, it isn't an easy ride" Gaia confirmed after a few moments thought.

"In that case, I suggest we head out of this forest and into the foothills as quickly as we can, then as soon as the undergrowth thins we head off the road and break a trail. We've got enough stores and enough hunters that if can find a defensible cave or something we can be safe for months."

"There'll be snow in the mountains by winter" Nabis shook his head. "We can't stay there too long."

"If we have a decent cave and plenty of supplies I don't think snow will matter" Demeter said to his father.

"It'll be too cold for Maia" Marcus argued.

"Okay, brothers, let's get to the mountains and see if we can find a cave, first" Gaia suggested. "At the very least we need to get off this road and it is two weeks to the foothills."

As the others were making their decisions, Cleopas was busy digging young Red out from the sacks of beans and meal and the mountain of cheeses that had toppled onto the young boy as they made their frantic escape. He emerged from the wagon gripping Cleopas' arm and holding his stomach.

"Are you okay?" Rhea asked, concernedly, noting the way the boy walked.

"The cheeses toppled onto him and winded him" Cleopas answered. "He's going to ride on the wagon seat with me for a bit" he continued - nothing could have deterred Cleopas from driving the wagon that concealed Red that day, he'd insisted on being as close to the boy as he could.

"He could ride a horse but we don't have time to make a saddle for him and we won't for a fortnight at least if we ride as fast as Kalliope suggests we do" Alexander said to his younger son.

"Let's not worry about that for now, can we get moving, please?" Jason begged. The family nodded to their kinsman and his lover and began to move once more, not quite at a canter but faster than their usual walking pace. They didn't push their horses too much as they didn't want them to tire too easily but did keep going all day, stopping only for five minutes at noon to pass water, dip a drink from the nearby stream and find such provisions as could be eaten for a cold lunch as they rode.

They didn't stop until darkness was almost upon them, and when they did they pulled as far off the road as they could manage with the wagons. The fire they lit was a small one and only for cooking and was put out as soon as a hot meal had been prepared. As they started to bed down for the night, lots were drawn as they wanted a night guard. Elis and Tito took first watch and Charon and Acantha were to be on second watch.

As the guards took up positions where they could see the road and listen for trouble, sat together so that they could keep each other awake and alert, the rest of the family, all wary, with their swordbelts still fastened and their horses close at hand, curled around their lover or a family member and slept - this night, because of the dangers, the children all slept between their fathers and not in the exposed wagon, which was closer to the road than was deemed safe.

They woke early, meditated for a short time and as dawn was breaking they were already saddling horses and choosing breakfast items that could be eaten whilst riding. Charon and Acantha steered one wagon, taking it in turns to hold the reins as the other slept. Elis and Tito, who had the earlier, slightly easier, watch, would swap and sit on the wagon seat and rest later in the day when the younger couple had both caught up on their sleep. The other wagon was, as per the previous day, the preserve of Cleopas and Red.

They set off at a brisk but not tiring pace, riding into the rising sun. This day panned out much like the one before, with three, ten-minute stops to pass water, change children's diapers, take trail food from stores and stretch legs, then it was back onto the horses to ride until as close to dark as was safe. Everyone was tired, conversations were quiet and brief and the tension levels were high.

The second night saw Clio and Aeson take first watch and Nabis and Jocasta the second. The elderly men were still fit, healthy, keen swordsmen and had no difficulty in staying awake and alert. The third day was a repeat of the second, so closely mirroring it that many experienced a déjà-vu moment when going about their tasks, and so passed several more days, riding as swiftly as they could manage in safety, stopping for the minimum amount of time that they could and taking all possible precautions.

It was on the tenth day after they'd left the city that they began to notice a subtle rise on the road and thinning of the trees. When they stopped at noon this was commented on. "I thought you said it'd take a fortnight to get to the foothills, Gaia?" Kalliope asked. "Is this the start of some lesser hills?"

"We've ridden very fast" Gaia answered, "we've come further than I expected we would. These are the start of the foothills, we would probably reach thin enough ground that we could break a trail before nightfall, or at the latest tomorrow morning." This news cheered the family, especially Jason and Simon, who experienced intense relief at the prospect of getting off the road and being able to truly hide rather than just run.

They followed the same pattern as the last few days, riding until quite late, but they stopped with a good half-hour's worth of daylight left and pulled well off the road and into the trees before making their camp. They posted guards as they had every night but it seemed that they finally might be able to relax a little.

The next morning they meditated for their usual two hours instead of cutting it short, then had a hot breakfast as they waited for the morning shadows to fade so that they had plenty of light to see what they were doing as they began to break a trail through the trees. They continued to head east, but turned slightly south as well, working their way steadily away from the road as well as upwards. The land wasn't too difficult for the wagons and progress was easy.

There had been some concerns about the trail they were leaving through the undergrowth but there were many herds of deer in the area and much of the grass was short, making it relatively easy, with the aid of a soft brush made of leafy branches, to disguise their passage. The few points that they had to break or cut their way through brambles or tangled undergrowth were spaced quite a distance apart and the further they worked their way upwards the less likely it was that any but the most experienced tracker would be able to follow them.

That evening they stopped with a good two hours of daylight to spare, having found a suitable campsite near a crystal blue mountain river. "The water may be cold but I think, brothers, that we all need to bathe, change clothes and launder some things, we've been pushing so hard that we've not had the chance to do any domestic chores" Tito suggested and most of the party agreed with relief. Only Red, who was unused to the Spartan's ways, looked surprised.

"The way we've been riding isn't our usual way of living" Cleopas explained to the boy. "We often travel much slower, we bathe regularly and wear much cleaner clothing" he said.

"I've only ever bathed twice a year in a wooden tub near the fire and you want me to strip off and jump in a river? The cold water'll kill me!" he exclaimed.

Cleopas and some of the others nearby laughed. "Red, if you don't get those filthy rags off your hide then you may die sooner than you want but it certainly won't be bathing that causes it" Clio smiled. "Come on, strip" he suggested. Red spluttered and his cheeks flamed as red has his hair with embarrassment as he watched the men of Sparta disrobe and clamber into the water.

"You're all naked!" he gasped.

"It's a bit hard to get clean if you aren't" Philip said. He too was bathing but stayed very close to the bank, keeping his eye on Maia, who was lying on a deer skin, patiently waiting for his fathers to pick him up again - he would be bathed later, in water warmed on the fire. Xanthe, though, was in the water with his fathers - he was larger and sturdier than Maia and thus was able to cope with the cold water, but that didn't mean he didn't squeal a little when Charon lowered him down.

Red gingerly slipped into the cold water, wincing as he did so. He took a leather rag offered to him by Cleopas and began to wash and as he did so he looked around at his companions and his eyes widened in surprise.

"Red, my boy, what is it?" Cleopas asked from nearby.

"You're all men" he whispered.

"Yes" Cleopas replied, unsure why this would surprise the boy - he had been in their company for a good number of days already and had met everyone.

"I thought some of you were girls, just more boyish than normal, but you're not" Red repeated.

"No, we're all male" Cleopas replied.

Red looked at Cleopas with a half-confused, half-accusatory expression and said, "how come you've got babies and children with you, then? Did you lot steel them away or something like you did me?"

Cleopas looked at Red and felt sick with horror. "Oh, mercy, no!" he cried. "No, no, no" he said and tears formed in his eyes. "The boys with us are our sons, Red, our true born sons" he whispered through his tears. "And as for you, I thought you wanted to come? If you truly want to go back, then danger be damned, I shall take you! I don't want you to feel for a second obligated to be with us."

It was Red's turn to become tearful. "No, Cleopas, I want to be here" he whispered, tears dripping down his cheeks at the sudden thought that he might be taken back or sent away.

"You just say that to make me feel better" Cleopas whispered. "I never stole you away, Red, I never, ever would do such a thing to a child! Do you want me to take you home?"

Red shook his head. "My home is wherever you are" he replied. "Don't take me back, I want to be with you" he said. He looked scared and hurt. "You won't leave me, will you?"

"No!" Cleopas cried and reached out, cupping the boy's cherubic face as the pair stood waist deep in the cold water. "I won't leave you. Red, I love you" Cleopas whispered, for the first time since they'd met.

Red looked at his saviour with misty eyes. "I don't know what it is but when I look at you my stomach fills with butterflies and I want to hold your hand" he explained. "I think I might love you too?" he asked, looking to Cleopas for confirmation.

They hugged tightly and then Cleopas said, "this water's not getting any warmer, let's get cleaned up, yes?" He took his rag but rather than scrubbing himself down he turned to Red and gently began to wipe his arms, his shoulders, his stomach. Red started to purr at the attention and stood on tiptoes, urging Cleopas to wash lower down, his nether regions.

Cleopas for his part was nervous. He'd tried to convince himself that the boy was a child to care for and not his mate but as the boy in question urged the man to wash him, his male prong began to swell to a very respectable four inches and Cleopas felt himself growing to double that in return. "Wash me already" Red begged. Cleopas ducked down in the water to hide his erection as he gently stirred and cleaned the young penis and testicles being presented to him. As he washed him, he tried to retract the boy's foreskin. "Ow, that hurts" Red complained.

Cleopas could see the thick crust of dirt that covered the delicate skin of the child's penis head. "I'm not surprised" he said softly and washed it clean as carefully as he could. He then reached behind the boy and pulled the cloth between his rear and, on realising that it was quite filthy, turned the boy around and rinsed the cloth so that he could wash him properly. "Cleopas, you're hurting me" Red squealed.

"Red, darling, you're filthy" Cleopas replied. "If I don't get you clean then you will end up ill" he continued, "I'm actually a little surprised you're not sorer than you are."

"But it hurts" Red cried softly. Cleopas cuddled him as he wiped, letting the filthy brown and black crusts rinse off his cloth before going back and slowly teasing more dirt off the pink, sore skin. "Almost done, baby, almost done" he whispered, not wanting to hurt Red but not being able to bear leaving the poor child dirty. Red started to sob when Cleopas washed his anus itself - the little hole was caked with dried matter and clearly was very red and infected.

"I'm sorry, Red, but it has to be done. You'll feel better once you are clean, and I'll get Nabis to mix up a poultice to heal your skin. Didn't it hurt when you went to the latrine?" he asked.

"It always hurts and stings and sometimes it bleeds a bit, why?" Red sniffled, trying to keep his throbbing nether regions out of Cleopas' reach.

"Red, child, it's not supposed to hurt and it's never supposed to bleed. You've got an infection in your skin caused by not bathing enough" Cleopas explained softly. He finally got the boy clean, checked his perineum and testicles and cleaned them, then urged Red to lean on his shoulder for support so he could pick up each of the boy's feet in turn and washed gently between the toes, before running his hands up each leg to rub the mud and dirt from off his calves. Lastly he urged him to duck his head underwater to rinse the dirt from his hair, swilling the curly red locks with his fingers to remove the worst of the tangles and make sure it was soaked through.

"I think you're clean enough" he pronounced after what seemed like an age to both participants but in actual fact was less than ten minutes in total. "Let's go find you some clean clothes." Whimpering slightly because his backside was very sore, Red let Cleopas help him out of the river. By this time the cold water had shrivelled Cleopas' penis back to its usual, unaroused, proportions and Red had lost his arousal because of the pain and discomfort that getting clean had caused.

Cleopas grabbed some chamois and dried the boy, then himself, then went to Nabis, who gave him some dried herbs mixed in tallow. "I made this just recently for Ajax" he confided. "He's not been preparing well enough before sex and has gotten his back passage torn. But this should heal an infected anus just as well as it does a cut one" he explained once Cleopas had told the older man of the problem.

With the ointment in one hand, he went to one of the packs to find clean loincloths for himself and Red. "I think my loincloths would be too big on you, they'd go around you twice" he smiled to Red once he'd rejoined the huddling boy, "but one of Demaratos' or Ajax's would fit fine" he said.

"Give it me, then, I want to cover up already" Red complained.

"Not until I've put some ointment on" Cleopas replied. "Come on, stand up and bend over."

"Do I have to?" he asked.

Cleopas smiled gently. "Do you like being sore?"

"No."

"Then stand up and bend over and let me put this ointment on you. Please, Red? It'll make you feel better, I promise."

Reluctantly Red stood and held his ankles, sticking his bare bottom up into the air. Cleopas almost cried at the sight of the painful, raw skin and very carefully began to smooth the ointment onto it.

"That feels really good" Red said softly.

"It's supposed to make you feel better, it should feel good" Cleopas replied. He got Red to stand upright again and then covered the boy with the smaller of the two loincloths he'd been loaned.

"I've never worn a cloth like this, my normal clothes are britches" he giggled as the cloth was tied - clearly the ointment was making his backside feel better already and he wasn't nearly as irritated with Cleopas as he had been before.

"That may be true but those britches you wore were infested with lice and fleas and quite impossible to wash and would have made you sore all over again, that's why I put them on the fire" Cleopas answered. Red made to protest at his garments being burned without his consent but Cleopas put a finger over the boy's lips, making the child smile. "We'll sort you out some better clothes on the morrow" he whispered.

"What do I sleep in?" Red asked. Cleopas wordlessly spread a large deerskin on the ground and picked his cloak up from where he had dropped it before getting into the water. "I think you'll probably be comfortable like that, in my arms?" he said softly. Up until that point, though they'd slept close together they'd not embraced.

"That may be fine but I need some clothes for now, I'm almost naked and we still need to eat" Red tried again.

Cleopas laughed. "You and everyone else, look around you" he smiled. Red did as he was bid and noticed that the whole group, even the former monk, Simon, whose potential arrest had provoked their flight, were clad only in loincloths, and a couple were even naked but made no move to cover up. He looked at Cleopas to ask why no one cared about modesty and realised that the man was only just fastening his loincloth and had a soft, but still, to Red's eyes, very large, penis on show. He stared at Cleopas' groin with wide eyes, spluttered in surprise, turned bright red and his little penis went hard and tented the loincloth very noticeably.

"Like something you see?" Cleopas asked once he'd fastened his loincloth, reaching over with a gentle hand and softly rubbing the palm over the end of the tent pole in Red's covering, just once.

"Oh god!" Red said, shuddering, as he came, a tiny watery dribble of seminal fluid, stating the case that despite his tiny stature he was well and truly entering puberty. Cleopas took him in his arms and held him upright as otherwise he would surely have collapsed and as he came down from his orgasm he started to cry and wriggled away.

"Stop, stop" Cleopas said softly.

"No, you'll hate me now, doing that is evil, I'm evil!" he replied.

"Red, Red, what you did was completely normal. I don't hate you, in fact I'm honoured that I was able to do that to you. It felt good, didn't it?"

"Mm-hm" Red whispered, blushing furiously but at least he'd stopped struggling to run away.

"Then why is it evil?" he asked.

"All the priests say it is" the boy replied with tears in his eyes and a tremor in his voice.

Cleopas felt out of his depth and looked around. "Simon" he said as he saw the former monk. "Could you and Jason give me a hand here?"

"Of course, what's the problem?" Simon asked, coming over to where they both were stood.

"Red here just spilled seed into his loincloth but for some reason he says its evil and that the priests told him that. I don't understand much about Christians so I hoped you could..." he stuttered to a halt and looked at Simon with pleading eyes.

Simon sat down on the deerskin that Cleopas had spread on the ground earlier and beckoned the pair to join him. Jason sat beside Simon to listen to the conversation.

"Red" Simon said softly. "I was a monk. Do you know why the priest wanted me arrested?" he asked. Red shook his head. "Well I was a true monk and brother to those who are at the church in your old town and I think that basically they resented the fact that I'd left them. We were on pilgrimage and one day and we met up with this family and as soon as I saw Jason here I knew that those teachings were wrong. I looked into his eyes and fell in love and I agreed to stay and share the gospel with the family, though really that was just an excuse so that I could stay at Jason's side. I've spilled my seed many times since then, with Jason, on Jason."

Jason couldn't resist and with a slight chuckle in his voice he chipped in, "inside Jason."

Simon suppressed his own laughter and elbowed his lover for interrupting with such a crass comment, before continuing, "and nothing could make me feel better. Love does splendid things and it also says in the scriptures that God is love. So do not worry, if you love Cleopas and your body does things in expression of that love, it is a beautiful thing and not something that should ever worry you."

"How did you know I love Cleopas? I've not said anything?" Red asked, panicked.

"The way you look at him, it's like he's your entire world" Simon said softly. "Do not fear - it is beautiful. And I firmly believe that God understands, son. It is the church that does not" he assured the boy.

"You really mean that?" Red asked.

"I really mean it" Simon replied with a small smile of encouragement and blessing.

Simon took Jason's hand as the pair moved away and sat down together some distance from Cleopas and Red. "Well said, my love" Jason whispered to Simon.

"He needs Cleopas so much" Simon replied, "and a blind man could see they are infatuated with each other."

"I know, but Cleopas must be more than blind because my baby brother still can't accept it is his partner bond" Jason said. He embraced Simon gently. "Are you okay? We haven't really talked about what happened." He left the thought open.

Simon sighed. "I knew they wouldn't like what I'd become but I never for a second imagined they'd try to arrest me" he said. "If I'd known they would react like that I never would have left the inn."

"You weren't to know, dearest" Jason said. "Besides which, we are free of them now and free of townsfolk and we will know to avoid this place and churches in general in future."

"I'm sorry" Simon apologised, having wanted to say so for a while.

"You've got nothing to apologise for!" Jason said softly, taking Simon's hands in his own. "Simon, my love, it is not your fault but theirs. You mustn't carry around this guilt, it will do you no good."

"But I caused you all so many problems, you could have stayed for so much longer, traded more, purchased..."

Jason interrupted him. "But we didn't and it doesn't matter. We got what we needed and we left with our family intact and safe and that's all that matters. Now, will you promise me something?"

"What?" Simon asked softly.

"Don't feel guilty about what happened? Please?"

"I promise I'll try not to" Simon offered and with that the two embraced tightly.

Everyone in the family washed their dirty clothes, oiled damp leathers to keep them in good condition and fastened the laundry to the outside of the pack saddles and wagons to dry. Combs were found to detangle and clean their damp hair, and the perennial problem of headlice was dealt with by massaging an antiseptic herb into each other's scalps and then carefully combing it all out. Red found such treatment odd as he'd never known any such thing in the past but realised he liked it immensely.

After a hot, filling supper and a very pleasant drink of warm water with honey everyone relaxed and sat talking and cuddling with their loves and renewing bonds that had been neglected since the start of their flight from the town. Red hadn't really seen this side of his companions before and watched wide-eyed as Acantha and Charon, Philip and Marcus, Leander and Joseph and others, all openly and erotically kissed and embraced their lovers. He was about to say something to the former monk, Simon, when he realised that he too was in a passionate embrace with the man, Jason, whom he had admitted he loved earlier in the evening.

Cleopas watched Red's reaction silently, waiting for the boy to say something. "Cleopas" he whispered after a good half an hour's silent watching.

"Yes, Red?"

"You're all men?"

"Yes, we established that in the river, remember?"

"Yes, but you're all men and you all love each other?"

"We're family, we're supposed to love each other" Cleopas teased, knowing what the boy meant but trying to encourage him to express it in a clearer way, knowing it would be less embarrassing in the long term if he learned to speak the truth now.

"No, I don't mean like that" Red sighed. "I mean, like, you have couples, like you're married and stuff, even though both people are men, don't you?"

"Yes, we do, Red, though we call it being mated or being bonded, not married" Cleopas whispered softly. "That doesn't upset you does it?" he asked.

"No!" Red exclaimed, rather loudly. "No" he repeated in a softer voice, embarrassed when several people turned and looked at him, "actually I think it's nice. It makes me think perhaps I'm not as strange as I thought I was" he admitted and even in the dim firelight Cleopas could tell that the boy was blushing furiously. He was going to say something but was interrupted by Red yawning widely.

"Are you tired?" he asked.

"Mm-hm" Red replied.

"Then come, let's sleep" he said, helping the boy to his feet. They moved over to where they'd laid the deerskin and Cleopas' cloak earlier in the evening and gently, Cleopas encouraged Red to lie down. He lay next to him and pulled the cloak around them both so that they were covered and to his surprise Red turned and snuggled up close to his side.

Red felt light-headed and surprisingly comfortable as he lay with Cleopas, both nearly naked, under the cloak. He was strangely excited to feel Cleopas' skin against his own and Cleopas felt the same. He gently took hold of the boy and rolled so that Red lay on top of him, then equally gently began rubbing his shoulders and back with softly circling fingertips. "Mmmmm" Red sighed as he was massaged.

"You like this?" Cleopas asked. "Oh yes" Red sighed and as the gentle massage continued the boy gradually fell to sleep. Cleopas loved the feeling of sleeping boy against his chest and wrapping his arms around the child he, too, began to fall into a deep sleep. He buried his nose in his diminutive companion's newly cleaned hair and found that even under the strong herbal smell, there seemed to be a hint of something sweet. "It's almost like... honey" he thought to himself with a smile as he snuggled Red closer.

Early the following morning, Cleopas woke in order to meditate and found that Red was still fast asleep on top of him. He tried to slide the boy off without waking him but didn't succeed. "Huh? What time is it?" the boy groaned.

"About an hour or two before dawn" Cleopas replied in a soft whisper. "I need to meditate" he said, "do you want to join me or go back to sleep?"

"Sleep" he muttered. Cleopas smiled and kissed the boy on his forehead. "Then sleep, dearest Red, sleep" he whispered. He snuggled the boy into the warm cloak, picked up his sword and took a cross-legged position on the dewy grass, aware that his kin were rising to do the same.

He began to breathe the still morning air and try to meditate but every time he cleared is mind, Red would pop into it. His smile, his unruly hair, the warmth of his embrace. Cleopas felt sick that the boy had referred to his departure from the town as being 'stolen away' and felt even sicker at the pain the boy must have been in from his filthy and infected nethers.

He shook his head to try and clear his thoughts and mentally prepare for the day ahead but still, Red was on his mind. What would the boy do that day? What would he say? Would he like the clothes? Would his behind be more comfortable? As much as he tried to think of the road ahead, the danger behind, the possibility of pursuit, the importance of caution, all his mind would throw back at him was Red.

"Why do I feel like this?" he sighed to himself. But no answer came.

They broke their fast on crisp rashers of bacon, porridge and fruit. Red woke as the smell of the frying bacon reached his nostrils, rousing him from sleep more successfully than anything else might have. Clio and Charon, who were cooking, both laughed gently at the sight as it seemed that the boy was following his nose over to the fireside and hadn't really woken up properly.

"Hungry?" Cleopas asked, handing him a platter of food, waiting on him as he had since he'd joined the family.

Red nodded as he took the offered food and shoved a large crisp bacon rasher into his mouth.

"Slowly, remember, how many times do I have to remind you?" Cleopas said. "The food isn't going anywhere. It's yours, Red." Red nodded and tried to show a little more decorum as he ate his breakfast and drank some water.

As he ate his fill he slowly woke up properly and the first thing Red realised was that he was still only in the loincloth that Cleopas had put onto him last night. He looked around furtively, noticing that at least half of the family were dressed - or rather, undressed - in the same manner. "Erm, Cleopas?" he asked softly.

"Yes, Red?" he replied.

"What do I do about clothes, today?"

Cleopas smiled, wondering when he'd bring the subject up. "I will sort some things out shortly but before I do, you need to pay a visit to the latrine and then have a good wash and I need to put some more ointment on."

"Do I have to?" Red whined.

"You said it felt really good yesterday" Cleopas replied. "Why don't you want me to put the ointment on today?"

Red shook his head. "I mean the washing. You'll make me get back in the river, won't you?" he accused. Cleopas nodded. "The only way you are going to heal is if you stay clean. And that means every time you go to the latrine, for soil or water, you wash yourself, thoroughly."

Red scowled.

"I mean it Red, do you want to stay sore and infected and end up really ill just because you didn't wash your bum?"

The boy blushed sheepishly. "You make it sound kind of silly when you put it like that" he said. Cleopas ruffled his hair. "Come on then, let's get moving" he urged him.

Red did as he was bid, washed thoroughly and submitted himself for the application of the ointment. Cleopas then went to various packs and spoke to some of the fathers of the older children and young adults to get some clothing. A pair of Ajax's old leggings that were too small for him, a spare tunic that had been made for Demaratos and one of Lykurgos' old cloaks later, Red was dressed as the Spartans were, apart from his feet which were still bare.

"I'll make you some boots" Cleopas offered, "and you'll be sorted."

"These clothes make me look funny" Red giggled. "I look like a barbarian!"

Cleopas managed to look hurt, even though he was amused. "Are you saying that I look like a barbarian?" he asked, pouting.

The grin fell off Red's face. "No, no, I didn't mean it like that, I meant..." he stuttered.

Cleopas couldn't continue the act and his face split in a broad smile. "I was joking, Red" he said.

"You stinker!" Red laughed. "That was cruel!"

"I know" Cleopas laughed. "Fun though." Red mock-punched him and their laughter rang out as Cleopas ran away and dodged the boy's attempts to catch him.

"Now, now, children" Hyacinth chided the pair. Cleopas uncharacteristically blushed. "Sorry father Hyacinth, I was only playing" he said as if he were indeed a naughty child. Hyacinth roared with laughter. "I was joking Cleopas" he managed to force the words out between his guffaws.

They set out about half an hour later, having finally begun to organise the horse packs a little more equally, tidy the wagons so that at least one of them could be slept in, and so on. Red, of course, still rode on the wagon seat but this day saw Cleopas on his horse and Alexander, Cleopas' and Jason's elderly human father, ride on the wagon seat with the boy. Cleopas pulled his horse close by and the three talked as they rode.

"I've wanted to ride up here for a couple of days, being on horseback for so long has been tough on my old joints" Alexander said.

"Father Alexander, why didn't you say something?" Cleopas asked. "I would have stopped sooner!"

"You two were content, you needed the time together" Alexander replied with a gruff smile.

They rode a mile or so in silence, during which Red, plainly, was deep in thought. "Cleopas?" he asked after a while.

"Yes, Red?"

"You called Alexander, father Alexander?" he observed, nodding to the old man.

"Yes."

"And this morning you also called Hyacinth, father Hyacinth?"

Cleopas' heart started to pound. He had wondered if the boy had realised this. "Yes" he said cautiously.

"I know it's not just a term of respect for your elders as you call Jocasta and Nabis and everyone else just by their name, so why do you call Hyacinth and Alexander, father?"

Cleopas sighed. "You know you asked me earlier about the children and I pointed out that all the boys here are our sons?" Red nodded. "Well I'm Hyacinth and Alexander's son."

"You mean like, they raised you or something when you joined the family? Who's your mother, where did she come from?" The boy asked.

"No, Red. I don't have a mother. Alexander sired me, Hyacinth bore me."

The boy laughed. "That's crazy! Men can't bear children."

The elderly Alexander interrupted. "I at first thought the same thing, when I met Hyacinth" he said softly. Cleopas and Red both fell silent and listened. "I thought these men were stupid for making up such a story and didn't believe them when their said that they could bear young. But then I saw evidence with my own eyes."

"What evidence?" Red asked. It was plain he was suspicious and confused.

Alexander nodded towards Marcus, only a few yards in front of the wagon, Maia in a sling on his front. "How does Maia get his milk, Red? He needs milk, he can't eat or drink anything else, he is very tiny. Who feeds him?"

Red thought for a moment, his brow furrowed. "He's sometimes in Philip's arms and sometimes in Marcus' but I've never seen him with a woman so he can get breast milk."

"So there are no women to breastfeed him. What are the other options?" Alexander prompted the boy to keep thinking and sharing his thoughts.

"Well, you don't have any goats or anything and I've never seen anyone feeding him milk from a rag or cup" Red continued.

"So what does that tell you?"

Red frowned. "No, that's impossible" he stated flatly after a few moments.

"What's impossible?"

"The only way he could get milk is from Philip or Marcus. But they are men!" he exclaimed.

Cleopas chuckled. "I'll get Marcus to show you at lunchtime" he said softly.

"You mean?" Red stuttered.

"We call it chest feeding, not breastfeeding as plainly we're not built like women but yes, Marcus produces milk for Maia to drink."

"And Philip too?" he asked. Cleopas shook his head. "No, Philip is human, like Alexander and yourself. He doesn't produce chest milk."

"What do you mean, Philip is human like Alexander and me? Does that mean that Marcus isn't human?" Red asked. His eyes went wide and he continued in a hissed whisper, "does that mean that you aren't human?"

"Marcus and I and most of us in this family are something a little more than human, Red" Cleopas said. "Most of the time we're indistinguishable from humans, though, except when we have young."

"Does that mean that you grow babies in your tummies?" the boy giggled suddenly.

Cleopas shook his head. "I wish it were that simple" he sighed. He looked at Red's consternation. "Red, my sweet boy, it doesn't matter for now. Don't worry about it, please? When it becomes important I will explain it all."

"Promise?" Red demanded.

"I promise" Cleopas replied with a gentle smile.

Surprisingly to Cleopas, Red was satisfied with this. Cleopas knew that when he was twelve he would have demanded and pestered until every single one of his questions were answered to his satisfaction. He wondered why Red was so accepting but then realised that with the information that had been loaded onto him that morning, he probably couldn't figure out what it was that he wanted to know first and presumably had decided to wait and see Marcus' demonstration later in the day.

They kept travelling until an hour past noon and stopped at the foot of a wide, sloping valley. A shallow river ran through it that was several yards wide but only about three inches deep, whose bed was covered in millions upon millions of pebbles as far as they could see.

"We'll lunch here and then use this river as a road" Gaia said. "It'll be a perfect way of hiding our tracks completely, no one will be able to follow us, if they even are still." Everyone nodded in agreement and they dismounted so as to prepare a small meal, collect water to drink and stretch their legs. Cleopas beckoned Red and the pair walked over to where Philip and Marcus were stood.

"Marcus, I have a favour to ask" Cleopas started.

Marcus grinned. "I've been waiting for you to ask, cousin" he said, "I could hear most of your conversation this morning. He turned to Red. "Tell me, exactly what is it that you want to see, child?"

Red blushed and stuttered for a few moments before getting his words into order. "Cleopas said that you made milk for Maia to drink and said that you'd show me" he blurted.

Marcus slipped his cloak from around his shoulders and untied Maia's sling and Red realised that the man wore no tunic, and only had a pair of lace-up, form fitting leggings under his cloak. On seeing the boy's questioning glances at his bare skin he explained, "a tunic would only get in the way, being bare-chested is easier."

He lifted Maia from his front, where the boy had lain situated so that he could easily get to one of his birth father's nipples, and handed him to Philip. Then, before Red's astonished eyes, Marcus pinched a nipple slightly and pressed down on his pectoral muscle and as he did so a thin stream of milk issued forth. "See?" he said softly, holding a milky finger up. A few stray drips strayed down his torso. He lifted his finger to his mouth and holding Red's eyes the whole time, licked the milk from it. Then he wiped another stray drip up with the tip of his finger.

"We can't waste it" he whispered and after looking at Cleopas and receiving an almost imperceptible nod of permission, held his finger and the drip of milk out to Red's lips. Red looked like he would protest and Cleopas whispered, "taste it, Red, and believe."

The boy cautiously snaked a tiny pink tongue out and Marcus let the milk drip onto it. "See?" Cleopas said gently. "We are men who are more than men. Men who can make milk for our young, children we carry ourselves. That is why we love other men, Red" he said. The boy swallowed the milk but said nothing.

Lunch was over fairly quickly and the troop remounted and began to ride up the river, climbing through the valley and into the mountains. The trees began to thin out even more and the day was warm and pleasant, though a cool breeze blew down from the mountain tops and the valley head, now clearly visible. Most of the family members were relaxed and happy and chatter filled the air but Red remained silent, lost in thought.

"I want to practise with my sword tonight" Lykurgos said to Acantha, his closest brother. "It's been two weeks since I've done any exercises, I'll end up getting sloppy."

"Aeson and I need to teach Konon some more, too" Clio said from nearby, "we can't leave his lessons for too long or else he'll forget what he's been taught."

"I want to start getting a saddle built for Red so he can get off the wagon and onto horseback" Hyacinth smiled, "and start teaching him how to ride".

"And I want to get a couple of bigger tunics made for Socra, he's growing out of the ones he's got" Philip shared.

"We've probably got about two, two and a half months until the first snow" Nabis said, "we can find somewhere secluded to hole up here in the mountains and then head south in about six weeks or so, that'll give us a month to get out of the mountains and into warmer climes and plenty of time for that churchman to forget about finding us. And all those tasks can be done once we find a suitable campsite."

"Are we going to camp outside or find a cave?" Charon asked.

"The weather's too changeable in the mountains" Elis replied, "we'd be more comfortable in a cave, if there's one that's suitable."

"How far are we going to travel into the hills before we stop?" Simon wondered.

"I'd say at least another week but it depends on what facilities we find" Tito replied. "We'll get out of this valley and into the next one and then start sending scouting parties to see if there's anywhere suitable to stay."

"We can't really go much north of our route, we'll end up too close to the road" Gaia said, "but that still leaves us with plenty of territory to look at so we should find somewhere."

They rode on fairly slowly, enjoying the sunshine and relaxing now that the threat of pursuit was fading. Jason pulled his horse next to Simon's and indicated that he wanted a little privacy so they rode a few yards back from the others. "It's been so long since we made love, I want you tonight" Jason's eyes sparkled with a mixture of lust and mirth.

Simon grinned. "Is that a threat or a promise?" he asked in a husky voice.

"It could be either, I'm a lot stronger than you" Jason replied in a similar tone, then grinned back to show that he was, indeed, only playing the dominance game that both of them enjoyed and not really threatening his lover. Simon's face fell into a soft smile full of love and longing and he said, "I love you so much, you know that, don't you?"

"I love you too, I hope you know that" Jason replied softly and they rode in companionable silence, smiling suggestively at each other as they followed the river and the rest of the family up the valley.

That afternoon the mood became festive and they stopped and pulled out of the river with about three hours of daylight left. "We need to set some traps tonight" Kalliope said as they all began to dismount, "we've been eating out of our stores for most of the last two weeks. I know we've got a lot but it's not going to last forever."

"We can have berries tonight, though" Socra grinned, pointing out the laden brambles a few yards distant. Kalliope laughed. "You and your berries!" he said. "Go on then, take some satchels and Demaratos and Evander with you and go see what you can collect."

The small boys ran off and the adults proceeded to build their campsite. Simon, Charon, Mark and Carme collected several armloads of wood from a stand of trees about a hundred yards distant from where they camped and several others set rabbit and bird traps at likely points around their site. They also placed some snares near the cliffs that were designed to catch larger animals, since there seemed to be a number of wild goats and sheep clambering in the area.

A fire was lit, deer skins were spread on the ground, water was collected and everyone started to relax as their work was done. The boys had brought about five pounds of fruit back, which was heated in a pot with water and a small scoop of honey to make a delicious, sticky sauce in which they soaked a good helping of dried venison. A few handfuls of barley made a tasty, savoury-sweet stew that was enjoyed by all and everyone laughed as Xanthe tried to feed himself and ended up covered in purple juice.

"You do indeed have a delightful son" Leander said to his brother as he watched Acantha as he tried and failed to keep the small boy clean.

"Father Leander! What about me?" Evander pouted from nearby.

"You are also delightful" Acantha told his nephew, giving the boy a kiss on his forehead. He had a purple, juice-covered rag in his hand and smeared it over the three year-old's face. "Hey!" Evander protested, trying to wipe the juice off.

"You're the one who wanted to be delightful, son," Leander laughed. After a few minutes pouting, Evander also joined in the laughter, realising that he was being silly to be jealous simply because his birth father complemented another child. "I'm sorry, father Leander" he said softly.

"What for, son?" Leander replied, pulling a contrite Evander onto his lap.

"I was jealous of Xanthe and I had no need to be" he confessed.

"Yes, you were and no, you had no need. You're my son and I love you, I love you so very much Evander" Leander said softly. He kissed the boy on his forehead. "Now, no more jealousy, hey?"

"No father Leander" Evander said with a sheepish smile.

As darkness fell, couples scattered so as to leave several yards between themselves and their nearest neighbours. Cleopas and Red found their own spot, undressed and curled up together, Cleopas of course applying more ointment to Red's red behind, which was slowly healing and losing its rawness. Red loved the feeling both of having his private parts touched and of having Cleopas so close and snuggled in tight, though he didn't really understand why.

He lay there for a while, enjoying the sensations, when he gradually became aware that the couple nearest him and Cleopas, Simon and Jason, were making strange grunting noises. "Cleopas?" he got the man's attention.

"Yes, Red?" Cleopas replied in a sleepy voice.

"What are Jason and Simon doing? They are making funny noises."

Cleopas started to laugh softly. Indeed, after a shy start, his brother and the former monk had no embarrassment anymore and would happily make love or even play the strange dominance game they seemed to enjoy within earshot of anyone and everyone. "They are making love, Red" he said.

"What's that?" Red asked with genuine innocence. "They sound like they are hurting each other."

"No, it doesn't hurt. They are making each other feel happy" Cleopas said. "Actually, they are spilling their seed with each other and I know you know how good that feels."

"Oh, how could they do that, with everyone around them!" Red gasped and Cleopas could feel the boy's face burning with embarrassment.

"Sit up, Red" Cleopas whispered and the boy did so, the cloak pooling around his and Cleopas' waist. "Look around you, my sweet. Everyone who is mated is showing their love. It isn't just Simon and Jason." The moon was out and around the area, for a distance of a couple of dozen yards in any direction from the dying fire, couples could be seen, either laying still embracing each other or else making love in various positions. Their faces weren't clear but their silhouettes could be seen quite easily.

Red looked around for a while, his eyes on stalks as he took in what he was seeing. Finally he lay back and sighed. Cleopas joined him and pulled the cloak tightly around his and Red's shoulders. "What is the matter?" he asked.

"Are you mated, Cleopas?"

Cleopas drew a sharp intake of breath. He hadn't been expecting this question, though he realised that with the things Red had been asking he should have known it was coming. "I'm not sure, yet" he answered after an age.

"What do you mean?" Red asked, turning to face Cleopas.

"I think I am in love with someone but I worry that he is far too young to be my mate" Cleopas confessed.

"Who is it?" Red asked. Cleopas couldn't help but cry and tears dripped down his face. In the moonlight Red could see the moisture on his man's cheeks and wiped it up with his small, soft fingers.

"I didn't mean to make you cry" Red whispered, "it was just that I didn't want you to go and make love to someone and leave me alone" the boy said in a shaky voice.

"Oh, Red" Cleopas gasped. "I would never leave you alone. The person I love, it's..." he stuttered to a halt - how on earth does a man tell a twelve year old boy that he loves him, he wondered to himself. More tears flowed and he laid a soft kiss on Red's forehead.

"It's me, isn't it?" Red asked softly. "The one you think you might be mated to, it's me?"

Cleopas could do nothing but nod gently and cry. Red pulled him close and cuddled him as best as he could, his small arms looping around Cleopas' neck. "Don't worry, Cleopas" he whispered. "Don't worry." And locked in their embrace they fell to sleep.

Early the next morning, Red found himself awake before Cleopas. He knew that some of the others had woken as he had heard their rustling and the gentle creek of leather as they found their sheathed swords and began to meditate. He could feel Cleopas breathing gently against his shoulder and he felt a huge rush of emotion, of thankfulness and peacefulness and affection for the man who had taken him from the slavery he'd grown up in at the inn and brought him out here to the wilds, dressed him and cleaned him and who had treated him with a respect he'd never known before.

He wondered why he wasn't more nervous in Cleopas' presence - after all, the man had admitted he was different, "more than human" was how he'd put it. He'd also admitted to wanting Red as his mate. Red wasn't sure what that would entail but for the first time in his life he knew that he belonged somewhere and that he was valued as an individual and not just as another pair of hands to wash dishes or empty slop buckets.

He knew, from the time spent in the family so far, that Cleopas would be upset if he missed his meditation so he decided to wake him up. As he wondered how to do that, mischief filled him and with a grin he reached under the cloak and gently untied the sleeping man's loincloth. His nimble fingers found the soft curly hair and the organ sat amongst the curls and he gently played with it, as if it were a toy.

Cleopas stirred slightly in his sleep as the sleeping behemoth between his legs started to grow. Red giggled, a little louder than he had intended and this disturbed Cleopas and he began to wake. He gradually came to consciousness and realised that young Red was caressing his penis. "This is a nice way to wake up" he whispered into the boy's ear.

"You like?" Red whispered back after a moment's surprise that Cleopas' had woken up so quickly.

"I do" Cleopas whispered, "but I must get up and meditate and if you continue that for much longer I shall lose all will to."

"I'm going to meditate with you this morning" Red whispered back, pulling his hand away from Cleopas' crotch, knowing that meditation was the mainstay of the family's way of life, knowing that, even when threatened with pursuit from the town and church men, they still devoted a small portion of that time before dawn to sit in silent communion with the land surrounding them. He couldn't justify for a second making any of the family miss this important start to their day.

The pair pushed the cloak off and sat up and Red quickly untied his loincloth. Cleopas reached for his sword, and they moved from the warm deerskin and sat on the soft, damp grass.

Red emulated the men around him, sitting cross-legged and silent. He alone didn't have a sword across his lap and didn't really know what to think about. He fidgeted slightly, trying to get used to the moist grass, the cool air. A particularly strong gust made him shiver and his teeth started to chatter, but he persevered, trying to relax, matching his breathing, breath for breath, to Cleopas'. He held his hands on each knee, sat straight backed, breathed deeply and one by one, registered each discomfort then tried to ignore it, focussing just on his breathing. It seemed to Red as if he hadn't been sitting long when the small tinkling bell of Gaia's roused him and he opened his eyes to see the rising sun's light beginning to illuminate the sky above the ridge of the valley.

He stretched, seeing that Cleopas and the others were doing the same. The area they camped in was still largely in darkness as the valley ran east-west and they were positioned only a few hundred yards from where the valley floor rose up to create the eastern rim of the encircling hills. "You did well, Red, I wasn't certain that you would be able to meditate for the entire time" Cleopas said softly, coming over to cuddle him.

"I didn't think I would either" Red replied, "I was half expecting to fall back to sleep but the cold kept me awake" he admitted.

"You want cold?" Cleopas grinned, "latrine and bath time and we'll see how your bottom is healing when you've washed it properly."

"Cleopas!" Red whined. "That water's freezing!"

"Would you prefer me to heat it up over the fire and bathe you?" Cleopas asked, nodding to where Acantha was preparing to do just that for Xanthe. Red shook his head and was going to reply with a smart remark that such treatment was only for small children, until he realised that Cleopas was genuine.

"Why would you do that?" he asked.

"This water feels like it might be ice water" Cleopas replied. "Sometimes mountain rivers are run off's from huge walls of ice high up in the mountains and it wouldn't surprise me if this is one of those. And I know you're not used to bathing outside or even being outside nude, you've not stopped shivering this morning. I thought you might appreciate warm water to help heat you up a little."

"Will the others have warm water?" Red asked. Cleopas shook his head. "Maia and Xanthe, certainly. Probably Konon and Evander. But no one else" he said softly, "but if you want to bathe in warm water, just say so. No one will think any less of you."

"I'll bathe in the river, like you" Red replied.

"Are you sure?" Cleopas asked. "I've realised that I've expected so much from you, just thrust you into this life. It isn't really fair of me."

Red had a flash of insight. "Is this because you confessed last night that you think I might be your mate?" he asked. Cleopas blushed and Red sighed. "You've got nothing to feel guilty for, Cleopas. You're the first person who's ever wanted me just for me" he admitted softly. "Now come on" he joked, "let me get to the latrine and wash in this ice water before I change my mind."

They toileted and bathed and made their way back to their clothes and Red enjoyed being part of the family camaraderie, even if he didn't join in the conversations. But presently he realised that a number of the conversations, though partly understandable, were sprinkled with dozens of words he couldn't understand. "Cleopas" he asked, "what language are they speaking?" he pointed to Nabis and Jocasta.

"Greek" Cleopas replied. "It's actually our native tongue, we use it a lot."

"You don't" Red said.

"That's because you, my little man, don't speak it. I thought you'd have picked up on our language before today, though?"

"I've had a lot to think about" Red replied. "To be honest, I haven't really listened to much of what's gone on until today." He looked at Cleopas curiously. "Could I learn Greek, do you think?"

"I'm sure you could" Cleopas replied. "You're only young, a perfect age to learn."

They got to the fireside and helped themselves to breakfast. "Do you think I could learn other things, too, Cleopas?" Red asked as he munched on some dried apple and a big wedge of cheese.

"Like what?"

"I'd like to be able to ride a horse like you and I really want..." he hesitated.

Cleopas smiled. "A sword?" he asked.

"How did you know?" Red demanded.

"I guessed" Cleopas replied with a smile, "and yes, you'll be able to learn to ride and use a sword. I shall teach you all you need to know in order to live with us and be happy and safe."

"Thank you" Red whispered with a shy smile, cuddling up to his man as he warmed up beside the morning fire.

They loaded up with their bedding, fire tools, uneaten food and other items, as well as several rabbits and a particularly fat goat that had all gotten caught in the snares overnight. The animals' throats were expertly slit and the carcases dressed and tied to a pack saddle, ready for skinning and butchering either at lunchtime or in the evening. They rode for several hours, first following the gravelly riverbed, then, when it began to carve an increasingly deep and narrow gully from the valley higher up, they got out of the river and picked their way carefully along the smooth, wide stone ledges beside the water.

As noon approached they started to climb steeply and soon were man-handling the wagons up several yards of steep bank, but when they reached the top of the climb they found themselves in a second valley, running slightly more to the south rather than directly east-west as the first one did. They followed it at a gentle walk for another couple of hours until a small, spring-fed stream gave them the water they needed to stop to lunch, rather later than they normally would.

"What is the verdict on staying here tonight, brothers?" Elis asked, gesturing to the picturesque location.

"Idyllic" Tito said to his lover, kissing him gently.

"You've got a romantic streak, Elis" Kalliope accused.

"And what is wrong with that?" Tito asked, "I have never heard you complain when Mark is being romantic."

Laughter rang out as the friendly banter continued. There were plenty of loosely scattered trees and undergrowth that provided firewood and the stream, though tiny, flowed fast and clean and pure, bubbling up from a small crack in some boulders. When the campsite was set up to everyone's satisfaction, several people began the task of skinning and butchering the previous night's catch and others began working on some projects and domestic chores they clearly had been putting off.

Red watched as Cleopas took a sheet of sturdy leather, a sharp knife, some other tools and several lengths of thong. He took a charred stick from the fire and beckoned Red over. "Stand on the leather, in this corner" he asked. Red did as he was bid and Cleopas gently drew around his feet with the blackened end of the stick. "Now, stand still a little" he asked and then using some thong he measured the girth of Red's upper calves, leaving some space for movement and cutting the thong loose. He checked the circumference of his foot at the widest part and then, finally, he measured the length of Red's legs from floor to knee. "That's all I need" he said.

"What are you making me?" Red asked. Cleopas smiled. "Boots, of course!" he replied with a chortle, "so that those sweet feet of yours don't freeze in winter. Now leave me to work, go ask my father Hyacinth or father Alexander for a job to do" he suggested and with a light heart and a spring in his step, the boy did just that.

Cleopas worked on the boots, first cutting a double thick layer of leather and a piece of soft, fluffy rabbit skin for the soles, then a pair of long slices of a slightly thinner leather to make the sides. A slice of soft rabbit skin for a tongue flap to protect delicate toes from the lacing finished the necessary cutting and with the aid of a metal punch and a hammer he began to make the holes so that the boots could be stitched together.

As Cleopas worked he watched Red, a boy clearly on his way to manhood despite his diminutive stature. He appeared to have been given some cooking tasks, first to collect several pots of water, then to get some beans soaking, then to cut some of the now-butchered goat into strips for smoking and drying. Socra, Demaratos and Ajax joined him on the cooking chores, Ajax demonstrating the correct way to cut the meat and how to use the knife safely and Red seemed to soak up the information like a sponge.

As they worked, Red noticed that the smaller boys especially didn't speak as clear Germanic as he was used to and often added phrases that he didn't understand to their speech. He asked what they meant and began to copy what they said so the simple cooking tasks turned into a language lesson too. Cleopas felt proud that the boy was working so hard to become a true member of the family.

To one side, watching what the boys were doing but not getting directly involved, was Hyacinth who, with Aeson and Demeter's help, was going about the reconstruction of a pack saddle so that Red could learn to ride. Several times over the course of the afternoon he was asked to stand and stretch his legs wide so that the length of his inner thighs and various other measurements could be taken to make the saddle fit the child properly.

By supper time many of the chores that people had set about were well on their way to being complete and they ate some spit-roasted rabbit, the remainder of the sweet venison stew from the previous night and some warm bread cakes flavoured with cheese. The beans needed soaking overnight so they would be served the following day. A dozen or so long canes covered with strips of meat were tied onto tripods and slung high above the fire to dry and Red cuddled into Cleopas and talked about his day.

"I did four whole canes of meat by myself and I learned some Greek today" he explained earnestly. "Ajax is a good teacher" Red said, complementing the boy who was younger, yet taller, stronger and seemingly more knowledgeable than him. "He asked me to go and play with him tonight, though," he continued, "but he said that before I did I'd have to ask you about what the games were and if I could. Demaratos giggled at him and said something about me being mated and unable to play and accused him of being something but I didn't really understand what they were talking about. What are these games Ajax mentioned?"

"Did Demaratos call Ajax horny?" Cleopas asked first, suppressing a spike of jealousy.

"That was the word, what does it mean?"

Cleopas sighed. "It means that Ajax wants to make love to someone, to anyone. The games he wants to play with you will be games designed to make both of you spill your seed, probably more than once."

Red's eyes went wide. "Oh!" he gasped. "I never thought..." he began, then went quiet.

Cleopas for his part was confused. A big part of him felt intensely jealous that Red might go and do this but a secondary part, a quieter part, said that if Red were not mated and in a bond then he would enjoy and appreciate it. It seemed to come down to whether or not Cleopas could accept his bond with the small boy. Conflicted feelings flashed across his face and Red watched as the man tried to decide what to say.

"Cleopas" he interrupted the man's musings.

"Yes, Red?" he replied.

"I like Ajax and all but I don't really want to play that sort of game with him. It doesn't feel right to leave you alone" he said softly.

"If you really want to, you can" Cleopas forced himself to say.

Red grinned a cheeky smile. "I'd prefer to play them with you" he whispered after a few moments.

Cleopas sighed. "I am a man and you are too young" he said softly.

Red pouted. "Ajax said that you had already played those games with him. Why is it so different playing with him and playing with me? Is it because I'm not like the rest of you, that you are more than human and I am just ordinary?"

Cleopas suddenly felt intensely guilty. "No, Red, of course not, that's not what I mean" he said. "It's just..." Cleopas fell silent. How would he explain it? To say that Ajax was taller or bigger, would give the smaller, yet older, boy, a distinct inferiority complex that Cleopas couldn't bear. To say that he was his nephew made the sex-play seem worse. To say that he loved Red and Ajax was just fun, or relief, would demean the family tie they had and would insult Ajax.

In the end he sighed and said, "Red, Ajax has been brought up in this family and sex-play is a part of our growing up and becoming a man. When I played with him it was because I knew the frustrations he felt of wanting to spill his seed, because I felt the same frustrations when I was his age. And when I played with him I'd never met you. But you, you've not grown up like us. You are more innocent and the games boys and men can play together are quite alien to you. I love you so much, Red, really I do, but I don't want to hurt you."

The boy leaned down from their cuddle and laid his head on Cleopas' lap. "You've made me spill my seed once, could you do that for me again?" he begged. "That didn't hurt." A small but obvious tent formed in his loincloth as he remembered the feelings.

Cleopas started to laugh, he couldn't help it. Tears rolled down his face as he laughed and cried at the same time at Red's cheekiness, his innocence, his sheer force of will. "Let's move away from the fire and find a secluded spot" he whispered. "There I shall make you spill your seed as many times as you wish" he promised seductively. Red grinned and got to his feet and, walking hand in hand the two left the fireside.

Ajax watched them go with a smile. "What's pleased you, brother?" Carme asked.

"Red has finally made Cleopas cave" he said. "They are going to make love, I am sure of it."

"Why are you so concerned with what Cleopas and Red do?" Lykurgos asked. The three adolescents were sat together.

"Red seems so lonely and he's confused because one minute Cleopas acts like his lover and another he acts like his parent" Ajax said with surprising insight for a boy his age. "And Cleopas is just as confused, sometimes it seems like he feels he should treat Red like his son, at other times he watches him just like father Kalliope gazes at father Mark. I invited Red to join our sexy games today" Ajax continued to the two older boys. "I was fairly sure he wouldn't and I told him to speak to Cleopas first to ask him about what they were and it seems that Cleopas has offered to demonstrate."

"That was a cruel thing to do, they are mated" Carme said.

"Are they?" Ajax replied to his brother. "They appear to be mated but Cleopas hasn't formally claimed him."

"Boys, leave Cleopas and Red alone" Jason said from nearby. "Let them figure this out themselves, please?"

"Of course, I'm sorry" Ajax said contritely.

"All this talk of making love and sexy games has made me hard" Lykurgos said and the other two giggled. "Us too" they both said.

"Can we play then? I want to be on the bottom tonight" he begged and the two brothers acquiesced to their young uncle's demands.

They rose early the next morning, meditated, ate the leftover bread cakes and porridge for breakfast and had mugs of hot water and honey to drink. They collected belongings together, strung the semi-dried meat, still on the canes, to the side of the wagons and began to ride, continuing up the same valley, through a fairly narrow pass and up into the hills proper. A second pair of horses was added to each wagon to pull the vehicles up the steep tracks but the journey was relatively easy despite the gradient.

They stopped at about the same time as the day before, to the side of a small hollow where a waterfall rushed down the hillside. The water seemed to fall gleefully, tumbling from several yards above into a deep, wide pool near to their campsite, which then drained into several streams going in different directions. They stopped and set up camp and it was Socra, predictably, who realised that the pool was teeming with fish.

The boys all began fishing as soon as they could, pulling silver-sided fish from the water, one after another. Gaia gave in to the boys' pleading and began to clean and skin the creatures and add big lumps to a pot. Rhea found some edible greens growing in one of the streams that led away from the pool down an incline and those, together with the beans that had been soaking since the day before made a very tasty fish stew for supper. Several filets of fish were strung up to dry and a second, smoky fire was built, with a large surface area and plenty of tripods and on these all the goat meat from the previous day, and the spare fish they'd caught, were arranged.

"That stew was delicious" Simon smiled to Jason when they'd eaten their fill. "I've never eaten fish cooked like that before."

"I'm glad you enjoyed it" Jason replied with a smile. "It's an easy dish to cook when you have plenty of fish and large numbers of people."

They sat, eating, relaxing, talking, until Socra said, "grandfather Gaia, could you tell us a story?"

"What sort of story would you like?" he asked.

A clamour of voices rose and then Socra spoke above them all. "I want a story of the beginning and Apollo."

"There are many tales about Apollo" Gaia smiled. "And many beginnings. Which do you mean?"

"Our beginning!" Demaratos laughed. Gaia looked at Red. "For some, that is a new tale, some have heard it many times before, but for you I will tell it" he began.

Socra, Demaratos and Evander cheered and Gaia held his hand up for silence. "I will tell it if you sit quietly and listen" he said pointedly. The boys settled down to listen and Red, resting with his head on Cleopas' lap, looked at his man. "You might enjoy this story" Cleopas whispered, "listen closely."

"Will I enjoy it as much as last night?" Red asked, his eyes sparkling with a combination of mirth and horniness.

"Shh!" Cleopas laughed. "Just listen."

Gaia took a draught of warm water and honey, put his mug down and cleared his throat. "Our ancestors were human" he began. "Ordinary humans, men and women. We lived in a prosperous country, Sparta, and were content. But our neighbours resented us, attacked us and our nation died by the sword.

"Our civilisation collapsed and what was once a prosperous, respected culture was reduced to a few hundred weary and heartbroken soldiers. We were all men and knew that when we died, Sparta, its memories and its people would be gone forever.

"We cried bitter tears as we held the bodies of our mothers, our wives, our daughters, our elderly fathers and our young sons. First our tears were of grief, but gradually they became demands for vengeance. We piled our dead high for burning and our anger rose as the pyres grew.

"When the pyres were complete and we could do no more, our anger and passion and our desire for vengeance against our hated enemies built within us. We were going to head on a suicide mission, to take as many enemies with us as we could, attacking their fortifications until we died and our priests suggested we ask for divine aid, and thus, to a man, we drew our swords and knelt as the handful of warrior priests who led our armies called out to our God, Apollo.

"Our God was a mighty one, the God we prayed to before going into battle, the God to whom we dedicated our dead, our deaths and those who fell by our swords, the God of the sun and our patron. We prayed, asking for his help, asking for his intervention, asking him to go before us as we went to our deaths. We asked him to turn us into instruments of vengeance.

"We prayed before the sun, we continued to pray until the moon rose, a full, white ball staring down at us as we knelt between the pyres and suddenly, in the light of the full moon, He was among us.

"He stood tall, with golden curly hair and a radiance that could be nothing other than divine. He was strong and proud and He called us, the remnants of the Spartan nation, His children. He came and promised us His aid and promised that we would get our vengeance and would exist and prosper long after our enemies had crumbled into dust.

"And we looked at our God in disbelief and asked Him, 'how is that possible?' for we did not understand what He intended. 'We are but men, when the last of us dies, Sparta will be no more' we told Him and our God laughed at our confusion and His laughter lifted our hearts and filled us with joy.

"Apollo told he had a way of saving us. 'Sparta will no longer be a place but a race' he said. 'Sons of Sparta will be unique among men, I will ensure your future down many generations, this I promise.' And again we asked him 'how, Lord Apollo? Tell us.' He revealed that he could enable us to be more than just men, that we would have the ability to bear sons and nurse them, so that we would grow and thrive and prosper and become a proud people once more.

"Several people laughed at his proclamation but suddenly they cried out loud as from their navels they grew strange organs of the like no one had ever seen before. They looked like feathers and spread into a circle on their stomachs and Apollo explained that this could be used, with another man's seed, to enable a son to grow. We were entranced and as our God's blessing flowed, all of us grew the new organ. We touched it and played with the soft feathers and the sensation brought us joy and hope and immense pleasure.

"But suddenly the dark night sky cracked and the moon shimmered and beside Apollo rose two other figures. The newly formed Spartans fell prostrate to the ground in terror for we recognised Lord Zeus, father of the Gods, and his wife, the Goddess Hera. Zeus held a devastating thunderbolt which crackled and fizzed and Hera was garbed in the blackest night and her expression was one of fury.

"The three Gods argued in languages no mortal could understand. Light and darkness flashed around us as we cowered on the ground and the night seemed as if it lasted a million years as we knelt there, waiting for the divinities to decide our fate.

"But as dawn broke, Zeus and Hera vanished and Apollo called us to be calm and to get up. And as we did so we cried in agony as the new, beautiful feathers with which we could bear our own children were as a lance of fire, filling us with unbearable agony. No longer could we play with them and touch them, no longer did they bring us pleasure or joy.

"But they still held hope for Apollo told us we could still bear sons but that to appease Hera, who wanted us destroyed, Zeus had commanded that it would not be pleasurable but would cause untold pain and danger. He made it so that for every Spartan man who kept the feathery disc, one lost it, so we could aid our brothers, and he told us that each of us could mate with one other and therefore raise our children as a family.

"And each man turned and looked through the crowd and found their loved one. Apollo taught us how to ensure conception and the safety of our unborn child, how we should care for each other, and He guarded us during the first few years of our existence as we learned how to be parents, how to nurse and care for small children, how to balance our years of warrior training with the things a mother would know.

"For suddenly the hardened, bitter, grief-struck warriors were as mothers to a host of small boys, who doted on their fathers and whose existence showed that Apollo's promise was true, that our race would grow and prosper. And when several seasons had passed, when our numbers had doubled and every man had a son that he had borne himself, Apollo returned and advised us that the time had come for us to leave our city and go into the world.

"He said that for our safety we had to scatter and hide what we were. He told us that if humans knew we would be persecuted but if we kept our secrets we would last far beyond the civilisations that had destroyed us. He said that when the time was right he would bring us back together into an army to reduce the cities of our tormentors to rubble. He also told us that our sons would meet, amongst humans, men whom they would love and who could father their children and that these humans, and these alone, should be let into the secret of our life and our existence.

"And so we scattered and left our homes. Men and children wandered, seeking their fortunes in the world. Some moved to other towns and cities and with well- placed lies hid their natures. Others lived the life of the nomad, travelling the ever winding roads. We scattered far and wide and carried the stories of our birth and our God with us.

"Since then we have been drawn together by our Lord Apollo several times. The first was to lay waste to the city whose princes had masterminded the downfall of our homeland. Over the years after that, we attacked some of the places that had sent soldiers to aid the cause. And the battles we fought we always won, but were never identified, simply slipping away under the watchful eye of our God.

"And so we exist and so we travel ever onwards even to this day, training as warriors, raising our sons, and awaiting Apollo's call to arms to join our brethren and gain final vengeance as He promised" Gaia finished softly and as the last words echoed around the fireside the family slowly, silently, made their way to their cloaks to lie down and sleep.

Red slept soundly, his dreams showing him pictures of far-away places and far-off times. He woke early and meditated, thinking as he did of the family he travelled with and the life they led. And a sense of immense privilege came over him as he realised what he had been given by Gaia through story that had been told. He vowed then and there to always stand by the Spartan family and protect them as best he could.

Dawn broke, and the waterfall near to their encampment scattered the morning rays into a beautiful rainbow as the fires were stirred up, one to cook breakfast, the second to continue to dry and smoke the meat and fish. Strangely, to Red's eyes, there was no immediate hurry that morning and when he asked, Elis explained, "we've been pushing very hard and so we're going to have an extra day here to relax and get some chores done. We're quite secluded and fairly defensible up here so we reckon we'll be safe."

After breakfast several teams set out on foot to explore the local area. "We're going to see if there are any caves anywhere nearby that would make a good base" Nabis told Red as he and Jocasta buckled their swords and breastplates on and picked up a food satchel and a water bag. Only a small skeleton of people remained at the camp: Marcus with Maia, Acantha with Xanthe, Aeson with Konon, Joseph with Evander, Jason, Simon, Alexander, Demeter, Cleopas and Red.

Alexander prepared lunch and started a good supper, Jason and Simon found weapons and began some extra sword practise, and the other adults continued with some chores. Xanthe was walking well and Acantha had begun a pair of soft boots, with a hard sole but sides of soft rabbit skin, for his son. Marcus was working on a new pair of boots for Socra, who was rapidly growing out of the ones he currently wore. Cleopas started stitching Red's boots together and Demeter and Aeson continued to work on Red's saddle. Konon and Evander played ball together and Joseph babysat for the two active children.

Red felt out on a limb slightly and sat watching the activities around him, wondering who he should help. Nothing really appealed but then he saw Jason giving Simon some sword lessons and an urge bit him. He went to a stand of trees and finding a limb that was about the same length as a sword he walked over to where the two men were practising some movements, lunges and so on and quietly, so as not to be noticed, he began trying to copy the movements that Jason showed his lover.

By lunchtime he was sweating and his arm was aching, even though he only held a stick of light wood and not a steel-bladed sword. He put it onto the ground gratefully when Jason called a halt and he and Simon sheathed their swords. "I saw you copying us, little man" he said to Red as they made their way to the fireside to get some food. "You're doing well."

"Thank you" Red blushed, "but I'm only using a stick."

"Be that as it may, you're still doing well and starting now with a stick will make it easier when you get a sword." Jason turned to his brother. "Do we have a suitable blade in stock?"

"I don't think so, most of them are adult-sized" Cleopas replied. "At least I don't recall any being particularly small. I'd like to make one if I get the chance" he admitted with a smile. Jason shook his head. "We need to get to a mining or quarrying town to purchase more metal and that isn't going to happen this side of winter" he reminded his brother softly, "and we'd need to be in a suitable forge site, with plenty of wood for charcoal. Red would be better served if a generic blade can be given to him now, to practise with. Why don't you plan to make him his own to celebrate your first year together?"

Red held his breath during the conversation, excited at the prospects it suggested. In the end he couldn't keep his tongue still. "Am I really going to get my own sword?" he asked excitedly.

"We will check out those on offer this afternoon" Cleopas smiled. "See if there are any you can handle."

Demeter had, by this time, put his saddle work to one side and also come over to help himself to food. "Why doesn't Red use Lykurgos' old childhood sword?" he asked. "It may be a little small but it should be okay."

"Are you sure, Demeter? You and Rhea made that for him" Cleopas asked, with deep gratitude at the thoughtfulness of his kinsman.

"We've kept his first sword for sentimental reasons" he smiled. "You know he and his brothers all used the same first sword? But his second sword doesn't have such a sentimental weight to it so if it can be of use, then by all means, use it" he said.

Red bolted his food, anxious to see the new blade, and stood bouncing on both heels waiting for the men to finish eating. Finally, after judging that they'd made the poor boy wait long enough Demeter led him and Cleopas to one of the horse packs and after rummaging in it for a few minutes drew out a sword with a rather worn belt and scabbard. "You might want to sew a new scabbard and belt, these have seen better days" he said, "but the sword is sound."

He handed it to Cleopas carefully, who took the gift, and a slip of tallow fat back to where he was working on the new boots. Red joined him and Cleopas said, "first of all, to ensure that you will be able to wear this belt, you will need to oil it thoroughly, then oil the scabbard, then finally polish the sword and check that it is sharp. Sit here with me and I'll instruct you how whilst I finish your boots" he smiled.

"With new boots and a sword I'll look just like you" Red grinned.

"And is that a good thing?" Cleopas asked. Red smiled. "It is an excellent thing, Cleopas. I love being with you, I love being like you. I can't wait!"

"Give me three more hours and your boots will be done, then we can dress you up and show everyone at supper tonight" Cleopas offered and Red laughed gleefully. "That would be brilliant!" he exclaimed.

The tallow smelled bad, Red decided, but it helped the leather to soften and made it shine, especially when it was buffed well with some chamois. It took him an hour to clean the belt, another hour to polish the scabbard and he was just finishing sharpening the sword using a stone and some water as Cleopas had instructed when the man said, "there, done."

Red carefully laid the now razor sharp sword on the grass before turning to his man. "My boots?" he asked.

"Yes, your boots" Cleopas laughed. "Now finish sharpening your sword, dry it and polish it with tallow and get it in your scabbard first. When you've done all that, then I will show you your boots and help you to put them on!" he chuckled at the boy's enthusiasm.

Red finished his job quickly, sheathed the sword and carried everything over to where Cleopas sat. He noticed that the man had a peculiar device in his hand, tiny, sharp and spring loaded. "What is that for?" he asked.

"Your toes" Cleopas answered.

Red looked horrified. "You're going to cut off my toes?!" he exclaimed, grabbing hold of his feet.

Cleopas collapsed in laughter. Once he'd gotten himself under control he gasped, "no, Red, I need to cut your toenails. Your nails are long and sharp and curly and will shred the front of your boots within days. Look" he said, pulling his own boots off, "my nails are short and trimmed. I keep them tidy and short and my boots are kept in one piece."

"Doesn't it hurt? I've never had my nails cut" Red said fearfully.

"You bite your fingernails all the time, does that hurt?" Cleopas asked pointedly and Red shook his head. "Well this will feel no different" he promised. "And I'll be as gentle and as careful as I can, I promise. Now come on, get your feet onto my lap and we'll get started."

"Do I have to?" the boy asked.

"Do you want to wear these boots I've spent all these hours making you?" Cleopas asked, making the boy feel ever so slightly guilty. Wordlessly he slipped his mucky, callused feet onto the man's knee ready to be worked on.

Cleopas had a bowl of water, some sand, some tallow and a rag to one side and the first thing he did was to clean the offered feet thoroughly. He washed the muck off the bottom and from between the toes and used the sand to rub the dry skin to try and get it to loosen a little. He took a little bit of tallow fat and massaged the feet so that they would be soft and supple and wouldn't rub too much in the boots then finally he took the specially designed blades and began to trim the talon-like nails.

They were very long and held a lot of ingrained dirt and had curled under the toes in some cases so it took Cleopas a long time to trim them. He took a little off at a time, going from one foot to the other and back again and it was nearly supper by the time he was finished. Red's feet were tidy and soft and his nails were short. "Finally, you had a lot of nail to get through there" Cleopas joked as he put the device away. He took the boots and carefully pulled them onto the boy's feet and urged him to stand up whilst he laced them.

"That feels weird" Red said softly as he tried to flex his toes in the new boots.

"Do you like them?" Cleopas asked, equally softly. Red grinned. "They are wonderful" he said, and leaning down he gave the still-kneeling Cleopas a gentle kiss. Cleopas kissed him back and whispered, "let's put your sword belt on and we can go show everyone else."

They weren't that far away from the fire and everyone was back for supper by this time but people had seen what the pair were doing and had granted them a modicum of privacy. Cleopas buckled the sword belt quickly and carefully, adjusted it so that the hilt of the sword lay at the right angle and getting to his feet he took Red's hand and led him to the fire.

"Walk a bit slower, my feet feel funny" Red asked and Cleopas slowed down to let the boy get used to the new sensations. "You look fantastic" Hyacinth said as the pair got to the fireside.

"Thank you" Red smiled. A number of other people complemented him and after they'd eaten he was urged to draw his sword. Cleopas helped him and as the boy took the weight of the blade properly for the first time he said, "gosh, it's heavy." A few gentle chuckles rang around the fireside as Cleopas helped him put it away again.

"It has to be fairly heavy or it won't have any strength behind it" he explained. "But I'm glad you like your things. Do you think you could get used to them?"

Red nodded and cuddled him. "Yes, I think so" he smiled.

Red's saddle had also been finished the same day so the following morning saw the boy riding for the first time. Cleopas stayed close beside him as he got used to the boots, the swordbelt and his horse, a small yet sturdy brown pony that had been, up to that point, a pack animal.

Since no one had found any suitable caves on their explorations the previous day, the family rode through the mountains, veering slightly south of east, for several more days before stopping for a two-night camp beside a small lake. From there they sent scouting parties to see if there were any caves and this time, they had luck. A half-day's ride from their camp would bring them to a large cave, with a spring just outside the entrance, a good copse of trees nearby and plenty of room for the horses and wagons. The area teemed with game too, plenty of deer and goats and rabbits to keep them fed.

"It seems made for us" Tito reported when he and Elis got back to the camp late that afternoon. "Not too deep, plenty of daylight, and the entrance is south facing so if we get any bad weather we'll be protected."

"Are we leaving straight away?" Demaratos asked.

"No, it'll get dark before we get there, we'll have to go a bit of a circuitous route because of the wagons" Elis replied. "We'll go in the morning."

The sun was setting, casting a red tinge over the water as several people undressed to get in, bathe and swim. Jason and Simon splashed around a little in the shallows, enjoying the cooling water and as they rested Jason regarded his lover's form.

"What?" Simon asked softly, aware Jason was staring at him.

"Just looking at you" Jason smiled back. "You know, when we met, you had milk-white skin and a soft belly and now you're brown and muscled" he smiled.

"It seems like I've known you forever" Simon replied. "I can't believe we've not even had a full summer together."

They embraced in the cool water, looping strong arms around each other. "I love you, you know" Jason said softly.

"I love you too" Simon replied and they kissed gently.

Jason felt himself getting aroused and noticed Simon's arousal in return. He broke from the kiss saying, "let's take this ashore or else we'll end up drowning or something." Simon grinned and they waded to the bank and sat naked on the soft grassy shore kissing some more.

"It's still daylight, we'll be watched" Jason whispered.

"I don't care" Simon smiled, pushing Jason flat onto the bank.

Nearby Red bathed with Cleopas. His anal infection had gone and he now seemed to take pleasure in being clean, much like the Spartans did. The blisters caused by his new boots were healing, he enjoyed his sword practise and was fast becoming a competent rider. His physical activity coupled with plenty of good food had begun to make him fill out - he had started to become a little more muscular and in the weeks since he'd met Cleopas had added at least an inch to his height.

He was increasingly comfortable in his nudity and he and Cleopas were very close and loving to each other, however they had not made love beyond the man using gentle fingertips to bring the overheated boy to orgasm and the boy using his hand on the man in return. Nothing else entered into their games, Red not considering any other activities and Cleopas believing that Red was too young and too small to enjoy them, despite the fact that Lykurgos and Ajax were both younger, both found great pleasure sex in all its forms and both had already had sex with Cleopas in the past.

"Hey, have you seen Simon and Jason?" Ajax shouted. Various boys and men turned to watch and cat-calls and laughter rang out.

"Stick it where the sun doesn't shine, Jason!" Lykurgos called between his giggles.

"I intend to!" Jason called in reply, piercing Simon with his organ and making the man gasp and roll his eyes in pleasure.

Red stood in the shallows of the lake and watched, dumbfounded. He knew the mechanics of sex by now - who wouldn't, living alongside such sexually active adolescents as Ajax, Carme and Lykurgos. But he hadn't seen it so graphically demonstrated before, as most of the family's sexual activities took place after dark. But here, perfectly illuminated by the evening sunshine, Jason was sinking that huge penis of his into Simon... and Simon seemed to love it! Red trembled with a combination of shock and lust, his little organ throbbed and he seemed to have trouble breathing.

"Like something you see?" Cleopas whispered into his ear, swimming up behind him and taking hold of the boy's organ between gentle fingers.

"Oh, gosh!" Red yelped and came there and then in the water. Ajax turned to the shout and smirked. "Like the show, Red?" he asked.

"Cl-cl-cleo-p-pas" Red gasped as he came down from his climax, supported in Cleopas' strong arms. Cleopas smiled gently, lifted the boy up and kissed him. "I guess you enjoyed that?" he asked as the boy's gasping calmed down.

"My word, yes" Red whispered with a dreamy smile.

He carried him out of the water and laid him down on the grass, not far from where Jason and Simon made love, seemingly oblivious of the audience they'd attracted. Grabbing a scrap of chamois he began to dry Red and massage him gently, noting as he did so that the boy couldn't take his eyes off Simon and Jason.

"Why do you find them so fascinating?" Cleopas whispered.

"I don't know, I guess I dream of doing what they're doing" Red replied with a blush.

"To them?" Cleopas teased.

"No!" Red exclaimed hotly, then laughed, realising that Cleopas was teasing him. "To you" he explained, caressing Cleopas' face with a gentle touch of his hand. "You, doing that to me, I mean" he clarified, blushing all the more furiously.

"Red" Cleopas said softly, "I love you so much but I worry. You are an incredibly small boy for all you've lived twelve summers and to put it bluntly I am not. If I make love to you as Jason does to Simon I will cause you intense pain. I cannot do that to you. If you want to be pierced by me in that way you will have to wait until you grow."

"Don't you love me?" Red's lip trembled as he held in his tears.

Cleopas scooped him up and cuddled him tight. "Red, I love you so much. I love you more than I ever thought it was possible to love anyone. Yes, Red, I love you, I cannot imagine loving anyone more. And that is why I cannot see you hurting, I die a little inside when you cry out in pain. In these past days I've winced with every step that your boots have chafed on your feet or your saddle has rubbed your thighs. I sobbed when I cleaned your nethers that first time and realised just how much pain you were in and how much pain I had to cause to clean you up. My heart would break to hurt you as much as I would if I made love to you in that fashion. To couple, to join together as one body is supposed to be the height of intimacy yet the pain I would cause you would make it lose every scrap of meaning for both of us."

"I love you too and I want to do more than just use our fingers on each other" Red pouted. "That doesn't really feel like it's enough to show each other how much we love each other."

"We do not need to have sex to demonstrate our love" Cleopas replied. "Let me show you how much I love you" he continued, scooping the boy up and walking over to where the main group of the family were sat near the fire.

"My family, my brothers, I know it's been spoken of but I wish before you now to formally claim Red as my mate and ask that you recognise him as such" he said in a quiet voice that for all its low volume carried over the whole family.

"Finally!" Hyacinth let out an explosive breath and people started cheering. "I thought you would never say so, son" he smiled.

Red looked at Cleopas, a gamut of emotions churning on his face. "I thought you said I was too young to be your mate?"

"I thought you were at one point" Cleopas replied with a gentle smile. "But to be my mate is more than physical, we are joined in the deepest part of our being. My love will always be yours, no matter what age you are, what you look like," he smirked and continued, "how tall you are and whether you have boots and a sword or mucky britches and curly toe nails. You are my soul and my life, from this day forth and forever, through good times and bad, through pain and through joy, through doubt and fear and through love, I vow to you."

"Thank you" Red whispered as Cleopas leaned in and kissed him gently on the lips.

They all slept well that night, curled together under the stars, many couples following Jason's and Simon's example and making love. The three adolescents played together, as they often did, and when finished Ajax climbed into the wagon to sleep, leaving the two others to embrace. Cleopas and Red kissed and cuddled but after their conversation, going any further that night seemed a little irrelevant and the pair fell asleep not long after in a gentle embrace.

The next morning they packed up for what was likely to be the last time for a while. Elis and Tito led the way as they had found the cave the previous day and it was several hours after noon when they arrived, having taken a relatively sedate route to enable the wagons to get to the cave safely.

It was in a small, low-lying valley, fairly overgrown, with trees and firewood aplenty. Wildlife roamed around and a spring trickled into a decent sized pool which then made a gentle rivulet into the undergrowth. The immediate entrance to the cave was flat stone and it went back about fifteen yards or so before finishing in a curve. The opening was wide as Elis had promised and the whole cave was well-illuminated with daylight.

Despite its clear usefulness it seemed that no one had been there before. The cave contained some old bones that indicated that wolves had used it as a den at some point in the past but there was no evidence of human habitation despite the ease with which the family's wagons reached it.

"I hope we don't have any problems with wolves" Gaia said wryly as they cleared the bones out and swept the floor clear with a broom of leafy branches.

"If they do cause problems, well, we could all use some wolf-pelt cloaks" Jocasta smiled back as he helped Gaia to sweep up whilst the others began to bring packs inside.

"Have you ever eaten wolf-meat?" Elis called out. He shuddered. "I tried it once. Revolting stuff."

"I didn't say we'd eat them, just use their skins. I'd like a cloak with a hood, I think I'd like to keep the ears" Jocasta smiled.

"You going all feral on me?" Nabis asked his lover in amusement. Jocasta grinned, then started to growl softly.

"I can't tell if you're growling or purring" Nabis smiled, going up to him and embracing him.

"At the moment, growling, but you can try and make me purr if you want" Jocasta said softly, making doe eyes at Nabis.

"Grandfather Jocasta, please!" Kalliope blushed.

"What?" Jocasta smiled. "You think you young ones are the only ones that have sex around here?"

"Urgh, what an image" Lykurgos shuddered. "All that wrinkly skin."

"I can still chase rings around you, grandson" Jocasta quipped. "You want to rethink your comment about my wrinkles?"

Lykurgos got a mischievous sparkle in his eyes. "Why should I, you are wrinkly" he said.

"Come here, brat!" Jocasta laughed, separating from Nabis and chasing after Lykurgos, who dropped his pack and ran away, giggling madly. The pair disappeared around the corner and soon Lykurgos' laughter turned into yelps as Jocasta caught up with him and was tickling him mercilessly.

"I'm sorry" Lykurgos gasped between his giggles. "You're not wrinkly, you're not. I'm sorry, stop, STOP!" he laughed.

All the packs were unloaded from the horses and stacked in the cave, and the wagons were pulled inside also. The horse were, for the moment, tethered outside so that they could graze on the grasses and shrubbery but if the weather turned nasty there was plenty of room for them at the cave entrance.

A firepit was prepared and encircled with large stones and skins were spread around it. Several people were dispatched to collect firewood - for the first few days they would rely on fallen branches and deadfall but since they were staying for a while they would in the next day or so fell a couple of trees so as to get a good store of wood in.

Finally, a meal was prepared, a late lunch or possibly an early supper, and everyone stopped to relax around the fire. "We need to unload every pack and both wagons fully and take and inventory of what we have" Hyacinth said.

"And decide how long we're staying here and if we're collecting stores for the winter or just enough to travel on with" Elis added.

"It'd be a good opportunity to do some more tanning, we'll need to if those wolves my fathers are talking about come prowling" Demeter smiled.

"I think we'll be here for a few weeks at least" Gaia said. "We'll plan for a long term stay and decide what we want to do next as the season starts to change" he suggested. "So we need firewood and food to begin with, we need a full cleanout of both wagons and every pack. It might be a good opportunity to check all the saddles for their fits and see to the horses too, we've not checked them over for a few months now and some might be in foal. Anything else anyone can think of?"

"New clothes for the children, they've shot up like weeds this summer and I doubt last year's winter garments will fit any of them. And I desperately need to mend my cloak, it's falling apart" Leander said.

"And sword training, I want to get Red up to speed and I'm sure Simon would appreciate it" Cleopas replied.

"I think it'd be a good time for us all to sharpen our swords and clean our gear" Kalliope pointed out, "we've not really given everything a good shake down since the spring."

"And we've not had the opportunity to pray since we left town" Clio finished finally, his hands straying to his dual sword hilts instinctively.

"Indeed, it was most remiss of me to forget that" Gaia muttered apologetically.

"Before we do any of that I'm starving" Carme said, "less talking more eating" he begged.

Some rabbits that had been snared the previous night had been roasted and these were shared out amongst the family. Everyone enjoyed the flavoursome meat and ate their fill and used the remainder of the previous day's rather stale flatbreads to mop up the juices.

"Happy now?" Mark asked his eldest son, who'd eaten a larger share of the food than anyone else.

"Just about father Mark" Carme smirked.

"I swear, boy, you're a bottomless pit" he sighed. Carme just burped and Mark gave him a look of disgust. "Okay, for that you can go get your own supper" he said.

"But" Carme protested.

"Out! Get off your backside! The quicker you move the quicker you'll find something!" Mark said, forcing the young man to his feet. "Go!" he said, half-irritated, half amused. Carme shrugged eloquently, ensured his sword was buckled tight and took a good handful of snares, a small leather slingshot and a satchel and wandered out of the cave. "Be back before dark" Kalliope called.

"If I find something I will be" Carme replied with a smirk.

"Be back before dark, please! PLEASE!" Mark shouted. Carme's laughter drifted back to them through the woodland.

"Perhaps I shouldn't have been quite so hard on the lad, he is only fourteen even if he is a man" Mark said, giving Kalliope a hug. Despite the fact that he was human Mark had lived with the Spartans for many years and had the same protective instinct towards his sons as Spartans did towards their young.

"He needs to learn, my love" Kalliope sighed. "For all he is good at some things he is ever so slightly lazy" he pointed out.

For the rest of the afternoon many of the family rested. It had been a while since they had the space and time to relax and not worry about getting to the next place, hiding, protecting themselves and it was nice to be able to calm down.

"Were our tracks properly hidden?" Charon asked sleepily.

"We did a fairly good job, I think" Rhea said, "but perhaps a group of us could retrace our steps tomorrow and ensure we're fully obscured."

"I can help with that" Charon offered.

"What are you and I going to do?" Red asked Cleopas.

"Well, I already said, some sword training" Cleopas answered, "and I think I'll teach you how to trap and snare food and start on some plant and herb identification, unless there's something else you'd rather do?"

"No, that sounds fine, as long as I can be with you" Red smiled, enjoying his restful and relaxing afternoon, leaning against Cleopas' chest as the pair dozed by the fireside.

It was almost dark and Kalliope and Mark were getting antsy when Carme finally appeared with half a satchel of food. "I was worried about you" Kalliope said, running out to meet him and giving him a hug. "Did you find something?"

"I found a ground nesting bird and a squirrel" he said, upending his satchel to reveal the animals, "and I'm fairly good with my slingshot so it wasn't difficult to get them. And the squirrel was feeding on hazelnuts so I picked a handful of those too" he smiled.

"You know you didn't really have to collect food? I wouldn't have made you go hungry, son" Mark said softly, guilt flashing across his face.

Carme came and gave him a hug. "I know but you made me feel a bit guilty, I'm still living off you like I'm a small boy" he said softly.

"You'll always be our boy, Carme" Kalliope said, coming to join in the hug. "Now, you want any help preparing those or are you going to do it yourself?"

Supper was late and accompanied by several mugs of beer and it gradually became a rather raucous affair, with laughter, jokes and stories abounding. Now, usually when entertaining each other of an evening they never had music but on this night they got a surprise. "Cleopas, do you think people would enjoy a song?" Red asked.

"You sing, Red?" he asked with a smile.

The boy nodded. "I don't know many words but I like remembering tunes" he explained. "I used to hear a lot in the inn but some of the words were really rude" he giggled.

"Well why don't you give us a tune without the words?" Cleopas asked. Red nodded and got to his feet and everyone looked his way.

"Red has some music to share" Cleopas shouted over the conversations and everyone turned to listen. Slowly, hesitantly at first but with gradually increasing confidence, the boy began to hum a soft tune, his soprano voice catching the highest notes with beautiful purity. When he reached the end, Simon got to his feet and nodded to the boy to start again and this time the former monk put a bass line in, weaving the deeper notes with the soaring melody.

They stopped and sat down and Red said to Cleopas, "was that okay?"

"Okay, Red, my wonderful boy, it was brilliant!" Cleopas gushed, kissing him. "You've got an amazing voice, you know? You should sing more often."

"Really?" he asked, wide-eyed.

"Really" Cleopas assured him.

Jason was having a similar conversation with Simon. "Where have you hidden that talent all these months? You and Red make quite a team. Do you know any with words or just tunes?"

"The only words I know are Christian hymns and psalms and they aren't appropriate now" Simon replied, admitting to Jason what the man had already guessed, that his lover, the former monk, had virtually lost his Christian faith.

"You don't want to sing them?" Jason checked.

"I don't entirely believe what I'm singing anymore so no, I don't" Simon confirmed.

"Well perhaps you could create new songs then? Why don't you and Red get together and prepare some music for us?"

Simon smiled. "I was never a poet but I can try if you like" he offered.

Jason nodded. "I'd like" he replied. He watched as Simon took another sip of his beer. "How much you planning on drinking tonight?" he asked with a smirk.

"Not as much as last time we broke the beer out" Simon quipped. "One mug full will be my limit tonight" he grinned back. He drained the mug he had in his hand and looked at it. "Or maybe two" he said thoughtfully.

Jason laughed. "When you're hung over in the morning I reserve the right to tell you I told you so!" Simon laughed with him as he headed over to the open barrel to dip himself another drink.

They didn't get to sleep until late and slept until almost dawn the following day. They mediated in the morning sunlight until an hour past dawn and then made a lazy breakfast and began dividing up the various tasks and chores they'd committed themselves to completing. Clio and Hyacinth went for a hike to scout out a suitable prayer site, and Carme took Socra and Demaratos out to help him collect a couple of satchels full of hazelnuts.

Charon and Rhea went to check the route they'd taken the previous day and obscure any remaining tracks, Demeter and Kalliope scouted the area downstream from the spring to see if there was somewhere suitable to make some tanning pits and Joseph started searching out suitably soft and warm skins and leathers from their stores in order to prepare new children's clothes for the winter. Cleopas took Simon, Red, Evander and Konon to a clearing nearby to start some sword training, Alexander began to plan supper and Leander and Acantha went to set several traps and snares to catch fresh game. Everyone else began to unpack the horse saddles and the wagons and stack foodstuffs in one part of the cave, skins and leathers in another, tools in a third and so on.

Out in the clearing the two small boys, the young adolescent and the former monk began their day by copying a series of drills that Cleopas demonstrated. Over and over they drilled, one routine after another. By noon they were tired and soaked with sweat and gladly sheathed their swords and made their way back to their camp to relax, soak in the pool, drink and eat.

As they sat little Konon said, "I enjoy what you teach but I'd like to learn how to use my sword with my other hand too so that one day I might be able to get two swords like father Clio."

Cleopas took a breath. "You know your father Clio only has two swords because he's a priest, don't you?" Konon nodded. "Yes" he said softly.

"Do you think you might want to be a priest one day?" Cleopas asked carefully.

The little boy shrugged. "Don't know" he said, then seeing the lunch on the fire his eyes brightened. "I'm hungry, can I have a whole piece of rabbit to myself?" he asked.

Cleopas smiled at the small boy. "You think you can eat a whole piece?" he asked.

"Oh, yes" Konon gushed, "I'm so hungry I could eat a whole one to myself!" Everyone laughed at the little boy's earnestness and a healthy portion of rabbit was put on a platter for him and true to his word, he did eat every single bit, licking his fingers and smacking his lips in delight afterwards.

By the time they'd eaten, the combination of good food and hard exercise had conspired to make the two small boys very sleepy indeed, so, under Alexander's watchful eye they were laid down next to the fireside to sleep. Leaving Simon to his own devices, Cleopas took Red on a walk to begin to teach him the art of foraging for food and how to identify what was edible and useful from what was poisonous.

"Are there lots of things we can eat in the forest, then?" Red asked once Cleopas had explained his plans for the afternoon.

"Yes, and more than that, there are lots of things we can use, herbs that are useful as medicines. We sometimes buy them and sometimes collect them and of course you never need much. You know that slip of ointment we used to help your nethers heal? Well, that had a little pinch from each of five different herbs all mixed into the grease."

"They must have been really tiny pinches" Red said. Cleopas nodded. "Yes, they were. But the point is that if you can find them, certain leaves or flowers or seeds are really useful. But we're going to see if we can find food too, it's just a matter of seeing what's out here."

Cleopas had learned over many summers walking out with older relatives how to identify all manner of plants and by evening they had a pair of full satchels each, one of various berries, another with nuts and seeds, a third with various herbs that had medicinal properties and a fourth stuffed full to the top with a peppery green leaf they'd collected from the side of a slow-moving stream lower in the valley.

"What are we going to do with it all?" Red asked as they walked down an animal track back towards the cave just as the sun was setting.

"The leaves will be chopped and cooked, either in a stew or by themselves. The nuts and seeds will be ground up and used in bread cakes. The berries will mostly be dried out ready for winter but some we'll eat fresh. The herbs will all be dried and wrapped up carefully so we have them if we need them" Cleopas explained. He smiled to Red. "You enjoyed this afternoon?"

Red opened his mouth to reply but his words were lost as suddenly, on the path before them, a huge grey wolf stepped out. "Cle..." Red began, his eyes wide.

"Shh" Cleopas cautioned. "Stay as still as you can" he said.

A second wolf appeared. "Can you reach your sword?" Cleopas asked.

"I-I-I think so" Red stuttered.

They weren't that far from the camp and Cleopas was thinking fast. "Red, I'm going to slowly bend down and pick a rock up from the path. As I do so, draw your sword carefully" he said. He moved, keeping his eyes locked on the pair of wolves, and groped for a stone.

He moved back to standing, aware that Red had his sword in his hand and was holding it with fair confidence, all things considered.

"When I throw this rock at them, if they shy away then I'm going to shout at the top of my lungs" Cleopas whispered to Red, almost without moving his lips. "You shout too, shout 'Spartan' and with luck some of the family will hear us and come."

Cleopas lifted his arm and threw the rock and the wolves darted backwards. Immediately after the rock had been launched he drew his sword and in a voice loud enough to practically echo through the whole valley he and Red both yelled, "Spartan!"

Back at the cave several people were enjoying a lazy evening when a faint echo caught their ears. "Spartan!"

"What's that?" Aeson asked.

"It sounded like Cleopas" Gaia said, getting to his feet. "But he wouldn't shout like that unless..."

"He was in trouble" Hyacinth said, tightening the buckle on his sword belt. Half of the family ran at top speed into the undergrowth, in the direction that the voice came from. Gaia led, followed by Elis, Tito, Marcus, Clio, Aeson, Nabis, Jocasta, Demeter, Rhea, Kalliope, Leander, and of course Hyacinth.

Left at the camp were the humans Alexander, Philip, Mark, Simon and Joseph, the children, Maia, Xanthe, Konon, Evander, Socra, Demaratos, with the two adolescents Ajax and Lykurgos and four full adult Spartans, Jason, Acantha, Carme and Charon, left on guard.

Back in the woodland Cleopas and Red were stood back to back on the path, now surrounded by five wolves that had appeared from the undergrowth and that were circling, growling softly. Both held their swords in a protective stance. "Spartan!" Cleopas shouted again, hoping against hope that someone had heard him.

"Cleopas, they're getting closer" Red said softly, then yelped. "Another two have just appeared" he whimpered, terrified.

"Stay calm, Red, it's not going to help if you lose your head" Cleopas whispered softly. "I'll be with you the whole time, I'll do everything I can to defend you. Calm, Red, calm" he counselled.

"Spartan!" he shouted again. The wolves circled closer.

Just then a series of shouts echoed. "Spartan!" "Spartan!" "Spartan!"

"We've been heard" Cleopas breathed a sigh of relief.

"But they sound like they are a distance away and the wolves are getting closer still" Red replied. "Oh, god, there's another!" he gasped. Cleopas didn't tell the boy that there were another three on his side too that had also appeared in the last few moments.

Eleven wolves watched them dispassionately. "Spartan!" Cleopas shouted. A crashing noise up ahead drew his attention and that of the wolves as the family arrived.

"By Apollo, no!" Clio breathed, hands going to both swords. The wolves saw the extra men, saw their chance for a meal rapidly vanishing and the ones on the far side, closest to Cleopas and Red, furthest away from the rest of the family, lunged for the man and boy.

One leapt and acting seemingly on instinct, Red brought his sword up and the beast landed square on the blade, dying even as it knocked the weapon from the boy's hand. Cleopas took a second animal down but a third continued to charge.

"No!" Hyacinth shouted, vaulting over the wolves between him and his youngest son, both of his priestly swords flashing as he caught the third animal between his blades, ending its life with a sickening crack and a flood of bright red blood. Behind him the rest of the family quickly attacked, dispatching the animals easily. Gaia hurried to Red and Cleopas, the man calm yet relieved, the boy shaking, crying and dirty, having soiled himself in fear.

Marcus took the last animal and silence fell, broken only by Red's sobs and the men's panting breath as they calmed themselves and took stock of the situation.

"It looks like we've found a pelt for your wolf cloak, Jocasta" Cleopas said softly after a long silence. Jocasta looked shocked, then Nabis started to chuckle, then the mood was broken and everyone started laughing and cheering. "Come on, let's some of us stay to skin these beasts and the rest should head back, I'm sure the others will be anxious for news" Marcus said.

Nabis and Jocasta offered to stay to collect the pelts, together with Gaia, Clio and Aeson. Hyacinth freed Red's sword, cleaned it and carried it, unsheathed, himself, as Cleopas had picked Red up in his arms and was holding him tight as they walked. Elis collected the food satchels that had been discarded in the urgency of the situation.

"How are you feeling?" Cleopas whispered. Red opened his mouth and closed it again without any words coming out - he was still too traumatised to talk.

"You're safe now" Cleopas continued softly. "We're both safe, you were very brave, the family came and helped us and the wolves are dead. Okay?"

Red nodded though his eyes still streamed with tears.

"Talk to me, Red" Cleopas begged. "Come on, you're safe. Talk to me" he whispered. They were almost back at the cave by this time and Jason and Simon came running.

"What happened? Where's Gaia and Nabis?" Jason asked.

"Cleopas and Red were set upon by wolves" Hyacinth reported. "We killed the beasts before they did any damage and Nabis and Gaia, among others, are harvesting the pelts."

"Are you okay, brother?" Jason asked Cleopas, concern on his face.

Cleopas nodded. "I am but Red's had a terrible fright" he said.

"Red, come on, calm now" Simon said, walking up to the boy, who was still cradled in Cleopas' arms. He caressed the boy's cheek gently. "The wolves can't hurt you now" he said softly.

Hyacinth brought Red's sword and laid it near to Cleopas' bedroll. "It might need a better wash but I wiped it on some grass" he said. Simon frowned.

"Red had to kill one of the wolves himself" Cleopas explained. As he said this the boy's sobs got louder and more panicked.

"I think I understand" Simon said wisely. "Red" he said, more firmly. "Do not feel guilt or pity for the wolf. It was him or you, do you understand? Killing something by the sword is quite different than knocking a rabbit over the head so you can cook it but you did well, your training paid off and you are alive to tell the tale. Do not feel guilty for using your sword, Red, that is why you are learning swordcraft after all."

"It that why you're upset? That you had to use your sword?" Cleopas whispered.

Red nodded. "K-k-k-kind of, b-b-b-but it's more that I realised how d-d-d-dangerous the sword was and how easily I k-k-k-k-k-killed the wolf" he stuttered softly before taking a couple of deeper breaths and relaxing into Cleopas' arms.

"Are you going to be okay?" Simon asked.

"Yeah but I kind of made a mess and I smell a bit" Red smiled ruefully.

"Let's go bathe, Red" Cleopas smiled, giving him a kiss on the forehead, "I'll help you wash and get you changed and find you some clean things to wear" he suggested. Red nodded and Cleopas carried him over to the pool and sat him near the edge, where the stream left it and flowed away.

"We'll bathe at this end and wash your loincloth in the stream, that way we won't pollute the water" Cleopas suggested. He gently eased Red down, removed his boots and began to untie his leggings.

"I can do it, Cleopas" Red protested.

"I know but let me, please?" Cleopas replied. "Let me care for you, my little mate" he smiled. "Let me care for you and undress you and bathe you and show you just what you mean to me." Silently Red nodded, smiling gently as his man unlaced and removed his outer clothes then picked him up and sat him in the stream before removing his loincloth, letting the flowing water wash the soil away.

He cleaned the cloth first as Red sat and watched him, scrubbing it against the stones of the stream, rubbing a little gravel onto it to get some more stubborn soil off and then rinsing it in the flowing water. He turned his attention to Red, urging the boy to get to his knees and using the wet loincloth as a wash cloth, ensuring that Red was fully clean before lifting him and placing him in the pool proper. As the boy sat in the cool water Cleopas quickly undressed and joined him, cradling him as the water trickled leisurely around them. After a few minutes they both got too cold and Cleopas lifted Red up and climbed out of the water with the boy in his arms. They went over to the fire where they dried on chamois, and both tied clean loincloths on.

The clothes they'd discarded near the water were gathered up by Cleopas, who quickly washed Red's leggings, strung the wet items on a tree branch to dry and rejoined Red by the fireside.

"Have you calmed down, my little mate?" he smiled.

Red nodded and smiled back. "I have but why are you calling me that?" he asked.

Cleopas' smile turned into a gentle chuckle. "I just want to be sure you know how I feel" he explained. "Especially after the peril we were in today." He sighed. "I want to reassure you" he said, more seriously now. "I know you were scared of what you did and were scared of the wolves but you know what scared me most?"

Red shook his head and frowned slightly and Cleopas pulled the boy into a cuddle. "The thought that I might lose you, that's what I was most afraid of" he whispered. As the boy's still-damp hair wafted under his nose, Cleopas took a deep breath and noticed as he did so a faint scent of honey that seemed to emanate from every pore. It seemed to be Red's own natural scent and was totally mesmerising.

"I'll never go anywhere that you can't follow, Cleopas" Red whispered after a few moments. He tilted his face and smiled softly and the man leaned down into a kiss. "I know, Red, I know" he whispered.

The wolf pelts, eleven in all, had long grey fur and were soft and warm. Nabis and Jocasta even cut two so as to include the ears and the whole lot were sat in the stream overnight with rocks to weight them down in the water. "We'll start to tan them tomorrow but keeping them submerged will be the easiest way to keep them clean overnight" Nabis said.

"You two picked a pair for your new cloaks already then?" Gaia smiled. Jocasta's and Nabis' smiles faltered. "Well, we've kept two with ears but we don't necessarily have to have them, if someone else wants them more" Jocasta said.

Gaia laughed. "No, no, they're yours" he said. He beckoned the pair slightly away from the fire. "And if there's a smaller pelt I think I'd like to give it to Red as his winter cloak, I think it'd be fitting" he suggested.

"I don't think one pelt by itself would be an entire cloak but it might make a good hood and keep the head and back warm" Aeson said. "Those wolves were big but not that big, any cloak wouldn't fasten at the front adequately and would leave most of your leg below the knee uncovered."

"We can stitch deerskin around them to make them the correct size for winter, sew them into a patchwork cloak" Leander suggested.

"We're putting the cart before the horse, here, brothers, let's tan them first" Kalliope laughed and everyone agreed.

The evening passed and faded into night and because the wolves had been prowling so close, Charon and Carme volunteered to sit up and keep watch. They said they'd do the whole night on the understanding they'd be able to sleep the following day - and since there was no travel planned this would be perfectly fine.

They kept the fire fed so that a small flame flickered and watched as the rest of the family snuggled under cloaks and deerskins and slept in the warm, dry, comfortable cave.

It rained on towards dawn and the family woke perhaps an hour before first light to the gentle patter of water. The cave and all their belongings were perfectly dry, though and they were glad they'd found the cover. As soon as they started their meditation, Carme and Charon bedded down and fell asleep quickly, and were snoring softly as dawn broke and the family began to prepare porridge and bacon for a hearty breakfast.

The day's plans were fairly straightforward - some would go fell a tree of a suitable size, cut most of it up for firewood and preserve some larger slices of trunk to make extra platters, bowls and dishes. Others would get started on tanning, preparing the pits in the locations that Demeter and Kalliope had scouted and would cut the necessary bark in order to preserve the pelts properly, and of course would collect some of the contents of the latrine to use as part of the job.

Hyacinth and Clio hadn't found a prayer site yet and went to continue their scouting exercise, leaving everyone else to either help with the cooking or other tasks or else have a relaxing day.

"What do you want to do today, Red?" Cleopas asked as they finished breaking their fast.

"Can we stay here?" he asked hopefully. Cleopas smiled. "We can but if we lurk around the fire too much we'll be given jobs to do" he pointed out. "You up to cooking for thirty?"

Red laughed. "No but together we are, I'll wager" he smiled.

"Well, let's go take an inventory of our stores and see what needs using up and we'll take it from there" Cleopas suggested.

All the foodstuffs had been unloaded and were stacked together, sacks of meal, beans, barley and wheat, barrels of pre-ground flour and frothy beer. They had several sides of bacon wrapped in thinly woven cloth, sacks of dried fruits and smoked meats and fish left over from previous foraging expeditions, some large, wax-covered cheeses, skins of wine and three crocks of honey. There were dried herbs stored in small wooden boxes and plenty of fresh greens and berries and raw nuts collected in the last day or so.

"You know, we could do with some roots, turnips and the like" Cleopas mused as they looked through the foods. "That's about the only thing we've got missing."

"We look like we've got enough food for a year!" Red gushed, gazing at the huge stockpile. Cleopas shook his head. "Three months, perhaps three and a half at the outside" he disagreed. "And that depends on a steady supply of fresh game. And by then, the weather will have turned and it'll become more difficult to find nuts and berries and fresh greens especially so we'll need to find a farm or something to purchase roots to store and provide vegetables over the winter."

"But there's loads of stuff" Red said, "how do you know how long it'll last?!"

"Practise" Cleopas replied. "The flour will give out first, we've only got about a month's worth" he said. "And that's if we only have bread cakes once a day. The grains will take us through another month if we grind them into flour as we go, and we can perhaps eke that out to a third if we add ground nuts or fruit to the mix, depending on what we find, of course. If we relied solely on the meats we have in store we'll run out within a week of the smoked stuff and a further two for the bacon. If we stayed here all winter, even if we foraged as much as we could, by the time spring rolls around the only thing left will be perhaps half a sack of beans, some beer, wine and a little meal" he explained.

"How would you get more food then?" Red asked.

"We'd take some pack animals and go find a farm and buy it" Cleopas explained.

"And you have enough money to do that?" Red wondered. Cleopas laughed and led him over to where a small, iron-bound chest sat against the cave wall. He flicked the latch and lifted the lid and Red gasped in astonishment at the heaps of gold, silver and copper coins that were stowed there. "How much is there?" he asked. Cleopas shrugged.

"I don't know" he answered.

"You've got enough there to buy a whole farm!" the boy gushed.

Cleopas shook his head in a kindly manner. "You've lived with us for a while now, surely you realise that farming holds no interest to us, even if we knew how which none of us do. We live a nomadic life because it's safer in the main. Sometimes a few of us may settle down somewhere but that's not the norm, and we'd have to settle in a town or village where our skills could be used to trade for food. Like, we could set up a forge or a tannery or a cobblers or leather workers, but we couldn't really be farmers, we don't know how, Red."

"You could run an inn, too, that isn't difficult" Red said.

"And what about brewing the beer? We're never in one place long enough to brew our own effectively, we'd have to buy training from someone before we could do that."

Red shook his head. "I know how to brew beer, helping in the brew house was one of my main jobs. I bet I can teach you how to brew beer" he said.

Cleopas laughed. "Well, if you know what to look for and we find foods that can be brewed, and if we stay here for long enough, of course, then I'll let you teach us!" He smiled at the boy with a faintly wistful expression.

"What is it?"

"I love the life of the nomad, Red, but if it ever becomes too difficult for you I would give it up, you know that, don't you?"

"I know" Red smiled. "And as long as I am with you I don't care. But perhaps when we're both old we can stop riding around and set up an inn somewhere?"

"As long as our sons are of an age that we can lie about their mother's death convincingly" Cleopas replied, "if that is what you want to do then we will."

"Our?" Red breathed, astonishment flowering on his face. Cleopas chuckled. "Of course. You're my mate, Red. That means that you and I may one day have sons together." The boy collapsed to his knees in stunned amazement. "Our?" he gasped again.

"Red, I thought you understood this? I am more than human, that means I can carry sons myself, with my male mate, which in case you'd forgotten is you. Red? Come on, Red, breathe" Cleopas said, and then urged as he realised the boy had forgotten to inhale in his shock.

"Our sons? We really will have sons together?" the boy finally managed to say.

"Yes, Red, my beautiful boy, my mate, my life, we will" Cleopas whispered, crouching down and cupping Red's chin in his hand. He leaned down and kissed him. "Does this please you?"

"I'm just a boy and an orphan to boot, what do I know about being a father?" he asked.

"Why don't you go spend some time with Marcus, learn how to care for Maia? Or Acantha and learn how to care for Xanthe? We've got a big family and lots of support, you'll be fine, my love, I promise" Cleopas replied.

They sat and cuddled for a while longer before Cleopas urged the boy to his feet and they began to prepare some food. Because they were dried hard the beans needed a good day's soak before they could be used so a crock-full was covered in water and left for the next day, when they would be boiled with bacon. Then some of the older dried meats and the last of the previous autumn's dried berries were put in a pot with plenty of water and a little splash of wine to stew into a thick, purple, savoury-sweet dish that would be served with oatcakes, meal mixed with water and a handful of surplus bacon fat to make delicious savoury flat cakes that crumbled in the mouth.

As mid-afternoon arrived the new fire wood had been stacked in an out of the way corner of the cave, at the back near to where the wagons had been pulled. The tanning process was underway and Ajax, Carme, Kalliope and Demeter had left the tanning pits, bathed, changed clothes and washed as thoroughly as they could, leaving the pelts to soak and cure. Elis and Tito had taken the large slices of wood, some chisels and mallets and had begun to carve out several large dishes and several others had come back from setting snares.

"Who's been cooking today, this is delicious!" Gaia said as he tucked into the offered meal, which they ate not as lunch or supper but as one meal mid-way between the two.

"Red and I made it, grandfather" Cleopas smiled. "I'm glad you like it."

"Xanthe has bathed in it, though, he must like being purple!" Acantha chuckled from nearby. The small boy, no longer a baby but a sturdy toddler, had managed to feed himself quite successfully but was covered in the sauce.

"Are you enjoying that, little sticky one?" Charon teased his son.

"Tiki" Xanthe agreed with a giggle, splatting his hand down into his dish before lifting a dripping piece of meat to his mouth with his fingers.

Over the next several days a routine was established. The valley was slowly combed for foodstuffs, which were gathered and brought back to the cave. Most of the nuts and berries were roasted or dried in some way for storing but some were eaten fresh. The deer they snared made for many roast dishes and also stacks of dried meat. Several dozen patches of tuberous roots were found and dug up to add some starch to the diet and they also found odd pockets of wild oats, barley and wheat that they carefully gathered and stored.

Whilst the food stores were being replenished, firewood was collected, the carving of various useful wooden items was being planned, tanned hides were measured and cut to make winter clothing, and saddles, sword belts, boots and so on were inspected and any that needed mending or altering were identified. And of course people continued to work on the wolf hides they'd collected.

They'd been there almost a week when Hyacinth and Clio finally reported back that they'd found a suitable prayer site. Most of the family expressed a desire to go and pray, in particular Marcus, who wanted to take baby Maia, "before he gets too old." Simon didn't understand the need, especially since the child didn't have a sword and he knew that Konon had been prohibited from worship until he had his own blade. When asked, Marcus simply said, "it's complicated" and refused to elaborate.

It was an overcast, windy afternoon that saw half of the family prepare to go to prayer. Marcus carried Maia, and was accompanied by his grandfather Gaia, fathers Elis and Tito, oldest son, Socra and brother Clio, who of course went as he was a priest. He was joined by the other priest and Marcus' uncle, Hyacinth, and Hyacinth's two sons Jason and Cleopas. Aeson, Clio's partner came too with their older son, Demaratos. Nabis and Jocasta also joined them.

All of the humans were, naturally, excluded but what surprised Simon was Konon's exclusion. The little boy made a fuss but his fathers promised all sorts of treats and presently the boy was left alone in the care of the rest of the family.

Since Jason and Cleopas had gone to prayer, Red sat with Simon, and after a short, mostly unsatisfactory discussion about the worship of Apollo and their exclusion, Simon steered the conversation around to more pleasant topics. "You ever played a whistle, Red?" he asked.

"No" the boy said, "why?"

"Just I thought it might be nice, since we've got a bit of spare time on our hands, to whittle a couple of whistles and learn to play them" the older man smiled. "And, while I think of learning, do you know your letters?"

Red laughed and shook his head. "No. I was once taught how to write my name though" he explained, "and I think I can still remember."

"Well, why don't I teach you your letters too, and we'll write some lists of the food we've got and the things we're carrying around, what do you think?"

"What do we write with? Or write on?" Red wondered.

"To start with we'll use the dirt and fingers, until you get skilled. Then, we can split some bark, that will make suitable parchment for writing on" Simon said after a few moments' thought, "or else we can pulp and dry it and perhaps make some paper. And as for ink, we can get some black soot from the fire and mix it with a little tallow fat, and then cut some feathers into quills for writing."

And so, whilst the prayers continued, Simon started a little school, teaching Konon, Evander and Red their letters. He began with their names, in Latin and Greek characters, and urged them to practise writing their and each other's names in the dirt, and to learn the other letters and their sounds. When the small boys got bored and went to play ball together, Red also gave up his letters, went to find a soft-cored stick and began to carefully hollow it out ready to construct a whistle and the adult Spartan members of the family all seemed to be watching the forest path with some sort of nervous anxiety.

Simon asked Kalliope why everyone seemed so stressed but the man shrugged. "It's nothing" he said, very obviously lying but equally obviously unable, or unwilling, to tell the truth. Simon dropped the subject, unsatisfied but seeing no way to get answers.

A couple of miles distant from the cave, the group that had gone to prayer were stood in a small stone grotto, open to the sky, carved by unknown means into an almost circular, smooth-floored depression in the rock. A few plants and mosses grew at the sides of the grotto but it mainly was clear, plain stone, a little damp, secluded, and very private, which was, of course, the main requirement of any prayer site.

They had with them a stag, whose halter rope had been secured around a boulder and which was happily eating the mosses that grew near to where it had been tethered. Their worship that day would be in two parts. Hyacinth and Clio would first sacrifice the stag and consecrate the site, then, once the site was sacred and Apollo's presence assured, Marcus would step forward and the baby would be presented and confirmed before the Gods.

It was Clio's turn to take the lead in the initial worship of that day, and though the sun was obscured by the clouds he began by saluting the sky with his swords held high in the cross, then began presenting his arms, spinning and twirling in a dazzling display of skill. After several minutes Clio stopped and held his swords in a cross, which prompted the elder priest, Hyacinth, to draw his blades and perform the same presentations, finishing in the same position, facing the back wall of the grotto, looking up into the overcast sky.

"Apollo, hear Your children!" Clio then called in a loud voice. Hyacinth echoed him and then the remaining Spartans drew their swords, though Marcus, stood slightly outside the grotto, did not, but waited for this ceremony to be over before joining the rest of the family. The worshippers held their swords high and called together, "Apollo, hear Your children!" and the power of the God became palpable in the circle within which they worshipped.

"Mighty Apollo, we worship You this day with sacrifice and ask You to hear our prayers" Clio then said. "You are the glorious God of the Sun, You are the powerful God of Warriors, You are the compassionate God of Death. You have power over our life and we give You this life in return!" Hyacinth took the animal from its tether and held it still, kneeling down with practised skill and twisting the head so that the neck was held tightly and the creature lay on its side, then with a flash of swords Clio cut the beast's throat and stabbed its heart with pinpoint accuracy.

The priests were bathed in the blood as the animal died and with a flash of light an unfueled fire sprang up in the centre of the half grotto, the flames dancing high and casting flickering patterns on the damp stone walls of the space. Then, on the back wall of the grotto, the rocks seemed to reform ever so slightly and the face, torso, legs and feet of a large statue slowly appeared, the face of the statue looking down on the men with an expression of pride.

"Apollo is present, hear our prayers, Lord Apollo, our God, our creator" Clio said, falling to his knees before the figure, trembling slightly as he bowed his head to his swords.

"Hear our prayers" the Spartans repeated, kneeling with swords, bowing to the pommels and praying silently to the deity who had, in such a stunning fashion, graced the grotto with His presence. After a few moments prayer time the two priests lifted the carcass to one side of the grotto and cleaned and sheathed their swords, the noise indicating to the others that they should also sheathe their blades.

Then Hyacinth turned to the statue and began to recite the great deeds of the God, from the earliest times. He continued through their changes, Apollo's challenge to the goddess Hera who wanted the Spartans destroyed, and His support of their ancestors as they learned how to be more than just men. He finally described the support that the deity continued to give them, finishing with, "and by your grace and power, Lord Apollo, a new son is born to us, a son whom we present to you this day," which was Marcus' queue to enter the grotto for the first time.

He and the baby were both naked, he had his sword at his waist and held Maia high on one shoulder with his left hand, so as to leave his right hand free to draw the weapon.

"Who do I see before me?" Hyacinth asked in formal tones, turning to the congregation.

"The sons of Sparta!" everyone shouted.

"And how do you exist?" Hyacinth continued.

"By the divine intervention of our most gracious god Apollo."

"And what do you require?"

"The blessing of holy Zeus, this day and always."

"And for what reason were you created?"

As one they drew the swords with a steely hiss, Marcus keeping a tight hold of little Maia as he did so. "For vengeance!" they shouted and their blood sung as they proclaimed this, their reason for existing, before their God.

The swords were the sheathed by everyone except Marcus, who, on a nod from Hyacinth, walked forwards to the bloody puddle on the ground where the stag had met its end some minutes earlier. "Who do you bring?" Hycainth asked

"A son of Sparta" Marcus answered.

"And how is he called?"

"Maia, son of Marcus and Philip."

"And he was borne of?"

"Marcus son of Elis."

"And how will he live?"

"By the creation of Apollo and the blessing of Zeus and through the forbearance of Hera" Marcus recited. He tried to remain calm but his voice showed a faint trickle of fear, a trickle that Hyacinth recognised but for the man's and the God's sake, ignored.

"Mighty Apollo" the prayer began, spoken by everyone, "for vengeance and out of sympathy for our tears for our mothers you created us. You blessed us and set us apart from all other men. By your divine intervention alone we exist and give birth to new life and keep the memory of our home and your mercy alive across the years. We thank you for this your new son, born to keep the same memory alive into a new generation."

After a short pause, the second prayer began, "Divine Hera, we cry with you and ask you to moderate your anger. Out of grief for our mothers we continue to accept both blessing and curse and pray to you, reluctant mother of us all that you will one day forgive our impertinence."

Finally the third prayer was spoken. "Mighty Zeus, creator of all, who granted your blessing on the whole world and confirmed your love for the men of Sparta be with us this hour as we welcome our newest brother and son to the fold. In the name of the people of Sparta we pray."

"Offer the child, Marcus" Hyacinth said as the echo of the prayer faded away. He did so and the father of the babe went and stood next to the priest, his sword still drawn. Maia cried at the feel of the cooling, congealed blood and the damp stone on his naked skin but he couldn't be comforted, not yet. His thin wails filled the air as Hyacinth spoke once more.

"You claim this boy to be a son of Sparta" Hyacinth said and Marcus alone said, "yes, I do."

"Do you know what Apollo requires from those who take the Spartan name in vain?"

"Yes I do" Marcus said again.

"And should your claim be proven false do you have the strength to do what is necessary?"

Marcus took a deep breath. "Yes I do" he answered a third time and twirled his sword in both hands, held the razor sharp blade high, reversed his grip and adjusted his stance so that he could plunge the weapon directly into the baby's heart.

Hyacinth put his hands on his own sword hilts and fell to one knee and Marcus stayed standing, pointing the deadly weapon at his son. "Mighty Apollo" everyone began intoning together, urged to speak by Clio, "We thank you for your divine intervention. We most humbly beg that you identify and claim as your own the sons of Sparta here present and accept as a sacrifice those who claim your parentage falsely." Everyone began to shudder and gasp as waving white filaments appeared on all of them, filling them with acute, burning pain. Maia, too, grew the filaments and with obvious relief Hyacinth pinched the little feathery tendril at the baby's navel.

Maia screamed in agony.

"Apollo you bless us with your gift and your presence, hold us in your arms we pray," Hyacinth said, shouting over the baby's agonised cries. "Hera your curse is our dignity and identity, look with mercy upon us we pray. Zeus we present this our brother Maia Marcusson as a true son of Sparta and worthy by all present to be called kin."

"Worthy by all present to be called kin" everyone repeated together. Hyacinth then got to his feet and let go of his swords. "Son of Sparta" he said to Marcus, "Lower your sword and recognise your brother" and finally Marcus lowered and sheathed his sword. Hyacinth bent down and lifted a sobbing Maia from the pool of congealed blood, kissed him gently and smiled at his family. "Let us welcome our son and brother" he said and at that the formality was broken.

"Come, Maia, shh, stop screaming, it's over now" Marcus comforted his child. He took the boy from his uncles' arms and held him up to his nipple to be fed. He wriggled and cried for another few minutes whilst his filaments were out, then, once they retracted he relaxed and finally stopped sobbing thanks to the comforting feel of his father's milk and warm arms, however he continued to whimper softly.

Marcus looked around his family to see Socra held in his great-grandfather's arms, sobbing in much the same way as his brother. "You okay, Socra?" he asked softly.

"No!" he squealed. "My belly button hurts and you, you, you almost killed my baby brother!" he accused his birth father. He glared at him, sniffled and wiped his nose on his arm, his face red and wet with tears and snot.

"Son, Apollo commands us to present our sons before him. No one can claim His gift and our legacy without His express permission. What this ceremony does is give Maia the right to call himself Spartan without fear. You, too, indeed all the Spartan members of our family, were confirmed in this manner."

"Why didn't you tell me?" the five year old wailed.

"I couldn't, son" Marcus replied. "It's one of the most sacred of divine laws, we cannot discuss the confirmation service with anyone who hasn't seen it. To sacrifice a person, even to mimic or mime such a sacrifice, is a terrible thing. Apollo's command prevents word being spread to anyone who does not have the right to know, and ensures that the only ones that are told have the capacity to fully understand what they witness. Son, look" he said, kneeling down and beckoning his grandfather to also kneel so that the older brother to touch and cuddle the younger.

"Maia will be fine, he is calming down and will soon be perfectly comfortable again, and he is proven to be a true son of Sparta! Would you deny your brother his heritage?"

"No," Socra admitted reluctantly, still sniffling.

"Then you must accept that this rite is necessary" the father finished, hugging both his sons.

"I'm sorry father, it's just..." Socra sniffled.

"I know son, it's hard. I had to do this for you, too, this is the second time I've presented a son before our God. And even though I knew I gave birth to both of you, there's always a moment of doubt when you think, would I have to do the unthinkable?"

"So why do you do it?"

"If I didn't, Maia would live a lie and any claim he made to Spartan heritage could be disputed by Hera. I would never wish such a terrible fate on anyone as to be challenged by the Queen of the gods, son."

"Is She that scary?" Socra asked.

Hyacinth came over to his father, his cousin and two nephews. "She is affronted by our existence, Socra. We are men who can give birth as women do. She loathes what we are and only because of the intervention of her husband, the mighty Zeus, father of the Gods, does She permit us to continue to exist. If someone claimed our heritage falsely, they would not have Zeus' protection and she would destroy them, indeed, she may use it as an excuse to destroy us all."

The boy shuddered. "That would be horrible" he whispered.

"Yes, so now do you see why your father Marcus had to present Maia?" Gaia asked the boy.

He nodded. "I do" he said softly.

Nabis and Jocasta dragged the carcass of the stag out of the grotto and quickly cleaned it. Everyone dressed, Marcus using a damp rag to clean the worst of the blood from his baby son before wrapping him warmly in a diaper and a soft, fleecy kid-skin and fastening him in a papoose to his torso. Jocasta and Nabis then shouldered the stag and they group walked back to the cave in silence, all lost in their own thoughts.

Socra cuddled his grandfather Elis for a while before consenting to walk with Demaratos. "The first confirmation I watched was when Konon was presented before the Gods" the seven year old said to the younger boy. "And I was upset too until I understood it properly. But uncle Alexander got really upset when he realised Konon was covered in blood and I remember trying to explain to him why but my throat seized up and I couldn't talk."

"Why? Wasn't that really scary?" Socra asked, wide-eyed.

"Father Aeson explained it to me" Demaratos said, "he said that keeping the secret about the confirmation is one of the things that Apollo helps us to do. If we try and talk about it to someone who isn't allowed to know he stops the words coming out of our mouths."

Marcus looked over at his oldest son. "That means you won't be able to tell your father Philip, you know that, don't you?" he asked softly.

"Why do we have to keep it secret? It doesn't seem fair to me" Socra asked.

"Because Philip and Alexander and Simon and Red and the others are human, Socra, and if they were told about Apollo, if they knew about how we worship and the fact that we sacrifice animals to our God, then even their bonds and the love they have for their mates might not be enough to keep them at our sides. And then, Apollo Himself commands us to keep it secret, if our faith becomes known then He runs the risk of His believers being targeted and attacked. We keep our faith to ourselves to ensure our continued existence, to keep our God strong through our worship and because we cherish the love of our partners. To risk losing our faith, our God or our loved ones would be unthinkable" Hyacinth explained.

Jason was walking nearby and shifted uncomfortably. He knew, of course, that Simon had already realised how they worshipped, either because of his own innate perceptiveness or because of some divine inspiration. He was thankful that the former monk hadn't panicked about the reality of sacrifice, and hoped that he would not ask awkward questions about baby Maia and the reason the infant had been taken to worship that day.

They stopped about half a mile from the cave and bathed in a small stream. The water was sluggish and a little green but even slightly stagnant water was preferable to returning covered in blood, especially when the infant Maia was also so-bloodied. When clean, or relatively so, they redressed and headed back to the rest of the family.

The Spartan watchers were all notably relieved and all of them whispered words of welcome to Maia, who was still fretful and in some obvious discomfort from his now-retracted but still-bruised filaments. Red was more excited to show off the whistle he'd made and he piped a little tune of four notes, relating to the holes he'd bored in the now hollow stick. Konon and Evander, oblivious to their kinsmen's moods, also wanted to show off writing their names and the letters Simon had shown them that day.

"It looks like you've had quite a school going this afternoon" Jason smiled to his lover. Simon nodded. "It's been fun and they all really want to learn" he explained. He looked at his lover. "I see you've been hunting again, was your afternoon okay?" he asked with a slightly pointed smile.

"It was okay," Jason replied uncomfortably, not sure what to say to the human who, in contrast to the rest of his species, did in fact know something of Apolline worship.

Simon dropped the subject, seeing that his lover was uncomfortable. He absently noted that baby Maia seemed very fretful that evening but said nothing, spitting the now-butchered venison and helping to prepare it for roasting with no other comment.

The following day, the remainder of the Spartans also went to worship, coming back with a dead boar, which together with the previous days' venison kept the family in meat for several meals. As time passed they settled into life in the valley. Their food stocks, thanks to the good quality of the late-summer foraging, didn't diminish appreciably and the older foods were eaten and replaced by new gatherings. The wolf pelts were tanned to completion, as were some good deer hides, some goat skins and several dozen rabbit skins.

Clothes were made and mended, leather goods, saddles and boots were fixed, and two mares were found to be with foal and were given more careful treatment than the rest of the horses so that they would give birth safely. Several times, parties of worshippers headed to the grotto on the hillside and came back with the remains of their sacrifices and the whole family basked in the presence and blessing of Apollo. The children all began to learn their letters, Simon, helped by Elis, prepared some paper for them to use eventually to write on, and Red practised with his whistle and in quite a short space of time was able to play some catchy little melodies.

Sword craft was practised regularly, and the family's carefully preserved records were taken from their trunk for Simon to look at. He, Elis and Kalliope began working to record the summer's events, the bonding of Jason to Simon and Cleopas to Red and the birth of Maia being the key points they noted down however a line was given over to recording that Simon had been threatened with arrest by men of his former faith.

"You record a lot of detail" Simon observed.

"It's actually quite fun to record our histories and to read over the deeds and lives of our ancestors and men we never personally knew but whose lives influenced ours" Kalliope smiled in reply.

Nabis and Jocasta made their wolf-pelt cloaks and a similar cloak was made and presented to Red, who loved the soft, warm garment. Several people whittled new bone needles for stitching and made other tools and useful items out of either bone or wood. The wagons were cleared out and cleaned completely and on one vehicle a section of the undercarriage that had started to splinter and decay was replaced.

They'd been at the cave a month and the seasons were beginning to roll on, the leaves on the trees beginning to turn from dark green to a host of shades of red, orange, brown and gold. The weather was warm in the afternoons but rather damp and crisp in the mornings and the family had begun over the last few days to discuss beginning to pack and move on. It was a particularly crisp morning with a hint of frost on the pre-dawn air when the family were roused shortly before they would normally wake for meditation, by twin cries of agony from Clio and his partner Aeson, both of whom were Spartan.

"What is it?" Red asked Cleopas groggily. Cleopas sat up. "What's the matter, cousin?" he called out, unable to see much detail in the dark cave as the sun was some time from rising and the fire not yet stirred up.

"We're emergent" came Aeson's voice, carrying both pain and excitement in roughly equal measures.

"Does that mean I'm going to get another brother?" Demaratos' voice sounded through the darkness.

"Enough!" Gaia spoke softly but firmly. "Let us meditate, we will continue this discussion after dawn" he said and silence reigned as swords were found and everyone settled down in their meditative poses.

As the sun rose and breakfast was prepared, Simon and Red both stared at the two emergent men with unashamed nosiness. "They look like goose down" Simon said with a soft, curious smile. "What do they feel like, Aeson?"

"I've never actually touched them," he admitted, to the human's obvious surprise. "They cause absolute agony if even a gentle breeze catches them, I'm couldn't even contemplate putting my hand on them" he explained.

"That seems unnatural, to be in that much pain" Simon replied. "Does it not hurt to bear a child?"

"It hurts beyond all reason" Marcus said from nearby. "And it is unnatural, if you think about it, we are men who can procreate between ourselves with no need for women. Our abilities are a direct blessing from our Lord Apollo. As for the pain, the agony we face goes some way to appease Hera and calm Her anger - at least that is what Zeus intended."

"So will you both carry a child?" Simon continued, speaking to the emergent couple, who, since they were both Spartan had emerged at the same time.

"No" Clio said, "though the family can care for two who are gestant it is unfair for us both to gestate and therefore remove the opportunity for another couple, should someone else become emergent before we give birth. I have had the most recent gestation between us, I carried Konon to completion, so this emergence is Aeson's" he explained with a small smile. He shifted his position and winced as his stomach contracted and his filaments were irritated. "Ow!" he exclaimed.

"You've only got ten days to endure, lover, stop complaining" Aeson smiled.

"I know, I'm sorry" Clio replied apologetically, reaching out and caressing his mate's face and ear with his fingertips in a gentle, almost erotic fashion. "I love you" he whispered.

"And I love you too" Aeson smiled back, turning his head to plant a soft kiss on the hand that touched him.

Heaps of porridge with honey and crisp bacon were distributed and eaten, incidentally the last of the bacon as most had already been consumed. After everyone had eaten, a discussion arose amongst the older family members about whether, and when, to move on. "We can stay here for a few more days and leave once Aeson has conceived" Kalliope suggested.

"And force me to have a whole nine months in the wagon? Why can't we stay a little longer?" Aeson protested.

"Because if we stay much longer we'll run the risk of being bogged down in the snow, don't forget we're quite high in the mountains and if we're going to get out before spring we need to make a move sooner rather than later" Elis said.

"Why don't we stay here?" Demeter asked. "We've got enough stores, I'm sure this valley could support us through the winter."

"We've run out of bacon and flour already and the meal and beans and grains won't last forever" Jocasta replied. "We'll end up totally reliant on foraging and by late winter there won't be much left. There's a danger we'd be very hungry indeed towards the tail end of winter and be praying for the snows to melt if we stay put."

"But Aeson's right, it's miserable enough being stuck in that wagon when you are forced to be, never mind when you're simply having to hide what you are because you're in human company" Marcus interjected.

"I think Jocasta's right" Gaia said, putting an end to the bickering, as the family by and large deferred to their oldest relative. "If we stay here for the whole winter, yes we would have peace and freedom but we won't make it through until spring without experiencing severe hunger. I suggest we wait for Aeson to conceive, then make our way to the southern foothills. We'll find somewhere else relatively secluded to camp and then a group of us will head with money and pack horses and go and find a farm to purchase goods from. We will stay in secluded spots as much as possible but get close enough to civilisation that we can purchase food."

"Will there be somewhere suitable?" Tito asked.

"And can we go straight south from here or do we need go head north and meet up with the road first?" Alexander wondered.

"There's still a lot of forest south of here, we could find a hidden dell or something for certain. But to answer Alexander's question, we will need to head north and pick up the road, I don't know that there would be a safe route south, certainly not one we could take the wagons on" Gaia replied.

"That means Aeson will have a fortnight at least of hiding in the wagon" Nabis said, "before he can come out and ride again."

"That cannot be helped" Gaia replied.

"Why would Aeson have to hide?" Red asked Cleopas, from where the pair had been sat listening to the discussion. "I don't understand."

"When we become gestant and carry a child, it is obvious to all. Our womb, where the child grows, is a temporary appendage that grows on the outside of our stomachs. Anyone except a blind man would with a single glance know that Aeson wasn't human. That is why he would have to hide" Cleopas explained softly. The boy nodded but seemed puzzled.

"What is it, Red?" Cleopas asked.

"The baby grows on the outside of your stomach?" the boy asked.

Cleopas nodded. "He will be supported by a web of strands that are kind of grey-white in colour but at the same time almost translucent. They look really odd. But yes, the baby grows on the outside of our stomachs."

"Not the inside like ladies?" Red confirmed. "No, Red" Cleopas smiled.

"And those wavy things on Aeson and Clio's bellies show that they can have a baby?" Red continued.

"That's right."

"How do they become a baby? They look like feathers" he said.

Cleopas chuckled and blushed slightly. "When the feathers are completely grown they'll lie flat like a disc against Aeson's stomach. When that happens, Clio will spill his seed onto them" he explained with a faint smile. "And the seed will be pulled by the feathers into Aeson's navel to make the beginning of the womb and the new child."

"Spill his?" Red blushed. "Oh, I didn't think?" he mumbled.

"Sex is more than just for fun" Cleopas whispered, making the boy's blush flame all the more furiously. "It is also for procreation, to enable the next generation of Spartan children to be born."

After a few minutes the blush calmed down and Red looked at Cleopas with a sheepish grin. "Will you show me how?" he asked softly.

"Here, now?" Cleopas asked.

"No! In private!" Red giggled.

Cleopas stood up and extended his hand to Red. The boy joined him, blushing again. Jason looked at his brother quizzically. "A little sex education lesson, brother" Cleopas joked, making Red blush even more. "Come on, let's find a private spot" he said to his mate and man and boy walked away from the cave hand in hand.

They didn't go far, barely five minutes' walk, enough distance to be obscured by the undergrowth but only just. Cleopas took his cloak off and laid it on the grass, then turned to look at Red.

The boy had grown and developed over the summer, thanks to the good food and loving care he had received. A couple of inches taller, several pounds heavier, with faintly defined muscles and a healthy tan, he looked like an adolescent now and was no longer a scrawny, maltreated child.

Cleopas of course towered over him but as a Spartan with a six foot, three inch frame he quite naturally was taller than most humans. They stood face to face, about a yard apart. "We first need to get undressed" he said softly, reaching over to unbuckle Red's sword.

He laid the sword belt on the ground carefully, then gently untied his cloak, which puddled to the floor. The deerskin tunic was pulled over his head to reveal a boyish torso which was dotted with seemingly millions of freckles thanks to a summer in secluded areas, which had enabled the boy to run around in a semi-naked state. The tiny pink nipples were hard on Red's chest, mute evidence, if any were needed, of his excitement.

Cleopas paused in his unveiling which was Red's cue to unbuckle the man's sword and leather arm-sheaths. He then tugged on the tunic to urge Cleopas to pull it off, since, of course, Cleopas was too tall and Red too short to reciprocate the movement in the same fashion as Cleopas had done for him. Cleopas did so and his muscle definition was much the same as any Spartan, strong and well-defined, and his skin was smooth to the touch and olive-toned.

Red untied Cleopas' boots and pulled them off, then pulled the laces at the top of Cleopas' leather leggings free, enabling him to slowly, gently, pull them down so that the man was clad only in his loincloth, which at that moment was quite obscenely tented. Red, of course, had seen this before - they'd enjoyed undressing each other many times, although the culmination of this day's foreplay would be different from the usual gentle touching that they normally engaged in.

Cleopas, now almost naked, knelt down and removed Red's boots, revealing clean, soft feet and neatly cut toe nails. He unlaced and pulled his little lover's leggings free, and the boy's loincloth was similarly tented as the man's, though of course the tent pole was quite a lot smaller. "You okay, my little mate?" Cleopas asked, still kneeling so as to remain face to face with Red.

Red nodded. "Absolutely" he smiled, a grin so full of joy and so genuine that Cleopas felt a surge of emotions that begged him to protect, nurture and love.

They hugged, their skin burning with desire as they pressed against each other. "You keep grinding against me like that and I'll shoot my seed in my loincloth" Cleopas whispered into Red's ear, urging the boy to moderate his movements somewhat.

"Sorry" Red gasped, as little breathy. He pulled away a fraction of an inch and then they kissed, a gentle peck of lips that seemed to hold so much more emotion, so much more respect, so much more longing than a lustful smooch would have done.

"I only say that because I thought you wanted to understand how we procreate?" Cleopas whispered back. Red nodded and bit his lip in his adorable way that showed that he was both very excited and quite nervous. "There's nothing to be nervous of, nothing at all, my little lover" Cleopas assured him. He manoeuvred from his kneeling position to first sit, then lie back on his cloak. "Come, lie down" he whispered to Red, who did so, cuddling up against Cleopas' side.

"Let's pull loincloths off before we go any further" Cleopas suggested and each untied and removed their own covering without any self-consciousness, having seen each other many times before. Red's small hand and slender fingers seemed almost automatically reach for Cleopas' organ but the man stopped him. "Not yet" he whispered, "let me show you how procreation works" he smiled.

He pushed Red flat and then in a swift movement knelt up and across the boyish thighs. "First I'm going to pretend that I am Clio and you are Aeson" he said, "then we'll swap over when you understand. Okay?"

"Yeah!" Red giggled.

"Okay" Cleopas said, "Aeson's filaments, the feathery things, will spread into a circle that covers his tummy like this." He traced the shape onto the warm skin and Red giggled again. "That tickles" he whispered.

Cleopas leaned down and kissed his nose. "I know" he smiled. He sat back up and continued, "anyway, his filaments would cover his stomach in a circle, all fanned out from his belly button" he caressed the tiny dimple on Red's stomach, making the boy giggle some more.

"When they are all out and ready Clio is going to kneel over Aeson's legs, like I'm doing to you" he explained, "then, being careful of his own filaments he is going to stimulate himself." He began moving his hand, using his own natural lubricant to slide his foreskin as he did so. He smiled at Red as the boy watched, wide-eyed, realising what was about to happen. After a few minutes Cleopas gasped and then in a dozen or so pulses, shot liquid all over Red's stomach, pooling on his skin.

"When Aeson is covered in Clio's seed his filaments will one by one curl over it" Cleopas said once he'd gotten his breath back. He rubbed Red's stomach with a gentle fingertip, drawing lazy lines from the edge to his navel to demonstrate. "And after an hour all the seed will be contained within a little bubble that sits just about here" he finished, smiling as he drew the small shape on the boy's stomach. Red smiled with love and longing, no longer giggling at the gentle touches on his ticklish zones.

"You want to do that to me, now?" Cleopas asked. Red nodded silently and Cleopas moved to let him get up. The excess liquid, still on his skin, began to run and pool and Cleopas grabbed a handful of dried autumn grasses from next to where they were sat and wiped it away. "There, all gone" he said softly. He lay on his back and somewhat gingerly the adolescent knelt over the man's thighs.

"Now pleasure yourself like I did" Cleopas smiled. "Don't worry about where to aim it, we've got lots of time to practise."

Red grinned and began mauling his little poker and after only a few minutes a tiny squirt and dribble of liquid spurted forth. Somehow, without either planning or aiming, he managed to make most of the miniscule offering land squarely in Cleopas' navel. "And that's it" Cleopas said once the boy's eyes could focus once more. "When the time comes and I am emergent, that is all you need to do. Do that and our son will be formed."

"Our son" Red smiled, with longing and desire and happiness flashing in equal parts on his face. "I like the sound of that" he whispered.

"I do too" Cleopas replied with a similar smile.

It was six days later that Aeson and Clio, both fully emergent, disappeared on one warm, sunny afternoon and came back with Aeson sporting a small white bubble over his navel that proclaimed he was gestant. Clio was in some discomfort as he'd managed to graze his filaments twice and had consequently lost all his hardness and had had to wait for the pain to subside before beginning to pleasure himself once again. But they'd managed on their third try to achieve conception and Aeson was both proud and protective of the little, painful growth on his torso.

That was the family's queue to begin to pack up and prepare to leave and four days later, after the last of Clio's unused filaments fell out, they had heaps of spare skins and sacks of food in the wagons and other items and possessions on the pack horses. Everyone except Joseph, Evander and Alexander mounted, since they would steer the wagons for this first leg of the journey, Evander cuddled up to his human father's side. The pack horses were strung together and four horses were teamed on each wagon, to pull them safely back over the rough ground towards the road, and with that, the family began to travel once more.

Aeson didn't wear a tunic but kept himself warm with a thick winter cloak over his bare shoulders. Whilst they were in unpopulated territory he was safe to ride and had already planned to do so at every opportunity. They would get out of the more rocky country that day and camp near the same lake that they had been to earlier in the summer. From there they would head east and north for the following couple of days until they joined the road over the mountains. It would be the third day that Aeson would have to begin to hide from prying eyes.

The journey back to the lake was fairly difficult but not impossible and they reached it mid-afternoon. They set up camp using the same fire pit they'd constructed on their outward journey, then sat and relaxed, glad that their first day's travel in over a month had gone smoothly. Everyone except Aeson swam that evening and as the dark of the night cloaked them and the temperature dropped, they all snuggled with their partners, or for the younger family members, their siblings, and slept whilst wrapped in someone else's warm arms. It was that night that Maia, who was bigger and stronger now and more likely to sleep through the night, slept in the wagon for the first time, cuddled by his brother, Socra.

The following day they followed an intersecting valley eastwards, turning north shortly after noon to crest a shallow ridge, which they followed for several miles until they reached a valley from which they could pick up the road easily. After descending into the valley they set up camp, knowing that on the following day they would only have four hours' ride or thereabouts to reach the road.

That night Simon paced nervously, clearly anxious about heading back to what was ironically termed 'civilisation'. He didn't think it was civilised to be threatening to arrest a man simply because he'd lost his faith and changed his appearance and knew that from the following morning until they entered a wilderness once more that he would be nervous of encountering Christians, especially monks or priests. "Simon, you're going to either wear a trench in the grass or wear out your boots, come and sit down, my love" Jason called out.

"Jason, what if?" he began, stopping his pacing and coming to crouch down by the fire where Jason lounged. "What if there have been communications, what if churchmen for miles around are looking for us? What do we do then?"

"We fight our way to safety then head away from civilisation and towns and villages and find somewhere that is safe" Jason replied calmly.

"But what if" Simon began but Jason held his hand to his lover's lips and silenced him. "Enough with the what if's, we'll deal with things as they arise" he said softly.

"But" Simon tried again.

"Simon, you've worked incredibly hard this summer with your sword, and you're so incredibly muscled and fit that anyone who tries to arrest you will have a fight on their hands. Not to mention that I and all the family will defend you. Now stop panicking, please?"

He held his arms wide and Simon leaned into an embrace. "I'm sorry, I'm just nervous" he said softly.

"There's no need, my love, there's no need" Jason assured him. They shared a small smile, then acting almost in unison leaned towards each other and kissed. The kiss progressed from a small peck of comfort to something lustier and soon both became aware that the other was getting aroused. They pulled apart to breathe, droplets of sweat beginning to bead on almost equally brown-torsos, though Jason was, naturally, more muscled and well-built than Simon. "Let's take this aways a bit" Simon whispered and the two lifted their cloaks and walked a dozen yards away from the fireside.

"I want you to make love to me, Jason" Simon begged as they sat down again. "I need to feel you within me" he said.

"Are you okay, Simon?" Jason asked, realising that his love seemed heartbroken, almost.

"I don't know" Simon admitted, "I can't explain how nervous I feel, there's something coming, I can feel it. It's important that we make love, tonight, my love, it feels almost as if?" He paused.

"As if what?" Jason asked.

"As if it'll be our last chance" Simon whispered, his voice breaking, and suddenly Jason remembered the words of Apollo, what seemed to be an age ago now, when the God warned Jason of a choice that Simon had to make to ensure their future together. He shivered with nervous energy, hoping that the sensation wasn't a premonition of something? something terrible.

"Let's make love, my lover" he whispered, "and not worry about the future. We are together now and that is what matters." They embraced and caressed and made love and afterwards slept into a sleep of spent exhaustion.

The following morning they awoke and meditated before dawn, ate a breakfast of berries, bread cakes and cheese after the sun had risen and by an hour after dawn were ready to ride. Aeson, with only a little grumbling, climbed into the wagon, where he reclined against a heap of skins and relaxed. He was a little bored but everyone knew that boredom was a far better condition than discovery.

They reached the road an hour before noon and from that point made good time over the mountains. They travelled at a healthy pace for three hours or so before encountering a campsite where a merchant with a caravan of goods had stopped for their luncheon.

"Do we stop?" Lykurgos asked Nabis - the two were outriders.

"It would seem sensible, we've not eaten either" Nabis replied. They reined in their horses and were watched by the merchant as the rest of the family rode up. "Hail, friend merchant, would you mind us lunching here alongside you?" Nabis shouted once the others had been consulted and had agreed with the outrider's plans.

"Do what you wish" the merchant said with a nervous tremor in his voice. "I have only my servants in the caravan, the last guard unit I employed refused to travel into the mountains with me" he explained. He looked resigned. "I only beg, if I may, that you leave my servants unmolested?"

Nabis was confused and his expression clearly displayed this but Gaia was quicker on the uptake. "Friend merchant, we are not brigands!" he said hotly. "We are but a nomadic family, our men and children ride on horses and our women folk in our wagons. We would introduce you to our wives if it weren't for our culture which prohibits our women from mixing and mingling with people who are not their relations. When we asked if we can stop and lunch with you, that is all we intend to do, I swear."

The merchant's eyes seemed to relax, but he still scanned the group. "You sound honest but you look too much like the robber troop that the church is searching for, it is said that you raided a monastery and made off with some of their brothers and all of their gold, and then it is said that you kidnapped the son of a rich man, or so the gossips claim" he said softly, looking to Gaia for either confirmation or denial.

"We.... what?" Gaia gasped, horrified.

"Father Gaia, what is it?" Elis asked, riding over.

"We?the accusations?" Gaia gasped, unable at that moment to speak because of the shock. Elis looked at the merchant who shrugged. "I can only tell you what the gossip is in the inns and taverns" he explained, "but a troop of men and boys dressed in skins, all armed and skilled swordsmen, are said to have offended the church by kidnapping some brothers in holy orders and steeling gold, and have also angered the townsfolk back there" he indicated along the road, "by kidnapping the valued son of a rich man."

Elis was braced for a shock so when this news was regaled to him he was more angry than horrified. "Simon, Red, come over here!" he turned and shouted.

Simon, accompanied by Jason, and Red, with Cleopas, joined the older men and the merchant even as the others had begun to dismount and make ready to eat.

"Friend merchant, I beg you, repeat your story a third time" Elis asked and the merchant did so. Simon looked shocked but Red was amused and burst into a fit of the giggles.

"What is so funny, young man? These are serious accusations" the merchant said.

"It's just I was an orphan and the inn keeper this family took me from had worked me as a slave from my earliest memories. I wasn't valued and I certainly wasn't anyone's son. I've eaten better this summer than I can ever remember doing so before, and I've been cared for and valued in this company more than I ever was in the town" he explained, sobering up.

"So they lied?" the merchant asked.

"It would seem so" Elis replied.

"Unless you are lying?" the merchant asked, looking at them with suspicious eyes once more.

"I can prove we are not lying" Simon asserted, finding his voice. The merchant looked over. "Oh?" he asked.

"I was brother Simon of Tours, junior to brother Luke, who led a pilgrimage this summer to set up a new church, and novice alongside brothers Peter and Jude. We met this family along the way and I left my brothers of my own volition. My tonsure has grown out and I have stopped wearing burlap but I still have my old robe in a pack if you care to see it, I can recite any part of the daily office you care to pick and have memorised most of the book of Psalms and the Vulgate gospels" Simon said softly.

"You are the brother that they?" the merchant gasped.

"They didn't do anything. I left of my own choice" Simon asserted. He saw the merchant looking at his sword. "I now dress in the manner of my adopted family and have been taught sword skills by them. I am by all accounts their brother and no longer a brother of the church but I cannot deny my background or heritage."

"And what of the money you are said to have stolen?" the merchant said softly. "I am guessing that was also a lie?"

"We made money fairly by selling leather goods in the market" Tito replied, who had also come to join the discussion. "We stole neither money nor people, that is not our way" he said. "But come, shall we eat or continue this fruitless conversation?"

"I am sorry, friend, I see the stories are unfounded but you are described very accurately" the merchant apologised. "I see you are honest men and for that reason, if I may I'd like to offer some advice - stay off the main highways as much as possible and whatever you do keep away from churches and garrison towns, there is a reward on your heads."

"We will bear that in mind, thank you for the warning" Gaia said to the man, finally recovering his composure.

They headed back to their respective firesides, the Spartan's fire newly burning and heating a pot of yesterday's venison and barley casserole. They each collected bowlfuls and Gaia, Tito and Simon related the news to the rest of the family, who were, quite naturally, as horrified as the others had been at the unfounded accusations. "How can they say such things?" Carme asked hotly.

"Quite easily, we are so much different than they, and we have taken two of their own into our fold" Jocasta said. Simon and Red made to protest but the man held up his hand and continued, "voluntarily, of their own free will and out of love but they have left one way of life and started another and neither Simon's nor Red's former acquaintances have any understanding of why."

Dishes of casserole were being shared around as Nabis said, "well, brothers, it seems unwise for us to continue the journey we had planned, perhaps as soon as we are within a day's ride of a farming village we should hole up somewhere and just send a couple of us to purchase food, and disguise ourselves somewhat, maybe purchase different clothing and change our appearance."

"Let's just get to safety, I feel rather exposed here on the open road" Jason said, sitting closely to Simon for comfort and out of nervousness.

They only stayed at the campsite for an hour, just enough time to heat their meal, sit and eat and let it digest. Re-mounting, they rode ahead of the merchant whose caravan of wagons moved at a somewhat slower pace than the Spartans maintained. "Thank you once again for the warning, friend merchant" Gaia said as they parted.

"Go safely and godspeed to your destination" the merchant replied, inclining his head in a half-bow as they left.

No one was really comfortable on the road and couldn't decide whether to ride as if being pursued or hold back as if heading towards danger, so the pace they set, though faster than the merchant, was fairly cautious. They had three riders both at front and back, watching for any trouble and the rest of the family rode fairly closely together. By nightfall the stress and tension caused a great deal of weariness but nevertheless they used the last of the daylight to pull a mile or so back from the road, into a small wooded valley, where they spent a restless night.

"It's going to be a cold night" Acantha remarked to Charon as he watched his older brother, Kalliope, put the fire out once they'd finished their supper. Xanthe was already asleep in his siring father's arms and Charon cuddled him closer as he nodded to his lover.

Kalliope turned. "It isn't safe to keep the fire lit, brother, you know that" he said, a little waspishly.

"I know!" Acantha sighed. "I wasn't complaining, just?" he rubbed his tired eyes and yawned. "This whole thing is just an insane mess! I can't see any way we can escape it!"

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to sound so rude" Kalliope apologised. "Let's just sleep on it, things might seem better in the morning."

The following day was a repeat of the first but without encountering anyone else on the road. The wind was quite cold and they woke to frost on the ground which, even though it melted fairly early on, still indicated the changing seasons in a way none of the family cared for. "How long will we be forced to stay on this road?" Lykurgos asked Gaia as they reined in for lunch.

"It's a little hard to judge how far along it we are, having come across the hills and all" Gaia replied. "At a guess we're going to have at least a week, possibly a fortnight before we come to the crossroads. There isn't a town there" he assured the concerned family, "just a couple of taverns, some camp sites, a market place and I think a horse traders, at least that was all it held last time we came through. And from there we were going to turn south but?" he paused.

"But what, grandfather?" Marcus asked.

"The southern road leads into quite a populous area. We would be safer continuing east or heading north, considering the advice the merchant gave us."

"What about winter, a trip north at this time of year would be tantamount to suicide!" Clio exclaimed. "I won't do it, not with Aeson with child."

"Could we not go a few miles south and then turn westwards again and head to the foothills? If we are cautious we could find somewhere for the winter" Joseph asked. "I for one don't want to be fleeing from both people and the weather for the entire season" he said.

Elis nodded. "Joseph has the right idea, I think. We'll have to be on our guard but the cross roads is the best place for selling the goods we've made over the last month and stocking up on food for the winter. If we pile both wagons and all the horses as high as we can, we might be able to last until spring with only the one trip to purchase foods" he suggested.

"Whichever way we turn we are in trouble" Simon sighed. "Who knows where these vile lies have spread to? There might be a trap waiting for us at the crossroads for all we know. At least back in the valley all we had to worry about was starvation." He sounded morose, depressed even.

"My love, don't think like that" Jason chided him, getting off his own mount and heading to Simon's side. The former monk also slid to the ground and Jason embraced him tightly. "We will be fine, I am sure of it" he said softly, but even as he spoke he wasn't sure if he was trying to convince his lover or himself.

They ate a cold lunch and within twenty minutes were back on the road, none of them really wanting to stop and sit at an exposed roadside site. It started to rain that afternoon and as darkness fell they sought a campsite but the road in that particular location led through a boulder-strewn pass, with several miles of nothing but damp, mossy boulders, high cliffs and no campsites or shelter in sight. "There's nothing for at least another hour" Tito reported as he reined in, having galloped ahead to try and scout a campsite out.

"It's getting cold and wet, we need to get the children under cover if we're going to continue" Marcus said, pulling his cloak a little tighter around Maia. Acantha had Xanthe secured to his chest also and he too was struggling to shield the child from the rain. Konon was drooping with exhaustion and almost asleep on his horse.

"Let's get all the young ones into the wagon and asleep," Leander said, "and get their horses tethered to the back of the pack train. We can't stop here, we have to keep going."

"This is utterly miserable" Rhea sighed, ringing the bottom of his cloak out to help it shed some of the excess liquid.

"You think you've got it bad, my love, imagine how the horses feel" Demeter said wryly.

"Let's keep going, the quicker we move the quicker we'll find shelter" Gaia said and so, miserable, damp, tired and getting increasingly colder by the minute the family got the children undercover and then kept riding.

It was pitch dark by the time they stopped, unable to go another yard due to their complete inability to see. They'd tried to light tallow lamps but the wind and rain knocked them out so they had no choice but to pull over to the side of the road, still in the pass, and try and make the best of an uncomfortable night. The children were all in one wagon with Lykurgos, and Ajax and Carme were urged into the second one along with a gestating Aeson and the elderly human Alexander. Several others hunkered underneath the wagons or between horses in an effort to keep a little dry.

The rain poured in sheets, making the night miserable and distinctly uncomfortable and as dawn began to lighten the sky the family were ready to move and try and find somewhere a little more comfortable to dry out and rest. No one felt able to meditate that morning, sleep had been elusive and all were bone weary and desperate for rest, so journeying onwards was deemed by far the most important course of action.

It was mid morning when they finally spied a cave, only a couple of hundred yards from the road but it would be dry and out of the wind and rain and would offer an opportunity to sleep. They headed to it gratefully and after a cursory inspection proved it to be empty, built a fire at the entrance and headed inside to dry out and warm up.

"Miserable, utterly, utterly miserable" Simon commented to no one in particular as he stripped his soaking cloak off and started wringing it out.

"Let's make a barley broth and roast that haunch of venison" Gaia suggested, "we'll all feel better with some hot food inside us."

"And we should put on some dry clothes too" Philip added, heading to a horse pack to hunt out his and his children's spare garments.

Several tripods were rigged up so that wet garments could be hung to dry and everyone got changed and then huddled around the fire, sipping warmed wine to ease the chill and looking forward to a hot meal. All the dry skins they owned were either spread on the floor for sitting on or were wrapped around people as blankets and most cuddled up to a loved one, sharing the warmth.

By mid-afternoon the worst of the wet garments and skins were merely damp and everyone was warm, well fed and sleepy, so naturally people began to drift off to sleep. Several made a point of staying awake, most notably Ajax, Carme, Lykurgos and the younger children who, in contrast to most of the adults, had a relatively comfortable sleep. But their seniors all slept, making up for the lack of rest the previous night.

It was late afternoon when everyone started to wake. Carme and Alexander had made a sweet berry soup with added honey and crushed grains, thick, warming, satisfying and almost like fruity porridge, perfect for a cold, wet, windy afternoon. "What now? Do we ride this afternoon?" Acantha asked.

"I don't think we should" Marcus said, "this is a perfect spot for resting, why don't we stay here tonight and set out first thing tomorrow? By then all of our clothes and cloaks will be properly dry and we should make good time out of this pass and down into more hospitable territory."

"We have to stay put" Nabis said, "we are too tired and we got too cold last night and Marcus is right, we need this extra night to ensure our cloaks are dry again." No one argued, everyone was glad of the rest and glad of the warmth, and they dozed and relaxed for the rest of the day.

The following morning, refreshed, relaxed and dry, they resumed their normal practise of meditation in the hour before dawn, then rose, prepared breakfast and tidied up their camp ready to ride out of the pass. The two mares that were with foal were doing well and seemed healthy and comfortable despite their soaking and everyone was in good spirits. The rain had stopped and even though it was fairly overcast the day held promise of warmer weather that afternoon.

They made good time and were out of the pass and into the tree line by noon, though they chose to continue through the wooded valley for another hour before stopping to eat. The road followed the valley for several more miles before rising up through another rocky pass, and after their experience they decided to stay in the valley until dawn the following day and give themselves a full day's light to tackle the boulder-strewn roadway. They camped in a copse of trees, which, although not completely water tight would still keep the worst of the rain and wind away should a similar storm follow them.

Cleopas took a deer using a slingshot which they cleaned and roasted, and they sat around the fire enjoying quite a party mood. The weather was kind and apart from a foggy drizzle that rose on towards dawn there was no more rain.

Several family members used the evening as an opportunity to find a little privacy and make love, including Red and Cleopas, who again mimed procreative methods, an act that they both found erotic and ever so slightly thrilling. The couple fell asleep with Red lying on top of Cleopas and when they awoke for meditation next morning they found that they were stuck together. "Ow!" Red complained softly.

"Move slower, lift up a bit at a time, that's it" Cleopas whispered back as he helped the boy pry himself free.

"Remind me to wipe my tummy before I nod off on you next time" Red whispered with a grin.

"Next time?" Cleopas grinned.

"Oh, yeah" Red smirked.

After meditating, breaking their fast and putting out their fire they began to ride and head towards the pass. It was steep and rocky but not too difficult and by noon they were at the top and anticipating only a few more hours ride before they reached the next valley. They clattered along in good spirits, chattering and laughing as they rode.

Demeter and Rhea were outriders and stayed perhaps a quarter of a mile in front of the main family, watching the road and scouting for any potential difficulties. They were on the downward stretch of road, in a section that ran down a river channel, with high sided cliffs and shale underfoot and a noisy, foaming river rushing downwards to the side of the path. Thanks to the cliffs and the twisting, switch-back nature of the road they couldn't see more than a few yards ahead and thanks to the river their hearing was also impaired. So it was when they rounded a corner and came face to face with a troop of heavily armed guards, accompanied by several richly dressed church men, they froze.

Demeter was quickest to recover. "I'll tell the others" he gasped, wheeling his horse and galloping back the way they'd come. Rhea tried to follow but a sharp command was issued to the troop and a loud voice carried through the pass, "we've got archers trained on you, heathen. Make no sudden moves."

Rhea froze and raised his hands. Though his blood was boiling he had no desire to be riddled with arrows. Another sharp command by the man in charge brought several men to drag him off his horse and bind him whilst the majority of the troop headed up the pass - straight for the family.

"What have we done to offend you?" Rhea asked.

"Turned a faithful brother against the church" one of the church men replied, "and who knows who else" he continued. "You are a menace to civilised society."

"We didn't turn Simon, he volunteered" Rhea tried to explain.

"Silence!" came the command, spoken like a whip. "Speak when you are spoken to." Rhea was pushed down to his knees and held with ropes and he knelt, humiliated, as he waited for the rest of the family to arrive.

Further up in the valley, Demeter rode as swiftly as he could but in the end he only managed to give the family about a minutes' warning. "Troops, in the pass, to arms!" he gasped breathlessly.

"Where's Rhea?" Jocasta demanded. Demeter's face clouded over with anger and pain. "Captured" he hissed.

There was a mad scramble to draw swords, get horses in position and move the most skilled fighters to the front, but they were barely in time as the attacking force jogged around the corner, long pikes in hand and looking menacing. They charged towards the family and engaged them in a fight without pause, surprising the Spartans who met the ferocious attack as best they could considering the lack of warning.

Just Nabis seemed to have gotten the upper hand and was making to strike his attacker with his sword, a voice rang out, "halt! You move that sword an inch closer and you'll get an arrow in your back!"

Nabis froze and looked up, though he was unable to see the speaker the canyon they were in made his voice carry.

"Up on the clifftops you will see archers" the voice continued, "all with arrows trained on you heathens. One more move, one more sword strike and you will all die."

Gaia looked up. "He's right, lower your swords" he said.

"But Rhea!" Demeter protested.

"Rhea won't benefit by you getting your fool self shot through like a pin cushion!" Gaia snapped. "Lower your sword!"

The family slowly sheathed weapons and on another shouted instruction unbuckled their sword belts. Then they were each grabbed roughly by a guard and escorted on foot, their caravan of goods and horses, with Aeson still hiding in the wagon, were lead by other soldiers down to where Rhea was being held.

A monk tried to take hold of Konon and Evander. "You're babies" he said, "you shouldn't be forced to fight and kill" he said softly.

"We are not babies we are boys and we fight to defend our family and our honour!" Evander yelled at the monk and squirmed from his grip. Konon also broke free and made a lunge for his sword, only to be stopped by a fierce looking soldier.

"Oh, no, my little rat, you are going to be guarded like the men for that movement" he drawled, taking the two small boys roughly by the shoulders and escorting in the same manner as their fathers and uncles.

Soon all the family and all their opponents were together, their horses and wagons had been tethered nearby and a man in rich robes walked over to them.

"Be careful your grace, even the children were armed" a soldier warned the man.

"They won't hurt me, they won't dare" the man drawled. He looked the family over as one might inspect livestock or cattle. "So you are the kidnappers" he said.

"We kidnapped no one, sir" Gaia answered.

"Silence!" the man shouted and a soldier hit the old man across the face.

"You are kidnappers, you stole away and converted one of the few brothers who knew about our gold stores and then our main monastery is robbed. You are kidnappers and you are thieves and you are heathens!" he exclaimed.

"No, your grace! I wasn't kidnapped, I went of my own free will!" Simon shouted.

A guard made to slap him across the face but the church inquisitor held his hand up. "Ah, yes, the former brother Simon. It is you, is it not? Brother Jude?" he asked.

A monk came over and inspected Simon's face. "More weather-beaten and browner but yes, that is Simon" he confirmed.

"You deserted your order and gave information about our wealth to heathens so that they could desecrate a holy church. How could you!"

"I left the order with permission from brother Luke but gave no information about the church except teaching the gospel, your grace. If your gold was stolen then that is pure coincidence and none of my doing" Simon replied.

"I don't believe in coincidence!" the man shouted. "There were four loyal brothers slaughtered at their altar! And here you are, with a sword at your hip and anger in your eye. What am I expected to think?"

Simon took a deep breath and looked at Jason, who was knelt next to him, before saying, "what do you want?"

"You" the man replied. "Willing or unwilling, we must protect the church's property and you have become a liability we are not willing to leave behind."

"And if I come willingly will you let this family go?" Simon asked.

"No, Simon, don't!" Jason gasped but was slapped across the face for his efforts. Simon turned with tears in his eyes.

"Jason, I have no choice" he said sadly. He looked at the church man. "Let them go, let me watch them leave and you can have me freely. Molest any of them and I will fight to the death and see how many of you I can deliver to the devil before I am killed."

"Simon, you can't!" Jason cried, openly sobbing.

"Be well, Jason son of Hyacinth" Simon whispered in a voice so soft only his lover could hear. "And remember I shall always love you." He then looked up to the inquisitor. "Your grace, let them go and I am yours, of my own free will" he said softly.

The man looked at Simon with narrowed eyes, apparently weighing up his choices. "Very well" he said. He nodded to one of the guards who beckoned some of the troop to start untying the Spartans. Their swords had all been dumped in a sheet which was tied with rope. "Carry it until you are out of sight" he said, handing the big, heavy bundle to Elis and Tito.

Jason was heartbroken but seemed to acquiesce and moved along with the family, leaving his love, his mate, knelt at the feet of the inquisitor. He looked around as Simon was finally permitted to get to his feet, his hands still bound, his head bowed, and a terrible resolve filled him. He knew he couldn't live without Simon by his side. His love was too deep, too strong. The thought of leaving Simon behind, never to see him again, filled him with horror.

Ignoring the gasps and pleas of his family Jason turned and ran at top speed towards Simon and his captor, grabbing a sword from one of the soldier's scabbards and knocking the man who he'd stolen the blade from onto his back. "You cannot keep him!" he yelled, lunging for the churchman.

The churchman drew his own sword, seeing the Spartan run towards him with murderous intent. Simon watched the scene as if in slow motion. "Jason! No!" he heard himself shout, then, as peril came closer, millisecond by millisecond, he made a choice. As Apollo had foretold he made his choice - he jumped in between the inquisitor and his lover just as they both thrust their swords.

The world stopped as one blade pierced his back and a second, his lover's sword, pierced his chest. He met Jason's eyes and for a second Jason saw Simon's love for him flash across his face. "Apollo" Simon gasped, then with a gurgle of frothy blood he collapsed and died.

"Well, not how I wanted to silence him but this will do" the inquisitor said callously, ignoring Jason who was crouched beside the body of his lover, horrified agony on his face. The man pulled his sword from Simon's corpse, wiped it on Simon's tunic and sheathed the blade.

"Let's go" he commanded, and ignoring the corpse of the former monk, ignoring the Spartan family who were in the process of untying the sheet and trying to find their swords so as to defend themselves and avenge Simon's death, the troops marched away in quick format, leaving nothing but dust and their footprints behind.

END OF PART TWO - PART THREE TO FOLLOW