The Priestess and the Brat Ch. 02

Note: This is a work of fiction and any resemblance of any characters to any persons, real or fictitious, is purely coincidental and unintentional.

Note 2: This work includes themes of a graphic sexual nature and involves person who, although entirely fictional, are all above the legal age of consent. This story is set in the slightly historical, but primarily imagined world of Ancient Rome, however, no offense is intended to any persons or cultures if I have mis-portrayed any historical, factual, or cultural aspects of the setting; the setting is used solely for its exotic and romantic attributes. If you find anything in this work objectionable or offensive, please move on to other content.

Note 3: This work is my own personal intellectual property. Copyright © 2017 Audrey07. All rights reserved.

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Chapter 2: The Arrival

The ship was loaded by sundown, but the captain had to wait until late in the night to shove off as the tides were unfavorable for the passage. Cassia had fallen asleep in her cabin, but was awakened by the shouts of the crew as they worked to get the vessel underway. Once the sails were raised and the ship was headed toward the mouth of the harbor, it fell silent again, save for the gentle lapping of the ripples against the hull, and the rhythmic slap of the oars as four dozen men pulled in perfect, practiced unison.

The soft sounds and the slightest rocking motion quickly lulled Cassia back into a half slumber. But when the ship passed the final jetty and slipped out into the open water, the seas and winds rose. The ship, pulled by it's enormous, square sail, lurched and stalled into the opposing waves. Cassia was nearly knocked from her bunk when the ship's prow free-fell off the back of a rolling breaker into a deep trough between the waves, and then lurched back upward again. Great plumes of frothy spray slapped the small porthole above her berth. Cassia, having never before been to sea, was terrified. She sat up and cried out.

Across the cabin, Athalia was cowering and looking green. But Ligeia, the Greek beauty, had been to sea many times, traveling with her former master all over the furthest reaches of the Empire. She giggled at Athalia, and then went to sit on the edge of Cassia's berth. She ran her hand over Cassia's back to sooth her and told her that this was all normal, they were going to be fine. It didn't seem to be helping. Cassia was practically shaking with fear.

Finally, Cassia turned to Ligeia and held up her arms for an embrace. Ligeia folder her petite master to her bosom and gently caressed her head. Without speaking, Cassia lifted up Ligeia's tunic and cupped her hand under her handmaiden's breast. She then lowered her head and took the breast into her mouth. "Domina," whispered the handmaiden, "This is not a good time. Everyone can hear everything on this ship."

Cassia looked up at her handmaiden with frightened, pleading eyes. "Do just this for me," she said, "It gives me comfort."

"It is her way," said Athalia, still cowering in the corner. "She kept her wet nurse until she was twelve."

Ligeia sighed and laid Cassia down on her berth, then lay slightly above her, offering her breasts to the girl. Cassia resumed. She took the nipple into her mouth and lovingly stroked the side of the great, milky-white breast with the tips of her fingers. She pulled at the nipple with her lips and held it in place with her tongue, forming a strong suction. She began to nurse at the girl's breast as if she were a child, though no milk flowed. Ligeia lovingly ran her fingers through Cassia's hair. With each lurch and crash of the ship, Cassia suckled harder, and soon, she had wrapped her arms around the Greek handmaiden as if holding on for safety. But, after a while, they both relaxed and soon, both fell into a deep sleep.

They awoke a few hours later when the strong morning sun sent a blasting beam of daylight through the porthole. Athalia was up first, and she went to the porthole to see if she could spot land. Quickly she called to her mistress. "Domina! Come, you must see this!" she said, excitedly.

Ligeia and Cassia stirred. They were both still groggy and had to extract their limbs from around one another. Each stretched and moaned, their bodies stiff from sharing the same berth. With a protracted yawn, Cassia got up and went to the window. The motion of the ship had calmed considerably since the night, but still Cassia was somewhat unsteady on her feet. Ligeia had to catch her arm to keep her from tumbling sideways. Steadied, Cassia put her face to the porthole and squinted into the bright sunlight. Then, her jaw hung slack and her breath caught in her throat.

Looming high above them were the great, soaring cliffs of Capri. Seabirds circled and played on the updrafts only half-way up the side of the sheer rock face. Here and there, atop each impossibly high rock promontory, a tiny forest of a few trees and thick vegetation sprouted. Higher up, on the top of the cliff, a line of dark green trees was broken by the stark white stucco walls of houses that seemed to be perched in the very sky. At the base of these cliffs, the water was a deep, turquoise blue. It was the most beautiful sight Cassia had ever seen.

The women crowded around the porthole and stared in awe and wonder as the island slipped past. Before long, they came to a low spot on the island toward the middle of its length. There, a small fishing village appeared to have been clawed out of the very rock of the island. There was a stone pile jetty, and the ship's oarsmen pulled the ship into the flat, calm water of the protected harbor, and alongside the quay. There were a dozen other ships in port, and more arriving as each of the loyal senators made their way to the emperor's retreat. The quay itself was overcrowded, with the crews of many ships trying to unload, passengers trying to disembark and servants desperately rushing to and fro. It was a writhing mass of shouting, shoving and chaos. And oppressive heat.

Emperor Tiberius's sprawling palace, the Villa Jovi, was perched atop a series of high cliffs on the northeastern corner of the Island. Cassia's father, the Senator, would be staying in the palace compound as a guest of the Emperor, but he had arranged for his daughter and her entourage to be secreted away at a villa he had rented in the small winemaking village of Anacapri on the other end of the island. If there was to be civil war and it went badly for Tiberius, those loyal to him would be at risk. The senator wanted to ensure that his family was hidden away from harm in secret.

Cassia and her handmaidens would be safe, but virtually imprisoned. They ruminated on this on the long coach ride up the steep road to Anacapri. So preoccupied were they by their dilemma that they failed to notice the incredible vistas as their coach wound up the climbing switchbacks that were, in some places, carved into the very face of the cliff. The views from hundreds of feet up were breathtaking. Below, the sea was impossibly blue and dotted with the stark white sails of the fishing fleet. Away to the East, Vesuvius towered over the mainland skyline. Meanwhile, every available slope was stepped with trellised vineyards.

This was the view that greeted them when they climbed out of the coach at the portico of the villa. The three women blinked in the bright light as they took in their surroundings. The villa itself was arranged in the Mediterranean style; a square building with a columned facia surrounded a central courtyard planted with fruiting trees, a central pond filled by a captured natural spring, and lined with sculptures and busts of the great emperors set on Doric pedestals. The house was two stories high and, as the women were ushered into the entryway, they were greeted by a vaulted great hall with an ornate fountain at its center under a skylight that let in a lone shaft of light. The walls were stucco and covered with frescos depicting the tales of Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love.

The women were greeted by the staff of house servants and Cassia was shown to her chamber on the second floor. Servants brought her belongings along behind her. The Chamber was smaller than Cassia was used to. Her handmaidens would have sleep in the adjacent chamber. This bothered Cassia. She was not used to being left alone.

The head of the household staff entered Cassia's chamber a few minutes later. She was a delicate looking woman of about mid-thirties; smallish and thin. Her hair was still dark, with no signs of gray, and she had large, dark, doe-like eyes and a sprinkling of freckles on her nose and cheeks. But there were laugh lines at the corners of her mouth and the beginnings of creases at by her eyes that betrayed her otherwise youthful appearance. Beyond her girlish visage, she had a generally child-like aspect to her appearance, yes she moved with an effortless grace and carried herself with confidence. When she spoke, it was with a clear, smooth voice that commanded attention. Just a few words let Cassia know that she was in charge here.

"Good afternoon and welcome. I am Gaia. Word has been sent to your father that you have arrived safely. I am the head of the house here and I have been asked to look after you and your servants during your stay. I, however, am not one of your servants." Cassia listened with half interest as the woman explained the household schedule; when meals would be served, when they would be down for the night, when they would be awoken in the morning. Two rules caught Cassia's attention: First, she would not be permitted to leave the compound without her male bodyguard, and second, that there would be no other men allowed in the household.

"Any questions?" asked Gaia, folding her arms.

"Wait," said Cassia. "Why can't I leave the house and grounds? I will not be held prisoner here."

"First, that's not what I said," remarked Gaia, raising one eyebrow. "I said that you could not leave without your male bodyguard. If he is with you, you are free to go as far as the village. Second, I do not ask 'why' anything. You father has paid me to enforce his rules and that is good enough for me. And for you," she finished, her face taking a hard expression as she said it. "If that is all, supper will be served in an hour." Gaia turned and left without another word.

Cassia called her handmaidens to her chamber and then shut the door behind them. "I wish to change my clothes and I wish to have my hair redone," she said to them flatly and then sat in a chair. Ligeia began sorting through her mistress's bags and removing the clothes. She organized them neatly in the wardrobe. Meanwhile, Athalia unfastened Cassia's long hair and began combing it out. "It appears that we are to be prisoners here," said Cassia, pouting.

"These are dangerous times, Domina," replied Ligeia. "Your father is concerned for your safety. If the tide of politics changes, it changes swiftly. In such times, the daughter of a Senator would be quite a prize for some evil scoundrel." Cassia regarded her. Athalia had been her servant since Cassia was still quite small, and the two had grown up together practically as sisters. But Ligeia had only come to her service a few years ago. She was older than Cassia and had traveled throughout the empire with her former master, for whom she had served as a nanny for his children. But she had been sent away by her master's wife after she caught the two together. Ligeia was buxom and lively with the pale skin and dark features that spoke of her Greek origins, and gave her an almost exotic look among her Roman family.

"You know so much of the world," said Cassia, sighing. "I want to travel to the furthest reaches of the empire. I want to see the whole world. Like you Ligeia." Cassia stood and allowed Ligeia to remove her robe and belted tunic. "Instead, I am stuck here, like a child. I will go out of my mind if I have to stay in this house all summer!"

Athalia was working Cassia's hair into ropes of fresh, neat braids. "Domina, you should learn to trust me. Haven't I always been able to find entertainments and diversions for us? Even with an armed contingent of soldiers, I have always come through for you. This house, with a single guard and a bunch of old women? Pfft. We will begin tonight. What will it be? Dancing? Theater? Bacchanalia?"

The three of them giggled at this last suggestion. If Cassia attended a Bacchanalia, her father would imprison her for real and would have her handmaidens hanged. She was to be married off to secure some powerful alliance, and that required her to be fully "intact." "Oh, Athalia," said Cassia. "I do trust you. But I'd be careful of that Gaia. She looks like someone to contend with."

"Bacchanalia!" said Ligeia, setting them all laughing again. "Poor Cassia wouldn't know what to do!"

"What!?" snapped Cassia, feigning offense. "I'm not some child!" With that she grabbed Ligeia's breast and stroked it. "You've never complained that I didn't know what I was doing."

"Oh, no, Domina!" replied Ligeia. "But you've never been with a boy. It's different."

"I think I can figure it out," said Cassia. "What is there to it? I am told that they have just one thing. You just have to squeeze that and tell him how big and strong he is, and he will do whatever you want." The three of them laughed some more.

"Um..." Ligeia was unsure how to explain. "It's not..." She paused. "It's... It's... well... they aren't the same. They aren't gentle and loving. And they don't last very long."

"Maybe you're not doing it right," chided Athalia. Like Cassia, she had never been with a man either. This made Ligeia blush deeply. The more she tried to explain, the more Cassia and Athalia teased her.

"I want you to show us," said Cassia, finally. "I want you to bring us a boy and I want you to show us how different it is with a boy."

"Domina," said Ligeia with a reproachful tone. "It is forbidden. Your father..."

"Is at the palace, drinking wine and partying it up with all of the other senators, while I am stuck here to rot in misery like some... some priestess initiate at a temple of Diana. Athalia! You promised you could secure us some entertainments. So, I want you two to go find some boy and bring him back here tonight, so that I can see for myself why Ligeia thinks they are so different!" With that, she dismissed her handmaidens.

That evening, after their meal, Gaia had one of the household servants bring her a lute and she entertained the guests with a song. She was surprisingly skilled on the instrument and her voice was lilting and soothing. Cassia thought she was softening and began to hope that the rules might be more relaxed than Gaia had let on. But, when she was done, the domineering aspect returned and Gaia marched everyone off to their chambers and made sure that all lights were out. Cassia resigned herself to a quiet night alone, without even the comfort of Athalia, the tall, pretty servant, for her bed. There would be no laying awake late into the night, telling stories and playing games. And there would be no curling up in the taller girl's arms and drifting off to sleep.

Cassia did finally manage to fall asleep sometime after the moon had risen high in the night sky. But it seemed that, no sooner had sleep overtaken her, that she was startled awake by the sound of her chamber door creaking on its hinges. She was about to call out in terror and alarm when she heard Athalia whispering, "Shhh, Domina! It is us! Don't raise the alarm."

In the dark, Cassia could just make out the shadowy form of the tall, thin servant as she entered the chamber. Athalia then stopped and motioned to someone outside in the corridor. She watched as the fuller figured form of Ligeia shuffled in, pulling a third, larger, unfamiliar form by the arm after her. Athalia drew open the drapes and the room was instantly flooded with slivery moonlight. Cassia nearly screamed when she discovered, standing between her handmaidens, was a handsome young man, clearly swaying slightly with drunkenness, and smiling broadly in a near stupor.

"Your wish is my command," said Athalia, grinning. "This is Stanis.."

"Janus," the drunken boy corrected.

"SSHHH!" Athalia and Ligeia both shushed him simultaneously. Ligeia gave him a swat on the back of his head, causing him to cringe.

"Stanis..." she said, glaring at the boy, "shall be your entertainment." Stanis reached out with his hand to greet Cassia, but Ligeia quickly smacked him again, making him wince. Without looking at him, Athalia said, "He will not touch the Domina. He is here to... perform... for Domina."

Ligeia brought the chair over near to the bed. She stripped the boy and sat him forcefully in the chair. To Cassia, who had never seen a naked boy before, he was both fascinating and disgusting. The boy was thin, but sinewy with muscles, and Cassia guessed that he labored in the vinyards. His body was tan except for his loins, which glowed a pale white in the moonlight. In the center, was a wild tuft of dark hair from which a thin worm of flesh dangled.

Athalia joined Cassia in sitting on the bed. "Well, Stanis, let's go. Do your... your thing."

"He must be hardened, first," insisted Ligeia. She stood over the boy who was starting to look confused. "Stanis, we want to see your cock get hard. Show the Domina what you promised us. That your cock rises like the sun in a great pillar of manhood. Come on. Show us your great pillar."

The boy looked nervously from face to face, bewildred. "I... I thought..."

"What? You thought what?" asked Ligeia. She lifted her tunic over her head and dropped it on the floor. She posed, stretching her body and pushing out her full breasts. "Well, there will be no fucking any of us unless you show us that you are man enough." She relaxed her pose and leaned toward him, caressing his cheek with the back of her hand. "What's the matter, Stanis, do you not want my body?"

Cassia noticed the boy shift anxiously in the chair. She could see his cock moving and starting to increase in length and girth. "Oh!" She said. "I see something!" Even in the moonlight, they could see the boy's face redden in embarrassment. Ligeia began to perform an erotic dance, swaying her hips and swinging them in a slow circle while her arms were lifted over her head. The whole time, she kept her eyes locked with the boy's. Gradually, he began to relax. His cock became fully erect watching Ligeia.

At first, Cassia and Athalia didn't notice, because they, too, had been captivated by Ligeia's sexy dance. "There!" blurted Athalia, forgetting to whisper as she finally noticed the boy's full, hard erection. She pointed to get Cassia's attention. Ligeia smiled and straddled the boy's knee, gyrating her hips back and forth, barely brushing her pussy over his skin. Instinctively, the boy reached for her, but she swatted his hands away forcefully. Instead, she leaned forward, placing her lips by his ear, and began to whisper instructions to him.

Cassia watched as the boy wrapped his fingers around his throbbing cock, and began to rub it up and down. She snuggled up to Athalia and embraced her as the two watched with a mixture of amusement and horror as the boy's pace began to quicken. Ligeia continued to whisper into his ear even as she swayed her large, naked breasts just out of reach of his hungry lips. The boy stiffened suddenly. His body went rigid and his face twisted as if he were in great pain. A single grunt escaped his lips and then his cock spouted with a fountain of whit cum. It spurted several times and Cassia could hear the wet splatting sound as it hit the stone floor. Then, the boy went limp, breathing hard as if had just been running a long distance.

Cassia and Athalia clapped in appreciation, only to be shushed harshly by Ligeia. While the boy recovered, Ligeia took his tunic and mopped the floor where his cum had splattered. She then handed it to him saying, "Thank you, Stanis, that will be all."