Disclaimer: I do not own The Borgias or any of it's characters. If I did, Lucrezia and Cesare would already live out the rest of their lives at the coast where nobody would know who they once were.

Giovanni Borgia slept the sleep of the peaceful. Borgia he might be, but he was far too young to be already stained with blood and sin. His mother watched him with a sad admiration, enjoying the beauty of her son, yet missing his father painfully. Her Narcissus – would he ever be able to hold his baby? She hoped it desperately, but feared the moment twice as much. Rome was a dangerous place – loving a Borgia was an even more dangerous undertaking.

There was a small clicking from the door. Lucrezia did not need to turn around – she knew who it was long before Cesare winded his strong arms around her. His sister placed her tiny hands above his big ones. She could feel him inhaling the scent of her hair with a soft sigh.

"You've born such a flawless baby, sister", he whispered into her ear, "yet your smile doesn't reach your eyes. Who is the man that I have to punish for your sadness?"

"No one, I suppose", Lucrezia responded crestfallen. "The laws of god and men, perhaps. Narcissus and I lived in different worlds since our very first day on earth. Our bodies may have been joined, but our lives never will be. I can take the pain – in fact, I saw it coming long ago – but little Giovanni will never have a father. Which is all my fault."

"He will have a father", Cesare reassured her strongly and hugged her tighter, "me. I shall play with him, I shall teach him all the arts of life – books and war and woman, I shall raise him like he is my very own son."

Lucrezia let out a small laugh. "You and me, having a son…", she said dreamily, "…how strange and wonderful that sounds. I loved my Narcissus, but you… in another world… there would have been no better father." She turned around in his arms to see him smiling, honored and shy at the same time.

"Isn't it fascinating then", he mumbled in a soft voice, "how we share the exact same dreams?"

"Soulmates share the exact same dreams." Lucrezia put her arms around his neck and played with some strings of his dark, curly hair. Her bright blue eyes stared into his dark ones. "Are we soulmates, Cesare?"

"If being soulmates means an undying love for each other", he responded, "then yes, little sister, we are." He smiled and nudged her nose with his own. Lucrezia returned his smile while curiosity creped into her eyes.

"How do you love me, Cesare?", she whispered. Her heart was pounding against her ribs. She knew she probably shouldn't ask this question, shouldn't destroy the fragile façade that they had built around their relationship, but she had to know. She had to hear it just once.

Her brother scrutinized her torn between desire and desperation. "You know how", was his simple answer. "I'm not gonna say it, otherwise it will be stuck in this pretty head of yours forever, putting obstacles in your way on your road to love."

"I am very much afraid my road to love leads me to you every time." They were so close that Lucrezia could feel her brother's breath on her skin. She could count every single one of his eyelashes. "Show me then", she whispered and watched while he closed his eyes with a look of frustrated desire upon his beautiful features. "Show me how you love me."

Cesare exhaled strained. "Lucrezia", he mumbled with a raspy voice, "you know we cannot-" All of a sudden he pulled her into his arms, pressed their bodies so close together that the sensation alone sent chills down Lucrezia's spine. She buried her face in the curve of her brother's neck, deeply inhaling his intoxicating scent. Cesare pressed his nose into her golden curls, desperately mumbling the same words over and over again: "Lucrezia, my love, my dearest sister…"

He pressed even closer to her. Lucrezia could feel his body reacting to her presence and she knew he was ashamed of it, but he didn't have the strength to pull away from her. She dared to kiss the soft skin on his neck, eliciting a small groan from his lips. When her teeth bit his neck tenderly, he did lose the last bit of restraint that he held. With a passion she never saw in him, no matter how many women she had spied him with, he kissed her lips. His teeth gently nibbled on her lower lip before his tongue parted her lips to kiss her with all the fire that he embodied. They licked into each other's mouth as if they would never kiss again. Lucrezia let out a soft moan and grabbed Cesare's dark hair while his hands slid from her waist to her bottom. She had dreamt so often about it, Lucrezia was nearly surprised that it was even more wonderful in reality. She grabbed the strings on her brother's collar to untie his shirt, pushing him closer to her oh so inviting bed. Right about when his knees hit the mattress and he was about to fall down, he grabbed her and swirled them around, hovering over her in seconds. They parted for air and smiled at each other, smiled at each other with eyes clouded with not only lust but love, and then Cesare kissed the top of Lucrezia's breasts and made her sigh in pleasure.

Giovanni's sudden scream interrupted them. It was like they were coming back to the real world with an immense rush. The siblings stared dazzled at each other, only now realizing what had just happened. Cesare was the first to move: he clumsily pushed himself upward while starring at his sister in shock.

"Lucrezia, I… forgive me!", he begged desperately while burying his face in his hands. She stroked his shoulder, trying to comfort him without much success. Suddenly Lucrezia was deeply ashamed of the act that she lured her brother into. "It's alright, Cesare", she whispered reassuring, even though it felt like god was watching upon her with a mad eye, "it's alright…"

He raised his head to reveal his guilty look. Cesare looked at her like he just broke her to pieces. "I shouldn't have done this to you!", he exclaimed angry with himself. "I promised myself that I would not satisfy my desires with you, not taint you -"

"Cesare!" Lucrezia grabbed his arm with just enough force to silence him. She looked him straight in the eye. "It was your wish as much as mine. No one is to blame." She gently kissed his cheek. Giovanni screamed louder in his crib, desiring the presence of his mother. "Go to dinner", Lucrezia whispered in her brother's ear, "I'll take care of Giovanni."

Cesare just nodded and stood up. He was almost out of the door when he turned around and asked uncertainly: "Did you enjoy it?"

Lucrezia gifted him with a warm smile. "Of course I did", she whispered. "Did you?"

He smiled back, half worried and half glad. "Not even a question", he answered and closed the door. Lucrezia smiled again and touched her still burnings lips before taking care of her son.