Title: Amor vincit omnia

Summary: AU. When Gregorius, a Servant for an influential Senator, is thrown into the life of Nikolai, the greatest gladiator in Rome, their lives and the Roman society around them are cast into turmoil. Nick/Greg slash.

Warnings: Suggestions of non-con

Disclaimer: CSI is not mine, neither are the chapter titles

Chapter 1/10

A/N: This fic is finished; I'm just editing the last few chapters. Chapters will be posted every 2/3 days.

Chapter I: Fear and Wonder, a Powerful Combination

Nikolai closed his eyes as he settled onto his bed. His arm was sore and his body weary from the fight, but it had been an easy contest and he was in much better shape than he usually was after a fight. The adrenaline had lost since left him; all that remained was the look in his opponent's eyes when he was ordered to take his life. He would never get used to it, and he never wanted to, the day taking the life of another didn't affect him, would be the day he lost himself.

A breeze wafted over his face from the small window at the top, far right corner of his cell, just under the stone ceiling, too high for him to look through. His bed was hard and uncomfortable. It was his though. He didn't own it, he owned nothing, but nobody would take it away from him. He was the crown jewel of the Senator's Gladiatorial troupe after all. He had the respect and adoration of many, but he was still a slave. He would be at the Senator's mercy for as long as he remained a Gladiator.

His mind began to lull into that space before sleep, drifting from nowhere to nothing, when his cell door was thrust open and a boy was thrown in by the guard.

"Gift from the Senator." The guard grunted before closing and locking the door once again.

Nik looked at the person before him, he was older than he'd first thought, but still just a kid compared to himself. The kid brushed down his dirty, once white tunic and sat up on his knees, one grazed red from the impact of his journey into the cell. He looked up with wide, deep brown eyes and nervously ran a hand through his tousled, sandy coloured hair.

"Um…" The kid started to say as he noticed Nik staring at him. He reached out a hand and lifted his knee so that he was sat on one foot. Nik thought he was going to move closer but he sat back and wrapped the hand around his waist, bowing his head to look at the floor.

Nik sat up on his bed and put his hands on his knees, he really wasn't in the mood for company but it wasn't the kid's fault he'd been thrown in here uninvited. "What is your name?" Nik asked, uncomfortable with the silence that had fallen.

"Gregorius." The kid answered, his eyes briefly flicking up before resuming his staring contest with the floor.

"I'm Nikolai." Nik said softly.

Gregorius sucked in his breath and let out what Nik thought was a laugh.

"I know." Gregorius said, raising his eyes and finally holding them there. "Everybody knows who you are."

Nik thinned his lips and nodded slowly. "I know." He said ruefully.

Nik laid back on his bed and stared at the ceiling, hoping Gregorius would leave him to sleep. He looked out of the corner of his eye and saw Gregorius inch closer to him. Gregorius lifted a hand and placed it on his bed, waiting a moment before lifting it again.

"No." Nik said sharply.

Gregorius sprang back on his haunches. "But I…"

Nik saw fear lace through his big eyes and immediately regretted the tone of his statement. He hadn't meant to scare him.

"He… the Senator, will flog me… if I don't… please you." Gregorius stammered. Nik tried to remain calm; the Senator really didn't know him at all if he thought this would please him, yes Gregorius was handsome, and yes, Nik was attracted to him, but forcing a man to have sex with him when they both knew he didn't have a choice, was something Nik would never accept.

Gregorius gulped and reached out again when Nik remained silent.

"No." Nik said again, anger flashing through him as he grabbed hold of Gregorius' wrist to stop him. He felt a tremor run through the slender arm.

Nik sat up and looked Gregorius in the eyes.

"I will not force someone to sleep with me who does not want to." Nik said sternly, he couldn't hide the anger from his voice but hoped Gregorius would realise the anger wasn't directed at him.

Gregorius sagged with relief; Nik felt the tension release in Gregorius' arm, still within his grasp. The fear remained in his eyes, though.

"I…" Gregorius searched for what to say.

"I will tell the Senator you pleased me." Nik said to reassure him, he dropped Gregorius' wrist and laid down once again.

"Oh." Gregorius said, his voice clear and without fear for the first time. He sat back against the wall and pulled his knees to his chest.

"So we just stay like this for the night?" Gregorius asked.

"Yes." Nik said, shutting his eyes.

"I saw you fight once." Gregorius interrupted the momentary silence.

"You did?" Nik asked politely. He kept his eyes closed, as he was still intent on going to sleep.

"When I was younger. The Senator took all his servants to the games to show off his wealth. He wanted to impress the Emperor. Not sure it worked, I don't think the Emperor likes him very much from the way the Senator talks about him.

I've never seen someone fight like you did."

"Comes with practise." Nik remarked.

"Have you done it a long time?" Gregorius asked.

"Too long." Nik yawned, hoping Gregorius would get the hint.

He didn't.

"Oh," Gregorius paused, "Do you like it? Fighting in the arena, killing all those men. You looked like you liked it."

Nik's heart clenched, he hated it, every second, but it was his life and he'd learnt to accept that. "No." He sat up, knowing that sleep was now lost to him.

"No, I don't like it. But I… put on a show… win the crowd. It's why everyone knows my name, and why I have a chance at freedom."

Nik hadn't expected the genuine curiosity that stared back at him. It was infectious.

"So Greggo… may I call you that?" He asked as an afterthought, the shortened name had come out without him meaning to.

"Um yeah, most people call me Greg." Greg explained.

"What do you do? I take it you haven't done this before?"

A blush rose on Greg's neck.

"No, I've never been to the Gladiators cells before." Greg said tentatively. "I work around the house usually," he said with much more confidence, "but recently I've been doing some research for the Senator."

"Research?" Nik enquired, as much as he'd tried to ignore it, Greg really was intriguing to him, he didn't often get the chance to have a conversation, one without the threat of a sword to the gut anyway.

"Into Ancestry." Greg said.

Nik nodded his head for Greg to elaborate further, he knew what ancestry was, despite his current profession he'd been brought up well with a good, basic education, but what purpose could Greg have into researching it?

"It started with looking into the Senator's ancestors, the ones he knows about like his great grandparents and any surviving distant relatives he might have. Then I research them and find any mention of relatives of the relatives and so on, it can bring up some interesting results."

Nik found himself smiling as Greg became more animated; the nervous boy who had entered his cell had been eclipsed by the vibrant young man before him, arms flying in all directions as his eyebrows leapt around his forehead.

"Once the Senator realised I was actually good at it," Nik laughed at Greg's smug quirk of his head, "he told me to take on other customers."

"Do you like it?" Nik said, asking the same question that Greg had asked of him.

"Yeah I do. I go to the library with Archibald, my friend – he teaches the other slaves how to read and write – so I get to see some of the city." Greg eyes sparkled as he smiled. "It's better than being trapped around here all day, everyday."

Nik sighed, knowing that feeling. "How long have you been here?" He asked, partially wondering why he'd never noticed him around the grounds before, Greg was definitely noticeable.

"Since I was little. I can't remember not being here." Greg said matter of factly.

"I didn't think the Senator took children as slaves?" Nik asked.

"He doesn't usually, but he wanted my mother – she is the head cook here," he said with pride, "and my mother refused to leave me. The Senator still has a mark on his hand from where she bit him." Greg grinned.

"I think I've seen it." Nik laughed.

"My mother is great, a bit over protective but… I wouldn't change her for the world." Greg's smile showed true affection and it warmed Nik's heart to know that people could still have those feelings in a world like this.

"Was it just the two of you?"

"No."

Nik almost regretted asking the question when Greg's look of affection was replaced by sadness.

"We left my Papa behind. He was too old to travel."

"Oh."

"My mother talks about him all the time though, so I feel like I know him. I have this memory of him bouncing me on his knee, but I don't know if it's a real memory or something my brain fabricated because I wanted to remember him."

Nik nodded but didn't know what to say, should he offer some comfort? He felt the need to, but he'd only just met Greg, he didn't really know anything about him, about his emotional needs, and he certainly didn't want to overstep his bounds.

"I remember the day you arrived." Greg said, breaking the silence.

Nik wasn't sure if it was a deliberate change of subject because Greg didn't want to talk about his past anymore, or whether he just wanted to move on. More likely, he was uncomfortable with the silence; silence didn't seem to be Greg's forte. Whatever Greg's reason, Nik went with it.

"You do?" It was a day Nik would never forget, but he'd never really thought about it from anybody else's perspective, he'd always assumed it wouldn't have impacted on their lives much.

"Yeah, everyone was out trying to get a look at you. My mum wouldn't let me anywhere near you, though." Greg rolled his eyes, "Gladiators are dangerous, she said. I told her it wasn't like I was going to challenge you to a fight to the death! But she insisted the further away from you, the better I was. I'm sure she'd think differently if she met you, though." Greg smiled and caught Nik's eyes with piercing contact. "I bet you know how to charm a few mothers." Greg winked.

Nik laughed, and it felt good.

"You think too much of me. I never get to meet the mother." Nik raised an eyebrow and teased back, he couldn't help it.

Greg's grin spread wider and Nik's heart thumped in his chest at the hearty laugh that escaped Greg's lips.

"Really? I can picture it now, a wave of women weeping with their hearts broken, their mothers' oblivious to the reason, from here back to… wherever it is you came from."

"Capua." Nik said, "I made my name in Capua before the Senator bought me. But no, sorry to disappoint, there's no wave of women either."

Greg sighed disappointedly and Nick chuckled at how obviously fake it was. After a lifetime of suppressing his emotions, Greg's openness felt like freedom.

"How did you end up in Capua? I take it you weren't born a Gladiator? Despite the amazing vision I now have in my head of baby Nikolai fighting off a tiger."

Nik threw his head back as a laugh ripped from his throat. He'd never thought he'd laugh like this again, never thought he'd revel in the company of another. He'd got used to the silence of being on his own, he liked it even, especially when his only choice for company was other gladiator's too dumb to find their way out of the arena, or spoilt dignitaries only interested in advancing their own wealth.

"No," Nik said once speech was possible again, "I was sold, by the orphanage I was at." Nik let out before his brain had even had the chance to think about the consequences of talking about his childhood.

"Oh, I'm sorry." Greg said seriously.

"About the orphanage? No need to be sorry, I loved it there, the couple that ran it, my parents essentially, were wonderful people, and I had a group of siblings to play with. It just meant that they couldn't do much to prevent the slave traders taking me away." Nik smiled to put Greg back at ease. He'd had a good childhood, he really had, chasing after his older sister's out in the fields, it was the happiest time of his life.

"How are you going to get free then?" Greg asked, and Nik remembered mentioning it earlier.

"The Emperor is putting on a celebration, I can't remember what of," the reason for the latest celebration wasn't really a point of interest in the life of a gladiator, "he's putting on a competition of the best gladiators in the land, the winner wins his freedom. The Emperor has already asked me to join his personal guard once I've won."

"You've met the Emperor?" Greg sat up closer to Nik, his eyes wide with astonishment.

Nik nodded, "A few times." Nik laughed at Greg's open-mouthed silence, he'd found a way quiet him, not that he wanted to anymore. "He asked to meet me after my first win in the Flavian Amphitheatre."

"Wow."

Nik had never enjoyed talking about his fights, or any part of his life as a gladiator, but he felt like he could talk to Greg forever.

TBC...

A/N: Flavian Amphitheatre = Colosseum