After the Fall(76)
“What wishes?” Gigi asked again, dying of curiosity.
“I borrowed what I’d guess is a rather large sum of money — Jack’s money — and I apologize for that,” he shifted uncomfortably, then smiled and looked frankly at Gigi, “but it seemed unlikely anyone would give me credit, based solely on my good name. No one seems to remember Quintus Pontius Flavus Magnus. In fact, from what I can tell, the only Romans well remembered in this time are Gaius Julius Caesar and Marcus Antonius. I must say, you live in a rather ignorant world — ”
“That’s fine! But what wishes?” she repeated in exasperation.
He laughed. “Well, it turns out I have something for you, too. You see, I thought,” he reached into his pocket and drew out a small, dark box, “I thought it might be nice to renew our vows when your parents get here. After all, you tell me it’s been sixteen hundred years since the last time we said them.”
A delicious chill of anticipation swept over her.
Opening the box, Magnus presented her with a very large ruby ring, encircled by sparkling diamonds. The ring beautifully reflected the radiance of the night sky.
“Will you marry me, Gigi? Again?”
“Oh, Magnus.” She held out a tremulous left hand, her third finger empty, so empty, since her struggle with Randegund. “Yes, yes, yes, I will marry you all over again.”
Magnus grinned and slipped it on her finger, then gazed at her. “I wanted to look for something like the old one, but apparently the museums are rather reluctant to sell Roman artifacts,” he kissed her, “and I think if they knew my true identity, they’d have me under glass before I could say a word in protest. As it is, they’re sure I’ve stolen the sword Athaulf gave me. Jack assured me he would take care of that mess, too. At any rate, he seemed pleased with my intentions and said you would approve.”
“It is beautiful and you are amazing and I love you dearly,” Gigi murmured, overwhelmed. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him deeply. “Can we please go downstairs now? We haven’t made love in hundreds of years, after all.”
“Granted,” he laughed, “but there is more. Jack has arranged for a ceremony on this beach at dusk tomorrow, and then a feast to follow, just your parents and us. We shall take our vows once more, beneath the starry sky.”
Gigi looked at him in wonder, then up at the heavens. It was so perfect. How had he known?
“You see,” Magnus whispered into her hair, “Jack took me somewhere else that day … to Placidia’s mausoleum, to see her ceiling, her beautiful legacy to the world. I think Placidia, being so very smart and a Christian, stayed well away from the infernal Styx and made her way up to the sky, to find her Heaven. And so, tomorrow, when we are wed, I know she will be looking down at us from above, blessing us with her love — and with everlasting happiness.”
Grand-père, too, Gigi thought, blinking back tears.
She gazed at Magnus, seeing destiny unfold in the depths of his wonderful eyes, at peace now and filled with happiness. The hurt she’d seen before was gone, as distant as the time they’d left behind.
“I will always love you,” she whispered.
“And I, you,” he took her face in his hands and kissed her, “my divine Gigiperrin.”
Authors’ Note
Galla Placidia could easily have been one of Shakespeare’s tragic heroines, her life shadowed as it was by misfortune and bitter loss. Yet she stands out as a figure of great humanity, coming down through the ages as a woman of keen intelligence and emotional resilience: occasionally girlish and rebellious, at other times fiercely passionate, a brave companion, and loyal wife.
Her relationship with Honorius does seem to have been challenging; her “abduction” by Athaulf after the sack of Rome shocking, their eventual union wholly understandable, given her looming future as the intended bride of the much older Constantius.
Some sources state Placidia was engaged to be married to Stilicho and Serena’s son, Eucherius, and we have deliberately ignored this for the sake of clarity in our work. Other contemporary historians — Hydatius, Marcellinus Comes, and Jordanes chief among them — record the barest details of the capture of Placidia by Athaulf during the sack, while giving various supposed marriage dates taking place after our date of A.D. 410; in other words, no one really knows what happened between them during and after the sack or when they actually consummated their relationship. For the purposes of our novel, we ask the reader to enjoy our literary license in this regard.