He didn't come from a family of great status or wealth. His merits were far less impressive. Varro was young, hungry, and inexperienced.

Everything that Paullus was not.

Varro supposed he should thank the gods. He was not out on the battlefield that day, fighting to his last moment. He survived and came back, but instead of marching in, wearing the civic crown as Paullus did, he faced a crumbling Rome. He was not blamed, yet guilt crushed him.

As he stepped into the curia today, Varro was once again reminded. He was not a hero. He was not Paullus.

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*Artwork: The Death of Paulus Aemilius at the Battle of Cannae (Yale University Art Gallery scan) by John Trumbull

Prompt: Opposite