An Owl in a Thornbush

Caesar (Ciarán Hinds) crosses the Rubicon into Italy with a single legion, which the overconfident Pompey (Kenneth Cranham) sees as a suicidal act. Vorenus (Kevin McKidd) and Pullo (Ray Stevenson) are sent ahead to Rome, to post Caesar's proclamation on the Senate door, but are told to return if they meet resistance. While the distraught Vorenus asks Pullo for marital advice, the father of Niobe's (Indira Varma) child, her brother-in-law, Evander (Enzo Cilenti), goes to see his son, and Niobe tearfully throws him out. Vorenus and Pullo surprise some of Pompey's troops, who run away. Pompey and his allies are panicked when they realize how quickly Caesar is advancing on the city. Pompey needs four days to amass enough men to fight him off, and Caesar is only two days away. Pompey tells Cato (Karl Johnson) and the rest of the senators that they'll have to retreat, gather strength, and then take the city back from Caesar. A proclamation is made that any noblemen staying in the city are allying themselves with Caesar and will be considered enemies of Rome. This causes a conflict for some. Brutus (Tobias Menzies) and his mother, Servilia (Lindsay Duncan), hide out in Atia's (Polly Walker) home while mobs loyal to Pompey run rampant in the streets. But Brutus decides that despite his friendship with Caesar, he must obey the proclamation and leave the city, while Servilia chooses to wait for her erstwhile lover. Atia, irritated by Octavia's (Kerry Condon) continuing relationship with her ex-husband, Glabius (Roberto Purvis), decides to take drastic action. Vorenus and Pullo intercept a group of Roman soldiers dressed in civilian garb who are fleeing the city with a very important wagon.