

Teutus Quinctilius Varus
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Alex Wyndham -
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He couldn't help watching his father, his gaze continuously flicking back to his face. He didn't want Tertius to feel he was staring at him or anything, but he did want to know what his father thought. He seemed impressed, possibly by what Teutus had managed in a short time - although he hadn't seen much yet - but there was an underlying sadness or something. Well, that was unexpected.
He wondered why, what might have caused Tertius to feel sad about him. Maybe about the distance that there was between them - maybe not, though, that seemed too much like wishful thinking on Teutus' part.
"It's good, it's doing well. I'm thinking of maybe finding my own house soon - I don't need anything like the size of yours, not just for me and Mama - but somewhere." He met his father's eyes. "Rome isn't that big, not really, but I'd like to be near yours."
Mostly for the sake of Antonia, but he couldn't quite bring himself to want to live right across the city, despite all the wishful thinking he'd done about wanting to get away from his father.
"If you see anything you like, or that you think Antonia would like, you're welcome to it," he said, and wondered if he would regret the offer. He liked to be generous to those around him, and had not really had the chance to do that for Tertius, although he'd bought Antonia various gifts, mostly small treats, over the years. She might prefer something a bit more grown up, more lasting, than almond pastries these days. "How is Antonia - I haven't seen her in a while."
@Atr
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"Thank you," he said again, more touched, and took a grape from the plate, feeling odd at being the one to initiate things. Previously, he had been the one to follow his father's lead but here, he was the host and Tertius the guest. "I'll be happy to show you around - and answer any questions you have."
This business was the one thing in his life that he could rightfully be proud of, and he hadn't expected to have the chance to show it to his father. He wanted Tertius to be proud of him and maybe just seeing it would help.
"I try to keep from having everything come from the same sources all at once, just in case of any storms or anything - there isn't any point in risking everything in a few ships sailing from Egypt, say, or Syria, when I can spread the risk and lose less if anything were to happen," he said, growing somewhat animated. He would begin the tour once they'd finished their wine and whatever snacks they wanted.
@Atrice
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"Thank you," Teutus said, surprised and (were the truth known) touched. He wondered momentarily if the gift was an attempt to buy his favour again, but dismissed the thought. Tertius didn't need to offer gifts of wine or cash to win Teutus over - but if it made him feel better, who was Teutus to refuse it? He wondered, suddenly, if Tertius offered tangible things because he didn't quite know how to offer the more intangible things.
"I do have wines, you know," he added, a little more hesitantly in case Tertius thought he was being ungrateful or something, and hastened to add, "But none of them from my father. I appreciate the gift."
If it was Tertius' attempt to rebuild what had become a very shaky bridge between them, Teutus wasn't about to refuse it. He would just have to try to accept his father for who he was and not who Teutus wanted him to be.
A slave came in then, with bread and grapes and a jug of wine, which he poured for Teutus and his guest before stepping back out of the way.
"It's Rhenish - not as fine as Falernian, but I hope you find it acceptable nonetheless," Teutus said, picking up his own cup. "I'll be very happy to show you around, if you're sure you want to see it all?"
@Atrice
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"Oh, no, no, not inconvenient at all." Which it wasn't, but even if it was, Teutus was prepared to make time for his father. At least, on a purely practical level; he was more cautious when it came to his personal life. The warehouse was open to customers, usually by appointment, so it wasn't at all unusual to have people come by like this.
He preferred to make appointments so that he could avoid having Senatorial types wandering around getting in the way of people trying to bring in new stock, but the office was at the landward end of the warehouse and ships were unloaded at the other end, where there was another door that opened onto the warehouse's private wharf. And the next shipment was due the next day anyway.
"Do have a seat," he said and glanced up at Hector, whose expression was inscrutable, before looking back at his father. "Would you like some refreshments?"
The thousand aurei question was, what on earth had brought his father here? He couldn't quite imagine Tertius bestirring himself to visit a warehouse just for the sake of it - though maybe he did just want to see what Teutus spent his days doing. He took a quiet breath, recalling his mother's words. "I guess... we've both wanted to see things in him that might not have been there....Stop worrying about him and live your life, be the best you can be. Maybe one day he'll see it, or understand, or find the right words."
This was.. it wasn't neutral territory, but it wasn't Tertius' territory, either. Teutus would take what he could get, and right now, he was going to try to give his father the benefit of the doubt, if he could.
@Atrice
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Teutus really would have to train his people better; it was almost as if they didn't want to let potential customers anywhere near the goods they might like to buy.
Except Teutus recognised this potential customer as soon as his attention was directed towards him. He hadn't expected that his father would deign to visit this quarter of the city, not the working areas right by the river.
He straightened. "You should be able to work the rest out by yourself," he told his slave before turning to Tertius, resplendent as ever in a spotless white toga, the broad purple stripe proclaiming his status to all and sundry - as if the litter hadn't done that already.
"Father! I wasn't expecting you - will you come into the office?" He indicated a nearby door, which led into a neat tidy office, with scroll cubbies alond one wall, a desk and two chairs, one obviously for Teutus and the other set for his customers.
What was Tertius doing here, and was it bad news for Teutus, or not?
@Atrice
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"Just be yourself, Makki."
"I guess that's what I'm finding difficult," Teutus said. "I mean, it's easy enough here, or at work. Just... not so much when I'm with him." Her hands were warm on his face and the expression in her eyes was indefinably sad somehow. There were crows' feet at the corners of her eyes where he couldn't recall seeing lines before.
"He's still the paterfamilias, what he thinks does matter. If he wanted to stop me from running a business, he could." Even Tertius hadn't tried that, though, maybe realising that Teutus did need to do something with his days.
He huffed a laugh that was little more than a puff of air. "I don't have any objection to marrying - just promise you won't try to find some senator's daughter."
That had been disastrous, in its own way, and had proven that Tertius really didn't have much idea what to do with his eldest son. He hadn't considered that Tertius might not have known what to do, though, and the realisation that his father might been fumbling in the dark was new. He felt sorry for his father in a way he hadn't before. It was a little uncomfortable.
"What about you, though? Wouldn't you like to marry, or are you planning to rule the roost even if I find a wife? When I find a wife."
@Sarah
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"I will," Teutus said, thouhg whether he'd see Wulfric again before he left Rome in the spring was anyone's guess. Wulfric knew where to find him anyway, and if Teutus wasn't at the warehouse, the staff knew where he lived. Whether Wulfric would want to see him again remained to be seen; he would probably not want to see any of his Roman relations again as they had been so determined not to have anything to do with him. Well, Tertius had, at any rate.
"And it isn't your fault, Mama," he said, snuggling a little bit toward her as he hadn't been able to do in many years. Their relative sizes made it more awkward now than if had been before and of course they hadn't had the chance to adapt as Teutus grew up. Her nickname for him made him smile; his father had never had a pet name for him. He wondered if he'd find one for Peregrinus, though he probably wouldn't. It wasn't the sort of thing he could imagine his father doing.
"I don't..." he sighed, again, a steadier release of air than the previous sigh. "He's tried, I suppose. Just... in all the wrong ways.." He leaned his head on Varinia's where she had tucked hers into his neck. "He wants me to be a son, I guess, just... I don't know. I can't be a senator's son, not legally, not in any way that really matters, and I don't know how to be that anyway. And it's not like he really treats me like a son anyway. It was like getting blood out of a stone to get him to admit he might be proud of what I've done with my business, even."
The only relationship he'd had with Tertius was that of a slave to his master, right up until two years ago, and it seemed that they still slipped into those roles more often than not, even if Teutus no longer had chores and duties in the house.
@Sarah
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"If there's one thing I want you to know - and I've probably said this before - I will do my best to keep any promise I make," Teutus said. Doubtless Jannus would eventually learn why that was, but right now was not the time to be spilling secrets, especially when they concerned his own father.
"This is going to be yours, I want you to have one in a size you'll find comfortable to use," he said, and asked the shopkeeper to show a selection of two- and three-leaved tablets in different sizes. They were all plain wooden ones, but this was a high-quality shop and therefore the wooden surrounds of all those on display had a good finish, smooth to the touch and not warped in any way.
Jannus was a quiet, serious sort of slave, careful not to give offence, or to do anything that might offend. Traits that Teutus had seen in others - and had probably shown himself - but that he wasn't used to seeing from the outside. That slight smile didn't go unnoticed, and hoped that as they grew more used to one another, that Jannus would smile more often, at least in private.
@Insignia
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"Did you want to invite him back here?"i
"Yes, if he'll come. If he's still in Rome," he said. Tertius wouldn't see him, Teutus knew that much about his father from what little he'd seen of the two of them together that evening. Germania was many, many miles away, a long and dangerous journey, and Teutus couldn't imagine what it felt like to have made that journey and to practically have the door slammed in your face. And his father hadn't outright forbidden him from talking to his brother, although how Tertius would enforce it if he had was anyone's guess.
"Father's a Senator, a Praetor even, he ought to have some idea about treating the people around him." He let out a long breath. "Maybe if Antonia Justa had lived longer, he'd be better." Although if his mistress had lived longer, she might have borne a son, an actual freeborn male heir, in which case neither Teutus nor his mother would be here, now.
"If I've learned one thing over the years, it's that I don't ever want to promise anything to anyone if I can't be sure I can keep that promise," he said. Maybe that made him more honourable than his father, maybe it didn't. "And... His father died ten years ago and he still didn't do anything about my freedom. For eight whole years. Even if I couldn't be his heir, he could have done something instead of just saying he would."
He pressed his lips together and let out another, shakier breath. He'd buried the hurt for a long time simply because he hadn't had anyone to tell - he could have said it to Charis but she hadn't even had the repeated reassurance of eventual freedom and he hadn't wanted to burden her.
"merda," he muttered. "Stupid to get upset over things that can't be changed, and we're here, now."
If there was one thing he could do, going forward, it would be to ensure that his own slaves never had to deal with all that uncertainty and pie-crust promises. He would make absolutely sure they could all be certain of their own futures.
@Sarah
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"Deep blue," Teutus said, opening the tablet again to make an additional note. "I will send a sample for you to approve before sending you the whole bolt dyed, if that suits you?"
It would be easier to correct a colour from a small sample rather than having to re-dye a whole long length, after all, especially if the dyers mistimed it and it came out too deep.
"I think it will be about a week or so before you can expect delivery of the full amount," he added, and leaned back. "I suppose you must have rather a large jewellery collection," he said wryly. "Something less out of the ordinary for you..."
She was an unmarried woman (they had first met when he was supposed to court her, or something, and he had not heard that she had married anyone yet) so she was not running her own home just yet, and whatever he suggested would have to be suitable for an unmarried woman.
"I have some Egyptian cotton - extremely finely woven - although I am not sure how uncommon you would consider that to be," he said. "I have some silk from the lands far to the East that you might be interested in, for a palla or a tunica, perhaps?"
He had not yet established any trade to the north; he wasn't sure exactly how amenable Wulfric would be to trading with him, and had no other contacts with anyone from that region, so he couldn't offer her any of the expensive golden amber from the distant north, not yet. One day, perhaps.
"Perhaps there is something you have been thinking of looking for, though, that I might be able to help with?"
@Sara
Topics I Participated In
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Surprise Visit
Started by Tertius Quinctilius Varus ·
April, 77 AD
It had been a good, long while since that dinner with Wulfric, Teutus, Charis and Tertius of course. A good, long time. Since then, he’d met Varinia again. And it wasn’t like he never heard from Teutus or that they never met, but Varinia had taken upon her the task of bringing messages to Tertius’ household and she was always welcome. It was less and less awkward with her there, even after Charis had been freed and made his wife. Of course he would always wonder, what if he did catch up with her again, properly… but it wouldn’t be right to Charis, he would not treat her like that. Even if he was sometimes unsure whether she actually treated him with respect or if it was all still just pretense. She did visit Teutus and got herself a dinner invitation, with Peregrinus, before she’d said it to Tertius. But he’d never know her mind. He’d never know.
But what he would know, at least now, was how his son’s business was coming along. He heard a bit about it now and again, both from Varinia and then when Teutus sometimes did decide to see his father, although he never spent much time in the domus anymore. But now was the time. Tertius had decided he wanted to see the warehouse for himself and see what Teutus was importing and what he would sell.
And he decided to do it unannounced, to surprise Teutus with the visit. Hopefully it would be a good surprise. He’d made sure to bring an amphora of his best wine to greet his son with. And then off he was, with a litter of course, all the way to the warehouse near the river. He could smell it before he saw it but decided to not be annoyed by it.
At last the litter came to a stop and Tertius stepped out, before the thing was lowered to the ground. The slaves and the guards would wait outside and meanwhile Tertius approached the crude looking beast of a guard by the door to the warehouse. He looked somewhat familiar? But Tertius couldn’t place him in this setting.
“Greetings… I am here to see Teutus.” He said with a friendly smile to the guard, who looked him over while gathering his hands on his back, standing more straight as he did, “Of course you are.” The guard said, but didn’t move and seemed to take a few moments finding the next words, “Does he know you’re coming?” He then asked and Tertius arched a brow, “He does not. I meant for this to be a surprise.” Tertius said, still trying to sound friendly, “Do you even know who I am?” He continued and the guard inhaled a breath and nodded, “You’re his father. Tertius. Well, see if you can find him.” The guard finally said and stepped aside. Tertius wasn’t sure he liked the way the man spoke to him or even looked at him. But Tertius walked past him inside to find his son.
@Sharpie
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The Gift of Conversation
Started by Ovinia Camilla ·
March 77AD
Ovinia rose a hand to shield her gaze from the sun as she glanced around the courtyard of warehouses. People bustled in and out of all of them, slaves with tablets around their throats and arms laden with goods, overseers with easy grins to her and her slave (at least until they saw her male slave keeping dutiful watch) and richer looking merchants all in a hurry. The smells of rich spices combined with that particular smell off of the Tiber in Spring made her cover her mouth with the edge of her palla. She didn't know whether she was early or Teutus was late, but she'd sent word two days before that she was on the look out for a gift for her mother and wanted to know if his business had anything suitable.
She'd liked Teutus during that slightly peculiar conversation almost a year ago now, foisted on them by their respective fathers. Praetors and schemers both. Fortunately Gaius Ovinius Camillus Major was an astute politician (no surprises) and had deftly manoeuvred away from any suggestion of a match between the pair of them. A freedman would never do, after all and soon enough she had been distracted with another Gaius entirely...until that had ended about as successfully as her match with Teutus had done. Still, despite all of that, he seemed a decent man with a good head on his shoulders and taking Tiberius and Lucius' advice to heart that it was good to get to know other classes of people within the city, she'd reached out to him to make the appointment.
"Domina." Her slavegirl gestured as the lean figure of Teutus appeared and she dropped her rich blue palla, a warm smile on her face. "Salve Teutus. It's good to see you again, I hope my request hasn't inconvenienced you?"
TAG: @Sharpie
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Retail Therapy
Started by Teutus Quinctilius Varus ·
(The day after Reading, Writing and Arithmetic)
The Porticus Liviae was one of those places where, eventually, you'd see every Senator and rich equite in Rome, and their wives twice, which meant that there were a lot of very high-class shops and stalls (so it was somewhere Teutus was interested in for perfectly good business reasons). It was also one of those places that had cheaper more functional shops and stalls selling more everyday items at more everyday prices, because of its location on the lower slopes of the Esquiline. There was no need to drag Jannus further afield to the Emporium Magnum or anywhere else, not with the Porticus Liviae (and the senators' wives!) right on their doorstep, so to speak.
His mother was busy weaving, and didn't need Jannus or him underfoot, and he didn't have a shipment due until the next week, so this was the perfect opportunity to take Jannus shopping. He'd made a promise and was going to keep it, after all. Even a promise to buy something small was a promise worth keeping, in Teutus' opinion. And as they were going shopping anyway, he'd made a list of other things they might look for, for the home. (And if he saw anything his mother might like, he wasn't above spending a bit of money on her; she deserved all the good things, after all.)
"First things first, though," he said to Jannus, diverting to a familiar shop in the arcade. He'd been here numerous times on errands for his father when he was still Tertius' secretary and had a friendship of sorts with the proprietor. "I promised to get you a wax tablet and stylus for your own, didn't I?"
@Insignia
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Like mother, like son
Started by Teutus Quinctilius Varus ·
Two days after Saturnalia, 76AD
Winter was quiet, as far as business went. It was dangerous to sail from about November through to some time in February - it didn't mean that ships didn't sail in those months, just that those months were more prone to storms at sea and so the most prudent sailors preferred to winter in some port or other. Which was just fine by Teutus, who was well enough aware that he had built flexibility into his business plans. Winter was a time to ensure the warehouse was clean and tidy, ready for new stock to come in.
And right after Saturnalia was a very quiet time indeed, with no need for Teutus to leave the house for business purposes. Which meant that he was at home today, watching as his mother set up her new loom.
"I don't think I mentioned it earlier, Mama," he said quietly. "Charis came by over Saturnalia... I invited her to dinner in a week or so. Just her, and her baby."
@Sarah
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How have we ended up here?
Started by Tertia Charis ·
December, 76AD
The winter winds whipped the edge of her palla as she jostled through the streets towards the familiar building that hosted, at her last count, three of her friends; Alexius, Aia and Teutus. She hadn't been here for a year, not since last Saturnalia and she felt guilt and shame well up under her skin, flushing her cheeks. What a difference a year made. This time last year she was waking up in Alexius' bed, coddled in his arms and then discovered by Teutus. She remembered the ripple of fear that shook her to her core that Teutus would say something, jeapordize everything and yet now she was standing outside the businesses occupying the street-level, a free woman. His step-mother in all respects.
She cleared her throat, trying to summon courage she didn't feel and wrapped the pale pink palla tighter around herself. The stola she was wearing felt dowdy, ugly even, compared to the simple tunicas she'd grown used to in her years of slavery in Rome. The painful twirls of her her hair, likewise, sat uncomfortably under the palla. If she was supposed to look like the respectful wife (come concubine) of a Praetor, she certainly didn't feel it. She felt like an actress playing a part she was wholly unsuitable for. Still, there was no time like the present and she steeled herself to climb to the first floor, drawing outside of Teutus' door. It was only when she knocked once she realised his mother might be home and felt a wave of nausea rise in her stomach. She considered backing away but then it swung open and... "Io Saturnalia." She offered with a weak smile.
TAG: @Sharpie
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Reading, Writing and Arithmetic
Started by Teutus Quinctilius Varus ·
They had settled into some routine over the last few months, which was something Teutus had been a little concerned about - things had gone smoother than he had feared they might as everyone adjusted to everyone else. Mostly, they were adjusting to him, he thought, because he was the master. It was an anomalous position in the household, of course, but far less anomalous than his position in his father's house had been, even before he'd been freed.
Olipor was giving Amandus lessons, with Teutus' blessing, and Varinia was teaching her maid Proserpina something, which left Teutus and Jannus.
"Can you read?" Something he had not asked when he'd bought Jannus, nor in the months since.
@Insignia
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July 76
Teutus' business was going well and he needed to expand because there were certain things he just couldn't do on his own. He had made arrangements with Alexius for his services regarding the security side of it but he needed a clerk for himself (or would do soon), a body slave and a general runner/messenger. The latter two were more urgent than the former; Teutus was more than capable of keeping his own books and records, at least for now.
He also needed someone who could act as an agent, but he would rather not look in the slave markets for someone to fill that role - though if he found someone who could, he wouldn't turn it down.
He had to steel himself to enter the slave market; he had himself been a slave and although he was never in any danger of being sold, it had left him with a sour taste in his mouth when it came to actually buying slaves, though it was something he would have to get used to.
"Good morning," he said as a guard or auctioneer or someone otherwise connected with the trade came up to him. "I don't suppose the boss is around?"
@Sarah
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A head for business
Started by Teutus Quinctilius Varus ·
August 76
Teutus had found and secured the use of a warehouse near the river's edge, located between the Aventine and where the river swept around Regio XIII, after passing Tiber Island, the Probus Bridge and the remains of the bridge defended in antiquity by Horatius. It was a good-sized warehouse, easily acessible from the river, with its own wharf, and easily secured (though Teutus would ensure that he had a couple of trustworthy guards on the site at all times - he was not going to have a guard or two there only when there was something valuable on the premises, and give that fact away). There were other warehouses nearby and he neither knew nor cared what was stored in any of them, save only that their presence would help disguise his own goods should anyone come looking with less than honest intentions.
He was on the site today to ensure that the latest shipment was stored properly, dressed as befit his station as the owner of the business in tunic and pallium and with a commanding presence (if he didn't particularly feel commanding he could at least look it, and followed his father's example as far as appearances went).
Some of his goods would be sold directly, some via auction (he knew a good auctioneer who would get decent prices and not charge exhorbitantly for his services). All in all, trade was good, and he could present his father with a good report of his dealings.
He turned as his clerk murmured, "Domine, there's someone to see you..."
There was indeed. "How can I help you?"
Tag: Open!
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My family and other aliens
Started by Teutus Quinctilius Varus ·
While Sergia (and Secundus) didn't live in Rome, that didn't stop her visiting her uncle and cousins for some rather extended stays - Tertius' house was big enough to house his family several times over, with a staff to match, as befit a Senator and Praetor.
One member of that staff (and incidentally of the family too, though not officially being a slave, the son of the Senator and a slave woman) was Teutus, the said Senator's secretary. This afternoon, the Senator was out somewhere that didn't require his secretary to attend him, and his young daughter was visiting a neighbour she was friends with, which left Teutus alone to finish copying out some correspondence for the Senator, a task that didn't take him very long once people stopped interrupting him.
Once that was done, with the letters left neatly on the desk in the tablinum for Tertius to sign when he returned, Teutus found a seat in the garden to enjoy a moment in the sun. He hadn't been there long when he became aware that his cousin Sergia was there, and scrambled to his feet.
"I beg your pardon, Domina," he said.
@locutus-sum
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Second time luckier?
Started by Teutus Quinctilius Varus ·
Well, their earlier conversation had gone less than swimmingly, thanks to Charis' presence - not that Teutus blamed her. If he'd known she was there, he wouldn't have turned up there himself, at least not until she'd left to return home.
He sighed to himself; he really needed to get a slave so that he didn't have to do all the wandering around Rome himself. Even if he had a slave, though, he'd most likely have to make this trip himself, this was not the sort of conversation or discussion he felt he could trust to a slave, not this early on in proceedings. Anyway, they lived in the same insula, and he wasn't damn lazy enough that he couldn't climb a few stairs from his apartment (several rooms on the first floor, and far too big for just him - but his father had insisted!) to Alexius', two floor above.
So it was just a few minutes later that he found himself knocking on Alexius' door, hoping that he wasn't disturbing anything untoward this time.
@Atrice
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