Chris

He smiled at her answer - a house in the city proper and a villa outside its walls. It seemed that - despite the shade thrown on Corinthia's particular line of Claudians, they had money. Lucius didn't entirely know the full details of what had happened to her father Manius, only that he had - for some political reason - been ousted from the succession. Some of the rumors he had heard spoke to his desire to marry Gaia and not a woman of traditional Roman nobility... but looking at Corinthia before him, the only thing remotely "un-Roman" about her was her second name, at least to him. "Lucius is fine," he said in kind. "I wouldn't think to be so formal with a woman who's already spilled wine on me and patted it off," he added with a quick chuckle before returning the subject to her family's villa. "Are you a lady who prefers a more peaceful, natural surrounding, as opposed to the hustle and noise of the city?" There were many nobles who did. Lucius, too, had been in the countryside outside of the city until recently. He honestly preferred it, but it was better for his public image to be with the public. Claudia Corinthia

Lucius hadn't expected Corinthia to take the cloth from him and do her own dabbing against the spill. Then he immediately thought of his bet, and turned his head to dart his eyes across the hall. He had hoped to catch Longinus' attention, but alas he was chatting up a party of three women - so far into winning their wager that he quite possibly had forgotten he was even in one. As Corinthia spoke of more wine and presented him with another goblet, Lucius returned his attention to where it belonged: on her. She asked what the had been speaking of, and in all honestly they hadn't really talked about much at that point. "Something about how my sixth cousin was once married to your eighth cousin, and they're both descended from Venus..." he paused to take a sip of wine. "Or something to that effect," and then flashed a smile. "Are you living in the city, Corinthia? May I call you Corinthia?" Claudia Corinthia

Lucius could detect small hints of a strong character within Claudia Corinthia - simply from the way her expression changed from hard and calculating to practiced and relaxed from moment to moment. He simply smiled and nodded as she commented on the connections of his family, and followed her eyes as they led both of their minds away from the conversation at hand and to the imperial family. Lucius was not so close to the center of power as others might think, but he wouldn't willingly have anyone think otherwise. "The pleasure is all mine, Claudia Corinthia," he said in turn. Not a moment later, all the smoothness that he had planned on unleashing on her - he was to win a bet after all - came crashing down like so many goblets of wine onto the floor, and his toga. He instictively reacted, moving back from the spill, but not quickly enough. His pristine toga was very thoroughly stained with pristine wine. For his part, Lucius decided to laugh it off. "I'm not sure whether your eyes or the slave's were wider in surprise," he chuckled, taking the towel as it was brought to him. He dabbed it across his chest where the liquid had begun to soak, taking some from the fabric with each application of pressure. "But it is quite alright. What's a part without a little spilled wine, eh?" He handed off the cloth and the slave immediately scurried away. "Though, I could use some wine now, I think... preferably to drink." Claudia Corinthia

Continued from Before it Begins... QUOTE Corinthia was not sure what she thought of him. Warily her gaze moved up and down, her posture was at ease and she could see her mother peeking behind the plant to observe them. She sighed and gestured with an open palm out to the gathered crowd of people. "It seems she may be hiding from you," She replied tartly. The reality of her situation was that she would need to marry. The sooner the better. Gods.. the better ranked, the better. Without it she would not be able to rise in the world. Now if only her mother's name would not hinder her. "Claudia Corinthia, and... may I ask your name?" She asked politely. It could not hurt to train when it came to mingling with people. There were others here who would be far less interesting. Around them there was the commotion of the arrival of the Imperial family. Corinthia glanced upwards in their direction with a frown. Her mother thought highly of them yet she did not. They had power and position. Both things that should have been hers by right. Claudia Corinthia was a name Lucius knew, and he knew it made her the daughter of Claudia Gaia, the widow of Manius Glabrio, nephew to Claudius Caesar and at one time marked for imperial prominence. Which meant that, in her own way, Claudia Corinthia was a part of the greater imperial family. Before he could respond with his own self-introduction, the arrival of Caesar and his immediate family demanded the attention of all the guests. Caesar was direct in his approach - waving to those gathered and giving them thanks for attending before the minglers once again mingled. Lucius returned his attention to the young Claudia Corinthia. "I am Lucius Junius Silanus, son of Marcus, nephew to the late Decimus, and head of the Junii-Silani." Claudia Corinthia

(Quintus Caesar) The Imperial Family had enjoyed their vacation to Naples for the winter. Though it was typical of Roman nobility to flee the oft insufferable heat and misery that was Rome in the summer - especially August - Quintus had decided that he would remain in the city with the regular toiling plebs. It was a political move, to be sure, but also he naturally preferred hotter climates, and was not a fan of the cold. The banquet had been planned some time in advance, mostly by others in the household outside of Quintus - parties and decorations weren't really his forte - and so he had gone to Naples with the idea of spending most of his time preparing his sons for the event and catching up on missives. What he didn't expect was the amount of time that would go into searching for the one-eyed cat who had been allowed to live in the Naples palace in order to hunt vermin. Drusus had given the animal the entirely outrageous name "Monophthalmus" - after Antigonus One-Eye, a general to Alexander the Great, and founder of the Antigonid dynasty of Macedonia that met its end to Roman arms - and Quintus had become the unwilling participant in search parties to find the disheveled and grumpy cat. When everyone was supposed to be ready to make their appearance at the banquet, as a family unit, Drusus had disappeared. Titus and Tiberius were sent to find the boy, and pulled him away from his hunt of one-eye. And so, fashionably late, the family at last made their entrance. Caesar was flanked by his wife Drusilla to his left, and to her side stood his daugher Flavia, and then his youngest son Drusus - who was obviously frustrated. To Caesar's right stood his eldest son Titus, who was flanked by his cousin, and Quintus' ward-and-nephew Tiberius. It would be an important night for the future of their family, and the future of Rome.

Silanus & Corinthia Lucius kept a small smirk on his face as the young woman looked up at him, seemingly unsure of whether to be offended or intrigued. "Indeed, it seems she is not," he said, and then purposely took his eyes from her to do a quick and completely scripted scan of the room for his fictitious Calpurnia. "I am sorry to have startled you... miss?" That was the best way to probe for a name, right?

Silanus & Corinthia "If it isn't Lucius Silanus," a familiar voice called out in Lucius' direction before the speaker arrived. Lucius turned to see none other than Lucius Cassius Longinus, the man whom had taken over in Britannia after Decimus' death, and Lucius' commander when he was stationed in the province. "Commander Longinus," Lucius gave a formal salute, and Longinus laughed it off. "Citizen Longinus for the time being," he said, returning the salute. "How long have you been back in country now?" "Just over a year, sir." Old habits died hard. Lucius cleared his throat. "Just over a year, but seeking out my next appointment." Longinus smirked. "Ah, then it's not the young ladies that catch your fancy? Or maybe the older ones?" For all his valor and battlefield successes, Longinus had become known as quite the ladies man within the upper circles of the nobility. "Truth be told, I detest these get-togethers... it's the after parties where all the fun happens. Say... Silanus... fancy a wager? A little friend competition."[/i] Lucius was never one to back down from a challenge; Longinus and he had bet against one another often in Britannia. "Sure," he said. "That ought to liven things up a bit." Longinus still wore his smirk. "We each challenge each other to entertain a woman. Whoever gets rejected first is the loser." "Alright," Lucius started, "but what's the wager? And how exactly are we defining a rejection?" "Ahh, let's say a hundred denarii? And any sort of word, action, or motion that disengages the target from conversation." Lucius nodded. "Alright, I can agree to those terms." He had already found the target for Longinus. "Your target, there. Good luck." Longinus chuckled, though Lucius thought he could hear the worry in the sound of it. "Well... shit," he laughed again. "You always were cunning; thinking ahead of the challenge." The man scanned those gathered and pointed out a young woman whom Lucius didn't believe he had ever seen, though her dress and manner of walking implied that she was someone of some importance. "That one there," he said and then held out a forearm for them to shake. The challenge began with that shake and Lucius was off to his target. It wasn't until he approached that he realized how potentially scandalous her clothing was - nearly transparent linens layered in an Egyptian style that, while covering her body, still clung tightly to its shape. He watched for a few moments, observing how she interacted with the woman beside her - whom, based on their similar facial features Lucius presumed to be her mother - and whether she took the lead or rear in introducing herself to those who approached them. He then watched the eyes of the other guests as the mother-daughter duo made their way through the growing mass of attendees. Then, he saw his opening. He approached behind her, tapping on her shoulder. "Calpurn-" he said, purposefully uttering the wrong name of a girl he didn't even know only to apologize when he 'realized' he had the wrong person. "Oh, apologies miss," he was quick to add. "I mistook you for someone else." A quick glance across the way informed Lucius that Longinus was doing quite well in his task.

At the age of only twenty-three, Lucius Junius Silanus was already the head of his family. His birth parents died when he was almost too young to truly remember or understand it. His foster-father, who was also his uncle by blood, was killed in battle in Britannia as the end game of a great betrayal by a household slave whom Lucius had come to see as one of his only friends. Lucius killed that slave - the first life he took - when he was still an adolescent. After that he returned home to live with an aunt he had never met, who then lost her life during Clemens' grab at power, and he was whisked away to Africa along with Flavia Juliana, a woman who was not bound to him by any ties of blood, but had become the closest thing to a mother he had. He had parted ways with his sister, Junia, for several years until Quintus Caesar restored order to the empire and made Rome safe for them. It was because of Juliana that Lucius was at the banquet. It was necessary for him to better integrate himself with the nobility in order to further grow his career... and, as she was very keen to remind him: He needed to find a wife. With the pedigree of his family's name, and his close connections to the Imperial Family, Lucius would be a catch for any woman. He was well-spoken, well-dressed, and a very controlled man. His main fault was his lack of emotion - or inability to express it properly. He had learned in his youth that letting emotions control him only made him weak, and he had dedicated himself to a more stoic and Spartan way of life. Nevertheless, he was at the banquet making the rounds. He had arrived with his sister Junia and younger brother Marcus, both of whom left to greet their own acquaintances. He watched from the corner as the guests mingled and laughed among themselves. Lucius had learned to calm his nerves before charging into battle... but this was an entirely different battlefield for him, and one that he would have to conquer.

Early March, 73 AD A year had passed since Lucius Silanus returned from Britannia, and even after returning from that foreign war, he had fought a long and testing battle in the courts to prove his legal entitlement to the plot of land at one time owned by his family - before it the domus was destroyed and the land claimed by the state. Victory for the Junii-Silani had come at the start of the new year. Had he desired to, Lucius could've asked Flavia Juliana for her help, but it was a battle that he wanted to win on his own, to further cement the prestige of his family. And win he did. Construction started not a week after his victory in the courts, and the architect had been given strict orders to build the new home in as close a likeness as possible to the previous one - with some small modifications. Lucius had included his sister Junia in the planning stage; since she had been older when they were first in the home of their late uncle Decimus, he figured she would have a stronger memory of the place. Construction was finished in the first week of March, and Lucius threw a large party to celebrate the feat. The remaining members of their family were of course there, as were friends, colleagues, and clients. The party was a success, but it wasn't until the next day, when the celebrations had come to an end, that Lucius truly had a chance to speak with his sister Junia. Though the younger brother, he was responsible for their family's well-being. Publicly, Lucius was as strong and resilient as he needed to be; the only person he could truly let his guard down around was Junia. The home had been constructed to have separate wings for each of the remaining Junii-Silani; Lucius, Junia, and their brother Marcus. As was his preference, Lucius did not keep slaves in his home, but instead hired veterans (or their father-less families) unable to find work elsewhere. He referred to them each by their gentile names, and insisted that they refer to him and his family by their titles - which made him Senator, his brother simply Marcus, and his sister Domina Silana. Only five (of fourteen) lived permanently on the premises. Two were guards - Septimius and Mettius; one the cook - Porcius; one a doctor - Ennius; and one a sort of secretary - Curius. The rest were housed in apartments owned and paid for by Lucius from whence they commuted each morning. Despite the late hour to which the party had extended, Lucius had risen early and got a head start on the day's work. It was Porcius' son who entered into Lucius' office to inform him that lunch was nearly prepared. Lucius smiled at the boy and immediately paused his work. He traveled into the triclinium, wondering where his sister and brother were. Junia Silana