Awkward encounter

[Chevi]

October, 74CE

Things had not progressed as fast as Aia and Decimus had hoped. After things got sorted out after the attack on the road, and everyone got chewed out by Flavia Juliana, Claudia and Cynane returned to the city (with the appropriate number of guards this time), and Decimus, once he could be moved, was taken back to the Castra so that the medici who took care of the praetorians could make sure his wound healed properly. He only got stolen moments with Aia before he left, and his absence left Aia shifting between sheer happiness and sheer worry.

Days and weeks passed. Flavia Juliana did not go to the city very often, and when she did, Aia accompanied her in the hopes of seeing Decimus, but he was not back on duty yet. She managed to leave him messages, but no encounter, in a pantry or otherwise, managed to happen.

Until today. Flavia Juliana was at the Palatine, and Aia managed to get the night off. She headed to the popina where they'd met before, leaving a message she hoped Decimus would get. She knew the owner of the popina, and hoped they'd have a room for the night. All this was long overdue.

By the time she entered the popina it was getting late in the evening. There were quite a few people inside, eating, drinking, and getting cheerfully loud. Aia covered her head with her palla as usual, trying to hide her telltale red hair as she walked to the counter. Hopefully, in a crowd like this, she would not draw anyone's attention... 

@Atrice

[Atrice]

It was late in the evening and he really should be going home to the palace. His home, at the palace. It was quite nice, he wasn’t even part of the Imperial family, but he had his connections and he had been coming and going from that place for years. It almost really was his home. He smiled at the thought and downed a little bit more of his drink. He’d been here with a few other friends, but they had all just left and he now sat here alone… well not entirely alone, his personal slave, the Briton Silvanus was here. And plenty of other people were here too. He’d eyed one of the barmaids earlier and thought he might persuade her to allow him to eye her even closer.

 Although he should be going home. Marcus ran a hand through his hair, he didn’t really feel like going yet. The long way back to the palace. Maybe Silvanus would carry him? Although he was a bit old to be carried around. Silvanus could fetch a carriage or a litter for him? Yes, that would be a grand idea. Silvanus didn’t like to leave his master here alone though (or maybe he didn’t want to walk through Rome alone in the evening), but Marcus explained that it was an order and he’d have Silvanus flogged if he disobeyed. Silvanus didn’t like the idea of having his back ruined, so he finally did as told. Not that Marcus actually planned on doing it, but Silvanus had only been enslaved few years and still feared the punishment. Someone must have done it bad when he was first captured. Well, lucky for Marcus - then it was easier to get the slave to follow orders.

 Marcus’ eyes followed the slave all the way to the door and until he disappeared through it and just then, someone else walked through the same door, entering the Poppina Via Lata. Was that…? Yes, it was! Aia! What the fuck was she doing here? His teacher, in the Poppina? This late? She had covered her flaming hair with her palla and walked as if she didn’t want to be seen. Well she’d been seen.

 Marcus emptied his drink and walked up the counter where she stood. He stood right behind her then, leaned closer with a huge grin on his face, “Good evening Aia. Missed me?”

 @Chevi

[Chevi]

Aia just about jumped out of her skin when she heard her name called so close behind her back. It was not Decimus, she would have recognized him anywhere, but it was a familiar voice, and she reacted before she realized where she knew it from. Swinging around, she was ready to punch the man in the chest to escape... but she noted the face just in time to pull up short.

"... Marcus?!"

Oh, shit. What the hell was her domina's son doing here at the popina? Did he know...?

Aia sighed, shaking her head in disbelief. She was the adult here. Maybe she could turn this around.

"What in the gods' name are you doing here?"

@Atrice

[Atrice]

This was an interesting turn of events! So he wouldn’t have to go home after all, because now he technically wasn’t alone here… Aia was here and Aia was someone he knew, so he could just say he was out with her. As if he’d ever plan on actually going out with her, but now that she was here… he was curious. Why was she here? Why at this hour? Why did she try to hide? Those were questions he’d see answered before they parted ways and she seemed so surprised to see him that he figured she’d do anything to remain ‘unseen’ to his mother.

 She’d spun around and he nodded with a wide grin on his face, when she exclaimed his name. Then she wondered what he was doing here. Really?

 “What do you think?” He asked with a laugh and held up his empty cup, which was easy enough, because she wasn’t nearly as tall as he was, “This is empty by the way. But I do need to have it filled again. And then I think we should sit down and have a drink and a chat together. I could ask you the same, by the way. What are you doing here?” He then asked with an arched brow. This was going to be interesting!

@Chevi

[Chevi]

“What do you think?”

Stupid question. When it came to deciding whether Marcus was here to drink, or to spy on her... well, he was definitely here to drink. Aia sighed.

“This is empty by the way. But I do need to have it filled again. And then I think we should sit down and have a drink and a chat together. I could ask you the same, by the way. What are you doing here?”

"Same as you, it seems" Aia smirked, and signaled for a drink too. "I would have thought you'd find... something closer to the Palatine? I come here sometimes when I have an evening off. You?"

She moved over to his table and took a seat. She hoped that if Decimus showed and saw her with someone else (especially her domina's son), he would have the brains to pretend he was not here to meet her. Hopefully. 

@Atrice

[Atrice]

Of course he was here to drink, that was a very good and useful reason to go to the Poppina. That and to look at people. And be seen. And have fun with your friends. But his friends had gone and he sent Silvanus out to find him some transportation back to the palace and while he waited for Silvanus, he might as well entertain himself with Aia. He had never imagined it would be so, but here they were, although she sighed and didn't even try to hide it. Marcus was curous though, wanted to know what she was doing here and she said she did the same as he. Then wondered why he wasn't closer to the Palatine.

"I come here sometimes when I want a night out. It's a good place. One of the more respectable ones. Well this part of it anyway." There was also the other part of the Poppina, reserved for the lower classes. He had a barmaid fill his drink, placed a coin on the counter and followed Aia to where she'd gone to sit down. Meanwhile he wondered why Aia was in this part of the Poppina. Not that she wasn't nice enough looking, but she wasn't even a Roman plebian. She was a foreigner. 

"Do you always come in this part of the Poppina then? I do, obviously. I've not seen you here before though." So maybe he just started coming here for real when he was 15, but to a man as young as Marcus, that seemed like a lifetime ago, that he was that young. It felt like he'd always come here. Not Aia though, he thought. And she tried to hide under her palla. That part was still a mystery!

@Chevi

 

[Chevi]

Marcus was a little too young to spend his night in a place like this. Sure, by Roman standards he was a grown man, but still his mother would have a fit if she found out he had strayed so far from the Palatine. Not that Aia was going to tell on him. She wouldn't have, even if her own secret had been safe. 

"I come here sometimes when I want a night out. It's a good place. One of the more respectable ones. Well this part of it anyway."

"It is." Aia agreed. She liked the popina. It was much less run down (this part anyway) than other places nearby, and the owners were trustworthy, and ran a tight ship. Drinks were acceptable, and questions were scarce.

"Do you always come in this part of the Poppina then? I do, obviously. I've not seen you here before though."

"Sometimes." she admitted, then smirked a little "I know the owner. She lets me sits here when there is free space."

As a foreigner, she should not have been over here, but it was true, she knew the owner. As a woman, she should not have been here at all, but no one had questioned that yet.

"I thought you'd be spending the evening with some company, though? Did your mother let you go out without Silvanus?"

@Atrice

[Atrice]

If she would ask Marcus, he definitely did not think he was too young to spend his night here. Besides, he hadn’t been here alone all night. He’d been here with friends. They just went home now and he was the last one and apparently now he was staying a little longer, because he had an interesting mystery to solve. Aia meanwhile agreed it was a good place and then said she knew the owner, who allowed her to sit here if there was space.

 “Lucky you then.” Marcus said with a grin. She knew the owner? What else did Aia do when she wasn’t teaching him and Caecina and the younger kids at the house? Apparently she got around. Then she began asking questions about Marcus.

 “I did spend the evening with company, they had just left when you came in. I sent Silvanus out to… find me a carriage or litter to take me home. I’ve no idea how long that is going to take.” Probably a good while longer, “So I’m just waiting now. At least now I’m not alone anymore, right? Carpe noctem!” He held up his drink to toast with her and then took a good sip of it, before setting back to the table

 “So… how about you? You didn’t come in here with company. Are you here to see someone?” Marcus asked with a grin, “Uh maybe a secret lover you won’t tell mother about.” He added with a laugh, because the idea was laughable! He was a bit drunk and honestly he didn’t believe in what he just said. Aia, have a secret lover? No way he’d believe such a fairy tale.

@Chevi

[Chevi]

It was a bit of a negative turn in the evening to run into her student at the poppina instead of her lover. One of those two things Aia had been looking forward to for weeks, and it sure as hell was not a half-drunk Marcus. The last thing she needed was for Flavia Juliana to find out about this.

“I did spend the evening with company, they had just left when you came in. I sent Silvanus out to… find me a carriage or litter to take me home. I’ve no idea how long that is going to take. So I’m just waiting now. At least now I’m not alone anymore, right? Carpe noctem!” 

"Carpe noctem" Aia smirked, drinking as well. I could have been worse. It could have been a brothel, really. Marcus was a decent kid, but even decent kids could get wild when they were not being supervised.

 “So… how about you? You didn’t come in here with company. Are you here to see someone? Uh maybe a secret lover you won’t tell mother about.” 

Aia, in a very unladylike moment, sprayed some wine through her nose at those words.

"Marcus!" she coughed, wiping her face on her palla "Do I look like someone who would pick up men in a popina?"

Hopefully he'd say no.

@Atrice

[Atrice]

Aia toasted with him, which was nice to see. It was interesting to see her here, actually, now he thought about it. He never knew Aia would go out to places like this and this late in the evening! He didn’t know yet if he would tell his mother, but he might slip a word to Caecina about it, because it was too good to keep secret. As long as he didn’t get too drunk. It would be too embarrassing in front of her, someone he knew and he’d see her when she was his teacher.

 He wondered why she’d come here without company and then joked about her coming here to see a secret lover. It really was a joke! Aia with the odd hair and the odd mannerisms, having a secret lover? He supposed her face was nice enough, but it really was too far out to imagine doing anything with her. Yet when he suggested the secret lover, she sprayed wine out her nose as if he caught her by surprise and she was flabbergasted! His eyes widened as he stared at her, while she coughed and seemed offended at his words.

 “I… uhm… guess not?” Marcus said, a bit surprised by her outburst, but then he pulled himself together again, “But… if it was a secret lover you’d not just be picking them up. If it was arranged. But you’re right, you don’t look the part.” He added with a grin, but then paused, “Wait…” Marcus narrowed his eyes, “You were trying to sneak in here, hoping no one would notice you. So either it is that. Or you’re a spy or something.” Marcus wasn't as stupid as you might think! Although  on the other hand, both ideas sounded too far out to be true. So what was the truth, if not any of those?

@Chevi

[Chevi]

Aia was doing her best to look appalled rather than caught red-handed. The coughing helped her mask her shock until she regained her composure. Not that her question really had a good answer.

“I… uhm… guess not?” 

Aia smirked at him. Good boy.

“But… if it was a secret lover you’d not just be picking them up. If it was arranged. But you’re right, you don’t look the part.”

Aia froze for a second; damn, the boy was quick, even when drunk. But then he moved on, and even though his comment stung a lot (hey, she did have a secret lover, and an amazing one too, thank you very much!), at least he was off the scent for now.

“Wait… You were trying to sneak in here, hoping no one would notice you. So either it is that. Or you’re a spy or something.” 

"Or" Aia arched an eyebrow "I just wanted a drink without being bothered. How many women from respectable households do you see around here?"

@Atrice

[Atrice]

It was really kind of amusing to run into Aia here! The last place he’d expect to see her! And her reaction to him suggesting she had a secret lover was interesting… but he decided it was a stupid idea, because Aia, with a secret lover? The idea was so off that you’d either laugh or cry over it. And he chose to laugh, of course. Still though, why was she here then? He was only half-drunk and he wasn’t stupid, so he had more ideas as to why she was here.

 Maybe she was a secret spy then? Wouldn’t that be amusing? He didn’t know her story, so didn’t know she could actually easily pretend to be something she wasn’t. Aia on the other hand claimed she was no spy, she just wanted a drink and not be bothered. She pointed out how few respectable women came here. He gave her a look. She might live in their house and be his teacher, but they were not the same class at all.

 “Not a lot of them.” He just said, but her claim to not want to be bothered was still weird. Why on Earth would you go out, if you didn’t want anyone to bother you? And besides, she failed at that, didn’t she?

 “But if you didn’t want to be bothered, maybe staying at home would be better? I hope I’m not… bothering you.” He added with an arched brow, looking at her. She better answer that question the right way. Yes, he was 16 and thought the world was at his feet. And so far, it was.

@Chevi

[Chevi]

“Not a lot of them.” 

Okay, so maybe Aia stabbed herself in the foot here. She was not really a respectable woman. She had lived as not a woman at all for years, and she was still in that strange place between soldier and Roman lady. She was a tutor to imperial children, but she was not a part of the family. So, maybe respectable was a strong word. That's why she'd added 'household'.

 “But if you didn’t want to be bothered, maybe staying at home would be better? I hope I’m not… bothering you.” 

Aia smirked.

"You are not bothering me at all, as long as you don't ask me to give you lessons in Gallic." she noted, sidestepping the question of why she was not home with the rest of the household "How about you, then? Making friends out here, or did you bring them from the Palatine?"

@Atrice

[Atrice]

It really was weird that Aia was here. She had her excuses, sure, but that didn't make it less weird and Marcus was not convinced that she was just here to catch a drink, on her own. Especially not in this part of the popina, at this hour, dressed like that and trying to hide on her way in. No, something was off here. And now she claimed she didn't want to be bothered, so why she was here at all was really a mystery. Which got him to think, if she thought he was bothering her. He hoped not. If she thought so, his mother would surely hear about this... and he'd make sure it looked bad for Aia, not himself. But she smirked, said he didn't bother her... and then he let out a laugh when she told him to not ask for lessons.

"Ha, I'd never ask for that." Not that he didn't pay attention when she was his tutor, and he knew it was important to learn these things, but it was difficult and a bit boring and there were definitely better things to do than ask for more lessons. Aia then asked if he was here to make friends or if he brought them.

"I came with a few, as I said. Proper company. But they all left. Nothing wrong with making new friends though." He said with a small smile and eyed that barmaid he'd been looking at earlier. She noticed and blushed a bit and he grinned at her, before his attention returned to Aia, "Did you plan on making any friends here tonight then? You really can't expect to come here and not have anyone talk to you, if you're alone. Especially not a woman." 

@Chevi

[Chevi]

"Ha, I'd never ask for that." 

Aia laughed too. Marcus was not a bad student, and a lot smarter than he gave himself credit for, but she could not fault him for not enjoying language lessons as much as drinking with his friends. "I'll drink to that" she said, sipping her wine. He'd have to accept that she was not his tutor tonight. 

"I came with a few, as I said. Proper company. But they all left. Nothing wrong with making new friends though... Did you plan on making any friends here tonight then? You really can't expect to come here and not have anyone talk to you, if you're alone. Especially not a woman." 

Aia followed Marcus' gaze to the woman who was glancing his way and blushing. She chuckled at the sight. Oh well, it could have been worse. It could have been a brothel. That would have been much harder to explain herself out of. "As I said, I know the owner. We chat sometimes when she has time. She's also a foreigner." she shrugged. There was a hint of an explanation hidden in there: Aia was not nobility. She was a peregrina, and could mix with her own kind. "It seems like you did make a friend." she added with a grin, nodding towards the barmaid. "Have you asked her name yet?"

@Atrice

[Atrice]

She laughed when he did, when he pointed out he’d never ask for lessons in Gallic and then she announced she’d drink to that. Marcus joined in, sipping his drink too with a grin on his face. It was kind of amusing, drinking with Aia. He never imagined he’d do that! The conversation continued then, he explained again about the people he’d been here with and how you could still make new friends here. And did she make any?

Aia again said she knew the owner because she was a foreigner… but they just talked when they had the time and he doubted it would be tonight, because the popina was pretty busy! Then she commented on how he’d made a friend and wondered if had asked the girl for her name.

“She just poured my wine, that’s all. We haven’t really talked. But she’s nice looking.” He said with a grin. It wouldn’t be very nice of him to try and flirt with her and convince her to sleep with her, because that might ruin her future or something. After all, there was no way he’d ever marry a barmaid… a plebian. He would not marry for many years to come and when he did, it would be to someone of his own class and whom it would be useful for him to marry. For kids and alliances and such. But the barmaid was cute, he could not ignore that.

“I suppose it’s her luck that you came by.” Marcus then commented and looked at Aia again, “So… you know the owner of the popina because they’re a foreigner? Are they from the same place as you then? There’s a lot of foreigners in Rome, I don’t expect you know them all?” He asked and drank a bit more wine. Perhaps he should stop. But he didn’t want to.

@Chevi

[Chevi]

Aia hoped that talk of the barmaid might distract Marcus from the other topic at hand. He was young enough to fancy women who were not well suited to him, and to enjoy some flirtation, even if he was not ne to easily fall in love.

“She just poured my wine, that’s all. We haven’t really talked. But she’s nice looking.” 

"That she is." Aia admitted. She could not fault Marcus for looking at pretty women. She did too, sometimes.

“I suppose it’s her luck that you came by. So… you know the owner of the popina because they’re a foreigner? Are they from the same place as you then? There’s a lot of foreigners in Rome, I don’t expect you know them all?”

Aia arched an eyebrow at the stubborn questions. Marcus was not going to let their encounter slide easily, and the drinks made him cheekier than usual. She chuckled anyway and drank. Maybe she could hold out long enough for his litter to appear.

"No, not all of them. And no, she's not from Gaul." she admitted with a smirk "But I find some people more interesting than others. Like a foreigner woman, who runs her own poppina in Rome. You have to admit, that must be a fascinating story. Don't you like a good story?"

@Atrice

[Atrice]

Marcus had yet to experience that thing with falling in love, but he could definitely be fascinated by the other gender and he wasn’t a virgin either. He wasn’t a child anymore, after all. Aia was curious about the barmaid he looked at and she agreed the woman was nice looking. But he wasn’t going to flirt as much with her as planned, because now he had Aia to talk to. And that was better than bedding some random barmaid, even if he wanted to. He knew he should be good. Even now. He wasn’t that drunk.

He remained curious about Aia though, wondering how she knew the owner of the popina, because you couldn’t know every foreigner in Rome, could you? Apparently, there was a bit of a philosopher in him… maybe. Only maybe. Aia arched a brow, then chuckled and said she didn’t know them all and this one wasn’t even from Gaul, like her. She went on about how she thought some people were fascinating and this was one of them.

“Everyone likes a good story, I think.” Marcus agreed with her, “You don’t see so many women running things on their own. It’s mostly something men do. So I guess you’re right.” He said and took a drink from his cup, which was near empty now. He downed the rest to get it over and done with, “Did you come here for just the one drink… or more?”

@Chevi

[Chevi]

“Everyone likes a good story, I think. You don’t see so many women running things on their own. It’s mostly something men do. So I guess you’re right.”

"I usually am" Aia said with a grin. As tutor, it was her job to be right, although usually that was limited to linguistics, not philosophy. And Marcus had to admit, a peregrina running her own business in Rome was an impressive story, even if he was currently more interested in women for their charms than her business prowess. 

His drink was almost finished, and so was hers. It was getting late; she knew that if Decimus was going to show, he could show up any time. Maybe he couldn't leave the Castra tonight. She still hoped, even if she would have to make sure Marcus did not notice.

“Did you come here for just the one drink… or more?”

"Maybe more than one" she agreed, signaling the barmaid. "So, if not her... do you have your eye on someone else? I won't tell your mother if you do" she added with a chuckle. 

@Atrice

[Sains]

This night had been a long time coming. For days he'd been holed up in the Castra waiting for his bloody arm to heal, and to say there was little to do would have been the understatement of an era! They'd not left him in bed, no, there was always a job that the legion could find for you to do in your leisure... If you could even call it that. He'd spent the entire day, and the day before, helping the quartermaster sift through endless piles of parchment to make sure that every last guardsmen was getting his fair allotment of wine and bread. If he'd had to listen to one more story about guarding the walls of Rome he'd go insane. Needless to say, he could hardly wait to arrive at the rather large tavern he'd come to frequent many months ago.

He wasn't excited for the drink or the good food, though they certainly held their place in his mind, but the girl that was waiting there for him. Confessing their love beneath the Flavia's seemed like an eternity ago, but that's only because he hadn't caught a glimpse of his loves face since he'd left in the morning. The mere thought of her blue eyes draped below that glowing red mane he'd first spotted a world away drove him on faster, for being late to this sort of meeting was unthinkable. Still, he knew what they were now. It hadn't been revealed to anyone and the secrecy of their relationship was the priority above all. Still, it wasn't as if anyone important was going to be there to rat them out. Maybe that was why he walked into the popina so confidently, his face exposed to the dim light of the room as several patrons milled about.

It seemed as busy as ever, though he could tell that there were a few more patrons in here than usual. He looked about for Aia and made for their usual spot though he stopped almost immediately when he saw her sitting with... A boy?.. 

He couldn't really tell by looking at the back of his head, but he knew that if he were a friend of hers he shouldn't try to be seen. So there he was, stuck there standing out in the middle of the crowd like a lost child. Aia would almost certainly have seen him, though she wouldn't have time to look long before he wandered off towards the corner of the bar to order a mug and keep his head low. Whoever she was with looked too finely dressed to be some run-of-the-mill pleb, that was for sure. He could only hope to guess at who it might be while he ordered.

"Mead for me..." he'd say in a brisk tone to the barkeeper, finding some suitable cover behind a man who was much... well... larger than he. 

 

@Chevi @Atrice

Edited May 10, 2020 by Sains

[Atrice]

He smiled when she grinned and said she was usually right… was she though? Well she was an adult, but so was Marcus, technically. She was just older than he was. He didn’t know how old, she still didn’t look wrinkled or anything and you couldn’t judge by her hair – which was still shorter than most other women, at least anyone he knew. Why had it been shorter though? He remembered it had been, when she first came to become their tutor. It was one of the many strange things about her.

Another was her going out for drinks on her own and he wondered if she was here for one drink or more. Aia said she wanted more than one and signaled the barmaid, whom Marcus would make sure to tell also to fill his cup. Aia was curious about anyone he might have his eyes on and promised she would not tell his mother.

“I’m a bit young to consider such things, don’t you think? There’s a lot I need to do first, before I can marry. I don’t really have my eyes on anyone special… yet.” Although there were many pretty girls where he came. Caecina was one, although it was still weird to think about her like that, when he’d known and lived with her since they were children. But she was also very good looking and nice to talk to. And she knew him. It wouldn’t be a bad match. If he dared to aim higher, Claudia Caesaris was also interesting. But no one knew what Fortuna had in mind for him.

“What about you? If you don’t have some secret lover, what then?” Aia wasn’t as young as he, he knew that. Was she going to be an old maid or something? Just then he thought he saw someone familiar out of the corner of his eye; that praetorian, who’d accompanied Claudia the day she arrived all bloody at the villa, with her guards and Aia in tow. Wasn’t that him? He stood there looking like a puppy, he thought. And then he went to the bar. Fun coincidence, that... he nudged Aia and nodded to where hes saw the man go, "Isn't that the... wounded guard Claudia had with her? His name escapes me... but you were there, do you know it?"

@Chevi @Sains

[Chevi]

All young men liked talking about women, did they not? At least to their friends. Aia was not really Marcus' friend, and she was a woman; there was no way for him to know she had been a soldier, and knew exactly how to talk about women, but sometimes she forgot about that part. Right now, she was not his comrade in arms. She was more like a weird aunt.

“I’m a bit young to consider such things, don’t you think? There’s a lot I need to do first, before I can marry. I don’t really have my eyes on anyone special… yet.” 

And then Decimus walked in.

Oh, bother.

“What about you? If you don’t have some secret lover, what then?”

Yeah, what now?

Aia tried not to look at Decimus longer than at any other person around them, but she also tried to catch his eyes at the same time to signal him that she was not alone. At least he noticed the latter fairly fast and moved to the counter, trying to look like he just happened to be in need of a drink. Aia's heart jumped at his sight, despite the tenseness of the situation; he looked a lot better than the last time she'd seen him. Her secret lover.

"Isn't that the... wounded guard Claudia had with her? His name escapes me... but you were there, do you know it?"

Shit.

"Who?" Aia blinked, looking up as if she had to look to notice Decimus. She had been a fairly good actor from an early age (survival skills). She was not sure how good Decimus was going to be at this charade, but there was really no good way of backing out of it now. "Oh! Hey, Decimus!" she grinned, waving a hand in his direction "Good eyes, Marcus. That's the man who took an arrow for Claudia. Looks like he lived, huh."

@Sains @Atrice

[Sains]

Decimus was quite content to remain as uninteresting as possible to the two, though there was no way he could know that Marcus had already seen and identified him by the time he'd reached the counter. Well, it figured. He wasn't exactly the most unrecognizable character, and the scars that adorned his arms marked him as one that was no stranger to a sword. Honestly there was very little he could do to make the situation better other than to act as if he hadn't seen Aia. Hadn't seen Aia... The thought sounded ludicrous in his head. How could he ever miss her face in a crowd? 

With little more to do than stare at his mug and take the occasional sip he set about looking uninterested in the best ways that he knew how. He started by bringing out his small purse and dumping a few coins on the counter to play with between his fingers. Gods, he hoped this didn't go on for too long or he might actually get bored. There was little chance of it for now though, he could only imagine that if he turned to look at her heavenly face again he'd be met with the staring daggers of whatever noble little brat she was sitting with. 

 

@Atrice @Chevi

[Atrice]

For some reason they were talking about whether Marcus had his eyes on some young woman or what, but he wasn’t serious about any of that. He could flirt, he could sleep around if he felt like it (but so far not with any noble girls), but he was far from ready to settle down and marry. He was 16 years old! Besides, he knew that few marriages were based on romance and he had little interest in that so far, or at least… so he thought. Other things mattered more at his age. But he wondered what about Aia, she wasn’t all that young and if she had no secret lover, did she have any plans in that direction?

But she never answered him, instead she was looking at something else it seemed and Marcus too noticed that wounded praetorian that came in together with Claudia, Aia and Claudia’s female bodyguard… he couldn’t remember his name though and pointed him out to Aia, who first blinked and then looked at him. She grinned at him and waved at him, calling him by his first name, but he ignored her completely. Aia said Marcus had good eyes and that this Decimus had taken an arrow for the princess and lived.

“Looks like he did. What really happened out there anyway? They didn’t tell us much, but Juliana prefers we don’t leave the house without bodyguards now.” He said, looking at her, wanting to know more. He hadn’t seen them arrive at the house back then, but he knew there was a lot of drama involved afterwards. He and Caecina tried to steer clear of it, but they couldn’t help but hear the slaves talking.

@Chevi @Sains

[Chevi]

Aia called out to Decimus, because it would have felt awkward if she didn't. He wasn't sure if it was a good idea, but then again, good ideas had been left behind a while ago, probably around the time they decided to meet in secret in a popina. By now, she was just trying to swim not sink. Decimus, on his part, decided to pretend he hadn't heard her greeting. 

Marcus noticed Decimus, and managed to remember where he new him from. 

“Looks like he did. What really happened out there anyway? They didn’t tell us much, but Juliana prefers we don’t leave the house without bodyguards now.” 

"Bandits" Aia shrugged, then remembered she should probably not be so matter-of-fact about it. She turned back to face Marcus "They had the nerve go to after the princess. It was a mess, but the bodyguards managed to kill some and chase the rest away. You should have seen the Briton woman. No wonder it took so long to take Britannia..."

@Atrice @Sains