Is This the Real Life?

[Atrice]

June, 75 AD

It had been a fine day at the Circus Maximus. Caeso had been racing with his favorite horses, all a lovely brownish red color and his good chariot had not been broken today either. When he finished the last round of his part of the races, he was smiling, because he knew he’d performed well and he had won. Well the team had won. But Caeso had won too. After the race, he went to the stables to help with the horses and cleaning up and he was approached by a messenger, telling him he was invited to a party in the nearby Aventine the same evening. It had been cleared with his master, it was fine that he went, of course it was. Caeso would not be a fugitivus, ever.

 So for the evening, he dressed up in his finest green tunica – light green for the general fabric, but it had been hemmed with a darker green in a finer fabric, so that it was almost shining. He hadn’t done much to his hair since the afternoon, it took a while to do the twists pulling his long hair towards the back of his head and he kept it like that. He didn’t mind standing out. It was well-known anyway, that he liked it like this. His mother had taught him to do it, ages ago, and she had been taught by her mother, who was born in Germania. It looked impressive, he liked it.

 At night, he showed up at the right domus and was allowed in, of course he was. There was already a lot going on. Slaves, probably whores, were dancing in the atrium and they probably would not just continue to do dance next to each other. People were there, watching the naked dancers and others were laying on couches, eating delicacies and again others were just conversing. He recognized some of the other charioteers and when some of the guests at the party noticed him, they raised their cups to him, celebrating his win.

 He gave them a nod and picked up his own cup of wine. Honestly it seemed a little bit dull to him, this party. He hoped it wasn’t going to be an orgy, because then he was leaving again. Caeso went to quietly lean against a pillar in a corner of the peristyle, just watching people, not caring to approach any of them. Why was he here anyway?

@Laria

Edited July 2, 2020 by Atrice

[Laria]

It had been and excellent day to watch the races, though she hardly found the time to go, Marcella thoroughly enjoyed visiting the Circus Maximus to see them. Watching the teams of horses dart past each other was always a thrilling sight, and today had been no exception. She had been rooting for the white team but she wasn't to upset by their defeat, she had only been hoping for their victory because of a recent aquantince who happened to be on said team; still, she couldn't deny that they had truly been crushed by green this race.

It was because of how eclectic the races had been that she was at this party that she ordinarily would never attend, but there were rumors that one of the winning charioteers might be in attendance. Of course she couldn't miss an opportunity to congratulate on of the men who had won such a victory, even if she was embarrassingly dress in both a white chiton and palla. She waited sipping a glass of wine and watching the entrance as she waited for one of the three victors to arrive, and then he did, she watched as he choose to lean against a pillar rather than immediately begin interacting with the other guests. She studied his face and saw that he looked indifferent, possible even annoyed, to be there. She nearly laughed at the irony, usually she had the same expression, but the one time she was excited to be at a party the reason she was excited looked annoyed. Regardless, she made her way over to him and said "I would like to congratulate you on your victory today, your team was excellent"

 @Atrice

[Atrice]

Caeso was fine with people congratulating him for the race and he did enjoy racing – and he did especially enjoy winning and knowing that he and his horses had done well. Knowing that he’d calculated it right and done the right things at the exact right moments. That’s what he enjoyed. Figuring out how to do it in order to win. So really it wasn’t that big of a win, because really it all came down to science and not luck. But nobody else seemed to understand that. And now he was here and people had seen him and he wondered when he’d get the chance to leave. Despite his good privileges and all that, he was still just a slave.

He had not noticed the dark-haired woman in the wine chiton and a palla, when he entered. And now he stood in a corner, on his own as he preferred it sipping his wine and wondering how long he would stay. So far, he was not entertained. He felt someone looking at him though and looked up, allowing his bright blue eyes to look at the woman, who now approached him and congratulated him too.

 “Thank you, domina.” He replied with a small smile, “I’m glad to hear you thought us excellent.” He added, knowing he was here to please the guests, so he would be polite to her. He should probably converse, they would want that… “Are you enjoying the party so far, domina?”

@Laria

[Laria]

“Thank you, domina... I’m glad to hear you thought us excellent"

Marcella matched his smile with the same level of enthusiasm that he displayed, or rather a lack of genuine enthusiasm. She couldn't exactly blame him, she reasoned that he must have conversations like this one at nearly if not every party he attended; she didn't just want to be just one more on a list of people he had meaningless chats with though, she had always wanted to be remembered by everyone she willing conversed with. 

"Are you enjoying the party so far, domina?”

"I can't say I am, no, though I can't say I'm the best judge as I'm not much of a party-goer." She looked him over and thought for a moment before asking, "I presume you feel the same?" It was quite the assumption to make, but she had resin to believe it: he seemed utterly disinterested in the provided entertainment, wasn't seeking out conversation, and had chosen to stand apart from the bulk of the guest. 

@Atrice

 

[Atrice]

She seemed happy to talk to him and he knew he should provide the same enthusiasm as she did. But it was hard to, when you were more or less forced to go to parties like these and most of the time, they bored you. Sometimes he’d meet someone nice to talk to, some Senator or even someone with a vast knowledge on some specific subject, but not all the time. And he doubted he’d meet anyone this time, but he could talk to the lady who had approached him, of course. It was better than being alone and bored, he supposed.

He wondered if she was enjoying the party and to his great surprise, she was not! She said she wasn’t much of a party-goer and gave him a look before she assumed it was the same for him. Caeso gave her a slightly surprised look, he had not expected that question.

But why lie?

“Actually I do.” He confessed to her, “No offense to you, of course. But you see all these people… all they want is to gossip and who knows what later. That doesn’t interest me. Yet on the other hand, it would be weird to not come to a party that celebrates my team. So here I am.” Caeso explained to her, being very honest, but why not. He assumed she had not expected such an honest answer and looked at her to keep it all going, “Why are you here then?”

@Laria

[Laria]

He seemed suprized when she answered so honestly and then questioned his own willingness to being there. She found his suprize rather amusing, and slightly smiled before he answered her question. 

“Actually I do... No offense to you, of course. But you see all these people… all they want is to gossip and who knows what later. That doesn’t interest me. Yet on the other hand, it would be weird to not come to a party that celebrates my team. So here I am.”

She had not expected such an honest answer, though she did appreciate it, she saw no reason for lying as a means to merely spare feelings, but she saw it happen quite often. What he said made perfect sense and was precisely the reason that she didn't often attend parties such as these, though she did feel a bit disheartened when he said that, as he put it, "who knows what later", did not interest him.  

"So here you are" she echoed, and took a sip of her wine, his explanation certainly proved that he had a valid reason for being there. She did however wonder why his other teammates were not present, perhaps they all shared his attitude on parties and drew straws to see who had to go, but that was extremely unlikely in this city. 

“Why are you here then?”

"I'm a fan of the races, and when I heard there was to be a party after I decided to attend in hopes of meeting a recent acquaintance, but he doesn't seem to be here, or at least not yet." Apon saying this she did a quick scan of the faces in the room, looking to see if he had arrived while she was engaged in conversation.

@Atrice

[Atrice]

Judging by the look on her face, she had not expected an answer as honest as hers – but she had been honest and why should he lie, when she had already guessed the truth anyway? So far, she was actually smarter than most guests here, but most of them didn’t care to wonder if he even wanted to be here. They just wanted him to be there and because Caeso was a slave, he had no choice. Sure, he had more freedom than some other slaves, but he still wasn’t entirely free. And he was certainly not free to say no to parties like these.

She repeated his statement at the end and sipped her wine. Caeso did the same and then he wondered why she was here, if she didn’t want to be here. The lady explained she was a fan and wanted to attend because she hoped to meet an acquaintance – who was not here yet.

“So you settled to entertain yourself with me.” Caeso said, “I hope I am not boring you yet, domina. I am aware that I am probably not what you expected. Most people tell me that.” He explained, continuing the honesty, now that he’d begun anyway. Maybe she would actually pay attention.

“Is there something else you’d rather do, than go to parties? Most noble ladies seem to enjoy them a lot.” Was she different, then? Why?

@Laria

[Laria]

It was refreshing to know that she was not the only one who found no joy in attending parties like this, it was not often that Marcella came across people who thought like her. She was quite enjoying this conversation, even if all the honestly was unusual. 

“So you settled to entertain yourself with me. I hope I am not boring you yet, domina. I am aware that I am probably not what you expected. Most people tell me that.”

She felt flusted when he accused her of entertaining herself with him while she waited, it was somewhat true but she still genuinely was interested and invested in this conversation. "It's true that you are not what I expected, but you're not boring me in the slightest." She had expected him to act much more extroverted than he appeared to be and that he would have excused himself to mingle with other guests by now, but here he was, still speaking with her. From what she could tell he had intelligence, a simpler slave would surely be indulging himself with food, wine, and attention. But he seemed uninterested in all of that, choosing instead to quietly observe the other partygoers, until she approached him of course. 

“Is there something else you’d rather do, than go to parties? Most noble ladies seem to enjoy them a lot.”

"I would prefer to spend my time doing something more... substantial. I feel like I'm wasting my time whenever I attended events like this," she responded. "Is there something or somewhere you would rather be or be doing right now?" she assumed there was, or perhaps he just disliked parties regardless of what he could be doing instead. 

@Atrice

[Atrice]

He had not meant to offend her, he’d merely said something he guessed was true about her. She had come here to meet with a friend, who wasn’t here yet, so now she settled with talking to Caeso instead, even if he was not what she expected. He could tell by the look on her face, that she had not expected he’d say those things. She said though, that she wasn’t bored by him. Caeso gave her a quiet nod with a little smile, glad to hear that he wasn’t boring her. Most people who met him for the first time often seemed so… unimpressed. But not this one.

Caeso then wondered what she’d rather do, than go to parties and the lady preferred to do more important things than wasting her time with parties. He arched a brow, she thought she was wasting her time? That was new. People usually liked parties, it was a way to meet people and socialize and make allies. If you were free. Caeso didn’t care about all of that. She then wondered what he would rather be doing.

“I would also prefer to do something more meaningful, Domina. I could be tending to the horses. I could be making plans or seek information. I could read something useful and interesting.” He explained to her and looked at her, tilted his head, “May I ask your name, Domina?” She seemed like someone worth remembering. Unlike most other women and men.

@Laria

[Laria]

She chuckled at how he arched his brow at her comment, the drama of it amused her, especially seeing as at this point neither of them should be suprized by anything the other had said. 

“I would also prefer to do something more meaningful, Domina. I could be tending to the horses. I could be making plans or seek information. I could read something useful and interesting."

She wondered what he ment when he said "making plans or seeking information, " she was no stranger to scheming, though she wondered exactly what it was that he was aiming to do. He mind immediately started whirring as she imagined all sorts of possibilities, perhaps he wanted to learn information on opposing teams? Or there were rumors about the races having fixed winners, maybe he was a part of that? It could be something more personal that she couldn't possible guess. No matter what it was he was after, he needed to watch himself, Rome was a ruthless place and if he wasn't careful he could get himself killed; though she was sure he didn't need reminding, he seemed smart enough to cover his ass and not go looking for trouble. 

"May I ask your name, Domina?”

"Marcella, Marcella Laelia" she answered, knowing full well that he was called Caeso, anyone who frequented the races knew. Though of course it would be rude to not ask, even if it was just a clarification "Ceaso, wasn't it?" 

@Atrice

[Atrice]

Caeso gave her a look when she chuckled at him, he could laugh too, but often the things he found amusing were strange to others. She was interesting though, because she did not want to be here and thought she could do something more meaningful. Just like Caeso. He could do so many things that would be better than being here, but he was a slave. If only he wasn’t, he’d have so many opportunities in Rome. He could do so much. But for now, he could do his best to serve his team at the races and make sure they won. Or he could be reading, learning new things.

The lady listened quietly with interest and then Caeso decided he would know her name, so he simply asked. She told him her name and he nodded at her question, “Yes, I’m Caeso.” He confirmed while he was thinking. He knew her name now and her interests and they would both like to leave here. Caeso had an idea, it was obvious, almost too easy, but because of that, it might actually work.

“Maybe we should both find something more meaningful to do, elsewhere. I’m a slave, Domina. You’re not. One of us could let the host know you want alone-time with me. He’ll understand, it’s not like it is uncommon. And then we slip away.” He suggested with a small smile, thinking it was a good plan. He did not have any hidden or secret agendas, other than getting away from the party. He didn’t know what she wanted though. Of course it could look bad for her, he didn’t know if she was married, but he had a way around that too, if she was concerned. First though, he’d see if she liked his idea. Marcella Laelia might be useful to him.

@Laria