[b]Nona[/b]
Nona walked arm in arm with Aemilia, enjoying the looks they achieved. After all, they did look the part of Roman nobility to a T. She had that air about her that said she was not afraid to kiss a man and then have him killed if he displeased her. She had spent early this morning making a sacrifice to Venus, asking that her husband fall more in love with her. Then a sacrifice to Angitia for healing for herself. She had been feeling rather ill lately, in fact not too long after marrying Crispus, and it was only getting worse. She still had an air about her that dissuaded talk, and made others not even realize her condition, but it didn’t mean at night she didn’t rant and rave and make the servants wait on her hand and foot to bring down her fevers and give her excessive amounts of baths in healing oils.

On this morning, she had hoped simply to make her presence known again with Aemilia. After all, if you didn’t let people see you, they forgot how important you were. [b]”Isn’t there a game tonight?
[/b] she asked her friend, speaking of course of the coliseum. Anybody who was anybody never missed an event there, and she was eager to attend and throw a token to the best gladiator in the ring.

[b]Marcus[/b]
That morning, Marcus Azarius woke up early with the dawn. He had given specific instructions to all the house staff (wait on his wife hand and foot, make sure Ateret didn’t leave the house unless cleaned and dressed like a proper upper class girl) and eaten briefly before heading to the docks. Unlike some merchants that sat back and let dough roll in, he was too invested in his business to simply trust such a thing to happen. Not to mention all those years as a slave had driven work into his fingers and prevented him from simply resting.

Today his work was mainly meetings though. Meetings others had set up with him in order to gain the loyalty of his business to their cause or hopeful rise in the ranks of the Roman empire. Meetings with those who wanted to join with his business into a partnership. Meetings with those wanting money for ventures and hoping he’d be affected by it. Then meetings he’d set up himself to discuss marriage between Ateret and others. He used to only set up such meetings with nobles. Then with the upper class. At this point, he was just looking for someone with a decent reputation despite social ranking. 

Rubbing his eyes and face, he went to his office and pulled out the bookkeeping records from last month, comparing their trade numbers with what they were on track to do this month.