The carriage came to the large stone walls, covered in vine leaves, that bounded the Castellian estate. A guard, dressed in a uniform with red linings under leather armour, came out of the gatehouse and opened up the iron gates. Augustus had never been so long removed from his home, and despite the current circumstance, felt comforted by the familiar setting.

Inside, the Castellian property felt like a world separated from the busy city streets. Trees lined the roads and grass fields that were well-kempt separated each building. Each grouping of buildings was an estate onto themselves, provided to each independent member of the main family.

The carriage came to a halt at the roofed entranceway of the grand manse. He exited first, then helped his wife descend the footstep of the carriage, an offer he made not just out of politeness, but also because she still seemed unused to riding in carriages. She had modest beginnings, obvious to anyone who paid attention.

A group of attendants were already appearing from the manse, ready to be put to work. “When the wagons arrive with our belonging, don’t bother unloading them,” he said to them.

“We won’t be staying here?” asked Marielle.

“No, we will be receiving our own estate. It is my right, now that I am wed.” Augustus turned back to those in the carriage. “Heratio, I need you to take care of something while I am in the manse. I need you to find Gillivan and hire him as my second bodyguard. When you are done, wait with him back here, in the carriage.” Augustus held out four silver venti coins and Heratio snatched them with a nod, then sauntered off.

Augustus turned to Marielle. “We need to change our clothing. This temple garb will be inappropriate for the occasion. It’s a small detail, I know, but I need this meeting to go well, so I must insist we change. You will change into the red and yellow dress I gifted you. Have your tutor and the slave girl accompany you to help you with it.”

“Cressa, Sara, I will need you two to come with me,” she said into the carriage. They exited the carriage, with the slave girl stumbling slightly on the way out.

“It’s a big step,” said Castor as he exited after, with the slave girl’s help. “I’ll part with you here, Master Augustus. I should go see my wife, I suppose. It’s a husband’s duty after all, after such a long voyage.”

“Go, and have fun. Come to my estate, whichever one it ends up being, whenever you are done. I’ll have much to discuss with you.”

Augustus led Marielle and her two attendants into the manse. He immediately noticed her and her young attendant’s shocked faces when they entered the foyer. It was designed first and foremost to impress. Mosaics of small pieces of ceramics covered the walls, showing the history of the Castellian family. There was ornate furniture, lined with gold leaf. The drawer handles took the shapes of leaves, artistically designed. The skill of the hands that made all of this was a point of pride of the family. A rug was woven with an intricate design, signifying nothing but a complicated pattern. Portraits were hung, oil paintings of amazing detail that showed the former heads of the Castellian family in dignified poses. There was a staircase leading up that had stained glass between the railings. All of it showed their excess. All of it declared that they were the true nobility of Venocia.

He led them up the stairs to a room they could use to change Marielle, then separated himself from them, moving to another room to change. A house attendant was sitting there waiting, Angela, a nanny from his childhood.

“Hello, again Master Augustus. I hope your travels have treated you kindly,” she said.

“They did. You may rise, help me get into my house clothes.” Angela rose and began preparing the clothes as Augustus undressed. “Tell me, how has the house been for the past two months? How has my mother been?”

“Two months? Oh, you must have heard already.” She shook her head. “You know I can’t speak of your mother. But I will say, I am glad you are back. The house has been chaotic recently.”

Augustus knew she couldn’t speak too casually as she was in an awkward position. She was close to his father. His father would often turn to Angela for comfort at night. Although Augustus never knew of it forming a rift between Angela and his mother, he imagined Angela would be particularly uncomfortable doing anything to raise the scorn of his mother. Especially now.

He managed to change quickly and returned to Marielle’s change room with time to spare. He waited, leaning against the wall, but not finding a bare space he had the frame of a painting digging into his back. She would likely be using the creams and lotions that were available there, experimenting with them since she likely didn’t have them back home.

In the lonely silence, Augustus' thoughts wandered. He remembered when his father told him that he wouldn’t be running for a Senate seat. Instead, his brother Cladius would be the candidate in his place. “To serve as a senator you must stay in the city to vote. The money spent on the bribes required to ensure a favourable election would be wasted on someone who was sent on a voyage,” his father had explained. “And, the absence would make the next election even more costly to win.” Augustus’ father had decided instead of the valuable position of senator, Augustus would study to become a magistrate. Being a senator was more prestigious, and gave a person access to vital Senate reports that could be used advantageously in business ventures. Augustus wrang his mind over all the disadvantages that turn of events had put him in. He clenched his fist in pulses, having his nails dig into his skin.

Their voices could be heard through the door, playful tones. She was already losing focus. Though, perhaps he was being too hard on her. How could she be expected to deal perfectly with this situation?

The door swung open and through it appeared Marielle, looking even better than before. Her skin was fairer and smoother, and her lips redder than earlier. “You look good,” Augustus said and Marielle brightened up a bit in response. He waved over Angela and discreetly told her they were finally ready to have an audience with his mother. “Cressa, Sara, go wait in the carriage we came in. You can find your way right?” They both nodded.

“Let's go meet my mother.”

“Will your father not be joining us too?” Marielle asked, completely unaware. Of course, she would want to meet the head of the family. However, Augustus had decided that would have to wait, as right now it was too dangerous. He needed more information, he needed a plan, and most of all he needed more coin.

“No, he won’t be able to join us,” Augustus said as they entered the reception room.

The reception room, like the entrance, was a gaudy display of wealth. Here, with a theme of mirrors. The walls were lined with mirrors of remarkable clarity, crafted at great expense. The floor was mosaic tiles depicting ships lined up at Venocia’s dock. With the large open windows and all the mirrors, the room was incredibly bright just from midday sunlight. Augustus wondered what his mother’s response would be if he just broke all the mirrors before she arrived, smashing them to pieces by hurling the wooden chairs at them. He pictured the shocked look on her face as she turned the corner to see her son triumphantly standing amongst the broken shards of the priceless mirrors.

Marielle rushed over to stare into the mirror, gawking at her own appearance. She flicked her hair and posed for herself. The mirrors that she must have owned back home would have been cloudy and misformed. She looked so innocent. How would she react to the mess that she had been married into? He lamented that things were happening so quickly and feared that she would find everything to be unacceptable. Maybe even coming to hate him for this situation.

“You must compose yourself,” Augustus reminded her, pulling out a chair for her to sit in. She sat, and he sat beside her, at the head of a long marble top table. Together, they both awaited the entrance of the lady of the manse. Under the table, he put his hand in her’s. “Take my lead.”

Julianna DeCastellian entered the room escorted by two attendants, and the married couple stood to attention. Her face was covered in fashionable makeup, hiding blemishes on her skin and giving her cheeks a rosy colour. Her dress, one that Augustus recognized, was elegant and beautiful, but not new. At least she hadn’t been flagrantly spending gold, yet.

“Welcome home,” Julianna said. She moved closer to Augustus for a long warm embrace, to be expected from his unusually long absence.

“It is good to be home.” They untangled themselves from each other. “Allow me to introduce you to my wife, for the first time. This is Marielle DeCastellian, formerly Marielle Jorland, of Jorland. Marielle, this is my mother, Julianna DeCastellian, the current matriarch of the Castellian family.” Augustus took a step back as they too hugged each other.

“Look at you. You are so pretty,” Julianna said to Marielle. “Such beautiful hair, but not quite in the Venocian style. We can fix that though, I have a servant I can lend you.”

“You too. I am surprised that Augustus’ mother would look so young,” Marielle responded. “This is a lovely home. These mirrors are so clear, and the detail in everything is so fine, I’m afraid of moving freely, lest I might break something of unbelievable value.”

Julianna went around the table and sat across the large table. It gave them permission to sit down again, as it was rude to sit while someone of higher authority stood. The table could seat twenty people, but they sat on either end. In his childhood, this seating arrangement had always felt natural, sitting so far from his parents during dinners, but now after eating in such close quarters with Castor and Heratio, it felt hollow.

“Well, you will need to acclimate yourself to this wealth then. Don’t worry, although to your old family that mirror would be an irreplaceable expense, to us it is but a trifling.” His mother exaggerated. Their finances were immense, but it wasn’t true that the broken mirrors wouldn’t create a fuss. All coffers had their limits. “After all, you will be staying here until the wedding at the temple.”

“Of Co–” Marielle began.

“No,” Augustus interrupted, giving Marielle an intense stare. Then turning back to address his mother. “The Castellian family charter, which holds in trust the Castellian businesses, dictates that a member of the main family will be provided a reasonable estate to live in, once he or she is married.”

“Yes, the Pantelli estate is vacant but will need to be prepared. Besides, our family would only consider you two to be married once the ceremony is held at the temple of Aurelia,” Julianna responded with a broad smile.

“Why was the estate not prepared earlier? You knew I would be returning with my bride.”

“I must admit, there have been things that have occupied my time while you were away.”

“By the letter of the law in Venocia, once I handed the consummation documents to the temple of Aurelia, we were recognized as married in regards to any contracts or charters. Trust me, I would know, after all those nights of studying to suddenly become a magistrate, when father, on a whim, decided I wouldn’t be running for the Senate.”

“Well, still, we are family. I hoped to have you two stay with me for the weeks leading up to the wedding at the temple. Would you want to overburden yourselves with both settling into your new home and managing your upcoming wedding? I will be invaluable–”

“Enough!” Augustus shouted while slamming his fist against the table, cutting off his mother and leaving her alarmed. “We won’t be staying here until the wedding. We won’t stay here even tonight! You will fulfill your duties as executor of the Castellian trust, or I will petition the magistrates and the Senate.” It was a bluff. He wouldn’t dare place a petition over something this petty and, although he needed to deal with the potential dangers that were directly ahead of him, he couldn’t allow himself to earn a reputation as a pestering litigant.

“You’ve been told?” Julianna averted her gaze in shame.

He felt Marielle's gaze upon him. She squeezed his hand tightly. No doubt she was confused. He could have told her before, should have told her, but he didn’t, because just saying it was just painful. But now, he let his anger encompass him, let it take over so that he could finally speak it.

“Of course I’ve been told! Father is dead! I learned at the docks before I had even stepped foot off the ship! Not only did I learn that, but I also learned that a new head of the family had been elected. In my absence!”

His anger was directed at his mother, and that was the first thing he saw. She looked away, biting her lip. But then he looked over at Marielle, she just looked at him, staring into his eyes. It wasn’t shock, fear or anger he read on her face, but concern.

“Your father died?” she asked.

Augustus nodded.

“Yes well--” Julianna began and the anger flooded back to him.

“And Giovannus! Of all people is now the head of the family! Father would view this as a complete disaster. I was to be the new head of the family. I was being groomed with achievements. Isn’t that why I was sent on that voyage in the first place!” Augustus threw his head back in exasperation.

“Yes, Giovannus... I would have preferred to hold off on the election until you got back. But Giovannus objected, and he had the support of some of the branch families. Believe me when I say that I did what I could, without risking my place as executor. I held the election, reluctantly, with you on the ballot. During the family convocation, I allowed your father’s vassals of high regard to speak on your behalf. But in the end, you lost, if only by a slim margin… but a slim margin is all it takes.”

Augustus calmed himself, running his hands through his hair and tapping his finger against the table. “Let’s return to the matter at hand. We will not be staying here tonight. Either give us the estate we are due. Or, if you force us to, we will stay at an inn until the estate is ready.”

“I would not be able to sleep thinking of you two sleeping in a dirty inn. Of course, if you are so insistent, I will provide you with the Pantelli estate, although be warned of its current unkempt condition.” Julianna pouted, remiss to not get what she wanted. “But, don’t be off so quickly. Now Marielle, let's at least have some tea and biscuits. I very much want to get to know my new daughter,” she said directly to Marielle. She already knew how Augustus would respond.

Augustus looked over to Marielle. It was her place to respond, but she just sat stunned in silence. She looked back at Augustus to gauge what she should say as the silence lingered awkwardly.

“Yes, let us stay for some tea and biscuits. But I’m afraid that’s all we can stay for. As you said, this estate will need lots of work. Our attendants will have their work cut out for them tonight, so we must make sure they have as much time as possible,” said Marielle. Augustus looked at her as she said it, impressed, and smiled at this vital display of competency. Marielle met his stare and smiled back, her cheeks turning a rosy red for just a moment.

“Excellent,” his mother said while gesturing one of the attendants over, to discreetly give orders. The attendant bowed then whisked herself off to quickly return with a cart. Tea was poured and biscuits placed on the table before them. “Let’s eat.”

“Sorry, but we haven’t performed the pre-meal ritual.” Augustus pointed out.

“Really now, we don’t need to do that when it’s just family.” His mother scoffed, putting her hand over her heart.

“I intend no animosity by it. It’s just that Marielle’s family raised her to be quite faithful. Or at least it would seem that way from the perspective of a Venocian. You know how farming villages can be. If we were to skip the ritual, Marielle would not object out of politeness, after all… she is a darling. But in her heart, she would be quite shaken to go against her teachings.” Augustus placed his hand on Marielle’s shoulder blade and rubbed. “Will you not show my wife our family’s magnanimity? Let’s respect the tradition passed down from the gods today.”

“Yes. If we don’t perform the ritual, then the gods would be displeased. If we didn’t perform the ritual, I would enjoy the company, but I would not dare partake of any food or drink.” She looked over to Augustus. “And I fear, with Augustus being as kind-hearted as he is, would refuse to eat, in a sympathetic gesture, for my sake.”

“It is true,” said Augustus with a nod.

“Very well then. I suppose it would be simpler to perform the ritual then,” his mother relented in an exasperated tone.

Augustus took the lead with the ritual, acting as the honoured guest in his own home, with Julianna playing the host. After all their arguing, it didn’t take long as there were only two items to be taste-tested, the tea and the biscuits. With it completed, they filled up their plates as they wished.

“It’s so sweet,” said Marielle, her hand over her mouth as she continued to chew.

“It’s made with lots of sugar. Have some of the tea, it will mute the flavour a bit if you aren’t used to it,” said Augustus before he took a sip of tea.

“One day, before the wedding, you must come shopping with me,” said his mother. “We must get you a few more proper outfits. My understanding is you only have the two acceptable dresses.”

“I would be so glad to, but I think we will be very busy for the next while. With the wedding, the new estate, and I’m sure Augustus will be busy too, having just returned to the city. I will need to do everything I can to aid him in his business dealings, so he can lessen his workload.” Marielle shook her head.

“Well, how about in a few days, after you’ve settled into your new home, we have a family dinner party. I will handle all the arrangements and invitations, it can take place right here at this table.”

“Julianna, we will just be so busy,” Marielle said with a smile.

“Oh, please call me mother. I absolutely can’t take no for an answer on this. You are a new addition to the family, you will need to be introduced to everyone! Even your two older brothers. I understand that you haven’t met either of them yet, correct?”

Marielle looked to Augustus, her parry had failed. His mother was right though, turning down an introductory dinner stepped too far. Besides, a large dinner party should be safe.

“I’m sure if we try, we can make room for a family dinner. Thank you for offering to take care of the details,” said Augustus.

“It will be no problem at all. Say the third evening after tonight?” Julianna looked again to Marielle for her response.

“That night will be excellent. I know you said it will be no problem, but at least know how grateful I am that you will be handling the preparations. I wouldn’t know where to start.” Marielle gave a polite smile as she finished off her tea. Augustus, seeing that, finished his own in a big gulp.

“Well, that is some lovely tea. I wish we could stay longer, but I’m afraid we have busy days ahead of us.” Augustus stood up, signalling to Marielle to follow suit.

“Yes, that was splendid.” Marielle gave a bow and Augustus grabbed her hand.

“Do you have the key to the estate?” Augustus asked, and one of the attendants stepped forward to hand him the key, already prepared. He wanted to comment how she must have assumed he would demand the estate, then ask why made him demand it like this. But he held his tongue. “Then we will be off.”

“It was so nice to see you again, my beloved son. Farewell,” Julianna said as Augustus led Marielle out of the room, hand-in-hand. Marielle squeezed Augustus’ hand tightly as they walked through the veritable labyrinth that was the Castellian manse until they were finally through that ornate entrance.

Heratio and Gillivan were there, waiting. Both sitting upon the perch of the carriage. Wagons were lined up, filled with their belongings, out in the midday sun.

“Greetings Gillivan. I take it since you are here, you agreed to be my bodyguard alongside Heratio?” asked Augustus, raising his hand to wave a greeting.

“As long as I’m paid the same as Heratio. That was the deal we struck,” said Gillivan. He was a bit taller and a bit more muscular than Heratio. Same tanned skin and similar facial features too, likely an immigrant from Bren. For all Augustus knew they were brothers, but he had never cared enough to ask. Before they left for the Maysian Ocean, Augustus would often see the two being friendly with each other. That was why he chose him as the new addition, in the hope that Heratio's loyalty would rub off on his friend, or perhaps, brother.

“That would be room and board, plus three silver coins a week,” Heratio said.

"Done. We will be heading to the Pantelli estate," Augustus ordered, and then stepped into the carriage with his wife. "We will be staying in the Pantelli estate for the foreseeable future." He announced again to the people in the carriage. As Sara, Cressa, Heratio and Gillivan were live-in attendants, he knew they would be happy to know their permanent residence was secured.

It wasn’t a long carriage ride. Down a short road then their carriage passed through the waist-high fence and gate to the three buildings and garden that constituted the Pantelli estate.

Augustus stepped out of the carriage, as he did so absent-mindedly tugging Marielle along. At that moment he realized that they had still been holding hands. He squeezed her hand one last time then let it go. "I want you to know, you did great with our mother," Augustus said, and Marielle smiled in response.