Ajax gripped the man’s hand gently, and a smile touched his lips as he gazed into the stranger’s eyes. “It’s an absolutely pleasure to meet you Maximus,” he murmured pleasantly, allowing his gaze to briefly run over the redheaded male as they stood their, their grasp on each other lingering a bit longer than necessary. The vagabond’s hands were exceedingly rough, and what he’d imagine had once been delightfully smooth, pale, freckled skin was marred with heavy scarring. The marks were clearly aged ones, and he found himself briefly wondering where exactly they were from before he cleared his throat and pressed the question promptly from his mind. It wasn’t his place to ask after such things, he had no business nosing in the past of a man he’d only just met. Besides, there were other matters to attend to, like the foul smell that was washing off of his new, disheveled companion. He released his hand as he agreed to join him for a bit of Grecian hospitality.<br/><br/>“Of course, my friend. Right this way.” Ajax turned on his heel, reaching behind himself to clasp his hands together at the small of his back as he began moving through the all too familiar streets of Athens. With the sun having begun its descent below the horizon and a soft rain pattering down upon the Agora the marketplace had cleared out rather quickly. Ajax hadn’t managed to procure all the goods that he’d promised his partner, but he was sure he could simply go out the following morning to fetch the last few items. What he had managed to get was being carried in a crudely sewn cloth leather pouch that was fastened about his weight, clinking obnoxiously as it bounced upon his leg with every step he took.<br/><br/>“My wife, Eirene, she’ll be happy to see a new face within the home,” he commented lightheartedly as he glanced over his shoulder at Maximus. “I’m sure she grows weary of being graced with solely my visage and that of our servants on most days.” In truth Eirene would quite possibly never grow tired of gazing upon her husband. Since the time they were children she’d had her eye on the man and, thankfully, her parents had their eyes on the Katsaros family line. The family wasn’t well known for maintaining a particular amount of political power, per say, but they were extremely wealthy when it came to properties. To be able to place their daughter into the arms of one who’d be able to provide for her suitably was a great comfort to her parents, and to be considered a part of Katsaros family was beyond pleasing to her father particularly. It boosted their social status a fair bit. To little Eirene, however, it was the fates in the works that her parents wished for her to be married to the same man whom she’d loved since she could remember.<br/><br/>Did Ajax love Eirene? Yes, that much was indisputable. She was the mother of his child, and he’d adore her for gifting him with his little girl’s life until the day he died. Now, did he share the same passion for the gorgeous specimen that she held for him? That was debatable. When they were first married he most likely would have said yes. He was, after all, blessed enough to be marrying one of Athen’s great beauties. Now that they’d borne a child together, and the excitement of a novel being in his life had worn off, however, he found that he couldn’t seem to renew his vigor for the lovely young lady. He loved her, but he wasn’t drawn to her as intensely as she seemed drawn to him, and at this point in their lives together he already had lost his desire for her. His libido had deadened prematurely, and his desire for his young bride seemed to have been buried along with it so it seemed. He didn’t find it to be an issue though, he didn’t have to desire her to be a proper husband, he simply had to provide for her and their children and see to it that they were as happy and healthy as he could make them; that he certainly had no issues doing.<br/><br/>The pair made their way through the slightly dulled streets of Athen’s until they reached an area where mostly homes resided. It was near the edge of the hub in a much calmer, quieter portion of the city.<a class="link link--external" data-proxy-href="/proxy.php?link=http%3A%2F%2Fchsalookintothelifeofgreeks.wikispaces.com%2Ffile%2Fview%2Fgreekhouse_p156_b690.jpg%2F119158063%2F607x241%2Fgreekhouse_p156_b690.jpg&amp;hash=ef8e24ff4d2cd6b6199bc87070f78184" href="http://chsalookintothelifeofgreeks.wikispaces.com/file/view/greekhouse_p156_b690.jpg/119158063/607x241/greekhouse_p156_b690.jpg" rel="nofollow ugc noopener" target="_blank">The home</a>that Ajax led Maximus to was a fairly large one, that was shaped like a large square with a large open courtyard in the center. The home was connected by no hallways (though there were some internally placed doors), but each room held a door that led to the external yard, which was blocked off from the remainder of the world by a carefully crafted stone wall. It was a large abode, clearly having been construction to eventually hold a large family plus a full staff, though currently it only held a pair of servants, a chef, Ajax, and his wife and single child.<br/><br/>“Welcome to the Katsaros household, my friend,” he said softly over his shoulder, smiling warmly as he pushed his way through the gate and then held it open for his new companion. The stone and wooden edifice was decorated beautifully by lush vines that crept their way up and down the pillars, adding a beautiful pop of color to the otherwise fairly plain, but finely constructed building. It could be assumed that within the stark walls there was colorful murals and tapestries strewn about the place.<br/><br/>“Ajax, my love!” Came a cry from the upper level of the house. Upon the leftmost side of the wraparound balcony a woman emerged from one of the many external doorways, cradling what appeared to be an infant to her chest. The fact that it was indeed a child was made clear by the resounding shriek that came from the young woman’s arms after she emerged into the humid evening air “Please, she won’t stop crying, I believe she wants you to-” the woman was given pause when she saw that her husband had brought company. “Oh, oh my I’m so terribly sorry,” she said with an embarrassed little laugh, beginning to scoot back towards the doorway.<br/><br/>“No, darling, come down. You should meet our guest,” he called upstairs softly, motioning her down to them with a warm smile. The woman looked a bit skeptical, but she heeded her husband’s call and moved around the balcony and down the single flight of stairs quietly, holding their little girl close to her chest as she did so. The man didn’t look particularly well off, and Eirene was clearly wary of bringing their child anywhere near this stranger. Ajax, however, seemed much more at ease.<br/><br/>“Maximus, this is my wife, Eirene, and our beautiful baby girl,” he paused momentarily to reach out and take a hold of the little girl gently. She was quick to quiet down once in her father’s arms, and she even began cooing pleasant as she grabbed at his long locks eagerly, “And this is Elpis, our little girl,” he introduced quietly, lifting his gaze onto the wanderer and smiling warmly.