He watched Julia as she walked from the house to
the bench in the gardens. Though she was outside, he noticed she still wore her
leather soleae and admired the way
the pearls decorated the sandals that hugged her petite feet. Appius, her
husband, would not appreciate how she walked, without thought, through the dirt
in the sandals he had just purchased for her. Sitting there, gazing in the
direction of the Tiber River with her piercing green eyes, she looked more
peaceful than he had ever seen her before. There was a slight wind and she
pulled the cream-colored palla tighter
around her body to keep warm. He could see the ornate crimson pattern woven
into the long-sleeved stola she wore
and thought to himself how well the color matched her golden red hair. Today
she wore her hair down, flowing around her shoulders in perfect ringlets, only
a small piece pulled back and secured by a jeweled hairpin behind her ear.
Not
wanting anyone to catch him staring at Julia, Decimus reluctantly went back
inside the house. As he passed by a perfectly shined metal mirror, his own
figure caught his attention. He examined himself for the first time with the
eyes of a slave. He was tall and built, towering over most men at 6’4.” He had
bright blue eyes and he noticed sadness in them he had never seen before. He
missed his beloved county of Greece. His dark brown hair was cut short and his
face was rough from not shaving in the past two days. He gazed over his plain,
linen colored tunic and tried to remember the beautiful and intricate togas
that used to adorn him. The sandals he wore now were old and tattered, the
leather almost to the point of breaking. It was a sight that Decimus was not
used to and was not yet comfortable looking at. He quickly turned away from the
mirror and continued on his way to the study.
