#Ephaedro

[such-familiar-distance]

Hi! I figured this would probably be a good ask for tumblr and not ao3 lol

So my question is (and you've probably answered this before, sorry I forgot) how old are the characters and how exactly does the timeline work with everyone's age at the different parts and with the war/abandoning of slavery? I understand this probably needs a longer answer but I would appreciate it so much, thank you in advance!

I don't think I have answered this! I never know how much anyone is interested and I don't like just posting to the void because I don't want to be annoying. but I'm always happy to answer or post stuff people are interested in! ❤️

This got too difficult to answer in text, so I made a spreadsheet with what age everyone is when, color coded by what past/present timeline of what story is when. I hope that's clear and helpful!

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Does your treatment of people change depending on how well you know them and if so how?

Who is the most important person in your life and why?

Who are your friends? Describe them.

Teunis

Teunis is capable of being polite to people he's just met. The better he knows someone the more they get to deal with unvarnished Teunis.

For past Teunis, the most important people are his parents and then Gaius because his whole life gets restructured around Gaius. For present Teunis it's probably Kal both because they're closest friends and their finances are tied up together in the shop.

Past Teunis has a group of similar-aged boys and girls in the neighborhood where he lived who he'd run with or do chores with. Present Teunis has ride or die besties Kal and Cyril, close acquaintances like Calla/Thisbe/Elion, and then a wide circle of people he's friendly with but not especially close to. He's a many acquaintances, few friends kind of person.

Ephaedro

Ephaedro treats everyone the same, very politely :) because what if there are consequences :) :) because even if it seems like nothing bad will happen what if it does :) :) :) (Teunis will find out how Ephaedro is with people he fully trusts much later)

Ephaedro's most important person is Gaius and then becomes Teunis later.

Ephaedro kind of doesn't have friends at the point where Teunis meets him. He's close with Sebastos but not friends for reasons that will come up later.

Kal

Kal is pretty reserved with people he doesn't know well and isn't trying to seduce. He comes off as a little cool and very put together for people he doesn't know well, unless he's in charm mode. For people he does know well he's much warmer but also much more of a mess and his default state is kind of an asshole.

Kal's most important person is Marcus basically no matter what point in time and he hates admitting this up until they're married (and sometimes also after).

Pre-Marcus Kal had a lot of friends that I wish I'd fleshed out in the original but I hadn't given much thought to at the time. Marcus-era Kal was kind of isolated or felt like he couldn't make friends for fear of Marcus' jealousy and he's only just recovering from that when Marcus shows up again.

Marcus

Marcus is always in polite and charming mode with people he doesn't know well, and then the better he knows someone the more comfortable he is being snippy or less formal.

Kal is Marcus' most important person. Arguably this is why Kal and Marcus are such a mess.

Marcus had a lot of friends before everything went down with his first play, and then post dropping Julius he didn't have friends outside of Kal's friends so now he has to figure how to friend again.

[such-familiar-distance]

Did an askmeme on FFA

Who is the person you respect the most and why?

Ephaedro: before meeting Teunis, definitely Livonia. So important, so smart, feels like she rescued him from a very bad situation. After meeting Teunis it's definitely Teunis. Smart, brave, ride or die loyal.

Teunis: some mix of his parents, Livonia, Thisbe, and/or Kal, but complicated depending on how he feels about himself at the time.

Cyril: definitely Eubelia. He's a wifeguy if that's still a thing in matriarchy world.

Kal: Thisbe or Alida. He wants to be a mean woman when he grows up.

Marcus: his oldest sister Olivia or Kal. Olivia doesn't show up much because they get along well and she may have accidentally encouraged his writing, oops. Kal after they get back together and Marcus realizes how hard Kal has had to work for everything.

[such-familiar-distance]

Angstober, "again". This might end up in a longer Teunis backstory thing eventually.

--

“Kallius,” Ephaedro whispered, shaking him. “Kallius, you can't do this again, master will be so angry.”

Teunis swam back up to himself muzzily, trying to focus on what Phaedro was saying. Kallius, that was him, because the master said so. Again–the fever?

Phaedro helped him sit up even as Teunis winced at the pain lancing through the switch marks across his back. His whole body throbbed as Phaedro helped him drink. Cold water, almost too much on his empty belly, and it felt good right up until it gave him wracking, shivering chills.

“Kallius, you can't,” Ephaedro said, starting to cry. “He said he'd sell you if you got sick again, you can't.” Phaedro stroked Teunis’ hair as Teunis leaned against his shoulder and closed his eyes.

“I'll get better,” Teunis said, already drifting back to sleep. “I'll get better, I'm fine.”

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From an ask meme on FFA:

5. What is the most evil thing you have ever done?

Ephaedro: thought really mean things about Gaius being a big entitled baby sometimes :( (plus the, you know, enabling Gaius and blaming of Teunis for abuse)

Florian: really ripped into Marcus' brother at the end and told him exactly what a stupid, vapid, selfish asshole he is. Not so much evil as perfectly justified but Florian hasn't done much that would qualify.

Antony: went out of his way for several years to passive aggressive undermine Marcus at every turn and make Marcus look bad to Marcus' mom and sisters. Not a good look because Marcus was just a dumb teenager struggling with some depression, but Antony was very anxious about his own position in the household and also didn't have a lot of tools to like talk about or have feelings.

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Flufftober, found

--

Teunis should have been less drunk to open it.  Or maybe more drunk. He spent the evening pacing the little parlor and bedroom of his boardinghouse rooms after a tense supper with Elion; he had trouble focusing on Elion with the unopened letter in his pocket, unable to make himself speak of it.  It lay on his parlor table while he drank, first small glasses and then straight from the bottle even as he knew he shouldn't.

--

My darling Kallius,

A friend attended a rather remarkable exhibition this spring in Leucarnum and she said the funniest thing.  She said one of the pretty boys running errands for that detestable Thisbe ad Claudiae woman looked remarkably like my favorite little assistant.  I didn't think it could possibly be you, since you were always such a good, polite boy and I know you'd know better than to get mixed up with such a horrible woman causing so much trouble, but I thought I would write to you at the address my friend provided because I have some rather important news I thought you might like to hear, in case it truly is you mixed up with so much trouble.

Our dear Ephaedro has for some years been visiting your lovely mother and father, who I understand are very anxious for any news of what happened to their precious boy.  Ephaedro has spent many holidays with them since they came to enquire about you, after your unfortunate disappearance.  Your charming parents seem very affected by your absence and comforted by Ephaedro's visits.

Your poor parents, like Ephaedro and so many of your unfortunate class, have never managed to learn to read nor write, but I would be more than happy to pass them news of you if you're able to find someone to write your reply for you.  A part of me hopes that my dear friend was mistaken and that you are not entangled with that horrid radical ad Claudiae woman, but another part of me hopes this has reached you so that your poor parents have news of you after all these years.

--

Teunis stumbled out of his rooms after he read it, the walls narrowing as the floor rose up to meet him.  He made it out to the cold back garden before he threw up.

Love,

Domina

[such-familiar-distance]

Flufftober, unexpected news

--

Teunis could tell when Kal saw it downstairs, from the way the tap-tap of his heels as he tidied the shop's front parlor paused suddenly. Teunis decided to ignore it, just like he'd decided to ignore the damned letter. He had an underdrawing to paint.

Kallius, damn him, was studiously casual about it when Teunis brought their little shared lunch down later. Kal sat at the parlor worktable doing the books and smoking a cigarette, dawdling over it so he could pretend he wasn't lying in waiting for Teunis.

Kal waited until they were eating to say anything about it. “You've got a letter,” he said without looking at it over in the mail rack on the wall.

“I know,” Teunis said to his bread without looking at it either.

“You're not going to open it,” Kal said, picking at his food.

“Would you?” Teunis snapped. Having the thing in the shop felt like a bomb waiting to go off as it was.

“Not addressed like that, no,” Kal agreed, not entirely stupid.

The letter was addressed to Kallius ad Gaius Artemidoriae, same as the tattoo on his chest, and there were only three people alive who'd write to Teunis under that name. The thought of two of them knowing where to send it made his skin crawl.

“Do you want me to get rid of it?” Kal asked after a while, fiddling with his coffee spoon without meeting Teunis' eye. He was so much like Ephaedro sometimes it made Teunis' chest hurt. Sometimes the only redeeming thing about Kal was he was enough of an asshole Teunis couldn't mistake him for Ephaedro for long.

Teunis sat back in his chair, looking over his shoulder at the letter. It was just a letter, just ink on paper. “It might be from Ephaedro,” Teunis said finally. Kal knew what that meant.

“I can open it for you if you want,” Kal said.

Teunis finished his coffee and shook his head. “I'll open it. Just not now.” He had a painting to finish, one that already looked too much like Ephaedro. It had been five years, there was nothing so urgent that it couldn't wait a day for Teunis to work up the courage.

[such-familiar-distance]

Flufftober "market day"

--

Teunis sat with his chin resting on his knees to watch the crowd, cheek still stinging because the dealer had slapped him and told him buyers wanted to see his pretty face, not the top of his head. He didn't want to be bought, he wanted to go home to his parents, but his father had told him to be good.

Teunis pushed the thought of his parents away, to keep himself from crying again.

“Well aren't you pretty,” a woman said, and tipped Teunis’ chin up with her walking stick. He looked up at the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen, her dark hair piled on top of her head and spilling around her face and dark eyes. “Stand up, pretty, let me take a look at you.”

The dealer came to hover as Teunis picked himself up; behind the lady buyer were another woman and two men looking bored, and a helot who looked exactly like Teunis watching eagerly over their shoulders. “Livonia, we'll be late,” one of the men complained.

“I'll just be a minute, don't fuss at me,” Livonia said. “Has he got all his teeth?” she asked the dealer.

“Of course, madame,” the dealer said. Livonia grabbed Teunis’ jaw and had him open his mouth, peering in at his teeth. She smelled like jasmine.

“Take off your tunic, sweetheart,” Livonia said when she was done.

Teunis blushed to the roots of his hair. He knew why he was there–had seen plenty of other helots stripped and inspected at the market while he'd been waiting to be sold, but no one had done it to him yet.

“Ah, and you're even prettier when you blush,” Livonia said, in a warm, pleased voice even as the dealer frowned. Teunis kept his eyes down and took off his tunic, conscious of the other helot’s eyes on him over her shoulder. “Has he got any training?” Livonia asked the dealer. “Music, embroidery, reading?”

“He's a virgin,” the dealer said as Teunis stood there naked, tunic at his feet. He wanted to say that he could sew, that his mother was a tailor's assistant and Teunis could sew as well as his father, to make this beautiful rich lady want to buy him, but he knew the dealer would slap him again if he opened his mouth.

“Turn around, lovely,” Livonia said. She made a thoughtful noise as Teunis turned his back. He tried to ignore the bored murmur of the two men with her, talking about the play they were going to be late for. She stopped him when Teunis faced her again and cupped his balls and tugged. He felt like he was going to die. No one had ever touched him before; no one else would ever touch him for the first time. “He's completely intact?” she asked the dealer as Teunis’ cock stiffened in her hand.

“I think he likes you, Livy,” the other woman laughed. The man who'd said they were going to be late made a disgusted noise. Barbaric, one of them muttered. Livonia laughed and flicked her hand for Teunis to put his tunic back on.

“He is, but I can have him castrated for you if you like,” the dealer said over Teunis’ bent head as he dressed.

“No, I'll take him as he is,” Livonia said. Teunis’ stomach lurched. The man who'd said they were going to be late rolled his eyes as she paid for Teunis, but the helot boy behind him looked delighted.

“You'll have a whole harem soon,” the man said, displeased.

“Oh shush, Gaius, he'll make a good model. Ephaedro, darling, take the new boy home,” Livonia said as she patted Teunis on the cheek and the helot boy came forward to take his hand. They were almost the same height, like looking in a mirror. Livonia took a few more coins from her wallet and gave them to Ephaedro. “Buy yourselves some candies and get him settled at home. The housekeeper will get him a collar.”

“What's his name?” Gaius asked, frowning at Teunis.

“Boy, for all I care,” Livonia said with an airy wave of her hand, already starting to leave. “You pick it.”

“Kallius, then, since you think he's so pretty,” Gaius said to her nastily as the little group of them turned away.

Ephaedro squeezed Teunis’ hand and gave him a smile. He led Teunis away from the dealer's stall, winding away through the crowded market. “Come on, we've got all afternoon. What kind of candy do you like?”

“Figs?” Teunis said. His mother's domina had bought them sometimes, if they were overripe and cheap. “I've never had a candy before. My name's Teunis.”

Something flickered over Ephaedro’s face, his smile briefly gone as though he wanted to look over his shoulder. “I'll buy you all my favorites and you can decide which ones you like best for next time,” he said, smiling again. “Come on, Kallius.”

[such-familiar-distance]

Maybe I'm doing Teunis whumptober? I've had some Teunis backstory sitting in the back of my mind for a while but there's some plot elements I haven't worked out so we'll see how much of this I get out in snippets before I figure out how to put it together.

Flufftober, "rainy day"

--

“Don't look at my cards,” Ephaedro said, tugging Teunis’ hair.

“I'm not,” Teunis laughed. He turned into Ephaedro’s arm around him, leaning his head on Ephaedro’s shoulder. Maybe he was a little sneaking looks at Ephaedro's cards, but only as an excuse to be tucked close next to him in the middle of the master's big bed as the rain pelted the windows.

“Liar,” Phaedro smiled. He played his hand on their laps, the deck half spilled where it was tipped on the thick blankets.

Downstairs, the door opened and closed to the sound of quiet voices. Phaedro paused on what he was doing, listening. Then he gathered up all the cards, plucking Teunis’ out of his hand to set them on the bedside table. Teunis let him, anxious to be good.

Ephaedro undressed them both with brisk hands, stealing a quick kiss as he tossed Teunis’ tunic away. “Don't look so worried,” Phaedro whispered as he lay Teunis down and pushed the blankets down to put them both on display. Teunis shivered between the chill and Ephaedro's hands on him, still feeling clumsy and awkward as Ephaedro fit himself next to Teunis and began petting him like they'd spent all day tangled up in bed instead of playing cards. The sound of the master's steps coming up the stairs was almost as loud as Teunis' heartbeat. “He doesn't like that.”

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Chapter 7, Teunis gets to go to college :)

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A chapter: Something nice happens to baby! Teunis for once :)

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From an FFA thread on characters' search histories:

Marcus':

dactylic hexameter vs anapestic octameter examples

how to move out of your mom's house

how to be a good son

symptoms of depression

how to not be depressed

blond twinks

blond twinks near me

Kal's:

how to pretend to enjoy sex

oil painting tutorial

how to like sex less

how to sign an oil painting

how to get over ex situationship

how to not date ex situationship

am I married

Teunis':

all my friends are morons

masochist DILFs near me

mean dommes near me

how to clear browser history

Ephaedro's:

how to not be scared

how to be happy

how to not be sad

how to force yourself to not be sad

how to pretend to not be sad

how to act happy

[such-familiar-distance]

Who is the person you despise the most, and why?

Teunis

On a daily basis, Marcus because he's a stuck up moron. On a long-term basis, many of Kal's ex boyfriends like Lucian. Teunis would like to say that it's Gaius but Teunis is still too scared of him for that.

Ephaedro

Ephaedro doesn't despise anyone :)

Gaius

Society husbands who don't do anything with their time. He would absolutely hate past idle-rich Marcus and Marcus would find Gaius' going-to-university ways scandalous.

Livonia

Livonia hates Thisbe by reputation. They've never met but Livonia doesn't like the politics of what Thisbe is trying to do, or that Teunis is caught up in it.

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Sorry to be a bother but I was wondering if we were getting more of my beloved Teunis’ backstory? Eager to see more of the dynamic with Ephaedro

not a bother and yessssss there will be more Teunis/Ephaedro. I stopped posting angstober snippets because I was working out the longer piece that I started posting to AO3 here if you haven't seen it and then the US election kind of destroyed all my energy for a while. But I do plan on posting more of it, hoping to have the next chapter up in a few weeks

[such-familiar-distance]

Teunis backstory up on AO3. About half of this first chapter was posted here but the other half is new.

[such-familiar-distance]

Flufftober, don't do that

--

Meges lit it for him and passed it to Teunis, leaning in to watch him.

“This is terrible,” Teunis coughed, half laughing behind his hand after his first puff. It felt like inhaling cooking smoke, hot and heavy.

Meges laughed. “It gets better,” he said, waving Teunis to try it again. They ran into each other sometimes, Teunis coming back from the bathhouse and Meges running errands for the neighbor’s cook, so they'd gotten into the habit of visiting–gossiping–in the alleyway out of sight of both their minders. It felt good to not be on best behavior all the time, to laugh with someone his own age Teunis didn't have to worry would tell domina or master on him, or be disappointed like Ephaedro. Teunis hadn't quite worked up the courage to kiss Meges, but he thought about it sometimes.

The second and third inhales went easier, and the light giddiness helped. Meges lit his own as they leaned against the alley wall, telling Teunis about the errands he'd run and the people he'd seen while he was out at the market, almost like being home again and gossiping with the other boys while they did laundry or watched the babies. With his sandy hair and easy gap-toothed smile he looked nothing like Ephaedro's pretty perfection, and Teunis found himself tipping closer and closer as Meges talked.

“What are you doing back here?” Ephaedro asked, startling Teunis back. “Are you smoking?” he demanded, scandalized.

He'd come out looking for Teunis, looked like, arrived or sent back from the club earlier than Teunis had expected. Teunis opened his mouth but didn't know what to say, standing there stupid still holding the cigarette. “Phaedro–” Teunis started, feeling like he couldn't breathe.

“I talked him into it, Phaedro, don't fuss about it,” Meges said.

Ephaedro gave him a pinched look, obviously reading how much distance there wasn't between Teunis and Meges and Teunis’ guilty look. He glanced between them, unhappy. “You get out of here, Meges, or I'll tell your housekeeper what you get up to on your errands,” Ephaedro said imperiously as he grabbed Teunis and pulled him away from the wall.

Whatever it was worked; Meges gave Teunis a guilty look and abandoned him there.

Ephaedro took Teunis by the hand and took the cigarette from his unresisting fingers, leading him home. “You can't smoke, master doesn't like it,” Ephaedro said.

“Phaedro, please–don’t tell him, please,” Teunis begged as Ephaedro pulled him inevitably back towards the courtyard gate. Gaius already thought he was too stupid to ever do anything right, it would only be worse if he thought Teunis was wilfully disobedient too.

Ephaedro rounded on him just outside the gate, shaking the still-lit cigarette under Teunis’ nose. “You can't do this, Kallius,” he snapped, the angriest Teunis had seen him. “It's filthy and you can't go sneaking around with dirty helots.” That was what he really cared about, Teunis realized, jealous that he'd caught Teunis with Meges. Ephaedro pushed Teunis stumbling in the back gate, dropping his hand to latch it behind them.

“Phaedro I swear it won't happen again, please don't tell master,” Teunis said, desperate. He clutched at Ephaedro's tunic, needing him to stay on Teunis’ side even when he didn't deserve it. The courtyard was empty at that hour, everyone at the baths or preparing supper. Teunis leaned into Ephaedro. “I won't talk to Meges again, I promise.”

Ephaedro's jaw worked, like he was trying not to cry. “You swear?” he said finally.

“I promise.” Teunis would owe Ephaedro, would have to be so good and obedient, but it was worth it if Ephaedro wasn't angry with him.

Ephaedro glanced up at the house, towards Gaius' windows as though he was watching them. “Alright,” he said finally, quiet, as though if he said it loud enough Gaius would hear his disobedience.

Teunis felt shaky with the relief of it, sure Ephaedro had been going to tell on him. He had about a second of gratitude before the door to the house banged open, Gaius' shoes loud on the cobbles. Ephaedro startled, dropping the still-lit cigarette.

“What are you two doing dawdling out here?” Gaius demanded as he came towards them. “Were you smoking, Ephaedro?” he said dangerously.

Teunis felt like he couldn't breathe, like he'd been buried under a ton of sand and would never claw his way out of it. Ephaedro stuttered a response, unable to lie and unable to say anything else. Teunis clutched his hand, a coward.

“It's mine, master,” Teunis admitted weakly, head bent. Huddled with Ephaedro against the courtyard wall he felt very small in the falling light. Gaius stood over them, his anger huge and palpable in the empty space. “He was coming to tell you.”

Gaius gave them both a measuring look as Ephaedro clutched Teunis’ arm. “Pick it up, Ephaedro,” Gaius said finally.

Ephaedro gave them both a wild-eyed look like he wanted to protest, but did as he was told. He picked up the cigarette, still burning, and held it like it was a snake.

Gaius put a hand on Ephaedro's jaw and made Ephaedro look at him. “I want you both to remember what happens if you disobey me,” he said slowly. “Put it out on him.”

Teunis felt like the whole world stopped, like nothing was real. He heard Ephaedro protest weakly, close to tears.

Gaius held his jaw, ignoring the tears that tracked down Ephaedro's face to his hand. “Who do you love more, Ephaedro?” Gaius asked, horrible and gentle. Ephaedro gulped air and tried to calm himself, still protesting.

Teunis held out his hand, watching it all from far away. Out of everything, he didn't want to hear Gaius make Ephaedro say it; Teunis already knew the answer.

“Please, master–” Ephaedro protested one more time when Gaius released him.

“Do it,” Gaius said, brooking no argument. “On his thigh, so you'll both remember.”

Ephaedro was shaking so hard Teunis thought he might drop the cigarette, but Gaius put a hand on his shoulder to push him towards Teunis so they were all three crowded against the wall. Intimate like fucking. One of them lifted the hem of Teunis’ tunic and he felt his cock stiffen against Ephaedro's thigh just before the bright-cold cherry of the cigarette ground into the crease of his thigh.

Teunis’ knees collapsed out from under him, leaving him clutching at Ephaedro's shoulders to stay upright with the horrible pain lancing through him, worse than the first time Gaius fucked him. Gaius watched, indifferent over Ephaedro's shoulder as Ephaedro held Teunis up with shaking hands and tears streaming down his face.

Gaius stepped back when it was done, the cigarette dropped somewhere at their feet. “Get in the house, and I want both of you to remember this,” he said before turning on his heel and leaving them there clinging to each other in the dark.