Cadeous's Apparel

Cadeous's apartment, located near King's Cross was a rather nice, homey space.  It was surprisingly spacious, with two bedrooms, a living room, a bathroom, and a kitchen.  He'd been told that he had good taste when it came to his home's decor,

The places were set.  Cadeous set down two wine glasses down at either place, double- and tripple-checking to make sure that everything was aligned properly.  A small offering of mixed nuts was placed down near the center of the table, as were two bottles of wine.  The pasta was nearly done, and the sauce for it was over a low flame in a pot next to it.  He was a rather good cook, having watched his mother prepare meals for his family as a child.  He grew up learning basic receipes, and the more food he made, the better cook he became. 

Claudia was due there any minute now.  He pulled up his right sleeve to catch the time, and saw that it was almost seven o'clock.  She said that she'd be there between seven and seven-thirty, which gave him a few extra minutes to prepare everything else.

Outfit

It was nearly seven twenty when Claudia arrived at Cadeous’ apartment.  Her clothing, while not truly what one might wear to a more casual sort of dinner with a friend, was casual for her.  So used to putting together a perfect façade for the world, it hadn’t taken long to get ready, yet for some reason she had taken more care then she normally would in applying makeup and picking the perfect accessories.

Raising her hand, she knocked lightly.  She always enjoyed these dinners, although they hadn’t been able to have one in some time.  It was a chance to catch up, and she hadn’t managed to find a time since the ‘incident’ in Hogsmeade.  Of course Marcus had questioned her afterwards, seeing right through her excuses.

She hadn’t managed to talk to Cadeous about it, so she wasn’t even sure if he realized her real involvement.  She was sure if he did he would say so tonight.

Cadeous just happened to be walking past the door when he heard series of soft rapping against it.  He paused in mid-stride, straightened out the cuffs of his dress jacket, and slid the lock to the side.  He opened the door and there was Claudia, his good friend who always impressed him with her choice of clothing.  Her apparel tonight was no different.  It was simple, yet... dazzling. She was dazzling.  A broad smile played out on his lips as he stepped to the side, opening the door all of the way for her.

”You look magnificent tonight, Claudia,” he greeted her, waving a hand towards his living room. ”Make yourself comfortable.  Dinner should be ready in a bit!”

He’d turned his stereo on earlier to a station that played classical, instrumental music twenty-four-seven.  It provided a calming sort of atmosphere, one that he was certain Claudia would enjoy as well. 

”I hope you don’t mind a spot of my homemade Fettuccini Alfredo for dinner,” he said. ”I don’t think you’ve ever tried it before... I could be wrong, though!”   

((OOC: A rather short post, but click here for a picture that resembles his living room...  it’s not that extravagant though, ))

As she discretely looked her friend over, she smiled slightly; glad she wasn’t the only one who had chosen to dress in a less causal style.  She entered the living room, seeing the familiar furniture.  The clean lines and white décor hadn’t surprised her the first time she had visited him.  It made sense and matched his taste.  Of course, her flair for the bold made her long to splash a bit of color amongst the furniture other then a few green plants.

“Thank you,” she said, out of habit smiling at him in the way she did whenever any man complimented her.  It was meant to draw a man in so she might sink in her claws and have her fun.  Of course, Cadeous was safe from all that.

She couldn’t help but smirk a bit at the chosen meal.  She would have to guard her reactions carefully so not to hurt his feelings.  She usually enjoyed Cadeous’ cooking, but very few had the ability to cook any of the dishes native to her country of birth in a way that made her favor it to what she had grown up eating.

“It smells delicious,” she said.

Seeing her smirk, Cadeous laughed.  He'd never cooked an Italian meal for the two of them before; it had been been quite a while since they had dinner with each other last.  Claudia's job was quite demanding, but he understood that.  She was, after all, the aide to the Minister of Magic, one of the most - if not the most - important man in the Wizarding World.  Their duel in Hogsmeade was a bit short-lived, but it had ultimately resulted in the Minister offering Cadeous a job as an Auror.

"Don't be too quick to judge, Miss Vespucciano," he said, motioning for her to follow him.  He turned around and headed into the kitchen to prepare two glasses of wine for them both.  "I happen to make quite a delicious plate of it."

He knew that she enjoyed his cooking, but she might have been curious - if not a bit surprised - by his choice for their dinner.  She was Italian, and no doubt had had her fair share of authentic Italian food in the past.  He was quite confident in his abilities as a cook, though, and hoped that Claudia would enjoy her meal.   

Claudia laughed at his comment, knowing he had caught the expression on her face.  She knew to be fair Cadeous didn’t have the usual British habit of making every meal beyond bland.  She near laughed as she remembered her lunch with Arius and his obvious disgust at the standard of cooking at the Leaky Cauldron.  Good taste in spices did not always seem to go well with British cooking.

“Have you followed up on that job offer?” she asked.  Had it really been that long since they spent any time together?

She had followed him into the kitchen, glad to see a bottle of wine waiting.  It would help her brain be a bit quicker should she have to answer any questions about her possible involvement in the whole event in Hogsmeade.  She had already endured Marcus’ round of questions, which she answered honestly.  He had accepted her reasoning for putting herself in danger…eventually.  She wasn’t entirely sure Cadeous would be so forgiving, even if it wasn’t her plan to be in need of rescuing.

Pulling two wine glasses off of the shelf of his cupboard, Cadeous closed it with his elbow and brought them over to his island counter.  One wouldn't think twice that he was only a simple fishmonger at a Muggle-run establishment.  Of course, that had changed.  Since his friendly confrontation with Marcus in Hogsmeade, he'd once again been offered the position of an Auror with the Ministry.  

He popped open the bottle of wine and set the cork back on the counter.  Pouring a dark crimson liquid into each glass, he replaced the cork and the bottle, then handed one of the glasses to Claudia.

There was an obvious sense of dejavu the moment the Minister offered Cadeous the job.  He'd been asked the exact same thing nine years prior, but from a different person.  There was a major difference, though, from the last Battle of Hogwarts and the incident in Hogsmeade...

"I have," he said, holding his glass out for he and his friend to toast.

He'd acquiesced.

She took the glass he offered, swirling the darkly colored liquid a bit.  She could smell the earthiness of the wine as it rose from the glass.  When he answered she quirked an eyebrow at him, surprised slightly at the vagueness of the response to her question.  He raised his glass to toast and she followed suit.  However she wasn’t quite ready to follow through on the action just yet.

“And are we looking at the newest addition to the Auror program?” she asked, feeling a smile cross her lips.

He was being a bit coy, but then again he had answered the question.  She had asked a basic question and got a basic answer.  Now of course she wanted the details.  Of course she could just look it up at work the next day, but she’d rather hear it from him.  Waiting for the response she could smell the meal he had prepared, thinking perhaps he would be right in his self-evaluation of his cooking.

“ I do hope that the Minister’s offer wasn’t ignored.”

He seemed to be able to tell what she was thinking when he responded, ”Well, can’t you always find out for yourself tomorrow when you go in for work?  Or haven’t you talked to Marcus yet about it?”

A smile crept across his lips as he held his glass out in front of him, knowing that she wouldn’t follow through on her toast until he answered her question.  As much amusement as he received from teasing her like this, he supposed that it was a better idea to tell her before she forced the answer out of him.  He chortled softly before adding to his previous statement.

”It wasn’t ignored,” he said as he stood there, his eyes meeting hers once more. ”In fact, I took him up on his offer.”

He clinked his glass against hers.

”To us, and the Ministry’s newest Auror,” he declared, smiling broadly. ”Well, ‘Auror-in-Training’, actually."

She quirked an eyebrow as he played coy for a few moments longer and then when he finally clinked glasses and told her he had been accepted as an Auror in training, her smile grew.  She had been wanting him to rejoin the Wizarding world for some time, and he finally had heeded her advice.  Taking a sip of her wine she felt a little wave of pride wash over her.

“Congratulations,” she said.  “They’re lucky to have you among their ranks.”

She took another little sip of wine, feeling the liquid warm her slightly as it slid down her throat.  It didn’t have the instant effect of firewhiskey, but it didn’t have the after affects either.  Setting it on the counter nearby she turned back to him, still smiling as she suddenly found herself filled with questions about her newest fellow Ministry worker.

“So, when do you start?”

"Tomorrow at three," he replied, setting his glass down onto the island as well before moving over to the stove.  Removing the lid from the pot resting over the flame, he peered inside of it.  Using the wooden spoon that was resting on the counter, he gave the sauce a quick stir before replacing the lid once more.  Wisps of steam rose from the pot, a sign that their dinner was almost ready.  The pasta had been cooked and prepared prior to the sauce, so he brought two decorated dinner plates down from his cupboard and set them down onto the counter.

"How much sauce would care for?" he asked her as he prepared her plate first.  Using a spaghetti spoon, he transfered a sizeable portion of the fettucini noodles from the pot and onto the plate.  Setting it aside, he put about the same amount onto his own.  Just as put the utensil into the sink, the oven's timer went off to indicate the time of completion for the sauce.  Wiping his hands off on a washcloth, he went over to the pot to check on it for himself. 

She smiled as she took one more sip of her wine before going to set it on the table.  She could hear him starting to dish out the meal he had prepared as she did so before turning and going back over to him.  He was just asking her about sauce when she reached his side again and the timer went off.  As he lifted the lid of the pot she smiled slightly as the aroma grew stronger.  Based on that alone she was sure her picky Italian taste buds would approve.

“One scoop of it should be fine,” she said.

She tried not to ponder too long what it would be like to have her friend at the Ministry every day.  There were certain things she didn’t usually discuss with him, even though she felt she could tell him anything.  There would also most likely be rumors surfacing about them if they were seen together.  After all, she knew she had a bit of a reputation, especially with the Aurors.

"One scoop it is," he said, shooting his friend a sideways grin.  He used the ladel resting on the stove, next to the pot to dish out a single scoop of the fettucini sauce onto either serving of noodles.  Once that was done, he replaced the cover and looked back at Claudia, his expression showing the faintest hint of concern.

"Are you alright?" he asked.  "You seem quiet."

He and Claudia had been friends for nine years.  They both knew when something was wrong with the other person.  This was no exception.  There seemed to be something on her mind.  What it was exactly, he didn't know. 

As he waited for her response, he picked up either plate, walked to his dining table and set them down at their places.  He pulled what was to be her chair out for her and smiled, motioning for her to sit down.

"Would you like the  music off or left on?"

She didn't answer his question right away.  Instead she followed him to the table, taking the seat he offered with a slight smile.  She settled herself, placing a napkin in her lap as he inquired about the music.  He seemed to always be the gentleman; something hadn't always taken notice of or appreciated as a woman should.

"On is fine," she said.  "I like it."

She waited for him to sit, pondering how to start.  She hadn't really intended on having this conversation today, but the topic seemed to be on her mind and she knew eventually she would have to tell him.  It wasn't that she was embarrassed by who she was or what she did...It was just difficult to talk about with him for some strange reason.  Nothing else was difficult.

"I...I was just thinking about what it will be like when you start working at the Ministry," she began after taking another sip of her wine.  "I feel like there are some things you should know about...well, about me specifically and some things you might hear.  I'd rather you hear it from me first, I guess."

He too took a seat at the dining table, and once he was seated, pulled his chair in closer to it.  He offered Claudia a warm smile before placing his own napkin in his lap and taking another sip of his wine.  He poured a little more into each glass, seeing as how they’d both finished quite a bit of it already. 

“On it shall remain then,” he said.  He looked back up at her as she spoke, and couldn’t help but show a look of confusion when she said that she had something to tell him.  He remained silent until she’d said her piece, wondering what it was that she wanted for him to know.  She seemed unsettled by whatever it was that she wanted to say, so he reached forward and set his hand on her own, giving her a reassuring smile.

“Whatever it is, Claudia, you can tell me.”

He meant it.  She was one of his closest friends, and he felt like they could tell each other anything.  He knew he could, and hoped that she could, as well.