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Outfit

Claudia couldn't name the last time she had been nervous about going out with a man, yet something about an evening in Rome with Hayden had her in the uncharacteristic state.  She had changed her dress three times, not happy with the way anything looked, and her hair seemed to be doing everything but what she wanted it to do.  She wasn't quite sure what to do to calm herself either as she rushed around her flat trying to be ready by the time he arrived.

When it came to men she was good at casual and short-term.  Perhaps that was all this would turn out to be, but he wasn't someone she had set out to charm into a date.  Lately she'd been doing a great deal of soul searching, and it seemed that life was trying to tell her she needed to slow down and let others in.  She and Cadeous were moving in separate directions and it made her quickly realize that she didn't really have many people she could count on in London.

They would be on her turf tonight in Rome and she was sure once they arrived she would be able to relax a bit and enjoy the city of her childhood.  Stepping into her stilettos she wondered if they would be wise considering she had quite the evening planned.  After all, her record of successfully walking in heels was a bit marred this week.  Shaking the thought from her head, she checked her appearance in the mirror.  The evidence of the attack a few days earlier had thankfully faded and at least she could try to pretend it never happened.  She wanted to think of her encounter with the werewolf a bad dream and nothing more.

Hayden looked himself over again in a mirror and tried to quell his feelings of doubt. He once again questioned what he was doing. He hadn’t been on a proper date in years and here he had gone and set one up with the lovely lady that he had had lunch with without thinking about it at the time. Now that he had time to think, he was terrified.

He had opened up about it in a recent letter he had sent to Venora and Camden. Part of him was glad that they were away so that they couldn’t see him like this, but he also missed their calming influence. When they were around, his life center of his attention—his universe. All seemed right in his world with them there, even when Camden was sulky and disobedient. Usually Camden made himself scarce, trying to place distance between himself and Hayden and Venora.

So it didn’t surprise Hayden when his daughter had sent back a note by her sweetly penned hand to explain that Camden had had very little reaction to the news. She, on the other hand, was thrilled. And her advice to her father had been an encouraging, “Dad! Just be yourself! You’re wonderful just the way you are!”

This had Hayden roaring with laughter as he sat at his kitchen table reading it. When he finally calmed down, had he reread the bit about Camden and sighed. Kyla had always handled him so much better. Hayden thought it was unusual because they were the men of the house, but early on it had been established that Camden was a Mamma’s Boy and Venora was Daddy’s Girl. And understandably, Kyla’s death had been hardest on Cam.

Even so, Hayden hoped that his foray into dating would not be met with too much resistance on the part of his eldest. He had heard plenty of horror stories.

He turned his attention back to getting ready and finally nodded with approval at his ensemble—nice pair of black slacks, blue button down shirt, shined shoes. One thing Hayden remembered doing well for dates was dress snazzy, thanks in large part to his mum.

“No man can ever go wrong in blue,” he remembered her saying. “And you especially, Halston, with your blue eyes like the ocean.”

Finally satisfied, Hayden slipped on a jacket that matched the slacks, stowed his wand (whose cherry wood was a comforting presence) and was off. He apparated to London and using the directions Claudia had given him, made his way to her place of residence.

Once there, he released another sigh before reaching up to knock on her door.

“Here we go, Hayden. You can do this…”

Outfit

The knock on the door caused her stomach to do a little flip out of nerves mixed with excitement.  She told herself she was being foolish.  Lunch had been pleasant enough, and at least she knew about his children.  The whole idea of his children terrified her in a way, but it was more for the fear that if this led anywhere and she ended up hurting him he wasn't the only one affected by it.  The topic of their mother hadn't be discussed, but obviously something had happened to her and that brought a whole other dimension to anything that might come out of this date.

Taking a deep breath she crossed the flat to the door, grabbing her coat and purse along the way, and paused for a moment before opening it.  Her life had seemed to be spiraling a bit out of control lately, and she reminded herself this was a good step.  Hayden wasn't someone who had a preconceived notion of her based on Ministry rumors.  Stop being a ninny and open the door, her mind screamed.

Fixing a welcome smile on her face she did just that, but she felt her breath catch slightly her throat as her eyes fell upon him.  The blue color of his shirt brought out his eyes and if she wasn't the sort of woman to keep her wits about her with men she certainly would have lost herself to staring into them.

“Hi,” she said, trying to ignore the still fluttering butterflies in her stomach.  Honestly what was the last time she had those?  She blushed a bit at her apparently lack of an appropriate coherent statement, but settled on, “I hope the directions were alright…Well, I think I'm ready.”

Side-along apparation was going to the only real feasible way to get them both there and in the same place.  The question was whether she was going to stick to the basic arm holding method or give into her old habits in favor of getting a bit closer to him.

Hayden rubbed his hands together as he waited for Claudia to open the door and at that moment, he realized something that was a little devestating for him: they were empty. He hadn't brought her anything as he had always been taught to do. No flowers or chocolates or some token of that nature to extend to her.

He cursed himself under his breath, but he had little time to dwell on his faux pas (and think about how disappointed he would make his mum) as the door opened and there she was. As his eyes drank her in, he managed to make a mental note that he would just have to make up for it somehow later on in the date before focusing completely on her.

Clearly he was out of practice with the whole dating thing. That had been painfully obvious several times before this moment. But somehow his uncertainty intensified the moment he took in her beauty. Before all words left his brain, he managed to murmur, "Weel Miss Claudia, dinnae ye look quite lovely this evenin'." He wasn't sure if she was nervous as well, but after ducking his eyes for a quick beat, he responded to her inquiry about the directions. "They were fine," he assured her with an easy going smile. "And Ah am ready when you are."

Despite Hayden claiming not to be very practiced and smooth when it came to dating anymore, there was the part of him that was natural at it, or yearned to be. So without further thought, he extended his hand to her and stated, "I dinnae ken (know) about ye, but Ah am rather excited about this...."

Hearing the compliment from Hayden seemed to cause yet another wave of nerves she did her best to hide.  His words were more genuine then she was used to, honesty wasn’t always something she heard from the men she met.  Observing him closely she was almost certain based on the way he looked away for a moment that she wasn’t the only one suffering from a case of nerves this evening.

Flipping the lock on her door, Claudia took step towards him allowing it to close behind her.  Extending her hand out she took his, trying to appear to be maintaining her usual confidence.  She was sure once she was walking along the old cobblestone streets of her childhood home she would be fine.  Simply being in Rome had a way of grounding her and reminding her of who she was beneath the self-assured façade she usually put forth.

"I dinnae ken about ye, but Ah am rather excited about this...."

“I am too,” she said with a smile.  “It’s been a long since I’ve been able to show someone around Rome.”

She took a breath to clear her thoughts before beginning the aparation process.  In her mind she could clearly see the spot she planned to have them arrive at.  It was down an alley that was inhabited by Rome’s Wizarding community and no one would think anything of their sudden appearance.  A moment later they were gone with a pop, rematerializing in the spot she had pictured.

The alley was narrow, and it was lined with the familiar old buildings she had seen every day as a young child.  The majority of the buildings housed flats.  Many of the shops on the first floor at first appearance seemed to be quite Muggle, but she had learned long ago that they were merely a front in case a curious Muggle wandered inside.

She didn’t readily release his hand, enjoying the feel of having hers within it.  Leading him down the alleyway they immerged at the northern corner of the Piazza Navona.  In front of them was the familiar sight of the fountain featuring a sculpture of Neptune illuminated by various lights.  From there she knew she could show him several of the sites without having to walk to far.

“So this,” she began, feeling herself relax a bit at the familiarity of it all, “is the Piazza Navona.  I spent a lot of time here as a child with my mother learning about the history of the monuments and buildings or shopping at the open air market they have during the day.  Up until a few years ago my father worked with the Vatican which is not to far from here on the other side of the river.  It was always a very convenient part of the city.”

Between the open air market and the various restaurants that lined the piazza she couldn’t remember  a week that passed in her childhood without a visit there.

Hayden watched Claudia closely for cues on how she responded to his compliments. He was hopeful that he didn't look as backward as he felt and even if he did, perhaps she would take pity on him.

But for some reason, she seemed nervous as well, which surprised him. When first meeting her, she seemed to be quite the unflappable, confident lady. But clearly dating was something that could make even the most confident folks feel inadequate and uncertain.

He flashed her another smile when she said that she was looking forward to their afternoon as well and he swelled again at the thought of visiting Rome and having someone like her show him the sights. He was perfectly content to allow her to lead the way and that included the aparation. Moments later they were no longer outside of her home but on another street completely unfamiliar to Hayden.

Hayden glanced back at Claudia and realized that they were still holding hands. He didn't mind and in a very gentlemanly way, he tucked her hand and arm in the crook of his before they headed off down the street.

Hayden was a very simple man and was fine admitting that to anyone who should ask. It didn't take much to amuse him or amaze him and that included everything he saw now. After she explained where they were, he simply stared at the fountain and murmured, "Wow." Then with a sheepish smile that seemed to indicate he was aware that that word alone was hardly adequate, he said to her, "Tis beautiful, Miss Claudia. Ah can definitely see how ye would have enjoyed growing up here. Ah bet ye were a verra happy child." He used his free hand to make a sweeping motion around them. "There's so much to see and do." With a pause as he gazed around, Hayden turned back to her and very seriously said, "Ah want to see it all."

They were from two very different backgrounds, and she knew that.  To her, to bring him to a place where she felt so completely in her element, was a sort of test to see if he would ‘sink or swim’ as the saying went.  As much as she loved Rome sometimes she forgot how the city could appear to someone who had never been there.

"Ah want to see it all."

She smiled slightly at the statement.  At least he didn’t seem completely overwhelmed by it all, but then again he did own a shop in London which was quite the city in its own right.  She knew she had a habit of trying to fit people into little compartments sometimes based on first impressions.  It was one of those things she was trying to overcome with this ‘new chapter.’

“Well, as your official tour guide I will do my best to fit in as much as possible,” she told him.

Just as it wasn’t built in a day, seeing it all in a day would be quite impossible.  She could give a good idea of what the city had to offer and perhaps they would return together at some point.  The thought of a second date caused her stomach to give a little flip of nervousness…second dates didn’t usually happen for her.  Considering one was a bit of an uncharacteristic thought for her.

“It’s the sort of city though that just when you think you’ve seen it all or know all of the history you find something new,” she continued on.  “As a kid I took it for granted though.”

Hayden hoped that his simplicity as a person would be something that was endearing and not bothersome to Claudia. He did worry that it would dubb him an antique by comparison. But Hayden pushed those concerns from his mind, quickly realizing that it would not do anything to make the date better.

He eagerly began to drink in the sights and there certainly was plenty to see given that the location had plenty of character and activity. The hustle and bustle of a city was not new to the Scot, but unlike being in London, Hayden was unaccustomed to being a tourist.

"Ah am sure you'll do fine. We have plenty of time to go wherever ye lead," he assured her with a small smile. "And Ah'm sure I will like what ye like. Because it's important to ye somehow or has a story behind it."

As they strolled along the street, Hayden listened to her talk about it and he nodded at her comment about taking it for granted. "Hmmm...kids do have that haphazard way of looking at the world. Easy thing to do, take things for granted." Hayden briefly thought of Camden and Venora, but didn't mention them by name out loud. "But Ah suppose that's the nice thing about hindsight....we can look back and appreciate what we took for granted."

"But Ah suppose that's the nice thing about hindsight....we can look back and appreciate what we took for granted."

“That is very true,” Claudia agreed.

She was very quickly beginning to realize that there was a very long list though of things she took for granted over the years.    The places one could always come back to, but with other people it was a bit more difficult.  In the wake of the attack part of her wondered just how many people would have missed her if Vane and Ciarra had not stepped in when they did.  Friends and lasting connections were not really her strong suite it seemed.

He hadn’t mentioned the newspaper article which, much to her horror had run in the paper that day.  She should have known that Thursby would have caught wind of it when whoever had been on duty filed their official report.  Perhaps he hadn’t seen it and she could pretend the nightmare never happened.

“If my memory serves me correctly,” she continued changing the subject back to their current location, “in the time of the ancient Romans this was used as a stadium for various games.  I always found it hard to imagine when walking along looking at the shops and fountains, but I suppose if that was all gone one could almost imagine chariot races here.” 

Hayden reached out and gave Claudia's hand a reassuring squeeze. He fell silent as he followed where she led, although it wasn't exactly that he was letting her drag him around. Rather, he kept close to her side, eager to see where they would head next. 

He listened to her little anecdotes about where they were. The fact that it had a tie to  sporting events was certainly of interest to the burly Scot. He tried to imagine what she described and nodded. "Yes, it is quite extraordinary to imagine the way things were at one time." He went quiet for another moment. "Sometimes Ah wonder what the magical world was like way before Ah was born. Ah suppose ye can say that Ah've always been fascinated by the Pensieve. Loved when me mother would allow me to see some of her memories."

After a pause, he ruminated, "What era do ye suppose ye'd choose to go back to if ye could?"

She gave a slightly shy smile when he squeezed her hand, something a bit uncharacteristic for her.  However, this whole evening was a bit out of the ordinary so it made sense that she might feel a bit less confident.  Trying to break old habits and do something one normally wouldn’t was not as mentally as she had hoped.

The conversation changed a bit to the magical world in the past.  The thought of being able to see a parent’s memories was actually quite an appealing one, it could give a perspective on the era most wouldn’t have otherwise.  Yet, she had not been lucky enough to have a magical parent so there were no Pensieves, only old photographs.

“I’d go back to the days when chivalry wasn’t quite so rare,” she answered.  “It’s probably more of a romantic notion then a realistic on though, with the whole notion of knights in shining armor and things like that.”

With a slight smirk she added, “I’ve also had this fascination since I was a child to see how my mother’s ancestors lived.  They were gypsies…they lifestyle certainly was not as glamorous as it’s sometimes portrayed, but I guess I’ve always been a bit curious.  Plus, my parents are both Muggle…but it’s no secret gypsies have their own special sort of magic.”

Her comments about chivalry being more rare these days intrigued him. A chivalric nature was nothing foreign to the Scot and Hayden wondered what kind of men Claudia was used to being around where it had become a rarity in their day-to-day actions.

Was it so hard to hold a door open for a lady? Or pay for dinner? Or complimenting her on looking gorgeous beyond compare? Perhaps so. But Hayden supposed that he had had it drilled into him from such a young age that even with the lapse in dating could hardly defuse it that much.

Clearing his throat, he decided to tell her as such. "Weel, Ah don't know that it's completely gone. Or that it's just a romantic notion. Perhaps people just need to look a little harder to find the knights among the disingenuous blokes." He stopped walking and turned towards her, gently tugging Claudia closer to him. He seemed to contemplate his next move for a prolonged moment and then he finally bent his head and leaned down to place a soft kiss on his companion's lips. Nothing extravagant. Just a simple little sweet thing before he slowly pulled back and smiled.

He started to walk again, and returned to her previous topic of gypsies. "Aye, that sounds quite exciting." He paused. "And gypsies love to have a good time too, eh? Ah could see you fitting in right well with them."

When he stopped and pulled her gently towards him, Claudia was a bit surprised.  There was a lingering moment when she wasn’t entirely sure what would happen next and he seemed to be contemplating his next move as well.  Then, his lips gently brushed over hers and she found her eyes fluttering closed for a moment.  It was simple, and tender and he didn’t force anything more then that on her.  When he pulled away her eyes opened again and she met his smile with one of her own.

They started walking again, and it took a moment for Claudia’s mind to refocus.  Clearly she had been wasting her time all along on the wrong sort of man.  Yet, at least she knew what to expect from that sort, there was little to no trust placed in the other person and therefore she was rarely hurt in the end.

"And gypsies love to have a good time too, eh? Ah could see you fitting in right well with them."

She smirked slightly at the statement, and then said, “You should see what family reunions are like.  My mother’s side is extremely musical…unfortunately not something I happened to inherit.  But, it’s usually quite  the party…”

She shook her head slightly as she continued, “I guess there’s simply something in my blood.  Even though that sort of life was and still is difficult for those who maintain it, there’s this sense of freedom associated with it.”