when in rome

"Are you? Either way it's a solid yes, I'd love to." She decided that she liked being around him, he was fun and knew how to take people to exciting places. As she wove around the crowd, trying to stick close to Hadrian, she jumped when a cheer resounded through the colosseum. Speeding up, Ania was close on Hadrian's heels when they stopped. Getting an idea, Ania pulled Hadrian back a bit, just so that they were more hidden in the shadows. Perhaps if she distracted the guard and got that weapon away, they'd have a better chance. "I'll distract, and you grab?"

Wandering out through the threshold, she approached the guard with feigned interest. When he noticed her, he appeared to be genuinely curious, especially in her hair. He seemed to want to touch it, and she suffered the somewhat heavy-handed tugs. He spoke, but she couldn't understand the foreign accent or language. Her distraction worked, though, as he leaned his spear up against the wall to fully pay attention to this new point of interest. Flirting was a bit awkward if you couldn't use words, and the guard seemed to be getting frustrated with her lack of speech. She felt a bit frightened when his body language suggested he was becoming more aggressive, and was confused when he calmed down. After a long string of confusing words, the guard calmed back down completely, and almost looked relaxed.

Before she knew it, she was being hauled up somewhere. For a moment, Ania thought that the guard had decided to carry her off, but then she saw the now confused guard patting the top of his head. Wiggling a bit, Ania adjusted herself and wrapped her legs around Hadrian for better balance. She was mildly worried when the guard recovered and began to ran after them with his spear. "Ah, he's following us!" He looked awfully angry, too. Perhaps the hat theft wasn't the most clever idea, but now they had a hat. Euphoria struck her when she realised that they had managed to steal armour from a Roman guard.

The guard was losing his stamina quickly, though. It was probably all that armour holding him down. It didn't look properly ventilated, and the poor man must have been so hot. She hoped he wouldn't get into too much trouble for letting his hat wander off. A few seconds later, the guard stopped, and appeared to give up. Hugging Hadrian around his neck, she felt quite victorious. "I think he gave up! We made it! That wasn't so bad. You still have the hat, right?"

Feeling a bit like a monkey, Ania slowly slid off Hadrian. She hadn't done any running, but she still was a bit tired. "I hope I wasn't too heavy." She hadn't been on a diet in forever, but she supposed that if she was to go on a date, it was a good time to start. Her eyes lit up when he produced the hat, and she admired it's pretty colours. Cackling when he placed it on her, she reached up on reflex and ran her fingers over the fluff on top. It hadn't been the texture she expected, and it only made her touch it more. "It's so fun to play with! I'm so happy!" She couldn't stop giggling, her hands running back and forth almost obsessively.

Pouncing forward, Ania wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug. "Thank you! It's so fun to play with! I'm glad you brought me here. I think I can die happy, now." Releasing him, she looked around with new interest. Their new location was a bit unfamiliar, but still interesting. The long shadows made everything look more dramatic and bold. "What should we do next?"

He would regret saying that he didn't mind carrying her, no doubt. She would milk that for all it was worth. After all, why bother walking yourself when there was a perfectly good person willing to do it for you? "Oh! I'll make sure to find time to die after the zoo date. Can't miss that one." She wouldn't miss that for the world. Animals were the most exciting thing to Ania, especially if you could buy a stuffed animal of one afterwards. Touching the spot where he kissed her, Ania spaced out for a moment, smiling blankly. She realised that he had asked her something, catching the ending just in time. Assuming that he was asking her what to do, she hurridly tried to think of something before she looked too off.

"Oh! Would you want to explore?" She didn't really have anything else on her to-do list in Rome, but it would be nice to sight-see a bit more before going home. The city almost looked empty, and it would be a nice change to walk aimlessly. Taking Hadrian's hand, Ania tugged him in a random direction. "So, what kind of life do you have?" It was an odd question, but it was always fun to learn about new friends.

"Your pet?" She had seen horses and cats and dogs on campus, so what kind of pet did he have that it wasn't allowed on school grounds? "What kind of pet do you have?" It must be a very exotic, like a giraffe. Were giraffes allowed on campus? They should be, that would be a neat ride to school. Especially if he was rich! Rich was an empty word, though. Even a little bit of money could be considered riches to some people. Stuffed animals was a much nicer way to measure wealth. "Rich? So, how many stuffed animals could you buy if you pooled all your money together?"

His life sounded quite interesting. Perhaps if he could buy many stuffed animals, he could fill an entire room with them! That would be a good way to spend your money. A room full of stuffed animals and pillows sounded like a very nice nest to sit in. "You should fill a room with stuffed animals. Or kittens. Either would do, I think."