All roads lead to Rome

An instant after I stepped into the shadows, I stepped outside and found myself in a side road leading to one of Rome's biggest squares. I was never good with names though. Quickly letting Ida go, I gave her a shy smile. "Italian it is, whatever my beautiful date wants."I grinned, choosing to leave our location as a surprise.

Ida was still in some kind of a trance until she was able to shake it off. "What the-" she started before looking around her. It took her a while before she started picking up little traces of where she was. The language, the architecture and so on. "Did you-Did we just- In to Rome?" her speech was broken. It was honestly amazing how some people were blessed by nice powers like this and some people just sang nursery rhymes to calm people.
Ida just stood there in awe looking as dumb as a rock.

"Yeah"I nodded with a blush and averted my eyes to the floor, fumbling with the last button of my light blie shirt. "You said you wanted Italian and I wanted our first date to be something unusual and memorable and intriguing so I thought you'd like it if we visited, like, the source of Italian cuisine. I-I can take us back though, if you don't like it!"

Ida stared at Cas before coming up with the prank of the year. "I got to say, 10 points from the creativity, but I changed my mind! I want Chinese!" she exclaimed with jumpy motion which made her look really exited. It was a little sad how she basically used Casius for her own fun, but she wasn't even fully aware of that.

"Chinese? Sure, I can take us to China. I just need a few more seconds to recharge. Since we're here, wanna go walk around and see stuff?"I offered, slightly upset I couldn't instantly make her wish come true. "I've heard that's what people do when they go some place new"

Ida was surprised that he consented her request at all. She clung to his hand with both hands, and it felt kind of weird. She had seen couples do this a lot. Ida was also happy he wasn't that tall, or she would have awkwardly hogged his bicep. "Where do you want to go first." the girl tilted her head and asked.

I looked down at her with a shy smile and a light blush covering my cheeks. "Wherever you want is fine by me. We could just take a walk around the square or even go see stuff like the Colosseum, from away that is, I don't think they do tours at this hour. It's your choice though"

Ida stared back for a long long time before finally having a comeback. "But I asked you first!" she insisted and squeezed his hand between her hands a bit harder. "It's actually funny how warm your hand is, maybe a common trait among people like you? Never mind, that sounds weird." she shook her head.

"It's due to the nerves. A common trait among Hades' kids is low body temperature - cause, you know, sons of the Lord of the dead and all. But when I get nervous, blood rushes to my hands and ears."I explained, blushing even more as I felt stupid for explaining such a tedious thing to her. She's your date, she doesn't care about your stupid blood habits. "Uh... I think I'm good to go now but we could still take a walk around. You choose, I'm okay with both"

"You're nervous?" Ida asked and smiled slowly, noticing his blush she raised her eyebrows. "I think that it's adorable though, don't worry. Unless you mind me making enthusiastic remarks about your traits." she laughed. "Let's just stay in here for a while." Ida requested.

"I don't mind at all, I like your remarks"I replied with a grin and gently squeezed her hand. "Alright then, let's go check out Rome, shall we?"I exclaimed excitedly and started walking towards the square to see where exactly we were.

"Casius, have you ever been on a date?" Ida felt a bit funny using his full first name, not a nickname. "Because this is my first date with a boy." she hinted and followed him Oop, there it goes. Now he knows that I'm bisexual. Oh well. Ida laughed a bit nervously to herself.

"No, never. I only had one girlfriend and it was by mail. Like, I was still in the underworld and Dad wanted me to socialize with people and not ghosts so Phone brought me this magazine and there were mail friends or whatever you call them. I'm glad I'm your first date, dunno why. Sorry if that seems weird"I shrugged and chuckled. "Isn't it kinda ironic how we're on a date when just a couple weeks ago you wanted to drown me in the lake? Cause you did, don't try to deny it"

"Mail? That's adorable! How old were you?" she felt a bit weird spieling about his former cutesy mail girlfriend. "I see that you're possessive! Just kidding." Ida stick her tongue out. The daughter of the happy-go-lucky god Eutychia let her eyes wander around the environment before quickly turning back to the boy. "Sorry, don't remember anything like that occurring." Ida said sternly, even though it was obviously a lie.

"Dunno, I was 14 or something? I don't really remember, time in the Underworld is a pretty weird concept."I shrugged and ran my free hand through my hair in an awkward move. "You know, this is much better than long distance dating. Even with such a grumpy... date"I chuckled, trying to cover up the fact that I nearly called her my girlfriend. It'll just freak her out, don't bring it up yet.

Ida stroked her black dress' hem with her free hand as it made her feel more familiar in such an unfamiliar situation. She was walking in the streets of Rome with someone she technically wanted to drown not that long ago and they were talking about the strangers ex-girlfriend. "I'll just assume that's a compliment. If so, thank you for your kind words." she said with a quiet voice and straight face, looking as unemotional as a human being could look.

I frowned as I noticed her slight fidgeting. "I'm sorry if that insulted you, I didn't mean it like that. I find your personality adorable, just so you know"I explained in a soft voice and gently squeezed her hand again. "I really enjoy being here with you and I wouldn't want anything to ruin that, not even my stupid words."

"Huh? I didn't mean it that way." Ida said after she had woken up from her daydreaming. "I enjoy it too, don't worry. You're not ruining anything." the girl tried reassuring him and awkwardly patted his head for a good couple seconds. After her date squeezed her hand a light pink color rose on her cheeks, but it looked fairly natural. This is so weird.

I giggled as she stood on her tiptoes to pat my head and purred like a kitten. "I am not a pet, you know. But I don't mind the petting"I teased her and leaned down to quickly kiss her on the cheek. "S-Sorry about that, I just felt like doing that. I know, personal boundaries, I'll ask next time, I promise"

Ida stopped patting him and put her hands on her sides. "I'm aware that you're not a pet, I think." she said quietly. She was a bit flustered after the short peck on her cheek. "You don't seem to learn though. But it's okay, this time." Ida huffed and crossed her arms.

I chuckled and gently poked her nose. "You're a funny little fella, aren't you?"I deadpaned with the most serious face I could muster. "I promise, I'm a quick learner. For example, can I please touch you now?"I asked in a pleading voice, my hands iching to hold hers.

Even though he only poked her in the nose, she had to take a step back in order to stay in balance. "I dare you to call me a funny little fella again." Ida hit him in shoulder by her fist, not too hard so he wouldn't 'whine' again. "It depends on where you want to touch me." she made a tiny X with her both index fingers. Damn creep

"I would just like to give you a hug, my funny little fella."I laughed and picked her up, considering her 'depends' as approval. Twirling her around for a few seconds, I placed her back down on the ground gently, practically bouncing on the spot with excitement. "Gods, this is the bestest day of my life!"

Ida let out a small and quiet holler. She was more than happy to get down. "It's nice that you're happy, but that I told you not to randomly touch me!" she squealed. "Don't call me little fella, I'm not that small!" Ida stomped her right leg and crossed her arms letting a tiny 'Hmph!' while doing that, and made her resemble a toy soldier.

"Awwwwww!!!"I squealed and reached out to hug her again but caught myself the last second. "But you said I could! You said 'It depends where' and that was a yes that you hid in a sarcastic or whatever remark, right?"