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[Scipione Romanes]

Scipione Romanes finished the rounds with the Quidditch team, making them practice. He had some appointments to get to, mainly a magazine that wanted to talk to the coach about the year so far. Scipione didn't really appreciate being in the light and talking to them, but he had no other choice. Ever since he managed to leave the family, things have been rather rocky ever since. His uncle was a man that no one stood up to, and he did once, only to live to regret it. He was old enough to be on his own at the time, when the scar on his cheek was placed. If anyone asked, he lied. He would always say it was a Quidditch accident, from the time he was playing in school. He was a chaser in his time, but has since played professionally before going to coach. He was better that way. Scipione was a little upset that one of his players was out on maternity leave, but it was a dangerous sport. Absolutely nothing should happen to that child. It didn't matter what. Scipione did have a heart, and hoped that his siblings were well with their own children since he was running from his own destiny.

"Mister Romanes, they are here to talk to you," his manager spoke in a very high pitched tone. Scipione turned to Hanna and just gave her a weak smile. He just wanted to get this over with. He approached the building of the magazine that was ready for him, since he was waiting outside, debating on leaving. One thing he hated was attention. He might be stern out on the field, but in the public, he was shy as ever. "Okay, thanks." The Italian spoke with a soft tone. A part of him wanted to run, but he owed it to those that followed the magazine. Scipione settled down on a chair, and waited for the person to get here. Scipione placed his hands over his face for a moment, breathing in what his mother would want him to do. But it didn't matter much. She was dead. He knew what happened to her. Everything that happened within his family was never talked about. Ever. It reminded him of the mafia, but surely, that was not what he descended from.​

 

[Merlina Caliburn]

Liberty Sol - Editor at Global Star


The editor of Global Star magazine had been on edge all week, for the first time in almost two years she had been 'howlered' by Palermo Bianchi-Caliburn informing her that she was to get Scipione Romanes no less, to do an exclusive interview and photoshoot for the magazine. Liberty Sol had listened to the howler with mounting apprehension, trying to get the world famous coach and one time professional quidditch player to do an interview for a magazine was one thing but to do a photoshoot as well was another ... bu that was not all, it would seem that her actual boss, Merlina Caliburn who she reported it several times a year was going to make a visit to see how the magazine was doing for herself. Liberty had paled and sat in her chair staring at the wall before her until her secretary had come in. It had only been then that she had been goaded into action, demanding that the personal assistant of Scipione Romanes be contacted and to be relentless about getting him to do an article; then it was all hands on deck as she got up and went through the entire building from basement to attic offices, making sure everyone was working, that nothing was out of the ordinary, that Merlina Caliburn would find fault with nothing when she got there.

By the end of that week, Liberty was breathing a lot easier - she had her best columnist prepped for the interview and one of New Zealand's finest all set up for the photo shoot, the only thing that irked her now was the fact that Merlina Caliburn had not expressed in any way shape or form what day she was coming, Liberty still wasn't meant to know that she knew about her visit of course but a little heads up would still have been nice. She walked now on pristine heels and dark grey fitted suit to meet with Scipione Romanes in the foyer. The bait that had finally reeled him in to do this was that his fans would adore it and they would, Liberty was certain that they'd sell more magazines that month alone because of the handsome Romanes taking up its pages.

Her short blonde hair was as neat as it was ever going to be, as she smiled now approaching the man, extending her hand as she did so. Politely telling him that he was very welcome and if he would follow her she would take him to where they had a comfortable room set up for the interview and photo shoot. They were going to go for candid, relaxed, in the hopes that this would make for an enterprizing endeavour. It was a side to him that had not been captured before in any newspaper or magazine but this was what Palermo Bianchi-Calburn had wanted and what that woman wanted, she always got.

The room was large, an area set aside with camera equipment and a plain blue backdrop, another area had a sofa, deep grey with matching arm chairs and a coffee table before them now laden with tea, coffee and condiments like milk, cream, sugar and lemon. Liberty introduced him to the interviewer, Chadwen Tarick before moving aside as her secretary came hurriedly into the room. Liberty excused herself, letting them get on with the interview, while the photographer snapped a few shots of Scipione. Aside Liberty's face paled, of all days that she had to show up, it would have to be today. With panic rising in her chest, Liberty left the room and hurriedly went to her office where Merlina Caliburn was waiting for her.

 

[Merlina Caliburn]

Merlina Caliburn inhaled deeply before entering the building, there was something so fresh and pure about the New Zealand air - she had missed it ... terribly and with that brief inhalation of air came a flood of memories of her school days at Hogwarts and her best friend Ryuu. Closing her eyes for a brief moment she was aware of her guardians on either side waiting for her to enter the magazine's front doors. Her eyes flickered open and she put aside the image of her old friend, wondering if she would get to see him now that she had returned.

Moving to the reception desk she announced herself and was escorted to the office of the editor Liberty Sol, she had only to wait a few minutes really and then plied with tea and refusing biscuits and cake, Merlina got on with reading through the account books, overseeing the magazine's layouts and the briefs on the editorials for that month. Liberty suddenly became all too excited and informed Merlina that they had on their premises at that very moment none other than Scipione Romanes, the entire interview and photo shoot process was explained to Merlina as if she had even needed it and standing up, she let the woman know that she would like a tour of the building. She knew who Scipione was, he was another pureblood like herself, another Italian like herself and if it weren't for the fact that he was an international star and an amazing quidditch player who should be on the cover of their magazine, Merlina would have somehow managed to convince herself that his being here had something to do with her grandmother.

But that was impossible she told herself as she was directed through to the printing rooms, the design rooms,
the journalists layer and last but not least the photography room. Merlina entered behind Eva her guardian and Liberty the editor, as Emilio her other guardian entered the room last. Both of her guardians instantly spanned out to make sure the room was fine while Liberty continued yapping in Merlina's ear. Merlina however had tuned everything out, her eyes had fallen on the young man being photographed. He was handsome but not in a conventional way ... she felt as if she was staring but couldn't help it and hurriedly turned her gaze to the editor who was now excusing herself to go and deal with another matter elsewhere in the building. Left to her own devices, Merlina moved to where a table was laden with steaming coffee and tea and graciously accepted the espresso that was poured for her before tentatively turning her head to look once more at Scipione Romanes.​

 

[Scipione Romanes]

Scipione felt like he was a some sort of rag doll, being dragged into doing something like this. But this was what the people wanted, and if he did not oblige, then he would be letting them down. Last thing he ever wanted when it came down to it ultimately. For now, Chadwen was starting up the interview, which Scipione stammered throughout it, not used to being asked questions, like what brought him to this country, about his personal life (which he dared not to answer since he didn't really have a personal life). The snapshots of him would be very embarrassing, from what he felt anyway. After all, he was tense, awkward, and just all around very quiet. Scipione looked up as Liberty, the woman that led him in here to begin with, eventually left him alone with the interviewer. Scipione sighed and continued with it, knowing that nothing he was giving them was anything other than simple and very much implied. Nothing particularly interesting. He was single, no kids, nothing. He didn't even have any ex-wives or ex-girlfriends that could give them information on him. Scipione lived for his team, and that was the end of it. He didn't do anything else. Even his home was collecting dust from the time he spent at the pitch.

Scipione went over how he tried to keep Dietrich Metzger on the team, but the klutz was an accident waiting to happen, and he had a family, as well as the temporary replacement for Kendra Vyhnal, who was the wife of another former player. She was pregnant and he didn't want anything to happen to that child, even if it were part-Veela. Scipiione looked up with his blue eyes to see that others had entered the room. The one that he focused on was the woman he recognized as Merlina Caliburn. It wasn't hard to recognize that name nowadays, especially in his homeland. Distracted, the interviewer asked the same question three times before it got his attention. Scipione, not even hearing the question, simply asked, "Are we done yet? I am feeling a little overwhelmed with all of this." He motioned toward the set, really not wanting to continue with it. His gaze fell on Merlina once more, before quickly shifting his gaze to his hands on his lap.​

 

[Merlina Caliburn]

Merlina dressed in a fitted office dress of grey, her hair was done in a simple ponytail with a twist, small pearl ear-rings donned her ears and heels that were barely 4inches. Where other women struggled to look elegant, Merlina could seemingly do it in her sleep. She knew this had not always been the case, she had been such a fish out of water at school but years of mentoring and tutoring from her grandmother and the very best in Italy, resulted in the perfectly polished pureblood that was now smiling with amusement as Scipione brushed off the interviewer. That was when he looked at her, the very moment she was looking at him. She felt her breath intake sharply and would have looked away too but he had beaten her to it and was now glancing at his hands.

She felt compelled to save him from the ridiculous questions that were being asked of him and reaching back retrieved another espresso from the smiling young girl behind the table. With both small cups in hand she walked with poise towards the set.

"I think that will be all" her voice was clear, soft, delicate and yet it spoke volumes of authority and the interviewer nodded swiftly and rose, thanking Scipione for his time and assuring him that they had all they would need. The photographer continued snapping shots until Chadwin coughed politely, whispered in his ear and motioned to tidy up. Merlina moved forward offering Scipione the espresso cup before sitting in the tall chair where the interviewer had sat moments earlier.

"Was it a personal or professional piece they had you doing?" she smiled at him, not sure where the bravado for speaking to him was coming from but knowing she just wanted to speak to him and it didn't matter what it was about.

The photographer gathered up his camera but left everything else on the set as it was, he could clean it all up later there was no rush but as he was leaving the room he turned and wondered if either would mind terribly his taking a picture as the pair looked devastatingly attractive together. He wasn't sure if his job would be on the line for it or not, so snapped off two before leaving the room hurriedly.

 

[Scipione Romanes]

Scipione had to release a sigh of relief when Merlina spoke, saying that would be all. If they would not listen to him, then they would listen to her. Scipione was not suited for this sort of thing. He was out of his element. His rearing was not the best since he rebelled the tradition in every way, including abandoning the business and going into Quidditch, which most of his family felt sports were a waste of time. Luckily, his younger brother Sergio found his future, in muggle football. Yet, they were still taking pictures. Scipione did not mind that as much as just talking. He finally spoke toward Merlina, though avoiding eye contact. ”Thanks for that,” the former Hufflepuff spoke with a quiet voice. This was not for him. He just loved his team and would do anything for them. That much was said when he bothered to come in here. He had high hopes of them wanting to know more about his profession and his team, opposed to him. But no, it had to be about him.

Scipione graciously accepted the espresso cup and took a deep drink, before sighing in relief again. He needed this. More than anyone would ever know. Scipione gave a warm smile, before finally gathering the courage to look at the Italian pure-blood. ”A fair bit of both. I don’t have much of a personal life, so I imagine it was boring.” A lie. He just preferred to keep it to himself. His family was all tore apart, and he had no contact with his siblings. If Collineus or his twin, Crius, were around, then he feared that he would suffer the same fate as his parents, who mysteriously vanished. Scipione watched as the cameraman captured two pictures of the two of them, before frowning. ”Um, he just... Never mind. How are things with you, Merlina?” Scipione would try not to worry about what would be said. It is not often that he was around women. Not that he liked men, he just did not have the time.​

 

[Merlina Caliburn]

Merlina tipped her head ever so slightly, the motion completely lost to an untrained eye but to anyone of highborn breeding and schooling, it would be as visible as if she had bowed her head completely. She could not recall the last time she had met Scipione, it had been in her teenage years she knew when her grandmother had first begun her attempt at arranging a marriage for her. Merlina had begged her grandmother, pleaded with her that she was not ready that she had to know the business first and foremost and all else should wait, would have to wait. This had appeased her grandmother of course but only for so long.

She noted how he did not look at her and could not help but feel bothered by it, she was used to men practically gawking at her now that this unexpected behaviour was like a welcome breath of fresh air and yet, she wanted him to look at her though she could not fathom why.

When he took the cup from her, she saw his smile and her heart felt suddenly light and ridiculously ... happy but her world buckled on its axis when he finally did look at her. Did she ever truly look into those eyes when she had been younger? They were so blue, so deep like an endless ocean and she felt captivated. No wonder people wanted to know about him, even she in that moment wanted to know all about him.

"Perhaps you should not give details about your personal life but simply then about you, let your public get to know who you are" and me, she felt the words whisper as if her very heart spoke them to her mind, willing her not to depart his company just yet, to try to keep him even a moment more in her own. She could not imagine there being any aspect of his life or him that was boring at all and feeling her cheeks blush a little, she turned to walk around the table - giving herself time to compose herself. She felt like some idiotic school girl, she had only ever had one crush in her entire existence and still loved him very much, though that love was absolutely pure in all its intent - she could not say the same about what she was feeling now. Ryuu had been different, he had been her entire world at Hogwarts New Zealand, he had been the reason she had liked it so much there. Perhaps if she had never met him, then leaving would not have been so heartbreaking for her.

When he spoke again she was almost afraid to look at him, but he said her name and it was as if it had never sounded so right before. If her grandmother saw her now she would most likely chuckle with delight that of all people Merlina was seemingly tongue tied over it was a pureblood and an Italian one at that!

"I cannot really complain" she told him eventually, having allowed a lengthened pause to fill the space between his words and her own, "I work and ..." she suddenly felt that she sounded so utterly boring, all she did was work, attend charity events and balls and the extremely rare pureblood party that she felt compelled to attend. A soft laugh fell from her lips as she braved the elements and looked from her cup to Scipione, "I don't have much of a personal life either, so I am boring too."

 

[Scipione Romanes]

Scipione sipped from his cup to keep from his mouth to feeling like sandpaper. This was utterly ridiculous. He should not be feeling like this, especially around Merlina. Sure, she was gorgeous and appeared to be a nice girl, but most of his life, he was running from the expectations that his uncle forced on his family, and it seemed like he was just falling into the web of the Italian pure-bloods and what the tyrants wanted from their families. Scipione tried not to get lost within her appearance, and tried to focus on the task at hand, which was trying not to cough up coffee when Merlina talked, so that he would not have his mouth open like an idiot. But it seemed like he might not be alone with how he was feeling, and somehow, he felt relieved. Her words spoke wonders, which it didn't even fathom on telling the people about him. He originally thought that his personal life was about him, but it truly wasn't. Yet, he still found himself to be utterly underwhelming. "I... I guess I could have. Even then, the public would be very disappointed to know that I am just a simple person. I think the mystery is what keeps people captivated. Yet, there's nothing beyond."

Scipione's personality was not boring though. He loved board games and just having a good time that wouldn't go beyond PG level, just based on his experience alone. Women were foreign to him. But then again, his family was just too complicated, he couldn't bare to let others know how much it pained and tortured him that he could not see them ever again. Her words made him chuckle a little bit, under his breath. It seemed like she might have been a workaholic as well. "Well, it seems like that we have two Italian workaholics sharing some coffee together. We can shake things up a little bit, if say, we go to the park on a walk or something." Smooth. Real smooth. He wanted to see how she had been since their teenage years, and it seemed like not much. "Unless your husband or boyfriend would mind it, or if there was something in your schedule that would prohibit it." He felt that he needed to justify it for some reason. Plus, he didn't want to make anything awkward. Coming from him though, he was definitely socially awkward.​