Time For a Change

Anthony walked out of his house without even a glance backward. It had been a while since he'd ventured outside into the cool Winter air, and he wasn't allowing himself to turn back around. It was a Saturday night, and he was heading out for some much needed fun. Life had been boring as of late, and he was desperate for some sort of change. He would just need to make that happen..

Shifting his leather jacket closer around his body, he glanced around before closing his eyes and apparating to the first place that had come to mind - the city. Away from Hogwarts, away from the Ministry. He'd been becoming a regular visitor up until a few weeks ago when he'd had to deal with some things, but now he was back and better then ever. He doubted he'd see any familiar faces up here though. Walking forward, he slipped his large hands into his jacket pockets, thinking over the things he could possibly do.

Maybe he'd meet someone new tonight? He was in the socializing mood, so he certainly hoped so..

Elizabeth found the fact that she had any free time away from Hogwarts amazing, and so she spent it the way any single girl would: a night on the town.

She had on her favorite sweater and pants, along with a vest that somehow her cousins managed to turn tie-dyed. Her scarf from her school years was wrapped around her neck, and was in surprisingly good condition.

She wasn't paying attention, as per usual despite the Auror training she had when she was like five (her father, paranoid bugger) and so she didn't notice when she bumped into someone.

"Oh! I''m so sorry!" she cried. "I wasn't watching where I was going."

Anthony continued walking along for a while, not really caring to pay much attention to where he was going. Why? Because he never usually did and he got along just fine. It didn't occur to him that he was in fact in the busy city. Maybe it was because he hadn't been out in a while and he was simply getting rusty. Either way, he blinked in surprise when he bumped into someone - and it wasn't lightly, either.

Barely holding in a few surprised swears, he came to an abrupt halt as he glanced up into the face of who he'd collided with. Hearing her quickly apologizing he could feel any of his previous anger slipping away quickly, and he soon offered her a slight half-grin. "It's fine, I'm sorry too. My mind was.. elsewhere." He offered, hoping to make her feel at least a bit better about the mishap.

After all, she hadn't been entirely at fault.

Her cheeks turned a pale pink when she saw who she had almost run over. He was cute, with his little half grin. She offered him one of her own, and he did try to make her feel better.

And at least she wasn't the only one who's mind was a million miles away.

Determined to put the awkward moment behind her, she said "So can I find out who I almost ran over?" she asked with a smirk. Luckily the flush was dying down.

Anthony didn't miss the moment her cheeks seemed to flush a pale pink, but if anything he found it amusing. He had that effect on women often, but he didn't let it get to his head. Yes, he was confident, but that didn't make him an asshole much like it did with other egotistical men.

He could feel one of his brows slowly raising when he heard her speak, but it was another pleasant surprise. For some reason he hadn't expected a remark like that to come out of her, but he was glad it did. He gave her one of his own smirks before answering, his Italian accent lacing each word. "I suppose I can afford that. Anthony Mancini." He paused a moment before offering his hand out to her.

Now that he actually got a good look at her, she was an attractive woman.. hm.

Taking his hand, Elizabeth shook it and said "Elizabeth Potter. It's very nice to meet you Mr. Mancini."

Merlin, that Italian accent added to the already high attractiveness level he achieved, but she was determined not to let it affect how her brain worked.

"So what brings you around here?" she asked, the flush completely gone now. The only color that remained was from the slight cold sting brought to her cheeks.

Anthony allowed his fingers to grasp her smaller hand, giving it a shake before he released it. He stuck his hand back into the depths of one of the pockets of his leather jacket, which was still hanging open as he ignored the cold air pushing against him. "It's very nice to meet you as well, Ms. Potter. Feel free to call me Anthony." He spoke casually.

He felt his broad shoulders rising and falling underneath his jacket at her question. "Boredom. Need for a change of scenery." He said bluntly, not really knowing how else he could answer her question. "How about you?" He curiously asked. He noticed now that the cute flush from before had evaporated from her cheeks, and he wondered if he'd be able to put it there again.

This could be fun.

"As long as you call me Elizabeth," she said.

"The same really, thought that if I saw another piece of paper I'd burn it," Elizabeth said. It was true, if she had to do anymore work she'd not be guilty of burning it and just saying that it fell in the fire. Not that that would have gotten her out of doing it.

She wondered what Anthony did for a living but the voice of her mother echoed in her head: that's not a polite question.

Anthony didn't hesitate to give her one of his charming grins. "Sounds good, Elizabeth." He obediently obeyed her request with a small chuckle. He hoped he was pronouncing her name correctly, considering his accent caused simple names to sound a bit different coming from him. He always did his best though, and he usually never had much of a problem.

He found himself nodding in understanding when he heard her explanation. Now he found himself wondering what she did for work, but would that be rude of him to ask? Never stopped him before. "If you don't mind me asking, what is it that you do for work?" It wasn't as if the question was completely random. After all, they were on the topic.. sort of.

Never before had her name sounded so good.

"I teach History of Magic at Hogwarts," she said. "It's better than being a tester at Weasleys Wizard Weezes, but sometimes the work just gets to you."

"What do you do?" she asked, wanting to keep the conversation moving at a reasonable pace. Anthony was nice to talk to, and Merlin he wasn't exactly a sight for sore eyes either.

Anthony allowed his hazel eyes to settle on her pretty face, listening to her as she told him what she did for a job. "Ah, a history buff." He said knowingly, and he couldn't help but crack a smirk when she mentioned it being better then being a tester. "I can agree with that. Not too sure I'd enjoy that job too much.." He shook his head back and forth a bit.

He was ready with an answer when she returned the question. "I work at the Ministry in the Auror department." He explained, pausing a bit as he realized the topic of conversation had come to an abrupt halt. Now was when he realized they were still standing in the middle of bustling people, and while he knew his request would be completely random..

"Would you be interested in joining me for a bite to eat? I know of this nice place not too far from here." He offered. He was always confident with himself, and now wasn't any different. Not even the fact that he'd literally just met her was stopping him. That was just the way he was.

"Well being a tester allowed me to get through the first three years out of school," Elizabeth explained. "But still nothing better than a job where you won't get injured or turned pink with orange polkadots because a product went wrong."

"An Auror? My Dad, Grandfather and Uncle all were one as well," she said grinning. "I just didn't get the OWLs needed for that career choice."

Upon hearing his request, the faint blush that had been on her cheeks when they first met returned. "I'd be happy to." she said smiling. He seemed like a nice guy, and despite the fact that they had just met it didn't feel odd at all.

Anthony continued to smirk and chuckle when she explained why she'd been a tester, and he couldn't help the amusing images that were popping into his brain. "While I'm sure those looks were cute on you, I certainly prefer how you look now." He said with one of his trademark grins, winking in the process. Yes, he was a flirt, but wasn't everyone when they were single?

He found his brow inching up a bit again when she said that her dad, grandfather, and uncle had all been Auror's as well. "Oh? That's interesting." He said sincerely, but nodded a bit when she mentioned not having had gotten the OWLs needed for being one. "That's too bad." He sympathized.

He noticed that the faint blush from before was back, and he couldn't help but once again smile in victory. After all, he did think the reaction was rather cute. "Great. It's just down the street here." He mused with a small gesture of his hand. Beginning to walk forward again, he glanced back as he waited for her to follow. He wanted to get to know her, and now this way, they could talk more.

She rolled her eyes a little but grinned just the same when Anthony said that the results from the products had looked cute on her. "Well I agree with you; I like the way I look now as well." The flush stayed on her cheeks at the wink, but she just returned a smile of her own. Two could play the flirt game, and besides she was single after all.

She shrugged when he sympathized with her lack of necessary OWLs. "Potions was never my strong suite and I think the fact that my potion exploded during the test might have contributed to my score." she chuckled.

And to think she got an A, must have been due to the theory portion. Give her a question, and she could answer it in a second. Have her make a potion...there was a reason why she was a mere tester even after three years of working at WWW.

He smiled at her and began walking. She followed him quickly but without knocking him over again.

Anthony took her reaction in stride, simply grinning again when she rolled her eyes. At least she was the type of woman to joke back, otherwise he wasn't too sure if he would have been able to get along with her. Without humor and he simply just wasn't interested. Not that he was shallow or even picky - even if he slightly was - but without a decent personality, why bother getting to know someone?

"Yeah.. exploding potions during the test.. never a good thing." He said with a smirk, only being able to imagine the mess it had created. Another amusing thought, but he didn't want her to assume he was laughing at her, and so he kept his chuckling under control.

Glancing ahead of him again to make sure they wouldn't be running into anything (or each other), he finally glanced her way again. Not being a fan of silence, he asked the first question that came to mind. "Where are you from, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Yeah," Elizabeth chuckled herself at the memory. Everyone screaming and running around when really she'd only messed up the order of three ingredients. That was tame for her. Her dad had laughed for days when he'd gotten the letter.

"I'm from Godric's Hollow," she said. "Dad bought a house near the memorial to Lily and James Potter after he married my mum. Granddad visits all the time."

She shook her head at the one time her grandfather had brought her great-grandfather to visit them and he'd spent the entire time grilling her mother about all sorts of muggle stuff.

"So what's this place like?" she asked, keeping the conversation rolling. "This restaurant."

Anthony alternated his attention from in front of them to make sure they were going the right way and to her as she spoke, answering his question. "Oh, nice." He said in acknowledgement. He wasn't from around here himself, but he was still vaguely aware of what she was talking about. "I'm from Italy. I'm sure you already figured that out though, with the accent and all." He said with a chuckle.

Hearing her question the restaurant, he couldn't help the grin that came across his handsome features. "Well.. I'll give you a hint. It's Italian." He said a bit sheepishly. He forgot to add in the fact that it was family owned.. by the Mancini's. She'd figure that out soon enough though.

"Yeah, the accent is a good hint," she chuckled.

"Yum!" Elizabeth exclaimed excitedly. "Italian is my favorite kind of food. Pasta, pizza, ravioli...I could go on for days."

Her mother joked that she'd inherited her stomach from her father, when really she just liked good food. And the Italians made good food.

Anthony couldn't help but chuckle, his shoulders rising and falling in an indifferent shrug. "Just can't hide anything around here.." He playfully joked. He wasn't ashamed of his accent, even if it did go giving things away about himself. He wasn't one to hide much though.

His handsome face lit up almost immediately when she expressed her excitement for Italian food. "Oh, we're going to get along just fine.." He mused with another dazzling grin, but he knew for a fact that they were going to. Call it a sixth sense, but he could feel it.

"This place has all of that, and more. You won't leave unsatisfied." He promised, rounding the corner and walking a few more paces before stopping in front of a classy looking restaurant. "Well, here we are." He said happily, gesturing toward the dimly lit building. From the outside, the glass was tinted so that no one was able to see inside, but people inside could see out. "Welcome to Mancini's." He gave her a sideways glance, pausing a moment before he moved to the door and opened it, holding it open for her. "After you, bellezza."

"Why would you want to?" Elizabeth joked back. The accent was a nice change of pace from the usual english accents she heard day in and day out.

"I'm hungry just hearing about it," she grinned when he promised that the restaurant had all the food she mentioned and more. Italian was really her favorite type of food. Others just didn't cut it.

When he held the door open for her, she smiled at him. It was nice to see that chivalry wasn't dead.

"Thank you," she said, even though she had no idea what he'd just called her. She hoped it was a compliment.

Anthony gave her a knowing look when she talked about how hungry she actually was. "I understand. Happens to me all the time." He said in agreement, nodding when she thanked him and offering a smile back. Only then did he realize that he'd let an Italian word slip from his mouth, and that she probably had no idea what it meant.

Following behind her after she'd walked through the door, he leaned forward slightly so he was able to whisper in her ear. "Bellezza means beauty, by the way." He said simply, before he was straightening up again and giving their bodies space once more. He gave her a rather hypnotizing grin before he turned toward the hostess happily. "Ciao, sorella. Tavolo per due?" (Hello sister, table for two?)

The dark haired girl nodded with a grin that matched Anthony's, and she glanced toward Elizabeth in question. "Oh, excuse me for being rude. Elizabeth Potter, this is my sister Adriana Mancini. Adriana Mancini, this is Elizabeth Potter." He introduced, and Adriana gave a soft smile. "Nice to meet you. Right this way." She replied, gesturing to them both as she grabbed menus and wandered over to a table set for two.

Ah, so that's what it meant. The pale flush returned to her cheeks, but she smiled all the same. The grin he gave her didn't help matters.

Work, brain, work! she thought as he turned to the hostess and requested something. Memo to me, memo to me: Learn Italian she thought.

Elizabeth thought that the hostess somewhat resembled Anthony and she smiled at her when they were introduced.

"It's nice to meet you too," she said and inwardly she was kicking herself for not realizing that he'd been requesting a table.

His sister? she thought as they were led to their seats. So it must be family own? Or did his sister just work here?

"This place is lovely," she told him as they sat down, "and your sister seems very nice as well."

Anthony could say he was quite satisfied when he once again saw the flush that seeped into her cheeks. He wasn't sure if it was mean that he enjoyed being able to do that to her, but he wasn't doing it with the intentions of being mean. She looked even prettier with the color splashed on her cheeks, that was all. And her reaction let him know just how modest she was about herself, which even though he was full of himself, he liked.

He leaned over and gave his sister a quick kiss on the cheek after she'd placed the menus down. Leaving them to themselves, she headed back to the hostess stand, and Anthony took his seat opposite of Elizabeth. He smiled when she complimented the place, and his sister. "It is. My parents, as well as Adriana and my younger sister Evangeline, put a lot of effort into decorating." He mused with a nod, glancing around the dimly lit place once more. The tables were set with fine silverware, a single candle stick lit in the middle. "But thanks. I'll let them know you like it." He said with a laugh.

He picked up the menu and made an attempt at glancing at it, although he really didn't need to. He knew everything on there by heart. "Know what you want, or shall I let you look through all the delicious options?" He said playfully, peering over his menu at her. She looked pretty with candlelight basking her pale skin. Hm.. distractions.

Oh so it was family owned! Well, Elizabeth could honestly respect that. After all W.W.W was a family business.

His laugh caught her attention, as it sounded almost musical with his accent.

"Oh give me a minute," she teased. "Everything looks so good."

She looked through the menu, which everything did look good (Merlin, so good!) that she couldn't decide. Finally she said "I'll have the ravioli."

Meat, cheese, vegetables...she'd have to stop thinking about it before she started drooling.

"What about you?" she asked. "Know what you'll be having?"

Anthony felt his brows raising again in amusement when she teased him, but he settled with giving her a slight upturn of his lips. "I'll give you a minute, no more and no less." He joked back, placing his own menu down and getting comfortable in his seat once more as he patiently waited for her to make her selection.

His attention wandered back over to her when she decided on having the ravioli, and he gave her a grin. "Good choice. I decided on having the good 'ol spaghetti and meatballs." He said with a chuckle, gathering up her menu and his own before placing it on the edge of the table. Just then, their waitress appeared. She gave Anthony a smile and he nodded toward her in friendly greeting.

She went through her small waitressing speech before asking their order as well as what they would like to drink. Anthony respectfully turned his attention over toward Elizabeth, signalling that he would politely be letting her order first. Yes, he was still into being a gentleman. It had just been the way he was raised.