The First Date-ish | Rossian

4:00 PM

"You've never taken me on a date before, Cassian Thomas."

Her voice was sweet and cheerful, but full of all the scolding a sixteen-year-old boy could expect from the girl he'd been dating for nearly two years, and still hadn't taken out for a night of fun. She had thrown her hair back into a french braid, mostly due to the smell of popcorn and candy apples still lingering in it, and had met the Ravenclaw in the middle of all the action. "It's almost like you don't like me." She pouted her lips as her hand slipped into his, her eyes sparkling with the playfulness that betrayed her real feelings.

They'd finally been relieved of their duties - allowed to go and enjoy the fair like anyone else, and there was plenty she wanted to do. Rosalie had every intention of dragging her boyfriend on every ride, eating all the treats they could muster, winning every stuffed animal possible, and then letting him dance the night away with her to the sounds of the jazz band.

It all felt so magical and exciting, and she wasn't willing to waste another second. "Okay what first? The swinging boats, or seeing how much blueberry pie we can eat between the both of us?" She smiled brightly at him, tugging him by his hand, already knowing exactly where they were going.

She plopped him down quickly onto one of the seats of the swinging boat and latched them both. With a little wiggle of her shoulders, she squealed quietly with anticipation. It looked like it went fairly high, and with any luck, it'd give a similar adrenaline rush to jumping off a six story roof with nothing but a broom to catch them.

"You've never taken me on a date before, Cassian Thomas."

Cassian slung an arm around her slender shoulders, tugging her close as they walked. He was happy to finally be relieved from his duties and able to enjoy the event from the side of a spectator and regular carnival goer. There were only so many times he could watch the deputy get dunked before his attention span began to wane. Was it any wonder that the boy had wandered away from his station a few times throughout the day? The professors needed breaks between periods of dunking, and so did he.

"Every day's a new date with you, gorgeous," he said, his tone as light as the Mid-March spring air. "Never a dull moment, all the romance," the boy carried on. "Sometimes, you even kiss me."

Rosie was right, of course. In the nearly two years they'd been together, they'd done many things, had hung out in many places, spent a great deal of time together, but none of it had ever been intentionally designated as a date. It wasn't on purpose or because he didn't think the girl deserved to be treated. It fell more in line with his breezy words. Cassian meant it when he said it was always a date for him. Every day, he got dressed and headed to classes they shared or to the Great Hall to eat together, every shared library shift, every late-night hangout was time he soaked up and enjoyed.

But she deserved a date at some point. It was getting a little out of hand.

"Okay what first? The swinging boats, or seeing how much blueberry pie we can eat between the both of us?"

The tugging made it clear it wasn't a question at all. Rosie already knew exactly where they would go, and he let her pull him along. This was one of his favourite versions of his girlfriend, a vibrant firrcracker with adventure in her eyes and a thirst for thrills. Usually, they could find a happy middle where she could be excited and his life wasn't perpetually flashing before his eyes.


Down he went into the seat, a smile bursting from his lips a moment later when she strapped him in and wiggled. "You're way too excited about this. Don't suppose it's because you know something I don't. Should I be worried?"

No, really. Should he? It wasn't too late for him to just...uhh...step back out and promise to watch her the whole time.

Merlin.

The eyeroll that accompanied the amused shake of her head was ruined by the grin tugging at her lips, hopelessly charmed despite herself. She nudged him slightly, "Smooth, Casanova. In that case, you're two years late bringing me flowers." He was adorable without even trying, making it easy to forgive his lack of planning a special date night now and again.

It went without saying that she absolutely loved spending time with Cassian. Always had, and now she had an excuse to keep him all to herself and torture him with questionable carnival rides? It was almost more excitement than she could stand.

"You're way too excited about this. Don't suppose it's because you know something I don't. Should I be worried?"

"Probably, but it's too late now!" Her arm slinked around his as she held on tightly. With a strange-sounding little bell, the boat began rocking, much to the elation of the other riders. Each swing took it them a little higher. Bit by bit, back and forth, up and down. Up and down. Until finally they were so high, they were coming out of their seats slightly when the boat swung down hard and fast.

Rosie shrieked with joy, clinging to her boyfriend as her stomach rose into her chest, sending that fluttering rush of thrill and adrenaline through her veins. The wind caught her braid and whipped it softly against his face, only making her laugh harder.

“Still think every day’s a date?” she yelled over the noise, voice bright with teasing. The next drop sent her clutching his arm, half-terrified, half-delighted. She squealed, burying her face in his shoulder as the world rose and fell around them.

"Flowers." Cassian tutted at himself, playing further into the dramatics. "I'm afraid we might have to cancel the date. I knew I was forgetting something."

It got him thinking. Was Rosie the sort who liked flowers? In many ways, she was a simple girl who insisted that she wasn't fussed about most things, but it didn't mean she had to settle for just anything. At the same time, other than the flower jewellery she sometimes made or the times the girl spent in the gardens with Ruth, he didn't see her making much fuss about plants.

Huh. He'd have to remember to ask her about it later. Apparently, it was too late for him now. There was no time to interrogate the eager gleam in her eyes. A bell rang, and suddenly his world was moving much faster than he'd been prepared for. Unlike his girlfriend, Cassian was a very manly man who did not scream or shriek...but Merlin, the way his stomach dropped into his legs at the first swing was enough to have him questioning all his life choices.

He wasn't clinging to Rosie. It was only a figment of the girl's imagination. Wishful thinking. Cassian, being the...uh...caring and protective boyfriend that he was, he was only holding her to ensure she didn't become too frightened.

Was there ever a better boyfriend?

He didn't think so.

He would not scream. He would not scream.

Cassian bit down on his lower lip as the boat lurched forward, taking them all along. It was safe to say he wasn't the sort for this much excitement. Were he on the ground, he might have been able to appreciate Rosie's delighted squeal, happy his girlfriend was having a good time. This boy, strapped in and clinging for dear life, was far too busy sorting out the pieces of his life that now flashed before his eyes.

“Still think every day’s a date?”

"Ask me later!" he yelled back. "When I'm sure we aren't dying!"

The back swing. Gooooood the back swing. All his muscles clenched, anticipating the next time it would swing forward. It was a good thing they'd chosen not to eat first.

He wouldn't dare cancel it if he knew what was good for him. As much as she understood Cassian was playing, there was no way on Merlin's green earth he was getting out of spending the entire evening with her, doing everything fun there was to do. They'd had a shit year; there was no way around it, and she was excited for them to move forward into making the rest of their time at Hogwarts magical.

Starting with the carnival. Neither of them were big snackers, but she had every intention of tasting all the treats. They would play all the games and ride every single ride.

Especially if they all felt like this.

The wind whipped across her face as they plummeted again, Cassian holding onto her as hard as she was clinging onto him. She knew he didn't like heights and was doing his absolute best to 'enjoy' the ride, but she loved that he had come anyway. Not that she had given him much of a choice, but what a good sport her boyfriend was.

"Ask me later! When I'm sure we aren't dying!"

It only made her laugh brighter. It was exhilarating; feeling as free as she did in the moment, her boyfriend wrapped around her, even if it was for his protection rather than hers.

As the ship finally began to slow, the rocking taking on a much gentler motion now, she let him go and smiled widely at him. "C'mon Cass. You've faced scarier things than a little carnival ride." She popped a quick kiss on his cheek as she unlatched them and immediately yanked him from his seat.

Time, apparently, waited for no one tonight.

"What's next? I'll let you choose this time." She crossed her index finger over her heart in a little promise, even as her entire body still vibrated with the excitement coursing through her veins.

This date was a mistake.

This date was not his best idea.

This date would be the death of him.

Cassian felt his entire body go cold as they plummeted again, the feeling only beginning to return with the realisation that they were slowing down. Small mercies, none of these rides would last forever. He just had to endure and take his wins in the way Rosie's laughter bubbled up her throat and the excitement that pooled in her eyes even as she yanked him from the boat.

His long legs wobbled as he alighted the ride, thinking he would need to sit down for at lea--

"C'mon Cass. You've faced scarier things than a little carnival ride. What's next? I'll let you choose this time."

Truly, the death of him.

"Benevolent," he said, pulling her close to him. "I get to choose." His choice? Standing there a moment longer with his lips pressed to hers while he convinced himself he hadn't walked off that boat dead. Feeling her lips and tasting the tart cherry they carried was... reasonable evidence that he was still among the living. Surely it wouldn't feel the same if he were a ghost, and Rosie would notice if his kisses had become spectral. Yes, he was alive and ready to not be standing near this thing anymore, in case she decided on a second ride.

Satisfied, Cassian pulled away, entwining their fingers together as he took her hand.

"Come on, I'll win you something cute before your next murder attempt. Then you'll have some company after I'm gone."

Dramatic? Only slightly. Hardly noticeable.

"Wasn't much of a chaser, but I bet I could hit those coconut things."

Best date ever.

She hummed as he pulled her in, his lips meeting hers against the noise and scents that surrounded them. It was very like him. Whenever Cassian felt a little flutter of something out of the ordinary, he always had to vent it in some sort of way. She didn't care who could see or if the professors would call them out. Finally, they were getting a carefree moment, where they could just be themselves again, and she was soaking in every moment with him.

"Come on, I'll win you something cute before your next murder attempt. Then you'll have some company after I'm gone."

"You were a great chaser. Have you already forgotten the last game we played together when you made that goal at the end?" She had rammed, and tried to get him a second time, but he'd dodged - her and an incoming bludger - and still managed to make the goal. Her boyfriend was always minimizing his achievements in the sport. Nevermind that he was a champion Quidditch captain two years in a row and had caught the snitch in nearly all of his games. He held no love for the sport, but he couldn't deny that he did have a talent for it.

"Besides, if I murder you, who will I snog? I'd just be punishing myself." She pulled their hands to her lips to place another kiss on his.

As he tugged and led her over to a game booth, her eyes fell on all the stuffies that were up for claiming. Various colors and fluffiness. Different magical creatures. Some enchanted to move and snuggle, others just cute little lovies that would be adorable on her bed. "That one!" she said, pointing out a bright blue diricawl.

She picked up one of the balls, and held it out to him with a sweet smile. "Don't let me down, handsome."

"You were a great chaser. Have you already forgotten the last game we played together when you made that goal at the end?"

"Sometimes I forget how thick those rose coloured glasses of yours are," he quipped, nudging her lightly by the shoulder. He remembered that match, too, and the sheer volume of luck the universe had doused him with to ensure he not only managed to dodge his over-zealous girlfriend but a pair of bludgers that had been sent his way. One had been by a girl he was glad he no longer spoke to, and another by a boy whom he'd never spoken to but had somehow gotten on the bad side of. To this day, Cass still couldn't say how he'd managed all that and still scored, but some things were better not questioned.

His lack of death in a game he had no business playing was one of them.

On the surface, her logic for keeping him alive made sense. Dead, she'd need a new boyfriend, someone else to snog. At that point, he supposed he'd have no choice but to rise from the dead to ensure that didn't happen.

The things he did for love--and to make sure no one else was enjoying his girlfriend. Someday, it would need to be studied. For now, he took the ball she offered and sized up the coconuts he was meant to be hitting.

There was now a bright blue diricawl he had to win.

"Don't let me down, handsome."

"Have I ever?" he asked, shooting her a quick wink before turning to face the stand. As soon as he got into position, the lights along the booth's frame lit up. Cassian took a moment to consider the angle and the distance. He walked to both sides before walking back to the centre eyeballing the silent targets. When he felt confident enough, he flung the ball--and would've gotten it, too, save the fact that the squirmy little devil giggled and rolled out of the way.

The boy blinked, unsure of what he'd just seen. He was ready to say it was all rigged, when he caught another pair giggling as they moved.

Two chances left. "Didn't think it was that kind of game."

She scoffed as he nudged her. Rose-colored glasses. Rosie didn't need them to see everything amazing that Cassian was, even if he didn't see them in himself. She was well-aware that she was her boyfriend's unapologetic biggest fan. The way she looked at him, smiled at him and always had her hands on him in some way often made others roll their eyes or groan in exasperation. It mattered little to her at the end of the day.

"Have I ever?"

His wink made her blush in that stupid way it always did, her smile tightening as she rolled her eyes, watching as he analyzed the game from every angle. It was amusing how Ravenclaw he was about these sorts of things, always taking his time, studying, calculating. "Never," she answered earnestly, leaning forward on the booth and drumming her fingers with anticipation. If the boy said she'd have it, that diricawl would be hers in the next two minutes.

She bit her lip, grinning widely as he threw and the coconuts giggled, dodging it easily.

"Didn't think it was that kind of game."

"It's a carnival game, silly," she said tilting her head a little. Had he never played one before? Her grandad had taken her to the local carnivals when she was little and they were...all sort of like this. "It's meant to have you lose." She turned back to the game and nodded to the coconuts. "Throw it a little off center so the ball hits right where it moves."

She would get that diricawl if she had to win it herself.

Well, yes, he knew it was a carnival game but there really should've been disclaimers about the potential for movement before he threw the first ball. Cassian understood, in part, that the people who typically ran carnivals were in it for a profit and that to do that, they needed far more losers handing over their money than they had winners who took their merchandise. Believe him, he got it. But this was their carnival that the professors had helped them put together. A lot of the prizes had been because of generous donations and a bit of fundraising on the side during their Hogsmeade weekends.

By that logic, there shouldn't still have been underhanded tricks to make sure most of them lost--especially not in front of their girlfriends that they were trying to impress. Cassian hadn't spent...most of the day slaving away at dunk tank--what was a break here or there--just to be treated like everyone else in attendance.

Where had Ruth gotten off to? She probably knew how to fix this thing. This was her area, after all.

"Throw it a little off center so the ball hits right where it moves."

It would work if the coconuts were following any particular pattern. As far as the Ravenclaw could see, they giggled and wiggled sporadically, going with their whims in whatever direction they happened to lean. It made them much less predictable and decreased his ability to anticipate where the ball needed to be.

He snapped his fingers, an idea hitting him as suddenly as a poorly fitted stage light breaking free of its holster.

Albeit...less painfully.

Taking a ball into each hand--no anticipation, no calculating, Cassian threw them both. The little coconuts, trying to escape one ball either ran into each other or bumped into the other he'd thrown. The mini chaos that ensued had a ripple effect, until none remained wobbling on the stand. A boyish grin spread across his lips.

"Told you I'd get it for you. Go on and grab it. I'll even let you choose the next place," he teased, mimicking her earlier words.

The evening was still young and there was plenty for them to see.

It was easy to love him.

Rosie smiled, feeling a familiar warmth begin to unfurl within her chest. She watched him, the gears turning behind his eyes as he considered her suggestion. It was the same focused look he took on when he was studying a stage or making edits to his scripts. He snapped his fingers, before hurling both both balls. The confusion that ensued on the coconuts' side left Rosie's mouth falling open, and she let out a breathy laugh of astonishment.

"Told you I'd get it for you. Go on and grab it. I'll even let you choose the next place."

She stood for a second her eyes narrowing with his tease, but her grin never left her, even as she leaned in to give him a quick kiss. She reached over as the vendor handed her the bright blue diricawl, and she tucked it securely into her elbow. It was one of the enchanted stuffies, that nuzzled right into her side and felt a little warmer than it had just a second ago in her hand.

"Thanks love. It'll go right on my bed. Keep me warm on the colder nights." She'd make him sleep with it a few times first so she could fall asleep to his scent cuddled up next to her. She didn't care if he'd argue about how 'unmanly' he'd look to the other blokes.

Her choice hmm? She knew exactly what she wanted. "Back to the swinging boat then," she said, her heartbeat already picking up with the exhilaration she knew was to come. She laced her fingers through his, giving him a sharp tug back to the ride they just came from.

It was going to be the best date, with the best boyfriend ever.