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Hello everyone!

Back from another (small) hiatus! Sorry if I had been incoherent in posting stories lately, let's say life had been busy ^^ Still, here there is a new chapter of my series, wooooooot! Hope you like it ^^

_Also, one question: I'm unsure if I should keep the little notes for the bits of Italian that I put in each chapter. Should I stop, or should I continue putting that?

Wanna thank Gritou because he is so fine and blows my mind!_

_"_Che dici1? What does the Prof. have to tell us?" Ale asked his friend, strangely for the first time, as the climbed the stairs siding the Modern Art Museum2, being careful to trail in the shadows of the oak trees.

"I honestly don't know." Luca told him the truth, trying his best not to pant. He really needed to get into shape if a slight climb up a hill at a faster than walk speed did that to him. Or maybe the rottie shouldn't have parked the moto so far from the entrance and in the small valley between the museum and the outskirts of Villa Borghese3.

"I wish he had at least given us a hint..." His roommate's words echoed his own thoughts as they were approaching the building of the Facoltà di Architettura4. As for many faculties of their university, this was just on of the many locations of the faculty scattered through the city; the prof. sure was lucky to have his office there, immersed in the green of the park, with almost no traffic sounds.

The lupine recognized his thoughts as a way to divert his mind from the meeting ahead of them. They hadn't discussed this summoning after the call ended, since in a bout of self-awareness they had gone to work directly and didn't do any pause at all. That hadn't stopped him from conjuring the worse scenarios possible, up to them being kicked out from their job due to laziness... Though that sounded unlikely even to his tormented mind.

"We didn't misbehave recently... Did we?" The voice of his best friend brought him to the present, their paws having brought them to the front steps of the faculty. The Rottweiler sounded weary and preoccupied, things he didn't like to hear in his voice, his posture mirrored his tones; he had to do something to get rid of them.

"Naaaaaah non penso5." The wolf said, shaking his head in denial, the cool embrace of the entrance enveloping them; he made sure to keep his back and hears perfectly erected to irradiate security. "Probably he wants us to do some paperwork for him."

"Like overseeing some student in his thesis or something? That would be a punishment though..." The darker canine groaned, but some of his pessimism had been dispelled, else he wouldn't have joked like that. His heavy pawsteps reverberated on the marble floor as they navigated the corridors, drowning the sounds of Luca's own paws.

"Probably he caught us talking way too much at work and wants us to make amend for it!" The lupo joked back, light heartedly speaking of his worst fear. True, they tended to chat a bit too much at the basilica, and he had been on the phone way too much...

His pocket vibrated just then, as if it had been summoned. He refrained to retrieve it, after all whoever it was he, or she, could wait for after seeing the professor. He had warned Edward about what he was going to do, and probably the text was him wishing good luck... So he wouldn't take it back if the answer would come in an hour or so.

"Yeah... though he is the first one to demand a chat when he comes to oversee us." Ale pointed out, his ears flicking a bit as if there was a fly bothering him. Might have been just that, or maybe just preoccupation showing up again...

"Eh, you know that there are always double standards." The taller dog shrouded his shoulders at one of life's many injustices. He realized then that they had surpassed the right door as they talked, which prompted him to do a complete turn on his self, quickly followed by the rottie.

They stopped in front of the door, the tag on it spelling in big white letter on the black surface PROF. A. DE ANGELIS. They stood there, neither of them having the courage to step forward and knock their presence in; whatever was the reason behind this meeting, it was very abnormal for the professor to call them without spelling out the reason, and that made them both very worried, as it had been clear since the call.

The lupine looked at his watch and saw that they had arrived early by a large margin, which posed an important question: should they go in or that would disturb the prof.? If the latter would turn out to be true, that would make everything worse... No one was eager to meet a grumpy badger after all...

Taking a huge breath, Luca raised his paw, turning his head to look at his friend in what he hoped was an expression of resolution. "O la va o la spacca6..." He uttered, his fist colliding with the door with a rapping sound.

"COME IN!" The familiar voice of prof. De Angelis came from the chamber, the shout making it hard to discern if he was angry or not. It didn't matter now, the decision had been made and the rottie was already twisting the doorknob, propelling himself inside along with the lupo.

The somewhat small office was as always, crowded with books and models, cramming several libraries and even a table tossed to one side of the room; in contrast, the professor's own scrivania7was neat and free of knickknacks, a modern laptop resting on its old wooden surface.

"Good morning ragazzi8." The badger welcomed them, the tin smile on his muzzle not giving away his intention. Was he smiling because he was happy to see them? Or maybe it was just a mask to hide his anger? Or was he savoring the moment before unleashing his wrath on those poor, foolish assistants?

"Salve professore9." The rottie answered to the salutation, the lupo blurting one himself. They were both rigid again, their tails (or the stub in Ale's case) perfectly still behind them.

"Please, have a seat. Did you come by motorcycle or by car?" The elderly fur motioned to the two chairs in front of his desk while asking such a trivial question.

"We... came with the moto professore." Luca answered for the both of them, sitting carefully on the chair, making sure to not show too much nervousness.

"Must be a very convenient mezzo10, the moto! Much quicker than the car in this city. Alas, I am too old to use one!" The badger exclaimed, expressing his sadness for his aging body, as all old people did at some point during a conversation. A trait that was even more annoying that usual when two dogs were waiting for some news on the verge of their seats.

"Well, it really is." The darker restorer said, probably thinking it was for the best to keep the chitchat going so to not aggravate the professor's mood.

"And quite fast, I was expecting you much later!" The black and white fur exclaimed in a not discernable tone. Luca liked to think he was expressing his approval for their puntualità11.

"I apologized if we interrupted you by arriving too early prof. De Angelis..." The lupo excused for the both of them, just to be sure. Better to apologize for something than just ignore it and make some damage, after all.

"Not at all lads, not at all! I was just reading some articles while waiting for you." The badger waved one paw in front of him, dispelling one of the worries that were floating in the lupo's head; unfortunately, it was one of the lesser ones.

"Trying to keep up with the new methods prof.?" Ale rumbled, using idle chattering to hide his nervosismo12 .

"It is always good to keep track, lads, even at my age." The prof. replied, his smile still on his muzzle; his hopes were getting up every second, but it was more of a torture since they just enhanced the dread that it was just all a trap.

"You are not old prof.!" The buff dog replied to such a remark, probably more to please the older fur's ego than anything else.

"Oh shush you, I am!" He laughed merrily, which was always a good sign. "Everything is fine at the Basilica?"

"Oh yes, work is going along, more so now that lessons are over." Luca spoke, eager to answer to any question. The muzzle of the rottie beside him shut down, as he had been beaten by his friend on that.

"Good good, I hope the parroco13isn't harassing you too much." The prof. nodded, pleased to hear such words.

"Luckily no, more so since Sara has started to intercept him every time, engaging him in conversations!" The rottie told his superior, grinning at the lupine since he had spoken first this time.

"Ohhh she is? Good good." The badger said, his fingers running in his chin fur in a contemplative gesture.

"Yeah, I think she prepares a theological argument every time, just in case!" The rottie chuckled, revealing their suspicions on those conversations. The other main theory among them was that the old fart of a parrocco was enamored of the squirrel, but they weren't going to reveal that to the prof.

"Oh my! Sara is such a brava ragazza14!"The elderly fur exclaimed, gaining nods of agreement from his two assistants. "I'm just sorry that the work here at the faculty keeps me from visiting the basilica."

"We would like to have you there more often prof.!" Luca replied, stroking again the other's ego. Truth to be told, it would be pleasant to see him there, the badger was much more laid back when on the work site than at the university.

"Oh you flatterer, I am sure you wouldn't. There would be fewer pauses if I was around." The academic winked at them, bringing dismay in the souls of the two young assistants.

"Noi non facciamo mai15-!" The rottie started saying, his voice being overcome by the lupo's as he talked above him. "We just do brief pauses-!"

"There there, no need to be flustered!" Prof. De Angelis interrupted the both of them, still smiling broadly. "It is natural to have a more laidback rhythm!"

"Uhm, well, yeah..:" The wolf mumbled, not sure what to say as his companion chose the better route of staying silent.

"In più16, your work speaks for itself. I'm not going to complain about something that brings such good results, lads." The badger continued, erasing another preoccupation from their hearts but leaving a mystery.

It seemed that the professor wasn't in any hurry to disclose the mystery around their summoning, as the conversation fell in a lull. Luca couldn't dare to break the silence first, waiting patiently his superior to speak again; though the seconds stretched to minutes, and it was a question of time before their curiosity got the best of them.

"Prof?" The rottie spoke, showing much more courage than his lupine friend.

"Yes Alessandro?" The badger said, seemingly coming to his sense as he had been lost in his thoughts.

"Uhm, why did you want to see us today? Tutto è a posto17?" Ale asked sheepily, as if he wasn't sure what to say exactly. His triangular ears flicked for a second, powered by the urge to lay back in a canine expression of distress.

"Oh? Oh! Yes! Everything is fine!" The professor exclaimed, his brows jumping with the realization. "I'm sorry, I was sovrapensiero18."

The two canines stayed silent then, their faces displaying utter curiosity as a hint for the badger to go on. The chase was growing very tiring, at least for the lupo, who was craving to know why they were there, if it wasn't to be scolded, as it was clear now.

"Well, lads, it is nothing to worry about, even good news, if you might." The elderly academic had noticed the state of his assistants; it was clear from how his eyes sparkled with mischief behind his glasses.

"What kind of good news?" Ale couldn't' resist asking, his ass on the edge of his chair, so much that he was risking to fall from it.

"You remember how I told you about the Sovraintendente19 being impressed by your work?" He said, his smile getting a proud shine in it as he showed more teeth.

"Of course we remember." Luca said, as he recalled how surprised they had been at hearing that. He also remembered a possible job opportunity hanging from that appreciation, which might well be...

"I was really happy to hear that!" The rottie added in an excited way, as he had come to the same conclusions as his friend, it seemed.

"Well, he called me yesterday asking about when the works at the basilica would be finished." The badger continued, stopping once again to wait for reactions.

"If everything proceeds as planned, we should be done in October." The lupo answered, taking it as a question. Indeed, they were quite close to finish, they were just at the final touches as of now, so to speak. His suspect grew stronger after such a detail; he knew something was coming out of it.

"That is what I told him, exactly. And something that pleased him immensely too." The professor said, his own tone making clear that part of the flattering had gone to him too. "He took it as a sign of your ability and skills."

"It is very pleasant... And we are grateful for you telling us, prof. But I think there was much more than just complimenti20, right?" Ale cut the chase, abrasive and almost rude from being fed up to wait. The lupo's ears flicked at such tone and words, and they did even more as the black and white fur started to laugh.

"Always so impatient, Alessandro." The badger chuckled, shaking his head in a fatherly way, as if he was used to that and oversaw such behavior out of love.

"Sorry, prof., I hat to be left hanging for something." The rottie apologized, still bearing a resolute expression that was almost defiant. Luca agreed with him, internally, but it would have been useless to add his voice now, it was much better to let the other two handle the conversation by this point.

"Forgive an old man for his sense of drama, lads." Prof. De Angelis apologized in turn, and the lupo almost expected his to offer some candy too. "But it is rare to announce such good news to such young kids, and I want to enjoy it."

"Fair enough, I guess..." The dark canine mumbled, a bit pacified by those words but still clearly impatient to know from the tenseness of his strong jaw.

"I am sure you heard about the Expo21, haven't you?" The academic said, expecting an answer from them.

"The Universal Exposition to be held in Milan, isn't it?" Luca said, finally speaking after such a great while, puzzled by this sudden change of topic.

"I am still surprised that was still going on." The Rottweiler added his opinion, leaving out the part concerning how that was going to turn in corruption as everything big did in Italy.

"Exactly that one. The city of Milan is preparing for such an event, renovating its image." The prof. almost sounded like a news anchorman as he gave such information. "That includes, of course, restoration important cultural sites."

"As to be expected, I guess. Even if there isn't much up there!" Ale snickered, the other two chuckling along with him in their anti-Milanese spirit.

"True, true. Still, there are a few and, among them, there is the Duomo22." The badger cut off his laugh, turning back to be serious.

"It is logical, it is THE landmark of Milan after all." The lupo replied haughtily.

"Yes. There will be several teams at work on it." The professor said, then dropped the bomb. "The Sovraintendente wants you, miei ragazzi23, to lead two of those teams."

That left the two assistants shocked, mouth agape in surprise. Luca couldn't know what his friend was thinking, but he sure hadn't expected that, the offer to lead a team of his own. Sure, by now he had guessed it was a job proposal, maybe even a good one, but that... that seemed almost unreal to him.

"I was sure you would react like that." The elderly badger grinned, happy to get such response from his young assistants.

"I... We don't know what to say..." The lupo said, expressing the feeling of the both of them. The rottie closed his mouth shut suddenly, not wanting to look too dumbfounded but failing at it.

"You don't have to say anything, for now. It is not yet official." The prof. said, still grinning. "I don't know the details yet, but it sure is a high profile work, with a good pay too."

"Yeah, I am sure of it..." The tall restorer said, maintaining the lead in the conversation.

"It should start in November and, however much I regret losing you, vi raccomando caldamente24 to accept the offer, once it will come officially." The professor talked, though the two canines in front of them were barely registering those words. He looked at his watch, exclaiming at the hour." And now, I'm sorry, I have to interrupt this pleasant conversation. I have to go to my grandchild's birthday!"

"O-okay, happy birthday to her." The rottie finally regained his senses, having the presence to say that as they both stood up, being accompanied at the door by the professor.

"I will make sure to tell her." The badger smiled as they reached the door, his paw on the doorknob. "Have a good day my lads!"

The door almost closed in front of them before it re-opened, the professor having remembered to say one last thing to her. "Almost forgot, this was un incontro ufficioso25, don't say anything to anyone!"

With that, he disappeared inside once again, leaving two emotionally shaken dogs trying to come up with that just had happened to them.

Translation:

1) What do you say/What do you think?

2) Situated in Villa Borghese, this museum has hardly any art that can be considered modern, since here the term "modern" as to be interpreted as "From 1789 onwards". Has lots od De Chirico's works though.

3) One of the biggest urban parks of Rome, sitting almost in the heart of Rome. Once was the extensive park of the Roman Princes of Borghese.

4) Faculty of Architecture. As said before, the Italian university system divides students in faculties from the beginning, where you have to stick to those subjects.

5) Naaaaaaaah I don't think so.

6) Italian saying that should be translated as "either it goes or it breaks", meaning "swim or sink/do or die".

7) Desk.

8) Boys.

9) Hello professore. I must note that "Salve"

10) Vehicle, shortened from "mezzo di locomozione" (way of locomotion).

11) Punctuality.

12) Nervousness.

13) Parson.

14) Good girl!

15) We never do-

16) Plus.

17) Everything is okay?

18) Being absently, absent-minded, lost in thought.

19) Superintendent.

20) Compliments.

21) Universal Exposition (yes, it still is around), that is held this year (2015) in Milan. More info here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Expo_2015

22) Duomo is an Italian synonym for Cathedral. The one of Milan is one of the symbols of the city, a fine example of Neo Gothic, here some info: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milan_Cathedral

23) My boys.

24) I warmly raccomend.

25) A unofficial/ officious meeting.

_ _