I remember a long long time ago a clarify say that in order to have Florentine you need the appropriate weapon skills as pre-reqs such as small weapon. Did this change or is my memory just off?
In order to use two weapons with only Florentine I, yes, the second weapon you wield must be a small weapon as per the rules of the skill (and you must therefore purchase small weapon). However, with Florentine II, you need only have the skills required to wield both of your weapons, in this case the one-handed edged skill (for which there are no prerequisites). Florentine I has no prerequisites, likely because it's possible that someone can be well trained in the use of one-handed edged weapons (and thus the ability to dual wield them) without knowing how to properly wield a dagger.