The Knight at Night

Athena was really upset by the events of the night, and Kendall was lost as to what he should do for her. He listened to her and tightened his grip on her, setting down his hot chocolate in a little overhang he supposed was for that purpose. He snaked his other arm around her waist, lacing his fingers together and dropping his chin to her shoulder, looking up at her as she spoke.

"That doesn't have to happen, Thea," he said softly, his voice dropping in volume. "What you are brought up to be, and what you become are two completely different things. And if I could think of anyone that would defy what people want her to do, it would be you." She continued talking and he shook his head, pulling her close. "Don't say that, you're wonderful."

Her cheeks turned red as she realized how much she had disclosed to him and he watched her, his brown eyes trailing on hers. "Don't apologize," he replied. She continued on and he said, "Of curse it's not too much to ask. We all want to be liked. My dad really likes my mum, but I wonder if she cares about him, and that's not an easy thing to watch." He snuggled closer to her. "Whoever ends up with you is going to feel so lucky, you'll be irritated by how much he likes you."

She said she didn't need him to watch out for her and he dipped his head. "Yeah, I know. But I want to, if that's alright."

Sleep wouldn’t have gone amiss for the emotional young Slytherin. Athena was at her wits end, at the lowest she’d been for the longest time. Being cuddled up in Kendall’s arms helped a little but it wasn’t enough to shake away the fear that Darius’ words would one day reflect her future. She didn’t honestly see anything else happening. It was going to happen whether it killed her father or not – or whether she killed him or not. Athena would be married off, she’d have the little brats she was meant to have and then she could move to Italy or something, have a nice separation and make off with an Italian toyboy. That grim prospect was almost worse than staying with the bloke she ended up with. Italy was most definitely not Athena’s most favourite place in Europe. She could put up with Spain for about a month but really, if she had to bugger off anywhere then it was going to be Austria.

“You’re ill aren’t you?” Athena asked with a weak smirk. Athena swallowed and leaned forward to place her cup beside Kendall’s. Athena shook her hands out and settled back against Kendall. Her hands came to rest over his and she gave a gentle sigh. “I suppose I could do something terrible and tell all of those vapid women that do nought but socialise that their husbands are probably off with their Mistresses,” Athena said thoughtfully. She laughed a little and shifted a little against Kendall. “Their faces would make my year I think,” She murmured. “I know Apolline has my father under her thumb but she was stringing him along for years. I...” Athena pursed her lips. “I don’t know. It’s too much. It’s all too much.”

Athena tapped Kendall’s fingers with her own as she thought. “How long have they been together?” She asked quietly, wondering about her own parents. Athena’s mind turned towards Cassandra, the woman who had given birth to her – the woman whose blood ran through the very veins that Athena possessed. Athena didn’t know what would have happened if Cassandra had told Gregory. They would have had to have married. Athena was rather glad of Apolline but she couldn’t help but wonder what her real mother was like at times. Her father’s opinion of her consisted of ‘she was a good lay’ – but there was nothing about her. In fact, she was as much of a mystery to Athena as she’d always been. It was impossible for Athena to not feel abandoned. She felt a little bit deserted. Still, there was nothing she could do now. It was all, far too late.

"You can look after me if you truly wish to,” Athena murmured before adding. “Do you think we’re close to yours?”

Kendall circled his arms around Athena, letting her lean against him and taking his share of the burdens she was holding up. She asked him how long his parents had been together, which he thought was an odd question. Perhaps she was wondering how long people stayed together when they loved someone like his father loved his mother. Or perhaps she was wondering how long some people stayed in a relationship they did not want.. like his mother.

He thought for a moment, thinking back to the last time his mother had used the length of the marriage as a threat against his father- 'We have been together for seventeen years and you still do not understand that occasionally I NEED to go shopping at all hours of the nights with my friends! You are insufferable, Augustus! Now go feed the birds!'

"It will be eighteen years this fall," he commented, nodding. "Eighteen years," he repeated. They had been married longer than he had been alive. How had his mother been with a man she questioned loving for that long? How had his father put up with his batty mother without murdering her for so long? Surely, there was some real love that kept them together..

At her words, he snuggled closer, feeling the Knight Bus begin to slow. "I will, then," he murmured. He glanced up to see Stan opening his mouth to shriek they had arrived. Kendall held up a hand. "You're in luck, love. We're here."

Eighteen years. Athena was nearly sure that was about the same as Apolline and her father. Then again, what did she know? Their marriage wasn’t something they spoke of much. There was veiled animosity between them, covered up by layer after layer of affection Athena didn’t doubt was for her benefit rather than theirs. She knew that Apolline did not resent her but she couldn’t shake off the idea that she was still the one being blamed for her father’s infidelity - or whatever he’d done. Athena had no idea whether her mother had come into the picture before or during the marriage. She knew, however, that there had been a long bout of publicity after she’d ended up with them, trying to make it seem as if Apolline had been secretly pregnant the entire time. Athena wished it had been so at times - she wished that there wasn’t that distrust between all of them. Perhaps that was why the pair of them were so eager to marry her off - because without her they could worry about their issues and not hers.

How typical.

Athena looked up as the bus began to slow. When it finally came to a stop, she began to wriggle out of Kendall’s grasp. She slipped out of his arms and smiled at him before gliding down towards the back of the bus in search of her shoes. She bent over, peering under one of the beds and jumped at the sound of someone clearing their throat. She sprang up once more and whirled around to stare at Stan who had found it prudent to stand a little too close to her. Athena’s eyes narrowed and she watched as he held up the scarlet heels, a smug smirk on his face. Athena huffed and snatched the shoes from his hands before breezing past.

“Shunpike, stop staring at my arse or I’ll have to take your eyes out of your sockets!” Athena called over her shoulder. She heard Stan squeak and she smirked before sitting back down beside Kendall. She slipped the heels onto her feet and wriggled her toes within them before standing up once more, finding herself a lot further off of the floor than before.

She took Kendall’s hand and tugged his arm, prompting him to follow her off of the bus. She smirked at him and hopped off of the back, landing fairly easily on the gravel. She wobbled a little but it was nothing to drastic. She stepped up onto the path and watched as the Knight Bus, with a bang, shot back into the night.

Athena rubbed her arms and smiled at Kendall. She blew a piece of hair out of her eyes and tugged at her shirt, feeling rather miffed at the state of herself. She couldn’t walk into their home dressed like she was. Pureblood women talked. Nothing could remain a secret and so Apolline - along with the whole world - would know by morning. There would never be a chance that Apolline would have found something less ridiculous to talk about. Athena didn’t plan on getting shagged out of her brains. She wanted a warm bed to sleep in and a little bit of company. She’d known even as she’d been stood in the Blood-Traitor’s garden that there would be no trying to sleep in her own home. No, she needed a positive air - even if it was in the form of Kendall James Rookwood.

“Oh sweet merciful Merlin...” Athena groaned. “I look like a prostitute!”

Athena would never be able to feel comfortable in the sort of things Pricilla wore. This was a Pricilla outfit by its very nature and Athena was more than just a little bit uncomfortable. Pricilla had set her up so that at the very least she’d be thoroughly snogged by the end of the evening. No one had banked on her ending up with Kendall for the night. Athena wished that she’d pushed for something more modest - something devoid of a piercing. At least, she figured, it covered the tattoos. That would have added to the embarrassment she already felt. Tattoos in places only bed partners would know - another Pricilla idea. Thinking it about it....the idea that Kendall had seen them was a horrifying one at best.

“I can’t walk into your house dressed like this, Kendall!” She hissed her eyes wide with alarm. “Maybe I’d get away with it...maybe your mother will think I’m just some random you’ve picked up from the party and then if I ever meet her again an awkward conversation pertaining to these events can be avoided!” Athena took a deep breath. “Is there a back door somewhere?"

Kendall watched Athena wriggle out of his hold of her, and released his embrace to allow her to do it. He grinned as he watched her, amused by the side of her that she hardly showed to people. Of the many things that could stroke his ego, this was a big one, and he relished it. He looked at the girl as if she was a prize. Deep down, though, he knew she was more than that. He had feelings. Sheesh, he thought. It sounded lame already, in his head. Kendall was too caught up with staring at Athena, to realised that Stan was doing the exact the same thing. Only at Athena's harsh words to Stan, did Kendall realise it. He glared at the other guy, as if his glare echoed the girl's threat.

Soon enough, the two were off the bus, happy to be standing on stable ground again, and away from the oddball of the bus conductor. Kendall took in a breath of fresh and cooling air, before his eyes settled on the vast of land that Rookwood Manor sat on. He was so proud of it, all of it, all of this was going to be all his one day. Master of the Manor, how his heart cheered at that. Kendall turned to Athena, hoping that the sight that impressed him impressed her too. Somehow, it mattered to him. At Athena's words, the boy broke into a huge grin, before a chuckle escaped his lips, and then a full-fledged bout of laughter came out. And then, he stopped, reining the laughters in when he saw the look on the girl's face.

"Awww. Come on, pet." He began in a teasing tone. "Don't worry about it. The prostitutes I've seen look nothing like you." Kendall laughed again, before he took a step back and pretended to be in serious observation of her attire. "I'll admit ... you look saucier than usual. I never pegged you as someone who liked to wear these clothes ..." He grinned. "But, well, they do bring out those curves. Mmmmm." And then he licked his lips, followed by more laughters, before he stopped, for good. There was a limit, and he had hit it. The teasing was to be met by reassurance.

Kendall slipped his leather jacket off, leaving him in just the t-shirt that was underneath it. Without a word, he put the jacket over Athena's shoulders. "Mmmmm," he began, in thought. "There is definitely a back door, but it's no telling which house-elf will see us. I think my mother would find out in one way or another if the entire population of them in the Manor talked about it, and you know how they're such a bunch of gossips." He rolled his eyes at the thought. "They're not allowed into my room unless I allow them to, though. Our safest bet would be to make it to my room without being seen. It'd be good." And then his eyes lit up. "Let's have a little adventure, shall we?"

Rubbing his hands with glee, Kendall took one of the girl's hands. "Good at climbing?" He asked, with a chuckle. "Those ivy there", he pointed to a random part of the Manor's facade. "They've always been good to me. Those nights ..." He smacked his lips and grinned at the memories of sneaking girls up and in, and even him leaving and entering in that manner to go the houses of those other girls. "Good times," he commented, and looked at Athena, as if he wanted a reaction from her from his teasing reminder of other exploits.

Maybe Kendall didn’t understand her worries but she was nearly positive his mother wouldn’t enjoy a scantily clad young woman wandering through her home. Athena didn’t want that either and she was sure that if it did happen and anything was said as a result then Apolline would have her under house arrest indefinitely. That would no doubt give the pair enough control and perhaps, if they were lucky enough, they could break Athena and marry her off to the highest bidder. Then all of their money troubles would be over and Athena would spend out her days gossiping away with Pricilla and popping out sons at every available interval. What a life to behold. Apolline would say that it was something to be proud of, not to begrudge of girls. Then of course she’d proceed to compare Athena to Pricilla and then explain in great detail why Pricilla was fit for the role of wife than Athena was and how she wished Pricilla was her daughter instead. Athena had heard that too many times. Thinking of it now, it just made her feel sick.

“I...” Athena looked quizzically at Kendall and looked down at herself. She tugged irritated on the thin, cotton shirt that Pricilla insisted she wear and flicked the charm hanging from the barbell that had been pierced through the skin of her belly button. Personally, Athena loathed it as much as she did the tattoos that were also Pricilla’s idea. Still, she figured it was amusing enough and it certainly didn’t hurt as much as it had earlier. Having said that though, the potions Pricilla had shoved down her throat had probably seen to that. She felt alright, that was for sure. She was still a little on the shaken side but apart from that she felt alright considering the events of the evening.

Athena lifted her eyes back up to Kendall’s and frowned a little. “Was that a compliment or...” She looked down at herself again and felt her cheeks heat up a little. “I-I...I don’t. I just...it was Cilla’s idea I suppose.” Athena glanced up again when Kendall’s hands on her shoulders, bringing his jacket into place. She smiled gratefully at him before smirking and giving a light laugh. “So chivalry isn’t dead then?” She quipped before looking him up and down. “What do you want?” she asked him, as if his intentions weren’t entirely as pure as he’d professed them to be earlier on.

House Elves that gossiped were worse than a hundred thousand descendants of Rita Skeeter. They were horrific. With what little English they knew they managed to do the maximum damage and Athena had heard many a tale pertaining to ‘Mistress Polly’s’ adventures in the past and certainly, she’d been told what her father got up to. It was as if every House Elf in the world was a little gossip except for hers. Hers just had attitude. They took too much delight in harassing the other Elves and keeping her content - not to mention alive - to stand around and gossip.

“Cut out their tongues if you’re that worried about gossip,” Athena retorted with a roll of her eyes. “They’re quite useful when it’s not you that they’re gossiping about. There are some potentially interesting conversations to walk in on.” Athena wiggled her eyebrows suggestively and laughed before looking up at the house that was simply covered in ivy. It was a wonder whether the house would stand up if the ivy was cut away. Athena was doubtful, very doubtful, though it reminded her of the walled garden in the house in London that Apolline insisted they stay in while shopping there. That too was providing the climbing plant with some to wind around. It was beautiful really. Athena had never actually had to climb vines before. The ivy that covered the house looked thick enough though. It certainly wouldn’t break.

“I’ll leave you to reminisce then, darling.” Athena purred, taking his jacket off of his shoulders. She draped it over his and smirked before walking up to the ivy. Athena bit her lip and looked up, spotting the open window to what she was going to assume was Kendall’s bedroom. Athena shook her head and leaned down to slide off the infernal heels she’d been forced into. She smirked and tossed them towards Kendall, telling him to “catch,” before looking up at the house once more. “Up we go, then?”

Kendall had effected a dramatic look of someone feeling incredibly wronged. While he had genuine intentions to allow the girl to cover up wherever she wanted, with his leather jacket, even he was amused at his own action. Athena's question only brought the comedy of his act higher up to its surface. "Am I supposed to feel offended?" He asked, feigning a sad puppy look. And then, beginning to feel disgusted at that look, he laughed it off and shook his head. "Chivalry is not dead until I am, Thea. I thought you knew that much. Why the sudden doubt?"

Kendall smirked, before Athena retorted about the House-Elves. He was never sure about gossips, whether he liked them or if they were trivial and meaningless. They were entertainment, for awhile. Usually, though, he would catch his name. As much as he enjoyed the fact that he was the topic on the lips of others, Kendall never liked the fact that people were privy to his life, as if he was worried they learnt about his intentions -- the part of him he wanted to keep secret. He hated gossips about his father though. There was always an irrepressible urge to curse whoever spoke about his father, always badly. He wanted to protect the family name. The one certainty of the Rookwoods was wealth. Reputation had slipped terribly among circles that did not involve Death Eaters. As much as Augustus did not care, Kendall did. He wanted the power back, from everywhere.

As he had no answer to Athena regarding the House-Elves, Kendall merely stood before finding his jacket back over his shoulders. He slipped back into it before running a hand through his hair, watching the girl slip her heels off, before allowing his reflexes to react to her tossing of them to him. Kendall almost dropped one heel off, but caught it quickly enough. It would have been embarrassing not to have caught them properly, since he was proud Quidditch player. It mattered. Grinning, he had his attention back to Athena. Taking a few steps closer to the girl, he nodded.

"And you don't need my help? You can ... grab on to me while I climb ... or a better idea would be if I climb after you." His grin widened, as if something else was thought about in his mind about that. "That is, if you know how to climb this baby," Kendall patted a part of the Ivy, and eyed Athena while he did it, smacking his lips without realising he was doing it.

Athena’s laugh in response to Kendall’s words punctured the sereneness of the air around them. She shook her head, her curls bobbing around her face both because of the breeze and her own movement, before bringing her eyes up to the vines. She smiled a little and shook her head again before returning her eyes to Kendall. “Take it as you will, darling.” Athena replied with a smirk. Athena pressed her lips together at the expression he was making and she moved closer, bringing her hand up as if to cup his cheek but instead patted her hand against the skin there. “I’m not doubting you, sweetheart. I’m merely applying to the Slytherin in you and unless you have lost your bearings then you’d do well to remember we don’t do anything without reason, unless of course you’re afflicted with stupidity and you and I both know you are not.” Athena’s smirk deepened and she dropped her hand back down to her side.

Stepping back towards the ivy, Athena turned and brought her gaze up to the window. She pressed her lips and cocked her head to the side before reaching forward and curling her fingers hesitantly around the ivy. It seemed strong enough. She wasn’t entirely trusting of it though and she knew a few cushioning charms wouldn’t go amiss on the ground if they were to fall. Athena removed her wand from the little pocket that was sewn into the inside of the shirt and pointed it at the ground. She paused at Kendall’s words and lifted her head, bringing the tip of her wand to rest to the side of her mouth. Athena quirked an eyebrow at him and glanced up at the house before shrugging her shoulders.

“Am I supposed to feel offended?” She threw his words back at him, her mouth curling into an almost cat-like grin. “I can climb thank-you-very-much, Mr. Rookwood. So if you don’t mind,” Athena pointed her wand at the ground and flicked her wrist. The ground immediately softened beneath her feet and she smiled sweetly at Kendall. “Just to make sure you don’t hurt yourself if you fall.” She poked her wand behind her ear and turned, curling her fingers around the ivy.

She knew she had to treat it a little bit like rope but not entirely. She’d have to shimmy for the most part because she had no idea how thick the ivy is and she wasn’t about to get her feet stuck and find out first hand. Perhaps she should have taken Kendall’s suggestion and let him carry her up but for her pride’s sake she refused. It had been knocked enough tonight and she really just wanted to instil a bit of faith back in herself. She could climb, she knew that for definite. It had always been a strength. Why, she did not know but she wasn’t going to knock it. Cleary it came in handy.

Athena broke from her thoughts and looked down at Kendall. She cocked an eyebrow at him and laughed a little. “You’re not staring at my ass are you?” There was a disbelieving but ever so slightly playful tone to her voice. “Hurry up slow-poke!” She exclaimed as she hoisted herself ever closer to the window ledge.

Kendall watched Athena, willing the eagerness in him for her to quell itself. After all, he was always the less interested one, no matter the girl. It would do no good for him to let this be the first -- one of the most, if not the most, astute Slytherin girl in his year. The boy almost expected a kiss, but who was he trying to kid? Slytherins calculated their steps. To have two together would mean at least double the calculation. There was not going to be much of an impulse here unless it suited their calculation to make a purposeful action look impulsive. It was not going to happen. Not now. Kendall cocked his head to one side and waited for Athena to explain herself, amused as he watched the way her lips moved when she talked. "No, of course, not. Stupidity is not Rookwood, at all." He nodded in agreement, although the look on his face was not clear if he meant for his sentence to be serious or merely a way to play along with what the girl was on about. "Indeed, there is a reason. It's a subconscious play of chivalry on my part. See," he spread his arms as if he had something to offer, "au naturel. Chivalry is Rookwood." Kendall chuckled before he began to watch for Athena's move, with her observation of the Ivy at a the wall closest to where the duo stood.

"..." Kendall was about to say something, when the girl brought her wand out, and in no time, he felt the ground around them soften. He chuckled. "That's very thoughtful of you, Ms. Goyle." He played along with her suggestion of his needing some sort of safety, although of course, he knew he needed none. He could almost climb the Ivy with his eyes closed. Still, he kept that boast in check. After all, it was not charming to brag too much. Quickly, Kendall noticed that Athena had began to climb the Ivy. He watched her, amused to see her being brave and going for it, not that he expected anything less from her. And then his eyes became mesmerised by the view she offered him. Mesmerised, is too charming a word. Rather, he was lusting after what he saw, it was really as simple as that. The girl's voice broke his stare, and elicited a cheeky grin from Kendall. "What's there about your ass to stare, Thea?" And then, he jumped onto the Ivy, allowing him to possibly skip three steps of the climb. The Ivy shook a little. Kendall did it on purpose, challenging Athena's hold on the plant. Laughing, he climbed after her, offering his left arm as a strength to push the girl's left foot up, allowing her to get herself up onto his window ledge. Only when she was safely in his bedroom, did Kendall made a few quick steps, and a heave, to flip himself over into his room.

The Rookwood wealth was reflected in just one bedroom. After all, Augustus was someone who believed in enjoying one's wealth. As a result, the children got to choose what they wanted in their rooms, and could request for additions whenever they felt like they needed them. Where there was one large empty space years ago, Kendall had asked and received a jacuzzi in his bedroom, when he turned sixteen. No questions were asked about why it was needed. Augustus had obliged simply because Kendall was a good son to him, and he saw no need to withhold whatever luxury his child wanted. Though dimly lit in the night, Kendall's bedroom had an inviting glow about it. The stillness of the water in the jacuzzi that had yet to be used for the night reflected the stillness of the room before the entry of the two. Kendall smirked at one glance at his bedroom, before eyeing Athena from the corners of his eyes. "Welcome to the Rookwood Manor," and then he paused. "Well, it's not the entire Manor. But I should think this room should keep you occupied for now." Kendall grinned before he walked to one of the seats near the jacuzzi, and slid himself into it.

Admittedly, Rookwood Manor had not at all been what Athena had been expecting. Having said that though, she didn’t know what she’d been expecting and upon tumbling through Kendall’s bedroom window, her presumptions were dashed again. Athena didn’t move from where she’d landed underneath the window and took a moment to rake her eyes across the room, taking in the sleek, modern edge the room had. She blinked rapidly, her eyes adjusting to the light the room held, and slowly brought her eyes back around before letting them dive once more across the room in search of something else, something she hadn’t seen at the first glance. It was all incredibly clean and more than just a little bit on the orderly side. It was also a deliberate show of wealth. Even if there wasn’t a Jacuzzi in the middle of the floor, the room would have still oozed wealth and power. It was a demonstration of that, as were the rest of the rooms Athena didn’t doubt.

Rising to her feet, Athena brushed her hands together, ridding her palms of the dirt that had rubbed off of the ivy onto them. She then brushed the dirt off of her feet before stepping a little further into the room and away from the window and made her feel as if she should launch herself through it and not linger inside in the warm. Athena leaned over before she moved to far in though and tugged the window in towards the other closed one. With the draft stifled, Athena turned and crossed the room towards the pair of leather seats next to an oddly shaped shelf-like thing. Athena was far too used to her rustic, 18th century style bedroom. The Goyle manor was archaic and as such there was little room for such extravagance. No one wanted to upset the ghosts or the paintings. That though, Athena knew to be the cover. Nothing was changed simply because her father couldn’t afford it. He and Apolline had frittered the money away.

It was quite ironic really. Apolline, the woman who had ruined Athena’s father, would get everything that was left when he died. Athena would get very little, hence the desperation to marry her off. The bastard daughter of Gregory Goyle was going to get very little when he died. Her fate would be either in the hands of herself or in someone who would look after her. Apolline would no doubt give the money she had ‘earned’ from her marriage to Athena’s father to her daughters from the marriage prior to that one. The older a wizard gets, the more susceptible to diseases he becomes. Gregory was aging faster than all of them and Athena was beginning to wonder when his flame would be snuffed out. Apolline was positively beaming in anticipation. Athena was sure he knew as well. He knew that his gold-digging attempt at redeeming the dire situation seventeen years ago was screwing him. He could see that - he wasn’t blind. Athena didn’t think he’d do anything about it though. Not a chance.

The Slytherin woman was tugged from her thoughts at the sound of water shifting around in the Jacuzzi. Athena removed her hand from the shelf and turned to look at Kendall. “Thank you,” She told him hurriedly. “For letting me stay, that is. Again. I, uhm....” Athena looked at her feet and frowned a little before shrugging her shoulders. “Tonight has been strange,” Athena allowed as she plopped herself down on one of the seats. “Beyond strange, in fact.” Athena slid off of the chair, clearly not content with just sitting, and dropped herself down on the floor. She slid forward dunked her feet into the Jacuzzi, figuring sitting on the edge was better than being completely swathed in the water. “So where has all your stuff been hidden away?” She asked, her eyes dipping around the room again. “It all seems rather sparse to me.” Athena flicked her foot out of the water, sending a few droplets of the water over to Kendall. She smirked at him and dropped her eyes to her hands that were resting in her lap.

Now she could relax, even if it was just a little bit.