WHO: Thorfinn Rowle & Val Avery. WHAT: So you're a Death Eater... WHEN: Thursday, March 1st. WHERE: The Rowle Estate in the Outer Hebrides. WARNINGS: Vague Death Eater talk.
Despite it having been only a little more than a week since Valkyrie Avery was a regular at the Rowle Estate, Val had gotten accustomed to their schedules, and had just managed to settle in when she was being offered a glass of red by her very accommodating host. She smiled in response, thanked him with a kiss to the cheek, and took a seat on the foot of the four-poster bed, clearly having been lost in her own thoughts.
Val remained quiet, very unlike her usual self, and unknowingly kept glancing at Thor's left arm, as though she expected to see the Dark Mark right then and there. She'd seen it before, and she'd suspected his involvement long before, but still. Her renewed thoughts made her a bit more curious now.
And despite his kisses on her neck that sent her in a frenzy, Val's fingers came to rest on his forearm, right where the mark would have been. "Wait, wait, Thor," she mumbled, though she did cock her head back, rather willingly. "Wait, I want to talk first," Val spoke, not sure where she got the voice to speak up after those soft kisses. Her hand reached for his jaw and she pushed his face back, just enough to show that she was serious.
When she spoke, he smiled against her neck, his breath hot and slightly haggard. Thor took it as though she was teasing, but when he felt her fingers against his jaw he knew Val was serious about wanting to talk. Pulling back, he tilted his head to one side and gave her a quizzical look.
“All right. We can talk.” In an effort to show he was taking her seriously, Thor dropped his hand and sat up straight. “What would you like to talk about, Val? Politics? Makeup? How the Weird Sisters are vastly overrated?”
"Okay, first of all," she started, putting a hand up. "The Weird Sisters are a national fucking treasure." Val raised both of her brows and took a sip of her wine, before lowering her glass carefully. "Second, ugh, politics. And third, I didn't realise you were so into make-up. What do you think of my eyeshadow work today, then? Good palette?" She closed her eyes momentarily, as though expecting Thor to actually comment on her technique, but opened her eyes again and smiled at him.
But she let the moment pass, and straightened up, before she nervously licked her lips. Her gaze fell to his arm again, and she let her fingers curl up the fabric of his shirt that had covered the part, and she tugged at it. "Do you enjoy it?" she asked, not meeting his eyes this time. Instead, the sip of wine covered her face even more.
A quip concerning the Weird Sister and her makeup was on the tip of his tongue, but her final question caused him to pause. Something about her tone of voice indicated to him that it would behoove him to act seriously, especially if he wanted to continue their evening tryst. Something about the tone of her voice also indicated just what she meant with her words, though Thor wanted to be sure before he proceeded any further with the conversation.
“What exactly do you mean by it, Val?”
Val didn't reply right away. She instead focused her gaze on his arm, as though she could see the Dark Mark glowing in its full glory. She contemplated how to put into words exactly what she was thinking but she didn't know if she could be so candid right now.
Finally, she drew in a breath and looked up at Thor. "Being a Death Eater," she replied, keeping her answer succinct and to the point. "Is that something you enjoy?"
“I don’t think enjoyment is the correct word for it,” Thor answered after a moment of pause as there was no use trying to play coy about the subject at hand. Given her family’s connections to the organization, he felt safe assuming that whatever was said would stay within these walls. “But it’s something that’s necessary in order to preserve our heritage and way of life.”
She more or less expected an answer similar to that, yet it still sent a shiver down her spine. Val straightened up again, and both of her brows shot up. "So what's it like, being one?" she asked, her question full of curiosity and not even a bit of accusation. She truly wanted to know, and she felt like Thor's answer might be a bit more honest, given he wasn't related to her. "Something you'd… I don't know, recommend?"
Thor nodded, but was once again quiet for a few seconds as he took time to plan what to say. Truthfully, his first instinct was to sway Val from even entertaining the idea of the Death Eaters. It was dirty work, to say the least, but far be it from him to dissuade someone from wanting to better and preserve magical culture.
“It’s not easy, which I’m sure you know from your brothers,” he started as he placed one of his hands on hers. “It’s a lot of work, but to me it’s worth it in the end. We’re making a lasting difference and helping to build a future for all our children and grandchildren.”
Val nodded in response, and turned her hand over so she could lace her fingers through his. His hand was so much larger than hers, and so much gruffier, as well. It made her smile momentarily, before she cleared her throat and looked at him once again. "I've been thinking about it," Val explained, pausing for just a second so she could take another sip of her wine. "Maybe it's something I should give a chance to, or — well, not that it's something I can take part in and have it be not a thing later on, but…," she trailed off, exhaling loudly.
"Uncle Hugo said I should think about it and I asked Keats and he seems against it and I haven't talked to Dante or my dad about it, so," she shrugged. "I don't know if I'm capable of some of the things, you know?" Her mind raced over to the thought of Gawain Robards' dead body at his desk and Ian's reaction to it. It truly had shocked her. "Maybe I should leave it to seasoned professionals," Val smirked, nodding towards him.
“It’s not for everyone,” he admitted. While he and his father took up their wands, his mother, Astrid, and Magnus had not. He wasn’t of the mindset that this somehow made him better than other purists though. In his mind, all manner of people were needed to preserve their culture, whether they joined the Death Eaters or not. “Not everyone is meant to be on the frontlines and potentially sacrifice themselves for the cause. That doesn’t mean you aren’t doing your part though.”
"I'm tempted by some aspects of it, I have to say," Val stated, in a matter-of-fact tone. "Some of the magic seems so … exquisite." She really did wonder just how one had to be to be skilled in it, and she'd been tempted to learn it for the sake of knowing about it. Her eyes gleamed, before she asked her next question: "Will you show me some of that magic sometime?" Val seemed positively radiant by that question, and the corners of her lips twisted upwards as she smirked again.
Thor returned the smirk. “I’ll show you some of that magic anytime you want. Maybe once you learn a few spells, you could make a decision whether or not you want to pursue joining?”
Val eagerly nodded, and finished the remaining contents of her glass, before setting it down on the table. "I think that's a wonderful idea," she replied, already eager to see what this would consist of, which made Thorfinn smile. Perhaps if she asked her family for some of the same, she'd be able to see exactly how all of this would shape out to be. The sheer thought made her tingle with excitement, and before she changed her mind too much, Val climbed onto Thor's lap, straddling him, as her arms settled on his shoulder. "Are there a lot of younger people? No need to tell me who, but just wondering. The youngest I know is Graham, so…," she shrugged.
“There are members who are around you age.” Several younger pursts had joined the cause, which was just fine with him. In some weird way, the Death Eaters were the more the merrier to Thorfinn. “And there are several senior members as well, so you would have plenty of individuals who could help you reach your maximum potential.”
"Okay," she replied, as her fingers dragged across the back of his skin gently. "Well, if it happens, it happens, I guess." Her eyes focused on his and she raised a brow. "How long have you — you know, been one?"
His eyes moved down to his forearm. “Since 2012. When it became evident we would once again have our chance to fix the fucked up past.”
"It's been going well so far, relatively speaking," Val stated, leaning in a bit. She smirked again, letting her lips caress his cheek for a moment. "We'll be okay, right?"
“We’re definitely going to be all right,” Thor answered before leaning forward to once again capture Val’s lips in a kiss.