Sweet Girl, I'm Your Man.

It was twilight by the time they reached Dover and already, the street lamps were shining bright. Elijah’s weariness was beginning to show but without complaint he helped unload the bags with the driver from the belly of the coach that had taken them from the train station down into the port. People readily came forward to claim their bags and Elijah was careful to group his and Katarina’s together so that they could be picked up easily. Thankfully, spells had reduced the sizes of most of their things so one suitcase was only necessary – then of course the obligatory carry-on bags full of travelling essentials. Once the unloading was done, Elijah tossed the carry-on bags onto each shoulder and picked up the suitcases, gesturing for Kat to go on ahead while he trailed, trying to shake the sleep from his mind lest he get snippy with the border patrol guards.

Once in the terminal, it was a matter of waiting for the ferry to allow them to dock. Elijah watched the cars and coaches that were lined up with weary yet suspicious eyes and he nudged Kat along into the glare of the luminous lights that unrepentantly shone down over them. After stashing their bags on the floor by some chairs, Elijah went in search of some coffee and returned not five minutes later with a cup of tea for Kat and a coffee as strong as the reluctant barista would allow him to have. Elijah nursed the polystyrene cup against his neck as he enjoyed the silence and the peace of the terminal. It appeared as though everyone was affected by the time of night; there was not a scrap of energy to be spoken of amongst the people that lingered there.

Eventually it was once again time to move on and Elijah gathered up the bags up again, this time placing a silent feather-light charm on them to make them an easier heave. The pair ascended up the stairs and onto the ferry with surprising ease, flashing their Magical Ids – which turned to Muggle Passports before the eyes of the Muggle guards – for the sake of making sure they were allowed on. This time, Elijah knew he could relax properly for an hour or so and led Kat into the bar area where he took a couch by the windows. He took his wallet out again, curious for a moment as to whether he should use Euros or Pounds and shrugged to himself before moving towards the bar – determined that he should find himself a beer; he’d leave the wine for the mainland.

“Here we go,” Elijah smiled brightly despite his fatigue and set the things down on the table. Already the rocking of the ship was beginning to take its toll and, gratefully, Elijah collapsed into the arm chair opposite Kat. He took the cap off of the beer and took a hearty swig before cracking open one of the packets of crisps he’d bought. He leaned over after a moment and opened the beer he got for Kat, wincing a little bit upon realising that she was a lady and it wasn’t exactly appropriate. Neither were the crisps really, either, but he didn’t think for a second that after being devoid of sleep for goodness only knows how many hours that she was going to be up for a three course meal.

Leaning his head against the back of the chair, Elijah exhaled heavily and let his eyes close for a moment. Then, suddenly having a brainwave, he sat up and dragged one of the carryon bags towards him. After unzipping it and digging around inside for a moment, Elijah produced a rolled up blanket and unravelled it before holding it out for Kat. He smiled a little, albeit sheepishly, and lowered his eyes once she took it, busying himself with zipping the bag up again.

“So I was thinking we could spend a little time in Amiens after Paris ... or quite a bit of time, if you like.” Elijah stole a look up at Kat before smiling a little. “What do you think?”

When Elijah Krum had offered to take her to France the very first day they had met, Katarina had been understandably sketpical of his intentions. She could count the number of vacations she had been on over the entire span of her life on one hand. When Augustus traveled it was for buisness that he would never let his daughter attend. When Kendall traveled it was with his Slytherin friends and having his kid sister there would only spoil the fun. Cordella had been the only one who had ever made any effort to take Katarina places but most of their trips had only been into London when the mother became ashamed of the scareness of her daughters wardrobe. Since Cordella's passing Katarina hadn't been anywhere. She had barely stepped foot off the Rookwood grounds, much less attempted to travel internationally. 

For that reason this journey was bittersweet. The death of her mother had hit Katarina harder than anyone could have imagined. The innocent light that radiated from the young girl had dimmed and, while still delicate, a darker air now tinted her glow. The ways of the world had finally started to make an impact on Katarina's heart. It was almost for that reason that the brunette found herself excited for this trip. The time she spent painting with Elijah had been the happiest she had been since Cordella. A combination of the art and company, she suspected, was enough to free her mind from her demons, if only temporarily. 

And so her suitcases had been packed and she had been sent off with close to no fanfare. Elijah had been a gentleman (of course) the entire time and Kat grew increasingly grateful he was there with each passing hour. By the time they had boarded the ferry Katarina was feeling the first hints of sleepiness but shook it off with relitive ease. She loved the feel of the ocean as the waves rocked beneath them. That was her only regret - that their itinerary did not contain any trips to the beach because they intended to stay in the city. From the look on his face when they had discussed it, Katarina could tell that Paris wasn't Elijahs favorite place but it was where she had wanted to go and he had been good enough to agree to her request and take her. 

He returned to their small table with beer and crisps. It was only as he drank deeply from the bottle that Kat saw the fatigue in his eyes. He was unstandably sleepy after the long travel day they had been having but she couldn't help but feel a bit bad for being the cause. Sure, he had offered to take her, but did he really want to go? The whole situation still boggled her and she couldnt quite wrap her mind around it. She accepted the blanket from him and draped it over her lap, blocking the chill from her legs (apparently it wasn't quite summer enough for shorts yet). "Thank you." she said softly with a smile of gratitude. 

As he busied himself with his bag, Katarina eyed the beer in from of her. She didn't quite trust it. Kat was probably the lightest drinker among her friends (minus Penny) and rarely accepted drinks when offered. But she felt just self concious and awkward enough to worry that it would be rude not to take it. She had just lifted the bottle to her lips when Elijah spoke again. "Amiens?" Katarina's eyebrows raised slightly with suprise at the invitation. "Yeah - I mean, wow. That would be lovely. Thank you." It was the smile on his face that convinced her. Even though he was still Kendall's best friend, she couldn't help but trust that smile. 

"I've never been to Amiens before." A little twinkle appeared in Katarina's eyes at the prospect of extending their journey and prolonging her avoidance of life back home. For the first time she had the feeling that this summer was going to be better than school. Even lacking a world-class library, a home-like bed, and the delicous tarts, the idea of France was already rivaling her love of Hogwarts.

Paris was a myriad of things and once it had been Elijah Krum’s most favourite place on earth. The city was a hive of all things that was exciting and terrifying about life, love, lust and the hedonism that Elijah had pursued as a teenager, searching for something to validate himself with. It was there that he learned how to paint and, more importantly, how to love. Paris had been many things for Elijah and unfortunately, not all of them good.

Roving about the city was something Kat wanted to do with abandon. If it was up to Elijah, he would have had her in Leon or somewhere by the sea, somewhere that wouldn’t potentially corrupt the lightness of her being. Of course, she’d darkened. It came with age and loss, he supposed. Kendall was very much the same, only his darkness had been exacerbated by his mother’s death where Kat’s had been caused. It wasn’t something that Elijah wanted to further in anyway; rather, reduce if he could.

The city was jumping when they finally arrived. Elijah had elected they take the train and the high-speed rail had gotten them there in record time. Feeling much again like a school boy, Elijah took a moment or two to shake off the nostalgia and déjà vu before hailing a taxi that took them through Paris, letting them see the sights from the car, before taking them to the Hôtel Plaza Athénée.

Pulling up outside, Elijah initially wasn’t sure what he was supposed to. Having been reinvigorated by the coffee on the train, he was feeling more awake than he had felt at any point over the twenty-four hours that had passed. Without thinking, Elijah got himself out of the taxi. He tapped his wand against his leg as he moved and transfigured his clothes into a three-piece suit with a skinny tie.

He smiled gratefully at the chauffeur and waved him away before moving to Kat’s side of the taxi. He tapped his wand against the taxi door with a slight of hand and opened the door, the magic transfiguring her clothes into a formal dress that flattered every inch of her. Elijah’s smile broadened and he held out his hand to her.

“Mademoiselle,” he murmured lowly, his voice slipping back into the French velvet speech pattern he’d been taught. “Tu a très belle.”

Elijah took Kat’s hand and helped her out of the tax, folding her arm around his and leading her up onto the pavement. The chauffer sidled up, his eyes wide in open confusion, having remembered picking up two scruffy children-cum-adults, not polished versions of the latter. No, the children had been left behind somewhere.

“How much?” Elijah asked. The chauffer named his price and Elijah removed a handful of Euro notes - too much he realised at a glance - and pressed them into the hand of the chauffer with a smile. The man tipped his hat and hurried off afterwards, uttering his quick thanks just in case Elijah felt it necessary to change his mind.

“I got the best,” Elijah assured her as he led Kat inside. “There’s an excellent view of the tower. You’ll love it; we can go in the morning if you like.”

It wasn’t long before the room keys were in hand and they were thundering up towards the Eiffel Suite, decorated in classic French style. It was a bit pink for his tastes but it was sumptuously decorated, their bags had already arrived, and the view was amazing. There was reason why he always returned to this particular hotel, indeed.

“Look at that!”

Elijah took his suit jacket off and dropped it on the back of the couch before pulling at the windows, throwing them wide open. He leaned out and grinned wickedly down at the city below.

“Kat, come here.” He urged. “You aren’t afraid of heights are you? Look, the tower..”