Aurora p.o.v.
A few minutes later, we heard footsteps going up the stairs and knew Mr. Wonka's fate was sealed. Then Mrs. Scrubbit came charging into the kitchen, blazing as a bull, and grabbed Noodle by the ear, dragging her out the side door to the most cold and horrible place ever: the coop.
"I want to teach you a lesson, you miserable little bookworm!!" She shouts at her.
I rushed over and tried to pry Mrs. Scrubbit's hand off the frightened little girl's arm, but I was shoved hard into the counter. I bit back a yelp.
"You can't do this! What did she do wrong?!"
"She knows exactly what she did, you brat! Now you stop squirming, and you stay out of this, or I'll do much worse than stick you in the coop!" She drags poor Noodle away and I'm left with a bruised back and a dirty kitchen.
I trudged to my room after cleaning up dinner and collapsed onto my bed, shedding a few tears for the young girl locked in the freezing bird cage outside. It doesn't do one well to waste time crying in a place like this, so I washed up and remembered we have a new "guest" with us, so I decided to pay him a visit before roll call.
I snuck across the hall and knocked on the only door with a light coming from under it. I didn't have to wait long before it opened and I stood face to face (well face to chest, seeing as how he's a good chunk taller than me) with Mr. Wonka.
"Oh hello." He smiles at me, and I feel my heartbeat speed up.
"Hello!" I mentally punch myself for sounding too eager. "I wanted to be the first one to welcome you to Scrubbit and Bleacher's."
He gets a big goofy grin on his face, and he stretches his hand out to me.
"Well thank you! I'm Willy. Willy Wonka."
My smile grows and I take his hand, sparks shooting up my arm. "Aurora Carrington, but you can call me Rory."
"Nice to meet you, Rory."
He steps aside to let me in his room, and leaves his door open when I lean on the wall next to it, going back to set his big suitcase on the desk.
"You...should've picked a better place to sleep for the night..." I comment after a moment of strangely comfortable silence.
He snorts. "Why is that? It seems perfectly lovely here. Besides I haven't a sovereign to my name so this was really my only option."
"I suppose you're right...but I think you mentioned it was all about to change tomorrow? How are you going to manage that?"
"Well, let's just say I expect to make a lot of money with what I've got planned for tomorrow." He stated, proudly.
I giggle and notice the time from the clock on the wall, sightly panicking when I realized I had to be downstairs quickly.
"Well, this was a very enlightening way to meet you, Mr. Wonka, but I'm afraid I must take my leave for the night."
I got to leave when I hear two quick footsteps and feel a gentle hand on my wrist, not at all like what I'm used to with Mrs. Scrubbit. I look back up and meet Mr. Wonka's bright green eyes, which are glued to my own.
"Will I see you tomorrow?" He sounds a bit hopeful.
I have to stop myself from saying anything I'll regret. "Yes." Unfortunately.
He smiles and takes his hand back. "I look forward to it. Goodnight, Rory."
"Goodnight, Willy...and...good luck tomorrow." I head out and back towards the service stairs, hearing him shut the door behind me.
I have a hard time sleeping that night, so when I look at the clock and see that its only 4 am, I sneak out and make my way to the coop, silently bringing Noodle back to my room.
"Thanks for saving me..." She whispers as we snuggle up in my bed, desperate to warm her up.
"Of course, Noodle. I couldn't leave you in there all night."
She fell asleep rather quickly, poor thing, but I still couldn't sleep. Somehow, I felt like tomorrow would bring something different for us.
