The moon has begun to rise on the horizon. The waning moon's gentle light descends upon Prince Manor. The moonlight streams through the windows and lit the halls sufficiently to safely traverse through without the light of a candle or a lamp. A tall slender woman with short hair swept to her side like raven wings tugs her shawl to cover her shoulders.
Georgine Prince looked almost untouched by age without nary a wrinkle nor an age spot. Yet in the light, one or two silver hairs can be seen creeping up in the ebony mane. Not even she was averse to aging. That and well, Rodrigo had certainly helped give her one or two gray hairs. By the time he was an adult, she would have a head full of salt-peppered hair!
A gentle smile appears on her face causing Georgine Prince's to look that much softer in the moonlight. She loved her child with all her heart. She would not have it any other way.
Halting in front of the oak door, Georgine raises her wrist and knocks on the door. She does not hear an immediate reply and reaches for the doorknob. She opens the door to the study and peers inside.
The worktable is clean, and the fireplace is quiet. The hidden laboratory is shut and has remained shut since the death of Sirsa. It stirred feelings of loss for Georgine.
Seated at the desk, her brother, Reginald sits. His dark feathered quill fiercely writes and pens one last urgent letter. Seeing her brother busy, Georgine quietly strolls inside and takes a seat across from her brother. She patiently waits for her brother to finish without seeking to interrupt his thoughts.
"Tadbey," Reginald called out as he set down his quill and reached for wax and his seal. He had pressed the wax to the envelope and pressed firmly the family crest into the wax to seal the envelope.
A loud pop is heard as a male house elf wearing blue overalls and a crisp white ironed shirt appears. Tadbey adjusts his spectacles and says, "Yes, master?"
"Deliver the letter to my cousin-in-law," Reginald held out the sealed envelope to the house elf.
Tadbey narrows his eyes behind spectacles causing the hair in his large ears to twitch. His long nose furrows and his hairy bare toes wiggle against the floor. "Are you certain, master?" He warily asked. "The Verninac's turned me away last time."
He will not this time," Reginald firmly responded.
"Right," Tadbey huffed under his breath but accepted the letter before vanishing from the study with a loud pop.
"Are you so certain, Reginald?" Georgine finally spoke. "Phillipe isn't one to be easily persuaded."
"No, but he does enjoy being begged," Reginald aloofly answered as he sat back in his chair.
"Mm, especially if the one doing the begging is you," Georgine crisply said.
"Precisely so."
Georgine pursed her lips, before nodding her head in understanding. "It would not be a maneuver I would have elected to deploy, but I cannot discredit the simplicity and cunningness of the ploy either. I suppose I will have to commend you for your audacity, brother."
"No need to sound so reluctant, Georgine," Reginald did not hide the plain amusement in his eyes.
Georgine huffed unhappily for a moment, before changing the subject. "I left Rodrigo with Rowan and Severus. They were having a camp out in the nursery along with Laldey. There are currently four tents set up in the nursery along with a stone brazier set in the middle of their circle of tents. Last, I saw Rowan and Severus roasting marshmallows on a stick and showing Rodrigo and Laldey how to make smores."
"Smores?' Reginald blinked in curiosity.
"Apparently, it is some sort of American muggle campfire confectionery," Georgine shuddered in horror. "It sounds utterly revolting."
"Well, it can't be too harmful," Reginald warily admitted. "Rowan and Severus would never purposefully harm Rodrigo nor Laldey."
"It is the only reason why I permitted it," Georgine unhappily sniffed.
Glancing at her brother, Georgine from under her eyelashes carefully assesses her brother's demeanor. "How many have answered your call?"
"Sufficient for me to be pleased, but victory remains unsecured," Reginald plainly answered. "I have down all I can. The fate of our cause now lies in the hands of the Spirits."
"The Spirits are rather fickle, brother, I would not put my trust in them," Georgine grimly said.
"Yes, well, there is nothing else I can do," Reginald reluctantly admitted. "I can only hope that it will be enough to persuade the Council and swing the vote in our favor."
"Surely the goblins could have further paved the road with gold," Georgine pointedly said. "I would argue to say this is a cause that aligned perfectly with their interests. Surely, they could afford to empty a vault or two."
"Grok Gringotts influence is limited when it comes to the International Confederation of Wizardry," Reginald shook his head. "It would have been more of a demerit than an aid. I specifically requested that he not intervene lest his aid be seen as tampering with the votes. I would rather not give our enemies more fodder to use against us."
"Fair enough," Georgine acknowledged her brother's point. "So, have you spoken to the guardian?"
"I did," Reginald gazed his sister in the eye. "The serpent is cunning. It has set the board in such a manner that I must admit I am most suitably impressed. I understand why our ancestor (Salazar Slytherin) valued the traits of serpents and embodied them in life."
"Truly?" Georgine blinked in surprise before thoughtfully furrowing her brow. "How many chess board pieces are on the board?" She pointedly inquired.
"A bishop, two rooks, and a knight."
Georgine pursed her lips recalling the giants and the centaurs, yet she had trouble guessing the others. "Naturally, Rubeus Hagrid the son of the current Gurg must be in attendance as the representative of the giants to ensure the success of the peace treaty."
Thoughtfully tapping her finger against her arm, Georgine focuses on the knight. "The centaurs provided aid during the battle," her dark eyes darted to study her brother seeking confirmation. The Centaur Chieftain or perchance their shaman."
"Yet two rooks, a puzzling question indeed. You won't be so kind as to offer me a hint dear brother?"
"Sufficient to say it was unexpected. However, I will be kind to offer a singular hint for one of the rooks." Reginald paused on purpose causing his younger sister's face to dark in frustration. Hiding a smile, he ceases to tease his sister and answers, "The black lake."
Georgine's mind raced before her eyes widened in genuine shock. "Surely, this is a jest in poor taste, brother! You can't possibly mean to suggest the merfolk?!
Reginald nodded his head once in confirmation of his sister's incredulous guess.
Stunned at the revelation, Georgine takes a moment to gather her thoughts. "It is a prudent move on the serpent's part," she said with admiration. "Granting the merfolk further influence grants the serpent more power as the guardian resides within the confines of the lake and exerts great influence upon the merforlk."
"Though I am curious, brother," Georgine peeked at the corner of her eye at her brother, "who have they selected to represent them?"
"Apparently, the new Mermish professor," Reginald drily responded.
"A half-blood?" Georgine blinked in surprise having heard through the grapevine (through Dorea, who heard it from Walburga) that the new mermish professor was a half-breed.
"I confess I am surprised the merfolk even considered the proposal much less accepted it," Georgine murmured with a healthy dose of skepticism in her tone of voice. "Merfolk are notorious for their hatred of interbreeds between their kind and that of surface dwellers even worse than that of wizardkind."
"Apparently, the merfolk of the lake are fiercely loyal to the guardian," Reginald wryly answered. "They accepted the order without complaint."
"Yes, they would have to be." Georgine nodded her head in agreement before her eyes were forcibly drawn to the silver ring of a serpent with crimson eyes biting its own tail on his brother's hand.
Seeing his sister's gaze drawn to the ring, Reginald says, "Their plans are afoot, but I cannot afford to make a move now."
"Brother, I fear you cannot do this alone," Georgine expressed her sincere worries for the first time. "The Acolytes are powerful as is Riddle. You will not be facing one powerful enemy but many." She hesitated to add, "And you are no longer in your prime, brother."
Seeing the steely gaze of her brother, Georgine knows her brother's mind is set. There is nothing she can do to change her mind. She sighs and rubs her arms in a subconscious effort to console herself. "You should rest, brother. It will be a long day tomorrow; you will need your wits about you."
"I cannot in earnest disagree with your request," Reginald tiredly said and rose from his seat.
"Of course not," Georgine proudly beamed. "I have always been the wiser of us two."
Reginald does not respond and refrains from rolling his eyes in exasperation at this younger sister's words. Even after all this time, there were days when he wondered what it would have been like to be an only child. It didn't sound that bad in retrospect.