Prince Andre’s Visit

The Academy began to buzz with excitement. The rumor began to spread that the Second Prince would be coming to meet a few members of the Order of the Rose. Most of the student body had never had the chance to meet the princes because their houses weren't high enough or because their fathers were not on the allied with the Second Prince in the battle for succession of the throne. Most of these young lords and ladies were hoping for at least the chance to make a passing greeting or in some other way be noticed. It was said that those noticed by the princes would have a brighter political future. The Second Prince was widely thought to be the front runner for the position of the crown prince.

When Madeline heard the rumor, her eyes rolled and she grumbled, "Ugh, I forgot the dead have all risen."

Olivier chuckled and said, "You should have seen Albert's face when I outed him for faking being dumb. He almost crapped his pants. I am surprised Cecil and Norris haven't arrived at the school yet to try and assassinate me."

Guy chuckled and said, "Don't get too carried away, remember, any change you make can have drastic consequences in the future."

Madeline smiled and then added, "The dragonfly effect!"

Guy shook his head and said, "No, it was butterfly effect."

"I like dragonflies better," Madeline explained.

Algernon asked, "Just by being here aren't we already drastically altering the future though?"

"Why are you here?" Guy asked.

Algernon blushed and then pointed at Olivier, "He wouldn't let me work at Ella's store."

Olivier smiled his normal goofy smile and said, "I just thought it would be more beneficial to the Kingdom for such a remarkable mind to be enrolled in the Academy."

Everyone stared at Olivier and then Guy said, "Right. Well, speaking of that since Diggory has already made changes, what have you noticed at the Royal Palace? What moves are Albert and Andre making this time?"

Olivier frowned and said, "What, I really thought it would be good for the Kingdom if the genius, Algernon is here with us..."

Guy sighed and then asked, "Olivier? The Palace?"

Olivier pouted and then said, "Albert is mobilizing the Black Knights just like before. Andre has forged an alliance with several other Kingdoms, he is basically selling the country to buy the throne. Father is on to both of them, only Cecil is firmly tied to Albert making the Black Knights an unplayable card for father. We were right about Wütendes Menschenreich, they are building up to war with us right now. They have been slowly stacking troops along the border. Prince Wolter will be coming just ahead of the invasion for a tour, which will just be an advanced scouting mission."

Alicia looked interested, she smiled and stirred her coffee. She cleared her throat and said, "You may kill as much of their army as you wish, the Emperor too, but Prince Wolter will survive. Am I clear?"

Everyone turned and looked at Alicia. Guy looked at Alicia and said, "You better make sure he doesn't cross my bottom line then."

Alicia chuckled and said, "Guy you always sound so serious, don't worry, I won't let anything happen to any of my friends or loved ones." She giggled.

Madeline asked, "Olivier, are we going to use this as the chance to expose the existence of the Council of Magic to the world?"

Diggory frowned and said, "I believe we shouldn't do that. Instead, I suggest we remain in secret."

Doreen asked, "You've been using the invisibility spell to visit the women's changing room again haven't you?" Diggory pretended to clean out his ears.

Guy slammed his fist on the table and then said, "Focus. This isn't a game, we sacrificed a lot to come here. Alicia lost her husband. I lost my father, my sister my reputation and fortune. Madeline gave up her airship. I know some of you didn't have to sacrifice as much as Alicia, but we all sacrificed friends and associates. Good relationships that took a long time to build. We are lucky that we were able to bring back our closest friends, but this isn't a time to play around. We are here to protect the future. Now, put those minds to work. We need to talk about how we are going to handle things here."

Madeline thought for a while and then suggested, "What if we Expose the existence of the Council of Magic, and still remain in secret?" She looked from face to face, "We could use a regular sailing ship, a big one. We'll make it fly like the airships and then unleash magic from its deck while wearing full plate armor."

Doreen smiled and nodded, "That's brilliant, we can make ourselves look bigger and scarier that way. The Council of Magic will become even more ferocious."

Olivier had his normal goofy smile and said, "I second that motion. All in favor?"

They all went around in a circle saying 'aye'.

Guy frowned and asked, "How much anime did you guys watch while we were in Tokyo?"

"A little..." Madeline admitted.

*****

Prince Wolter von Plettenberg asked his man, "Are you sure they asked for me by name?"

The man nodded and said, "They even knew our codes and secret passwords."

Prince Wolter frowned, he opened the letter and read it. His eyes grew wide and then he said, "We're going to Pays Des Abrutis ahead of schedule. That Prince Andre, the fool, has already leaked our plans. We'll have to hope Father's brute force approach will be successful. I need to meet this informer personally. They have something we need more than just intelligence, they have magic."

The man tilted his head and asked, "Magic?"

Prince Wolter nodded, "The books of Magic we found, they have the key to use them. Our informant said to meet them in at the Academy de L'échec and I would find everything I have ever dreamed of finding."

The man chuckled, "Such an obvious trap intrigues you?"

Prince Wolter grinned and said, "Not the trap, but the honey used as bait. No one should have this information, because I have never spoken to anyone about it."

*****

Ella and her grandfather were working in the shop when he asked, "Ella, what happened to that nice boy we had helping out around here? I could still use his help with the tuning and stringing."

Ella frowned and said, "He was given a scholarship to the Academy de L'échec."

Ella's grandfather smiled, "He was a very smart boy. I'm sure he'll do well there. You should consider him as a possible suitor, Ella. You would do well to win the favor of such a smart husband. He seems more genuine than the fancy pants lord that comes in here buying my violins just to court you."

Ella laughed, "I'm sure you're right Grandfather."

He smiled at her and said, "I'm glad you have found better friends Ella, you even speak properly again."

She chuckled and said, "I was around Algernon so much that it just sort of rubbed off on me, I suppose." Ella looked up and giggled, "Speaking of my fancy pants lord..."

Olivier walked in holding a bouquet of flowers, "Ella, dear, I hope you didn't miss me while I was away?"

She laughed and said, "Miss ye? I was hopin' ye'd 'ave run off wif one o' them ladies from yer fancy school!"

Ella's grandfather made a face and shook his head.