The Welcoming Lunch

"Lady Margaret? She is still alive? Well, that is a surprise. I always thought that father would send her to the gallows because he could not stand the sight of her.", Raphael reminisced.

"Yes, Young master. All of us feared that as well. But, your grand father had forbade the killing of the servants of the household, and your father is a man of rules, and rules alone.", the butler replied.

"Yes indeed. Fine, we will be there. Do send for her immediately, I do not wish to leave here until I see...William.... properly taken care off.". Raphael struggled considerably to speak Will's name, considering the bad taste with which he had gotten the name. He smiled bitterly, and he took a suit from his wardrobe and went to the bathroom.

Fifteen minutes later, the two parents were ready. They looked truly different with a suit and a red dress respectively. They looked like they were going to a wedding, when in fact they were just going for lunch.

"Well, there are disadvantages to being this rich. To think you would have to dress up to have dinner with your family.", Will thought to himself, utterly disappointed by this custom.

The parents gave Will a kiss goodbye, and left him in care of an old nanny who looked like a nun. She had a few teeth missing in her front row when she smiled, causing Will to avert his gaze.

"Do take care of him, Lady Margaret. If there is one person who I trust here, it would indeed be you. I will leave him in your care.", Daphne said to the old woman, and gave her a hug. The two left the room, leaving Will alone with the nanny.

In the formal dining space of the manor,

The table was huge, and huge was no an overstatement. It could seat dozens of people, and one end could only be barely visible from the other. The old man, clearly the head of the family, sat at one end, and the other was conveniently empty. All the seats were filled with men of different sizes and statures. The old man gestured Raphael, who had just entered, to sit at the other end. But, after he did sit, he noticed that the seats next to him were not empty.

"Your wife can join the other women in the other dining area... This is a very serious discussion, and she is not welcome here, I don't trust a women with Monroe secrets.", he said.

Raphael clenched his teeth. He gestured Daphne to go to the other dining area as his father had commanded. She reluctantly left the area.

"If anything happens to her, if anyone harms her, I will not be as kind as last time.", he declared.

"Stop being such a baby. She is a full fledged wizard. She graduated from Hogwarts along with you. Surely she can protect herself from a few pests."

Then, he cleared his throat and stood up.

"I, Arthur II, thank all the esteemed guests for attending this welcoming party for the return of my son, and with him, my heir. Today is indeed, a very celebratory occasion for the Monroe family, so I thank all of you for coming in such short notice."

"Hear, hear", all of the men said, raising their already filled glasses of wine in recognition to his words.

"The past decade has been harsh for the Monroe Family, with you-know-who trampling all our best men, and destroying the foundation that we stand upon. Sometimes, I wonder, should I have sided with him? Well, we are Gryffindors. Of course not!", he said.

But the response was very mixed. There were awkward chuckles here and there.

"A new born boy, just a few months ago, had defeated the dark lord. And now, I have a heir around his age. I really envy them for being born in the new age that this will all usher. What can I do, except for setting the stage for all of this?"

All of the men nodded in agreement.

"Well then, why dilly dally. Let us feast in celebration.", Arthur waved his hands, and the table was suddenly filled with caskets of food, and drinks that smelled so aromatic, that anyone would salivate. But, none of the men even moved their hands to touch the hand. They were all looking at Arthur. He sat down, and took a piece of steak from one of the floating plates onto his own. He sliced a piece and put it in his mouth. Only after the men saw him gulp did they start eating.

Raphael shook his head at dismay at this tradition. He knew that they were just very afraid of the head.

"Should have joined him my foot. If I hadn't stopped you, you definitely would have. You should thank me for saving the family.", he muttered in his breath.