Christmas Break Ⅲ

The grand front doors of Prince Manor are covered in mistletoe and holly wreaths enchanted to change into wondrous shapes every ten minutes. An excellent showcasing of Dawn's handy work. The doors open wide for them as Rowan and Severus stumble through.

There standing patiently and waiting for them in the front foyer is a tiny house elf, Dawn. Dawn is wearing adorable livery with a small clipping of mistletoe behind her ear in festive cheer. "Welcome home, young master and mistress!" Dawn happily squeaked as the little holly decoration in her hair shake from excitement.

"Thank you, Dawn," the twins weakly chimed slumping into nearby chairs.

Much like Hogwarts, the Prince halls are impeccably decorated with tinsel, Christmas trees, strings of holly, and hundreds of ornamental decorations. Rowan and Severus study the hall with childish curiosity and delight. It would be their first holiday at Prince Manor.

Seeing Rowan and Severus's pale faces, Dawn knowing says, "Young master and mistress, please rest easy, while Dawn grabs you a soothing to get you back on your feet," with a whoosh the house elf vanished taking Owyn's cage away with her.

With a spring in his step, Reginald enters the front hall with two floating trunks behind him. Without the use of his wand, the trunks fall neatly to the ground. The doors shut soundlessly behind him to the great astonishment and awe of Rowan and Severus.

A shrill peacock cry is abruptly heard further down the hallway. The peacock, Fidel arrogantly struts down the hallway with his feathers in full swing. Suddenly Fidel trembles at seeing the two seated figures one of which he absolutely LOATHED. Fidel's feathers instinctively snap shut as Fidel does a hasty U-turn and dashes back the way he came.

A smirk appears on Reginald's face as witnesses his sister's familiar dash away. Rowan snorts, while Severus shakes his head at the peacock's lack of pride. Utterly disgraceful!

Turning towards his grandchildren, Reginald says, "After you recover go and greet your grandmother and Georgine in the private family parlor," before striding away towards his study.

With a faint pop, Dawn appears with a tea set and two large, soft, fluffy rolls on a platter. "Please enjoy a cuppa and a bit of bread to help settle down the young master's and the young mistress's stomach."

Rowan and Severus graciously accept the offer as Dawn adds, "And when you are done, please just leave the cups here on the platter. Dawn will get to them in a jiffy." With a wave of her fingers, Rowan and Severus's two trunks vanish with Dawn off to the twins' bedrooms.

Rowan and Severus sip the warm cider with a dash of cinnamon and spices. They both let out a sigh of contentment. The two of them, slowly chew and enjoy the perfect rolls. The rolls help to settle down their stomach, while the cider warms them up. Wiping off any traces of crumbs, they set down their cups on the tray, before trotting towards the private family parlor.

As they stride through the manor, Rowan and Severus find that even the holiday portraits seem to be in a festive mood. Rowan and Severus spot an enchanted portrait that changes according to the seasons. The portrait at present reveals a warm glowing cottage with freshly fallen snow and a snow-covered mountain in the background. Tiny children like figures in mittens play in the snow and build snow magical creatures such as a wyvern.

"Huh," Rowan and Severus said in unison, before continuing on their way.

In the doorway of the parlor, Rowan and Severus peek inside to see an elegant room furnished in light blues and beige colors. Aunt Georgine sits at the bench of the grand pianoforte while the keyboards play all on their own. The grand pianoforte is being played without a wand and without a verbal spell by Georgine. A difficult feat on its own, but one that Georgine made appear to be easy.

"Huh, not bad," Rowan remarked at the beautiful music, while their grandmother, Sirsa Prince embroiders a silk handkerchief with the Prince family crest.

"I'm more surprised to see Aunt Georgine she's not smoking," Severus quietly whispered. Ever since the tea party incident, Severus had never quite gotten over his dislike of Aunt Georgine. Needless to say, Severus and Aunt Georgine felt exactly the same way about each other.

Rowan and Severus glance at each other in understanding before politely entering the parlor. "We're back, grandmother and Aunt Georgine," they announced their presence.

Sirsa glances up from her embroidery as the pianoforte abruptly ceased to play. Georgine takes an unlit long, red cigarette at her side and lights it without any magic. She sends puffs away sending a smoke ring toward the twins.

"The two of you have grown," Sirsa approvingly remarked seeing the healthy filled-out cheeks of her grandchildren. Still, they were a tad too thin for her. However, her husband's family tended to have rail-thin physiques.

Sending a reassuring smile at her grandchildren, Sirsa says, "I have heard only good things from word mouth. Those in my circle conveyed their grandchildren's compliments for making Slytherin proud since your very first week. I expect the two of you to continue to behave yourselves."

"Yes, grandmother," Rowan and Severus' obediently chimed together.

"Well, go on and enjoy yourselves now. We'll be holding a grand festival gala on Christmas Eve," Sirsa warmly dismissed her grandchildren.

"Thank you, grandmother," Severus and Rowan gleefully cheered, before running off to visit Sir Knight Prince in the attic.

"Hmm, they have grown since we last saw them. I should have Dawn tailor their clothes and further lengthen them just in case," Sirsa warmly remarked, before sending a fierce scowl at her sister-in-law. "Now put that cigarette out, Georgine, you know the rules!"

Georgine sniffs and puffs out one last cloud of smoke, before reluctantly putting it out in a silver ashtray. "As long as those two stay out from under my feet, I don't care." Sirsa wryly shakes her head at her sister-in-law and returns to her embroidery, while Georgine resumes playing beautiful music at the pianoforte.

The through corridors of Prince Manor, Rowan, and Severus make their way to the small tower-like edifice that Sir Knight Prince liked to haunt. Sir Knight Prince sits at a table playing wizard chess against himself. His ghostly head instructs one side of the wizard chessboard while his body gestures to the moving pieces, where to move.

The dashing noble face of Sir Prince Knight glances up at hearing them. "Well, if it isn't my wonderful living descendants. How was Hogwarts?"

Rowan rolls her eyes at Sir Knight Prince's remark. Sir Knight Prince is their many-great-great uncle and not their actual ancestral grandfather. "We were both sorted into Slytherin," Severus murmured intently studying the ongoing chess match.

"As expected," Sir Prince Knight remarked at the traditional family sorting.

"So, what have you been up to?" Rowan asked the mischievous ghost.

"Oh, you know the usual," Sir Knight Prince said. "Haunting the dungeon, scarring the tail feathers off of Fidel, nothing much to recount."

Severus subtlety gestures at the body of Sir Knight Prince, the body takes the hint and moves differently. It should be impossible since the ghostly body has no eyes to speak of it. It is as though the body can act as a separate entity from the ghostly head of Sir Knight Prince.

Then again, this is a magical entity. Who knows what can happen after a century or two? Maybe the ghostly body of Sir Knight Prince had gained a conscience of its own.

"Sir Prince Knight, the Princes have resided at Prince Manor for centuries, but why aren't there more ghosts?" Rowan curiously asked.

"One must choose to remain as a ghost and the others choose to depart for the Beyond," Sir Knight Prince solemnly answered. "I remain behind to fulfill my duty to watch over and protect the Prince family. I failed in life, and I have resolved to remain tethered to this plane until our lineage comes to an end."

"But don't you get lonely?" Rowan asked as she leaned against the wall.

"At times," Sir Knight Prince acknowledged. "Yet Prince Manor is always full of novelties with each passing generation. I find that it is not so bad. And besides, I am not here all the time."

Rowan's eyes widen with interest. "Oh? Do pray and tell."

"Sorry, it's a secret," Sir Knight Prince said with a rueful wink as Rowan snorted and folds her arms over her chest in reply.

Still, Rowan is left with an interesting train of thought. If ghosts can travel to places they have previously visited, can they visit new places only those places they passed by in life? That being said, does a ghost qualify as a type of fragmented soul much like a Horcrux? And how does one confirm such a thing or place a spell on a ghost in the first place?

An interesting quarry, but not one Rowan may fully elect to pursue. In the end, a ghost would not help her find a Horcrux, but still, it is an interesting concept to consider. Beside her, the wizard chess match continues as snow gently falls outside. It was quite the warm atmosphere if one were to say so.