บท 900: Christmas Day Divulges Ⅴ

Feeling at peace with his decision, Severus lets out a trembling breathe. His lips tighten for a moment gathering strength before he formally bows his head towards his aunt. "I am pleased to greet our cousin, Rodrigo Prince," he sincerely said. Instant relief appears on the faces of everyone especially that of Georgine's.

Taking her cue, Rowan also bows towards her aunt. "I sincerely greet our cousin, Rodrigo Prince."

"Rodrigo," Georgine gently instructed the curious toddler whose attention was on those in the room, "please greet your cousins, Rowan and Severus Prince."

"'Ello," Rodrigo shyly peeked up at them and waved his chubby little fingers at them in greeting.

Something flashes in the depths of Reginald's eyes that passes far too quickly to be named. Grabbing a serviette, he promptly gestures to the feast laid out before them. "Let us eat and not let Dawn's hard work go to waste," he firmly said as they murmured thanks, before beginning to eat.

Sir Knight Prince pointedly eyes Reginald but does not speak. He tilts his head in brief greeting before he turns away to depart through the nearby wall. A loud gasp is heard from behind as the toddler happily claps his hands in delight. No doubt, Rodrigo Prince would be a frequent admirer and visitor of Sir Knight Prince.

No one comments on the departure of Sir Knight Prince as they begin to eat. The rest of dinner is mostly filled with the sound of clinking silverware and the ongoing conversations between mother and child. Rodrigo is a curious bright-eyed toddler that wants to try everything. Yet despite the toddler's lack of dining manners and energy, Georgine is surprisingly patient with her child. Perchance that is what will make all the difference in the end.

At the head of the table, Reginald ate in a steady fashion. He betrayed no sign of emotional turmoil, but rather acted the same as before. Yet the stretched-out silence itself gave him partially away.

It was even more so obvious as Severus acted in a very unusual subdued manner, but not that Rowan fared much better either. For the entirety of the meal, the two of them forced themselves to eat as much as they could even though the meal before them held no taste to them. They did not wish to disappoint Dawn, who had worked her heart out to produce the spectacular feast laid before them nor did they wish to make the meal more awkward than it already was.

Severus and Rowan began to look green until at long last the food is removed from before. The two are not even able to sigh in relief when treacle tart, pasties, brightly colored macarons, Christmas cake, a countless array of sweets appear to cover the entire length of the dining table. Severus clamps his hand over his mouth, while Rowan pointedly turns her head away as a wave of nausea overwhelms them.

Seeing the expressions of his grandchildren, Reginald removes a small pack of party favors, Christmas crackers. Wordlessly, he hands over the pack to Georgine, who carefully accepts the party favors. The curious toddler happily wants to help unwrap the favors.

Seeing Georgine and the young child otherwise occupied, Reginald subtly gestures to Rowan and Severus to depart. Seeing the signal, Rowan and Severus mutter quick excuses about retiring early, before rushing away. The two were rather pale, and wane when they fled into the corridor.

Behind them with the help of Georgine, Rodrigo cleverly snapped open one of the wizard crackers open. The enchanted Christmas cracker went off like a cannon sending out a slew of blue smoke. Rodrigo loudly coughed and waved his wands, before clapping his hands in delight at the appearance of a small flower bouquet and a packet of luminous balloons. The sound of cannon explosions continued to follow Rowan and Severus who wisely retreated through the manor and upstairs.

The two of them quietly flop down onto Severus's bed laying on their backs staring at the glittering enchanted starry ceiling that showed the moving planets and stars. Even from their location, a muffled cannon-like thud can still be heard. The two of them remain silent until the muffled bang's finally fade away.

Adjusting her pillow, Rowan closes her eyes and murmurs, "I must admit that you took the news much better than even I expected, Severus." After everything that had occurred, she felt a bit tired. She would just rest her eyes for a minute.

Severus snorts but does not have the energy to scowl at his twin. Frankly, he felt numb and emotionally drained at this point. Still, a trace of frustration can be heard in the depths of his voice. "Did you KNOW all along, Rowan?" He loudly asked.

"No," Rowan honestly replied stifling a yawn. "I just found out earlier this morning by sheer accident otherwise I would be just as flabbergasted as you were dinner."

"And you didn't think in telling me why?" Severus sharply asked turning his head to the side to gaze at his sister.

Rowan yawns and snuggles deeper into the fluffy pillow. "There was no sense in getting you all riled up."

Severus carefully searches his twin's face but finds no lies. He sighs and turns back to gaze at the ceiling. "Well, I suppose that was for the best," he reluctantly admitted.

"Mm."

"So, we have a cousin now."

"Congratulations, you are no longer be the sole male heir in the Prince household," Rowan drowsily mumbled, "You ought to be more grateful since that will make marrying Lily that much easier."

Severus loudly coughs before glaring at his twin only to find her curled up on her side. Rowan looked exhausted and had finally succumbed to the pressing physical need to sleep. He turns away and quietly stars at the enchanted ceiling that reflected the starry cosmos.

Soon the soft snores of Rowan can be heard. Severus knew that his twin was genuinely sound asleep. Then again, Rowan had slept even less than him. He lets out a heartfelt sigh and leans further into his soft pillow.

Closing his eyes, Severus feels a loose ache in his chest. The kind of hollow feeling when a tooth is removed. Yet the pain in his chest was no longer suffocating. And that was enough for the time being as his eyes grew heavy and he knew no more.