Chapter 880 - Panicked Arrival Ⅲ (2/2)
”Are there truly no other kin to take the child in?” Cassiopeia pointedly asked.
Before Druella can respond to the surprise of them all, Dorea says, ”I will take the child in.” They all gaze at her in true disbelief as Cassiopeia nearly chokes in shock at her younger sister's audacity.
”Dorea,” Cassiopeia begins to say, before tactfully pausing to rephrase her choice of words, ”it is difficult to bring up an energetic child and especially a child, who will truly grieve the loss of his mother.”
”Exactly,” Dorea answered with a sad little smile on her face. ”I am a lonely old woman, sister, and who better than I to teach him how to live with one's grief.” She paused and somewhat embarrassingly continued, ”I have watched Georgina these past years and despite all her aloofness, she is bright and filled with energy whenever her great-niece and nephew are around. I too wish for the warmth of the sun in my latter days.”
Cassiopeia was not one for affectionate gestures, but just this once, she reached over and clutched her sister's hand in affirmation. Seeing the determination of his younger sister, Pollux quietly says, ”I see that you will not be dissuaded, Dorea, I will not object to the guardianship, but I expect for the child to properly comport himself.”
Dorea gratefully nods her head at her elder brother and lets out a soft sigh. Her pale hand streaked with blue veins pulls her shawl tighter around her shoulders. After that bit of excitement, she felt rather tired and cold.
Seeing that Dorea's plea had been so easily granted, Cassiopeia straightens her spine and says, ”We have lost two blood kin on this night brother and one by marriage, brother. This is only the start and War will surely rage around us once more. We require allies, Pollux, so I beseech you to permit for the surviving pruned branches within the Isles to return.”
Druella blinks at the audacity of the elder Black spinster but remains silent as it is not her place to comment. No, this could only be decided by the one acknowledged as the patriarch of the Black family, Pollux Black. Despite Arcturus Black being eleven years older than Pollux, it was Pollux, who led the family and determined any great change within the family rules.
The ticking clock loudly ticks in the corner slightly muffled by the soft snuffling sounds from Arcturus, who tries to contain his silent weeping. After an unbearable silence, Pollux raises his pensive gray eyes to meet that of his sister. ”I have long argued against the return of broken branches, but those branches still thrive in the wild despite having been transplanted into the wilderness. Perchance, it is time for a change, very well, Cassiopeia, you shall have your wish. Summon all existing broken branches within the Isles to the ancestral home, we will return them to their rightful place.”
Cassiopeia's eyes brim with tears as she holds back a cry of joy. At long last, her dearest wishes to see the return of her beloved younger brother, Marius to the fold would be fulfilled. Holding back a sniffle, she hoarsely bows her head to her brother. ”Thank you, brother,” she sincerely thanked her older brother.
Pollux lets out a weary sigh appearing suddenly aged and looking far older than his actual age. ”I am old, Cassiopeia,” he reluctantly admitted, ”and I am tired.” He wearily half-closes his gray eyes in exhaustion. ”I have outlived my two sons and I have no further dėsɨrė to outlive any more of the younger generations.”
Arcturus lets out a rather loud sniffle at his cousin's words. A parent should never have to outlive their child. And even an arrogant pureblood understood that much.
In a rare display of affection gesture, Cassiopeia reaches out and gently pats her cousin on the back. Pollux does not comment on the gesture as Dorea sadly but knowingly gazes at her kin. The breathless agony would fade away with time, but the sorrow never truly fades much as an old aching wound never does.
Sensing that the elders wish to privately speak alone, Druella rises and politely excuses herself. She understood that she had no place in their grief. And though she did not mourn the loss of Lucretia and her husband, she did not dėsɨrė death upon them either. Rather she had much to do including tending to the sleeping child.. With firm purpose in mind, she strides down the corridor to guard the newly orphaned boy.