Chapter 94 - Grass Snake Ⅱ

Seeing the door slightly ajar, Rowan peeks her head into the study room. As usual, there is an assortment of potions from Severus and grandfathers' experiments. While in a neat corner of the room, a pile of books gathers together proclaiming the area as her own. In luck, Reginald is alone as he is bent over his desk studying an ancient volume. Hearing the door being pushed open, Reginald glances up and smiles.

"I've been expecting you," Reginald calmly stated as he carefully marked the page and closed the manuscript shut.

"I assume that Sir Knight Prince has already been down here to see you?" Rowan muttered as she closed the door behind and took a seat before him.

"Oh, yes," Reginald chuckled. "He was quite distressed at the direction of your questions. I presume that you've already spoken to your grandmother and my sister. I am certain that they have already answered your questions."

"Yes," Rowan grunted in annoyance at being so easily read.

"But not the ones you wanted," Reginald summarized by the expression on his granddaughter's face.

Sighing, Rowan says, "Perhaps I need to rephrase the original question. The first Prince's father's line has been blurred on the family tree only to show that of his mother, our family, the Hassan's. And the more I hear the more I seem to be inclined to believe that the first Prince of the family was not only a Prince by name but in more ways than one. So, I shall be blunt and ask, is Salazar Slytherin the blurred-out father of the first prince?"

Reginald begins to laugh and says, "Typically, we would not be having this conversation until your wedding day or upon my deathbed, whichever came first. But I suppose it's a family trait, we've never been ones to wait around for answers."

"So, it is true?" Rowan stammered in disbelief.

"Yes, very much so," Reginald mused as he crossed his fingers on the desk. "Lamia, that was her name," Reginald reverently said as his gaze turned distant. "Whether seduction was employed is unknown, what we do know is that she was a most clever witch."

Reginald paused for a moment as if in silent reverence. "Lamia knew that the child in her womb was the hope of the clan for a new beginning or its entire destruction if Salazar came to know of the unborn child's existence. And so, she wove incredible protection spells upon the unborn child to keep him from harm and safe from enemies. Even giving her own life up upon birth in order to enact the greatest of protection magics, the proof of a mother's love, sacrifice."

Seeing his granddaughter's grave expression at his last words, Reginald changes the subject. "However, my dear, I must applaud you for turning my hairs that much grayer."

"Is it because of what we might inherit?" Rowan croaked ignoring the previous remark.

"Yes."

"Have there been many parselmouth's?"

"Four accounted for in the family. But we've wisely kept that little tidbit to ourselves."

Rowan is quiet for a moment thinking of an appropriate response. However, upon noticing her unusually pale demeanor, Reginald straightens up in his seat. "Have you-, have you begun to hear things?" Reginald quietly asked.

After a pause, Rowan finally answers, "This morning I heard a grass snake cursing at Severus for almost stepping on him."

Reginald lets out a soft sigh, "How unexpected and yet not. I suppose thou becoming a young woman had something to do with it."

Rowan's ears turn bright red in embarrassment at her grandfather's words. Why was everyone discussing her period! It's perfectly normal, okay! So, stop talking about it like it was a bloody miracle!

Seeing his granddaughter's utter discomfort, Reginald shakes his head. "I do not mean to make you ill at ease, Rowan, but of the four Princes that have inherited Salazar's gift, three have been males and only a single female. The only female parselmouth in our family did not begin to hear serpent voices until after her first blood moon. Assuming that is still the same case, it comes as no surprise as to why you have recently begun to hear their voices and not before."

"Oh," Rowan said in a small embarrassed voice.

Reginald leans back into his seat rather tiredly. "But still, I would have thought for sure the gift would have skipped you given that you are a half-blood," Reginald muttered. "But I suppose I should be grateful that it was you and not Severus that inherited our family's gift."

"Because Severus is the last male heir?" Rowan crossly barked.

"No, because I doubt Severus would be able to hide it," Reginald coolly answered. "Severus is too much of an open of a book to protect himself from those that would use him or those that would seek to destroy him."

"Oh," Rowan sheepishly muttered with some embarrassment and guilt.

Reginald hides a tired smile and says, "I suppose the one good thing about this is that we can say with absolute certainty that you undoubtedly belong in Slytherin."

"I suppose it does, doesn't it?" Rowan said with a wry smile.

Rising to his feet, Reginald knee's creak as he says, "I am most famished. What about you?"

"Apparently I'm starving," Rowan sincerely replied as she also rose to her feet.

"Ah, yes, the pangs of hunger of youth," Reginald fondly reminisced. "I used to be able to down an entire pot roast all on my own for dinner."

Rowan's face turns slightly green at his words. "I like to eat grandfather, but not that much!" Rowan exclaimed.

"Yes, well, I was a teenage boy," Reginald chuckled. "You, on the other hand, are a teenage girl, it's not the same thing at all." Rowan snorts in reply causing another chuckle to arise from Reginald as they walked out of the study and towards the kitchen.

Reginald and Rowan had barely had a seat when Dawn without any word was placing dozens of plates before them to eat. Beaming at the generous meal, Reginald says, "As always you outdo yourself, Dawn."

"Thank you, Master," Dawn said with a proud grin, before fluttering away to complete some other task.

Munching on a sandwich, Rowan mumbles, "On that note, is Dawn the only house-elf? Because I've never seen any other house-elf and the manor is awfully big for her to cook and clean by herself."

"Well, there is one other elf, and he is mostly in charge of the grounds," Reginald mumbled back. "Tadbey, is more of a recluse and though he does aid Dawn in the cleaning of the manor, he rarely allows himself to be seen."

"Huh," Rowan said with a mouthful of food.

"Why do you wish to meet him?"

"Maybe some other time."

"Very well, then."

The two of them lapse into pleasant silence as they continue to eat until loud footsteps cause them to glance at the doorway. Severus eagerly lets out a whoop and says, "The Evans said Lily could stay with us the last two weeks of Summer. So, we can go shopping together in Diagon Alley as usual and instead of going home, Lily will come home with us!"

In response, Rowan merely takes another bite of her sandwich as Reginald does the same. Denoting the lack of excitement or interest in either of them, Severus coughs and says, "Er, that would be alright wouldn't it, grandfather?" Pleading with his grandfather, Severus in a rare instance pouts desperately at his grandfather in hopes of having his request fulfilled.

"I certainly don't mind, but you will have to ask your grandmother as well-," Reginald is unable to finish his sentence as Severus is already sprinting out the door and off to see his grandmother.

"Faster than a bloody racehorse," Reginald huffed at being cut off in mid-sentence.

"Personally, I always thought he had some Doberman in him," Rowan commented.

Reginald chokes at Rowan's words, before finally saying, "I doubt that."

"Mm, the Snape side is awfully shady if you ask me," Rowan countered causing Reginald to further choke. Seeing that it was in his own best interests, Reginald wisely decided to ignore that sticky bit of track for the moment. After all, it was awfully embarrassing to keep chocking.