His two roses

It begins

Chateau Delacour, Marseille, France Aug-04-1994

A small castle stood majestically and alone on top of a hill overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. Lush green grass stretched as far as the eye could see, dotted here and there by stray trees. The combination of the sun beating down on the bleached walls of the castle, the sound of the waves licking the sands of the beach and the general fragrance of a flower-filled countryside made for a very pleasant atmosphere. It seemed only appropriate that a building which housed such beauty should in itself be a sight to behold.

Inside the castle, Dominique Delacour sat at the head of the dining table with a letter in his hands. It confirmed what he had already known, but it did not make him any happier. He didn't let his displeasure show on his face as Apolline drew up the nearest chair to him and sat on it. His wife however, seemed to have already sensed something was wrong with her husband. She did not say anything, but merely smiled at him enquiringly. Dom allowed himself to return the smile.

"There are times, not very often, when I wish you couldn't do that," he said.

"Do what?"

"Read me like a book."

She laughed her tinkling laugh. "You should've thought about that before marrying a veela. Now tell me. What's troubling you?"

Dom looked into her blue eyes, trying not to lose himself like he had done so many times before, "I think the entire family needs to hear this. Could you please go get them all?"

Apolline gave her husband a quick, searching look before gliding out of the room. Dom watched her go and sighed into his long black beard. He was not looking forward to doing this. His daughters had already gone through enough for no fault of their own.

The door behind him, which lead to the kitchen opened to reveal a tall veela with dark black hair and darker eyes. Even though he loved his wife dearly, and considered Camille to be nothing more than a sister, he felt himself drawn to her. Veela simply broadcasted their allure which worked to enhance their already considerable beauty.

Camille Fletcher walked towards the table and sat on the chair her friend, Apolline had just vacated. She took one look at him before saying, "What's the matter Dom?"

This was too much. He may not have been a poker-faced individual, but he certainly wasn't an open book either. In fact, most of his political rivals had a very hard time reading his expressions. At home however, it seemed to be a completely different story.

"How do you two do that? It's really starting to bother me now. None of my opponents can tell what I'm thinking. But I seem to be a toy in your hands."

Camille gave a trademark veela giggle that would have made most men's heart flutter. Dom's certainly did. "Well, we have known you a lot longer than your opponents."

At that precise moment, Apolline walked into the room through the hallway door. "They'll be down in a moment," she announced, and noticing the expression on Dom's face added with her eyes twinkling, "Not trying to seduce my husband, are you Camille?"

Camille smiled mischievously at Dom and said, "Hmm… let me see…. Actually, I think it was Dom who was trying to flirt with me."

Apolline grinned at Dom, who was now red in his face and said, "Well then, I guess I'll have to keep an eye on you two from now on. Right, Dom?"

"Hmph," Dom grunted. Teasing him was one of their pass-times. He didn't mind much. He would never have admitted it, but he liked it.

The hallway door opened again. This time, to reveal a much younger veela. To say she was beautiful was inaccurate. Silky smooth, waist-length silver hair cascaded down her face hiding two deep blue eyes that put the sea outside to shame. The perfect complexion of her face would have made many a man dream about stroking her cheek. The nose was a mark of precision and her perfect mouth with its full lips was only complemented by her delicate chin. Even at fourteen years of age, her figure could have had any woman on the planet turning green with jealousy. Beauty was earthen, Fleur Delacour was divine.