Antonio appeared in front of an imposing manor in one of the smaller magical settlements of Wizarding Britain. The mansion was, of course, not as grand as the Bones Manor, but it carried a unique charm of its own.
It was the Sinistra Manor. The Sinistra family was considered a medium grade family in Wizarding Britain.
Though not counted among the more powerful and influential houses like the Bones, Greengrass, or Lestrange, they still held a respectable status. The family was old, with a certain prestige attached to its name.
The Sinistra family were one of those families that remained unaligned with any of the major houses. In a sense, they were among the few truly neutral families in Wizarding Britain, and for a long time they had enjoyed the benefits of such neutrality.
The Sinistra family had enjoyed certain connection with the Black family but that connection had been purely economical and not at all political.
Families like these were often the first to be approached by larger houses or factions, seeking support on a case by case basis. And the neutral families were usually willing to lend their backing, obviously, in exchange for some benefit.
While this had the advantage of extracting greater gains, such families often walked a thin line. In times of real crisis, they had no powerful ally or faction to turn to for help. And in circumstances like these, with the Dark Lord's forces running rampant, it was precisely such families who found themselves facing the most heat.
When Aurora had first arrived at his inn with the intention of seducing Antonio and securing his help, it had been because of the threats the Sinistra family had been receiving from Death Eaters.
Antonio had agreed to help her and even agreed to meet her grandfather, Lord Sinistra to discuss the problem further.
Auroa had said that she would talk with her grandfather and communicate further with him. But after that night, he had received no further communication from Aurora.
With relaxed steps, Antonio approached the manor and stopped just a step away from the boundary of the ward that encircled it.
He raised his fingers and slowly poked at the ward. The act always felt awkward to him.
Poking into the ward of a house was much like pressing a doorbell in the Muggle world. It relayed a message to the lord of the house that someone was standing at the edge of their boundary.
To Antonio, however, it always felt strangely undignified. He often thought magical houses might have devised a better alternative than the equivalent of pressing a doorbell.
Antonio waited for a couple of minutes before a middle aged man exited the manor and approached him. The man was dressed in rich and lavish robe and a slightly portly appearance. Obesity was generally not a thing, you witnessed in the Wizarding Britain.
Antonio did not know the man, but he was certain it was not Raphel Sinistra, the current Lord of the house.
The man reached the edge of the ward, and there was a flicker of shock across his face as he registered who was standing outside.
"Lord Olario," he muttered, his body stiffening, his voice carrying both anxiety and tension.
"Mr.?" Antonio asked tentatively.
"I am Trafel Sinistra," the man explained. "Elder son of Lord Sinistra."
Aurora's uncle, Antonio noted silently.
He smiled in response.
"I am here to meet Aurora. I have not been able to contact her for the last few days, and I have received no reply from her. Could you please inform her of my arrival?"
Although Antonio's words were polite, his tone and posture made it clear that he would not be accepting no for an answer.
"Give me a couple of minutes," Trafel muttered before turning around and hastily walking back inside the house.
After a little more than a couple of minutes, two figures exited the house once again. The first was Trafel Sinistra, and behind him walked an old man with a steady gait. Lord Sinistra. Raphael Sinistra. He looked quite similar to his son.
It was not Aurora. And at that moment, Antonio began to feel certain that something was indeed wrong.
"Lord Olario," Raphael said as he came to stand in front of Antonio. His posture was straight, his demeanour calm. Unlike his son, there was no nervousness or fear about him. Being a lord surely made you more confident or perhaps more potent to deal with pressure.
"Lord Sinistra," Antonio returned the greeting, maintaining his polite composure.
"May I know why you are here?" Raphael asked.
Antonio's eyes narrowed slightly as his gaze shifted toward Trafel Sinistra, who flushed in embarrassment.
"I am here to see Aurora," Antonio repeated firmly. "I have been trying to contact her for the past few days but have received no reply."
"And why do you wish to see my granddaughter?" Raphael asked.
"She is my friend," Antonio answered, his patience thinning.
"I would be thankful if you inform her that I am standing outside the wards of Sinistra Manor, waiting to meet her," he added, his voice stern, his impatience now palpable.
"I am afraid, Lord Olario," Raphael replied, his expression unchanging, "that you cannot meet her. What I can do for you is inform her that you came to see her but you will not meet her."
There was certainty in Raphael's tone, and a strange, quiet courage.
"Are you challenging me, Lord Sinistra?" Antonio muttered.
He pressed his palm against the ward, which rippled under the force of his magic in resistance.
"Do you think this ward is truly capable of stopping me?" he continued, applying more pressure as the ward rippled more defensively.
"No, Lord Olario," Raphael answered evenly. "Before witnessing what you did yesterday, I was certain this ward would have held against you. But after seeing what you are capable of, I am just as certain you could shatter it in moments."
He paused, his eyes steady and he continued.
"But the question is, would you be willing to do so? Yesterday, you had a reason to act out of line and kill Death Eaters. You justified it as an act of self defence and probably you were right. But what reason would you have to breach my ward and invade my home?"
A faint smile touched his lips in amusement.
"Are you trying to replicate what the Death Eaters attempted at Bones Manor, yesterday night? Invade and kill the lord of the house? If so, then perhaps you should don their attire and masks as well."
Antonio felt his anger rising but he knew the man was right. He could cut across both the ward and the man in a single spell, but he would have no justification. He was also not certain what exactly was happening with Aurora. Breaching the ward was a step he would take only in extreme conditions and from Raphel words, he felt that Aurora was fine. At least, she did not seem in some sort of immediate trouble.
"Are you sure you want to do this, Lord Sinistra?" He questioned, his voice barely above a whisper.
"I apologise," Raphel said calmly. "But I have already made my choice."
"Is she fine?" Antonio asked.
"She is," Raphel nodded. "But you cannot meet her."
Antonio gave one final look and turned away from the wards. He had not given up on his quest on meeting Aurora but he needed to find an alternative.
#
#
#
[Add the book to your collection. Send it some power stones. Leave a rating and a review.]
[Access advanced chapter on P@treon. Replace @ with a. One additional advanced chapter each week on P@treon. ]
[email protected]/imaginarywriter