As expected, when Persephone crept downstairs for breakfast, Daddy was already seated with his mug of black coffee before him and a meager breakfast of toast and scrambled eggs settled neatly on the table. Neither one of them very big eaters, the small offering more than sufficed, with half of the food often finding itself as a treat for the countless stray cats that littered the streets of Spinner's End.
Snatching a half slice of toast, Persephone slathered it in grape jam and forced herself to consume the bread in its entirety. Hungry or not, one still had to eat in order to keep up their strength. Merlin knew, Persephone would need all the energy she could get for today. Booked far more than she usually was for the next sixteen hours, mostly with intentionally stupid twits that seemed determined to remain mediocre, only the thoughts of Holiday Pay kept her from feigning illness.
"When do you leave, Princess?" Daddy drawled, nursing his steaming coffee carefully.
"Fifteen minutes." She answered, pushing away a third of her uneaten breakfast as the thought of her endless day of work unsettled her stomach.
"Who are you calling on first?" Daddy wondered, contemplating the small spoonful of eggs on his plate with a weary air.
"Obadiah Burke." She drawled, stealing a sip of coffee from his mug.
"The tiny first-year?" Daddy muttered, rejecting his eggs by pushing them away.
"Yes," She nodded, "The Hat put him in Hufflepuff."
Daddy frowned sympathetically, feeling for the poor pure-blood child who'd been made an outcast by the whims of a hat crafted in medieval time. Mocked cruelly by the Slytherin's for his perceived lack of character in being placed in a house so blaring opposite of their own, and not allowed to befriend the Hufflepuff's by order of his parents, the poor child really was in a hard place.
"He's not been having a pleasant year, to say the least." He contributed.
Persephone nodded, having already resolved to go uncharacteristically easy on the unlucky boy. If nothing else, when the time came for Persephone to give her review of the day's lesson to his parents, she'd certainly sugar-coat it.
"What would your students say," Persephone teased, summoning her purse, "if they heard you defending a Hufflepuff?'"
"They wouldn't live to tell the tale." Daddy shrugged, rising as Persephone did in order to kiss her on the cheek. "When will you be home?"
"Just before midnight." She assured. "I have an astronomy lesson to teach the Selwyn brothers."
"I'll be in the company of…the Dark Lord." Daddy hesitated, helping Persephone into her cloak.
Persephone stiffened, always wary when the Dark Lord called on her father unexpectedly. More often than not, the result was never a happy one. Whether the demagogue was furious with his lower minions for failing him, or cross with Daddy for some perceived slight, the results of such unplanned meetings usually involved a cruciatus or two.
"When were your notified?" She questioned, her stomach knotting painfully.
"A few hours ago." Daddy answered, a tired look aging his face.
"Do you have reason to be worried?" She pressed, already in danger of running late but far from caring.
"I believe the Dark Lord is frustrated with the lack of progress in obtaining that which he desires very much." Daddy summarized. "And I believe he will find that I share a portion of the blame for that."
"And what," Persephone asked slowly, "Do you believe will be done to you?"
"Seeing as the blame will fall chiefly with others," Daddy explained, "I will escape relatively unharmed, with only a few cruciatus curses to show for it."
"Are you certain?" Persephone interrogated. "I don't want to return from a grueling day of work only to find you passed out in the kitchen."
Daddy blushed, ashamed at the memory of his daughter finding him lying in a helpless heap atop the kitchen floor last year. Needlessly guilty, he looked at his boots, struggling to find the inexistent words to reassure his daughter all would be find.
"I'll be fine, Princess." Daddy promised. "I'm far too valuable for the Dark Lord to kill, he knows that."
"You'll send word to be the moment you leave and the second you return." Persephone ordered, leaving no room for discussion.
"As you wish." Daddy obliged, giving her another kiss to the cheek.
Despite wanting nothing more than to just stay behind and await her father's return, Persephone sighed in defeat an apparated away into the remote confines of Burke Manor- an impressive stretch of wooded property in the heart on Romania. If anything, perhaps the trials of teaching a depressed little boy to cast a cheering charm would distract her from the nagging worry about her Father's well-being.
Gliding down the barely distinguishable path through the dark woods, Persephone shivered and pulled her cloak tighter about herself. Why the medieval Burke family thought it acceptable to set impenetrable anti-apparating wards was far beyond her understanding. Not only was it highly unnecessary, it was impracticable to boot. Not even the Malfoy's had such a large parameter closed to apparition.
Per usual, the weathered old hag employed to greet visitors answered the door, her rancid breath assaulting Persephone's senses in a most disagreeable fashion. Blinking as the stench drew water to her eyes, she cleared her throat and stepped into the incense-saturated air of the grand foyer.
"Ms. Snape," The hag croaked, "Young Master Burke will see you on the terrace."
"Thank you, Calliope." Persephone smiled, slipping a small sickle into her palm in way of a tip.
"You are a very generous lady, Ms. Snape.' Calliope creaked. "Right this way, please."
Despite being well-acquainted with where the veranda was, having been tutoring young Obadiah since last year, Persephone willingly trailed after the slowly-moving woman. It wouldn't be very polite to just rush past her, especially not when it wasn't her fault that she was well past a hundred and not as limber as she once was.
"I'll have tea brought out to you presently, Ms. Snape."
"Thank you."
With that assurance, the hag pushed the doors to the veranda open and then shuffled off to acquire the promised beverages. Shivering in the crisp air, and wondering why they Obadiah to take his lessons in one of the many studies within the house, Persephone smiled warmly at the youth and settled herself in a seat equipped with a warming charm.