In The Dark

Chapter 109, Tests both great and small

A tap on the bedroom door woke Gellert and Blaise in the early morning. "Yes," Gellert called, hastily sitting up in bed as Blaise did the same at his side.

"It's Bramble with coffee. Are you prats decent," the elf called.

"At least covered," Gellert replied with a smirk as his gaze dropped to the bed where several thick blankets and a green quilt currently covered he and Blaise. The bedroom door clicked open and Bramble entered, a cup of coffee in each hand.

"We shall eat at Gellert's initiation, so there will be no breakfast here, but both of you could use some coffee to wake you up. Geo says to dress nice, whatever that means. You have around half an hour to get ready," Bramble warned. As he spoke, the elf approached, extending his hands with the cups. Gellert took them with a murmur of thanks, passing one to Blaise.

"Of course," Bramble replied before apparating out. Dress nice... What did that mean?

"Should we match then," Gellert wondered aloud, lips twitching. Sabra disliked their preference to match, but they did always look so dashing when the look was doubled.

"Anything you like," Blaise said, glancing blearily up from the cup he was clutching for dear life. These days neither man was particularly one for mornings.

Gellert paused to consider. "Yes, let's match. It is our thing, after all. It would also serve to present us as a unit to the Cabal so that they see that you're involved."

"Is that important, do you think," Blaise asked. "That I am involved? When Father is handing it over to you?"

"As you've promised to be there with me, I think it is," Gellert said mildly, hoping that Blaise hadn't changed his mind on that.

He relaxed when Blaise nodded, giving him a lazy smile. "Very well then. What shall we wear?"

"I think our formal black robes would be nice. The ones threaded in silver with the runes on the hem."

"Ah, those. Yes they will look grand," Blaise agreed. He was the first to finish his coffee and rise from bed. Moving to the wardrobe, he took out the two robes in question, placing Gellert's beside him on the bed. Hastily downing his own coffee, Gellert reached for the robe. The crisp stiff fabric under his fingers combined with the silver threading along the entire robe was pleasing. He was already feeling properly grand as he slid it over his head. By the time he was beside Blaise at the mirror, admiring their reflections as he ran a silver comb through his blond locks, he felt the welcome surge of energy from Bramble's coffee rushing through him. It had his mind sharp and ready for whatever the day would bring.

With a final glance in the mirror, he slid the crystal wand from Mag up his sleeve, fitting it into the wand holster that was conveniently stitched into the robe. Forgetting his bloody wand certainly would not do. Once he and Blaise had cleaned their teeth and such, they headed down stairs to join the rest of the family. Everyone waited in the front hall near the door. Bramble sported his usual spiderweb patterned tunic, but Geo wore green dress robes and Sabra wore a flowing red dress with a wide flaring skirt and a web-like lace train that trailed dramatically behind her. "We head to my family's first, and my Father will take us to the meeting. I don't even know how to get there on my own," Geo admitted. "I was not to be given that information until I became the head... So now it shall be yours."

"The two of you look dashing," Sabra said, smiling warmly. She extended one slender hand to Gellert's shoulder and the other to Blaise's, giving each a squeeze. "Even if you did insist on dressing alike," she added with a chuckle. She'd nearly given up on complaining about that.

"Thanks, Mum," Blaise said, and Gellert nodded.

"Yes. We wanted to make the family proud and look proper... you know." Gods was he babbling? Perhaps he was nervous, which was ridiculous considering the government intrigues he'd navigated in his past. Thankfully, Bramble Apparated them to the Grandparents in Italy before more could be said. The stately manor somehow looked sleepy in the early morning light, and all was still. Bramble lifted the heavy gargoyle knocker. Alberto, the fat jolly little elf who served the manor opened the heavy oak door at once, smiling brightly.

"So good to see all of you," he said in thickly accented English as he bowed. Bramble gave a marked frown of disapproval as everyone else greeted him in return. Something about the tubby little Italian elf made it difficult not to smile back when he smiled so cheerfully. Difficult for everyone except Bramble, of course.

Bramble disapproved of Alberto's eating and cooking habits, being very health conscious himself as was Sabra, who had practically raised him. "The Master is ready to take young Master Gellert to his initiation," Alberto boomed excitedly as he practically skipped inside, beckoning them to follow. Blaise's grandparents waited in the parlor, nearly matching looks of tense excitement on their faces. The elder Zabini wore dress robes and his short gently rounded and rosy cheeked wife sported a dark purple floor-length formal dress. "I Apparate us to this meeting for the last time," Blaise's Grandfather declared. His English was poor so he spoke in Italian, which Gellert had learned to understand relatively well by now.

"After today, it shall be Gellert's job. I know you will do well. You honor our family this day," he said. As he spoke, he reached to give Grindelwald a warm hug as only the Italian's could do. Not for the first time when in the presence of this family, Gellert found himself swallowing down a lump of emotion. "Grazie Signore," Gellert said, responding in Italian as a mark of respect. Though the older man was a few decades younger than Gellert would've been had he not gotten the Youthening potion, that hardly mattered. Gellert felt young, and the elder Zabini was worthy of respect... IN Italian. Gellert had learned to understand the language better than he could speak it, but he'd picked up a few necessary phrases and intended to learn more. Blaise was a good teacher, it just came down to finding the time for lessons what with everything else they had going on. Gellert always taught Blaise a bit of German for every bit of Italian Blaise taught him. Both had a shared desire to learn the native familial language of the other. As soon as the elder Zabini Apparated them, he touched Gellert's head, passing on the location to him with a Knowledge-Spell.

It was only mildly ironic for Gellert that the meeting place happened to be in Underground Naples, Napoli Sotterranea, as the surprisingly well lit sign reassuringly informed him. He expected remains of Roman catacombs to be rougher, dirtier perhaps, but luckily that was not the case. The Cabals and their hirelings took good care of the place. Signs clearly charmed to be visible only to wizarding eyes, pointed the way towards important places, like a Cabal library, a theater, a dining place of some sort, all of which he planned to explore later. The set up did seem to encourage social interaction, providing a useful as well as pleasurable way to make connections.

A long marble corridor stretched out before him, and suddenly he was aware of another dimension of the Knowledge-Spell that the elder Zabini had imparted to him. He knew that he was supposed to proceed down that corridor as an innate certainty. He moved forward, and strangely it did not occur to him to look to right or left as it normally would have. Ordinarily he could have done so out of healthy curiosity as well as for matters of defense. One must be aware of all places from which attacks could come as well as all possible exits. His own path seemed to indicate approaching a forbidding gargoyle statue with a bird head, which was a rarity above ground, not only in the few Gothic places within Naples itself, but also throughout the most interesting historical locations within Italy, Venice, Florence, Milan, and even Rome.

The gargoyle's eyes lit up in red as Gellert approached, making him appreciate the spell used for being able to identify a human body within its vicinity. A body it evidently found as worthy of inspecting if its next question was any indication. "Who comes here and for what purpose," the gargoyle statue intoned, its voice sounding, well, just like the voice of a gargoyle should, in his mind. Deep, strong and confident it was, and his own reply could not be anything less than that, at least on the level of confidence if not depth of voice.

"It is I, Grindelwald, on behalf of the..." the blond wizard began to respond, only to be interrupted by the same question once more.

"Who comes here and for what purpose," the gargoyle demanded yet again, and this time Gellert considered a different form of reply that might suit it better.

"It is I, a member of the Zabini family, come to join the cabal," Gellert spoke in a lower volume looking around in case there were eavesdroppers. He was certainly in the right place though, and there were no strangers in sight to overhear him. He had no idea what the creature wanted or what he should say, so caution was in order.

Luckily, this answer satisfied the gargoyle better, or rather the spell animating it, as its eyes changed their color from red to yellow. "Would you swear an Unbreakable Vow of Silence that stops you from betraying the operations of your family and the safety of the Cabal?" the booming voice next demanded, and Gellert nodded his agreement. Seeing with some surprise that his motion was not acknowledged, he had to wonder if that oversight was the result of a poorly executed spell that missed a certain element, or an intentional choice on behalf of the wizards who designed it.

"I do," he vocally confirmed, evidently to the gargoyle's satisfaction, as the color in its eyes changed from middle yellow to dark green.

"Do you swear to finish all the tests inside, even without knowing what they are? Do you further swear to obey all orders given to you, without attempting to change them, fulfill them in different ways, or find loopholes to avoid doing them entirely? Do you swear to obey all of these conditions, Gellert Grindelwald?"

Though expecting to hear the last sentence ending with the convenient description 'junior', for his release from prison rather than his death at Voldemort's hands was still to be a well kept secret, Gellert nevertheless responded with "I swear to all of these conditions," and with interest noted the gargoyle changing its eye color to middle green.

Finally the gargoyle intoned, "you may enter." What looked like a mere part of a catacomb's remains started shifting then, the creaking sound almost reminding him of how he expected the gargoyle itself to sound were it to move. Idly Gellert wondered what magical precautions the statue had to deter a determined well trained wizard, but if its defenses needed to be tested. he would of course have to do that later, when the ceremony was officially over. In the mean time, his curiosity drifted towards the frescoes he noticed on the inner walls of the initiation chamber as he proceeded forward. The first fresco to greet him was that of an octopus, the second of a Roman triumvirate, lastly followed by a Runespoor in livery engraving of all things, perhaps signifying some peculiar manifestation of Cabal humor. Both the Cabal and the Runespoor had three heads, after all.

"Now I wish we'd worn our Runespoor cloaks," Blaise murmured. "We'd have impressed everyone by matching the decor." The regret in his voice echoed Gellert's own at the thought. Before he could nod his agreement, Blaise continued, a rare note of awe entering his voice. "Or could the artwork be because of our cloaks? If so they're fast." The reluctant admiration in Blaise's tone did make Gellert smile. His partner was beginning to see the value of this impressive organization at last, or so it seemed. Before Gellert could grow too accustomed to that happy thought, though, Blaise continued. "Then again, there are three heads to the Cabal, so the Runespoor could've long been a part of the incorporated decor. I suppose we Dark wizards can simply be more similar in our tastes than most of us like to think. We all want to fancy ourselves unique and above the rest."

"Well most of us are, so you're in good company." The wizard who addressed them was one of Blaise's cousins. His name was Mauro, if Gellert recalled properly. He was a short stocky young man with a compact body and dark curls that spilled onto his shoulders. Gellert had only met him a few times, over the holidays. The man had always been jovial and friendly. He gave them a warm smile as he stepped forward, causing Gellert to nearly dazedly wonder just where he'd come from. Come to think of it, Gellert hadn't even noticed his own family following him until Blaise spoke. Blaise stood at his right shoulder with Sabra, Geo and Bramble just behind him. So engrossed was Gellert since entering the Cabal headquarters that he'd noticed no one or nothing but his intended destination. Now it was evident that this was due to some spell targeted at initiates. A very well crafted spell at that to so easily bypass Gellert's own excessively strong mental shields. Then again, perhaps the spell had sensed his willingness, and so had worked with his own shields rather than against them for all he knew. "It's good to see someone else doing this before I have to... You know, so I shall be aware of what to expect," Mauro continued conversationally. Clearly, he would inherit his father's position in the Cabal as well. Gellert was pleased to know that the pleasant young man would be one of the heads some day. It was reassuring to already be at ease with future fellow associates.

"Hello, Mauro," Blaise drawled. "So pleased to serve." In spite of his snarky tone, he gave his cousin a warm smile. Mauro grinned back, reaching to slap Blaise on the shoulder. "So you two aren't angry about the snowman incident anymore," he asked hopefully.

Gellert mock scowled. "It was prattish, but Blaise and I are into repaying things in kind over holding grudges."

"I thought we were into both," Blaise quipped and Gellert laughed.

"Stop telling our cousin all our secrets," he replied playfully. He was grateful for Mauro's presence, because it eased the tension in his belly that he hadn't even been consciously aware of until his laughter caused it to let go. The snowman incident to which Mauro Zabini referred had occurred over the past Christmas spent with the family in Italy. Blaise and Gellert had gone for a romantic walk in the snow while at the grandparents and decided to build a snowman. The experience was quite romantic until Mauro and some of the other cousins had come to knock their snowman down, quite effectively ruining the moment.

"What if I asked you to just accept my apology and forget about it," Mauro asked, meeting Gellert's eyes. Suddenly the other man's laughter faded, causing Gellert's own to do the same.

"I... Well sure, you're family. If it means that much to you, sure. We'd have just played some prank if we even remembered by next year, but if you're that worried, apology accepted." Was Mauro truly that concerned over their possible retaliation? Granted he and Blaise could be dangerous, but not to family... Especially not over a silly holiday prank for Merlin's sake! A blue flash of light passed between the three of them and Mauro gave a grin of relief.

"Good, because that was one of the cabal tests. They asked me to find something to ask your forgiveness for, and fortunately I remembered the silly snowman thing. I had no idea they'd ask me to help, so I was really getting stressed there for a bit."

"It is done," Blaise's grandfather said, stepping forward to clap Gellert on the back. "Gellert Grindelwald-Zabini, you are now my heir, and I, Ermenegildo Zabini pass my share of the Zabini Cabal onto you."

Gellert blinked. "That was it? I don't have to do anything else?"

"You did what was asked of you," Blaise's grandfather... their grandfather said proudly.

"So all I have to do is forgive someone," Mauro practically squawked. "I was all nervous for nothing." His words made Gellert wonder if Mauro had missed his exchange with the gargoyle, but he didn't ask in case that was top secret.

"There is more," Ermenegildo assured. His name was Ermenegildo! Gellert had always just thought of him as a grandfather, the Zabini elder, but of course he had a name. "Besides, each person's personal test is different," Ermenegildo continued to Mauro. His name may be Ermenegildo, but Gellert would never refer to him as such. He was Grandfather, or as it was said in Italy, Nonno. "There are small tests... protocols that all members must pass, but there is always one individual test set up to challenge a weakness that the Cabal feels most important to how a man will represent himself as a leader of this organization. In Gellert's case it involved when and when not to hold a grudge... for both are useful. Yours, though, shall be entirely different, I am sure."

"Good to know, Nonno," Mauro said glumly. "Just when I thought I had it all figured out..." He sighed. His expression brightened as he turned to Gellert. "Congratulations!" He sniffed the air. "I smell breakfast! Let's go eat. It's how we Italians celebrate."