Finally arriving in France, Victor warmly said goodbye to Antoine's squad, hailed a taxi, and headed straight home. Well... or almost home.
— This is definitely it! — Victor declared confidently, dragging his sister toward yet another establishment.
Adele merely rolled her eyes and let out a heavy sigh: this was already the third bar they had walked into in the past hour.
Stepping into the smoky room reeking of cheap alcohol, Victor looked around and finally spotted the long-awaited distinctive detail. Approaching the right wall, he knocked rhythmically on a painting. That very second, a hidden passage clicked open inside it with a quiet snap, and the two of them stepped inside. The Muggles relaxing there didn't notice a thing.
— We're back! — Victor shouted loudly, walking into the living room alongside Adele.
Perenelle practically ran out to meet them with a beaming smile. Seeing her, Victor's face lit up and he opened his arms wide, preparing for a tight hug, but Madame Perenelle walked right past him and pulled Adele into a tight embrace:
— Sweetheart! You're finally home, I missed you so much!
Adele happily returned the hug.
Victor pouted slightly, but he wasn't about to give up: waiting for Perenelle to let go of his sister, he enthusiastically threw his arms open again.
— Well, look at that! Has Victor Moss himself actually graced us with his presence? — Madame Flamel chuckled, crossing her arms over her chest. — And here I was beginning to think you forgot where your home is.
Victor, having been left without his hug, sighed glumly:
— Well, I wrote in my letter what happened... I had to finally wrap up all my affairs in England.
Perenelle scanned her grandson with a strict look, though warmth was already breaking through her eyes:
— Missy could have brought you here in a single second! You could have come, told us everything in person, had a quiet breakfast, and only then returned to your business. Instead of showing up on the third day right at lunchtime!
Victor lowered his eyes guiltily, stepped closer, and wrapped his arms around her himself in a tight hug:
— I'm sorry... I know, it's my fault. But you know how I am: when I get absorbed in something, I completely forget about everything else in the world. By the way... I'm starving! Is there anything delicious to eat? — he looked up at her with a spoiled expression.
Perenelle completely melted on the spot, smiling as she pressed him close:
— Go get changed, and I'll lay the table in the meantime.
Victor beamed:
— Thank you!
Grabbing Adele by the hand, he cheerfully pulled his sister upstairs toward their rooms.
Perenelle sat at the table, her eyes fixed on her eating grandchildren, practically beaming with happiness. She had missed them immensely.
Usually, she simply had nothing to do in this massive house. Yes, thanks to Victor she had regained her youth, but that didn't mean she had rid herself of the ancient, deep-seated boredom born of longevity. Nicolas, as usual, spent all day from morning till night buried in his laboratories. While Victor was away from home, Perenelle felt as though she had slipped back into that dreary past. And only this unpredictable boy turned out to be capable of filling her life with real purpose.
At first, she was driven by simple curiosity. But over time, she realized clearly: in Victor, she saw her true successor—the only wizard to whom she was ready without hesitation to hand over the great empire she and her husband had built over long centuries. And just to see this boy grow up and reach what heights he would achieve, she was ready to live through many more decades.
And, of course, Adele was not to be forgotten. Perenelle didn't demand extraordinary feats from the girl the way she expected them from Victor, but having a lovely granddaughter on top of a genius grandson was the sweetest gift fate could grant her.
— Grandma, can you spare me some Galleons? And help me refine an idea—it requires serious management skills, and I'm not particularly well-versed in that.
Perenelle and Nicolas stared at Victor in surprise.
— And just how many Galleons do you need? — Perenelle asked fondly.
Victor scratched his chin thoughtfully:
— I'm not entirely sure, but... a couple of million should be enough to start with, I think.
Nicolas, who had just taken a sip of tea, instantly spat it right back into his cup and broke into a fit of wild coughing:
— How... how many?!
Perenelle looked at her husband in confusion:
— What is with the strange reaction, Nicolas? It's only a few million Galleons.
Nicolas transferred an astonished gaze from Victor to his wife:
— What do you mean "only a couple of million"?!
Perenelle frowned slightly, and then her eyes began to slowly widen with sudden realization:
— Dear... Tell me honestly, do you even have any idea what our current financial situation is?
Nicolas froze. He tried to say something, but his mouth just opened and closed soundlessly. He had stopped caring about money so very long ago! Usually, his wife handled all the finances. The last time Nicolas had even given thought to the family budget was when they handed over almost all their Galleons for the global reconstruction of Beauxbatons Castle... And when was that, anyway? He could hardly remember himself. Ah, right... right after he created the Philosopher's Stone. Which meant over five hundred years ago!
— You could at least check our accounts once in a while! — Perenelle rolled her eyes dramatically. — Even if we give Victor a hundred million, our financial standing will literally remain completely unchanged.
Leaving her husband alone with his thoughts, Perenelle turned her gaze back to her grandson:
— And what exactly are you planning to do?
— Oh-h-h, I think you'll love it! Heh-heh-heh... — an impossibly sly smile spread across Victor's face.
— Hm-m, you've got me intrigued. Fine, right after lunch you'll explain everything in detail, — a spark of thrill glinted in Perenelle's eyes.
— Victor has problems with his eyes and with casting magic, — Adele suddenly chimed in, popping a piece of food into her mouth.
Everyone at the table froze instantly. Perenelle and Nicolas turned their gazes to Victor in unison.
Victor himself stared at his sister in absolute shock. Did she just... sell him out?! Did she just tattle on him?! No, he had planned to discuss his casting issues with Nicolas himself, but as for the eyes, he wanted to keep quiet to the very end. He knew all too well that Perenelle still hadn't gotten over that whole ordeal.
— Victor! — Perenelle said coldly. — I knew those eyes wouldn't lead to any good! You two idiots... Well, Nicolas, satisfied with crippling my grandson?!
Nicolas instantly pulled his head into his shoulders. He genuinely didn't understand why he was being blamed again—Victor was the one who forced him into it.
— Adele! How could you betray me?! That's it, I'm not talking to you anymore! Baka! — Victor leaped up from his chair in offense and bolted out of the dining room.
— Baka? — Adele blinked her eyelashes in confusion and looked at her grandmother.
— That's Japanese for "fool" or "dummy," — Perenelle explained nonchalantly.
Suddenly, Victor's head popped back out from behind the doorway:
— And don't touch my dessert! I'm eating it later! — and he instantly vanished again.
— I'll eat his portion, — Adele stated with complete calm.
Perenelle nodded approvingly:
— Of course, dear.
Nicolas tried not to even breathe, desperately hoping he would simply be forgotten in all the commotion. Alas, no such luck. Adele and Perenelle stared at him simultaneously with icy, ominous glares.
— Well... I think it's time for me to go. I mean... to check on Victor... Well, anyway, I'm off! — Nicolas sprang up from his seat and bolted out of the room like a whirlwind, chasing after Victor.
When Nicolas walked into his workshop, Victor was already waiting for him.
— So, how is it out there? — Victor asked nervously.
Nicolas sighed and shook his head ruefully.
— Ha-a-ah... I would have never thought my own sister would betray me. And how did she even notice I was having trouble with magic?
— Is it really because of the eyes? — Nicolas asked with genuine curiosity, instantly switching to professional interest.
— Seems like it, but I'm not entirely sure. First I had something akin to a nervous breakdown, then my eyes started bleeding, and something happened to me. Hurry up and check them! We need to resolve everything while they're eating my dessert and calm Grandma down—I won't be able to run away like that a second time.
Nicolas nodded. The faster they sorted out the problem, the better it would be for both of them.
— Sit down.
Victor lowered himself into a chair. Nicolas stepped closer and placed his palm over his eyes, expecting the etched runes to reveal themselves—he was certain that was where the issue lay. However, when he pulled his hand away, nothing had changed. Nicolas frowned in puzzlement:
— Activate them.
Victor nodded, and his pupils instantly turned into the Sharingan.
Nicolas repeated the procedure, but the result was once again zero. He sank deep into thought and decided to focus on a single eye. The alchemist carefully touched his finger to the eyeball to forcefully trigger the runic sequence.
— Ow, uncomfortable! — Victor pulled back, blinking rapidly and rubbing his eye.
Flamel froze in utter bewilderment.
— Hold still and endure it! — he spoke strictly, holding Victor's head firm and peering closely into the artifact. He carefully touched the eyeball once more. The sensation was unmistakable: it was warm, moist, and soft.
Nicolas slowly backed away, staring at Victor wide-eyed.
Victor rubbed his eye and asked:
— So what's the verdict?.. Hey, I asked: what's the verdict?
Nicolas finally came to his senses and whispered in awe:
— They're... real.
— Hm-m, of course they're real. You created them yourself!
— No, you don't understand. They're real. As in... living eyes.
Now it was Victor's turn to fall into a stupor. He leaped out of the chair, ran to the nearest mirror, closely examined his iris, and carefully touched his eyeball himself.
— Huh?.. What?! — he spun around sharply to face Nicolas: — Why are they real?!
— You're asking me?! How should I know!
— What do you mean "how"?! It's your work!
Nicolas threw his hands out in front of him and shook his head frantically:
— No, no, and no! That is NOT what I created! My eyes were artificial artifacts made of a special material covered in microscopic runes! HOW ON EARTH DID THEY BECOME ACTUAL LIVING ORGANS?! — by the end, he had broken into a scream.
His nervous system simply couldn't take it anymore. It was one thing to restore a lost body part or regenerate tissue, but for magic to turn an inorganic, artificial artifact into actual biological eyes... That was completely impossible! Right?.. The alchemist was starting to doubt his own foundational knowledge.
Both stood frozen in the middle of the workshop, staring at each other in silence. For several minutes, no one dared to break the quiet, until Victor softly uttered:
— Magic?..
Nick finally reacted:
— What "magic"?! Of course it's magic! I created them using alchemy and magic!
Victor shook his head:
— No... I mean magic not as a science, but as a real miracle.
— A miracle?! A miracle?! What miracle, don't talk nonsense! — Nicolas flared up. — I've been practicing alchemy for six hundred years! Everything in this world has a clear, logical explanation! We just need to find it!
He rushed over to the bookshelf, snatched thick tomes containing his notes on creating the Sharingan, and feverishly began flipping through the pages:
— We'll figure everything out right now... Yes, right now we'll understand it all!