Fin Caught Red Handed pv

Benoit d'Estienne had never been Orion's pick for his sister. It wasn't that the man was cruel, it was that he had the extraordinary ability to appear absent while standing in a room full of people. His career always came first, then whatever scraps of time he had left in the day he would offer to his family.

The Frenchman thought Océane deserved better, but he had learned the hard way that telling a woman you think her husband is an idiot doesn't exactly produce a desired result. So, he kept his mouth shut and let his sister claim to be happy. Then Benoit became a widower and the girls still remained less of a priority, left into the care of nannies or whatever other caretakers his brother-in-law hired. So, when Benoit had approached Orion years earlier to propose his idea to move the girls to London so they could be closer to Hogwarts, he had told him to go for it. If Benoit was going to be an absent father, Orion could be an active uncle. It seemed simple enough at the time.

That was before he knew how dangerous Hogwarts was. He wasn't naive; he was aware that danger didn't announce itself with its wand drawn, but he hadn't expected to find it around every corner at a school for children. Even with the hag coven destroyed, the word 'safe' was optimistic... A word the professors told the children so they could sleep better at night.

It would seem this year he would take on another duty; protector. It was not a role he was familiar with, he was used to destroying. Hunting.

Orion had promised to meet his niece for ice cream, but he had arrived early and took an educated guess; Solène would have her nose stuck in a book. As the shop's door opened and the bell chimed to indicate his arrival, his sapphire eyes scanned the crowd. He found her pretty easily and watched his niece for a moment as she poked around the array of books, selecting a title that should be far beyond her grade level.

Merlin have mercy on him, she was too curious for her own good. A trait she shared with her mother. A fond smile crossed his face.

He took a step closer before speaking, his voice soft as to not interrupt the other customers, "[I thought you were here to purchase your schoolbooks, Little Star, not conduct unauthorized research into the dark arts.]"

Orion's lips quirked into another small smile as he noticed his niece tense up. He wasn't usually the type to lecture children; a task he'd leave to her governess. However, only on a rare occasion when they did something stupid, like try to break into his office. A deep chuckle rumbled in his chest as he reached over to gently ruffle Sol's hair, almost undoing her messy bun. He tucked loose tendrils behind her ears and leave down to kiss the top of her head affectionately.

"[Better to find you with your nose in a book then midway through some Merlin forsaken curse. Although considering the family you hail from, I might need to keep a closer eye on you during Defence Against the Dark Arts.]" The Frenchman sounded amused more than anything, but in truth he was concerned about his niece's curious nature. She even looked more and more like her as the years passed. The Lécuyer genes were strong, though they had seemingly missed her younger sister.

He wheezed when Solène squeezed him, although he amped up his reaction as a joke, "[Take it easy on your old uncle, Star, I'm two years away from 40.]" His arms wrapped around the preteen, giving her a gentle squeeze. "[I've missed you too, kiddo.]"

With a grin he plucked the book she had been reading from the shelf and quickly rifled through the pages before deciding it seemed harmless enough. He tucked it beneath his arm. "[I'll buy it for you when Astrid isn't looking. Just don't go casting anything dangerous. Now, come along, troublemaker, I promised you ice cream and you're going to give Astrid a heart attack when she realizes you're out of sight.]"

He let out a shallow breath that sounded half like a sigh and half like a laugh, "[38 is not that old, little star. Time can be cruel when you get older, and years start to feel more like months. Perhaps someday you will be 38 and your niece will call you stardust.]" He teased half heartedly. Although the thought of Solène being his age was jarring; he could have sworn she was a messy haired five year old just yesterday.

["Just remember, I'm trusting you with this knowledge."] His niece's curiousity was going to be the death of Orion; he could almost see it happening now. He still wasn't entirely sure how well he could protect her from the evils of Hogwarts, but he also knew that warning her to stay away from certain people, or families, would just make her more likely to seek them out. If he could keep her distracted with a 'forbidden' book at least she would be less likely to go looking for trouble on her own. ["Magic should only be used with the upmost care."]

He could practically hear his inner voice hissing at him for being a hypocrite.

["No need to worry."] He straightened his spine as Astrid appeared and waved away her concerns. ["I came early because I wanted a bit of extra time with my niece. I have a surprise planned for her after ice cream."]

The Frenchman wrapped his arm around Sol's shoulders to guide her towards the check out desk. ["Come, we'll purchase your books and head out."]