Sabriel was born to half-Veela Belrose Gardinier and the wizard Ferris Stewart in 2010. The boy was particularly prized due to his father's preference for a male heir, his harrowing health, and the rarity of male Veela. His mother's side of the family were French inventors. His great-grandmother had married into the company and monopolized it. His father was an infamous, albeit retired Italian Auror.
On the morning of December 20th, Bellrose gave birth to a severely premature child (two months premature) in the company of her nurses and husband. Complications with her pregnancy had her on bed rest since her fifth month. No one was altogether sure if the child was going to survive, but they did their best.
Sabriel could not leave his incubator and feeding tubes until he was almost three months old. From there, he was gradually nursed into suckling. Sabriel matured into a healthy, plump baby soon enough, but difficulties remained. He was asthmatic, anemic, coupled with a weak heart and hypersensitivity. Many of these factors improved later in life. By the time he was five, the sensitivity dulled but left behind rapt senses. He still suffered from frequent fevers, dizziness, exhaustion and heart palpitations. His sisters lulled him to sleep with their songs, and nursed him awake in the mornings for his medicine.
Sabriel's delicate health was handled with utmost care. It took strong effort to keep him stable, but he was a cheerful child with a very defining personality. The boy was very intelligent and loving. Ferris spent a lot of time with him, encouraging sports and teaching him to count and cipher. Belrose taught him to sing. Sabriel was a fast learner. His genius was apparent since he was almost two, where he was forming complex sentences and expressing his desires fervently. Sabriel also developed a particular fascination with Quidditch. He got a Firebolt for his seventh birthday.
Before Sabriel turned eight, he and his sister Marianne visited their grandparents in Venice. At this point, Sabriel had matured into an elegantly-formed child, with a small body not too thin with almond-shaped gray eyes. He had a girlish, pretty face; high cheekbones tapering to a triangular chin and a plump lower lip. His pale blond hair was often coaxed into a neat bun by his nurse, with rebellious wisps framing his face. His voice was high, but lilting. He had natural singing talents. Despite being the only boy in his family, he was almost indistinguishable from the girls. It was something that frustrated Ferris.
Sabriel cleaved to his grandfather. When not incapacitated by his fevers, he would trail along behind him, pausing to ask questions and to form clipped inferences. Ruppet privately indulged in the moments he spent with his grandchild, and introduced him to many games, particularly chess and backgammon. During an unusually challenging game of checkers, when Marianne and Grandmother Dominique were out shopping, Sabriel politely inquired who the 'man of black' was.
At first Ruppet assumed the boy meant the several wizards that often passed the mansion on the way to the Ministry (Venice was the center of the French Ministry of Magic), but he swiftly decided that was wrong. A premonition hit him so strongly he gave a yell. Death Eaters! Death Eaters were coming!
Ruppet snatched his grandson and deposited him in an air vent. The man was somewhat numb with shock - how had Sabriel known? The boy had been particularly insightful, yes, but how could he have spotted the Death Eaters before he had? It took a moment, but Ruppet realized the boy must have been a seer as well. A powerful one, at that. He did not know what devastating effects such traumatic premonitions could have on a child's psyche. He also did not know what the Dark Lord would do with such a find as this. Ruppet placed a hand on Sabriel's forehead. His intentions were to suppress the boy's powers, and to lay a silencing charm on him. Sabriel was not cooperating. He was confused and fearful. At the last second, he managed to push the man's hand off him. It was clear the force hurt him a great deal, but Sabe held steady.
"Stubborn lad," Theodore commented. His spells were not permanent, nor were they particularly potent. Sabe had not given him enough time. He knew he had little option now. Theodore sealed the vent, and gave one last, sad smile at his grandson. Sabriel was tearful. He knew the Death Man was bad. He knew Ruppet was going to die. But suddenly the visions had stopped and he could only anticipate.
The Death Eaters did appear, but only one attacked. This was the Death Eater Sabriel committed to his memory. There was very little conversation between the two. Ruppet begged and pleaded. The villain wanted to hear none of it. Their duel was brief and Sabe found himself grappling at the grate of the vent. Then, a splatter of blood turned his world red. "Sectumsempra"?
Sabe had closed his eyes for part of his battle. When he opened them, the bloody corpse of his grandfather lay spread for all eyes to see. Sabe bit back sobs. His body shook. His heart leaped and twisted, threatening climb up his throat. He was terrified. He wanted out. He wanted away. But he was afraid of the expanse of the vents and he could not escape out the sealed grate. The Death Eaters had vanished following a spell that send some green light beaming through the ceiling. Sabriel understood none of it. He could only call out to his grandfather. God, why was the man bleeding so much? Why didn't he move?
Hours later, a crying Sabriel was pulled out of the vent. He spent several days at a Wizarding hospital, where trauma was confirmed. It was arranged that the Gardinier family could be targets, and they were to move. England was the selected place, and the family sold their manor and relocated there.
As the boy grew older, Sabe's personality underwent a dramatic change. His cheerful, effervescent guise melted to solemnity and introversion. He spent several hours in bed due to intense fevers and hallucinations. The deterioration of his health elicited stress in both parents - sorrow in Belrose and frustration in Ferris. Ferris would attempt to rouse him and engage him in sports, but the boy remembered very little of his time spent before witnessing his grandfather's death. He helped the maids with their chores, and he allowed his sisters to coddle him, things he found unnecessary and annoying in the past.
Ferris remarked on this change. "Why the hell is he so different? I know no child should have to see what Sabriel saw, but this is a little extreme."
Belrose paused her primping. "Dear, sometimes I wonder if you know our son at all. He always attached very strongly to the people he liked, and to see his beloved grandfather die like that, right in front of him, must have hurt my baby something extreme. He just needs time to cope."
"Well, I hope he finishes coping soon enough," Ferris muttered bitterly. Belrose could only sigh.
The tension between Ferris and Sabriel continued to escalate. Ferris bitterly accepted that he was never going to have his 'old son' again, and reacted to this fact with predictable violence. He yelled at Belrose when she tried to placate him. He complained and raved.
Nine-year-old Sabriel was still as delicate as ever, much like a girl. He was on the path to recovery, steadily growing more and more mobile and sometimes straying away from home. His father's escapades, however, suddenly calmed, and it was announced Belrose was going to have another child. The months passed. He was elated. Sabriel had never seen him so happy. He bought Belrose and Sabriel many gifts, and taught his son how to dance.
However, Belrose experienced similar complications as with Sabriel. This time, however, the baby died in the womb. This seemed to be a breaking point for Ferris, and once again he focused his last hopes on Sabriel. The man's ideals for a son were potent, and he was filled with frustration every time he laid eyes on his weak, feminine heir. Still, he again tried to coax Sabe into socializing and sports. He suggested Quidditch, but Sabriel was too weak to play and only had a passion for observing it. Embittered and disheartened, Ferris slowly developed comfort in alcohol.
Belrose was depressed and did not respond to Ferris's complaints about Sabriel. When the boy was eleven, just before he started school, Ferris hid his disgust with him no longer, plunging the child further into introversion and distress.
by Sabriel Gardinier Tue Dec 13, 2011 10:13 pm
