Albus Potter and the Prophesied Year

Ch 44 Formal Instillation

"You need to have some sort of coronation as soon as possible," Gerhart told Albus, Cleo, Galadriel and Thorin Monday May eight. "The closer to Cleo's due date the harder it will be to hold a ceremony."

"We have been talking about it," Albus replied. "I don't want to call it a coronation, but I agree we need something. We think we need the four original thrones, the oldest ones we found in the cave that takes two Magi couples and two Elf couples to get into. We are continually running into the issue of words changing meaning over time, however. One to three thousand years ago the word "King" had a meaning of sole ruler. The kingdom belonged to the king. That is still the case in a few countries, more or less. The Jewish judges were rulers, but only temporarily, and their children did not necessarily inherit the job.

"Galadriel and I and our mates agree. We do not want to be that kind of ruler. The office should not be hereditary. And I should not be able to change laws on my own. At the same time, right now Cleo and I have to agree to or reject almost two thousand years' worth of laws that have been promulgated with the provision that the king and queen have to approve or reject them.

"We think we are going to arrange the ballroom at the palace with the four thrones in a place of honor at the very back of the hall where we will sit, but up high as objects to be viewed, hanging on the wall, not in a position where anyone could sit in one."

"There is only a week between your due date June twenty-fourth and the start of the ICWW July first," Gerhardt reminded Cleo and Albus. "That makes me nervous."

"It does us too," Albus agreed. "There is not much we can do about it, though."

"I will try to make sure my next one is not due so close to the start of the ICWW," Cleo told the Prime Minister.

Gerhart rolled his eyes, thinking that Cleo had not even delivered her first and was already talking about another one.

"We will decorate the ballroom," Galadriel volunteered. "It needs to reflect both the new position of the High Elves and the position of the crown princess and prince of the Magi."

Albus suggested, "I think the ceremony should involve signing documents of understanding, some sort of covenant between the Magi and High Elves, and between the holders of the first wands and, I hate to say subjects, that's the old view of kings and queens. A covenant between the holders of the first wands and the people they serve."

*

There was a raised platform at the back of the great hall on the main floor of the palace, and that had been where rulers and dignitaries had always been seated. Any remaining symbols of the previous rulers were removed. Albus knew there was an ancient coat of arms for the Peverell family, but Albus did not want to use it.

"Do we even need a coat of arms," Albus asked the small group trying to design the platform and symbols.

"Both the High Elves and you two do," one of the Magi replied.

"Can it be tied to the office, and not the family?" Albus wondered.

This started a rather long and involved argument. Finally, Albus insisted, "The coat of arms will refer to the office, not to the Peverell family!"

"The High Elf coat of arms will also refer to the office of holder of the first wands, not the family," Galadriel agreed.

There were two people in Switzerland who were familiar with heraldry and coats of arms, but both couples agreed, after a couple of hours of working with them, that their attempts at designing coats of arms for the Magi and High Elf holders of the first wands were disasters.