Purple Shadow had grown much larger. Standing in the snow with its wings folded, it was almost as tall as an adult.
Unless it deliberately shrank itself, it could no longer perch casually on Shawn's shoulder.
It raised its right claw, signaling for Shawn to take the letter.
Shawn reached out to take it, then ran his hand over Purple Shadow's increasingly magnificent crest.
Purple Shadow was less clingy now. It tilted its head away, refusing to let Shawn keep touching it.
Shawn thought nothing of it. He gave the others an apologetic nod, intending to read the letter first and see whether he could find an excuse to slip away.
Helena and Maxime had no patience to wait for Shawn to read his letter. They had only just managed to intimidate him with Nicolas Flamel's name and the threat of using his wealth to hire Bounty Hunters.
So they pressed their advantage, refusing to let up.
"Mr. Black, everything else can wait. What we're discussing concerns the international situation. That is what matters most right now."
Shawn could not be bothered to engage. He shot Fudge a look, leaving his lackey to handle them.
Then he opened the letter Alice had sent from the United States.
But he had barely opened it, before he could even start reading, when a commotion from Purple Shadow caught his attention.
Purple Shadow had wandered off to one side. Bored, it spat a gem out of its mouth and began kicking it around the snow like a ball.
The gem gave off a blood-red glow, staining the surrounding white snow crimson.
Before Shawn could say anything, Maxime reacted far more strongly. The enormous woman covered her mouth with one huge hand and cried out.
"Ah! That's the Philosopher's Stone! You-you-you actually gave it