Escape to Ecarte Island

Confessions

From Hilary Baugainvillea to Ellenora Baudelaire-Hodgins:

Dearest Ellenora,
I know my most recent letter sounded more like a telegram, but that was all I had time to write.  Uncle Dietfried runs a tight ship, especially in the wee hours of the morning! I barely had it in your father's hand before I was assisting in pulling up anchor.  Please forgive me for it barely being legible. 
I am writing this one under the editing eye of Mother, so it ought to read a lot easier!
The last time I was able to visit, you were interested to see the production of  'Gwendolyn'.   I was not familiar with that opera, nor, honestly, any other opera, but since then, I read the libretto. I found it extremely interesting. I hope it was a good performance.
I just finished 'The Perils of Jimeny Dukes'.  I'll bring my copy when I am able.  There is quite an education of the history of Leidenschaftlich. I think you would really enjoy it, although some of the perils are quite violent. I guess they would not be called perils if they weren't somewhat violent! I read some parts of it to Father and he could vouch for the realism of the war scenes. It's next to impossible to imagine. We've been fortunate, not looking war in the face like our parents had to do. I believe I would be rendered insane if we were at war and you and your family's safety was not assured.
You had asked what I should like for my birthday. To be completely honest, I would really enjoy spending the day with you down on the boardwalk down at the port and catch one of the comedy plays or even a marionette show.  Would that be alright? I know they have a new bookstore open nearby. That would be a wonderful birthday gift!
I'll be here on Ecarte throughout the holiday, and plan to be back at the academy in a couple of weeks. By the time I'm able to visit you again, about four months from now, I'll be a year older. Thirteen years old. What an old man I'll be!
Always Yours,
Hilary D. Baugainvillea

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  Not that Hilary's parents had not taught him, by example, the affection of married folks, but it was of the practical sort.
They were the perfect team, each giving time of themselves when the other was in need. They both took part in each other's projects and ideas. Hilary wanted a marriage such as this. . .someday.
At the moment, he just needed advice of how to properly (well, more like effectively) capture romantic attention from members of the opposite sex. Whether he asked for it or not, his cadet mates were full of advice, but it tended to range from ridiculously immature to downright lewd. Many times it was both.
The person he truly needed the most was his uncle Dietfried, but he was not around. He was on his way back to Ecarte Island. Apparently he was to present the painted document Petrich Hollenburg had recently finished. The announcements of its Grand Showing were up all over the city. People all around him spoke emphatically about it as if royalty were descending upon Leiden, and to have the chance to go was the epitome of all worthy things.
Hilary did not realize how much his face tended to scowl whenever his eye rested on the elaborate announcements. When he did stop and finally think about it, it was not the fact that it was a Grand Showing as much as the name of the name associated with it. Master Celestial Scribe Petrich Hollenburg. . .
Ever since meeting Hollenburg, Hilary felt a mixture of extreme awe and, somehow, a bit annoyance. Uncle Dietfried obviously thought the world of this man, and his parents easily took to him, as well. All of that stood to reason, for Petrich Hollenburg was, as far as Hilary could tell, an overall pleasant and even brilliant fellow.
But it seemed his popularity even extended to intimate others, like Claudia Hodgins and Benedict Blue who had hurried Hollenburg to The Lux under the cover of early morning for reasons Hilary had no privy. But, whatever business Petrich Hollenburg had gotten himself into to warrant a daring escape, it involved the Hodgins', which ultimately involved Ellenora. . .
This conclusion satisfied Hilary the most in his regard to Hollenburg. Sure, he was a mystical celestial scribe with untold talents. Sure, he was interesting and charming, and in an odd sort of way, quite handsome, Hilary supposed. . .but he had somehow brought trouble into Ellenora's world.
If Hilary had been older, wiser, and a little less in love with this girl, he would have immediately recognized these emotions as jealousy toward Petrich Hollenburg. As it were, however, he felt the tinges of intense dislike as well as distrust.