Chapter
2:
The League of the Scarlet
Pimpernel
Your presence is requested in the study of Blakeney Manor today
at three in the afternoon. Matter of life and death.
Percy
The friends I had were loyal enough, I knew, to answer that small
letter that had been sent to each of them. They would be in agreement
with the mad idea I would be placing before them, and sure enough,
they all arrived one by one. Andrew had made it there first, possibly
having guessed that I would do something like this, and then the
others followed.
John Osborne (whom we all called Ozzy as a tease) was the oldest
of our close circle. A rather serious fellow but never one to turn
down a meeting with all of us younger boys, no matter how much we
poked fun at him.
Sir Elton Hunter what can I say? One of the more humorous men I
knew, he always seems to make us laugh, whether he thought the jest
was funny or not. Although there were some things about him that I
just could not comprehend; his interest in butterflies is still
beyond my understanding.
Lord George Farleigh was another one of the more serious men in
the group. He was so particular about everything he saw, heard, and
did that I could scarcely believe how close we were. I guess
opposites really do attract.
Lord Antony Dewhurst had been my friend ever since we were knee
high; we were both pranksters (still are!) and always had a devil of
a time planning and carrying out our jokes. However if one of us was
ever down, the other was there to help things become normal again.
Tony was my other brother in life, and for that I would stick by him
for all time.
Ben and Neville Mallory were the only true pair of brothers by
blood in the circle. Tony, Andrew, and I had known Ben for quite some
time and through him we met the younger Neville. Quite the
interesting pair, they were a total contrast to each other as far as
looks, but anything but different in manner. Anyone with an untrained
eye could not tell that they were related.
Lord Timothy Hastings was as loyal as they come, but he was also
the "ladies' man". It always seemed that he had some other girl on
his mind every time he met with us, but like myself, he had no ready
intention of settling down.
Sir James Leggett was rather the shy and quiet man, making him the
least expected member to join in our wild bunch. While the rest of us
were basically loud and always trying to make an impression, he was
the one who remained impassive and under control. But he was an all
around good man with a kind heart, and therefore wholeheartedly
welcomed by the boys and myself.
Sir Harold Watson whom we simply called Hal was, like Neville,
brought into the group by someone already in it. A close friend of
Hastings and a lover of cards, he entered the gang instantly,
although it took a few games for him to lose before we welcomed him
completely.
Finally, there was me, Sir Percy Blakeney. I do not enjoy talking
about myself, but a small introduction that should have come a while
ago could not hurt. As were my comrades, I was born and raised an
Englishman. My mother had gone insane after I was born and my father
worried more about her well being than my own. Despite that, however,
I did manage to grow up alongside my wonderful friends and live a
normal carefree life.
Sink me I am not staying on the main subject, am I? Well then let
us get back to it: the first official meeting of the League of the
Scarlet Pimpernel. The room gradually became a full clamor of chatter
and fear as each man approached me with his note.
"What is the meaning of this, Percy?" Ozzy exclaimed as he waved
the paper literally in my face. "You write that you need to see us
due to a matter of life and death, and then you sit before us, calm
as the English Channel on a demmed sunny day! Now I demand
answers!"
Standing up and patting him on the shoulder, I simply gave him
what he wanted, not raising my voice even slightly. "My dear Ozzy, do
keep your wits about you long enough for the matter to be stated. For
all of our sakes, please do remain calm." As he quieted down, I paced
the room slowly with everyone from Andrew to Hal looking on.
"Gentlemen, we have all of course heard of the bloody, and sink me I
do mean bloody, revolution that threatens our fellow men of innocence
in France. Dewhurst himself has seen it all happen, is that not so
Tony?"
The man in question nodded as everyone turned their gaze to him.
"I swear that the jest about blood soaking the streets and gutters of
Paris alone is not a lie."
"Really now?" I asked with a dramatically sarcastic gasp. "Odd's
fish do tell the boys and I more about this, perhaps even who was
executed recently," I finished while making myself contently
comfortable in my chair once again.
As Tony stood up, I could have sworn I saw him become choked with
emotion, and I could not really blame him. St Cyr had been a good
friend of ours indeed, and to hear that he and his whole family had
been cruelly murdered by madmen could cause nothing else but
pain.
After a moment, Tony managed some words. "My friends, the Marquis
de St Cyr and his family are dead." Allow me to mention that we all
took a moment of silence out of not only respect but also shock. Then
Tony continued. "Someone had discovered their hideaway place and it
was there that they were dragged first to prison then to the
guillotine. St Cyr and his wife were beheaded immediately, and I have
to admit that I am grateful not to know the details of the child's
death. All I can say about that is…I am speechless! I wish there
had been a possible way to prevent this event."
That was my cue! Jumping up instantly, I shouted, "And now each
one to follow will be stopped because we are going to do so!"
The entire room had become silent as each man looked at me as if I
had three heads. Only Andrew could find words to speak. "Percy, by
now we all know the strong need that you have to end the slaughter,
but it is just not possible. How could we even attempt to stop the
French?"
"If David could defeat Goliath, we can certainly teach them a
lesson of our own."
"And how exactly do you plan to do that?" Farleigh asked dryly.
"Robespierre is not going to stop the guillotine only because a few
Englishmen want him to, Percy. We all know that."
As everyone agreed, I groaned in stubborn determination. "Come now
gentlemen, somewhere deep inside you, there has to be a want to help
the innocent prisoners. These friends that we have known all or most
of our lives are being murdered day after day simply because they are
of noble blood. Do all of you want to see it continue? No, I know you
do not, and therefore we have to do something. I already have a plan,
but first you must agree to it. Our lives will be at stake should we
be caught, but I know we could do it successfully! Now who's with
me?"
Slowly but surely, I saw many hands raised until no man had them
lowered. Satisfied with the response, I walked over to my desk,
beckoning them each to follow my lead. As they all joined me, I took
out a piece of paper, red sealing wax, and removed my family signet
ring from my finger. I applied the wax to the paper, and then having
pressed the opened ring into it, I held the paper up for all to see.
On the red wax had appeared the shape of a small flower.
"Gentlemen, I give you my family crest the Scarlet Pimpernel and
the beginning of my plan. Every day, week, month, as long as we need,
we shall sail to France to release and rescue as many prisoners as
possible. I know very well that all can not be saved, but we must get
at least a handful at a time; the more the better. However, we can
not tell anyone about this, relatives, friends, sweethearts, no one!
The less people that know about this will decrease the risk of
betrayal."
"But what if anyone does suspect us?" Hastings asked quickly.
"What should we tell them?"
"Very simply that we are going to France for clothes and
frou-frou, or away on a fishing or hunting trip in Scotland or
whatever! Make up any story you can, as long as we appear to be the
least expected men involved with this whole Pimpernel business. After
all, what do people think about us now? To them, we are nothing more
that dandies anyway, so who could guess?" I waited until I had
knowledge of their understanding before I continued. "Other than
that, there is one more thing. Any orders or instructions that I will
have for you will only come under this seal; if you see a different
one, do not follow what its contents says to do. The seal of the
pimpernel will tell you that the letter is authentic and from me. Any
questions?"
Ozzy shook his head disgusted. "But Percy, we are only a few men!
How are we…?"
"I know you are all afraid," I interrupted. "Believe it or not, I
am also frightened out of my mind about this, but, my friends if we
do not do this, who will?"
And so concluded our new lives as the Scarlet Pimpernel and his
league, for after my last statement, they paused for only a second
before giving a great cheer! Nothing, I knew, could stop us now!