Council of the Houses

A governing body of rule which presides over all of the ley families. It is headed by the four most powerful: the Verlaines, Marwans, Brants, and Tevas. The governing style is -- overall -- democratic, and all families have a say, no matter how big or small their ley line is.

History

January 22nd, 1520, Werner Brant's wife, Valisa, gave birth to a son. At two months of age her son was able to blow fire from his mouth. Frightened, they almost turned to authorities for answers when the family's closest friends, the Verlaines, heard about it. They told the Brants that their daughter, Bleu, could ressurect her dead pets, and their son, Viktor, could speak to the dead. It was then that they investigated their homes, and found the ley lines under the basement floors. At this moment Werner and the head of the Verlaine household, Blase, decided to explore and question the globe to see if there were more. The Marwan family, a prestigious and 'scientific' household, answered the call and said that their son was so strong he could lift a fully-grown horse.

They formed a Council together, unofficially, to relay theories and try to reason what the ley lines were. It was only in the mid 1800s that the Council was pulled together as it is known today, when a family from America, the Tevas, joined it officially. Numerous other families joined it after that, but the core four were set (some, at first, tried to object about the Tevas being in the top four -- until they heard about the size of their ley line). The last family to join was in 1924, the Eggers'.

Chain of Command

Passed down through the generations, a person, when elected Head of their House, is expected to take on their family's Council duties.

Brant:"Presiding Officer of the Court." Opens the meetings, makes speeches when appropriate, soothes discussions that go ill. Very much a respected, and powerful, moderator.

Verlaine: "Keeper of the Dead, Justice and Judge of the House Court." Buries bodies of the dead (and determines cause of death) in a special graveyard at Verlaine Manor. Sentences criminals within the families, when it is a crime in reference to another of their kind, and sees personally that it is carried out.

Marwan: "Investigator of the Court, Information Officer of the Council." During a trial, comes up with the information of what happened, so that a decision can be safely made. A number of the Marwan family have shown certain Shadow ley qualities, such as seeing into the past; an ancestor like this cemented their place in the Court and Council. Often they spy on Normals.

Teva: "Council Treasurer." Keeps the books in place, manages the collected funds in reference to the Council's meeting house, and is financial advisor for all of the ley families.

Fjell: "Keeper of the Books." Records Council meetings, family births, family trees, and keeps the records of the Council Treasurer safe.

Meryett: "Defender of Justice." Solicitor (prosecution) of the Court.

Sumdari: "Seeker of Justice." Barrister (advocator) of the Court.

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