Dearest Nicholas,

Well, of course that is the most exciting news! Congratulations, my dear. I have always known you could do it, of course, but that should not cut the sweetness of your victory.

As to your concerns about securing its storage place — of course I will be home to consult as soon as I have finished this business in Vienna, but I do have some immediate ideas.

The stone, as I understand it from your lectures on the topic, should be strongly blood-aspected, due to the infused enforcements (and of course colorimetric associations introduced in the Rubedo stage), yes? In which case, the ideal place to mask its unexpected power from casual divination would be in an area with similarly aspected background ether.

No, I'm not suggesting you drop it in a vat of blood, you silly man.

Tell me — have you tested the rate of its production of the Elixir? Specifically, does it convert only the water present at the interface, or the totality of the body into which it is introduced? I remember that was one of the unknown parameters of your theory, because you had no indication whether the "totality" invocation would bind to both the input and output behaviors, or merely to the output behavior.

Additionally, to what extent does the stone cope with impurities in the base of the Elixir? Be a dear and tell me how well it converts a measure of salt water; I think that detail may be critical to my idea for long-term concealment.

In the meantime, the wards on our home should be quite sufficient for temporary use. But still — subtlety is key. I would suggest you go out and buy another batch of ingredients for the last ritual, as though you had failed once again at the cusp of victory. Now that your work is complete, we can certainly afford it, and it should keep those jackals off the scent until my return.

Vienna is, of course, as lovely as you may remember from our trip here seventeen years ago. The bakery you were fond of has unfortunately closed, but it has been replaced by a scrivener that is producing the most cunning enchanted quills. I have enclosed one for you.

Despite the luster of the city, business is tedious. It is proceeding, however slowly, and I anticipate wrapping up negotiations in no more than another few weeks.

I miss you terribly, and eagerly look forward to your next letter.

Yours with love,

Perenelle