This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.
Carwen was a beautiful young woman. She loved cooking and was well known for her kitchen crafts. She had wild red hair and a plump build, but her kindness to everyone around her overshadowed everything else.
Her parents owned an inn in the village but were struggling to make ends meet. She didn't have a large dowry yet somehow it was arranged for her to be betrothed to a traveller with high stature and wealthy background. So, to save her family from becoming destitute, when she turned sixteen years old, she was to be married off to this stranger.
Her two younger sisters; Gabrielle and Elizabeth, both loved her, and she had quickly become the twins' main caregiver. When her mother had fallen pregnant again, Carwen's father had hoped for a boy. When the girls were born, he was furious. Her parents argued constantly because he wanted a male heir. He felt no remorse for ignoring his daughters.
Carwen's father left just after the twins turned two years old. He had met another woman, so he left Carwen's mother in the hope this woman could provide him with an heir.
This left Carwen's mother desperate. She needed to find a way to provide for her daughters, so she became a barmaid. This left Carwen home alone to raise her twin sisters all by herself.
When she turned fifteen, she became despondent. She had hoped something would be done to prevent her being married off to a stranger. She knew her time was fast approaching, her pure virtue was the only thing she had to hold onto to find a man, and her mother's only hope for salvation.
But Carwen had no interest in marrying the rich traveler. So she did the only thing she could, she ran away. She loved her sisters dearly, but sacrificing her chance at love she couldn't do.
This was breaking a promise to help her family, but she had no alternative. Her mother refused to listen to reason. When she ran away, she left with nothing but the clothes on her back.
She walked for hours and hours until she became tired. Then she sat down next to the road to rest and catch her breath.
In the distance she saw a tiny cottage draped in honeysuckle. With renewed vigor she walked the last miles to reach the tiny cottage, perhaps it was abandoned or she could ask the strangers for a place to sleep before carrying on with her journey the next day.
When she reached the cottage she saw an elderly lady on a wooden bench overlooking the garden; a man Carwen's age working at a wooden bench not far away. Before the man noticed her, she saw that he was crafting without his hands touching the bench.
The dark haired man was shirtless; sweat was dripping down his brown muscled chest. He looked up at her; and as their eyes met the magic sparked between them.
"Hello Carwen darling," The grey-haired lady said.
"I'm sorry, do you know who I am?" She asked nervously.
She didn't want to be found, perhaps she shouldn't have come here. The man gazed at her with amazement, as if she had just appeared from a dream.
"We will know you," the lady said curiously.
"I'm Trevor Hufflepuff," the man introduced himself. "Nonna is a fortune-teller; she said you would be arriving soon."
Carwen instantly felt something between them, it was love at first sight. The two grew to love one another, their magic called to each other.
She quickly took on the role of taking care of Nonna and Trevor.
The two got married soon after, and Trevor often took letters to the village for her siblings. She heard that both the twins had been married off to wealthy men, and finally her mother could live out the rest of her days in relative luxury.
Her siblings were happy; she couldn't ask for more than that. After their mother died, the twins left with their respective husbands and she was content with her life and staying at home.
She never regretted having chosen love; despite the fact that she was lonely and longing for a child.
"Nonna, why can't I have a child?" Carwen asked one day.
"Dear one, you will have your baby girl. She will be more powerful than you and Trevor put together. She will one day be known as one of the greatest witches of the age, just have patience, child," Nonna responded.
Empowered by this message, she was patient. Nonna had never been wrong before. She was happy to wait till her time came.
One morning she was feeling ill, and went to wake Nonna for breakfast, to find the old lady had passed away during the night. She and Trevor were upset, but after a few months they realised they were expecting a child.
Trevor was thrilled for her that they would be having a child, uncommon during those times, he had no care if his child was a boy or a girl. He was just happy to have a healthy wife; and soon their love would produce the greatest gift of all - a magical love child.
They knew it would be a girl; and spoke for hours on what to call their baby. They eventually chose the name Helga. Helga was chosen in tribute to Trevor's mama he never knew. She had died giving birth to him. Which left him to grow up with his Nonna, who knew everything before it happened. She had greeted Death like an old friend, passing away during the night, knowing her passing would make room for a small child - her great-granddaughter. She knew Helga would do wonderful things during her life, using her kindness, love, tolerance and curiosity.
This child would revolutionize the craft, and centuries later the legacy of Hufflepuff would be written in each book, told to each young witch and wizard. Everyone would know about their history.
The day Helga was born marked a new chapter in the young couples life. One that would change not only their lives, but millions of magic users thereafter as well.