Disclaimer: You people aren't stupid, you know it's not mine...

Pairings: Salazar Slytherin/Rowena Ravenclaw

Mentioned Godric Gryffindor/Helga Hufflepuff

A/N: I wrote this as my entry to be part of the Gryffindor Inter-House Competition Roleplaying team on Hogwarts Extreme and I guess that it was fairly good since I did actually make the team. The challenge was as follows:

Right.. you all think you're good at roleplaying? Well, you're about to find out! Four lucky Gryffindors will get the chance to compete in the role playing competition of their lives along with members from the other IHC Teams!

Think you can beat out all the others and win eternal glory for your house and cool prizes for yourself? Well! Step right up, this is the place for you!

So, how are you to achieve this marvelous request you ask me? Well, it's simple.. to convince me and the rest of the Gryffindor staff to select you to compete for our house you must write a story for us, though you will be role playing in the actual competition short stories will allow us to see how your story writing skills and character portrayal and your grammar ability.

Now, there are some rules that you must consider with your stories.. so pay close attention because I'll know if anyone doesn't follow them and also if you can't follow the rules for this I'll know you won't be able to handle the IHC rules and your entry will be disqualified, no matter if it's the best thing I ever read

The Rules

1. Your fic must deal with the Hogwarts houses in some form, it could be anything from a love story where two of the founders fell in love to a modern story where the houses have to work together as a team to achieve a goal... as long as the houses of Hogwarts are a key element.

2. Your fic must contain canon characters.. I don't mind if you have an original here or there but you MUST have canons..

3. Your fic must be at least 1k long.. - this means a thousand words people and I WILL be checking them in word.

4. You should use proper grammar/spelling and a wide vocabulary, make your story grammatically correct- use a spell check or have someone proofread it!

5. It MUST follow the TOS of Hex, in other words.. PG etc..

6. It must be owled to ME Celestina-Hermione by no later than August the 20th! This means you have roughly ten days

You may begin... impress us

Now, as you should have figured out from the summary, I chose to go the route of writing a love story about the founders (more specifically, Salazar Slytherin and Rowena Ravenclaw). This story has no swearing and doesn't go beyond the occasional kiss between the pair (normally I would have done more, but I needed to make sure I followed the rules). I may write a lengthier, more passionate version later, I don't know. For now, this is it.

I would also like to apologize for the story being a little rushed. I did actually plan to have a little confrontation between Salazar and Rowena when he left Hogwarts and for him to have a chat with Helga (and maybe have Godric have a thing for Rowena...just to create conflict), but I ran out of time. Just because the contest gave me ten days to write the story, doesn't mean I didn't wait until the last day and scramble to get it done (cough...).

Enjoy!

Bronze and Silver

"Gryffindor, you prat!" echoed through the halls of a newly constructed Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, bouncing off the cobbled walls like a bludger off a beater's bat. The source of the noise was currently in the dungeons, seething with rage after being startled by his colleague, Godric Gryffindor, while trying to brew a particularly difficult potion.

"Do you have any idea what could have happened if I had dropped these lacewing flies in the cauldron before the exact time when they were required?" Salazar Slytherin demanded, shaking a fistful of said flies in the face of a suitably cowed (or so Salazar felt) looking Godric, "Well, do you?"

"Uh..." the other man stumbled, unable to identify the potion (and how could he, being that it was one of Salazar's own creation) and, therefore, unable to identify the potential consequences of the a-fore mentioned mistake, "It would have exploded?"

"This would not have been a mere 'explosion', Godric," Salazar sneered, "The lacewing flies must be added just as the last traces of the magnesium ribbon are disintegrating and mixing with the hydrochloric acid. If not, the compound created from belladonna and hellebore would not have the necessary time to stabilize. The result would not only be the combustion of all my hard work, but a poison so powerful that even the slightest contact with one's skin would prove deadly which would, undoubtedly, cause imminent and excruciatingly painful deaths for us both. However, if you must insist on using layman's terms, yes, Godric, it would indeed 'explode'."

Godric, for his part, looked horrified, "Sweet Merlin, Sal! Why would you want to tamper with something that dangerous?"

"Well, if our theory is correct, it should all be worth it in the end," a scholarly female voice interrupted, "Besides, if added at the right time, the lacewing flies should actually stabalise the compound. Furthermore, the addition of mandrake roots should negate the effects of any toxins in the potion." Both men turned to see Rowena Ravenclaw striding purposefully towards the simmering cauldron, a rather exhausted looking, yet infinitely cheerful, Helga Hufflepuff beside her. Rowena peered into the cauldron, brushing rebellious strands of long brown hair that had escaped from her messy bun behind her ears in an absentminded fashion. She made a disappointed "tutting" noise as she pulled back, "I don't suppose we'll be getting around to adding ginger today then."

Salazar made his own inspection before groaning and pinching the bridge of his nose. The potion had gone a swampy green in color, not at all the light turquoise he'd been aiming for. "It's spoiled," he said, "Again."

"Well, you should have waited for me," Rowena scolded in her "lecturing tone" which reminded them all of every strict teacher they'd ever had. Rowena's skills in reprimanding were second only to Helga, who's motherly mannerisms had a way of working to make the others feel incredibly guilty when she was "disappointed in them". Fortunately for Salazar, Rowena seemed to take pity on him as her face softened slightly and her tone was considerably gentler when she next spoke. "You've been working on this potion almost non-stop for the past month," she said, resting a hand on his shoulder, "Maybe you should take a break." Salazar didn't say anything, but headed off in the direction of his quarters, leaving Rowena to stare after him in concern.

"I'm really sorry, Ro," Godric said, trying to convey his sincerity through emerald colored eyes, "This is all my fault."

Rowena shook her head. "If this hadn't happened, something else would have. We've tried to brew this potion several times now, but every time something went wrong," Rowena paused, looking thoughtful, "We still need to find the proper catalyst for the moonstone and wormwood and we're stuck on one of the key ingredients. It's all been terribly frustrating."

Godric pretended to be shocked, "Something the great Lady Ravenclaw can't figure out? Next you'll expect me to believe that vampires can't be killed by a stake through the heart!"

Rowena offered a tiny smile at this obvious attempt to cheer her up. "They can't, though their hearts are the most vulnerable parts of their bodies. Also, it would be more difficult for them to heal if they were injured with a blade made from a combination of elder wood and silver," she explained quietly, though she was sure Godric must know these things already.

"Come now, Rowena. You too, Godric," Helga said, smiling brightly at her friends, "I didn't spend all day harvesting ginger to let it go to waste. I have a new cookie recipe I've been meaning to try and I'll need your unbiased opinions."

While Godric looked positively ecstatic at the promise of some of Helga's famous cooking, Rowena shook her head. "Thank you, but I'm afraid I'll have to decline," she said, "I want to check on Salazar."

"Alright then," Helga agreed, "I probably would have suggested it myself if you hadn't. Why don't both of you join Ric and I when you're ready?"

Rowena nodded her consent before hurrying off to Salazar Slytherin's suite.

---SS/RR---

Salazar didn't even open his eyes at the gentle knocking on his door. He knew who it was. "You can just come in, Rowena. You know the password." A few moments passed and then he felt the bed dip beside him, a cool hand settling on his forehead.

"You okay?" Salazar looked up at the young woman beside him, her usually stern eyes betraying concern

"I'm absolutely fine," he told her.

"We'll figure it out eventually."

"I know."

For a while they just sat in companionable silence, each basking the other's presence. Salazar loved spending time alone with Rowena. It was the only time he could be himself. It was the only time he could forget about the masks he wore and stoic facades and just...be.

Reluctantly, he broke the stillness, leaning up to capture his love's lips with his own. "Come, I smell Helga's cookies and I've been wallowing in the dungeons far too long for one day."

---SS/RR---

Salazar smiled to himself, hearing laughter drifting through an open window. The women were dueling again. Rowena's vast knowledge of spells made her a formidable opponent; she had a counter for everything and her spells were always performed with precision and accuracy. She battled strategically, thinking every one of her moves out carefully, and she had an incredible level of concentration. Helga, however, was constantly moving and surprisingly light on her feet. Very much like Godric, she didn't think before acting during battle (though, with Godric, it was more a case of doesn't think before acting ever) and didn't give her opponents much of a chance to either. Although her face was always serious when dueling, her eyes shone in a way that let everyone know she was having fun.

Salazar sat down and waited for Rowena's return and the opportunity to present her with his gift.

---SS/RR---

"Merlin, Sal," Rowena whispered, "It's beautiful!" She was holding an exotic looking flower, closest resembling a lily. It's petals were a shimmering bronze, lined with veins of silver. Beautiful was an understatement.

"Do you know what it is?"

"Speciosus Planta," she said, still in awe of the exquisite flower, "Where on earth did you get it?"

Salazar shrugged, clearly pleased with her reaction; "I've built up a few connections. I initially got it to try in the potion..."

"Yes, this would make the perfect catalyst for a moonstone-wormwood compound!" she cried excitedly. She turned to Salazar, trying to give the flower back to him, "Don't waste something this rare on me! You must use it for your potion!"

He waved her away, smiling affectionately, "Nonsense! Giving it to you is not a waste! Besides, we still have to figure out that pesky key ingredient and I'm sure I'll be able to obtain another one by then."

"Well," Rowena said reluctantly, "If you're sure..."

"Of course I'm sure," Salazar assured her, "When I saw it I couldn't not give it to you. It reminds me of us."

At that moment, Rowena looked into his eyes and saw shining silver looking back at her and was sure he was seeing bronze. "Thank you," she said before his lips were pressed against her own, cutting off anything else she might have told him.

---SS/RR---

Salazar didn't open his eyes when he felt the bed dip beside him like it had so many months ago. "You didn't knock," he muttered.

"You always tell me not to."

"Since when do you do what I tell you?" There was a pause filled with unfamiliar, uncomfortable silence before he spoke again, "Did Ric send you?"

"No," a pause, "Helga might come down here later though."

Salazar groaned, finally looking up at her, "He doesn't fight fair."

Rowena raised an eyebrow, "This coming from you?"

Salazar hummed in agreement, "And I am the one who picks on him for always being Mr. Noble."

"That you do," Rowena agreed, settling down next to him, "Sal...is it really such a problem if Muggle-borns attend the school?"

Salazar sighed, hearing the unspoken plea in her voice and knowing that he'd lost, "I suppose not. It's just...this was the way I was raised and it's hard to let go of the pureblood ideals I've had all my life."

"I know," Rowena said softly, "But you'll try?"

Salazar nodded, "I will." For you.

---SS/RR---

Godric sighed as he sank into the lush red couch in his quarters. He hated arguing with his friends and fights with Salazar seemed to be getting more and more frequent.

"Don't worry, Godric," Helga whispered as she sat beside him, allowing him to run his finger through her soft red hair, "I won't let Sal keep Muggle-borns from Hogwarts and neither will Rowena."

"I know that," Godric said, "But this is just one fight of many. I just don't understand him anymore! Everything has to be a fight with him!"

"It's okay, Ric," Helga soothed.

"No, it's not," Godric said, "I'm afraid, Helga. I'm afraid that all of this is coming to an end. That this'll be the end of us."

Helga wanted to reassure him, she really did, but she couldn't. She couldn't because she'd heard something in his voice that had never been there before. Defeat.

And it frightened her.

So Helga did the only thing she could think of. She wrapped her arms around her friend and held him close to her; not in the way she would've done back when they'd been dating, but in a simple gesture of giving and receiving comfort. "It's okay," she said again. She could only hope it was.

---SS/RR---

Salazar smiled as he read the first line of Rowena's letter a second time. The letter itself was nothing too significant, just letting him know that Rowena was visiting Hogsmeade with Helga and would be gone all day, and the first line, only being two words long, hardly seemed any better. Yet it was.

Dear Silver, it proclaimed in Rowena's neat script. To anyone else, it wouldn't have meant anything, but to him...it meant everything. So pleased was he, he elected to read it a third time.

Dear Silver,

As his eyes scanned the words, his smile turned to a contemplative frown.

Dear Silver, echoed through his mind.

Silver.

Suddenly, his eyes lit up and he dashed out of his quarters just as fast as he could.

---SS/RR---

Salazar mopped sweat off his forehead and smiled as he bottled and labeled his latest invention. Finally, he had done it! Years of wondering what the missing ingredient could be, of bringing his best Potions students in on it to no avail...and it was right under his nose all along! Or, rather, over it.

"Silver," he muttered incredulously, "Liquid silver." It really was a wonder that he didn't think of it sooner; the metal had all kinds of magical properties.

Salazar was nearly bursting with excitement of his success, but knew that he couldn't tell Rowena. Not until he knew for sure it would work.

"With a potion that induces prophetic vision," he whispered as he studied the turquoise liquid, "Soon, I'll know a lot of things."

---SS/RR---

"We have talked about this, Salazar, and we will not ban Muggle-borns from this school!" Godric shouted, towering over the other man in a way most would find quite intimidating. However, Salazar Slytherin was not backing down.

"We must for the good of the wizarding world!" he argued, "You've seen the destruction Muggles have wrought on their own world! What's to stop them from doing the same here? They're barbaric, warlike creatures and have no place in this school!"

"You can not hold children responsible for the crimes of their ancestors!" Godric cried, aghast.

"Oh, spare me the righteous speeches, please!" Salazar growled, "They will destroy us all! And if they don't destroy our world through acts of supreme violence and mayhem, then they will destroy our way of life! They come to this school with no understanding of how this world works and push their ideals onto us! They think they're superior to us and I won't stand for it!"

"They think no such thing!" Godric roared - sounding every bit the lion he'd chosen to represent him, "So what if they don't know about our culture? Isn't that what a school is for? To learn? Besides, any laws that are changed so thoroughly by their mere presence obviously need to be changed anyway!" Godric paused to take a breath, though it was clear that his rage had in no way decreased. "It seems to me," he said slowly – dangerously, "That you're the one trying to press your beliefs onto other people. You're the one who thinks he's superior. Tell me Salazar, do you have any idea how their world works? What their culture's like? I would suggest that you actually know what you're talking about before trying to ostracize a group of people that is becoming a larger and larger part of the wizarding community."

Salazar narrowed his eyes, "I can see that I am wasting my time."

"You are," Godric agreed, clearly glad that the argument was over.

"I mean that I am wasting my time at this school," Salazar said nastily, "If you will not listen to reason, then I feel that my talents would be better suited elsewhere. You've only been holding me back and I will not stand for it any longer!"

With that said, Salazar Slytherin left in a swirl of robes, leaving behind a shocked co-founder.

---SS/RR---

Salazar walked briskly, only focussing on getting past the wards so he could disapparate. He didn't want to remember his fight with Godric or the hurt look on his face when he left. He didn't want to remember the way he'd left Rowena in tears or the way she'd thrown the gold locket he'd given her for her birthday on the floor. He didn't want to remember Helga finding him in the hallway or the nasty, spiteful things he'd said to her. He just wanted to forget any of it had ever happened.

I have to do this, he reminded himself, I have to make them think that I really want to leave or they'll try to find me. I can't afford that. He shuddered as he remembered the horror of the vision he'd had. All the death, destruction and suffering that had been centered around Hogwarts...that had been caused by his heir. It had been one of the worst things he'd ever had to witness. How could one man possibly hate so much? And to think, this boy who fancied himself a lord had used his chamber, his beloved basilisk! Salazar was ashamed to admit that he had briefly considered killing the great snake, but he hadn't been able to bring himself to do it. He had raised the creature from the time it was an egg and couldn't stand the thought of spilling its blood. No, he would stop this from ever happening.

Salazar had it all planned out. He had purchased a small cottage outside of the Muggle town of Little Hangleton. Perhaps immersion in Muggle life would teach his descendants tolerance and prevent the horror he'd seen waiting in the future. As for the here and now, his fellow founders (Friends, his mind whispered forlornly) would never think to look for him there. They'd be safe.

Taking one final, longing look at the place he'd called home, Salazar Slytherin disaparated.

---SS/RR---

No one knew what became of Salazar Slytherin or his real reasons for leaving. All the students of Hogwarts knew was what they could see for themselves.

All the Slytherins knew was that they had been abandoned. That they had been left to fend for themselves against a school that was getting increasingly more prejudiced against them.

All the other houses knew was that their beloved professors had sunk into a deep depression and were merely shadows of their former selves. All they knew was that Salazar Slytherin (and, by default, his house) was to blame.

Gryffindors took it the hardest, feeling that it was up to them to stand up for everyone else. Soon a feud erupted between the Gryffindors and the Slytherins. The three remaining founders tried to fix things, but it was too late. The damage had been done.

---SS/RR---

"So you will do this?" she asked, "You will bring my daughter back here?"

"I'll do whatever it takes," the young man promised solemnly, looking sorrowfully at the rapidly aging woman in the hospital bed; her once beautiful face turned sunken and pale, "But Professor Ravenclaw-"

She smiled at him, though the smile was without the brilliance it once contained, "Please, call me Rowena. We are not in school."

The young man seemed to internally debate something for a moment before continuing. "Lady Rowena," he said slowly, "I dearly hope that I'm not overstepping my boundaries by saying this, but you do not look well. I fear that I may not be able to bring dear Helena back in time - though I will surely try. If-if I don't make it...is there a message you would like me to give her?"

Rowena Ravenclaw's eyes softened and, for a moment, her famous beauty was present once again. "If that is the case," she said, "Then tell her...that she is like her father. He was a stubborn pillock with a jealous streak a mile wide and was never very good at apologies. He left me too." Here, she paused and turned to look at something to her left, "But, in the end...he came back."

The young man followed her gaze and was surprised that he hadn't noticed the beautiful flower sitting on the table earlier. The flower was rather exotic looking and its petals were bronze streaked with silver. It was in a green vase with three words carved into the side.

"Bronze and Silver," he whispered.

Rowena Ravenclaw nodded contentedly and closed her eyes.

THE END

A/N: Love it? Hate it? Well, there's a little button down there that you should click so you can tell me. Reviews are, as always, wanted and appreciated (even criticism).

Thanks for reading!