Disclaimer: All characters are owned by J.K. Rowling
The clouds had parted to let in the golden rays of the sun into the dark and gloomy corridors of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Up inside the 3rd floor there was nothing but total silence and an eerie sense of mystery into it. They say this is where all the magic happens. This is the isolated place in Hogwarts, where ironically the darkest forms of magic will take place, together with the birth of a history that will change the school forever.
A metal door with golden plates and an image of a lion engraved onto it slightly opened. A hush of words can be heard from inside. A deep and very manly voice was uttering words that were rather in a very desperate and fearful tone. Despite the long silence that followed afterwards, it is obvious that the man is expecting an answer from someone. The echoing of his footfalls clearly narrates his impatience.
"We need a new plan. Salazar has found out that we were only tricking him."
"I'm sorry if I failed, Godric. I didn't know he was spying on us. How could I forget that Slytherin can talk to snakes? He's been using that pet of his to hear our conversations!"
"Don't worry too much, Helga. We both forgot. Actually, we had been forgetting all along that Slytherin is more powerful than we think. But he won't hear us here. I've cast a Silencing Spell on the whole room. However, we still need a better plan. That or we will die."
Another set of footsteps echoed throughout the corridors. This one was rather in a hurry, as if someone is actually running after it. The door banged open and as soon as it had swung, it had also closed. A woman with wavy dark brown hair and deep brown eyes and a very slender body was backed on the closed door, breathing so heavily that she couldn't even let out her words.
"Try to breathe first, Rowena. I know we are in a hurry but you've been torturing yourself lately," said the woman with blonde hair and a very small frame.
"She's right you know. I see you haven't slept lately and the shadows beneath your eyes testify to that," muttered the man who was tall, has a white beard dangling down to his chest, and wearing glasses that resemble the crescent moon. The eyes behind them were full of wit, as well as worry.
"Don't worry about me. Right now, I have good news."
There was a very swift transition from her exhausted face to a one that was wearing a smile in it. And not just any smile, it was a smile full of hope.
"What is it?" said the man who was smiling now.
"I found out Salazar's new plan. But you have to listen carefully to this one. This isn't like his usual dark schemes. This one is marked with pure evil, and I can say that this is also his best one ever."
"Don't remind me of the time Salazar tried to trick you into drinking a poisonous potion. I still can't believe he thought you would fall for that, you of all people." Helga Hufflepuff was trying not to laugh hard now.
"Yes, I can still remember it like it was yesterday. He actually mixed the potion with my pumpkin juice and waited for me to drink it. But when I saw tiny air bubbles appearing on the surface of the goblet, I knew I wouldn't be stupid enough to drink something that would either be boiling with hotness or steaming with poison."
The two women were so immersed in their conversation that they forgot that they weren't alone inside the room. There was Godric Gryffindor, their leader, looking down on them with a blank expression on his face.
"Why did you women stop? I was actually looking forward to hearing the part when Salazar got a taste of his own medicine, literally."
"Oh don't fool us, Godric. I know that what you're thinking right now as our wise old leader that we should stop babbling like there is still tomorrow because there might actually not be a tomorrow," muttered Helga. Gryffindor merely smiled.
"Oh alright! Enough of the babbling. Here's what I've found out..." And just as fast as a bubble would pop, all their expressions turned back to nothing but anxiety. This was obviously something that could change their lives forever.
Ravenclaw went on with her story... "Salazar's wife is pregnant; she's going to bear a child. And not just any child, a son." She knew this was too much for her friends to handle from the vacant expressions on their faces, so she chose to continue. "He is planning to continue his work through his heir. I don't know how many generations he is going to wait, but the longer, the better. His abilities and knowledge will be passed to every generation, and as every descendant of his learns more and more, so as their power will increase... until the time that his own true heir returns..."
"You know, that doesn't sound unfamiliar to me. I knew Slytherin is a copycat!" said Helga.
From these words, Gryffindor let out a sigh but nonetheless opted to say a few words. "Obviously he has a penchant for creating pastiches of my plans... but on the evil side. And I can't believe his wife is pregnant too." He let out a smile. "You think our sons will be best friends?"
"I doubt it," both women cried.
"So anyway, what do we do?" Helga said with a very confused look.
"We make his plan backfire," Rowena answered with a hint of determination and excitement on her face.
"And just how do we do that?"
"Let my wand show you the way..." She pulled out her wand. It was colored navy blue with linings of bronze and gold in it. It was about 9 inches in length and it was really very slender, enough for her to grip it tightly. Her wand is known to be the temple of absolute knowledge, that is, it knows more than the bearer could ever know. It was made specifically for Rowena when she was very young. Her grandfather, who was a very powerful wizard, wanted her only granddaughter to discover things that no witch or wizard has ever known before. And the wand gave her that ability. And since it was given to her on her 7th birthday, it has never failed to teach her.
She spread her palm and let her wand lay on it. Both of her friends backed a few feet away, obviously anticipating something. Then she muttered "Absolvo Veritaserum." With these words the wand shook from its idle position and hovered to the air. At first it was just a few inches above her palm, but gradually it flew upwards until it reached the middle of the room. And from it, a shining light of white and blue filled the room, which made all of them cover their eyes. A few seconds afterwards, the wand was showing them several images which were floating around it. Obviously this is how Rowena shows all her ideas to them, and they had grown immune to its peculiarity.
"So we perform a spell that would allow his heir only to emerge after 1000 years. And then what?" Helga was clearly very confused.
"With that much time, we teach my heir to defeat his heir." Gryffindor obviously liked this. He couldn't take his mind off the idea that his heir will continue to block out the evil schemes that Slytherin will pass through his descendants, which he likes so much.
"Right you are, Godric." But she wasn't at all impressed that someone understood everything she said. She had gotten used to the fact that Gryffindor would understand her plan while Hufflepuff will end up sitting down all confused. She had long ago decided to leave the dirty work to her, which is, spying over Slytherin and executing all her plans. Yes, her plans. She was the brains; Godric was the leader, the advisor, and the protector. And Helga, well, Helga was the hand and feet of the group.
"So what's the spell?" Rowena let out a sigh from Helga's words.
"We need to let his wife drink this potion I made. Aside from allowing me to take control of the infant's powers, it would also make her sleep. Then I shall cast a spell to bind the powers of the unborn child, which will continue up to a thousand years."
"Why can't we just make it last forever? And don't you think that the powers will get so strong once they've been released?" Helga was definitely more confused. But Rowena didn't mind. She was more than happy to answer this question of hers, more to show her wit.
"Because there's no known spell that will exceed the power of this binding spell. It's the longest time that we have. And for your second question, the spell would actually forbid the powers to get stronger. It will prohibit the combination of Slytherin's powers with that of his descendants. Sure the heir will be getting much knowledge, but without enough power, he won't be able to succeed. With this at hand, Gryffindor's heir can finally strip the powers from Slytherin's heir once and for all."
"I like it. When do we start?" Godric had been quiet for a while. He had gotten used to the constant exchange of questions and answers between the two and he has learned to just keep silent. Now, his words were filled with more determination.
"Tonight. Helga, I'll be coming with you. Godric, in case Slytherin finds us, you know what to do."
***
"I can't believe how easy this was." Helga was looking down at the body of an unconscious woman. There was a goblet beside her, near her hands, and juice was spilled on the floor. But that liquid is far from being juice. It's the potion Rowena made.
"Me neither." Rowena is now unrolling a small piece of parchment that she had drawn from her robes. There was a very neat cursive writing in it. And without any warning, she kneeled down beside the woman, took her hands, and muttered her spell. A glow of yellow light suddenly appeared from her hands and moved to the hand that she held. And just like that, the glow had disappeared. And she stood up with a look of triumph on her face.
"That's it? You've bound the power of Slytherin for 1000 years in just 10 seconds?" Helga was so amazed that her jaw was dropped. "You didn't even use your wand!"
"It was only partly me. The potion inside her was the one that allowed me to do it. And the spell required me to use my hands as an object of channeling, sort of like connecting our two bodies. And not an object that was merely an extension of my arms."
"Whatever. I swear if I had that wand I'd use it well."
"What do you mean use it well?"
"You know what I mean!"
And suddenly they heard a crashing sound outside. Ceasam Apparium! Rowena had drawn out her wand and had pointed it out to the door that was locked from the inside. The door suddenly opened with a loud banged, it's hinges almost got unscrewed. It was as if it was forced to be opened.
From the inside, both women saw that Gryffindor and Slytherin were already in a duel. Both held each other's wands and several objects were lying throughout the corridor which made it clear that they had been used to annihilate the other.
"Expelliarmus!" Slytherin shouted.
Before the spell took effect, Godric had apparated to his back and had shouted another spell at him. "Petrificus Totalus!" But it didn't work.
Slytherin turned around and threw a punch at him, and Godric back away just in time before it hit him.
"So you want to go manual... no problem with me."
Godric's wand had disappeared from his hand and he had leapt from his feet and was somersaulting mid-air towards Slytherin. Slytherin had obviously done the same thing. There are now two distinct objects flipping mid-air about to crash each other. Both women stood there in shock. And as the two bodies crashed into each other, a blinding light scattered from their bodies and they were both thrown at the opposite ends of the hall. Helga was standing there in total shock, as if she was the one who was petrified. Ravenclaw, on the other hand, had moved down the corridor and is now holding a hand down to her friend, or she thought. When the rugged figure looked up at him, she came to a state of shock like that of Hufflepuff. It wasn't Godric, it was Salazar. Before she could move, Slytherin had grabbed him on her arm and had pulled her towards him, pointed his wand at her. He muttered the words "Finite Apparatus" and was holding a very evil smirk down at her.
"You can't disapparate now. Amazing, isn't it, how Gryffindor and I can't kill each other. I would have thought I'm more powerful than Gryffindor, that I could take him down with just one glance."
"Clearly you're not as powerful as a basilisk, Salazar."
"You're right! Maybe someday I can use that, you clever, clever girl."
"Get off me! Or else..."
"Or else what? You'll kill me? You can't do anything now. You left your wand inside the room and we're both aware that you're the only person why could control it. Hufflepuff won't stand a chance against me, and I'm quite sure that she's inside hiding inside the closet. Too bad you can't disapparate because of my spell."
Rowena admitted to herself that he was right, though it hurt her a lot. Her wand was designed that only she could use it. It's just another wood in another person's hands. But that didn't make her despair. Witty as she has always been, an idea flashed into her mind. Actually it was more of a reminder.
In Slytherin's shock, she suddenly called out her wand, with a name that was unknown to anyone, until now. "Eagle's Eye!" As if it heard her, the wand suddenly disappeared in white and blue lights and reappeared in her hands. Pointing the wand to herself, she muttered the words "Mortum Inflamare Varitas Incantatum" and just like that, she died. Slytherin was well aware of what she did that he dropped her dead body to the floor and when he glanced down at her wand, it suddenly burst into flames.
"It appears to me that her pride is more important to her than her life. Stupid Mudblood." He was now kicking her lifeless body and smirking down at it. Then, from the corner of his eyes, he saw another figure standing up and ready to attack.
"Avada Kedavra!" Godric Gryffindor had regained his strength and had muttered the single spell that entered into his mind when he saw Rowena.
But as if because of mere chance and bad luck, Helga Hufflepuff suddenly appeared from the room and had blocked the spell from Slytherin, which caused her death.
Slytherin couldn't believe it. He was saved by Hufflepuff, not that she chose to. She had decided to conquer her fears and join the battle outside when she heard the spell that Rowena had muttered. She knew what it would do. It would take life from her, and then it would destroy her wand. She knew Rowena was dead. But unfortunately, the stars weren't in favor of her that night. Because when she barged out of the room, there she saw Salazar Slytherin, with an expression of shock, and then everything went black.
"You killed her, Godric. And you almost killed me."
"Now I won't miss."
Together they pointed their wands at each other and muttered the same Killing Curse at the same time. Red sparkling lights emerged from Gryffindor's wand, while Slytherin's had green. The spells were too powerful that it was actually pulling them to the center of the room. They both knew that if they got too close to each other, the energy would be so powerful that it would take both of them out. Out of desperation, he called out two names he knew might be able to help him. And they came.
The ghosts of Rowena and Helga were now standing beside him and they were smiling at him. "We're doing it now," he said to them. Both ghosts stepped inside Godric's body as they possessed him, giving him all the energy they had left in their soul.
Godric knew that it was working. The light from his wand now hand hints of gold in it, and it's power was getting stronger. In just a few seconds, his energy overpowered that of Slytherin's and all of it, including that of Slytherin, vanquished his opponent from the spot he was standing at.
With a final look of triumph he thanked both Rowena and Helga as their ghosts stepped out of his body and he whispered before he collapsed, "See you in a thousand years."
The clouds had parted to let in the golden rays of the sun into the dark and gloomy corridors of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Up inside the 3rd floor there was nothing but total silence and an eerie sense of mystery into it. They say this is where all the magic happens. This is the isolated place in Hogwarts, where ironically the darkest forms of magic will take place, together with the birth of a history that will change the school forever.
A metal door with golden plates and an image of a lion engraved onto it slightly opened. A hush of words can be heard from inside. A deep and very manly voice was uttering words that were rather in a very desperate and fearful tone. Despite the long silence that followed afterwards, it is obvious that the man is expecting an answer from someone. The echoing of his footfalls clearly narrates his impatience.
"We need a new plan. Salazar has found out that we were only tricking him."
"I'm sorry if I failed, Godric. I didn't know he was spying on us. How could I forget that Slytherin can talk to snakes? He's been using that pet of his to hear our conversations!"
"Don't worry too much, Helga. We both forgot. Actually, we had been forgetting all along that Slytherin is more powerful than we think. But he won't hear us here. I've cast a Silencing Spell on the whole room. However, we still need a better plan. That or we will die."
Another set of footsteps echoed throughout the corridors. This one was rather in a hurry, as if someone is actually running after it. The door banged open and as soon as it had swung, it had also closed. A woman with wavy dark brown hair and deep brown eyes and a very slender body was backed on the closed door, breathing so heavily that she couldn't even let out her words.
"Try to breathe first, Rowena. I know we are in a hurry but you've been torturing yourself lately," said the woman with blonde hair and a very small frame.
"She's right you know. I see you haven't slept lately and the shadows beneath your eyes testify to that," muttered the man who was tall, has a white beard dangling down to his chest, and wearing glasses that resemble the crescent moon. The eyes behind them were full of wit, as well as worry.
"Don't worry about me. Right now, I have good news."
There was a very swift transition from her exhausted face to a one that was wearing a smile in it. And not just any smile, it was a smile full of hope.
"What is it?" said the man who was smiling now.
"I found out Salazar's new plan. But you have to listen carefully to this one. This isn't like his usual dark schemes. This one is marked with pure evil, and I can say that this is also his best one ever."
"Don't remind me of the time Salazar tried to trick you into drinking a poisonous potion. I still can't believe he thought you would fall for that, you of all people." Helga Hufflepuff was trying not to laugh hard now.
"Yes, I can still remember it like it was yesterday. He actually mixed the potion with my pumpkin juice and waited for me to drink it. But when I saw tiny air bubbles appearing on the surface of the goblet, I knew I wouldn't be stupid enough to drink something that would either be boiling with hotness or steaming with poison."
The two women were so immersed in their conversation that they forgot that they weren't alone inside the room. There was Godric Gryffindor, their leader, looking down on them with a blank expression on his face.
"Why did you women stop? I was actually looking forward to hearing the part when Salazar got a taste of his own medicine, literally."
"Oh don't fool us, Godric. I know that what you're thinking right now as our wise old leader that we should stop babbling like there is still tomorrow because there might actually not be a tomorrow," muttered Helga. Gryffindor merely smiled.
"Oh alright! Enough of the babbling. Here's what I've found out..." And just as fast as a bubble would pop, all their expressions turned back to nothing but anxiety. This was obviously something that could change their lives forever.
Ravenclaw went on with her story... "Salazar's wife is pregnant; she's going to bear a child. And not just any child, a son." She knew this was too much for her friends to handle from the vacant expressions on their faces, so she chose to continue. "He is planning to continue his work through his heir. I don't know how many generations he is going to wait, but the longer, the better. His abilities and knowledge will be passed to every generation, and as every descendant of his learns more and more, so as their power will increase... until the time that his own true heir returns..."
"You know, that doesn't sound unfamiliar to me. I knew Slytherin is a copycat!" said Helga.
From these words, Gryffindor let out a sigh but nonetheless opted to say a few words. "Obviously he has a penchant for creating pastiches of my plans... but on the evil side. And I can't believe his wife is pregnant too." He let out a smile. "You think our sons will be best friends?"
"I doubt it," both women cried.
"So anyway, what do we do?" Helga said with a very confused look.
"We make his plan backfire," Rowena answered with a hint of determination and excitement on her face.
"And just how do we do that?"
"Let my wand show you the way..." She pulled out her wand. It was colored navy blue with linings of bronze and gold in it. It was about 9 inches in length and it was really very slender, enough for her to grip it tightly. Her wand is known to be the temple of absolute knowledge, that is, it knows more than the bearer could ever know. It was made specifically for Rowena when she was very young. Her grandfather, who was a very powerful wizard, wanted her only granddaughter to discover things that no witch or wizard has ever known before. And the wand gave her that ability. And since it was given to her on her 7th birthday, it has never failed to teach her.
She spread her palm and let her wand lay on it. Both of her friends backed a few feet away, obviously anticipating something. Then she muttered "Absolvo Veritaserum." With these words the wand shook from its idle position and hovered to the air. At first it was just a few inches above her palm, but gradually it flew upwards until it reached the middle of the room. And from it, a shining light of white and blue filled the room, which made all of them cover their eyes. A few seconds afterwards, the wand was showing them several images which were floating around it. Obviously this is how Rowena shows all her ideas to them, and they had grown immune to its peculiarity.
"So we perform a spell that would allow his heir only to emerge after 1000 years. And then what?" Helga was clearly very confused.
"With that much time, we teach my heir to defeat his heir." Gryffindor obviously liked this. He couldn't take his mind off the idea that his heir will continue to block out the evil schemes that Slytherin will pass through his descendants, which he likes so much.
"Right you are, Godric." But she wasn't at all impressed that someone understood everything she said. She had gotten used to the fact that Gryffindor would understand her plan while Hufflepuff will end up sitting down all confused. She had long ago decided to leave the dirty work to her, which is, spying over Slytherin and executing all her plans. Yes, her plans. She was the brains; Godric was the leader, the advisor, and the protector. And Helga, well, Helga was the hand and feet of the group.
"So what's the spell?" Rowena let out a sigh from Helga's words.
"We need to let his wife drink this potion I made. Aside from allowing me to take control of the infant's powers, it would also make her sleep. Then I shall cast a spell to bind the powers of the unborn child, which will continue up to a thousand years."
"Why can't we just make it last forever? And don't you think that the powers will get so strong once they've been released?" Helga was definitely more confused. But Rowena didn't mind. She was more than happy to answer this question of hers, more to show her wit.
"Because there's no known spell that will exceed the power of this binding spell. It's the longest time that we have. And for your second question, the spell would actually forbid the powers to get stronger. It will prohibit the combination of Slytherin's powers with that of his descendants. Sure the heir will be getting much knowledge, but without enough power, he won't be able to succeed. With this at hand, Gryffindor's heir can finally strip the powers from Slytherin's heir once and for all."
"I like it. When do we start?" Godric had been quiet for a while. He had gotten used to the constant exchange of questions and answers between the two and he has learned to just keep silent. Now, his words were filled with more determination.
"Tonight. Helga, I'll be coming with you. Godric, in case Slytherin finds us, you know what to do."
***
"I can't believe how easy this was." Helga was looking down at the body of an unconscious woman. There was a goblet beside her, near her hands, and juice was spilled on the floor. But that liquid is far from being juice. It's the potion Rowena made.
"Me neither." Rowena is now unrolling a small piece of parchment that she had drawn from her robes. There was a very neat cursive writing in it. And without any warning, she kneeled down beside the woman, took her hands, and muttered her spell. A glow of yellow light suddenly appeared from her hands and moved to the hand that she held. And just like that, the glow had disappeared. And she stood up with a look of triumph on her face.
"That's it? You've bound the power of Slytherin for 1000 years in just 10 seconds?" Helga was so amazed that her jaw was dropped. "You didn't even use your wand!"
"It was only partly me. The potion inside her was the one that allowed me to do it. And the spell required me to use my hands as an object of channeling, sort of like connecting our two bodies. And not an object that was merely an extension of my arms."
"Whatever. I swear if I had that wand I'd use it well."
"What do you mean use it well?"
"You know what I mean!"
And suddenly they heard a crashing sound outside. Ceasam Apparium! Rowena had drawn out her wand and had pointed it out to the door that was locked from the inside. The door suddenly opened with a loud banged, it's hinges almost got unscrewed. It was as if it was forced to be opened.
From the inside, both women saw that Gryffindor and Slytherin were already in a duel. Both held each other's wands and several objects were lying throughout the corridor which made it clear that they had been used to annihilate the other.
"Expelliarmus!" Slytherin shouted.
Before the spell took effect, Godric had apparated to his back and had shouted another spell at him. "Petrificus Totalus!" But it didn't work.
Slytherin turned around and threw a punch at him, and Godric back away just in time before it hit him.
"So you want to go manual... no problem with me."
Godric's wand had disappeared from his hand and he had leapt from his feet and was somersaulting mid-air towards Slytherin. Slytherin had obviously done the same thing. There are now two distinct objects flipping mid-air about to crash each other. Both women stood there in shock. And as the two bodies crashed into each other, a blinding light scattered from their bodies and they were both thrown at the opposite ends of the hall. Helga was standing there in total shock, as if she was the one who was petrified. Ravenclaw, on the other hand, had moved down the corridor and is now holding a hand down to her friend, or she thought. When the rugged figure looked up at him, she came to a state of shock like that of Hufflepuff. It wasn't Godric, it was Salazar. Before she could move, Slytherin had grabbed him on her arm and had pulled her towards him, pointed his wand at her. He muttered the words "Finite Apparatus" and was holding a very evil smirk down at her.
"You can't disapparate now. Amazing, isn't it, how Gryffindor and I can't kill each other. I would have thought I'm more powerful than Gryffindor, that I could take him down with just one glance."
"Clearly you're not as powerful as a basilisk, Salazar."
"You're right! Maybe someday I can use that, you clever, clever girl."
"Get off me! Or else..."
"Or else what? You'll kill me? You can't do anything now. You left your wand inside the room and we're both aware that you're the only person why could control it. Hufflepuff won't stand a chance against me, and I'm quite sure that she's inside hiding inside the closet. Too bad you can't disapparate because of my spell."
Rowena admitted to herself that he was right, though it hurt her a lot. Her wand was designed that only she could use it. It's just another wood in another person's hands. But that didn't make her despair. Witty as she has always been, an idea flashed into her mind. Actually it was more of a reminder.
In Slytherin's shock, she suddenly called out her wand, with a name that was unknown to anyone, until now. "Eagle's Eye!" As if it heard her, the wand suddenly disappeared in white and blue lights and reappeared in her hands. Pointing the wand to herself, she muttered the words "Mortum Inflamare Varitas Incantatum" and just like that, she died. Slytherin was well aware of what she did that he dropped her dead body to the floor and when he glanced down at her wand, it suddenly burst into flames.
"It appears to me that her pride is more important to her than her life. Stupid Mudblood." He was now kicking her lifeless body and smirking down at it. Then, from the corner of his eyes, he saw another figure standing up and ready to attack.
"Avada Kedavra!" Godric Gryffindor had regained his strength and had muttered the single spell that entered into his mind when he saw Rowena.
But as if because of mere chance and bad luck, Helga Hufflepuff suddenly appeared from the room and had blocked the spell from Slytherin, which caused her death.
Slytherin couldn't believe it. He was saved by Hufflepuff, not that she chose to. She had decided to conquer her fears and join the battle outside when she heard the spell that Rowena had muttered. She knew what it would do. It would take life from her, and then it would destroy her wand. She knew Rowena was dead. But unfortunately, the stars weren't in favor of her that night. Because when she barged out of the room, there she saw Salazar Slytherin, with an expression of shock, and then everything went black.
"You killed her, Godric. And you almost killed me."
"Now I won't miss."
Together they pointed their wands at each other and muttered the same Killing Curse at the same time. Red sparkling lights emerged from Gryffindor's wand, while Slytherin's had green. The spells were too powerful that it was actually pulling them to the center of the room. They both knew that if they got too close to each other, the energy would be so powerful that it would take both of them out. Out of desperation, he called out two names he knew might be able to help him. And they came.
The ghosts of Rowena and Helga were now standing beside him and they were smiling at him. "We're doing it now," he said to them. Both ghosts stepped inside Godric's body as they possessed him, giving him all the energy they had left in their soul.
Godric knew that it was working. The light from his wand now hand hints of gold in it, and it's power was getting stronger. In just a few seconds, his energy overpowered that of Slytherin's and all of it, including that of Slytherin, vanquished his opponent from the spot he was standing at.
With a final look of triumph he thanked both Rowena and Helga as their ghosts stepped out of his body and he whispered before he collapsed, "See you in a thousand years."