A/N: written for Hogwarts assignment 1, Astronomy Task Two - Write about one or more of the Hogwarts Founders.
I was binge-watching Merlin the other day, and the inspiration for this fic came to me. And also I really need to apologise for making up those awful names.
Helena did not agree with her mother when the founders went to see the tournament, and took their children along with them. She was grumbling all the way to the stadium.
"I do not get why we need to do this, Megan." she groaned, walking up to her best friend.
Megan Hufflepuff looked at her friend, her eyebrows furrowed. She had not bothered to hide her agitation. For the past week, she had been hearing Helena Ravenclaw complain about the ordeal that will befall the darling contenders of the tournament.
Megan knew that Helena was kind and looked upon everyone with kind eyes, but that still didn't make it easy for her to listen to the never ending complaining of the young Ravenclaw.
Helena Ravenclaw's argument was that the contenders of the jousting tournaments are risking their necks for no cause at all, but the amusement of others. The risk is high, and the rewards are small, all but a few coins. Something that the dead could not collect.
That was only but a summery. She spoke much more to prove her point, but no one really listened to her rantings.
They all thought that it was because Helena and her mother never was on good terms, and her mother was all for going to the tournament. So of course, Helena had to go out of her way to not go, and convince the others not to go.
She failed, rather spectacularly, as the others were very excited to go and watch.
Apart from Godric, no one had ever been to watch something close to this.
"Helena, dear, I think you will have a lot of fun, with the rest of us," said Helga Hufflepuff, threading her arms around the young girl, her student.
"I do not think that I will be having any fun. No, not any at all," said Helena. She turned her nose up, sniffed the perfect air of the summer day. "It doesn't smell right," she said, and she unraveled her arms from Helga Hufflepuff's and walked towards the packed stadiums on her own.
A very distinct, pretty figure in the sunlight.
The stands was a disarray of colours.
The different flags that flew in the wings, all representing the house of the knights that were to attend the tournament. Of course, there was the different colours of the dresses that were on the bodies of beautiful young woman.
Helena climbed through the mass of people, searching for the group that she had come here with.
Finally she had managed to find the founders and their family and friends, leaving a trail of grumbling and mumbling in her path. Helena sat down next to Godric Gryffindor, the most tolerable of the founders that she found. A few minutes later, her friend, the daughter of Helga Hufflepuff sat down next to her.
"Megan," said Helena, turning around to face the blonde, "How long will this blasted thing happen? And how long will it take to stop? It is simply a torrid affair!"
The dark locks of Rowena Ravenclaw swung, as she turned to look at her daughter.
"Helena, please!" she chided, "Watch your tongue."
"Like you do yours, mother?" asked Helena, not giving her Rowena a single glance. "Like how you would spend your time giving people advice that they do not want to hear?"
"Helena," said a firm voice.
Helena closed her eyes trying to calm herself, then looked at Godric Gryffindor, and gave him a soft smile as reassurance.
The sun of blazing hot in the middle of the day, and Helena reached over to one of the nights squires that were patiently waiting by the stands, waiting for their masters to come out and try to maim each other. "Could I have some water, please?" she asked as politely as she could.
The squire that she had asked was a weedy-looking fellow. He nodded silently and came back a few minutes later and handed Helena a cup of water.
"Thank you," said Helena, nodding to the squire.
She then sat back on her seat, waiting for the tournament to begin.
It was when Helena was about to open her mouth and complain some more when a trumpet sounded, blasting from the stand of where the muggle lords and ladies were sitting. One of them stood up. He looked like a regular garden nome, except on his enormous head there was a thin spot of hair, sitting in the middle like a nest of birds built in a tree.
"THE TOURNAMENT SHALL NOW - COMMENCE!" He announced in a booming voice Helena thought could only be achieved using sonorus.
The little nome man reached behind him and straightened with a large tool of parchment in his hand.
"WE WILL BEGIN BY CELEBRATING OUR HOSTS. THE LORD AND LADY OF WINDOMERE!"
A polite round of applause sounded from the stands. A man that looked in his mid thirties and a girl a few years younger stood up and nodded to the crowd at large.
"NOW, TO THE EVEN THAT WE HAVE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR. FIRST TO COMPETE IS SIR EFFLACK GREY AND SIR LAWRENCE TANNER!"
The trumpet sounded again. Two small flags, one of them were red and the other yellow, were pinned on a huge wooden board, bellow the words Grey and Tanner. Two flags of the same design but much bigger danced in the wind.
Probably their house just cheering the knights on.
Helena squeezed her eyes shut, sighed and opened them once more.
"You alright?" asked Megan.
"Yes," said Helena, and then under her breath so no one else could hear, "Just resigned to the fact that I am really going to finish this game."
And she did so.
Between the game, the sounds that came from her companions were varied very wide. Megan Hufflepuff simply drew in a deep breath whenever a knight got injured, or simply, ran the risk of being injured. On Helena's other side was Godric Gryffindor, and though he tried very hard to appear dignified, but like whenever they went to see a game of Quidditch, he would yell and shout 'useful' advice towards the knights, but his shouts were never loud enough to cause the people too much distress.
Rowena Ravenclaw and Salazer Slytherin were very much alike when they were watching the tournament. Both of them leaned forward from their chairs, hands underneath their chin, staring at the proceedings. The long javelin sticks pointing to one another. They hardly moved from this position, and Helena soon found it boring to watch them.
Helga Hufflepuff was yet different in another way. She had clasped both of her hands together and they laid on her lap. Helga watched the tournament with a faint smile on her face, a little gasp would come out of her mouth when something nasty happened.
Helena too, couldn't help herself but lose herself in the game halfway through it.
She cringed when it was necessary and smiled whenever someone won.
"I would have to say," whispered Megan into her friends ears, "I think you're beginning to have fun."
Helena did not reply, as she did not want to admit that she did, even a little bit.
After the tournament was over, the group, lead by Godric, went to congratulate the winner.
"You were amazing, I was watching over the by the stands," said Helena, raising a glass of wine to the knight that was in the process of taking off his armour. It was quite a surprise to Helena when she noticed that the winning champion's squire was the one who got her her drink right before the tournament started.
"Thank you," said the young knight.
Helena couldn't help but notice the way that the knight lifted his hands to wipe the sweat from his glistening skin.
"Me too, I think that you were amazing," piped up Megan, who had just popped from behind Helena.
The young Ravenclaw smiled at both her friend and the knight. She couldn't help but be a little annoyed that her best friend had just interrupted a talk that she was keen on having with the champion on her own.
Helena kept smiling, out of politeness as she saw Megan and Sir Efflack Grey's mouth open and close, but she had a skill of not listening to conversations that were taking place in front of her.
When her muscles started getting sore Helena dropped the edges of her mouth and looked around.
The four founders were all clustered around, talking to someone that looked oddly familiar.
"Eeek!" Helena squealed.
The two closest to her stared at her.
Helena grabbed Megan's hand and raced out of the tent.
"What's going on?" asked a flustered Megan when they finally stopped at a table of refreshments far from sight of the founders and their new companion.
"The Baron! Why is he here?" Helena peered from behind Megan's shoulders, trying not to be seen. She immediately gasped and knelt down near the table as if a bomb had gone off. "Why is he walking towards us?"
"I need to hide! Distract him!"
And still in a uncomfortable crouching position, Helena lifted the fabric of the nearest tent and straightened after she had got in.
She hoped that the Baron might not find where she was hiding.
Helena looked around, figuring that this tent was probably another loosing knight's, but the funny thing was, that it was empty all for a small piece of paper in the middle of the patch of grass.
Simply out of curiosity, Helena reached forward and lifted up the paper. It turned out to be a single tarot card. But it was a tarot card she did not recognise.
A drawing of a raven with its wing out in mid flight and behind the dark wings was a skull.
Helena dropped the ominous card on the ground and ran out of the tent.
Helena found the group once more and hour later, and thankfully, the baron was not in their midst. A few minutes later, it disassembled and Helena walked with her arms around one infamous Salazer Slytherin.
Unlike Megan, Helena had always found herself comfortable around the founder of Slytherin house.
It was maybe the reason Salazer had always believed Helena, that she had more going for her than even Rowena Ravenclaw herself. It was the word against her mother that made Helena's heart warm to the man.
They were currently buying a few souvenirs by a stand that looked like it was set up by a gypsy.
But when Helena had presented her with a few muggle coins, the woman had shook her head and winked at her and Salazer.
"Holly, my lovely student, how is everything going?" asked Salazer, with a oily smile on his face that did not reach his eyes.
"It's been great," said the woman, Holly, but Helena wasn't that convinced.
Salazer handed Holly the money and she let them fall into her pockets with a ka-ching. Holly looked up at the younger, but taller Helena. "And who is this, Salazer? Another prized pupil? If it wasn't she wouldn't be here with you, would she?"
"This is my student. Helena Ravenclaw, her mother is Rowena Ravenlcaw," said Salazer, uninterestingly, his eyes falling on a locket about two feet from him.
"Well, Helena. Let's just hope you get a better future than me, dare say, with a mother like yours, you'll get plenty of opportunities to do great things," said Holly.
Helena narrowed her eyes. She nodded, and said briskly, "There's a million things I haven't done. Let's not run before we can walk." Helena flashed Holly a false smile, wound her arms around Salazer's and steered him away.
It was not until the sun set and the celebrations were almost over did Helena see her best friend again.
"You will never guess what just happened!" shouted Megan, running to Helena and promptly lacing her arms around her friends.
"What?" asked Helena, her eyebrows lifting just enough to show that she was interested.
Megan burst into a fit of giggles. Helena waited patiently for her friend to calm down. After Megan did, she whispered, "I think I've captured the attention of a noble knight. He said he goes to Hogwarts, but he must be a year above me, and in a different house. I haven't seen him before. Anyway, he says that he will write to me every week until the summer has ended. Isn't that exciting?"
"It is," said Helena, truly happy for her friend.
A raven dropped down on a tree next to the duo. It cawed angrily and Helena's happiness ebbed away.
She and her friend were heading to a fireworks show, which was the last event of the day.
"I'm so happy that this torrid affair is almost to a finish," commented Helena.
"Oh, you mustn't say something like that. I thought you quite enjoyed it," said Megan, a pout already formed on her face. They reached a huge patch of dewy grass, walked through the crowds and found the group they came with.
"Mother," greeted Helena as she sat down.
Rowena nodded her head.
Someone behind Helena coughed. Helena closed her eyes and let out a breath. Merlin be merciful and don't let it be who I think it is.
Her wish had not come true as when she was face to face with the person she had been hiding from a few hours ago.
"Hello, Baron," she said with gritted teeth.
"Helena. I need to talk to you," said the Baron, baring his teeth in a would-be smile. It only made Helena cringe.
"After the fireworks, please."
Helena turned back to stare at the sky, waiting for the colours to rise from the green and light up the dark blue.
After the show, Helena knew that she could hold back the Baron no longer. With a pained smile on her face, she turned to him. "Yes?" she asked, hoping against hope that he would not be proposing today, as he did many times over.
"Helena, would you -"
"No!" shouted Helena. The good lords and ladies that were walking by stared in horror. And then in a angry whisper, she continued, "No I will not. And I can't imagine how many times I have to say it to you, so please stop."
She stood up and stormed towards the tents and pavilions.
It was by the tournament stands when Rowena accosted her daughter. "Helena, wait."
Helena froze in her tracks, her fists balled together by her sides.
"I think it's a good idea, the Baron. He loves -"
"I don't care what he loves, mother," She split the last word out like it was the worst insult she could throw. "I am my own person. And someone as wise as you should be able to see that."
Rowena opened her mouth, about to speak. Helena didn't know then, but upon reflection she thought her mother was truly angry. Rowena's face was whiter than parchment, and her mouth were closed into a thin line.
"I'm sorry that I'm not the daughter you wanted." Helena whispered, and turned her back on her mother.
It was the raven she had seen before, Helena was sure of it. It rested on a tree close to her.
She waited for the raven to caw at her like it did before, but it didn't. As Helena walked away, bathed in moonlight, she amused herself by thinking: what? Whose funeral are you going to?