Helena glided along the corridors, absent-minded to all of the young ones moving along to their classes and the youngest who still sometimes shrieked in her presence. She only had one thought, which was to stay above the fifth floor of Hogwarts for the entirety of the day, as it was well known that he never drifted up past the third unless he was going to the Astronomy Tower.

On most days, she could deal with his presence, albeit for short periods at a time. After 1000 years the Baron had finally learned that attempting to speak with her would never work, resulting only in her fleeing from his presence, avoiding him for however long she deemed necessary.

However, there was one day of the year the Baron was always to be avoided, and this particular day of this particular year it was especially important to do so. Exactly 1000 years since the day of her death, the day of his death, the day both of their betrayals had come to a head. Even after finally conditioning him to keep silent around her, she knew that today he would be relentless if he spotted her. She couldn't allow that to happen.

The funny thing about being a ghost was that all of her emotions from the time she died never waned with time. If anything, they had grown stronger in the years, the centuries she had haunted the halls of Hogwarts. Perhaps they would have faded if she hadn't been confined in the castle with him. If she wasn't stuck in these hallowed halls her mother had helped build from nothing, a constant reminder of the consequences of her jealousy.

As always, she recounted the last few weeks before she had ran away, before her mother had died and before the Baron had found her. She remembered dancing with him at the Hogwarts Ball. He had been pursuing her from the time they were wee first years, back when they were just babes. At that time, all of the Houses had gotten along harmoniously, as Slytherin had yet to descend into dementia-induced madness and tirade against Muggleborns.

He had been gentle that night. Part of the reason she had avoided him all those years was because of his famous temper. He lashed out at classmates, professors, at anyone who got in the way of what he wanted. And he wanted Helena badly. But he had charmed her, dressed neatly in his formal robes, looking the picture of perfect gentleman, kissing the back of her hand and speaking softly to her. She had kissed him on the cheek and she had never seen such a look of bliss on anyone in her life. Despite herself, she felt the stirrings of love rise up in her.

Many had wanted her because she was Rowena's daughter, and she had spent her life dodging suitors of every kind at every turn. But she could feel he wanted her because of who she was: Helena, the brightest of their class, Prefect and set to be Head Girl the upcoming year, well-versed in four languages and two instruments, charming, and beautiful. He had whispered all of these things to her that night. It was intoxicating the her, the Helena that boiled over with jealousy every time her mother's accomplishments were spoken about in her presence, whose soul died a bit every time she heard her mother's companions whisper about her not being able to live up to the Ravenclaw name. She wasn't focused enough, wasn't creative enough, wasn't innovative enough, she just wasn't enough.

"You are more than who they believe you to be. I love you for all that you are, all that you have been, and all you have yet to be. You are bound to be greater than any of those before us," he had murmured into her ear. And so she had fallen.

After that night, she had developed a plan to make everything work in her favor. The Baron was well-off, from nobility, and with her inheritance combined with their mutual high standing in society, there was nothing standing in the way of them practically ruling Wizarding society. The only thing that niggled at her mind, the only flaw she could foresee affecting her plans, was her fear that she was neglecting the one thing that could allow them to reach their goals uninhibited. The one thing that had been the object of all of her jealousy over the years. Her mother's diadem.

So, a mere week after the Ball had finished, the students had packed up for summer holidays and left, she stole her mother's diadem. Rowena was too wick, on her death-bed, to stop her. The week of stewing had fed the nightmare-ish jealousy she was feeling, so much so that she had abandoned all plans to reunite with the Baron, choosing to run off and use the diadem for her own good. Perhaps she would reunite with him after she had everything worked out in her favor, though she would keep the diadem hidden as her own personal tool.

She fled to Albania as quickly as she could, recalling a forest there that she had traveled to once with her mother. It was full of magic, the perfect place to set herself up for the future. The perfect setting. But as weeks wore on she became increasingly frustrated, and even began to feel inklings of shame. The diadem wasn't working for her, or perhaps it hadn't been made for her kind of purpose. Her mother had never allowed to wear it before, which hadn't helped her resentment.

She couldn't go back, though. Not after she had so cruelly abandoned both her mother and the Baron, not to mention the shame of having to return to Hogwarts for another year. She would stay where she was, use the diadem to get her head clear, and figure out where to go from there.

But then he had found her. He had begged and pleaded for her to come home. Her mother was ill, sick with worry about both her and the diadem, her life's work. Mentioning her mother's concern about the diadem was enough to make her anger and resentment flare back up, however, her panicked mind convincing herself that upon her return her mother would lock her away as punishment for her transgressions.

So she refused him. She refused him again and again until she could see the anger growing in his eyes, his body practically vibrating with rage. Too late, she wondered if her rejection to him bringing her home was misconstrued in his eyes as a rejection of the man himself. But still, he asked and she refused and his anger exploded, his knife drawn and plunged into her chest before she could so much as cry out.

And that was all she remembered for awhile, floating in white space until the walls of Hogwarts began to arise in her vision. She knew she was dead. She knew her supposed love had killed her. And she knew she was disgraced, set to haunt her mother's school for the rest of time. She had felt his presence growing near her, and in a panic she realized what he must have done, so she glided away, up into the towers. She knew she couldn't avoid him forever, but she was going to try.

Avoid him she had, even when he had found her, his ghostly body showing signs of his grief-stricken suicide. She did not care for his belated anguish. She avoided him even as he wrapped chains around his body in penance for what he had done to her. She wondered if she should be wearing chains herself.

She had avoided him for 1000 years. Avoided speaking with him about anything, because then her guilt would break free and her own anguish would manifest itself into an uncontrollable fury. She didn't want to acknowledge that she had made mistakes that day and beyond. She didn't want him to know that she had still cared for him, was planning on going back to him. That her biggest regret was her jealousy gaining such control of her that she had abandoned the one person who had ever made her feel like an individually worthwhile being.

She didn't want to tell him all of this. And she knew ten seconds into any conversation with him it would all come spilling out. So she hid as it approached midnight 1000 years after he had killed her, knowing that she had killed him in return. 1000 years from the day she had been cursed to stay in this hell.

Her body shuddered as she heard the clinking of chains behind her, and a soft voice called out, "Helena."


Hedge Maze: (plot point) an anniversary

Ferris Wheel: helenabaron

Insane House Challenge: Quote - "I love you for all that you are, all that you have been, and all you have yet to be."

Compartment 24 - Creature: Ghost/(Emotion) Grief