Disclaimer: If you believed I owned them in the first chapter, I won't take your illusions away from you.

Chapter II

The peaceful hall bathing in the yellow sunlight of the morning turned its colours briefly into all of the colours of the rainbow. After a moment of held breath, everything turned back to normal, with the exception of the bright pink wall opposite the slumbering staircase.

"Wrong again. You just don't know how to do this, Albert."

"You are not any better yourself," the voice was trembling with held frustration, anger and helplessness.

"Well, hurry up and try again before anyone notices that!"

"How was I supposed to know that tiny stick worked just as powerfully as a staff would:"

"Just undo it!"

"Undo what?" The third voice belonging to a woman came down sternly and made the owners of the first two jump. Two boys hid a polished wooden stick behind their back and tried their best to look innocent hoping the woman wouldn't notice the pink wall behind them. Unfortunately it was rather big to be unnoticeable.

"Did you do that?"

The boys made grunting noises that could be understood as 'yes' and 'he started it'. The black haired woman raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms before her looking both stunningly beautiful and unbelievably scary. The whiteness of her skin contrasted to her black hair and brilliant blue dress and if she were to smile, she would have been simply adorable. But it was very unlikely that she would have done anything of the sort. Every muscle in her body seemed to be tense and just waiting for a reason to explode. There was no softness in her eyes either. They were solid ice.

"Pardon?"

"We were just trying to use the sticks you introduced to us, ma'am. We didn't mean the wall to be pink, honestly, master Ravenclaw."

There was a dangerous flash in her eyes. "A wand, Mr. Spruce, a wand."

"Yes ma'am. We meant no harm."

"Truly, we didn't."

"And you thought a pink wall would be an appropriate cheer to the lobby, didn't you?"

The boys were silent and bowed their heads waiting for what was coming. But before the woman was able to open her mouth, another woman ran quickly down the stairs. She looked out of breath and her oat-coloured locks were wildly refusing to be bound on the back of her head. She was soft-featured and a little plum and her deep-brown eyes looked straight towards the other woman kindly as she smiled.

"There you are, Rowena. I've been looking all over for you."

"Hufflepuff," the other woman greeted her tone not changing.

"Oh, I see you've done some decorating here. It looks very… erm… joyfull."

"It is not…"

"Oh and before I forget,--" Hufflepuff exclaimed with no notion to what the black haired woman was about to say. "— Algernon and Fredric are needed in their dormitory."

"Albert," the other boy muttered silently.

"Yes, of course, of course my dear. Now, run along, will you."

The boys found their legs moving quickly pass master Ravenclaw, who was angry enough that shooting lightnings from her eyes would have made no significant difference. The woman dressed in yellow however winked her eye and smiled gently.

Rowena Ravenclaw drew a slender wooden wand out of a unnoticeable pocket of her dress and with a graceful movement made the pink wall turn back to normal. Hufflepuff was nodding thoughtfully next to her.

"You are right my dear, that was rather flashy colour, wasn't it."

Rowena sighed and hid her wand back to her pocket. "What is it that you wanted to see me about?"

Hufflepuff blinked. "See you?"

"You said you were looking for me."

"Did I? Sorry, I must have forgotten."

"Lady Ravenclaw!"

Rowena turned towards the staircase as a third woman came down and walked determinedly to her. She bowed her head a little before starting to speak.

"I gave the letters to master Gryffindor. He told me to tell you that he would like you to go and tell him the things he needs to know yourself and any further deliveries to his wife should be either destroyed or given to him."

"Didn't you tell him what I told you to tell?"

"I'm sorry, ma'am. I wasn't able to tell all. I tried, but he didn't want to hear. From me at least."

Rowena's mouth turned into a thin line and she seemed to be angry yet again.

"I expect people to do as they are told. I have no time to go to him. You were supposed to do that for me," her tone was stern, but Miss Dunwoody did not look away from her even thought she did look apologetic.

Hufflepuff looked from the woman to another and waited a while before interfering their conversation.

"Rowena, dear, it is not Miss Bunnywood's—"

"Dunwoody."

"—Miss Dunwoody's fault. Godric simply wanted to speak straight to you and I can't blame him. But we all know you are busy… Perhaps we can help you with something else to help you get the time you need to go talk to him… or…"

Rowena however drew a deep breath and looked straight into the oat-haired woman's eyes.

"No need, Hufflepuff. I'll go myself." The black haired woman turned around dramatically and headed her steps towards the staircase her blue dress changing it's colour to a darker shade of blue when the shadows reached her. The woman stopped in the middle of the staircase and placed her palm on the handrail. The staircase started to move. She looked very proud of being 'the queen of the staircases' at that moment. She was, after all, the only one to ever be able to control the ever-changing stairs and knew it very well.

When she had disappeared from the view, Helga Hufflepuff sighed heavily. She turned her head to shoot a warm smile to Miss Dunwoody. The woman started to walk towards the Great Hall giving her a sign to follow.

"I wonder how long they will be like this… Hogwarts it self will suffer if they don't know when to stop. Godric sitting in his room without coming down, confused as ever… I'm quite sure the note he sent me three days ago was really meant to the Head of Wizengamot… And Rowena wandering around being unhappy and gloomy about everything… I can't even remember when she smiled the last time," she sighed again, "and Salazar… rummaging around the country being probably just as unhappy as the rest. If he'd stay still for a while he could help me better the moods of everyone and it would all work much better. His apprentices are going to be restless soon."

Dunwoody felt a slight blush creep to her cheeks and felt uncomfortable listening to her superior talking to her like she was her equal.

"Ma'am… Uh, I… I'm not sure you should…"

Helga turned her gaze towards her and saw her discomfort. She smiled again. "I'm sorry, my dear. Of course, you are not the one I should complain to… You must have worries of your own too. But you just seem to be such an understanding young lady, that I totally forgot that."

This time she returned the smile. Then she felt the cold worry reach her mind. "But ma'am… that must mean the school is in troubles. You are not going to…?" her throat felt dry and she wasn't able to continue. But Helga simply continued smiling.

"I'm sure the school will be fine, dear. Now, shall you accompany me to some lunch? I'm quite hungry from all the commotion you know."

"Oh, no, I simply couldn't… I mean what would the others think about that?"

"About what, dear?"

"Well, you are… you. The master. And if you would eat your lunch with me, they would think I'm trying to reach beyond my position or something and then…"

"No need for you to worry about that sort of things, Helena-dear… But somebody has to recognise your superiority considering the other apprentices," Helga mused patting her shoulder in a very motherly way, which seemed weird to Miss Dunwoody, for the woman was not that much her senior.

"Thank you, Master."

"Oh, no need to be grateful, dear. It is to be expected that the people we teach learn something and eventually develop into self standing wizards and witches. Why else would we go through all that trouble?"

She smiled softly and allowed a short silence fall between them to show her respect to the words.

"But ma'am …"

"Yes dear?"

"My name is Celestine."