A/N: This chapter swings toward a darker theme and hints slightly at femslash if you squint really hard. So yeah. Do enjoy!
Disclaimer: I can't remember the last time I did this, but everything is still the same. I don't own anything related to the Harry Potter world or characters.
"Go pack. I don't want to see the others before we leave."
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Rowena watched them all. They all had points, but Helga had the most resources from which to pull evidence in favor of the two dark men that had left. She just hoped something good happened soon. Godric would never be the
same if things were not smoothed over quickly.
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Chapter 9
In a Hand-Basket
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Harry stumbled after Salazar, his feet were starting to hurt. A lot. "Where are we going?"
"My home," he looked over his shoulder to his exhausted lover and smiled gently.
"Where is it?"
"Near by,"
"How much longer?" he whined.
"Soon,"
On impulse, Harry jogged up to his taller lover and hugged him, bringing their steps to a halt. "Thank-you,"
"You have nothing to thank me for. I did it for love. Not for gratitude." He smiled, wrapping his arms around Harry before stepping back and continuing on.
Silence.
"What's that up there? It's all hazy."
"Welcome to Slytherin Manor. This is where we will remain."
"It's beautiful."
"I'm glad you like it. Come."
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Harry, plaintively, Hogwarts called out. Come home. Please,
Helga shuddered, feeling the sorrow drag through her, causing her own mood to plummet downward even more. "Please, stop." She whispered hopelessly, blinking back tears caused by Hogwarts' cries of loss. At the castle's continued cries she ran from her rooms, and through the corridors, heedless of students and staff alike, rushing out of the door to the grounds. "STOP IT!" she screamed, falling in a heap at the front gates, bared by Hogwarts himself from leaving, his cries still echoing through her mind even as her colleagues came to get her, worry creasing their faces.
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"This cannot go on much longer. Helga will not last." Rowena murmured, taking the slack hand of her best friend. She blinked back tears from her normally stoic eyes. "We swore not marry so we would not leave each other in this cruel world. We swore to die together. Don't do this Helga," She sat heavily on a chair beside the bed. "Godric, Hogwarts has trapped us here. What can we do for poor Helga? How can we send word of what is happening?"
Godric sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. It's all your fault, he hissed within his mind, picturing Harry's delicate face twisted in glee. It's your fault this is happening. If you hadn't showed up, Salazar wouldn't have left and the damn castle wouldn't have attached itself to you.
"Godric!" Rowena shrieked when Godric suddenly slumped over. She felt the anger roiling in the air around her. "Hogwarts, please stop." She whispered, clutching Helga's hand to her breast when the angered magic turned its attention to her. "Let us send the students and other professors home. Please," she begged, closing her eyes when she felt the magic envelop her. An uncomfortable stinging sensation flowed through her mind before it receded. You may, the words echoed harshly within her mind, tinged with the power of Hogwarts and her own stolen magic. An empty hole was left behind.
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He wandered the halls, allowing the ambiance of beauty and serenity wash over him. His mind, once broken, had healed within the past year that he and Salazar had fled Godric and the rest of the world. He never did tire of Salazar's home though. He wandered outside, looking around the lawns. Great fountains covered the back lawn, powered by magic and spouting different colored water from animated statues. A playful mermaid from a nearby fountain winked saucily and sprayed blue jeweled water at him. Dodging, he laughed and continued off the back porch. Lilly gardens dotted the grounds, their bright beautiful blossoms giving further life to the emerald sheen of the grass. Down by the front gates, he distantly heard the tiger lilies roaring as the October sunlight hit them.
"Enjoying yourself?" he jumped when he felt arms wrap around him.
Relaxing into the embrace, he grinned, grasping a ringed hand and feeling Salazar's chin rest on the crown of his head. "Quite. I never tire of the beauty."
"Good,"
"I sometimes wonder though. What would have happened had we stayed? What has happened now that we've left?"
The tiger lilies once more gained their attention. Only this time, they were snarling at something. Harry immediately drew his wand and marched to the gates, Salazar close behind. "Who goes there?" he called harshly, seeing a frightened man staring at his flowers.
"Sirs, would you happen to be Salazar and Harold?" he asked, inching away from the angry lilies.
"Yes," Harry stepped forward and placed a reassuring and quieting hand on his lilies.
"Why are you here?" Salazar demanded quickly walking to Harry to protect the small man if needed.
"I have a message from the village sirs,"
"What is it?" Harry frowned in concern. It had to be bad if the village was sending some poor unknowing man wandering around for them.
"Who sent you?" Salazar was not as accepting. He knew word traveled far and fast and rumors and lies traveled even more so.
"One of the villagers sent me. No one has been see exiting the castle since a week after you left. Hogwarts bared the other three founders within its walls, not allowing them out. They had to dismiss the students and other professors to save their lives. It is said that Helga has gone mad. It's all gone to hell."
A stricken silence.
"We must leave." Harry turned to Salazar, his eyes shinning with panic.
"We might become trapped within."
"So?"
"Do you have no plan?"
Harry grinned. "I always did think better on the fly."
The two dark men sprinted from the front gates, toward the apparation point. Behind them, the tiger lilies snarled at the messenger and hurled him from the grounds, snapping wards up and the gates closed.
"Touchy," he mumbled, scrambling up and away from the manor that was hazily disappearing into the wards. "Hope they're not to late,"
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Rowena clutched Helga's pale hand tightly, trembling at the strain of the castle's sorrow. A year after Harry and Salazar had left, and the castle was still mourning. Godric never had woken up from that blow the castle had dealt him. She had no idea how he still lived for Hogwarts would let her no where near him. Poor sweet Helga had finally fallen into a coma after being driven mad. She herself was near to collapse with the strain of taking the brunt of the castle's emotions. And her magic was gone. "Stop," she mumbled, forcing her shaking body up to accept the food that was delivered to her every four hours by the castle. "They will come back. Helga always said Harry would do anything for those he cared about." She walked back to the bed and sat heavily, carefully setting the empty plate and
goblet on the table. "Come back," she whispered, falling asleep next to her long time friend.
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Salazar would never have thought that Hogwarts would allow itself to go to such ruin. "My poor creation," he murmured, feeling Harry place a comforting hand on the small of his back. "You look ages old. Not the young beautiful thing you should be."
"Come. The sooner we return to him, the sooner things will be better."
"Of course."
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The presence was known of almost immediately. He instantly stopped his watching of the others and hurried from room to room, his presence ghosting familiar halls and doors and rooms. Finally, He found them. They were entering the door. Instantly, they were engulfed in warmth. Gratitude and joy and sorrow surrounded them.
"'Warts," an unsteady voice whispered, his magic snaking out to meet with His in an embrace.
"My creation," Salazar softly murmured, raising an unsteady hand and placing it on cool stone walls.
"We're back." Harry said softly, walking further into the hall "What have you done to yourself?" he asked sadly, looking at the filthy dark halls.
"We can fix it now," Salazar said, coming up to Harry and grasping the hem of his sleeve. "We can fix everything, but we need to find the others."
The joy and warmth turned to the oddest mix of horror, sadness, and anger. Instantly, the two dark wizards were swept through the floor, and were being forced through the stones, up to where the infirmary was. They were forced from the floor to fast to gain footing and went sprawling.
"Rowena," Harry murmured, having scrambled up as soon as he had seen the woman on the bed. "Helga," horror tinged his voice as his own mind felt what was wrong with the small founder. "Oh what has been done?"
"Godric," Salazar hurried over to his once friend and turned the body over and recoiled at the sight of the pale, sunken flesh of what used to be an active body. "Godric," he shook the frail body, feeling such cold permeating the body, fearing his friend's death.
"Sal," a weak voice rasped from the body beneath his frantic hands.
"Godric," his throat burned in his effort to hold back tears and a scream. This was his fault. If he and Harry hadn't left, this wouldn't have happened.
"Don't you dare blame yourself." Godric rasped out slowly. "You were protecting yourselves." He smiled, an expression that more resembled the mocking death grin of a skull than a comforting expression. "From me," he added painfully.
"Hush," Salazar instantly barked, feeling his throat burn once more as he held his tears and expression in check. "We need to get you in a bed and get some food in you."
"No. I can feel myself fading and Hogwarts has taken my magic." His voice caught at the end of his sentence. "I just want to say that I'm sorry." He closed his eyes, they stayed closed for an alarming amount of time.
"Godric," Salazar shook his friend's shoulder in a panic.
"I'm still here. Just, Hogwarts didn't mean it. He lashed out when I was being an ass." A longer pause. "Like always."
"My brother,"
"My…brother,"
"Godric,"
Silence.
Harry hurriedly shook Rowena's shoulder. Her once rich brown hair was a stark white, and her once strong body was frail. "Rowena," Her eyes blinked up at him, a blue so tired it made him ache: eyes that so reminded him of himself after the war and before Salazar had come to him.
"Harry?"
"I'm here,"
"Thank God," shaking arms reached up weakly and he bent down to meet them, allowing the shaking appendages to wrap around his neck.
"What of Helga?"
"Only her body remains," Rowena choked out. "She went mad and then fell into a coma. She hasn't moved by herself in months."
"My fault," Harry moved from her arms as if burnt, guiltily staring at Helga's wasted face. "All my fault."
"Never," Rowena forced herself up and moved to him. "You did not know this would happen. You were protecting yourself." A spark of sapphire fire showed through the dull defeated blue.
Salazar came forward and wrapped comforting arms around Harry. "Neither you nor myself had control or knowledge of what would happen if we left."
"What of Godric?"
"Dead. What of Helga?"
"She is only physically alive. The rest of her is dead." Rowena mumbled, sitting next to the wasted form of her long-time friend. "Will you stay?"
"We don't know," Harry burrowed further into Salazar's body, trying to block everything out.
"There is nothing to stay for." Salazar said cruelly. "There are no students. There is nothing left but us."
Silence.
"She passed on without me. She ignored our vows to each other."
"Go to her," Salazar suggested softly.
"Shut-up! Don't even suggest that in passing!" Harry roughly pushed Salazar away from him.
"No. He's right. I don't even have my magic anymore."
"What of Hogwarts?" he was desperate.
"He has you two. Will she join me if I die?" she looked at the taller of the two men, questioning him.
"She will never have a life. We will move her along to you."
"NO!" he tried to get a hold of her, tried to stop her, but Salazar quickly grabbed him.
"Hold him."
"I am. I will miss you."
"STOP!"
"I love you both and hope you can find happiness after this." She kissed them on the cheek and left the wing, tears on her face. She shakily, but determined, headed to the front doors, to the lake. To the sky and grass she hadn't seen in a year.
"No," he moaned.
"Shh," a voice whispered soothingly in his ear. "She will be happier."
"Row," a voice moaned from the bed behind.
"HELGA!" Harry burst from Salazar's arms, rushing to the bed.
A sigh passed her lips and she fell limp, her body no longer functioning.
"She was waiting for Rowena to leave," he choked out.
"We must tend to them, then we can decide what to do."
"Of course," he cradled himself as he sobbed.
"Harry," he moved to the smaller man, concern in his voice.
"Just hold me. Just hold me."
"The dead cannot wait for long, but the living must first be comforted." Salazar murmured as he encased his small lover within the warm folds of his robes.
"We're all that's left. What do we do?"
"Comfort the living and bury the dead."
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A/N: all-righty then...I honestly didn't mean for it to turn out that way. not that sad or dark...gosh...
I think that maybe one more chapter and an epilogue will finish this fic out. look for another chapter hopefully next weekend being as I have no contest next weekend.
Ok, I got such a negative response to how I wrote last chapter, that I took time to re-write this. Now that I've fixed this, I'm gonna go back to writing the new chapter.
Review please!
Cheers!