A/N I wrote this in 2011 when I was 10 so it is heavily edited for clarity and grammar and punctuation and... everything actually. I don't know why I did this...
This is the tale of Rowena Ravenclaw, one of the founders of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
It was the November of 946 up near Edinburgh, Scotland when Rowena Ravenclaw was born at 1:59am, wailing and screaming. A beautiful baby and 20 years on, 966, she was still just as beautiful. Having got married the previous year to Lachlann Ravenclaw, a very powerful wizard in the newly-formed wizarding government, Rowena had a new passion. A passion to build, or to find, a wizarding school for all the young witches and wizards in Scotland. When Rowena was 11, she was sent away from the country, all the way to Germany to go to school. Others were homeschooled.
She decided to set out on her mission alone with the hope that she might find some like-minded companions on her travels. The first person she met, when she stopped to rest at a famous wizarding pub, was Godric Gryffindor, an English wizard, who had the same desire as her but had different reasons for it. Rowena wanted to create this school for learning and knowledge but Godric, having gone to the same school as Rowena, wanted the school to have competitions with one another which was common in Germany.
She and Godric chatted like long lost siblings despite having never spoken during their time at Durmstrang due to differing personalities and the fact that Godric was 6 years older than her. The next morning, they set off again in the direction of the coast in order to find clues and ideas to bring to their school. It was on top of a cliff where they set up camp for the next few days.
"You do the spells, Godric." yawned Rowena.
"What spells?" questioned Godric. "Oh, the shielding charms? Of course Rowena."
After a good week of planning, they were ready to go again. But one thing stopped them, they didn't know where to go!
After two days of solid trekking by the coast, they encountered a creature that struck fear in their souls. They had learned very little of how to deal with magical creatures at school but knew that this one was one of the most dangerous... The Lethifold!
Rowena froze in fear but Godric leapt forward, sword shining in the evening light. Each time Godric seemed to have struck the Lethifold, it managed to get away. The Lethifold was getting closer and closer when finally Rowena broke out of her panicked spell and fired the first spell to come to her mind.
"Expelliamus!" she shouted at the Lethifold.
The Lethifold was flung dramatically into the air flailing and crying before landing some 10 metres away. But this only angered the Lethifold more and it came back at them with more speed and ferocity before.
Godric lost grip of his sword and Rowena was loosing her nerve and was about to apparate them away when suddenly a shout followed by a burst of blinding silver light that shot through the sky and landed on the Lethifold making it shrivel up and die.
Wands raised and battle ready, Godric and Rowena slowly faced their saviour.
As the dust settled, the man's face was revealed.
"Salazar!" exclaimed Godric. "It's Salazar Slytherin, Rowena! You know, from school."
Rowena did know. With a look of disdain, Rowena greeted him.
"Thank you Salazar. For... saving us." with that she stalked off, not prepared to talk to Salazar anymore.
"Come with me, now! There'll be more of them any minute," Salazar said. "You should never have come here..."
Godric ran over to Rowena. "Rowena, you have to come with us. He knows more than us, he saved us! He could be useful to our goal. Please Rowena!"
Slowly Rowena nodded and the three of them apparated to Salazar's home.
After a warming goblet of mead and a good meal, Godric began to tell Salazar of their mission. Salazar kept quiet until the end of Godric's story before surprising Rowena.
"I'd like to join you," said Salazar evenly. "We need somewhere safe and homely for the wizards and witches of England to learn instead of carting them off to a place they've never dreamed of seeing before or getting a rubbish schooling by parent's who know very little."
"No." said Rowena. "I won't allow you. You were a terrible student, always in trouble with those so-called 'friends' of yours. We want to create a school for EVERY witch or wizard not just the select few you think are 'pure wizards'."
"Rowena," levelled Godric. "You're being unreasonable. Even I was a bad student sometimes at school but you've let me join."
"I don't think like that anymore," Salazar argues back. "I was trying to fit in, trying to find a place for myself in that aweful school. I've changed. Why do you think I live here?"
Salazar's house was situated in a busy Muggle village in south Scotland. In fact, he lived above a shoe-making shop where he was an apprentice.
"I'm going to bed." Rowena stomped off leaving the boys to mull things over.
The next morning, Rowena still wasn't talking or even looking at Salazar. She didn't eat the meal he had made for breakfast. Soon after, Salazar had to work so went downstairs and left the other two to talk.
"He really has changed Rowena. And he can help us. You saw how he saved us yesterday, he can bring a different set of skills with him." Godric pleaded. "We need him Rowena..."
When Salazar returned home, the others were packed and ready to go.
"Leaving so soon?" Salazar asked.
"Come on Salazar! We've got a school to build!"
After hours of trekking, many apparitions and a few lucky escapes, they found the perfect place for their school. They set up camp with plans to begin the building the next day.
Just as they were about to lay down, they heard muffled sounds coming from outside the protective charms.
"R-a Ro-na -lo?"
"What is it?" whispered Godric.
"Row-a? Hel-oo? Row-na!"
"I think they're asking for you, Rowena..." whispered Salazar.
Suddenly, a figure appeared just outside their tent, inside their wall of charms. The tent curtain was pulled back to reveal...
"HELGA!"
Rowena rushed up and slammed into the stranger.
"Umph!"
They finally separated so Godric and Salazar could see who it was.
"This is Helga Hufflepuff, by childhood best friend!" Rowena gushed.
After a flurry of greetings and a long and rambling recount of her travels from the valleys of Wales to the moors and lochs of Scotland from Helga, they all settled down to sleep.
The next morning Helga was already up and had started making breakfast before the others emerged from the tent.
"Wild rabbit for breakfast today," Helga announced. "I have to say, this is my absolute favourite meal, I mean there are so many ways to cook and eat a wild rabbit: hog roasted, cooked and then pickled-"
"Smells wonderful!" said Salazar.
They dug into their breakfast and we're nearly done when Helga asked:
"Is this where the school's going to be?"
"How do you know what we're doing?" questioned Godric who was still a little suspicious.
"Oh it was obvious!" giggled Helga. "I just asked Rowena's husband!"
"Of course you did!" said Rowena. "Let's get started shall we boys?"
After 20 years of building the school out of some ruins along Hadrian's Wall, the school was complete. They had decided on their own houses and the subjects they would teach. The only trouble was coming up with a name. Each person had different suggestions, but none of them seemed right. One night, they were feasting in the Great Hall and had drunk a fair bit of fire whiskey and mead.
"How about..." Godric tried. "Pigfarts..."
They all burst into laughter, Helga even rolling off the bench because she was laughing too hard.
Suddenly Rowena had an idea.
"What about Hogwarts?" Rowena exclaimed.
Everyone stopped laughing and started to consider this suggestion.
"I like it" said Salazar.
"Sounds good, actually," said Godric, impressed.
A week later, it was announced that a new school was opening in September. It would be called...
HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY!