The Founder's Troubles - chapter 20
JudgeDP
recap: Rowena and Salazar have been sent into the future to help in the fight against Voldemort while Godric and Helga stayed in the past to find out about their true names (Gryffendor and Hufflepuff). Godric has found his and a secret underground chamber, much like those belonging to Salazar and Rowena.
"I am leaving tomorrow," Archanes announced a week later at breakfast.
"What?" asked Helga.
"Why?" questioned Godric.
"Because," their master explained, "it is about time I took Lucile home and there is some sort of problem in the east that I am, and I quote, 'desprately needed to handle, no one else can do it.' I hate being famous and powerful."
"Oh, poor Archanes," Godric fained pity. All three people sitting at the table with him, Hat and Pest looked up at him in shock. "What? With Salazar and Rowena gone someone had to say it."
"Too true, Godric," said Archanes through a mouth full of eggs as he raised his glass. "Now, I expect you two to be on your best behavior, if Salazar and Rowena could last over a month with me gone and have no problems surely you two can do the same, if not better."
A small hissing sound could be heard behind Archanes, who turned to look with the rest of the group. A little snake was coiled up on the floor and Pest wasted no time in cawing at it. Once the snake was gone Godric said, "If I didn't know better I'd say that snake was laughing."
"He- hello?" said a frail sort of woman as she allowed the door to Grandmother's shop to close behind her. She had long black hair that reached past the small of her back and bright green eyes that made her look perfectly harmless, which she was.
"Yes, m'dear?" called the old woman. "How may I help ye?"
"I- I am here for-" the woman stopped short, wringing her hands.
"My dear child," Grandmother said kindly, coming out from behind her curtain and taking the woman's hands, "I know why you are here."
"You do?"
"Yes, but I cannot help you if you are not willing to take responsibility for what you are here for," Grandmother dropped the woman's hands and turned around. "So unless you can say what you want you had best leave."
The woman reached out but stopped short of grabbing the old hag's shoulder. "I am here for revenge," she said coldly.
"Wonderful!" Grandmother grabbed the woman's hand and led her to the table behind the curtain. "Now just who do you want revenge against and why?"
"Lady Helga of Dukesburrow, she used some sort of magic to attack me and ruined my life."
"Oh, I see. Well, you have indeed come to the right place, Helga is staying in a castle not a half day's ride away and I have already sent three men to seek revenge or something a bit nicer to that castle. I can help you, if you understand what you are getting into?"
"I do."
"Good. Now, let us not talk of payment now, that can wait until after the work is done." Grandmother got up and began rumaging through some bottles until she found a particuarly sinsiter looking one filled with a deep black liquid. "Drink this down, all of it."
The woman opened the bottle and without even stopping to think drank the whole of it down. She set the empty bottle down on the table saying, "Now what?"
"Now you are going to go to that castle and kill Lady Helga," Grandmother said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"What?!" the woman roared, jumping to her feet. "I will do no such thing! I came here for your help so that you could do something! Send a demon after her or- or-" The woman began swaying back and forth until she fell to the floor in a dead faint.
"Why my dear," the old woman said, "that is exactly what I am going to send after the girl."
"Helga?" Godric called, poking his head into the massive library.
"Yes?" Helga answered, continuing to bite her fingernails as she read a three thousand year old parchment.
"What's wrong?"
"What? Oh," Helga noticed her budding habit, "nothing, it's just-"
"Just what?" Godric said, taking a seat across from her.
"Well," the girl picked up her flute, "I'm getting a bad feeling."
"About what?"
"Salazar and Rowena, I feel like something bad is going on, I just don't know what."
"I can promise you Helga, something bad is going on." Helga laughed. "But it's nothing to worry about. Those two can handle themselves, now was that all?"
"No. I keep thinking about my first governess."
"Ah yes, you told me about the visions."
"Mm-hm, I feel like she's in danger and I'm responsible."
"I don't see how that's possible, but if you give me her name I can send Archanes a letter, see if he's heard anything?"
"Matilda Cartwright," Helga said, smiling.
"Great, I'll go send Archanes the letter. I'm going to take my horse out for a run afterward, so don't go searching for me."
"I won't. Tell Archanes I miss him."
"I will."
"And if he sees Rowena and Salazar to tell them the same!" she called as an afterthought before the boy could get out the door.
"Will do!" the Gryffendor said with a sweeping bow.
The seven foot tall demonic-looking thing (I leave it to your imaginations) picked itself up off the floor and turned to the old woman sitting at a table. "Hungry," it said simply.
"I know my dear," said the woman, "but you will find nothing to relieve your hunger here. You can find something quite delicious up at the castle, a certain Lady Helga, formerly of Dukesburrow."
"Lady Helga. Must pay. Hungry."
"I know, why don't I send you to the castle the fast way, that way you don't have to wait."
"Hungry. Lady taste good."
"I'm sure she will," Grandmother said with a satisfied smile as the creature disappeared.
"Those eyes will tell Helga who's doing this to her just before she dies, I always love it when something essencial like the eyes stays the same," crowed the crow.
"Let's just hope this one succeeds, I'm tired of having those children defeat everything I throw at them."
"You can't win them all."
"They seem to. Let's go check on my other two dearies, that always cheers me up."
Helga slowly made her way up to her chambers, she needed a nap to get her mind off of her bad feelings. 'Come on Rowena, Salazar, be all right,' she thought as she looked at a tapestry of a knight, a lady and a unicorn in a grassy meadow.
"Grrrrrrrr."
"Who's there?" Helga called, spinning around. "Show yourself!" The young girl fingered her whistle in her pocket as a large shadow made its way around the corner. When whatever it was could be seen in full light Helga gasped in shock, standing before her was the most evil thing she had ever seen: seven feet tall, deep blue, and horribly frightening. "What do you want?" the girl asked, pulling out her whistle, ready to use it.
"Hungry."
"We have some wonderful food down in the kitchens if that's the case," Helga slowly stepped backward.
"Want Lady."
"Lady? Well, there are no ladies here I'm afraid, best try the next castle."
"Lady Helga of Dukesburrow. Taste good."
Helga's face paled considerably as she tripped on her long robe and fell to the floor, the creature was on her in an instant.
'Uh-oh,' thought the little snake, 'this is not a good thing. I can't help her directly, my job is helping those other two and they'll kill me if I let their friend die. Wait! I've got it! That furball owes me from our last poker game!' The little snake curled up in a ball and disappeared with a "pop!"
"Lady taste good," the thing said hungrily.
"Not today," Helga said and a flurry of yellow sparks shot out the end of her whistle into the thing's chest. Needless to say it was knocked backward, giving Helga time to run.
"Hungry," the demon-thing said, rubbing its sore chest. "Angry." It took off down the hall on all fours after the girl. It jumped high into the air and came down on her back, sending her sprawling and her whistle skittering across the floor.
"No!"
"Eat now."
"I think not," a large paw connected with the creature's muzzle, knocking it into the wall.
"What?" Helga asked when she looked up and saw a badger looking down at her, her whistle under its right paw. The badger suddenly looked sharply over Helga's shoulder. The girl grabbed her whistle, turned, and began to play.
As she played, twin beams of yellow and black light left the whistle and circled around the beast, stopping it in its tracks. It fell to the floor, clutching its ears as if the beautiful music hurt. It suddenly looked up at Helga with those deep green eyes of its and the girl dropped the instrument with a start. The creature, forgetting its hunger in the presence of good sense, ran.
"Miss Cartwright?"
Matilda Cartwright woke up in that all too familiar cage in the back of Grandmother's shop. She was back to her human self by now and remembered everything that had happened. Looking around she saw Grandmother and shrieked, "What have you done to me?!"
The old woman continued to pet her siren but looked up in a very bored fashion, "What do you mean my dear?"
"What do I mean?! You turned me into some demon and sent me after Helga you ugly old hag!"
Grandmother's eyes widened and a look of pure anger formed on her face, her hand had stopped above the siren's head and the once-girl was trying to make her master happier. "Why you-! I gave you what you asked for! It was your duty to realize that dream!" Grandmother seemed to regain her control once more and went back to petting the siren, who now purred contentedly. "All we have left to discuss is your payment."
"Payment?! I refuse to pay you!"
"Really? Well then, I will just have to keep you then."
"Keep me?" the woman paled.
"Why yes. This little pretty here," Grandmother indicated the siren, "was once a customer of mine, she refused to pay me as well, so I turned her into this. Oh I liked her, she reminded me much of myself as a young girl, falling in love with a man and turning to the dark arts to get his love in return, that is why I didn't make it so horrible for her as it will be for you. I may have taken her humanity but I gave her almost flawless beauty. True, those first few days were torture for her, her human side hating me with all it had and her fish side longing for nothing more than to please its master, me, she came around in the end though, now she is as loving and devoted as a puppy.
"You will not be so lucky. That potion you drank, its affects are permanent, you will forever be changing from woman to beast and you will be doing it as a slave to me."
"Would one of you explain to me what is going on?" Helga asked the badger and little snake. The two animals looked at each other. The little snake turned and slithered away.
"Stupid worm," grumbled the badger.
"I heard that!" called the snake, though Helga could not understand what he was saying.
"Who are you and why can I understand you?" Helga asked the badger.
"Oh, I'm just an old friend of the worm, I owed him and he decided that it would be fun to bring me here to help you."
"Oh. That explains absolutely nothing."
"I know. But there is no reason why I sould tell you anything. Now if you will excuse me, I have to get ready for the winter."
"Thank you sir, I will remember your kindness."
"At least your polite," he said, not turning back to her. "Before I go there is a secret passage behind the picture above your fireplace, it leads to an underground chamber."
"Why would I want an underground chamber?"
"Trust me, you will! Goodbye and good luck Hufflepuff!"
"Hufflepuff? What does that mean?" the girl asked herself.
recap: Rowena and Salazar have been sent into the future to help in the fight against Voldemort while Godric and Helga stayed in the past to find out about their true names (Gryffendor and Hufflepuff). Godric has found his and a secret underground chamber, much like those belonging to Salazar and Rowena.
"I am leaving tomorrow," Archanes announced a week later at breakfast.
"What?" asked Helga.
"Why?" questioned Godric.
"Because," their master explained, "it is about time I took Lucile home and there is some sort of problem in the east that I am, and I quote, 'desprately needed to handle, no one else can do it.' I hate being famous and powerful."
"Oh, poor Archanes," Godric fained pity. All three people sitting at the table with him, Hat and Pest looked up at him in shock. "What? With Salazar and Rowena gone someone had to say it."
"Too true, Godric," said Archanes through a mouth full of eggs as he raised his glass. "Now, I expect you two to be on your best behavior, if Salazar and Rowena could last over a month with me gone and have no problems surely you two can do the same, if not better."
A small hissing sound could be heard behind Archanes, who turned to look with the rest of the group. A little snake was coiled up on the floor and Pest wasted no time in cawing at it. Once the snake was gone Godric said, "If I didn't know better I'd say that snake was laughing."
"He- hello?" said a frail sort of woman as she allowed the door to Grandmother's shop to close behind her. She had long black hair that reached past the small of her back and bright green eyes that made her look perfectly harmless, which she was.
"Yes, m'dear?" called the old woman. "How may I help ye?"
"I- I am here for-" the woman stopped short, wringing her hands.
"My dear child," Grandmother said kindly, coming out from behind her curtain and taking the woman's hands, "I know why you are here."
"You do?"
"Yes, but I cannot help you if you are not willing to take responsibility for what you are here for," Grandmother dropped the woman's hands and turned around. "So unless you can say what you want you had best leave."
The woman reached out but stopped short of grabbing the old hag's shoulder. "I am here for revenge," she said coldly.
"Wonderful!" Grandmother grabbed the woman's hand and led her to the table behind the curtain. "Now just who do you want revenge against and why?"
"Lady Helga of Dukesburrow, she used some sort of magic to attack me and ruined my life."
"Oh, I see. Well, you have indeed come to the right place, Helga is staying in a castle not a half day's ride away and I have already sent three men to seek revenge or something a bit nicer to that castle. I can help you, if you understand what you are getting into?"
"I do."
"Good. Now, let us not talk of payment now, that can wait until after the work is done." Grandmother got up and began rumaging through some bottles until she found a particuarly sinsiter looking one filled with a deep black liquid. "Drink this down, all of it."
The woman opened the bottle and without even stopping to think drank the whole of it down. She set the empty bottle down on the table saying, "Now what?"
"Now you are going to go to that castle and kill Lady Helga," Grandmother said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"What?!" the woman roared, jumping to her feet. "I will do no such thing! I came here for your help so that you could do something! Send a demon after her or- or-" The woman began swaying back and forth until she fell to the floor in a dead faint.
"Why my dear," the old woman said, "that is exactly what I am going to send after the girl."
"Helga?" Godric called, poking his head into the massive library.
"Yes?" Helga answered, continuing to bite her fingernails as she read a three thousand year old parchment.
"What's wrong?"
"What? Oh," Helga noticed her budding habit, "nothing, it's just-"
"Just what?" Godric said, taking a seat across from her.
"Well," the girl picked up her flute, "I'm getting a bad feeling."
"About what?"
"Salazar and Rowena, I feel like something bad is going on, I just don't know what."
"I can promise you Helga, something bad is going on." Helga laughed. "But it's nothing to worry about. Those two can handle themselves, now was that all?"
"No. I keep thinking about my first governess."
"Ah yes, you told me about the visions."
"Mm-hm, I feel like she's in danger and I'm responsible."
"I don't see how that's possible, but if you give me her name I can send Archanes a letter, see if he's heard anything?"
"Matilda Cartwright," Helga said, smiling.
"Great, I'll go send Archanes the letter. I'm going to take my horse out for a run afterward, so don't go searching for me."
"I won't. Tell Archanes I miss him."
"I will."
"And if he sees Rowena and Salazar to tell them the same!" she called as an afterthought before the boy could get out the door.
"Will do!" the Gryffendor said with a sweeping bow.
The seven foot tall demonic-looking thing (I leave it to your imaginations) picked itself up off the floor and turned to the old woman sitting at a table. "Hungry," it said simply.
"I know my dear," said the woman, "but you will find nothing to relieve your hunger here. You can find something quite delicious up at the castle, a certain Lady Helga, formerly of Dukesburrow."
"Lady Helga. Must pay. Hungry."
"I know, why don't I send you to the castle the fast way, that way you don't have to wait."
"Hungry. Lady taste good."
"I'm sure she will," Grandmother said with a satisfied smile as the creature disappeared.
"Those eyes will tell Helga who's doing this to her just before she dies, I always love it when something essencial like the eyes stays the same," crowed the crow.
"Let's just hope this one succeeds, I'm tired of having those children defeat everything I throw at them."
"You can't win them all."
"They seem to. Let's go check on my other two dearies, that always cheers me up."
Helga slowly made her way up to her chambers, she needed a nap to get her mind off of her bad feelings. 'Come on Rowena, Salazar, be all right,' she thought as she looked at a tapestry of a knight, a lady and a unicorn in a grassy meadow.
"Grrrrrrrr."
"Who's there?" Helga called, spinning around. "Show yourself!" The young girl fingered her whistle in her pocket as a large shadow made its way around the corner. When whatever it was could be seen in full light Helga gasped in shock, standing before her was the most evil thing she had ever seen: seven feet tall, deep blue, and horribly frightening. "What do you want?" the girl asked, pulling out her whistle, ready to use it.
"Hungry."
"We have some wonderful food down in the kitchens if that's the case," Helga slowly stepped backward.
"Want Lady."
"Lady? Well, there are no ladies here I'm afraid, best try the next castle."
"Lady Helga of Dukesburrow. Taste good."
Helga's face paled considerably as she tripped on her long robe and fell to the floor, the creature was on her in an instant.
'Uh-oh,' thought the little snake, 'this is not a good thing. I can't help her directly, my job is helping those other two and they'll kill me if I let their friend die. Wait! I've got it! That furball owes me from our last poker game!' The little snake curled up in a ball and disappeared with a "pop!"
"Lady taste good," the thing said hungrily.
"Not today," Helga said and a flurry of yellow sparks shot out the end of her whistle into the thing's chest. Needless to say it was knocked backward, giving Helga time to run.
"Hungry," the demon-thing said, rubbing its sore chest. "Angry." It took off down the hall on all fours after the girl. It jumped high into the air and came down on her back, sending her sprawling and her whistle skittering across the floor.
"No!"
"Eat now."
"I think not," a large paw connected with the creature's muzzle, knocking it into the wall.
"What?" Helga asked when she looked up and saw a badger looking down at her, her whistle under its right paw. The badger suddenly looked sharply over Helga's shoulder. The girl grabbed her whistle, turned, and began to play.
As she played, twin beams of yellow and black light left the whistle and circled around the beast, stopping it in its tracks. It fell to the floor, clutching its ears as if the beautiful music hurt. It suddenly looked up at Helga with those deep green eyes of its and the girl dropped the instrument with a start. The creature, forgetting its hunger in the presence of good sense, ran.
"Miss Cartwright?"
Matilda Cartwright woke up in that all too familiar cage in the back of Grandmother's shop. She was back to her human self by now and remembered everything that had happened. Looking around she saw Grandmother and shrieked, "What have you done to me?!"
The old woman continued to pet her siren but looked up in a very bored fashion, "What do you mean my dear?"
"What do I mean?! You turned me into some demon and sent me after Helga you ugly old hag!"
Grandmother's eyes widened and a look of pure anger formed on her face, her hand had stopped above the siren's head and the once-girl was trying to make her master happier. "Why you-! I gave you what you asked for! It was your duty to realize that dream!" Grandmother seemed to regain her control once more and went back to petting the siren, who now purred contentedly. "All we have left to discuss is your payment."
"Payment?! I refuse to pay you!"
"Really? Well then, I will just have to keep you then."
"Keep me?" the woman paled.
"Why yes. This little pretty here," Grandmother indicated the siren, "was once a customer of mine, she refused to pay me as well, so I turned her into this. Oh I liked her, she reminded me much of myself as a young girl, falling in love with a man and turning to the dark arts to get his love in return, that is why I didn't make it so horrible for her as it will be for you. I may have taken her humanity but I gave her almost flawless beauty. True, those first few days were torture for her, her human side hating me with all it had and her fish side longing for nothing more than to please its master, me, she came around in the end though, now she is as loving and devoted as a puppy.
"You will not be so lucky. That potion you drank, its affects are permanent, you will forever be changing from woman to beast and you will be doing it as a slave to me."
"Would one of you explain to me what is going on?" Helga asked the badger and little snake. The two animals looked at each other. The little snake turned and slithered away.
"Stupid worm," grumbled the badger.
"I heard that!" called the snake, though Helga could not understand what he was saying.
"Who are you and why can I understand you?" Helga asked the badger.
"Oh, I'm just an old friend of the worm, I owed him and he decided that it would be fun to bring me here to help you."
"Oh. That explains absolutely nothing."
"I know. But there is no reason why I sould tell you anything. Now if you will excuse me, I have to get ready for the winter."
"Thank you sir, I will remember your kindness."
"At least your polite," he said, not turning back to her. "Before I go there is a secret passage behind the picture above your fireplace, it leads to an underground chamber."
"Why would I want an underground chamber?"
"Trust me, you will! Goodbye and good luck Hufflepuff!"
"Hufflepuff? What does that mean?" the girl asked herself.