"Hey Sal! What's up?" Godric said as he patted Salazar on the back.
"Why are you so cheerful this morning?" Salazar replied, though it wasn't an angry reply, he was grateful that Godric seemed to have forgotten their arguments from yesterday.
"Oh, I don't know, just happy to be alive." Godric was still thinking about his date with Persephone yesterday.
Godric and Salazar were seated in Hoggy's Happy Bar, waiting for Rowena and Helga to arrive. Today was when the real business would start.
"Godric, I must comment on your hat. What were you thinking, man?" Salazar asked.
"You just don't know fashion. All the V.I.W.s are wearing them. And I am a founder of the greatest school in the world. That makes me very important." Godric said, pulling his new wizard hat off his head and running his fingers along the brim.
"So you needed a bigger hat?" Salazar joked.
"No just a bigger one, a better one!" Godric stated as he gently set aside the hat on the table.
Rowena and Helga walked into the bar just then. Rowena wearing a nice deep blue robe; she was also holding her baby, Rachel. Helga was wearing a very pretty, peppy shade of yellow. With her strawberry blonde hair and cheerful face, she looked just like summer. The four of them had each made an individual pact to try and forget the anger that had resulted yesterday. Not knowing that the others had done the same each had thought it best to move on for the sake of Hogwarts.
"Hey boys!" Rowena called.
"Row, you shouldn't bring your baby into the bar!" Godric called to her as he and Salazar moved over to make room for the girls.
"Well, Richard had t work today and it was you two who insisted on having the meeting here. I think any place else would have worked better." Rowena said sternly.
"Helga, you've never worn that color before." Salazar shocked everyone by noticing that detail.
"Well, no, I haven't. But it seemed so cheerful that I thought I needed to wear it to match my mood." Helga said, "Do you like it on me?"
"Oh yes, it looks very nice." Salazar stated, but still in his business like tone.
"So, Helga, have you talked to your father about that land that he owns? You know the land by that big lake." Godric said steering the conversation back to business.
"I have. He thinks that a school is an admirable use for the grounds, but he wants to make sure that we give him compensation for it." Helga said.
"What sort of payment did he have in mind?" Rowena said as she bounced Rachel on her knee.
"Well, he wants to make sure that the land isn't wasted. He wants the school to become well known and very prestigious. But besides that, he wants me to understand that my brother Hubert had wanted to build a horseless broom factory on the land as well. And that business could make profits. A school really isn't good for turning over money."
"Well, he's right, but a school is so much more of a noble use for the land than a factory." Salazar said.
"He knows that, I talked to him yesterday about this for quite a long time. He says that he will let us build our school if we can show him that we have exact plans for the running of it, and for how it will continue after we leave the school. Plus, he wants to make sure that the Hufflepuff name is used somewhere."
"I think we can handle that." Godric boasted.
"And he wants 700 galleons." Helga said quietly.
"That is quite a lot, but I think it's reasonable. Money should be the least of our worries." Rowena said before Godric or Salazar could make one of their ruder outbursts.
"Uh huh, Mr. Warton could help us out maybe, and my family has some money they could donate."
"My family does as well. Besides, if we have everything worked out, everything but the money, that last part will get taken care of. It usually does."
"Alright then, so what will we teach?" Rowena said, pulling out a quill and parchment.
"Transfiguration"
"Potions"
"Herbology"
"Charms"
"History"
"Math"
"Writing"
"No, not the last two." Rowena said, as she took down the suggestions.
"Why not? Math and writing are always taught in schools." Helga questioned.
"Not in wizard schools. Our school has a specific goal to teach students magic. We can't have them worrying about reading novels and doing algebra on top of learning spells. In our world, magic is more important than math." Rowena said, "It's unfortunate, because I happen to love math, but I think that those skills will be used in other ways if we teach them correctly."
"Whatever Row, you should be in charge of all the smart stuff." Salazar said lazily.
"Fine, I'll draw up lesson plans for several subjects. What ahoulf you guys do?"
"I'll design the school. I think it should be in a castle." Godric said.
"No, better let me do the architectural part. I think I've got some ideas that could really help us out in the future. I'll also hire the people to do the construction." Said Salazar.
"Fine, then I'll talk to the right people, and get donations and get people enrolled and stuff."
"So you get to be the people person?" Helga teased, "What about me? I'm good with people too."
"You can help me, besides you are already working on getting us the land." Godric said.
So, a year or two passed, and Hogwarts was built. The castle looked great. It was big and set atop a hill that overlooks a forest and a lake. It was beautiful on the inside as well. Every hall seemed to be made of the finest stone carvings and the stained glass windows let in a variety of colors to the twisting halls. Students had been sent letters telling them that were invited to study to study magic.
"Why did we have to invite the muggle borns? I don't think they should be taught. This should be an upstanding organization with only the best wandering its halls." Salazar said as he looked over the list of the students. He was with Helga inside Hogwarts castle. They were both seated on the floor in the middle of the great hall. The tables and chairs hadn't arrived yet.
"Sal, shut up about that. Blood doesn't matter and besides, we want as many students to fill these splendid halls as possible." Helga replies, as she peered over his shoulder to have another look at the list.
Over the last year, Helga and Salazar had grown very close. Helga's warmth balanced out his sometimes cold demeanor.
"Anyway, you only have to pick those that you like to live in your house." Helga said, "I really think that was good idea of Godric's. To give each of us little section of the school just for our own goals."
"Helga, don't talk of Godric right now."
"Are you still upset at him because he got engaged to a muggle? Salazar he's your best friend. You need to accept where his heart led him. Persephone is a very nice girl."
"He gave up. He could have married someone better if he had kept looking. He saw Persephone the minute after we quit our old job."
"Salazar, don't talk like that. You know that you can't always choose who you
fall for." Helga said, but then she added softly "I know that very well."
"What do you mean? Who did you not choose to love?" Salazar alertly focused his attention on her.
"Salazar, don't make me say it. I think you should know." Helga turned her head away from him; she was a bright shade of pink.
"Helga, I love you, too." Salazar whispered. He lifted his hand to touch her cheek.
She pressed her hand against his and turned to face him. Salazar leaned in toward her and kissed her gently. The second kiss was longer and more passionate, and after that they both forgot everything else in the world. It was only them, in an empty room with a bewitched ceiling above that showed the stars twinkling brightly outside.