For starters, this won't be entirely historically accurate! But I hope you enjoy the story despite this. And maybe care to leave a review? :)
Essentially this story will be a collection of short snippets from the lives of the 4 Hogwarts founders. The focus will predominantly be on Rowena Ravenclaw.
I hope you enjoy :)
A thousand years or more ago
When I was newly sewn,
There lived four wizards of renown,
Whose names are still well known:
Bold Gryffindor, from wild moor,
Fair Ravenclaw, from glen,
Sweet Hufflepuff, from valley broad,
Shrewd Slytherin, from fen.
They shared a wish, a hope, a dream,
They hatched a daring plan
To educate young sorcerers
Thus Hogwarts School began.
— The Sorting Hat (1994)
A Thirst for Learning
"I expect it is dangerous to keep your wand there."
Rowena looked up from her book and at her close friend Helga Hufflepuff who, it appeared, had come to join her.
"What if it slips?" Helga added.
Rowena brushed her fingertips against her wand placed securely behind her ear. It had been placed there while she read her manuscript; or rather, continued to edit it. Indeed, for the last year or so, ever since she had received her wand and discovered the beauty of magic, Rowena had taken to writing down the spells she learnt or had invented.
Though it was more for herself, Helga was adamant that other young witches and wizards would benefit from such a text. With no magical institutions to teach spells discovered by each generation, it seemed sensible to write a manuscript containing as many spells and magical theories as possible.
Helga came to sit beside Rowena on the small bench the latter had been occupying for several hours. "Hm?" she prompted.
A flicker of a smile passed Rowena's rosy lips. "It would not dare to slip," she replied causing her friend to smile too. "Will you be returning to Wales now that I have shown you most of Perth?"
Helga nodded. "Soon," she said. "But not immediately. Travel is not kind to mother, even when we do use magic." The younger witch, only by six months, leaned forwards and retrieved the wand from behind Rowena's ear. "I would rather you not tempt fate in this manner."
"I do believe you worry too much, Helga," Rowena replied, accepting her wand again and placing it delicately beside her. She then stood up quite suddenly and closed her manuscript. "For you," she said, handing Helga the bound pages. "I have another copy at home," she proceeded to explain.
Helga took the manuscript and looked at it in awe. "Is it finished?" she asked.
Rowena shook her head. "Of course not, and it never will be," she said. "One cannot write down all there is to be known in a mere thirty pages. And I cannot be the only one to contribute," she added knowingly. An excited gleam blossomed in her delicate grey eyes. "You must add to it, Helga."
"But what will we do with all this knowledge contained in one book?"
Rowena smiled and picked up her wand in one graceful motion. "My dear Helga, the possibilities are infinite."
The Beginnings of an Idea
"It does sound rather ambitious," Rowena agreed, though she seemed interested in the whole affair nevertheless. "How did you come by this boy?"
Helga smiled and leaned forwards. It had been difficult to conceal, up until now, how much she had been looking forward to telling her friend about her most recent excursions and discussions. "As you know, I visited an English monastery last fall with a family friend, Godric Gryffindor," she began. "To get our hands on a particular text about the creation of the pensieve."
Rowena nodded - she had heard of this particular discovery already. "Indeed."
Helga smiled again. "On our way, we heard of a young boy who, similarly to you, is writing a manuscript outlining key magical theories and discoveries in the magical world."
"This Salazar Slytherin?" Rowena clarified.
Helga nodded. "Godric and I spoke to him for quite a long while and it appears we share the same desires to spread and pass down knowledge to other magical persons."
"But to create a magical institution..." Rowena began, frowning slightly for her ever-working mind was already attempting to determine how this might be possible. "And with four individuals alone? Could we even manage?"
Helga put her hands on Rowena's own, causing the ebony-haired witch to look up. "Rowena, what has your mother always said: if there is a will there is a way. And is this not what we have always wished to do?"
