Hey look, Chapter 5!
Well, I had originally planned on getting this out just in time for Christmas, but I fail at life sometimes, so you're just going to have to deal with some lovely Christmas-y stuff!
Disclaimer: It's all JK Rowling's.
My beta, xLady-Helenax, is the bestest person EVER!
Helga was admiring the Christmas tree she had decorated with her husband when there was a hard knock on the door. Excitedly, she strode to the door, and opened it to see Rowena, a thick navy robe hugging her form, with flushed cheeks and windswept hair.
"Happy Christmas!" the dark-haired woman exclaimed.
"Happy Christmas to you as well, Rowena," Helga replied, and the two embraced tightly. "Please, come inside where it is warm!" she hastily added.
Rowena came in, and started to remove her outdoor robes. She sighed with relief as the warmth of the house heated her skin.
"Is no one else here yet?" she asked lightly, picking up a bag she had set down while hanging up her robes.
As they walked into the living room together, Helga replied, "No, you are the first. You are usually early, Godric is usually late, and Salazar is forever unpredictable."
Rowena laughed at her friend's analysis; it was entirely true.
"You're tree is wonderful!" she gasped. It was dazzling with lights, baubles, and strings of popcorn, and the top was decorated with an angel.
Helga smiled. "Thank you! We ought to decorate a tree all together, some year," she mused.
Rowena nodded, but before they could continue their conversation, they were interrupted by another knock on the door. She quickly set her bag down beside the tree.
"Too on-time to be Godric," Helga said with a grin and Rowena nodded again, "must be Salazar then."
Sure enough, it was indeed the tall, lanky gentleman, looking just as windswept as Rowena had. Rowena couldn't help but smile at how he looked, for he normally made sure he was well-kept and as formal as possible.
"Good evening, ladies, and Happy Christmas," said Salazar, as he bowed a little, before coming through the door.
"Happy Christmas!" the women chorused happily.
A few moments later they were back in the living room, where Rowena and Salazar sat down, and then Helga left them to get drinks.
"How have your holidays been so far, Rowena?" Salazar said to commence conversation.
"Quite nice, really," she responded. "I've spent a lot of time home, reading. Having independent, quiet time has been lovely. How about yourself?"
"Very much the same," Salazar told her. "I cleaned up around the shop."
"Oh yes, how is Mr. Agrippa doing?" Rowena asked in a concerned voice, remembering how the health of Salazar's mentor was wavering. Surely the cold weather would not help.
Salazar replied with a deep sigh. Rowena watched his face change slightly; his eyes went a shade darker, and the lines of his skin seemed deeper and more prominent. The woman knew what her friend's answer would be before he even opened his mouth.
"He is unwell," said Salazar, rather unnecessarily. "He had been feeling better, no more than a fortnight ago, but he has fallen ill once again. I really do fear for his life, as his health is the worst it has ever been."
Rowena wasn't sure how she should reply. It was sad that her friend was on the verge of losing someone who was important to him. Salazar had not been born here; he had traveled to this place, leaving his family behind. Though Salazar was consistent in acting as though he held no emotional connection to anything or anyone, Rowena knew that the wizard, Agrippa, was the closest thing Salazar had to a fatherly figure.
Words didn't seem to be enough, so she raised a thin hand and rested it on Salazar's forearm, running her thumb gently back and forth over the thick fabric of his sleeve.
He took another deep breath, as if assuring her that he would be alright.
At that moment, Helga reappeared with a sliver try balanced upon her hands. Four glasses, a bottle of mulled mead, and some serviettes were laid out on top of it. She set it down on the coffee table, turning two glasses right side up.
"Here's something to warm you both up," Helga said enthusiastically as she poured the mead into the glasses. She went to put the bottle down, as a knock sounded from the front door, but Rowena raised a hand to stop her.
"That will be Godric," she said. "I will go let him in."
She slowly took her other hand from Salazar's arm, looking downwards, and got up to answer the door.
Godric greatly contrasted the mood that Rowena and Salazar were in after talking about Agrippa. He beamed, he spoke loudly and excitedly, he moved quickly in grand movements, and his laugh boomed; deep and colourful.
Helga and Salazar heard him wish Rowena a Happy Christmas from the living room, and then heard it again as he entered the room.
It was amazing, how the Christmas holidays could affect one's mood by simply reoccurring once a year.
"Glad to see that you have finally arrived!" Helga exclaimed. "Please, take a seat and have yourself a drink."
Godric wasted no time before obeying, lifting his glass high in the air after taking a seat in an armchair.
"To us," he commenced a toast, "the most brilliant witches and wizards of this century, to Hogwarts; our shared dream, and to Christmas; a time for family and friends!"
Both Rowena and Salazar felt their solemn moods slip away as they lifted their glasses to clink them with Godric's, and then Helga's. They all finished their first glasses, and poured themselves more.
"Is Felix not here, Helga?" Godric wanted to know. Helga smiled at the name of her betrothed.
"He should be here, yes," she explained. "He went out to purchase some candles before the shops are closed; we were running low."
"Perhaps he is running late," Rowena commented. "The weather outside is harsh."
"That seems to be the case, yes," said Helga. "He said he was going to visit his parents this evening, to give us friends some time to ourselves."
"That is considerate of him," Salazar replied.
"Yes, but he should come to see you all for a little while," the cheery woman responded.
Conveniently, at that moment, they heard a lock turn, a door open, and the sound of wind and snow from the wild outdoors.
Felix, a tall, tidy looking man, appeared in the entrance of the room. When he saw there was company, he bowed politely, and then continued into the room, towards Helga's side. They embraced, and then Felix turned to the other three people in the room.
"Good evening, and Happy Christmas, to all of you!" he greeted, with a smile. He was a cheery sort of fellow, and always enjoyed visiting with Helga's friends, engaging himself in her life and interests. Naturally, the three other founders liked him, and didn't mind spending time with him while in his and Helga's home.
Helga slipped away from his side towards the kitchen, and reappeared with a fifth glass, to fill for Felix. The two of them sat together.
"Tell me how you have all been," Felix insisted, for he had not seen much of Godric, Rowena, and Salazar since the four had commenced the building of the castle.
They continued to talk amongst themselves late into the evening, enjoying each other's company and the spirit of Christmas.
January, 1014
"I suppose it is time to find the book," Salazar said quietly and the others quickly nodded, but didn't respond.
Wordlessly, Rowena stood, for the book was hidden deep in the cellar beneath her house, secured within a complex wooden strongbox. She left the other three and went to retrieve it.
The wooden chest smelt of dust, and Rowena felt a small pang of guilt for not looking at the book at all over the past couple of years. Once they had done the spell correctly, they had hidden it well, for it would be a dangerous source of information.
She decided at that moment that she would carry the small box back up to her friends, so they could remove the book together. She grasped it firmly and made her way back up to her living room.
Her friends were still silent when she returned, but they looked up to acknowledge her coming into the room. She nodded to them, and sat down beside Salazar.
She opened the lid of the strongbox and looked at the book that lay beneath it. It was large and thick, containing hundreds, perhaps thousands of pages that had already begun to age. The box was spacious, giving the novel room enough to lay there opened.
She knew that everyone was thinking the same thing at that moment. They were thinking about the importance of this book; to some people it may look completely useless, simply a bunch of mostly empty pages bound together. The four of them knew that at least a couple of the pages would have writing on them by now, and that the rest would fill as the years went by.
They were all remembering the process in which this book became. The discovery, the bewitching – it was as clear in their minds as if it has been done yesterday.
"Look at this," Rowena said, as she slid a thick book towards Salazar. The young man watched her for a second, before casting down his eyes to regard what she was so eager to show him.
Instructions and diagrams filled the light brown pages. It was for a spell, one that required very strong magical ability. Salazar held his breath as his eyes made their way to the top paragraph
Magic cannot be created, destroyed, stolen, or given. It can, however, be sensed. Magic is deep within the souls of witches and warlocks. When a new life form is added to the earth, its additional magical substance may be pinpointed.
The following spells may assist a witch or warlock to bewitch an object that will immediately make a record of any new magical substance within an area. The larger the area, and more difficult the spell will be to conjure and maintain.
Momentarily forgetting where he was, Salazar's mouth hung open in shock as he thought of the possibilities. A moment later, he sensed Rowena shift in her chair a little. He closed his mouth and looked up to her, unsure of what to say.
"It is a very helpful novel," she told him plainly, to break the silence. "I'm sure we may find other spells in it for other things we may need."
Salazar smiled. Rowena was always prepared. She was always thinking, always testing her knowledge, always ready to tackle any task. She was an admirable woman.
"This is perfect," he breathed quietly. "Perfect."
Rowena nodded, the corners of her mouth twitching upwards in satisfaction of her friend's reaction.
"It is full of powerful knowledge," Salazar continued, now flipping a few pages to see what else the book had to offer, "very powerful, indeed. Something like this is the wrong hands …" He continued to admire the novel, but then flipped back to the original page.
"I found it in my father's library," Rowena explained. "I was anxious to figure out how we could find students, when people need to be so secretive about their magic. I couldn't help but feel that there would be no easy way to accomplish it. Then I found this."
"Brilliant," Salazar replied. "This spell looks intriguing; it will be a challenge to conjure."
"That makes it all the more exciting, does it not?" Rowena said, playfulness dancing in her deep blue eyes.
Together they examined the preparation steps and the instructions for the spell, both eager to try it. When they finally felt as though they could leave it for a bit, they packed it up and went to show their other two friends.
The four friends had moderately busy lives, and by the time they felt they could attempt their magic locator spell, the season was already changing. They met together in the lodgings that Salazar and Godric shared.
Helga set a package down on the table in their living space, and extracted a huge black-bound book from it, along with a quill made from an eagle feather.
Rowena bent down to grab the book with the instructions in it, but Godric placed a hand on her elbow, stopping her. "You don't need it," he told her. "I have no doubt that you will perform this spell perfectly."
The dark haired woman looked up at him sternly and went to argue, but Salazar stopped her. "Godric speaks the truth. You are the most intelligent witch I know, Rowena."
"Together, we shall accomplish this," Helga added. "We're in this together."
These comments not only reassured Rowena, but made all four of them a little calmer about the situation. This was just one spell, and they knew how to do it properly. This would be nothing, compared to the magic and skill they would need to build an entire castle on their own. Now, they all felt rejuvenated and ready, as they gripped their wands tightly.
There was more to it than a simple incantation. Making an object capable of sensing and recording magical ability required a powerful mindset. They needed to want the spell to work. They had to feel the need for the book and the quill to work properly. If they focused enough, it would work, and it would keep working for years.
The four of them all took their wands out at the same time.
They had gone over the incantation already, the Latin words swam in their minds eye and they pointed their wands towards the book and the quill. They had planned this out beforehand. Rowena and Helga were focusing their power on the quill, while the men focused on the book. They were prepared, they were ready, and nothing was about to stop them.
"Annalis Natura," they all said in deep, serious voices. They were all so focused that the outside world seemed to dissolve around them, as they willed their magic to give the two instruments power of their own.
Godric focused his entire being on the prospect of influencing the lives of young people.
Helga imagined all the different students she would meet, discovering their special magical abilities.
Salazar envisioned the witches and wizards whom he would teach so that they could carry on the legacy their mentors had started.
Rowena anticipated all the new things she would learn as she delved even further into the theory of magic in order to properly teach her students.
The area around them was bathed in a white-blue hue, which engulfed the four friends and the book and quill. Their concentration didn't budge.
The light grew greater still, as the incantation they had spoken took life and activated the magic the four possessed. They continued to think of nothing aside from the success of the spell.
Then, quicker than it had appeared, the light was drawn back to the table and into the two objects sitting on top of it. Dead silence took the place of the light, giving an eerie feeling to the dark room.
Godric, Helga, Salazar, and Rowena each put their wand arms down without tearing their eyes away from the book or the quill. They made no other movement, and didn't say a word.
Nothing was happening. Rowena started to panic a little inside while still remaining completely still. Why wasn't anything happening? Rowena felt her spirit drop as she thought of their defeat. She had believed they were strong enough to do this together, but it seemed as though she was, for once in her life, incorrect.
She finally tore her gaze from the quill and started to back up, giving into failure. She regarded her friends. Godric and Helga still looked hopeful, though not perfectly so. Salazar had also seemed to give up, his shoulders slumped slightly as he took a deep breath.
Before the lanky man could walk away, however, Godric grabbed him by the elbow, holding him fast. The other did not look at him, nor did he speak to him, but he gently pulled him back into the stance he had been in before.
Unsure of what Godric was doing, Rowena also took the step back to her spot in their small circle and raised her wand once again. She watched intently, as Godric let go of Salazar, and instead, moved his hand towards the book.
He closed his eyes, making his thoughts impossible to read, though Rowena could interpret them anyhow. Her friend thought they still had a chance, with a little more willpower. The incantation, spoken in four different timbres, still hung in the dense air.
Godric placed his right hand on the thick book, which glowed a little brighter underneath his warm touch. Helga took his lead, and pressed her small fingertips to one end of the eagle-feather quill.
Rowena instantly understood and held the opposite end of the quill, after taking a brief look at her cheery, blonde-haired friend. The sunny woman was once again full to the brim with confidence, which made Rowena feel a little confident herself.
There was only one of them left. Salazar hesitated, not so sure of their actions as his friends were. How was this supposed to properly activate the spell? The man was unsure, but he thought he had nothing to lose. He pressed his palm to the top of the book, alongside Godric's and the volume grew brighter still.
All four of them experienced an instant change. The room grew warm, and the objects in their hands seemed to boil under their fingers. The white light shone again, and the heat intensified as they held their statures even longer, their will power growing with each second.
Godric had pulled his hand away just in time for the front cover of the book to fly open and lie still upon the table. A moment later, the hands were coming away from the quill as well, as it jumped into the air and hovered a few inches over the book.
Time passed, and the four stood there, like they had before, but this time with a new attitude. Now they were filled with hope and amazement as they watched the quill balance within the air.
Suddenly, it flew down towards the paper and slide across the page. There was no ink on the quill, yet black letters were scrawled across the hard surface.
There was a date, a time, and then a name.
The quill was recording the birth of a baby, a baby with magical ability.
Godric, Salazar, Helga, and Rowena all let out a sigh of relief and happiness, then looked up at each other, smiles beginning to spread across their faces.
It had been a long time since their accomplishment, and the result of it was now sitting in front of them. It had slowly recorded the names of witches and wizards in the area, so that when the time came, the four Hogwarts founders would know who to enlist for their first term of classes.
The book was placed onto the table. It was warm to the touch, they found, even after all this time. The first page was indeed filled with names, dates of birth, and other information. Four sets of eyes started to scan the page, reading the names to see if any were recognizable.
"I volunteer to go through the names," Godric announced suddenly. "I will find all those who will be of the correct age by the start of our first year."
The others nodded.
"We should compose a letter," said Rowena. "A letter to send to those who should attend, with all the information and supplies they may need. Once Godric has found all the names, we shall prepare to send them out, to give our students a fair amount of time to ready themselves."
"Let us work on that together, Rowena," suggested Helga. "I could write the informational letter, and you may put together a list of supplies and requirements."
"Excellent," her friend replied.
"As for transportation," said Salazar, "Godric and I will work it out. I believe we could make portkeys, and place them in the main villages that students will be arriving from."
"Wonderful plan," Godric commented. "We are getting close, my friends, very close."
With that last sentence ringing in their minds, the four friends disembarked, off to prepare themselves for September. Excitement coursed through their veins as they went through their individual tasks, anticipating what the last half of the year would hold.
Welcome to the end of Chapter 5. Thanks for reading! Please leave me a review and let me know how you enjoyed this chapter!
In case you were wondering, Felix, Helga's betrothed, is based on JK Rowling's character, Felix Summerby, the inventor of the Cheering Charm. He was Wizard of the Month for May 2004 and 2005. Remember, my character is based on him, since the real one lived about 500 years after this story, and I don't particularily imagine him like the picture I found of him on the internet somewhere.
Annalis Natura: I made up this latin phrase, using words I thought appropriate. I do not know latin, so who knows if it's grammatically correct or not. Annalis, I used for it's meaning of a record of something, possibly yearly. Natura, I used for its general meaning of substance, essence, birth, or nature. Hopefully my translations are correct.
Happy New Years too all,
-D0nQuix0te
