Chapter Thirteen

"So Dumbledore sent you?" Harry said.

They were all sitting in the staff room, clutching large mugs of tea. Sarah held hers close to her chest, trying to warm herself.

"Yes," she said. "He wanted you to use this opportunity as well. He said it was your good fortune you came to such a time, when so many great witches and wizards were at Hogwarts." She chanced a look at the founders. "He wanted you to learn from them."

"But why?" Harry pressed. "What could possibly be different or better?"

Slytherin scoffed. "Everything's different here, cub. We don't murder pregnant women for one."

Their earlier venture into Sarah's memories hung over the group like an uncomfortable shadow.

"Besides, it seems to me that a great deal of knowledge has been lost over time," Slytherin continued.

"Like what?" Harry asked skeptically.

"Hand to hand combat, without magic or wands," Gryffindor interrupted.

Sarah nodded. "That's true."

"So you're going to teach me how to use a sword?" Harry still didn't sound convinced.

"I'm going to teach you how to defend yourself without magic," Gryffindor said.

"And I will teach you the art of healing. Wand or no," Hufflepuff said. "You'll be needing it, I fear." She was looking at Sarah when she said this but the girl didn't notice. Sarah was staring into space, deep in her own thoughts.

"I will teach you cunning," Slytherin murmured. "Bravery and showboating don't win wars."

Gryffindor chuckled at the slight jab. "Indeed my friend."

"And I will fill in the gaps," Ravenclaw said, after a moment of thought. "Theoretical knowledge will still be of some use, especially in your studies."

"That's settled then," Gryffindor said, draining his mug in one gulp and standing. "Rest now, you two. We begin tomorrow."

Sarah snapped back into reality at this statement. Both of them? She couldn't quite hide her dismay.

"Don't sulk Sarah, it'll be good for us," Harry said, already warming up to the idea, and excited at being personally tutored by the Founders. "Besides, it was Dumbledore's suggestion too."

Sarah, as usual, remained quiet.

Sarah stared down gloomily at her meal, trying to block out the noise in the Great Hall. Her head throbbed painfully, and she pushed away her bowl of steaming vegetables and rubbed her temples wearily. Something poked her shoulder and she jumped violently, hands flying to her wand.

Gryffindor frowned at her. "You should eat Miss Selwyn," he said, gesturing to her untouched meal. "Is anything the matter?"

"N-no," Sarah said, grimacing as the throbbing escalated. "I'm fine." She looked down wearily.

"Our class starts now," Gryffindor continued. "You will follow me." He turned away and Sarah hastened after him.

"Shouldn't I be with Lord Slytherin, sir?" she asked.

"You're one of mine," Gryffindor said, "why would I give you to him?"

"I'm not?" Sarah said, slightly dazed. She tried to concentrate on their path.

"Yes you are, and I can understand why you might have wanted to be in Salazar's House in the future, but those kinds of precautions are not necessary here," Gryffindor said. He led her down a small winding stone path towards some students practicing their sword combat. The metal worsened her already painful headache.

"You will practice with me first," Gryffindor announced. He drew a sword from a long wooden rack. He then drew another, smaller one. He inspected it closely, and then tossed it to Sarah. She did not summon the effort to catch it and picked it up after it plunked to the ground.

She could barely hold it up. Gryffindor lifted her arm slightly to form a right angle, showing her how to block. Then he pulled it forward into a parry. Sarah just blinked throughout the entire exchange, throwing in a nod here and there.

When it came to actually dueling Gryffindor, she failed miserably. She stumbled, and she was clumsy in her movements. Gryffindor stopped, his warm brown eyes slightly irritated.

"You have to try Miss Selwyn," he said sternly. "Harry wasn't much better than you, but he tried." He enunciated the last word.

"I really – just can't," Sarah mumbled.

Gryffindor narrowed his eyes at her, the girl's eyes were glassy, and she winced every now and again. Her arm was held limply at her side.

"Try again," Gryffindor said finally. They carried on for a few more moments, until Gryffindor once again held up his hand.

"Leo!" he called. Sarah winced again at the volume. The sound was like a hammer pounding into her head. Leofrick ambled away from his own duel and joined Gryffindor.

"Yes, uncle?" Leofrick asked.

"Teach Miss Selwyn the basics of being a member of my House," Gryffindor said.

"What do you mean?" Leo asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You heard me Leo. She'll be your protégé."

Sarah blinked, the throbbing in her head worsening. She clutched at it, dropping her sword.

Her vision remained perfectly clear, but her hearing dulled, and she felt excruciating pain wash through her before she passed out.

This time, when Sarah awoke, she was still at the dueling fields. She was propped up against something hard, and Gryffindor was cursing as he rolled up her left sleeve. With an effort, she tried to move but was held firmly in place. She turned her head slightly and saw that she was resting against Leofrick, who had two hands clasped around her stomach to stop her from moving.

"You've lost a lot of blood and you haven't eaten this morning," Gryffindor said grimly, pinching the sleeve of her robe to show her it was soaked.

"I didn't notice," Sarah said weakly. "It didn't hurt."

"It should." Gryffindor's forehead creased.

"Knife must've been enchanted," she mumbled.

"The work of a Death Eater?" Gryffindor asked.

"My aunt," she sighed. "Though you are right. She is a Death Eater."

"Unbelievable," Gryffindor said, shaking his head. He tapped his wand against her arm and the words that were dripping with blood sealed themselves again. Gryffindor stood from his crouched position and held out a hand to Sarah, who took it.

Her light headedness returned as soon as she was on her feet and she gripped Gryffindor's arm tightly to stop herself from collapsing again.

"Leo, take her to the Great Hall and make sure she eats some meat. Then you can begin with her education of my house. Start with something light," Gryffindor said. "And show her the common room and the dormitories."

"Yes uncle," Leofrick said, getting to his feet and brushing down his robes. He took a firm hold of Sarah, who slowly let Gryffindor go.

"You're one of us now," Gryffindor said. Sarah only nodded. She had the feeling that she had lost any Gryffindor in her from the moment she had chosen Slytherin.

"C'mon Sarah," Leo said kindly. He let her lean on him as they slowly made their way back to the castle. Once she was seated in the Great Hall, Leo pushed a plate of beef stew towards her. Sarah was still surprised that the meal was still going. The confusion must have shown on her face because Leo quickly provided explanation.

"There's food in here all day, some of the students keep strange hours."

Sarah nodded, taking a small mouthful of the scalding soup. She sighed. She was far from hungry.

"We're going to stay here for as long as it takes for you to eat," Leofrick said, his tone light, but his dark green eyes held a steely determination.

"Okay," Sarah said in a small voice. She took another mouthful and swallowed forcefully. "Where's Harry?"

"Probably still with Lord Slytherin," Leo replied.

"What am I going to do? As your protégé?"

"Well firstly, you'll have to learn the codes and conventions of being a Gryffindor, then maybe we'll throw in some dueling. You need to work on that, though you probably can do better than what you showed today," Leo said, shrugging. "Anything that comes up really."

Sarah stared back down at her meal, taking another small spoonful. Leo didn't look bothered by her slow pace, and waited patiently until she had finished. She was soon feeling much better. Her light-headedness had disappeared and she was able to think with clarity.

"Now," Leo said, vanishing her plate. "We can go to the Library, get you stocked up on reading material."

Sarah was again surprised. A Gryffindor (that was not Hermione) volunteering to go the library?

Leo grimaced, "It's not my favourite place, but it's where we should start."

"Lord Slytherin, where's Sarah?" Harry asked, trying to distract Slytherin from the interrogation that he knew was occurring.

"She's probably with Godric. Now, no more of this 'distracting me' business," Slytherin said, twirling his wand. "I have been appointed primarily to get answers from you, and believe me Harry, that is something I very much intend to do."

Harry gulped, shifting back into his chair. "I really wish I could, but the timeline. I just don't know how much I've changed already, and before, when it happened…" he trailed off, thinking about Buckbeak, third year, and the profound impact a few minutes of time travel had on events.

"Harry," Slytherin said softly. "I'm sorry about this Voldemort character. I don't agree with what he's done, obviously. I just hope you'll believe me when I say that I want to help you."

Harry gaped at him. "Of course, of course. I don't believe any of those things anymore. I know you're not evil. Sarah'll come 'round too," he said firmly.

Slytherin rubbed his blue eyes wearily. Though still sharp, and decidedly cold, they held a warmth Harry had not noticed before. He looked much worse for wear after their memory trip. His clothes were bedraggled, his dark hair was all over the place and not as smooth and silky as it usually was. Similarly his expression and manner were much less composed.

"Thank you," Slytherin finally murmured. "That means a lot."

Harry nodded, looking awkwardly down.

"Let us begin," Slytherin said, pointing his wand at Harry. "Legilimens."

"You look awful," Sarah said, prodding Harry.

They were seated for dinner. After Harry's interrogation, as he liked to call it, Slytherin had hastened to meet with the other Founders. No doubt to tell them everything, Harry thought bitterly.

"Thanks," he muttered.

"Which ones?" she asked quietly.

"Graveyard, Ministry, the worst ones as usual," Harry whispered back.

Sarah squeezed his hand comfortingly under the table. "They'll help. It'll be alright."

"Mhmm," Harry mumbled, stuffing his mouth with bread using his other hand.

"You will come with me after dinner, Harry," Slytherin said. "We will do some meditation and focusing exercises. Your nightmares need to stop. You cannot continue to allow Voldemort access to your inner thoughts."

Harry nodded stiffly. "Is Sarah coming too?" he asked. He had noticed Sarah hung back awkwardly from the conversation, and, like always, seemed content to just observe.

"No, she'll be coming with me," Leo said. "We're going to work on some defence techniques. You won't need your wand."

Gryffindor gave Leo an approving look, but Sarah merely slumped in her chair. She had to tell them soon, they were wasting their time and effort on her for no good reason. Three of the four Founders seemed unaware of the girl's distress. Lady Hufflepuff was watching more closely, and could clearly see the masked worry and anxiety.

"Actually Leo, I'd like to take Sarah for a bit. We could work on some healing spells. Defence right after dinner is a little heavy, especially since she's not well," Hufflepuff said.

Leo shrugged, "Perhaps that's a better idea, my lady. What do you think Sarah?"

"I'd like to go with Lady Hufflepuff," Sarah said at once.

"That's settled then," Hufflepuff said with a tone of finality, as Gryffindor looked to protest.

After dinner, Hufflepuff whisked Sarah away quickly before the Gryffindors could change their minds. She brewed the girl a tea infusion, bustling about her little stove in a motherly fashion.

Sarah sat by a comfy chair near the fire, and the atmosphere infected her. She was starting to feel more relaxed than she had in ages. Hufflepuff's tea, which dissipated a flowery aroma throughout the chambers added to this feeling.

"What's going on?" Hufflepuff asked, sitting down in a chair across from Sarah. She had given the girl a large mug of tea, and poured one for herself as well.

Sarah stared down into the purple contents of her cup, wondering if it would taste as good as it smelt. She took a tentative sip, and closed her eyes as she felt her muscles loosen, and the tension leave her body.

"I can't go back," Sarah said finally.

Hufflepuff sipped her tea and waited.

"It's part of the spell that sent Harry here. The Tenures. It creates a sort of permanent place in time for you. I have to replace him, otherwise he won't be able to go back."

"Oh, my dear," Hufflepuff said. "Have you told Harry?"

"No," Sarah said. "I have time though, but you really shouldn't be wasting any training on me."

"Nonsense," Hufflepuff said. "It doesn't matter if you're here or there, it's still useful."

They sat in comfortable silence for a while.

"I have to tell the others, you know that don't you?" Hufflepuff said, drinking the last of her tea. "And you'd best tell Harry soon as well."

"Yes my lady," Sarah lied. "I will."

Hey all :)

So so so sorry for the long (3 year!) hiatus! But I'm back now. I have a storyline completed, and plan to finish this story in another seven chapters, including an epilogue. Thank you to everyone who has stuck around, and any new readers. My schedule is still pretty hectic, but i'm going to try and update at least once a week, if I can.

If you notice an absence of an update for longer than three weeks, feel free to PM of leave a comment on the story and I will give you an update on how I'm going with the next chappie. I'm also on wattpad as EsmeraldaSnarkle if you want to follow me there. I've got Tenure up on there too, and I will probably update it sooner than here on .

Anyway, thanks for reading. Please review, follow and favourite if you enjoyed the story! It will always motivate me to write more and more :)

xx

ES

PS: Keep an eye out for the Valkyries next chapter. ;)