He landed on his feet, the Triwizard Cup falling to the ground with a clatter. Immediately Godric rolled and hid behind the first thing he could: a tombstone.
His eyes, thankfully already adjusted to the night, quickly took in the location he had landed in. A dark, overgrown graveyard with a small building nearly hiding behind a large yew tree. Hills rose all around him, a large, old house standing on a far hillside.
"Ah, she's hiding," a high pitched voice echoed around the graveyard and Godric couldn't quite pinpoint where the voice had originated from. "Find her." Hissing picked up where the voice trailed off, and Godric could recognize the sounds of Parseltongue.
He changed his bo back into his sword, the weight familiar and comforting. He sent another message through the ring: Found Tom . Cup portkey.
He then carefully began moving, using the headstones to keep as hidden as he could. He kept his eyes flickering from the ground to the area around. With Tom speaking Parseltongue, he figured to keep a watchful eye for any snakes as well as for any humans obeying the self proclaimed Dark Lord.
Silently he moved over to the next tombstone and the next.
"Come now, you can't hide forever," a new voice called out.
He hadn't planned to hide for long. However he knew better than to rush in without a plan or without knowledge of how many he fought against.
"Why prolong your fate? You'll be found sooner or later." There, the voice sounded closer.
- - - - Bonus Scene - Salazar - - - -
"Where's my baby?" Dani practically screeched.
Heath's voice was a practice of calm, "I'm sure Ric's fine."
Salazar felt his ring warm and vibrate again. He stiffened with worry, but didn't look at his ring to read the message Godric had sent. He knew one of the girls would. Salazar looked to the entrance of the maze and saw Snape staring up at the screen moments before the man moved. Salazar leaned towards Harry and reiterated, "Stay with Dad."
The crowd around them were screaming and cheering. The Hogwarts students were celebrating, absolutely clueless to the danger that Godric had found himself in. A band was playing somewhere in celebration. The girls left the stands, Salazar moved to follow, but felt a tug on his arm. Harry looked as if he'd have liked to say something, but Salazar shook his head at him and repeated, "Stay. With. Dad." Time was no longer a luxury. He firmly pried his arm away from his brother. The moment he was free from Harry's clutch, Salazar ran down the stairs to catch up with his friends. Once they were under the quidditch stands, Salazar looked at his ring and regretted the action. The message wasn't surprising, they knew whatever Crouch was up to it would involve Tom, but Salazar's heart clenched at the words all the same.
"Rowena, Helga," Salazar said and they nodded as he insisted, "Now."
The women wasted no time to step forward. The three linked arms and intoned, "Gus Godric a ghiùlan."
- - - - End Bonus Scene - Salazar - - - -
Movement on the ground made him freeze. He did not dare move his head the slightest as his eyes looked to his left. There, less than a meter away, Godric saw a large snake slowly making its way towards him.
He shifted and moved carefully forward, acting as if he didn't notice the serpent.
Suddenly, it lunged at the same time a spell came at him.
He threw himself to the side, the spell hitting the tombstone and shattering it. The snake changed direction quickly despite its size, and came at Godric again.
"Alive! I need her alive for now!" Tom screeched, the pitch higher than Godric remembered.
The serpent struck again and Godric swung his sword. The snake hissed and drew back, the blade barely missing the creature. A spell came shooting towards him and Godric crouched down as it flew over his head. "Found you," he murmured.
"Get that sword from her!" Tom demanded angrily. Godric used the opportunity to pinpoint his location.
For the moment, Godric ignored Tom and charged at the caster, weaving in between the spells thrown at him. He finally saw a thin, frail form. The face was pointed and sickly white, nearly luminescent from the moon's light. The man shot ropes at Godric, but he twirled to the side, planted his feet, and lunged forward, plunging his sword into the man's gut.
The man choked, a faint wheezing sound escaping his mouth along with a thin dribble of blood. He gasped for breath, air frantically pulled into his mouth, but barely a whisper of sound escaped him.
See? He could hear the boggart's voice echoing in his head. See how easy it is?
Godric ignored the words as he pulled the sword smoothly from the organs, skin, and robes with practiced ease. He started to move away in case of -
Godric cursed and dove to the side as the snake seemed to come from nowhere. Rocks and dirt clawed at his skin as he rolled back onto his feet.
Behind him he felt four familiar magical auras appear and he immediately barked out, "Salazar take care of the snake, Helga protect the lad, Rowena put up wards."
Trusting the other three to listen, Godric raced to the last location he had heard Tom's voice.
- - - - Bonus Scene - Salazar - - - -
Hearing their orders, the friends moved to carry them out. Salazar dropped to a knee and scanned the immediate area. Where the snake was, he couldn't say. So, Salazar spoke in Parseltongue to lure it out, "Come child, you need not serve him any longer."
Rowena paused and stared at the spot Godric stood in just moments ago asking the empty air, "Wards? Is that all I'm ever good for?" She looked around them. "And how far are these wards to reach?" Rowena, who had never seen battle in either lifetime, huffed. "Oh honestly, Godric, why must you be so vague?"
Helga shook her head at her friend, plucked a rock from the ground and handed it to Rowena. "Start here, dear."
"Ah, clever." Rowena took the stone in hand, crouched to steady the rock on her knee, and swiftly began her runes while chanting in Gaelic.
"As for you, Mr. Potter." Helga crouched and dug her fingers into the earth just as the boy was pulling the cloak off of himself. Her eyes closed and the silence stretched for a moment as nothing seemed to happen. Then the earth trembled under their feet, and moments later the ground twisted upwards in an arc around Harry, shielding him from sight and any spells.
"Another speaker," came a responding hiss.
- - - - End Bonus Scene - Salazar - - - -
Godric felt the earth rumble and tear behind him, heard Rowena's words as she began casting, Salazar hissing, and the snake moving towards the new threat.
"You believe yourself worthy of such a name?" Tom called out to Salazar, or so Godric believed. Godric followed the voice and as he bared down on where the location was, his eyes fell to the ground and saw... a baby?
"Avada Kedavra!"
Godric jumped over the poorly aimed spell and once he landed made for the swaddled Baby-Creature-Tom-Thing.
"You can't kill me, I am Lord Voldemort! I have defied death and it cannot claim me! Avada Kedavra!"
Godric sidestepped the spell easily and didn't waste any breath on replying. He was going to kill this version of Tom and nothing the homunculus said would be enough to sway his hand. It had to be with the sword, with the basilisk venom. He didn't want a repeat like Quirrell again.
He raised the sword and just as he was about to plunge the blade into the malformed bundle, Tom's mouth twisted into a smirk. "You will die by my hand soon, Fay Dunbar," and as the tip of his blade drew near the Baby-Creature-Tom-Thing, it twisted. A loud crack sounded, and suddenly, Tom was gone.
His sword slammed into the earth, a shout of pure frustration leaving his lips.
He sent his magic flaring out, searching for any sign of other magical presences.
None. Except for his friends, the boy, and the snake.
Godric tightened his grip on the blade and yanked his weapon free.
He didn't have time to wallow in his failure. He moved quickly back to his friends .
- - - - Bonus Scene - Salazar - - - -
A soft pounding could be heard from within the cocoon of earth around Harry. A muffle of shouts followed, but Salazar willed his attention away from the boy to focus on the snake heading their way. Salazar spoke once again, "Tell me, child. Are you in servitude against your will or do you serve freely?"
"I do not serve, foolish speaker." The snake responded as it was closing in.
Salazar spoke softly to the women, "She's coming."
Helga stiffened and watched for movement, Rowena's Gaelic came faster and her magic flowed over them. Salazar spoke in parseltongue again, "The other speaker serves you?"
"He is my hatchling," came the response, and a beat later, the snake lunged.
Salazar had a split second to dodge and hissed when the snake's tail slapped his arm. He knew he'd be bruised, but would worry about that later. The snake's venom would have been much more deadly than bruising. The serpent was green, long, and lovely. Salazar didn't hesitate as the snake went straight for Helga. He shouted, " Tha mi sgiath!"
The snake bounced off the glimmering shield around Helga, landing on the ground between Salazar and his barrier. Rowena threw the rock she had been writing her runes on, hitting the ground beside the snake and shouted, "Bidh mi a 'glacadh!"
- - - - End Bonus Scene - Salazar - - - -
Godric came running up to the group and heard Harry yelling from inside the dome, "I can help, let me out!"
Helga responded to Harry in a quiet, but firm voice, from her place in front of the earthen shield, "Peace, Harry, we will explain when we can. You are safe and will be let out presently."
Rowena looked pleased with herself as she stared down at where the snake was lunging at the barrier she apparently created.
Salazar's look was a mixture of amusement and resignation.
Ignoring the continued shouts of the boy, Godric looked at Salazar. "It doesn't look like it's going to stop. What needs to be done?"
"She needs to be destroyed. She has the same vileness as the diary." Salazar sighed and shook his head. "She calls Tom her hatchling. He has twisted her loyalties, as he had done with Ismanna. However, unlike Ismanna, this one believes him. It must be done, but how? How can we safely transport her to the vault?"
"We won't need to. We asked Ismanna for some of her venom to be put on my sword." Godric stepped forward in the silence, as Harry had stopped shouting, and turned his attention to Rowena. "Will my blade be able to reach her without you having to drop the barrier around her?"
"Yes," Rowena said automatically. She then met Godric's gaze. "She's trapped inside. Nothing will exit, be it spell or physical, but anything can enter."
Godric strode to the snake and positioned himself. As quickly as he could, to spare the snake as much pain as possible, Godric thrust the sword in and aimed the blade for her head.
His aim hit true.
She stopped thrashing almost immediately. Moments later came the familiar sound of Tom's scream. It pierced the air, shattering the calm, followed by the black vision of the man dissipating into nothingness.
Godric tried to pull the sword free from the barrier. He failed. He pulled again. Failed again.
He glanced over at Rowena and quirked an eyebrow. "May I have my sword back?"
"Your... oh, of course," Rowena said sheepishly. "A chrìochnachadh."
Godric removed his sword and cleaned the blood off the blade. His eyes focused on one body and then the other, the snake and man, before turning to see where Harry was still blocked from view. "Tom got away. I didn't realize he could apparate in that form," he growled lowly under his breath. "We need to take these bodies back to the laboratory. We don't have the luxury of time to burn them." He glanced at the Triwizard Cup and shrugged. "We can transfigure them into something smaller and place them in the cup until we arrive back at the school. Rowena, you'll help?" Godric's speciality with transfiguration was in creating something of equal size whereas Rowena could transfigure items into differing sizes for a longer amount of time.
Rowena stepped forward as Godric levitated the cup to stand between them. "We can place the objects in here for ease of travel and I'll carry it back." He glanced at Helga and Salazar, whose attention had fallen onto the silence of the dome. Godric had a task, though, and he couldn't worry about the boy at the moment. They had too much to do and very little time. They needed to get back to the school, see if Snape had been able to douse Crouch, and free the real Moody.
Hurrying to the body of the man he killed, he levitated it back to the group after finding the man's wand. He saw that Rowena had already transfigured the snake into a quill and had placed the object inside the cup, her face unreadable.
Godric saw the look on Helga's face and refused to allow his shoulders to slump. She looked... not angry, but upset and a bit sickened. "This is..." Helga trailed off, eyes jumping to Godric and gestured at the body, her face pale.
"Detestable, yes." Godric gestured to himself. Before he had been taken to the graveyard, he only had a small smattering of blood on his trousers. From the small encounter with the man, Godric had blood splattered on his arms, chest, and, now that he wasn't focused on the fight, he could feel it on his face.
You will always only ever be a killer.
"But this is what I do, Helga, and it needed to be done."
"Of course you did. It was necessary. If you had not, Tom would have killed you, then us," Salazar agreed while Rowena transfigured the man into yet another quill and levitated it into the cup.
Helga said, "I was not speaking of you. I was referring to the corpse."
Once Rowena had completed the transfiguration, Salazar moved to the mound of dirt covering Harry. He placed his hand on it, before asking, "Helga, will you please let Harry out now?"
The earth trembled, the walls of the cocoon opened and there stood a shell shocked Harry who had his wand up and pointed at the first person he saw: Salazar. Salazar looked at the boy's wand, but didn't outwardly react, and tentatively stepped forward speaking softly, "Remember what I said about Moody?" Harry's eyes narrowed on his adopted sibling and he swallowed before nodding. "He will be searching for you, but you're here. What do you think he will do when he can't find you?"
He frowned in thought but when the answer came to him, Harry's eyes widened, and his wand tip lowered. "Hermione..."
"Yes, we must go back."
Godric turned his back to the group and marched over to the Triwizard Cup. "We'll answer your questions, Harry, we just don't have the time. We also have another issue." He grimaced. "Tom knows our names and -" he grabbed the cup and felt the familiar tug, "bollocks," and everything swirled once more into a cacophony of sound and colors.
- - - - Bonus Scene - Salazar - - - -
Rowena stared once more at an empty spot where Godric had been only moments before, speaking to the air, "Really, Godric?"
Helga tried not to laugh as she looked at her friend. "I do not believe that was his fault either."
"I suppose not," Rowena looked at her and sighed, "it's simply frustrating the way he leaves us to clean up his messes."
"Actually," Helga corrected, "he took the mess with him this time."
"Focus, please," Salazar said with a growl. The two women stared at the man in surprise. Salazar scowled. "I know you two usually don't… didn't go into dangerous situations, so, let me explain our current circumstance: Godric has been taken again, Tom is still alive, current location unknown. Therefore, the logical conclusion is that it isn't safe for us to stand around out in the open. Godric needs me… us..." Salazar pointed a finger at Harry, "and you were supposed to stay with Dad."
"I couldn't." Harry smirked. "You were doing something... very Gryffindor."
Salazar gaped at the boy, before he could contain himself he responded, "No need to be offensive."
Their rings warmed and vibrated. All three looked immediately at the message and sagged in relief. "Thank the gods, he's home." Salazar offered his arm to the boy and said, "Grab hold, Harry."
Harry gripped Salazar's arm and closed his eyes tightly. The three founders linked arms once more, but just as they began to speak the activation code, Rowena gasped. Unfortunately, Salazar and Helga had already recited the last word by the time she had pulled away from her friends.
- - - - Bonus Scene - Rowena - - - -
Rowena had reached her small 'warding stone' and plucked it from the ground with a triumphant, "I got it!" The woman turned with a beaming smile on her face in time to see her friends be whisked away with Harry. She deflated, her smile falling to a pout, and spoke to no one in particular, "Sometimes my enchantments work a little too well."
Holding firmly to her stone, Rowena sent a pulse of magic into her ring and recited, "A thoirt dhachaigh."
- - - - End Bonus Scene - Rowena - - - -
Godric stared around him, once more at the front of the maze. However, no one had noticed him. Snape and McGonagall weren't there. Crouch was bound and attempting to say something, but nothing could be heard. Flitwick and someone in auror robes were standing near the man. With Snape and the deputy headmistress gone, Godric was left to assume that the two had gone looking for the real Alastor Moody.
Godric quietly hissed out, "Bob," as he changed his sword back into a bo.
"Sir Gody." The house elf appeared, disillusioned so no one saw him. "What can Bob do?"
He tilted the cup to show the elf the inside. "Take these quills to the laboratory now."
The quills vanished from view and Godric heard the pop of Bob's departure.
- - - - Bonus Scene - Rowena - - - -
Rowena landed moments after her friends. Harry nearly pulled Salazar off of his feet. Salazar looked around for Rowena, and relaxed when she appeared. She held out her stone, her triumphant smile back upon her face as she repeated, "Got it!"
Helga went to her friend immediately and pulled the woman into her arms for a warm embrace. Rowena hugged back, giving and receiving the reassurance that they were both okay. Helga's voice was soft when she admitted, "You put a fright in me when you let go."
"I am sorry," Rowena admitted, "I saw the rock you had given me. I almost left it behind and while I honestly don't think someone could use it, I wasn't willing to take that chance."
Helga didn't respond more than to nod and give her friend a gentle squeeze before releasing her.
- - - - Bonus Scene - Salazar - - - -
Salazar looked at the boy and stated, "For someone as graceful as you are on a broom, you are surprisingly clumsy."
"Where are we? I thought we were going to Hogwarts." Harry ignored the man's comments and looked around in wonder.
Before anyone could answer there was a familiar splash of water and a happy hiss of, "Mummy!"
Harry stumbled backwards and stared wide eyed at the basilisk. "Mummy?"
"A speaker?" Ismanna asked and moved surprisingly slowly compared to her usual speed. Her tongue flashed out and she jerked to a stop in surprise. "Swimmer!"
Harry grinned at the basilisk. "Yes. We swam in the lake together." Then Harry leveled a look at the others. "There's going to be a lot of explaining, right?"
"Yes," Salazar said in resignation, "but we need to work on your occlumency."
"My what?"
"Your mind shields," Salazar said. "No, I'm not reading your mind. Stop shouting at me. I won't answer you before you can... Harry just... no, stop... for the love of..." Salazar closed his eyes and begged his brother, "Please, stop with the questions and I promise... I... yes, I promise to explain this too, just... Can we go now?"
Rowena looked at Helga and asked, "Was that as entertaining for you as it was for me?"
Helga chuckled. "Yes, it was, but I'm rather certain Godric will be expecting us."
The four were taken by surprise when Bob popped in with two quills. All humor was gone at the sight and Rowena tugged at her friend, looping their arms together. "Time to go."
"Put your cloak on, Harry."
"But... Yeah, okay."
- - - - End Bonus Scene - Salazar - - - -
Having sent Bob off with the quills, Godric stalked forward. For the first time since they came back, he allowed a small portion of his magic to flare out around him in front of others that were not his friends, mimicking accidental magic. Everyone's attention flew to him, and he knew that he made quite the sight: covered in blood, magic lashing around him. He sent a burst of magic towards Crouch so all of a sudden everyone could hear what the man was spouting, " - survived! You were supposed to die to bring back my lord!"
Madam Pomfrey was hurrying towards him, but Godric paid her no heed as he called out, "Were you the one to send me to the graveyard?"
"Of course I did. My lord trusted me to-"
From his peripherals, he saw the auror glance over at Fudge who was a good two meters away from the Death Eater. Fudge shook his head sharply once and said, "Enough has already been said." Four magical presences appeared next to him, though no one was visible. Moments later, he felt them moving away, probably to get somewhere out of view so they could come back.
Keeping up with the excuse of accidental magic, he amplified his own voice and snapped, "Were you the one who had a skirmish in a graveyard that was supposedly meant to bring back a dark lord? No? Then you -" a hand on his shoulder caught him off guard and he quickly grabbed their wrist, twisted, and flung them over his body. He set himself in a fighting stance, bo at the ready, and... "Sorry, Madam Pomfrey." He quickly kneeled beside her as she gasped for air, the impact with the ground winding her. "I'm a bit jumpy at the moment."
The crowd roared to life around them and Godric shook his head at the shouting. "I'm alright," Madam Pomfrey finally said as she sat up, patting his hand. "Now if you'll let me see to you."
He couldn't stop his smile if he tried. Healers, always more worried for others than themselves. "I only hurt myself with the Acromantula." And speaking of healers... he turned his head and saw his three friends and Harry hurrying towards them, Salazar with an exasperated, yet fond, look on his face.
"Honestly, Ric?" Salazar asked as he crouched beside Godric.
He shrugged. "She surprised me."
Madam Pomfrey harrumphed, but would not be deterred. "But the spider only injured your leg. Who's blood is on you?"
" - the most powerful wizard of -"
"Not mine." He and Salazar helped her to her feet and Godric sighed tiredly at the adults all staring at him. "What?"
"Ric!"
"All will bow before him and -"
Godric closed his eyes and turned as his mother came running towards him, Heath and Hermione close behind with the man, the two of them quickly making their way to Salazar and Harry. Seconds later he felt Dani's arms wrap around him, uncaring of the blood on his skin and he felt a tremble run through his body. He startled as the dragon toy he had given Salazar jumped from his mother's shoulder, to his own, before it leaped off and quickly flew over to Salazar's. Godric chuckled when he heard Salazar sputter when it pressed its face against his chin and quickly wrapped itself around his shoulders.
"Are you claiming that you fought You-Know-Who?" The auror snapped.
"The Dark Lord will-"
"Well, I escaped, didn't I?" He held up the Triwizard Cup from behind Dani, finally opening his eyes to glare at Fudge from over his mother's shoulder. "It's a good thing the original Portkey still worked as I would have been stuck at the graveyard and -"
Dani's voice came from above his head as she said quietly, "He doesn't know you. I love you. I knew you'd be back, but don't do that to me again... okay?"
"I'll try," he murmured back, tightening his left arm around her waist before releasing her. Godric ignored Madam Pomfrey checking him over and gestured to the tied and muted Crouch. "Who's he? I'm assuming he was impersonating Moody since there's an eyeball and wooden leg near him."
"-cleanse the world and bring order to -"
"That is none of your concern, Miss Dunbar," Dumbledore finally stepped forward.
Dani huffed and said, "He claims his name is Bartemus Crouch Jr. and that he was using something called... Polly Juice?" She paused, nose scrunching up in confusion at the words. "Impersonating someone."
"I'm his most treasured-"
"And, I, for one, would like other answers: who his lord is, why he wanted Ric." Heath agreed, and Godric looked over at the man, blinking at the glare he was leveling towards Crouch.
" - the Dark Lord, and only those who fear him call-"
"That is enough!" Fudge once more silenced the man and turned to face Godric. "Get a hold of your magic at once!"
"And perhaps you should watch how you speak to a child." Heath stepped forward.
However, before anyone else could say anything, the headmaster now stood before them. "Miss Dunbar, I believe we need to have a discussion."
"Which will have to wait!" Madam Promfrey harrumphed. "We are going to the hospital wing. Once I am done checking Ric over, and only then, you can have your discussion."
Godric groaned, but allowed his mother to lead him after the school nurse, his hands flying out and grabbing first Salazar then Helga. "I'm not going alone. You're coming, Ro! I don't have enough hands." He would not admit out loud that he was using his magic to nudge her after them. No one else needed to know. He was not having this talk with Dumbledore alone. He had the excuse that he would be telling them anyway. He seriously hated the headmaster.
- - - - Bonus Scene - Harry - - - -
Harry's leg wouldn't stay still. He sat there on the sofa glaring into the fireplace, his leg bobbing up and down rapidly. His hands were fisted into his jeans. The teen was running the events of the evening over and over in his mind, his glare intensifying with every pass. Everyone, as always, wasn't aware of the bigger picture. They didn't realize that witnessing Moody's big reveal of being a Death Eater - courtesy of the polyjuice potion wearing off - wasn't the most dangerous event that happened that night. And their naivety drove him around the bend.
Hermione sat beside him, nudged him with her shoulder, and tilted her head when he jerked in surprise. "Are you okay?" She looked around before continuing, "I know you went with the others, even if no one else knows you were gone, but you said you weren't hurt."
"I'm fine," Harry said.
"Harry…"
He ran his hands through his hair and looked around. No one was paying them any attention, and Ric wasn't in the room. Ric... Godric... Harry shook his head. "We can't talk here. I'll be right back."
Harry ran up to his dorm room and grabbed his invisibility cloak. He hid under the cloak and made his way down to the Common Room. It was tricky getting across the room, but he eventually made it to Hermione. Harry looked around the room and with no one looking at them he swiftly threw the cloak around Hermione to hide them both from view. His friend let out a surprised squeak at the move, but was soon standing at his side so they could make their way out of the tower. Hermione went first through the portrait hole as Harry held the cloak upwards, blocking anyone's view of the pair of them, then he awkwardly followed.
The pair made it to a nearby classroom and closed the door. Harry slumped against the door as the cloak slipped off of them. Hermione was biting her thumbnail nervously. "What's wrong, Harry?"
"He lied. They lied." Harry pushed off the door and stomped to a desk to smack down the cloak in his fit of pique. "Sal isn't just Tracey. Ric isn't just Fay. Ro isn't just Lisa. And Helga... Well, she's Helga."
"You aren't making sense."
"I heard them, Hermione." Harry huffed and his hand bunched into a fist, gripping the cloth of his beloved cloak. "Ric called them Salazar, Helga, and Rowena! Lisa... Ro... whatever, called him Godric." He relaxed his grip and flopped into a wooden chair. He shook his head and said, "At first it didn't really register. I mean. I was stuck in this mud bubble... thing... that Helga made. She put her hands IN the ground and the dirt responded." He slouched in his chair. "I can't stop thinking about what I heard. What I saw. They're not normal. They're the founders. Somehow."
Hermione sat down and frowned. "That can't be, Harry. They died a thousand years ago."
"I know."
"Do you think they're barmy? I mean. This is just too fantastical."
"I'm supposed to talk with Tracey tomorrow. I'm supposed to get answers. Maybe I'll ask then." He grit his teeth and said. "The lying berk. They've been lying to me this whole time." Harry growled and stood up to pace. "I bet I'm not even a Peverell. They made that up so he could have control of me."
Hermione gasped at the implications, then shook her head. "That doesn't make sense though. If she... he... if Tracey were in league with Voldemort. She could have hurt you over the summer after I left."
"He was supposed to come back tonight." Harry shook his head. "I don't know how he was supposed to do it. They didn't explain that. But after. I bet he was going to bring me to him after. Voldemort is his descendant. Why wouldn't he just hand me over?"
"But if the others are really Godric, Rowena, and Helga... they wouldn't let him..." Hermione winced. "Would they? They wouldn't allow him to ban muggleborns from attending the school. I can't imagine them allowing Salazar Slytherin to harm you."
"If they're not really the founders and are just barmy..." Harry growled. "Ric and Sal are the ones that claimed I was a Peverell, Hermione. They're in this together. They're not really the founders. You said it yourself. They died a thousand years ago."
"You're not going alone tomorrow, Harry." Hermione stood up and Harry stopped his pacing. "I'll go with you. We'll face this together."
"Yeah?" Harry asked.
"You're my best friend. I'm not going to let you face this alone," Hermione said with conviction.
Harry sighed with relief. "Thanks, Hermione."
A/N-Elipsa: For clarification: no, Godric did not see the cauldron. He was a bit preoccupied, the other founders weren't near, it was at night, and they didn't have the chance to investigate because DE's probably would have showed up / Ric got portkeyed back to.
AN-Ajellah: Their rings have numerous spells and enchantments. The first being the Protean Charm. The second was the locator spell. The last added is the Portkey. Now this last one is different from other portkeys because it can do one of two things. Take you safely to another ring, or 'home' as in to the warding stone in the laboratory. They simply need to pulse magic and use the activation code. I looked up the Portkey on the wiki and read the etymology: French porter, meaning "to carry", and English "key", in the sense of a secret trick. So that's how I phrased their activation code(s).
I also looked up the etymology for Protego (I shield) and Finite (to finish) so those two aren't technically made up, just in Gaelic.
Google Translate Time:
Activation code(s) for the portkey translations:
Gus Godric a ghiùlan - to carry Godric
A thoirt dhachaigh - to carry home
Now about the spells 'created' for this chapter:
Tha mi sgiath - I shield
Bidh mi a 'glacadh - I trap
a chrìochnachadh - to finish