Aria stretched as she rolled over in her bed. She reached towards the other pillow and was disappointed to find it empty.
George must have gone to the shop early today, she thought as she turned towards the clock on the wall.
She almost leapt out of the bed when she realized that it was almost 10:30. She never slept this late, although it was no wonder after her last few days. Her caseload of work at St. Mungo’s had been a bit heavier than normal, especially since she was pulled from the children’s ward to the Spell Damage ward due to a sudden rise in cases there. Her cross training to every ward helped her feel like a better Healer, but it also pulled her away from her newest passion of caring for children.
She lay in bed for a few minutes and then got up to get ready for the rest of her day off. She had a bit of cleaning to do today and she wanted to make dinner for George for once. It seemed that he ended up doing most of the cooking due to her work schedule. She hoped she could soon slow down a bit there, and maybe think about having a family. She and George had been married for a couple of years now, and she thought maybe it was about time to add to the ever-growing Weasley clan.
These thoughts kept a smile on her face as she went about her morning routine. She showered, styled her hair after drying it with her wand, and then found something comfortable to wear. She settled on some comfortable Muggle-type clothes that Hermione had gotten her hooked on, some jeans and a button-down shirt.
She went to the kitchen to find a bite to eat so she could run a few errands in the afternoon. She needed to go to Hogsmeade to get some groceries, she needed a few new work robes as hers were wearing out, and she wanted to get some flowers to set up a romantic dinner for George. She glanced at the clock and realized that it was now just about noon. As she passed the front door of the flat she and George had moved into just before they were married, located not too far from her work at St. Mungo’s, she heard a noise outside. A loud thump made her jump, so she glanced out to investigate and found an interesting looking package lying outside the door.
She opened the door to bring it inside, wondering where it had come from. It was wrapped in colorful paper and had no address label on it.
Who left this here? What is it? she thought.
She removed the bright paper and opened the box. Inside she found a letter, a scroll, and a bowl. The bowl had strange markings all around the rim that also looked quite worn. She opened the letter and read:
A destiny is found this day.
Reality hides within this bowl.
In some, disbelief would delay.
A quick response will lead you closer to your goal.
Much will be explained along the way,
Circumstances will play out.
Family loss will no longer betray.
Adventure will prove you devout.
Defend yourself, for darkness may dismay.
Desperately Helga calls from beyond.
Enough, now head towards this soiree.
Don’t forget to bring your wand!
*Remember to say ”Occultus Ultra Totus Vicis” when ready to start.
Aria did not know what to make of this, but as she read the letter a feeling of urgency was building inside of her heart that told her she needed to hurry. She went to her room to grab her ready-to-go bag. Inside was everything she felt would be needed in an emergency. After losing her sister to Death Eaters in the War, she felt compelled to be ready to react the next time she felt the need to do something swiftly. She quickly left a note for George explaining as best she could what she was about to do, hoping he wouldn’t worry about her. Now she was ready.
Aria looked at the contents of the box one more time before setting off. She picked up the scroll realizing she had not read it earlier.
Maybe this will give me more information for my mysterious quest, she thought to herself.
She opened the scroll which, at first, appeared to be blank.
Okay, this can’t just be a worn piece of parchment thrown in for fun. There has to be a reason this is here. I wonder if it’s in invisible ink. Those games Aurora and I played as kids at Grandma’s may come in handy! Aria thought as she remembered entire weekends where she and her twin sister, Aurora, would experiment with spells, inks, potions, and incantations to hide messages to each other. Those experiments also gave Aria one last chance to see her sister before the Death Eaters came and murdered Aurora, and their father. Their father was trying to save Aurora when he was killed. Aria shook her head so that her thoughts could get back to the mystery at hand.
She started with a few of the more commonly known spells and incantations to reveal invisible text. When those didn’t work, she tried a few others. Thirty minutes later, after multiple failed attempts, she remembered a spell that her grandmother had shown her and Aurora. Aurora and she had spent every summer with their grandmother as their father worked a lot and wanted to keep them out of trouble. She would have activities for them to work on that would entertain their ever-questioning minds. She was once a highly respected Auror and passed on many of her work secrets to the granddaughters she adored. The secret spell involved heated lemon juice and intoning the charm, “Lingua no Promptus” . Aria remembered her Grandmother telling her that this secret was of utmost importance. Did she know about this future mystery?
Aria quickly set up for the spell, and when all was ready, she made one last attempt at unleashing the mysteries of the scroll.
“Lingua no Promptus.” She waited patiently for about thirty seconds after casting the spell and picked up the scroll to see if her efforts had paid off. Words had appeared and Aria read:
I will go now, and I will store those two memories in the Pensieve that Rowena has given me. I must preserve them, leave them behind, for better understanding of such terrible disasters can only come with experience and I do not wish for anyone to go that far before being warned, not again. Perhaps one day I can show them to Salazar, but to convince him I will need to perfect that spell I have been working on first. In making this spell I must have felt, for the first and probably last time, what Rowena feels with that unquenchable thirst for knowledge. I want to comprehend everything about a spell that can make someone see through another’s eyes and then I will be able to alter it ever so slightly to cast on my Pensieve.
The words left Aria’s mouth hanging open in a bit of disbelief. Rowena? Salazar? In the letter, Helga was mentioned. Could this mystery involve the founders of Hogwarts? Aria’s mind was spinning as she tried to put all the pieces of the mystery together into a format that fit. The Ravenclaw inside of her was greatly intrigued, and Aria knew that she would have to complete this adventure in order to live with herself. She wanted to know who wrote the letter on the parchment and who Helga was.
Aria looked at the paper one more time and saw other words written by someone else; at least the handwriting was different. It said:
Pensieve Potion
Over a low flame: mix equal parts of soybean oil, primrose seed oil, and crushed Pomegranate seeds until mixture simmers, stirring counter-clockwise as the mixture heats.
Next mix in three crushed Gotu Kola leaves, a pinch crushed Ginkgo Biloba leaves, some ground Shatavari Root, and if the bowl is totally dry, a few Tulasi leaves. Stir clockwise twice after adding each ingredient.
Allow mixture to come to a slow rolling boil for thirty minutes, giving a smooth stir around the edges every five minutes. Mixture should turn clear when finished. When ready, fill up the Pensieve and recite incantation.
Aria was starting to get frustrated with all the delays, as she wanted to get this adventure started. She quickly gathered the ingredients for the potion and worked on brewing it.
Potions never was her best subject, but she did tolerably well. Aurora had excelled at Potions, and the memory bit into Aria’s heart. She really did miss her sister. She couldn’t help but wonder what life would have been like if Aurora hadn’t been killed. Keep your mind on what you are doing, Aria! You’ll mess this up otherwise and be delayed further. The letter said not to delay.
An hour later, Aria proudly saw her potion turning clear, so she knew she had followed the instructions correctly. She poured the finished potion into the bowl. Then she realized she wasn’t totally sure what incantation to recite.
The letter had an incantation written in it. The bowl also appears to have an incantation around the outer edge. Which one do I recite? Aria wondered.
Aria stared at the bowl for a minute and decided to try the incantation on the bowl first, assuming that it was the spell to activate the Pensieve.
“Per Alius Memoria Ostendo Sum,” Aria whispered while reading from the bowl.
Soon, the mixture turned foggy and started to swirl, awaiting a memory. Aria thought for a moment, and the first argument she had ever had with Aurora popped into her thoughts.
The argument did not last long, but it had sent Aurora crying from the room. The argument was about learning more about their mother. Aria thought it best to leave the past, there…in the past. Aurora wanted to learn more about the woman who gave birth to them. Aria never could understand why Aurora wanted to understand their mother so much. Their mother had betrayed their father, who worked as an Auror, and tried to turn him over to the Death Eaters to be killed. She had remained imprisoned in a lesser prison until their birth. Their father had even allowed their mother to name their daughters. She never saw them again. Their father had raised the two girls on his own, after their mother was imprisoned in Azkaban. She died in Azkaban after only a few weeks.
Aria pointed her wand at her temple and pulled out the memory. The memory that started the great divide between her and Aurora that lasted until just moments before Aria lost both her sister and father to the Death Eaters just before her sixth year at Hogwarts.
The memory settled in the Pensieve, and soon, Aria found herself drifting down into the memory…only something was different. She was looking at herself, and Aurora’s thoughts were being placed into her mind. Aria remembered now that the argument occurred soon after their arrival at Hogwarts. They had just been sorted…into different houses. Aria had been sorted into Ravenclaw and much to both of their surprise, Aurora had been sorted into Slytherin. The argument had occurred during dinner when both girls had rushed into the hallway to discuss the unexpected occurrence and to send a letter to their father. Both were a little frightened to be separated from each other. Both had thought they’d be together even though Aria always was a bit more of a bookworm, achieving with less effort then Aurora. In the letter, Aurora had wanted to include a plea to learn more about their mother, which Aria did not want to include.
Now Aria stood in Aurora’s shoes. She sat on the stool as Aurora had and listened to the Sorting Hat talked to her about her future.
Ah, the other McFadden girl. Now where to place you? Cleverness and cunning I see in droves, many of the fine qualities that your mother possessed. So, the best place for you would be… “SLYTHERIN!”
Aurora had sat on the stool in a bit of shock, and was pushed towards her new table by Professor McGonagall. Only after the sorting was completed could she move towards Aria and go to the hallway, afraid of what the Sorting Hat had told her. She needed to learn more about her mother. She did not want to have the same end.
Aurora had moved quickly towards Aria as the rest of the room moved to begin the feast in front of them. Only a few glances were made towards the similar looking first years that rushed from the Great Hall together…a bit of fear in their step. It was fear of separation from Aurora that had moved Aria into the hall with her sister, but it was fear of what made her so much like her mother that moved Aurora…but Aria wouldn’t listen. They wrote the letter to their father, and Aria refused to include Aurora’s questions about their mother. But how Aurora needed to know! She needed to understand why fate had placed her in Slytherin, not one of the other houses, but into the house of their mother. She fled from her sister’s side and swore she would never forgive her for not understanding the desperation in her heart to know more about their mother.
Aria gasped as she was sent back into the present. She had not heard the fear, the desperation in her sister’s voice when she had pleaded to ask their father about their mother. She had been blinded by her lesser fear of separation from her sister, and because of that fear, she had caused a worse separation. She had lost her sister’s trust and understanding by her own lack of understanding. Aurora had always been more inquisitive about their mother. Aria had not even known until recently that Slytherin was the house their mother had been placed in. Obviously, Aurora had known before going to Hogwarts. So many questions were flooding into Aria’s mind. So many ‘what ifs’, that she had to stop herself because she could not go into the past and change it. She had to learn to deal with it and let go, or she would drive herself insane. Nothing was going to bring Aurora back, but maybe now she could better understand the actions Aurora had taken. Tears streaked down Aria’s face.
Who could know that such a small argument would have such big ramifications on both our futures? Aria pondered to herself.
Aria shook her head. I need to put these thoughts behind me and think about the task at hand. The letter I received had implied that I needed to go to the past to help Helga…perhaps I can go back and try to find out why the leaders of Hogwarts had decided to divide students like they did into houses. It divided the populations and put up rivalries that do not help too many in my eyes. Could I use the bowl to go back into the past, without having a memory to use?
Aria looked at the parchment and the note again. Finally, she decided that maybe now was the time to try the other spell, the one inscribed on the bottom of the letter. She grabbed her bag and her wand before trying the spell. Her thoughts were on Helga and the desperation that seemed to call out from the note on the parchment. Perhaps Aria could go back to that time and find out exactly what Helga was trying to achieve, but at the same time talk to her about the separation of the houses.
Aria stared at the bowl and recited “Occultus Ultra Totus Vicis,” but nothing happened.
Maybe I need to be concentrating on the moment I want to go back to and say the incantations one after the other.
“Per Alius Memoria Ostendo Sum Occultus Ultra Totus Vicis” she intoned, and found that this time the incantation worked. She was pulled into the bowl and back into the past.
It took Aria a moment to orient herself. She stood next to the lake at Hogwarts, near a newly planted tree.
I spent many days sitting under the tree next to the lake here when it was nice outside. Could this be when the tree was but a sapling? Aria wondered as she touched to top of the little tree that reached only to her chest in height.
Aria looked around her and turned to move towards Hogwarts. She didn’t know where to look for Helga first.
I might as well just go up towards the front door and hope I meet with her. I can ask about her there if I don’t find her first.
Aria moved closer towards the front of Hogwarts. The sun beat down and she found herself becoming a bit warm.
There doesn’t seem to be too many students around. With this heat I would assume that maybe it is the summer holiday, she thought to herself.
As she neared the gates of the castle in front of her, Aria heard a bit of arguing coming from around the corner of the building. She moved forward cautiously to see what was happening.
In the front courtyard stood two men: a big lion of man with reddish-brown hair and a big bushy beard stood facing another man who was smaller and dark haired. He was clean shaven, but he also seemed strong willed. The cunning of the smaller man jumped out at Aria, as did the bravery of the bigger man.
Could this be Salazar Slytherin and Godric Gryffindor? They seem to match the descriptions passed down through the ages. Aria wondered in silence.
Both men obviously were upset and fighting about something. What the topic of the argument was Aria didn’t know.
“How could you, Salazar? You betrayed all of us with your actions! It will take generations to gain the trust of the Muggles again, if we ever can!” the bigger man roared down at the smaller one.
“I did only what I had to, Godric. The man would have killed me! He thought I had come to curse his daughter or some such nonsense! I never meant to hurt him…but he would not stop,” the smaller man replied in a cold, hard voice.
“Maybe this is for the better. Muggles will ever fear that which they do not understand. They will fear our magic because they cannot do it. We should never have started recruiting Muggle-borns anyway,” Salazar added with disdain.
“What makes you think that you have the right to make that judgment?” Godric argued. “Some of our best students are Muggle-borns. It takes a lot of courage to come into a world they little understand, but they have and they have thrived.”
“What’s done is done. I did not have a choice, Godric. You were not there. You did not see the man rage at me. I tried to do as much damage control as I could. All the memories of the Muggles nearby are modified, so that they do not remember exactly what happened. We need to hide our world from them, Godric. Our world and the Muggle world will never live in harmony. The Muggles will always be threatened by our magic,” Salazar said as he turned away.
“Do not walk away, Salazar! We are not finished here!” the bearded man roared.
“We are quite finished. You will ever blame me for my actions, so I will leave, but remember my words,.” Salazar said looking back one last time. “I will miss Hogwarts, but I cannot stay where blame will always be mine.”
Aria hid behind some bushes as Salazar passed her.
I wonder what that was about? Is this when Salazar left Hogwarts forever? Whoever was killed must have been important to cause such an argument. I wonder if I could go and prevent that death? Maybe then Salazar wouldn’t have left Hogwarts and the division in the houses wouldn’t feel so wide?
Aria moved back down towards the lake to contemplate how to go back just a bit further in the past.
Do I need to go back to the present in order to go further back in the past? I don’t have the bowl with me; it’s sitting in my kitchen. Oh, I never thought of this before, but I don’t even know how to get back home! Aria realized. Panic started to set in.
She quickly made herself take a few deep breaths to calm down. Her heart was still pounding in her chest as she forced herself to sit down next to the sapling and breathe for a few minutes to clear her mind.
Aria remembered a conversation she had with a few Ravenclaws one spring day. Somehow, they had started to talk about time travel and what ramifications it could have. As Aria thought about this conversation, she realized that to change time and prevent the origination of the house system at Hogwarts would change the lives of practically every British wizard and witch from this moment on. Not everything about the system was bad. There were too many students to house in one area of the school, and the houses helped give the students at least a little bit in common with each other. There was a heart that belonged to each house; a common characteristic that pulled the students together and helped them survive the difficult teen years of growing up.
Aria realized that to change the past was to change her present, and although there were a lot of bad things in the world, there were a lot of good things too. As much as she missed Aurora and wished she could have had more time with her sister in peace, they had a moment of reconciliation with each other before Aurora had been killed. Many people do not have time to ask for forgiveness and reconcile, but Aurora did. She died knowing that Aria still loved her, and that their father still loved her and was willing to give up his own life to protect her. Aurora was at peace and Aria should be happy for her. Even though she still mourned her sister, she realized that nothing could bring her back.
Aria sat exploring her thoughts, she was concentrating so hard that she did not see or hear the woman approaching her from behind.
“Excuse me, young lady. I can tell you are deep in thought, as I have often seen such a look on Rowena’s face, but may I inquire why you are here?” asked a kind faced, plump, ginger haired woman standing to Aria’s right.
Aria jumped to her feet and startled to be confronted by someone from the castle.
“Excuse me! I’m sorry, I…er…uh…,” she stuttered with a lost, ‘deer in the headlights’ look on her face.
“I’m sorry to have startled you, dear. Please calm down. I saw you sitting here so peacefully by the water, but thought that maybe you needed something from the school. May I introduce myself? My name is Helga Hufflepuff and I am one of the founders of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, the castle you see up the hill. You seem a bit out of place here and I thought that maybe I could help.”
“Helga Hufflepuff! You’re the reason I’m here, well…uh, part of the reason…although I’m not actually sure what I’m doing here anymore,” Aria said. Memories and thoughts were overwhelming as memories of her sister, father, and her Hogwart years brought tears to her eyes that started to run her face once more this day.
“Calm down, my dear. Come with me and you can tell me all about it over some tea. There have been enough misunderstandings occurring here today. I’ll let you compose your thoughts as we walk and while I prepare the tea,” Helga said as she gently led Aria up the hill to Hogwarts.
Helga had proved true to her words. They had gone into Hogwarts straight to the kitchens where Helga promptly brewed up some tea after leading Aria to a cozy little kitchen table that seemed to match the brightness that danced around Helga. A few house elves seemed to expect such behavior from her, and promptly produced some other refreshments to go with the tea. Helga thanked them and then joined Aria at the table.
While Helga brewed the tea and refreshments were found, Aria had time to collect her thoughts. As they sipped at their tea, she told Helga the truth, as it seemed to be the best place to start. She began with waking up that morning and finding the box, showing Helga the letter and then the parchment. Helga looked a bit bemused as she read the letter, but held her part of the story until Aria was done with hers.
“I remember writing that little note that you hold in your hands,” Helga informed the young lady. “I wrote it not long after our first efforts to form this very school. Godric and Salazar had gotten into a big argument about whether or not Muggle-born wizards and witches should be allowed to attend the school, as otherwise they could very well go through life without knowing how to use their powers. Rowena and I agreed with Godric that they should be allowed to attend, but Salazar was quite upset by the mere thought. In the end they were allowed to attend. A few were even sorted into Salazar’s house once Godric made the sorting hat. We thought that maybe Salazar had come around, but recently he has started his protestations again. He’s even gotten into a bit of trouble with a Muggle community. I never did find the time to let him see through the eyes of a Muggle-born witch or wizard through the Pensieve; to see how much the opportunity to come here meant to them.
“Possessing magic but totally unaware of how to control their powers could be quite dangerous to the Muggle-borns, and sometimes other Muggles become aware that there is someone different in their midst, and then those who are different are ostracized. It can be quite dangerous for some Muggle-borns. Salazar had never understood that.”
“I saw two men arguing right after I arrived here. I believe it was Godric and Salazar. I think Salazar was preparing to leave the school,” Aria said, not wanting to tell Helga the future of the school she knew.
“I feared as much when I passed Salazar on my way out to enjoy the afternoon sun. Godric also looked quite distressed. Perhaps it is time. The tension between the two of them is almost unbearable for Rowena and I, although I hate to see Salazar leave. Perhaps we will find a way to reconcile those two someday. For now, to preserve the school, one of them needs to distance themselves. Maybe I’ll find a way to get Salazar to look in my Pensieve before he leaves, but as angry as he was, I doubt it,” Helga sighed as she took a sip of her tea.
“When you found me, I had just realized that what I came back in time to do was not something I could do. I had come back to find out why you separated the houses as you did, for I thought the division hurt the students, but I realized that each house has something to offer the students. Maybe we can open our eyes more and learn from the other houses. It is our differences that make the world so interesting and we each have different needs along the way. The separation of the houses is important and I cannot stop that separation, but maybe I can help each house see the importance of the other houses, to help the students see from each other’s shoes, if only for a moment. Now I just have to figure out how to get home,” Aria sighed.
“Well, you came back using the Pensieve, right?” Helga asked.
“Yes.”
“Then you just have to ask to return to your time. The incantation ‘Reverto Mihi Ut Meus Vicis’ should send you back,” Helga informed the young woman.
“Thank you! Thank you so much for listening to me and helping me. I know I can help the students at the school. An evil wizard had tried to take over and attacked the school last year, and there has been a lot of turmoil there ever since, especially between the Slytherins and the rest of the school. Maybe I can help them all see that sometimes the differences are important and that some of the students didn’t fight because they couldn’t. It has been a true honor to talk with you! I think I need to return home, though,” Aria said as she hugged the older woman in front of her.
“You’re welcome. I didn’t really do anything but listen. You seem to have been through an awful lot for nothing, though,” Helga replied.
“I don’t think it was nothing. I have learned a whole lot today, and made a few discoveries in my own heart. I will better be able to live with the loss of my sister and father. I realized the importance of differences, and I got to meet one of the Founders of Hogwarts. I’d have to say this experience has definitely helped me grow. Thanks again for all your help. I need to get back to my husband and share my day’s adventures with him. Good-bye!” Aria said to her new mentor. “Don’t ever get too frustrated with your work here Helga, for your school will touch the lives of generations to come. This school is your legacy and is worth fighting for.” Aria whispered to the Founder. After receiving a smile of acknowledgement from the kind older woman Aria said, “Reverto Mihi Ut Meus Vicis ”
Aria found the world swirling around her as she rushed up and out of the Pensieve for the second time that day.
“You’ve returned!” Aria heard George say as he pulled her into his warm embrace.
“Yes, I’ve come back, from a rather remarkable adventure. I’ll tell you all about it, but first I want to write a letter to Professor McGonagall and send her a package I think will really help up at the school,” Aria told her husband.
She quickly wrote the letter and packed up the bowl, after emptying it, she had received that morning to send to the Headmistress of Hogwarts.
They do not need the parchment. I will save this if I ever have need of traveling in time again. For now, it is probably safest to keep that secret between George and I.
Aria moved into the kitchen where her husband had started to work on dinner for the two of them.
“I was going to make dinner for you tonight for once, but then my day turned into an adventure,” Aria said with a sigh. A bit of disappointment had crept into her tone.
“Well, why don’t you help me make it and tell me about your adventure while we work?” George suggested as he pushed a cutting board towards her. “I’m keeping things simple tonight, how about some spaghetti and meatballs with salads?”
“Sounds wonderful!” Aria answered as she got to work on the salads while her husband mixed up some meatballs. She told him about her day as they worked together. Eventually they sat down to eat.
“I guess you did have a pretty emotional day. Wow, to meet or at least see three of the Founders of Hogwarts! Having tea with Helga Hufflepuff, not too many people can say they’ve done that! I know how hard it was for you to not interfere with how things were, but it probably was for the best. Messing with time can be very dangerous. Sending that bowl to Hogwarts was probably one of the best things you could have done. Keeping the parchment was probably also wise. I don’t know about you, but I’m feeling a bit tired. The dishes can wait until tomorrow. Let us go and enjoy some time with each other,” George said to Aria with a wink as he gently pulled her towards their bedroom.
