The Secret of Rowena Ravenclaw • Harry Potter/Merlin Crossover

Chapter One

Thanks to tomthomas101 for the help. Story also available on fanfiction.net and AO3

Rowena looked upwards towards the castle, admiring the gleam it took on in the absence of sunlight. The walls which usually loomed over the vast grounds and the dense forest seemed calm against the hues of purple, pink and blue that painted the sky.

The picture was infinitely more astonishing when one looked at the backdrop. Clouds obscured part of the sky to the left, causing the colour of the sunset to blend and twist making the reflection in the loch seem ethereal.

You built this, she thought, you, Salazar, Godric and Helga.

Rowena looked upwards at the castle that gleamed, mesmerising all who would look at it, it was the product of her and her friends' hard work.

Sometime during her reminiscence, Godric had appeared next to her, the light from his torch cast heat towards the surroundings, "I would have thought to find you in the library, not out here watching the sunset,"

"Hmm, Oh yes," She mumbled, still in a trance, "I thought that I should have a look at the whole picture every once in a while,"

"It is rather splendid, is it not?"

"Yes, although, a few people would not go amiss," Rowena prompted, signalling with her hand for them to walk.

"We—that is Salazar and I—have come up with a way to distribute the letters," Godric stated, proudly explaining the decision of using birds.

The journey to the castle was not long, the ridge, however, was steep and troublesome to navigate in the low light emitted from the torch. The fact that they could have safely used magic crossed neither of their minds until they saw Helga at the entrance, her hands on her hips.

The braziers on either side of the hall shadowed Helga, making her look less like a dangerous beast and more like an irritable mother. Helga's hands moved from her hips and crossed in front of her. She was ready to administer a scolding when Salazar came down the hall, determined to soothe her with his words.

"Dear Helga, supportive as I am of your insistence on correcting our friends' behaviour, we have been hard at work all day and are all very hungry, are we not?" When Salazar fixed his gaze, Godric and Rowena were quick to nod their agreement agree.

"Alright," She conceded, turning to head to the hall.

There was no doubt, Helga was a lady of good breading. She held her head high no matter the occasion and did not base people on the word of others. She was passionate, hardworking and loyal but she was often far too passive and mistaken for a fool.

Lightning flashed outside, illuminating the corridor with a glow. Then thunder was heard, rumbling and ominous.

"I do hope no one is travelling tonight," Helga whispered pushing open the doors to the hall, Rowena wished the same. She knew, however, that the likely hood of someone travelling was exceptionally high.

"Helga," Godric murmured, awed at the decorations, "You have surely outdone yourself,"

With appreciative envy, Rowena admired the hall. Helga and her helpers—they seemed to resemble elves—had managed to mould breathtaking statues out of the stone walls; Serpents curled into the walls, badgers leaned over snarling, griffins stood mid-rear and attached to the back of all the animals were wings to represent eagles.

They had them placed around the side of the hall and in their clutches, held braziers. The braziers were merely meant to light up the corners and, as such, thousands of candles were hovering in the air over four long tables. Each table had two benches, on either side, which were of similar length but ended a few centimetres from the end as to slide smoothly under the table, when not needed.