The Enchanted Ceiling (OPEN)

"Helga," he sighed, knowing exasperation wouldn't help his case. And it really wasn't his style anyway. "My dear friend, you know it wasn't just the number of spells you used to light and raise the candles. I've seen you cook an entire five course meal in a quarter of a hour when it should have taken all day and longer." How would he know? He didn't cook but he had a good idea - sorta.

Grabbing out his wand, he extinguished each one before lowering them back into the crate for later positioning. Godric would take care of it himself later. Or ask Rowena before getting dressed. Someone could manage it in time, surely. Salazar would likely be too busy primping for the feast and Helga needed some rest. She wouldn't get it, of course, because she would insist on overseeing the kitchen before joining them at the head table.

Thus, food was called for. Which he stated to her quite firmly. "Neither of us are leaving until Sir Raine returns with bread and you eat at least two slices. I would have had him send for some creamy butter as well but I figured that would take too long and I'm sure you have things you must do before the feast. Eating will give you the strength to get through until our meeting tonight.

"And I will take no arguments," Godric said firmly. "You will do this, for me? Please?"

Helga turned slightly to face Godric as he said her name. As expected, her worried friend gave her a soft but well deserved lecture of sorts. He had pointed out without fully pointing out she had been stretching herself out too much and trying to cover it by saying she had overdone it on a few spells wasn't the best fib she could have used. She had half expected him to usher her to sit down on one of the nearby benches the moment Merrick had left but perhaps he wasn't that far into worry mode to do that just yet. 

She watched as he put the candles away though a bit more slowly then she would have done but she wouldn't hold it against him. Godric was great in his own ways and probably the smarter of them right now by not overworking himself on the opening day of the school. Seeing all the candles though did remind her she should send away for an order of candles to replace the supply she was using here. No use worrying Rowena or Salazar by having their stock supplies misused though she intended to tell them about using the candles the next time she saw the two. 

Once he seemed to have finished saying his piece, a firmer tone on his voice then he usually had around her and she simply looked at him quietly for a few seconds in reply at first. Then a small warm smile formed on her lips "Your mother hen mode needs a little work. Needs just a touch more firmness and a look that says you mean business in a parental way but it was a good attempt" Helga said, raising a hand up and gently patting it against his cheek a couple times before lowering it to her side again. "Alright, I'll eat a little something before getting back to work. Just for you. Lucky for you the bread should be just fine on its own. I used a little enchanted churned butter in the recipe so they should have a nice buttery taste and knowing it tastes far better warmed versus cold I wouldn't put it past Elm and Patch to heat it up a little before they give some to Sir Raine."

Godric chuckled. "Well, I don't have to do it all that often. Usually, I leave that sort of business to you and Rowena. Heavens knows Salazar hasn't a maternal bone in his body. However, from the looks of some of my smaller students, I'll need to work on it, for their sake.

"Now, why don't you take a seat while I try to figure out how many candles we're going to need to order? For a room this size, it will take quite a few and yet, we don't want to overwhelm the ceiling so it'll take away from the stars. Can't have it too dark to see though. Some of these corners can cast tall shadows and I know how important it is to you for this room to be comfortable and welcoming." Hopefully she appreciated that he was trying to be a more tender soul when it came to the matter. It wasn't exactly a natural emotion for a knight. Usually, tough love was their best guide but he'd already been lectured how not all of his students would react so well to such treatment.

And his time with escorting Kimberly north to Scotland had given him experience about exactly how well that would go over with some of the more gentler souls he would be entrusted with.

Making sure that Helga did, in fact, take a seat on one of the long benches, Godric began to walk the length of the aisle. Slowly, he re-lit and levitated candles to the right height over one table to figure out how many would be necessary for five of the long trestle tables set up in the Great Hall.

Hopefully Merrick wouldn't take too long to fetch the bread for her so they could all get on with what they needed to do before dinner.

"Yes mother Godric" Helga said with a soft grin and carefully took a seat on one of the long benches. "You'll pick it up eventually, with time you'll find a way to connect to the students in your own way and show them you can be a big tough guy but still have a soft giant of a heart." 

She watched as her friend seemed to be measuring the length of the room by relighting and hovering a few candles. It was as if he had read her mind on the task and no doubt knowing she would make sure it was done before dinner in just under a few hours now. 

"There are roughly 250 candles in each of the crate, making 500 I used for the example just a moment ago. I think if we space them out a little better then I did that might be just enough to provide light for the room while not obscuring the ceiling from view but if you think we need more I believe there was one more crate of them in the store room. 

Though I imagine if we use all of the supply candles for this, as marvelous as it will be to see and if we enchant them to never melt or burn away, I don't think Rowena or Salazar would appreciate us using up the supply on the first day of school. We have a few tall floor length candelabras in the store room we can use at the head table to give us enough light and spare having to hover the candles over there and we can send out an order for more candles to the trading post to see if they can craft them but if not we may need to send the request out to the port for more before the other two have a panic attack we don't have any candles for the rest of the castle" Helga explained.

As she watched him work with the candles another idea took form in her mind as she looked at the row of floating candles. With a smile she raised her wand, giving it a little twirl followed by a flick and the candles began to rise and fall in slow motion and slightly off timed from one another. Like an ocean wave of water the candles made a wave motion in the air as they rose and fell slowly in a roll over and over. Smiling with a hint of guilt she tucked her wand away in her pocket, knowing if she was bound to get it taken from her hand by force if she did any more magic without taking a much needed rest for a while.

After convincing a few of the house-elves that his request for bread was for Sir Godric and Lady Hufflepuff, they insisted on giving him a flagon of freshly mulled wine as well to wash it down. So with the wineskin and loaf of bread in hand, he made his way back to the Great Hall where the two founders were waiting for him.

"Apologies fer the time," he said as he hurried back into the room. "They be insistent tha' I bring wine along as well."

The smell of the bread was making his stomach rumble a bit and his mouth water. It smelled buttery and freshly baked, which was truly the only way to enjoy it. The wine was warm in the bag, and ready to be consumed. "I also brough' a glass fer Lady 'ufflepuff, se she d'nay 'ave te drink li'e us savages," he said with a gentle rib toward Godric. He set the bread down on the table where Helga was sitting and then the wine goblet before uncorking the wineskin and pouring her a glass.

"About five hundred." Godric nodded, looking around the room. "I think that will just about do it. And I'm afraid we'll have to send to a few places for them. It's the only place we can get that many in a short amount of time. I'll go early tomorrow and start collecting. For now, we'll just..." He looked around, starting to maneuver some of the candles over all four of the tables but most of them collected closest to the head table.

"We don't have enough students yet to need the whole room lit up like this so we'll just cover about half the tables for now and leave a few to light the way." Total, he used about two hundred. The room was still a bit dark but it would work for the feast of the night, add to the mystique. They would only truly be necessary for the evening meal as the vast windows would bring in plenty of light for the afternoon repast.

He was confused when he noticed a few of the candles bobbing up and down. Then he noticed Helga shuffling and was certain that she was sliding her wand away in it's usual spot. He smirked, shaking his head at her antics but in the end, it was amusing so he left it alone. Thankfully, that was when Merrick arrived with the bread and, due to the amazing house elfs, some wine that would better suit Helga. "Excellent timing, as always Raine. A third opinion is always important. What do you think of our work? It's only a temporary fix, of course but for a few days until I can collect the necessary candles we'll need...?" He asked the man as he walked over to get some of the bread though more to make certain that Helga did, in fact, eat and drink something.

While he trusted her, she was stubborn and if she really wanted to go without, she would. Best he stay to make certain. With his wand already out, he began slicing the bread into neat, equal slices for the three of them - just in case Merrick was a little hungry as well. It had been a long day for them all and a little meal would make up for all the hard work they'd done today.

Once the bread was sliced, he levitated three slices in Helga's direction before taking one for himself - just to start with, of course. He could have held all three in his hands but he was supposed to be presenting himself as a gentleman and with students running around the school now, it was best to always be on his best behavior.

Or at least until he knew they were in bed and wouldn't wander in to see him eating like an animal.

Helga exhaled a small sigh, her gaze taking a break from the candles and ceiling to look around the grand room. She had designed a little on the grandest of grand size and while right now they didn't have very many coming to fill in the seats, eventually the room would no doubt be packed with students coming to start another year or their first year at the school all four of them had worked hard to create. She smiled, a warm feeling filling her heart at just such a thought. Her family had always been close and on the larger number size of members. Used to the cozy and friendly atmosphere that came with such a close family she was hoping to express that in this room now. Secretly, it had been her hope to have a large family of her own just like her siblings were no doubt building and their parents had done for them but after the loss of her late husband she had settled with the two children he had blessed her with, giving them double and triple the love she could in exchange for a larger sized family. What she had remaining Helga poured into the school, wanting it to feel like home to the students leaving their own to come here. While it might take a little time for that to take effect, they would each still be treated like family in her eyes.

She turned as Marrick returned from the kitchen, smiling when he recounted the house elves insistence he bring wine. "I'm a little surprised they didn't send you off with a tray of cheese and cured meat as well to go along with the bread. As busy as they are, they still want to go above and beyond to satisfy any request made on our behalf" Helga replied. As predicted, Godric approached the bread as soon as it was set down on the table and quickly sliced it up before hovering several pieces in her direction. She gave him a small look the took one of the pieces floating near her. It was warm in her hand, hinting the elves had grabbed one that had come right from the oven instead of one that was a little cooler from the cooling racks. Not that it was a problem, just another example of the elves spoiling them a bit.

Her attention shifted to Merrick as he held out a goblet of wine in her direction along with lightly teasing himself and Godric about drinking like savages' from the wineskin instead of a Goblet. She had no issue drinking from it with them but given he already went through the trouble to pour it for her she accepted it with a polite thank you. Wine in one hand and slice of bread in the other, for a moment she felt like a kid again. Testing and tasting potential pairing hits and misses. Though she knew this pairing would be good or at least she hoped so, the elves were still working on pairing things correctly with the right wine, mead, or ale.

Before Godric had a chance to test out his mother hen mode again, Helga took a bite of her slice of bread and let the taste take over her mouth by following it up with a second bite as soon as the first was gone. When Merrick wasn't looking in her direction, she waved the piece of bread in Godics direction for a moment to playfully tease him she was for now listening and eating her bread like she said she would. She didn't get to tease him often, mostly the roles were reversed but it was a nice little way to further boost the friendship and bond between them.

Merrick looked back up at the ceiling as Godric asked him his opinion on the candles and he nodded after a moment. "I thin' it loo's grand as e'er," he said. "Jus' enough te keep thin's warm withou' takin' away from the ceilin'."

Absently he took up a piece of the bread and bit off a corner. It practically melted in his mouth in a buttery doughiness that was perfect. It was still warm even which made it even better. He handed the wineskin over to Godric in case he wanted to drink first now that Lady Hufflepuff was served with her goblet.

Speaking of the Lady, Merrick turned toward her and gave her a small bow. "I jus' wan'ed te say again, than' ye fer the opportunity te de this. E'eryone wan's te leave a mark upon the world an' per'aps this be mine."

Satisfied, Merrick took another bite of the delicious bread and chewed quietly as he looked around the room. He was incredibly proud that it had come out so well. He had had his doubts when he first started but looking up at it now, he was beyond pleased.

Godric was relieved to hear that it would work for the time being. That's what he needed to hear and what would make Helga happy. He'd get up early and apparate down to Gringotts. Another withdrawal from his dwindling funds to start buying candles to make up for the ones used in here.

Wand in one hand and bread in the other, he ate the deliciously melt-in-your-mouth bread while he distinguished each candle and lowered them onto the table so that they could be charmed into ever-burning. No one wanted wax in their food while they ate, after all. Unfortunately, that was one charm he did not know but surely Helga did or she wouldn't have suggested it. And if she knew it, Rowena certainly did. He would send a message to their friend about the matter so she could see to it before the evening feast.

Once the candles were all in place on the tables (distinguished, of course), Godric grabbed his second and third pieces of bread. Seeing that Helga had pushed her third piece back towards his collection, he arched an eyebrow at her. But before he could debate the issue with her, Merrick was offering him the wineskin. He gladly took it to wash down the first piece of bread. While it wasn't dry by any means, it was better than the stuff he had on him by far. Never turn down a good mouthful of wine - something the man who had trained him had instilled in Godric when he was young. Good and delicious things were far and in between and one must take advantage when they had the opportunity.

Of course, the man would have never anticipated a place like this existing and sadly had died before Hogwarts had been finished. But Godric owed everything he had to Lord Henley and everything he taught his students was done in his former master's name. Without that man, Godric wouldn't be half the wizard he was today.

He caught himself looking off in the distance, remembering the night he'd come back to the Henley estate - finding it burnt to the ground. The old man and his young wife burned in their great hall and their youngest children slaughtered. Only the eldest son, who had been away, had survived to bear on the name and the old man's debts which had destroyed the family. Well, young Simon, Godric, and a few others had taken care of those debts in the same manner that the collectors had and it was one battle Godric almost didn't regret.

Closing his eyes tightly, he pushed it away, gobbling down the piece of bread quickly and taking another deep drink from the wine-skin. "I..." His voice crackled a bit. He needed to get away and do something before the memories consumed him. Today was a happy day and he would not let the past overcome the present. "I...I should check on Gwen. And speak with Rowena about charming the candles, since you'll need to be down in the kitchens." He said to Helga, reminding her that she had other obligations and could not worry about this one.

"The ceiling looks great, Merrick," Godric said quickly before excusing himself from their presence and then practically fled from the Great Hall.

Helga had tried to sit calmly and enjoy the unscheduled break and snack, the bread was indeed tasty and went ok with the wine but the longer she sat the louder and harder her mind buzzed at her she still had a list of things to do and only a few hours left to complete them. Yes, she did have the help of the house elves and no doubt they would be fine taking care of it but she just couldn't give up the need to get her hands dirty too and help. 

She had eaten at least two slices of the bread and half her goblet of wine, hoping that was enough to at least ease the worry from her friend's shoulder a little bit. Helga looked at Godric, wondering if her tease had done anything when she caught sight of something on his face for just a split second. She didn't need to be fully rested and alert to notice something not normally present on one of her friends and defiantly didn't belong there if she had her way. Yet, before she could ask he quickly excused himself and left the room. 

"G-Godric!" Helga called out but he had already rounded the doorway. "Oh bother, sometimes I forget how quick on his feet he can be when he wants to be. Guess I will need to tell him later." She resisted exhaling a sigh, not wanting to make a fuss out of it. Godric had possibly just needed some time to himself or he remembered something important and needed to go take care of it. At some point she knew he would be tattling to Rowena about what happened, needing to include it if he was already going to get her help with enchanting the candles as normally Helga would have taken care of it on her own. His words had all but declared he would see to the task of the candles and she wasn't to try and take care of it herself, instead go on with the next task on her list. Still, the look on his face had worried her and she wondered if she could press him about it later or if it would be better to let it go. 

Not wanting to ignore Merrick any further than she had, Helga turned to him and gave him a smile. He had thanked her for giving him the chance to enchant the ceiling but really, it was them that should be thanking him for putting what was maybe the best finishing touch on the grand hall. 

"Your most welcome Sir Raine. Thank you as well for giving us a piece of yourself and your work to display here for all who come here to enjoy. For generations, your piece will be viewed by wizard and witch alike. I could think of no better way to leave your mark on the world then what wonders you have created here and the knowledge you will gift the students through your lessons. But don't think its the only mark you can leave on the world, there is no limit to how much we can do, so don't let it stop you from putting more out there if thats what you would like to do." she said then slightly raised her goblet up with a smile to toast Merrick and his hard work. "Another toast to you Sir Merrick! I am very delighted and overjoyed that you decided to come here and help us teach students for as long as your willing to stay. And for putting what I think is the best feature for this room and maybe the castle. But don't let Rowena know or she will get a little mad at me for playing favorites."  Helga smiled again, hoping her words at the end had sounded like a soft joke she was intending them to be. Though, she wouldn't put it past her best friend to be a little annoyed and a touch jealous she hadn't thought of the idea. There was plenty more for Rowena to think up though, no doubt if Godric was going to seek her out to handle the candles, her friend would make them be dancing in the air or at least close enough to that.