Founders' Pick

Disclaimer: All I own is Simone and all those other people that you don't know. I know that this might seem a little cliché. But I don't really care.

"You're kidding me, right?"

A black girl with long, black hair and dark brown eyes stared at the three people sitting in front of her, in shock. Her arms were folded over her chest and she was looking at them angrily. They were all in a large, marble room. It had a small, circular dais, behind which three people were sitting and rows of bookshelves, lined with too many books to count.

"We have to fix this." A man on the left was looking at her steadily. His hair was golden with white streaks coursing through it and pale, blue eyes. He seemed very old.

"You made this mess," said the woman next to him. "We need you to fix it." Her eyes and hair were a deep brown and she was eyeing the girl with the same steadiness as the man.

"The damage is already done," protested the girl. "There's nothing that I can do about it. I bet if Salazar was here, he'd agree with me."

"Well of course he would," said Godric Gryffindor, his eyes flashing. "He doesn't have a problem with anything that you do because it benefits his heir."

"Godric, calm down," said the woman on the far right, who had spoken nothing as of yet. Her hair was a lighter blonde than Godric's and her eyes were hazel. She focused her gaze upon the girl.

"It is your responsibility to do this. If you don't, you can never be redeemed."

"I don't care. Staying here for the rest of eternity won't kill me."

"I don't know about that," said Rowena Ravenclaw, the brunette.

"Simone, look, either you do this willingly, or we force you to do this. Honestly, you don't have a choice."

Simone knew that Helga Hufflepuff wasn't lying. She was the most honest person she had ever met. She sighed, knowing there would be consequences if she decided not to do as the Founders asked.

"Fine," she said resignedly. "When exactly do you want to send me back? And do you plan to take me back after it's all over?"

Simone definitely did not want to be stuck back there again, having to live with the guilt of what she was going to do.

"That's only if you want to come back. You many change your mind after-" Helga looked at the other two founders. "How many years is she going back again?"

"Not too many. Only three years before your death."

"That's it?" asked Simone incredulously. "Only three years? I barely did anything within that time frame."

"Oh, but you did so much that impacted everything that happened." Godric was surveying her. "I'm starting to wonder if it's safe to send you back. We don't know if you won't make the same mistakes again." He looked at the two women beside him. "Don't you agree?"

"Hey, I'm still here," said Simone defiantly. "And, you can trust me. I can change; I learned my lesson last time, I won't make the same mistakes."

"So you know where to do things exactly the same and to do things totally opposite of what you did before?" Rowena was looking at her closely; Simone knew to detect any sign of fear or betrayal.

"Yes, I know where to fix things and to leave things exactly the same. I'm not thirteen anymore."

"Even though you'll be pretty close when we send you back," said Rowena.

"How do I get in contact with you?" Simone ignored Rowena's comment.

"The same way you always have. If we don't respond, you know that means whatever you have to do, you do on your own."

"One last question." Simone could feel her mouth go unusually dry as the final question went through her mind. She probably already knew the answer, but-

"Yes," said Helga. "It'll still be within you. We can't change that."

"But didn't it die?" asked Simone helplessly.

"If you come back, so will it. And it will die with you again when you return."

Simone grasped this information and held onto it. So he'll still have a hold on me, she thought. Just like he always has.

"We'll send you back to September first of that year. Here's what you'll do..."

The Founders and Simone were then in discussion of the next three years.

"Do you understand?" asked Godric after they had finished.

"Perfectly. I swear, nothing will go wrong." With that, she disappeared, not knowing how wrong things could go.

Okay, please review. I've thought this through carefully, and I want to know what everyone thinks. If you understood any of it, I'll be very surprised. Review!