Notes:

Conventions:
"text" - speech
'text' - thoughts

Enjoy the next chapter.

Harry and Salazar were training occlumency in Death's mansion. With Salazar's explanation, Harry got slowly the hang of it. In a break, Harry asked the questions, he held back since his arrival, two months ago.

"Salazar how was your relationship with the other founders? You have certainly noticed that everyone thinks that you are a dark wizard and totally against muggleborn and muggles. But this wouldn't fit. If I understand it the right way, a Master of Death must keep balance to anchor Death. So what is the truth?"

Sighing Salazar looked ashamed to the floor, but answered.

"I knew that you would asked some when. I'm ashamed of myself. You must understand that I come from a traditional pureblood family. Mundane men or non-magicals, as we called them in my time, were disregarded. I married with fifteen, what was common. Salome was a beauty and open-minded, but the most prominent trait was her affection to everyone, whether magical, non-magical or creature. But that was her doom. I wasn't at Hogwarts, when emergency call came from a muggleborn who lived in a town with several other muggleborns. Godric assembled a rescue group including Salome. Beside me, she was the best healer that means it was a logical decision and she wanted to help. But it was only logical superficial, because she hated violence and hesitated to attack someone especially non-magical who couldn't protect themselves against spells."

Salazar looked to Harry with sad eyes.

"Salome was separated from the others and overwhelmed by the non-magical. In the chaos, Godric realized it only later. When Godric went back, he could only recover her body. She was gang-raped and then killed. The next few years, I hated them and tried to kick the muggleborns out. I was mourning and blamed them, too. My relationship with Godric suffered as well. I blamed him, how could he involve her, when he did know of her hesitation to attack someone. It was a very bad time for me and I started to research. I've got involved with the dark arts, as you would call them. In my time, magic was magic without negative classification and prohibitions. One day, I heard a story about three brothers who cheated Death and got some extraordinary items."

"But the story is not that old."

"Yes, your story. But Death uses always the same method. He seeks three brothers out who fit in his opinion. When the brothers cheat superficially death, he would appear and influence them to wish for the equivalent items. The brothers of my story wished for a stone and a cloak and a staff instead of a wand. To return to my story, I wanted to find the resurrection stone. I was a fool and blind. Unknowingly, I owned already the cloak. It was an heirloom of my family. I have got it, because I was the oldest. But I didn't really use the cloak and it was in one of my vaults.

Someday, I tried a spell to locate the resurrection stone. I apparated to a forest and casted the spell, but something went wrong. I depleted my magical core and lost my memories. When I woke up, I didn't know who and where I am. I was exhausted. Fortunately, a mundane woman, a herb woman, found me and helped me. I lived with Lisa for several months. This time was good for me, because I could see the other side, the life of a mundane. After I remembered everything, I changed my attitude.

Today, I'm sure that Death influenced the events in the background. The failed spell to ensure the change of my attitude that I can keep the balance and anchor him. Before I could return to Hogwarts, the staff and stone ended up in my hands somehow. But I didn't want them, but there was no way out. I think you felt the same. I became the Master of Death and returned to Hogwarts.

As Master of Death you radiate an aura, which is cold, powerful and somehow supernatural. The aura is similar to the aura from Death, but not that strong. The common magical only senses that something is off, but magic sensitive wizards and witches can sense the complete spectrum of the aura.

I returned to Hogwarts and radiated this aura. I wasn't aware of it. My welcome wasn't as friendly as I expected. The students drew back from me and the other founders repulsed me. They thought that I misused rituals and changed myself. So I fled Hogwarts and lived as hermit until I could control the aura.

To answer your questions, the historians are partially correct. I didn't have the chance to correct my errors and make up with Godric. This is one reason, I teach you occlumency. It will help you to suppress the aura. In addition, the harmony aspect as Sky should compensate the aura as well."

To this chapter I allocated the the chapter "Meeting the Tutors" in the story "A Second Chance Part 1 - A New Life".