Disclaimer: I own nothing except the idea... The rest belongs to the wonderful JK Rowling.

Authors Note: This was written for the Organization Boot Camp Challenge on HPFFC. It was set by SnarkyAndProudHufflepuff. The first word I used was Secret. This story will be multi-chaptered, with each chapter being a snapshot from the Ministry of Magic. It'll be small stories set in different era's, all relating to The Ministry of Magic. The first chapter focuses on a character that will not be recognized easily, but I do hope you enjoy it none the less. This chapter was beta'd by Reitzel-chan. However, I made a few changes after she'd read it, so any mistakes that remain are my own. I think that's it... I hope you enjoy the story, let me know what you think!

The Voice That Guides Me

"You're late!"

"I know," she sang irritably, trying, and failing, to pull a dress over her head whilst eating a slice of toast. The slightly burnt piece of bread kept changing hands as she struggled to get her arms through sleeves that seemed to possess a life of their own.

Then again, a lively arm sleeve would certainly not be the strangest thing she'd encountered throughout her 30 years of life. It was not unusual if one was of a magical persuasion, and especially not if one was an Unspeakable. That though, was something they were not allowed to speak of, what with all the hush-hush and cricket noise surrounding their everyday doings.

"You're late!"

Incessant! That was the only way to describe the ungodly voice that kept interrupting her musings. No wonder her thoughts were as scattered as they were... if that made much sense. Now, if only she could manage to find a mirror within the chaos she called a bedroom, she might just be able to see whether she resembled a respectable member of society.

Her eyes scanned across the expanse of her bedroom. She would have to sort through everything once she had a day off work, or she would at least have to think about sorting through everything. Her eye caught a stray newspaper dated March 8, 1772, that would be the previous day's paper. Why couldn't she remember an owl delivering it? It didn't matter though, neither did the mirror – she really would have to put that thing on a wall, she had after all been living in her apartment for four months. She'd worry about it another time; her thoughts were too muddled at the moment.

That was to be expected when one shared your thoughts with a previously unnamed (She'd dubbed it quite simply as 'The Voice') specter of sorts. Oh yes, her thoughts were never her own, and though some would say that it was simply your inner voice guiding you, she knew that no inner voice could possibly compare to the unappealing madness that was "The Voice".

"You're late!"

Such was her life...

"Welcome to the Ministry of Magic. Please state your name and business."

She enjoyed traveling to work the Muggle way, even if it took a sizeable amount of time everyday. Her colleagues considered her methods strange, arguing that Floo or Apparation would be faster, but what they couldn't comprehend was the fascination she had developed with the Muggles she'd travel with on the wagon, or the ones she passed as she walked to the postal booth (A Booth specifically designed for Wizards, which muggles never seemed to notice) that would lead her down into the Ministry itself. Muggles who had no idea that they were only scratching the surface of the realms of possibility, Muggle who complained about their average and mundane lives when she herself wished for nothing more than peace inside her own head. How could they not see the glory in normality? Could they really be that desperate for something more?

"A better question would be how you're unable to answer the simplest of questions."

"What?"

"Welcome to the Ministry of Magic. State your name and business."

"The lack of please is an indication of her annoyance with you."

"Be quiet," she muttered harshly. Focusing her attention on the task at hand. "Levina Monkstanley, I work as an Unspeakable at the Ministry," she answered the female voice that echoed from the post box.

She sighed as the pavement rose above her. How she longed for the normality so many took for granted.

The Voice had not been present from the start. In fact, it had not made its appearance until she was well within her Hogwarts years. At first she had thought nothing of it, just a voice after all, just that little noise in the back of your head that gives you a nudge here and there... how very wrong she'd been.

Within a matter of weeks, The Voice had taken on a personality of its own and was injecting itself into every aspect of her life. Naturally, she'd gone to see the school's healer, his name had long since been erased from her mind, but he had been unable to find anything wrong with her and had insisted that she was simply seeking attention.

Her next step had been to tell her best friend, a lovely girl with sun-kissed skin and warm eyes. Alas, their friendship soon perished once certain truths about Levina were revealed. It was just not acceptable to be friends with someone who, on occasion, argued with a voice only she could hear. So she had decided to walk away, leaving behind a friendship that should have lasted a lifetime.

She had considered revealing the new presence in her life to her parents when the school term ended, but by that time, her friend had proved to be the opposite of what she was once thought to be. In telling just one more person, a chain reaction had taken place, which meant that by the time vacation rolled around, Levina was practically a recluse. Her only company was The Voice, which was a rather rude entity with an unhealthy love for sarcasm. She frequented the library, trying to find a possible explanation for her predicament, but nothing was forthcoming.

In years to come, she would look back upon that first year spent in the company of The Voice, and she'd wonder if she had made the right decisions. Would things have turned out differently had she chosen the right people to confide in? Possibly a Professor or her parents? Had her being not been shattered by Healers and friends that turned out to be nothing more than false entities, would someone have been able to help?

Dwelling on the past was worthless though, that much she knew. That small fact also served as the reasoning behind her change over that first summer after being joined by The Voice. Once she had accepted what was to be, she'd become more focused on the future, and the possibilities it could present.

She refused to trust people, and avoided the company of her fellow students at all costs. Instead, her focus shifted to her studies, and her life turned into an endless maze of knowledge and spell casting. Most days were spent in the Hogwarts library, devouring every book she could lay her hands upon.

Throughout all of this, The Voice remained a constant fixture. Its harsh comments on her actions had become expected rather than feared, and sometimes when the quietness of her solidity become too much, she would seek out The Voice. The easiest way to do this was to retract from anything knowledgeable. The Voice seemed to feed on information, which could probably explain the change in her behavior. When he was derived of it for too long, his irritability would rise and his comments would become more degrading than was usual. Through these methods, she was able to attract The Voice's attention, and sometimes he would become helpful. He'd offer advice on assignments and provide answers during examinations. Overall, it felt as if a second person inhabited her mind, one with a vast knowledge and an aptitude for rudeness.

In the end, The Voice's insistence on acquiring any knowledge available was worth something. She graduated from Hogwarts at the top of her year and was able to further her studies, which eventually lead to her current position as an Unspeakable at the Ministry of Magic.

Today she found herself in one of the rooms concerned with spell research. It was hardly her favorite place to be, (She was particularly fond of the newly formed Thought Chamber) but The Voice seemed to enjoy the monotonous work.

Initially she had become an Unspeakable in the hopes of finding an explanation for her unusual predicament. That had changed over time and she now genuinely enjoyed the work. The job was shrouded in secrecy, something she was all too familiar with. Her colleagues tended to keep to themselves, each one unable to reveal exactly what they were doing to another.

"You'd be far more productive if you actually paid attention to the work on your desk, or have you lost the ability to read?"

'Maybe I'm simply trying to block you from my thoughts. We both know that you hate it when my mind wanders,' she thought in return. Nevertheless, she dragged the discarded research papers towards her.

"Well, you do know what they say about unattended minors..."

Levina huffed; earning a questioning look from one of her colleagues seated only a few steps away. 'Keep it up,' she thought. 'I might just show you exactly where my thoughts can go.'

"Unfortunately I have knowledge of that particular type of torture. Christmas dinner with your grandmother comes to mind. If I never have to endure you imagining your grandfather in a polka-dotted one-piece again..."

'How did I get from Ice-skating to swimsuits anyway?' she wondered silently.

"As I've mentioned before, your mind should hardly be allowed to wander."

She assumed her silence would be answer enough. Levina opened a file labeled with an unpronounceable Latin word, already dreading the contents.

"I think I've become bored with our life."

'Then it's a good thing that you have no say in the matter,' she murmured absently as she stared at the first page, which contained nothing more than a repetition of some obscure Latin phrase. She would have to start by deciphering it.

"I'm being completely serious here. It's become dull and mundane, what we need is a challenge. We should have more!"

Levina stood to retrieve a book from one of the many shelves that surrounded her. Giving a slight nod of greeting to her colleague as she passed him, she chose to continue ignoring her invisible companion.

"I think I might just have an idea..."

She sat down, fully prepared to end her discussion with The Voice, in favor of devoting her full attention to her work. The Voice would probably appreciate that anyway. She reached for the inkpot and accidentally knocked her quill from the table. As fate would have it, the now offensive object chose to roll a great way, until it finally came to rest under a bookshelf near her fellow colleague.

"Aw fiddlesticks," she muttered aloud.

"I'll take your silence as agreement then? Very well, jolly good on you old beam!"

She crouched near the shelf, wand in hand in case she could prod the offensive object into submission (It was a possibility). She could feel her colleague's eyes on her back as she reached for the quill.

"Lumos"

"Lumos?" She said aloud. The tip of her wand lit up like a lantern, illuminating the ground around her and enabling her to see the fallen object. "Lumos?" she whispered again, unable to comprehend what had just taken place.

"How did you do that?" The voice of her colleague sounded, curiosity filling his tone.

Levina Monkstanley stared down at her hand where it still held onto the wand with the lighted tip. How had she done that?

"Fame and fortune here we come. No more boredom for us!"

Levina sighed heavily as her colleague -She would have to learn his name- rushed off to find the Head of their Department. It wasn't everyday a new spell was discovered. They would certainly want to make this public, which meant that she would have to be vigil, making sure that her secret was never revealed. They'd probably want to know how she'd been able to do it too.

She sighed once more. Such was her life...

2nd Note: A Guest reader pointed something out that had really just slipped my attention... I seemed to have chosen trains as the Muggle traveling choice. Trains that didn't exist yet - I'm blond, it's a problem okay! Anyway, I changed it slightly so that it would fit the era better.