Originally Posted 6/10/16, last revised 10/27/16.

Disclaimer:I don't own Harry Potter, and while I've never met her and am not one of her subjects, I have nothing but respect for the Queen. Information about British law and letters to and from the Queen comes from online research and is accurate to the best of my knowledge.

Chapter 29: Royal Inspection

Just after eight o'clock Wednesday morning, Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth arrived via Portkey at the gates of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. After she recovered, she found herself once again thinking that Magical transportation left much to be desired. It didn't help that there were three people holding her up, as being unfamiliar with Portkey travel she had naturally lost her balance upon arrival. Once she was settled, she thanked her escorts and looked over the castle in the distance.

To say that Hogwarts was an impressive structure would be a massive understatement. Despite having lived in castles all her life, the Queen felt herself a little envious of the people who got to spend their childhoods here, the structure was that impressive. She was interrupted from her musings by her Chief Wizard, who asked, "Impressive sight, isn't it?"

"Yes, quite," she replied. "I was just thinking how lucky the children who get to be schooled here are to experience something like that." She looked down at the bracelet she was wearing that allowed her to see the castle. "Thank you for the bracelet, Charles. I think I would have been disappointed to have missed this."

"You're welcome, Ma'am, but you couldn't have entered the castle grounds without it. I'm glad to know it's working though."

"Yes, well, let's not keep our hosts waiting, shall we. We have much to discuss before returning home."

"Of course, Your Majesty. Please, let me help you into the carriage for the ride up to the front door."

They rode in silence, the Queen, her Chief Wizard, and a half-dozen members of the MMS, pulled by a carriage drawn by skeletal winged horses. When they reached the front door, they were greeted by two more members of the MMS, who waited until the Queen had disembarked before bowing.

"Your Majesty," said the more senior of the two. "We have done as you requested and not informed the Headmaster of your arrival, though I suspect he knows anyway due to the wards. Most of the professors are in the Great Hall, having breakfast. If you'll follow me?"

"Lead on, Sergeant," said the Queen, following him into the castle itself.

When they reached the Great Hall, two soldiers opened the doors and the Chief Wizard entered first, turning to the assembled professors and announcing the Queen. "Presenting Her Majesty Elizabeth the Second, by the Grace of God of the Magical Kingdom of Great Britain Queen, Defender of the Faith."

Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth the Second, strode into the Great Hall like she owned it and addressed the Headmaster. "Headmaster Dumbledore, when we last spoke to you we said that there were more pressing issues to deal with before we addressed your failings to our Magical Realm. Those issues have now been dealt with, and now the time has come to deal with you. There will be a time for you to speak in your own defense, but first you will listen. Do we make ourself clear?"

The assembled professors, especially McGonagall and Hagrid stared at her in disbelief. Didn't she know who she was addressing, and where she was standing? McGonagall made to say something but Dumbledore stopped her as he rose to address the Queen. "No, Minerva, I will handle this," he said. Turning back to the Queen he continued, "I understand, Your Majesty. However, I believe it would be best if we were to continue this conversation in a more private setting..."

"In a moment, Headmaster," said the Queen cutting him off. "Before we do so, we wish to address several failings that are specifically related to Hogwarts, which we believe will be beneficial for all of its professors to hear and not just you. Please, be seated until we conclude this part of our discussion."

Dumbledore looked like he wanted to protest, but the look on the Queen's face left no room to do so. He merely nodded and sat, getting a second set of astonished looks from the assembled professors.

"Headmaster, Professors of Hogwarts, we stand before you not with accusations, not with rumors, but with facts. You. Have. Failed. You have failed many, if not all, of the Magical youth of Great Britain, and you have done so for many, many years. When we were a young girl, we became the Crown Princess after our father ascended the throne following the unexpected abdication of his brother. We learned of the Magical world shortly after our father's ascension, both because of the fact that we were next in line to the throne, and because there were a number of Magical children who wrote us to congratulate us or otherwise correspond with a Princess who was around their age."

She tilted her head for a moment, looking towards the professors' table, then smiled. "In fact, now that we think about it, we believe we may have even received at least one letter from one of you. Minerva McGonagall is not a very common name, nor one we are likely to forget." McGonagall's eyes went wide in amazement, and then she blushed slightly as she realized that she'd been publicly outed for writing the now Queen while she was in school.

"In any event," the Queen continued after a moment, "after the war the Magical world withdrew, and direct correspondence ceased even before we ascended the throne, other than the occasional missive sent to us by the Prime Minister regarding a conversation he'd had with his Magical counterpart. But we've kept tabs on things through the Crown Wizards' office, mostly hearing about how those who were not born to Magical parents were ostracized from society once they left school, something that continues to this day.

"And that is why we say you have failed. Fifty years ago, the greatest confrontation in human history came to an end, and with it the idea of racial purity was dealt a fatal blow. Granted, it is an ongoing process that continues even now, and with varying degrees of success, but we are trying to improve things for everyone wherever we can, regardless of the circumstances of their birth. You, on the other hand, have done nothing to end the bigotry aimed at denigrating and pushing out those who were born to non-Magical parents. Absolutely nothing."

Dumbledore made to say something, but the Queen ignored him and kept going. "From what we have learned, Hogwarts is separated into four houses, each of which instill and reinforce their own core set of values into their members. These houses are supposed to represent the innate strengths of their members, with children being placed into the house that will best foster those strengths and help them reach their potential. Yet one of these houses is nearly, if not completely, closed to not only those who were born to non-Magical parents, but even most of those who were born to only one Magical parent as well! And this house, which implicitly if not explicitly excludes those born of non-Magical parents, also looks down upon them and works to ensure that their opportunities post-Hogwarts are limited as much as possible.

"Tell us, Headmaster Dumbledore, are we wrong? We would very much like to hear your answer to that."

Dumbledore opened his mouth to respond, only to shut it yet again, this time of his own volition. He had no response, at least none that would answer the question based on what she had said. He had tried to ensure that the Muggleborn were given equal opportunities while in Hogwarts, and to stem the worst of the bigotry in the school, but the problems persisted. Finally, he answered the only way he could, saying, "No, Your Majesty, I cannot disagree with your statements. Perhaps some of the details, but unfortunately not the conclusions."

The Queen held his gaze for a moment, before slowly looking at all of the Professors in attendance. None of them looked happy, though some looked more thoughtful than others. "Do you want to know why you have failed, Headmaster?" Getting a weak nod, she continued, "It is because you failed to address the cause. While we are sure you've tried to address at least some of the symptoms of the problem, you can't cure a disease by just treating the symptoms. That changes today, right now in fact. Tell us, Headmaster, how many other teachers and staff members are missing from breakfast today?" She nodded at the two empty seats on one side of the table.

Dumbledore glanced at where she was looking, then answered, "Professor Trelawney, the Divination teacher, rarely dines with us, and I have not yet found a replacement for Professor Snape, who taught Potions. Also, Professor Binns, who is a ghost, does not leave his classroom. Other than that, Madam Pomfrey, the school nurse, is on vacation, as is Mister Filch, the caretaker."

"So," said the Queen, "If we are counting correctly, you have a total of fifteen adult wizards and one ghost in charge of several hundred Magical children, living here without any direct parental supervision for nearly ten months out of the year. Is that correct?"

Dumbledore didn't like where this was heading, but he had to try and defend the way things had been done. "Actually, Your Majesty, there are quite a number of ghosts in the castle, as well as all of the portraits that hang on the walls. They do their best to keep an eye out for trouble, and inform myself or one of the other Professors in the event of a problem."

"And can ghosts and portraits do anything other than report that there's trouble?"

Dumbledore shook his head, knowing he had lost this round.

"No wonder you've not been able to do anything. We are astonished that you manage to maintain any level of control over the students, having to watch them with so little help! That is something that will have to change, and soon." The Queen surveyed the Professors again, before adding. "While we do not expect that things will be able to be changed in time for this school year, we can assure you that this will be the last year that any of you teach under the current structure. Whether or not you remain here teaching at all will depend on your willingness to work with those appointed to reform the system into something that meets both the needs of Magical Britain and the requirements of the Department of Education."

"But, Your Majesty, Hogwarts doesn't have the funding to increase its teaching staff!" exclaimed Dumbledore.

"The British Ministry of Magic is not what you have dealt with before. Educating our Magical youth properly," she said, emphasizing the word 'properly', "is one of its most important responsibilities. While we insist that the laws be changed to ensure equal opportunity to all of our Magical subjects, it is only by changing the attitudes of our Magical children that the attitudes of the society as a whole will be changed. Thus it is here that those changes must begin, and so it is here that we will have to invest in the future we wish to achieve."

The Queen was pleased to see that at least a couple of the Professors, including McGonagall, were nodding at this last part. "Now, Headmaster, we believe we have much more to discuss that does not involve Hogwarts or the rest of the Professors. Let us find a quiet room to continue this discussion ourselves and let everyone else get on with their day."

At least one of the Professors looked a little disappointed that the rest of the conversation would be private, but nobody said anything as Dumbledore rose and excused himself, leading them out of the Great Hall and towards his office.


Turning a corner as they neared the Headmaster's office, the Queen stopped short as two ghosts floated across the hall chatting with each other. While she had been informed of the likelihood of encountering ghosts in Hogwarts, it was still a disconcerting experience to say the least. This was made even more so when the ghosts stopped and turned to look at the new arrivals, then immediately bent one knee and bowed to the Queen.

"Your Majesty, welcome to Hogwarts," said one of the ghosts, a tall gentleman in a great ruffed shirt. "You honor us with your presence."

After a second the Queen recovered her aplomb, and replied, "Thank you, good sir. Unfortunately, we have much to do and must be on our way."

"Of course, Your Majesty," replied the ghost, bowing again, before he and his companion 'stood' and floated the rest of the way across the hall and through the wall.

The Queen took a few seconds to collect herself, then turned to Dumbledore who looked slightly pensive. "Let us continue on, Headmaster. While I do not believe my health will suffer any for that encounter, I believe it would be best to avoid any more for now."

Dumbledore couldn't help but give a small smile, then nodded and led them on to his office. He wasn't sure whether it was a good thing or a bad thing, but he knew that all the ghosts would know about Her Majesty's presence very quickly, and at least some of them would likely wish to see her for themselves. Mostly he worried about Peeves, and what that troublemaker was likely to do to a Muggle in the castle, Queen or not.

When they reached his office, Dumbledore conjured comfortable chairs for the Queen and her Chief Wizard before taking his own behind his desk. As he sat, he couldn't shake the feeling that despite being the one sitting behind the desk, he was the one who was getting called on the carpet, as it were.

"Mister Dumbledore," the Queen said, reinforcing his feeling, "as we said before, the more pressing issues from earlier have been dealt with. Namely, as you may have already heard, the so-called Dark Lord Voldemort is dead, along with his followers."

Dumbledore shook his head, sadly. "I was very dismayed to hear about the loss of so many Wizards' lives, Your Majesty. I'm sure that at least some of them would have changed their ways if only they were given another chance."

"You are being naive, Mister Dumbledore, and that's being generous," retorted the Queen. "Before the assault began, they were hand delivered a message giving them an opportunity to surrender. In response, each and every one of those wizards who were killed chose to attack the soldiers rather than doing so. Had they surrendered instead, they would have been treated reasonably and received fair trials after being thoroughly investigated. Regardless of their reasons for not surrendering, they made the choice to not follow directions, and thus it is on their head that the consequences of those actions rest. Is that clear?"

"Yes, Your Majesty, I understand. But I'm afraid that this may not be the last we see of Voldemort. He was said to have been defeated once before, and yet he returned."

"Oh, he's not coming back," said one of the soldiers, laughing. "Nobody survives a head-shot like that!"

"That's enough, Sergeant," said the Queen reproachfully. Turning back to Dumbledore, she continued, "But he is essentially correct. Unless there's something you haven't told us that would allow him to do it again."

Dumbledore fidgeted in his seat, causing the Queen's countenance to grow stormy. "Mister Dumbledore, you will tell us what you know RIGHT NOW, or we shall have you arrested for treason and treated the same as the criminals who were arrested at the Ministry. Speak!"

Dumbledore looked shocked, but hesitated to answer. Seeing his reluctance to cooperate, the Queen turned to the soldier who had spoken earlier. "Sergeant, please take Mister Dumbledore into custody and take him to your holding facility. We want him interrogated thoroughly until you know everything he is unwilling to tell us."

Dumbledore blanched and quickly said, "That won't be necessary, Your Majesty, I'll tell you what you want to know." The Queen held up a hand to the soldier, stopping his advance, then motioned to Dumbledore to continue. "Fifteen years ago," he said, "a prophecy was made foretelling the birth of the one who would defeat Voldemort. I believe that Harry Potter is the boy whose birth was prophesied, and more importantly that he is the only one who can defeat Voldemort."

The Queen glared at Dumbledore and said, "Yes, we know." At Dumbledore's shocked look, she continued, "We learned about it Sunday morning, including the fact that it was originally made to you. Tell us, why are you only telling us about this now? And more importantly, why did you not do anything to prepare the boy for the task you believed his future to hold? We have heard the prophecy already, but please tell us what you remember it to be."

Dumbledore sighed, then closed his eyes, remembering. After a moment, he opened them again, staring off into space, and began to recite. "The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches. … Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies … and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will know power the Dark Lord knows not … and either must die at the word of the other for neither can live while the other survives. … The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies. …"

Dumbledore sagged in his chair and looked at the Queen, who simply nodded. "That's the whole thing. Harry Potter was one of two boys born at the end of July, a couple months after the prophecy was made, to parents who had survived encounters with Voldemort three times. When Voldemort tried to kill him as a small child, he marked Harry with the scar on his forehead, marking him as the true child of the prophecy. So you see, Harry must face Voldemort himself."

The Queen's expression darkened further and she leaned in towards Dumbledore, who unconsciously leaned back away from her. "And how, pray tell, was he supposed to defeat this so-called Dark Lord if he never received any training or preparation. Or, perhaps, were you attempting to ensure that Voldemort killed him this time, and that someone else, perhaps yourself, would then be able to defeat Voldemort once Sir Harry was dead?" The last part was said in a dangerous tone that made even the members of the MMS cringe.

Dumbledore paled at the Queen's implication, realizing his actions could be interpreted that way, and quickly raised his hands and shook his head. "No, no! That was never my intention! I just wanted him to have a normal childhood before having so many responsibilities dumped on him! Yes, I considered the possibility that if Harry failed that someone else might be able to defeat Voldemort afterwards, but I always hoped Harry would emerge victorious!"

Between his immediate reaction, and the look of genuine horror on his face, the Queen was inclined to believe him, but she still pressed on. "We fail to understand how you could believe that he had a happy childhood, since from what little we have learned directly from Sir Harry, as well as from a cursory investigation, he was never welcomed in the home you placed him in. On top of that, it's clear that he has had the weight of the Magical world placed on his shoulders several times while here at school, something you must have known about. After all those things, claiming to want him to have a normal childhood sounds like a pile of rubbish to us. But that is a different matter, one we intend to discuss today as well, but not until we deal with other things. So what is the real reason you've refused to train Sir Harry for his eventual confrontation?"

Dumbledore looked as though he wanted to deflate even more, but given his current posture he really had nowhere to go. "I don't know for certain..." he began, but the Queen cut him off.

"We do not care about certainties, Mister Dumbledore, we care about your reasons. If you have speculation, you may certainly label them as such, but you will tell us them right now!"

"Yes, Your Majesty," said Dumbledore quietly. "I am not completely certain of this, but I have a strong suspicion as to the method he used to survive based on the events that happened at the end of Harry's second year. I believe that Voldemort split his soul, probably multiple times, and stored the pieces in vessels called Horcruxes. One of these vessels, a diary, was used during Harry's second year to possess a first year student and nearly resulted in Voldemort's rebirth at that time. Fortunately, Harry was able to destroy it, and with it the part of Voldemort's soul that it contained. The reason I believe he has made more than one is that had he only made the single one, he should have passed on immediately once it was destroyed, yet he did not."

The Queen looked to her Chief Wizard and said, "Charles, as soon as we leave Hogwarts I want you to find out everything possible about these Horcruxes and determine if Mister Dumbledore is correct. I also want you to find Mister Croaker and get his opinion on Mister Dumbledore's theory right away. Since he was present during the operation, he may also be able to either confirm or deny whether there is any possibility that this is true."

"Yes, Ma'am," said the Chief Wizard, making a few notes. He then looked at Dumbledore and asked, "What can you tell me about Horcruxes, Headmaster?"

Dumbledore looked uncomfortable, but only hesitated for a second before the Queen's glare prompted him to speak. He spent the next ten minutes explaining about Horcruxes, and why he thought Voldemort had created them. When he finished, the Chief Wizard asked, "Do you still have the diary? I'd like to have Croaker and possibly a few other people look it over for clues if possible."

Dumbledore nodded, replying, "I do. I'll have to retrieve it from where I keep it safe, but I'll do so before you leave."

The Queen's expression relaxed a little, and she gave Dumbledore a brief smile. "Thank you, Mister Dumbledore, we appreciate you cooperating with us. Now, while we understand that the question of these Horcruxes is yet to be decided, you should be happy to learn that barring new evidence Mister Croaker is convinced that Voldemort is dead, for several reasons. First of all, having heard the prophecy, Sir Harry took the difficult step of explicitly asking us to ensure that the so-called Dark Lord Voldemort was killed during the operation to neutralize him and his followers. According to Mister Croaker, and our own Chief Wizard agrees, that certainly qualifies as 'at the word of the other.' Also, while present during the battle between the MMS and Voldemort, Mister Croaker saw no evidence that a spirit departed the body when he was killed, something Sir Harry mentioned happening previously. And finally, after the battle was over and everything else settled, Mister Croaker checked the prophecy sphere he had shown us and said that it no longer appears to be active."

Dumbledore did a double take at that last revelation, and once again slumped in his chair. "The prophecy has been fulfilled? But I was certain..."

The Queen smiled, as Dumbledore trailed off, his train of thought finally derailed completely. "So you see, Mister Dumbledore, while Harry Potter may not have been the one to strike the final blow that ended the life of the so-called Dark Lord Voldemort, the chain of events that led to that blow were all started by his own words. Regardless of how you believed the prophecy was to be fulfilled, it has been fulfilled."

"But what about the power the Dark Lord knows not?" asked Dumbledore. "I was certain it was Harry's ability to love that was going to bring about Voldemort's downfall!"

The Queen stared at Dumbledore incredulously, then started to laugh. It grew into a full belly laugh for a moment before she pulled herself together and saw him staring back at her in confusion. "We're not sure where you got that ridiculous idea Headmaster, or perhaps which drugs influenced it, but we assure you that while wars may have been started by the power of love, they have never been ended by it."

"But," said Dumbledore, spluttering. "But, what else could that power be? Despite their similar backgrounds, the one major difference between Harry and Voldemort is his ability to love!"

"Mister Dumbledore," she replied sounding like a grandmother humoring her grandchild, "you seem to have fallen into the trap of forgetting that there are different kinds of power. You wizards may work with all sorts of different things that we non-Magicals do not, but that doesn't mean we don't have power. Or, as in our case, are considered a power unto ourself. And we can assure you that while Voldemort may have known of us, based on his activities he did not recognize us as holding any real power, a mistake he is no longer capable of making again."

Dumbledore thought about everything the Queen had said, and what the text of the prophecy said, and reached the inescapable conclusion that Her Majesty was right. It had happened in a manner that was totally unexpected, even inconceivable prior to a few days ago, and so he had never really considered any alternatives. Now, once again, the Muggle Queen was telling him that his thinking had been wrong, and this time he had to admit she made a very strong argument. How was it possible that he, Albus Dumbledore, had been so wrong? As the realization came to him, he slumped and gave a big sigh. "I'm sorry Your Majesty, but that's quite a revelation. I think, perhaps, that a shock of this magnitude calls for a drink. Would you care for something?"

The Queen considered her answer for a moment. Not that she would have had one herself, but given what she'd laid on him, and what she intended to hit him with next, she decided that letting him have one might work to her favor. "No thank you, Headmaster, but please, help yourself," she said.

Dumbledore nodded and got himself a shot of firewhisky, which he downed in one gulp. After the burning in his throat settled, he sat back down and looked at the Queen. "I don't suppose that 's everything you wish to discuss with me, Your Majesty," he said, sounding somewhat deflated.

The Queen gave a predatory smile and shook her head. "Hardly, Mister Dumbledore, we're afraid we've barely scratched the surface. You see, while we haven't had any direct dealings with the Magical world prior to this past week, we've heard much about it through Charles, here, and what he's gotten from all of the Wizards he's dealt with. And if our interpretation of what we've heard is correct, your so-called leadership of the Magical world has been primarily to sit on your behind and do nothing."

"I beg to differ, Your Majesty," interrupted Dumbledore, before the Queen held up a hand and stopped him.

"Shall we give you a list?" she asked rhetorically, before doing just that. "As we stated before in the Great Hall, you've been Headmaster for forty years, and Chief Warlock for nearly the same amount of time, and yet you've done nothing to fight for what you claim to stand for. We've already mentioned you not trying to change the attitudes of the children you teach, but you've also done nothing to change the laws regarding how they are treated. Tell us, Headmaster, just what happens to those born to non-Magical parents once they leave Hogwarts? Where do they live, work, and so forth?"

Dumbledore made to answer, then stopped. He thought for a minute and realized that while he'd seen a few Muggleborn graduates over the years, for the most part he only heard from them again if their children came to Hogwarts. "I... I can't say that I know, Your Majesty. I don't recall seeing many of them once they leave after seventh year."

"And do you know why?" she asked. Giving him a moment to answer, she continued when he didn't, "Well we do. Or more specifically, Charles and his staff do, and they related it to me." Turning to her Chief Wizard, she said, "Charles, if you would please enlighten the Headmaster?"

"Ma'am," he said, nodding to the Queen before turning to Dumbledore. "While our records only go back about fifty years, I can say with certainty that at least eighty percent of all Hogwarts graduates with two non-Magical parents leave Magical Britain within two years of graduating. Some of them get tutored before going to University, while others find jobs that don't require formal education, including a number of them entering Her Majesty's armed forces. We suspect that number to be in excess of ninety percent, as we know of at least a few wizards and witches who have left Britain altogether, but because of our enforced separation until recently we have not been able to ascertain exact numbers, and in any case the trends are statistically strong enough that we don't need to refine them. However, while we have only circumstantial evidence to support it, we believe that everyone who graduates from Hogwarts without at least one Magical parent leaves the Magical world within five years unless they get married to someone who does have a Magical parent."

Dumbledore was stunned. While he knew that many Muggleborn preferred to go back to the Muggle world, he had no idea that it was essentially all of them. "But," he stammered, "but why would they do that?"

The Chief Wizard started to answer, but the Queen held up a hand. "The answer to that should be obvious to you, Headmaster, given all the positions you held until recently. Tell us, how many members of the Wizengamot have been born to non-Magical parents? How many high level Ministry employees? How many Hogwarts professors?"

Dumbledore blinked, then thought about it for a moment. Eventually he came to the conclusion that the answer was the same for all three questions: none. He could not think of a single Muggleborn to ever hold any of those positions. Shaking his head slowly, he answered, "I'm sorry, Your Majesty, but I can't think of any."

"Because there haven't been any for hundreds of years, at least not in the Wizengamot or the Ministry. While we cannot speak for certain about Hogwarts, we asked our Chief Wizard to investigate the first two and what we found was rather disturbing. Did you know, former Chief Warlock, that since the founding of the Ministry there have only been two members of the Wizengamot who were born to even one non-Magical parent? And that they were already sitting on the Wizengamot when the Ministry was founded and could not be removed? Since then, only those with two Magical parents, and mostly those with all Magical grandparents, have been chosen to serve on the Wizengamot.

"But even worse is the employment policy of the Ministry; while apparently not written down anywhere, the de facto policy for advancement is that no 'Muggleborn'," the Queen emphasized her distaste at the term, "shall be promoted if there's a 'half-blood' available to do the job, and no 'half-blood' shall be promoted if there's a 'pure-blood' to do the job. It doesn't matter who is the most qualified or has the most seniority, only those deemed as being 'pure-bloods' will ever rise to the top of the ministry. While we admit we can understand how that policy may have been socially acceptable when the Ministry was first founded three hundred years ago, even we accept that times have changed such that this is not longer so." She motioned to the Chief Wizard, who picked up the discussion.

Mister Adlington nodded, then said, "Even if the policy was occasionally overlooked by certain department heads, it still meant that those born to non-Magical parents could never rise beyond entry-level positions with the Ministry, let alone be in a position to make significant policy changes. When I spoke to Governor General Bones, she admitted that while she tried to promote people based on their competence and not their blood status, she would occasionally have to do otherwise to avoid starting a political fight she felt she could not win.

"Outside of the Ministry, we found it wasn't much better. While entry level shop positions were available, most of the shops that would hire those with non-Magical parents admitted to feeling pressure to favor those with Magical parentage over those without. Many of them told of encouraging their employees to move on when a 'half-blood' or especially a 'pure-blood' expressed an interest in working for them, and some would let them go outright. The only place we found that seemed a bit more accepting of those born to non-Magical parents were the Quidditch teams, but even they acknowledged that very few managed careers longer than a few years due to the pressures they faced. Also, the longer they stayed in the Magical world the harder their transition back to the non-Magical one became, leading many to retire earlier than usual in order to make the rest of their lives easier."

Dumbledore was speechless. He truly had no idea that things were so heavily arrayed against those without Magical blood.

"So tell me, Headmaster," asked the Queen, "what would you do if you were newly graduated and found that most of your opportunities existed only so long as someone whose parentage was 'better' than yours didn't want your job?"

Dumbledore reached for the firewhisky again, but stopped before he actually picked up the bottle. As much as he wished he could ignore what the Queen was telling him, now was not the time. Pulling his hand back, he said, "I had no idea, Your Majesty," then raised a hand to prevent her from chastising him yet again before he finished. "I had no idea," he repeated, "but I should have. I should have seen all of the things you've said, and I have no excuse for not doing so. At best I can plead the mistakes of an old man, but that would be less than completely honest, as these things have been going on since I was young."

The Queen looked at Dumbledore trying to read him, and to her surprise saw nothing but an old man who was worried that she might be right. As gratified as she was to see that she was starting to get through to him, there was much more to discuss, and things would only get more unpleasant as they went.