Mastermind
by Teddylonglong

All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story.
I am not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes.

COMPLETELY AU! Partly OOC.

It is my story, and I intend to write it the way I want it. If you don't like it, don't read it.
Reviews are very welcome, as they inspire my muse. Thanks a lot to the kind readers who commented on the previous chapter!


When the movement stopped, Ron looked around with curiosity. They found themselves in a corridor, which looked very different from the halls within the Ministry, which were quite plain with the same linoleum floor laid out everywhere. The corridor here was equipped with a dark blue carpet and somehow looked noble in comparison.

Croaker knocked at the door in front of them and told what seemed to be a secretary who he was and that they had an appointment with the Prime Minister.

"Minister O'Neill is already waiting for you," the secretary informed them and led them into the Minister's office.

HP

Minister O'Neill was a very friendly man and greeted them pleasantly, when Croaker introduced them as Mastermind and Sphinx and explained that the two ten-year-olds had come to assist him with the flow of information concerning the magical world, that they were Unspeakables though and as such not allowed to show their faces to anyone, not even to the Prime Minister.

"I fully understand," O'Neill replied gently and told them that the former Minister of Magic, Madam Bagnold, hat informed him about the role of the Unspeakables. "She was a wonderful Minister of Magic and always used to keep me updated if there was any interesting news, which is important, as it's my task to inform the Queen, who is especially interested in the magical world, because she's part of it without being able to take part."

"We understand, and while Sphinx is going to inform you, on a weekly basis if that's convenient for you, at the same time, Mastermind will speak with the Queen, provided that she accepts being informed by an Unspeakable," Croaker explained and promised, "If there's any urgent news, the children will of course contact you immediately."

"Thank you very much," the Prime Minister said and suggested that Sphinx should visit him on Friday afternoons, as this usually was the quietest time in his office.

"Is your office connected with a fireplace?" Croaker enquired and, seeing the Minister nod, suggested that he could call his office when he had time for Sphinx to visit.

"That would be the best," O'Neill agreed and added, "This will also be the best for Mastermind's visiting times with the Queen."

HP

The visit with the Queen was not much different – apart from the fact that both children were extremely amazed from the interior of Buckingham Palace. They realised soon that the Queen was indeed very interested in the magical world and asked a lot of questions. Most of them the children could answer, only from time to time, Croaker added his own explanation.

'If you don't know the answer to a question, just say that you'll check it out and inform her about it the next time,' the Head Unspeakable telepathically told the children, causing Ron to inwardly sigh in relief.

"The Queen talked to us almost as if she was a normal witch," Ron said to Sphinx, when they were back at the Unspeakables Office. "I really liked that."

"Yes," Sphinx agreed, and Ron somehow sensed that she was smiling, although he could not see it.

"You can always go to visit the Prime Minister or the Queen together if you feel more comfortable together, although I think you'll both able to inform them by yourselves," Croaker said, before he dismissed them with the suggestion to take a look at the Unspeakables' library if they were interested. "I'll see you tomorrow morning at eight o'clock for the meeting," he added and took his leave.

"Shall we take a look at the library?" Sphinx suggested, and Ron eagerly agreed.

Together, they spent a couple of hours checking out the different sections of the surprisingly huge library, discussing this and that with interest.

'I've never met such a nice girl before,' Ron thought, when they both popped to their homes. 'I hope I can become friends with her at Hogwarts, too.'

HP

From the following week onwards, they only had training from after the morning meeting until lunchtime, and during the afternoons, they were free to spend their time in the library or assist the adults if their help was required.

Ron was happier than he had been ever before in his life. He felt as if for the first time he was able to escape from his older brothers' shadows and thoroughly enjoyed himself. The morning meetings were usually interesting and gave him a lot of insight into current problems of the magical world, and the Queen was very nice and easy to talk to. She was also willing to discuss whatever information about the magical world he threw at her, and the afternoons in the library together with Sphinx were extremely enjoyable. The children got along so well that Ron had the impression as if – for the first time in his life – he had gained a good friend. 'Even if she's a girl,' he thought.

It was on a cold, snowy afternoon in December when Ron stumbled over a folder that caught his interest. 'Prophecies from the year 1000 till today' it was labelled, and Ron began to explore the content with curiosity.

"Sphinx, look at this," he called over to his friend, and the two children skimmed the long list together, only to stare at one of the last entries, wide-eyed.

"Prophecy between Harry Potter and Tom Riddle AKA Lord Voldemort," Sphinx read in surprise.

"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 have power the Dark Lord knows not... and either must die at the hand 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," Ron read the content in disbelief.

"Do you think that was when he beat him as a baby?" he enquired.

Sphinx shook her head. "I don't think so," she said, pensively. "Look here, it still says 'Unfulfilled'. This must be something that's going to happen in the future."

"But how?" Ron asked, incredulously. "I thought Harry Potter killed You-Know-Who?"

"That's indeed strange," Sphinx admitted. "Let's go and ask Croaker about it. Maybe he knows something."

Carrying the folder, they headed to see Croaker, glad that he was just alone in his office.

"Some people think that he's not really dead, especially considering that no one found his body, only his wand," Croaker explained, pensively. "I'm not sure how he could not be dead though. Maybe he used some kind of very dark magic, but that I don't know for sure. I only know that this is said to be the reason why Harry Potter has to grow up with his muggle relatives. Dumbledore cast blood wards around their home to keep Harry safe from Death Eaters and possibly Voldemort."

"You say his name?" Sphinx enquired.

"Why not?" Croaker returned the question. "Apparently, people think he'd pop up behind them if they did so, but I don't believe that."

"That's true," Ron agreed, resolving to use the name instead of the ridiculously sounding 'You-Know-Who' that most people used.

HP

When he discussed the matter at dinner time, just when his older brothers had returned from Hogwarts for the Christmas holidays, his mother was very upset, and Percy predicted his imminent demise by the hands of the one who should not be named, causing the twins to tease him throughout their holidays.

HP

During the following weeks, the thought 'How can someone be dead but not really gone?' kept popping up in the front of Ron's mind, and when he met Sphinx again after the Christmas holidays, he told her, "I want to try to find out a bit about dark magic. You know Croaker said it could be very dark magic that Voldemort isn't really dead."

"Okay Mastermind, I'll help you," Sphinx replied pleasantly, and as soon as they were free to do their research in the library like every afternoon, they began to systematically search for books about dark magic.

Unfortunately, their research was not very efficient to say the least, and months later, they still did not have a clue how Voldemort had managed to cheat death.

HP

One day in spring, when Ron was visiting the Queen, he brought up the topic and discussed the matter with the Queen, who was taken aback at the idea of Voldemort being not really dead.

"Why don't you ask the older Unspeakables?" she suggested in a soft voice. "Maybe one of them has heard something like that."

"We asked Croaker once and he didn't know, but I'll ask him if there's anyone who might know," Ron replied, feeling very much reassured by the idea.

"I'm also wondering if Harry knows about the magical world," he changed the topic to another matter that had been bothered him for a while. "He's growing up with his muggle relatives, and from what I found in the Unspeakables' library about his mother's family, they seem to hate magic. I'm not sure of course though."

"Why don't we invite him here, so that you can meet him and tell him everything about the magical world in case he is unaware," the Queen suggested, causing Ron to gape at her in surprise.

"Is that possible?" he enquired, excitedly. "I'd love to meet him and help him find his way around the magical world. It's just that Dumbledore is said to have prohibited anyone to contact him in any way."

"I'll send someone to invite him for next Friday afternoon," the Queen promised, making Ron cast her a genuine smile, happy about his secret agreement with the Queen to take off his hood when they were alone.

HP

A couple of days later, Croaker introduced a very old Unspeakable to the children, whom they had not met before. He introduced him as Zeus and told them that he had been an Unspeakable for about one hundred years but had then retired and was now only occasionally visiting the library to look up something. Hearing about their inefficient research, Zeus remained pensive for a couple of minutes, and Sphinx and Mastermind already exchanged a confused look, when he finally spoke up.

"Horcruxes. He must have made Horcruxes. Look it up, you'll find it… wait." He rose from the chair he was occupying and retrieved a book from a shelf. "Read this. It'll help you, but let me warn you, this is very dark magic and shouldn't be known at all. No," he interrupted himself, taking back the book from Ron. "I'll give this to Croaker. You're too young to be confronted with such dark magic."

"Exactly," Croaker agreed upon hearing the story when the three entered his office. "I'll check it out and inform you," he promised, mumbling something like "Your mothers would kill me if I allowed you to read such a book."

HP

On Friday afternoon, Ron was extremely excited when he made his way to Buckingham Palace to see the Queen. After meeting her almost every week and talking about this and that, Ron had become to think of her like of a good friend. Today, however, was the day when Harry Potter would come to visit, so that he could give him an introduction to the magical world.

"I think I should put my hood on this time if Harry's going to join us," he said to the Queen, who nodded her agreement.

"I believe that's better, so that you won't get into trouble with the Unspeakables," she replied in a soft voice. "Harry should arrive any minute now."

"How is he going to get here?" Ron enquired with a combination of curiosity and excitement.

"I've sent someone to fetch him," the Queen replied, smiling, and explained, "I even sent someone to hand over his letter last week to make sure that he received the invitation."

Ron absentmindedly sipped his tea, while the Queen proceeded to ask questions about the magical world, which Ron was happy to answer as well as he could. He also informed her that they had found out that Voldemort had to have made Horcruxes, although he had to admit that he did not have a clue what they were. "The Unspeakables are looking into the matter though," he added, reassuringly, just when the door opened and a boy of about his age hesitantly stepped into the room, followed by one of the Queen's guards.

"Hello Harry," the Queen greeted him, making Ron think once more that she acted so normal, much different from what he had expected upon hearing about the British monarchy.

"Hi Harry," he echoed, greeting the other boy in a friendly voice, efficiently hiding his surprise at how the boy was dressed. He was wearing a black suit along with a light blue tie. None of the children, whom Ron had ever met, had been wearing suits, not even on occasions like Christmas parties.

"Err, excuse me, but I'm not Harry," the boy stammered, looking at them, wide-eyed.

"Who are you then?" the Queen enquired in a strict voice.

"I'm Dudley," the boy replied, seemingly frightened. "Harry's my cousin."

"Arthur," the Queen addressed the guard, who was still standing next to the visitor, "take the boy back home and bring the right one. It's Harry Potter who's supposed to visit us."

"I'm sorry," Dudley stammered. "My mother told me that it was surely me and not the freak who was supposed to be invited, so she told me to go with him," he added, pointing at the guard.

"Go now," the Queen said, sounding colder than Ron had ever heard her speak. "Harry Potter is not a freak by the way, and I can't wait to meet him."

"All right." Dudley's voice had almost become a whisper, before the guard pulled him out of the room.

"That was gross," Ron blurted out, staring at the Queen in disbelief.

"Extremely, but believe me that the boy's mother will be in trouble, when I send someone to enquire about the matter tomorrow," the Queen replied, smirking. "Now that we're going to have about two hours before our real Harry is supposed to arrive, do you have any way to get these kind of Unspeakable robes for me? I'd love to make a trip to Diagon Alley together with you, but of course I could only do such a thing incognito."

Ron nodded in understanding. "Let me ask the boss," he replied, before he telepathically contacted Croaker. 'Could we get one set of Unspeakable robes? The Queen would like me to take her to Diagon Alley wearing Unspeakable robes.'

'Of course, Mastermind. Come here to get them,' Croaker replied, immediately.

"I'll just go and fetch a set of robes," Ron informed the Queen and, hearing her approval, he popped straight into the Unspeakable Office, only to return five minutes later.

"This is fun," the Queen said, as she called her son Charles to let him know what she was going to do, before she covered herself with the Unspeakable robes and hood. "How's that?" she asked, sounding very different from her normal voice.

"No one will know who you are," Charles confirmed in apparent amazement.

"I think so too," Ron added, only to ask, "Where exactly would you like to go?"

"I just wish to see Diagon Alley, nothing specific," he was informed and gently held on to the Queen's arm, before he popped both of them right in front of Gringotts.

If anyone noticed Ron and the Queen in Diagon Alley, they would believe that they were two Unspeakables patrolling the street.

Ron gave the Queen a small tour around the wizarding shopping centre, and the Queen seemed to thoroughly enjoy herself.

'That was fun. We should have taken Sphinx with us,' Ron thought, when he readied himself to pop them back into Buckingham Palace.

"Thank you so much, Mastermind," the Queen told him upon their arrival. "That was the most enjoyable excursion that I had during the last fifty years."

Ron chuckled. "You're very welcome, and we can do that at any time if your schedule allows it," he replied, smiling, even if the hood was covering his smile.

HP

Finally, Harry Potter arrived. Ron stared at the small boy in disbelief. 'He looks as if he was even younger than Ginny,' he thought, taking in the rags in which the boy was dressed with disdain. 'He's also very skinny in contrary to his cousin.'

He was brought back to reality, when the Queen and Harry exchanged their greetings. "Hello Harry, I'm the Mini Unspeakable Mastermind," he told him, causing the smaller boy to look at him in clear surprise.

It was already tea time, and the Queen instructed a servant to serve tea and scones in the adjacent dining room, where she motioned the boys to take seats around the table.

Noticing that the other boy seemed very frightened, Ron gently instructed Harry to follow him and made him sit at the table, lowering himself in the seat next to him, while the Queen took a spot opposite of them.

"Now Harry, why we've called you here," she began to speak in a soft voice, "is to enquire if you're aware of the magical world."

Harry's face took on a horrified expression, and he replied in a barely audible voice, "I know that there's no such thing as magic. My relatives have told me that."

"Nonsense," the Queen contradicted, firmly. "There is magic, and you're a wizard just like Mastermind and just like I'm a witch. Have you never done strange things? Things that your relatives aren't able to do?"

"Yes," Harry replied. It was almost a whisper, when he continued, "That's why I'm a freak."

"No Harry, you're not a freak. You're a wizard like me, and from September onwards, we're going to attend Hogwarts together," Ron informed him, causing a long discussion about Hogwarts and the magical world.

They only had to finish their conversation, when one of the guards disturbed them informing the Queen that she had an appointment in an hour.

"Oh dears, I'll have to get ready for my appointment," the Queen muttered. "Harry, I'm very happy that I had the chance to meet you," she added in a soft voice. "If you're interested to learn more about the magical world I suggest that you come here every Friday afternoon. That's when Mastermind usually visits, and even if I might not be available the whole afternoon, the two of you can enjoy each other's company. Someone will of course fetch you from your relatives' home and take you back there in the evening."

"I'd love that," Harry replied, smiling broadly. "Thank you so much for inviting me and for telling me about the magical world. I'm very happy, and I can't wait to get to go to Hogwarts. Thank you, too, Mastermind."

"You're welcome," Ron replied, happily, ecstatic to be able to meet Harry Potter once a week. 'Maybe I can become his friend even before we'll attend Hogwarts,' he thought in excitement. "Excuse me," he addressed the Queen, as he observed Harry leaving together with Arthur, "how are you going to punish his aunt and uncle?"

"Did I understand it correctly that Professor Dumbledore made Harry live with his relatives, because he's the saviour of the magical world and blood wards around their house are supposed to protect him from evil wizards?" the Queen enquired.

"Yes, I think so," Ron agreed, taking off his hood.

"And this so-called family is at least verbally abusing him," the Queen said, apparently more to herself than to Ron, who was wrapped up in thoughts about the other boy's behaviour.

'The twins play pranks on me all the time, and Percy's sometimes unbearable, but still, no one has ever called me a freak or worse, and I've always clothes that fit, even if they're hand-me-downs,' he thought, suddenly realising that he felt very loved by his family.

A slightly evil grin crossed the Queen's face, while she remained pensive for a moment, causing Ron to look at her in expectation.