The Queen had just had her breakfast, at the best part of her day, as she delicately sipped her golden raspberry juice from a glass, going through the day's Daily Prophet.
On seeing the bold headlines, emblazoned at the front cover, she choked on her juice, spitting it out immediately.
MINISTRY SEEKS EDUCATIONAL REFORM DOLORES UMBRIDGE APPOINTED FIRST-EVER "HIGH INQUISITOR"
She growled, slamming her glass harshly down on the table.
"You!" she barked to the house elf that stood at the corner of her room, should she need anything. "Take it away," she said coldly, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. This was atrocious, utterly disgusting.
Standing up, she didn't bother to read the rest of the article as the angrily flung the newspaper into the fire, watching with gleaming eyes as the toad face of Dolores Umbridge contorted and burned immediately.
"CORNELIUS FUDGE!" she roared, grabbing her scepter and heading out of the room, grabbing Francis' copy of the newspaper that lay on the table. Angrily storming up to the headmaster's office, she didn't care about how she looked, she needed to see Dumbledore instantly, the Ministry was getting out of her hand without her presence.
Heading up to Dumbledore's office, she was stopped by the stupid stone gargoyle. Trying to move past it, it refused to grant her entry way.
"I suppose you need some sort of password," she muttered. The gargoyle nodded.
"I'm the Queen," she demanded. "This is an emergency."
"Password," the gargoyle said monotonously.
The raven haired girl got furious, and groaned, her patience getting lower by the second.
"Is something the matter, Your Majesty?" came an awfully calm voice, from behind her.
She turned around, her head quickly snapping backwards.
She was very relieved to see the familiar hook-nosed, greasy haired man that stood behind her.
"Snape," she breathed, coming down the steps, a few feet away from him. "Yes, something is the matter," she spoke formally. "I need to talk to Dumbledore."
"Professor Dumbedore would be in his office," he said, in a monotone.
"Yes, I know," she snapped. "Don't test my patience, Snape, I'm not in a good mood," she said rapturously, waving the Daily Prophet in his face.
Snape seemed to be hiding a hint of a smile. "Ah, yes, that makes sense," he told her. "The password is Ice Mice, by the way."
Valerie tilted her head slightly, scoffing. "Ice Mice?" she questioned incredulously. "Ice Mice?" she repeated. "What is he. twelve?"
"Your Majesty, I do not assess others based on their mental being, now if you'll excuse me, I am late for a class."
With a flourish of his long, black cloak, he disappeared behind the corridor.
"Ice Mice," Valerie sighed, climbing the stairs to the gargoyle that guarded Dumbledore's office. The gargoyle grumbled before rotating and letting her pass. As she climbed up the long, winding stairway, she knocked on the door to the headmaster's office.
"Enter," he called out feebly.
She entered.
He was pacing across his study, his half-moon spectacles placed precariously on his nose. On turning around and seeing the queen in his presence, he took of his glasses, almost as if he believed he was dreaming.
"Your Highness," he murmured, pulling out a chair for her to sit in, while taking the chair opposite, behind his desk. "I see you found your way into my little corner of the world."
Around her, Valerie noticed tiny instruments that puffed and blew steam quietly. She had to admit, it was rather a calm place, with ambience. A bird stood proudly behind Dumbledore, with a wonderful red, crimson and gold plumage of feathers.
"What's the meaning of this?" she questioned, placing the paper in front of him, Umbridge's ugly face looking at the pair of them.
"Before I answer any questions of yours, Miss Pendragon," he spoke. "I wish you to answer a few of mine."
Valerie ignored him, shutting him out. "I need to go to visit Fudge."
"Valerie," he finally spoke, using her birth name, causing her to stop thinking, and glance up at him. His blue eyes pierced into her own, and she sighed softly, nodding.
"Fine," she admitted begrudgingly, clenching her jaw. Funnily enough, she didn't reprimand him or clobber him for using her first name, and not addressing him by her title.
"How are you?" Dumbledore asked quietly, clasping his hands atop the table, as his phoenix gave a musical cry.
"I... what--?" she stammered, taken aback by such a common, yet personal question. "I'm fine, obviously," she responded. "Why else would I be sitting here?"
Dumbledore surveyed her through his half-moon glasses, waving his wand and conjuring up a teapot with biscuits. "Do help yourself," he said with a smile.
She glared at him.
"Ah," he chuckled. "Now, I asked how you are."
"I heard you just fine," she gritted her teeth. "And I answered. I'm fine."
Dumbledore merely smiled and shook his head. "No, my dear, you are not. You should know that you have permission to leave Hogwarts at your own will. However, you came to me as an excuse for me to grant you permission to leave. The true reason is that you needed someone to talk to. Someone to challenge your intellect."
She didn't say anything. "Let me ask you another question. When I told you your mother passed away, when you were eleven, why did you shut yourself out?" he questioned. "I will have to admit, you make a wonderful queen, I admit I underestimated you.."
"I shut myself out to protect myself from the diseases out there," she responded vaguely.
"Diseases of the physical sense, or the mental?"
"Both."
"Valerie, I admire how you managed to survive on your own. You are very capable and strong, although I did inform you five years ago my door was always open."
She didn't say anything. "Albus," she finally said, using his first name. "I'm... I'm not okay..." she breathed, running a hand through her hair.
"I know, my child, I am aware. I am so pleased you came to visit me. Whatever made you come here?"
She pointed to the newspaper.
"That's not all."
She shook her head. "Francis," she muttered. "He told me it was time I see you."
"Ah, Francis, my old friend. How is he?" Dumbledore reminisced.
"He's good," she shrugged.
"My dear Valerie, you need to stop pushing people out," he said gravely. "Your father used to do the same, he believed he was better than everyone, and trusted no one. The mind can sometimes become a very dark place."
At this, her eyes began watering, and she blinked several times before speaking her mind.
"Let me fill you in. I have grown up as an orphan, with nothing but the weight of a kingdom thrown upon my shoulders. I have never known what having parents feels like, since my father was a psycho, and my mother was dead. Growing up with the Malfoys, as a child, I'd heard stories and rumors of my father. But it wasn't until I actually met him a few months ago, that I realized how utterly psychotic he was!" she explained, tears budding in her dark eyes.
"When you came to me, five years ago, you informed me of how my mother died of spattergroit, and the rest of the Pendragon line perished with her."
"Yes, that is correct."
"I locked myself in the castle, with the notion that I would not get out, since there are sicknesses out there. Or someone might take advantage of me. But it wasn't until I read all about Spattergroit that made me decide to never, ever leave the castle walls."
"You don't mean—" Dumbledore began.
Valerie raised a finger to silence him, as she continued speaking. "But Spattergroit is only transmitted by touch. The Pendragons were on vacation in France when my mother died. And, due to us being royals, any small illness, and the world's best healers would treat it."
"Oh, my child," Dumbledore murmured softly, standing up and placing an arm on Valerie's shoulder, as she shook, tears streaming down her cheeks.
"He murdered my mother," she breathed, wiping her eyes, the small, scared, gentle girl coming out from underneath her mask. "And the rest of my family."
She'd never spoken about her mother to anyone, except Francis. Francis and herself knew the truth, and now, Dumbledore.
And then, she felt like she didn't care. She stood up, and wrapped her arms around Albus Dumbledore, who placed his hand on her pack and patted her.
"I thought you would join him," he said quietly.
"At first, I thought so too," she wiped her eyes. "But now, my only goal is to avenge my mother."
"And I have no doubt you will," he consoled her. "You've done so well, my child. You've been so brave."
She quickly wiped her eyes. "Thank you," she said softly. "For being so overly inquisitive," she chuckled.
"Now, there's a bathroom right there, do clean yourself up."
She nodded. "Thank you, Albus," she said again. "I do appreciate it."
She went to freshen herself up, placing her cold-hearted façade back up, in the process, turning around to leave.
"Valerie, I do believe we need to converse again. Do owl me when you would be willing to come in here. The password is Ice Mice."
She gave him a rare smile. "I will."
With that, she turned to leave, heading back into her room.
The ministry would face her wrath.
Cornelius Fudge would be very unlucky.
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A/N: Surprised?
Here we go. Valerie's true colors exposed.
comment.