Blood, Love and Rhetoric

Being an Atypical Précis Explaining the Changes and Elaborations of the World of Magic as Seen by Melanthios and Hanford

The Magical World of Harry Potter has many and varied differences to the present world, of which Rowling explains only a small part during the course of the series. This leaves the fans the freedom to invent details necessary for fan-fiction, such as the specifics of laws, how details like law, fashion, religion, etc. work and, except for a few families, the history of generations past. Most fans of larger works, or those favouring a lush setting, build their own answers in the gaps that Rowling has left. These can range from the conservative to the wildly experimental, and result in personal, definitive versions of missing details, which were given the name ‘fanon’ years ago. This précis will focus on one of these fanons, one created over the course of one and a half years by the collaboration of authors Melanthios and Hanford. The author considers this fanon to be closer to the ‘wildly experimental’ side of the spectrum. It will not go into the details and histories of individual characters and families, instead concentrating on the world itself as a larger setting suitable for an RPG.


Magic Itself

Magic has rules, just like any other force in the world. Magic cannot create permanent objects, recall a life that has been lost, or call back a soul from the beyond. It, like everything else, requires energy to use and maintain. The source of magic is unclear, as no formal study has been made as to why some humans have the ability to use/produce it and some do not, though the ability is observably linked directly to genetics.

Magic has five accepted domains: Fire, Earth, Air, Water, and the fifth domain, which called by many and varied names, including: Spirit, Sex, Life, Creation-Destruction and Power. It is all of these things at the same time. While the first four domains are understood with ease, the fifth domain remains largely mysterious. Sex magic falls under the fifth domain, and its name is partially a misnomer—ritual sex or sex rituals are merely the most effective way to use the fifth domain of magic, for reasons not fully understood. Regardless of how it is tapped, the fifth domain is accepted to be both powerful and important to magic and life in general. Some have even speculated that the fifth element is life itself, and many cults have sprung up around this theory.

Family Curses: How They Work and Whence They Originate; also: Why the Magical World Fails to Recognise Genetic Disorders

In the muggle world, we speak of ‘family curses’ in a metaphorical sense; in the magical world, however, family curses are real and very literal. They can take the form of something that outwardly appears to be a genetic glitch (e.g. albinism, vitiligo, allergies)—however, there is always a difference that distinguishes between a genetic condition and a magical curse. Taking the example of albinism, the genetic condition is recessive, and would get ‘diluted’ with future generations. However, the curse of albinism would not be diluted. In this way, there is a scientifically discernable difference between genetic and magical conditions.

Curses can originate from almost countless sources. Sometimes, the Faustian ‘deal with a demon’ is the origin of a curse; usually this results in a curse that is nigh-impossible to break. At other times, the curse is the direct result of a family casting a curse over another family for some slight (most of the time the slight is real, rather than imagined)—this origin usually results in a curse that can be broken, as well as being rather poetic in its revenge (e.g. if infertile family A stole a child from fertile family B, family B’s curse may run along the lines of, ‘You want children so much? Then have them,’ resulting in a curse of hyper-fertility). The third and final source for family curses is the Folk (often called Fae), who show themselves more often to magical people than muggle (the Folk will be detailed more in the latter third of this document).

There is a great disadvantage to the public knowledge of family curses, and that is that true genetic disorders are rarely acknowledged as such in the magical world. This can cause strife for the individuals who have them, especially those individuals whose genetic disorders cause them to resemble other magical beings or beasts. The Ministry for Magic does not formally recognise gigantism (such as acromegaly), dwarfism (such as achondroplasia), syndactyly (webbed fingers/toes), etc., labelling individuals as part giant, part goblin, or part merperson respectively. About half to three-quarters of these instances result in stigma and false but officially-sanctioned stories about an individual’s parentage. Sometimes, even a person’s rights as a ‘being’ will be officially taken away (as with a notable male model in the magical fashion industry, who has acromegaly; his success is not typical).

In conclusion, the presence of family curses is usually distinguishable from a muggle perspective, due to the ‘genes’ for it not behaving the way that they should—however, the magical world, for all the attention paid to bloodlines, has a dearth of information on actual genetics. A simple muggle application of science, such as a DNA-test, could find out the difference between a magical curse and a mundane disorder. A magical test is far less accurate, and usually not even a simple interview about family history is conducted, before a judgement is given. As well, there is a prevailing attitude in the magical world that muggle science is inferior to magic. So, even if a DNA test was conducted and used as evidence, the Ministry would not change their initial judgement of the individual’s supposed hybrid status.

On a final note, it is socially taboo to ask about family curses; they are considered extremely personal.

The Imperius Curse: Prototypic, Direct and Indirect Variants, and the Knowledge of Their Respective Existences

It is not well-known, even among Death-Eaters, that the Imperius Curse has three distinct variants: the prototypic variant, the direct (well-known) variant, and the indirect variant. The prototypic variant is, as name suggests, the first Imperius Curse to be invented by Tom Riddle. It had the fatal flaw of a two-way connexion between the mind of caster and victim, meaning that the victim could, eventually, control the caster. As result of this quickly-discovered flaw, Riddle abandoned the use of it, in favour of the more perfected variants. This brings us to the second variant: the Direct Imperius Curse. Well-known as the Imperius curse first revealed in the fourth book (GF14), it gives very simple, specific orders. It is reasonable to assume that long-term, the Direct Imperius Curse would be impractical. The Indirect Imperius Curse is the solution to long-term need to control an individual; instead of direct orders, it superimposes an entire mode of thought, much like a computer program, while still allowing the illusion of free will. Unlike those who were described as snapping out of a trance, those under the Indirect Variant did not visibly ‘wake up’.

All variants of the Imperius Curse have slight physical cues as to their victims—there is a cloudy glassiness to the eyes. In the prototypic variant, the glassiness is complete, and the trance-like expression (or rather, lack of expression) is the main signal of the curse’s hold. In the Direct Variant, the glassiness is slight, but still noticeable when the Curse dissipates. The Indirect Variant, however, has a variation caused by the fundamental difference in how it works, and as a result, dulls not the cornea of the eye, but the iris. This is an example of magic affecting a metaphoric part of the body in a literal sense—i.e., in the Prototypic and Direct Imperius Variants, the ability to ‘see’ (think) for oneself is completely arrested; in the Indirect Variant, one is ‘allowed’ to see for oneself, but through a narrowed view. Hence the affliction of the iris, which focuses the eye, and not the cornea.

The reason the variants of the Imperius Curse are not known is due to the fact that—like all the Unforgivables—they were developed by Riddle himself,1 who effectively destroyed all documentation of their development, when he recorded the process at all. Thus, reverse-engineering and anecdotal evidence was all the larger magical population had to go on. This resulted in a vastly incomplete body of knowledge, which was further handicapped by the fact that most of the intelligence on the Unforgivable Curses was gathered during wartime, and thus the inner workings and theory were, compared to defence against it, low priority.

Unspeakables, a Brief Summary of What They Do, and How State Secrets are Stored in the Magical World

Simply put, the Unspeakables are, in essence, equivalent to members of the Secret Intelligence Service (MI6), Central Intelligence Agency, or even other fictional government agencies like the Men In Black or Bureau of Paranormal Research and Defence. They are Intelligence-gatherers, assassins, counter-intelligence, and secret agents. They are required to have ambiguous morals; strong skills in mathematics, ciphers, symbolism and lying; a high pain-tolerance; the ability to kill without compunction if necessary; strong Legilimency and Occlumency skills; and strong duelling skills. The job is demanding, physically and mentally, and most agents only last a few years before being ‘destroyed’ due to finally losing their grip on sanity.

The Unspeakables were thought to have originated during the war with Grindelwald. In actuality, the Department of Mysteries has existed almost since the Ministry for Magic was founded; the Department and its Unspeakables were revealed publicly during the war with Grindelwald due to new strategies implemented during the hostilities. During this time, Unspeakables fought alongside normal duellists for the first time, in melee. They also gathered intelligence for more immediate and tactical use than they had in previous (and smaller) conflicts. The war with Grindelwald was the largest in magical history, and at the time it was thought that it would never happen again. However, the damage was done: the Unspeakables were irrevocably fixed in public memory as existing.

The magical world, like the muggle world, has state secrets; and each magical government has its own organisation devoted to gathering intelligence both domestic and foreign. Unlike the muggle world, however, the magical world’s method of keeping secrets has long been to hide them in an individual. The most basic form of this is the Secret-Keeper spell, which is used by civilians. More secure forms have highly classified names, and require advanced Legilimency to implement, as well as the sacrifice of another mind. The person used to house the information is known as a Vessel. Different countries keep secrets differently, changing the way based on the nature of the information.

One example of a Vessel-ritual is largely used in continental Europe, notably France and Italy. The Vessel is almost completely brainwashed, even the linguistic capabilities picked apart to basic elements and secreted away to unconnected synapses. Effectively lobotomised, the Vessel is kept alive, but no more, until the information is needed again. Long-term Vessels can have information transferred or—more common in France—undergo a series of Dark Arts spells, potions and rituals in order to unnaturally prolong their lives. This is expensive logistically, as said magics require many unstable elements (such as souls or faerie ingredients). However, when done successfully, it is the most effective. About one in every hundred attempts is successful. It is known that castrated individuals have a better chance of surviving.

The Department of Mysteries is technically a branch of Law Enforcement, but it is unknown whether they answer to the Minister, or whether the Minister answers to them.

Physical Ideals and Fashion in the Magical World, and How it Differs from the Muggle World

The magical world is split half-way over physical ideal: Britain’s aesthetic prevails for most of Africa, Italy, and the Slavic countries. However, France’s ideal prevails in most of Spain, Germanic countries, South America, and the Far East. The two leaders of fashion differ most in their ideal of the female form: Britain’s fashion has nearly always preferred women to be almost exaggeratedly curvaceous, while France demands the fashionable woman be as thin as the British woman is fat. The aesthetic for men is less contrasting between camps: Britain’s fashionable wizard resembles the fop of the Rococo or the dandy of the Regency, with lace, ruffles, and powder; France’s fashionable wizard is only a little less foppish, having more of an art deco or mod sensibility.

As controversy surrounds the fashion industry and its effect on the populace, especially the young, in the muggle world, so too does the selfsame controversy and criticism blanket the fashion industry of both aesthetics. In Britain, there is much concern over the self-esteem of naturally lightly-built females, as well as concern over the rampant eating disorders in the male youth. Overall, recent efforts to show a more equal range of body types is much more prevalent in Britain’s magical fashion magazine (Ton). France’s Va! has time and again refused to comment or take responsibility for its supposed effect on its readers’ emotional and mental well-being. Despite this, Va! has not lost much readership.

The rivalry between the two magazines is legendary, with insults ranging from the petty (the models and staff of Ton have almost a tradition of pretending not to notice the female models of Va!), to the extreme (Va! has been accused of using Potions classified as Dark Magic to spike the food and drink of Ton models). Sabotage is de rigueur, and the security of both magazines is ridiculously high, surpassing that of the Ministry itself.

At times, the magical and muggle worlds have had the same physical aesthetic; the 1960s was the time of the last overlap of this kind.

Marriage Customs of the Magical World, Touching on Babies, Polygamy, and Sexuality

Marriage in the magical world is much the same as in the muggle one, with only a few details changed; these details, however, would shock some of the more conservatively-minded muggles. Firstly, and perhaps most importantly for those living in the 20th and 21st centuries, there has never been a taboo against being attracted to one’s own gender, all genders, or none at all. Secondly, child-bearing is not restricted to those born female; automancy (lit. ‘self-magic’) allows males to spontaneously generate the organs necessary for pregnancy and birth (This same automancy allows for two females to produce offspring as well). Polygamy is the last difference, being both legal and mundane for those in the magical world, though it is uncommon in recent years.

Godparents and Their Importance in Society

The Godparent Laws were mandatory for all magical children regardless of descent from 1368-1971 C.E.

Godparents are relatively recent in wizarding history, originating during the Black Plague, when the muggle population was decimated by disease. The magical population boomed, straining resources and giving rise to the Witch Hunts. Though effort was made to control it after the initial explosion, adolescent wizards and witches had less ability to control their automancy, resulting in accidental pregnancies. The answer was to weave a magically-binding relationship between all magical children and an adult that would keep the automancy in check until the child could control it on his/her/its own.

When a child is born in the magical world, he or she is assigned a godparent; a godmother if the child is female, and a godfather if the child is male or hermaphroditic.2 The binding ceremony keeps both child and godparent safe from most deaths, though the godparent’s protection wanes the farther the distance from their godchild.3 As well, the godchild is incapable of coitus until said godchild is able to give informed consent for the godparent to ‘claim’ him/her/it. After which, the godchild is free to seek out another partner. Godparents are incapable of impregnating their godchildren, as protection against magically-arranging marriages, which is not the purpose of the binding.

In the tale of the Cinder Girl, Ella’s godmother appears to help her on her way to the ball (and, by extension, marriage and sexuality). This muggle tale has root in magical fact: one must associate with one’s godparent before moving on to adulthood’s domain of sexuality in the magical world. Historically, this was to prevent accidental pregnancies, as well as slowing the spread of venereal disease. As a godparent’s responsibility does involve sex with what the muggle world considers a minor, controversy has sprung up in recent years. However, the godparent tradition and laws are too important, and remain strong despite their lack of use by muggle-centric households in recent years.

Controversy has sprung up a few times in magical history, but never as much as in the 1960s, when the civil rights movement occurred in the muggle world, along with a renewed sense of pride in oneself or one’s cause, rather than one’s traditions or country. Muggle-born wizards and witches, as well as half-bloods from muggle-centric households, protested the existence of the Godparent Laws, and much effort was made to abolish their use. This caused friction between muggles and purebloods once more, contributing directly to Voldemort’s ability to snare followers. Eventually, all the protesters achieved was to abolish the long-standing requirement of magical children from primarily non-magical households to adhere to the Godparent Laws.

This resulted in an increasing ignorance of the Laws, and a very real danger of population explosion again, straining the ability of the magical world to keep itself secret. The protection of individuals that the laws offer is also something that has prevented them from being abolished entirely—as well, they can be used as a very rudimentary tracking device, since if either godparent or godchild dies, the other can feel it. This protection and simple life metre was used extensively during both the war with Grindelwald and the war with Voldemort.

Despite the controversy and the repeated efforts to put the Laws to rest, the widespread use of them by those wanting some measure of extra protection has kept them from ever being more than ill-favoured. Many of muggle descent have attempted to bypass the sexual requirements of the laws, to sometimes agonising effect. The purebloods use the perceived muggle hatred of the Godparent Laws (and, indeed, all sex-magic) as reason to keep them out of magical society. The muggle-borns see the Laws as debased and abusive to children. The Ministry has attempted to keep both groups contented by simply allowing knowledge of the Laws to no longer be mandatory, effectively allowing them to bury their heads in the sand about the problem.

Faerie and the Folk

The Folk are much more present in the magical world, and many wizards and witches can claim at least one faerie relative. As with the muggle world, the magical world is not completely welcoming of the Folk, and opinion is generally that they are not to be relied upon for much. Usually a faerie relative is not one that stayed longer than one night—nevertheless, they leave mark enough on the children they sire, and some purebloods consider faerie blood to ‘strengthen’ the line. However, as many purebloods consider a faerie relative as bad as a muggle one; unlike muggles, however, faerie relatives are far less inclined to ignore being disowned, and so great care is taken to instead hide their true nature, or keep them under the control of their spouse.4

All Folk are classified in the Ministry for Magic as ‘being’ to prevent offence being taken. This causes trouble only rarely, as most faerie creatures are sentient.

Gender and Aristocracy in the Magical World

In the magical world, gender is directly related to aristocracy. None have titles save those who are not fully male nor female. True hermaphrodites exist in the magical world, and are venerated as royalty; about one is born every generation, though very occasionally there are two.5 Eunuchs are considered nobility, with castrati being of slightly higher rank than those castrated during puberty. Though highly respected and even worshipped during certain points in history, individuals have no real political power, though they do have considerable social power.

Gender plays a key role in one’s inherent magical ability. As such, castrati, eunuchs, and hermaphrodites6 have access to all or more of the fifth domain of magic, about which very little is known or understood. It must be noted that transsexual individuals (known simply as ‘The Dysphoric’) do not have noble rank. There is increasing pressure on the magical world from the genderqueer community to research the gender-based magic of individuals who identify as some combination of male and female, though the Ministry has been resistant to give funding to said research.

Religion in the Magical World

As much as the Western muggle world’s culture and society is based in Christianity, the magical world’s is based in Paganism—largely Celtic Paganism. The devotion to religion is as varied as in the muggle world, the only difference being the types of religions and belief systems that are common or uncommon. Christianity and Judaism are as rare in the magical world as Paganism is in similar populations. Most (if not all) Christian wizards and witches are Catholic, and most Jewish wizards and witches, in contrast, are Reform. As result, muggles from newer Christian sects or non-Pagan traditions find themselves asked by curious strangers about their unfamiliar beliefs. At times they are ridiculed, though this is not as common among religions that are minor in the magical world as it is among equivalent groups in the muggle world.

There are different kinds of Paganism, called Creeds, with Celtic being the most prevalent in the British Isles and Western Europe. The Greek Creed is as common as the Celtic one in continental western Europe, with Nordic Creed being more popular in the northern areas of Europe. The Egyptian Creed is strong in northern Africa and the middle east, as well as having followers in several Mediterranean populations. Immigrants bring their own Creeds with them, such as the Yoruban Creed from parts of Africa, Hinduism from India, and the Creeds of the New World.

The official holidays in the wizarding world are wholly centred on annual celestial happenings: the summer and winter solstice, and the spring and autumn equinox. However, because of the diversity of Creeds, there are a set amount of allotted holidays for employees and students of all religions, with no penalties taken out of pay or school. In this way, the magical world is quite tolerant and accepting.


In closing, the fanon outlined here fills holes not normally paid attention by many, opening avenues for more detailed, ‘everyday’-level gaming. As well, it facilitates players who wish to pay more attention to politics within the context of the game. Though canon is not ignored, nevertheless the fanon is unique in how it fills in details around the broad brushstrokes Rowling gives all her fans, and will provide a challenge to veteran gamers, as well as new setting in which to play familiar characters.




(1) Due to the Killing Curse’s incantation being a modification of a muggle phrase, there has been speculation that it was invented well before the other two. This is not the case, however, as Riddle modified the muggle phrase, not the other way around.

(2) Note on gender: Children marked for castration (i.e. second sons) may have a godparent of either male or female.

(3) Distance, according to the magic, can be physical or personal. Strong personal ties on the part of the godchild can result in physical distance being moot, and cold personal ties can result in the protection being rendered moot regardless of physical closeness.

(4)This is where the muggle legend of stealing a selkie’s skin originates, though muggles are incapable of holding a magical item of that strength.

(5) An Hermaphrodite has not been born in any part of the magical world for three generations. This is worrying to many Seers, and it is popular in Divination circles to use this fact, in combination with the wars that occurred after the last Hermaphrodite died, to argue that the Apocalypse is nigh.

(6) For ease of reference, most of the magical world refers to hermaphrodites and eunuchs of all kinds as ‘the aristocracy’. ‘The Nobility’ is never used, as the term is often used to refer to the sidhe.





Harry Potter and all characters and recognisable content from the Wizarding World are © J.K. Rowling, Bloomsbury, Scholastic, Warner Bros.
All other content © Melanthios 2008