This Year's Love

Chapter 1 - Forbidden Release

Yet again the paper escaped Elizabeth's fingers and fell from the table. She jumped up from her chair, knocking it backward onto the laminated wooden floor. One hand rose to cover her mouth and stifle the cry of shock.

With trembling fingers she reached down to pick up the sheets.

Footsteps came thundering down the stairs and in moments William peered through the doorway. "Elizabeth? Are you okay?"

"He's escaped!"

William didn't seem to catch the note of excitement quivering in her voice. "I know, but don't worry! Fudge has Dementors and Aurors combing the country already, and he'll be back behind bars in no time!"

Catching hold of her emotions once more, she nodded. Quickly she scraped up the paper and stuffed it into the coal bin. But inside, her thoughts were whirling round and round in a confused mix of relief and terror. He looks so DIFFERENT! What did they do to him in there? How did he escape? Did he really kill Peter? What has happened to him?

* * * * * * * * * * * *

"This is RIDICULOUS!" Fudge stormed, waving his short arms around his head as he paced behind the conference table. "He CANNOT HAVE JUST VANISHED!"

"Excuse me sir, but you're not suggesting that Snape had a point?" a young wizard asked.

"I don't know. I honestly don't know! I don't see why Potter would want to free Black, but I also don't see why Dumbledore was just so damn calm when he discovered the murderer has escaped again!"

"Mr. Fudge, do you have any plans to continue the search for Black?" a witch in shocking pink robes asked with a predatory grin. In front of her an acid green quill was balanced on a roll of parchment.

"Where the hell am I supposed to search for the bugger?" Fudge's face was flushing purple. He kept gripping his bald head with his hands and looking at the ceiling as he continued to pace.

Elizabeth eyed the quill suspiciously as it began to scribble across the reporter's parchment.

"I, honestly, am beginning to worry about the sanity of the Hogwarts headmaster," a quiet voice purred from the seat next to Elizabeth. She jumped and glared at Lucius Malfoy.

"Now, Malfoy, watch your footing!" Fudge spluttered, finally lowering his windmill arms and coming to a standstill.

"Minister, you can't ignore it any further. He hired a werewolf to teach children Defence Against the Dark Arts; he doesn't trust your loyal Dementors and he quite obviously doesn't see Sirius Black as the threat that he is."

Fudge made an odd spluttering noise again and looked away from Malfoy's cool gaze. He began to pace again. "The thing is, people, Black will quite clearly be heading back to his master! What are our latest leads on his whereabouts?"

Bertha Jorkins peered along the table, "Oh, I believe the last official tip-off we got was from Ogden in Siberia - but that was around two months ago. Recently however there have been a few more rumours than normal coming out of Albania..."

Malfoy waved a hand in disgust. "Rumours. That's all you deal in, Jorkins. Minister, we have no idea where Voldemort is right now." Everyone at the table winced. "He could be right outside the door, listening in, and we wouldn't have the faintest clue to it."

Bertha bristled. "Well at least I'm doing more for the cause than you are, Lucius! All you do is criticise other peoples' efforts without actually doing anything yourself! If you're so bloody - "

"Bertha, calm down - " Fudge began.

"No! No, Minister, I have to say this." She was now standing up. "If you're so bloody good, Malfoy you get up here and you do all the jobs that we're doing!"

Malfoy sneered. "Jorkins, your are all doing so little that I could do all your jobs and still have time to spare on my own, which I take very seriously," he said in a voice that dripped liquid nitrogen.

"Bertha, sit down, please!" Fudge broke in again. He'd stopped pacing again and his face was now a pasty white. His gaze flickered nervously over Rita Skeeter's Quick Quote Quill, which was hastily jotting down all it had heard. "We have a couple of leads here." He shot a silencing glare at Malfoy, who had opened his mouth to object, "and we are going to follow them both up. Bertha, if you wouldn't mind and if Ludo can spare you, I'd like you to investigate the Albanian rumours."

Jorkins nodded. "That'll be fine, I'm sure, Minister. I have an article to write on the Albanians' international team before the World Cup, anyway."

"And Malfoy? Would you like to explore the official tip-off from Siberia?"

The wizard sat up, affronted. "I will not, Minister! I am quite busy enough with my own job!"

Fudge looked around the table, apparently not going to concern himself with a comeback to Malfoy's excuse. "William?"

With a sideways glance at Elizabeth to check she had no complaints, William nodded. "Of course, Minister."

In the other ear, Elizabeth heard Malfoy's murmured mockery of her husband and felt the muscles in her shoulders and jaw clench in sudden irritation. How she'd love it if William uncovered the Dark Lord out there and showed Malfoy up to be the Death Eater everyone could see he was.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

"Honestly! You get to go to Madagascar or wherever and I'm off to Siberia!" William planted a quick kiss on her cheek as he gathered up his suitcases in one hand, holding his wand out in the other. With a swift 'pop' he Disapparated.

Smiling, Elizabeth checked all the locking spells on the house one last time, then she herself vanished.