Clad in a black and gray suit, Draco Lucius Malfoy walked through the halls of the Ministry toward his office. The once cocky young boy was replaced with a serious man who had put much of his youth behind him. Various staff wished him go morning, and he replied to them with the same greeting, but did so in a very standard, customary manner. There was little significant emotion behind it.
Entering his office, he sat at his desk and looked over some of the files he was to go through that morning as his secretary entered with tea and poured it for him. On his tray was a morning copy of the Daily Prophet. Draco thanked her in the same way that he greeted the employees outside- a dry and standard show of gratitude. He sipped his tea and looked over his paperwork a bit more until his attention turned to the front page of the newspaper. The top story was understandably Liam Ollivander's disappearance. Draco had been informed of it already, but still was interested in what the Prophet writer had to say about the situation. Putting aside his paperwork, he grabbed the newspaper and read it.

Such a mysterious event reminded him of a time in his life that he wanted to forget but could not. The memories struck him in nightmares, they struck him whenever he dealt with a dark wizard or dark witch case, and they struck him now reading this newspaper...

It seemed as if Draco was destined to be a wicked man from the time of his birth. His own father was a Death Eater, and both Lucius and his mother bowed before the Dark Lord. It was almost always in the plan for Draco to do the same. Draco did little in disproving that theory during his time at Hogwarts. He was a cruel, foolish, spoiled child. He inherited his father's hate for Muggle-Born and Half-Blood wizards. He became enemies with not only Harry Potter, but any he saw unfit to be in his presence. This was usually anyone in Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, and Ravenclaw. Looking back, Draco wondered what he could have achieved if his mind was not so clouded by the darkness of his family. He could have been truly great... perhaps as great as Harry Potter himself. Instead he allowed his own ego to betray him.

Then came the day he was asked to do the unthinkable... kill his Headmaster Albus Dumbledore. Did he disagree with Dumbledore on things? Or course. But to kill the legendary wizard? Draco was as mean as a coiled viper at the time, but he was no killer. The struggle he went through, the nightmares... and the guilt and shame he felt even after Snape killed Dumbledore instead. He had become possibly the most reluctant member of Voldemort's ranks.

But this is where light came out of darkness. Draco began to see the error of his ways, and refused to give away the captured Harry Potter to Bellatrix at Malfoy Manor. His respect for Harry and what Harry stood for grew when Potter saved him from the inferno when his one-time enemy didn't have to. If only he had stayed to show Harry his gratitude by fighting at his side, but he was still nothing but a foolish, confused boy at the time.

He had grown since then... a bit wiser, and had, if anything, learned from his past. He had tried to be the Minister the Wizarding World wanted, and not bow to his own selfish desires. It was not always easy, but he felt he was doing a good job. And now it was his responsibility to address this issue about Ollivander's disappearance. It was time to assure his world that the Ministry would not allow darkness to engulf the Wizarding World again.

Stepping out before various employees in the Ministry, as well as the Daily Prophet reporters and others who were interested in what he had to say, Draco responded to the recent happenings.

"As many of you aware, recently a good wizard and friend of many here including myself, Liam Ollivander ,vanished under mysterious means. I know given the long period of peace we have enjoyed since the fall of Lord Voldemort, this has incited a significant level of fear in our community. I am well aware of those dark times as doubtless many of you now that I was part of them first hand. But let me assure one and all that the Ministry will make every effort to locate Ollivander and return him to his home, as well as deliver any potential party responsible to Azkaban." The Ministry will not rest until this is accomplished. We have the finest Defense Department in the Ministry's History. So tonight, wizards and witches, do not tremble in your beds. Do not fear for the safety of your children. Know that all of you are and will be protected at all costs. Good day."

And with the end of speech, Draco began to head back to his office.

Morgaine watched her boss address the assembled crowd, a briefcase in one hand, a magical clipboard hovering at her left as she scribbled down notes for a press release later. She tucked an errant strand of her mousy hair behind her ear as the Minister stood for a few moments for photographs, taking mental notes. She, too, had come a long way, though she differed only slightly from her school self. Quiet and reserved at Hogwarts, she had retained her cloak of superiority and grown a steel-clad spine beneath it and nerves so firm she could withstand a blizzard in a bikini if need be. Not that she would likely ever reduce herself to such nakedness. Her body was a temple to darkness no person was allowed to behold. Her muddy brown eyes flashed with hidden intelligence; her languid smile almost betraying the depths of depravity lurking in her soul.

She had gotten her post at the Ministry through her father's good connections, but that had been over a decade ago, and her current standing was thanks only to her own cunning and capability. A series of well-spaced accidents and retirements had smoothed her passage, and now she was one step below being the most powerful politician in the wizarding world. Would she ever try to usurp the Minister? She did not know; on the one hand, the position had endless perks, but on the other, the buck most definitely stopped there, and she preferred working from the shadows, letting others reap the consequences of her actions. And above all, she was discreet, something it would be much harder to achieve if she was in such a spotlight. 

She watched Draco deal with the reporters and photographers seamlessly, as always, and felt the familiar instinct to stay hidden. She should follow that, she knew, and she was glad to step aside as Draco withdrew calmly to the clamour of questions still being thrown at him, then glide along, invisible to attention, at his side.

"Well said, sir," she murmured. "I'm sure everyone will be much relieved. The Ollivander's will be glad to know Liam's disappearance is being taken seriously. The Aurors are still interviewing people in Diagon Alley, but so far nothing has turned up. I instructed them to Floo us both, as well as the Undersecretary and the Head of the Aurors, when they have news. Unfortunately, there is little else to be done at this time." She flicked through the magical clipboard, enjoying the thought that perhaps Liam was being tortured, or even killed, though no sign of it showed on her face. She continued to speak smoothly. "You have no appointments until later, unless someone turns up without forewarning. Would you like me to mark your office as Do Not Disturb?"

@draco

Draco showed just the slightest hint of annoyance at some of the reporters' questions. There were also those who thrived on rumor and controversy. No matter who was the Minister of Magic, there were those who would always seek to discredit that Minister in order to get more readers and make more galleons. Those people disgusted Draco. To him, they were as low as the dark forces he once aligned himself with. They reminded him that even in peace time, there still existed that lot in the world that were rotten to the core. If only he could do something to silence the people who gave the press a bad name, but to do so would violate the freedoms that all shared, the good and the bad.

As he made his way back to his office, he was met by his Advisor, Morgaine DeLuna. He had wondered where she was after the speech, but he then figured she didn't want to deal with the vipers asking questions. She was a smart woman, and Draco felt she was highly trustworthy. Otherwise, why would he have her as his Advisor. She was a great help to him in troubling times, though up until now most of those troubling times had been over minor things.

"Thank you, Morgaine," he said when she complimented him. "It is as much my job as any other here to preserve the peace, and I intend to do that until this whole affair is over. And yes, let us hope everyone IS taking this matter seriously. Merlin forbid that the Ministry is in the state it was when Voldemort had first returned." He gave Morgaine a small smile when she spoke of what she had done, despite the fact that she added that little could be done. "Nevertheless, your work in all this is to be commended, Morgaine."

Draco thought it over as Morgaine asked if he wanted his office to be "Do Not Disturb".

"Not at the moment," he said. "There are certain parties I am expecting to arrive here, and I do feel it is necessary to speak to them. Still, I will have my secretary alert me first."

He gave the orders to the secretary and then opened the door to his office for Morgaine to walk in, ever being the gentleman.

MORGAINE ETTE DELUNA

Morgaine inclined her head slightly at the praise. She had worked hard to hide her true self and gain the Ministry's trust with this watered-down facade. All her evil intent was channelled into long hours at her desk; all her hatred of the relaxed class system, so different from the Pureblood domination of a bygone era, was seen as her 'ploy' to remain in favour with the older, more conservative people of influence. Little did they know, should the extent of her 'traditionalism' ever be discovered, they might find it too rich even for their stuffy tastes. She knew of Draco's past, of his former allegiance to blood purity, and found it very hard to reconcile the two versions of the story. 

"Yes, disorder on that scale is damaging even in peace times. With any luck, this incident can be contained and we can resolve it before anyone loses their heads - metaphorically, of course," she tried a grin at her unintended joke, aware of its poor taste. "Though it might still be wise to give an interview to a few of the more sensationalist papers, with a focus on the Ollivanders' heartache rather than any deeper implications."

She flashed a friendly smile at the secretary, who she often cultivated as an unknowing contact, and murmured her thanks as the Minister held the door open for her, her mind clicking into gear as he mentioned expecting people. She was more-or-less a free agent, as was the Minister, and neither were required to report fully at every step of the way, merely give updates of relevant information at appropriate times. She had been glad of that more than a few times, even just recently. She had a healthy interest in keeping track of his movements, though, given that her stance on change and progress was always 'slowly, gently', whereas other members of the Council often favoured a more direct approach.

"I will not take up too much of your time, then," she smiled. "Unless, of course, you would appreciate a second set of eyes and ears in your meeting?"

She made a quick mental note to find out who arrived from the secretary later, if need be with a mild truth serum, over drinks. The woman was loyal and competent, to be sure, but everyone had their weaknesses, and Morgaine was more than adept at ferreting them out.

@draco

In her small but of dark humor, Draco could momentarily pick up an odd vibe from Morgaine. But how could he condemn her for having a slight bit of a dark side. Didn't he still have just a bit of one? Didn't his wife, his son, most everyone he knew? Didn't everyone? No, he couldn't condemn Morgaine for a little joke. He was no doubt on edge, a part of him fearing the possibly that things would get worse. After nearly a quarter century of peace... things would go wrong again. No... he refused to allow that to happen again.

"Sometimes I wonder if losing one's sanity is all that much better than physically losing one's head," sighed Draco. "But yes, let us hope it can be resolved. As for an interview with some of those particular papers, I do think that might be a wise idea, though I don't want to exploit a tragedy. After all, Liam is a friend of mine. I have far too much respect for him to do that to his family. However, we do need to keep the focus of those reporters in the right direction or they'll try to eat the Ministry alive." He smirked at Morgaine. "Metaphorically speaking of course."

Draco was actually about to stop Morgaine before she took her leave, but she ended up stopping herself. The fact was that he needed one of his most trusted employees present. If anything he needed a witness on hand in case a potential debate became too heated and accusations were made later.

"I think a second set of eyes would be most welcome," he said. "As well as someone to join me for tea. I just realized I've missed lunches and am a bit famished. Please sit. I'll have my security send an owl to the cafeteria to prepare us something."

MORGAINE ETTE DELUNA