Disclaimer: Please see Chapters 1 and 2 for all disclaimers

Shout outs…

Mercury Gray… I don't think we'll be snipping dear Lucius any time soon.

Evenstar Elanor… She doesn't live at Azkaban. Just a regular visitor.

Angoliel… "Tink her across the nose." Love it. And glad you've liked Thunderstruck so far…

Wyall Jared… Nofears. Serena can only take so much.

Athena Dumbledore… Welcome! Glad you like the story so far.

Chapter 20: Miscalculation

Meredith looked in the mirror, scrutinizing her face. The doctor at St. Mungo's had done an excellent job. No one who hadn't seen the incident at Diagon Alley would ever know that her nose had been broken. What he hadn't been able to heal was the humiliation. As much as she told herself that Serena had resorted to violence like some barbarian, the fact was that Serena had knocked Meredith to the ground with a single punch.

Satisfied she looked better than anyone else in the office; she walked out of the ladies room and returned to her office. Her desk at the Ministry was spotless; all of her files were stacked in orderly bins. Her new secretary – the fourth one in as many months – minced into the room.

"Excuse me, Ms. Parsons?" Her voice was thin and reedy. In her hands was a stack of notes that had come via owl over the past several days. "More messages have arrived from Barrister Thorne demanding to be allowed access to his client."

She scowled at the secretary who quailed. "Fine," Meredith sighed. I've put him off as long as I can without someone starting to ask questions, but the man is a bloody pest from hell! "Inform Mr. Thorne that I shall meet him at Azkaban tomorrow at three in the afternoon. He can talk to his client then."

"Very good, madam." The secretary scurried out of the room and shut the door behind her.

The next day, Meredith made sure she was at Azkaban well before Jeremy's appointment. She sent the guards off to other areas of the prison and walked down the stairs that led to the hallway where Severus' cell was. For a few minutes, she looked through the small window – if you could even cal it that – in the cell's door. Severus was lying on his bed, rubbing his eyes. He heard the door open and froze. Slowly he opened one eye to see who had invaded his dank little corner of hell.

"Well, it has been too long, hasn't it, Severus?"

Snape stood up warily from his bed. Her figure was a little fuller than he remembered, the hair was shorter, but there was no mistaking those hazel eyes.

"Meredith?"

"Oh, and I was afraid you would have forgotten all about me by now." She smiled and looked up at him through her lashes.

As if I could ever forget you, he thought, even though I have tried.

"Well it seems that you've gotten yourself in quite a pickle, luv."

He was mildly offended by her use of the affectionate term but ignored it.

"What do you want?"

"Still as blunt as ever, I see. Well, I wanted to tell you that your barrister has finally gotten around to seeing you. Can't believe it took him this long. I mean, can you imagine any reputable barrister letting his client just languish in here without so much as a consultation?"

Severus' frown deepened. What barrister? He hadn't heard anything about who his case had been assigned to. Probably some fresh out of school boffin who has never worked a trial before.

"You don't even know who your barrister is? You poor dear." The underlying message was unmistakable: no one cared enough about you to even get you a barrister… not even your wife.

Inside, Severus felt a wall begin crumbling and the cold desolation of Azkaban leeched its way a little deeper into him. Meredith hid her smile, putting a façade of concern. Just a little more and Severus would be so unhinged that a jury would have no trouble delivering him, trussed and tied, to the Dementors. She was so taken with gloating about how pleased Lucius would be; she wasn't thinking when she spoke next.

"Once Thorne gets around to getting here…"

"Thorne?" Severus leaped at the glimmer of hope she inadvertently offered. "Jeremy Thorne?" Surely Serena had been the one to track Jeremy down. There was no other way he would have heard about what happened to Severus.

Meredith realized her misstep and a flash of irritation skimmed through her eyes. "I didn't catch his first name," she lied with a dismissive sniff. "I have more important things to do. Perhaps I'll stop back later to see how you're feeling."

Severus hoped that she wouldn't, but figured he wouldn't be that fortunate. "When will Jeremy be here? I want to get this foolishness resolved quickly," snapped Severus, grateful that she was leaving.

Meredith smirked, and offered one last verbal dagger. "Don't worry, I'm sure your trial won't take long at all."

Severus hardly found that statement reassuring. The door slammed behind her and in the echoing silence, Severus felt himself starting to sink further down into despair.

Ah, at last. Sorry this one took so long. Wee bit of writer's block combined with too much "real life" going on. I haven't touched my manuscript either and I'm feeling rather guilty. This is a bit of a transitional paragraph and hopefully I can get the next one up soon. Please read/review!