Disclaimer: I own nothing; all belongs to JK Rowling.

The Missing Link

I wandered through the ruined remains of the ancient castle, my home away from home during my teenage years. I forced myself to blink back the tears that threatened to overflow as debris scattered across the ground with my every step, though I told myself it was merely the sting of residual smoke that made my eyes water. I didn't care that my robes were trailing through the layers of ash that littered the castle, the leftover residue of the war that seemed impossible to avoid. I didn't seem to care about anything anymore.

All of this carnage and destruction was for a cause, I thought as I climbed over fallen stones that had once been the base of the main staircase, or maybe the roof, but I found no comfort in the words.

It didn't matter anymore. Only sorrow, only pain, only the deep, keening loss of family - a loss I'd refused to face until today.

I was out of time, but there were plenty of ways to procrastinate the inevitable.

It was a hard task climbing the stairs, ruined as they were, but I had to see it for myself. Finally reaching the top, I took a deep breath before taking the final step. The castle seemed to fall apart at the smallest touch these days, but I was sure that the solid balcony would hold fast. Not that I would have minded much either way.

When no tragically unfortunate death greeted me, I slowly let my weight rest fully on the crumbling floor, and it held. I probably should have felt some kind of relief, but I told myself that I only felt empty.

This was the easy part, though. Taking those steps, taking that leap of faith, just being physically present was nothing compared to the emotional pain I was avoiding. The pain I hadn't allowed myself to feel over the last few days, since the final battle.

I let my gaze linger on the hall below, wasting time that I didn't have. I shuffled closer to the edge, where part of the banister had crumbled away.

"Weasley."

My head whipped around, peering to a shadowed corner of the balcony that had been the source of the voice, though I already knew who it belonged to.

"Show yourself, Malfoy."

There was a pause before he emerged from the dark, hands held out in a peaceable gesture, though I didn't lower my guard. There was something different about the boy, and it only made me more suspicious.

I scowled at him. "I didn't expect to find a ferret lurking about the castle."

"Constant vigilance," Draco Malfoy said wryly, turning to survey the Entrance Hall below. "Nothing shocks me anymore."

I didn't take my eyes off the blond as he let his hands rest on the crumbling railing, my vision darkening as something began to heat inside my chest. "I'd be careful, if I were you."

Draco peered at her from the corner of his eye, my double meaning coming through loud and clear. "The Malfoys are always careful, Weasley. The Malfoys always come out on top."

"No matter who they might trample along the way, right?" I glared at him, my fists clenching involuntarily.

He turned to me then, his arms resting on the balcony behind him. "I didn't murder your brother, Ginny."

"Don't you dare talk about my brother." My voice sounded shrill to my own ears, unlike anything I'd ever heard it before, as an uncontrollable anger began to surface.

"We all lost something here."

I felt my body begin to shake - I was losing it. "What have you lost, Draco Malfoy? You don't even know the meaning of the word."

Malfoy looked away for a long time, though his gaze was slightly unfocused as though he were actually considering an answer.

It was when he finally met my eyes once more that I finally noticed the difference that had put me so on edge; Draco Malfoy was a man devoid of innocence.

"I haven't got much family to lose, Weasley. I lost my aunt, and I lost many friends - just the same as you."

You mean monsters - murderers, the biting retort sat on the tip of my tongue during the long silence, and I'd been about to offer it to him when he spoke again. "I lost a war that I never wanted to be part of in the first place. At least you got to choose." Draco shrugged, then turned to survey the Entrance Hall once more.

I had no reply for that.

We stood there, the silence almost awkward but for our introverted thoughts. Who was this man? Definitely no one I'd met before.

"I didn't have a choice." I glanced at him, expecting him to interrupt, but he just kept staring across the room. "It's never a choice when it comes to doing the right thing. Not for me. And not for Fred."

I couldn't hold my angry tears back now, I couldn't help but let them roll silently down my cheeks even as the man who was supposed to be my blood-sworn enemy stood next to me, witness to my agony. And still, he did not look at me.

"I'm sorry, Ginny Weasley," Draco said quietly, hesitantly placing his hand on my shoulder.

I let it rest there despite the torturous pain searing through my chest, the weight feeling almost comfortable, as though that small contact was holding the pieces of me together. When he finally met my gaze, his stormy eyes anchored me, that single connection to another person the last thing keeping me from flying off the handle.

I pulled away in a panic, quickly wiping away my tears. "I'm sorry, too," I told him, then bolted back down the staircase, my black robes flying behind me.

I didn't need to look back to know that he would be staring after me, and I didn't want to look back and see in his expression that he'd felt that inexplicable, impossible connection too. I didn't want to admit it, but I was furious... and I was scared.

Besides, I had a funeral to attend.

AN: Hope you guys enjoyed this. Written for a short writing challenge over at the DG Forum, details below, and I totally had this written before the deadline - there was just a delay in getting it beta'ed, so I've ended up posting it only partly edited (excuse any mistakes). This is the first fic I've published as first person perspective, though the first half was originally written in third person, so ten points will go to anyone who picks up any mistakes there.

The next chapter of Chaos Theory is finished and waiting for a once over from my beta as well - be patient and look out for it over the next week (or so)! ;)

And, as always, I'd love any feedback you feel like passing on.

Prompt: "Nothing shocks me anymore" somewhere in the text.

Bonus Points: Hogwarts era.

Required: Draco/Ginny centered.

Length: Min. 300 words, no max.

Rating: Any.

Deadline: May 17th.