[A/N: I own nothing. Only the plot of this fic, I do own. Thanks again for the wonderful reviews!! I wouldn't have gotten this far without my faithful reviewers, you know who you are]

.:XI:. Casualties of Society

If Ginny knew weeks ago being a Slytherin was going to be this hard, she wouldn't have given in and agreed. But if she knew about all the brushes and the moments of close contact with the mysterious Malfoy she would have jumped (literally and figuratively) to the prospect of Draco teaching her how to act like a Slytherin.

Ginny wouldn't admit to herself that she almost liked being in such close contact with Malfoy and not in their own separate worlds from each other. Since they would be arriving later, he didn't need to teach her dinner etiquette, it happened to be a whole other area either of them didn't want to get into.

But now it seemed utterly worth it to be in the grand ballroom at Malfoy Manor even if it was for a dire significance. It was as if the two of them were stepping into another world as they entered the ballroom. Underage witches and wizards in their finest robes, finishing their meals on the finest Malfoy platter and asking their partners to dance on the fine Malfoy dance floor. Few she recognized from Hogwarts.

When Ginny was finally released from her state of awe, she became quite aware of Draco stiffening on her arm. She had completely forgotten he grew up in this place and had quite a different perspective about it.

The potion itself only would last an hour so it was crucial to soak up as much information as they could.

"Hello, Blaise," she heard a choppy voice call from her right side.

"Evening, Marcus," Draco replied, nodding to Marcus Flint and – much to Ginny's dismay – steering her over to where Flint stood holding a glass of wine.

"Glad you could make it," Flint flashed Ginny a horrible toothy smile and returned his attention back to Draco. "Quite a scare back after the Holidays,"

"Yes," Draco returned. "Could they repair the Express?"

"For the most part," Flint replied lazily, like it was a strain to continue with the conversation. "Now, everything is set?"

The question caught Ginny by surprise. She looked over to Draco and caught the reassuring glance he granted her.

"Yes, we just have to wait," Draco answered.

"Good to hear," Flint offered Draco his hand, and Draco smoothly retreated it to his pocket after taking it.

Draco gave her a reassuring nod and took her to their table. Ginny was barely aware of the glass of red wine in her hand. It made her feel grown up sitting there with Draco and drinking (expensive, probably) wine and less...sixteen. Wait.

"What day is it?" she asked him.

Draco looked visibly startled from being snapped from his daze, looking upon the other guests (quite close to their age), dance about the room. Ginny noticed that the ones that approached the table nodded and the happiness looked quite fixed as if they were trying their very best not to sulk.

"Don't you spend enough time looking at newspapers," he shot, obviously quite annoyed. "To know what day it is? It's always right there at the top."

"Just answer the question,"

"It happens to be February the twenty-fourth," he said lazily, sipping from his glass. She didn't even notice with all that was happening. Before she could voice her thoughts properly, Draco cut in.

"You know," he said. "It's quite odd not to see any of the parents here, you know make sure their heirs don't act out or say the wrong thing in front of their friends,"

"But their friends aren't here anyway so it defeats the worry of letting something slip," she returned graciously.

"Touché," he said, quirking an elegant black eyebrow at her. "I'm going to have a look around, see where Lucius is hiding,"

"That leaves me here to do what?" Ginny asked. Draco stood up and turned from the table.

"Just stay here and let me handle it," he said nonchalantly.

She watched the space between him and the table increase as the seconds slowly went by then he all together disappeared through the large oak doors from which they entered fifteen minutes before.

Ginny sat there, alone at her table, feeling very put out that Draco could be just as intolerable and just plain rude while he was trying to be another person. But something deep in Ginny's mind told her she wouldn't have it any other way.

She was suddenly snapped out of her daze by a loud applause. The guests' attention seemed to be turned to the entrance of the ballroom, where Draco just exited. There stood Millicent Bulstrode with who appeared to be Theodore Nott, a quiet Slytherin in Millicent's year that doesn't take part in groups, on her arm. Millicent herself beamed at all of them in her periwinkle dress robes. It was odd to see her hair down, she almost looked like a normal girl in her late teens. It still seemed quite peculiar that Millicent hadn't held the party over the Holidays. But even as she moved on to the dance floor, her face noticeably fell.

"Pandora?"

It took Ginny a moment to register that that was her name for the night.

Marcus Flint stood at her side quite hopefully.

"Er, yes?"

"Would you care to dance? I mean since Blaise popped out for a bit doesn't mean you can't join in,"

Ginny was quite surprised that Slytherins used vocabulary like "popped out". Never the less she accepted and was soon swept onto the dance floor.

It was here that Ginny felt herself relax and put aside Flint's atrocious hygiene (or lack thereof) and lose herself in the music. He wasn't such a bad dancer actually and hardly made a move at all to pull her closer. It was quite rare that she ever attended anything this elegant and she might as well enjoy it regardless of what Draco wanted her to do.

But whether she liked it or not, she still heard things on that dance floor. Not the sort of things you'd here in the girls' loo or at the breakfast table.

"Did you hear..."

"...they were so furious...

"...he can't know...,"

"Yeah, he owled 't reach him in time..."

Full realization dominated Ginny's thoughts. It was a trap. This whole ball was a trap made by Lucius in order to lure Draco here. She had to go warn him. She had to go now!

But before she could even get out of step with Flint, a very loud crash echoed across the ballroom and drowned any music that dared to play. Every head in the room turned to the new arrivals at the front entrance.

Magical Law Enforcement Wizards along with a few others from various departments shrouded the front entrance, sealing off any escape.

"Now, now," the silky voice echoed through the silence. Lucius Malfoy stood there in all his glory looking upon the Aurors with mild amusement, seemed to have just appeared at the scene from nowhere. "I'm sure you're all not on the guest list,"

A witch stood apart from the crowd, who turned out to be Tonks. The shock of electric blue hair was a dead giveaway.

"We have reason to believe," she said, quite unlike her usual cheery tone. "That you, Lucius Malfoy, are housing your son, convicted of three murders, here in this Manor,"

Mr. Malfoy looked quite unabashed at this statement. Perhaps even slightly amused.

"And what would give you that idea?" the older Malfoy inquired lightly.

"We have traced the lock on his wand to this area precisely," Tonks returned.

"Is that a fact?"

"It is,"

Another wizard pushed through the crowd looking like he was quite out of breathe. Ginny didn't even have to think twice to know that it was the youngest Weasley boy clad in his faded black Hogwarts robes.

"Harry's got him down in the dungeons," he panted. Ginny suddenly felt very sick. Not only because Draco seemed to be in quite a fix, but also it could only mean –

Ginny looked down at her hands. No longer pale and smooth but calloused and freckled. She pulled a strand of her hair in front of her eyes. Indeed it was no longer a beautiful mahogany but frightfully red.

Ginny looked at Flint pleadingly as the crowd of Ministry wizards departed to the dungeons and a few stayed behind to question Mr. Malfoy. Flint pulled her along to the side wall of beautiful white marble engraved with the Malfoy coat of arms. Flint pushed it in with the side of his fist and a small square of the wall, just big enough for Ginny to fit through, slipped away to the floor.

She looked up to Flint with utmost gratitude.

"Just make sure he doesn't get into anymore trouble," he said before he Disapparated. Ginny was happy to see that they would be able to Disapparate inside the Manor as she slipped through the tiny opening before it closed up.

$

It was really a big change from the dazzling ballroom to the mucky dungeons of Malfoy Manor as Ginny arrived after a few slimy seconds in the duct going downwards, an unpleasant reminder to her trip down the chamber of secrets, even if she only could remember flashes of it.

It was terribly dark, and Ginny had a time trying to dismantle her wand from her slime-ridden dress robes.

"Lumos," she watched as walls around her began to take form from the darkness. There was only one corridor leading out. Ginny made her way slowly through the twists and turns, ready for anything that might attack.

She only met a Red Cap on her way and quickly stunned it, not before it bombarded her with Stink Pellets and gave her a hard thwack on her forehead, and hoped their wasn't any reason for it to be here, since she knew quite well that Red Caps only appear when blood is spilled.

At last Ginny came to a solid wall. A good Alohomora did the job. She was faced with a very moldy tapestry in her field of view. Dim light bordered the edges and she could hear quite plainly, the conversation going on, on the other side.

"You know," Ginny knew that voice. "I've put up with a lot of your taunting and your feeble attempts to make me miserable,"

"In my defense," sneered another voice that warmed her heart. "Most of those attempts worked quite well."

"I know you didn't kill her,"

"Well that makes two of us doesn't it?"

"I'm willing to let you go if you tell me where she is,"

"What if she doesn't want to be found?" No, no, Draco, you git.

"What are you on about?"

"Perhaps she left on her own accord,"

"You're lying!"

"Am –?" Draco gave a horrible cry of agony.

"Tell me or I'll – I'll –"

More fierce cries of agony. She'd have to help Draco; it was the only way he wouldn't get killed. Harry didn't mean to kill the last time.

Ginny back pulled the tapestry.

"Harry, stop,"

$

How did Lucius find out about their plan? What did Marcus Flint give Draco? Why aren't the adults attending the ball? Why are the guests so sorrowful? How do they know of Draco's plan? Who will Ginny choose? Draco or Harry? What will the repercussions be from this decision?

Tune in next time for a very special Wrath of Ginevra wherever Internet may be available.

$

And here it is, your moment of Zen:

"If it's too loud, turn it down" – Weezer