Title: Call Me Ginevra

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own any characters except those you can't research on the lexicon and aren't mentioned in the books. The plot is my own. Any resemblances to other plots are pure coincidence. Think about it this way, great minds think alike.

Full Summary: The war has the Weasley's worried about poor little Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall claims she has the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. While at Malfoy Manor Ginny faces growing up, a strict regiment and Draco on a day-to-day basis. Can Ginny and Draco brave the unknowns of friendship? Will the buds of relationship form? What will Harry do when he finds out that only Ginny holds the key to defeating Voldemort?

Pairings: Draco/Ginny (I guess this sort of answers the "buds of relationship" question in the summary, huh?)

Rating: Eventually M, but pace yourself. (I will give fare warning of the chapters which that rating applies.)

Chapter Two: Composure, an Acquired Skill

Narcissa pulled Ginny's body out of the fireplace dragging floo powder and ash all over the floor. The woman summoned a blanket and maneuvered it beneath Ginny's head. Inspecting the wound on Ginny's forehead, she whispered a short incantation to stop the bleeding. The redheaded charge had been a victim of good luck.

The Death Eater who Narcissa recognized as Armando Mottles, a portly Irish man who helped Lucius in some of his more, dirtier non-Death-Eater acts, had been the one to shoot them with some sort of stunning charm. Narcissa, who had seen it coming, attempted to throw herself in front of Ginny, but was rocked out of the way by the shaking of the building. Ginny was hit with the blast and propelled into the back of the fireplace where she incurred a nasty bump on her head.

From behind her she heard the house elves scatter in, their small feet making patting noises on the wood floor. "Miss Narcissa, Miss Narcissa! What happened? Are you alright?" They cooed as they gathered around. Over the years she had become a favorite of the house elves, more gentle towards them than either Lucius or Draco.

"She needs some medical attention but she should be fine. I'll be alright as soon as she is." Narcissa replied; hand on her head as she felt the onslaught of the magical oath take over. The stunning charm on Ginny was making Narcissa very woozy and in seconds she too was passed out on the floor of the Malfoy drawing room.

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Ginny awoke to a strong beam of sunlight filtered by shear curtains showering her face. Squinting, her temples throbbing, she held up a hand to block out the pest. Groaning, she used her elbow to elevate her upper half and looked about. She was in a large bedroom, covered on one wall with magical wallpaper that displayed falling golden leaves on a white backdrop. Against the wall was a desk already covered with assorted papers.

Next to the desk was a door, closed, but she assumed it led to a bathroom. Between the desk and the foot of her bed was a large Persian rug depicting springtime somewhere, and at the foot of her bed was a large leather trunk which she recognized as her own.

It seemed to fit in, matching well with the dark walnut floors and cream walls. To her left her wand and small personal items set on a small pedestal table that separated her bed from a large chair, dark red and plush. Windows, floor to ceiling, lined the wall from the chair to the bathroom door. To her right she saw her reflection in an antique dresser mirror. Her head was wrapped tightly with cloth. Reaching a hand up, her skin tingled and stung as she touched it lightly. Flinching, she pulled away and swung the covers off of her legs.

Scraped up and bruised, her legs were clad in nothing but some shorts she had packed earlier that morning and she was wearing a shirt her mum had made for her, designed with a large gold 'GW' on a red background. It was one of Ginny's favorite shirts. As she ran her fingers over the embroidery, she was overwhelmed with missing her mum.

She wondered if a report on the attack on the Ministry had gotten back to them, whether or not they knew that she had been there when it happened, that she had been hurt. Oh, how she wished her father would rush in at any minute and take her up into his arms, tell her everything would be okay, ask her how she was doing, just like he normally did. But she knew that wouldn't be the case. She knew he wouldn't come rushing through that dark door and into this room to check up on his baby girl.

She was alone now, alone in enemy territory.

A light knock came from said door and for a second her heart skipped a beat in hope that maybe she was wrong, but as the door opened she that one the other side was Narcissa Malfoy, not Arthur Weasley.

"I see you're awake. How are you feeling?" Narcissa closed the door behind her and crossed the room, heels clicking against the wood, sitting at the foot of Ginny's bed. Ginny noticed that Narcissa had changed from earlier; it felt so long ago since they had been at Le Fete.

The woman was now wearing some sort of pant suit. It was mint and made out of silk. The top was very eastern in design, crossing asymmetrically across Narcissa's chest. The bottoms were cargo style and stopped in the middle of Narcissa's shins which Ginny noticed were bruised as well.

"What happened to you?" She reached forward, touching the skin lightly. Beneath her fingertips she felt warm smooth flesh, something she was surprised to feel. She had expected Narcissa to be cold.

"No matter dear, how are you feeling?" Narcissa laid her hands over the bruises, covering them up and forcing Ginny into the original question.

"I'm fine, but my head is throbbing and I feel like I'm about to be sick." Ginny's stomach was reeling and just sitting up was making her nauseous.

"It's the effects of the medicine." Narcissa sighed. "You were hit with a mild stunning charm which renders you temporarily unconscious. You were given some medicine to speed up the process because it can last, depending on the witch or wizard it is cast on, anywhere from half a day to a week. Lucky for you your body is strong enough that you woke up in time for dinner."

"Dinner? How long was I out?" Ginny rubbed the back of her neck as it strained in agony.

"About a day." Narcissa saw the shirt in Ginny's hands and looked at it, a small smile crossing her thin lips. "This shirt, did your mother make it for you?"

Ginny held the shirt protectively to her chest. She nodded.

Narcissa's smile slipped away as she realized how Ginny must have heard her words. She turned to the windows. "I never was able to make things for Draco, he grew at such odd rates, you know. One day he was small and the next day he was six, and then thirteen." Narcissa laughed lightly to herself, an awkward sound to have left her mouth. She could barely recall some of Draco's younger years with him being away at boarding schools which Lucius had insisted upon, training for a young boy to develop into a young man.

Ginny blushed pink, feeling she was in someway interrupting a very private moment of Narcissa's. It was even more embarrassing to think that at some point in time Draco had been a child. Ginny would therefore have to acknowledge he was human and could have feelings and that was a leap she wasn't prepared for.

After a pause, Narcissa patted the cushion and stood up, announcing a change in subject. She stood and straightened any possible wrinkles from her clothes and smiled at Ginny cordially, a very businesslike demeanor washing over the woman. "You've missed lunch in recovery but dinner will commence at seven tonight. I'll give you thirty minutes to take a bath or shower, whichever, the bathroom is right through that door."

Narcissa motioned to the door beside the desk across from Ginny's bed. "I'll send in a house elf to help you with your attire and introduce you to the staff. Afterwards I can show you the manor and grounds which should put us right at dinnertime. We can begin your lessons tomorrow morning."

Narcissa turned and left and with the click of the bedroom door, Ginny found herself surprised at the pool of excitement boiling up inside of her. She had never been pampered before, and although the prospect of sitting at the same dinner table as Lucius and Draco didn't sound much like pampering, everything else sounded great.

If it was anything like being doted on in the swanky French restaurant or the experience of having upscale, trendy robes tailored to her body, she might just like it here. She moaned as her head throbbed again, going from ear to ear and she let herself lay back into her blankets and pillow. She would enjoy the day if her body would let her.

It took some time but the tenacious redhead finally coaxed her body to stand. She shuffled her feet across the floor, the wood warm against her feet from the beaming of the afternoon sunlight through the windows. She turned the old-fashioned knob on the bathroom door and entered a room completely covered in stone.

The floor was a sand colored marble tile with cream veins and the countertop a dark brown with amber. The sink was to the right of the door, submerged in the dark marble, flanked on each side by sconces and crowned above it with an ornately framed oval mirror. Ginny could barely breathe as she marveled in the detail of the frame. It spiraled and curled and if she looked close enough, it glowed slightly.

Behind her, across from the grandiose vanity area was a porcelain claw foot tub sitting beneath a large bay window. To the right of the tub was an oversized tiled shower with the water falling from the ceiling like rain. She realized, finally, that her jaw was wide open. Shutting her mouth, she disrobed and climbed into the shower, hesitant to get into the bath should she never get out.

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She was in heaven. A deep crimson robe had been left for her on a chair beside the vanity. Inside it she felt as if she was wrapped sunlight. She could smell the honey from her body wash and the rose from her shampoo. She sighed happily as she opened the door into her bedroom, steam following her out; at the foot of her bed stood a smiling house elf by the name of Babsy with straw-like hair and big green eyes. Her sharp nose whistled a bit as she spoke to Ginny on what to wear and when.

Ginny had been surprised to find her chest filled with clothes the right size. She could only figure that Narcissa had gotten sizes from during the robe fitting and had someone get Ginny clothes while she was unconscious.

Closing the door behind her, Ginny stepped out into the hall wearing a dress which was belted at her waist and puffed out slightly above that, the hem falling right above her knees. Two inch-wide straps held up the fabric and connected in the back where a basket-weave pattern of strips of satin had been laced between her shoulder blades and to her lower back. The color was a cool mint green that made her blush stand out against the creamy, freckled skin. Her long curls had been straightened and pulled into a ponytail that stopped at the bottom of her back. From her ears hung simple teardrop earrings of emerald.

She was glowing as Babsy introduced her to the staff that had lined itself up in the hallway. Aside from the number of odd house elf names Ginny would have to place in her repertoire, she met the head grounds keeper Landon, a man of about forty who was at the time dressed in grounds-tending clothes, and Ernest the "chief of staff" of sorts. Ernest took her from there and walked her down a curving staircase to the lower level where they found Narcissa in a drawing room reading something in the paper.

Ginny stepped down a few steps into the room, a plush Persian rug beneath her feet. "Just a moment, dear, take a seat." Narcissa's eyes flicked up momentarily and she nodded to a chair, and then returned back to her paper.

Ginny slowly made her way over and lowered herself onto the cushion. To her right was an immense fireplace surrounded by white molding painted with gold decoration of ivy and leaves. On either side of the fireplace were volumes. She was surprised to see how many books the Malfoy house had in it. She didn't think they read all that much.

The room was filled with luxurious furnishings, ranging from eighteenth century French to nineteenth century English. The eclectic blend of time periods and cultures made the room so antique and warm that Ginny felt almost, dare she say, at home.

Narcissa set the paper down and Ginny could see a picture on the front page of the Ministry. "It seems the attack is popular talk of the town." Narcissa explained.

"But there have been plenty of attacks, why was that so special? I mean, besides the fact that it was at the Ministry?" Narcissa crossed the room and sat adjacent to Ginny in a wingback upholstered with silver and blue patterned fabric that shined in the light.

"Because they stole something from the Department of Mysteries, there were fatalities, of course. And the fact that we were there was mentioned." Narcissa explained simply. She looked Ginny over a smiled slightly. "You look very nice in that color. I'm glad the clothes fit, I had an order placed for clothes when we were getting your robes done." Ginny received the affirmation of her assumption. "Now, are you ready for the tour?"

Ginny nodded and stood. Her height was elevated about two inches with the addition of what she recognized as fashionably "in" wedges. She didn't understand the cork part but the rich turquoise of the strap across her foot and around her ankle was lovely. Now, standing at about five foot nine inches, she was almost as tall as Narcissa, who was a tall thin woman. Narcissa smiled in approval and Ginny followed her out into the landing beneath the staircase she had previously descended.

"That staircase takes you back up to your room. That is the guest wing. Standing outside, looking at the front of the house, it is on the right with our gardens. On the left is the family wing. In the middle, joining the two wings, are the family dining and living room. All of which is on the third floor. We are on the second floor right now where Lucius and I have our offices."

From the landing and leading further down, was another short flight of stairs. At the bottom of this was an immense foyer and the front door which allowed Ginny to be able to picture where she was. As they stepped off the last step, they were turned in front of the main entrance, another winding staircase to the right of where they were.

Narcissa turned, the fabric of her pants shimmering beneath the light flooding in from the windows. Ginny loved the windows. They were on either side of the front door (which was a dark walnut and held an ornate design of glass within its wooden panels) and spanned nearly floor to ceiling, the width of the car her father had magicked (and Ron and Harry had stolen to get to school their second year).

Between the family wing staircase and one of those massive windows was a large archway leading into what looked to be a living room. Ginny and Narcissa stepped inside. To their immediate left was a bay window with a bench built into it, covered with cushions and blankets. On the opposite wall of the entrance, centered between the window and the entrance to another room was a massive fireplace, this one seemed to be carved out of stone. There were long silver and green striped sofas around the room and a large coffee table in the middle.

"When Lucius and I have company over we usually mingle in this room, I'll be holding parties for you to associate yourself with others and it will teach you social skills." Narcissa dictated.

"What kind of others?" Ginny asked, a hint of uncertainty in her voice.

Narcissa's blue eyes shot towards Ginny's direction. "The appropriate kind." Narcissa ended the topic by walking through the room into the adjoining space decorated with dark wood tones and greens. In the center of the room was a long table that held, Ginny estimated, twenty chairs all around.

"This is where we dine with company. Notice how we have the table set up for only eighteen people, any more and it would cease to be party and turn into chaos. An appropriate amount of people for a party is roughly fifteen to twenty, you should be able to mingle and remember everyone within the first hour."

Ginny nodded, raising her eyebrows at the supposed obviousness of this information. "Tonight we'll be in the family dining room right?" She asked.

"Correct." Following Narcissa through the dining room, they arrived at double doors at the other end. Narcissa pushed one open and as Ginny stepped through she found her herself in a hallway that spanned the entire house from left to right but was barely three people from the door Ginny had just stepped through to the one on the opposite end of the hall. "This hall," Narcissa began, "Is to improve flow during nights when we host dances. We've found it's much more conducive to those attending if they have a nice quiet hallway to retreat to."

"How can you have dances in this house? I mean, I haven't seen a room big e…" Ginny trailed off as Narcissa opened the door across the hall and led them into an gigantic room, lined with floor to ceiling windows on one wall, a large painting of a ball from long ago hanging on the right wall and many smaller paintings depicting various other balls on the left.

"How often do you actually use this room?" Ginny asked, eyebrows rising in awe.

"Well, there's the Valentine's Ball, the spring ball, the summer ball, the fall ball, the All Hallows Eve Ball, the Christmas Ball, and the New Year's Ball. That makes about six or seven." Narcissa answered casually. "We cater to roughly a hundred people at each event, invite only of course, and only those of high society."

Narcissa went on to dictate several rules of hostess-ing, rules Ginny found herself not paying attention to as she realized she didn't know how to dance the way the Malfoy's did at these balls. "Ginny, I hope you've been petrified because you're staring into space and being non-responsive, which are symptoms of not listening."

"I'm sorry, it's just, I…" Ginny trailed off, embarrassed. Narcissa waited. "I don't know how to dance."

There was silence. "We'll change that."

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Warmth against her back, wind causing the leaves on the tall trees to shake and whisper in the calm, birds chirping in the background and the slight, gentle scents of the garden whisking her mind away to somewhere else; Ginny was at peace in the gardens. Sitting on the edge of one of the fountains, rivulets of water falling into a shallow pool behind her, she felt as if nature had wrapped her in a blanket and was singing her to sleep here in this place that she knew would be her solace.

Around her there were no signs of the house, a fence, walls, rules, anything. The trees and flowers were so high; they towered over her and blocked her view of the manor completely. This maze of beauty already had Ginny dreaming of sleeping outside during a summer night. She wished she could show it to her mum, she had always liked gardens.

Ginny sighed. Although the wide open fields of her home were liberating, she couldn't go anywhere without being able to see a fence or the house. This is what she needed. She inhaled the scents of the garden deeply.

After the tour with Narcissa they had found they still had time left until dinner. Narcissa excused herself, saying she had to take care of some business before dinner anyways and cautioned Ginny to be on time for it. The house had been massive with two libraries, a dozen assorted rooms, that giant ball room, and about fourteen bedrooms from what she gathered. She had decided to come out to the garden to see what it had to offer and she was not disappointed. The sun was still up, inching across the sky in the later afternoon hours.

"Enjoying the scenery?"

Ginny spun around to find a familiar face and the source of the familiar voice. He had grown up quite a bit from the scrawny, pale faced brat he had been. Granted that was three months ago that she last saw him, but he had done a lot of growing in that time. His face, for some reason, looked more filled out. She noticed that he looked like a young adult instead of a pre-teen rodent. His hair wasn't slicked back as it once was, merely gelled into a style. His eyes weren't slits, they were open and calculating, his nose wasn't up in the air, in fact Ginny couldn't see up his nose for the first time in what seemed about seven years.

At first she wasn't sure how to answer him. His tone wasn't cruel or ridiculing, but she could never be sure with him. "As much as I can with the times," She responded turning back, hair falling over her shoulders still in its ponytail.

She heard him step closer and felt the change in the breeze as he sat down beside her. "War times?" He asked.

She turned her head, looking him squarely in the eye, brows furrowed. "Well that all depends mister Malfoy." She stood and dusted off her skirt.

"On what, Miss Weasley?"

She felt her cheeks burn. "On you and your father I suppose."

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A knock sounded through Ginny's room. She had found escape in the covers of her bed from the confusing conversation she had with Draco earlier that day. His entire self confounded her. He wasn't acting right, he was acting as if they barely knew each other- which was the truth since they rarely ever spoke personally of themselves, but they did know each other enough to know that they didn't like each other at all. This made Draco's behavior even more disturbing.

She pushed herself up off of the mattress and crossed the room, bare feet patting on the hardwood floor. She opened the door and looked down to find a house elf that she remembered as Uula standing with a note in her hand. "For the Miss from the Misses." She stated, holding out the parchment to Ginny. Taking it and nodding to the elf, she turned and closed the door behind her, making her way back over to the bed where she crawled back into its comfort and opened the letter.

Ginny,

Lucius has been called away on business. Tonight it will be you, Draco, and I alone for dinner. The attire you were wearing earlier today will be fine for the occasion. Be in the family dining room by six-forty-five sharp.

Narcissa.

Ginny felt a pressure rise up off of her shoulders as if Merlin had done it himself. A pardon on sitting face to face with Lucius was just what the healer ordered to ease Ginny into her first conscience day at the Malfoy Manor. Now all she had to do was get past Draco.

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Ginny used the skirt of her dress to wipe the sweat from her hands away. Why was she so nervous about this dinner? Narcissa apparently liked her enough to save her life during the Death Eater attack at the Ministry; she would certainly punish Draco for being a twat, wouldn't she? Of course, Narcissa did chronically spoil Draco, even while he was away at Hogwarts.

Conflicted, but even more scared of being late, Ginny pushed open the door to her room and made her way to the family dining room on her side of the house. Taking a deep breathe for confidence, she opened the door to the dining room just as the clock chimed signaling a fifteen minute mark, fifteen minutes until seven.

Sitting at the table was Narcissa Malfoy at one end and Draco to her left. The woman smiled and held out her hand, motioning for Ginny to take the seat of honor at her right. "Come, Ginny, sit down. I'm surprised by your punctuality."

Ginny slid into the chair, refusing to make eye contact with Draco as she did so, and smiled at Narcissa. "A good surprise, right?"

"Of course." Narcissa nodded and a set of waiters set different plates and dishes in front of them. The dinner was so consumed with chewing that not much conversation took place. After the entrée, Narcissa excused herself to her room.

Ginny was aghast. Her jaw was once more picking the small particles of dust up off of the floor as Narcissa exited the room. Sitting in her chair, cheek ablaze in blush, she looked wide-eyed at Draco who was watching her with interest written on his features. "You ran off today in the gardens." He smirked.

That smirk. She hated it. Clenching her jaw, searching for an answer, she nodded. "I didn't feel the conversation would've progressed any. Besides, I was tired."

"So tired that you couldn't say goodbye?" His eyebrow quirked a little as he leaned forward on his elbows. She was beginning to get irritated with him. Why was he playing like this? It was some sort of strange cat and mouse game and she was not one to volunteer for cat food.

"I had a long day, Draco."

"Don't get defensive, Weasley."

"I'm not getting defensive." She spit out, words falling like bricks in the space between them. Draco sat back in his chair, seemingly pleased with infuriating the redhead.

"What made your day so long?" He questioned, reaching for his goblet and sipping from it. His voice was light as if he was only mildly interested. This change bothered her.

"Nothing." She wasn't particularly keen on reiterating the events of the Ministry so soon after it happened. She wasn't quite sure what to think of the situation and therefore had decided not to deal with it just yet.

"I assume it had nothing to do with that little Ministry ordeal. Really if you're going to be at Malfoy Manor you should learn to deal with things like that." The condescending tone- it was about all she could take.

"Like you dealt with Dumbledore falling to his death at your feet?" She almost threw her chair backwards as she pushed herself out of it and stomped out of the room, slamming the door behind her.

As she marched down the hallway, tears burning her eyelids she was confronted by Narcissa, a slightly irritated look on her face. "Did you just slam that door, Ginny?"

Ginny stopped, fear pushing into her gut. "Ye-yes ma'm I'm sorry." She stammered.

"Ginny in this house you may have all the heated debates you want, but please don't slam any of the doors, throw any furniture or valuables, or point a wand in anyone's direction."

"But I didn't throw anything or point a wand at anyone!" Ginny cried, frightened that she had been somehow framed in such a short period of time. Draco was good.

"I listed them for further notice. I'm sure my son is trying to see just how easy it is to get under your skin and if it only takes him a matter of seven minutes to have you storming out of a room I expect the other two rules to be abided by in this house, for it seems they may arise in a very short time." Narcissa paused, her eyes measuring something in Ginny.

"Ginny, my son is a very clever boy. I love him very much but something he picked up from his father was an innate ability to make someone's skin crawl; do not think he has not done the same to me. But you will find people like Draco everywhere in life and so it is important that you listen to what I am about to say. Do not let them get to you where they can see it. Let it bother you all you want it to, go back to your room and cry all the pitiful tears that you must, but face to face never let someone trying to find out how easy it is to break you down know that they can or could or they'll do it with increasing vigor each time."

The words echoed in Ginny's mind as she laid in bed, staring at the ceiling of her new room in her new house, a part of her new life. Her mother would've fussed, her father would have consoled, her brothers would have vowed revenge (well, all except for Percy), even her friends would try and make her feel better. But no one would've told her to deal with it like an adult, and that's exactly what Narcissa had said. As Ginny drifted off to sleep, eyes closing and the world becoming more distant to her, she realized that in a way those words were exactly what she wanted to hear.