A/N: I'm going to try to delve a little bit more into Ginny and Blaise's past and give you a few teasers on their relationship. Hope you enjoy!
Disclaimer: Anything you recognize from Harry Potter belongs to JK Rowling!
"What the bloody hell is she doing in Italy?" Draco exclaimed. "Must I do everything!"
"What do you mean by that, Malfoy?" Hermione asked suspiciously.
"It means where do you think Potter heard those rumors about Death Eaters and New York from? Knowing Potter's protective streak, I thought surely he would keep the She-Weasel under lock and key at home. Obviously he failed even that," Draco said with disdain.
"Enough," Eduardo Salvatore ordered. "We must find Miss Weasley's current whereabouts and protect her until she can be sent home."
"Ginny's never going to agree to that," Hermione worried.
"Surely she will listen to reason," Minerva said. "Once she hears of the dangers-"
"But that's just it," Hermione interrupted. "I'm the one who convinced her to come in the first place," she explained miserably.
"All we can do now is ask her to come in and hear us out," Remus soothed. "I admit I don't know Miss Ginny Weasley that well aside from those final battles, but as I recall she's an intelligent girl."
Pacing, Draco shot another glare Hermione's way. "I just knew you had to be to blame in all of this somehow," Draco accused.
Offended, Hermione stood up. "You idiot!" As a precaution Draco reached for his wand when Hermione shot up.
"Children!" Professor McGonagall thundered before either could say more. "If you cannot act like adults, neither of you need to stay for this conversation!"
Chastened, both quieted down on opposite corners of the room. "Miss Granger, if you have Miss Weasley's contact information, I will have my secretary get in touch with her while we come up with a solution," Salvatore invited.
Hermione nodded. "Ginny should be at the hotel by now." She wrote down what she knew on some parchment before handing it over to the secretary outside, asking that she be notified the moment the secretary was able to get in touch with Ginny.
"I've been thinking. It might be to our best interest if we keep Miss Weasley here with us rather than sending her home. She may be the key to the capture of these rogue Death Eaters," Salvatore was saying as Hermione returned to the room.
"Must we involve her?" McGonagall fretted.
"Minerva, she is already involved just by her presence here," Salvatore reminded her.
"I think she's a complication we don't need right now. Keep her in London while we deal with these Death Eaters," Draco suggested.
"How did they know that she was even going to be here? They probably have the floo network and all apparition centers monitored," Remus said. "It may be a danger to move her at all."
"I don't care what we do. I just want Ginny safe," Hermione added.
At this point, the secretary entered Mr. Salvatore's office after a brief knock. "Excuse me, but the hotel manager says that a Miss Ginny Weasley has not yet checked into the hotel."
"What?" Hermione asked, alarmed. "But she must have arrived ages ago!"
"I'm sorry. Would you like to speak to the manager yourself? I can get back in touch with him for you," the secretary offered.
"Do you think she decided to explore the area before going to the hotel?" Remus thought.
Hermione shook her head. "It's just not like her. Something must have happened."
A sharp buzzing sounded. "Excuse me," Draco said. He pulled out an oddly shaped case from his pocket, which was transformed into a Muggle cell phone, and began heading towards a quiet corner in the room.
"Is that what I think it is?" Hermione asked quizzically.
"We've taken to adopting some of the more convenient Muggle devices. With the right charms, they can be made completely untraceable," Remus explained. "But we have to keep such things hidden. Wouldn't want them to get into the wrong hands."
Hermione nodded slowly, deep in thought about the potential of other Muggle devices.
"What!" Draco exclaimed. "Keep her there. I'll be in touch." All eyes turned to Draco. "I've found Ginny Weasley."
-:--:--:--:--:--:--:--:-
Ginny was silent throughout most of the ride to Blaise's home. She was just so confused. Was she doing the right thing by going with Blaise now, or should she ask him to turn around and take her back to her hotel?
And what if Blaise was right and those people were after her? She got chills just thinking about the danger that could bring to her family. Rubbing her arms absentmindedly, she looked away from the window and down to her lap—anything to avoid looking at Blaise.
"You cold?" Blaise asked hesitantly. Startled, Ginny looked up. "You're rubbing your arms. I just assumed you were cold," he indicated.
"Oh, I'm fine." Ginny looked away again, obviously uncomfortable.
"We should arrive soon. Is there anything you need?"
Ginny sat up abruptly. "Oh, Hermione! I need to talk to Hermione and tell her what's going on," Ginny remembered. "I don't know how to get in contact with the Italian Auror Department, but I'm sure if I send her an owl, she'd get the message."
"The Italian Auror Department?" Blaise asked sharply. "Is Hermione Granger here in Italy?" Blaise's mind was racing. Draco typically stopped by their offices the first day he arrived in Italy, which meant that he should be there today. Did he know about Granger being here, or was this an unexpected development?
"Yes, on some international relations thing, I think. And Remus Lupin should be there, too. If there really is a danger, we need to notify them. Why didn't I think of this before?" Ginny smiled in relief. "If you don't mind, maybe you can just take me there. I'm sure if there is a danger, they can handle it. In fact, maybe I could even go back to my hotel tonight."
"We're here," Blaise announced with some relief. He needed to keep her distracted while he made some plans. "I might have some contacts at the Italian Ministry. I'll show you to my library. You go write your letter, and I'll see what I can find out about Hermione's whereabouts."
"Thank you." Ginny looked around, in awe at Blaise's estate. Done in creams and golds, the home was sprawled across several acres of land and had a fantastic view of the city.
"Right this way." Blaise kept a hand at her lower back under the guise of leading her into the house. They passed through a stone archway into the main courtyard, where a fountain and several leafy plants and flowers resided.
"This is beautiful. Has it been in your family long?" She loved that the house was so roomy, yet only two stories tall. It was almost the complete opposite of the home she grew up in. While she loved her childhood home, it wasn't exactly her dream house.
"Actually, I've only just completed it this year. I've been designing it for a long time." Blaise stared proudly at his home.
Ginny looked a little sad. "Since Hogwarts, maybe?" And suddenly Ginny remembered.
It was lunch time on a Saturday and they had the entire weekend to themselves. Sitting by the lake with his arms wrapped tightly around her, Blaise nuzzled her neck and left a small kiss there. "How about we compromise? If you promise that we can move to Italy when you graduate Hogwarts, you can decorate our house any way you want it."
Ginny grinned and looked up into his eyes. "You already know what I want. Something pretty and new. Peaceful. You know, that will last a long time. And lots of space for our children to grow. That's all I want."
"And one day, I'm going to give that to you," Blaise swore.
Blaise slowed to a stop, realizing what he let slip. He cleared his throat uneasily. "You know it's been a dream of mine to have my own place."
Yeah, Ginny remembered those dreams they once shared. In the back of her mind, Ginny knew that this was what she feared about coming here. And if she stayed long enough, she knew she would come across an ornately carved door with a brass handle and a beautiful nursery inside.
Closing her eyes, Ginny could almost see the room. It would be designed like those Muggle Disney fairy tales with woodland animals, maybe a cute little cottage, and of course a castle painted in the distance. Just like she always wanted.
Ginny looked away before Blaise could catch sight of a stray tear. "Well no wonder I like it. You did a great job," she added quietly. Blaise, too, looked a little sad. But she wasn't ready yet to go into all of that with Blaise. "So where is this library you mentioned?" Ginny broke away from his light hold and began heading toward the large double doors ahead.
"Gin, I didn't mean-" Blaise began.
Ginny sped up her pace. "I need to start on that letter to Hermione," she interrupted.
"We'll need to talk eventually," he said.
She finally stopped and turned back to face him. "But not now," Ginny begged.
Blaise could see the faint glistening of tears in Gin's eyes. It always did break his heart to see her cry. So he let it go. Again. For now.
In silence, he led her to some parchment and a quill. "I should be back before you complete the letter. I'll get in touch with my contact and see what can be done about locating Hermione."
Ginny ignored him as she furiously began composing her letter.
In a quiet room two doors down, Blaise pulled out his wand and changed an old book lying on a desk back into a cell phone. Punching in a familiar number, he called Draco. Hopefully he would know about Hermione's whereabouts and what to do about Ginny.
"Yes?" Draco answered crisply.
"I'm not calling in on the status of my mission," Blaise replied quietly. "There's been a complication. I have Ginny Weasley here and she almost got in the way. She's asked that I get in touch with Hermione Granger."
"What!" Draco exclaimed. Blaise drew back in surprise. He expected Draco to be displeased, but not scream over the phone about it. "Keep her there," Draco ordered. "I'll be in touch." With that, he hung up.
Shaking his head in confusion, Blaise transfigured the phone into a lamp and locked the room. Ginny was still writing when he returned to where he left her. "Did you find Hermione?" Ginny asked him without looking up.
"There was no answer."
Ginny looked up suspiciously. "Is this some trick so you can stop me from returning to my hotel?"
"No, I told you I'd help you locate Hermione, and I will," Blaise insisted. "I'll try again in an hour. Until then, are you hungry? Thirsty?" Blaise asked hopefully. Ginny looked at him as if he had lost his mind while he wondered how he was going to keep her in one place until Draco could get back in touch with him.
A/N: About the nursery Ginny imagined. I couldn't decide which Disney fairy tale to use, so I chose a common theme found in Bambi, the ending of Alice in Wonderland, Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, etc. Hope you're following the story so far. Please R/R!