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 Note: They're off to America! You had questions, I give answers.

Author's Note: I don't know what it is but I'm on a writing war path! Maybe I'll finish the whole story before the month is up! (Haha yeah right…) You give me reviews I give you more chapters… it's like putting gas in your car except I'm free!

Chapter Nine: An American Arrival

The morning pressed at Ginny's eyelids like sandpaper. She had been rudely awoken by one of the house elves, poking and prodding at her as if she were cattle. Grumpy and irritable, Ginny forced herself from the comfort of her bed and stumbled into the bathroom for a shower. Thrusting herself inside the steamy vacuum, she sighed and let the drops of water roll down her chilled body. Last night the manor had been so warm, this morning she had been nearly freezing.

She ran her hands over her hair, calming it beneath the water and waiting until it was extremely saturated before attempting to shampoo it. She thought about Draco. His silver eyes, his blonde hair. She was particularly fascinated about his hair, she found out. After staying at Malfoy manor she had discovered exactly what it looked like beneath the gel.

His hair looked like silk in the light, thin and fine. It was in a way reminiscent of Ron's, except Ron's was much more unkempt. Draco's shortest layers were beneath his eyes settling atop his cheekbones. Beneath that a second layer touched his jaw line and added a bit of mystery to his appearance. Ginny had fantasized about running her hands through his hair many times since she had seen it in the garden one day, free and not held back by that demon goo.

She still struggled with the idea that his face was pointy, she never saw the connection with a ferret, though she teased him the name nonetheless. No, the bridge of his nose wasn't very wide, his jaw was pronounced and sharp, but he looked undeniably masculine and if she did say so herself: yummy.

She shook her head. She was going insane. Firstly, it would do her no good to think of Draco even remotely in any way outside of a friend. It would never happen, it just wasn't supposed to. Yes, she could agree with mass opinion that he was bloody gorgeous but she had to give up any fantasies of rolling around the floor with him. Well, she had to give up the possibility of that reality. She could always have the spaces of her mind to play with him.

She kicked herself for thinking such thoughts. She was a Weasley, she was a Gryffindor, she was a lady, and she need not be thinking those naughty, naughty things.

Oh but how she liked to.

Grunting and throwing her soap bottle on the floor, she quickly finished washing up and grabbed the towel that hung over the shower door to wrap up her hair. Taking another, she slid it around her body and nestled herself in its terry-cloth warmth. She loved towels, especially absorbent ones. The ones at the Burrow were nice, but they hardly got the water off. She paused. She had just referred to her home as "the Burrow."

She considered this. Was it really her home anymore? Had she not found her place at least temporarily in the house Malfoy? Was that not now her home? Struggling with this conflict that perpetuated inside her, she nearly dropped to the floor when she realized her change of clothes had been left in her bedroom. Grumbling about how she was sure the house elf had left by now, she pulled open the door to the bedroom and nearly dropped the towel that was shielding her very nude body.

"Bloody hell, Draco, mind a warning!?" She braced herself against the frame of the door and clutched the ends of the towel to her with more fervor than before.

Draco sat on the edge of her bed, one foot sitting casually on the opposite knee. He raised an eyebrow in reply to her mini heart attack and fought back a smirk. "Do forgive me, Gin, I just assumed you didn't tramp about your room naked."

Ginny glared in return, and snatching up her clothes, stuck her tongue out at him with great ferocity and slammed the bathroom door shut behind her, locking it as loudly as she could. Her cheeks surprisingly held their color until she looked in the mirror and saw just how much of her body had been revealed to him. Her breasts were pressed together by her arm and the cleavage it produced had been staring him in the face.

The towel swept across her body, grabbing at her waist and spread out at her hips, opening in a slit up her thigh. Blushing furiously, she threw the towel to the ground and succeeded in knocking things about on the counter trying to get dressed.

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Draco waited outside the bathroom for Ginny. The second she had slammed the door in his face he had let out a gust of breath and toppled over. Forcing his muscles to relax he covered his groin where his body protruded against the fabric of his pants. What in blazes was she doing flouncing about like that? The image he had just been treated to flashed in his mind. Her full breasts teasing him from behind her arm and that stupid towel, her shapely legs reaching out and that slit… That damned slit, tempting his eyes upwards to the shadow the towel prevented him to see.

He felt a little slimy but no worse for wear knowing that while she was talking he was only half paying attention as his body was only half available for that particular sense. Groaning he arranged himself for modesty's sake and fell back against the bed. She was driving him absolutely mad without knowing it and that seemed to make things all the more difficult for him to deal with. Sighing, he left his hands on his stomach so if need be he could protect her virgin eyes from what his body so seriously wanted to do.

Just as he was going to let himself venture to what those things would entail, Ginny stepped out of the bathroom dressed and hair dried, ready for the trip. Almost thankful for this, Draco stood and led her downstairs to Narcissa's sitting room.

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It wasn't a long journey by any means, they had gone by portkey, but it was rather exhausting to do so overseas. Their things had been connected to the portkey by a rope and they landed somewhere on a vast expanse of land. Turning, they found themselves in the courtyard of a small cottage covered in vines and hidden by indigenous trees. The air here was different, a bit warmer and smelt of something not found in the UK.

Ginny followed Narcissa and Draco up to the door where a man stood, hands on his suspenders and a grin on his face. "Narcissa!" He exclaimed, taking her shoulders gingerly into his hands and placing a kiss on her forehead. What a wonderful surprise. Business or pleasure?" He asked almost right away. Ginny frowned, she had a feeling what he meant. Draco had explain that Lee was a doctor that Narcissa had met while in school and trusted to care for her after all of Lucius' beatings.

"Business, I'm afraid." Narcissa forced a weak smile, something Ginny was surprised she could see through. After introductions they were given a tour of the cottage, a small one bedroom one bath place where Lee lived by himself and tended to his land with no connection to the Muggle world. His house was visible to Muggles but so far removed from them that they never took notice.

They ate dinner there, Lee living up to his reputation of poorly executed jokes and the food meeting all standards required to feed the grumbling stomachs of Ginny and Draco. They departed the cottage and were met by what Ginny recognized as a town car. Her father would love to hear about Malfoy's riding in Muggle modes of transportation. Realization dawned on her, that's why Narcissa and Draco hadn't brought any robes, they were going to be spending their time (with the exception of Lee's place) in Muggle territory.

They all clamored into the vehicle and drove off to a hotel where Narcissa bought them each rooms and handed Ginny and Draco their keys, bidding them a goodnight and excusing herself. Ginny watched her walk away.

"Don't worry; she's going back to Lee's even though she wants us to think she's going to her room. She'll be there the majority of the time we're here." Draco tilted his head in the direction of their rooms and Ginny nodded, following closely behind him. Narcissa had been able to get them the last two rooms together, across the hall from one another. The doorman had dragged their trunks up to their respective rooms and let them be.

Ginny looked around. It was quaint, sterile, more luxurious than the Burrow but far below the Manor. Draco, she figured, must be having a fit. She crossed the hall and knocked in his door. After a few curses could be heard through the heavy wood it creaked open to reveal a scowling Draco. Ginny giggled. "What, having that poor of a time already?" Pushing open his door she squeezed her way in between his body and the door.

"Well at least it's not as bad as mine, I don't even have a sofa like you do. All I have is a chair and a table." She turned back to find Draco staring at her in disbelief. "What?"

"Not even going to let me invite you in?"

Ginny rolled her eyes. "Don't play that bollocks with me Malfoy, you can't use manners as an excuse between us anymore." She turned to peek out his window to inspect the view. He watched her with curiosity, she had referred to them as "us." He found this odd, he hadn't really thought of their friendship in a way that combined the two of them into an "us." He relived the sound of it in his head until finally he realized he was staring.

"Weasley." He called for her from across the room, for some reason he didn't find himself able to lift his feet. Ginny turned to face him, eyebrows raised in confusion.

"Weasley? Since when have you called me that anymore? What's gotten into you are you sick?" She closed the space between them and placed the back of her hand on his forehead. He felt his skin tingle where she touched and his stomach do flip flops. What had gotten into him? She didn't know how appropriate that question was.

"Nothing, stop being annoying. Let's go for a walk." He lightly waved her hand away and turned for the door.

Ginny, not thinking twice about what had just transpired, followed.

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They stood next to each other in comfortable silence alone on the elevator, Ginny marveling at being in one again, Draco trying to hide his white knuckled grip on the bar behind him. He was not a fan of elevators having been stuck in one for nearly two hours the last time he had come with his mother.

Ginny was blatantly unaware of this and hummed some tune that served in soothing him for the time they were in the death chamber.

The elevator binged pleasantly and the doors slid open, Draco rushing out and waiting for Ginny. As she appeared beside him they walked in silence, surveying their surroundings. The building itself was a giant rectangle made up of identical floors with identical rooms that coordinated a maze of hallways. The lower level, the floor Draco and Ginny found themselves on, was an even bigger mystery than all the others.

They stepped out into a long corridor that to the left went on to more rooms and more corridors. To the right was an alcove containing, well, frankly Ginny and Draco didn't know what they were. Ginny had seen them before, her father had called them… Oh, what were they? Hermione had mentioned that they were a convenient Muggle way to get snacks and drinks.

Well, it wasn't very important.

Ginny and Draco decided not to take that route and instead made their way to the front desk. In passing they saw rooms that had glass windows barricading assorted Muggles on bicycles that didn't go anywhere. Draco muttered about their obvious idiocy but with a swift punch in the side from Ginny he was quieted. "It's a Muggle activity, I'm sure some of the things we do would be strange to them."

Draco scoffed and ignored her.

Ginny, rolling her eyes, stopped dead in her tracks. It wasn't until he was thirty paces ahead of her that Draco realized he had lost her. Turning he saw the redhead with her face pressed up against a wall of glass as she peered into a room. "What in bloody…" He trailed off as he saw what it was she was looking at. It was a giant indoor ocean. Children were splashing around with plastic tied around their arms, elderly women in tight black shiny fabric were walking back and forth across an area and teenagers their age were balling themselves up midair as they jumped in.

"What in Merlin's name are they doing?" Draco's eyebrows were sewn together in utter shock.

"It's a pool." Ginny stated, a twinkle in her eyes that made Draco nervous. "Come on." Ginny wrapped her fingers around his wrist and dragged him back to the elevator.

"Ginny what are you doing? Ginny? Ginny are you listening to me?" Ginny shook her head and Draco sighed. He wasn't going to get through to her.

Ginny dragged Draco up to her room and once inside, through him against the bed (well, shoved him in the direction of it) and began fishing around in her trunk. "I figured we would be around a pool so I decided to bring my swimming suit." She explained, although, Draco still had no clue what she was talking about. "Here we are!" She exclaimed, pulling out assorted pieces of clothe like the Muggles in that room were wearing.

"Oh no, I'm not wearing anything like that!" He pointed a finger at a brightly patterned small sized article.

"That's not for you!" Ginny laughed. "That's my suit, here!" She handed him a pair of shorts. They were an odd texture and Draco didn't know what to think about them. "I wear them over my suit for modesty but I guess it's a good thing since now you've got something to wear." She pushed him towards the bathroom. "I bet it'll take you longer to change than me so you can have the bathroom, I'll be out here when you get done."

She shut the door in his face and he could hear her cackling through the paper thin walls. Grumbling he stared down at the shorts Ginny had given him. How was he supposed to put these things on? Grunting, he shucked his clothing and stood before the mirror embarrassed that he was about to put on those shorts. Scowling he shouted out to her. "Do I really have to wear these!?"

He waited for her response. "Yes stupid!"

Scowling he inspected the shorts and decided that the way in which to get them on was to pull them up. He did his best in picking which side was the front and pushed his legs through the garment. Pulling it up and securing it with the ties, he inspected himself in the mirror. It created an odd shape on his body but at least his well toned chest was showing.

Opening the door he stepped out to find Ginny looking out the window again. Well, her entire body wasn't really the first thing he noticed. She was bent over the arm of the couch, body in an S shape. Her shapely bum barely covered was the focal point. He admired it first then followed her legs down to her feet where they kicked back and forth. He leaned to the right, trying to catch a glimpse of her bare stomach and breasts. Smirking, he cleared his throat.

As Ginny turned he nearly lost the air to speak. They way her body twisted and curved, her breasts projecting outward, her stomach sloping in towards her belly button and her shapely legs flexed under the weight of her body (which he guessed wasn't very much). He wasn't even embarrassed when she snorted at him.

"You've got them on backwards you moron." She ushered him back into the bathroom and after a minor wardrobe malfunction and the procurement of towels they made their way down to the swimming pool that Ginny had spoke of.

As they walked through the heavy glass door and into the swimming pool room, Draco felt the temperature of the water beneath his feet and felt his lips twitch at the thought of Ginny's physical reaction to its coldness. They managed to get two chairs next to each other and set up stations of towels and their flip flops. Draco, still hesitant to get into the water, let Ginny volunteer to splash around a bit by herself while he lifeguarded her.

Rolling her eyes, Ginny tied up her hair and managed the first few steps of the shallow end before turning towards Draco. "It's a lot colder than I thought it was going to be." Draco gave her a small laugh and leaned back in his chair, hands behind his head, and closed his eyes.

Surprising himself, he managed to dose off and when he woke up he heard splashing and giggling that sounded awfully familiar. Blinking his eyes open he felt his stomach tighten in jealousy as Ginny bounced around with a group of Americans. They seemed to be playing a sport, keeping a ball above their heads and hitting it back and forth. Grunting, Draco picked himself up and kicked off his flip flops.

If those Americans could do it, certainly he could too. Marching to the steps he cleared all of them and promptly stepped back up half of them. Teeth chattering, he remembered his Malfoy reserve and turned back, forgetting the cold.

"Draco!" Ginny called out, missing her chance to keep the ball in the air. Draco noticed the smiles of those around her fall at the excitement in her voice. Excitement? Draco felt his heart pound as she pushed through the water to join him. What was this emotion he was feeling? Pride? Why would he be proud? Of course Ginny should rather spend time with him than those awful Americans.

"Draco," She was out of breath and he was happy about it, she had worked to come see him and she had a huge grin on her face. He loved it. "You decided to come in. Come on, I'll introduce you. I met these Americans, they're really nice." She grabbed his wrist and turned to walk back.

"I bet they are…" Draco muttered underneath his breath.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Ginny turned and frowned at him.

"Oh nothing," Draco shrugged, leaving his wrist in her hand, any excuse to have her dote on him in front of those other guys. "It's just I'd be real nice to a pretty girl too."

Ginny grinned and he didn't know if he liked the twinkle in her eyes that accompanied it. "Draco Malfoy…" She grabbed his other wrist and he blushed. "You're real nice to me, are you saying I'm pretty?" She was obviously teasing but the insinuation made Draco twitch, or maybe it was that when she turned her head that way and seemed so coy he wanted to believe she was actually flirting with him.

"Don't be stupid, you might as well be another boy to me, you're just a mate."

If he didn't know any better, he would've thought the look on her face for a split second was disappointment. Instead of lasting it morphed into a smile and she shrugged, running off with her Americans. Jaw clenched and hands balled into fists, he followed her halfway into the water and then left her to the Americans. If she was going to be insolent and waste her time with them, who was he to stop her?

Turning he managed to step on the one spot on the pool floor that hadn't managed to get a good coating of roughness, slipped, and smashed his forehead onto one of the steps. From then on it was black.

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Draco thought his head was going to explode. Forcing his eyelids open he founds himself staring into two hazel cups of hot chocolate. Focusing he saw the outlines of Ginny's face twisted into a worried expression. She was biting her plump bottom lip and the way she was sitting next to him allowed for full view of her chest. Smiling he dared to speak.

"How long was I out?"

"Not very," Ginny brought a wet cloth to a particularly tender spot on his forehead. "You're lucky you know that? With all those boys around I was able to find someone to carry you up here."

Draco looked around. He was in Ginny's room. The American knew where Ginny's room was. "I bet you didn't have trouble with that, did you?"

"Don't be a pervert." Ginny snapped, pouting beautifully. "And no, I actually had a few volunteers. But you'll be happy to know it wasn't a favor, I paid him back." Draco blanched. He really didn't want to continue the conversation.

Ginny grinned and began to press the cloth around his forehead. Draco hissed and smacked her hand away. "What are you mad? Cut that out!"

Ginny smacked him back and set the towel down.

Draco ran his fingers over the seam of the comforter. "So…" He trailed off.

"So what?" Ginny asked, raising an eyebrow.

"So how could you possibly repay him? You don't have any Muggle money." Draco looked away, refusing to see the expression on her face. She had won the battle.

"I said I'd let him call me tonight."

"Ginny!"

"What?"

Draco sat up straight stared her in the eyes. "That's nonsense! An American? Really? A Muggle?"

"What's so bad about it?" She asked indignantly, hands on her hips.

Draco snorted and kicked his feet over the bed to get up. His head quickly began to swirl and upon trying to stand up, he found himself palm against the nearby wall just trying to keep off the floor. He tried not to admit to himself that Ginny attempting to hold him up and fawning over him made him feel good, but he savored being pitiful and having her care for him. "Unh…"

"Draco, you need to just lie down and relax. You had a nasty bump on your head and I was able to minimize it when we got up here but I didn't have any potions for the headache." She guided him back to the bed so he could lie back onto the pillows. "Please, just rest."

The tone in her voice made his stomach warm. Did she truly care for him? Draco first had to convince himself that Ginny could care for someone like him. Ginny was from another world, one completely opposite from his own. She had a large family, she lived in a home that could barely accommodate standards in a teenage life and she was far from spoiled. He recalled seeing her in things he had seen her brothers wearing.

She was a Gryffindor to top it all off. Slytherins and Gryffindors were bred to hate each other, not like each other.

Not that he liked her.

Or that she liked him.

Or that they remotely liked each other.

But in the meantime, he mused, he could deal with a little babying over him. They sat in silence for a while, Draco finding place in the room to look other than Ginny, Ginny staring directly at him. How could she stare at him like that in such a delicate moment? How could she so bold-facedly search him for any sign of reaction? He finally brought himself to acknowledge her and look up. Her eyes searched him and he felt like he was being prodded by a doctor.

"What?" He snapped. She jumped at the shock of his shout and he immediately felt bad for it.

Ginny plastered a smile on her face and got up, walking to the other side of the bed. He watched her as she picked up a pillow and the blanket from the foot of the bed. Without a word she set up a place for herself in one of the chairs. He sighed and cocked an eyebrow. "Ginny," He started.

She looked over at him. Blinking, she waited.

"What… what were you going to say… last night before you left? What were you going to say?"

Ginny's eyes seemed so different as he looked at them. So full of something that he had never seen before and she was about to let him into this secret place that he wanted so much to be a part of. "I," She paused and Draco nodded. "I was going to ask what would happen to us."

Draco frowned. Standing, this time his resolve to sit next to her trumped his nausea. Falling beside her on the arm of the chair, he leaned against the back of the chair and balanced himself. "What… what do you mean?"

Ginny blushed and stared down at her hands. "I mean, what's going to happen to us after the War? Regardless of who wins I think it's obvious that we're both thrown on one side or the other despite what we want. But, will that kill our…" He couldn't put what they were into words either. It was strange to him, to feel this way about someone else.

He had mates, but they in no way compared to Ginny. He could tell her things he couldn't tell them, things they either would have laughed at or ignored. Instead Ginny related to them and teased him playfully about it. On more than one occasion they had talked about his family, about how hard it was for him to be at home and he hadn't had regrets about any of the times. And it wasn't just him talking either.

Ginny shared things with him that made him feel like he was actually worth something. He was actually her friend, not just her his.

He had dated before, although he wasn't sure if Pansy counted, but she hadn't been the only one. With those girls he had known specifically how he felt about them but there was something different about this. They were shy around each other and he had never been shy before. He hated it, yes, but to some extent he desired to feel it again. It made him feel like he wasn't part of his twisted world anymore, that he was part of this fantasy realm that Ginny belonged to and she was his ticket in.

He couldn't say that he had romantic feelings for her because he refused to think of it, but he knew that if he let himself think of it… there was only one clear answer.

"Ginny," He hooked his finger beneath her chin and brought it up so she looked him in the eyes. "I hope you know a friendship with me doesn't just go away. So far I've only stopped being friends with someone if they've botched the friendship themselves, you know, betrayed me and all. Are you planning on betraying me?" She shook her head. "So there, no worries then."

"But-" He knew what she was going to say. What about Voldemort? He wouldn't stand for a Malfoy being friends with a blood traitor. He touched his finger to her lips and felt his body tingle with knowing now exactly what her lips felt like.

"If I were you I'd let the rest be left up to the future, I don't like planning for the worst and quite frankly those aren't thoughts to sleep on." She nodded and he settled back on the bed.

He watched her stare at the ground, pretending she was comfortable in the chair and finally he had enough. "Ginny, come here." He patted the space on the bed beside him. He thought he saw relief flush her face and her cheeks tinge pink. Pride surged through him at the thought of having the power to do that to her. Slytherin girls had long since forgotten what to blush at and were nearly worse than the boys. Ginny's innocence was endearing and he liked it.

She crawled onto the bed next to him and laid down, arm under the pillow. He settled so they faced each other and he rested his free arm next to hers on the bed. As she closed his eyes he took her in for a moment, watching the way her red hair shone against her skin. Smiling, he closed his eyes and moved his hand over hers. Before he drifted into sleep he felt her hand squeeze back.