Chapter 3
"You're all set," Madam Pomfrey smiled as Allegra walked out from behind a blind where she had dressed in clothes that Hermione had brought her last night.
"Really?" Allegra grimaced, "it still aches. It wasn't like this with my arm and wrist."
"They were just singular compound fractures. The potion works quickly on those. This was slightly more dramatic, it's going to take a few days before your body feels normal again."
"Great, no quidditch for me then?"
"No, and you're dismissed from classes today, too." Madame Pomfrey turned around to strip Allegra's bed and tidy up.
Allegra turned and walked stiffly out of the room, her whole left side from her waist down didn't want to move. She had fallen unconscious shortly after arriving and being lifted into a bed. Madame Pomfrey had given her a potion that fused bones correctly and quickly, but it did nothing for the soft tissue injuries, and always left the patient feeling a bit dazed.
It was soon to be lunch time, so Allegra decided to make her way down to the Great Hall and sit and wait for her friends.
"Allegra!" Hermione rushed to her, "how are you feeling?"
"Like shit."
"I'm not surprised, you broke bones."
"Yeah, but I've broken bones before and been out on my broom the next day," food appeared on the table and Allegra started to fill her plate, "I'm so fucking sore."
"You know muggles have to live with it and wait six to eight weeks for their bones to heal."
"Really?" Allegra raised her eyebrows, "well then lucky me, I'll be happy to hobble."
Hermione smiled sympathetically, "it's just the bruising that hurts. You're going to go all yellow." Harry and Ron sat down opposite them.
"How's our cripple?" Ron grinned.
"Crippled." Allegra scowled at him, "seriously, I'm hobbling. It took me about five minutes to get down a flight of stairs. I genuinely don't know if I'll get back up." Harry, Ron and Hermione laughed. Allegra didn't.
"You get the day off from lessons though," Harry said, "that's good."
"Yeah, I have nothing to do."
Harry rolled his eyes and ate his sandwich, there was no use trying with Allegra when she was consciously trying to be miserable.
"What are you going to do?" Ron asked, "Go to sleep?"
"No, I'm not tired. I've had over twelve hours sleep, I'm functional with six." Harry nudged Ron and shook his head as if to say, don't bother. "I'm going to go to the library and think about doing some work."
They nodded approvingly, but didn't dare comment.
As she had suspected, it took Allegra longer than she would care to admit to reach the library. Hermione had walked up to their dorm to get Allegra's work for her and come back down all in time to meet her half way up the third flight. She had started doing her work but quickly became distracted and found picture books and new ways to play with her hair.
"Hello."
Allegra turned, "hello."
Draco sat down at the table across from her, "I'm meeting Blaise here." Allegra shrugged, he didn't need an excuse.
"So," he said, clearing his throat, "do you remember me carrying you last night?"
"No I -" suddenly the memory jumped into her head. "Yes, thank you." Draco squirmed at the sincerity in her eyes. He looked down and shrugged.
"How did it happen?"
Allegra pursed her lips, since last night she had time to reflect on the whole Cho-Chang-pushing-me-down-the-stairs thing, and Hermione had told Madame Pomfrey that she had fallen down the stairs on the way down from the dormitory. "Cho Chang." Draco raised an eyebrow. "Hermione has forbidden me from saying anymore," Allegra said, "but it was her fault."
Draco considered this for a moment, but didn't ask her about it.
"Had you broken anything?"
Allegra cocked her head, "weren't you there?"
"No, I didn't stay."
"Oh," Allegra's face fell, "I fractured my hip and ankle."
"Wow, that must have hurt."
Duh. "That's what I told you at the time." Allegra got up and hobbled to the bookshelf behind her.
Draco snorted, "are you sure they fixed you?"
"She said that I'd be a bit sore, but I can barely bloody move!" Allegra smiled. Draco was trying not to laugh.
The stiffness was still hanging around two days later. When Allegra woke up Hermione was at the window, taking letters from two owls. Allegra got out of bed and stretched, her hip was starting to feel less wooden.
"Ali," Hermione looked up from a letter, "I think you better have a look at this."
Allegra rushed (well, relatively) to the window and Hermione passed her the letter.
Hermione & Allegra, you may have already heard but last night Harry had a "dream". In the dream my dad was attacked by a giant snake. Harry had a feeling it wasn't just a dream so we went to find McGonagall. She took us to Dumbledore (at 2.30am) and he spread word to search for dad. They found him before it was too late and he is now recovering at St. Mungo's and is on the mend. Snape took Harry away and I haven't seen him since. Ginny, Fred, George and I are at Snuffles' house. I don't know what's happening about Harry and Hermione coming here for Christmas, but mum said she's sorting it.
Write back if you know where Harry is, love Ron x
"What's the other letter?"
"Harry and I are leaving tonight," Hermione and Allegra looked at each other with large eyes. There was another tapping on the window and Hermione took the letter from the owl. "It's for you."
Hi Honey, I'm visiting Arthur this afternoon, he's had an accident and if you haven't heard you'll soon know. There has been a change of schedule with the pre-Christmas games. I'm going to be away with the team until December 20th. However, I have arranged for someone to stay with you from the 15th, so you'll only alone with Cassia a few days. It's a surprise so don't ask who it is.
Sorry Honey, love dad x
"He could have sent me to stay with you lot until he gets home," Allegra said passing the letter to Hermione, "it's going to be a random aunt again. Hermione scanned the letter quickly.
"He probably doesn't want to add stress now that Arthur's injured."
Allegra looked at Hermione, "you calling me stress?"
Hermione rolled her eyes and set the letters down on the desk. Pavarti's curtains suddenly flew open.
"Good morning!" she sang, stepping out of bed. Allegra ran to get her towel and jump in the shower, Pavarti always took too long and made everyone late.
Allegra had helped Hermione pack at lunch time and they had left before dinner, leaving Allegra at Hogwarts more alone than she had been in a long time. She walked into the Great Hall for dinner and found it troubling to not find any of her usual meal time friends. Luckily, her roommates Pavarti and Lavender were already at the table so she went to sit with them. She felt a bit mean, feeling sorry for herself for not having her best friends to sit with, so she made sure to make an effort to join in with their gossip and laugh at their jokes.
The next morning she had double potions and walked alone to class. Draco was already at the desk when she sat down.
"How's the hip?" He asked once Allegra had settled in her seat.
"Better, almost, thanks," she didn't feel much like chatting this morning. It had quite disturbed her how miserable she felt without Hermione; she had always thought she relied on herself.
"What's wrong with you?" Draco asked, put out by her ill attention. Allegra shrugged half-heartedly, and he watched as her eyes floated over to Ron's seat. "Where's Weasley?"
"They've gone," Allegra said airily.
"Gone where?"
"Home." A strand of long dark hair fell in front of Allegra's eye, she tucked it behind her ear and looked down at her workbook. "Ron's dad had an accident and they've all gone home."
"All of them?"
"Yep. Even Harry and Hermione had to go because they're spending Christmas with them, but I'm not. I'm alone. Nothing to do."
That's a little melodramatic, she thought, but if she was honest she didn't want to listen to Lavender gossip about Hufflepuff boys she'd never heard of or look at Witch Weekly with Pavarti. And she couldn't even fly yet.
Draco didn't move or reply. Fine. She wished he wouldn't do that. If he didn't want to know he shouldn't have asked. She would be quite content sitting in silence. Snape began the lesson and Allegra tried to focus on taking notes.
"You know," Draco began after not making a sound for over twenty minutes, "if you want, I can keep you company." Allegra whipped her head up and looked at him wide eyed. "I mean, Blaise! But I would be there - 'cos - he's my friend and ... Pansy still follows him ..." Allegra's eyes narrowed. "He's one of your best friends," Draco concluded. He sighed and looked down at his workbook. He'd just made himself sound like a fool, what was he doing?
"That's true," she nodded, "that would be good, actually, if you could talk to him?"
Draco nodded, not looking up at her.
"If you were there," she shrugged, "it wouldn't be bad. If Pansy's there, then that's just beyond horrible."
Draco sniggered.
"This is ... a strange experience," Blaise repeated for the second time since Allegra had met him and Draco to walk down to Hogsmeade. It was the last chance the students had to go before the Christmas holidays started.
"It's not, Blaise," Allegra insisted, "Malfoy and I, talk, in Potions class." Draco nodded.
Blaise looked either side of him and then shook his head, "I don't care what you say, it's still weird."
The worst thing was that it was weird. Talking during Potions was one thing but going to Hogsmeade together was quite another, although Allegra suspected it would have been a hell of a lot easier for them if the other students hadn't done such a good job of staring.
"If you carry on, Blaise, I'm leaving." Draco had reached the point where tolerance becomes annoyance.
"Right. Sorry."
Hogsmeade had been decorated with Christmas lights, tinsel and festive charms. Some areas, like Zonko's and the sweet shop, were beautifully decorated. Others, like outside the Hogs Head, had nothing. The three of them spent some time going in and out of shops, and Allegra bought a few things.
Honeydukes was seething with students, some were there to buy for themselves but the younger children were buying presents for their family with their limit budget. Most gave Draco and Blaise a wide birth but they all ran around Allegra like a maypole.
"Watch it!" she snapped at a small boy who had almost knocked her over. He looked like a rabbit in headlights and ran away. Draco laughed out loud. "Well, they're fucking annoying me."
Draco smirked and raised an eyebrow, "I'm impressed."
"She did almost get into Slytherin, you know," Blaise said.
Allegra turned her attention back to the shelf. She reached out for the last jar of Everlasting Gum at the same time as Draco and they bumped each other. They looked at each other and Allegra's eyes narrowed, then they both froze. Normally, Allegra would have told him to get the hell out of her personal space.
"Here," she passed it to him. Draco made a mumbling noise and walked off to find Blaise.
Inside the Three Broomsticks it was even more crowded than normal. After waiting five minutes at the bar a booth by the window became free and they rushed to get it.
"Is it just you and your dad for Christmas this year?" Blaise asked.
Allegra nodded, "I think so." Allegra's family was small and they all led very separate lives. Occasionally, a grandparent would show up, but it was rare. Her dad's parents were spending their older years traveling the world and hadn't returned to the UK in two years. They had met her dad abroad when they could but Allegra was always at Hogwarts or at home. Her mother's dad had remarried a muggle and no longer used magic. She had an aunt on her mother's side but she hadn't seen her since first becoming a teenager. It was far more likely that her father's friends or colleagues would be invited over than their family.
"What about you?" She looked at them both so either could answer.
"The usual," Blaise said, "me, mum, a man of some description and then after lunch I go to dad's where I try to pretend I'm part of the family."
Blaise's mother was a socialite. She had been born into money but had doubled her fortune through her romantic escapades with hugely wealthy wizards. She had been married and divorced three times and seemed to have a different man every time Blaise spoke to her. His dad had been a summer romance when his mother was only sixteen and although they had kept Blaise his mum had never quite grasped being a mother. Of course, his father had gone on to get married and have his own family and now had three children all less than half Blaise's age.
"And you?" Allegra looked at Draco.
"Same old," Draco said, and Blaise smiled knowingly. "Just me, my mother and father. They shower me with gifts and I smile and give them presents - mum loves hers - or at least pretends to, and my father shows no appreciation at all. Then we eat in silence."
"The perfect Malfoy Christmas," Blaise smiled. Draco didn't mirror the humour.
"So, how have you enjoyed the Blaise and Draco experience?" Blaise smiled later that evening.
"I think we should ask you how you enjoyed the Malfoy and Boone experience," Allegra reversed.
"It was enjoyable."
"I think we did good," Allegra agreed.
"We did better than good," Draco added, "we're a miracle."
"Well, you've got what you always wanted, Blaise," Allegra smiled, "I don't hate him."
"You don't hate me?" Draco looked at her.
"I thought that was fairly obvious."
"Do you hate her?"
"... No, I guess not."
"Is that a guess not because you're lying, or because you hadn't thought about it?" Blaise asked. Draco considered it for a moment. "Or is it just that you knew it already and it's hard to say out loud?"
Draco nodded, "it's admitting I've got a problem that's difficult."
"Hey!" Allegra frowned.
Not everyone was as happy as Blaise to see Allegra and Draco getting along outside of their school work. Actually, no one else was happy about it.
"What do you think you were doing today?" Pavarti started as soon as Allegra walked through the door to their room.
"Spending the day with Blaise," Allegra said. She walked to her bed at the end of the room and took off her coat. She hoped that having Hermione's bed in between herself and her remaining two roommates would give her an advantage. It didn't.
"And ..." Lavender continued as both girls sat down on Hermione's bed.
"Someone else."
"Draco Malfoy!" Pavarti exploded. "What the hell were you thinking?"
"I went to be with Blaise. Draco was there, it's no big deal."
"Draco?"
"No big deal?" Pavarti's eyes were wide, "Allegra, listen to yourself!"
Allegra shook her head, irritated. "I didn't go to be with him!"
"It's the history, Allegra. Harry, Ron and Hermione would crucify you for this!"
"But they're not here, are they!" Allegra growled.
There was a pause as the girls backed off momentarily. "You'll regret it, that's all," Lavender told her gravely.
"No I won't," Allegra said firmly. She wondered why it really mattered, and why the hell they thought it was any of their business. It wasn't like she'd chosen to go with Draco over someone else. They had barely spoken to each other! Lavender and Pavarti shook their heads and got up. "You can't hate me because I spoke to someone you don't like."
"No, but we can be annoyed with you."
Fuck you. Allegra couldn't be bothered with this, she closed the bed-curtains on the side of the room that faced the others and shut them out.
Pavarti and Lavender were still angry with her when it was time to get the train home and so she found herself boarding the train alone. She sat in a compartment with three Hufflepuff first years who were content ignoring her and her them. After about half an hour after the train had started moving Blaise found her. She had told him about the fight she'd had with Pavarti and Lavender and asked him to keep it to himself.
"I knew you'd be on your own," he said as he pushed the door open, "that's so like you. You have a fight with someone but instead of finding your other friends you'll sulk on your own."
"These are my friends."
"Really?" Blaise folded his arms and leaned in the doorway, "what are their names?"
"This is Lola, Theo and Katrina."
Blaise looked at the children, "what are your names?"
"Tia, Ryan, Angelica," the first girl pointed.
"I can't believe you'd do this to me, Lola!" The children laughed.
"Come on, come sit with me."
"Is Malfoy there?"
"Yes."
"I don't think I should." Blaise rolled his eyes and picked up Allegra's bag.
"Come on, you have got to stop caring about what people think of you," he picked up Allegra's owl, Midnight, and stepped out into the passage.
"Goodbye, Lola, Theo, Kat."
"Bye!" They called, giggling.
Allegra followed Blaise through three carriages before he stopped outside his cabin. He opened the door and Allegra caught a glimpse of Pansy Parkinson.
"Oh hell no," Allegra tried to walk the other way.
"That's funny," Blaise frowned, opening the door, "Midnight seems to want to come with me," he held the cage in the compartment. Allegra sighed and dragged herself back to the cabin.