Chapter 7

Blaise looked down at Allegra with a sympathetic expression. So yes, she may have just walked into a door. Yes, it may have caused her to bite the lip she'd been chewing, but it was Blaise's fault. He was stroking an owl that had just flown in through the kitchen window while she was walking towards the hall, and it looked really cute. It had taken her attention and thus Allegra had walked into the kitchen door.

"Geez, Allegra, if you wanted my attention you should have just asked." He said, dabbing a wet tissue on her lip. "It would have been a lot less painful." He smirked and his eyes flickered from her lip to hers and back again. "I didn't realise you'd get jealous of a bird."

"I wasn't," she mumbled, but it came out more like I wasnaw.

"I don't blame you; I'd want my attention too. I probably wouldn't have made myself bleed, but each to their own." Allegra groaned. "Don't worry, Gra-Gra, you're still beautiful." He patted her on the top of her head and she kicked him. "That's the thanks I get for calling you beautiful and cleaning your disfigured face?" She smiled sarcastically until it split her lip even more and she stopped.

Oliver and Draco were allowed downstairs a little after eleven, they still looked a little blue and Draco's mouth looked much better than Allegra's now, seeing as she hadn't yet gone to fix it. But at least they all looked good enough that they could tell Mike they'd played a drunken game and not come out of it well.

The day passed easily and Oliver and Draco acted as though nothing had happened, which Allegra praised them for.

The day before she was to leave for the Burrow she had managed to persuade her dad to take them shopping. The best part, Allegra thought, was that she got to be someone else. They didn't have polyjuice potion, but they could change their hair, clothes and eyes, which would be enough. Mike knew about her invisibility cloak and thought that that, along with the fact she could defend herself well, would be enough for a short trip out in a group. Blaise, Draco and Oliver didn't seem to find it quite so exciting at first, but Blaise soon turned to Allegra's way of thinking.

"I want to have, uh, dark red hair! Yeah, and ... Draco's eyes. A full fringe, shoulder length please!" Allegra bounced around in front of her father.

"Alright, if you stop moving I'll do it." Allegra steadied herself while he did it. "There."

"Yay!" She grinned and moved out of the way. Blaise moved forwards next.

"Mouse brown short hair - not too short though, and green eyes, like Allegra's normally are." Blaise stood while Mike changed it. Blaise turned and grinned at Allegra.

"Woahh!" Allegra's eyes went wide and she jumped around. "Do I look different? You look different."

"Yeah, we'll go to the mirror in a minute." Blaise said, resting an arm on her shoulder in an attempt to calm her down. Mike went to Draco.

"Black short hair and dark brown eyes." He said simply. Mike did it and he went to Allegra. "Am I still hot?"

"Hotter." He frowned but Allegra gave him a thumbs up. Oliver walked out of the bathroom and into the hall.

"Wow, you all look different." He, since he was old enough, had done his himself. His hair was long and blonde and his eyes were dark.

"Ah! Let's go and look in a mirror," Allegra ran into the bathroom and stood in front of the mirror. Blaise and Draco followed and stood either side of her.

"This is weird." Blaise said, Draco nodded. Allegra stood looking at herself in silence and then cackled in excitement.

"Names! I want to be ... Adriana Kingsford." Blaise and Draco rolled their eyes. She looked at Blaise expectantly.

"Oh, alright, er, Craig Summerton." Allegra smiled and looked at Draco.

"Uh, Owen Hunter."

Oliver and Michael appeared in the doorway, Michael had made his hair an untidy shaggy ginger and his eyes were now stone grey.

"What's your surname?"

"Kingsford."

"Right, then I'm ... Henry Kingsford."

"What about you?" Allegra asked Oliver.

"Tom Mitchell."

"See, easy!" Allegra grinned, "let's go!" She pushed her way out into the hall and the men followed.

"Do you think this is what it would be like if you kept a cheetah in a cage for three weeks while feeding it nothing but sugar and caffeine and then let it out?" Draco said.

"Probably," Oliver nodded.

They flooed to the nearest magical pub and she managed to land somewhat gracefully for once, which was great since there was a group of nineteen or twenty year olds in there. Oliver had left the pub before Allegra had even got there, apparently he had recognised over half of them and legged it before they had a chance to think he was familiar.

"Come on, Adriana," Draco smirked, following Michael and Blaise.

"Coming, Owen," she grinned. Blaise rolled his eyes. Outside they found Oliver looking through the window of a quidditch shop.

What do you need, Ali?" Mike asked. Allegra stood looking around blankly. "I mean, Adriana?"

"A present for Harriet and Nevilina."

"Who in holy hell are they?" Draco asked, they all looked at him.

"The Gingerbread Man's wife and the Cookie Monster's wife." He still looked confused. "Anyway, I think we all want to go in here." She gestured at the quidditch shop, "and it's quite likely I can get Harriet something in here."

"Why would a girl want something from there?" Draco asked, and Oliver banged his head against the glass.

"The same reason Adriana would." Blaise said patiently. Mike was grinning as he listened and eyed every passerby.

"Why don't you just give her a Firebolt, you have a bunch."

"Because she's already got one." Allegra said slowly.

"Oh. Oh! I've realised who she is." They all sighed in relief.

"Thank fuck," Allegra said, shaking her head and walking into the shop.

About an hour later the boy's staying power had disappeared and knowing that she'd got all the shopping she needed to get done, forced herself away from the wizard streets back through the pub and out to a muggle shopping center so they could get a decent sandwich.

She had bought both Neville and Harry a few things each, for Harry, she'd got a quidditch book, a new pair of gloves (they'd all purchased a pair, in fact) a new jumper and a box of sweets. Mike was also getting the team to sign a poster for him. For Neville she had bought a few Herbology books that she hadn't seen him reading and therefore hoped he didn't have, the same box of sweets and some bulbs for a strange plant that looked and sounded pretty cool in her opinion. Not a very Herbology-tuned opinion, but an opinion nonetheless.

Allegra was last to sit down at the sandwich shop and slid into the booth beside Blaise, who like the other boys, was devouring his sandwich like it might disappear at any moment. Allegra ate her sandwich comparatively daintily and sipped on her coke. After they'd finished it was time to go home and Allegra followed the boys reluctantly back home to wait for her next outing: a trip to the Burrow.

Allegra was singing. Loudly. "Today's the day, I'm going to the Burro-"

"I know." Draco sighed, rolling his eyes and rocking back from where he was sitting on her bed. "You've said that, what? Ten thousand times and it's only ten-thirty. Meanwhile, me and Blaise have to stay here with -"

"Don't even say it." Allegra said quickly, turning to give him a stern look from where she was digging around in one of her drawers.

"I wasn't going to," Draco said with mock offence, "I was going to say the English quidditch team."

"That's what I thought." Allegra turned her back and went back to packing. She'd been packing really quickly before Draco had decided to keep her company, the clothes had simply packed themselves. But now she had to do it manually. Yuck.

"Then why did you say -" Allegra shot him another look and he smirked.

"I'll write to you guys, and you have to write back every day."

"I'd like to think that's because you'll miss me so much that I'll be on your mind all the time, but I won't kid myself." He slid of the bed and started strolling around the room.

"Well, you will be on my mind twenty-four-seven." She threw a can of deodorant into a travel bag on her bed.

"Okay, then I won't kid myself that it's not because you're worrying that I'll have another fight." Allegra scoffed and went into the closet to flick through a rail of dresses. Draco wandered in and started looking though her clothes. "So you'll definitely be back in three days?"

"Yes, three days from now, I'll be back."

Allegra fell out of the fireplace, coughing up half the ash from all the fireplaces she'd passed.

"Oh, ew," she complained, standing up to brush herself down.

"Allegra!" Molly said so suddenly and with such excitement that Allegra jumped out of her skin. "Oh, Allegra dear, look at you! You've grown so much since I last saw you, skinny as the rest of them I see," she shook her head momentarily.

"Molly, I saw you at the train station."

"Oh, you must tell me all about your trip to visit Charlie," before she had time to finish Hermione had latched onto Allegra.

"Oh my goodness, Allegra," Hermione said, "I'm so glad you're here."

"I thought I could hear mum's excitement," Allegra heard Ron say, and she smiled at him once Hermione let go.

"How is everyone?" Allegra asked.

Hermione looked at her urgently, "let's go upstairs fir-"

"Allegra?"

"Fleur?" The graceful young woman stepped into the room.

"Oh my goodness! Thank god you are 'ere! It gets a little boring alone." Fleur said. Allegra laughed awkwardly as Hermione muttered "alone?" from behind her with a certain venom to it.

"You'll be staying with Ginny and Hermione, Allegra," Molly said. "We'll be having lunch in a few minutes. Ginny can you help me set the table?"

"What? I want to go and talk to Allegra," Ginny moaned.

"I know you do, love, but you'll have a chance to -"

"Don't worry, Molly, I'll 'elp with lunch so Ginny can catch up with Allegra." Fleur said and a smile flickered on Ginny's lips.

"Thanks," she smiled, giving Allegra a push to say get-out-while-we-still-can.

Hermione dragged Ron and Harry up stairs away from Fleur and Allegra and Ginny followed.

Inside Ginny's room her bed had been wedged up against the window, a large single with the covers thrown open like she'd just got out. Next to it was Hermione's perfectly made bed, with a book and some pyjamas at the foot. A little way away and close enough to the door that when they opened it it hit the bed, was Allegra's bed. At the moment Hermione's suitcase seemed to be occupying it, with some bedding at the top folded where the pillows would usually be, and on top of that Crookshanks was waking up as the noise of teenagers filled the room. Allegra had sent Midnight ahead that morning and she was now perched with Pig and Errol at the top of one very large wardrobe, eyeing Crookshanks reproachfully.

Ginny went in first, apparently to kick any dirty laundry that had been on the floor under the beds so that the two boys didn't see, and then climbed over her bed to sit in the wide window seat on a sky blue pillow. Allegra followed and sat at the top of Ginny's bed, Hermione sat opposite at the top of hers, and Ron and Harry settled on each.

"So, how have your holidays been so far?" Allegra asked. Ginny and Hermione gave her detailed accounts of theirs, Harry shrugged and smiled after saying it's been good since he's been at the Burrow, and Ron said a simple "yeah, good" with his usual crooked grin. Allegra then told them all about her holiday with Charlie, skipping over the fact that Draco and Blaise were currently at her house. That - that she was saving for just the girls.

"Dad got promoted!" Ginny blurted out.

"Wow, that's great!" Allegra smiled, "what does he do now?"

"Uh, the Detection and Confiscation of ..." Ron faded off, his face twisted in deep thought.

"Of Counterfeit Spells and ..." Ginny tired but the same expression appeared on her features, it was the most alike the two had looked since Ron was ten.

Hermione huffed loudly, "he's Head of the Office for the Detection and Confiscation of Counterfeit Spells and Protective Objects. You two have the memory of a goldfish."

Allegra smiled and rolled her eyes, "sounds like something he'll enjoy, anyway."

"I guess your dad told you about Bill and Fleur, then?" Ron said, pulling a loose hair off his sleeve.

"Of course," Allegra smiled, they all grimaced. "But you don't like her." Ginny shook her head.

"She's so stuck up," she vented.

"The boys don't mind, of course," Hermione said, "they all become dumbstruck when she walks in the room." Ron gave a little grunt of protest.

"She's not that bad," Allegra said, and Ginny raised an eyebrow challengingly.

"Allegra, you might be able to get on with prissy perfect girls -"

"I don't!"

"- but I can't."

"You are one." Ginny frowned and hit Allegra in the arm playfully. "Look, I just think that if she can get through the Tri-Wizard Tournament she's probably tougher than you think."

"I can see your point," Hermione said in a tone that suggested that if she did see it, she didn't like it.

Ginny made a loud noise of frustration, "you have the same view as Harry."

"Wow, Harry, like - we should so be best friends," Allegra said in an overly girly voice.

"Oh my god, we have like, so much in common!" Harry mimicked, causing even the stubborn girls to laugh.

Ginny sighed at the end of her laughter, "I just wish it was Tonks instead."

Ron groaned and lolled his head back onto the wall, "Ginny, we've had this conversation before."

"I know, but it's true." She grumbled, looking out the window.

"Have you seen Tonks lately?" Harry asked and Allegra shook her head.

"No, why?"

"She looks awful." Hermione whispered.

"That's not very nice."

"No, as in, her hair is all a dull brown and she looked really tired all the time." Ron said softly.

"Oh, is it not because -"

"We're not sure." Hermione cut in. "We thought so at first but it's been weeks. She loved Sirius but ... well, she's getting worse."

Allegra frowned, that didn't sound like the Tonks she knew. "Is she here often?"

"Mum keeps having her over for dinner," Ginny said. "I think she's hoping Bill will fall for her instead of Phlegm."

Allegra burst out laughing, "is that what you've been calling her?" Ginny nodded proudly. Allegra shook her head and sat back with an amused smile, "anyway, yeah, maybe I'll try talking to her."

"Good luck, she's been really reserved. She's no fun anymore." Ron said.

"Did Dumbledore give you your present?" Harry said, suddenly looking up as he remembered.

"Oh, yeah," Allegra nodded and grinned. "It's not as good as yours, obviously, but it's still pretty damn cool. Fit two of us I reckon."

"Enlighten us?" Hermione said.

"Dumbledore gave me an invisibility cloak."

"Really? That's a good idea."

"Yeah, it's so if I get into a problem I can just ... disappear."

"Yes!" Ron exclaimed with his fists in the air, "now we don't have to squeeze under Harry's."

Allegra turned and looked at Ginny intently. "Gin, there's something I want to show you." Hermione smiled at Allegra, and knocked Ginny's table lamp onto the floor where it shattered.

"Hey!" Ginny protested.

"Allegra," Hermione smiled. The lamp put itself back together and sat on the bedside table as though it had never happened.

"Was that you?" Ginny asked, her expression half shock half grin. Allegra nodded. "Wow, that's pretty cool."

"She's a Mentalist," Hermione said and then faced Allegra, "I've been doing some research."

"What's that?" Ginny asked.

"It means she can perform magic without a wand, need to speak verbally or even think of the incantation. It just happens."

"And that's the problem," Allegra said, "apart from the fact that it sounds like I'm an escaped mental patient, it's hard to keep a hold on."

"You best keep this to yourself," Ron told his sister.

"Oh, and who am I going to tell?" She scoffed.

Fleur opened the door and stuck her head in.

"Lunch is readee," she smiled and Allegra stood up, her stomach had been rumbling since she had arrived.

"Great, let's go eat." Allegra eagerly pushed Harry out of the room and the others followed.