The next morning, he stood in front of his mirror, practicing. It was getting difficult and he was beginning to get frustrated, causing him to grip the sides of the basin tightly.

"Let's try this again," he grimaced, breathing deeply to control his temper. "Allegra, you may not care about me anymore and I understand why. But, I do care for you. I realize this now …Oh this is absolute shit." He shook his head and tried again. "Allegra, you can tell anyone you like about us. I care about you and I never want to lose you again…That's even worse. Hm…Allegra, you will be my girlfriend. Kiss me this instant…UGH!" He dropped his head and splashed some water on his face. He looked into the mirror again. "Come on, Draco. You can do this." He thought for a moment. "Maybe a quick walk will do me some good."

He grabbed his coat from the hanger by the door and hastily shoved his arms into the sleeves as he hurried out the door.

…

Allegra clutched her textbook to her stomach as she skipped down the stairs from her Divination class. She'd read some tea leaves and had enough time to go over her dream journal with Professor Trelawney, which left her in a good mood. She hummed a happy little tune as she reached the last turn in the staircase.

"Allegra," called a voice from the base.

Allegra stopped skipping and stared at the person.

"Hi, Malfoy," she said with confusion. She glided down to the bottom step and rested her arm on the banister. "How can I help you?"

Draco shifted back and forth on his feet, his hands behind his back. He opened his mouth to say something, and then closed it. This repeated several times.

"Allegra, I…"

"Yes?"

"I just wanted to say…" He trailed off again, biting his lower lip and running a hand through his hair.

"Are you okay?" Allegra asked, crossing her arms.

There was a long pause. Suddenly, Draco produced a bouquet of daisies from behind his back and threw them at Allegra's face.

"Here!" he shouted. "I'm sorry, okay?"

Allegra squeaked a bit in surprise and fumbled to catch the flying flowers. She stared at Draco in disbelief for a moment.

Draco sighed and took a deep breath.

"I would be very…happy…if you would consider taking me back…Please."

Another long awkward pause echoed through the hall. Allegra continued to stare at Draco over the flowers. Eventually, Draco let out a sigh and turned around. He started to walk away when suddenly he heard a squeal and something leapt on his back. He grunted and stumbled a few steps forward, reaching back to pry Allegra's legs from around his waist and her arms from around his neck.

"Of course I'll take you back!" she cried ecstatically. She put her chin on his shoulder and kissed his cheek. "You're so sweet, Draco. I missed you terribly." At this point, he had managed to get her off his back (literally) and place her in front of him. She wrapped her arms around his waist in a tight hug, resting her head on his chest.

"I…I missed you too, Allegra," Draco said softly as he gently stroked Allegra's hair. "I…I…" He cleared his throat, unused to saying these next four words together in one sentence. "I made a mistake."

"I let my temper get the better of me," Allegra sighed. "I'm sorry too."

Draco was about to nod and agree that most of this was her fault, but he pulled away from her hug, grabbing her shoulders and looking into her eyes earnestly. He was quivering with all these new phrases he had never said before.

"No, it wasn't your fault. I was wrong. I should've never let it happen. It was my error, not yours."

Allegra reached up and touched his hands.

"You're shaking, Draco."

He looked at his feet for a moment.

"I guess I'm not used to apologizing this honestly," he shrugged.

There was another silence. Then, Allegra reached up and touched Draco's cheek, tilting his face back up so their eyes locked. She leaned forward and kissed him softly on the lips. While the kisses he had given her were passionate and filled with lust, Allegra's kiss was sweet and innocent. Draco could feel the pure, honest-to-God affection pouring out of her and into him. He had to admit it; it was much nicer than the times he'd kissed her before. He wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed back.

Ah sweet bliss…

…

That night, at dinner, Allegra seated herself next to Draco. She smiled and he smiled back before slipping his arm around her waist.

"Hello there," he whispered in her ear, kissing her cheek.

"Hi," she giggled back as she leaned her head on his shoulder.

As the rest of the students filed in, Allegra caught sight of Whimsy coming in with the Weasley twins. She gave them a surreptitious wave. They blinked back in astonishment.

"So," Draco smirked as everyone sat down and food appeared, "what's my little kitten hungry for tonight?" He gestured to a plate of steaming chicken. "That looks delicious. Do you want some?"

"Sure," Allegra nodded.

Draco was serving some of the succulent poultry onto his girlfriend's plate when an irritated Pansy Parkinson appeared on Allegra's other side.

"Move, Yollesgrave," she hissed.

"Why?" Allegra asked.

"Because I sit there," Pansy spat. "I always sit next to Draco."

"But I'm comfortable here," Allegra whimpered. She scooted towards the Malfoy boy a bit more, patting the wooden bench beside her. "You're always welcome to sit right here, though. Look, I've even made a spot for you, Parkinson." She grinned brightly.

"Move!" Pansy shouted, feeling half annoyed and half insulted by the offer.

"But Draco probably wouldn't want me to move," Allegra pleaded.

"What's this about you moving?" Draco asked, seeming to finally come back to the conversation from his dinner. His grip tightened on Allegra's waist. "No one is moving. I forbid anyone to move."

"Draco, what's this?" Pansy snapped, indicating Draco's arm around Allegra's side.

"Oh, right," Draco shrugged. "Allegra and I are seeing each other now."

"WHAT?" Pansy shrieked, she held her hand to her chest and gasped several times. "B-But you hate her! You can't stand her! Don't you remember?"

"I happen to think she's pretty fantastic," Draco replied icily. "I think you ought to find somewhere else to sit as of now. This part of the bench is quite crowded."

"No!" the raven-haired Slytherin yelped. "No! No! No! This can't be happening…" She ran off, weeping too overdramatically for even Allegra to take it seriously.

Draco watched her go.

"Now," he grinned slyly, "where were we before our dinner was so rudely interrupted?" He kissed her neck. Allegra giggled and swatted him away. "Oh? Ticklish are we?" Draco wiggled his eyebrows flirtatiously and kissed her neck again.

"Stop it!" Allegra laughed, whipping her head around to block his attacks. Her eyes locked with his as his head rose slightly so his lips were inches away from hers.

Draco leaned forward and kissed her softly.

"Better?" he winked as he pulled away.

Allegra nodded dumbly. The plates of dinner food disappeared and were replaced with dessert.

"OOH!" Allegra squealed, her eyes drifting towards a bowl of custard with an iridescent green luster. "Shiny pudding!"