Chapter 3- Mona Lisa's Smile

"A smile can brighten the darkest day."

Allison's face screamed internal conflict, but Oliver didn't care to notice. It was his mission to get her as far away from Flint as possible. And if that meant not going to Hogwarts this year, then so be it.

"Oliver," she whispered barely audible. "Oliver. Oliver stop."

He let out an aggravated sigh and reluctantly stopped. Allison had half expected him to let go of her hand. But when his fingers remained laced through her, it made her stomach flutter as she contemplated why this was.

"Well?" He questioned her more with his face then his voice, "Why did you tell me to stop?"

"My hand," she thought and spoke at the same time, she then closed her eyes and smacked herself internally.

Oliver face flushed and then turned a slight color of red. "Right," he replied looking at their hands clasped together and unwillingly releasing them. "I just thought…" he started trying to justify his actions.

Allison watched him intently. She couldn't deny that she wanted to be enlightened on the matter. Her smile however, gave off that she was in a blissful mood instead of a curious one.

He pursed his lips in uncertainty, "Why are you laughing at me?"

"I'm not, I wasn't," Allison replied hiding all signs of her happiness. After a few moments however, Allison let a grin shin through.

"There it is again. Stapleton, why do you find me so funny," Oliver demanded getting aggravated.

Allison's hand was immediately brought to cover her mouth as she told him, "I wasn't laughing, just smiling."

"I can have that affect on girls," Oliver jokingly boasted, as all color of humiliation vanished from his cheeks.

"I see you found your words Wood," Allison stated, the smile fading from her face.

"It was just a joke. I was making a joke," he rushed to say as she walked away from him.

Turning back around softly she looked at him with her body stiff with seriousness. Allison opened her mouth to comment on Oliver's proclamation but no words came out.

"See, that's the problem with girls like Allison," Marcus interrupted, "The lot of what they do is of importance. They don't have time for jokes."

"Don't you have someplace else to be Marcus?" Oliver frowned.

"Like brushing your teeth," Allison added.

Marcus ignored Allison's snide remark and continued, "And the only people or events that they actually make time for have to benefit themselves."

"I beg your pardon?" Allison said in an offended tone.

"Marcus leave her alone," Oliver warned.

Marcus made a threatening move towards Allison to test Oliver. Marcus' jolt triggered Oliver to grab her by the waist and push her behind him. Oliver and Marcus stood face to face.

"You should really stop trying to protect her mate. Especially since her and her family don't approve of people like you." He grinned.

"People like me? She needs protection from people like you." Oliver replied.

"Oliver, no I don't. I can protect myself," Allison whispered in Oliver's ear.

"Shh!" Oliver commanded putting his hand up to stress it. "And I swear if you try one more thing Flint," Oliver threatened.

"Merlin, stick to playing Quidditch, Wood. You're awful at threatening. And besides, she said she is fine one her own, you heard her. So why don't you leave her on her own?" Marcus questioned with a mischievous smile plastered on his face. When Oliver showed no sign of moving Marcus became annoyed with him. "Wood, stop protecting her as if she's your girlfriend. She's just as single as she was back in first year; it just means she's fair game for the both of us. Of course you'll probably lose her like you lose in Quidditch each year."

"Excuse me? I am not some sport!" Allison attempted to run forward and choke Flint.

Oliver held her back and ordered her, "Ill handle this!" When he had successfully calmed her down, he turned back to Marcus and sustained his quarrel. "She is not some sport! And even if she were, she wouldn't be fair game. She's my girlfriend," Oliver boasted.

Allison shook her head as if she had heard Oliver's statement incorrectly, and scrunched her eyebrows as result of the thoughts that took over her mind.

Flint's face dropped in belief of what Oliver had told him. However, when he looked to Allison for confirmation, his arrogant grin came back. Allison was mouthing, " His girlfriend? What?" and her eyes were shifting every which way in confusion.

"Why does Allison look as if this is the first time she has been informed of this then?" Marcus raised his eyebrow in a questioning manor. "She's fair game mate."

Allison chuckled irritably, "you now what, I'm getting real tired of you. Oliver has had a chance. Now, its my turn," Allison walked quickly towards Marcus, pushing Oliver against a compartment door as she walked by him. As she approached Marcus, and shook her head, "This will so be worth the howler I get from my mother tomorrow." Allison pulled her elbow back, closed her fist and let it hurry towards Marcus' face.

Marcus lay on the floor and cried like a baby, "My beautiful face! You stupid muggle loving who..." but before he could finish Allison kicked him in the stomach knocking the wind out of him.

She walked back to where Oliver stood in amazement, back still against the compartment door. With the adrenaline still pumping through her veins, she teased Oliver by closing any manor of space between them. When she was positive that enough time had passed she leaned in and whispered in his ear, so that is was barely audible, "You take too long to do anything anyways. You know what they say, if you want the job done right."

After, she backed away from him and laughed at his frightened facial expression and rolled her eyes. "How does it feel Wood? To finally be the one that's left speechless. What is it in you that has to do that to me? Are you crazy? I'm your girlfriend? You have to be off your rocker," Allison rambled in stress and uncertainty. "I can't say that part of me doesn't hope that tomorrow you wont be calling me an ugly pureblood, and I wont be calling you an arrogant, big headed flirt! But I know that wont happen, we are always at each other's throats. And then your are someone completely different when we're around Fli…"

"Allison, I didn't mean to," he walked forward to scoop her up in a hug.

But Allison just pushed his arms away and shook her head. "I'm not going to play part in something that I have no control over Oliver. I cant play part in something so… something so unstable."