Immortal Magic (Book 1)

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Allison's Point of View.

Once we arrived back at the Burrow, Mum wasted no time ushering everyone upstairs to unpack.

"Hermione, Arthur and I picked up the rest of your things from your parents," Mum told her warmly. "So everything you'll need for the holidays is already here."

Hermione smiled gratefully. "Thank you, Mrs Weasley." Mum then turned to me. "And Allison, you only need to pack clothes for your stay with the Cullens."

I smiled before stepping forward and wrapping my arms around her. "I missed you, Mum."

"I missed you, too, sweetheart," she replied softly, kissing the side of my head. She pulled back and shooed us toward the stairs.

"Now off you go. Unpack just so you can pack all over again." I rolled my eyes dramatically, though I was still smiling, before Hermione and I headed upstairs to mine and Ginny's room.

When we stepped inside, Ginny was already unpacking her trunk. She looked up immediately. "Allison, do you really have to go?" she asked with a pout. I laughed softly as I dropped my trunk beside my bed.

"Yeah, but look on the bright side. You'll finally get the room all to yourself for part of the holidays." Ginny brightened for all of two seconds before frowning again.

"But who's going to protect me from Fred and George's pranks?" Hermione burst out laughing while I motioned for Ginny to come closer. "I suppose it's finally time I share my secret method for avoiding the twins."

Ginny leaned forward instantly while Hermione looked up with interest. "Hide under their beds," I whispered seriously. Both Ginny and Hermione dissolved into laughter, and I quickly joined in.

Eventually, Ginny's laughter faded, though the grin on her face remained suspicious. "You know," she began casually, "I noticed something all through the school year."

I narrowed my eyes at her. "That sounds dangerous." Ginny ignored me completely. "You and Harry hold hands a lot."

My cheeks immediately warmed. "And," Ginny continued smugly, "there were loads of times I caught him staring at you while you and Hermione studied in the common room."

I turned bright red. "What exactly is going on between you two?" she asked. "Nothing," I muttered far too quickly as I turned back to my trunk. Behind me, Hermione and Ginny snickered.

"Really?" Hermione asked innocently. "Then why are you blushing?" I refused to answer and instead aggressively started unpacking my things. Hermione eventually came over to help while Ginny continued teasing me every chance she got.

A few hours later, after all the unpacking was finally finished, Ginny, Hermione, and I joined Ron and the twins down by the lake. We spent most of the afternoon swimming, splashing each other, and trying unsuccessfully to avoid Fred and George's attempts at dragging us underwater.

Eventually, Mum called us back inside to get cleaned up before dinner. Once everyone had showered and changed, we gathered around the kitchen table for dinner. Mum and Dad spent most of the meal asking about our year at Hogwarts, while the twins exaggerated nearly every story they told.

After dinner, Percy disappeared upstairs with a book, Ron and the twins vanished somewhere outside, and Hermione and I wandered out into the garden.

We ended up lying side by side in the grass, staring up at the darkening sky. After a while, I noticed Hermione roll onto her side to look at me. "So," she said casually, "what is going on between you and Harry?"

I turned my head toward her. "Honestly?" "Honestly." I sighed and looked back up at the stars. "I don't know." Hermione pushed herself up onto one elbow. "Can I be honest, too?"

I glanced at her curiously before nodding. "All year," she began carefully, "you and Harry gravitated toward each other. You were always touching somehow. Holding hands, sitting close together, checking on each other."

I stayed quiet while she continued. "And whenever you smiled at each other," Hermione smiled softly. "It was like everyone else disappeared for a second." I slowly sat up, turning to face her properly. "Hermione." 

"I'm serious," she interrupted gently. "When Ron stopped speaking to me after the Firebolt incident, Harry barely spoke to anyone either. But he always watched you." I blinked.

"He'd look over at you constantly while you studied," Hermione continued. "You never noticed because you were buried in books, but I did." I looked down at my hands.

"And you do the same thing," she added quietly. "Your eyes always find him, too." Neither of us spoke for a moment.

"Not to mention the way you both protect each other," Hermione said after a while. "In the Shrieking Shack, Harry kept shielding you, and you kept pulling him away from Sirius whenever things got dangerous."

I let out a slow breath. "I don't know how to explain any of that." Hermione smiled knowingly. "I do." After that, we fell into silence again.

But no matter how hard I tried to think about something else, the holidays, the Cullens, anything, my thoughts always circled back to Harry.

Eventually, Hermione stood up. "I need to use the bathroom. I'll be back." I nodded absentmindedly and stayed where I was, staring up at the stars. Without realising it, my fingers found the bracelet Harry had given me during our first year.

Memories replayed through my head one after another. The way he always reached for my hand without thinking. The way he looked at me whenever he thought I wasn't paying attention.

The countless moments where we sat together laughing over absolutely nothing. The warmth I always felt whenever he was close to me. "Allison?"

I blinked and looked up to find Hermione standing over me again. "You okay?" I realised then that I'd been absently tracing my fingers over the bracelet.

"Yeah," I replied quietly as I sat up. "I just need to ask Mum something." Hermione followed me back inside without question. I found Mum sitting in the living room, knitting while Dad read beside her. Hermione lingered quietly behind me as I sat down next to Mum on the sofa.

"Mum?" I asked carefully. "Do you remember when Ginny and I asked how you knew you loved Dad?"

Mum immediately set her knitting aside and smiled softly. "I do." "How did you know?" I asked quietly. Mum glanced toward Dad fondly before looking back at me.

"I knew because being with your father felt easy," she said. "We could sit together for hours talking about absolutely everything and nothing at all." Dad smiled over the top of his newspaper.

"When you truly love someone," Mum continued gently, "you don't feel like you have to pretend to be someone else around them." I swallowed hard.

"Allison," Mum said softly, "what's this really about?" I hesitated before shaking my head with a small smile. "Nothing. I just wanted to hear you say it again."

Mum looked unconvinced but didn't push. "You know you can always talk to me when you're ready." I nodded before standing up again. "Goodnight, Mum."

"Goodnight, dear." Hermione followed me upstairs in silence until we reached mine and Ginny's room. The second we walked inside, Ginny looked up curiously. "What was that about?"

I closed the bedroom door behind me before turning toward them both. "Everything you said earlier," I admitted quietly. "About Harry and me."

Ginny sat up straighter immediately. "You're still not making sense." I took a deep breath. "I think I love Harry." Both Hermione and Ginny immediately broke into huge smiles.

Mine, however, didn't match theirs. Hermione noticed first. "Isn't that a good thing?" "Maybe if we were older," I said anxiously. "We're thirteen, Hermione. How are we supposed to know what love even is?"

"You're scared," Hermione said softly. I gave her an obvious look. "Obviously." Ginny suddenly grinned. "Allison loves Harry." I groaned as she poked my side. Hermione joined in a second later, and soon I was batting both their hands away while laughing helplessly.