Oliver Wood as Gryffindor Quidditch captain was a pain when no breakfast had graced your stomach. Katie tried to take notes, tried to understand the sarcastic remarks Angelina uttered under her breath – but failed.

Katie noticed, even the boy who lived was nodding off while leaning onto his broom.

Oblivious as ever Oliver went on with his supposedly brilliant field plan. No, not even the slight roll of his tongue which made the formation of his words turn out different than the others would make Katie resist the urge to rest her head on Angelina’s shoulder and take a nap.

The rush is very high when you win a match and especially when the match was against the Slytherins. Everyone has a different way of expressing this high rush. I, myself, am hugging Alicia with all my strength while she screams in my ear. There is a lot of cheering going on.

I hear Alicia call out for Angelina who had just entered the locker room, her face flushed - but before we reach her, Fred Weasley is lifting her up in the air, capturing her lips with his. I make a gagging sound, behind me Oliver shouts: “Get a room!”

Word flies fast at Hogwarts; even no news is news. So naturally, the great hall, this morning, buzzed with gossip and latest findings of the events from the first night back. The culprits had not shown their faces yet, everyone was running on assumptions.

“I heard he flew in at something called Ford Anglia” Someone informs the Gryffindor table.

“What is that?”

“Maybe it’s a broomstick!”

Next to me, I notice Oliver’s face turn pale. “What’s wrong?” I ask, genuinely concerned.

“If Harry gets expelled, I will lose a seeker, Katie!” I roll my eyes and pat his back sympathetically.

Maybe it was the lack of patience or maybe even intelligence on Katie’s part but she just could not transform the beetle in front of her into a button. Try and try as she may, she failed.

Katie could however foresee the look Professor McGonagall would give her - followed by a ‘Really Miss Bell?’

“I give up” she announced the obvious. The older Gryffindor sitting next to her shook his head lightly. “Your wrist movement is wrong” Taking a hold of her wrist, Oliver flicked it to the right before muttering the spell. The beetle transformed and Katie yelped.

Marcus Flint was a sly, conniving moron. Katie Bell abused him with her fellow team mates as it became clear he had purposely made the Gryffindors lose their practice time on the pitch. The argument between Oliver and him turned noticeable when Oliver Wood lost it and launched himself on the Slytherin captain.

Noticeable enough for Professor Snape, who interfered and took away thirty points from the Gryffindor house. Wise for the moment, the Weasley twins pulled Oliver off Marcus just in time before Slytherin enjoyed the satisfaction of Gryffindor losing more points.

Oliver hissed: “Wait till the match, Marcus!”

It felt as if he had been chasing the Quidditch cup for too long now. Even Charlie Weasley had graduated and left the team. Oliver did not have a plan for the new term. During the summer, he had considered the prospect of giving up his position as the Gryffindor captain.

He couldn’t though. He had spend too much of himself in this game. Too much energy. Too much strength. He just couldn’t give up. He wanted to cup.

Perhaps his luck would change now, maybe with the arrival of his two new team mates: Harry Potter and Katie Bell.

“You are not giving me any attention” Oliver accused, despite the wish to do so. The boy had been trying to talk to her a while now. No, divination was clearly more important.

“What is it Oliver? I am not in the mood to talk Quidditch” Katie Bell frowned, not looking up from her book.

“Why is it that you assume I want to talk about Quidditch?” he challenged.

Katie looked up from her notes. “Well. Is there anything else you ever like to discuss with me?”

Taken aback, Oliver flushed a little. Frowning, he muttered: “I .. I’ll leave.”

“Wake up! Quick Oliver, Wake up!” He had been stirred awake with such urgency, that he jumped out of bed. Before he could understand anything, he was being dragged down the boy’s dormitory.

Oliver’s heart pounded with fear. What was wrong? What was going on?!

It was complete chaos - just not the kind he was expecting. The common room had suddenly erupted; his team mates tackled him to the ground - everyone was there and they were all singing ‘Happy Birthday!’

And in such madness, Katie decided to give him a small kiss on the cheek – Oliver simply grinned.

Katie ignored the plans brewing inside her teammates’ heads. So what if Oliver was obsessed with them practicing all the time. They needed the practice so they could win. Yes, it was definitely frustrating and exhausting – but that did not mean, they should get him a date.

No Fred Weasley’s reasoning was insane. Oliver wouldn’t forget about Quidditch just because Mary’s eyes are beautiful. She did not have the power to do that. Katie refused to be a part of the whispering and the muttering. They could and should not trick Oliver into going on a date.

It was insane.

Winter is perhaps my favorite time of the year. I woke up to Angelina’s scream today. Her nose was glued to the window as she stared outside, clearly in much awe. It was snowing; the very first snow of this winter. Pulling on comfy socks and cloaks over our night dresses, It didn’t take us long to run outside.

I had my face turned toward the sky, arms spread wide open; tongue sticking out – hoping to catch a snow flake. Instead I caught a large snowball on the side of my face, followed by familiar laughter. Oliver was a goner.

The fact of the matter was Oliver could not play if he did not catch up with his homework. Madam Pince had been just as frustrated as he was. Since the Gryffindor team had been barging in the library all day long to lecture him about it.

“Go ahead, lecture. I am listening” he muttered as Katie finally decided to show up.

Her lecture, however, didn’t hit him until she was holding him by the collar and looking him in the eye. “By God Oliver, if you fail to show up for the next practice I am killing you myself!”

“What?” Angelina grumbled slash whined, when Katie’s elbow nudged her side.

“Look, Oliver is in the daily prophet!” Katie said to her surprise. Despite her desperate hopes of taking a nap before class she found herself burying her head in the newspaper Katie was holding.

Katie pointed at a column, on top of which was a blurry picture of Puddlemere United’s players – among them Oliver was very visible with his very visible wide grin.

“In other news, recent graduate of Hogwarts, Oliver Wood joins Puddlemere United as a reserve player.”

Angelina burst out laughing. “They wouldn’t know what hit em’!”

Katie would have prepared herself but If only embarrassment came with a warning. When you are a first year, you cannot be sure of what to say or how to react in certain situations, especially when an older boy acknowledges your presence because of your bright pink pajamas.

Katie tried to squeezed eyes her shut, in hopes of turning invisible. “They look nice,” he said, her eyes opened to his wide grin. “Uh .. I have them in yellow too” she blurted out.

“Oh really?” he asked smiling, clearly amused.

Katie nodded.

“YO OLIVER!” Someone shouted and he was gone.

Think fast.

Too late.

The nasty bruise on the forehead would later encourage friends and team mates to assure Katie that it had been a tricky situation to get out of. After taking a bludger, the fourteen year old was falling down. The roar of the crowd above her disappearing completely when she reached the ground with a thud. Lee Jordan’s voice rang inside her ears: “Katie Bell down! Seekers on the move!”

And then pain shot through her forehead, Lee shouted again, this time about the snitch and Oliver was leaning over her even before their victory was announced.

It was a fine afternoon, one they hadn't had in days. For days, winter had refused to leave Hogwarts. Two Gryffindors, grateful of the weather change, were the first ones out of the castle to take a stroll near the Whomping Willow. Katie protested against it, saying it was rather stupid to be walking near something so dangerous.

“All the other places are mostly snowed in” Oliver retorted, grinning. It was the first time, he had noticed Katie being afraid of something.

“Well we can kick and push against the snow”

“You are scared,”

“No, I am not.” she huffed.