*Disclaimer* I do not own Harry Potter or any of the Harry Potter characters that are in the books, all I own is the plot and any characters that aren't from the books.

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times... actually, it was quarter to eleven, and I was hurrying through King's Cross Station with my mum. As we walked, she gave me the same back- to- school lecture she gave me every year. And, like all the years previously, I only pretended to listen as she went on about respecting the staff and doing my homework on a regular basis. My mind was elsewhere. I was thinking about the new training schedule I had devised for my house quidditch team. We were sure to (finally!) win the Inter- House Quidditch Cup, I was sure of it. Thinking about this preoccupied me so much that I was startled when I heard my name shouted out and discovered that I had already walked through the barrier to get onto Platform 9 3/4. Looking around wildly, I quickly spotted the Weasley twins grinning slyly at me. My face broke into a smile.

"Hey!" I greeted them as we walked towards each other. "How was your summer? Ready to begin quidditch training?" I hurried on, without waiting for them to answer the first question.

George clucked his tongue and shook his head. "Well, Oliver, I see you haven't changed a bit over the summer," he chuckled.

I shrugged good- naturedly. I was used to my teammates razzing me about my obsession with quidditch. As far as I was concerned, the rest of my team wasn't dedicated enough to the sport.

The twins and I kissed our mums goodbye, promising to write weekly, and got onto the Hogwarts Express. We found an empty compartment towards the back of the train and loaded our luggage into it.

Moments later, a familiar face poked his head in. Inwardly, I groaned. Peering in at us was none other than Lui Marshall, a fellow Gryffindor and one of my roomies.

"Mind if I j-join you guys?" he stuttered, a desperate look on his pathetic face. Lui was just about as uncool as you could get, though his looks weren't to blame. He had wavy hair that was dirty blonde in colour, and a slight gap between his two front teeth. I had even heard the occasional girl go as far as to say that he was, "sort of cute". No, it was Lui's complete lack of confidence and social skills that had resulted in his 17 year dry spell.

"Not at all, Lui," I told him with fake enthusiasm as a look of great relief spread over his face. I proceeded to get up and help him load his heavy trunk.

Sitting down again, I decided to break the ice between the twins and Lui. They weren't exactly on great terms since last term, when Fred and George had given Lui cockroach clusters and told him they were mixed nuts.

"So Hufflepuff'll be getting a new captain AND a new seeker this year, eh? Who do you think they'll pick for those positions?"

"I heard Diggory and Fitzsimmons are both going for seeker," Fred scowled. He's never liked either of the boys, Diggory in particular.

Before I could answer him, another voice spoke up. "Diggory? Cedric Diggory? Man, I hope he gets it. He's got me hotter than Georgia asphalt in the middle of July."

I knew right away who was talking. A tall, tanned brunette with pale blue eyes, Ayan's joking and laughter were infectious. I had thought he was quiet and studious up until about a year before, when he finally came out of the closet and admitted that he was gay. Right away, he had become more relaxed, outgoing, and personable. I was a little paranoid in the beginning, assuming every time he had tried to start a conversation with me he was really trying to make a move. When I finally realized that he, knowing I was straight, wouldn't try and hit on me, we became good friends.

"Ayan!" I exclaimed, giving the Hufflepuff a High 5. "How was your summer, man?" Ayan had spent the summer in North America, working an internship with the American Ministry of Magic.

"Slammin'!" he told me, settling down in the seat across from me. He began to tell us all about his summer with the yanks. This went on for several minutes, until the compartment door opened right in the middle of his hilarious story involving a "laundromat" and his first attempt at washing his clothing. We all looked up at the same time and smiled as one. The girls had arrived.