Author's Note: This is the first rewrite. I feel like there was not enough magic incorporated into the original story and the characters lacked depth and development. I hope you enjoy the revised version even more than the original. Thank you to my loyal fans for reviewing often and for being patient.
-Yuushi-chan
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, or anything associated with Harry Potter (i.e. characters, spells, animals, etc.).
An American Quidditch Player in London
Chapter 1
Oliver Wood walked onto the pitch. He took in a deep breath while smiling. He was beginning his fourth year with Puddlemere United's reserve team. He was excited as always when quidditch season began again. He had been notified that morning that he would be playing in their next match due to the starting keeper having caught a bad case of Vanishing Sickness.
Too bad for him, but now I get to play. I'm going to get some extra practice in before the rest of the team arrives in an hour or so. I need to be in good condition for the game tomorrow.
Oliver went to the locker room to put on his training robes and get the crate with the quaffle, bludgers, and snitch in it. He pulled the quaffle out of its place and held the tip of his wand to the ball, enchanting it to fly on its own.
He mounted his broom and kicked off hard heading toward the goal posts. He hovered in front of the middle hoop waiting for the quaffle to head down the pitch. He dove for it as it flew violently toward the goal to his left. After catching it he threw it back toward the middle of the pitch imagining that one of his teammates would catch it. Oliver practiced this drill for the next forty-five minutes before coming down to get some water.
This summer had been brutal. The heat was sweltering as it was, but when playing quidditch the sun became twice as fierce. Oliver had already gone through one and a half water bottles and real practice hadn't even started yet.
"Man, I should have brought a few more with me. Today's going to be harsh if it stays this hot for the rest of the afternoon." Oliver said to himself.
He was just about to return to his drills when he heard someone approaching him from behind. He turned around to greet the person and found that it was one of his fellow teammates, Michelle Burbank, the star chaser and team captain. Her shoulder length blonde hair was pulled high on the top of her head. When it reflected the sun it projected a light glow around her face.
"Hey, Oliver! I didn't think anyone else would be here yet," she said. "I heard you're starting keeper for the next game. Nice break."
"Yeah, thanks. It's not often that I get to play as a starter. I'm pretty excited for this match, too." Oliver said with a smile. "I hope you brought enough water, today's a scorcher."
She nodded while she pulled her training robes out of her bag. "I'll be right back. I'm going to change. Michael should be here soon." She yelled over her should just before she entered the locker room.
And she was right, Michael arrived only a minute later. He was a tall man, toned, and one of the damn near best beaters in the league. He was a black man with a deep booming voice, but one of the nicest men Oliver had ever met. Oliver had been greeted by Michael on his first day of practice with Puddlemere United. The man was intimidating, a great factor when he held a beater's bat in his hand.
"All right, Michael?" Oliver greeted.
"Afternoon, Oliver. I heard you were placed as starting keeper for this game. Good for you. It should be an exciting game, and a home game no less." Michael said.
"I'm excited for this match. Playing the Falmouth Falcons." Oliver grinned.
"Yeah, and foul mouthed they are." Michael said laughing a booming laugh at his joke.
"Oh, Michael, you and your jokes," Michelle said as she walked toward them in her training robes. "And really, they aren't that great."
"You may not find them funny, but my wife sure does. I need something to cheer her up." Michael said a worrisome look creeping into his eyes.
"Why, is she all right?" Oliver asked worried for his teammate.
"Oh, yeah, she's great. She's pregnant again. We're excited, but she's had some bad morning sickness this time round," he explained.
"Oh, well congratulations!" Michelle exclaimed. "This is your third now, right?"
"Yes, that's right. I'm hoping for a boy this time. I'm not sure if I could handle a third daughter," he laughed again.
"Congrats, mate!" Oliver said patting Michael on the back.
They heard a 'pop' the telltale sign of someone apparating. All three of them turned toward the place where the sound came from. They saw another teammate heading their way.
"Afternoon, Scott!" Michael greeted him.
"Great afternoon for practice, don't you think?" He asked giving a short laugh. "You ready to bash in some heads of those Falcons?"
"You bet! This is going to be an exciting match." Michael said excitedly giving a high five to Scott.
Scott was the other starting beater. He was a shorter man, stocky, with an aggressive personality. He had been penalized no less than twelve times last season for his constant unnecessary violence during matches. He looked the part of a beater as well, having a scruffy appearance, some stubble around his chin and mouth, messy, shaggy dark brown hair that hung in his mischievous hazel eyes.
"Oliver, I heard the good news. Congrats mate! It's about time you get a break," Scott said forcefully patting Oliver hard on the back.
"Thanks, mate, but it's only this game. It's not much of a break," Oliver laughed nervously.
"Ah, yeah, but you'll be on the starting team in no time," Scott tried to be reassuring.
"You said that last year, too, and I'm still on the reserve team," Oliver said a little annoyed.
"Well, it's bound to happen sometime," Scott laughed a breathy laugh before walking toward the locker room to change.
During Scott's absence, the rest of the starting team had arrived. The other chasers, Chelsea, a short girl with long strawberry blonde hair and a very toned body, and Chuck, a tall thin man with golden blonde hair and a skinny body, walked up to Michelle immediately striking up a conversation about their most recent town outing. Puddlemere's seeker, Karen, a short thin girl with short, spiky black hair and a cherub face was speaking to their coach about the preliminary quidditch match she had gone too over the weekend.
Everyone was changed into their training robes and standing around their coach who was currently trying to get everyone excited about today's practice in the sweltering heat.
"We have a tough game tomorrow, so we need to work as hard as we can today. I want you to play past your fatigue. When the heat starts to get to you, just raise your hand and you can switch out to get some water. I don't want anyone collapsing during this practice, so stay hydrated. You got that, Wood?" Their coach had just pointedly looked at Oliver.
"Yes, sir," Oliver answered.
"Good, now everyone drink some water and be on the pitch in two minutes," Coach Runckle gestured to the field before turning around and walking toward the stands.
Oliver finished his second bottle of water for the day. He was just about to head to the pitch when the coach caught his attention.
"Now, Oliver, I wanted to speak with you. The Falcons are an unruly team and they tend to go for the keeper as a target. You're going to need to be on your guard tomorrow for fast flying bludgers. So, please take it easy today at practice. You need to be on your game tomorrow." Coach Runckle told him.
"Sure, I'll take it easy today. I'm excited for the match," Oliver said with a grin.
"Glad to hear it. Now get on the pitch."
The sun was unbelievably hot. Nearly every five minutes one of the players was signaling that they needed water. Oliver was sweating so bad that sweat was nearly dripping off of his robes. Half way through practice, their team captain, Michelle, bewitched one of the bludgers to aim hard and fast at Oliver. Michael and Scott found it difficult to control the bludger, and as a result of that, Oliver had suffered a few hard hits to the abdomen. By the end of practice he was sore, tired, and dehydrated. When he was in the locker room changing with the rest of his team, Michelle came to sit next to him.
"Hey, are you doing okay? You're looking a bit pale." She asked concerned for her teammate.
"Yeah, just a bit sore, and I ran out of water about an hour ago." Oliver explained giving a small cough.
"Are you a wizard or not?" Michelle asked giving him an exasperated look. She pulled her wand out of her robes and pointed it at one of Oliver's empty bottles. She waved the want and said "Augmenti." Water filled the bottle from top to bottom and with a flick of her wand stopped just before spilling over the top.
"Thanks, I always forget about that one," Oliver said taking the water and draining it.
"You better rest up, mate. Tomorrow's gonna be a rough day, and Michael and I can't guarantee full protection from the Falcons' beaters," Scott said patting Oliver on the back before walking out the door.
Oliver left not long after Scott, saying goodbye to the rest of the team. He walked halfway down the entranceway before apparating to an alleyway a block away from his flat. Walking up the stairs to the second floor Oliver's left leg gave out and he tripped on the top step, falling forward onto the landing.
"Ow!" Oliver moaned laying there trying to steady his heart rate.
He forced himself up and unlocked the door to his apartment. He dropped his bag before closing the door and heading to his shower. The heat from the water made him dizzy so he lay down on his bed. The heat mixed with his fatigue made him pass out within seconds.