(A/n: This idea came to me as I was reading the first book. It's based on the period of time when Harry was obsessed with the mirror of erised and is obviously unlikely to really happen. But please read and review! Oh by the way I know Katie should be in fourth year but I don't like that so she's not In my world)
Oliver Wood was certain that his seeker was up to no good. There was something fishy about that boy. He frowned as Harry Potter showed up late for practice for the third time in a week. "Sorry, I fell asleep doing my charms essay," Harry apologized stifling a yawn with his hand.
Oliver nodded to say he understood. "What had Harry's excuse been yesterday?" he thought to himself. He thought back to the previous day's events and came to the conclusion that Harry had fallen asleep with his head in his dinner plate. Oliver recalled a bit of mashed potatoes nesting in Harry's dark eyebrows. "The day before that Harry was late too," Oliver remembered. That day Harry had fallen asleep during Transfiguration consequently landing himself in detention. "Third time you've been late this week Potter, having trouble sleeping lately?" he asked, his Scottish accent coming out mixed with concern and suspicion.
Harry simply nodded his head. "Yeah, loads of work lately I've been staying up late just to catch up," was his response.
This only made Oliver grow even more suspicious. He remembered third year to be quite easy and laid back. He was about to voice his thoughts when another idea sprung upon him. Why not follow Potter and see what he was up to at night? But then he mustn't let Harry think he was on to him. Oh yes, better to pretend he thought nothing of Harry's tardiness and wait till tonight to corner him. As the captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team it was his job to find out what Harry was up to. After all, if this continued Harry might fall down the stairs when he wasn't paying attention from exhaustion and seriously injure himself. Or worse, he might cost them the Quidditch cup!
For once in all his years at Hogwarts, practice was slow and boring for Oliver. He wanted badly to find out what Harry was up to. Several ideas presented themselves to Oliver. "Perhaps Harry is conspiring against the team and trying to think up ways to destroy their chances at winning the cup!" he had thought. The idea was later discarded and marked as too far-fetched.
The Gryffindor Quidditch team noticed Oliver's far off expression at once. It was rather peculiar for Oliver to be thinking of other things when playing Quidditch. In fact, it was peculiar for Oliver to be thinking of things other than Quidditch at all. "Do you think he's ill?" Angelina Johnson, a fifth year chaser, asked her fellow chasers.
Katie Bell, another fifth year, narrowed her eyes in her Captain's direction. "No he can't be because then he would've cancelled practice in fear of his illness getting worse and putting him out for the season," she decided.
The third of the three fifth year friends, Alicia Spinnet, shook her head violently causing strands of brown hair to fall from her loose ponytail. "Or maybe he's trying to deny the fact that he's ill and he's secretly dying!" she whispered dramatically.
"Who's dying?"
The three chasers turned around to see the smirking faces of Fred and George Weasley. "Oliver," Angelina answered quickly, "We reckon he's hiding a fatal illness, it's the only thing he could possibly take more seriously than Quidditch."
"Other than our Katie of course," George added, grinning deviously.
Katie blushed before hitting him upside the head. "He doesn't like me!" she yelled angrily.
"Denial denial," George teased.
"Shut it you two! Can't you see our beloved Captain is in need of our help? He's dying!" Alicia exclaimed solemnly.
The bickering pair ceased their quarrel immediately. "What can we do to help?" Katie asked, concern showing through her face.
"I have an idea," Fred said, grinning broadly.
Later that same day a newly clean Oliver approached the Fat Lady. After giving the password he climbed through the portrait hall, plans of following Harry running through his mind. A sudden shriek of "SURPRISE!" interrupted his thoughts. Oliver jumped several inches in the air, wide eyed and looked for the source of the noise. Standing behind a red couch stood his Quidditch team. Angelina Johnson was holding up one end of a huge banner that said, "PLEASE GET WELL!" Next to her, Alicia Spinnet was smiling warmly, Harry was giving him a thumbs up, and Katie Bell was grinning. Fred and George held up the other end of the banner and had set off mini fireworks in the common room.
The sparks flashed red and gold producing many sentences such as; "Team Wood for the cup!", "We love Oliver!", and "DON'T DIE OR ELSE!
"Guys, what is this all about?" Oliver asked, genuinely confused.
"Oliver we know about your fatal illness," Katie said approaching him slowly and engulfing him in a hug.
If he had looked closer he would've noticed tears forming in her eyes. Instead he shot her a dumbfounded look and fixed the rest of his team with a questioning gaze. They just nodded sadly in response. "I'm not dying, I don't have this illness that you speak off," Oliver said confused.
Fred stepped forward and shook his head sadly. "We thought you'd deny it at first," he said.
"But the truth is," George cut in.
"You need to come out in the open," Fred finished.
"Sort of like with the whole you being gay thing," George added.
"WHAT! I am NOT gay!" Oliver hollered, in his I-am-your-captain-do-not-disobey-me voice. His face had gone red both out of anger and embarrassment.
George held his hands up in defense, "Oh right, I forgot you fancied Katie."
Oliver's face turned even redder, "I don't fancy Bell!"
"Ah, you sound quite like her now. She denied it too," Fred said cheerfully.
"This is ridiculous! I am not gay, dying, or in love with Bell," Oliver clarified.
"The first two may be so, but the last I have to disagree with," Angelina said wisely.
Alicia nodded in agreement. "But what do you say we party anyway? Fred and George went through the trouble of nicking food from the kitchens so we may as well crank up some music and party," she suggested.
It was a mutual agreement that Alicia's suggestion would be granted and with a flick of his wand George started the music.
Many butterbeers, cauldron cakes, and hours later the chasers declared they were tired and headed off to bed. Fred and George soon followed leaving Oliver and Harry alone in the common room. "Well I'm off to bed," Oliver said feigning a yawn and making his way up the steps.
Once in his dorm he waited a minute or two before creeping back down the stairs in time to see the portrait hole swinging shut. Oliver cast a disillusionment charm over himself and exited the common room. He came out just in time to see Harry pull an invisibility cloak over his head. "Bugger," he thought, "Now I won't be able where Harry was headed." Luckily, the cloak got caught in Harry's shoelaces unbeknownst to the wearer, and his feet remained visible to the human eye.
Moving fast Oliver followed Harry's swift footsteps to a seemingly deserted classroom not far from the library. Harry pulled open the oak door and dropped the cloak to the floor. Oliver made it through the closing door just in time and gaped at what was before him. A mirror. It looked as if it was quite old and had funny writing written across the framing. From afar he couldn't see anything so special about the mirror, but Harry seemed to be in a trance. He was staring at the mirror as if his life depended on it and Oliver detected many emotions flicking through his face. Fascination, curiosity, sadness, and longing. Why his young seeker would be longing was unknown to Oliver. "Maybe Potter enjoys looking at himself," Oliver thought to himself, "But was it really worth him missing sleep and being tardy for practice?"
He stood behind Harry -not daring to open the door in fear of startling the boy- for what seemed like eternity. He was certain he'd heard Harry whisper "It shows what I desire most," almost as if he knew Oliver was there. But that was silly, he couldn't possibly. He was probably just talking to himself. Finally, Harry picked up the invisibility cloak and was invisible once more. Oliver was about to follow Harry out the door when his curiosity got the better of him. He uncast the disillusionment charm when he was sure Harry had left the room and cautiously approached the mirror.
If what Harry had murmured was true then he'd see what he wanted most. Oliver was picturing himself holding up the Quidditch cup for the first in the six years he'd been at Hogwarts. So when Oliver stepped in front of the mirror he was quite taken aback. Yes, there was the Quidditch cup laying at Oliver's feet, but the reflection Oliver didn't seem to be paying it any attention. He was instead greeted by the site of himself snogging a girl. The girl was quite pretty with dirty blonde hair cascading down her back and vibrant green eyes. "Bell?" Oliver said out loud, all thoughts of reprimanding Harry for being out late forgotten.
It couldn't be. Potter must be mistaken, this mirror most show an alternate reality. No doubt, Oliver fancied Katie Bell, but he never would've chosen her over Quidditch. At least he thought so. It had been the reason he'd never asked her out. He was afraid the break up would affect her performance on the pitch. Or had that just been what he'd told himself each time he failed to pluck up the courage to ask her out come Hogsmeade weekend. "No, no," Oliver thought to himself, "Quidditch before everyhing."
But could Quidditch comfort him when he felt down and make him laugh like Katie did? Oliver ended up spending the night in front of the mysterious room thinking about his true feelings. He'd ended up making a list of the benefits of both Quidditch and Katie. Much to his surprise the things he loved about Katie vastly outnumbered the things he loved about Quidditch. When morning came Oliver had hesitantly reached the conclusion that there was one thing he loved more than Quidditch. As he made his way down to the Great Hall, starved from the night's realizations he mulled over what it meant in his mind.
The Gryffindor table was nearly full with students shoving their faces with a delicious breakfast and chatting up their friends when he entered the Great Hall. "Oi, Oliver!" the ever boisterous voice of Fred Weasley hollered through the hall, "Over here!"
Oliver looked up to see a smiling Fred seated next to his twin and across from the three chasers. His cheeks tinged pink when he saw Katie. After slowly approaching his friends he took a seat next to Katie and smiled. It might've been lack of sleep, or pent up feelings that possessed Oliver to do what he did next. For no sooner had Katie opened her mouth to greet him when Oliver seized her around her waist and drew her in to a passionate kiss. Several wolf-whistles and cat-calls later the two broke apart both smiling idiotically. "So I guess this means you two fancy each other?" Angelina questioned but it came out more as a statement.
"Yeah," the two answered in Unison.
"Will you go to Hogsmeade with me?" Oliver asked, still smiling.
"Yeah, although usually the first date comes before the first kiss," Katie remarked good humoredly.
Oliver chuckled while thinking perhaps the vision in the mirror had come true after all.
(A/n: its 11:50 PM as I type these last words so forgive me if there is any mistakes. What did you think? Please review )