-Chapter Four-

"Puddlemere Chaser Mansfield drops the Quaffle back to Wadcock. Jocalind Wadcock swerves around the oncoming Wimbourne Beater, McKeown, with a nifty move. She's in all alone with Wasp Keeper, Nelson--fakes a throw; drops the Quaffle to teammate Whitman, who--scores! Brysten Whitman with a great shot on the right side gives Puddlemere their second goal of the game, but the Wasps still lead 30-20."

The voice of the commentator echoed across the stadium as the Puddlemere fans went into a frenzy; Wasp fans booed as Brysten Whitman took a short victory lap before play continued.

"Wow, folks, do we have an excellent match under way here at Blackmore Pitch. Puddlemere United is really holding their own against this hard-hitting Wimbourne team. Play resumes with the Wasps in possession--Luke Beaudry darts out from behind the Wimbourne goal, headed down the pitch. Beaudry nearly gets decapitated by a Bludger--compliments of Ripley Brubaker--and losses the Quaffle. His teammate, Cole Hotham, recovers the Quaffle and continues up the pitch, dodging a block by Whitman. Hotham--gaining the zone--passes to Michael Ryder. The two Wasp Chasers toss the ball between them, trying to throw off the Puddlemere Keeper as they close in. What an outstanding save by Oliver Wood; he wasn't fooled for a minute! Wood launches the Quaffle down the pitch to Connor Mansfield--"

Oliver pumped his fist in the air to relieve the rush of energy that had bubbled up after the save. It wasn't another shut out, but he was fairing well against a physical Wimbourne team. Flying out a bit from his post at the center goal, Oliver watched intently as the play developed down-field.

The Puddlemere crowd at Wasps' end were suddenly on their feet, calling for a penalty shot after one of the Wimbourne Beaters cracked Brysten--who didn't even have the Quaffle--around the shoulder with her club. All the Puddlemere players were irate as the play continued on; Oliver let his objections be heard from his end of the pitch, but he quickly had to regain his focus as the Wasp Chasers headed his way--

"Another spectacular save by the United's Keeper. Wait a tick--I do believe the Snitch has been spotted. Hurley Turner rockets down the pitch with Hannah O'Connor hot on his heels. O'Connor gaining; Turner extends--yes! Hurley Turner gets the Snitch for the Puddlemere victory. It's a 170-20 win for the United; they bounced back nicely after that grueling loss to Falmouth earlier in the week," the commentator finalized over the loud cheering of the Puddlemere fans.

Oliver looped around the goals and then joined the rest of the team, huddled in the middle of the field congratulating one another on a well-played match. The celebrations continued all the way into the locker room; they didn't let up as their coach tried to talk with them.

"Alright, settle down now," Coach Vance said firmly, after their shenanigans had gone on long enough. "There will be plenty of time for celebration later."

The team slowly sank into silence, but it was a highly amused tension that had everyone looking at each other with smirks as their coach carried on.

"Well done tonight, lads. Everyone was on their game. We're only two weeks into training, but I can see the makings of a very strong team for the fall, especially if we continue to play like tonight. Hurley, that was a nice capture tonight--good eyes."

Hurley nodded with a grin as the rest of the team gave a little cheer.

"Mansfield, Wadcock, and Whitman, excellent execution on the plays we've been discussing."

Jocalind Wadcock grinned. Connor and Brysten high-fived one another. The rest of the team whistled and applauded.

"Wood. You have some great saves out there; keep it up."

Another cheer from the others, but Oliver simply nodded.

"Bru. Carlisle," Vance said, nodding to each of them in turn. "No penalties tonight, boys. It's a job well done."

Everyone chuckled; even Coach Vance had a smile on his face.

"We'll meet here tomorrow at one o'clock to run some drills. Alright, hit the showers."

Oliver sat for a few minutes, collecting his thoughts on the match. As usual, he knew there were a few things that he could have done differently, but overall he was satisfied with the effort of his performance. Someone clapped him on the back, pulling him out of his meditative trance.

"Don't think on it too much, Wood. You had a great game," Merek Hudson said as he walked by, all ready changed into his streets clothes.

Oliver gave a short grin and a nod. "Thanks."

And with that, Oliver gathered his things and headed for the showers.

---

There was a mob waiting outside the pitch again, but fortunately for Oliver most of them were occupied by the players who had come out before him. Still, his appearance brought a few people forward, asking for the typical picture and autograph. This time, however, instead of a large group hovering around him, he had a constant stream of one or two people approach him at a time; it was almost more painful than being bombarded all at once, because a few times he thought he could get free but someone else would walk over to him.

About halfway through the seemingly unending line of fans, Oliver caught a glimpse of Dayla; she was standing away from the crowd, watching them like she had before. He wanted to go over and say hello, but his current situation kept him from doing so. Oliver slowly made his way over toward her, hoping that when there was a break in the action he would be able to talk with her.

An opportunity came after Dayla had been asked to snap a picture of Oliver and one of his fans. The girl said her friends had run off to talk with Jarrett Jones, so she didn't have any one else to take the photo for her. She thanked both of them and hurried off to rejoin her friends.

"Hey Oliver," Dayla said, greeting him with a laugh. "So, this is why you do it, eh? All the adoring fangirls?"

"I suppose that's part of it." Oliver grinned. He nodded toward the camera hanging around her neck. "And whose photo are you hoping for?"

"Oh, this. I was hoping to get a few good shots of Brysten for my mum and dad; they've been so busy that they haven't had a chance to come down here to see him." Dayla gave a shrug.

Oliver was just about to reply, but they were interrupted as a pair of girls walked up to him. The girl with the short, spiky brown hair had her eyes glued on Oliver, giving him the once over, while the other, who had curly, black locks, shot a dark look at Dayla. The short-haired girl brushed her hand over Oliver's shoulder and smirked.

"Hiya Oliver," she said in a syrupy sweet voice. "You played brilliantly today."

"Er--thanks," Oliver replied, the tips of his ears tinging pink. His eyes slid over to Dayla, who had her lips pressed tightly together, looking highly amused.

"So, Ripley is having a party tonight; I was wondering if you were going to be there?" she asked, batting her eyelashes, in what she must have considered a flirtatious manner, but it looked more like she had something in her eyes.

There was a snort from a few feet away and Dayla quickly clapped a hand over her mouth to keep from bursting out with laughter. Both girls aimed glares at her and then turned back to Oliver. Distracted, he was quickly trying to formulate a reply.

"Well, I--uh--I won't be going. I have some--uh--things I need to do tonight. Sorry," he said, giving them a poor excuse, but hoping it would suffice.

"Are you sure you can't come Oliver? I was really hoping you would," she replied with a pout.

"Sorry-"

"We would have so much fun. I promise." She was smirking again.

"Look, he said he's not going, alright?" Dayla suddenly interjected, stepping forward. There was no more laughter in her eyes; they hardened as she set them on the two girls, who looked scandalized by the intrusion. "So why don't you just leave it."

The girl, who had done all of the talking, furrowed her eyebrows, giving Dayla a look of utter dislike. She gave a huff, turned on her heel, and marched away. Her friend glared darkly at Dayla for a moment longer before following.

Dayla rolled her eyes when their back were turned. Looking back at Oliver, she grinned sheepishly. "Sorry, but I couldn't stand much more of that."

Shaking his head, Oliver chuckled. "Don't be sorry. I'm relieved actually. I don't think she was going to take no for an answer."

"It's pathetic, is what it is."

"Yeah. So, thanks for that. I owe you."

"No problem. I wonder if Brysten gets a lot of that? Ugh, it would be aweful."

"Does Brysten get a lot of what?" said a voice coming up behind them. They turned to see Brysten looking at them curiously.

"I want to know if you've got a lot fans desperately throwing themselves at you?" Dayla replied, raising her brows.

"Not yet, why?"

Oliver explained, "I just had one. Wanted me to go to Bru's party with her-"

"It was revolting, really. You had better be careful, the pair of you; one of those girls could do a spell on you if they get desperate enough."

"Eh, they are harmless," Oliver replied with a shrug.

Brysten gave a chuckled. "So, you're not coming to Ripley's party then, Oliver?"

"No. I'm going to go back to the flat. I've got some things to do," he explained vaguely, not wanting to go into detail about his post-game rituals.

"Well, if you get finished, you should come by; celebrate the win with us," Brysten offered, nodding encouragingly.

Dayla smile. "Yeah, Oliver, you should come."

"Well, I better be off; lots to do. I'll see you guys later," Oliver said, ignoring their suggestions to attend the party. They said good-bye and he walked a few paces before Disapparating, hoping the flush in his face wasn't noticeable.

He had gotten a strange sensation in the pit of his stomach when Dayla had said he should go to the party. It was the same feeling he always had after making a particularly good save, one where he had to do some quick acrobatics on the broom; it was strangely satisfying, this feeling.


A/N: I encourage you to review! It's helpful with motivation! :-)

Jess - Thank you so much again! I really appreciate the feedback! I don't mind leaving a little note down here for ya! No biggie! I hope you enjoyed this chapter as well.