Thank you all for sticking around. We are finally on the tryouts scene. I like looking at things through Theo's eyes a lot. There may be a budding romance between him and our favorite bookworm.

Theo sat up in the stands to watch the 8th year quidditch tryouts. Blaise sat next to him muttering about how he could never play quidditch, it might mess up his face.

"It is my best quality," Blaise said as an aside.

"It's your only quality," Theo muttered to him.

Blaise put his hand on his heart and gasped. "You think I'm pretty?"

Theo rolled his eyes and looked at his friend. "What do you think will happen if one of them doesn't make the team?" Blaise knew who he was talking about. Campbell and Malfoy were turning into quick rivals.

"All hell will break loose I imagine." There was a moment of silence. "What if they both make the team?"

Theo scoffed. "They are both going out for seeker."

Blaise shrugged. "Hooch will put them were they work best and you know it. They could both end up playing."

Theo's brown eyes widened. He hadn't even thought of that. "That would be worse. So much worse." Blaise nodded in agreement.

There was movement in the stands and Theo felt someone sit next to him. He looked over to see the brown curls of Granger's head. She wore a Gryffindor scarf and was looking through some muggle binoculars at the pitch.

Theo and Blaise shared a look. "Hey Granger," Theo tried.

"Hey Nott," she replied not taking her eyes away from the pitch. Theo looked again at Blaise, who simply shrugged.

"What's up?" He tried again.

"Look, I don't want any trouble, this is just the best place to watch and Ginny asked me to take notes," she huffed.

Theo laughed. "So you're a spy for the enemy then?"

"The enemy?" She sounded outraged but then when she saw Theo's smile she backpettled. "Just because McGonagall said we weren't in houses anymore doesn't mean I've lost my loyalty."

Theo put his hands up in mock surrender. "Hey I wasn't saying we should throw away loyalty, just have some 8th year added on yeah?" He bumped his shoulder into hers.

He caught a hint of red creeping up her cheeks. She shook her head. "Where's Cormac? I thought he was trying out."

Theo shrugged. Then one of the Patil bints sat down a row down from Granger. "You didn't hear?" She started. Theo made an effort not to roll his eyes at the beginnings of gossip. "Malfoy sent him to the infirmary."

This got Theo and Blaise's attention. Malfoy hadn't mentioned anything like that at lunch, not that he really had a chance.

"Draco? Why?" Granger asked looking again at the pitch.

"Apparently, he called Pansy a Death Eater slag and Malfoy got protective." Patil, always with half true information.

Blaise cut in then. "He never said that to Parkinson, he said that to Little Nott."

Theo looked at his friend. "That's what that wanker said to Campbell?" Blaise nodded. "I should teach him a lesson."

"Malfoy beat you to it," Patil chirped. Theo's mouth creased into a thin line. He was thankful someone was standing up for his sister, but he didn't know how he felt about Malfoy being the one to do it.

"Draco can't just go around beating people up. The Headmistress will have to punish him," Granger exclaimed in her swotty way.

"For what he said to my sister he should bleed," Theo countered.

Granger gave him a pitying look and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Is Campbell okay?"

"Fine enough to slap Malfoy," Blaise piped.

Everyone turned to look at Zabini then. "She slapped him?" Hermione was shocked. Blaise just nodded.

"Who slapped who?" Parkinson asked as she took a seat next to Patil, under Theo. Daphne wasn't far behind sitting next to Pansy.

"Campbell slapped Malfoy," Patil said matter-of-factly as if she was the one to know it all along.

Pansy looked appalled. "That little bint!" Everyone laughed at her outrage. She swung around to face the pitch then as Madam Hooch's whistle pierced the air. Suddenly there were brooms in the air and 20 8th years were doing drills.

Theo could see his sister even without the help of Granger's muggle gadget which she offered to him. She looked fast, but not as fast as Malfoy. He knew how to work in a team better than she did. She had only ever really played with Theo or in a simulation game where she conjured up opponents.

Granger was next to him scribbling down notes onto parchment. Theo chuckled to himself. Of course she would take actual notes.

A bludger came right towards Campbell and Michael Corner, some Ravenclaw bloke. Theo knew exactly what she was going to do before she did it. Instead of moving out of the way, which would have warned Corner of the coming bludger, she fell to the side, spinning so she was now on the bottom of her broom. She had mastered flying upside down when they were 15 because of a moment just like this. Corner got hit in the side with the bludger and tumbled to the ground.

Campbell pulled up on her broom righting herself and flying off smiling so wide that Theo could see. Theo jumped from his seat and whooped. "Yeah Campbell!" He yelled, pumping his fist in the air. Granger laughed by his side. "What?" He asked as he sat down.

"Nothing." She shook her head. "It's just nice to see you supporting her like that." The red crept back over her cheeks.

Theo nodded and laughed slightly. "Don't forget to note that my sister is the best damn flyer on the team," he said poking at the parchment in Granger's lap.

She rolled her eyes. "Campbells not on the team yet."

Blaise popped his head out. "With that move she is. Our girl's got skills." Theo laughed. Blaise had always been a supporter of Campbell. "Go Little Nott!" Blaise yelled from his seat.

"Draco is obviously going to get a spot on the team," Pansy said matter-of-factly to no one in particular. Theo noticed that Greengrass had come to sit next to Pansy.

Daphne leaned into her friend. "If Crabbe and Goyle make the team, it will be a Slytherin majority." Theo looked down at the girls. They were leaning on each other and giggling together. Theo couldn't remember ever seeing either of them this happy.

Patil started talking then. "No way! Coote and Peaks are going to beat them out for beaters no problem." Theo thought that she must be the Gryffindor twin.

Blaise leaned forward in his seat, resting his elbows on his knees. "Goldstein is kicking ass as keeper over there," he pointed at the Ravenclaw boy manning the hoops.

Theo waved his wand, popcorn appeared in a bag in the air. "This is getting good. I think Hooch is about to change it up, give Campbell and Malfoy a chance to catch the snitch."

Granger looked at Theo. "She's going out for seeker?" Theo nodded. "Huh, I thought she'd be a chaser." Theo thought she had a point but didn't say it. Seeker is all Campbell wanted to be.

Suddenly the snitch was let out, Theo saw the flash of gold near the Slytherin stands. The moment he saw it Campbell saw it too. She drove her broom straight at it. Malfoy saw her move and knew what she was aiming at. Suddenly they were side by side chasing the damn ball.

They were flying in unison and Campbell reached her hand out. She was going to get the snitch. Then Malfoy bumped her sending her off her broom. She kept hold of it by the fingertips of her left hand. She cried out and Theo stood immediately, not knowing what to do to help. She was over 60 feet in the air, hanging on by just one hand. Malfoy was already gone, chasing the snitch down.

Before Theo could levitate her down safely, she swung her other arm to grip the broom and righted herself much to his relief. As she began flying again, Hooch's whistle went off. Malfoy caught the snitch. Tryouts were over.

Theo raced down to the pitch as Campbell landed. She stormed right at Malfoy only to be caught by Blaise and Theo. "Malfoy, you son of a bitch, you almost killed me!" She screamed at him. Malfoy just sauntered over as if it weren't taking both the boys to hold her back.

"You got in my way," was all he said. Then he walked off to see Madam Hooch with the team list.

Campbell was fuming but she had to know. Even though Malfoy caught the snitch, she had been right there and he had almost killed her. She still had a chance she thought.

They all walked over to where Madam Hooch was tallying the scores. She looked up from her board finally and addressed everyone. "Beaters are Coote and Peaks. Keeper is Goldstein. Chasers are Boot, Bones, and Nott. Seeker is Malfoy. Team Captain is Nott." Campbell's face glitched as she didn't know how to take the news. "Your practice time is Monday 3-5, Wednesday 8-10, Thursday 5am-6am, Sunday 7-9." Madam Hooch walked off the pitch then, leaving the group stunned.

"I, I," Campbell started.

"You made Captain!" Blaise pulled her into a hug and lifted her off the ground.

"I didn't get seeker!" She wailed. Theo looked at her, his hands stuffed in his pockets.

Malfoy just examined his nails. "Of course you didn't get seeker. You didn't catch the snitch."

She stormed at him. "You pushed me off my broom!"

"You got in the way!"

Theo pulled her back. "Hey Bell, look at me." She did. "You made the team. Not only that, you made Captain. You did it Bells." He was so excited for her.

She finally smiled. "I did, didn't I?" She started jumping up and down. "This is amazing, I can't wait to tell fath…" she trailed off and stopped jumping. She cleared her throat. "I just, um, I just can't wait to get started." Theo nodded in understanding and pulled her into a hug.

Blaise smiled at his little friend. "We should throw a party!"

"We should definitely throw a party!" Patil chimed in.

"What? Like with everyone?" Campbell asked.

Blaise and Patil nodded. Pansy looked up from her nails. "I could party."

Coote and Peaks flanked Campbell. "What do you say Captain? Gryffindors throw one hell of a rager," Peaks said.

Goyle pushed past Peaks to stand next to Campbell. "Not as great as Slytherin."

Granger rolled her eyes from her viewpoint on the sidelines. They were meant to be melding together. Creating a unity not about house but about the fact that they had all just been in a war a survived. That they all got to come back to this place and finish their education.

"We can all plan it together," Campbell conceded. She had never really like parties before, but then again, she had never been quidditch team captain either. She was smiling ear to ear.