The rest of the week flew by. By Friday I was feeling a little more settled. The team was just finishing up when Garrett stopped by.
"Well, how was the first week?"
I smiled warmly. "It's going well so far. I've met with most of the team. I just have Rose and Wood left next week so I'll be able to get started on everyone's individualized nutrition plans next week."
He nodded in understanding. "That's good to hear. Any concerns so far?"
"The team seems pretty solid. I have assigned Haskel some physical therapy exercises for his shoulder. One side is a bit weak compared to the other and seems to strain easily. There's nothing else I'm actively working on anyone with though."
Garrett looked surprised. "That's a good catch on the shoulder. Do you think the team needs to be seen on a regular basis to stay ahead of things like this?"
I shook my head. "No, I don't think so. I will be watching the practices. If someone seems to move in a way that seems like they tweaked something, then we can do an assessment after the game. Otherwise I've just told them all that I have an open-door policy and if anything at all is bothering them, they need to come see me. Once the season starts up, I'll have the weekly evaluation right before the game as well."
"That sounds like a solid plan to me. I think you are going to be just what our team needed." He turned to leave. "Oh, I'm not sure I mentioned it, but you're allowed up to two guests during any friendly games or regular season matches. They can join you in your office or on the sidelines, but they need to stay out of the way if there's an injury."
This perk wasn't in the contract, but I was pleasantly surprised by it. Perhaps I would invite my parents or Ginny and Harry to a game.
The thought of my parents gave me a horrid realization. I hadn't even told them I'd moved! Not that it would matter too much anyways. After the war I was able to restore their memories, but they have chosen to stay in Australia. We aren't super close, but we aren't necessarily strained either. In a way, attending Hogwarts prepared us for living in separate countries.
I puttered around the field office for a while longer finishing up my day's work. All of the players had long since gone home with the exception of one. It wasn't just today either. All week I noticed that Oliver Wood put in more hours than anyone on the pitch. A part of me was worried what I would find during his exam next week with all the extra hours of exertion.
Finally, I decided enough was enough and headed home. And it was starting to feel like home. My things all had their place and I was settling into a nice routine. I set to work fixing myself a late dinner before making tea to take into the living room.
I grabbed a quill and parchment to write to my parents. It seemed only right that I should keep them up to date on something like this.
After filling them in with a detailed letter on my job and flat change as well as a brief recap of my first week, I sent off the letter with Matilda. Feeling like my obligations were done for the week, I turned on the TV and started looking for something to watch. Most electronics still don't work around magic, but last year Seamus Finnigan had a breakthrough and was able to get a few things to function. Anything requiring data to be transferred like a telephone, the internet, or cable was still a no, but simple things like a TV and DVD player worked great.
Just as I was about to make my selection, there was a knock at the door. I set my tea down and went to see who could be visiting at 9:30 in the evening.
I opened the door to find a bashful Oliver standing there. He rubbed the back of his neck shyly. "I hope it's not too late, but I'm still wide awake. I came to see if you wanted to hang out a bit."
Deciding some company would do me some good, I let him in. "I was just about to watch something if you'd like to join me. Would you like some tea?"
"Both of those sounds great."
I showed him to the living room before going to get another cup of tea and joining him.
"I was thinking about watching Friends. Have you heard of it? I have the first eight seasons."
Oliver blushed a bit. "I grew up in a magical household so I'm not really familiar with electronics."
It occurred to me that despite going to school with Oliver for three years, I really knew very little about him.
"Sorry, I didn't know."
He got slightly flustered. "It's no big deal. My grandmother is a half-blood, but she grew up in the Magical world and the technology advances weren't what they are now so my exposure has been relatively low. I've been trying to change that as time allows."
That seemed fair. "Well, I was raised muggle so allow me to broaden your horizons." I made a show with my hands and he chuckled. "This is a pretty good show. It's light and funny and, if you like, I can point out any muggle references you don't understand."
"Yeah, I think I'd like that."
And that's how I found myself watching reruns of Friend's with Oliver Wood until 2am on a Friday night.
