Title: The Interview
Ship: Katie/Oliver
Summary: Katie didn't want to do this but her job depended upon it. She refused to let any man, let alone famous Oliver Wood, erase over three years of hard work. So she bravely raised her fist and knocked on the door. KO
Author's Note: Another old piece I found in my old files, I hope you like it and please tell me what you think.
"Katie!"
An attractive young woman poked her head into the Editor's Office. Her thin eyebrows rose at the sight of the mess. It looked as if a tornado had just swept through. She leaned against the doorframe, crossing her arms over her chest.
"I guess Kirke finally quit," Katie Bell laughed, realizing the reason for the disarray.
The normally cool and collected Editor of Bludgers and Brooms, the biggest Quidditch magazine in the wizarding world, looked up. His face was beat red and he was clearly sweating.
"Kirke – I knew hiring him would be a mistake from the beginning, just wait until I talk to his mother – stupid boy – I have deadlines to meet, doesn't he realize that the whole magazine depended upon the feature interview?" the Editor snapped knocking another stack of papers off his desk.
"Whoa, slow down! Kirke was supposed to write the feature interview?" Katie gaped at her boss, marveling at his foolishness.
"I know, stupid, I know, but he's my nephew for Merlin's sake, I thought that maybe if I gave him the chance…"
Katie groaned, pressing a hand to her forehead.
"What do I do now? Everything depended upon that dumb interview. If I don't run with it, we'll lose sales, we'll lose our jobs, we'll lose the magazine!" the Editor moaned, sinking into his chair.
"No, that's not going to happen," Katie shook her head firmly. "We're going to run with the interview."
"We are?"
"Yes," Katie decided with a nod. "When was the interview supposed to take place?"
"Today, at three, that's in-" The Editor woefully glanced at his watch.
"Twenty minutes, that still gives us plenty of time." Katie clapped her hands.
"You're not actually planning on going through with this are you?" His jaw dropped when he realized that Katie was in fact planning on doing the unthinkable. "But Katie, this is Oliver Wood, the best Quidditch player in the Wizarding World, the same player who hates interviews more than anyone else in the Quidditch circuit! You can't just waltz in there! You have to have connections-"
Katie laughed loudly interrupting the Editor's rant.
"Trust me you'll get your precious interview. I'll take care of everything. But, I'm going to need a very big raise…" she added thoughtfully with a smirk.
"I'll give you a promotion, bonuses, anything, just go!" he begged, consciously aware of the fact that they were wasting time.
With a toss of her glossy brown hair, Katie Bell strolled out of the office with a confident smile.
1111111111111111111111111111111111111111
Approximately twenty minutes later Katie Bell stood outside the door of Puddlemere United's locker room. Her whole demeanor had changed. She was out of breath, her face was slightly flushed from running, and the confidence that had once radiated from her had faded away.
What was she thinking? There was no way Oliver Wood was going to let her interview him. The last time they'd talked was… well… Katie couldn't remember. It was probably their last fight, the one where she'd accused him of being in love with Alicia Spinnet when it had been painfully obvious that the girl was all for George Weasley.
Glancing around, she pulled out her compact mirror and nervously checked herself out. She straightened her skirt and smoothed her hair, before snapping the mirror shut.
Katie didn't want to do this but she had to. Her job depended upon it. Katie refused to let any man, let alone famous Oliver Wood, erase over three years of hard work.
So she bravely raised her fist and knocked on the door.
Katie had to wait several minutes, and knock a few more times before someone finally came to answer the door.
"Kirke? I could've sworn you – oh."
Katie's heart stopped as soon as she looked up into those beautiful hazel eyes. She'd always loved his eyes, always. And his hair, she was thrilled to notice, still damp from a shower, and still as curly and perfect as she'd recalled.
"You're not Kirke," he observed, squinting at her.
"No, I'm not," she couldn't help but smile as he rubbed his eyes and finally focused on her.
"Hang on – Katie Bell?" His eyes widened, clearly he recognized her and clearly he was surprised to see her. This was good. At least he hadn't slammed the door in her face, well, not yet.
"Wow it's been…" Oliver trailed off.
"…a while?" Katie supplied with a soft chuckle.
"Yeah," Oliver nodded and ran a hand through his hair. "You look…" His eyes moved from her head to her toe, giving her the full X-Ray. Katie was acutely aware of the fact that his eyes seemed to pause and linger on certain parts of her body far longer than was necessary. "You look good!" he finished with a wide grin.
Katie blushed, something extremely rare considering the fact that by now she was used to receiving these kinds of compliments frequently.
"Well, you don't look so bad yourself Mr. Wood," she commented, taking the opportunity to check him out. What she found pleased her immensely. The past seven years on the Puddlemere United had done his body well, which she found hard to believe because he had always had a fine physique even at Hogwarts. But he was a man now, and she realized that she too had outgrown the awkward, insecure teenager who had been left behind at Hogwarts without a second thought.
For several minutes they stood in the doorway, like that, just staring at each other, reminiscing and adjusting to the changes and the growth that had taken place in each of them.
Oliver finally cleared his throat, interrupting the awkward silence.
"Uh, I don't mean to sound rude Katie, but what are you doing here?"
"I'm here for the interview!" she laughed.
Oliver blinked and scratched his head.
"You mean-"
"Yes, I write for Bludgers and Brooms and you agreed to this interview months ago," Katie interrupted giving him her best smile.
"I did, but you're not Kirke." Oliver frowned.
"I think we already came to that conclusion Oliver, can I come in?"
Katie ducked beneath his arm, sliding into the room before he could reply or shut the door in her face.
Though Katie had interviewed many Quidditch players during the course of her three years at Bludgers and Brooms, most of them male, she'd never had the opportunity to interview a Puddlemere United player and this was the first time she'd ever been in the locker room. There was a lounge area, before you entered the actual changing rooms, a couple of cream colored arm chairs, a coffee table and a luxurious matching sofa that Katie chose to sit down on.
"Feel free to make yourself at home," Oliver encouraged sarcastically.
"Thanks, I intend to," Katie said already kicking off her shoes and tucking her knees beneath her. She pulled out her muggle notebook and her favorite quill, preparing to get started right away.
"Sit down Oliver," she smiled, patting the spot beside her.
Oliver hesitated, but then reluctantly came and sat next to her on the sofa. Katie gave him her most encouraging smile and got down to business immediately. The questions were the standard set, and luckily Oliver eagerly answered all of them. That was until they reached the question concerning his love life.
"So Oliver, how's your love life been? Anyone who's been following the tabloids should know that you've gone through quite a number of women in the past four years, but during the last few months it's been mysteriously quiet. Is there a new woman in your life or are you just tired?" Katie asked very fast, knowing that this was one of the more personal questions that often made or broke the interview.
"Hey, I thought this was a Quidditch magazine? What's a Quidditch magazine doing asking about my love life?" Oliver asked her but he was grinning.
"Oh Oliver," Katie giggled and shook her head. "Just between you and me, more than fifty percent of our sales are thanks to the females. In fact about twenty percent of our readers are teenage girls and middle aged women who probably don't know a bludger from a quaffle."
Oliver gaped at her, clearly horrified by the idea that such a person existed.
"You still haven't answered my question Oliver," Katie reminded him, tapping her quill impatiently. If she could get him to answer this question, the sales of this issue would sky rocket.
"Is there or is there not a new woman in your life?" she repeated slowly.
"Why do you want to know?" Oliver asked smirking. He leaned back on the sofa, stretching his arm across the back where it dangled, dangerously close to her shoulders.
"It's a standard question Oliver, it's part of my job, and you, by agreeing to this interview, have a duty to answer it," she said with a frustrated sigh. She was so close to finishing this, why did he have to be such an arse now?
"I don't have to answer anything," Oliver said smugly.
So he did know the rules. Katie had heard that Oliver could be difficult when it came to the few interviews that he did grant on rare occasions, but she had thought that maybe because she was an old friend…
"Then I assume that there is someone in your life… and that we're finished here?" The pen hovered hopefully above the notebook, but she doubted that he would answer her.
"Finished?" Oliver sounded surprised.
"Yes, that was the last question, so I guess I'll be going then…" Katie snapped the notebook shut, untangled her legs and was reaching for her shoes and her bag, when she felt his arm finally close around her shoulders, preventing her from fleeing.
"There is someone in my life," he said quickly.
Katie felt her heart sink even as she opened the notebook.
"Tell me about her." But she found that the usual enthusiasm was missing from her voice and that she was longing to leave, but at the same time…
"Well, I guess you could say she's an old friend." Oliver paused smiling. "Well, we were more than friends at one point, but then, you know how things are when you're young and stupid." He chuckled.
Katie forced a laugh, wondering who the lucky lady was.
"We hadn't seen each other in six years, but today I saw her for the first time and I realized that I missed being with her and I didn't want her to leave so soon…"
Oliver's arm tightened around her shoulder and Katie realized that the pen had dropped out of her hand, lost somewhere between the cushions.
"Now that I answered your questions, can I ask you some?" Oliver asked Katie, turning to look at her for the first time.
"Sure, ask away," Katie squeaked in a voice that sounded much too small and faint to be her own.
"Is there a new man in your life?"
"Yes," Katie replied.
"Oh." The disappointment was visible on his face as he retrieved his arm from its snug place around her shoulders.
"My cat," Katie spoke up suddenly, dearly wishing that his arm was still around her shoulders.
"What?" Oliver asked quirking an eyebrow.
"I just got a kitten, his name's Puddlemere," a slow smile spread across her face and Oliver's face lit up.
"Would Puddlemere mind if I took you out for the evening?" Oliver asked.
"I don't think he'll mind, but you might have to drop in and visit him, you know, just to meet him…" She smiled seductively.
Oliver nodded in agreement.
"Can I ask one more question?" Katie begged.
"I suppose…" Oliver sighed, pretending to be annoyed.
"What kind of kisser are you?" Katie asked seriously, though mischief sparkled in her dark eyes.
"Hmmm… I guess we're going to have to find out."
Katie giggled and Oliver leaned down, silencing her with a kiss.
A/N: Just something old I found, please review.