Today's line: "As luck would have it..."
Five months later
The Donegal Dragons beat Puddlemere United in the League semi-finals by one hundred and fifty points to thirty.
Oliver supposes there is an element of luck to games balanced such as these, where both teams are strong in different areas; the first time they had played one another the Snitch had been conspicuously absent for hours and Puddlemere had forged wildly ahead on the merit of their Chasers and the unfortunate speed of the Dragons' Keeper, but in today's game the tiny golden ball makes itself known just outside of the one-hour mark and Aidan, utterly focussed, dives right through the middle of game-play and narrowly avoids being hit by the Quaffle to catch it before Puddlemere's Chasers have had a chance to get started.
He catches Katie's eye when they shake hands and the two beam at each other; the woman mouths good save at him as they pass. She'd come at him out of nowhere about twenty minutes in and he'd caught it out of pure luck, so he mouths good shot in retaliation and moves on.
Aidan simply lifts an insouciant eyebrow at him as they clasp hands. Oliver rolls his eyes in a mockery of a long-suffering attitude, and they leave it at that. When they're changed and standing in front of the hordes of press waiting for a post-match statement, he hands over twenty Galleons to his lover.
"Mr Lynch," a journalist shouts as Aidan tucks the prize into the pocket of his beautifully-tailored slacks. "How do you feel about the implications from fans that Oliver Wood let you win?"
The two of them share a look before Aidan replies easily, "I have to say, I've been a little confused as to how the Keeper of the opposition could affect whether or not I caught the Snitch quickly."
Oliver chuckles from a few steps away; a few cameras flash in his face. "In all seriousness, though," Aidan continues, "I understand their concern. Quidditch is a very competitive game and we take it very seriously. Oliver and I are both very competitive people, and I think it's healthy to face off against each other every once in a while. If anything, it makes us both try harder to win. As luck would have it, we came out on top today, and I don't expect that to have more of an effect on my home life with Oliver than it would had we both played separate teams. He played hugely well today and really has no reason to be disappointed in his team's performance."
Their eyes meet over the swarm of journalists and Oliver beams at his lover. The swarm turns towards him instead; he leans away from a wand jabbed in his face with a laugh and a hasty apology from the young witch whose wand it was. "Are you proud of your partner, Mr Wood?" she asks timidly.
Oliver catches tight hold of Aidan's hand as he strolls over. "Very proud," he says earnestly, rubbing the hand in both of his own. "That was a fantastic catch."
Aidan hums critically. "Mmn, not the best of my life," he says.
"No?" Oliver asks lightly, turning to lift an eyebrow at him. "What would you say that was?"
The Seeker kisses him neatly on the cheek. "You," he answers steadily. There's a collective aaah from the press; Oliver's mouth determinedly fights a smile as he rolls his eyes.
"You've been working on that line for ages, haven't you," he says deprecatingly, patting his lover on the cheek.
Aidan grins boyishly. "Weeks and weeks," he admits. "How was the delivery?"
"Not bad," Oliver admits, looping a hand around Aidan's waist and drawing him subtly away from the press. "Not bad at all."