A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed, especially to EmberNickel, brilliantincandescence, EbonyK, and OliverWoodLuvr :) Your words have been most encouraging. My wish, though, is that everyone who presses on Story/Author Alert would let me know what she thinks!

Before you find out Katie's fate, I present a gift for you all: some Puddlemere lovin' ;) Happy Friday the 13th, or Saturday the 14th, wherever in the world you are!

CHAPTER 5 – Headlining the Locker Room

"Pick it up, Wood, PICK IT UP!" bellowed a frustrated Coach Nolan from his levitating observation pad. By no means was his Keeper doing horribly, but he certainly wasn't performing at his best. "Ye're playin' like a damn pansy! That's the ninth goal you've let past you!" With an angry wave, the coach cut the drill and sent his players off on a water break.

"Not you, Wood, get yer arse over here," Nolan called gruffly. Oliver flew to him, sheepish. As Oliver opened his mouth to speak, his coach pulled a newspaper from under his own arm and whacked him upside the head. "Could this have anything to do with that shoddy performance?" Coach Nolan crossed his arms accusingly and shoved it into Oliver's gloved hands.

'MOST ELIGIBLE BACHELOR' Oliver Wood Spotted With Mystery Woman

Puddlemere United's star Keeper, known for his near-reclusive habits, was seen out and about just last night, August 27, with an unidentified young woman. Onlookers described her as tall, brunette, sweet-featured, and "very familiar-looking". A society girl, perhaps? The couple shared an intimate dinner at the Swinging Cheshire, where they reportedly looked very cozy, with plenty of laughing and arm touching. Although witnesses were unable to capture photos, they report that Wood and his date left together, arm-in-arm.

A source close to the famously secretive hunk says, "It takes a special kind of girl to get Oliver out of his shell. Quidditch is his life. But now he's seeing somebody, and he couldn't be happier." We couldn't agree more. This is the first time Oliver Wood has been seen with another woman since his steamy affair with the ginger-haired socialite, Amber Guest. After their confusing break-up last year (who really knows what happened?), we think Oliver deserves some fresh, new company in his life!

What do you think? A lady who has actually captured Oliver Wood's fancy? Is it possible that Witch Weekly's Most Eligible Bachelor has found his match? Stay tune as we find out who his mystery lass is!

Coach Nolan observed many expressions flit through the Keeper's face as he read the article: confusion, slight shock, mild contempt, amusement, and, most puzzlingly, happiness. Finally, the coach took it upon himself to disrupt his Keeper's reverie.

"Oy!" he said, "Is it true then?"

"Huh?"

"Don' play dumb with me, Wood!"

Oliver took a second to scan the article. Dumbfounded, he finally assented, "Um… Some of it, I guess? What 'source'? I – I mean, this was just yesterday! She's a friend from Hogwarts, Coach, the girl I was writing the other day. Remember?" His forehead creased in earnest.

Coach Nolan gave him a scrutinizing look in response. And then, "Security wards showed that ya let a girl in last night, an' that she left this morning. Same lady?"

"…Yes," Oliver reluctantly admitted, for once hating that he was being monitored. It felt weird. "But nothing funny went on, Coach. It was a couple drinks –"

"There it is!" bellowed the Coach, stunning Oliver into silence. "This," he said, shaking, "is unlike you, Wood. Booze does not mix with training. I never thought I'd have to tell ya that. And as for the girl… Ya know what?" Nolan held his hands up. "Never mind."

Oliver ruffled his hair, aggravated, knowing his coach had much more to say. About his alcohol consumption, maybe, or his night with Katie. But Coach Nolan reined in whatever comments he might have had, and instead traded them in for a warning. "This… is probably different from that slag, Guest, that PR had ya dating. Bloody waste of your time, if ya ask me.

But from all the boys on my squad, I've come to expect the most from you. This is definitely a first, which is why… I'll let it go, just this once. Yer personal life ain't any of my business."

Oliver nodded, releasing a breath he didn't know he was holding. Relief. Coach Nolan went on: "But if I see you making moony eyes instead of saving goals, I'm going to kick yer arse halfway to Wales, understand?"

"Halfway to Holyhead," Oliver thought, a grin beginning to make its way onto his face. But he suppressed it, and mumbled, "Yes, Coach. I apologize - I had a lot on my mind this morning. I'll pick it up."

"Good," Nolan said gruffly. "We might only be in the friendlies rounds until the season formally starts next year, but I'll have no lollygagging. Now get yer arse in line."

Oliver somehow managed to get past training in spite of his little hangover. He also realized that thanks to the morning's events with Katie, he'd forgotten to wear his athletic support, which accounted for the discomfort he was feeling down there. Still, he carried on like a trooper, forging through every goal-blocking exercise Coach Nolan threw his way, as well as the post-scrimmage sprints and the core workout. If he thought that the coach was being extra hard on him today, his teammates confirmed he wasn't just imagining it.

"What crawled up Nolan's bum and died there this time?" asked Roger Davies sourly after training. Davies, though a longtime rival of Wood's at Hogwarts, wasn't so bad now that they were on the same team. Roger got bumped up to first line just that year, and he wasn't quite used to Coach Nolan's methods yet. He was smart, though, to keep his griping to the confines of the locker room. "Shoddy game today, Wood."

"He's got it in for me today, men," winced Oliver, giving his hips a little shake. Then he held up his hands like he was in a trance. "It's like he knows."

"Knows what?" Sean Flanner, Puddlemere's veteran Chaser, took a seat on the bench. "I, for one, know you forgot your support. Look at you go. How's the ol' pair now, hmm?"

Oliver shook his head, smiling wryly. "If I'm lucky, they'll still be functional, if not a little bruised."

"I, for one, agree," said Roger thoughtfully, flexing his abs before a mirror. "I couldn't help but feel that Nolan was a bit pissy at you."

Mock gasps abounded. "The Golden Boy? Piss Nolan off? Never!" cried Flanner. "Stop, I beg you, Davies. You look more like a ponce than you do on a regular."

"It's true," Oliver peeled his Keeping gloves and arm guards off, and made to remove his sweater. "Sorry he made it difficult for you lads. How else do you punish a Keeper?" He pulled off his boots, socks, and shin guards, flexing his toes for good measure.

"I think the question is, 'Why punish the Keeper?'" Davies smacked the back of Oliver's head with the towel slung low on his hips.

"Oy! I don't wanna see that! Put the towel back on!"

"Bothered, are ya? Well, I'm not!"

"I might have the answer," cackled Benjy Williams, their Seeker. He threw down the same newspaper Coach Nolan had thrown at Oliver earlier that day. The others leaned in to investigate.

"How'd you get your hands on this, Benj?" frowned Oliver, recognizing it instantly. Roger scrambled to get his towel back in place.

"Filched it while Coach was busy killing you," Benjy winked. "Finding Snitches gets boring after a while, so I gave myself a break."

"Most eligible bachelor Oliver Wood spotted with mystery woman… WHOOP!" Roger Davies gave a yell that caused the team's Beaters, Neil and Philly to take immediate notice.

"What's this?" cried Neil Borodin, poking his head out of his shower stall.

"Wood finally has a woman? A real one? Pay up, mate!" cried Philly Wilson from his ice bath.

"Aw man, no!"

The Keeper groaned into his towel, blushing as Flanner shook his shoulders in delight. "Three cheers for the handsome, charming, most eligible Oliver Wood!"

"WHOOP! WHOOP! WUHOOOOOO!" The men's locker room was in mayhem. Davies skipped around with glee. Philly Wilson made spit fountains of his ice bath water ("No to shrinkage!" he cried). All to Oliver's dismay, of course.

"Who's the lucky ducky? There's a goody Woody," teased Flanner, massaging his shoulders.

"I am going to streak in this locker room if it isn't a stunt!" Davies guessed. "Is it!"

"Another stunt?" asked Flanner, confused.

"Please don't," Benjy frowned at Davies.

Oliver stood up, rolling his eyes. He grabbed the offending newspaper and slowly crumpled it. "Men, while I… appreciate the strange interest you all have in my love life or lack thereof, I'll have you know she's not my woman," he said evenly, controlling a blush that was surely creeping onto his cheeks. "It wasn't a PR stunt. It wasn't a date." He deftly tossed the paper ball at Davies' head, hitting the mark before Davies could bat it away. Concealing his inner glee, he strode towards the showers.

"I just wanted to congratulate you, mate! It's not like you've dated an actual girl since Bell… If it counts," Davies taunted in retaliation.

"Who?" asked Flanner again. Oliver played deaf, and instead stepped into the shower and locked himself in. His glee had converted into nervous energy over the reality that Davies could have known (or could he?), and just felt glad the others didn't.

Just as he pulled his breeches off, Neil splashed some cold water into his stall. "How convincing, Wood! If you weren't interested in this mystery girl, won't you tell us who she is?"

Oliver inwardly cursed his teammate's having noticed his omission. "You were washing your nuts with that water," he grit out, and pretended to drown himself in the shower until everyone left. With nothing but the spray to keep him company, he wondered why he couldn't just tell them everything. Or anything, for that matter. It was just Katie, for crying out loud. Then again, it was Katie, not just Katie.

When the coast was clear, he made his way back to Puddlemere Tower. In the lobby he bumped into Isadora Fairfax, the only female on the team. They entered the lift together. Pressing on the button for the 14th floor, Oliver asked, "16th, Fairfax?"

"15th, Wood," she corrected him dryly. "I only live a floor above you, you keep forgetting."

"Oh, yes, how silly of me," Oliver said coolly, although his face betrayed a bit of panic, and Isadora took notice.

"I may have overheard some drunken singing from your flat last night," she said. "This is the first time I've ever heard you take a girl home." She sneered a bit, and pushed a stunned Oliver out the elevator and into his flat. "Can't say that I like the idea. I'll see you in the weight room tomorrow, yeah?" she said as the doors closed.

Sighing, Oliver pinched the bridge of his nose. Why was everyone on his ass today? And why was he so shy about wanting the rumors to be true? He shouldn't be, and it was high time he made a move, career or no career. It was decided: he would ask Katie out. Soon. Maybe. In any case, it wouldn't harm anyone if they saw each other more. Maybe.

The tired Keeper threw himself on his couch and thought of a letter to pen…

A/N: Hooray for Puddlemere in their various states of undress! Who's Oliver writing to? Review to find out! And stay tune - Katie's tryout is next!