Fun and Games

Chapter Six: The Invitation

Lost in thought Eamonn quickly made his way back to the infirmary. He had been up all night, and now all he wanted to do was to crawl into his bed and sleep for a week! He was no longer as young as he had once been, and it was a startling revelation for him. Old age seemed to have crept up on him without his noticing, and only just now pounced. As quickly as he could, Eamonn hurried down the corridor. He knew full well how late it was, and cursed himself for letting time slip away from him as it had. He hoped that Oliver would still be there watching over Lili, but had a feeling that Oliver would not have spent the night by her side. Wizards of that sort were a dying breed. He also reckoned that the loudmouthed Captain he'd seen the day before, had probably wanted to talk to Oliver as soon as he was done with Lili. He had seemed quite irked the day before, and Eamonn couldn't really blame Oliver for not wanting to put that off for very long. Eamonn was more than a little familiar with wizards like Liam and definitely did not care much for that type of wizard. He set those displeasing thoughts aside as he cautiously approached the infirmary, fairly certain as to what he was going to find.

He walked quietly into the room and smiled at the unexpected sight that met his eyes. There Lili was, fast asleep in the infirmary bed, with her young wizard Oliver dozing in the chair by her side. Eamonn felt gratified at the sight, happy that there were still a few good ones left in the world for witches like Lili. Lili and Oliver both looked so peaceful that he decided not to wake them up right away.

He yawned, and checked his watch. It had been a long time since he had last pulled an all nighter, and he was absolutely exhausted! This past time he had spent the whole night recreating the defense spells in Lili's necklace. It was painstakingly meticulous work, but well worth his while as Lili had proven the day previous. He sincerely hoped that after the day before's episode it would not be needed. But since he wasn't a gambling wizard, he wasn't going to take that chance. Eamonn knew that Lili was too irrational about some things for him to trust that she had finally learned her lesson. He stood there for a minute contemplating the best way to wake the sleeping pair without embarrassing them too much.

As he was standing there deliberating on what to do, the decision was taken out of his hands. The door flew open and the main head of the company strode in along with his entourage and the obnoxious Captain. At the sound of the door slamming open both Lili and Oliver started awake and looked around the room groggily taking their bearings. The large beefy man spearheaded a group of four neatly dressed wizards. Liam, oozing enough charm to win over an entire stadium full of an opposing team's fans, brought up the rear of the group.

"Lili, me dear lass, how are yeh doing on 'tis fione mornin'?" boomed the large wizard in a thick Irish accent, and a twinkle in his eye.

"Mmm. . . My head aches, but other than that I feel fine." She smiled wanly at the older man, still feeling a little muzzy, but awake enough to tease the older wizard. "Yourself must have been fairly worried about meself to come down to see meself. Yourself's a very busy wizard."

He laughed a big jolly laugh at her imitation of him. "Oh no, I know yeh can take care of yehself. Although yeh do have a tendency to do stupid things sometimes, but I forgive yeh. This young wizard here insisted that we come to make sure ye'were okay." He gestured towards Liam, who was still oozing charm for all her was worth, and continued, "I told 'im that herself would b'just fione after a g'nights sleep, but himself insisted. Sos here we'are to see yeh. . . Although, now that I think of it, I do have some business to discuss with yeh." He eyed her laying in bed and chuckled to himself, "but later we'll give yeh time to get yehself together." He grinned at her disheveled state, and she flushed slightly.

Oliver smiled to himself at the friendly banter between Lili and the larger man. Clearly he was quite fond of her, and she enjoyed playing along with him. Lili definitely seemed to be drawn to people full of life and mischief, first the Weasley twins, and now this pair of elderly jokers.

"Ah Diarmuid, how very kind of you to express your overwhelming concern for my well-being." She smiled, "I'm meeting a few friends for lunch. . . So, er um. . . I'll make my way to your office just after lunch then? Is that soon enough for you?" She glanced at him questioningly, really hoping he'd agree since she really needed some time to get herself together both physically and mentally before meeting with him. She didn't know what he wanted to talk to her about, but wanted some time to prepare herself for anything. Knowing Diarmuid it really could be anything, from a lecture about her most recent behavior to congratulations for 'her' team getting the sponsorship, to a spirited discussion about which teams have chances at the cups. Where Diarmuid was concerned, 'business' tended to have a rather loose definition, mostly suited to his mood.

"Oh that'll do, that'll do just fione." He surveyed the room, for the first time noting Oliver, but instead of commenting on him just yet he turned his gaze first to his old friend. "Eamonn! Ya'old dog yeh! I should've guessed that ye'd be here. When Lili's in trouble yeh always there to help her out of it. Don't yeh think yeh getting a wee bit old for that now?"

"Diarmuid me old boy, good to see yeh too. Yeh seem t'forget that yeh older than me. And here yeh'are to help out as well." Eamonn beamed at the larger man as he slipped easily back into his own dialect, "jus' making sure Lili's okay. Someone's got t'do it don't yeh know. An I didn't like that funny business with the Bludgers at all, at all. S'not natural, that."

"That yeh right. An' until she picks a young wizard someone's got t'make sure she doesn't go and get herself killed." He grinned widely, as Lili blushed. "'d be bloody inconvenient considering all the trouble I went through to get her here in the first place!"

"Diarmuid! Well I never!" Lili huffed mock angrily, "if you keep talking about me like that I'll just hop on the next Portkey home and wash my hands of the lot of you!" She stuck out her tongue and crossed her arms across her chest pouting a little bit, but obviously having a hard time trying to keep a straight face.

"Aw Lili me lass I know yeh joking! And what's worse yeh'know I am too! Now c'mon. . . Let me see that smile?" he wheedled cheerfully, clearly enjoying himself.

Lili laughed, not able to maintain her annoyed demeanor any longer, and once she stopped she flashed Diarmuid a genuine smile. "Ya happy now?"

"O'course! Well, mostly. . . Now all y'have to do is to find a nice young wizard and settle down, then I'd be perfectly happy." Diarmuid tried to hide his grin and winked at Eamonn before turning his glance toward the silent Oliver.

Oliver flushed faintly at the timing of his gaze and the implications that were made, silently cursing the fact that Liam was in the room to bear witness to the elder wizard's friendly banter. Liam is so not going to like this, it's going to make that little chat with him later on just that much more pleasant I'm sure. . . Why did he have to see that I'd spent the night here?! I'm positive that's not going to win me any brownie points. It's not as if I had intended on staying. . . But I'm sure he's not going to see it that way. . . What is it that's making him so, so irritable?

"That was one hell of a catch, me lad. I'm much obliged to yeh for saving one of me favorite employees." Diarmuid nodded in Lili's direction and she blushed again faintly, looking down at her hands and fidgeting with her ring again.

Oliver had a hard time not noticing the dark look Liam was shooting him behind the larger wizard's back. Wonderful. . . That really is going to be one pleasurable conversation later isn't it? And I haven't even done a thing! I really don't know how he could be so annoyed with me. . . Why now? Things are really starting to look up for me! The team is doing better! We even had a shot at the T&LE sponsorship! The coup de gras for any team! Granted we're probably not going to get it, regardless of what Lili's said, but that's beside the point! Things have been going really well for me! So why me? And of course why now?! Liam's never had a problem with me before. . .

"I very much enjoyed watching yeh guys play yesterday, yeh really managed to utilize our brooms and equipment to their fullest extent. I look forward to seeing more of yeh. That is, o' course, if yeh should chose to accept our sponsorship." His last statement was sent in Liam's direction.

Liam quickly wiped the look of pure hatred off of his face, replacing it with one that was only too pleased to accept the offer before the older wizard could notice. He did his best to put off a pleasing vibe, as this sponsorship was very important to him, and he didn't want to do anything to spoil it when he was so close.

"Of course we would love to accept your sponsorship sir." Liam smiled, positively exuding charm and graciousness. "It would be an honor to be the new poster team for Thunder & Lightening Enterprises." His eyes gleamed with an unearthly glow that only Oliver noticed.

"Good, set it up with Lili here, she will be your liaison to the company," Diarmuid gestured at Lili.

She smiled, genuinely happy that Diarmuid had decided to give Puddlemere United the Sponsorship without her having to ask him to do so. They were, after all very good players and certainly deserved it on their own merit. Lili's offer to give them the sponsorship as a compensation of sorts, really wasn't a very good compensation as they honestly deserved it in the first place. At Lili's smile, Liam's smile became more of a wolfish grin. He found it to be almost too good to be true.

"So whatever you need just let her know and she will be sure to take care of it." And then in a stage whisper to Eamonn, "do ye think that maybe if we put her in contact with so many good looking fit young wizards she'd be bound t'chose one o'them?" He managed to contain his laughter for only about a second before exploding with laughter at his own joke.

"Diarmuid!!! That's enough!" exclaimed Lili. Her face had turned so red that it was now white with little pink patches.

Eamonn winked at Diarmuid. "You really think so? I've been trying to get rid of her for years but to no avail." Eamonn sighed dramatically and then couldn't help laughing as well.

"Really, you two old wizards are worse than a couple of gossiping school girls!" Lili's face was still red, but her voice had lost its edge and her eyes were dancing.

Oliver watched in slightly shocked amazement, and tried to keep himself from joining in the laughing. The slight shock came from the fact that she was single. The ring she was wearing looked fairly serious to him, but then again he didn't have much experience in that realm. He also had to privately admit that she appeared to be a winsome witch and he couldn't quite make out why she would chose to be single. He figured that she had to be making a conscious decision on that part, as he couldn't imagine wizards not being attracted to her. Not that I'm interested in her though. . . That would just be plain inappropriate! Especially since we will now be working together! It was obvious to him that the older men enjoyed poking fun at Lili's single status, and that they had been doing it for quite some time. Or rather, at least long enough for her to enjoy it too. Nevertheless Oliver decided not to join in the laughter at Lili's expense. Liam on the other hand joined in laughing heartily.

Once Diarmuid had finally regained his composure he made his way to the door. "Now if tha's all I really must b'going," he said wiping tears of mirth from his eyes. "What's next?" he barked to the group of silent wizards in his entourage. They had neither said anything or really moved much since their entrance, behavior Oliver found strangely unnerving. At Diarmuid's question, they suddenly became animated and started shuffling parchment, quills, and little notebooks.

"10:00 am. appointment with the broom researchers in the lab, sir!" Chirped one of the followers triumphantly, earning him dirty looks from the others. He grinned and preened himself a little in their glares.

"Right then, I'll see yeh'after lunch Lili," The large man smiled one last time, and exited the room taking his entourage with him.

Eamonn took the momentary pause to give the repaired necklace to Lili, inwardly delighting in the way her face lit up upon seeing her necklace again. Her genuine joy at having the necklace back good as new, warmed his old heart. That alone was enough for him to make spending the entire night fixing it for her, when he was fairly certain that he would probably have to do it again at some point. He knew her well enough to know that she still chafed at her new limits and boundaries, and probably would for a long time.

"Oh Eamonn, you've fixed it! Thank you so much!" She gave him a hug and a quick kiss on the cheek. Lili held the necklace up to the light and the little phoenix pendant shone brightly in the sunlight, the small blue-green stone in the phoenix's claws glittered as it caught the light streaming in the window. "It's perfect! Just like new! How can I ever thank you?!"

"Aw, don't worry about it lass. Not a problem. Now I really must get some rest. I was up attending to a few things all night and I am completely exhausted! I'm not as young as I used to be," he grinned sheepishly. "I'll see you for dinner tonight Lili?"

"Of course! Same time, same place?" She smiled at the thought of having dinner with him.

He grinned and nodded, his eyes falling on Oliver. "Thank you for staying with Lili as I requested. Most other wizards would have left after she had fallen asleep. It was very kind of you to stay."

Oliver flushed faintly, avoiding Liam's malicious glare. "No trouble sir. Only too happy to be of help."

"You're a good lad then. I'll see you tonight Lili." Eamonn nodded at Liam before turning and exiting the room. His bed in his old office was calling out to him. Diarmuid had enough foresight to leave Eamonn's office alone, even though he had retired from the company. Diarmuid knew that Eamonn was they type to never actually retire, as there would always be something to draw him back, especially now that Lili was working for the company.

Liam took Eamonn's exit as an opportunity to sidle up to Lili's bedside while she was occupied examining her necklace. He pulled something out of his pocket, murmured a few words and suddenly bouquet of pretty rainbow flowers appeared in his hands. Rainbow flowers being a type of flora that constantly shifted colors to suit either the person holding them, or the environment in which they were growing or resting.

Once she finished inspecting the necklace Lili fastened it securely around her neck and slipped it into her robes for safekeeping. When she looked up, she gasped at the flowers Liam was holding out to her. "Oh Liam! They're gorgeous! But. . . But why? Oh, you know you really shouldn't have! They're absolutely beautiful!"

"Not nearly as beautiful as you are." His eyes made their way over her form lying on the bed. "Just think of them as a get well wish. . . And if that doesn't work for you then think of them as a token of appreciation for all you have done for the team." He beamed, "I don't doubt that we wouldn't have gotten his sponsorship if it weren't for you." He smiled enchantingly and claimed one of her hands to give it one of what was becoming his trademark soft kisses.

Oliver had a hard time keeping his expression neutral, but somehow managed through superhuman effort. He still had that little chat to attend to with Liam, and it would do him no good to infuriate Liam more than he already was before that talk. Oliver had seen Liam angry before, but had never been on the receiving end of it. He wasn't exactly looking forward to the experience. What got to him the most was the fact that he didn't really have any idea as to why Liam was so angry. Oliver had time the night before to think about it while watching over Lili, but he was still coming up empty handed. He'd done nothing wrong as far as he could see, so why Liam would be angry was beyond him.

"Thank you Liam." Lili replied in a glowing voice. She looked at him warmly as she reclaimed her hand from him. The flowers turned from a dark purple and red mix to a light blue and white one as he handed them to her. She inhaled their fragrance and sighed, "oh they're just lovely."

While Lili was examining the flowers, Liam made his way over to Oliver, who had risen at Diarmuid's entrance. "I hope you haven't forgotten about our little chat Wood," he hissed. Then he raised his voice louder so that Lili could hear him, "come along Wood, it's past time that we should be going. We've got lots to do, and I'm sure Lili here needs to get herself together for that meeting after lunch." He turned to give Lili a much more pleasant look. "We'll just leave you to get ready then. I'll be in touch with you shortly to make the necessary arrangements between my team and your company. We'll make it over dinner." Liam smiled ingratiatingly and pulled Oliver towards the door.

Lili looked up from admiring the beautiful flowers to catch Oliver's eyes. "Oh! Oliver, wait. Wait a moment please." Lili glanced at him appealingly.

Oliver found that as much as he knew he should, he couldn't resist her appeal for him to stay for just a moment longer. As he paused, somewhat unsure in the doorway, Liam gave him a dirty look and continued on his way out into the hall apparently giving his reluctant permission for Oliver to stay for another minute or two. As he past, Liam snarled something incomprehensible to Oliver, and inaudible to Lili before leaving the room.

Lili looked shyly over at Oliver. "Er, Oliver, those friends I'm meeting for lunch. . . Well, they're the Weasley twins. If you don't have anything else more pressing to do, you're more than welcome to come along to see them." She smiled encouragingly at him. "I'm sure that they will be more than delighted to see you!"

Oliver was torn, he wanted to go, but was afraid of what Liam would say. Liam was capable of making his life a living hell. He looked down at his feet, his face clearly showing conflicting emotions.

"Aw, c'mon Oliver! I know you want to come. If not for my sparkling company then come to see the Weasleys! And oh how annoyed they'll be with me if they find out you were here and I couldn't convince you to come along to see them. . . We can't have that now can we?" Lili tried in a wheedling tone. As she found that it wasn't quite working, she flashed him one of her best innocent smiles, complete with that vague outline of a halo. "Aw, c'mon it'll be fun!"

Aw shit, thought Oliver, I'm not going to win this. Liam is not going to like it, but. . . Screw Liam. After what had happened yesterday, Oliver had lost all respect he had formerly had for the team captain. Liam can just go. . . Oliver suddenly realized that he'd been staring into the middle distance for quite some time. He flashed a bright smile.

Lili's heart skipped a beat at that brilliant smile directed her way. Although the skipped heart beat could have been some of the remaining after effects from her accident the day before, she somehow really rather doubted it.

"Of course I'll come. I haven't seen those Weasley's for almost a month!" I'm probably going to regret this later, but what the hell, he thought. If the Weasley's are going to be involved it'll be worth it!

Lili grinned at him happily. "Great! I'm meeting them at 12 in the lobby of this building." Grimacing for a moment she continued, "I'm not letting them anywhere near my office for a long time!" Her expression turned contemplative, as if she was trying to remember something that she had forgotten. "Oh! And before I forget! Wear casual Muggle clothing, we try to keep the lobby Muggle orientated. We get a fair number of tourists wandering in and it's best if they just see a Muggle office building."

"Sure, sure, that makes sense. I'll see you at noon then!" Oliver grinned and waved as he walked out into the hall to rejoin Liam and have that little discussion no doubt.