More Than Friends

Chapter 1

Katie and Oliver had grown up as neighbours and best mates rearing from the well-established wizarding families of Bell and Wood. They were only children, and in their youth one family had practically adopted the child of the other. Much of their early childhood was spent riding on miniature brooms and playing with toy wands. Though many years had passed since they had enjoyed such activities, both remained the best of mates, despite some changes they had undergone thorough growing up. Oliver now had a girlfriend, Lilly Quinn, and Katie had decided that boys other than Oliver were no longer "gross" as she had once described them. Both had remarkable talent for Quidditch as both had played it in their own fashion since the day they learned to fly. They were flying around the Quidditch Pitch after a training session on a cool Monday night. Oliver flung the Quaffle to the brown-eyed girl that he'd known for most of his life. She caught and rebounded it to the good-looking Quidditch star. After their brisk game of catch, Oliver began to land as Katie circled the pitch to warm down. Oliver laughed when she asked him if he wanted to "warm down" with her and hollered back that he preferred to stay warm if he was going to see Lilly later on. Katie grinned and murmured something like "grotty boy" before landing herself. Oliver grinned back and ruffled her hair as they walked to the Gryffindor tent.

~*~

Katie was still wiping the broomsticks and balls clean when Oliver returned to the Gryffindor tent from his shower, wearing a crimson red towel around his waist. She was beginning to regret volunteering to clean them this week as another splinter poked into her thumb. "Ah well, too late now," she thought, pulling the splinter out with her teeth. "Ouch!"

Oliver began searching through his bag for his robes and a jumper. As he began to dress, Katie looked up for her Healer's Kit. Their eyes met and both turned a slight pink.

"Oy! Do you mind?" Katie shrieked, embarrassed.

"Um, s-sorry?" Oliver stammered, going from pink to red. "It's not like I haven't changed in front of you before and--and there's nothing you haven't seen!" Oliver was a bit surprised; it was unlike Katie to be worried about something so trivial.

"Yes, well...well... Lilly! She wouldn't be too happy about that!" Katie threw down the Quidditch gear, finished, and headed straight for the shower.

"God, what's the bloody matter with her lately?" Oliver said under his breath. "What's the bloody matter with me?" Katie thought viciously. "You are what's the bloody matter with me! Well... okay, not you as a person, but..."Katie struggled with her thoughts, guilty, "...you're taken."

She could have any guy she wanted, except the one she really wanted, and maybe a few Slytherin boys (not that she wanted any of them, anyway). Oliver thought of her as a friend, she was sure of that. "No one, not even Lilly, knows Oliver Wood the way I do," she thought. And no one beside Katie knew how she fancied him.