Keep Away

My arms flew into the air, narrowly missing the lamp beside me. "OLIVER WOOD!? ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!"

Fred's eyes widened and he held up a hand to quiet me. "Jane--Jane don't--"

"Oliver Wood...Oliver bloody Wood." I was on my feet now, pacing back and forth and trying to dig up some sort of revenge on the fly.

"What about Oliver Wood?"

I knew who it was before she finished her question. Libby Williams was standing a few meters away with her arms on her hips and a quizzical expression on her brow. Leave it to the number one member of the Oliver Wood fan club (or as I called them, the shriekers) to hear his name while passing.

"He died in a bar fight!" I cried angrily. "Now go set up funeral times!" I chucked a throw pillow at her resulting in Libby giving me an offended glance as she made her way out of the portrait hole. "I bloody hate her!"

Fred and George tried their best to calm me down. "Jane, let me explain!" Fred said, pulling me back into the chair.

"He didn't just go telling every bloke he saw. There's a reason," explained George. They were smiling.

Why would Oliver Wood tell the twins something he'd sworn not to tell--well, he didn't particularly swear not to. That wasn't the point. The point was that he put some rubbish about trying out for Seeker in my head only to humiliate me anyway!

"Wood told us about what you have to do," Fred whispered so that only his twin and I could hear. "He said you have to try out for Seeker or he goes and tells the whole school you can't fly."

I nodded. That was obvious.

"He told us," continued George before I could interrupt with Wood-hating words, "because he thought we could help you learn to fly."

I held up my hands. "Look, guys. No offense, but Wood is full of it."

"What do you mean?" George raised a brow.

"I can fly just fine. I learned like everyone else in our first year," I said with a snigger. "I told you lot already, I have serious motion sickness. Wood saw me out on the pitch earlier. I was testing out a broom low to the ground because I can't fly higher or I'll get sick. He's just spreading rumors again, boys." I shot them my most convincing grin.

There was no way I was going to let this happen. Sure, the twins could definitely help me learn to fly, but there was no way the both of them could keep their mouths shut for a couple weeks until try-outs. Fred would eventually blab to Angelina about where his spare time not snogging her was going and George would pick up a bottle of whiskey and explain about my not kicking off properly to the entire common room. It wasn't happening.

"Really? You can fly fine then?"

I nodded heavily. "I can fly fine, boys. Wood is just a silly prat."

Fred smiled, more than likely thinking of spending more snogging time with Angelina. "Well, good to hear then. I think I'll go finish my...erm...Potions essay for tomorrow. See you, Janey."

I waved, heading out through the portrait hole and making my way downstairs. Once out of earshot, my temper flared right back up. Wood wanted to help me learn to fly by telling the two people most likely to tell the entire blasted school! What a sly man he was.

Bloody hell, I'd lost all of my power against him. I didn't even have an argument, which did not come in handy once I knocked into him just before the top of the marble staircase.

"Wood!" I cried. "Watch where you're going!"

Wood laughed at me and I watched a smile brighten his tanned face. "Perry, where are you going in such a hurry? Quidditch practice?"

"Don't be stupid, Wood." I tried to walk around him. I did not need this right now, especially since he held all of the cards in his hands.

"Talk to the twins yet?"

That did it. "YES, I TALKED TO THE DAMN TWINS, WOOD!" I cried, shoving him with my pointer finger. "I thought we had a deal! I can't believe you!"

He looked slightly taken aback. "We do have a deal--"

"Deal my arse! You telling them breaks our damn deal, Wood!"

"Hold it, Perry." He held out his arms and placed his hands gruffly on my shoulders. I stood for a second, frozen because his hands gripped my shoulders so hard. "I didn't do that to break our deal. I did that so they could help you learn so you won't make a prat out of yourself at try outs."

"I don't know why you even want me to try out to be your sodding Seeker, Wood. I don't even like Quidditch."

Wood cocked a brow. "Yes, that's why you've subscribed to the Quidditch Weekly magazine for two years now."

"I mean I don't like playing it!" I cried, wriggling away from his hands. "I know you're doing this just to humiliate me and I'll have you know I'll try out just FINE!"

"Will you?" He smirked again in his usual, arrogant way.

"Yes. And I don't need Fred and George's help to do it. I can do it myself you good-for-nothing prat!" With that, I stepped to the side before he could block me and made my way down the stairs. At least I had the last word even though I knew learning to fly was going to be my downfall.

"Maybe Johnson or Spinnet will want to help you...I'll ask them..."

"WOOD! DON'T MAKE ME COME BACK UP THERE!"

He chuckled as he walked away, back toward Gryffindor Tower, an obvious skip in his step.

I found a different broom in the back of the outdoor closet this time and I examined it closely before plucking cobwebs off of the ends. I didn't know what I was examining for, but it looked sound. It looked like a broom.

The pitch was deserted like that morning and I walked to the center of it, wind whistling through my long brown hair (every once in a while knocking a piece of it into my mouth or eye). It was nice, being on the grass that I watched from the stands. I felt almost powerful. Playfully, I lifted the broom above my head in imitation of winning the Quidditch Cup.

"Thank you, thank you!" I cried, laughing into the hard autumn wind. "I'd like to dedicate this win to the years of reading Quidditch Weekly and to this broom that finally got its chance!" I paused, laughing harder now. "And with this win I would like to make my first act as Quidditch-Cup-Winner to name myself captain and kick the bloody Scotsman off the team!"

I smiled to myself, imagining the cheers pumping through my ears. Sure, it was a lofty goal but it was nice all the same. Mounting the broom, I took in a deep breath. This was it--the moment of undefined truth. I bent my knees and kicked off as hard as I could.

I was flying--wind in my hair and face toward the sky. Unfortunately, once I was off the ground I didn't know exactly what to do--so I experimented. I pushed my body forward into the broom, but it took off toward the other end of the pitch so quickly that before going even four meters my face was implanted in the grassy pitch.

It was a soft landing even though my mouth was full of dirt. I sat up, dusting off my robes and trying to wiggle the blades of grass out of my hair, and I looked around. No one had seen (thankfully), but I wasn't taking any more chances. There was no way I would be able to continue in the day light.

I picked up the broom, cursing at it quietly as I made my way across the pitch.

"Jane! Jane, I'm glad you're here!"

I turned. The girls were walking toward me dressed in their Quidditch robes and holding brooms.

Alicia grinned. "I've got to show these lousy gits who's boss. Keeper...I ruddy swear."

Angelina chuckled, stretching out a few feet from me. "We've been taunting her about her true calling since you left." She looked over at the seething Alicia. "And don't worry, Jane, Wood isn't coming."

"What do you mean? Why would he?"

Katie mounted her broom, letting the dying light capture her face. "We called an emergency practice but we told Oliver that Alicia would fill in!"

"I swear to MERLIN I'm going to bloody KILL YOU!" Alicia took off after her, waving her hands around like a mad woman.

I groaned. "All right, you girls have fun." I smiled, making my way past Angelina.

"Where are you going? I was hoping you'd be the other Chaser while Alicia fulfills her life dreams." Angelina poked me with her broom. "C'mon, Jane, you never fly with us. You've got a shelf full of Quidditch magazines and you can never fill in."

"I don't feel good."

"You never feel good!" Angelina countered.

This was a hell of a time for them to finally be asking me about playing Quidditch. I thought for a moment while glancing up at Katie swerving in and out of the hoops away from Alicia. It had to be Oliver that pressured them into this.

"Look," I said, holding up my hands. "I told you I have severe motion sickness. I'm going to bed."

Angelina frowned. "All right. I'll send the Keeper up in a bit."

My eyes went to the size of tennis balls. "Wha--huh? Why would you do that? Why would I want to see him?"

She raised a brow. "Erm...I meant Alicia, but if you want me to send up Wood I have no problem doing so. Maybe the two of you can reconcile something so we can go out and have a dinner in Hogsmeade together."

"Leave it alone, Ang." I threw my broom over my shoulder, huffing, and continued on my way. All the way back to the castle I could hear Alicia screaming vulgar things at Katie.

Things didn't seem to be looking up. Every time I tried to learn, someone came and interrupted me or I ate so much dirt I was full. I tried. I tried until the poor broom was splintering at the ends and my hems were six inches deep in mud. Nothing seemed to be working and it didn't help that Fred was gloating at dinner about try-outs only being a week away.

I spent hours in the common room pouring over books on techniques, cursing myself for not just learning when I had the chance. The twins figured I had a paper to do and the girls were gossiping too much for their own good and stayed away from me and my books. To them, gossiping in the dormitory probably looked a lot better than quizzing me on whatever I was working on.

The Thursday before Saturday's try-outs I stood on the pitch, having reserved it privately for the afternoon. I started my routine the same way, mounting my broom, taking a deep breath, and then eating dirt. I had improved considerably. Now I got at least six feet in the air before falling to my doom.

"This is rubbish!" I cried, falling to my knees in the grass and throwing the broom as far as it would go. "I don't WANT to try out for sodding SEEKER! I don't even LIKE Seekers!"

"That's not very good team spirit."

My face almost went back into the dirt.

"Perry, you just haven't practiced enough."

I turned around to see Oliver Wood smirking at me. He was holding his broom over his shoulder, standing back so that his weight was shifted on one leg.

"Oh, wonderful. It would have been nice to have the entire summer to practice or maybe a little lead way on the date of the try-outs. Must be nice to have that kind of power, Wood." I stood up, dusting off my pants. "I don't need you out here tearing the mickey out of me, you know."

"I know," he said. "I came out here to teach you to fly."

"I do NOT need your help, Wood."

Oliver bit his lip. He folded his arms and surveyed me, something I found increasingly annoying. "No, I've been watching you for a few days now and I think you need my help."

"If it wasn't for YOU, I wouldn't even have to try out for this bloody position and I could go back to reading my damn magazines and going to games. I don't need your help of all people. If I needed help, I would ask...someone else."

"But not the twins," Oliver replied. "No, not them. And not the Chasers...they're excellent fliers, by the way. I should know. Who then?"

"Anyone but you," I snapped, walking away to grab the broom. "Now bugger off, Wood!" I pushed my right leg over the broom and kicked off. And then ate dirt. Some even got into my hair.

"Let me help," he said, pulling me off the ground. "You just need to adjust your balance."

"Don't touch me." I turned and walked toward the large hoops, flipping my hair as I went. I took a deep breath, staring at the stupid broom in front of me. I should just forfeit and Oliver would get the privilege of telling the entire school (or just Gryffindors who would be at the practice, but they would tell the entire world) that I was a fake.

"Are you sure?"

I narrowed my eyes and brushed my hair onto my back. I could do this. I glanced over at him, still standing in the same position. I could beat him at this even if I didn't get made stupid sodding Seeker of his team.

"Balance on both legs, Perry."

"GO TO HELL, WOOD!" I did it though, balanced with both of my knees slightly bent.

"Grab it with your right hand in front of your left if you're right handed!"

"I told you to go jump off a cliff!" I adjusted my hold.

"Make sure you're sitting correctly on the broom and then kick off my bending your knees at the same angle!"

This time I didn't reply, only bent my knees and kicked off as gently as I possibly could. My toes skimmed the grass for a few meters until I landed abruptly, but that was the first time I had not completely landed face-first in the Quidditch pitch mud. And it was the worst possible mud--mixed with insects and the leftovers from the bottoms of people's shoes.

"Nice flying, Perry!" Oliver turned, snickering to himself, and walked toward the exit to the pitch.

I made a face, stepping away from the broom for a moment and staring around at the grass that was in tact instead of interrupted by large shoe skid marks and face prints. "Oy, Wood!" I cried, running a few steps after him before I stopped.

"Hmm?" He turned.

"Sod off." I smiled.

He returned it and left the pitch. "Keep practicing, Perry. I'll call the Canons about you." I could have sworn there was a wink before he vanished into the darkness toward the castle.

Rolling my eyes, I took a seat on the nearest bench. Perhaps this was not going to be as difficult as I thought.

On Saturday morning I remembered why I hated the actual playing of Quidditch. Angelina woke me around six in the morning. I had no idea what six was. I didn't know six existed until Ang pointed at the clock.

"Wake up, Jane. It's time to get moving."

"For what? Fire? Apocalypse?" I muttered.

"Quidditch," she replied with a cocky grin.

"Same bloody thing." I pulled the covers over my eyes, but they vanished soon after from the well-placed wand flick of Alicia. "Why am I getting up again?"

"Because Oliver told us you're trying out for Seeker."

I shot up in bed. "Excuse me?"

"Last night in the common room after you'd gone to bed," said Katie with a smile. "We asked for the list of people trying out for the spot and your name was on it."

"So naturally, we figured it had to be a mistake," said Alicia, narrowing her eyes and ruffling through her wardrobe for something.

"But no," continued Angelina, "dear Oliver assured us that it was true. So we decided that you were going to wake up with us this morning."

"And tell us exactly why you decided not to tell us you could fly or that you were trying out for Seeker...this late in our stay at Hogwarts." Alicia folded her arms.

I pressed my face into the nearest pillow. "Oliver Wood is a git and I hate him."

"Yes, we all know that rubbish. Get on with it," said Katie. "We've got Quidditch soon."

I pushed the pillow down so the girls could see my eyes and even though my lying was horrible compared to anyone else at the school, I managed to think something up that was relatively convincing. "I...erm...I had motion sickness before but then I was testing out brooms a few weeks ago and I didn't feel any discomfort. So I...I saw Oli--Wood and he told me to try out and I didn't want to...but I agreed anyway."

Alicia raised a brow and stared at me hard. "Why?"

"I don't know. I don't think I'm any good but I figured I'd give it a go anyway since I've never tried. I don't expect to make it or anything, but it sounded like...fun." I had to swallow before the final word. I tried to look the girls in the eye, but both of my eyes were watering with guilt and in the end I told them I had to go to the loo and sort myself out since it was so early.

I could hear them talking in the other room.

"What's up with her?" asked Katie.

"Bloody hell if I know. I bet her and Wood snogged for a while or something."

"Alicia! That's ridiculous. You know those two would rather be lunch for the Squid than even look at each other," said Angelina. "I bet this was something Oliver cooked up. I'm going to have a word with him about messing with Jane. She seems vulnerable right now."

"THAT'S BECAUSE IT'S SIX IN THE BLOODY MORNING!" I cried from the other side of the bathroom door.

The pitch was dry when I arrived on it, my shoes barely sinking into the dirt. I was wearing my regular robes and had the old beat-up broom with me. Catching sight of a few of the other people trying out for Seeker, I noticed they were all dressed in Gryffindor garb and sporting new broom models. There was one that had only just been released.

I wanted to get this over with more than anything.

"Perry." Oliver put his hand on my shoulder and smiled at me briefly. "I have a present for you."

"Death? Is it death, Wood?"

"Don't be so dramatic," he said, but laughed. He held out a broom. "This is for your try-out."

I stared at the well-polished broom in front of me. "Wood..."

"Yeah, I know it's my broom."

"Wood, I'm going to break it."

He raised a brow. "I didn't think you hated me that much, Perry."

"No! I mean I'm going to fall on my face and your broom is going to be in little tiny pieces all over the grass right next to where my head is."

Oliver squeezed my shoulder tightly. "Good luck, Perry." He turned, smiling, and walked toward the changing rooms where the team was sure to be waiting and Angelina would be ready to corner him.

"Wood?"

He turned again, this time without the broom from the previous evening. "Yeah?"

"Why are you making me do this?"

Oliver shot me the infamous Wood-grin and shrugged. "I'm not making you do anything, Perry. Good luck."

The Seeker candidates were gathered at the north end of the pitch beside a large crate that presumably housed a snitch or two. The group varied between a lot of second and third years, to a few well-mannered fifth and sixth years, and then one seventh year. There was a girl who could have been a fourth year, but I had no idea. She was sort of dodgy-looking and no one was speaking to her.

When the team came out, I knew I would be jeered at. The girls refused to meet my eye out of confusion since this was obviously weird to them. I looked at Oliver and wondered if he had cracked to Angelina about my inability to fly. He was looking cheerful and Angelina was pale and anxious-looking, so I doubted he spilled anything.

Fred and George, however, were a completely different story.

"Janey! We've heard about your natural-born talent!" Fred cried, slapping his brother on the back with his Beater's stick.

"Apparently we heard Wood wrong that time! I wish you would have told us sooner--would have kicked that other git off the team!" George said with a grin.

I tried to ignore them, but they were double-teaming me. A few girls in the audience giggled, but the twins paid them no mind. Both of them could have any woman in the world and yet neither of them had anyone but each other. In the most brotherly sense possible.

"All right!" called Oliver and the group quieted. Fred and George were still making faces and there was an awkward sign in the crowd behind the captain that said: WE HAVE FAITH, PICK THE RIGHT SEEKER. THEN MARRY ME. It was apparent that Oliver was trying his best to ignore the fan base behind him.

"Here's how this is going to go. I'm going to release the snitch. You lot are going to fly in groups of four searching for it. You get points for technique, finding it the quickest, and actually finding it at all. You'll do this a couple times just in case you're paired with a prodigy or some rubbish like that."

I nodded, understanding completely that I was about to look like a moron not only in front of my friends, but the Oliver Wood fan base as well.

"Oliver! Oliver!"

He turned around, annoyed since he was about to blow the whistle and let the first four into the air. "Bloody WHAT?"

"Where's your broom?" asked the girl with the sign.

I blushed and quickly hid it behind my back.