Golden Girl; 𝓕𝓻𝓮𝓭 𝓦𝓮𝓪𝓼𝓵𝓮𝔂

Fourth Year: Slugs Slugs Slugs

The Gryffindor team huddled in the changing room at the crack of dawn, all having been rudely awakened not fifteen minutes before.

The twins sat puffy-eyed and tousle-haired, next to Bambi, her own hair in an unkept messy bun from the night before, dark circles under her eyes. Alicia was leaning against the wall, just barely awake and nodding off, while Angelina yawned again and again, shooting occasional annoyed looks at Wood.

Oliver was only waiting on Harry, and upon his entrance, briskly walked up and patted him hard on the back, "There you are, Harry, what kept you?" He asked.

"Our team," Oliver announced, "As you may have noticed," He added grinning with the most energy Bambi could ever see someone muster at such an early hour, "Has all our positions full from last year, which means we can get a head start on practicing when the other House teams are still holding tryouts." This piece of news seemed to be the most exciting thing to Oliver. "Now, I wanted a quick talk with you all before we get onto the field because I spent the summer devising a whole new training program, which I really think will make all the difference."

Wood held up a large diagram of a Quidditch field, on which, were drawn many lines, arrows, and crosses in different colored inks. He took out his wand, tapped the board, and the arrows began to shoot all over the diagram.

Fred's head drooped right onto Bambi's shoulder as he let out a long snore.

The first board took nearly twenty minutes to explain, but there was another board under that, and a third under that one. Bambi blinked slowly, hardly taking in a word he was saying as he rambled on.

"So," Wood said, "Is that clear? Any questions?"

"I've got a question, Oliver," said George, who had woken with a start, "Why couldn't you have told us all this yesterday when we were awake?"

Wood glowered at them all, "Now listen here, you lot." He said, "We should have won the Quidditch cup last year. We're easily the best team, But unfortunately— owing to circumstances beyond our control—"

Bambi knew he didn't mean to, but Oliver's eyes for a brief moment flicked to Harry, who had spent the final match of the previous year in the Hospital wing.

Wood took a moment to recompose himself, "So, this year, we train harder than ever before... Okay, let's go and put our new theories into practice!" He shouted, seizing his broomstick and leading the way out of the locker rooms.

As they exited the locker rooms and made their way to the Quidditch pitch, Bambi walked alongside Oliver. The early morning light cast long shadows on the dewy grass, and the cool air carried the faint scent of autumn. She stretched slowly, easing the stiffness from her limbs, and glanced at Oliver.

"Good to have you back here, Bambi," Oliver said with a grin. "Hope you got a lot of practice in this summer."

Bambi returned the smile. "Yeah, plenty. Spent a lot of time flying with the twins and dodging a fair amount of Bludgers."

Oliver chuckled. "Sounds like you had an interesting summer." He smiled, "Oh, so, hey- I was thinking, maybe we could work on some new strategies together. Your flying has always been top-notch, and I could use your input on some continued game plans."

Bambi raised an eyebrow, intrigued. "Really? I'd love to help!" A feeling of confident pride built inside her, but she pushed it aside.

"Am I really that good that he's asking me for advice?"

He nodded, his grin widening. "Absolutely. You've got a great eye for the game, and I think we could come up with some plays that'll leave the other teams in the dust."