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Daisy whipped up and down the quidditch pitch, her eyes focused on the bludgers as she deftly dodged each one, seamlessly working through the drill.
“Good! Now, keep up your speed! I’m adding more bludgers!” her father, Oliver Wood, shouted from down on the field. She tightened her grip on the broom and leaned closer to the handle, picking up speed as two more bludgers joined the four already whipping around the pitch. “GOOD WORK, PIX!”
She couldn’t help as a small, smug smile came across her face. While working with her father irritated her more often than not - and there were often many epic arguments when he trained her during the summer break - she did ultimately want to make him proud. And at least for the most part today, he hadn’t been too insufferable.
“What’s this? More bludger drills, Coach?” a familiar voice said. “Or are you trying to kill her?” Daisy’s eyes widened as she looked over and saw the captain of Puddlemere, Bryan Wills, jog up to her father’s side in his practice kit. He stopped and looked up, covering his eyes with his hand so he could follow her movement. Her grip slipped slightly at the sudden rush of nerves.
“DAISY! WATCH IT!” her father shouted. She turned her attention back to the pitch just in time to dive out of the way of two bludgers coming at her at once from opposite sides. Bugger. He was going to yell at her for that - she should have easily avoided the near collision. “GET DOWN HERE!”
Sighing, she saw the bludgers return themselves to the open chest at her father’s feet as he frowned at her, watching as she flew over and touched down. It was one of the rare days that he had her practice at the pitch in Puddlemere, wanting her to be prepared for after she graduated. Also, he was still holding team practices and it was easier to train her there in the morning while most of his team were in the gym doing conditioning. He often left his assistant coaches in charge while he worked with her, then had his seeker Ashley White take over in the afternoon while he worked with the rest of the team. When they weren’t there, they were at the pitch in their backyard, Oliver overseeing every second of her training - he had tried using his assistant coaches in the past and decided none of them were good enough for his children.
All of her brothers - the Wood triplets - were now signed for first string in the League with Remus and Alan finally making it up from reserves on the Wanderers, and there was nothing Oliver Wood wanted more than for his slight, ginger firebrand of a daughter to make first string right out of Hogwarts like her older brother Jamie. The scouts were already set to come to all her matches during her seventh year and he was pushing her hard.
Of course, all of that flew out of her head at that moment as she felt her cheeks heat up while she walked over to her father and Wills. The chaser was grinning as she walked up, which caused her stomach to do flip-flops.
Wills had always been one of her favorites on her father’s team - outside of Ashley, that is. And as a little girl, she had been rather smitten with him. She had grown out of it over the years, of course, needing to focus on quidditch and school. Even dated a few blokes her own age, though after the Chris debacle, she stayed away from anyone that was remotely connected to her brothers. But something had changed this summer in regards to Wills. She noticed it the first time she went to watch the team practice right after she got back from Hogwarts. Wills had bounded over towards her, taking her up in his arms and swinging her around - as he usually did - before placing her back down and asking how her exams went. She had gotten a bit flustered and tongue-tied, something that never happened around Wills, before finally sputtering out that she did well enough and would continue on in all her N.E.W.T. classes the next year. He then beamed at her, telling her well done, and it felt like her heart had stopped completely for a few moments.
Which was frustrating, to say the least. Seventh year Daisy Wood did not get crushes. She had Quidditch scouts to focus on. And she most definitely did not get them on the annoying, yet charming star chaser for Puddlemere United. Her father would kill him if he found out. Though he was the captain of the team and integral to all of Oliver Wood’s successful plays, she didn’t put it past him to try and hex Wills if he found. Even if the chaser had no fault in the situation. He didn't even know of her crush.
“Nice work, Pix. Until the end that is,” Wills said. Daisy swallowed and nodded, venturing a look at her father. While he was furious, he didn’t look particularly happy.
“You got distracted. You can’t get distracted,” he said sternly.
“I know, Dad,” she said, gripping her broom.
“What was going through your head up there?” he asked. Daisy’s eyes widened slightly, though she kept herself in check and fought the urge to look at Wills.
“I, I… it won’t happen again, Coach,” she said before gulping. Oliver sighed and shook his head.
“Best not. Take a 5-minute break and then I want you to do five laps for that little fiasco. Got Ashley working with you while I deal with the chasers,” he said. Daisy nodded and walked over to her bag where she pulled out her water bottle and started gulping it down. She could sense Wills walking up to her side as her father went inside to check on the rest of the team.
“Seems Coach has you working on new drills,” he said casually. Daisy nodded quickly, taking in his slightly wet hair and the way his practice t-shirt clung to his chiseled torso. She suddenly turned, acting as though she were inspecting the field.
“For the scouts,” she said. “Been working with me on plays as well for the year.” She willed her heart to stop racing and her mind to stop wondering if he’d take his shirt off later during team practice. Merlin, she needed to stay focused. Her father would kill her if she had another incident like before. More than that, she could not let him know.
“Dare say you’ve got nothing to worry about there. And then next year you’ll be playing against us,” Will said, grinning at her. “Still wish Coach would sign you though.” Daisy snorted as she looked over at him, her eyebrows raised.
“Fat chance of that. Ashley’s good for several more years. Not to mention, he wants me to get a few years of experience on first string elsewhere before he signs me,” she replied, feeling herself begin to relax a bit more.
“True,” Wills said. “But someday we’ll be on the same team, Pix. That is if your dad can afford you and all.” Daisy chuckled and shook her head. “Well… keep at it. Need to go see what’s keeping the others.” He winked at her before walking off, tossing his broom over his shoulder. Daisy let out the breath that she had been holding in and shook her head.
She was not about to let a crush on Wills get in the way. She had her final year of Hogwarts to worry about - both class and Quidditch. The scouts.
“Get a grip, Daisy Wood,” she muttered to herself as she put her broom down and started off jogging around the pitch. Best to get her laps out of the way before her father came back.
~~~
“There you are, Pix!”
Daisy turned around from where she was standing in the middle of the pitch at home to see Wills trotting up to her. This was odd. It was in the middle of the day.
“What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be at practice?” Daisy asked, frowning at him slightly. The blonde player just grinned as he stopped at her side, looking down at her.
“Told him I had a bit of a cold,” he said, his blue eyes twinkling.
“No. You get yourself back to the pitch. I’ll not have him yelling at me for you skivving off,” she demanded. Wills’ grin just grew.
“As I recall, you enjoy a bit of mischief, Pix,” he said, leaning closer to her. Daisy’s eyes widened as her cheeks turned bright pink and purple streaked through her hair. “Ah, what’s this?”
“Nothing,” she said quickly, changing her hair back to normal. She hated when she couldn’t control her metamorphmagus sometimes - usually only when she was feeling rather strong emotions. Wills just chuckled.
“I think you fancy me, Pix,” he said, stepping closer to her as his eyes danced.
“I do not,” she said, trying to rearrange her face into a frown. He only laughed harder.
“You do, Pix. It’s written all over your face,” he said.
“So?” Daisy replied, unsure of what to say next.
“What if I told you that I fancied you as well?”
Daisy’s heart stopped for a moment as her eyes widened. There was no way. Wills was one of the top chasers in the League. Had been playing on Puddlemere for ages. He was captain, for Merlin’s sake. One of the most eligible bachelors in the League. Not to mention, he was a massive ladies’ man. There was no way he fancied her - his coach’s daughter.
“What game are you playing, Wills?” she asked, immediately wondering if her brothers had put him up to it. She narrowed her eyes at him slightly. Wills just chuckled.
“No game, Pix. I fancy you,” he said, stepping even closer to her. Daisy felt her cheeks heat up again, noting that he was standing rather close to her. And he was leaning down, his eyes fixed on hers. Merlin, he smelled amazing. And why hadn’t she ever noticed just how beautiful his eyes were?
“This was actually happening,” she thought. He was about to kiss her. She had wondered what it would feel like and now it was finally happening. She closed her eyes as she took a deep breath and waited.
She could feel his breath against her lips as an odd tingling sensation ran through her body. Just a bit closer…
~~~
“DAISY! BREAKFAST!”
Daisy shot up in bed and whipped her head around wildly, seeing the sunlight pouring in through her windows as her heart pounded. She could hear her mother down in the kitchen through her slightly open door as she glanced over and noted it was 7 a.m. Even though it was summer, no one slept in at the Wood house. Not during the week, anyway. There was Quidditch practice for her and her dad while her mother went to work in her workshop, developing potions and other assorted items for her uncle’s joke shop that she was a partner in.
Daisy quickly tried to jump out of bed, but her legs got tangled in the comforter, causing her to fall onto the floor instead with an ungraceful thud. Groaning she pushed herself up into a sitting position as she rubbed her elbow and scowled at the offending material.
“Everything alright?” her mother asked, walking into her room. She had obviously heard the thud and orbed upstairs. Daisy’s eyes widened as she whipped her head over, seeing the look of worry on her mother’s face. “Thought I heard something.”
“Just… fell out of the bed. I’m fine,” she said quickly before smiling. Iris just stared at her a moment and Daisy was pretty sure her mother was reading her mind. Merlin, she hoped that she didn’t see the dream about Wills.
“Hurry up, then. If you want to eat while it’s still warm,” Iris then said before turning and walking out of the room.
“Don’t forget that Lucy, Sarah, Eliza, and Lisette are coming over this afternoon!” Daisy called after her.
“I remember,” Iris called back. Sighing, Daisy untangled her legs and pushed up, walking over to grab her Gryffindor captain hoodie off her desk chair and pulling it on. Quickly, she made her way downstairs to the kitchen where her father was already sitting at the table, fully dressed and looking over the day’s Prophet. He would be heading over to the pitch shortly after breakfast.
“Ashely’ll be over in an hour,” he said, not looking at her. “I know the girls are coming over, but I want you to get in at least four hours with her before they do.” Daisy sighed and reached for a piece of toast and marmalade.
“Yes, Dad,” she said as her mother sent over plates of eggs, bacon, fruit, and sausage, along with a pitcher of orange juice.
“It is the summer break, Oliver. Let her have some fun,” Iris chided. “It’s her last before school ends.” Oliver looked at his wife over the paper.
“She needs to keep up her form if she wants to be ready for the scouts,” he replied. “And we still need to go over your plays for the season.”
“Yes, but don’t push her too hard,” Iris said. “You remember what it’s like being 17. Er, well… guess that’s not the best example…”
“I am sitting right here,” Daisy muttered, shooting frowns at both her parents. Every since her brothers had graduated and moved into their own place in Diagon Alley, their father had turned his complete focus to his youngest, much to Daisy’s annoyance. If she thought he had been hard on her before, it was nothing compared to how tough he had been since last summer.
“I mean it, you need to push yourself harder than you have before,” Oliver said sternly, putting his newspaper aside as Daisy began eating. He launched into the same spiel that he gave her nearly twice a day. Stay focused. Work harder. The scouts are coming. Don’t you want to make first string right out of school and be considered for the Scottish World Cup team? Blah, blah, blah. She had heard it so often that she could recite the entire speech in her sleep. In fact, she did often have nightmares about it.
However, even her overbearing father couldn’t dim her good mood. Her cousin and best friends from school were coming over for a sleepover. And then next week, she was off to spend the weekend in Diagon Alley with her brothers. Maybe she’d see Wills as well. A smile came across her face at the thought of that. Though she quickly shook her head as her thoughts turned towards the dream.
She really needed to stop daydreaming about him in front of her parents.
“I mean it, Pix. Remember what I said? Your weekends are privileges. You want to spend time with your friends, you need to work hard during the week,” Oliver said. Daisy met his gaze and nodded.
“I said, I got it,” she said slowly, resisting the urge to roll her eyes. Oliver nodded and turned his attention to eating, though he tossed a few questions at Iris about whatever potions she was working on for the shop. Iris answered easily enough, though kept glancing over at Daisy, who was rather preoccupied with her breakfast. After a bit of time, Oliver stood and walked his dishes to the sink. He then returned to the table and kissed Iris before sending a warning glance towards Daisy and left.
“So, you want to tell what the whole falling out of the bed ordeal this morning was really about?” Iris asked. Daisy’s eyes widened as she wolfed down the rest of her breakfast and jumped up from the table.
“No time. Need to get ready for Ashley,” she said, starting for the stairs.
“Daisy Nymphadora Wood,” her mother said.
“Gonna be late, Mum!”
She knew that her mother had likely already seen everything in her head anyway, but she wasn’t about to talk about it with her.
~~~
“Oooh! Witch Weekly’s released another Quidditch top 10 list!” Lucy squealed as she sat up on the chaise lounge in the backyard next to the pool, clad in a dark green bikini. Daisy looked over at her cousin from where she was reclining on her own, both of them under a large umbrella due to their pale complexions. Granted, Daisy’s mum had developed a rather strong sunscreen for her since she spent so much time outside on the pitch. Sarah, Lisette, and Eliza paddled over to the edge of the pool.
“Are Jamie, Alan, and Remus on it?” Eliza asked, her blue eyes bright. Daisy just rolled hers. Alan and Remus hadn’t even started playing first string games yet, though she wouldn’t have been surprised if they were on there.
“Just Jamie,” Lucy said. “No. 8. Suspect it’s because Remus and Alan only just got promoted.”
“He’s always been one of the fittest guys in school. Not surprised,” Lisette said. Sarah snorted.
“You two have always had it bad for Jamie, Alan, AND Remus,” she replied.
“Can you blame us?” Lisette asked, tossing her long blonde hair over her shoulder.
“The new Arrows beater… John Kingfisher… he’s No. 9. He is dishy,” Lucy said. “What do you know about him?” She looked over at Daisy, who lazily reached for her lemonade.
“Not much. He’s American,” she said, looking over at Lucy as she took a sip.
“Come on, he’s on your brother’s team. Surely you know more than that,” Lisette called out. Daisy looked over at her and shrugged.
“Jamie doesn’t really spend that much time with the Arrows, to be honest,” she said. “Or, at least he doesn’t talk about them much. Seems to get on with the team captain though… Ryan Kelly.”
“Why’s that?” Sarah asked.
“Think it’s because he’s planning to transfer to Puddlemere,” Daisy replied with a sigh. “With the way Dad’s keeper has been playing, I’m assuming it’ll be sooner rather than later.”
“No, absolutely not! We are here to have fun. NOT discuss Quidditch,” Lisette screeched. “Fit Quidditch players are fine, but nothing more! It’s bad enough I have to hear it all year at Hogwarts!” Daisy chuckled as she sat up. “Continue, Lucy…”
“Let’s see… no surprise here, Wills is No. 1 again,” Lucy said, her face now buried in the magazine. “Oh, but that is a good photo.” She flipped it around and showed Daisy the photo of Wills grinning and winking at the camera. It was taken during practice and he had his shirt off. She rolled her eyes behind her sunglasses. Typical Wills. Though she couldn’t help but find it charming.
“Oh, Wills… he’ll always be No. 1 in my heart,” Lisette said in dramatic fashion, acting as though she were swooning. Daisy looked over at her, a tinge of jealousy overcoming her for a moment, though she smiled at her antics. Eliza laughed loudly and dunked Lisette under the water.
“He’s mine!” she shouted playfully. Sarah just shook her head. But Lucy was closely watching Daisy.
“What? No snide comment?” Lucy asked. Daisy whipped her head over to look at her.
“Huh?” she asked. Lucy started grinning.
“You fancy him, don’t you?” she asked, leaning closer. Lisette and Eliza stopped splashing around and looked over at her.
“Do not,” Daisy said quickly. All four girls started giggling. “Stop it!”
“This is priceless,” Lisette shouted. “Do you still have that daisy ring he gave you?”
“No,” Daisy replied. “And I do not fancy Wills.”
“You so do,” Lucy replied, falling back onto the chaise, laughing madly.
“You gave us so much shite for fancying him, so just consider this payback,” Eliza said.
“I, no!” Daisy said, sputtering slightly as she glared at all of them. “You lot are impossible!”
“So that’s why you want to go visit your brothers so much,” Sarah said, grinning.
“I want to go visit them so I can get away from my dad,” Daisy said indignantly.
“Yea, and the fact that Wills is constantly hanging out there has absolutely nothing to do with it,” Lisette added.
“It doesn’t,” Daisy said, crossing her arms in front of her, frowning at them. The girls continued laughing.
“I wish I could hang out at your brothers’ place. It’s not fair. Best friend has a dad and three brothers playing professional Quidditch and yet, we never get to meet any of the hot players,” Eliza said with a sigh.
“There’s a reason for that,” Daisy retorted.
“You know, it’s okay if you do fancy him,” Lucy said, looking over at her. “He is rather fit.”
“But… he’s… Wills,” Daisy said. She then groaned and threw herself back on the chaise. “I can’t have a crush on him!”
“Why? Because he’s Wills? Or because he’s your dad’s star chaser?” Sarah asked, though she was still grinning.
“Both,” Daisy said looking over at her.
“You know, you are allowed to fancy whoever you want,” Lucy said. “A crush is just a crush. Not like you’re going to date him or anything. He may be fit but he’s so much older than us.”
“I know,” Daisy said, glaring at her cousin slightly. “But none of you can say anything.”
“Not like any of us run into Wills on a regular basis,” Lisette replied, now studying her nails.
“I mean it! You can’t tell my brothers! You know how much they love taking the mickey out of me,” Daisy said. “They’ll do or say something embarrassing in front of him.”
“Not like we spend much time around your brothers either. Not since they moved out, anyway,” Lisette said.
“But I certainly wish that we did,” Eliza said with a sigh. “Not been the same…”
“I know, it’s been rather peaceful,” Daisy said. “No more pranks and such.”
“Any thought on where you’ll live after school?” Sarah asked, changing the subject before Daisy grabbed her wand and attempted to jinx Eliza or Lisette. She could tell they were starting to get on her nerves.
“Not sure,” Daisy said, glancing at Lucy. “If Luce weren’t already moving in with Molly, I’d think about moving in with her.”
“Sorry, Pix. Mum and Dad helped her get the flat with the idea that I’d move in as soon as I graduate,” she replied. “Perhaps you could move in with Dom. I know she hates her current roommate and wouldn’t mind kicking her out for you.”
“Or… you could always move in with your brothers,” Eliza shouted. “Then we could all have an excuse to hang out there every weekend.” Daisy rolled her eyes.
“I am not moving in with my brothers just so you can flirt shamelessly with all their teammates. Or them. Besides, there are only three bedrooms in Mum and Dad’s old place,” she said.
“They could easily add another,” Lisette said.
“Or get me my own place,” Daisy said, a starry look starting to come into her eyes. “Imagine. No Dad. No brothers. It would be glorious.”
“I doubt even your parents could afford a place for just you in the Alley. Have you seen the prices nowadays?” Lucy said, sounding all too much like her very sensible father. “It would be a shoebox.”
“A shoebox of my own is better than living here or with my brothers,” Daisy said.
“They’re not that bad,” Sarah scoffed. Both Daisy and Lucy just stared at her.
“You’ve never been to a family gathering,” Lucy said, deadpanned. “Last Christmas half of us ended up with green skin for an hour.” Sarah burst out into laughter, though quickly stopped when she saw the deathly looks both redheads were sending her.
“No, I don’t think I’d like living with my brothers again,” Daisy said as she reclined again. “I’m ready for my own place.”
“Sure you are,” Eliza said. “Or… maybe you could move in with Toby. He’s in the Alley, isn’t he?”
“Not yet,” Daisy replied, a contemplative look on her face. He had mentioned that he was looking for one as he would start oblivator training at the Ministry soon. He wanted to live somewhere closer than their small village in the Scottish countryside. “Perhaps that is an idea… he could always get a temporary roommate until I graduated…”
“And then perhaps you two would finally get together,” Eliza said. Daisy ignored that comment.
“Would your dad even allow it? You know how protective he is,” Lisette said, her brow furrowed.
“He trusts Toby. We’ve been best friends for ages,” Daisy said. “He’s probably the only man outside of my brothers that he would let me live with.”
“Something to think about,” Lucy said, smiling. Daisy nodded a smile beginning to appear on her face.
Yes, perhaps that’s what she should do…
~~~
The next Friday night, Daisy stepped out of the floo at her brothers’ flat and immediately tossed her bag down before stomping over to their always-stocked liquor cabinet.
“Not even a hello first?” Remus asked from where he was sitting on the sofa with Alan, both of them with a beer in hand. Daisy didn’t say anything as she quickly poured a drink - albeit slightly stronger than she usually did - and tossed a good chunk of it back. She sputtered a bit.
“Take it you had a rough practice with Dad today,” Alan said. Daisy looked over at her brothers.
“What do you think?” she asked before walking over and collapsing on the sofa in between them.
“Honestly, you should be used to it by now,” Remus said, smiling slightly. Daisy’s eyes flashed red as she glared at him, causing the smile to disappear as he backed up slightly.
“He’s become impossible,” she groaned. “I don’t know how I’m going to survive the rest of summer…”
“You could always move in with us,” Alan offered.
“And deal with Dad at training and your pranks? I think not,” she said before taking another drink.
“We wouldn’t prank you… all the time,” Remus said. Daisy just rolled her eyes.
“It would make sense for you to move in here, though,” Alan said. “Mum and Dad already own the place, so there’s no rent.”
“And you would get to see us every day,” Remus said, leaning closer to her.
“I finally got free of you all. Why would I want to subject myself to even more of you again?” Daisy asked. Remus and Alan just chuckled as the front door opened and shut.
“Ah! Pix!” Wills shouted as he walked in with Jamie, the both of them with their team bags over their shoulders. Daisy sat up, immediately grinning at the sight of Wills and slightly suspicious about the two of them arriving together. Even though Jamie was still with the Arrows, he had been spending more time with Puddlemere. She suspected there must be some sort of secret transfer deal in the works. Of course, her stomach would at that moment decide to do somersaults.
Merlin, this was just Wills. She could act normal around him. She had known him since she was a little girl, after all.
“Hey Wills, Jamie,” she said casually before taking a drink. Jamie was watching her curiously as Wills walked over and flopped down into one of the armchairs.
“What are we up to tonight, lads?” he asked boisterously as he looked around the room.
“Hanging out with Pix,” Remus said. “Got some folks coming over a bit later for a bit of a party. You staying?”
“Nah, got a date,” Wills said, looking at his watch. “Only here for a beer before I head out.” Daisy felt a small bit of disappointment. Even though she was all sorts of awkward around him at the moment, she had hoped to hang out with him while she was visiting.
“Who is it this week?” Alan asked. “The model?”
“New girl,” Wills said, smiling. “Some singer…”
“I’d say to tell us how it goes, but I’m sure we’ll get all the details in Witch Weekly,” Remus commented. Wills chuckled as he took a beer from Jamie and propped his legs up on the coffee table.
“You know they always get it wrong,” he replied. “For one, I did not go on a date with what’s-her-name… the Witch Weekly reporter.”
“Right, you only shagged her,” Remus said. Wills snorted.
“First of all - I’m a gentleman. If we had spent a night together, you would never hear it from me. Secondly, I make it a point never to date media,” he said. “We spoke for a few minutes at a party and someone must have snapped a photo. Next thing I know, there’s a countdown to the engagement in the next issue of Witch Weekly.” The entire flat broke out in loud laughter at the thought of Wills getting engaged. It would never happen. “How’s training with your dad, Pix?”
Daisy sputtered a bit on her drink, not expecting the subject change.
“About the same,” she said. “He yells. I yell back. Sometimes I send a bludger at him and then I get grounded.”
“That why you’re here in such a tizzy?” Alan asked. “You sent a bludger at him?”
“No, but I wanted to,” Daisy said, scowling at her drink as though it were her father. “But wanted to spend the weekend here even more.”
“You’re here the whole weekend?” Wills asked, his face lighting up. Daisy nodded. “Brilliant.”
“We were just trying to convince her to move in,” Alan said.
“All my favorite Woods under the same roof? Sounds perfect,” Wills said, winking at her. Daisy could feel the blush start to come over her face, but quickly hid it, not wanting her brothers to see. Merlin, she’d never hear the end of it if they found out.
“Maybe,” she said lightly.
“Thought you hated the idea of living with us?” Remus said, pushing her shoulder slightly. Daisy glanced at him, seeing his grin from the corner of her eye. Bugger, she forgot that just moments ago she had said she’d never move in. Too late now.
“Let’s just say that I am considering all possibilities. Including the one of living with you lot,” she said sensibly. “Not saying that I’m going to do for sure.” She glanced over and saw Jamie staring at her intensely. “Stop looking in my mind, Jamie!”
He quickly shook his head and made his way to the kitchen. Daisy just sighed and concentrated on her drink as her brothers and Wills started up a lively conversation about practice. Barely any of it registered as she kept sneaking glances at Wills and then Jamie, who she could tell for the most part was staying out of her head. He settled in the other armchair finally.
After about an hour, Remus mentioned that Wills should get going if he wanted to make his date on time and the chaser stood and left, much to Daisy’s chagrin. Though without him there, she could breathe a bit easier. After he left, the triplets put out some food and snacks just as a few of the Wanderers came over, as did Vane and Jakes from Puddlemere. They all took some time to ask Daisy about practice and school as the party started up. Someone put on some music and more drinks came out as players from a few other teams arrived. It wasn’t as big a gathering as their usual after parties, but there were still about 15 or so people hanging out.
Daisy stood to the side of the room in front of the balcony, her head tilted to the side as she thought over living here with her brothers. She had been completely against it but the more she thought about it, it might not be as bad as she originally thought. There were the parties nearly every weekend. And she did love the triplets, even when she wanted to kill them for pranking her.
And there was the bit about Wills hanging out with them all the time.
“You’re seriously thinking about moving in?” Jamie asked coming up to her side. Daisy shrugged and looked over at him.
“Beats staying at the country house,” she said. “As long as you could keep Remus and Alan in check.” Jamie chuckled.
“They don’t do it so much at the flat anymore,” he said. “Not much time for it... You think Mum and Dad would be okay with it?”
“Why wouldn’t they be?” Daisy asked. She lightened up a bit as she saw Wills walk in. Date must not have gone well, though she was halfway surprised not to see him bring her along, whoever she was.
“Dad’s a bit protective of you and all. And we’ve always got blokes from the League in and out of here,” he said. Daisy snorted.
“How is it any different from when I come over for the weekend?” she asked.
“Bit different. You’d be sleeping here. Likely walking around in your pajamas or something,” he replied.
“It’s not like I’d be running around in my knickers,” Daisy scoffed, seeing Wills grab a beer and then beeline straight for Jamie and herself. Her heart rate picked up slightly as he grinned at her.
“There’s my favorite Pix,” he said brightly.
“Where’s your date?” she asked, hoping she sounded casual.
“Wasn’t as interesting as I thought she’d be… and she wrinkled her nose when I suggested we stop by,” he said nonchalantly. “Figured this party would be more entertaining than the rest of the evening with her, though she was gorgeous.” He leaned towards her slightly and Daisy fought hard to keep her cheeks from turning pink or her hair from turning purple. Merlin, she was going to have to fight to keep this crush a secret. Jamie stepped away, leaving them alone.
“Think I need some air,” Daisy said suddenly, turning to step out onto the balcony. Of course, Wills followed, leaning against the railing beside her.
“Still trying to decide if you’re moving in?” he asked, looking over at her. Daisy nodded as she took a drink of her beer. “I think it’s a brilliant idea.”
She kept her eyes trained on the street below.
“Really?” she asked, glancing at him out of the corner of her eye.
“Yea, we’d get to hang out a lot more,” he said. “Hardly see you as it is.”
“Probably because I’m still at Hogwarts,” Daisy said, rolling her eyes.
“You know what I mean,” Wills said, smiling at her. “Soon you’ll be out and playing first string somewhere and then you’ll be at all the after parties. You’ll be one of us finally.” Daisy chuckled.
“That’s if I get signed,” she replied.
“You had Harpies scouts coming to your games since you were in fifth year. You’ll get signed, Pix,” Wills said. Daisy sighed and took another drink of her beer.
“If Dad doesn’t kill me, first,” she said. Wills just chuckled.
“I’m more worried about you killing him,” he replied. He leaned over and bumped his shoulder against hers. “Seriously, Pix. Just move in here.” She studied him a bit before sighing and shaking her head.
“Suppose I will,” she replied. Wills grinned and turned back towards the flat, dragging her in with him.
“Oi! Daisy’s moving here after she graduates!” he shouted, causing a few cheers to go up as her face turned nearly red as her hair. Blimey, he could be embarrassing.
“Wills,” she hissed, pulling her hand from his, though she didn’t really want to. He just grinned at her.
“Come on. Do a shot with you dear older brother, Wills,” he said, pulling her towards the drink table. Daisy just chuckled as she allowed him to do so, relishing the weight of his arm around her shoulder.
There may be no future there, but a girl could dream.