"What about?" Carina asked concernedly.

"Us..." Oliver mumbled in response. Carina stared at the boy in bewilderment, afraid of what was to come next.

"Is something wrong?" Carina questioned. He seemed to notice the apprehension in her expression, and a smile spread across his face.

"Oh, calm down, will you? There's no way I could ever break up with you!"

"Oliver, you can't play around like that!" Carina exclaimed while slapping him in the arm, "You had me worried for a second there!"

"Just keeping you on your toes, love. Besides, you had me worried for a whole year!" he chimed, leading her down to the creek at the edge of the field. He sat down upon a rather large rock on the shore, motioning for Carina to do the same. She happily plopped down next to him, leaning her head on his shoulder. In front of the two, the creek flowed peacefully, emitting a soft, soothing trickling sound. The breeze rustled through the grass, and at that moment, everything seemed just right.

"What was it that you wanted to talk about?" Carina asked after awhile.

"I just wanted to let you know that I was so, so, so worried about you this year. You probably had no idea what was going on while you were paralyzed, but every evening before dinner I would come and visit you in the Hospital Wing and just tell you about my day, what was happening at Hogwarts, what you were missing, how all of the Quidditch matches turned out, how proud you would've been to see your brother catch his first Snitch, everything. I would just sit there for a whole hour and talk to you. I reckon Madam Pomfrey thought I was insane for doing it, but I didn't care. The only thing that concerned me was seeing you lifeless in that cot. Sometimes I would check your pulse just to make sure you were still alive... you just had me so concerned. And then this summer, I didn't want to pester you with my letters, but you didn't reply to any of them! I don't even know what I was worried for, but as soon as I received your letter that your father had kicked you out of the house, I nearly cried. Cried, Carina, do you realize how rare that is? I... I've never felt like this before. I've never felt so in love with anyone! I... I love you. Carina Malfoy, I love you." Oliver finished. After hearing this, Carina nearly fell off the rock, but Oliver caught her with a laugh, his own arm trembling in fear of rejection. With enormous eyes that were practically swelling with tears of joy, Carina looked straight into Oliver's eyes and said, "I love you too, Oliver Wood."

When hearing that, a massive grin spread  across Oliver's face as he tackled the girl, throwing her off the rock and onto the soft grass behind her. He squished her face between his hands, kissing her repeatedly. A giggle escaped from her lips as she kissed him back, pure euphoria coursing through her veins. On the horizon, the sun began to set, coating the sky with numerous shades of pink, purple, orange, and yellow. Birds chirped from the sky, while bullfrogs croaked from the stream. In the background, a beautiful song played softly in the Wood household, and a gentle laugh from the cottage even echoed across the field. The couple embraced for what felt like eternity, simply relishing the scene.

"Oliver?" Carina whispered.

"Yes, love?"

"TAG!"she exclaimed while hitting him in the arm and sprinting in the opposing direction. The grass tickled her bare feet as she ran, but her pace only quickened when she noticed Oliver on her tail.

"You can't get away that easy, Malfoy!" He called after her.

"Try me, Wood!" She giggled. Her legs practically sailed across the field, until finally, she had arrived at the cottage. She swiftly turned the corner, then began running down the gravel road. By this time, her feet were burning, but she didn't care as she laughed uncontrollably.

"Slow down, will you?"

"NO WAY!" Carina cried, still running. She was nearly five meters ahead of the boy, but a protruding stone tripped her, causing the girl to tumble onto the road.

"Gotcha!" He huffed as he arrived at her side, hands on his hips.

"You thought!" Carina exclaimed, leaping off the ground and continuing her flight.

"You've got to be kidding me," Oliver gasped. He continued to chase after her, until finally the girl collapsed on the gravel in defeat.

"Okay... I'm tired now," Carina admitted, panting.

"Only took you a half hour," Oliver said as he sprawled out onto the road beside her.

"Don't deny it, you enjoyed ever second of that!" Carina stated while smacking him.

"You're right... I did, but man, I'm tired."

"We're just out of shape."

"You're so right. It's starting to get dark, you wanna maybe get off of this road and go inside? You still haven't met Dad," Oliver suggested with a smile.

"Sure!" Carina exclaimed. Oliver jumped to his feet, then held out a hand for Carina, which she gladly accepted. The two strolled back to the cottage with the moonlight to guide them.

"Dad?" Oliver asked when they walked through the screen door.

"Hm?" a man's voice said.

"You want to meet my girlfriend?" Oliver asked hesitantly. Carina heard the scratching of a chair on tile, then watched as Mr. Wood appeared from the kitchen. He was a lean man of average height, with neatly trimmed, sandy brown hair, and a face remarkably similar to Oliver Wood's.

"So you're the girl my son talks about constantly? Rightly so, very pretty indeed. Nice to meet you, Carina," he said with a smile, pulling the girl into a hug.

"Good to meet you too, Mr. Wood," Carina replied politely.

"You know, I'm surprised we haven't met before, you know, after more than a year!" the man commented.

"I know, I was trying to come sooner, but my parents aren't exactly the most lenient folks," Carina admitted sadly.

"Ah yes, the Malfoy family. I knew Lucius growing up, and I must admit that he hasn't changed one bit."

"Yes, he's pretty firm in his beliefs, I personally don't-" Carina began, but was cut off as Mrs. Wood joined the conversation.

"Oh, you two are so cute! Did you see them running around in the fields, Calum? Absolutely adorable!"

"Oh, I noticed them alright, Katherine."

"Well, we'll be going upstairs now," Oliver trailed off, then grabbed Carina's hand and lead her up the wooden steps. She glanced into Oliver's bedroom, which was a rather small room, and much to Carina's surprise, was also rather neat. Various Quidditch posters were stuck to the walls, but all of them were well spaced and color-coordinated.

"Mum won't let you sleep in my room, but we happen to have a spare bedroom which you can stay in. Make yourself at home, I'll go grab your trunk," Oliver stated, bounding out of the room. Carina happily flopped onto the bed, and was nearly asleep by the time Oliver returned.

"Asleep already?" He joked, his Scottish accent stronger than ever.

"Yup," Carina groaned.

"You haven't even eaten dinner yet!" Oliver exclaimed.

"That's okay," Carina murmured, her eyelids sinking.

"Okay, but you should probably change out of your dress, it's a bit dusty," Oliver suggested.

"It's not a dress," Carina mumbled.

"What is it, then?"

"A romper. Learn your fashion terms."

"Oh, for goodness sakes woman, just put some pajamas on! I'll even get them out for you!" Oliver laughed while opening her trunk and digging through various items of clothing.

"How do you tell your clothes apart? They're all the same color..."

"I dunno," Carina replied. With a sigh, Oliver shuffled to his own room and returned with a t-shirt and boxers.

"Here, just put this on," he said, placing the clothing on top of Carina's head. He then turned and walked out of the room, closing the door behind him. Carina didn't move.

"Carina?" he asked after a few moments of silence.

"Huh?"

"Are you changing?"

"Yeah, of course," Carina replied, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Oliver! Carina! Dinner's ready!" Mrs. Wood called from downstairs.

"Carina's nearly asleep, Mum," Oliver admitted.

"Oh, that poor girl probably had a rough day. Did you show her to the guest room?"

"Yup, she's passed out on the bed right now."

"Oh, good!" Mrs. Wood exclaimed, them scurried to the kitchen.

"Carina, you done changing?" Oliver asked as he returned to her door.

"Huh?"

"I just want to say goodnight!"

"Fine," Carina muttered. He heard rustling from the bedroom, and finally she opened the door. He couldn't help but notice how cute she looked his clothing as he lead her to the bed.

"Perfect, goodnight love," he said while kissing her on the forehead.

"Goodnight, Ollie!" her tired self giggled. He shook his head with a smirk, then closed the door and walked out. Within seconds, Carina was sound asleep.

-

Carina spent the remainder of her summer at the Wood household, and was rather sad to discover that only one week remained. Everyday she would wake up, eat a delicious breakfast of muffins and eggs, then practice for hours on end, until finally the two got tired. Sometimes they would jump in the nearby stream, while other times they would sit by a bonfire, or even play a game of Exploding Snap. This day in particular, her and Oliver decided to visit Diagon Alley.

"Do you have everything you need, dears?" Mrs. Wood asked as she held a pot of Floo Powder for the two.

"Yes Mum, also we'll probably be back after dinner," Oliver replied while hugging his mother.

"Okay, you two be safe!" She exclaimed while hugging Carina. The girl smiled at Mrs. Wood, then gently reached for a handful of Powder and dropped it into the flames.

"Diagon Alley!" Carina said clearly, tucking her elbows in. Within seconds, she arrived at the fireplace of the Leaky Cauldron, with Oliver right behind.

"Hey... I just realized... you're seventeen... can you Apparate?" Carina asked as he patted the soot off of himself.

"No, I was supposed to get my license this summer, but plans changed a bit," Oliver admitted.

"You're kidding! I kept you from getting your Apparating License?!" Carina questioned in shock.

"Yeah.. but don't worry, it was all worth it!" Oliver exclaimed.

"You should've gotten it anyway! I'm so sorry!" Carina cried.

"Don't worry about it, love, I'll have another chance during Christmas break," Oliver said while taking her hand in his. He lead her out of the pub, tapped on the bricks outside, and stood back as the wall shrunk away. The couple happily strolled through the archway, then roamed the alley, in search of their school supplies. The streets were packed with Hogwarts students, all of which seemed to be shopping in the same stores.

"I hope I don't see Father," Carina whispered.

"Don't worry, we can make a quick escape, look at all of the different shops here," Oliver comforted. They went to Flourish and Blotts to gather their books, and even stopped at Gambol and Japes for Carina. At noon, they ate at a cafe, then continued shopping.

"Could we go to Quality Quidditch Supplies? I really want to check out the Firebolt," Oliver pleaded.

"Of course!" Carina chimed, dragging him into the store. In the very front window, the Firebolt sat on display, allowing Oliver to ogle at it.

"Too bad your dad can't buy you one of these this year," Oliver sighed.

"I doubt he'd buy it anyway, he's spent enough on the Nimbus Two Thousands," Carina admitted. Behind them, the shop bell rang, and two redheaded twins strolled in.

"Carina?" they asked in unison.

"Fred, George! HI!" Carina shrieked, launching herself at the pair, "How was Egypt?" she asked eagerly.

"Bloody amazing, we locked Ron in with the mummies!" they exclaimed.

"You did not," Carina gasped.

"You can ask him yourself!" George exclaimed,
"Yeah, then we told him there were spiders in there!" Fred added.

"What about you, Carrie?" George asked, searching the room for Lucius.

"I ran away!"

"Wicked." they gasped.

"Wait... where are you staying, then?" Fred asked suspiciously.

"With the Woods," Carina replied, motioning towards Oliver, who gave them an awkward wave.

"Like... sharing the same room?" George inquired.

"No!" Carina exclaimed.

"You better not be getting yourself into any trouble, missy," Fred stated, ruffling her hair,
"And you better watch yourself, mister," George joked with a finger in Oliver's direction.

"Anyway, we have to go stock up on Dungbombs," Fred began,
"See you in a week!" George finished, then the two ran out of the store.

"Those two are something else..." Oliver muttered.

"You're certainly right," Carina replied. They continued to shop for the remainder of the day, before traveling back to the Wood household and falling asleep together on the couch.