Melanie had a stack of  desserts in her hands and arms, ready to return back to her seat when she saw Oliver approaching her.

"Uh hey...Melanie...that's a lot of sweets you got there." he said his eyes fixated on the biscuits and pastries she had collected.

"I know..it's great isn't it? It's like a never ending supply of deliciousness at the tables right now. I love Valentine's Day for this reason. What's up with you, Ollie Bean?"

"Oh...nothing much. I umm.. actually I came over here to speak with you."

"And here we are. Mission accomplished, huh?" she said with a smile.

"Right." he scratched under his chin slightly before turning around to look where Todd and Ace were standing, both of them giving him encouraging nods.

"Are you okay?" Melanie asked giving him a look.

"I'm fine.. so do you have any plans today?"

"Not really." she said with a hopeful rise in her chest. "Why?"

"Well, I was wondering if you weren't busy if you'd like to go to Hogsmeade with me...on..on a...you know... a date?"

"Really?" her eyes widened, she wasn't sure if all the sugar she had consumed prior to Oliver approaching her was causing some odd hallucination.

"Yeah, but that's only if you want. I don't want to force you to go-"

"You couldn't force me even if you tried." she chuckled. "Sure, I'll go with you to Hogsmeade."

"Yeah?" he smiled.

"Yeah." she nodded.

"Oh well great, when do you want to go I understand this is all last minute." he said.

"I'm ready when you are."

"But what about all the stuff in your hands?"

"I'll eat it on the way there."

"All of that?"

"Don't underestimate me when it comes to sweets, Wood."

"I'll be sure not to from now on."

Ace returned back to his seat across from Andy as the two watched Melanie leave the Great Hall with Oliver talking about something they couldn't quite hear.

Andy looked to Ace with a small smile. "Did you tell him to ask her on a date?"

"I didn't tell him...I only hinted at the idea." Ace said.

"But why Ace? Why are you helping him...when you..."

"I don't expect you to understand, Andy." Ace told her. "I know that you want what's best for Melanie and trust me I want that too. And while you may not think that Oliver is best for her, right now, she does. She likes him  and while it may or may not work out, I'm not going to be the one to try to make things complicated for her. That wouldn't fair to her.'

Andy nodded her head realizing that he was right, even if she didn't like it. " Can I ask you something Ace?"

"Of course."

"How  long have you liked Melanie?" she asked him.

Ace looked down at the table. "I..." he sighed, " for awhile now."

"Awhile," she repeated, " so why didn't you ever say anything?"

"Because it just wasn't the right time."

"Do you ever think it'll be the right time?"

Ace shrugged. "Life works in mysterious ways, Andy. But things happen for a reason, whatever happens, happens. I won't be the one to manipulate situations for my own benefit, because that's just selfish."

"Even if it means sacrificing your own happiness?"

"That's the thing Andy, I'm not sacrificing my happiness, because if she's happy...I'm happy."

"I saw Carter running down the hall screaming earlier." Oliver told Melanie as they walked through the village.

Melanie laughed. "Yeah, Valentine's Day has him all freaked out."

"Why's that?"

"Because girls have cooties at his age." she said. "Plus, some of the girls in his year were discussing love potions, so he's paranoid."

"Love potions?! First years with love potions?"

"Scary thought, right? You better watch your drinks today, Ollie, a little first year might be coming after you."

"That's an unsettling thought."

"It happened to my mum when she was in school."

"She drank a love potion?"

"Oh yeah, it was Valentine's Day and her friend Helen was trying to slip a love potion to the boy she liked, and my mum ended up drinking it by accident."

"What happened?" Oliver asked.

"Their friendship was awkward for a little while afterwards." 

"I can imagine it being so." Oliver laughed.

"So I have to admit but I'm pretty surprised that you asked me on this date considering the last time we spoke, you asked me for ink in class..."

'I know. I hope you don't think I've been avoiding you or anything, but...between you and I...all this is still rather new to me."

Melanie looked up at him. "Your life really does just revolve around quidditch doesn't it?"

"Not to sound pathetic or anything but it's a really big thing in my family. It's really what we bond over since we all have different interests outside of it. My dad's not a big talker unless it's about quidditch and my mum well...she has other hobbies but I'm not all that interested in them, you know? But we can talk about quidditch together."

"So quidditch is the common language in your family?"

"Pretty much. Is your family into it?"

"Not really." Melanie said. "I mean, they know of the game but that's about it really...Carter will watch a game but my mum doesn't care too much for it."

"And your dad?"

"He's not in the picture." Melanie told him.

"Oh I'm sorry."

"Don't be, my family and I prefer it that way."

The two spent the day mainly walking around Hogsmeade learning more about one another, realizing that outside the quidditch pitch they hardly knew anything about each other.

"You know I still can't remember how we became rivals in quidditch?" Oliver told her.

"I called you a bludger brain and you would not let it go."

"Oh right." his cheeks turned pink. "I guess I have been a bit of bludger brain lately haven't I?"

"We all have our moments, Wood. Some of them great...others not so great."

"You have some talent with getting into people's heads, especially during matches."

"It's my specialty. I'm not the fastest on the broom, and I'm not known for my tricks in the air, but I can rely on my mind games and I'm okay with that. I've managed to piss off plenty of people on broomstick so I like to think I've accomplished a great deal."

Oliver smiled. "I wish I could do that."

"You can...you just have to learn how to read people."

"How do I read people?"

Melanie sat down on a bench and patted the space beside her for him to sit.

He took the spot beside her. 

"You have to learn all about reading body language of people, how they carry themselves, it says a lot about a person."

"Such as?"

"Such as a person who walks with their head up all the time versus someone who keeps their eyes glued to the ground as they walk. That's a good indicator. You can see if a person who can hold eye contact against someone who can't hold eye contact for more than a couple of seconds."

"You observe all this just while talking to someone?"

"Of course, I have to know the kind of person I'm dealing with."

"So, it's safe to say you've already read me."

"Yes." she smiled to herself.

"And?"

"You're complicated, OllieWood."