Erin's mood switch was so drastic that it shocked everyone around her. Beatrice had gone to Madame Hooch, demanding for the captain's match to be replayed, but Madame Hooch told her she had already made her decision, which only put Erin deeper into her upcoming depression. Cedric had won his match against both Michael and Tamsin, so he had secured the title. Erin didn't go to class on Tuesday, nor on Wednesday. Luckily, no one asked questions as she technically wasn't allowed to leave the Hospital Wing yet.

She had ignored Wood completely over the past few days, but he didn't really try to talk to her either. She missed him and she knew he never meant to get her splinched, but it just hurt too much. He had no reason to hang out with her anyway, as she didn't need any "captain lessons" anymore.

She did drag herself to quidditch practice on Wednesday, as Madame Hooch would announce their new captain. Even though she found it difficult to find the motivation to play, she knew she'd regret it if she didn't.

Beatrice felt hopeless too, as she wasn't able to cheer her friend up this time. It was a similar situation like last year and Erin had never really been the exact same. The girl had gone through so much these past years, with her dad, Oliver and now losing the captain title. Beatrice hated to see her like this, but she often lacked empathy, which was ironic since she was a Hufflepuff, and didn't quite know how to help her out.

There was a very uneasy atmosphere in the Hufflepuff quidditch team. There was an air of guilt, as everyone noticed how quiet Erin was. They knew how badly she wanted it and they felt bad for her. Not bad enough to do something about it, though.

Madame Hooch walked onto the pitch and the tension rose significantly.

"So," she said, clearing her throat, "I have decided who your new team captain is going to be."

Erin noticed Cedric crossing his finger, a smile lingering around his lips. At least he'd be a good captain. He was dedicated to the team too and even though Erin really liked Tamsin and Michael, Cedric definitely deserved it he most out of the three of them. 

Beatrice took Erin's hand, noticing the sad look on her face. And all because a stupid apparition accident.

"Ladies and gentlemen, please put your hands together for your new leader, Erin Evans."

Erin looked up confused, totally shocked by hearing her name. What? 

No one clapped, until Beatrice did.

"WOOHOO! Go Erin! You go girl!" she said, pulling the girl into a hug. The other team members started clapping, some a bit more reluctantly that others. Erin tried to figure out why Madame Hooch had made her captain, but she only smiled at her warmingly.

"None of you who wanted to become captain proposed to postpone the match when Erin was in the hospital. Not only is that very unlike Hufflepuff, it is a selfish quality that I don't want to see in a team captain. You should always put your team first and by not sticking up for Erin, you all proved to me that you weren't fit for the role. So for now, you're dismissed. Celebrate your new captain and be sure to practice extra hard on Friday. Good luck Erin." Cedric stormed off the pitch, clearly annoyed. Michael and Tamsin had gotten over it quickly, as neither of them had expected to become captain anyway.

"Congratulations, Erin. You'll do great", Tamsin said and hugged her. All others followed quickly and although Erin was still very much confused, reality slowly started to sink it. She had been elected captain. She was captain of the Hufflepuff quidditch team. She did it, but how?

"Madame Hooch? Madame Hooch!" Erin ran after the flying teacher, just needing a little clarity.

"Yes, Erin?" she asked.

"Why? Why did you choose me?"

"As I told you, they didn't stick up for you. That's not a very good quality."

"But how do you know I would? I wasn't even there." Erin didn't know what to think of the situation. Them not asking for a rematch could not be the only reason.

"Erin, I've watched you play for a month. I can see how dedicated you are. You were the one who took Heidi under her wing, you were the only one who practiced outside of the normal hours and the only one to notice the Keeper problem. You were born for this, Erin." Madame Hooch walked away, leaving Erin both relieved and uneasy.

"Also, when the captain of another quidditch team, a very competitive one for that matter, tried to convince me to make you captain, I had to listen."

That sentence took a while to sink in, but when it did, Erin was really confused again. Another team captain recommended her? Did Wood recommend her? It had to be Wood, as Erin barely knew Roger Davies and Marcus Flint would definitely not recommend her. A very competitive one, of course it was Wood. Wood had talked to Madame Hooch.

"Oh Merlin, Erin!!" Beatrice shrieked in her ear, jumping up and down. She engulfed the girl into a hug again, rocking her back and forth. "You did it! You're team captain!"

Erin smiled, for the first time in a couple of days. She was team captain.

"I'm team captain", she whispered.

"You sure are!" Reality kicked in like a sucker punch and Erin's mood switched 180 degrees.

"I'm team captain!" She jumped up and down. She hadn't been this excited since she'd gotten onto the team.

"I need to set up a training schedule. I need to reserve the pitch. I have so many things to do", she said. Life was chaos.

"First I need to go kick someone in the nuts", Beatrice said, looking over Erin's shoulder. She saw a last glimpse of Oliver, before he walked away from the field.

"Don't", Erin said. Although she had a lot to do, there was one thing that she needed to do first.

"He's the reason I'm captain. I'll see you tonight", Erin told Beatrice before she ran after the Gryffindor boy.

"Wood!" she called out for him. Oliver turned around, looking awkwardly. She caught up to him, only to then realise that she had no idea what she wanted to say to him. So she just stood there for a while, mouth open, but no words coming out.

And then she slapped him.

And then she hugged him.

When she pulled back, Oliver looked at her in shock, both by the hand that had left a red mark on his cheek and by the unexpected hug from the girl who hated her just yesterday.

"I'm sorry", she said with an innocent smile, but quickly recovered to a confident smirk. "No, I'm not. You definitely deserved that."

"What was that for?" Oliver asked, still very much confused.

"Uhm, because you got me splinched, maybe?"

"No, not the slap, I get that, but the other thing." Oliver was the most awkward he had ever been, and that said a lot. He hadn't hugged a lot of girls in his life and he didn't quite know how to behave.

"Well, thank you. Madame Hooch told me you recommended me to her."

"Oh, that. Least I could do", Oliver said, rubbing his neck. Erin didn't like the tension that was still there.

"Are you doing anything right now?" she asked, to which Oliver shook his head.

"Well, come on then." Erin grabbed Oliver's sleeve because she felt too uncomfortable to grab his hand and dragged him to the nearest stands. They walked up the stairs to the top and Oliver decided midway to just roll with it. They took a seat, overlooking the quidditch pitch. They didn't say anything for a while, which was a little uncomfortable, but comfortable silences were overrated anyways.

"I really am sorry for putting you in the infirmary. I really didn't mean to", Oliver said after a while.

"I know you didn't. I'm sorry too for freaking out like that. I just kind of lost it when I realised I had missed the match." It was quiet again. October was just around the corner and the weather was slowly starting to shift, switching up the warm summer temperatures for icy cold wind.

"Can I ask you a question?" Oliver tried again.

"Sure."

"Why did you want it so badly? I mean, I always wanted to be captain too, but you seemed especially driven, like it was the only thing that mattered." Erin blushed. She had been a little obsessive over becoming captain, maybe more than a little, but it all had a reason.

"You promise you won't tell anyone?" she asked. Beatrice probably knew her reasoning, just because she had been around her and her family many times, but she had never explicitly told anyone why she wanted it so badly.

"Course not", Oliver mumbled. Erin took a deep breath, rubbing her hands together.

"It's because of my dad. He has always been the biggest quidditch fanatic ever. He taught me how to play, took me to my first game, bought me my first broom...", Erin smiled, thinking about all the memories she had with him.

"Four years ago, he got into a massive car crash. He was paralyzed completely and hasn't been able to talk ever since. He's not dead, but I did lose my dad that day. He just sits at home in his chair, looking out of the window. I don't think he even recognizes me anymore." Tears were blurring her vision. It felt good to talk about it, but it was all the more painful.

"But there was this one time, three years ago when I told him that I had made the quidditch team. He looked at me. He looked at me and he smiled. His eyes smiled. I could see in his eyes that he was happy and proud, even though he couldn't really show me. Ever since I vowed to do everything I could to get him that happy again." The tears were now slowly rolling down, staining her quidditch robed. Oliver put his arm around her and she rested her head on his shoulder, trying to breathe calmly.

"Over the summer, the doctors told us that his heart would most likely stop beating in less than a year, so I vowed to become team captain. I'd go home on Christmas break and he could be proud of me one last time. I just want to experience one last time what it's like to have a dad."

Erin was now bawling, resting her head in her hands.

"Hey, come here", Oliver said, pulling her into a hug. He slowly rubbed circles on her back to calm her down, resting his head on hers.

"I'm sorry I'm so emotional. Blame it on being a Hufflepuff", Erin smiled through her tears. She was a pretty emotional person, but rarely around others. She felt relieved now, though, as if a huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders.

"Well I can't exactly blame you with a story like that. I'm sorry you have to go through that", Oliver said.

"It's okay, thank you for listening. I needed that." Erin stood up, dusting off her robed.

"I guess we're kind of friends now, right? That's what friends are for", he said. Erin smiled, but died a little inside. Friends, right.

"So, no more slapping then?" Oliver smirked.

"Depends on you, Captain", she said and exited the tower.