Sparks

Sparks 02

Chapter Two

As the boys changed into their Hogwarts uniforms, the train came to a lurching halt. "Are we in Hogsmeade already?" said Marcus Flint as he put on his shirt.

A creepy feeling of utter cold started to envelop the compartment. It is a struggle to keep his eyes open but Marcus tried. As he turned towards the door, a tall cloaked creature, there was no other word for it, drifted into the compartment. Around him, his friends recoiled from the feel of this thing in the compartment.

Suddenly, Marcus heard his parents arguing like they were right beside him. He heard his father hit his mother over and over again. He felt like he was five years old again. Marcus wanted whatever was causing him to feel this way to stop. As Marcus reached his breaking point, the creature turned and left the compartment. The sounds and feelings started to recede.

The first thing Marcus saw when he opened his eyes is the pattern on the floor of the compartment. He is lying in a ball on the floor. Shakily, he got to his feet. He could see that his friends are in the same sorry shape he is. "What the hell was that!" he shakily asked.

"I think it was a freaking Dementor. What the hell is it doing outside of Azkaban! Merlin, I'm so cold. Guys, call me crazy but I could swear my good-for-nothing, gold- digging, snog-anything, forgets-my bloody-name, horrid git of a mother was here a minute ago," said Tarquin with a shudder.

A shivering Chris Warrington looked at Bole who is pale and obviously upset and said, "Well I'm crazy too because I could of sworn this compartment was over run by thousands of hairy spiders a second ago!"

"Geez, I need some chocolate because I feel like hell!" said a shivering Myles Derrick.

With shaking hands, Montague pulled a large slab of slab of chocolate from his rucksack and shared it with his friends.

A few moments later, a comforting feeling of warmth stole over Marcus as, in his mind, the echo of his mother's screams faded away. He sighed with relief. " What are those things doing here anyway?" he asked.

Unexpectedly, the door to the compartment snapped open and all the heads in the compartment jerked up. Draco Malfoy darted into the compartment. "Merlin, I'm so glad to see you guys. Those things are all over the train! I think they are looking for some guy who escaped from Azkaban named Sirius Black. I guess they think he is here because he is after Scarhead! I cannot believe Potter has managed to muck up my school year before I even get to Hogwarts this year," said Draco. "Merlin, I thought my father was following me to school!"

After that disjointed outburst, Draco shuddered and Montague silently tossed him some chocolate and thought to himself, unaware that the others are thinking the exact same thing, that living with Lucius Malfoy must be like living with your very own personal Dementor. "Poor Draco," thought Montague. "Tarquin and Marcus think that their respective home lives suck but I bet a thousand galleons that they have it not near as bad as Draco does."

After a few minutes of silence, Bole perked up and gave Malfoy a gimlet eyed stare. "So Draco, I tell you about my Ravenclaw girls and you do not even breathe a word about Alicia Spinnet! I am shocked and appalled!"

Montague turned to Malfoy and suppressed a small grin as he said, "Alicia Spinnet, what were you thinking! Honestly Malfoy, a Gryffindork?"

Myles Derrick glanced at Malfoy and tacked on for good measure. "Really, Malfoy in the showers?"

Draco glared at Marcus. "Flint, who didn't you tell, you git!" he shrugged and said, "What? I'm only a guy and she seduced me!"

"What did she do Malfoy," drawled Warrington, "smile and say come and get me you bad boy Slytherin?"

Amid howls of laughter, Malfoy reluctantly smiled and admitted, "Something like that but ummm...without the clothes."

Derrick and Montague sat up abruptly and asked at the same time, "Really?"

"I wonder if that goes for all Slytherin boys?" said Tarquin. "You know Chris, you can never underestimate the attraction of the bad boy thing with straight-laced girls. Why do you think all those Ravenclaws go out with me?"

"Merlin, Tarquin, could it be that for some strange reason, girls have been slobbering all over you since nursery school and it's not because you're horribly stinking rich! I mean, we all got rich parents. Seriously, you must have some veela in you or something," said Flint as he shook his head.

"I let you boys in on a little secret. Girls want what they can't have. Two words boys, emotionally unavailable. I make no promises and therefore I tell no lies. There you go, free advice! Besides, it is my goal at Hogwarts to never have an official girlfriend because she has to come from Slytherin House and my father has his heart set on marrying me off early. Therefore if I do not date girls from Slytherin House, I will not find myself married before I'm nineteen," said Tarquin with a hoot of laughter.

"Well what if he arranges a marriage for you? I mean it is not unheard of. Trust me, I have visions of coming home after graduating Hogwarts to find myself getting married to some girl I've never met before, or worse someone I have," said Malfoy as he smiled at Bole.

Flint laughed and said, "Pansy Parkinson!"

Montague interjected with, "No, Tracey Davis!"

Warrington shouted, "No, Medea MacDuff!"

"Wait, what about the Bulstrode girl? The one who wants to be on the team," said Derrick.

Malfoy grimaced. "Well, out of that crew I actually wouldn't mind marrying Millicent," he said thoughtfully. "I mean I actually like her as a friend."

"Besides," Tarquin teased. "You want to be the pretty one in the couple anyway!"

With that comment, the compartment collapsed in laughter yet again.

"Hey, finally it's Hogsmeade!" said Marcus over the laughter.

As the boys unloaded their compartment and Draco wandered off to collect Vin and Greg, Marcus mused to himself that at least an arranged marriage hasn't crossed his family's mind yet. Thank Merlin for small mercies. As usual, Flint isn't paying attention to where he's going as he walked through the crowd of students at the Hogsmeade station. He doesn't notice that his friends trail behind in his wake and that the younger students part like the Red Sea in front of him. He doesn't hear the First years whisper to the older students asking them whom those boys are. Marcus also doesn't hear the whispered answer - the Slytherin Quidditch team.

To the casual observer, it looks like they are trying to intimidate the younger students. The tall strong looking young men walk in unison out of habits honed on the Quidditch pitch. They walk with a bit of a swagger that comes from being well off and with their heads up high because no one looks down on Slytherin House, not in their presence at least.

After their arrival at Hogwarts and as the feast is underway, the boys started to discuss the upcoming Quidditch season.

Montague mentioned to Bole, "Tarquin, I saw that Gryffindor, Oliver Wood, buying stacks of books about Quidditch in Flourish and Blots in Diagon Alley this summer. Can you believe that guy actually went to the Dark Side bookstore in Knockturn Alley to find Creaothceann books as well? Crazy git!"

Bole looked at Montague all puzzled and asked, " How do you know he went to Knockturn Alley?"

" Oh, I followed him there then I owled Marcus and told him what books he bought," said Montague innocently.

"I'm not even going to ask how Montague found out what books Wood bought. He should be a spy for the Ministry when he grows up," said Bole as he turned towards Flint. "Did you get the books Wood got?"

" Even the Creaothceann books from Knockturn Alley. He bought them for the strategies," said Marcus as he nodded.

As the conversation drifted eventually to the new Dark Arts professor and the Dementors, Marcus tuned out the chatter and looked toward the Gryffindor table looking for Wood. Marcus found him sitting with his female chasers and the Weasley brothers. Marcus hated to admit it to himself but the whole twin beater thing is working for the Gryffindorks. He scrutinized the chasers hoping to see an armsling around Angelina Johnson's arm. Nope, too bad, she looked healthy. Spinnet looked healthy as well but all Marcus could see, when he looked at Spinnet, is Malfoy and water. "Geez isn't he a little young for her? Imagination, stop the mental images please," Marcus thought to himself.

He tore his glance away from Spinnet and then his gaze collided with Katie Bell's. Their eyes lock, as neither is willing to look away first. " She is quite the strong willed girl. I hope Wood can handle her," Marcus thought to himself. Just to play with Bell's head, Marcus gave her a wink as he grinned at her and looked away. Marcus has no idea that he is the main topic of conversation at the Gryffindor table as he turned his attention back to his meal and the conversation at the Slytherin table.

A few minutes before, Oliver Wood was finishing up going over the new Quidditch strategies he had learnt over the summer. He turned to Fred and George and asked them, "What do you think will be our greatest obstacle in winning the Cup this year?"

George turned to Fred and Fred replied, "Marcus Flint."

Oliver sighed and said, "I know. I was speechless when I heard he failed his NEWTS and would be back. I was hoping that Tarquin Bole would be the new captain. He is not near as devious as Flint. Besides, Flint is their best player."

" How do you fail your NEWTS? I know he not the sharpest twig in the broomstick but Flint is not that thick!" said Angelina to Wood.

Fred smiled at Angelina and announced, "I heard that he went to the British Quidditch final instead of writing the tests," everybody but Oliver laughed after Fred revealed the news.

Oliver looked annoyed and asked, " Fred, how did he get tickets? They were impossible to get. I tried. My father tried. How the hell did he get tickets?"

"You forget Wood, Flint is rich and near as Quidditch obsessed as you. He found a way. But he's paying the price mate, another year of school," replied George.

" Ladies, have you taken a good look at Flint lately? The man is looking fine," whispered Alicia to Angelina and Katie.

" Have you been drinking?" said Angelina as she snorted.

Katie laughed and at this point looked towards the Slytherin table at Flint and then their gazes locked.

After he smiled and winked at her, Katie gave a smothered squeak and blushed. Alicia, who missed the look, the wink and the smile said, "What is it Katie? You looked flushed."

"I looked over at Flint and he caught me," Katie Bell gave a rueful smile to Angelina and Alicia. She doesn't mention the attractive smile or the wink he gave her. "Wait a second. Merlin, did she just think the word attractive and Flint in the same sentence?" Katie thought to herself." Nope. Not me. He must have been winking at someone else too," as Katie silently lied to herself. Then, she averted her gaze from the Slytherin table and steered the conversation at her table back to Quidditch. But she is completely aware of the Slytherin table for the rest of the meal.

Later that evening, Tarquin, Chris and Marcus arranged their new dorm room. "Thank Merlin, Snape put us together mates," Bole said as they rearrange the room to accommodate their Quidditch strategy boards and supplies. "By the way Marcus, Circe Jones was certainly pulling the moves on you in the common room tonight. I bet if you ask nice she'll come and tuck you in," Bole says with a grin. "I'm not even going to mention the Hufflepuff girl outside of the Great Hall tonight. I could barely keep a straight face when she asked to see your broomstick sometime. Myles had to make a break for it or else he was going to laugh his ass off! Who knew you were such a stud Flint!"

Flint glared at Bole, who tried to look sweet across the room, and at Warrington, who is laughing on top of his bed. Marcus then said, " You two wankers are lucky that you are both my best mates, you know that!" Then, he laughed and said, "I cannot believe that girl actually asked to see my broomstick. Did you see where she put her hands when she 'accidentally' ran into me at the start? Who knew a dental charm would have this effect? Or maybe they're not scared of me anymore? I don't like that idea. I'll have to do something about that," Marcus muttered to himself.

"Please Marcus, Circe Jones has had a crush on you for years," said Tarquin as he shook his head at Flint. "Didn't you notice her following you around last year? I think that her tight new robes, new hair-do and, dare I say it, push up bra have a lot to do with her more aggressive attitude than dental charms do. Now, as for the Hufflepuff girl, I don't know Marcus, do you have veela in your family?"

Chris was laughing so hard he fell off the side of his bed. On that note, the boys called it a night and went to bed.

As Marcus drifted off to sleep, he doesn't dream about Circe Jones or the Hufflepuff girl, he vividly dreams about Katie Bell's eyes looking into his own.