Kings of Sabotage – Part One

Marcus looked across the table, happy to see that Lottie was much more relaxed than she had been at the end of their last date. Rather than take her to another crowded place or somewhere like Follies, he opted for a quaint little bistro that he had happened across a couple years ago that had a good wine list.

If he wanted to make a better impression on Lottie than Wood, he figured he should start looking for places that would be more her style and fit her comfort zone. He couldn't help but feel a bit smug when Lottie said that she had been wanting to try the place for a while.

He had chosen well.

And if they wanted to move somewhere else afterward, he already planned to introduce her to his favorite firewhiskey bar down the street. It was small, but never crowded and quiet. Intimate. Cozy. And he had a strong feeling that Lottie would appreciate that.

"How's the case going?" he asked before taking a bite of his salmon. So far, she had been steering the conversation towards Puddlemere and training, which gave him a feeling that she was trying to avoid talking about work. Which he felt meant that something had happened. Probably involving her brother. While she looked happy, he could sense a bit of irritation in her blue eyes but knew from her actions that it wasn't directed at him.

Lottie sighed and gave him a small smile.

"Which one?" she asked, almost as if she knew what he was doing.

"The dark wizard you've been tracking," he said.

"Ah, yes," she said, sitting up in her chair and stabbing at her steak as a frown came over her face. "Bugger is still in the wind. And Potter and I are left running in circles."

"You've only been on it for a week or. Shouldn't beat yourself for not finding him yet," Marcus said calmly. Lottie looked up at him, her expression unreadable. She then sighed again and an apologetic smile came over her face.

"I know, just… guess I'm eager to prove that I am good at what I do," she replied. "And capable of taking on bigger cases. Merlin, sometimes I feel like I'm a rookie auror again with the stuff they give me…"

"Are you trying to prove something to the Ministry or to Bernard?" Marcus asked, long ago picking up that a lot of Lottie's gripes about work were centered on her older brother.

"Both? Maybe Bernie a bit more," she admitted. She then groaned slightly as she sat back in her chair, dropping her fork on the table. "He just… infuriates me sometimes… Today, he had the gall to tell me that the only reason I got the damn case was because he put in a good word for me with the head of the department." She scowled. "I don't need his help. And the git was expecting a bloody thank you. Nearly gave him a black eye instead."

Marcus couldn't help but chuckle at the thought of small Lottie punching her older, much bigger brother. Though he had no doubt that she probably could do a fair bit of damage.

"Just imagine how good it'll feel when you bring him in," Marcus said with a smile. "You, Lottie Bell, bringing a dark wizard that has evaded capture for two years. On a case that even your older brother couldn't solve. Didn't you say it was his before?"

She studied him a moment before a smirk appeared on her face and she sat back up.

"It will feel rather good," she said. She then reached for her half-empty wine glass. Marcus reached for his own, noticing that it was empty. He turned to flag down a server when one popped up on his other side, startling him a moment.

"More wine?" the server asked, holding out a bottle.

"Yes, please," he said. The server filled up the glass and then walked off just as Lottie was starting to ask to have hers topped off.

"Well, that's odd service for you," she commented. Marcus just shrugged as he glanced around, already making eye contact with another and nodding him over. "Still." He turned back to look at her. She was smiling and held her glass out. They clinked and then Marcus took a drink, noting that it tasted a bit different than what he had been drinking.

He looked at the glass and then put it down, figuring the server had accidentally given him the wrong one. The new server poured more wine into Lottie's, causing her to smile in gratitude before she turned back to look at Marcus.

A look of horror flashed across her face before she quickly rearranged it into something calmer. What was that about? Marcus quickly looked behind him, wondering if she had seen something.

"What's wrong?" he asked, turning back to her.

"I… Marcus… something's wrong with your face," she said, dropping her voice. Marcus frowned. He didn't feel any different. He reached up and felt around his cheeks, his eyes widening as he felt bumps starting to rise up.

"What the fuck?" he nearly shouted.

It was then that the stinging broke out from his face, but quickly spread throughout his body. He looked down at his hands, seeing boils starting to break out across his skin. A surge of anger, confusion and a bit of fear swarmed through him as he looked up at Lottie.

They were starting to garner a few looks from nearby tables.

"Are you allergic to anything?" she asked quickly as she grabbed her purse and started digging around through it.

"No… I don't think so...," Marcus said, trying to keep calm, but his voice came out a bit squeaky. More and more people were starting to look over at them, but at the moment, that was the least of his worries. He just wanted the stinging, which was growing to a near unbearable degree, to stop.

"Alright, stay calm. I've got this," Lottie said, jumping up and running over to him with a bottle in her hand. Just as she reached his side, he couldn't help but let out the largest fart that he had ever heard in his life. The both of them froze, embarrassment running through his veins as all sound in the restaurant stopped and every eye turned to look at them.

Marcus couldn't bring himself to look at Lottie.

"Here. This should fix it if someone slipped something in your food or drink," she said softly, holding out a small bottle in front of his face. Without a word, he took it and quickly drank the contents.

"Dear Merlin, let this work," he prayed softly.

Another, larger, fart sounded and the boils doubled. As did the stinging.

"It's alright, ehm… right…"

Lottie threw some money down on the table and quickly helped him up from the chair.

"Looks like we're going to St. Mungos," she said, wrapping her arm around him. Marcus still couldn't bring himself to speak as they quickly walked through the restaurant. It remained quiet, though he could hear someone chuckling softly. Marcus looked over just before they walked out, seeing bright red hair behind a menu.

He glared and almost started towards the table. Fucking Weasley. But he farted again, which reminded him that there were more important things to get to.

Like trying to save this date.

Lottie fought hard to keep from laughing as Marcus scowled from the bed in St. Mungo's where he was lying. He looked miserable and continued to fart, though thankfully it didn't smell. She felt bad for him, truly she did, but it was all too comical to see the normally formidable chaser in this state.

She looked away, attempting to smooth out her face before the healer arrived. She could hear him grumbling to himself, but it was so soft that she couldn't make it out.

"Well, let's see what we have here…"

Lottie froze a moment and then grimaced. Of all the bloody healers to get. Slowly, she turned around and pasted a smile on her face as she met her brother Adam's amused smirk.

"Wasn't expecting to see you again so soon, Char," he said. She kept the forced smile on her face, not wanting to think about the family lunch on Sunday. Bernard had, of course, informed her brothers of her predicament. And they had all weighed in, save Charlie. He had, thankfully, stood up for her.

Adam and Bernard were firmly on Team Wood. Which meant that Lottie was not looking forward to this interaction.

Adam walked over to the bed.

"So, what do we have?" he asked lightly as he looked down at Marcus, inspecting his boils, though Lottie could sense the underlying tone of disapproval in his voice.

"We believe that someone slipped something into his food or drink. I gave him Charlie's antidote and it didn't work," she said sternly. "Made it worse." Adam glanced over at her and then back to the scowling quidditch player.

"Sure, it's not just allergies?" he asked lightly. Marcus turned his scowl to the healer.

"I don't have allergies," he said, his voice low. Adam sighed and nodded.

"Well then… since we have no way to know what it was that you were given, we're going to have to try a few different things. Might be here awhile," he said before turning and starting towards the door.

"Adam, you will help him," Lottie said sharply. He stopped and looked back at her.

"Course. It's my job. I'll be back," he said, before turning and leaving. Lottie sighed and ran her fingers through her hair.

"Take it that's-" there was another fart, "one of your brothers."

She looked over at Marcus, who looked rather pathetic on the bed. She could tell he was trying to hold everything in, but the strained look on his face combined with the boils and rash, not to mention the grimaces from the stinging, all combined into a hot mess.

Lottie couldn't help herself as a giggle snuck out. She quickly covered her mouth as Marcus looked down.

"Oh, Marcus…"

She walked over to the bedside and sat down, reaching for his hand.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't be laughing, I know," she said. "It's going to be okay. Adam may be a git, but he's a damn good healer." Marcus looked over at her.

"This is-" Fart, "not how I expected the night to go. I was hoping for a quiet-" Fart, "simple night out." Lottie smiled and squeezed his hand.

"You, sir, have nothing to apologize for. Though for the life of me, I can't seem to understand who would slip you something or why," she said. Marcus' face turned dark a moment.

"Oh, I've a good idea," he nearly growled.

"Mind filling me in?" Lottie asked. He turned to look at her and smiled, though with the boils it looked more like a grimace. She couldn't help but flinch at the sight.

"It's fine. I can handle it," he replied.

"Alright, let's try this first round of antidotes," Adam said brightly as he walked in with a tray of bottles and various other equipment. For a moment Lottie looked down at it in horror.

"Just what are you intending to do with that pointy thing?" she nearly shrieked as Adam walked around and placed the tray on a table next to the bed.

"Just in case the potions don't work and we have to manually drain the boils," he said, smiling at her. Lottie just glared in return.

"Don't worry, dear little sister, by the time I'm done, your boyfriend will be good as new," Adam chirped. All the color left Lottie's face as she glanced at Marcus and saw his equally shocked look. It was all she could do to stop from groaning.

Damn her older brothers. Both of them. She was sure that Adam wouldn't wait to inform Bernard of tonight's happenings.

"Just hurry up."

The first potion had made the stinging go away, so Marcus would take that as a win. But then there were still the boils and the flatulence that he was dealing with. Which were far more embarrassing. Even more so as he continued to fart in front of Lottie's oldest brother.

The man at least attempted to somewhat keep a professional air with him. But he could sense a bit of antagonism. He also swore that he was slightly enjoying Marcus' current state.

"So… I assume you two were out on a date?" Adam asked, directing the question to Lottie.

"Yes," she said shortly, crossing her arms in front of her and continuing to glare at him. Merlin, she hadn't been talking lightly when she said that she couldn't stand her two oldest brothers.

The two looked similar, though Adam's hair wasn't wavy and appeared a lighter shade of brown. And he was also much taller than Lottie, though leaner than Bernard from what he could remember. Bernard had been much stockier and played beater on the Gryffindor team while Adam was a chaser.

Charlie had been much shorter than the two – closer to Lottie's height – and those two most definitely favored each other far more than she favored Adam or Bernard. Suppose that had something to do with the fact they were twins.

"How was that going before them, ehm, incident?" Adam asked, portioning out a few different potions into a bottle. His lips twitched as though he was fighting off laughter.

"Oh, shut it, Adam," Lottie retorted. The healer stopped and looked over at her and then down at Marcus.

"She this testy with you?" he asked, smiling.

"No, not usually," Marcus replied, unsure of whether he liked or disliked the man. Adam returned to his work.

"Ah, must be me, then," he said brightly. He shot a grin over to Lottie. "Always did seem to be sore with me about something."

"Probably because you're a git," Lottie replied.

"Mary seems to differ in that opinion," he said. Lottie snorted.

"Still haven't told me how you got a perfectly wonderful woman to agree to marry you and then carry your children," she said dryly. "Bribe her?"

"No, dear sister. Mary actually loves me for who I am," Adam said, winking at Lottie. "Before I forget, she wants you round for dinner one night. The boys are eager to see their favorite aunt."

Marcus' eyes widened slightly as he looked over at Lottie. She hadn't mentioned that she had nephews. Just what else had she held back from him? Right. This was only their third date. There was a lot he still didn't know about her. That she didn't know about him. The happiness from learning that she had told her family about him waned slightly.

If this was going to continue, Marcus had a few secrets of his own that he would have to divulge.

"Oh, bring Flint if you want," Adam added. Lottie's eyes widened as she sat up in her chair. Marcus wasn't sure what to say, though at that moment he let yet another fart out. Both brother and sister turned their focus to him.

"Think you could fix that next?" Marcus asked, sure that under the boils, his face was bright red.

"Right… sure," Adam said, handing him the next vial. "Try this."

Marcus gulped it down, not even caring that it tasted similar to what he assumed sewer water would taste like. They all waited a few moments to see what happened. Marcus looked down at his hands, seeing the boils were starting to shrink.

"There we are," Adam said proudly. Marcus farted again. "Oh…"

"Christ, Adam," Lottie shot across the bed as she jumped to her feet. "I know you're doing this on purpose!" Marcus raised his eyebrows as he looked over at the healer, starting to frown.

"I swear, Char, I'm not," Adam said, now staring at Marcus closely, the healer side of him fully taking over. "Really, that potion should have gotten rid of everything. Whatever it was they gave you, must be fairly potent."

"Reckon it was," Marcus grumbled as he shifted in the bed, thinking about George Weasley. He hadn't thought that Wood would enlist the help of his prankster friend in their little feud. Actually, no, that didn't seem like Wood. He was all about playing fair and following the rules. It was likely that Wood had talked to the Gryffindor chasers about this and then Johnson had told her boyfriend. Then Weasley had acted on his own.

That sounded far more plausible.

"Okay, right… I think I know what to do next," Adam said, already walking to the door as another, loud fart resounded throughout the room. Lottie sighed and sat back down, studying him.

"Really, tell me who did this. I mean… there are laws against this sort of thing, you know," she said, frowning, after Adam left.

"It's fine, Lottie," Marcus said, shifting in the bed as he started feeling a bit lightheaded. Was this another effect of the joke potion or was it one of the antidotes that Adam had given him?

"No, it's not," Lottie said. "What if you had a bad reaction to it?"

"I'm… it's fine," Marcus said, struggling with his words a bit. Worry started to enter Lottie's eyes.

"Are you okay?" she asked, starting to stand and lean over him. He tried to focus on her face, but there were now two of them and he wasn't sure which one was real.

"You're very pretty tonight. Both of you," Marcus said, starting to smile. "Did I tell you that earlier? You're always pretty."

"That's lovely," Lottie said, starting to move from the bed. Where was she going? No, don't go, Marcus thought. Stay here, pretty Lottie.

She stopped and gave him an amused looked. Shit. He had said that out loud. Lottie snorted softly and continued laughing. He must have said that out loud too.

"You just rest… I'll go get Adam."

"Okay."

Lottie was thankful that Marcus seemed to have somewhat regained his wits as she helped him home. It had taken a few more potions, but Adam had finally gotten rid of the flatulence. Well, mostly. Every so often, Marcus would let out another soft one that would have her in giggles again.

Though he was still a little loopy, so thankfully was currently not so embarrassed by it. She had given Adam a fairly good tongue-lashing about it for the short period that he had passed out, though her brother swore that it wasn't his intention. Just an unexpected side effect. And that he really was trying to reverse the potion, but it was a bit more difficult than what he usually dealt with.

Of course, then as they were about to leave, Adam had the gall to ask her if this was what she really wanted. To be with Flint - the bloke who called her Smelly Bells in school. She had told him that he had changed and then promptly left, half dragging Marcus with her.

"Almost there," she said as they cleared the last step and were now in front of Flint's front door. He pulled out his wand and tapped out a rhythm then opened it, the two of them stumbling in. She glanced around, noting that it was clean but had a distinctly masculine feel to it. Though she didn't really have time to study it more. She needed to get Marcus to bed.

"I really am sorry," Marcus said for what felt like the 100th time that night, his words still slightly slurred as they made their way through the living room to a slightly opened door that Lottie assumed was his bedroom.

"As I've said, it's not your fault," Lottie replied, struggling a bit as he put more weight on her. Merlin, he was heavy. Granted, he was a professional quidditch player.

"I ruined our date," Marcus lamented. Lottie couldn't help but chuckle.

"Trust me, you didn't ruin anything," she said as they walked in and the room was flooded with soft light. She moved over to the large bed and then pushed him on it. The large player splayed out and Lottie huffed slightly before removing his shoes and then struggling to get him tucked in. Yes, he was fully clothed but as hard as it was to get him this far, she didn't want to spend the next hour trying to get him undressed. "Now, Adam says you just need to sleep, and you'll feel fine in the morning."

Marcus looked up at her, blinking slightly as though he were struggling to focus on her face a bit. She bent down and kissed his forehead. He really was adorable like this. As she started to back up, Marcus reached out and touched her cheek.

"I know they bother you, but it must be nice having brothers," he said. Lottie's eyes widened slightly. "They care about you. Be happy you're not alone." Lottie frowned slightly, the statement hitting her a bit hard.

She hadn't thought much about Marcus' homelife before, but the look on his face made her wonder just how hard it had been for him. And how hard it might be now. He never spoke about his family, or why he decided to fight against You Know Who. She wondered if perhaps everything - the bullying, the macho image - if it were a front for something deeper.

What pain did Marcus Flint carry in him?

"I do love them," she said softly, as a smile came over her face. "They annoy me, but I love them." Marcus smiled. "And you're not alone, you know. You've got me for starters." His smile grew, though a faint blush came over his face.

"I like you, Lottie. A lot," he said. He then chuckled slightly as though he had made some sort of joke. He then stopped and looked up at her. "Stay with me."

Lottie was silent. She wasn't sure if he was talking about right now, or if there was something more to the request. Her heart clenched slightly. She swallowed and then leaned down to gently kiss his lips.

"Of course, I'll stay…"

And I finished writing the story today! Hooray! And had soo much fun writing this chapter and the next one. They were supposed to be one chapter together, but as you can see, got a bit carried away and there was no way it was going to fit into one.

Aphrodite-Venus-u.k – Haha! Well, there's more story to come!

I'm the Galactic Starfish – Thanks so much! I'm glad that you're enjoying it and I hope that you like this one. ^_^

LeeForShort – Haha, of course they were going to find out. Had to add the feud aspect in at some point. ^_^ Hope you like this one and what's coming.

Thanks for reading and following!