Chapter 8: Mates

The next few weeks just flew by as Marcus had the team training almost everyday, occasionally before the sun was even up. Poppy's team mates weren't exactly warming up to her, but after what Marcus did to Derrick, their behaviour had changed for the better. Marcus did his best to try and include her, making her work as hard as anyone at practice and treating her as though she was just another boy, and others followed his lead.

Poppy, not having much experience with boys, was surprised to learn how openly they shared their thoughts in the locker room, even with her present. They would talk about girls, rating their looks or discussing who snogged whom, when and where. She was used to Grace sharing every little detail of her romances, but getting to hear the other side was fascinating. The boys never held back due to her being there, sometimes they were downright vulgar, though Poppy noticed Adrian was always quiet and Marcus wasn't as crude as she had thought, only chiming in once in a while to comment on someone's story, never sharing any of his own.

Poppy walked with Marcus back to the castle. They had just finished two hours of practice and supper would be served soon. Both of them were starving. Quidditch practice with Marcus was a lot more brutal than it had ever been with Oliver. They had often practiced at home and Poppy had been to see the Gryffindor team's training session a few times. Oliver, though firm, was also encouraging and helpful while Marcus was rough and demanding. The team would run through every play until it was perfect, even if it meant being late for supper or breakfast.

"You're awfully quiet whenever they talk about girls," Poppy said, meaning her team mates.

"Would you prefer I spoke like Montague?" Marcus asked.

"Oh, no, he's disgusting. But seriously, have you ever had a girlfriend?"

"That is none of your damn business."

"Fine, forget I asked."

Poppy had been getting to know Marcus for the last few weeks but it was proving to be quite a challenging task, as he didn't really want to talk about himself. So far she had found out Marcus liked Herbology, mostly because it was completely different from Quidditch, and that whenever asked about his family, he would get angry and leave. He was also an avid supporter of The Falmouth Falcons, not surprising at all since his playing style was very similar. Poppy also knew he kept a bottle of firewhiskey hidden in his trunk, "for emergencies."

They sat down opposite each other for supper.

"You know what your problem is?" Marcus said while filling up his plate with mashed potatoes. "You're too nosy."

"You're too private," she replied.

He chuckled. Poppy enjoyed these kinds of moments, where she saw what was under the tough shell of Marcus Flint. She had found that the best way to get information from him, was to tell him about herself. Usually, he didn't seem to care much or looked as though he was barely listening, but he never left or told her to stop bothering him. And rarely, if he was in a good mood, he'd share something about himself.

"Would you say we're friends?" Poppy asked after they had finished supper and were walking to the dungeons. "I know you've been saying for two weeks how you don't want any friends, but you spend time with me and we talk, so I'm just wondering..."

"We're mates," he said.

"That's another word for friend."

"Friends are for girls and little children, we are mates."

"Fine."

"Fine. And stop asking so many questions, bloody hell."

Inside, Poppy was beaming but on the outside, she remained calm and collected. She could finally say she had more than one friend.

The girls in Poppy's dormitory had teased her about Marcus a few times. They had said they couldn't understand what Poppy saw in Marcus since according to them, he was ugly. Poppy had tried explaining to them that she was not dating Marcus but they didn't believe her, especially after the rumor that had circulated. Their comments had actually gotten Poppy to think about Marcus's appearance. She had noticed his arms before and now, because of practice, she had seen the rest of his upper body too. He was definitely strong and muscular but not to the point of obnoxious. Poppy had to admit to herself Marcus' body was attractive. But it wasn't his body that made everyone call him a troll.

She had never thought of Marcus as ugly. During her first years she thought he looked scary with his signature sneer that rivaled the one of Draco Malfoy's and slightly trollish with crooked teeth but never ugly. His teeth were still slightly crooked but they looked a lot better than before and his nose looked as though it had been broken a few times. His beard was usually unshaven for a few days at a time. He wasn't conventionally attractive but there was something about his rugged appearance that appealed to Poppy. She thought it was only his reputation and the sneer that made a lot of students scared of him. Now that she knew him better, she found herself often thinking he looked fine. Sometimes even attractive, especially when he talked about Quidditch and got so intense he almost seemed angry. Poppy didn't think it was normal of her to be attracted to her angry friend, mate, whatever, so she didn't tell anyone. Especially Grace. Grace would never shut up if she knew what Poppy was thinking.

She was laying on her bed, once again thinking about Marcus's appearance. She didn't know why this was such a frequent topic in her mind and caused tingles in her stomach. When Marcus smiled, which wasn't that often, Poppy always wanted to smile, too. When he took off his shirt, her concentration was lost. She was sure he had seen her stare but hadn't said anything. Poppy was thankful for that.

Poppy had to admit she fancied Marcus. This had never really happened to her before, as most boys ignored her and she ignored them. Except Adrian, of course, but Poppy had never thought of him as more than a friend. She didn't know anything about relationships as her only examples came from people such as her friend Grace, whom she loved and cared for but whose longest relationship had lasted approximately two weeks. Grace always said she kept picking the wrong boys. Poppy had also seen her brother take a different girl to Hogsmeade every time they were allowed to go but none of them seemed to stick around.

"They all want me to spend so much time with them, I have other things to do," Oliver always said. "They don't understand my priorities."

Poppy sighed. She didn't know anything about relationships and clearly nobody else did either. Marcus had so many bad qualities, he was definitely not boyfriend material. The drinking, the fighting and always acting in the the most stereotypical Slytherin way were just a few of the things Marcus was known for.

A scream coming from the common room interrupted her thoughts and she decided to go see what was happening. As Poppy entered the room, she immediately saw a huge group of people huddled around Draco Malfoy, their teams seeker. Pansy Parkinson was standing right next to him, looking horrified and Poppy assumed she was the one screaming. Marcus was standing in a corner, looking worried and lost in thought. She went over to ask what was going on.

"Remember when Malfoy hurt his arm with the hippogriff on the second day of school?" Marcus replied.

"Yeah. Almost two months ago."

"True, but he's been complaining about it ever since. Somebody just accidentally bumped his arm and he's obviously faking the pain but if he keeps up this act, we won't be able to play against Gryffindor next week and your brother will probably think I'm scared of him and his little team and his little Potter. I could just hit him right now."

"What, Oliver? Since when do you care what he thinks?" Poppy asked and realized this was a rather stupid question since Marcus and Olivers rivalry had been going on ever since they were both chosen as captains for their house teams. From that point forward they were obsessed with each other.

"No, I could punch Malfoy, but Wood sounds like a good option, too," Marcus replied with a grin.

"Why are you always such a git?" Poppy snapped. Marcus looked at her surprised.

"It was a joke," he said, slightly annoyed. Poppy knew he didn't like it when people questioned him or his actions.

"Yeah, right," Poppy remarked and turned on her heels to go back to her dormitory.

Poppy fell on her bed and sighed. He was such an idiot, and she hated the fact she fancied him. It wasn't just physical, either, she actually liked his personality, at least during the times when he wasn't acting like a typical tough guy.