A/N: Prompts, as always, are displayed at the bottom.


Mistletoe

AlwaysPadfoot


Alice has been in love with Frank all her life.

Growing up under a betrothal never seems to rear its ugly head and make life hell, like she had been expecting. Ever since they are able to understand what love is, Alice and Frank know that is what they have.

They hold hands at five years old; they play house and pretend they are married already. Alice's parents would laugh and shake their heads. Just you wait until they're teenagers, then we'll see if they're still in love then. Then never comes. Frank and Alice remain just that — Frank and Alice. They are inseparable; they are that couple, but that doesn't bother either of them. They are happy, just wrapped up in each other. Frank is her best friend.

Frank makes her feel special.

As they grow older though, one thing is clear, their physical relationship would always be limited to hugs and kisses — anything else makes Frank feel uncomfortable. Alice understands, of course; she would never demand sex from the man she loves more than anything else in the world. In her sixth year, and Frank's seventh, Alice heads to the Christmas Party in the Ravenclaw Common Room. Frank has said again that it's fine if she needs to blow off steam. If she wants to, then its okay if Alice wants to kiss other people, or more. Frank trusts her, and he knows that Alice will always come back to him — she knows it too. Besides she doesn't need anyone else; she's always been okay with what they have.

Frank kisses her cheek and tells her she looks beautiful before he leaves to go and study. Alice and her housemates make their way up to the Ravenclaw Tower and the party is already in full swing. She makes it seem effortless just how well she blends in.

Alice loves house parties. She loves the music; her body seems to pick up the rhythm and move in time, whatever the genre. She loves to be just that little more carefree with Firewhiskey in her belly and flashing lights in her eyes. She lets herself get just that little bit more lost in a world that has always been overflowing with adventure. Tonight is no different.

Well it isn't until a chorus of oooo's surround her, everyone's eyes fixated on something just above her. Alice frowns and looks up. Above her head is a sprig of mistletoe, the leaves lit up in blue and green and purple. She then looks to the left to see what boy she might be forced to kiss, only to see that instead, that boy was Marlene McKinnon. The Gryffindor smiles wifely, goofily even, but her body language is so confident. "What do you say, Alice? You in?"

Alice thinks about Frank, then about his blessing to be intimate with others. It doesn't feel like betrayal — that is what she expects to feel — it just feels right.

"I'm in."


Comp/Challenge: Yule Ball / Pairing the Character Drabble Comp

Prompt: Kissing Your Date - Write about getting caught under mistletoe. / Alice/Marlene

Word Count: 499