Title: Glass Hearts

Rating: PG-13

Summary (of chapter): Frank Longbottom, everyone! And kissing.

--

"Look, are you sure about this –"

"Shut up, Frank. Just for two seconds. You just – I need to think."

"Think? Think?" Frank repeated. "Look what you're doing! You're no better than they are!"

He was in a grimy underground cave. Sweat from his forehead, mingled with dirt from the cave, dropped into his eyes and burned. He kept wiping at his eyes, wishing he knew a spell of some sort.

He and his partner Caleb Dearborn had captured one of the Death Eaters after an attack in Manchester. He was suspected of being involved in the disappearances of a thirty-year-old woman and her seven-year-old son. Their husband was a Ministry official who refused to join the followers of Voldemort, but hadn't reached his family in time to protect them. It was a story Frank was getting used to, sick as it was.

The man sat on the dirty ground, leaning up against the rock wall. He was tied up and a small trickle of blood was dripping down the side of his head. They had pulled a bandana over his mouth because he wouldn't stop yelling about Lord Voldemort and Dark Magic.

"How do you propose we get it out of him?" Caleb asked. When anyone first met Caleb, they immediately thought of a pretty boy, high-maintenance, too gentlemany, too handsome. But Frank now saw his darker, rougher side.

"I don't know!" Frank exclaimed.

"You're not even an Auror!" Caleb said. "You shouldn't be here. You wouldn't be if Moody and Dumbledore didn't like you. You're just a kid, you don't understand these things!"

"Torturing him isn't going to make us any more right!" Frank yelled. "We're fighting again them because –"

"Because they kill innocent people," Caleb said. "Because they use Dark Magic. Because they have no just reasons behind their murders. Our job is to get them back –"

"We shouldn't be sinking to their level!" Frank said. He swatted at his eyes again as sweat dripped down into them and he swore under his breath. "I am not him."

Caleb shot him a filthy look, then he pointed his wand at the tied up Death Eater. "I'm going to ask you one more time," he said. "Then you're going to answer my question."

"Caleb, stop it," Frank said.

"SHUT UP!" Caleb yelled.

"I'm your partner!" Frank yelled back at him.

"Where is Mrs. Nelson?" Caleb demanded.

The Death Eater shook his head, yelling through his bandana. He bashed the back of his head against the rock behind him repeatedly, yelling louder and louder. Frank was sure he was going to pass out, with the force he used with each blow.

"Where are Mrs. Nelson and her son?" Caleb yelled.

The Death Eater held out one long yell. Caleb waved his wand and said an incantation. The yell changed and the Death Eater's eyes widening in pain. "Where are Mrs. Nelson and her son?" he asked.

Caleb took off the spell. He bent down in front of Death Eater, who had crumpled after the pain. He pulled down the man's bandana. He looked in his thirties; he was a good-looking man, he could have been any next man in Diagon Alley, someone who was buying something for his girlfriend. But he wasn't any normal man. He was a dark wizard and a murderer.

"Where are Mrs. Nelson and her son?" Caleb repeated. He put the tip of his wand to the man's neck. The man was hardly conscious.

"He's not even conscious," Frank said.

"His eyes are open," Caleb said in a tense voice.

"Barely," Frank said, his voice choking. "Look at him, you idiot! He's not going to tell you anything while he's in that condition."

Caleb started to say a spell. Frank grabbed the back of his shirt and wrenched him off of the Death Eater. "Stop it," Frank said firmly. "He's not going to tell you anything when he's barely conscious."

Caleb glared up at Frank, then looked at the Death Eater, who had passed out.

An hour later, Mad-Eye Moody found their cave. Their voices were hoarse, and the back of Frank's throat burned from the emotion he was holding back. "He's unconscious," Caleb told Moody.

"I can see that," Moody replied. "Did you get anything out of him?"

They both shook their heads. "No," Caleb said. "We tried for about thirty minutes, then he passed out."

"All right, let's take him out," Moody said. "We're going to the Order Headquarters."

"We're not headed for the Ministry?" Frank asked.

"Not today," Moody said, shaking his head.

--

Alice,

First, I just want to say that I miss you so much. I'm honestly considering writing Dumbledore to ask if I can visit you. I don't know what they think about visitors, but I don't know how much longer I can go without seeing you.

Training is hardly training, they've given me an unofficial promotion. We've gone through a load of tests, but since they're so short on Aurors and Hit-Wizards, we've had to do some of their work. It's like I skipped three years. I think they often forget I'm still eighteen. I think I often forget I'm still eighteen. I hardly feel human sometimes.

I'm sorry, I don't want to drag you down with my dung. How is your seventh year going? I bet the homework sucks. How are your classes going? And the new DADA teacher? Is he still cool? Remember Professor Greengrass? He was weird. What was it he said about Puffeskins? I don't even know if I spelled that right. I'm too tired for my own good.

I sent some candy and quills. I can't imagine being locked up on Hogwarts grounds. Man, I would miss Hogsmeade. And don't worry about it, you don't have to get me anything. I just thought you might need it. Seventh year is definitely fun, but it's the hardest year. And no Hogsmeade trips - man!

Do you know of any secret passages? I could sneak unto the grounds to see you. Ask James and Sirius - they're always getting into trouble.

Write me back. Soon. As soon as you can, actually. But remember to do your homework.

Frank

P.S. I love you.

P.S.S. I didn't want to write that. I would rather tell you in person, but you have to know.

Alice wiped her face, sniffling. She glanced around. She had left the Great Hall when she realized the letter was from Frank, and now sat on the bottom step of the grand staircase. It had only been two months since they had said goodbye the night before September 1st, but it felt much longer, especially since she knew he was in danger, doing things an Auror trainee would never have gone fifteen years ago. She tried to hold back sobs. He never told her much, but she could use her imagination.

And saying that he loved her . . . Alice knew he wouldn't like the idea of telling her through a letter, but who knows the next time they would see each other? She let a sob escape her lips, and put her face in her hands. How were they going to get through this? She had spent two summers with Frank, and a few years of being acquaintances, and yet they were in love, and yet there were so many things keeping them from safety.

A few people came out of the Great Hall. Alice wiped her face, trying to hide her tears. The voices dropped as they walked past her.

"Alice, you all right?"

Alice looked up as Lily sat down next to her. She tried to smile, but grimaced a bit. "Hey," she said.

"What's wrong?" Lily said, touching her arm.

Alice shook her head. Tears streamed down her cheeks, resistant to her attempts to stop crying. She waved Frank's letter around a bit. "Frank wrote me."

"Oh," Lily said. "What did he say?"

"That he loved me," Alice said, breaking off with a sob.

Lily looked confused for a moment. "So, these are tears of happiness?" she asked.

Alice laughed a little bit. She sniffled and shook her head. "He's just . . . he's doing dangerous things," she said. "He's not . . . he says he doesn't feel like he's eighteen anymore, like he's not even human. I'm worried about him."

Lily's face fell. She rubbed her on the shoulder, frowning. "I'm sorry," she said. "Don't worry, Frank will be fine. In a few months, you two will be together."

"What if he dies before then?" Alice asked. She broke down into sobs.

Lily continued to rub her shoulder as Alice cried. "I just . . ." Alice tried to say. She caught her breath. "I never thought I could love him so much."

She looked at Lily. Lily was looking at her with a strange expression, as though she had just realized something very important. "What?" Alice said.

Lily shook her head. "Nothing," she said. "Nothing, don't worry about it."

Alice let out a shaky breath. "I miss him a lot," she said.

After a few moments, Alice wiped her face and stood up. "Okay. All right. Thanks, Lily. I'm going to run to the Hufflepuff common room."

Lily nodded understandingly. She gave her a sympathetic look. "Don't worry," she said.

Alice gave her a grateful smile. "See you later," she said, sniffling. She walked away, wiping her cheeks again. She had a feeling it was going to be one of those days. The days where she cried at the smallest things, when she rethought her whole life, during which she spent most of the day staring out of the window.

--

It rained all day. The rain pounded against the windows, raising anxiety already present because it was the Friday before a Quidditch match. Slytherins and Gryffindor were caught up in the competition, the corridors tense, the insults sharp, the duels often. Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff students took their sides or stayed in their own corners.

Lily had a hard time concentrating all day. Her classes seemed like a blur. She wrote down notes without registering their meaning. She walked by situations where Head Girl discretion was obviously needed. She thought again and again of what Alice had said that morning. I never thought I could love him so much. The girl was heartbroken, the boy she loved forced into the war and fighting for what was right.

"You all right?" Mary asked Lily. "You've been off the mickey all day."

"I've just been thinking."

They were headed to the Gryffindor common room. The rest of their day was free, having just finished an afternoon class of Transfiguration. Lily had felt James's eyes on her as her and Mary practiced spells, but had avoided looking at him. That was the last thing she needed.

"About what?" Mary asked.

Lily shrugged. "Different things."

They walked into the common room. It was filling up slowly as students got out of their afternoon classes. Lily glanced around. The rain pounded on the windows. Mary walked up to their room. Lily walked to the window. Through the rain, she saw the Quidditch pitch. She remembered James and Sirius telling Remus and Peter they had practice. Swallowing, Lily glanced around.

"Can you watch my things for just a moment?" Lily asked a fifth year prefect.

She didn't wait for a response. She left the common room, then started jogging for the staircase. She ran down it, then down the next one. She was running to the Quidditch pitch. Part of her was yelling at her - what was she doing? It was pouring outside, and she didn't have a cloak. What would she say? Another part of her knew exactly what was going on.

She skipped the trick step, nearly tripping. Her throat burning, she didn't want to think about what would have happened had she tripped. She probably would have landed herself in the infirmary.

"Who are you running from, Mudblood?" Avery yelled after her as she passed the Great Hall. She ignored the laughs of his cronies, running through the entrance doors.

It was pouring harder than she thought. Lily was drenched within moments. Mud and water came up from her heels as she ran towards the Quidditch pitch. She saw figures flying in the sky. She finally reached the pitch. She bent over, putting her hands on her knees as she panted. Seven floors . . . she was never doing that again.

Over the rain, people were yelling down at her. James landed a few feet in front of her. He walked towards her. "What's up?" he asked, looking concerned.

Lily stared up at him, still panting. He was about a head taller than her.

His eyebrows furrowed. "Is everything all right?" he asked.

"James," she faltered.

What was she doing? The players above them flew around on their brooms, a few of them looking down at them. Lily couldn't really see much through the rain, but James's face and his look of concern was clear. It seemed like her mind; she couldn't see much through the chaos or the danger, but James was clear.

"James," she said again.

"Yeah?" James said.

Oh, screw it, she thought.

Lily stepped closer to him, putting her hands on the side of his face. She pulled his face down and kissed him. Unlike their last kiss, nearly a year ago, under the mistletoe, they held nothing back. She wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing him deeply. James dropped his broom, wrapping his arms around her torso. The rest of the world seemed to fade away. Lily didn't care that other people were watching, and she didn't notice that she was soaking wet. She had never been kissed so passionately. She had always wondered what it would feel like to feel weak in the knees during a kiss, and now she knew.

James picked her up and spun them around, their lips still together. James set her down lightly, and Lily broke away. The two of them looked at each other, the rain falling on their faces. Lily slowly began to come back to reality. People were yelling above them. James smirked at her, setting his forehead on hers.

Lily let out a soft laugh. "You have no idea now long I've wanted to do that."

"What?" James said, raising his voice over the rain.

Lily grinned. "I said you have no idea how long I've wanted to do that," she yelled.

"You're kidding, right?" James yelled.

Suddenly, Sirius was on the ground next to them. "What was that?" he demanded.

James shrugged. "You never seen two people kiss before?"

Sirius stared at James incredulously, then he looked at Lily. Lily started laughing. "What's so funny?" Sirius asked.

Lily clutched her side. She couldn't catch her breath. "I . . ." she trailed off. "I just kissed James Potter! And liked it!"

The rest of the Quidditch team joined them. Marlene stood by Lily, a huge grin on her face. She elbowed Lily in the side. "We're trying to have Quidditch practice," she said.

"Oh, right," Lily said.

"No, maybe we can postpone it . . ." James trailed off.

"No!" Marlene and Sirius said in unison.

"You two lovebirds can continue it later," Sirius said loudly, holding James's broom out for him.

"We're already really good," James said.

"No," Lily said, shaking her head. "No, it's all right. I'll see you guys afterwards."

James looked disappointed. He glanced around at the players around them, then seemed to admit defeat. "Okay," he said. "We'll see you later."

"Have fun," Lily said, smiling at James.

She turned around and ran back into the castle. She leaned against the inside of the entrance hall and sunk down to the ground, grinning. Well, the worst part was over.

--

The news spread fast. By dinner, Lily felt like everyone's eyes were following her. Lily and Marlene sat down next to Mary, Candace, and Debra. "Lily, is it true?" Candace asked.

"I told you it was!" Mary exclaimed. Lily had told Mary as soon as she had made it back to the common room. There was no use hiding it; hardly anyone at Hogwarts could keep a secret, especially one as juicy as an unexpected kiss between the Head Boy and Girl.

Candace stared at her with her eyes wide. "I thought . . . I mean . . ." she trailed off. She looked at a total loss for words. Marlene laughed quietly as she filled up her plate with dinner.

"What?" Lily asked, rolling her eyes. "I hardly respond like this when I hear you snogged someone."

"Which is about once a week," Mary said.

Candace made a face at her as Mary, and Marlene laughed. "I mean - what about Dennis?" she said.

"Well, we just don't . . . click," Lily said.

"So, you kissed James Potter?" Debra asked.

"I couldn't ask him to Hogsmeade," Lily said with a shrug.

"Oh, my god, Lily, you act like this is nothing!" Candace exclaimed.

"Oh, it was going to happen eventually," Marlene said.

James and his friends walked into the Great Hall. "There's your bloke now," Debra said, grinning.

Lily felt like an enormous weight had been lifted off of her shoulders. So, she liked James Potter. Marlene and Remus were right; there were worse things. She thought about what Alice had said. Lily figured she might as well try it out with James. If it didn't work, then fine, they could be friends. But maybe it would work out.

"Ladies," James said, meeting Lily's eyes. "Mind if we sit here?"

"Go ahead," Marlene said.

James sat across from Marlene, and his friends flocked around them. Remus had a grin on his face. Peter was glancing around the table with a confused look on his face. "All right," he said. "Lily, did you really kiss him?"

"Why don't you believe me?" James said indignantly.

Peter shrugged. "Well, come on," he said. "It's Lily!"

Everyone laughed except for James. He rolled his eyes. "I knew this was going to happen eventually," he said. "I mean, it was inevitable. I'm me."

The girls rolled their eyes. "You're so cocky," Candace said.

"Wait, so -" Peter began.

"Yes," Lily said. "I really kissed him."

Peter nodded, his eyebrows raised. After a moment, he asked, "Why?"

"That's the question that's lingering on all of our lips!" Sirius exclaimed. "Why, Lily Evans? What motivated you to do such a thing?"

Lily glanced around. Everyone's eyes on her, she felt a bit on the spot. "Well," she said, "I kept hearing about what a good snogger he was."

There were laughs around the table. Debra elbowed Candace in the side. James grinned at the blonde. "You really said that about me?" he asked.

"Don't flatter yourself," Candace said haughtily. "It was all Juniper."

James rolled his eyes, eating his roast beef. Lily gave him a smile. "So, have you got rounds tonight?" she asked.

James shook his head. "Nope, Remus does," he said.

Lily took a drink of her pumpkin juice. "You two should switch," she said.

"Oh, come on," Mary said. "If they switch, you won't get anything done!"

"Oh, haha," Lily said as the boys grinned stupidly.

--

After dinner, the common room was full of students. Everyone was having fun, enjoying a night knowing the next day was Saturday, and a Quidditch game to boot. It was almost as if the war was far away, perhaps in a different country, instead of taking place in their homes and families.

Lily challenged James to a game of Gobstones. After a few games, they were both covered in disgusting liquids the stones had shot at them. "So, why'd you really kiss me?" James asked after cleaning up Lily's shirt for her.

"Why do you think I did?" Lily asked.

"You lost a bet?" James suggested.

Lily rolled her eyes. She never would have made a bet to kiss someone - especially James - in the first place. "I like you," she said.

James paused. "Say that again."

"I like you," Lily said with a smirk.

James nodded approvingly. "That's a good reason to kiss someone," he said. "You know, if there were Hogsmeade trips, I would ask you."

"I would say yes."

A smile came unto his face. He was cute, really. Lily had always thought his nose was a little off-center, but it was sort of quirky now. She wondered if his hair ever stopped sticking up so much. She smiled back at him.

They played more games of Gobstones, and it turned out that Lily was better at the game. James got a bit sulky, trying to think of new tactics. "You know, this is really funny," Lily said after James lost four games in a row. "I'm Muggleborn and everything."

"Yes, haha, so funny," James said, rolling his eyes.

Lily glanced around the common room as James cleaned himself up. Marlene, Sirius, and Remus were discussing Quidditch on one of the couches. Lily smiled, wondering when Marlene would come clean about her feelings for Remus. Since Lily had done it, Marlene should be soon to follow.

Remus and James switched prefect rounds, and Lily and James walked around the castle for two hours together. Lily enjoyed it. She didn't have to hide anything anymore, it was out in the open. They liked each other, and now things were going a certain way. They talked about school, about the prefects, about Quidditch, and got back to the common room past hours.

"Well, goodnight," Lily said.

The two of them stood in the middle of the common room. James nodded, putting his hands in his pockets. "Get some sleep," Lily said. "You've got a big game tomorrow."

James nodded again. "I won't be able to sleep," he said.

Lily smiled. "I should have kissed you tomorrow," she said. "After you guys won the game. In front of everyone."

"Well, you still can," James said, shrugging.

"Goodnight," Lily said. She kissed James on the cheek. She pulled away, but James leaned in, tilting his head, and kissed her on the lips. They smiled at each other. "Goodnight."

"That's the third time you've said that," James said.

"Goodnight," Lily said. She turned around and walked upstairs. She wasn't going to be able to sleep, either.

--

A/N: Well, not THAT unexpected, but if you put yourself in the characters' shoes, maybe? I'm going to try to update every two weeks from now on, sorry for the wait!

Next up: The Quidditch match and a game of truth or dare with more kissing, some singing, and secrets about diaries!