Title: Glass Hearts

Rating: PG-13

Summary (of chapter): Lily at the Potter's house, New Year's Eve with Dorcas Meadowes, Marlene, and Remus, and back to Hogwarts!

Lily stirred awake, a ray of sunlight in her eyes. She turned unto her side, away from the light. She saw James laying next to her. His hair was sticking up, and his glasses lay on the nightstand. She remembered last night, the giant attack and the fight with her sister. She had come up here to sleep with James, and he hadn't tried anything. She scooted closer to him, setting her head on his shoulder. He sleepily put his arm around her.

Lily smiled, her hand on his chest. She found that James smelled a certain way, his soap and sweat and cologne and the wood of his broomstick blending together. Although they hadn't gotten too physical yet, she was beginning to become familiar with his body. His slight frame, his narrow jaw, his bony shoulders, his calloused hands. She wondered if they would get married; if he was the last boy she slept with like this, comfortable and relaxed, even after a long night and a yelling match with her sister. Would he be the one to always be there when she cried? Would he be the only one who could love her the way she needed?

The bedroom door opened suddenly. "Prongs -" Remus stopped dead in the doorway, staring at Lily with wide eyes. "Lily?"

Lily gave him a bashful smile. "Happy Christmas," she said.

Peter came in after Remus, whistling, then the same look of shock came unto his face. "Lily?" he said.

James groaned from next to her. "Shove off," he said.

"Is that any way to speak to your guests?" Sirius said, pushing past Remus and Peter.

Lily sat up, feeling uncomfortable. Good thing she was wearing decent clothes. James groaned again, and he wrapped his arms around her waist. Sirius sat on the bed, waggling his eyebrows at Lily. "You kids have fun?" he asked.

"Sirius, if I mean anything to you, leave," James said. Lily smiled, feeling his jaw move against her stomach.

"What about Remus and Peter?" Sirius asked indignantly.

Remus, leaning against the doorpost, crossed his arms. "I'm not leaving until he leaves," he said.

Peter was still staring at Lily, his jaw open.

"Why do you hate me?" James said into Lily's stomach.

"Go on," Lily said, throwing a pillow at Sirius. "Get out, I have to get dressed."

Sirius stood up while rolling his eyes. "More snogging and shagging," he said.

"All of you, get," Lily said, waving her hand at Peter and Remus.

The three boys left, closing the door behind them. "Why do they listen to you?" James asked through a yawn.

"I'm a girl," Lily said, as though this were obvious.

James smiled up at her, resting his hand on her thigh. "You know, I can't see you very well," he said, "but you're absolutely the most beautiful sight to wake up to in the morning."

Lily smiled back at him. She lay on her stomach and kissed him. He wrapped his arms around her. The two of them hadn't ever been in a bed together before, and Lily found it slightly exhilarating. James pulled the covers over them. "Did you lock the door?" he asked.

Lily grabbed her wand from the nightstand, locking the door, and then James pulled her closer to him.

Around noon, all five of them were sitting in the kitchen eating lunch. It seemed like Peter had come to grips with the situation and that Lily was, in fact, at James's house over Christmas break. Mrs. Potter had made soup and sandwiches, and they all sat around the table, chairs crammed in so they would all fit.

"So, Lily, your parents don't mind that you're here?" Mrs. Potter asked.

Lily shook her head. "They know me and my sister just need some space," she said. "My sister really doesn't like the wizarding world, and last night really. . ." She sighed, not knowing how to put it gently. "Let's just say she's not happy with me."

Mrs. Potter nodded understandingly. "Oh, it's all right, dear," she said. "I'm sure she'll be fine soon. She's just shaken up."

"That's a mild way to put it," Sirius said.

Fortunately, Sirius hadn't seen Petunia after they went back. Lily shook her head and let out a small laugh. "I think she tried to hit James and Sirius over the head with a frying pan," she told Mrs. Potter.

"A frying pan?" Mr. Potter repeated, laughing.

"Well, maybe it would have done them some good!" Mrs. Potter said. "Two seventh years running off to join a giant attack! And they were out in that shed for hours. Boys, I don't know what you do in there, but if you're wrecking my things -"

"Mum, nothing in there is yours," James assured her.

"Don't worry about it," Sirius said. "We're behaving ourselves."

"Good," Mrs. Potter said. "I know you're of age, but it you're breaking any laws -"

"Of course not," James and Sirius said in unison. Lily smirked, thinking about the motorbike she and James had taken for a ride a few days ago. She had been sure they were going to die; she had only driven a motorbike a few times before.

"Have a little faith," Sirius said.

Mrs. Potter gave Lily a smile, shaking her head.

It was New Year's Eve, but most people were at home celebrating with their families and close friends. After the giant attack, witches and wizards decided to lay low on the holidays.

Dorcas was not spending the night with family or friends. She sat in front of the fireplace at the Order Headquarters. The fire wasn't on since the smoke would give her away. The Order of the Phoenix Headquarters was a cave in the mountains changed into a semi-homy place. They had moved here three months ago.

The Order had been around for about two years. Dumbledore started it after ten years of war. Dorcas had been here since the beginning. Two years of chasing down clues, of fighting, or loss after loss, of Unforgivables. She was tired. Moody was trying to talk her into taking a vacation, but she still wasn't having any of it.

There was a pop!, the noise echoing off the walls of the cave. Dorcas took out her wand, but saw it was Fabian. "Hey," she said.

"How's it going?" Fabian asked, taking off his cloak.

"Just enjoying the hols," Dorcas said, holding up her firewhiskey.

"You should be at home," Fabian said. He sat down across from her, narrowing his eyes.

"This is practically my home," Dorcas said, glancing around. "The good old Order."

"You can come over to our place," Fabian offered.

Dorcas hardly thought that was a good idea. Instead of saying this, she asked, "What are you doing here?"

"Looking for you," Fabian said.

"Liar."

"No, honestly, Gid wanted me to invite you over."

By the way he held his hands in front of him, she could tell her was telling the truth. "Why didn't he come himself?" she asked.

Fabian paused, and Dorcas knew the answer. She could read Fabian like a book. It came from knowing him for so long. "I'm not going over there if she's there," she said.

Fabian looked annoyed. "Can't the two of you just get on with your lives?" he asked. Dorcas wasn't sure if she was talking her and Gideon, or her and Gideon's snooty girlfriend, Emmeline Vance.

"Why is he even with her?" Dorcas asked.

"Is that jealousy I sense?" Fabian asked, grinning.

Dorcas began massaging her temples. "Fabian, it's too late to talk about Gideon," she said.

"Whatever you say," Fabian said fairly.

They sat there for a moment, looking into the empty fireplace. Fabian grabbed himself a firewhiskey out of the cabinet and sat back down. "I guess I'm staying here, then," he said, popping the bottle open.

"You can go back," Dorcas said.

Fabian shook his head. "I'm spending the hols with family."

Marlene turned around and looked at her butt in the mirror. She frowned a little bit. Why did it have to be so. . .flat? She turned back around and surveyed herself. Her long curly hair was down, and she had defrizzed it as much as she could. She had a long-sleeved dark green shirt on and normal blue jeans. Remus and his parents were coming over for New Year's Eve. Apparently, her mother knew Remus's father from somewhere . . . they used to work together, or something.

She sighed. Her brother's were over for the night. Downstairs, her mother and sister-in-law were cooking up some snacks for the night. It was an hour and a half for midnight, but the night still felt young.

She pulled her hair back in a clip, then decided to leave it down. What did she care? It was only Remus.

Marlene walked downstairs and joined her family. Little Lucas was running around, playing with his Quidditch action figures. Her brothers and dad were sitting in the living room, talking over a drink, grateful to have the night off. She walked over to the oven, where her mum stood, making snacks.

"You smell good," Sarah said, smiling at her knowingly.

"Honey, I'm excited to meet Remus," her mum, Abigail McKinnon, said.

"I'm excited for you to meet him, too," Marlene said. She glanced over at the clock - they said they'd be over in ten minutes.

Those next ten minutes seemed to be the longest in Marlene's life. She helped with the snacks, took out drinks, talked with George about Frank Longbottom, spun Lucas around until they were both dizzy, changed her shirt after spilling milk on it, and they still hadn't come.

Finally, there was a knock on the door. Marlene went to answer it, butterflies in her stomach. She opened the door, a smile on her face, and Remus stood there with two adults behind him. She had seen them on the platform before, but had never properly met them. "Hi!" she said. "Come on in."

"Thanks," Remus said, walking in.

Marlene shut the door after his parents came inside. "Mum, dad, this is Marlene," Remus said.

"It's nice to meet you," his mum said pleasantly, shaking her hand.

"Oh, I'm so glad you guys could come over," Marlene said.

They walked into the kitchen, and everyone was introduced. Remus's parents were probably the nicest people Marlene had ever met. His mum was so interested in the wizarding world, even though she had been married to a wizard for eighteen years.

The rest of the night seemed to fly by for Marlene. Every time she looked at the clock, she couldn't believe so much time had passed. They all played a few games of Exploding Snap, then sat around the living room to eat while Sarah and Doug played against each other. Remus told stories about his days at James's house. They all exchanged opinions on the Quidditch teams, and George and his dad started arguing about the Arrows. After a while, the Lupin's were telling them about Greece.

"You should come with us next summer," Mrs. Lupin said to Marlene.

Marlene smiled, blushing a little bit. "Oh, I don't even know your family," she said.

"They wouldn't mind if you came for a week or two," Mrs. Lupin said, waving her hand. "Honestly, it would be so much fun. I think you would love Greece."

"It does sound like a great place," Marlene said. She met Remus's eyes, and he smiled at her, shrugging a little bit.

Marlene could tell her brother's didn't like the idea, so she changed the subject. She would love to visit Greece, especially with Remus and his family. She would entertain this idea when the summer actually came up, though.

They cleaned off the platters Marlene's mum had set out and drank most of the drinks. At midnight, they counted down with the WWN. Cheers went up in the small living room, and Marlene kissed Remus on the cheek. He smiled at her, patting her on the back.

The two of them sat at the kitchen table while the adults talked in the living room, Lucas asleep on his mum's lap. "So, Happy New Year," Marlene said brightly.

"Yeah," Remus said. "It's been a really good year."

"To think we hardly knew each other a year ago," Marlene said, shaking her head.

"Yeah," Remus said thoughtfully. "That's crazy."

He reached across the table, taking her hand. "This is a good way to spend a holiday," he said.

The Hogwarts castle filled up with students as Christmas break ended. The dorms were full of new presents, laughter, and stories from break. The common room fireplaces were alit again, lighting up the faces of the students. The portraits were excited for the new life. They listened to the talk that filled the corridors and waited for passwords again. Teachers and students were on their usual schedules. They started new units and spells, book bags heavy with books and homework after the three week holiday. Everyone was glad to be back at Hogwarts, though, even with the work.

Prefect meetings were a breeze, Lily and James now used to being Head Girl and Boy. Even with the usual tenseness of the war, there was a balance in the castle. Students were getting into trouble, enjoying the snow left over, and having fun. Two days into the term, Marlene and Remus had to pull a third year Gryffindor out of the lake after his girlfriend pushed him in. Peeves had a load of new songs to share with unsuspecting teenagers. There was a rumor flying around that Jewel had cheated on Sirius with Kingsley Shacklebolt over the break. Lily told everyone to shut up about it, annoyed at the rumor mill of Hogwarts.

In the first Potions class of the term, Lily sat by Sirius, aggravated. She slammed her books down on the desk, making Sirius jump. She shot a glare at Wilkes before sitting down. "I'm so ticked off," she said.

"Why?" Sirius asked.

"Slytherins are just. . ." Lily paused, trying to think of a nasty word. She gave up when Severus walked into the room.

"They telling you about Jewel and Kings, too?" Sirius asked.

"Yes!" Lily exclaimed. "Number one, it's none of their business. Number two, Jewel would never do something like that."

Sirius pulled his Potions book out of his book bag. "You don't think so?"

Lily looked at him as though he were crazy. "Of course not!" she said. "She's crazy about you."

"How do you know?" Sirius asked.

Lily rolled her eyes. "We're friends," she said.

"Why aren't you sitting next to James?" Sirius questioned, motioning to the empty desk behind them at which her and James usually sat.

"You don't want to sit by me?" Lily asked, narrowing her eyes.

"No, no, I want to," Sirius said quickly.

After class, Sirius saw Jewel walking with her friends. "I'll meet you guys there," he told the Gryffindors. He jogged over to Jewel. "Hey, Ool."

Juinper and Holly Nice giggled. "Is that what you call her?" Juniper asked.

Sirius ignored her, setting his arm on Jewel's shoulders. "You know what all the Slytherins are saying, don't you?" he asked.

Jewel rolled her eyes. "Yeah," she said. "It's ridiculous."

Sirius gave her a smile. "Of course," he said. He remembered when, before break, Candace had warned him that Jewel was going to break up with him. He had brushed it off, blaming Candace's nosy nature. Since then, he couldn't help but feel like there was something off between him and Jewel. Christmas break had been fine, they had visited and snogged and ridden on his motorbike. Maybe he was just paranoid.

Quidditch practices started up, the Ravenclaw versus Slytherin match two weeks into the term. The Slytherin Quidditch players constantly taunted Kingsley Shacklebolt about Jewel Mufflet. A few days before the match, there was a fight outside of the Great Hall. Although James was tempted to join in, he separated it before the professors noticed and took away some points. He clapped Kingsley on the back as he headed outside.

The match approached, and the stands filled with students and professors. Marlene sat by Remus and Lily, cheering for Ravenclaw as the balls were released into the air. There was a crisp, cool breeze blowing across the pitch, blowing Marlene's hair across her chin. The Quidditch players whizzed through the air. Their robes were flashes of color, and the cheers of the students rose into the air. Marlene loved every bit of Quidditch.

The game flew by quickly, Ravenclaw winning two hundred to fifty. Marlene cheered with her friends. She walked down the stands, her hand in Remus's. In the Gryffindor common room, they all hung out, but Mary suddenly grabbed her by the shoulder.

"Do you know Warren Philis?" Mary asked.

"Why?" Marlene asked.

"Let's go find him," Mary said. She dragged Marlene out of the common room, and then proceeded to explain she had some snogging to do.

When they finally found him, he was holding hands with Holly Nice. Mary tried to get Marlene to dare her to try to get him away from Holly, but Marlene refused to.

"You're so boring!" Mary said, grabbing Marlene's arm and dragging her down the corridor. "I think you need to stop hanging out with Remus so much!"

"Hey, Remus isn't boring," Marlene said defensively.

"Whatever you say," Mary said with a roll of her eyes.

They strode past a group of Slytherins. "Hey, MacDonald, I saw your brother over holiday," Avery called to them. "I told him I'd say hi."

"Would you like a trophy?" Mary said.

"I was just passing along the message," Avery said, glaring at her.

"Tell him to tell me himself next time," Mary said as they walked on.

After a few steps, she said, "Slytherins are such prats."

"He's only sore because he played like dung today," Marlene said.

Later that night, Mary had left to find Warren Philis again. She decided she didn't need Marlene to dare her to do stupid things, she would do them herself. Marlene just shook her head as she left the common room. She looked down at her homework, sighing.

A few minutes later, Remus walked over to her table. "Hey," he said. "You want to take a walk?"

"Sure," Marlene said, grateful for the interruption.

She put her stuff up in her room, then they left the common room. Remus seemed to be walking with purpose, his hand tight in hers. "You want to see a cool room?" he asked.

Marlene shrugged, grinning. "Sure," she said.

He started pacing in front of a blank wall. Marlene watched him curiously. She glanced around, wondering if he was lost. They stood across a tapestry. Suddenly, a door appeared on the blank wall. Marlene stared at it. "How did you -" she began.

Remus took her hand and opened the door.

The mysterious door led them to an inside garden. A stone path led through all sort of trees and plants, some of which Marlene had never seen. There was a fountain in the middle of the room. Water flowed over the statue of dolphins. A stone path weaved in and out through the room, and there were two benches against the opposite walls. The wall across from them and the ceiling was made of glass, letting the sun in.

"What is this place?" Marlene asked.

"The house-elves call it the Come and Go Room," Remus answered. "It's a room that changes - it comes in the form of whatever the person in front of it needs."

Marlene walked towards the fountain slowly, touching the plants with her hands. "What did you need?" she asked.

"Something to impress you," Remus said.

Marlene set on the edge of the fountain and dipped her hand in the water. "It worked," she said.

Remus sat down next to her, smiling. "Really?"

"Oh, yeah," Marlene said. She leaned towards him and kissed him on the lips lightly. He kissed her again, putting his hands on the sides of her face. Remus was the first and only boy she had ever kissed, and she wouldn't mind if she didn't kiss another boy for a very long time. His movements were soft and gentle, but at times, his kisses felt like fire.

They broke away after a few moments. Marlene quietly dipped her hand in the water and splashed Remus. He gasped. Laughing, she jumped up and ran away when he tried to splash her back. He chased her into the thick plants.

He grabbed her around the waist and pulled her close. She grinned up at him. He leaned down and kissed her again. Marlene wrapped her arms around his neck. He pushed her up against the tree, his mouth hard against hers. She weaved her fingers into his hair and pulled slightly at it. His fingers touched the skin of her back, sending shivers up her spine.

It felt like hours passed until they pulled apart for air. They explored the rest of the room, smelling the different flowers and admiring the plants they had never seen. Remus picked her a flower every five minutes, and by the time they left, she had a bouquet of exotic flowers and a small pink spot on her neck.

A/N: They're so cute, aren't they? Thank you so much for the reviews! Please review this chapter if you liked it :)

Next chapter, James takes Lily up to the Astronomy Tower for her birthday, against all reason, Petunia asks Lily to be a bridesmaid, and Marlene finds out some bad news.