Yup, this one is sad. Really, really sad. Honestly, I'm not destined to write fluff, so take it or leave it :P

Written for Herbology Assignment #3 on the Hogwarts Witchcraft and Wizardry forum :)

I See Fire

If this is to end in fire
Then we should all burn together
Watch the flames climb high into the night

They had always known, really, that it would happen to them. But when Death had finally arrived at their door, it had still caused a hitch in their breaths and a skipped beat of their hearts.

Because no matter how much someone knows that they're going to die, it takes a lot more than knowing to believe.

And then, there's always that frightening, eerie possibility that you're going to be forced to live when you should have been long gone from life.

It all started with a knock. A simple, innocent, run-of-the-mill knock. But Frank and Alice Longbottom had grown wary of knocks in the last few years, so their grips tightened on their wands as their heads perked up at the sound. They exchanged worried, frowning glances, both of them only thinking of Neville.

They had a plan, though. Frank and Alice would have been shameful Order members if they didn't have a plan.

Frank stood up and made for the front door as Alice went the opposite way to Neville's room. She picked up the peacefully sleeping boy, looked at his face during her entire walk across the hall to their small study as if trying to memorize every last inch of his face. This was her son, and she hoped to Merlin that if she was going to die that night, it would be with his peaceful face floating around her mind.

Once Alice arrived in the study, she headed straight for one of the bookshelves and waved her wand at the highest shelf - just a few centimetres over her head. The shelf slid forward and levitated above her head, revealing a small alcove behind it. Alice gave her son one last, long look and a kiss on the forehead before placing him inside the alcove and levitating the bookshelf back into place. If anything should happen, Augusta would know what to do.

Meanwhile, near the front door of their small house, Frank peered through the door scope and instantly felt a horrible feeling in the pit of his stomach. There they were - masked and ready to take them down. Two from what he could see, but he had an inkling that there were more. They were so confident that Frank figured the knock was more a kindness. The Death Eaters at his door probably knew with absolute certainty that the lives of Frank, Alice, and hopefully (at least in their minds) Neville Longbottom were theirs for the taking.

A soft click broke Frank out of his nervous thoughts and his head snapped towards the study. Neville was as safe as he could be and that thought comforted Frank a little bit. His son would live and, if need be, finish the job that they couldn't.

Alice exited the study and Frank headed straight for her. The worried look in his eyes told her all that she needed to know - it was just a matter of time.

Frank wrapped his wife in his arms and let out a shaky breath. "We'll be fine, love," he said quietly as he stroked her hair. "Neville will be fine."

"Neville will be fine," Alice agreed. She didn't even bother to agree with the other statement. She didn't believe it at all.

Finally, the second knock came. They could have ran - but only those who run are chased, and neither Frank nor Alice wanted to drag Neville into living day by day with no guarantee of food, safety, or warmth. They had known from the moment that their son was born that the young parents would either make it out of the war alive with their son or die for him.

The third knock came much sooner than the second. Loud, violent, raging. Followed by a manic screech. Frank tightly grasped Alice's hand and she squeezed back. Their wands were raised before them, ready to rain all of the hell that they could muster on the murderers on the other side of their door.

Alice swished her wand with thoughts of her son's peaceful face in her mind and procured her Patronus. It dissipated, well on its way to inform the rest of the Order of what was happening.

There was no fourth knock. The door flew off of its hinges in a storm of splinters and sparks. Frank and Alice didn't hesitate. Their hands parted ways and their minds went into duelling mode, immediately sending all of the offensive spells they could think of at whoever their attackers were. There was still debris floating around the entrance hall of their house, but their hexes were bound to hit someone.

When the dust finally cleared, they counted four. Four Death Eaters' masks. Four sets of swishing, black robes. Four wands deflecting. And now, four wands menacingly aimed their way.

Frank and Alice's fight for life quickly turned into a defensive one.

Thankfully, they were a team. A perfect team. Frank could cast a large Protection Charm, and Alice knew all the special tricks to enforce it. But that left no one attacking their attackers, and soon enough they were surrounded by prowling, faceless murderers, manic laughs, and dark chuckles.

That was the moment in which Frank and Alice believed they were going to die.

Alice flinched and stepped closer to Frank when the first curse bounced off of their protective bubble. It would wear off eventually and they would have nowhere to run.

But Neville will be fine.

"Come out, come out, darlings," a female voice taunted just before she threw an ugly, purple curse at their shield. It caused an orange fracture to appear.

Frank and Alice stood back to back, wands poised for the moment that their shield would shatter. Even if they believed they were going to die, they wouldn't go down without a fight.

The couple ducked when the first spell got through and they both immediately cast their Disarming Spells - but they didn't hit any of their opponents and soon enough they were back on the defensive, fighting for their lives. This time, they held each other's hands, for if that was the moment in which they would die, both Frank and Alice wanted to do it with the warm feeling of holding someone's hand.

Eventually, as they grew more and more exhausted, their duelling grew more clumsy, and the kinks in their brave, Lion armour became more obvious. They were disarmed in two quick spells, and then all that Frank and Alice had left was that warm feeling of skin against skin, so they held on a little tighter and got a little closer to each other.

"Crucio!"

The spell hit Alice first, and for an excruciating two seconds, Frank saw - felt it in the clenching of her hand - his wife in a state of absolute terror.

When the curse hit him, he almost thought it was worse to see Alice writhing in pain.

Almost.

Because no matter how much it hurt to see his dear Alice fall to her knees and groan in pain, no matter how it tore at his heart to see her soft features contort into complete terror, there was nothing that compared to the feeling of the Cruciatus Curse.

It felt as if someone was stabbing him with a hot poker. No, not just him - it felt as if his very soul was being stabbed by countless, searing hot knives. He heard two screams and knew, deep inside, that they belonged to him and Alice, but the sounds were so far-off, so unearthly and inhuman, that he could not wrap his head around the fact that those sounds were coming from them.

The more pain Alice felt, the more her hand clenched onto Frank's. Her nails dug into his skin, probably drew blood, but it felt like the prick of a needle next to the curse that was setting his body on fire. At least she was still holding on. At least he could still feel her hand holding on to his. Like she was holding on to life.

It was the warm feeling of holding someone's hand and thoughts of Neville's peaceful, sleeping face that kept the couple grounded.

But Frank and Alice Longbottom were only human, and like any human, there came a point when the pain was too much. When, no matter how much they had worth living for, it was simply easier to give up. And, for the young couple, this point in time crept up on them like an eerie fog - slow and harmless at first, then blinding you all at once.

When this moment finally came for Alice, she let go of her husband's hand and let out the loudest, longest, most heartbreaking screech that echoed through the silent night.

And when Frank felt his wife letting go of his hand, his bloodcurdling, agonizing scream joined hers.

Oh my goodness, I hate myself. Yup. Okay. Creds to Ed Sheeran for the inspiring lyrics.

Please review! :)