InsaneJournal

Who: Susan and Rhona
Where: Empty classroom
When: BACKDATED: March 27, Saturday, after dinner
What: Girlie things, a little tiny bit of firewhiskey, and a very chaste kiss!
Rating: PG13
Status: Complete



The Quidditch game that afternoon had been exciting, but it was sometimes hard for Rhona to enjoy the game on a purely entertainment level. She would catch herself mapping out the opposing player's tactics, trying to predict their plays, looking for strengths and weaknesses, and suddenly she would realize that fifteen minutes had passed and she had been completely oblivious to the cheering of the crowd around her. She supposed that was a hazard of being a captain, and a sacrifice she was willing to make.

She had caught Susan after the game and asked her if she wanted to hang out later that evening, and when she'd agreed, they'd set a date to meet up after dinner in one of the empty classrooms. Rhona had to admit to be really looking forward to the meeting--she was comfortable around Susan, she liked her quite a bit. Plus, she really needed to tell someone what was going on between her and Eliot, and it would have to be someone who wasn't involved at all, so all of the Ravenclaws were out.

She wolfed down her small portion of dinner and hopped out of her chair before most people were even half-way done, shooting Eliot a smile before she ran out of the Great Hall and up to the tower, answering the riddle as quickly as she could, then bolting into her room and grabbing the bag she had prepared. Twenty minutes later, she had set up the room with some transfigured pillows for them to lounge on, and she was bouncing on her heels waiting for her friend to arrive, eager to get down to girly time.

The invitation to hang out with Rhona had been met with enthusiastic, unhesitating acceptance, though Susan didn't think to rush her dinner until she saw Rhona run out, and even then Susan was another fifteen minutes. Once Susan finished, she bid her dormmates adieu and headed for the classroom she and Rhona had agreed to meet at. She stopped in a bathroom on her way and took out her headband, fluffed her hair, then put it back in again. She wasn't nervous since she felt comfortable around Rhona even if they didn't know each other in and out yet, but she did want to at least make sure she didn't have food in her teeth or something. Susan was very self-conscious about the way she looked in general, and it was more out of a lack of confidence than vanity that she felt compelled to primp a bit.

Once she'd finished, she picked up her book bag--currently filled with the snacks she'd gathered for time with Rhona--Susan headed out and headed right for the room Rhona was waiting in. Susan knocked even as she opened the door and stepped inside, all sunny smiles and bounce in her step.

"Hi! Am I late? Are we on a time constraint? I saw you rushing out of dinner," Susan said cheerily.

She jumped up excitedly when Susan entered, grinning with her usual bubbly energy. She was wearing a pair of jeans and a pair of trainers, topped off with a printed cotton top, casual but just as well-dressed as she normally was. "No! I was just excited! And feeling energetic! And, uh, I don't eat much, so, I had time!"

She turned and picked up the bag she had brought down, pickign it up and holding it high. "I brought some treats! And, um, some nail varnish, because I haven't painted my nails in awhile and I thought this would be a good time to be girly?"

"Ooh, yay! That would be great! And I brought snacks so if you get hungry later, I totally have crisps and chocolate! You know, just junkfood, which you can indulge in guilt free because your super awesome friend brought it to share," Susan said, clapping her hands a bit at mention of the nail polish before going off on her little ramble about junk food. She bounced on her feet a bit and added, "Oh, but I totally forgot to bring like, something to drink. I could run and like, get something from the Great Hall? I bet the food is still all out..."

Rhona wasn't sure she could ever indulge in junky food guilt free, no matter who supplied it for her. To other people, her obsession with eating and nutrition might be a bit odd, even unhealthy, but to her that's just how it had always been. And she was tiny, which she thought meant that she didn't require a great deal of food to keep going.

"I brought something to drink," she said, grinning mischievously. Reaching into her back, she produced a small flask of firewhiskey.

Susan blinked a she looked at the bottle of amber liquid, and then dissolved into giggles. She'd never had alcohol before, and it was definitely against the rules. She covered her mouth then and almost whispered, "Scandalous! You are such a rebel."

Though alcohol wasn't exactly good for her, if only because it was a blood thinner and that was one of the things her potions did, it wasn't really dangerous. She'd asked Dale once, without her father present, if drinking alcohol would kill her. He'd told her honestly that it wasn't shown to interact badly with her potions, but it also wasn't proven to work with them, and that really, moderation was key. Still, Susan had always avoided it, but the last few months, she'd been growing more and more curious about the sorts of things everyone talked about but that Susan had never gotten involved in.

"First flying, and now this. You're singlehandedly broadening my horizons," Susan said, and the smile that adorned her face as she lowered her hand was clearly excited.

She liked the way Susan giggled, and that she had called her a rebel. Rebellion wasn't exactly something that people often associated with Rhona, since she kept herself on such a strict schedule and was so obsessed with order and controlling herself. Still, it had been a few weeks of doing things she probably shouldn't be doing, so it wouldn't be too much craziness to get a little tipsy, as long as it was only a little tipsy. Plus, what good Scotswoman would refuse whiskey?

"That's what I'm here for. What was it you said? 'A Whole New World'?" she teased, reminding Susan of the song she had sung before.

"Don't make fun of me!" Susan said, laughing as she thwapped Rhona on the arm and then moved to sit down on one of the transfigured pillows. She grinned up at her friend and gestured to the pillow across from her. "I've never had alcohol before. Goodness, there really are a lot of things I haven't done."

"I can't help it, you're very easy to make fun of," she said with a grin, pulling two pilfered glasses from her bag. At Susan's admission, she turned back to her, her expression concerned. "Will you be okay if you have some? I mean, don't get me wrong, I want you to have fun, but it would really put a damper on the evening if I was responsible for killing you."

Susan grinned a bit and leaned back on her arms. Susan was good at smiles, and even though she didn't quite mean it all the way, there wouldn't be any hint it wasn't totally genuine. She knew she wasn't perfectly healthy, but she hated being treated like she was going to keel over at any moment. She was used to being the sick kid, but that didn't mean she enjoyed it. Aside from an hour or two a week when she had to take potions, she could do pretty much anything anyone else could.

"I think I can withstand it," Susan answered. "Besides, it doesn't mess with my potions. I asked like, last year. I mean, I just can't drink in excess, I guess. But then, that's not good for anyone, is it?"

"Well, your definition of excess and mine might be a bit different, considering whiskey is like water to a Scotsman. Still, I'm down for the count after three, so we'll take it slowly," she said, setting out the two cups and pouring a finger of whiskey into each, then handing one over to Susan.

Raising her glass, she said, "May those who love us, love us. And those who don't love us, may God turn their hearts; and if He doesn't turn their hearts, may He turn their ankles, so we will know them by their limping." After her toast, she took a sip of the amber liquid and tried to keep from wincing.

Susan raised her glass, enjoying the witty toast. She made the mistake, though, of sniffing the alcohol before tasting it, and it took her a moment to gather her courage enough to take a sip. It was warm as she swallowed, and she could feel it burning all the way to her stomach. It was a strong taste and she definitely found it a bit overwhelming. She coughed a bit and then shook her head.

"Oh wow. That's... strong!" Susan said, eyeborws raised high as she looked at Rhona with a bit of surprise.

"Woke you right up, didn't it? Sip it slowly, if you drink it too fast you'll vomit all over the floor," she warned, obviously speaking from experience. Setting her glass down for a second, she braced herself against one of the tables and lifted herself to sit on it, crossing her legs daintily before attempting another swig from her cup.

"My dad always said this would put hair on your chest."

Leaning back against one of the desks, Susan got comfortable on her pillow on the floor and then carefully, carefully took another sip. She swallowed and then giggled a bit and said, "I definitely don't want hair on my chest. Not even a little bit."

She tried to recall if her father had ever said anything about alcohol to her, but he wasn't flip about it. He rarely drank, and when he did, it was usually while sitting quietly and staring into the fire and she knew he was remembering people he had lost. He didn't do it very often, though, and usually Susan had ben able to distract him from his melancholy with a hug. She didn't think commenting on any of that, though, would be appropriate given the situation, so instead she just looked up at Rhona.

"What does it feel like to be drunk?" Susan asked curiously.

"For me it feels whoozy, and like I can't think straight, and everything becomes fuzzy and funny. And if I drink much too much, then I start getting dizzy and feeling sick. Really though, it's worse the next day if you overindulge. Then you hate yourself and everyone you've ever met," she explained cheerfully, as if it was the most fun to ever be had.

"Oh, that's all!" Susan chirped, amused. She took another little sip, and this time the taste wasn't as overwhelming. She supposed she was getting used to it a little bit. "I hope I don't get dizzy or sick, but fuzzy and funny sounds entertaining. Maybe we should paint our nails before it gets to that point, though. Or else we'll get polish everywhere. What colours did you bring?"

She turned and dug into her bag, producing two bottles of varnish. "Pink and, uh... pink. I'm not really that adventurous when it comes to my nails, unfortunately," she said sheepishly, setting the bottles down. "I hope you weren't counting on me for the excitement. I like to paint my nails but sometimes it's just pointless -- they always get chipped at practice, so matter how thick my gloves are."

"Oh! I know a good spell to keep them from chipping!" Susan said brightly. "It's basically like a mini-imperturbable charm. It's totally nifty. Dad uses it to keep his labels from getting damaged when he stores or freezes potions."

Susan was a talker. She knew that. She enjoyed chatting and could ramble on about any number of things for a decent length of time. She was cheerful, and a good distraction. She didn't think people minded, really. And Rhona seemed similarly cheerful, so she was certain her new friend had that in common with her. They were both energetic and friendly enough. Rhona was probably a little more uniformly outgoing, but they got along well, Susan thought.

Rhona was definitely more outgoing, but since her entire childhood had been dominated by loud, rough, hard-living men, it was almost a survival mechanism. It seemed that her personality had grown to make up for her size, until she was able to give the impression of being two feet taller than she actually was. Then again, it probably helped that no one could get a fix on her, since she was constantly in motion.

"That's a good trick, you'll have to teach me that." She took another sip from her glass, then slid down and sat on a pillow beside Susan, taking the glass and nail varnish with her. "Now, aren't we supposed to chat about boys or sommat while we do this?"

"Which boys would you like to talk about?" Susan asked, taking another sip of her drink before setting it down and reaching for the polish. She unscrewed it to take a look at the colour and made a pleased sort of noise before she said, "Would you like me to paint your toes for you?"

"I can do my toes, but can you do my left hand? It's hard for me to paint with my right," she said, leaning forward and reaching her hand out. "And I can do your toes, if you want." Shifting a bit, she wiggled until she was comfortable. "Are there any boys you're interested in?" she asked, avoiding for the moment the boy she really wanted to talk about.

"No," Susan said casually as she took Rhona's left hand and began painting. "I mean, there are some boys who I'm close to, of course, but nothing like that. How about you? How are things with that boy you mentioned who sang his feelings for you?"

Susan hoped Rhona didn't assume she meant Aaron, since they hadn't talked about but whom she knew also sang to Rhona. Aaron had asked Susan not to say anything, so she didn't raelly want it to come up. But Susan was curious if Rhona was still as displeased as she had been the day they'd gone flying. She hoped that Rhona and her friend had gotten over it and remained friends. It would be a shame for a friendship to end over something like that. Rhona had said it was a friend, hadn't she? Whatever the case, Susan was curious where things now stood.

She shook her head, holding still to let Susan paint as carefully as she could, her long hours of sitting in a broom making it easy for her to hold a position for very long. For all of her energy and bounciness, Rhona wasn't exceptionally fidgety, which tended to make people feel odd around her and not know why. Exhaling, she tried to figure out a way to talk about what had happened without sounding arrogant. "There are no boys you're interested in?" she asked, cocking an eyebrow. She thought girls lived for that kind of stuff -- at least girls who weren't like her.

"Actually, it ended up being two boys by the end of the week. The... the second was more awkward than the first, since I didn't know the boy too well and he was actually singing to me, and there was... um, dancing. Which was embarrassing for both of us. But with the first boy, well..." she bit her lip, and made herself continue. She had to tell someone. "I went to see him again last Saturday, to, uh, try and clear things up, and I realized that I am really attracted to him. So we, uh..." she blushed, looking down. As much as she had been raised in a rough-and-tumble environment, she still didn't like being crude, and it was difficult to admit that she had shagged someone in the greenhouse. "We were intimate."

"Not really. I mean, boys aren't interested in me, so it's easier just not to get too fussed about it," Susan explained, starting with Rhona's thumb as she painted, hands steady. When Rhona started talking about Aaron, Susan really hoped the other girl didn't say anything mean. She didn't think Rhona was the mean sort at all, but like she said, she didn't really know Aaron, and Susan was protective of her friends. She was glad at least when Susan continued on to talk about the boy, whoever he was, and when she finished, Susan's mouth was agape.

"You... really? Really? Intimate as in... physically... um. You. Sex?" Susan asked, eyes wide. "Really? Oh my gosh. Wow. So are you a couple now?"

Rhona was flushing scarlet by the time Susan got the words out, and her eyes were firmly fixed on the floor. The blush deepened at her next question, and she found herself hoping Susan wouldn't think she was a total harlot because of what she was about to say. "Um, no, because... I don't really have time for a boyfriend but, well, I mean, we're attracted to one another. So, it's... it's convenient."

"Oh," Susan said, her mouth a small oval of surprise. Her cheeks turned a bit pink at the assumption she'd made, and though she knew she'd never be able to sleep with someone she wasn't committed to and in love with, Susan was a firm believe in non-judgement. "But I mean, if that's what you want! I just hope you don't get hurt or something. Or that he doesn't. That's... wow. That's..."

She paused for a moment, dipping the varnish wand back into the bottle and leaving it there for a moment so she could focus on Rhona's face. Her voice was shy as she asked timidly, "So, uh, what. Um. Was that your first time?"

Well, at least they were both blushing. And that Susan didn't seem like she was going to start moralizing at her. With her free hand, she reached out and plucked up her glass, taking a larger gulp then before. She could tell that if this conversation continued on this track, she was going to need fortification. "I don't think I will? I mean, we've been very clear about what it is," she said, though a part of her knew that it wasn't what Eliot would have asked for, the part that wondered if he was settling. She hoped she wasn't playing with his emotions, which is why she had tried to be clear that liking him didn't mean she had time to fall in love.

She blushed deeper at Susan's question, though the girl didn't seem like she was judging, so she felt compelled to be honest. "No, um, it wasn't. I had -- before, with um, Angus Macleod and," she coughed, embarrassed, "Phinnias Burns," she finished, naming two Wigtown players, one of whom had transferred to the Pride of Portree a year ago, who were both rather well known if you followed Quidditch at all.

Susan nodded a bit, surprised by the admission if only because it was so far out of Susan's scope of experience. She couldn't imagine doing that with a boy, let alone with grown men who professional quidditch players. Susan didn't really recognize the names, but she knew enough to make assumptions. They weren't students, anyway, and she'd heard of them in conversation before.

Susan followed suit with her drink, taking another sip of her drink and wrinkling her nose at the taste as she swallowed. She watched Rhona for a moment, Susan's cheeks getting pinker by the minute, and then she leaned forward and asked, voice a whisper, "What was it like? I mean. What did it... feel like? I've never... I mean, I probably will never... Sorry. I guess I'm just curious?"

She took another sip of her drink, following Susan's lead. The alcohol was definitely loosening their tongues, but they still couldn't get the words out without much stammering and hemming. "I mean, it... well, it felt good, obviously. Really good. And Angus and Phinn, they... well, they really knew what they were doing, you know? But with Eliot, it was... I don't know, it was, um, sweeter. Like it... like it, uh, meant more," she answered, inadvertently naming the boy in question.

"You will never? That's silly, Susan, you're very pretty, and you're young. You just need to... you need to know what you want and take it. Everything in life is about goals," she said, a bit more comfortable on the topic of hard work and follow through than she was on the topic of sex. If Susan felt like she was getting lectured by a Quidditch captain, she wouldn't be far off the mark.

"Oh, no, I mean. Of course. One day. In the very distant future, maybe. I just can't... I can't imagine it, that's all," Susan replied, even as her brain did a double take at the fact that it was Eliot. Formal, polite Eliot Quirke. Susan didn't know him that well at all, so it didn't really affect her life. She was far more caught up in the new knowledge that Rhona was much more experienced than she was.

And Rhona said it felt good, and sweet, and meaningful, and that was just like what Susan had always thought it would be like. She smiled a bit and then resumed her painting of Rhona's nails. "That's so... I mean, it's so grown up. I've never even kissed anyone. I'm like a twelve year old in an eighteen year old's body."

"Like I said, it's not a matter of waiting, it's a matter of taking. You can't just sit around and hope you get the things you want. You need to grab them yourself, or someone else is going to take them first," she said, and it was becoming obvious how Rhona had become so good at finding and snatching the Snitch from mid-air -- the Snitch really had no other choice, when it came down to it.

"How funny, since I'm an eighteen year old trapped in a twelve year old's body," she teased, not feeling particularly grown up, since she couldn't even discuss the matter without blushing and mumbling.

"You don't look like you're twelve," Susan said with a smile. "You're really pretty, Rhona. And you can pull off at least fifteen."

She was teasing, and she let Rhona know by smiling up at her before finishing off her last nail with a flourish and letting go of Rhona's hand. It really was a nice colour of pink. Susan thought it would look good on her toes.

"I hope I did an okay job. I think I did. I don't see any particularly heinous smudges," Susan commented on the nail job.

She rolled her eyes, though her smile showed she wasn't offended. "Hardy har har, Susan. You shouldn't make fun of little people, we're all friends with leprechauns and goblins and we can get them to rise against you," she teased, pulling back her nails to examine them. "They look good," she approved, picking up her wand and casting a spell that made a gust of warm air rush from the end of her wand, directing it at at her fingernails to dry them more quickly.

"So, Susan. Boys. You have really never been kissed?"

"You're hardly any more of a little person than I am. I'm like, what, an inch taller than you? Well, I guess, um. I'm a little bigger than you," Susan said, then flushed red. She knew she wasn't exactly in the best shape, and it was a sore spot for her. Susan was really very self-conscious and basically hated her body, so talking about it always made her feel awkward and she wished she hadn't said anything.

Looking for a distraction, Susan latched onto Rhona's next question and answered, "But I mean. Kissing. Nope! I mean, who would I have kissed? Ernie? Justin? Aaron? They're all my friends. Only my friends. I've never kissed anyone but my Daddy. Oh, and I think Dale gave me a few fatherly kisses over the years. Before he... Well, anyway, I don't think that really counts, though."

She didn't respond to Susan's concerns about her size, knowing that fighting against a girl's insecurity was usually fairly useless. Better to compliment them when it wasn't the topic of conversation, since it seemed more believable that way. If she insisted Susan was pretty now, it would only seem like she was trying to make her feel better.

The mention of Aaron made her drop her eyes to her nails again, where she concentrated on painting her right hand. That was definitely still an uncomfortable topic. "Aaron doesn't seem so bad," she mumbled, keeping her gaze trained downward.

"Oh, no, Aaron's wonderful," Susan said absently, tilting back a little more of her alcohol. She was starting to feel a bit funny, and she wondered if that was what it felt like to be drunk. She just felt a bit dizzy and her lips were tingly. Idly, Susan lifted a hand to her mouth and tugged on her bottom lip. "Anyway, Aaron likes you. And I mean, I don't mean that like... even if he didn't, even if all of them, Ernie and Justin too, weren't seeing anyone, we're just friends. They don't see me that way, and I don't see them that way. There's just been no one, that's all. There isn't really anyone that I could see myself kissing."

Her brows drew together and she looked back up at Susan, her expression a little bewildered, and a little irritated. "He doesn't like me. Okay, well, maybe he does, but... I mean, he doesn't know me. We hardly said two words to each other before he sang to me, and..." she trailed off, not sure what else to say. This was obviously a bit of a sore spot for her.

"Sorry. Sorry." Shaking her head, she tried to regain her composure. "Really? No one?"

"Really," Susan said, shrugging. She didn't think it was that big of a deal, or at least she hadn't until now. Rhona seemed so surprised by it, and it made Susan begin to wonder if it was completely strange. Maybe she was weirder than she thought. "Is it completely abnormal? I mean, that I haven't kissed anyone? I mean. I don't even know how. I've never even really thought about it much." Susan paused a moment. "Okay, I mean. That's a lie. I'm curious, of course. I am a girl. But what can I do, you know?"

"It's not abnormal, it's just surprising. You're pretty," she said, then held up her hand, "and hush up, you are. But I can, well, I guess I can see where you're coming from. The boys here can be frustrating, and I know I didn't look at any of them before this year. Heck, I didn't even know I liked El... that boy I was talking about until the other night. I just never let myself think about it," she said, apparently having forgotten she'd already revealed who the mystery man was.

Susan sighed a bit and leaned back on her arms, a bit of a wistful expression on her face (after, that is, she made a bit of a face at Rhona for insisting she was pretty). "I bet it's nice. Kissing, I mean. Oh, but I bet I'll be awful at it. People are supposed to learn kissing when they're younger, I think. When did you have your first kiss?"

"It's nice," she affirmed, shifting a bit and checking to be sure the nails of both hands were dry now. "It's hard to be awful, unless you try too hard. You just have to... relax. Don't try to eat the other person's face." She finished her drink and put her glass away, her head swimming a bit and indicating she should cut herself off for now. "I was fifteen, two years ago."

"Well, I should hope no one tries to eat anyone's face!" Susan said with a laugh. "That doesn't sound at all pleasant."

Then Susan followed suit and finished her glass, setting it aside next to Rhona's as she contemplated kissing. She wondered who her first kiss might end up being with. She was already eighteen, and she had no prospects. Maybe she'd never kiss anyone.

After banishing those silly thoughts from her mind, she smiled up at her new friend. "I suppose there's no rush. Daddy always said that life happens at it's own pace and follows no rules."

Perhaps it was the whiskey talking, but Rhona didn't like the thought of Susan going un-kissed. She knew it would happen for her friend eventually, but wondered how much of the delay was caused by insecurity. She was afraid that the longer it took before she got to the first time, the harder it would be for Susan to let herself find someone to do it with. She knew from experience that a mental block on intimacy was a very effective way of keeping yourself from noticing what, and who, was around you. Without preamble, she reached out and bunched Susan's shirt in her hand, pulling her forward to press her lips against hers, kissing her softly.

Susan let out a soft squeak of surprise as Rhona pulled her in, but then she let her eyes shut for a moment and just return the kiss. She was shocked, of course, that Rhona was kissing her, but Susan wasn't inconsiderate. Asking why on earth Rhona wanted to kiss Susan could wait until after the kiss was done.

For that moment, Susan just let her lips press against Rhona's, and it was nice. Rhona's mouth was soft beneath hers and she tasted a bit like the alcohol they'd just been drinking.

When their mouths parted a moment later, Susan's cheeks were pink and her heart was beating a bit quicker than it might usually, and she blinked at her friend before asking softly, "Um. What. What was that for?"

"I've been flying my whole life, practically, since my family isn't big on broom restriction laws. I've also been playing Seeker since I was about nine, when my dad realized I had good eyes and I wasn't going to get much bigger. I was pretty good at it, but I'd never played in a real game, and I obsessed over it. My entire first year, all I could think about was my first game, how I would play, what I would do, how to win, if I was going to be good enough. Second year, I made the team, I kept obsessing. Then my first game, I played like a total failure, because I had spent so much time thinking about my first game that I completely psyched myself out. Then, once the first game was over, I realized that I had already done the hard part. Now I could just concentrate on doing well and having fun, because I didn't have the pressure of it being my first time anymore."

Susan listened to Rhona speak, taking in the words and processing the metaphone, perhaps a little more slowly than she might have done had she not had her first taste of alcohol. She nodded to show she understood, and then smiled widely.

"Thanks. I mean, it was nice," Susan said, though she wasn't sure it was the sort of nice it could be. She had never thought about kissing a girl before, not really, and though she wasn't put off by the idea, it hadn't quite been a revelation. It had been nice, like she said, and sure, she'd liked it well enough, but she was sort of glad that Rhona hadn't kissed her because she was secretly in love with her. It was ridiculous to contemplate, anyway, the thought of anyone being secretly in love with her, and Susan wouldn't have had a clue what to do with it. Still, Rhona had kissed her, and Susan wasn't unaware of the fact that some girls liked other girls. "So, um. You like boys. Or, I mean, I hope, since... Eliot, and all. Do you like girls too? I mean. I don't mean me. But... just... girls?"

Rhona reached into her bag and extracted a granola bar, apparently wiped out from explaining why she had kissed Susan. Breaking the bar in half, she held a piece out to her friend and began to munch on her own piece, looking philosophical. She hadn't kissed Susan because she was attracted to her -- or to girls in general. It had just seemed like the thing she could do to help her friend, so she had done it. And it had been easy, so she couldn't complain.

"Um, no, I don't think so. I mean, I do, as friends, and I like you as a friend, but I just wanted to... help you. I've never thought about girls that way, I guess. Mostly I just think about Eliot."

Susan accepted the snack and took a little nibble as well. She considered what Rhona had said and then nodded. "That makes sense, I guess. I haven't ever really thought about it either. I mean, I thought that was nice. It felt... nice enough. But I don't know if it was, like, the sort of nice it might be if it was with someone that I liked like that."

She lifted a hand to her lips contemplatively as she considered whether or not she might like girls, but that hadn't made her stomach flip or her palms sweat or her nerves jangle. Rhona was her friend, sure, and Susan thought she was pretty and smart and fun, but she had never really thought about kissing her before. She wasn't exactly opposed to the possibility that she might like girls, but she was pretty sure that wasn't the case here.

"I think the only someones that I might like like that will be boys, though," Susan added after a brief pause. "That was kind of fun though!"

Rhona watched Susan work through it in her head, hoping that she had done the right thing. Her friend didn't seem to be freaking out or falling in love with her, so that was nice. Finishing her half of the granola, she leaned back on her hands and nodded. "Well, whatever you want to do. I don't care if you like boys or girls or both. I mean, I'm still friends with Luag, so..." she trailed off with a shrug, not really sure what else to say. "I'm glad you thought it was fun, though."

"I don't think it would really matter if I was. I mean. My father..." Susan trailed off and then looked around as though she was worried someone might overhear. Satisfied they were alone, she continued. "I mean, you couldn't say anything ever, not that you would because who would you say it to anyway, but I think... well, I mean. He's never said anything, but he was very good friends with Dale, my healer before I came to Hogwarts. Anyway, Daddy's fussed about propriety, but I think that might be one point he wouldn't really stick on, you know? Anyway, I'm not worried about it."

Rhona raised an eyebrow, a little taken aback. Admittedly, her worldliness was limited, and though she had traveled a great deal with the Wanderers, there was very little to be seen inside a Quidditch stadium that could teach you about stuff like that. Her first exposure to gay people had been limited to what she saw at Hogwarts, and it had made her uncomfortable at first. When she got older, she realized that it was something that was normal, that she could deal with on a rational basis, and it stopped being something she saw as strange. Still, it was a bit surprising to think that Susan's father could be gay. After all, he had to have been with a woman at some point, yeah?

"I won't tell anyone."

"Well good!" Susan said, considering the topic closed. She didn't think she liked girls, but if it ever turned out that she did, it wouldn't be a big deal. That was all there was to it, so far as she was concerned, and there was no reason to make it any more complicated. "Are you done with the polish? I kind of want to do my toes."

"I am. Stretch your feet over here," she offered, and made her lap flat for Susan. It seemed like the time for heavy topics was over, and she was kind of glad for it.