it's not safe in here [rl with emily]

[ambiguities]

[ A quick glance at the clock reveals the time to be half past four. It's been well over an hour since Cook left her sitting there alone in the Three Broomsticks. He'd been slightly hesitant to go at first, but she'd encouraged him -- wanting her best mate to enjoy himself in spite of her own piss-poor mood.

She swallows the last dregs of her now-lukewarm butterbeer and considers her options. Inevitably, her thoughts stray to Emily. The little redhead is coming along well in her studies thanks to Naomi's patient tutelage. They meet together in the library after classes several times a week, carefully poring over their notes until the dinner hour. Aside from that however, Naomi is careful to maintain her distance. Although house relations have apparently come a long way since the last wizarding war, it's still not exactly well-accepted to see a Slytherin and a Gryffindor intermingling so often.

Unless you're family, of course. Naomi winces as she thinks of the nasty look Katie had shot her over her twin's shoulder earlier that same day, when she'd apparently lost her mind or been under the influence of the confundus charm or something, because she had somehow convinced herself over breakfast that it was in any way okay to just approach Emily Fitch in the Great Hall where anybody including her obnoxious cow of a sister could see.

So her plans to invite the other girl out to lunch with her as a reward for all her hard work had been hexed dead upon arrival. Feeling a bit uncharacteristically sullen about the missed opportunity, Naomi had almost called off the trip entirely before Cook had caught wind of her so-called "funsponging" and dragged her down to Hogsmeade himself. They'd sat around talking and drinking for some time but a lingering sense of annoyance (and that's all it is, she harshly barks to herself) at that bloody bitch Katie had prevented her from truly relaxing.

And now, deciding she's had quite enough of the glaring coming from some other would-be patrons waiting for a spot to free up in the crowded tavern hall, Naomi rolls her eyes and finally vacates her table. Her arse has barely cleared the seat before she's being jostled out of the way. On any other day she might have turned around and given them a real piece of her mind but at this very moment all she wants is to get away from all the happy chatter around her.

Outside, blinking against the glare of the setting sun, she picks a random direction and starts walking. Of course, she knows just about every inch of this tiny town by now, so before long she's conducting her steps with a purpose, navigating easily through sparsely inhabited streets towards the one place that never fails to make her smile: Honeydukes. ]

Comments

[neverhadaboyfriend]

[Inside Honeydukes, Emily may be sulking a little. After the weeks of studying with Naomi in the library, she'd wondered what she was approaching her for in the Great Hall... only for Katie to stop Naomi in her tracks.

[The encounter had colored the rest of her time with her sister today, setting Katie off on a rant about Naomi and how she was a terrible dormmate and why was Emily spending so much time with the mingy little Mudblood anyway. Emily had mumbled excuses about how Naomi was tutoring her and her grades had gone up this term, and snapped at her for the 'Mudblood' slur, but it had only made Katie more vicious: She was pretty sure Naomi's a lesbian "and Merlin's balls, Emily, you need to be careful around her or people will say you're one too, and you're not."

[And then Katie had ditched her for a date at Madam Puddifoot's, some pureblood Ravenclaw boy. "He's got a brother, Emily, you could do with meeting more boys."

[She's not sulking, she convinces herself, she's getting treats for James seeing as he's too young to visit Hogsmeade during the school year. She's getting him treats because of that giant hug and half of his care package from Mum that he gave her when she finally got onto the Quidditch team (she'd given the food back: "no, James, you keep it, it's okay, Mum sent me one too"). She's definitely not buying him sweets because James doesn't give her any crap about hanging out with a snake who isn't family (her little brother had joined her in Gryffindor house), despite some of his fellow first years and their prefects being a bit old fashioned about the Gryffindor-Slytherin rivalry.

[She makes sure to pick out all the candy Mum doesn't buy, like exploding bonbons and Acid Pops. Eventually Emily hovers in the Unusual Tastes section, suspecting James will be hugely amused by blood flavoured lollipops.]

[ambiguities]

[ Naomi's immense sweet tooth is usually best satisfied by the chocolates section. But having grown up as a Muggle, a lot of the "novelty" candies make her stomach flop and churn just thinking about them... Case in point, the bin of chocolate frogs she's currently inching her way around, doing her best to not actually look at the way they occasionally squirm and shudder in their individual wrappers. How anyone can even bear to just pop one of the bloody rotten little buggers in their mouth like it's no big deal, she'll never understand.

Another ill-placed step later however and she's forced to grab onto the side of the bin in order to steady herself. A quick glance down reveals the reason for her stumble: someone has dropped a package of Every Flavor Beans and not bothered to pick it back up. Her first impulse is to kick it away from her but she's forced to acknowledge that would be just as rude of an act.

She retrieves it from off the floor and her hand hesitates mid-thrust as she's placing it back on the shelf. Perhaps... Yes, she might just have a use for this after all. Stuffing it under her arm she continues down the aisle. ]

[neverhadaboyfriend]

[Eventually, Emily's shopping basket is pretty full of sweets, probably enough for all the first years in Gryffindor. As she makes her way to the counter, she draws her coin purse from her pocket, trying to work out if she actually has enough for all this with money to spare--

[--when she abruptly bumps into someone.]

Sorry... [She glances up. Hello, Naomi.] Oh. [It's an 'oh' of genuine surprise, of not having at all expected to run into Naomi here.]

[ambiguities]

[ Naomi instinctively cringes away from the encounter, relaxing only slightly once she finds the current obstacle in her path to be only Emily. Hah. Only Emily. That's a bit of an oxymoron, isn't it?

She manages a weak smile, more pleased than she'll ever want to admit at the unexpected run-in. ]

It's alright... Here, you dropped something.

[ And she stoops without hesitation to pick it up. ]

[neverhadaboyfriend]

It's ok-- [She doesn't want to impose on Naomi for her own stupid clumsiness, but she's already bending down, and all Emily can do is hover awkwardly.]

Thanks.

[ambiguities]

Yeah, sure. No problem. [ Naomi bites down on her bottom lip as though considering something but just shakes her head and smiles rather blandly instead. ]

Well... I'll let you get to it, then. [ She gestures vaguely in the direction of the check-out line. ] See you around, eh?

[neverhadaboyfriend]

[Emily nods, taking a couple of steps towards the check out...

[Before squaring her shoulders like she's about to go onto the Quidditch pitch, and turning around to face Naomi again. Time to be brave.]

Do you want to... grab a butterbeer, or something?

[Inwardly, she's cringing. That sounded stupid, desperate, full of hope.]

[ambiguities]

Oh, I-- Yes. [ She accepts the offer quickly, before her brain is given the opportunity to invent some excuse not to go .]

That would be lovely.

[neverhadaboyfriend]

[A smile bursts wide and uncontrollable over Emily's face before she can tone it down to something more sane-looking.] Cool. I'll just pay for all this - it's for James. [Not all for her!] My little brother.

[ambiguities]

[ Naomi is reminded of the little box tucked beneath her arm and becomes suddenly self-conscious. ]

Yeah, sure. I'll just...

[ She hangs back a bit while gesturing Emily forward. Glancing around for a good place to dump the Every Flavor Beans, she accidentally catches the eye of a second cashier who tries to wave her over. Well, fuck.

Hurrying over, she tries to get it paid for and bagged up before Emily has time to take notice. ]

[neverhadaboyfriend]

[Luckily for Naomi, Emily's purchase takes considerably longer than hers. Eventually, Emily comes back to her, shoving her sweets into her messenger bag.]

Sorry to keep you waiting.

[She has the grace to look sheepish, but she also can't keep a small smile off her face. Naomi's willingly spending time with her that isn't surrounded by textbooks and parchment, nor on the train where she probably had the least occupied cabin.]

[ambiguities]

It's fine. The Three Broomsticks was pretty crowded last I saw, anyway...

[ She racks her brain for any suitable alternative to suggest but the best she can come up with is the Hog's Head, a seedy little place that she hardly wants to take a girl like Emily into. ]

[neverhadaboyfriend]

[She sighs, trying to think. She's not particularly keen on the Hog's Head on reputation alone, and Madam Puddifoot's is out of the question.

[But nor does she want this opportunity to slip from her grasp so quickly. Before she can think too hard about it, she blurts out:] We can still hang out somewhere else. If you want, I mean.

[ambiguities]

[ Naomi raises a brow, somewhat surprised by the other's vehemence. But she smiles slightly and nods. ]

Well, we can head back in that direction at least. Maybe something else will catch our eye along the way?

[neverhadaboyfriend]

Yeah. [She settles, a little embarrassed by her own outburst.] Worst comes to worst, we could get takeaways somewhere; good thing it's not too cold yet.

[ambiguities]

[ The idea is far more appealing than perhaps it should be... Nipping in and out of some quaint little eatery, finding a nice place to settle down off of the beaten path... Real alone time with Emily.

She's smiling brightly without realizing it. ]

Right. That's not a bad plan, actually.

[neverhadaboyfriend]

[Emily mirrors that smile, encouraged by the smile as much as by her words, and starts heading off.]

So... What've you been up to today? [Considering most of what she knows of Naomi is studying or Quidditch, she's kind of curious about what else she does with her free time, who she hangs out with.]

[ambiguities]

[ Naomi trails behind Emily by a few paces at first before tentatively falling into stride alongside her. ]

Not much of anything, to be honest. [ Her smile turns a bit wry at this next admission. ] I was going to skive off the whole trip but Cookie wouldn't stand for that. So I ended up spending most of the day at the pub with him. What about you?

[neverhadaboyfriend]

At least you got out of Hogwarts. [She smiles, trying to find the positives in Naomi's day.]

Ah, I just ran some errands and did some shopping with Katie, before she went off on a date. [Thinking of her sister's parting words as she left, Emily tries not to make a face, but she doesn't quite succeed.]

[ambiguities]

I'd need a good drink too, if I had to spend the whole day with Katiekins.

[ It slips out before she can quite help herself; she has the good grace to actually look embarrassed about airing her grudge so freely. ]

[neverhadaboyfriend]

[Emily closes her eyes for a second, caught between a rock and a hard place of simultaneously wanting to agree with Naomi and to defend Katie.

[She settles on neither, on the truth about this horrible tension between her sister and the girl she        ]

I'm sorry she's so horrible to you.

[ambiguities]

[ Naomi can no longer meet her companion's gaze but her words sound soft even to her own ears. ]

No, look-- She's your sister. You don't have to... I mean, you're not responsible for her any more than she is for you, alright? So don't apologize. Whatever Katie's problem is with me, that's all--

[ She shrugs a bit helplessly. ]

[neverhadaboyfriend]

[Emily sighs in exasperation at herself and her stupid sister. She knows Naomi's right about them not being responsible for each other, but at the same time...]

I just wish she wouldn't... at least not to you.

[That last part was never meant to come out, though it's at least a good deal quieter. She bites her lip before she can go on.]

[ambiguities]

It's just as well that you're so sweet, then. That way the two of you cancel each other out.

[ Naomi can feel her cheeks turn a distinctly rosy color, much to her own dismay. ]

[neverhadaboyfriend]

[Her breath hitches. She dares a fleeting sideways glance at Naomi, but looks away again at that blush, because that means it means something, and she doesn't know what to do with that yet.]

Thanks. [It's soft, but sincere.]

[ambiguities]

[ Naomi opens her mouth and closes it again, repeating this process several times over before settling on the most neutral word she can think of. ]

Sure.

[ They walk the rest of the short distance in silence, with Naomi pulling slightly ahead so that she may open the door for Emily. ]

In you go.

[ She ushers the redhead with a smile, seeming to relax now that they're surrounded by a whole tavern of others. ]

[neverhadaboyfriend]

[She can't help a smile at that chivalry as she goes inside. There are enough people here that they definitely won't get a table, but that also makes it warm enough for Emily to shrug off her cloak even though they'll only be here for at most ten minutes.

[Emily takes a breath, summons up whatever courage got her into Gryffindor, and takes Naomi's sleeve to pull her through the crowd to the counter and the menu. Contrary to her sister's expectations of crowds parting for her, she's always been good at slipping through crowds unnoticed, and she wants to share that with Naomi.]

shall we start a new thread?

[ambiguities]

[ It's a rare occasion to see anyone besides her housemates outside of full Hogwarts regalia. Naomi smiles wryly as she catches herself checking out Emily's arms of all things. But her period of admiration is short-lived as her friend -- is that what they are? -- begins to tug her off towards the bar.

Although it's hellishly crowded, Emily seems to have no problem figuring out the path of least resistance. It's almost like -- well, magic -- the way she scoots her way around all of the warm, mingling bodies barely receiving so much as a glance as she goes. Naomi herself is a little more stumbling and careless as she follows, but ultimately with Emily's guidance the two of them make it with such relative ease that they might well have just apparated there. ]

You're entirely too good at that.

[ She remarks with a bit of a smirk as she pulls out a mokeskin pouch from her pocket and begins carefully sorting out four silver sickles from a handful of tiny bronze knuts -- exactly enough to pay for two mugs of butterbeer. She doesn't put the bag away though, in case Emily mentions wanting something to eat along with their drinks. ]

meant to last time, forgot because I am an idiot

[neverhadaboyfriend]

[Emily returns that slight smirk.] Learned in self defense.

[She pulls out her own coin purse, gazing up at the menu. Actually, she is kind of hungry.]

Have you tried the sandwiches here...?

sssh no you are not <3

[ambiguities]

[ The idea of someone as out-of-the-way and harmless as Emily needing to worry about 'self defense' is somewhat startling to her. Then again, perhaps the redhead being so small and seemingly frail is its own explanation. Naomi purses her lips briefly before nodding. ]

Once or twice, yes. They're fairly decent. I'm partial to the turkey and watercress, myself.

[neverhadaboyfriend]

Ooh, haven't had that one. One each, d'you think? [She checks the price and starts counting coins.]

[ambiguities]

Sounds like a plan. [ Naomi waves down the barkeep and places their order as Emily finishes counting out the last of her coins. Seeing all of it together in one giant pile is cause for the slight smirk now tugging at the corner of her mouth; it's a reminder of Cook and her as children, pooling all their allowance together for sweeties at Sugarplum's. ]

If you wait here I can try and find us a table? Or d'you maybe want to eat out on the porch?

[neverhadaboyfriend]

[YEAH SAMMICHES.]

It's not too cold yet; we could eat outside.

If not the porch, there's... [She pauses, unsure of whether to offer this, one of her favorite places in Hogsmeade, then decides to go for it:] There's this one spot I really like - peaceful, quite lovely when you think about it - that not many people [particularly Katie] really think about.

[ambiguities]

[ The thought of being left so alone with only Emily is at once thrilling and terrifying. Her stomach squirms and Naomi has to restrain herself from agreeing too quickly, not wanting to seem overeager. ]

Yeah... Yeah, sure. That sounds alright.

[neverhadaboyfriend]

[At that acceptance, Emily dares to offer a smile that's just a little wicked.]

I hope you don't scare easily.

[And with that, she starts off in the direction of the Shrieking Shack, going before she can change her mind, and hoping like hell that Naomi doesn't scare easily. She supposes fear's one way to sneak an arm around someone (she's seen enough boys pull it with Katie, listening to ghost stories on the Wizarding Wireless), but it's also a way to put someone off entirely, and she's not sure which way Naomi would swing on that.]