Astronomy
Walburga looked at her like she was seeing the stars for the first time. Maybe that wasn't true. Maybe it was the alcohol in either of their systems (mainly Acantha’s) but something that night was different. Something was different and an alarm was going off in Acantha’s head. It went a little like this:
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
Something was different when Walburga bit down on her lip, not breaking eye contact. Something was different because Acantha was so dizzy, (on drinks or Walburga, she wasn't sure) that all rational thinking and any sense of control had evaporated.
She stopped forward. Walburga didn't step back. They were nose to nose now. Breathing each other's breaths. She doesn't know what happened but next thing she knew, she was kissing her. The alarm blared louder.
FUCK. FUCK. FUCK. FUCK. FUCK. FUCK. FUCK.
She pulled back immediately, stumbling backwards, tripping over herself and landing on the floor, one hand over her mouth. Acantha jumped up. She could just imagine that her look of horror matched Walburga’s but she only found curiosity on her face. This time, Walburga was the curious one.
“Oh fuck- im- oh merlin- oh fuck fuck fuck- Walburga- im so sorry-” She was suddenly sober, too sober.
“What-” Walburga started stepping toward her, no anger in her voice.
Acantha didn't stay to hear what she had to say, though. She bolted to the door and down the steps of the astronomy tower as fast as she could. She ran and ran and ran until she reached the quidditch pitch, and she collapsed there. Her pants sounded more like sobs.
It's not like Acantha hasn't kissed anyone before, and it's not like any of them hadn't been girls. She’d never kissed Walburga Black before and for some reason, that was entirely different. How? She didn't know yet. Acantha has had plenty of drunk (and sober) kisses with friends, or people she didn't even consider friends, so why was she so distressed about this? She should've stayed to hear what Walburga had to say.
She groaned and rolled onto her stomach, pushing herself to her feet and walking to the castle.
Her head was empty the whole way back, but she found herself knocking on a door. It opened with a creak.
“Acantha?”
“Lyall,” She pushed through the door. “You busy?”
“It's midnight.”
“So no?” She went to lay on his bed and played with the tassels on his curtains.
He laughed quietly, glancing to see his roommates had already closed their curtains.
“I guess not.” He came over, climbed into his bed next to her, closed the curtains and watched as she cast a silencing spell.
***
Walburga had never noticed the freckles that dusted Acantha’s face. Well, she had never noticed them like this. She wasn't sure what Acantha had noticed, but she looked like she had noticed something. Acantha pressed her eyes shut, but when she opened them again, they fluttered a little. She looked drunker than she had a second ago. And -
Oh.
Oh.
Acantha pressed her lips to Walburga’s and Walburga held still, as still as she could. Not wanting it to end. She clasped her hands behind her back, even though Acantha’s hands were in her hair.
Unfortunately, Acantha withdrew. Well, she fell backwards as if someone had shoved her. She was covering her mouth, and Walburga unclasped her own hands to help her up but Acantha quickly jumped up on her own. Shock and terror painted her. Walburga wasn't sure what she was so worried about. It wasn't a romantic kiss. It was between two girls. She didn't know what it meant, but Acantha was acting as though she had just kissed a boy. Walburga wondered if kissing boys felt the same. She hoped it did.
“Oh fuck- im- oh merlin- oh fuck fuck fuck- Walburga- im so sorry-” Acantha spluttered out.
But Walburga didn't understand.
“What are you on about?” She started to say, but Acantha sprinted out of the room and barreled down the steps.
She looked over the railing to see her sprinting across the lawn to the quidditch field. Walburga sighed. What in the world? Oh well, this seemed like something for tomorrow Walburga. She slowly made her way back to the Slytherin dormitories and into her bed. Acantha would come talk to her tomorrow and this would all be sorted out.
Acantha didn't come talk to her the next day. Or the next. Or the day after that. Or the week following. Walburga began seeking her out just for Acantha’s eyes to grow wide when she saw her and to promptly go the other direction. Walburga even ran after her once. With no luck, though. Acantha hasn't talked to her for three weeks and Walburga didn't know why, or what to do.