Practical Lessons
Grayson Hunter
Disclaimer: The characters are the property of J. K. Rowling, Scholastic, and Bloomsbury. Please do not sue.
Rating: A very strong R. Not quite NC-17, but fairly close, so I advise all younglings to hit the back button immediately.
Pairings: This is a Lily/Narcissa story. Lily/James and Narcissa/Lucius are mentioned, but they are not featured.
Warning: This is *flashing bright lights* FEMSLASH*flashing bright lights* . That means: Two females getting very close with one another. Not quite sex in this case, but very close.
Summary: Lily is frustrated with guys, especially James and his ignorance of her love for him. One particularly bad day, Narcissa happens upon her, and offers a few... suggestions. (Read: they do more than just kiss!)

I hated him. Despised him. Abhorred him! The jerk!

It was all his fault I loved him, too!

Scowling, I wiped my eyes with a tissue, cursing him for sending me sobbing into Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. It was completely pathetic, and I ought to have been used to it by now.

But I wasn't. Especially when he was going out with my best friend- and she knew I loved him!

For two years, he had thrown himself at any girl that walked in front of him- except me. It wasn't fair!

And now he was "with" my best friend!

I decided I needed to rethink our friendship. Even if they wouldn't last long, it was still a betrayal.

I sighed and looked around. The bathroom was as dark and empty as always. I'd been sitting in there for half an hour, crying and moping and trying to figure out the mystery of James Potter, and what I had to do to become his girlfriend. The bathroom, as disgusting as it was half the time, was my hiding place- safe from at least half of the school because it was for females, safe from the other half because the bathroom was haunted by the most obnoxious ghost in the world... Who had, fortunately, decided to go see the merpeople for the day.

I drew my knees up in front of me and sighed again, as was my wont when I was upset. I dabbed at my eyes with my crumpled and soaked handkerchief. It was actually his handkerchief. It even had his initials on it- he'd given it to me forever ago, after a particularly brutal day where I'd been made fun of by one of the other houses.

He'd forgotten about it and never asked for it back.

Damn him anyway! Why did he have to be so bloody blind? Why couldn't he just look at me and see me? I wasn't some little girl anymore. I was a woman, and damn it, I cared deeply for him...

Furious with myself, I crumpled the handkerchief up and threw it across the floor of the bathroom.

It landed at the feet of Narcissa Black, a tall blonde Slytherin who was considered the most beautiful girl in the school. The blonde's eyebrow was arched and her books were clutched in one arm as she looked down at me, an unreadable expression on her face.

I fought the urge to groan. I couldn't deal with this right now... The Slytherin/Gryffindor rivalry wasn't one I took part in even under the most normal of circumstances, and this was far from normal.

Much to my surprise, Narcissa tilted her head. "Let me guess," she drawled. "Potter."

I flinched. "Why-"

"Because to a woman who spends as much time studying people as I do, it's obvious you... fancy him in some way or another."

I immediately began worrying if anyone else had noticed. Oh God, what if Sirius or Remus or Peter or James knew! What if they were all laughing about my stupid, pathetic-

Narcissa rolled her eyes and set her books down on the floor, and sat down next to me, managing to do it gracefully.

A little startled, I gave her a suspicious look.

She rolled her eyes again. "Honey, I deal with morons all the time," she assured me. "Every woman needs a little help once in a while, and how shall I ever keep my good name if I don't offer to help out once in a while?"

I was really puzzled now. As far as I knew, Narcissa didn't *have* a good name. "Are you trying to pull something here?" I asked after a moment, seeing no other excuse for her odd behavior.

She laughed softly. "I wish it were that simple. No, I just want to offer you some advice on behalf of womankind."

"I never pictured you as a feminist," I observed slowly, still suspicious.

Narcissa rolled her eyes. "Do you want help in getting Potter, or no?"

I hesitated. "Maybe?"

She smiled a little, and moistened her full lips. "It's simple, really. He's taking you for granted. Maybe one day he'll wise up and realize you're it, but that might not be for a while. You've got to do something about it. Get a boyfriend. Go out and get snogged."

I grimaced. "Yes, I'll just walk up to a guy and ask him to snog me. That'll work. I don't even know *how* to kiss, so that's an especially bad idea." It did not please me when, thinking back on what I'd just said, I realized that I'd just revealed that I'd never been kissed.

Narcissa looked surprised. "You've never been kissed before?"

I sighed. "No. Shock you? Not all Gryffindors are sluts like that? Well, sorry to disappoint you."

She put her hand on my arm. "Don't take it the wrong way. I was just surprised. You're too pretty for that."

I laughed bitterly, wondering if she needed glasses, and then wondering why she would say something like that to me. "Alas, no one else seems to find me attractive enough to want to snog." I considered this. "Or maybe it's because I've never actually kissed someone, and they all know it, and they all think I'm a bad kisser..."

It was amazing what thinking too much could do to me. I always came away with the most upsetting ideas.

"I don't think that's it," Narcissa managed to say, and to give her credit, she managed to keep from laughing. She couldn't, however, hide the sharp amusement in her eyes. "Is that what you're afraid of? Because you've never kissed, he won't like you?"

I shifted uncomfortably, looking at her. "Well, I know he goes out with a lot of girls..." I could name them all. In alphabetical order. Backwards. While hanging upside down on a tree with Sirius throwing apples at me. I scowled and purposely looked away from her. "Well, maybe he only likes good kissers."

"Then you think if you learn how to kiss, it'll all be better?"

I looked at her again, having forgotten who it was I was speaking to. "Why do you care?" I asked. "And I don't know if that'll make it better. It can't hurt."

"What if he wants one of those girls who has never been kissed by a guy before?" she asked, an odd smirk on her face.

I sighed. "Well, if that's the case, I think I'll be ready for him for the next decade or so." Unkissed and clueless.

"Personally, I think he's just a moron," Narcissa said, and continued before I could get my mouth open to argue with her. "I think what you need to do is to stir up some competition. Go out and find someone to snog. You'll learn to kiss, and make him notice you're a living, breathing, available woman." She tilted her head to the side a little, considering things. "I've always thought that women looked different after their first kiss," she observed. "Maybe he'd notice it too."

I shrugged. "I'd try anything at this point. But I still face the problem of finding someone to kiss."

"I can help you there," Narcissa offered slowly, and I looked at her curiously. She was studying me with a strange look on her face. It dawned on my slowly that perhaps she didn't mean to imply that she would *find* someone to kiss me... Sure enough, she continued to meet my gaze. "If you're... comfortable with it. I'd be very happy to help you learn."

I noted she didn't say "learn to kiss". Just "learn." I wondered if she'd done something like that before, and then wondered if *I* could do something like that. The butterflies in my stomach seemed to find the situation interesting, though that wouldn't help me decide one way or the other. "I'm not..." Was it okay to say that I wasn't a lesbian? Or that I wasn't gay? Or should I just kind of say "No thanks" really fast and run away.

Her hand that had been on my arm now rested on my shoulder. She smiled slowly at me. "I'm not a lesbian either, Lily," she said. "It's nothing more than practice. It's fun. It's how I learned to kiss, a long time ago."

I wondered how long ago it was, because Narcissa seemed to be the type of girl who had lost her innocence at a very young age. I wondered who it had been that had kissed her, and if they had explained it this way too. "If you don't like it," she said, shrugging carelessly, and purposely avoiding my eyes. "We can stop. No one ever has to know. As a matter of fact, no one *should* ever know."

Still, I hesitated, the idea of kissing another female making me uncomfortable. And yet, as I studied her face, I found myself nodding a little. She smiled softly. "Lesson number one in our very practical lessons," she said, and her voice seemed to have changed. It was much lower, softer. Sexier. "Close your eyes and relax."

I closed my eyes and tried to relax. But when I suddenly felt her lips touching mine, I found that that was a very impossible thing to do. Slowly she kissed me, not pushing too hard, and keeping it very soft and gentle. Her hands slowly drifted up, and I found myself shifting to face her better. Tentatively, I tried to mimic her actions, and felt her smile as I did so. She didn't pull away.

It was a little startling when I felt her touch my side, near my breast, but I did not pull away. She pulled back slightly, and our eyes met. "All right?" she asked softly. I managed a nod, and felt rather silly. Here I was, sitting on the floor in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, kissing a girl, and I couldn't even managed to say a simple "yeah" in response.

She began to kiss the side of my neck, and it was that that made me realize I would really like kissing. Shivers went through me, and I closed my eyes again. She kissed me all over my neck, and then up, and then she was nibbling on my ear...

Nibbling on my ear. I wanted to laugh- this was what all that talk was really about? At last, I understood!

She drew back slightly. "Lesson number two," she said with a small smile, and her voice was still soft. "Never wear dangly earrings when your kisser is impatient." She sighed. "I lost a lovely pair of diamond and emerald earrings one time when I was out with Lucius..."

And before I could recover from *that* statement, she kissed me on the mouth again.

This time, her hands drifted more, and I wasn't sure what to make of it when she brushed a hand against my breast. "Kiss me now," she murmured as she met my eyes again. "As much as you feel comfortable."

I got the feeling that she literally meant that I could do whatever I wanted. Especially when she set her hand on my leg, just under the edge of my skirt.

I slowly kissed her on the mouth again, and again, mimicked her actions and began kissing the side of her neck. I figured I was doing pretty good when she gasped softly and arched her neck back. With much less certainty did I let my hands touch her sides, and that made her laugh a little. Perhaps to guide me, or perhaps because she wanted to, she slowly reached for the top buttons on my shirt. At this I paused, and so did she, drawing back to look at me, patient and waiting for me to decide.

Wondering exactly how far this would go if I said yes, but then deciding that I could stop it if I felt really uncomfortable, I nodded my assent. She smiled a little. "I really shouldn't be teaching you this much in your first lesson," she murmured as I tentatively kissed her again. "But you need to know what comes next."

And so she slowly began to unbutton my shirt, and I felt the cool air hit my skin. Uncomfortably, I realized that I had to untuck my shirt, or let her do it for me- and she wouldn't be able to do that without unbuttoning my skirt, and I wasn't ready for that now- or possibly ever. So I paused and flushed a brilliant red as I untucked it and unbuttoned the last button. And as I did so, I felt a little disappointed to see her unbuttoning her own shirt. Our eyes met, and she smiled again, and stopped. "Whatever you want, Lily," she murmured.

I wasn't sure what I wanted.

But I reached up and continued unbuttoning the shirt for her, revealing, to my shock, that she did not wear a bra. I didn't know what to think when her breasts were bared before my eyes, and looked up at her as she helped me slip my shirt off. I helped her take off hers. The first time my fingers brushed against her breasts was an accident- the second was curiosity, and I quickly drew back, uncertain.

She was more forward, and let her fingers slip beneath the thin silk of my bra, and reached around to unfasten the clasps in the back. I fought back panic for a moment when she freed my breasts, but she met my eyes again- it was odd, but I had never noticed her eyes before. They were incredibly seductive. She smiled again, and her thumbs brushed across the peak of my breasts. It felt incredibly... sexy to sit there, both of us bare from he waist up, our hair tussled, and leaning forward to kiss again. This time we were close enough that our breasts brushed, sending an erotic thrill through me. And then, to my shock and pleasure, she lowered her mouth to suckle from me. It was like nothing I'd ever felt before, and it was so incredible that I gasped. Her hands were touching me and feeling me, and it was a fantastic feeling.

She paused then, to my disappointment. "Lie down," she murmured softly, and I did so, wondering what she would do next.

Once I was where she wanted me, Narcissa began to kiss me again, and slowly her mouth worked a pattern down to my belly button when I did so. She knelt between my legs and her arms were on either side of me, and she shifted so her mouth hovered over mine again, and she kissed me once more. Gently she let herself down on top of me, and from there, we somehow ended up on our sides.

I ran my hand along her bare side, her skin warm against me, and ran my thumbs across her breasts. She sighed softly as I did so, and, so encouraged, I slowly moved to kiss her there as she had done to me.

"Lily," she moaned softly, and I felt her fingers playing with the button of my skirt. At this, I hesitated for a long moment, torn between the luxury of feeling so good, and the facts that were unavoidable- I barely knew her, she was a she, what about James?, and did I really want to go *that* far *this* fast?

She sighed softly. "It goes only as far as you like," she murmured. "We can stop at any time."

I stayed still for a long moment, and then I think I surprised her when I reached to unbutton her skirt before she could undo mine. As we pushed it off, I realized with some amazed amusement that we both still wore our shoes and stockings- and little more than that, once she began removing my skirt as well.

Clad only in our knickers (and stockings and shoes), we gazed at each other, our breasts touching, our legs entwined, and our arms around each other. I thought she still waited on me, and so I slowly let my hand drift down her side to touch her hip, and saw her smile again before she returned to kissing the side of my neck.

I didn't know quite what to do- I wasn't ready for much with... well, down *there*, and I didn't know if I wanted her to do anything to me, either. And so I let my hands run across her soft skin and up to her breasts again.

I felt sexy. I felt aroused. I felt incredible.

And at last I knew I wasn't ready for more when she let her fingers slip through the top of my knickers. She could tell too- I tensed and drew back a bit, and she met my gaze. She looked disappointed, but nodded slightly, and went back to kissing me.

Still, I wondered if it would be all that bad-

I drew back a little. "Narcissa," I murmured.

She sighed softly, but met my eyes. "Do me two favors," she murmured. "Let me look at you. Please?" She sat up, slipping away from me.

I hesitated. "You mean, well... naked?"

I said the last word as quick as I could.

She smiled, only slightly. "Yes. Completely."

Uncomfortable, but willing, I slowly stood and slipped off my panties, standing before her unclothed.

She stood as well, and walked towards me. I shrank back a little, but she didn't let me go far. "You're so beautiful," she murmured, and looked me over for a very long moment. It made me feel... even more aroused, I suppose.

And then she startled me and kissed me again, and her hands brushed across me- somewhere no one had ever touched with sexual intent. I shivered, and she stepped back abruptly and gathered her things, which had been mixed with mine. "My second favor," she said hesitantly, stepping close to me again. "If you ever want to continue..."

I nodded a little. She gave me a long look again as she was pulling on her things.

I reached for my knickers, and was more than a little embarrassed to find that they were in a puddle from one of Myrtle's floods.

Narcissa laughed, and I felt uncomfortable standing there naked, while she was nearly dressed already. I set the knickers aside and tugged on my skirt. I'd never realized how short it was before I had to wear it without knickers. I quickly pulled on my bra and then the other shirt, glancing over at Narcissa, and realizing that she had been watching me.

She smiled softly. "I hope things work out with you and James."

I blinked, a little startled by her abrupt reminder that this was nothing more than- than whatever it had been. I shrugged my shoulders, feeling uncomfortable still because I wore nothing under my skirt. "I hope it goes well with Lucius."

Narcissa knelt to pick up her books, and handed me mine. Her hair was long and straight, and it had required no time to fix. I gave up on mine and tied it in a ponytail.

She came towards me again, and this time I didn't shrink away, though I almost did. Her hand touched my cheek, and then her lips touched mine, and her tongue touched mine as well.

And then she gave me a sexy smile and sauntered out of Myrtle's bathroom. I looked at myself in the mirror, wondering if I looked as changed as I felt. Probably not, I decided.

And I sauntered out of the bathroom after Narcissa.

A new woman, even if I didn't look it.

(I left his handkerchief behind.)