Elsie smiled softly at Penny. The deal was almost sealed, she and Tyb just had to figure a few details out and then they'd talk to her mum and hopefully things would progress easily from there. Hopefully. Elsie had the intention of becoming Mrs. Kirke one way or another and if that meant eloping, well so be it. "Thanks," It was nice to get that off her chest somewhere, even if she'd shocked poor Penny into a stunned kind of stupor.

"You would have found out eventually, I assume your mother would have told you before you got married?" Elsie assume her own mother would and that discussion was still probably looming in her near future. How amusing that would be. Elsie wondered if she'd be able to keep a straight face.

"It's nothing to worry about, I promise." She assured her friend eagerly, hoping Penny wasn't concerned in any way.

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   Cassius Lestrange

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MJ always makes her so pretty

"You would think such a fundamental difference would be explained when we reached adulthood, if only for our own protection." Penny mused in an offhand manner. Obviously, she couldn't expect her mother to explain the ins and outs of intimacy right when she graduated school, but there had to be a flowery way to explain it, didn't there? Some sort of euphemism for girls to understand so that they know what men are capable of. (Penetration, apparently.)

Penny had much to worry about, mainly how to avoid causing such a reaction in Nemo again. Their friendship was so awkward now, and now that she realized why she knew it to be her fault. Nemo hadn't wanted to lay in bed with her — hadn't wanted to penetrate her — and she had drunkenly coerced him into it. How was she supposed to remedy the situation without further ruining their friendship, though? To talk about it was forbidden, to try and allude to it in flowery euphemisms would only confuse them both. What was she supposed to do but give him time to forgive her?

"Nothing to worry about," she repeated with a faint nod. "Right."

  

It looked like Elsie hadn't soothed Penny's anxieties at all, in fact she may have created more.

Nodding, Elsie certainly agreed this was information any young woman, entering the season or the workforce, should know. Better to be prepared than to be left wondering until the last minute. "Pen, listen." She smiled reassuringly at her friend. "Some day you'll marry someone you care about and who cares about you and it'll all come naturally." Elsie believed that Penny would find someone who would love and respect her just like she had.

"If you're worried about Mr. Fisk, maybe you should just talk to him. You've been friends for a long time, I wouldn't let this ruin it." They reminded her a little bit Tyb and herself in that respect and though she really only knew Mr. Fisk in passing, he struck her like a true gentleman. Not to mention Penny was a good judge of character, even if her imagination got the better of her sometimes.

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MJ always makes her so pretty

Penny nodded stiffly. Marriage to anyone would be unbearable, she thought. Few would tolerate her quirks and passions, and even fewer would respect her career as an aspiring broom maker. Aside from Nemo, no man would gift her an entire workshop as her father had. And, well, Nemo wasn't an option, she didn't think.

"Yeah, you're right." She agreed before turning to stash the book behind some muggle manuals. The last thing she needed was for Cassandra to find it and start questioning why Penny needed to know about the male anatomy. "You're right. Have you had dinner? Cook always makes too much for just Mother and I."

  

Elsie couldn't help but wonder if she'd unintentionally made things more difficult for Penny, but she had faith her friend would figure it out in the long run.

Penny seemed done with the conversation and Elsie didn't see the point in trying to continue it now. "I haven't, let me pen a quick owl to my mother to let her know where I am and I'd be happy to stay." Elsie felt like it was the least she could do, maybe stay and take Penny's mind off whatever it was that way bothering her.

Things would circle back around eventually, they always did and Penny would be able to handle it.

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MJ always makes her so pretty