"Hermione! What are you doing? You have a date!"

Hermione reluctantly tore her gaze from the Veela book that Fleur let her borrow to see Ginny standing with her hands on her hips at the end of Hermione's bed. She had just gotten to the chapter about the very first Veela tribe, and she didn't particularly want to stop reading. Plus her date wasn't for another hour. Breakfast was still in progress and Fleur wouldn't be finished eating for another forty minutes at least. She liked to forgo eating her breakfast when she had Clara and the surrounding Ravenclaws to chat with.

"My date isn't for another hour. What's the rush?" Hermione asked, returning her attention back to the pages before her.

"'What's the rush?!'" Ginny cried indignantly, placing a hand over her heart as though Hermione had cruelly betrayed her. "Sweet cheeks, what did you plan on wearing? Are you going casual? Sophisticated? Do you even know?"

Hermione raised an eyebrow. "I was going to wear my jeans, and a coat. Maybe a hat and scarf because it's cold."

"Aren't you going to try to look cute?" she asked.

"Well," Hermione snapped the book closed with a pointed glare, "I'm sure Fleur is going to wear the exact same thing. And if she doesn't, then she won't even care what I'm wearing."

"Well what am I supposed to help you with?" Ginny pouted. She crossed her arms and slumped onto the foot of Hermione's bed. "As one of your closest female friends, it is my duty to help prepare you for your first date. It's an unspoken rule." She was met with a roll of Hermione's eyes. "Oh, come on, Hermione! I'll do your makeup!"

"Absolutely not." Hermione vehemently shook her head, her frizzy curls bouncing against her shoulders.

Ginny harrumphed. "Can I do your hair then?"

"Well…" Hermione had no argument prepared for that. What would be the harm in it? She would end up putting on a hat anyway. "I don't see why not."

Ginny wasted no time in moving behind Hermione and combing her fingers through her friend's thick hair. She tugged Hermione's head back to get to her hairline, and started dividing up her hair into even chunks. "So what did you plan to do for your date? Go to Madam Puddifoot's?"

Hermione grimaced as Ginny tugged particularly hard on a lock of hair. "Not exactly. I figured we could take a walk around Hogsmeade first; then stop at a couple stores like Honeydukes, Scrivenshaft's, and Tomes and Scrolls; and then have lunch at the Three Broomsticks."

"You forgot to plan your snogging time, sweet cheeks," Ginny jested with a laugh. She leaned to the side a bit to catch a glimpse of Hermione's red cheeks. "Where will you squeeze that in? Perhaps after Honeydukes? Oh! During your nice, romantic walk around the village, I bet."

"Ginevra!" Hermione slapped at Ginny's leg as her face started to burn even hotter.

"I recommend waiting to snog until after you've gone to Honeydukes," Ginny continued nonchalantly, returning her focus to the braid she was currently twisting into her friend's hair.

Hermione raised a brow, despite the fact that Ginny couldn't see her face. "And why's that?"

Ginny grinned devilishly. "So you can taste the sugar on each other's lips."

There was an explosion of giggles and incoherent yelling as Hermione whipped around and shoved Ginny over, nearly sending her toppling off the edge of the bed. Hermione smacked Ginny's arm several times, eventually grabbing her book and threatening to drop the heavy tome over Ginny's head while simultaneously poking at ticklish spots with her free hand.

"Hermione Jean Granger, don't you dare drop that book on me!" Ginny shrieked. She twisted out of Hermione's grasp and flopped back onto the floor all in one motion. "Now, don't be so scandalized, you know you're going to take my advice."

Hermione's blush spread from her collarbones all the way up to the tips of her ears. "Stop being ridiculous and finish doing my hair."

Ginny kneeled behind Hermione once more and gathered up the discarded ends of her hair with minimal comments. Though she couldn't resist with the occasional jibe as she finished braiding Hermione's hair.

Ginny tapped her chin in thought as she studied Hermione's appearance through squinted eyes. Braid poking out from underneath a Gryffindor hat, Gryffindor scarf, a well-worn brown coat, blue jeans, and Hermione's worn trainers. Not quite what Ginny had in mind, but it worked well for her friend.

"You got Gryffindor socks on as well?" Ginny said instead. "Because you look like a walking Gryffindor advertisement."

Hermione rolled her eyes with a huff. "I don't have any other hats, Gin. Nor scarves."

Ginny huffed, before deciding to change the subject. "So when are you meeting Fleur?"

"Ten minutes."

"Oh!" Ginny clapped excitedly. "Can I walk you down? Give her the ol' "if you hurt her, I'll hurt you" talk?"

"Oh, Ginny, I don't really think that'll be necessary…" Hermione said. She grimaced as a pang of remorse settled into her gut when Ginny's face fell, her shoulders caving in on her lithe frame. Hermione sighed. She just knew she would end up regretting this… "Okay, well, maybe you can wait until after a couple dates before you give her The Talk, but-"

Hermione didn't even get to finish her sentence before Ginny was all smiles and exuding her usual energy. The redhead threw her arms around Hermione and squeezed tight, even going so far as to press a loud, exaggerated kiss onto Hermione's cheek.

"You won't regret it, sweet cheeks!" Ginny exclaimed. "But enough about that! Let's get you to your date!"

Hermione, too stunned by the complete twist in Ginny's mood, was left to be dragged along by the overzealous redhead. Ginny had managed to get Hermione down the dormitory stairs, out of the portrait hole, and halfway down the seventh floor corridor before Hermione's feet finally started to work of their own accord.

The two of them ducked through tunnels tucked behind tapestries, down hidden staircases, and even through a trick wall before finally stopping in the corridor outside the Great Hall. Students slowly trickled out of the Great Hall as they finished breakfast, the older ones immediately exiting the castle in the direction of Hogsmeade while the younger students turned toward their common rooms. Hermione tucked herself against a windowsill to wait for Fleur, unconsciously twisting her scarf in her hands and occasionally readjusting the lapels of her coat until Ginny finally swatted her hands back to her side.

Ginny stepped in front of Hermione with a bit of a huff. She smoothed down Hermione's coat for her, the little scrunch between the redhead's eyes reminding Hermione an awful lot of Mrs. Weasley. "Now," Ginny began, "don't do anything stupid."

"Gee, thanks, Gin. Very reassuring," Hermione drawled with a roll of her eyes. Ginny continued straightening out Hermione's clothing, only gracing her friend with a small harrumph in response. Hermione almost expected her to lick her thumb and wipe some dirt off her face at the rate she was going.

"Bonjour, 'Ermione, Ginny," came Fleur's smooth voice.

Hermione hastily swatted Ginny's hands away from her clothing as her face flushed a bright red. She raked her eyes down Fleur's form - jeans with a small rip in one knee, a simple coat, and earmuffs dangling around her neck - before meeting Fleur's own eyes, a knowing smirk plastered on the blonde's face.

"Good morning, Fleur," Hermione said with a smile as she regained her confidence. There's no need to be nervous - it's just Fleur, after all, she thought to herself. I can do this. I can do this. "You enjoy breakfast?"

"Oui, eet was excellent, as always," Fleur answered smoothly. She reached out and gently fingered at the end of Hermione's braid. "I like ze braid, eet ees a very nice touch." Ginny looked inordinately smug about the indirect praise.

Hermione cleared her throat as her confidence fled her once more and another blush colored her cheeks.

"Alright," Ginny said, clapping her hands together with a self-satisfied grin. "I'm taking that as my cue to leave. Have fun, and don't do anything I wouldn't do!" With that being said, she turned on her heel and swept back down the corridor in the direction of the Ravenclaw common room.

Fleur returned her attention to Hermione, her smile a bit bashful and more mellow than the smirk she had before, which helped soothe Hermione's nerves. She held out a hand. "Shall we?"

Hermione easily slipped her hand into Fleur's. Their fingers easily intertwined and Fleur gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. "We shall."

I am sooooooooo sorry for taking SIX. MONTHS. to update. Life has been so crazy between that stupid summer job that worked me 60 hours a week, getting a new job, and college starting.

I have the next chapter started, and by started I mean that I have two paragraphs. I know that this chapter doesn't make up for six months of nothing, but I sincerely hope that you guys still enjoy it