AN: I don't own Harry Potter. Wish I did, but I don't.
Alright, then. Go! Read and enjoy!
"So,' Ginny said as she and Hermione walked through Diagon Alley Friday afternoon. 'what are you planning to have done to your nails?" she asked.
"Well, nothing too fancy," Hermione said. "I want my nails to look nice for my date with Neville, but also be practical for work. Maybe a medium length French tip or something?" she said in more of a question than a statement.
Ginny nodded in approval. "Sounds nice. You mean like Fleur has, right?"
"No, shorter than Fleur has. I don't think I could work with those long nails of hers." Hermione said. While she did admire Fleur's long fingernails, she just couldn't see herself with those. Hermione was sure she'd end up injuring herself if she had them.
"Good choice, Hermione." Ginny said. "Besides, I can't picture you with those long nails." she said, voicing Hermione's thoughts. "And here we are." she smiled, stopping in front of a building brightly colored building with a door shaped like a nail polish bottle, painted a glittery pink that sparkled under the sun's rays.
" 'Kitty's Claw's'." Hermione read. Turning to look at Ginny, she raised her eyebrow at her friend. "Seriously?" she asked.
Ginny shrugged. "What? I think it sounds cool." she said. "Come on." she said, grabbing Hermione's arm when she saw she wasn't moving.
A witch came up to the two as soon as they entered the door. She was wearing a bright pink wrap dress and pink heels. Her blonde hair was pulled back into a chignon and she had pink feathers clipped into it. Her makeup was a mix of varying shades of pink, and she completed the look with pink diamond earrings and a pink diamond necklace in the shape of a cat paw.
"Welcome, welcome!" she said in a high voice as she air kissed both Ginny and Hermione. "I'm Kitty Lavoux, and this is my shop. Do you have an appointment, dears?" she asked.
Hermione was the first to break from the shock she had as they entered the shop. "Oh, uhh...yeah. Ginny Weasley and Hermione Granger." she said, trying not to roll her eyes when she heard Kitty gasp. Being a war hero, she got that reaction a lot.
"Oh, Miss Granger!" Kitty said. "I'm a big fan, and it's so nice to meet you!" she exclaimed, excitedly grabbing Hermione's hand and shaking it rapidly.
"Well, it's nice to meet you, too, Ms. Lavoux." Hermione said, glaring at Ginny as she stood to the side giggling.
"Please, call me Kitty." Kitty said. "Now, Miss Weasley, Darlene will be taking care of you today, and I will personally see to you, Miss Granger." she said. She directed Ginny to a small table where a witch with green spiked hair was waving as she pulled Hermione toward another table in the corner. "Now, Miss Granger, any ideas?" Kitty asked, pushing Hermione onto the stool and walking around to the other side.
"Uh...French tipped, maybe medium length." Hermione said after making herself comfortable. "And please, call me Hermione." she added.
"Alright...Hermione." Kitty smiled, barely containing her excitement. She couldn't believe that The Hermione Granger was in her salon. And had given her permission to call her by her name! She was trying to act professional, but it was hard when she was so starstruck. "Any color in mind, or just clear?"
"Just clear, I think." Hermione said as Kitty got started.
"Did Neville mention where he was taking you tonight?" Ginny asked as she and Hermione sat with their feet soaking twenty minutes later.
"Yes, he did." Hermione said, sipping her tea. "He's bringing me to Longbottom Manor for dinner in the solarium." she said. "And before you say anything, I don't think it's cheap, I think it's sweet."
"What?" Ginny asked in an innocent voice. "I totally agree with you. It is sweet. Instead of being somewhere loud and crowded, he wants it just to be the two of you." she said.
"I'm sorry for intruding, but I couldn't help but overhear." Darlene said. "You're dating the Snake Slayer, Neville Longbottom?" she asked with wide eyes.
Hermione nodded shyly. "Yes. He's my match in the marriage law, actually." she said with a smile.
"I bet you two are so cute together." Darlene gushed.
"Oh, they are." Ginny chimed.
"And you, Miss Weasley? Were you paired with anyone?" Darlene asked.
Ginny nodded. "Yes. Oliver Wood," she said happily.
Darlene just blinked at Ginny. "I'm sorry. I don't know who that is," she said with a chuckle.
"He plays for Puddlemere United,," Ginny said. At Darlene's blank look, she added, "The quidditch team."
"Oh, well, I'm not a fan of quidditch. I had nine brothers growing up, and most of the conversations in our house revolved around quidditch, so I got sick of it before I even knew what it really was," Darlene said. "I've been to one game, and that was enough," she added, grimacing.
Hermione laughed. "Well, then, you're in the same boat as me. I don't care for it either." she said. "But since most of my friends played, I got dragged to every game they played, and even the World Cup a few years ago," she said, making the cosmetologist laugh.
"Darlene, your three o'clock is here." Kitty said as she walked over to them. "Now then, ladies..."
After another round of tea and a few biscuits, as well as an autograph for Kitty's niece from Hermione, the two finally left the salon.
"Neville's coming to get you at seven, right?" Ginny asked as they stood outside Kitty's.
"Yeah." Hermione nodded.
"Okay. We need at least two hours to get you ready, so..."
"Two hours? Just to put on a dress and do my makeup? Really?" Hermione asked in surprise.
"...we need to be back home by five, which gives us about an hour and a half." Ginny said, ignoring Hermione's interruption. "So, we could get some ice cream at Fortescue's, or go to Madam Malkin's for a bit of shopping, or..."
"Or we could go back to the Burrow and sit by the pond and relax for a bit," Hermione suggested.
Ginny nodded. "Oh, that sounds better. We can sit in our bathing suits with a couple of bottles of lemonade," she said. Looping her arm through Hermione's as they began the walk to the twins' shop so they could floo home, she sighed, "Just when I give up all hope of you being somewhat normal, you completely surprise me, Hermione."
Neville stood in the kitchen at the manor and sighed as he ran his hands through his hair. He had wanted to cook dinner himself tonight as an extra romantic bonus for Hermione. But, after three hours and who knows how many cock-ups, he gave up. There was a pot on the fire that was boiling over, he had burned the chicken, and the pasta was too soft and mushy. Looking around, he sighed deeply.
"Tipper."
A house elf wearing a blue and white checked tea towel as a dress and a white ribbon tied to the end of each pointed ear popped into the kitchen.
"Master Nevvy call Tipper?" she asked.
"Yes, Tipper, I did." he nodded. "I need your help. I have a friend coming over for dinner tonight, and...well...as you can see, I made a big mess out of dinner." Neville said with his arms out toward the stove and the island.
Tipper looked around with big eyes as she gasped. "Master Nevvy shooda call Tipper first time. Tipper not make big mess like Master Nevvy." she said.
"Yes, I know." he said. "So, while I go shower and get ready, would you and Tulip clean this up and fix something else for dinner?"
Tipper nodded. "I goes and gets Tulip right away, Master Nevvy." she said before popping out of the room.
"Thanks." Neville called to the air. Taking one last look, he turned to go shower with slumped shoulders. He really hoped his kitchen fiasco didn't set the tone for the rest of the night.
A half hour later, Neville had showered, shaved and changed. Wearing a pair of khaki pants, a white button up shirt with the sleeves rolled up and tan colored boots, he walked downstairs to check on the elves progress with dinner.
Entering the kitchen, his eyes widened.
"Tipper, Tulip, this all looks so good." he said. There were dishes of scalloped potatoes, broccoli with cheese, another filled with sliced ham and turkey, even one with Neville's favorite, green bean casserole.
"Thank yous, Master Nevvy." Tipper said as she bowed. "Does Master Nevvy require any other things?"
"I'm sure Hermione and I will enjoy everything, Tipper." he said, smiling at the little elf.
Tipper and Tulip both looked at him with wide eyes. "Master Nevvy be bringing a lady over?" Tulip asked.
Neville nodded as he chuckled a bit. "Yes. I'm sure you've both heard of the new marriage law?" he asked. At their nods, he continued, "Well, I was matched with Hermione Granger. She's a very nice lady, and I think you'll both like her." he said.
"Don't yous worry, Master Nevvy." Tipper said happily. "We elves know about Missy Herminny. She worry about elves, and try to make life betters for us."
"Yeah, that's her." Neville nodded. Looking at his watch, he realized he only had a few minutes before it was time to go get her. "Alright. If you could move all this into the solarium, and set the table in there, I'd appreciate that." he said.
"Right aways, Master Nevvy." Tipper said.
With a word of thanks, Neville turned on the spot, disapparating to the Burrow.
It was six thirty, and Hermione was still trying to decide what to wear. Everything she had didn't say 'casual, simple dinner'. Most of her dresses said 'fancy, too dressy', which didn't work for a simple dinner at Neville's. And her casual dresses were a bit too casual for a date. She wanted to look nice, but not too nice. But, at the same time, she didn't want to look too plain.
"I still think you should go with the pink dress." Ginny said as she looked through Hermione's closet.
"Um...no." Hermione said from behind her. "After seeing all that pink Kitty was wearing, I think I'll stick with the yellow dress." she said. "Unless you think it's too dressy for a simple dinner at his?" she asked with a frown.
"Well, it is dressy, but I think you'd make it work." Ginny said as she turned to look at the dress Hermione had hung on the back of the door. It was a knee length dark yellow dress, strapless and sleeveless, and had a Chinese design on the front in a lighter yellow color. It also had a slit up the side, which would show off Hermione's long, toned, and tanned legs.
"Yeah, but this is just a simple dinner. Nothing fancy, you know." Hermione said. "I swear, I'm thisclose to just wearing this towel." she said in frustration as she tightened her grip on the fluffy white towel she had wrapped around her.
"Well..."
"Ginny! This is serious! Neville's going to be here at seven, and I am NOT wearing a towel!" Hermione yelled.
"Okay, how about this. Save the yellow dress for when he takes you out somewhere. You know, like a restaurant, or maybe the Victory Gala next month? Instead, how about..." Ginny said, trailing off as she turned back to the closet. "Aha! How about this one?" she asked.
"'Well..." Hermione said, biting her lip as she stared at the dress. The dress Ginny was holding was a dark blue dress. It was knee length and had only one sheer sleeve on the left. "Yeah, yeah. That one's better. Dressy, but not too much, but also not too plain." she said, taking the dress from Ginny.
"And we could pair it with these," Ginny said, holding up a pair of black strappy heels. "These will show off your new pedicure. And wear your diamond necklace with it. And this black clutch bag. And we can pull your hair back in a low, loose bun just at the bottom of your neck." she added excitedly. "Oh, you're gonna look fabulous! I'll go get my bag while you get changed." Ginny said before leaving the room.
"Hey, Neville. Come on in." Harry said as he opened the door for Neville. "Hermione's still getting ready, but she shouldn't be too much longer." he said as he shut the door.
"Alright." Neville said. "Uh...how've you been?" he asked.
"Good." Harry nodded. "Actually, I'm great. I got paired with Luna, and as a surprise, I'd been looking for a house and finally found the perfect one in Godric's Hollow, just down from where my parent's house was."
"Congratulations, Harry," Neville said, patting Harry on the shoulder. "That's great. I haven't seen Luna in a while. How's she doing?"
"She's good." Harry said. "She took over 'The Quibbler' from her dad recently, so she's been busy." he added.
A throat clearing from behind them got their attention. Turning, they saw Ginny standing at the bottom of the stairs with a smirk.
"Mr. Longbottom, I present your date for the evening, Miss Hermione Granger." she said in a teasing voice.
Harry and Neville looked as they heard heels clicking against the stairs. Neville's eyes widened as he saw her heels, then her legs, then her dress, and then the rest of Hermione appear.
"Wow!" he breathed.
Review please.
I'm sorry, but 'Master Nevvy' was just too cute not to add.
Til next time!
XOXO - Onyx Obsidian