Ch 92: All Kinds of Family
Hermione stepped out of her house and let the spring sun warm her face. It had taken until the end of April, but the weather was finally starting to feel like spring. She had been looking forward to today for quite a while. She so rarely had a "girls' day" anymore, especially since Rose had gone to school. But today she was going to spend the day getting her nails done, shopping and chatting with her daughter, mum and Fatima. The week before at lunch, Fatima had let slip that her mother was not willing to go look for wedding dresses with her since she wasn't marrying someone they considered to be an acceptable husband. She had some girlfriends, but no one who knew about magic who she could really confide in about the situation. Hermione had been horrified, and immediately declared that they would be taking Fatima out the following week for a proper bride-to-be day of fussiness. Rose had requested a girls' day while home for the Easter holidays anyway, so it would work perfectly. Hermione and Rose drove the few minutes to her parents' house to pick up her mother, who came out wearing a huge grin.
"I have so been looking forward to today," Jean confessed. "This is the kind of thing Janie and I used to do all of the time. And, really except for the day we shopped for your wedding dress, or the day before your wedding, I haven't done anything like this in ages.
"I'm sorry, Mum. I love this too. We need to make more time for days like today."
"Yes, especially now that we seem to spend all our time with boys!" added Rose emphatically.
Laughing, Jean asked, "Are we picking up Fatima? I can't wait to meet her."
"No, she lives on the other side of town, so we're meeting her at a nail salon near the bridal salon," Hermione said.
Soon the four ladies were relaxing their way through manicures and pedicures and chatting like old friends. After their nails were done, they got lunch at a nearby café. Following salads and desserts, they lingered over tea to kill time before the appointment at the bridal salon.
"Fatima, dear, I think that the biggest problem we will have at the salon will be finding a dress that doesn't look smashing on you," Jean grinned. "With your figure, you can pull off almost any dress shape."
"Thank you, Jean. You are too kind. I don't really know what to look for. When I went by myself, everything the shop ladies had me trying felt wrong. I know I don't want a traditional red sari since my family may not even come, but I do want some nod to my heritage, even if my family isn't enthusiastic about the wedding. When I told the bridal salon ladies it was to be a January winter wedding, they all seemed to assume it will be glitzy winter wonderland thing. But I don't want the poofy, sparkly, fluffy things they were bringing out to me. I want to look beautiful for Matthew, obviously, but I also want him to recognize that it's me in there."
"Oh, I am sure we will accomplish that," Hermione grinned. "When I was struggling to find a dress, the thing that worked for me was when Rose asked me to close my eyes and describe what I saw in my head. Why don't you try that?"
"OK," said Fatima with a deep sigh. She closed her eyes and thought for a moment before finally saying, "Well, I see me coming down the aisle in a white dress, floor length but not a big skirt or a big train or anything. I guess A Line? I think a fitted waist but in a gorgeous fabric. Maybe some very fine embroidery but no sequence or bows or anything. And, the top needs to be simple but fitted, and either strapless or off the shoulder so it can highlight the pearls that Matthew's mother gave me when I turned 17."
"Oh, that's lovely," sniffed Jean as Hermione nodded along, dabbing her eyes. "We will absolutely find that for you."
They decided that the flowers and attendants' dresses would be in vibrant reds and oranges as a nod to the traditional wedding colors from her family's side, but they would look for the classic and timeless white dress for her to wear down the aisle. And they would look for a way to have a veil that was a nod to her heritage with perhaps some red embroidered into it. A few hours and maybe fifty dresses later, Fatima was standing in front the three mirrors at the salon in the exact dress she had described. The contrast of her dark skin and the white silk was stunning, and the dress was pearl white, and had tiny pearls embroidered in the hem and on the back of the skirt. It was classic and yet modern at the same time, and the delicate sleeves fell just at her shoulder creating a gorgeous v-neck where her pearl necklace would look incredible.
"I never thought I'd find something so perfect," she said grinning through tears. "I can't thank you enough for coming with me! Hermione, why are you crying?"
"I'm happy for you," she laughed through the tears. "And I know how happy I was when I married Ron. And, well, you look so much like Rose. I can't help but think of how she will look in a wedding dress too. Sorry – just emotional and happy I suppose."
"Mum! I'm twelve!"
Fatima grinned. "Rose, I feel like I was twelve yesterday. Goes faster than you think. But, seriously, I am so grateful you all came with me today."
"Of course, Fatima," said Jean. "Ma'm, do you mind giving us a moment," she said to the shop attendant, who excused herself and left the room to the three friends. "Now, Fatima, you are going to be the most amazing bride. And Matthew will be tripping over his own jaw as he watches his beautiful bride walk towards him."
"I hope my parents will change their minds and come to the wedding," she sniffed.
"If they don't come then they are fools. Parents love their children. I don't love Hermione any less because she has magical skills, and they shouldn't love you any less because you don't. And when you have children someday, you won't love them any less if they have blue eyes or brown eyes or can't see at all. It's the same thing."
"You're right," she sniffed. "I just wish my parents saw it that way too. If they don't I am not sure who would walk me down the aisle. Matthew's dad could, I guess. But, he needs to be there for Mathew too. Sort of why I didn't ask his mum to come today."
"Fatima, I am sorry your parents aren't living up to what you wish they would be. But you can't let them ruin this for you. This is your day. Yours and Matthew's. And you have to live your life. If or when they come to their senses, then you welcome them back on your own terms in your own life," Jean said. "And as for walking you down the aisle, I am more than sure that Matthews's dad would be proud to do it. It's what Prince Charles did for Meghan Merkle, right? But if you don't want that, then Michael or Ron would be thrilled to do the honors. You can't let petty details spoil such a special time in your life."
"Exactly," smiled Hermione. "You and Matthew are so perfect for each other. Hopefully they will see that someday. But you can't wait to live your life until they snap out of it. Until that day, you'll have to put up with the rest of us in your slightly nontraditional family."
"Thank you," Fatima sniffed as she hugged Hermione. "You really have no idea how much that means to me. I guess I really have been blessed with unexpected family after all."
