Tuesday – 8am
Draco was woken up by his noisy alarm clock, interrupting his beautiful dream.
He was walking through a forest when he spotted a white light coming from the distance. He walked towards it, curiosity getting the better of him. What he saw was absolute wonder.
There was Hermione, in a white glowing dress, with white wings attached to her back. She was angel. He could see the golden halo above her head. She turned her head towards him and approached him.
He stayed absolutely still and waited for her to come to him. When she was close, she smiled at him, which made his heart leap.
She reached for his hand and slowly intertwined her fingers with his. He couldn't get rid of the gleaming smile on his face. He tightened his hold, which caused her to embrace him. He, hesitant at first, wrapped his arms around her small but beautiful body.
She was so warm. He felt so much comfort in her embrace. He wanted to stay there with her...
But he was awoken by his stupid clock. He got in the shower, getting ready for another day at the Ministry.
Hermione read the Daily Prophet as she ate her breakfast.
"Good morning, 'Mione." Ginny greeted her.
"Good morning, Gin." Hermione smiled.
"Anything interesting in the Daily Prophet?" she asked. Hermione shook her head.
"They're still going on about me and Ron." Hermione replied.
"Don't worry. They'll find something new soon." Ginny assured her. Hermione smiled weakly at her.
"Hey, how about we go shopping today?" Ginny suggested.
"Okay, Gin." Hermione nodded. She placed all the dished in the sink and started to wash them, until Ginny stopped her.
"You don't need to do that, Hermione. You're not the maid in this house." Ginny said.
"No, gin. It's fine." Hermione assured.
"No, Hermione. You're not doing it." Ginny stopped her.
Hermione having given up obliged to her red headed friend.
"Now, go get ready. We have a long day ahead of us." Ginny demanded her.
"Yes, mother." Hermione joked. Ginny chuckled lightly with Hermione.
As soon as Hermione had gotten ready, the two women apparated to Diagon Alley and started to get some shopping done.
They entered a shop called Haledon's. Hermione had to say, it was amazing. There were clothes and accessories of all brands – Gucci, Giovanni, Jane Norman, Chanel, Calvin Clein...
"Hi Ginny." A familiar voice greeted her.
"Hi, Pansy. How's it going?" she asked.
"Alright. It's very busy today. Anyways, what bring you here?" Pansy asked.
"Just wanted to cheer this girl up." Ginny indicated to Hermione.
"I see. Hi, Hermione." Pansy greeted.
"Hi..." Hermione trailed off.
"So, anything in particular you're looking for?" Pansy asked.
"Not really. But if you could recommend anything, then please tell me." Ginny replied.
"I have something in mind." Pansy smiled.
She lead the two witches into the right wing of the shop ad started to personally choose dresses that she believes would make Hermione presentable...and also make someone drool over...
She shoved the handful of colourful dresses in Hermione's hands and pushed her towards the changing room.
Hermione dropped the dress on to the stool present in the changing room. She then wondered when Ginny had gotten on such good terms with Pansy Parkinson, but she would ask that later. First, she had to try these not so comfortable dresses. She reached for the first dress on top of the pile. She stripped herself of her clothing except for her vest and undergarments. She pulled the dress over her head, and to her surprise, it went over her with ease. She straightened the dress out and looked at herself in the mirror. She smiled at her reflection.
While she did that, Pansy and Ginny were in deep conversation about the masquerade Pansy was throwing at the weekend.
"So, you're coming, right?" Pansy asked.
"I'm really sorry, Pansy. I really want to come, but I have training to do for the big game on Sunday, and Harry's going on an assignment this Friday. He said he won't be back for at least a week or so." Ginny apologised.
"No, it's fine. I understand." Pansy glanced towards the changing room which Hermione still had not come out of. "What about Hermione? Is she free?" Pansy asked.
"Um...I really don't know. You'll have to ask her when she comes out." Ginny replied. She just received a nod from Pansy.
The curtains were drawn open, causing Pansy and Ginny to turn their attention towards Hermione. She circled her, thinking on whether or not this dress was a good look on her.
The dress dropped to her knees. It was a midnight blue colour, strapless. Pansy examined the dress worn by Hermione carefully and had finally come to a decision.
"No. This is not the one." Pansy stated.
"Why not? I think this is a great dress." Hermione argued.
"Believe me, Hermione; I know what kind of dresses look good on what person. I know my fashion, and it's telling me that you're making a bad choice with this dress. So, off you go. Try something different." Pansy ushered her back inside the room.
Hermione felt slightly frustrated by this decision. She looked at her reflection, still wearing the dress. She didn't see what was so wrong about the dress. She pulled it over her head and chose another one from the pile.
Hermione not bothered to check in the mirror, exited the changing room. Pansy observed this dress very closely too, careful not to miss out any small detail about it.
This dress was a faded shade of red with a strap around her right shoulder. It hugged her body loosely slightly puffed below her waistline. It had a line of golden sequins at the helm of the dress.
"No. Try another." Pansy ordered her.
Hermione tried yet another dress chosen at random by her hands.
Pansy studied her once again. This time she seemed to look impressed.
This dress was pure white, and strapless. It flowed down to kiss the floor. It had a few large sequins stuck randomly around the part of the dress above her waist.
It was an understatement to say that this dress looked good on Hermione. Pansy admired the prom-like design of the dress and decided to break the good news to the slightly annoyed Hermione.
"Yes. This is the one. This looks perfect on you." Pansy smiled. "What do you think, Ginny?" she asked.
"Hermione, you look beautiful!" Ginny awed.
"Thank you." Hermione blushed. Finally, she had found a dress.
"Would you like to come to my masquerade party on Saturday night?" Pansy asked suddenly.
"Um...okay. It's not like I have anything to do that night anyways. Sure." Hermione answered.
"Great. You should definitely wear this dress then. Wait. Let me just find a mask to go with it." Pansy said. She hurried to the section where masquerade accessories were shown and picked out a black mask with intricate gold marking on it.
She handed it to Hermione. "This should go perfectly with the dress. So, do I take it that you're purchasing this dress? –Oh and the mask is free of charge, by the way." Pansy smiled.
"Thank you, Pansy. I really do love it. Hermione said, thankful for Pansy's help.
"It was my pleasure." She took the dress and removed the tags that were needed and folded it neatly before putting it into a bag along with the mask.
"Have a great day." Pansy bid them goodbye as Ginny and Hermione exited the shop.
"So, Ginny. Would you care to explain how you befriended Pansy?" Hermione asked, not that she minded, she was just curious.
Ginny revealed that she had taken up a class all to do with clothes designing, which Pansy had taken part in too. They were chosen to work as partners by the teacher, and so had to endure each other every Tuesday s and Thursdays. They soon got used to it and started to enjoy their time with each other and soon became friends.
"I never knew you were interested in fashion designing." Hermione said.
"Well, I was. Sorry I never told you." Ginny said weakly.
"No worries. So, are you going to the party?" Hermione asked.
"No, can't, I have training. Harry's going on an assignment, so he can't attend either." Ginny said.
"Then why did she ask me? We're not really that close." Hermione said confused.
"I told her to ask you. Seeing as you would have nothing better to do." Ginny lied. She knew the real reason why Pansy invited Hermione to the ball, but she could never reveal that to her.
"That's very nice of you, Ginny. Anyways, I have to go. I forgot that I had made an appointment with my lawyer about the divorce." Hermione said, sadness filling in her eyes at the mention of the last word.
She hugged Ginny before making her way to the Ministry of Magic. She went to the counter of the Marriages and Divorces department and asked about her appointment.
"Oh yes! Miss Granger, I apologise for the inconvenience, but Mr Grayson will not be England for a few weeks as he had to leave on urgent family business. But he had informed me to tell you that he has put his best lawyer, other than himself of course, in charge of your case. Is that alright with you? The secretary asked.
"That's fine with me. Am I allowed to meet him today?" Hermione asked.
The receptionist checked by calling the lawyer to affirm Hermione's presence.
She disconnected the phone and looked at Hermione. "He says that you can come right in. His office is in Room 257." Hermione thanked the woman and started to make her way to the room.
She knocked on the door and waited for a voice to allow her in. And it did.
She couldn't help but think that she had heard that voice somewhere before. But before she could think on it further, she looked up to see the platinum blonde hair of none other than Draco Malfoy.