005. Outsides
She heard the collective gasp as she entered the Great Hall. As she walked down the floor on the arm of her date, she saw the awe-struck (and sometimes jealous) stares of her classmates and peers. She even heard some of the professors murmuring how lovely she looked, and what a pleasant surprise that she should "clean up so nicely".
It all made her sick to the stomach.
The only reason people complimented her that night was because her hair was straight and her dress was flattering and she was wearing make-up. Nothing else even remotely important had changed (besides the tooth-shrinking, but was that really important at all?). She was still the same old Hermione Granger.
But she didn't look like the same old Hermione Granger. So naturally she deserved the many appreciative looks and compliments she'd been getting all night.
It just burned her up inside.
"Her-my-ninny? Vould you like something to drink?"
The girl looked up at her date standing nervously at her side and smiled. "Yes Viktor, that would be lovely. Thank you." She watched as the boy (no, really he was a man) made his way over to the refreshment table and shook her head. At least Viktor didn't care that she didn't always look like a porcelain doll. In fact, he seemed a bit put-off with her new look and had ever-so-bashfully told her that he preferred her hair when it was wild. He was rather adorable when he was uncomfortable, the bookworm mused.
Hermione's eyes wandered over to one of the many tables where a red-headed boy sat, staring glumly in her direction. The girl had to hide a smile. So there were two people in the room who were a bit put-off by her new look. She could live with that.