AN: I own nothing. Wish I did, but...oh, well.

Thanks so much for the reviews, follows, and faves. This would have been up sooner, but there are so many songs appropriate for a post-war benefit, and none of them seemed to fit. Just when I found one, I found a better one, and so on. But, I finally settled on one that I think works, and hopefully you will, too.

To the guest reviewer who mentioned their romance wasn't happening yet, it's coming. I can't bring myself to speed up things between them, hence the reason this is no longer a five chapter story. But I promise, it will happen.

Also, keep in mind that this is a benefit, not an awards ceremony. There will be no Order of Merlin's being handed out in this chapter. A future chapter, maybe, but not this one.

Alright, off you go! Read and enjoy!

"Why do girls always take so long to get ready?" Ron asked as he, Harry, and Sirius, along with the other men, waited in the living room of Grimmauld Place for the women to finish getting ready.

"Don't ask, Ron. Just...don't ask." Sirius said, shaking his head.

Harry stood in the living room, waiting for Hermione to come down. It was the night of the Ministry benefit, and she had agreed to be his date. He had to be honest, he was nervous. He knew that most of the eyes in the ballroom tonight would be on him, which wasn't helping. But, mostly, he was nervous because tonight was what Hermione had dubbed a 'pre-date'. Tomorrow was their actual date, and even though he wanted that to go well, he also wanted tonight to go well.

His thoughts were interrupted by Sirius, who clapped him on the shoulder. "You alright, Pup?"

"Just nervous, I guess." he replied.

"Well, that's natural. After all, everyone in the world wants to get a look at 'The-Boy-Who-Lived', you know. Especially tonight." Sirius said.

Harry groaned. "You're not helping the nerves, Padfoot." he grumbled. "Anyway, it's not entirely that."

"Ah. The lovely Miss Granger." Sirius nodded.

"Yeah. I mean, I know I shouldn't be, cause we've known one another for ages, but..."

"You've not known one another as dates, correct?"

"Right. I've never really even been on a date, and tonight is kind of a pre-date date, so..."

"A pre-date? What the hell's that?" Sirius asked.

"It's...you know, I'm confused about that, too. All Mione said was that she didn't want this to count as our first date, because she wanted our first date to be something special by itself."

"Ah. I see, I think. It's a date, but it's not a date date." Sirius said. "So the pressure for her and you to have a good time is doubled so she'll be looking forward to the actual date." Sirius nodded. "Just relax, Harry."

Harry snorted. "Right."

"Repeat after me. 'It's only Hermione.'" Sirius said.

"It's only Hermione. It's only Hermione. It's only Hermione." Harry repeated over and over.

"Right. Now, take several deep breaths. In. Out. In. Out." he said, breathing along with Harry.

"Okay. I think I'm good now." Harry said after a few moments of deep, cleansing breaths. "Thanks, Siri."

"Good. Because I think I hear the ladies coming." Sirius said.

Sure enough, one by one, Minerva, Molly, Ginny, Luna, Tonks, Hermione, Angelina, Katie, and Fleur came down the stairs. While they all looked extremely lovely in their varying colors and styles of dresses, it was Hermione that captured Harry's attention. He watched, eyes wide and sparkling as she stepped off the stairs, stopping a little in front of him and spinning to give him the full effect.

Hermione had left her hair down, with half pulled away from her face, kept in place by a gold hair clip, and the rest hanging down her back in glossy curls . She had gone lightly on the makeup, only highlighting her chocolate brown eyes with golden eye shadow, making her eyes look darker, and had nude colored lipstick on. Her dress was a body hugging floor length, white, halter top style, that had a split on the right side up to her thigh, and was backless. She had added in a pair of white pumps, and a gold bracelet, which finished off the look wonderfully.

"Wow." Harry breathed out, not able to take his eyes off her.

"You like?" Hermione asked.

"Wow." he repeated, looking her up and down. "You look...wow."

"I'd say thanks, but if you keep repeating that, I'm gonna start to feel insulted." she said, smiling.

Ron let out a low whistle as he walked over to join them. "Merlin, Mione. You gotta warn a bloke before you turn up looking like that."

"Well, thank you, Ronald." Hermione said with a sniff, before breaking down and smiling at her friend. "You know, you never mentioned who your date is." she smirked.

"Oh, I'm meeting Lavender at the ball." he said, a wide smile on his face.

"Oh? How'd that happen?" Harry asked, breaking out of his shock.

"We ran into one another in Diagon Alley. Literally." he said. "I turned the corner and BAM! Ran smack into Lav. I offered to take her tonight to kinda make up for it." he added, ears flushing.

"Well why didn't you invite her over to get ready with the rest of us?" Ginny asked, joining the group.

Ron scratched the back of his neck. "Uh...didn't think of it, honestly." he said, making Ginny roll her eyes.

"Alright, everyone, are we ready?" Sirius asked. "Okay, then. I okayed it with Kingsley, so we'll all be apparating directly to his office. I figured you ladies wouldn't want to floo in your dresses." he said.

"Why Sirius Black, how thoughtful." Minerva said cheekily, giving him a wink.

"Yes, well...let's be off." he said, making everyone laugh as he turned a deep red.

The large group walked down several corridors at the Ministry, the men automatically taking up positions of protection and walking with the women on the inside. There was no threat, but with so many wizards and witches gathering tonight, they weren't taking any chances. As they got to the ballroom, they were stopped by a Ministry worker who was to introduce them as they entered.

"Oh, Ron! Wait!" they heard, just as the man at the door was about to begin the introductions. Turning, they all saw Lavender Brown walking quickly to join up with them. "Sorry." she said, blushing. "We didn't say exactly where we were meeting, so..."

"No, it's fine, Lavender. I'm sorry." Ron said, taking hold of her hand. "You look lovely, by the way." he added.

"Thanks." she said, smiling at him. Lavender had chosen a one shoulder dress in a dark red color. It fit her like a glove, hung to the floor, and had one long sleeve. She had pulled her wavy blonde hair up into a French twist, with wisps hanging down. Hermione thought she looked very grown up, and lovely.

"Ron." Hermione said, nudging his shoulder with her finger. "You and Lavender are next." she said, nodding to the wizard waiting for them to step forward.

"Right." he said, tightening his grip on Lavender's hand as they were introduced.

Harry took a deep breath as he knew their introduction was next. Hermione squeezed his hand in support, giving him a smile.

"Harry Potter and Hermione Granger." the wizard said loudly once Ron was a little way inside the ballroom. As Harry and Hermione entered, the noise level dropped until the only sound was the clicking of Hermione's heels on the floors. As the two got to the middle of the floor, halfway to their table at the front, the entire ballroom burst out in applause, which made the two of them burst out laughing for some reason.

"Blimey. Way to make an entrance, guys." Ron said, making the rest of the table laugh as they took their seats.

An hour later, everyone was thoroughly enjoying themselves. The silent auction had gone off wonderfully, with the winners to be announced at the end of the evening. Everyone enjoyed their dinners, which turned out to be choice of a honey roasted lamb with baked potatoes, or duck a l'orange with grilled vegetables. Despite the reason for the evening, conversation all around the ballroom was kept light, with much needed laughter filling the room.

In an extreme show of forgiveness, and about moving on from the horrible last several years, Hermione had even engaged in a short conversation with the Malfoy family, who were seated with the Greengrass, Goyle, Parkinson, and Zabini families. What shocked most people when they enquired about the conversation was that Hermione had been apologized to by the entire table. Not only for the events that transpired at the hands of Bellatrix, but for Draco's behavior all through Hogwarts. However, what shocked Hermione was the fact that Pansy had voluntarily complimented her, telling her she was the best dressed in the room.

Needless to say, when the Weird Sisters took the stage, the younger members in the audience lost their minds, but tried to act mature about it. It wasn't quite as chaotic as during their appearance at the Yule Ball all those years ago, but it was close. The dance floor was full, however. Hermione, Ginny, and Luna went backstage to get ready for their performance. The three of them stood in the corridor outside the stage entrance, with Hermione doing her usual pre-show ritual and saying a little prayer. For the first time she could remember, she was nervous about going onstage. She knew how she was received in the muggle world, as most people who were fans of her parents knew her, but the wizarding world was a whole other matter. These people only knew her as one-third of the Golden Trio, and the brightest witch of the age, not as a gifted music artist.

"Thank you for that wonderful song, boys. Ladies and gentlemen, once again, the Weird Sisters!" Kingsley said, stepping up to the microphone as they took a bow and stepped off to a round of thunderous applause. "On behalf of the wizarding world, I'd like to thank the Weird Sisters for taking time out of their tour to be here." he added. "Now then, our next performer is someone I think all of you know in some way, whether you're fortunate enough to be friends with her, or you've heard of her academic prowess. Needless to say, I do consider myself extremely lucky to be able to call this woman 'friend', and have her return the sentiment. Ladies and gentlemen, Hermione Granger."

Hermione was surprised to find almost the entire room applauding for her as she, Ginny, and Luna walked onstage. She mentally crossed her fingers, hoping everything went well. At the last moment, she had changed her mind on the song, deciding the previous one was too chipper for a night like this. It was a good song, but she preferred the new one they were going to do. She also hoped Ginny and Luna remembered their parts.

"Hello, everyone." Hermione said. "Uh...this song is for anyone who lost someone close during the war." she said shyly. Looking at the girls, she gave the signal, the three of them clicking their fingers in unison before Hermione started singing in a sweet, but strong, voice.

How do I say goodbye to what we had?
The good times that made us laugh
Outweigh the bad

I thought we'd get to see forever
But forever's gone away
It's so hard to say goodbye to yesterday

I don't know where this road is going to lead
All I know is where we've been
And what we've been through

If we get to see tomorrow
I hope it's worth all the wait
It's so hard to say goodbye to yesterday

And I'll take with me the memories
To be my sunshine after the rain
It's so hard to say goodbye to yesterday

And I'll take with me the memory
To be my sunshine after the rain
It's so hard to say goodbye to yesterday

"Thank you." Hermione said after they finished. To her surprise, she got a standing ovation, with several people wiping tears from their face.

Review please.

Song - Boyz II Men - It's So Hard To Say Goodbye To Yesterday

I wanted to give a nod to Emma Watson, so, if you Google it, the dress Hermione wore to the benefit is the same one Emma wore to the premiere of 'Noah'. It was a gorgeous look, in my opinion. You can't miss it, trust me. She's strutting down the carpet, looking like she should be on a runway instead of at a movie premiere.

Enough of my rambling, though.

Til next time!

XOXO - Onyx Obsidian