Chapter Twenty-Eight
Author's Note: Thanks for reading! So appreciated. In case you missed it, I wrote a one-off M-rated story that belongs between this chapter and the previous. It's called For the Nights we Chose. If you'd like to read it, click on my profile; the story will be in the list of the stories I've written. Thanks! It's not necessary for this overall story, but if you're interested, it's hopefully worth checking out before reading this chapter – SJ
I've been asked about the pink drinks Hermione gets at the bar [thanks maybeitisnt!]. In my mind, they're a drink me and my friends call a Pretty in Pink which is just vodka, cranberry juice, and pineapple juice. There's a real drink called a Pretty in Pink which is far more complicated but we didn't know that at the time of 'creating' our drink.
Reluctantly, Hermione opened her eyes, sighing regretfully at the sight of the late morning air streaming in through the blinds of George's bedroom. Her unclothed body was still entwined with his. She slowly lifted her head from the crook where George's arm met his torso and strained her neck to see if she could tell if George was awake yet. Evidently he either was already awake or Hermione's shuffling had stirred him.
"What's going on, Mione?" George asked drowsily.
"Hmm…not much," Hermione responded quietly with a content smile. "I have to leave soon though,"
"Erm, no you don't," George suggested, wrapping his arms a bit tighter around her waist and kissing the back of her neck.
"Unfortunately I do…I promised Ginny I'd meet her this morning for wedding preparations." Hermione sighed as George nuzzled her neck.
"You don't honestly think that Ginny is in any state to meet this early do you?" George chuckled. "You saw how incapacitated she was last night,"
"Ginny's got impressive bounce back skills," Hermione pointed out fondly. "If anything, she's probably quite anxious to get going on today."
"Hmm…I doubt that," George grinned. "I think you'd might as well stay here with me. Maybe we could aim for a repeat of last night,"
"Erm, I'd like that," Hermione muttered. "But I'm afraid, I already have plans, love,"
"That's rubbish," George responded good-naturedly, burrowing his face into Hermione's back. "Stay,"
"How do you think Ginny would feel about me standing her up to shag her brother," Hermione asked with a playful laugh. It took all her strength to turn down George's suggestion. "I imagined she'd be quite displeased."
"She'd most likely be incredibly unimpressed," George admitted begrudgingly. "Well…then I suppose I should let you go, shouldn't I," He added, lightly patting Hermione's hip with his palm.
"I will see you later…" Hermione gently reminded him.
"That's definitely in order," George smiled, burrowing into his duvet as Hermione climbed out of his bed. In the morning light, she was all the more self-conscious of her nudity, but did her best to not mind George's blatant stare as she wandered across his room to locate her black knickers where George had tossed them the previous night. Picking her dress up from its crumpled heap, Hermione hastily did up the zipper of the wrinkled garment. She was glad that she was able to travel from George's back to her flat by the fireplaces and thereby avoid any awkward encounters on her trip home; her disheveled appearance was a particularly obvious indicator of the previous night's debauchery.
"I'll see you tonight George," Hermione said once she'd put herself together to the best of her ability. She rested her palms on the bed and leaned forward to plant a gentle kiss on his lips.
"Yup, dinner at the Burrow," George grinned, returning her kiss. "I assume that's what you're referring to,"
"It definitely is," Hermione replied. Sunday night meals at the Burrow were a common tradition with the Weasley's and she was sure that Mrs. Weasley expected all her children, grandchildren, and unofficially adopted children to be present.
"Ok, well have a nice day…and take care of my little sister. See to it that she finds nice things for her wedding," George added, lazily rolling onto his bare chest.
"Will do," Hermione waved as she headed out his bedroom door.
-o-O-o-
"Hey Hermione!" Ginny chimed merrily as Hermione entered the familiar café at which the two girls had previously agreed to meet. The red head wore a wide smile, bright eyes, an energetic demeanor and casual, yet put together, outfit of jeans and an ivory sweater, all of which betrayed no signs of her glaring intoxication the night before.
"Ginny…Glad you made it," Hermione responded in a lively tone, ordering a cappuccino from a passing server as she made through the crowded Sunday morning café to join Ginny at the table her friend had claimed. Hermione straightened her form fitted maroon top over her dark jeans and placed her beaded bag over one of the wire-backed chairs before sitting down across the small table from the smiling Ginny. "So what's the game plan for today?" She asked.
"I'm not sure really," Ginny admitted sheepishly. "I guess just look through some of these," She continued, gesturing at an impressive stack of bridal magazines sitting in front of her. "And then checking out a couple of nearby shops for bridesmaids' dresses, I suppose…maybe start looking at wedding dresses if we get the chance." Her flippant attitude indicated that she hadn't given much consideration to the makeup of the day and hadn't been too worried about the state of affairs of her approaching wedding.
"Alright," Hermione smiled gratefully as a server placed a wide ceramic mug filled with frothy cappuccino on the table. Her sleep had been truncated from her night with George and she knew that the caffeine would be necessary if she was to remain standing throughout the full day ahead of her.
"Oh there's Lav," Ginny commented, waving at the honey-blonde girl clad in a casual floral dress who had just entered the shop. "I hope you don't mind that I invited her…neither Ang nor Luna could make it unfortunately," She added, referring to her two other bridesmaids.
"Oh yah, of course that's alright, great really," Hermione replied, casting her own small wave in Lavender's direction. "More input is better…and it would be nice to spend the day with Lavender," She wasn't entirely sure of the veracity of the words she'd spoken. While she was warming to Lavender's presence, Hermione worried that the other girl's fussier tastes could be a hindrance to her and Ginny's plans. Despite her qualms, she smiled as Lavender joined their table: "Good to see you."
"Hey girls," Lavender gushed as she set a pad of parchment on the table. "I've already set up an itinerary…of all the places we have to hit and all the things we have to get done." She continued in a rushed voice before pleasantries had even been exchanged. Leafing through the parchment, she looked up again. "Ginny do you have a dress yet?" Lavender asked in a clipped, business-like tone.
"Erm, no," Ginny shrugged sheepishly. "I figured I could get one closer to the date."
"What! No you can't. That's the most important part." Lavender looked aghast.
"I'm fine with something simple," Ginny responded, a nervous shimmer clouding her eyes as she idly sipped her hot chocolate. "It doesn't have to be anything much…just a white dress."
"Just a white dress?" Lavender exclaimed lengthening each word for affect. "Ginny, no pressure or anything…but this is the wedding of the season. There's nothing more exciting happening this summer than you and Harry getting married," She explained as if describing a complicated idea to a child. "You cannot simply wear any old, white dress," She scoffed. "You simply must look fabulous…You're the biggest deal going right now,"
"Lav, are you sure about that?" Hermione asked incredulously, hoping to alleviate Ginny's obviously growing trepidation.
"Oh yes…yes indeed. The Boy Who Lived is getting married…it's a massive, societal event," Lavender stated matter-of-factly. "And don't think this doesn't matter for us, Hermione. We have to look amazing too…they'll likely want pictures of the whole wedding party in the Daily Prophet, in Witches Weekly, Monthly Merlin, Hello Magic, The Broomstick, Timeturner Magazine, Magic of Fact, The Tattler," Lavender listed publications off on her fingers.
"The Tattler?" Hermione questioned as she gently placed her cappuccino mug back on the table. "Isn't that a Muggle magazine? I don't think they'd care."
"Well…maybe I got a little ahead of myself…but you get the picture. This is a very big deal…The press has been eager ever since you announced your engagement," Lavender responded with a knowing flourish of her hand.
"Perhaps we should get going on our planning," Ginny blanched as she spoke in a decidedly quieter voice than normal for the fiery red head.
"We most definitely should," Lavender asserted as she spread her ink covered pages out on the table.
-o-O-o-
An hour later an exhausted Hermione found herself in the first boutique of their marathon shopping day. Her lack of sleep the previous night was wearing on her and the bright white lights and loud music of the shop made her head throb. Nevertheless, she did her best to maintain a cheerful attitude for the sake of the clearly-stressed-out Ginny. The three girls had decided to tackle dresses for the bridesmaids first; Hermione had thought it best to worry about Ginny's wedding gown when she was in a more easygoing mood.
Hermione yawned as she flipped through the rows of brightly coloured cocktail dresses and gowns. She felt suddenly guilty for her tiredness, knowing that she was letting down her friend because of her late night with Ginny's older brother. Glancing at Ginny, who was anxiously riffling through dresses on the other side of the rack, Hermione suddenly felt a pang of regret, not for what she did, but for pursuing George, starting something with him, and taking it to its natural escalation without ensuring that the relationship didn't bother Ginny. Despite the fact that she and George hadn't yet decided how and when they'd tell his family about their mutual involvement, Hermione knew that it was important to finally say something to her dear friend.
"Erm, Ginny, I have to tell you something," Hermione mentioned cautiously, glancing up from the sapphire dress that she had pulled off the hanger and had been studying intently. "I have something to tell you," She reiterated when Ginny had looked up and met her eyes. "I hope you're not mad…but it's kind of a big deal,"
"Oh, is this about you shagging George?" Ginny asked absent-mindedly, continuing to push dresses across the rack without even looking at them.
"W-what?" Hermione dropped the dress that she had been holding. "How do you know? When did you know? How come you haven't said anything to me?" She hastily asked, quickly bending over to scoop the dress off the tiled floor, unable to mask her surprise.
"I've known for a while," Ginny shrugged. "Maybe New Years…I guess it's been pretty obvious for some time…I didn't say anything because I figured you wanted to tell me on your own time."
"I-I can't believe you knew," Hermione mulled over the words. "I had no idea you were aware. I thought we were doing quite a good job of remaining discrete," She speculated.
"Seriously Mione?" Ginny laughed kindheartedly, her wedding stress appearing to fade momentarily. "You were the furthest thing from not obvious. You two were flirting the entire time at Victoire's birthday and you were all over each other last night. I'd have to be daft not to notice anything…I was certain you'd start ripping each other's clothes off right there,"
"Ginny, it's your brother!" Hermione exclaimed, not really shocked by Ginny's way of speaking. The young red-head was quite frequently unnecessarily forward in regards to her brothers' dating lives. Hermione had overheard several conversations between Ginny and Angelina that she was sure would most many younger sisters recoil with a fervent blush. Besides, Ginny's comment was shockingly apt.
"I know," Ginny chuckled. "Doesn't mean I can't tell when he fancies a girl. And trust me I always know when you fancy a bloke."
"You do?"
"Always."
"Hmm…" Hermione paused. That Ginny already knew about her and George was the last thing she expected. While she had considered that Ginny might be excited or disappointed over her dating her older brother, Hermione hadn't anticipated that Ginny's reaction would be closer to ambivalence. "Are you mad, Gin? That I'm with George?"
"No, of course not," Ginny chuckled. "Why'd I'd be mad? I love you and I love George, so obviously I'd love you two together."
"Oh," Hermione muttered, impressed with Ginny's surprisingly simple way of looking at her and George's relationship. "Ok, good," She sighed, relieved that one of the Weasleys she was most concerned about telling was supportive of her relationship with George. "You'd tell me if you were unhappy?"
"Really Hermione," Ginny laughed. "You don't think I'd tell you? Obviously you'd be the first to know if I was displeased with you dating one of my brothers."
"Of course," Hermione echoed Ginny's laughter. The forward Ginny certainly wouldn't take a passive aggressive approach if she disapproved of Hermione's actions, particularly actions that involved her beloved older brother. "Well…I'm glad you're ok with it…." Hermione faltered; she had expected that the conversation would last much longer and wasn't entirely sure what to do with the silence.
"Oh yah…if anything, I think it's rather brilliant. When you and Ron broke up, I honestly gave up hope that you'd be my sister-in-law one day…now I can look forward to when you marry George and we're part of the same family…officially that is,"
"Great," Hermione murmured, not surprised that Ginny would get wildly ahead of herself over the state of George and Hermione's relationship. She had been certain that once the Weasley clan learned of her and George's involvement they would be quite keen to plan a wedding and preparing for future children. "Not quite there yet Gin,"
"What do you think of this one?" Lavender interrupted Hermione and Ginny's conversation when she approached them holding up a vibrant blue dress. "I think it's lovely,"
"Erm yah," Hermione commented, barely looking at the dress, her thoughts still on her conversation with Ginny.
"Am I disrupting something," Lavender asked quite intuitively, glancing between the other two repeatedly.
"Nope," Ginny smiled in a way that made Hermione hope that her friend was feeling more relaxed about wedding plans than she had been when they three young women had left the café. "Mione was just telling me how she's shagging Georgie,"
"Is that so," Lavender exclaimed excitedly. "You and George," The honey blonde looked delighted over having learnt the brand new item of gossip. "Tell me everything."
"Er, I don't know if that's necessary," Hermione faltered, suddenly self-conscious to be at the very centre of attention.
"I'd like all the details," Lavender grinned gleefully.
"No, no you don't," Hermione recommended, shaking her head.
"They hooked up at New Years," Ginny eagerly volunteered.
"No we didn't," Hermione pointed out. "It was much later than that,"
"Whatever," Ginny shrugged flippantly. "They wanted to get off together at New Years, but they put it off for some reason." Hermione couldn't help but laugh at her friend's shockingly on-point description of her and George's relationship.
"You and George," Lavender whistled, sounding impressed. "That's remarkable…hey Ginny…Is Mione the first to shag two Weasley boys?" She asked with a curious giggle.
"Hmm…you know, I'm fairly certain that she is…although, mind you, I of course don't know everything about my brothers' sex lives," Ginny answered without any hint of self-consciousness.
"Oh, Merlin," Hermione groaned. "Is that honestly a distinction I want?" She questioned rhetorically.
"Well, you've always been a favourite of the Weasley family," Ginny pointed out with an amused giggle.
"I think it's fantastic," Lavender breathed airily. "In fact, I had a substantial crush on George in fifth year…thought he was so fit…guess we have a remarkable overlap in our taste of men,"
"I guess so," Hermione grinned through her awkwardness, astounded that she and Lavender shared such a thing in common. "Shall we change this subject though," She continued with a pointed look towards Ginny who obviously had no desire or intentions of dropping the topic. "Why don't we try on that dress," Hermione suggested, motioning towards the gown that Lavender had selected.
"Fine…We can discuss this later," Ginny laughed. Hermione was glad that the introduction of the discussion of her and George had brightened Ginny's spirits so definitively. Then again, Ginny's love of gossip should never be underestimated.
"This should be about your size, Mione," Lavender commented, glancing between the dress's tag and Hermione. "Why don't you give it a try first?"
"Sounds great," Hermione nodded, accepting the dress from Lavender and making a bee-line to the dressing room where the rest of the dresses they had picked out during their time in the boutique were waiting. Once in the change room, Hermione hastily yanked off her maroon top and jeans and pulled the blue dress over her head. She did the zipper of the dress up. The bodice was too large on her and wanted to slip down, but Hermione secured the back with pins in order to give an idea of how a proper-sized dress would appear on her. Smoothing out the skirt, she exited the change room to demonstrate the gown to Ginny and Lavender who were eagerly waiting on the other side.
"Oh wow, it's perfect,"
"It's stunning,"
"Yah?" Hermione questioned, studying her reflection in the full length mirror. The makeshift fitted strapless bodice was snug, dipping with a subtle sweetheart neckline between her breasts and boasting slight ruching along the torso. An ivory ribbon tied around the waist in a substantial bow at the back. The skirt was simple yet flattering. It skimmed out over Hermione's hips and drifted down her legs were it ended with a rolled hem at her knees. There was nothing about the dress that was particularly fussy or complicated. Nevertheless, the light fabric and carefree style suited Hermione and she liked the dress the moment she saw her reflection in the mirror. The tie at the waist made her look remarkably slender through the middle and the way the skirt floated out around her was both playful and flirtatious. She sashayed her hips in order to get a better sense of the effortless movement of the dress, smiling at the way it flow around her legs.
"Well, I think that is the one," Ginny commented with a grin.
"Ah, what about all these other ones?" Hermione asked gesturing at the dozens of other dresses the three girls had selected to try on.
"Why bother? I like this one," Ginny stated assertively. "It looks amazing on you and I'm sure it will look great on the others as well…why don't you try in on too Lav, just to make sure," Ginny diplomatically considered even though Hermione could tell that her friend had already decided on the dress.
"Alight," Lavender grinned. Hermione returned to the dressing room and quickly changed out of the dress and back into her casual clothes.
"You know who is really going to like you in that dress, Mione?" Ginny questioned the moment that Hermione and Lavender exchanged locations.
"Dare I ask?" Hermione laughed in reply.
"George," Ginny declared with a mischievous grin.
"Oh Ginny,"
"He'll think you're incredibly gorgeous, I'm sure," Ginny bounced on spot as she jovially chided her friend.
"Is this what I have to look forward to? Are you ever going to lay up on teasing me over George?" Hermione inquired lightheartedly.
"Of course not…what's the point of you dating my older brother if I can't tease you about it?"
"I suppose I can't argue with that logic," Hermione shrugged as Lavender joined them in the larger, main dressing area.
"Lav, that's fantastic,"
"It really is," Hermione agreed with Ginny's assessment. The style suited Lavender's curvier figure and the colour complemented her honey blonde hair and rosy complexion.
"Are you sure?" Lavender questioned. "It's very important we look nice…Witches Weekly remember. We have to pick something that looks great in person and photographs well and suits all of us," In the way Lavender rambled, Hermione sensed that she was worried about the prospect of participating in an evidently high-profile wedding. She felt a pang of concern for the other girl that she hadn't experienced before. The interested scrutiny that would be afforded to Ginny and Harry's wedding didn't particularly bother Hermione – she was simply excited for her two best friends – but it obviously weighed heavier upon Lavender.
"Lav, it really is stunning on you," Hermione spoke sincerely. "You have nothing to worry about…you look fabulous,"
"You really do, Lav," Ginny agreed with a kind smile. "This is the dress," She exclaimed, clearly relieved to be able to check an important item off her lengthy to-do list. "The colour should suit Ang and we can get it hemmed if need be for Luna," She added contemplatively. "Lav, change out of it…I'll go place an order for four dresses and then we can hit the next store." Her step substantially lighter than when they had entered the boutique, Ginny turned on her heel and raced towards the shop's front desk. Hermione smiled at her friend's enthusiasm. She too felt better than before. It was a reassurance to discover that Ginny was supportive of her and George. Feeling more awake and lively than she had earlier, Hermione quickly gathered her things and hurried behind Ginny, eager continue preparing for Harry and Ginny's wedding.
Author's Note: Thanks so much for reading. Please leave a comment if you can. I love hearing from readers! Can you believe we're nearing the end of this story? I only have several more chapters planned. Already it's ended up so much longer than I initially thought. But I'm still going to be so sad when I'm finished with it – SJ