"It's time," Candy said.
"Really," Hermione gasped, which stopped her from babbling about natural beauty of Scotland, shocked, as if she had just woken up from a dream. "It felt much shorter than half an hour."
"Talking helps, honey. And, technically, it only has been twenty-five minutes, You still need to change into something sexier. I'm guessing you want to change behind the screen," she pointed.
"Y-yes, sorry," Hermione gasped, feeling guilty that she was having trouble getting naked even after Candy staying nude all this time.
"Nothing to be ashamed of, honey. It's not like you're auditioning to be dancer." She paused for a moment. "Pity, you would be an excellent dancer."
"I'm not exactly graceful," Hermione decided to answer, even though she blushed.
"Nonsense," Candy answered as she pointed at the wardrobe. "Now, let's pick you something so you can change. We don't have much time left. Any preferences?"
"N…not really," Hermione whispered as she looked at the wardrobe, which was filled with an unbelievable amount of colorful and shiny fabric … in terms of quantity. Only few outfits had more fabric than a hand towel would have, yet Hermione ignored them steadfastly — not a bad choice considering she could see the other side through them easily.
"Hmm," Candy murmured. "What's the preferred way you flirt. Innocent seductress, or something a bit sharper?"
Hermione froze. "I … I don't flirt much," she murmured. And wasn't that the truth, she felt, once again the sense of inadequacy hitting her hard. She knew those things weren't as important as the mission, but after watching Candy easily saunter for half an hour, her sense of inferiority rose up hard.
"Oh, sweetie, you're really wasting your beauty," Candy answered, and Hermione didn't like the sense of pity in her tone. "Flirting is always a nice weapon, one that could make your life much easier. A pout here, a little cleavage there, and maybe a short skirt to reveal your beautiful legs," she said. Hermione might have answered her, but she was distracted by her fingers grazing her legs. "It would have helped you with your grades as well."
"I was always top of my class, thank you very much," Hermione answered sharply, her anger sudden and clear as she spat her words. "I'm sorry," Hermione tried to backtrack as she realized Candy pulling back.
Candy wasn't frowning but smiling. "Don't worry. You're proud of your skills, it's not something to be ashamed of." She paused for a moment, then smiled even wider. "You know what, we can use to our advantage."
After some fumbling, she pulled a schoolgirls uniform from the wardrobe — or, very revealing approximation of a uniform, with a micro skirt and a white shirt might as well be a bra. Luckily, along with them, she also pulled some fresh underwear from a sealed bag. "What do you think?" she asked.
"Looks … good," Hermione murmured. It was revealing, of course, but it wasn't as bad as the others in the wardrobe, so Hermione was quick to accept, then grab them to disappear behind the screen. She felt cowardly doing so, but she was already at her limit.
Candy stayed at the other side of the screen.
"So … how's this … Mr. White," Hermione asked, afraid of the man that she would interview, in a way she hadn't even dressed for her fiancee.
"Oh, you're very lucky about that, Mr. White is an absolute man," Candy said, her tone suddenly wistful. "He's not only handsome and confidence, but also he's young. Probably twenty-five. Not to mention, he's rich, he owns half of the club."
"And the other half," Hermione found herself asking.
Candy chuckled. "Owned by Mr. Black," she said. "An absolute dog, in any sense of the word, and definitely a man to avoid, especially for a pretty young thing like you."
"R-really," Hermione asked, suddenly afraid.
"You can always call me and I'll throw my body to him to keep you safe, sweetie."
"I can't—" Hermione whispered, suddenly ready to dash away.
"Sorry, sweetie, I'm just teasing, Mr. Black is harmless," she said, then corrected. "Well, not harmless exactly, but he won't do anything without making sure you're alright with it. He's not a sleazy owner that would kick you out just because you're sleeping with him, or even promote you to better hours because sleeping with him. It's very refreshing in our line of work." Then, she giggled. "It doesn't hurt that the man is an absolute beast in bed. Positively feral."
Her tone made it clear that she wasn't just gossiping about what she heard from others. "W-what about Mr. White," Hermione asked even as she finished undressing and put on her white stockings. She wanted to use the opportunity to learn a bit more about her upcoming interview.
She couldn't afford to fail her interview.
"Oh, he's a dream. Young and handsome, and the most striking eyes you'll ever see. He even walks around with sunglasses most of the time, which is good. Most of the girls here didn't even see his eyes, or they'll camp in front of his door rather than working," she chuckled.
Under different circumstances, Hermione would have loved to listen to her, but she was in aan important mission. "Candy, please," Hermione asked even as she put her underwear, which covered much less than large, sensible pieces she preferred to wear, the fabric lacy. At least they were not transparent.
"Don't get your panties in a twist," she said, once again chuckling. "Not that there's enough to be twisted before snapping." Just like that, Hermione was blushing once again. "If you wish. Mr. White is smart and sharp. And while he's kind, he doesn't have much patience. Trying to trick him is the easiest way one could be kicked out with no references, as some bartenders or dancers that was skimming from the shared pool had learned. Also, he doesn't react well to anyone that's trying to be overbearing. Even when the mafia visited…"
Candy's silence turned poignant silence. "What happened?" Hermione asked, trying to hide her panic. "Something dangerous?"
"Nothing to be worried about, honey. It's just an altercation with the mafia. We were afraid that they'll react badly, but luckily, they were taken down by Feds before they could do anything to us. We were lucky."
"I understand," Hermione said, trying to keep calm, but she was getting overwhelmed.
"Oh, sweetie, I'm sorry. How about I tell you something fun. When I was visiting Mr. Black's office for a … private meeting, I heard Mr. White has a nickname. Prongs Junior."
"Thanks," Hermione muttered, chuckling, though mostly to keep Candy calm. She didn't care about Mr. White's nickname. She cared about finding Harry Potter, and she only needed to pass an interview for it. "Anything else?" she added as she finished putting on her costume and stepped out.
Hermione found herself looking at Candy, who had used the opportunity to change as well, faster than Hermione expected. She was wearing a sexy policewoman outfit. Considering she was almost naked before, Hermione shouldn't be reacting to it even the slightest, but she still found herself blushing badly. Somehow, she was sexier dressed than naked.
Damn, she thought. What was wrong with her.
"Wow, even better than I expected," Candy said as she dragged her toward mirror, then halfway, she stopped. "Shit, we're almost late," she said as she started to move, dragging Hermione away.
Hermione was certainly not ready for going to that meeting without checking the mirror, but high-heeled stilettos she was wearing didn't leave much margin for taking action. She felt herself be dragged.
"Now, about your meeting strategy. I can see that you're nervous, and you told me you were a good student. I have a trick that will help you."
"What kind of trick?" Hermione couldn't help but ask as she followed her helplessly, fear growing in her once more. She was not ready for the meeting. Not dressed like this…
Unable to cast magic!
Realization hit her that, along with everything else, her wand was still hidden in her boots, unable to be used, and despite all her practicing, wandless magic still avoided her. She couldn't believe she had neglected to take her wand with her.
"Well, since you're a dutiful student, it'll be good for you imagine him as some kind of Professor. It'll help you to calm down and make you a bit less rattled." She glanced at her face. "You definitely need that."
"Maybe you're right," Hermione found herself saying. She was not exactly onboard with the idea, but without her wand, she was panicking, and maybe, imagining him as one of her professors would help. She certainly had a better rapport with her professors than her friends, that was for certain. "Thanks, Candy. I'm sorry to say but I needed it."
"Don't get stuck on it, sweetie," Candy said. "Actually, let's see how you walk as well," she suddenly stopped grabbing her hand, and Hermione stumbled a bit. "Walk forward, slowly, but sashay your hips. You have the ass for it, flaunt it…"
After that, came several suggestions, of which Hermione did her best to follow, about ideal distance to take a step and other functional yet complicated advice, feeling a bit weird as she did so. She couldn't even imagine there was that much detail went to walking. Luckily, she was a quick study.
"Excellent," Candy said with a booming smile as she took a few more steps, then froze in front of a door. "With this performance, you will be our best waitress. Now, ready for your meeting?"
Hermione took a deep breath, trying to ready herself for it, ignoring her desire to ask the other woman to join the meeting, knowing it to be impossible… "You'll do fine," she said as she patted her shoulder, and left.
Leaving an anxious Hermione behind.