QLFC: Season 11, Round 6

Team: Kenmare Kestrels

Position: Chaser 1, Captain

Prompt: Bratz

Additional Prompts:

[emotion] cheery

[object] body glitter

[dialogue] "Me, a princess?"

Word Count: 1553

Warnings: slight self confidence issues

Notes: I'm going for the fashion side of Bratz and writing a story about someone getting dressed up fancy. On a less important note, I literally haven't read or written anything golden trio in ages, I had to look up Hermione scene packs for this XD

Hermione forced her hands by her sides and took a deep breath. This would be fine. Lavender was nice, and she loved fashion! Hermione had nothing to worry about. She tried to remind herself of that, but it didn't seem to work. She hated asking for help, especially from people she wasn't close with. With another deep breath, she pushed open the door to their dorm, praying that Lavender was inside.

She was. She was sitting on her bed, flipping through a magazine, completely enthralled. No one else was in the room; it was just the two of them.

"Lavender?" Hermione said, hoping she didn't sound nervous.

"Hmm?" Lavender didn't even look up from her magazine.

"I was wondering if you could help me," Hermione said. Lavender did look up at that. She looked surprised, and maybe a bit curious. That was understandable, Hermione had never asked her for help before in her life. "Viktor Krum asked me to the Yule Ball, and—"

"Viktor Krum? Merlin, you're lucky! He's so hot!" Lavender said. She closed the magazine and set it down beside her on the bed. "What was it like when he asked you?"

"I…" Hermione could feel herself blushing. "He was nice? A little awkward, though. It was actually really sweet. I was studying in the library and he came up to me and apologized for interrupting, then asked if I would go with him. He looked so nervous. I've never seen a boy look nervous to talk to me before." She forced herself to stop talking, keenly aware of the fact that she was blushing furiously.

"Eeeeeeee! He totally likes you! What about you, do you like him?" Lavender asked, leaning towards Hermione.

Hermione hesitated. Was this what having girl friends was like? "I think so?" she said.

Lavender made a high-pitched sound that was somewhere between a squeal, a laugh, and a scream. "That's so amazing! Merlin, I'm so excited for you! Now what did you need?"

"I… I was hoping you could help me choose something to wear? I've never really dressed up much before."

"I was hoping that's what it was!" Lavender said. "Of course, I'll help; this'll be so fun!"

Hermione breathed a sigh of relief as some of the tension dropped from her shoulders. "Thank you," she said. "I honestly don't even know where to start."

A grin spread across Lavender's face. "We'll start right here." She picked up the magazine she had been reading and held it up. The cover had a picture of a woman twirling and showing off a floaty red dress, with the words Fabrics & Frills: fashion for the feminine printed across the top. Lavender beckoned Hermione over to her. "Come here, we'll look together. What's your favorite color?"

ooOoo

In Hermione's opinion, five hours was far too long to spend getting ready, but Lavender had insisted that anything less wouldn't be long enough, and Parvati had insisted that Lavender was right. So, despite her better judgment, Hermione had agreed. The second she entered the dorm she could see why though. It was chaos. Every surface was covered by makeup or hair supplies, clothes were laid out on all of their beds, a table had been set up with snacks and sweets on it, and the room seemed to be overflowing with energy and excitement.

"Hermione! You're here!" Lavender said cheerfully as soon as she spotted Hermione in the doorway. Her curly blond hair was braided into a crown with ringlets hanging down from it artfully. Hermione had always been a little jealous of how well-behaved Lavender's curls were.

"Your hair looks really nice," Hermione said.

Lavender laughed lightly. "Thanks. Yours will too, once I'm done with it!" she said. "Here's the plan! We're going to make you look stunning. I'll do your hair, then afterwards Parvati's gonna do your makeup, okay?"

Hermione nodded, suddenly nervous. Parvati was on the other side of the room, helping Jane with her makeup. It looked like she was sticking a pencil in her eye. Hermione wasn't looking forward to trying that. "Okay," she said. "What do you need me to do?"

"Just sit here." Lavender gestured to a chair. "And let me work. You're gonna look amazing!" She grabbed a hairbrush and a spray bottle as Hermione sat down.

"Who are you going with, Hermione?" Jane asked.

Hermione turned to look at Lavender, but Lavender firmly grabbed her head and turned it so she was facing forward again.

"It's a surprise," Lavender said.

"So you don't even know," Jane responded.

"Of course I know," Lavender said. She began brushing Hermione's hair, spraying it occasionally with the spray bottle. "Besides, I'm far more interested in hearing about you and Michael. Didn't he ask you the day it was announced?"

"No, it was the day after. He…"

Hermione let the conversation fade into the background, wincing a little as Lavender pulled on her hair. She wished she was comfortable with this, sitting around doing hair and makeup and talking about boys, but she never had been. Ever since she was in primary school, she'd spent her free time reading and wishing she was one of the cool kids; that she had friends. Even once she got to Hogwarts and became friends with Ron and Harry, she still sometimes wished she wasn't so bookish. Every morning, Parvati and Lavender would get ready together while chatting about whatever was going on in their friend group, and Hermione would just brush her teeth and hair, and get dressed. No chatting, no laughing, no makeup, not even a braid. Lavender and Parvati always looked so pretty, and she always looked so plain.

"Done!" Lavender said. "It's your turn, Parvati!"

Hermione pulled herself out of her thoughts. Had she really zoned out for that long? She lifted her hand to touch her hair, but Lavender gently swatted it away.

"Don't touch; the Sleekeazy's hasn't fully set yet."

"Sorry," Hermione said. "Can I see it?"

"Not yet, we're gonna do a big reveal once your makeup is done and you have your dress on," Lavender said.

"Trust us, it looks amazing!" Parvati said. She moved a chair in front of Hermione's and sat down facing her. "Now, have you ever worn makeup before?"

Hermione shook her head, looking down at all the brushes and bottles that Parvati had floating between them.

"Okay, then this might feel a little strange, especially the eyeliner and mascara," Parvati said.

"What if you accidentally poke me in the eye?" Hermione asked.

"I won't," Parvati said. "Trust me, I did Padma's makeup all summer."

"And even if she does," Lavender added. "I've poked myself in the eye so many times. It feels weird, but it doesn't hurt."

Hermione nodded, still feeling a little nervous. "Do you mind telling me what you're putting on? I… I want to learn how to do makeup."

"Of course!" Parvati said. "I can teach you some techniques later if you want!"

"That would be wonderful!" Hermione said. "Thank you."

This time she didn't let her mind wander. She listened closely as Parvati listed each product. There were a lot of them.

"Now, I'm going to use just a little bit of body glitter," Parvati said.

Hermione's stomach flipped. "Body glitter? Won't that be a bit much?" Surely it would draw too much attention! She just wanted to feel beautiful, she didn't need to stand out, did she?

"Not at all! I'm just using a little as highlighter. It'll make you look ethereal!" Parvati said. She unscrewed the cap of the small tub.

"I don't know… I just don't want people to stare."

Parvati sat back. "I won't use it if you don't want me to, but I definitely think a little in the corner of your eyes would be a perfect touch. I don't have to put it anywhere else."

"I think it'll be a really nice touch," Lavender said.

Hermione looked between her roommates' faces. They both looked so sincere, maybe… maybe they were right? But the idea of having glitter on her face was terrifying. They looked so excited though… "Alright, but just a little."

Parvati and Lavender both grinned. "You're going to look so good!" Parvati said, leaning forward with the brush in her hand.

Hermione tried to feel their excitement, but as the time for the ball drew closer her nerves grew. Finally, it was time to put on her dress. Lavender zipped it up for her, then turned her around.

"Merlin! You look like a princess!" she said.

Hermione ducked her head as Parvati and Jane came to stand beside Lavender. "Me, a princess? I wish," she said.

"No, Lavender's right!" Jane said. "You're gorgeous."

"Come see for yourself!" Parvati said. She grabbed Hermione's hand and dragged her over to the full-length mirror.

Hermione gasped lightly. She could hardly believe that the reflection staring back at her was, well, her. Her usually frizzy hair was pulled perfectly back into a tight bun, and her makeup was flawless. Parvati was right, the glitter was a perfect touch, and it wasn't too much. The soft pink and purple of her eyeshadow complimented her periwinkle dress perfectly. She smiled and swished her skirt, joy bubbling up inside her. She looked beautiful, and even more, she felt beautiful.