you will see your beauty every moment that you rise

[cleverness]

Hermione feels her chest tighten from the moment she steps into the dress shop. There are soft colors surrounding her on all sides, a mixture of white and faint pastels, in such quantities that Hermione can't even imagine how she'll ever be able to find the right dress in time. For years, she's dreamed about what her wedding day might look like, and even if Hermione doesn't have the extensive notes that others her age might, there's an excitement that thrums just under her skin as she hurries into the shop.

She's invited some of her friends to join her — anyone who has a couple hours and the patience to spare. Even though Hermione knows that the wedding will be perfect simply because of the man who will be standing at the end of the aisle, she wants all of the other details to fall in place. Having more eyes and opinions will only make her feel more secure in her skin.

"Do you know what style of dress you're looking for, dear?" the shopkeeper asks her, a sweet woman with a heart-shaped face and delicate brunette curls.

Hermione parts her lips, on the cusp of deferring to her judgment entirely, but a moment later, she nods. "I think I'd like a long dress," she admits, feeling her cheeks flush. "White, perhaps with a hint of lace."

Half an hour later, Hermione stands back up on the stool in front of the tri-panel mirror, turning around slowly and feeling the weight of the skirt.

"What about this dress?" she asks, brushing errant curls of hair out of the way as she spreads the skirt, feeling the fabric against her palm.


[ help hermione pick between dress one, two, three, four. ]

Comments

[cleverness]

Elle's reaction is quick to bring tears to Hermione's own eyes, and the laughs, the sound just slightly broken as she twirls around on the step stool to get a better look. The fabric is just heavy enough that Hermione feels like she'll be kept from floating away from sheer joy. "Oh, you're not allowed to make me cry yet," she complains, though the smile never dims on her face as she steps down from the stool to stand in front of Elle, shoulders raised sheepishly.

It's strange, how much of a difference putting on the dress lends to the occasion. Hermione's wanted the white dress and wedding for so long, but it always felt like something she had to wait far longer for, something so far away that it was more of a distant concept than a reality.

Now, everything's coming together.

"It's really happening, isn't it?" Hermione asks, cheeks flushed. "I'm really getting married."

[beyondtheblonde]

"You're really getting married," Elle says, briefly touching Hermione's cheek before she takes her hands. She's already expressed how happy she is for her friend before, but it's hard to keep from saying it again, at the risk of repeating herself. There's just nothing like knowing someone's found love to make the world seem so much more beautiful than it already is. Lovely, clever, tenacious Hermione deserves every bit of it.

She laughs and takes a step back to look her over, lifting her hand to spin Hermione. "And I'll tell you something, Ron is the luckiest man in Darrow. When he sees you, he is gonna faint dead away."

[cleverness]

Hermione giggles as she's twirled around. Something about wearing the dress seems to be going directly to her head, between the way that the embroidery catches the light and the swish of the skirt around her feet. It's been about a decade since Hermione first discovered her personal sense of style, but trendy robes and high heels don't quite compare to this.

It's a little bit like playing dress-up all over again.

"Oh, I don't know," Hermione says, quirking a brow in Elle's direction. "I happened to run into Emmett at Dimera Apartments lately. If you ask me, he's quite the lucky fellow as well. Although I won't argue that Ronald is better off with me present in his life." She lifts her chin with a small smirk.

[beyondtheblonde]

"That's the thing about love," Elle says, soft and fond. Her time with Emmett will come, she's sure of it. It just isn't right for them yet, not for a step like that. They're still getting to know each other, still learning what it takes to make this relationship really work. And this time around, she's going to do it right. No rushing, no planning weddings in her head before there's even been talk of a proposal. No waiting when the time is right for someone else to make the move. For now, though, she's happy where they are.

Brushing back a bit of Hermione's hair, she smiles. "With the right one, you're both better for it. Now, is this the dress or are there others to try?"

[cleverness]

There's a softness in Elle's touch that makes Hermione feel as though she's found a sister. Her heart aches, thinking of how Ginny probably won't arrive in the city in time for the wedding, if indeed she makes it to Darrow at all, but Hermione's grateful for the company that she has, for the people who have extended their friendship so quickly. The loneliness that had permeated all of her initial days has largely died down.

"I'm just glad that he finally came around back in the day," Hermione says with a feigned scoff. "Honestly, with how much I'd helped him over the years, he should have realized the possibility of us years before he did. But, well. Boys can be clueless." Hermione makes her way back to the rack, glancing at a few more dresses that were brought over for her to try. "I still have about half a dozen dresses on this rack to go. Do you think you would be able to help me with the zipper?"

[beyondtheblonde]

"Of course," Elle says cheerfully. She's helped with wedding dress shopping once or twice, and it never gets old to her. There's just something so magical about getting to be a part of that, watching someone prepare for one of the biggest days of her life. Her relationship may not define her anymore, but she hasn't changed her mind about love. Serious lawyer or not, love is the glue that holds everything together. Playing any role in something that important is a gift.

She laughs as she follows after Hermione to help. "I don't know how men get it together without us sometimes. How long have the two of you been together?"

[cleverness]

"It's been about... six years now, I suppose. We started dating when we were eighteen," Hermione says, making sure to keep her hair out of the way as Elle helps to zip the dress up fully. "Whether or not he's willing to admit to it or not, I'm not sure, but as far as I'm concerned, we weren't really considering anyone else for the couple of years beforehand. It's strange, to grow up alongside someone else in that way."

Hermione leans down slightly to straighten out the hem of the dress, making sure not to step on the fabric as she makes her way out of the dressing room.

"The two of us and our best friend, Harry, have been practically inseparable since we started school together when we were eleven. And at that age, you're usually not thinking about boyfriends and girlfriends. Easing into that realization was, well. Difficult. At first, it was as though Ron was uncomfortable even thinking of me as a girl rather than a mate, so to speak. Because clearly, your best friends can't also be girls."

[beyondtheblonde]

Elle laughs, rolling her eyes affectionately. "Boys," she sighs. "They can be so ridiculous about those things." She remembers being eleven and not really caring about any of that. She'd like clothes and dogs and pep squad and going shopping with her friends. Boys were cute, but not exactly a priority, and she's not sure when exactly that changed. Little Elle had her priorities straight, she thinks.

"It's like the moment they realize you're a girl," she says, patting Hermione's shoulder as she steps back, "it's some crazy shock, like they totally didn't even realize you had boobs before."

[cleverness]

"Exactly," Hermione says, making sure to smooth out the sleeves on the dress. The lace is soft, but still feels slightly strange as she moves her arms around, but the tighter contour of the dress immediately appeals to Hermione as she steps out to look at her reflection in the mirror, still beaming from cheek to cheek.

"It worked exactly like that for the two of us. There was a ball that was being held at our school, you see, and he and our friend Harry were agonizing over what to do about the ball. Both of them tried inviting some of the most popular girls at school, and after both of them were rejected, they froze and didn't know what to do," she explains with a grin. "By then, many of the girls at school had already been asked. Only then, in a fit of desperation, did Ron point out to Harry that I was a girl, and therefore a potential option for his date. Making the assumption, of course, that I didn't have a date. It vexed me at the time."