Chapter 1
"Do you really think this is necessary?" Hermione Granger asked her best friends loudly, trying to overcome the noise of the hair dryer. She watched in the mirror as Luna and Ginny both grinned and nodded emphatically. It was her twenty-third birthday and they were bound and determined to make it her most memorable yet. Doing that meant going all out. They'd found her hard at work in her research lab and kidnapped her earlier in the afternoon. After taking her to lunch they'd gone shopping forcing her to try on dress after dress until Ginny had declared she'd found the perfect one. They hadn't even let Hermione see it, let alone try it on.
Her only reprieve had been the bubble bath they'd made her take. Hermione had soaked in the soothing warm water for
almost an hour before Luna had came barging in through the door , instructing her to shave her legs and wash her hair.
Now she was sitting on a chair in front of her vanity, watching with nervousness as they dried her hair and smothered
it in sleakeasy….
Hermione could practically see the words makeover written on their foreheads. She loved her friends dearly but she
would never be fashionable or trendy like they were. She'd never cared about hair or makeup. She'd only ever
wanted to be a scientist. They, however, had other plans for her.
"Mione…stop looking like this is painful," Ginny commanded. "We just want you to have a little fun
today. Especially tonight." Before Hermione could question Gin further, Luna took control of the situation.
"Okay, here's the plan. While I work on your hair, Ginny is going to fix your makeup. Then…. after we're
finished, you're going to go into your bedroom and put on the beautiful dress that we found for you today. Then,
tonight, we are going out to celebrate your birthday. You will enjoy this. You will have fun." Hermione saw the
hopeful look in both their eyes and decided what the hell. You only ever turn twenty-three once. Might as well take the
time to enjoy it.
"So…. what exactly are we going to do tonight?" she found the courage to ask. Luna had her turned away from the mirror now and she stood in front of her, taking strands of Hermione's cinnamon coloured tresses and wrapping them around her wand. Ginny was in the other room doing. …something.
"Well, we were thinking dinner and maybe dancing," Luna said.
"Who else is coming? Did you invite Ron and Neville?" Hermione asked. She had assumed that part of the
evening would include Luna and Ginny's boyfriends. They'd all gotten to be good friends, since the girls had
decided to share an flat.
"Uhm…. yes." Luna said somewhat distractedly. "Ginny…come here," she hollered for the other girl
and Ginny came running.
Luna NEVER shouted, but when she did, you knew it was for a good reason.
"What?" she asked, slightly out of breath.
"I'm thinking an up do? What do you think?" Ginny studied Hermione closely for a moment before nodding
and breaking into a smile. "That would be perfect."
An hour later, both girls were standing in front of Hermione, blocking her view of the mirror. She was all ready. Her hair was piled up on top of her head, a mass of girls with a few tendrils escaping here and there. Her makeup was minimal but flawless thanks to Ginny. And her dress…her dress was breathtaking. It clung to Hermione's curves, emphasizing her trim figure. The colour, a deep burgundy, brought out the olive tone of her smooth skin. She was really quite stunning.
"Oh…Mione, you look incredible," giny said. "You really do."
Hermione felt herself blushing at the compliment and growing more nervous. She just wanted to look in the mirror now.
She had to see for herself.
Luna and Ginny stepped aside, allowing Hermione to see herself for the first time in hours.
She gasped as she looked in the mirror. She could hardly believe what she was seeing. She, Hermion Jayne Granger, science research geek extraordinaire, looked beautiful. She couldn't even deny it. Ginny and Luna had managed to take her average brown /gold hair look like ringlets of silk. And her complexion looked flawless. There were no tell tale lines from the safety goggles she had to wear in lab. Her skin looked radiant and her eyes were bright and sparkling. And her dress…. it managed to make her less than stellar figure look almost, dare she think it, sexy. Hermione couldn't help the big smile that spread across her face.
"You…. you guys have really outdone yourselves. Thank you. Thank you so much for doing this, for making me take
time out to have fun. It means so much to me," Hermione gushed as she turned towards her friends. That's when
she realized that she was the only one ready for their night out. "What time are we leaving? Don't you guys
have to change?" she asked.
"Well, you see Hermione, there's something we forgot to mention," Luna started.
The buzzer to the flat went off, indicating that the wards had been broken & the arrival of someone.
"Ginny…you explain while I go get the door," Luna said and quickly went off.
Hermione raised her eyebrows questioningly, waiting for an answer to what she'd thought was an easy question.
"Uhm…Hermione," Ginny started tentatively, "Luna and I aren't exactly going to be joining you this
evening…"
Harry James Potter stood outside the door to apartment 118. He'd just gotten buzzed in and was about to knock when it flew open, revealing a very pretty blonde woman. She looked to be in her early twenties. Not exactly the norm for his clients.
"Hi!" she said brightly. "Are you Mr Potter?" she asked.
He nodded and smiled. "Yes. You must be Hermione?"
She shook her head no and pushed him back, closely the door quietly behind her.
"No, listen, I should probably explain something to you. Hermione…she, uh, she doesn't know about this
evening. My friend and I sort of set it all up for her. You see she doesn't get out very much. In fact, she's
never had a date in her whole life. So for her birthday this year, we thought that we'd give her that experience.
So here's the deal, we're going to pretend that this is a blind date. You take Hermione and show her the time
of her life okay? Treat her like a queen. Woo her…. make all her girlhood fantasies come through…."
Harry interrupted. "Listen, Uh…?"
"Luna, I'm Luna Lovegood," she filled in.
"Listen, Luna, I'm not... that type of guy, okay. I just take them out so that they have company for the
evening. I don't…perform any extra services," Harry tried to explain.
"OH! NO! That's SO not what I meant. I just mean…that maybe you could give her a kiss goodnight. Nothing big,
just a peck on the mouth. She's twenty-three and never been kissed. She needs to learn to live a little. I'm
totally not expecting anything else to happen. In fact if it does…. ''Sweet Merlin I'll hex you into
oblivion''. She needs to start slowly."
Harry tried not to laugh at his own embarrassment and at the expression on Luna's face. She was certainly
amusing.
"Okay, so now that this is all settled, here's the money for the night out and for your payment. Thank you so much for doing this and please don't mention that we hired you. It might give her the wrong idea," Luna said, handing him and envelope full of cash.
"I think I can handle that," Harry assured her.
"Great. Now, wait right here and I'll go see if Hermione is ready. Ginny's telling her now about the, uh,
'blind date'." With that Luna went back inside the apartment.
Harry stood there, staring at the door once again. He shook his head. He really didn't like this job. The women
were nice for the most part. They were just lonely, looking for some companionship. But Harry hated being a hired date
for them. They were almost always twice his age and after a couple of drinks, they would try to relive their younger
years and get grabby with him. Unlike some of the men he worked with, he never let them get away with it. He talked
with them, listened to them. That's all they really wanted in the end, someone to listen to them. He didn't
hate the job. If he didn't want to settle down so badly, he wouldn't care. But his father & Mother had died ,
leaving behind a mountain of money and no one to share it with and this was the only way Harry could do this and vet
whom he dated..
H needed to know if his dates were genuine enough…
His mind wandered for a moment to tonight, trying to think of what he could do with this woman. He'd have to change
his plans. She was obviously younger than his usual clientele and wouldn't enjoy the same things. He was just about
to use his cell phone to call and cancel the dinner reservations he'd made when the apartment door flung open. Luna
ushered him in and pushed him over by the couch.
"Hermione…come on, you're going to be late for dinner," she hollered.
Harry watched then, as a Red headed woman, this one taller, came out of a bedroom, practically dragging someone with
her. She pushed the person with her, toward Harry and stepped back.
He could hardly believe his eyes. The woman in front of him was like a vision. He'd never seen anyone so beautiful
before. She was short and slender with dark brown hair and olive coloured skin. He was completely mesmerized by her. He
knew he should say something…anything, but he was too distracted by the way she was biting nervously on her full bottom
lip.
"Uhm…" was all he managed to get out.
"Hi," Hermione said finally speaking up. Her voice was more of a squeak than anything. She was so startled by
the handsome man in front of her that she could barely form a coherent thought. When Ginny had told her that the entire
thing was a set up for a date, she's wanted to cry at how cruel the entire thing was. Her birthday was not supposed
to be her first date, let alone a blind date. She wasn't expecting this though. How they'd managed to set her
up with this fine specimen of manhood, she'd never know.
"Hermione…it's…it's nice to finally meet you. Luna here has told me so much about you that I could hardly
wait to see you in person. I know this is awkward but…. I'd really like to take you out tonight for your birthday
and I promise you we'll have a good time," he told her sincerely. Harry had never meant anything more in his
entire life. He really did want to take this woman out and he really did want to show her a good time.
Hermione's nervousness began to dissipate as she stared at his eager face. His warm emerald eyes drew her in and
she knew, hearing his words just then that tonight would be okay.
"Okay, let's go then," she said softly. She offered Harry a tentative smile which he returned and then
took her hand in his, leading her out the door.
Ginny and Luna watched the two leave and let out a sigh of relief.
"I can't believe we pulled it off'' Luna said.
" I know…but did you see the look on her face, Luna? She took one look at him and was completely smitten. I
don't want to be the one to tell her that this was all a set up. That we paid him to take her out. Plus…if we
don't tell her and she likes him and has a good time, she'll be heart broken when he doesn't call her to go
out again. I really think this was a mistake?" Ginny said, plopping down on the couch.
"It's not my fault the guy was an Adonis. I seriously thought, he'd be some kind of deranged warlock and
we could all have a good laugh later. But now…. anyway, we might not have to worry. Harry looked uh, well, he looked
pretty smitten himself," Luna told her with a half smile.
"You think?"
"Please, if the heated look he gave her says anything, they'll be engaged by next year."
"Whatever Luna. You're so funny sometimes," Gin said with a laugh.
"Come on, let's floo our manly Wizards and see what they're up to," Luna responded. She knew
they'd need a distraction while they waited for Hermione to come back from her first date.
Harry couldn't believe how nervous he'd suddenly become. Good Lord, one look at Hermione and he'd turned into a bumbling fool. It was like being 16, going on his first date all over again. This definitely felt like a first date. Ironically enough, he did this for fun and he'd never once been this nervous. Of course there was a big difference between the women that hired him for his company and Hermione Granger. Hermione Granger had managed to turn him into a pile of mush within the first five minutes and all she'd had to do was take the hand that he'd offered her. He knew without a doubt that he was in big trouble. Before the end of the night, lines were going to be irrevocably crossed and things were going to change for him. And he found that he really didn't care. In fact, he welcomed it.
Hermione glanced at Harry shyly out of the corner of her eye. She was still marveling at how attractive the man in the driver's seat next to her really was. She could study him a little better here in the car while he drove. He definitely had a nice profile. A perfectly straight nose and a strong looking jaw. The planes of his face came together symmetrically in a way that was more than appealing. Hermione's eyes lingered over his lips. She found herself wondering for the first time in a long time just what it would be like to kiss a man. More specifically what it would be like to kiss this man. Maybe if tonight went well, she'd get to find out. The thought was enough to fill her stomach with a flurry of nervous butterflies.
"So, I hope you like homely cooked food because we have reservations at the Golden Griffin down by the Haymarket," Harry told her.
"I've never been there before. I'm sure it will be wonderful," came Hermione's reply.
He could practically hear her smile. Harry forced himself to keep his eyes on the road. The urge to turn his head and look at Hermione was almost too great. He told himself that if could have the pleasure of looking at her, maybe he could listen to her voice. "Hermione, why don't you tell me more about yourself," he suggested in an effort to get her to talk.
"Oh, well, I'm not really that interesting. Besides," she said with a laugh, "I'm sure that Luna's talked your ear off about me," Hermione said.
"I'm sure there's plenty you could tell me about you that I don't already know. And I'm absolutely positive that none of it is boring." They were sitting at a stop light when Harry said this and so he was finally able to look over at her. He was a little surprised to find her look right at him. Their eyes locked and neither could look away. They were sort of trapped by the other's gaze.
A car horn sound from behind them startled them both. Harry looked behind him and then ahead, finally seeing that the light had turned green. Neither said a word then until they arrived at the restaurant moments later. Harry helped Hermione out of the car and tool her hand again leading her into the restaurant. When they were led to their table he had a hard time relinquishing his hold on her so they could be seated.
The spent some time perusing the menu, both keenly aware of the other. Hermione kept looking up and sneaking glances at Harry over the top of her menu. One time he caught her and she ducked her head, biting her lip. Harry had to force himself to look away. He didn't understand why that simple gesture, stirred such a reaction in him. The waiter finally came to take their order, effectively taking away the shield they'd both been using. So they just sat their looking at each other. When Hermione realized that she was openly starring, she felt her cheeks flush with her embarrassment. No wonder she never dated. She acted like a silly teenager when it came to men.
She cleared her throat nervously. "Harry...why don't you tell me a little about yourself. Uhm...I don't know anything about you and I'd really like to," she admitted.
Harry smiled. "Well, I'm twenty-four years old. I'm just finishing my last term of training at the Ministry of Magic in the Auror Dept here in London. I'm originally from Godrics Hollow in Wales I'm almost finished with a wizarding degree in Dark Arts & combat techniques , specializing in Dark Art artefacts & I hope that after I graduate this Term, I can start work right away." As he spoke Hermione's face lit up and her eyes started to sparkle. A huge grin broke out and Harry was positive that he'd never seen anyone so beautiful in his entire life.
"Really? That's so incredible. That's almost exactly what I did. Only instead of a Bachelor's degree in Medical Technology, from St Mungo's … . It couldn't just be coincidence that any of this was happening.
"That's incredible, " Harry responded. "So where are you at with that? How much time until you're finished?"
Hermione smiled. "I was sure Luna would have told you all of this," she mused.
"Well...there's something I should admit." Harry was going to tell her the truth. Most of it anyway. To hell with what Luna had said. He could definitely see this date turning into more. He didn't want to start it with a huge lie though. Before he could go on with an explanation, the waiter interrupted them with their drinks.
Hermione took a sip of hers and then looked up at Harry expectantly, waiting for him to finish what he was saying.
"Well, uhm, Luna and your other friend sort of set this up. I really didn't know anything about you. They...they wanted it to be a present for your birthday so they made the reservations and took care of everything, but all the money I earn goes to several childrens orphanages around the country"… H.ermione's face fell as he spoke and he'd never felt so guilty in his life. He instantly regretted opening his mouth. He'd do anything to keep that smile on her face. Almost instinctively he reached across the table and grabbed her hand. "I have to tell you, though, that the minute I saw you....well, I've never wanted to be with anyone so badly in my entire life. I knew that tonight was going to special. So however misguided and awkward their actions....I'm really glad they did what they did."
His words caused a flush to rise and spread over Hermione's skin seeming to start below the neckline of her dress. Harry watched as her skin turned a very becoming shade of pink and his mind wandered into territory that Hermione had yet to discover. He quickly got himself under composure, focusing on Hermione's beautiful face once again.
What Harry had said had warmed Hermione's insides. She'd never thought that anyone could be attracted to her in that way. The way Harry was looking at her with.....desire in his eyes made it easy to quickly get over being upset with Ginny and Luna. She was glad they'd done this too.
"Let's get out of here," Hermione said abruptly.
Harry's face fell and he looked disappointed and was about to beg for another chance when he felt Hermione squeeze his hand. Their eyes met and she spoke again. "I think that we should start this date over. I want to do something that you would have picked for us, not what Luna and Ginny picked."
"That sounds like a really good idea." Harry threw some Galleons down on the table to cover their drinks and stood up. With her hand tightly clasped in his own, they left the restaurant.
Almost two hours later they were still in the Haymarket. Their location was a little different now though. Instead of the small, stuffy environment of The Golden Griffin they were in a large, slightly crowded bar. They'd both relaxed considerably with Harry undoing his tie and unbuttoning the collar on his shirt taking an edge of the idea that the evening had to be perfect. So instead of having the perfect first date, they could focus on each other. Hermione had filled Harry in on as many details about herself as possible over a basket of greasy fries and two frothing butter beers.