Cover Girl

This fic was inspired by two other fantastic fics.

The first one, "High-heeled Shoes" by Agape, has the BEST line ("Hermione had found herself gravitating toward the cosmetics shelves more and more lately, and it worried her.").

The second one, "Glamour Girls" by Luckynumber, teams an unlikely pair (Eloise Midgen and Millicent Bulstrode) glamming-up in the girls' bathroom.

While my fic isn't necessarily "funny" I thought it was really fun and had a blast writing it.

I hope you like it!

X-X-X

"Ginny!" Hermione yelled, her voice echoing loudly through the girl's stairwell as she ran to the top. "Where are you?"

Ginny's red hair appeared first, pulled on top of her head into a large, sloppy bun. Her face followed shortly after, green and stiff. "What is it Hermione?" she asked in a pinched voice. "I'm giving myself a facial."

Hermione, breathless, grabbed Ginny by the shoulders. "He did it," she whispered wildly.

If Ginny's face mask had allowed, she would have frowned. Instead she opted for rolling her eyes. "Who did wha--" she stopped abruptly, her eyes wide and focused on Hermione's flushed face. "You mean...?"

Hermione nodded and bit her lip. Suddenly the two girls let out ear-piercing screams, holding each other and jumping up and down in the hallway. Soon, doors were opening along the corridor, girls coming out in various stages of Saturday morning dress to look at the two celebrants.

One girl, her black hair already sleek and shiny, and make-up expertly applied, leaned against the wall and said loudly, "That's an invite to the Yule Ball if I ever saw one!"

Hermione and Ginny grinned at her happily and ran into Ginny's room, slamming the door behind them.

"OK," said Ginny, her voice back to normal as her mask had cracked in the excitement. "Here's what we need to do." She kneeled down next to her bed, threw open her trunk and started piling glossy magazines on the floor next to her. "Here's Witch Weekly's 'Best dressed of 1994,' The Daily Prophet's Annual 'Who's Who in Fashion' and The Quibbler's 'Color Me a Soulmate Guide to Your Best Colors.'" She looked at her pile and said, almost as an afterthought, "Oh and we have to see Madam Malkin."

"But I didn't sign up for Madam Malkin," Hermione moaned. She thought sadly of the other girls who would be standing in line on the day Dumbledore had assigned for Madam Malkin to visit Hogwarts for fittings.

Ginny threw Witch Weekly's thick edition at her and said, "Our appointments with Madam Malkin this afternoon are at 2:00 and 2:15."

Hermione blinked and said, "Wait. This afternoon? But how did you know I would even go?"

Ginny grinned and said, "Oh, like there was ever a doubt?"

Hermione blushed and said, "You're a lifesaver, Ginny!" She checked her watch. It was 9:30 AM. "Well, what are we going to do until then?"

Ginny's already cracked face cracked farther as her mouth dropped open. "Are you serious? We've got less than 2 weeks! Every moment counts!" She strode purposefully across the room and grabbed a bright pink jar, opening it and smearing some of the contents onto Hermione's left cheek. Hermione ran into the wall trying to get away from Ginny.

"What are you doing?!" she shrieked as she wiped it off.

"Hey!" Ginny grabbed Hermione's hand and spread it on the other cheek. "Do you know how much that costs?"

Hermione wrinkled her nose and said, "Well save it for yourself, then."

Ginny sighed heavily and said with forced patience, "Sweetie, your face isn't gonna clear itself up."

"What's wrong with my face?" Hermione asked angrily.

Ginny smiled a pitiful smile and said, "Nothing overall, but some proper exfoliation, moisturizing and foundation definitely won't hurt."

Hermione sighed and closed her eyes. "You're right, Ginny. I'm hopeless. I don't know the first thing about any of this. Two weeks won't be enough time." Tears began running down her face, dripping green trails onto her black school robes.

Ginny reached forward and pulled Hermione into a hug. "Don't you worry, love. I'm going to take care of every last detail. Victor won't know what to do with himself when he sees what I've done with you."

Hermione sniffed and pulled back, digging in her pocket for a handkerchief. She smiled at Ginny through her tears. "OK," she said. "I'm ready."

"Excellent," Ginny replied, reminding Hermione strikingly of Fred and George.

What have I gotten myself into? Hermione thought with trepidation.