The Dior Experience
Chapter 22
Home - September 26th, 1998
Hermione was happy to wake up in her own bed Saturday morning. Although Hogwarts was warm and comfortable, nothing really compared to waking up in her own bed.
Rolling over she checked the time on the clock next to her bed. It was 9:15, she was thankful her parents had let her sleep in this morning. She quickly checked the time she needed to meet John, 3pm. She had plenty of time today to dawdle before making her way into London.
Much to her surprise the day passed quickly, and before she knew it, it was time to head into London. At 2pm she went ahead and apparated to the Leaky Cauldron. She then apparated to Bedford Square Garden, which was right across the road from the park.
Hermione was quite familiar with the museum layout, but wasn't entirely sure where she would be meeting John, and the Dior team. The moment she walked into the lobby, she heard someone call her name.
"Hermione!"
"Julie! I'm so glad to see you! Once I got in here, I had no clue where to meet you all."
"John thought he had forgotten to tell you, so he sent me!"
"I'm thankful! So where are we headed?" As she asked, Julie grabbed Hermione's hand, and pulled her along.
"This way." Julie started leading Hermione towards the elevators, and up to a non - exhibition floor.
"We will be up here on Level 4 for hair, and make-up today, and tomorrow."
"Perfect, thank you again."
"No problem! While you're here, I've been assigned as your handler, so if you need something just tell me!" Julie then started to whisper. "Also, just so you know, I'm magical as well."
"Well it is fantastic to know I am among friends. The next time I'm in France, you'll have to show me the rest of the shop." Hermione smiled.
"That would be great. There is so much you didn't get to see!" Julie exclaimed, then led Hermione over to a hair and makeup chair.
"This is where you'll be getting your hair and makeup done. This is your hairdresser Clara. Your makeup artist is Jack, he will be over later. John will stop by soon as well."
"Thank you again Julie. I assume you'll be sticking around since you're my handler?"
"Of course! You can't get rid of me that easily." Julie laughed.
"I would never!" Hermione feigned hurt.
Clara, the hairdresser, started assessing Hermione's hair.
"You have a lot of hair! It is so thick, and healthy."
"Thank you. I do my best to take care of it."
"It's wonderful. I'm not used to seeing this with models." Clara said.
"Well I hope it doesn't cause you too much trouble."
"No darling, it won't, I know how to handle thick hair!" Clara reassured Hermione, who smiled in return.
Julie, and Hermione chatted While Clara worked on Hermione's hair, After some convincing, Julie finally showed Hermione the inspiration for her look. Her hair would be done in a style that could only be described as classic French meets modern. It was certainly interesting, and very high fashion, so Hermione just went with it.
"Julie, could I bother you for a bottle of water, and a piece of fruit please."
"Of course!" Julie said as she got up.
Not even five minutes after Julie got up, John walked over to say hello, and discuss the day.
"Hermione, my muse!"
"John! Lovely to see you again!"
"Did you have any issues getting here?"
"None at all. Thank you again for having me here."
"You are meant to be here darling." John then turned to Clara. "Clara, is Hermione in a spot where I could take her into the rehearsal space?"
"She is! Now Hermione, your hair is not done yet, please come back quickly." Clara responded.
John led Hermione through the space to an area where there was a small replica of the event space.
"Now Hermione, this event is meant to celebrate the combination of history, and fashion. Specifically when modern fashion takes influence from history. This is where you come in. You're wearing the dress everyone sees as the pinnacle of combining fashion, and history."
Hermione nodded, following along easily.
"You will be the last one out on the runway. Then you will stop in the center of this circular area, and stay in that spot until the runway has cleared. When the runway has cleared, I will come out to join you. Then I will discuss the dress, and answer a few questions. Do you have any questions?"
"Just one. When do I leave the runway?"
"You'll leave with me."
"I'll just wait for your signal then."
"Perfect! Now let me get you back to Clara before she yells at me."
John took Hermione back to Clara, where the hairdresser was waiting to finish her hair. Not long after Hermione sat back down Julie appeared with water, and a snack.
"Thank you so much!" Hermione said.
"No worries. I'm glad I could help." Julie replied.
"Alright Hermione, sweetie. Your hair is all done. Does it feel alright?"
"It feels like it will hold."
"Perfect! Jack looks to be heading over this way now. Good luck tonight!”
A tall, well kept, attractive man started making his way over to Hermione accompanied by John. She assumed this was Jack as she hadn’t seen him yet, and he seemed to be carrying a rather large kit with him.
“Hermione, I’d like to introduce you to Jack. He’s our lead makeup artist at Dior. He’s going to get you all made up for the show, and photoshoot ahead of time.”
She had completely forgotten about the photoshoot that she was taking part in. There was a large possibility that people she knew could see images of her. Oh well she thought, it’s time to face the music. Hermione did make a mental note to fill Ginny, and her friends in before the images were released.
“Nice to meet you Hermione.” Jack offered a handshake to Hermione, which she gladly accepted. “I’m going to get my kit setup then we will get started with skin prep.”
Jack worked like a well oiled machine. Once he was set up, he started right away with making sure her skin was ready for all the makeup. Hermione did ask him to explain what he was doing, as she hoped to take away any tips she could. Before long, he was saying she was all done. She was impressed with how smooth her skin looked.
Julie then started ushering Hermione towards the changing area. That was the first time Hermione caught a glimpse of a clock. It was already 5:45pm, this day was flying by.
Like the first time Hermione had tried on the Maria Lousia dress, Julie helped her into it. She was just as astounded by the dress's beauty as she was the first time. The whole look impressed Hermione. She looked beautiful, but it was the beauty and craftsmanship of the dress that had truly shown through.
With Julie's help, Hermione, and the massive dress navigated into the makeshift photo studio where John was waiting. Much to Hermione’s surprise, she turned out to be a natural in front of the camera.
John, and Julie were elated with the images they were seeing. John even promised to get images to Hermione, so she could have a portfolio.
“We’ve got the photos we need, thank you everyone.” John said.
“Hermione, you were absolutely fantastic. Are you sure you haven’t done that before?” John commended her.
She couldn’t help a giggle before she responded. “I promise, that’s nothing I’ve ever done before.”
“Well you just gave us our next quarter’s worth of campaign images in less than an hour, usually that takes multiple, many hour long shoots.”
Hermione was stunned at his admission. She certainly hadn’t expected that when she was having fun in front of the camera.
“Alright my muse, it’s time to make our way downstairs for the event. Any last questions?”
“No, I don’t think so. I go out when you tell me, make a full lap, then make my way to the center space, where you’ll come out, join me and talk about the dress. Did I get that right?”
“You did.”
The pair made their way down to the main event space through a series of hidden hallways. Once they were set backstage it didn’t take long for the show to start. Hermione was able to watch the other models go on the monitors that they had backstage. This also helped her see exactly what she was supposed to do.
Before Hermione knew it, it was her turn. She walked onto the stage, to a flurry of gasps from the crowd. Hermione didn’t let that distract her. She knew her mission, and she was determined to succeed. Walking with a confident authority, Hermione commanded the room’s attention. All eyes were on her as she made her way to her final point, where she stopped with a flourish.
A short while later Hermione was joined by John, who was greeted with applause. He thanked everyone for coming, then he spoke at length about the dress she was wearing and the combination of historical fashion and current fashion.
This was the first time Hermione had a chance to look around, and take in everything around her. All eyes were on her and John. What surprised her were the familiar sets of eyes she saw. Her parents were there! She had no idea they were coming. They looked so proud, and that made her heart swell.
She continued to appraise the room, and noticed another familiar face. This time she was 100% sure of who she was looking at. It was Narcissa Malfoy.
The Malfoy matriarch was looking directly at her with a questioning look on her face. Hermione was sure she would be sending a letter off to Hogwarts in the morning to gossip with her son. Oh well. Hermione's goal was to enjoy her life, even if that meant having to field questions from others.
Truth be told, Hermione was having the time of her life. She generally hated attention being on her, but this made her feel powerful. This was going to make her reconsider her stance on complete privacy. The more Hermione thought about it, the more she knew that complete privacy wasn’t possible for her life long term given who she was, and her destiny.
Hermione was pulled out of her thoughts by John asking her to walk around the floor one more time. She was more than happy to do so, this is when she heard John make one final announcement.
“Ladies, and Gentlemen. I would like to use our last few moments together to introduce my model, and muse, Mya.” John said, extending a hand in Hermione’s direction as she came back to John.
Photos from the photo shoot Hermione had just completed, flashed onto the screens in the museum, as applause erupted from the crowd. John turned to Hermione and mouthed, give them a wave, when she did the crowd applauded even more.
As the crowd applauded, John said a quick thank you. He grabbed Hermione by the hand, and led her backstage.
“You were fantastic!” John said, giving her a hug.
“Thank you. That was exhilarating!”
“Alright, let's get you changed. I know John wants to talk to you after.” Julie said, and John nodded.
Julie helped Hermione out of the huge dress, and Hermione was happy to change into her own clothes. When she was done, she made her way out of the dressing room to talk with John.
“Are you ready to do this again tomorrow?”
“Of course, now that I’ve done it once I’m sure I can do it again.”
“Now, I have a full curated collection for you as payment for today and tomorrow!” John showed Hermione two huge suitcases. “There’s also a lookbook for how to style everything!”
“Thank you so much!”
“No, Hermione. Thank you!”
After their discussion, Hermione headed home with her new suitcases in tow. John showed her a private space in the museum she could aparate from so she wouldn’t have to cart the suitcases around.
Given the time, Hermione apparated straight into her bedroom, instead of her normal spot in the woods. She went downstairs to grab a snack, and drink from the kitchen. There, she ran into her parents who congratulated her, then all three went up to bed.
Sunday morning Hermione slept in again. When she woke up and noticed the time, she started getting ready. Just before 11am, she apparated to the spot John showed her the night before. From there she made her way up to hair and makeup, where the day passed much like Saturday had.
The show went as planned, with the only difference being the lack of faces she recognized. Although that’s not anything she was upset about. The show finished early for Hermione, even though the event ran until 7pm. She managed to be home just before 6:45.
She spent a little time catching up with her parents, then went upstairs to grab a few things she wanted to bring back to Hogwarts. She looked in the mirror quickly, pulled all the pins out of her hair, threw it up in a ponytail, and made sure her makeup wasn’t too extreme for going back to school.
Hermione said a quick goodbye to her parents, then headed out to where the portkey was set to leave from. Right at 7:30, it whisked her away to right outside the Hogwarts Gate. When she entered the gate, she was happy to see the Headmistress was waiting for her.
“Good evening Headmistress.”
“How many times do I have to ask you to call me Minerva in private?” The older witch said sternly.
“One more apparently.” Hermione joked.
“I figured you would prefer apparating up to the castle, instead of walking.”
Hermione was relieved to hear her say that. She was absolutely exhausted, and already not looking forward to the walk.
“Thank you, you would be correct.”
“Take my arm please.”
As Hermione took the Headmistress’ arm she immediately apparated them to a small room off the Great Hall.
“We’re right off the great hall, and it’s an informal night. Go join your friends.” The headmistress dismissed her.