A Gift for Digthewriter: Second Chance at a First Meeting (Hermione/Pansy, G)

Dec 28, 2021 14:01

Author: REEBY10
Recipient: digthewriter
Title: Second Chance at a First Meeting
Pairing: Hermione Granger/Pansy Parkinson
Rating: G
Word Count: 1,300
Summary: Pansy hasn't been on a date in ages, but she's not sure being set up on one with Hermione Granger of all people is the answer.

Pansy was already regretting saying yes to allowing Padma and her sister to set her up on a date. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to go on a date. No, it had been a depressingly long time since she’d been on one, and she obviously wasn’t doing a great job getting one on her own. It was just that she wasn’t quite sure about the person they’d set her up with.

She remembered Hermione Granger from school. Of course she did, Potter and Weasley and Granger had been in the limelight more often than not over their time at Hogwarts. For causing problems and Potter being the Chosen One mostly, but also for Granger’s grades and stubbornness.

Pansy also remembered that they’d certainly not been friends then, nor even really acquaintances. Enemies might be taking it too far, but there was certainly the house rivalry to consider and their sides on the war. House rivalry meant nothing now that they were adults, really, except for a joke or nostalgia’s sake. Their sides on the war… well, that didn’t mean as much as Pansy might have thought it would mean, since so many people had been pardoned and so much effort had gone into rebuilding, but it was still something people knew.

Something people remembered.

So yes, Pansy had thought very seriously about telling Padma no when she’d suggested the date, or even just not showing up. There were plenty of reasons to think this was a bad idea and that none of it would ever work. But the truth was, she was lonely. Lonely enough to go on a date with Hermione Granger.

Pansy took a deep breath as she approached the coffee shop, steeling herself and reminding herself once more about why she was doing this. Then she opened the door and stepped inside, the pleasant smile she’d perfected long ago under the tutelage of her pureblood mother firmly on her face.

Granger was already waiting at a table near the counter, which Pansy wasn’t particularly surprised about. Back in school, Granger had always been prepared for anything, so of course she’d come early to a date to at least get the lay of the land. Pansy wished she’d thought to do so herself.

“Good morning,” Pansy said as she stepped up to the table. “I hope you haven’t been waiting long.”

“Oh!” Granger said, flushing a little. Whether it was in embarrassment or something else, Pansy wasn’t sure. “No, no, not long at all. Please, sit. I haven’t even ordered yet.”

Pansy sat, taking the moment to get a better look at Granger close up. She looked good, dressed in navy blue robes in an attractive modern cut, bushy hair clipped back from her face but not really doing anything to tame it. Padma really had come through on promising to set her up with a pretty girl.

Before either of them could say anything else, the barista who had been manning the counter, looking bored at the lack of customers, stepped up to their table.

“It looks like you two are on a date, so I thought I’d give you a little tableside service,” the woman said, winking and making Pansy wrinkle her nose. She really didn’t think it was that obvious, but perhaps the woman saw something she didn’t. “What can I get you?”

They ordered, and a moment later the woman was back behind the counter, working on their drinks. It left the two of them alone again, glancing at each other a little awkwardly. Pansy tried to remember what she usually did or said on dates. Had it really been so long that she’d forgotten? That was a depressing thought.

“This is ridiculous,” Granger finally busted out.

Pansy looked up at her, eyes wide. Apparently, Granger had gotten tired of being on a date with her already. That was a record she certainly hadn’t wanted to set. It was a good thing the coffee shop was practically empty so that the only people who would witness her humiliation were the barista and an elderly couple of wizards near the window.

Just as Pansy was preparing to excuse herself as gracefully as she knew how to, Granger put her hand out. A little dumbfounded, Pansy reached out and shook her hand. Granger beamed.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, I’m Hermione Granger,” Granger said. “Please call me Hermione. I was set up on this date by my friend Parvati, who constantly bemoans my being single since practically everyone else we know is married by now.”

Pansy blinked at the seemingly superfluous introduction, then smiled at the realization. If Hermione wanted to pretend they were meeting for the first time, she could do that. Perhaps it would help with the awkwardness.

“A pleasure. I’m Pansy Parkinson and you can of course call me Pansy,” Pansy replied, giving Granger a small smile. She really was starting to feel more relaxed. “Padma, who I work with at the Ministry, set me up because I haven’t dated anyone in ages and kept complaining about it.”

And then… They talked. It was a little startling when the barista came with their drinks, but she was gone in a flash and forgotten just as fast even though it had taken quite a bit longer than it should have for just two drinks. Pansy barely drank her drink, too invested in the conversation to break enough for more than a sip when her throat started getting dry.

Hermione was so much different than Pansy remembered her from back at school. The core intelligence and stubbornness were still there, shining through her face as she talked about a project she was working on with the International Confederation of Wizards, but Pansy could see more now. Was willing to see more now, since they hadn’t really been on terms to get to know each other back then.

Now, Pansy found herself wanting to know everything.

In the end, they talked for what had to have been hours. Pansy’s coffee was cold and half drunk, but she couldn’t find it in herself to care. Not when she and Hermione had leaned in closer and closer as time passed, their fingers somehow ending up intertwined on top of the table at some point. Pansy was, though she wouldn’t admit such out loud, a little bit enamored.

They eventually left the now crowded coffee shop and stopped outside, neither of them quite willing to go yet even though any other date would have been over by now or been moved to a much more private location. This was just a first date, though Pansy hated a little how much she was hoping for a second. But she just couldn’t get the words out. She thought, more than a little angrily, that that was a holdover from Slytherin days long ago, too proud to say what she really wanted.

Thankfully, Hermione didn’t seem to have as much trouble. Between one breath and the next, Hermione darted forward to press a light, chaste kiss to Pansy’s lips before stepping back. Pansy was too shocked to reciprocate even if she’d had the time.

“I really enjoyed our date,” Hermione said firmly, her Gryffindor courage sparking through. “I’d really like to go on another. Soon. If you’d like.”

“Yes,” Pansy breathed out, face flushing. She felt like she was soaring after the startling success of their first date and the promise of more to come.

Hermione smiled. “Then I’ll owl you soon,” she said and turned to walk away.

Pansy stood there for several long moments afterward, trying to regain her composure. It was a lost cause, though, her own smile breaking through without conscious effort. She thought back to a few hours before, when she’d stood outside the coffee shop just as she was now. It felt like another life almost, that worry as she prepared for disappointment.

Oh, how things had changed. For the better, she thought, and headed home.

.fic exchange: winter 2021-2022, *femslash, pairing: hermione/pansy

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