InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "but your ranger is no more,"

Primrose was nervous. There were many reasons for it, the most prevalent one being that she was going to spend the afternoon with Pippa. She liked Lucas' sister. Pippa was kind and honestly seemed willing to like her, and they had a few things in common: an appreciation of romance novels and professional worrying. Still, Prim was nervous. She had a hard time letting her family buy things for her, and she had a plan to make sure Pippa didn't spend a lot of money on her. Though, Prim would find it difficult argue more than once.

For all her nerves, she was excited and deeply touched. She wanted to know Pippa better, and she wanted to give the other woman a chance to know her. They both cared very much for Lucas, though in different yet similar ways, and Prim needed to prove, without trying too hard, that she was worthy of Lucas' friendship.

In the outfit she'd worn to work, Prim arrived at Harrod's just a few minutes early. She clasped the strap of the bag she carried, staying well out of the way as she watched the crowd around her. There were fewer people going into Harrods than on a weekend, but there were still plenty of tourists for her to watch. Several of them, it seemed, were there because of Neverwhere. Prim smiled at those snippets of conversation. Books inspiring people to do things pleased her. Spotting Pippa in the crowd, Prim pushed forward to meet her. "Hello. I hope you are well."

--

Honestly, Phillipa was glad to be getting out of the house. She'd spent so long being inside, slowly recovering, and then preoccupied by Lucas being unwell, she couldn't recall the last time she'd even been shopping. Working from home was great, but it also meant she didn't have much occasion to dress up, which was something she actually liked to do. Going shopping with Prim meant having a reason to put on clothes that made her feel more herself than she had in weeks.


She got to Harrods at two o'clock as planned, cup of tea in hand and heels clicking against the ground as she approached the entrance. Prim was there already, and she offered he younger girl a smile as she drew closer. "Hello, Primrose," she greeted her, flicking her hair back over her shoulder. "I am, thank you. And you?"

Not wanting to be in the way of others, she placed her free hand gently on Prim's elbow to guide her inside with her, glad for the quieter atmosphere of the store rather than the noise outside.

--

"I am well," she replied. Prim was glad Pippa was wearing heels. It made them closer to the same height than if the other woman had been wearing flats. She felt less conspicuous when she wasn't taller than those she was with. She allowed Pippa to lead her inside, falling behind just a little to keep from bumping into someone exiting the door they were entering. Once past the flow of traffic outside, though, she fell into step with Pippa.

There was a brief moment when the memory of the last time she was in Harrods tried to overwhelm her. Her heart skipped a beat, and a frown furrowed her brow. But Prim was determined to have fun today. She wanted to restore the happiness she usually felt when walking through the rooms of the department store. She would not allow the ghost of meeting her mother ruin her spirits.

"I know it has turned into quite the tourist trap," she said conversationally, "but I have always enjoyed coming here. The colours, the sounds." She looked around, a small smile chasing away her frown. "The people here for no other reason to say they've been." She paused to let a group of ladies wearing purple skirt suits and bright red hats go by. Their chatter marked them as distinctly American. She was curious why they were dressed similarly, but she didn't dare ask.

--

“It is a bit of a spectacle,” Phillipa commented as she glanced around, a slight smile turning up the corners of her mouth. “Most any store with a name so well known tends to be, but that’s part of the fun. Why not come here when there’s so much to see? And do? I’ve come for the spa alone before, and that was just as nice as spending the day buying clothes.”

She drew to a stop when they got to the elevator, pressing the button and turning slightly to face Prim. “Clothes first, then we can work our way up to shoes. You said you’d started working as a legal assistant, is that right? For your aunt?”

--

"Honestly, I've never come for the actual shopping. I usually have a look around then go for tea." She always reserved Harrods for special treats to herself. She didn't have a lot of money, though she knew her aunt and uncle would happily make sure she did, so she always kept her splurging to a minimum. "I very much enjoy people watching and wandering through the displays."

Prim nodded in response to the question but hesitated for a moment. "I have plenty to wear to the office. Outfits like this are easy to find in most thrift shops." She blushed slightly to admit her frugality, but she was not ashamed of buying secondhand clothing. "I sometimes make my own clothing, too." She glanced at the light above the elevator, watching its slow descent. "I have a handful of dresses that I have never worn because I lost my nerve once I got home with them. They're nicer, and I've not really had a place to wear them. Though I'm not sure I would be able to talk myself into them."

She was babbling, and she sucked in a breath to stop herself from continuing. "I was hoping," she continued, choosing her words carefully, "you would help me find something worthy of a date." Prim's blush deepened, and she quickly looked at Pippa. "I don't have a date, but, in case, I'd like to have something nice to wear."

--

Phillipa gave a hum in response about people watching, because department stores like that were a great place to do so, especially ones as well known as Harrods. She glanced down at Prim’s dress, reaching over to touch the fabric of the skirt for a moment to take in the texture of it. They had quite different taste in clothes, but she was used to that when it came to shopping with others - the point of it was to find what they liked and what suited them, looked the best on them. She had her own closet for her own fun. Her eyebrow quirked up when Prim mentioned the dresses she’d never worn, and then raised higher at her request.

“My darling Primrose,” she started, a gentle smirk spreading across her features as she stepped into the elevator with her and pressed the button for the first floor. “First of all, once we’re done here we’re going to need to go to your home so you can show me those dresses, I insist.” Her expression softened slightly before she continued. “And as to wanting something worthy of a date, I know we can accomplish that. I was going to say, looking for work clothes is all fine and well but I always require at least one piece that’s for nothing but fun, so if we don’t need to look for work clothes… fun it is. We will find you something gorgeous and definitely worthy of a date.”

--

The gesture confused Prim, but she didn't flinch out of Pippa's reach. The dark fabric looked heavy, but it was lighter than it seemed, making it comfortable for a late spring day. Subconsciously, though, she smoothed her skirt once Pippa let go, as if telling it to calm down, that everything was okay.

She nodded her acquiescence. She needed to go home anyway. A few of her smaller items had gone missing at the inn. Nothing expensive or, honestly, important, but she needed another thing of hairpins and face wash. "No one has ever seen them. If my cousin knew they existed, she would insist I wear them. I don't even know if they'll still fit." She hoped they would. She'd gotten all of them on sale at one point, but she didn't like the idea of them no longer being options.

Primrose held her breath as the elevator stopped on their floor and the doors opened. She was putting a lot of trust into Pippa. She didn't doubt her companion's fashion sense or ability to know what looked good. She was simply nervous because this was going to be a lot of attention paid directly to her. She didn't let people do that often, not even her family. "I will probably have to be convinced of everything," she said apologetically. "But I trust you, and I promise that I won't take constructive feedback personally."

--

“Well we’ll have to see when we go and look at them after,” Phillipa said easily, waving her hand as if any of Prim’s concerns about the dresses she had at home would disappear. She was sure they were nice, as she’d never seen Prim in anything that had made her react badly, but she was interested to see what the other girl had purchased that she didn’t have the nerve to wear.

Stepping out of the elevator, she glanced around the floor before turning her gaze back to Prim. “I promise this will be painless,” she offered, gently resting a hand on Prim’s arm. “They’re dresses. If they don’t work, they don’t, no problem, there are hundreds to play with.” She gave her a smile and then took on a more serious expression, though slightly playful. “Now, important questions. You tend more toward fit and flare - is that the style you were wanting to look for in this, as well? Also, most important, how do you want to feel in this dress? Pretty? Sexy? Other things?”

Phillipa started walking toward the racks as she waited for Prim’s response, glancing over her shoulder at her. “Oh, and before I forget, no worrying about how much things cost. You look at the price tags, I’ll buy you more things.”

--

Prim tried to dismiss her worries as easily as Phillipa had, but they sat quietly in the back of her mind, waiting until they were needed again. She followed Pippa to the racks, considering her questions. "On a normal day, yes. I prefer fit and flare or a-line. This is about as much skin as I usually show, though I do have some dresses with thin straps and lower necklines. But I wear cardigans over those unless it is grossly hot." She was thinking about how she wanted to feel in the clothes when Pippa's next words startled her.

Blushing, Prim managed a laugh. "That will be a challenge," she confessed. She chewed her lower lip, considering the terms. "May I have one warning before that happens?" She would look at price tags, that was in her nature. She would try not to worry about it, but she knew she would slip, and a warning the first time it happened would make her work harder to keep it from happening again.

Returning to the questions, she let her eyes dance over the clothes. "I want to feel like myself," she said a little quietly, "but a more extroverted version of myself. I want to feel daring and vibrant. I want to feel like I have the confidence to say what I want to go for it without fear." She paused and turned a hopeful smile on Pippa. "I want to find my inner Gryffindor," she said quietly so no one else would hear.

--

Phillipa tilted her head to the side as if she was having to think about it, but she easily relented. “Alright, one warning before I start piling on necklaces and shoes.”

She kept her gaze on Prim as the other girl spoke, taking in what she was saying and watching her expression as she said it. It was never her goal to find clothes that didn’t suit someone, as it was important to feel like oneself in whatever one was wearing. That was why she was glad to be out of the apartment, away from the house, wearing clothes that made her feel like her. Even when stepping outside of one’s normal box, that was important.

“Daring and vibrant,” she repeated, smiling a little more as she gave a nod. “Those are feelings I can work with.” They went hand in hand with confidence, and boldness, which it also seemed Prim wanted to have. “So are you wanting to stick with your fit and flare and a-lines? It’s fine if you are, they look good on you. I would like to pick one or two things outside the box just to see how they look - I think it’s important to go outside your norm every once and a while to see what’s out there. Is that okay?”

--

"Thank you," Primrose said with quiet earnestness. She would try not to look at the price of anything, but she couldn't be sure how strong her resolve was to avoid it.

She nodded. "'Outside the norm' is exactly what's hiding in my wardrobe." Prim felt the fabric of the dresses nearest her. "Either because of the shape or the colour or the pattern." She turned back to Pippa. "I like the theory of them. I even liked the way they looked on me, but I don't--I can't.." She sighed and trailed off, trying to find the words she wanted.

Her eyes landed on an emerald green dress, and she smiled, though it was tinged with sadness. "I can't shake what I learned as a child. I've been away from my parents and brother for seven years, and I still hear them telling me that I'm wrong. That I don't deserve nice things. That I'm making a spectacle of myself by wearing something that draws the eye." She reached out and touched the dress, enjoying how it felt, surprised that she was telling Pippa this. "I bought the dresses in moments when I was able to ignore the negativity, and then lost my nerve when I got home."

Prim's hand fell to her side and she shook her head. "I'm sorry. How depressing."

--

Phillipa watched Prim, her brow furrowing and the corners of her mouth tugging down in a frown at everything she was saying. While she hadn’t had anything close to the same experience, quite the opposite in terms of being told she did deserve all the nice things, she knew what it was like to have parents that were shit. She gave a shake of her head, her chin held a little higher as she reached out to pull a dress off the rack and hang it over her arm.

“You know what I do?” she asked, turning to face Prim and resting her hand on her hip, standing close enough for Prim to hear her but no one else to. “I say fuck that. No one gets to decide what you deserve but you and if you want to wear some yellow jumpsuit with hot pink polka dots, you wear it. Our parents shouldn’t get to dictate our lives. I let mine for years, and then everything got a whole lot better once I realized I didn’t have to. They probably hate at least half the things I do, and most likely the clothes I wear, but it’s my life, not theirs. It’s your life, not theirs. You deserve to get to do what makes you happy, and wear what you please. As long as you’re not hurting anyone, you do you, and they can sod off.”

--

Prim appreciated everything Pippa was saying, and it did make her feel better, but she couldn't help but wonder if it was easier for Pippa to make a stand against her parents because they were still partly around. She didn't say so. She would never say or do anything that made anyone doubt their own strength. Nor would she say something that made her seem ungrateful.

"I am working on it. It's hard to break a lot those old habits and ignore the old feelings. I've stood up to my mother only once in my life, because I've only had the one opportunity. I hid at Lucas' for several days after, because I was shocked at my gall and gumption, I suppose." Prim took the dress from Pippa's hands and put it back on the rack and pulled out one in her size. "Your parents," she said, draping the dress over her arm and turning back to Pippa, "I pity them. They miss out on so much because they refuse to know you and Lucas as you are rather than as how they want you to be."

--

“It’s not easy, I won’t pretend it is,” Phillipa added, letting Prim take the dress and glancing down to check the size on the one she replaced it with, making a mental note for the other ones she found. “It took me moving to another country for years to really be able to do it, and I’m not saying to do that, just that I know it’s hard.”

Her lips pursed for a moment when Prim mentioned her parents, and Lucas, because really that had been her breaking point with them. They’d acted so ridiculously all because of him being in a different house than the rest of them, and that was enough for them to disparage him. Why on earth would she have tried to fit any mold they set out for her when that was the length of their care? “If they had their way, I’d have been married off to someone wealthy and well connected years ago,” she said dryly, taking another dress off the rack and rolling her eyes. She wasn’t ignorant of what she was to them - a pretty, pureblood bargaining chip, but one who refused to be used. “So when you said vibrant, did that mean you want something with a lot of color?”

--

Prim gave a little smile at the thought of living elsewhere, or, at the very least, traveling abroad. She hadn't ever left the UK, though she had wanted to work for the Department of International Magical Cooperation. She knew several languages well enough to be comfortable conversing in them, but she had never been anywhere to test her abilities. In hindsight, that was probably why they hadn't wanted her to work for them. "They, whoever they are, say anything worth having is worth working for. I don't expect an easy or quick fix. I know that's not realistic." This shopping trip was a step in the right direction. It was a test of Prim's abilities to simply thank someone for their kindness rather than argue that they don't need to.

Though she turned away to hide the disgusted look on her face, she wasn't sure how sure how successful she was in doing so. She picked up a purple summer dress. It was similar in shape to what she normally wore, but the purple was very regal and eye catching. Without thinking, she glanced at the price tag and put it down again when she saw the figure. "Marriage should come out of love not obligation or a business deal," she said, turning back to Pippa. "I am glad you found a way to avoid it."

Prim glanced again at the purple dress. "Something brighter. Not, necessarily, more colours, but richer tones. I wear a lot of pale blues, greens, and creams. My brightest cardigan is yellow, but more of a daisy yellow than a lemon or sunshine."

--

Phillipa gave a soft hum of agreement to what Prim said. She worked hard all the time, though it wasn't always evident to others who looked at her - then again, part of her working hard was working smart and getting the right people to do jobs for her. Still, she hadn't gotten where she was by sitting back and expecting things to be handed to her. She asked for them, sometimes demanded them, and proved she could handle them. And that was how business worked.

She didn't miss that look on Prim's face, but there wasn't much that could be done about that. It was just the way things were. "It's a constant battle," she replied, taking a step forward to retrieve the purple dress Prim had put back, checking the size before draping it over her arm. "I doubt I'll ever get married."

Moving over to the next rack, Phillipa pulled a few more dresses, working to find colors and patterns that said bold to her but in dress styles that suited Prim. There were reds, pinks, florals, more saturated blues and greens than she'd ever witnessed on anything the younger girl had worn. "Ready to try some things on?"

--

There was an answer to that that everyone seemed to give. Oh, you just haven't found the right man yet. Primrose refused to say anything like that to anyone. "That's your choice," she said instead. "But I hope--forgive me if this is not my place--but I hope you keep your heart open to the possibility of the love that could lead to marriage." To be loved that well, to have a friend who would become a partner in all things, was a wish she had for all whom she cared about. Marriage wasn't for everyone, but she did hope Pippa found love, friendship, and happiness.

Prim followed Pippa around the racks, watching what she picked up. The only commentary she made were small oohs over the colours. At her companion's question, Prim took a deep breath and nodded. She wasn't, really, but they had several items for her to get through. A small voice that sounded distinctly like Daisy told her she would have fun once she got started.

After entering one of the dressing rooms, Prim tried on the first dress she had picked up. It showed off her figure more than what she was used to, but it was a good shape. The dress, not her figure, though that wasn't terrible, if she were honest. The colour, though, didn't seem to go as well with her darker hair. "I'm not sure I can wear this shade of green anymore," she said, stepping out to consult with Pippa. She stood before the mirror but kept her eyes on the dress, never looking at her face. As long as she focused on the dress, she wasn't really wearing it. Her hand brushed the price tag and, without thinking, Prim looked at it, blushing instantly when she realized what she'd one.

--

The corners of Phillipa's mouth twitched slightly at what Prim said, but she didn't have anything to say in response that wouldn't lead to a longer conversation on the topic, or revelations she didn't want to make. It was one thing to keep her heart open to it, but that hardly mattered if the other person didn't. It was easier to focus on the clothes in her arms, taking them to the dressing rooms and hanging them up for Prim before stepping out and waiting.

When Prim emerged, Phillipa tilted her head and looked her over from head to toe. "I think you might be able to, but it would take the right accessories to add some lightness and balance it out." She quirked an eyebrow when Prim looked at the price tag, a soft smirk spreading across her features. "That's two. Don't think I didn't see you earlier." She placed her hand on the small of Prim's back, guiding her toward the room again. "Next. Maybe one of the Oscar de la Rentas."

--

Prim blushed but did not argue. She returned to the dressing room and read the tags until she found the designer Pippa had named. She very much liked the shape of first dress she came to by de la Renta. She liked the pattern's colour, though it was bolder than she was used to. It was, however, something she would wear on a daily basis, except this dress was entirely silk. She'd never worn silk before, and Prim very much liked the feel of it against her skin.

She returned to the mirrors, barely daring to touch the dress, afraid she might have oils on her hands that would ruin the silk. She wasn't a messy person, but she was afraid of ruining something so pretty, and her fear showed in how she carried herself. "It's really pretty, but how delicate is silk?"

--

There were several dresses by that designer hanging in the room, beautiful fabrics from a collection that looked like watercolors - vibrant, playful colors in classic silhouettes. Phillipa waited to see which one Prim picked when she came out, and smiled softly when she did. It was gorgeous on her, just enough color to stand out but not too much to overwhelm.

“Silk is quite a strong fabric,” she said with a shrug, stepping up behind Prim to look at her in the mirror. “You can spot clean it easily, if that’s what you’re worried about. A dress like this would probably need to be dry cleaned if you want the whole thing done.” She tilted her head and smiled at her in the mirror. “It looks beautiful on you. How do you feel?”

--

"Like I'm going to ruin it," she replied honestly, laughing shakily. She didn't know much about silk, only that she was never allowed to touch her mother's silk blouses. "Thank you," she whispered. Again, she simply studied the dress in the mirror and not herself. "I like the shape and the splashes of pink." She looked at Pippa in the mirror, clasping her hands just in front of her stomach.

"It feels amazing on. It fits really well, but I will worry about it every time I move." She accidentally met her own gaze in the mirror and quickly looked down, sighing at herself. "I'm overthinking this, aren't I?"

--

Phillipa laughed softly, stepping out from behind her so she could look her over from the side. “You’re not going to ruin it, I promise,” she assured her, then bit her lip as she gave a nod. “You are overthinking it, yes. It’s a dress, Prim. A lovely, colorful, kind of fancy dress, but it’s just a dress.”

She peeked into the dressing room before going into it for a moment and coming back out with another dress. “So this is the same shape, same dress, but different colors and pattern. Do you think it’s too much for what you’re wanting? Or would you like to try it and see how it looks too?”

--

Holding her breath at Phillipa's assurances, Prim gently ran her hands down the bodice. The seams and the fabric were sturdier than she thought, and it really did feel lovely. She smiled softly at Pippa's words.

Staying where she was, staring at the dress and stealing glances at herself in the dress, she wasn't sure what Pippa would come back with. When she saw the dress, she forgot to school her face into a look of polite interest for a full two seconds. The colours were--They were kind of terrible, in all honesty. Blushing slightly, she softened the look of slight disgust and smiled politely. "I like the shape, but I do not like the green with the orange." Her tone was honest yet very apologetic, as if Pippa had designed the dress herself.

--

Well that was certainly easy enough. Prim’s face was expressive enough that Phillipa would have tossed the dress to the side before she said anything if it weren’t so expensive. As it was, she waved her hand airily and hung it up on a nearby rack for items to be returned to the floor. “Works well enough for me. Saves you the trouble of putting it on.”

There were still plenty of dresses for her to try, after all, since she’d gathered lots of different ones off the various racks. “Alright, go on and wow me with another one. I promise you won’t ruin any of them, silk or otherwise.”

--

Prim returned to the dressing room, quickly removed the silk dress and carefully put it back on its hanger. It was lovely, and once she was over her fear of it, she was sure she could love it. She hung it to one side as a 'contender'. Turning to the other dresses, she moved several of them aside as too similar to what she normally wore. The colours were different, but they were shapes she was used to. She showed Pippa the white dress with the black lace, but decided that, while she really liked the lace from the front, it was an odd shape in the back.

She spent several minutes admiring the backless pink dress and the purple dress, but, ultimately, she didn't love them. She could see their positives, though, and the more dresses she put on, the more fun she began to have. She was loosening up, admiring how she wore the dresses rather than how they wore her. She had a lot of fun with the red dress. It was demure in the front and less so from the back. She was amazed that she liked the length, and it took the place of the silk dress as front runner. There were only two dresses left for her to try on. However, after the red one, Prim decided that the one with the nude skirt and black lace was underwhelming, though still pretty.

She stood staring at the last one for several minutes, uncertain about putting it on. It had a hi-lo hem, and she wasn't sure if she liked it on the hanger. When she finally put it on, she couldn't help the smile on her face. "I really like this one," she called before stepping out to show Pippa the galaxy dress. "I don't know why, but I really like this one, and I'm very torn between this one and the red one."

--

This was the part Phillipa had been looking forward to, because she knew the more dress Prim tried on, the more used to the process she would get. There were different fabrics, shapes, textures, all kinds of things to see and experience, to take in how they worked with her body and felt against her skin. Trying on clothes was meant to be fun, and she could see the fun starting to creep in on Prim as the wheels in her mind stopped working so hard with each dress after the next. Plus, dressing Prim was a treat. She was tall, had a good figure, and legs for days. That’s why she’d chosen an array of dresses that had those in styles Prim usually wore, and styles she definitely did not. They all looked good, it was simply a matter of which ones felt good.

The final dress was one of the wild card picks she’d gotten, unsure of how Prim would feel about it but knowing it would look great. It had a modest neckline, but a fun skirt - though longer in the back to hopefully keep her from feeling self-conscious about the length of the front. It wasn’t as bright or colorful as many of the other choices had been, but it was vibrant in its own way.

“Now that is a dress,” she said, reaching over for Prim’s hand and pulling her in front of the mirrors. “You look so gorgeous.” She absently smoothed down a fold of the skirt and took a step back, offering Prim a smile. “How do you feel? Is it comfortable? It looks stunning on you, Prim.”

--

Primrose blushed at the praise, but she kept her head up. This dress seemed to demand that from her. There could be no uncertainty when carrying the galaxy. It was, perhaps, an odd way of looking at it, but it worked on her. Her thanks were given in a breathy voice full of emotion and excitement.

"I feel--" How did she feel? She was still working on stating her feelings. Worry and fear were easy, but the more positive they became, the more difficult it was for her to find the right words to say. As she thought, she began to picture where and when she might wear a dress like this. It wasn't an everyday kind of dress, but she smiled at the thought of a picnic under the stars, on a hill by her house where there was little light pollution.

"I feel amazing," she whispered. Prim smoothed the bodice of the dress against her ribs. "Like myself, but a little more daring." She looked at her legs. "It might be the hem." She turned to the side to look at her back. "Because this length and silhouette is very me, and this," she faced front again, "is the me I am trying to be. Not different. Just more comfortable in who I am."

--

Amazing was good. Amazing was perfect, even, especially for someone who had been doing their best not to look at herself in their mirror when the adventure began. Phillipa gave a nod at Prim’s description, a genuine smile spread across her features as she watched the other girl turn in front of the mirror and look at the different angles and sides of the dress.

“That’s the important bit - feeling like yourself.” That helped that even if the dress was a bit out of the box for her, it wasn’t wearing her, Prim was wearing it. She looked comfortable in it, and Phillipa would have even wagered to say a bit confident. Prim was holding herself like she was proud of how she looked, maybe daring people to notice her. That was what the right dress could do. “And you look like yourself, too, not like you’re trying on someone else’s clothes. It suits you.”

--

Without stopping to think what she was doing, Prim threw her arms around Pippa's shoulders and hugged her. It was a quick hug because she didn't hug many people, and she didn't know if Pippa liked them or not. "Thank you. I--" She took a step back and looked down at the dress, blushing again. "Thank you." She was overwhelmed, but in a very positive way, and she couldn't find her words. All she could do was smile and stare at the dress.

--

Phillipa hadn’t been expecting that, so she didn’t react at first, mostly taking half a step back with one foot to keep her balance. She did return the hug for a moment before Prim pulled back, and offered her a smile. “You’re welcome.”

She wasn’t sure if Prim was thanking her for the dress, or something she’d said, but either way the response was appropriate. “You deserve it, you know,” she added, giving a nod. “So why don’t you go on and change, and we’ll get it and go back to yours so I can see what wonderful things you’ve hidden away.”

--

She didn't know that, but she didn't argue. She whispered her thanks again and scurried off before her eyes could fill with tears. Prim took her time getting changed just to make sure she had her tears properly stopped and all signs of them gone. She carefully put the dress back on its hanger and gathered the ones she would not be getting. After hanging them neatly, Prim rejoined Pippa.

They left Harrods with two more dresses than she'd anticipated, but she didn't argue, and she kept her 'thank yous' to half a dozen rather than ad nauseum. When it was safe to do so, she grasped Pippa's arm and, via side along, apparated them to just outside the Potter home. She stood aside to let Pippa enter. "Would you like tea or anything to eat?"

--

Alright, so many Phillipa had been lying about giving Prim one freebie of looking at a price tag before starting to add things to the buy pile, but she couldn’t help it that dresses were so nice and looked good on her and should be bought! That’s just how shopping went, is all. So of course she got multiple dresses, and maybe had popped out while Prim had been changing to get a little something for herself too, slipping it into its own back when she’d checked out as she was sure it would have made the younger girl blush.

She murmured a quiet thank you as she went into the house after the apparated there, stepping inside and absently smoothing her hand against her skirt, though there were no wrinkles. “Oh, I’m fine, thank you.”

--

Prim nodded, closing the door with a soft click. Bypassing the kitchen, where she would have felt more comfortable entertaining Pippa, Prim led her upstairs to her room. After carefully laying her new purchases on her bed, she went to her wardrobe and took out the dresses she'd never worn. She laid them out for pippa to see, then retrieved the shoes she bought because they were cute, but they made her self-conscious with the added height.

Standing back, she watched Phillipa and waited for her verdict.

--

Phillipa always liked to see people’s bedrooms - it was like a peek into their life that not many got to see. Her own room was a place she kept to herself, aside from the people who were in her apartment often enough anyway, like her brothers, Gemma, Terence. Prim’s room was nice and sweet, like she would have expected it to be, and Phillipa perched on the edge of her bed as she watched Prim lay out all the dresses she had hidden away.

“Oh, these are pretty,” she said as she looked them over, letting her fingers drift along the fabric. “These would all look really great on you, being all tall like you are,” she added, motioning to the sheath dresses in particular. “The rose pattern is a bit big, but the shape of the dress is good. Florals in general are good for you, though. This,” she went on, moving her hand to the lacy one, “is not what I would have expected. It’s very lacy and nice.”

--

Prim blushed deeply when Pippa reached the lace dress. "It's really short, too," she said, marking a spot on her thighs. "I bought it around Halloween last year. I don't know why. I kept hearing Daisy in my head telling me 'You have to be sexy.' So I bought it. It was just a few quid." She clasped her hands under her chin and looked at the bit of fabric. "It feels like a dare that I'm working up to." She wasn't sure if that made much sense outside of her head.

"After today, after your help, I'm going to try five of these six dresses. You've helped me see that I do have it in me to wear dresses like this. I am very grateful for today. I know I keep thanking you, but I am so grateful."

--

Phillipa raised an eyebrow at her when she talked about the length of the lacy dress, smirking softly and looking back down to it. “Yes, it’s practically scandalous compared to the rest,” she commented. “I can imagine it as something for Halloween, though. One day, should you want to wear it, it will look amazing on you. It’s a good color for your skin tone, and lace is always nice and fun.”

She glanced up at Prim with a smile, probably the most genuine one she’d had all day. Of course she’d expected the afternoon with Prim to be nice, but it really did mean a lot to hear her say such things, and she was surprised by how touched she felt by her words. She pushed up off the bed to get to her feet and reached over to give Prim’s hand a light squeeze. “I’m glad to have been able to help, Primrose.”