Kate Fontaine
"No, you can't come!" I exclaimed to Bill, lightly pushing him away from me as I packed my things into my bag. It was the next day and I was meeting up in the Muggle part of London with Mrs Weasley and Mrs Diggory. Of course, one of them was my mother and the other the mother of my fiancé.
"But I'll miss you." Bill grinned, trying to somehow soften me into letting him come with us.
"I'm shopping for my wedding dress..." I reminded him. "You're the groom." Bill pouted but agreed to stay home anyway. "It's going to be nice. Hopefully, my mum and your mum will get along well."
"I'm sure they will." He promised, kissing my forehead before turning me around. Bill had this habit of playing with my hair. And so, he attempted to braid it as I finished applying my makeup. He yanked on it a couple of times but I ignored the feeling, knowing that Bill meant well. "You're sure that I'm not allowed to join you?" he inquired one more time as I was pulling on my coat.
"William," I sighed, using his full first name just to tease him. "It's supposed to be bad luck to see the bride in her wedding dress before the ceremony." I reminded him as he pressed a kiss to my cheek.
"All right, I'll let you go then." Bill sighed, leaning in and kissing me as the world slowly fell silent around us. When he kissed me, the world fell away. It was slow and soft, comforting in ways that words would never be between the two of us. His hand rested below my ear, his thumb caressing my cheek as I ran my fingers down Bill's spine, pulling him closer until there was no space left between us. I could feel the beating of his heart against my chest and I realised what he was doing.
I pulled away from my fiancé, grinning. "You're a cheeky little manipulating bugger, aren't you?" I discerned that he was trying to distract me from leaving.
Bill smiled, a dangerous and cheeky glint in his eyes that I saw far too often in his twin brothers' eyes. "I have no idea what you're talking about, Mrs Weasley." The name made my heart race, so I awarded him with another quick peck before manoeuvring around Bill and reaching the door. "Bye!" I said quickly before locking the door behind me. I turned around and buttoning up my coat as I made my way down the street to the bridal shop I was meeting Molly and my mother in.
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"Kate!" I heard two excited voices exclaim as I entered the bridal shop. The shop was lined with wedding dresses along the windows and beautiful shoes, and I immediately felt underdressed in my simple jeans and top.
I glanced up and saw Molly and my mother waving at me, immediately causing my mood to shift from awkward to ecstatic. I was starting to get along really well with Bill's mother, and my mother had a lot of healing to do due to Cedric's death, so seeing her excited made me even happier. "Hi!" I exclaimed, bringing my mother into a hug before giving Molly a cuddle as well. "It's so good to see you both," I added once I pulled away from my mother-in-law-to-be. "I'm really glad that you're both here."
They both beamed at me before getting straight to it. "So what style are you looking for?" Molly asked, eyeing the mermaid dresses as she smiled at me.
I laughed at her enthusiasm. "Something simple, but not too old-fashioned," I explained to Molly and my mother, who both nodded in understanding. "Preferably something with spaghetti straps because we'll be having a summer wedding," I added.
"I completely agree." My mother said happily as Molly continued nodding. "I say that we split up and each pick a dress, then assemble and you can try them all on." I grinned, agreeing with her words before we all split up. I made my way over to the floor-length dresses, finding a gorgeous all-white cami-style dress. The fit was quite loose, and I knew it would be comfortable. It didn't have too much of a shape to it, just a subtle cinched waist. I took it off of the bar and examined the dress while holding it out to me.
"Oh, that is beautiful." A shop assistant said, clapping her hands together with a wide grin. At first, I had thought she was just complimenting me so that I would buy the dress, but when I saw the excited shine in her wide, brown eyes, I knew she was being sincere. "When's your lucky day?" she asked me.
"We're thinking the 1st of August," I admitted and she sighed happily.
"I still remember my wedding day," she told me animatedly. "If he's the right guy, you will remember it forever." The shop assistant assured me, and I thanked her, declining help when she offered it to me.
Once I had found the dress in my size, I glanced around the store, looking for my mother and Molly. I found them chatting in a corner, sipping on the free champagne the shop assistants offered them and smiling. I let out a sigh of relief, pleased to see that they were getting along well. "Alright!" I exclaimed once I made my way over to them. "I've got a dress. Should I go try them on then?"
They practically shoved me into a changing room cubicle after I spoke, and I chuckled to myself, shaking my head as I hung up my coat and bag on the hooks provided. I tried on Mum's dress first, pleased when I saw that it had almost fit my criteria. I had assumed at least one of them would completely stray from my words. It was a beautiful, strapless, cream dress with a sweetheart neckline. It was floor length and cinched at the waist, small beads and pearls adorning the top half.
I managed to zip the dress up myself, as it was a low back and pushed the curtains open to reveal myself to my mother and Bill's mother. "Well?" I asked, twirling around. "What do you think?" I queried, and both ladies smiled.
"It's pretty." Molly complimented, analysing the dress carefully.
"Very," Mum agreed, nodding her head. "But it's not what you wanted, is it?" she realised. "The beading looked more simple on the hanger. Now, it looks sort of..."
"Complicated?" I supplied, glancing down. They both nodded, and I knew that they were right. I was sure I wouldn't find the perfect dress, as women sometimes longed for. But I was confident I would find a beautiful dress. That would be good enough for me.
"Alright, in you go." Molly ushered and I allowed her to unzip my dress quickly before holding it up at the bust, holding it to my chest until I was back in my changing room cubicle.
The next dress, my dress, was the eggshell white maxi number. The moment I stepped out, I knew that Molly and Mum hated it. Once I saw myself in the dress in a mirror, I knew why. The dress looked more like a beachy maxi dress than a wedding dress. It simply wasn't formal enough, and it didn't feel like I was in a wedding dress. It was too casual, and the v neckline wasn't doing me any favours. I didn't exactly have a perfect chest.
"Me neither." I agreed, laughing. Molly and Mum joined me in my laughter and I made my way back to my cubicle so I could try on the last dress; Molly's dress.
My breath caught in my throat when I saw myself in my cubicle mirror. The dress Molly had chosen for me was perfect. It had thin straps that lead to a sweetheart neckline. The dress itself had was narrow until about mid-thigh, where it loosened a little. It was almost a mermaid dress, but not as dramatically different. The sheath dress looked... natural on me. There was a delicate lace filigree on the bust and hem, and modern silhouette made the dress look anything but old-fashioned. Still, it was simple and classical with a modern twist.
I exited the cubicle and Molly beamed, proud, and my mother had tears in her eyes. "Well?" I asked, my voice slightly shaky, as I was getting emotional seeing my mother this way. "What do you think?"
"It's ethereal, Kate." Molly breathed out, clasping her hands together as she nodded, tears welling in her eyes as well. "Truly." She added as if to reassure me.
"Mum?" I began, moving closer to her. "Mum, is this the one?" I asked in a teasing tone, mostly teasing myself because I wasn't expecting to find a dress that I would love so much.
"It's perfect." She exclaimed, tears now gliding down her cheeks delicately. "Cedric..." Mum added, prompting tears to roll down my own cheek as well. Cedric. He would have loved Bill, and he would have loved this dress. Mum wiped her eyes, and I let out a small laugh, wiping my own. "If Cedric were to see you in that dress... He would have been in tears as well." She nodded, sure of herself.
"I know," I agreed immediately.
"You may not be my blood," Mum began, taking my hands in hers. "But you are, and will always be Cedric Diggory's sister." She told me sternly, wiping away a stray tear from my cheeks. "You remember that." Mum finished and I nodded, wrapping my arms around her in a hug.
"Thank you," I said quietly. "For everything you've done for me," I added, leaning back and giving her hands anther squeeze. "Thank you, too," I said to Molly, smiling. "For picking this dress," I touched the material of the skirt in my hand for emphasis. "And for accepting me into your family." And with a quick wave, I got Molly to join my mother and me in another hug.
A/N: Here's the link to Kate's perfect wedding dress: http://www.polyvore.com/long_strapless_for_love_matrimony/thing?id=166097702
