Gwen. The two women smiled at each other.

"Rough day, pet?" Gwen inquired, making her way to the sinks. "You look frazzled."

Hermione rolled her eyes and collected her bag from the counter. "Meeting with Xander Parkinson," she explained. She was pleased to see Gwen grimace in recognition.

"Complete tosser, he is," she commented. For a moment, Gwen stared at herself in the mirror, a critical expression on her chubby features, before she turned to Hermione, looking a touch nervous. "Do I look okay?"

"Of course," Hermione replied with a smile. Now she looked at the older woman, she noticed that her robes were decidedly nicer than the ones she usually wore to work. "Why? Got something nice planned for this evening?"

The answer was written all over Gwen even before she gaveit. Her cheeks flushed and her eyes lit up in a way Hermione couldn't remember them doing before. "I have a date!" she announced excitedly. "You know John from International Magical Cooperation?" Hermione had barely nodded when Gwen continued talking. She only knew of him but it seemed unwise to interrupt. "Well, we've been sending inter office memos to each other for weeks and the other day, out of the blue, he asked me to dinner!"

"That's great," Hermione enthused. She hadn't known Gwen have a date in the two years she had known her so she was genuinely pleased to see her happy. "I'm sure you'll have an amazing time."

Gwen's smile flickered as the nerves hit her again. "Well, at least one of us is sure."

"Gwen-" Hermione began,