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“Well, I think he looks stupid.”
Tonks pursed her lips annoyed. She glared briefly at the youngest Weasley before looking back to focus on the task at hand.
“Ignore her Harry. She’s just jealous of pretty girl’s like us.”
Ginny rolled her eyes.
“He isn’t a girl, and I don’t get why we’re all playing around with this stupid charade of his. I’d expect this kind of game from the twins, but not you Harry.” Ginny scoffed. “Plus, the glitter just looks absolutely stupid.” With that Ginny turned and marched off. Her shoulders set and her head high like she’d just won some type of argument.
Ron couldn’t help but disagree more with his sister though. For the better part of an hour he’d been watching Tonks show Harry how to use make-up the muggle way, and trying out different looks on Harry’s face for her to see. It wasn’t the most enjoyable way to spend his free time, but he figured that maybe seeing Harry in makeup would make this whole trans thing make more sense to him. It had only been a week ago that Harry had come out to him about everything. About how she’d spent her entire life feeling wrong, and how she’d met a muggle this past summer that was transgender. How this muggle and her had spoken for hours and hours about what it meant to be transgender. How Harry had for the first time called herself a girl, and how right that moment had felt.
Harry had cried that night she’d confessed to him, had teared up as she’d come out to the Order, and had wept when a few of the one’s she thought she could trust had turned their backs on her. (Like Ginny was doing now.) Sirius had been the first to hug Harry close after the confession. Had petted her hair and told her it would be okay. Ron had been the second, because even though he didn’t understand this whole trans thing and thought it was a little weird Harry was his best mate. Which is why when Harry smiled for the first time in days because Tonks wanted to teach her about makeup that Ron decided to follow and watch. He’d watched as Tonks explained several different containers of goop, he’d watched as Tonks smeared and spread things on Harry’s face, and he watched as Harry had smiled wider and wider with each new look. He watched and hoped to figure this out.
So, far the experience hadn’t taught him much other than it seemed women more mental than he originally thought with the amount of stuff they smeared all over their faces. He had to admit though Harry looked pretty good in the stuff. His favorite was the glitter so far. The glitter lipstick made Harry’s lips shiny, the glitter mascara made her eyes sparkle, and the glitter that Tonks had swiped across Harry’s cheeks made her entire face light up.
Ginny was wrong. So very, very wrong. Harry looked amazing in glitter.
He turned to tell Harry that, and frowned when he realized Harry was no longer smiling. She was staring at the table forlorn biting at her lip. Some of the gloss was starting to smear off and dye her teeth a bright pink.
Tonks sighed and lightly ruffled Harry’s hair before slipping Harry’s glasses back on.
“Don’t listen to her Harry. Your gorgeous, right Ron?”
He nodded.
“See. Now, I’ve got to get to a meeting I’m already running late too, but this isn’t over. I still have to teach you how to do cat eyes.” She stood up, while pushing the mix-match of different makeup toward Harry. “You can have all this by the way. That way you can practice your look before I teach you how to do it by wand. Goes a lot smoother when you know what face you’re going for. Plus, it looks better on you anyway.” She gave Harry a wink before sauntering out of the room somehow managing to keep her clumsy ways in check.
Ron kept his eyes on Harry as Tonks left. She was staring at the mass of beauty products now unhappily. Slowly running her freshly painted nails over each of the products before grabbing at a package of what looked to be wipes. She opened the packaging and pulled out an already dampened cloth. She glanced at the mirror one last time before pressing the cloth to her face and beginning to wipe away at the powder Tonks had spread on her cheeks.
“Harry, what are you doing?”
Harry paused, biting and smearing more of the gloss off her lips.
“What’s it looks like I’m doing. I’m taking this junk off.”
“But… Harry … you… is this because of what Ginny said to you?”
Harry didn’t respond, but the defeated look on her face was answer enough.
“Harry don’t listen to Ginny… she’s… she’s … she’s just jealous.”
“Jealous of what?” Harry asked.
“Of you, of course. She’s jealous that she doesn’t look as good as you do in makeup.”
Harry snorted, and looked back in the mirror.
“Ron, I look like a boy trying and failing to do drag.”
“Well, that’s just because you don’t have the finally touches done yet.”
“Final touches? Ron what are you on about?”
Ron smiled and stood up. An idea had popped in his head. “Wait here mate, I’ll be right back.” He hurried quietly out of the kitchen, and up to the room he was sharing with Harry. He made his way over to his trunk, and began tossing things out as he dug around inside hoping more than anything that he’d find what he needed.
Then he saw it.
He gripped the small, golden object tightly in his hand, and hurried off back to Harry not bothering to pick up the mess he made. Harry was still frowning when he skidded back into the kitchen, but she hadn’t tried taking off anymore of the makeup so Ron counted that as a win.
“Alright, mate listen,” Ron began. “This is going to be a little strange, but… do you remember the first Hogsmeade trip, and how you couldn’t go so Hermione and I promised to bring you back something.”
Harry nodded.
“Well, I didn’t give you everything that I bought for you. See, Hermione had dragged me into Gladrags Wizardwear, which was right boring at the time but I saw this thing… and it reminded me of you so I bought it. It wasn’t until after that when Hermione asked if the gift was for Ginny that I realized this wasn’t exactly something you give to your male best friend. I actually thought about just giving it to Ginny, but … part of me always felt I was meant to give it you… and I just… oh bloody hell, here.”
Completely red in the face Ron held out a tiny golden hair pin. On the band a cute, fat golden owl occasionally flapped its wings. Harry reached out and took the owl barette as though it was the most precious thing in the world.
“You bought this for me?”
“Yea, but I mean at the time you were still… it’s stupid I know I just-”
“I love it. Can you help me put it on?”
Ron stared shock as Harry held the hair pin back out to him. A shy smile slowly starting to form on her face.
“I uh… sure mate.”
He took the pin, pulled back a bit of Harry’s messy black locks, and clicked the pin into place. The owl seemed to get a little lost amongst the mess of black, but it flapped it wings just so to help keep the locks at bay.
“How’s it look?”
Harry turned to look back into the mirror, but Ron stopped her before she could.
“Wait, you’re still missing one last final touch.”
Ron dug through the mass of makeup sitting on the table before he finally came across the container of golden glitter. He opened it, searched Harry’s face for permission, before reaching over and spreading the gold under Harry’s eyes and along the tops of her cheeks. Once finished he recapped the container, and smiled at her.
“Alright, you can look now.”
Harry turned towards the mirror, and all but beamed at herself. The glitter under her eyes were a little uneven, most of the gloss that had once donned her lips now stained her top teeth, and the little owl was all but being buried under the mop of black hair, but she looked happier than Ron had ever seen.
He found he couldn’t look away.
Ginny had been dead wrong.
Harry looked absolutely amazing in glitter.