After standing outside the door for several minutes, approaching it more than once before backing away again, Ji-Hyun finally took the plunge and entered the clothes shop. Her suspicious behaviour had attracted the attention of several passers-by, but thankfully none of them had said anything to her. If they had, she might not have had the courage to actually proceed with this – not that she was doing much better now. Instead of approaching Cora Malkin, she was carefully examining a selection of gowns near the door.

Although she wore wizard clothes often enough, Ji-Hyun had grown up in muggle clothes, and when not required to wear robes, she didn’t. But with such lovely clothes before her… she still didn’t have the money. Not really, and because so many of the other students were muggles too, or just enjoyed wearing muggle clothing, she never looked weird or different when she wore them.

Her slow journey across the racks had taken her closer to Cora, who was no longer occupied by talking to a customer and had to have seen her. Somehow, that didn’t make the final steps any easier. She couldn’t carefully edge around anymore, and if the seamstress was right there, surely she must have guessed who Ji-Hyun was?

With a final check that there really wasn’t anyone else nearby, she stepped closer – enough that she could speak softly so there was absolutely no chance of being overheard, “Hi. My name’s Ji-Hyun, and I have an appointment, about, um,” she paused, her eyes flickering about again before she finally decided that she wasn’t going to say it, “a fitting?” They both knew what she meant. Because she’d known that she would back out if she didn’t make sure that she couldn’t, Ji-Hyun had been very specific about what the fitting was for.

Cora had started the day late. It’d worked out in her favor, actually because her great grandmother had scheduled tea with one of her friends and when Cora had gotten an inquiry for a specific type of appointment… well, she’d thrown this date out immediately, holding her breath in hopes that the inquiring mind had the same date free. 

It wasn’t that she couldn’t necessarily sell when her grandmother was around, but… it wasn’t their standard fair that she was exactly handing off.  Cora had started her career with robes and structured pieces that she thought were cutting and exciting.  Then, she started to experiment a little bit more, read some more – and well, there was another area that she had started trying her hand.  She’d shown off to a few friends, who told a few more friends, and her undergarment endeavors were gaining speed. But Malkin’s wasn’t generally the place for that – so this was a business on the side. 

So, as it approached closing, she was looking out for her appointment – while trying to scoot the customer she was dealing with out.  An old family friend of her grandmother’s wasn’t going to be the person who needed to be there.  So, when she finally got her out (after selling her a ridiculously oversized hat with a giant fluttering bat on it), Cora ran her hands over the skirt of her dress. 

Shaking her head, she let out a deep breath before looking up with a renewed smile on her face as the rather nervous looking girl approached and spoke to her.  “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Ji-Hyun!” she greeted warmly, taking the girl’s hand and shaking it.  She’d inquired, of course, if the girl was seventeen – and was happy to book the appointment after she knew.  “I’m Cora, and I’ll be helping you out today – you can, of course, call me Cora,” she added breezily, a wide smile on her face. 

“Let me just take care of the front,” she motioned to the door (her intent was to lock it since this was the last appointment, “and you can head to the fitting area.  There’s a robe out for you if you change,” she wanted to be as soft as possible, the girl seemed ready to faint, “I’ll need to measure and it’s easier,” explaining was probably the best way to get her comfortable.  “So I’ll give you a couple of minutes to get ready,” she took a step toward the door, “and you just shout when you’re ready for me to come back, alright?”

She waited for confirmation before she made her way to the front door, lowering the curtains in front and putting up the closed sign and locking the door.  It was a little early, but that was fine, it wasn’t busy season yet.   

Nodding in response to the words, Ji-Hyun tried for a smile, before giving up. Cora was lovely, and she didn’t look scary, but she knew why Ji-Hyun was here, and that was so embarrassing. She hadn’t detailed why, exactly, she had made her request, but it wasn’t like there were many possibilities. Cora knew something that not even some of her closest friends knew.

There was nothing to do but nod in agreement to the instructions. Oh, the door was to keep people out. Yes. That was good. That was – really good. Nobody she knew could possibly stumble in, not that it would have happened (probably), but it might have. “Okay. Sure. I can – I can do that,” she continued to nod as she spoke, the words as much to convince her as Cora.

She nodded one last time, turning and walking to the fitting area. She could so do this. She wasn’t even doing anything much different from what she usually did, just this time it was a little more… deliberate. Or whatever. People wore stuff like this all the time! It would be fine. It was totally a normal thing to want. There was nothing to be embarrassed about. “Pull yourself together!” She ordered herself, taking a moment to breathe before moving to undress. It would be fine. Cora was nice, and – she probably saw people undressed all the time! Ji-Hyun might not have much to be proud of, but Cora wouldn’t judge her. And if she did, it wasn’t her fault.

Even after she’d wrapped herself securely in the robe, fingers clutching the fabric so tightly that her joints were white, she took a moment to clear her throat before announcing her readiness, staying perfectly still until Cora appeared. “Hi. Is this – is it just like a normal fitting?” At least then she would know what she was doing. Mostly. Just not much about what she was planning to buy.

Forcing her fingers to relax took a moment – not enough to release the fabric, or even enough to appear comfortable, but not white knuckled either. She had to calm down. If she was calm, then it would feel like everything happened faster. If there was something else to think about, it would help, but she couldn’t think of anything to talk about. “Do you do this a lot?” the question was rushed, and she probably shouldn’t ask. It seemed invasive of other people’s privacy, even if she didn’t know who those other people might be.

Cora was happy to close up the front of the shop and give the young lady some time to herself to calm herself.  It was like getting fitted for anything, but the idea of anyone but the person the items were intended for seeing you in them was probably overwhelming.  Cora actually knew the feeling.  She had the benefit, however, of creating the clothes and knowing her measurements well enough that no one would ever need to.  She wasn’t bashful, by any means, but some things were meant for certain people and that was that. 

She got the feeling, but Cora was the person who would enable her to have the big reveal and the moments it was totally about.  So, Cora puttered around the front, waiting for her to come to the realization herself and invite her back into the fitting area.  She would be nothing but professional, of course, but it couldn’t be forced. 

When she finally did get called upon, Cora looked up with wide eyes and a bright smile.  Her question was nervous, but genuine.  “Exactly the same,” she chirped, trying to be reassuring.  “I’ll do your measurements in the robe,” her voice got steadily more normal as she approached, not having to project – and finally normally spoke as she got in front of the girl who gripped at the silky fabric like it would disappear if she didn’t hold onto it. 

So, it was Cora’s job to help her.  “Since it’s like any other fitting,” she repeated, trying to assure her, “yes – multiple times a day,” she added with a bit of pride in her voice before she pulled her pink measuring tape out of the box of tailoring supplies by the pedestal in front of the mirrors.  “Now, you can step up here,” she offered gently and motioned toward the slightly raised platform.  “Keep the robe on,” she added, “and I’m just going to do a few measurements.” 

She usually whipped the tape out from behind her neck and got straight to it, but gentle approach was the best way to go.  “Now, I’ve found,” she adjusted the lighting a little bit so she’d be able to see better with the flick of her wand, “It’s much less weird if you talk to me while I’m measuring,” she laughe a little, “So I’d love if you could give me an idea of what you’re looking for.  I have a few different styles I could pull for you, but I’d like to narrow down just what you might want.”

Ji-Hyun sagged in relief, drawing in a deep breath and smiling. When she stood straight again, her back was straighter, and although she still wasn’t calm, keeping the robe on made her feel more comfortable. While she still wasn’t exactly in her comfort zone, she was closer to it than she had been, and since it was going to be just like a normal fitting, there was nothing to really worry her.

The answer made sense – even if it didn’t really answer her question (unless it did, and what Ji-Hyun was doing was way more common than she had thought – maybe that was it?) she didn’t really mind not getting an answer.

Nodding in confirmation that she, too, was happy to talk, the small measure of confidence she had gained evaporated when she realised what she was supposed to talk about. What style she wanted? Although she was perfectly happy to identify skirts as pencil, A-line, or anything else, and knew the difference between a sweetheart and a bateau, Ji-Hyun’s knowledge of lingerie types was limited to what kind of garment it was. And even if she did know, it was so much more personal than clothes that she was sure she would be hesitant.

Her eyes moved to the ceiling, then to the floor, as she tried to work out what she wanted. She had been so focused on what she was doing that she’d never really paused to consider what the specifics would be. “Um. I – I don’t want anything fancy?” she tried, tentative, sure that wasn’t very helpful, “just something nice?” There was a pause, and then she added, “lacy?” her voice getting progressively quieter and less certain as she went on.

She could have thought about this beforehand. No, she should have thought about this. You didn’t go to a fitting and take whatever the dressmaker decided to make! Her brother had been dividing trousers into either jeans or trousers for years, and always waved it off when she corrected him. She’d asked him how people dealt with his inability to specify what he wanted to buy and he’d shrugged! And now she was just as bad as him.

Cora was a little more intuitive than some people.  It came from a variety of places.  She’d always been quiet in school, fixing buttons and sewing rips, just listening to people, and then she started working for her great grandmother and she did some of the same things  -but she was always listening.  When she started doing fittings and measurements, she got to see how people reacted to her and the way things worked when they were being measured.  Ji-Hyun’s body language suggested she was nervous and uncomfortable. 

So, Cora took a few steps back and used her wand to guide the tape, rather than her hands.  Usually, she wouldn’t mind being all up in somebody’s business – hell, it was partially how she’d managed to wrangle her current beau into her life.  But, Ji-Hyun wasn’t an adorable ginger man that was just begging for her hands to be all over him, so she let the wand do the work and listened to what she was saying.

Maybe the girl didn’t know much about what she was looking for and that was completely okay.  Cora felt like a lingerie Sherpa – she would guide her over the metaphorical mountain of anxiety and misinformation that was generally thrown anyone’s way.  Nice and lacy were definitely things that Cora had in her wheelhouse.  Personally, she had much more black and strappy stored away.  She’d brought a good mix with her in her bag and knew that she’d have something for the girl, maybe even a few somethings that she could possibly want. 

It would just be significantly less than for someone who was feeling a little more empowered and sexually in charge.  “Well, why don’t I show you some options?” she smiled as the quill took the measurements on the parchment to the side.  Cora rushed over to her large, carpet style bag and started pulling out boxes from the seemingly endless bag.  Magic was wonderful, truly, and Cora put the boxes into two piles – the ones she thought Ji-Hyun might like, and the ones that she figured the girl might pass up. 

She had to bring a lot of things, of course, just in case, but she could bet on a few items that Ji-Hyun might like.  Cora’s own style would probably be a little overwhelming for the young woman, and thus relegated to the maybe later pile.   

“Why don’t you step on down,” she offered with a bright, sunny smile, “and take a peek through what I have here.”  She had a small selecton, but that didn’t mean it couldn’t grow.  “If you like a style, but not the color or the pattern, I can always change that.” 

She stepped aside, giving Ji-Hyun a comfortable space to look through what she had and put her hands on her hips, going over to the parchment where the measurements were being collected and nodded.  She wasn’t necessarily small, but she gave off the appearance of being dainty and innocent.  She’d look phenomenal in some of the things Cora made.  “If you’re having trouble, pull your three favorites out and I can sketch something up…” she pulled out her pad.  The more she thought about it, the more she could have designed something just for her.  It was weird, where inspiration came from, but she sort of hoped she’d get a chance to create a custom piece. 

Ji-Hyun tried to stay as still as possible while the tape was measuring her. Having clothes fitted was something she could never afford in the muggle world, and couldn't usually afford in the wizarding world. She didn't mind particularly - the idea of having clothes made specially for her was appealing, kind of, but it was also intimidating. She'd had small changes made, like having the length of a cloak adjusted, but never had anything like the dresses that some of the students wore to balls at Hogwarts. She would be too worried about spilling something on it, or falling over and tearing it, or having someone step on it, to actually enjoy wearing something like that.

Watching the boxes appear from the carpet bag, Ji-Hyun was silently impressed that Cora had managed to carry their weight. Maybe there was another charm to make the bag lighter too? She didn't have the time to ask, because Cora was already suggesting that she step down. She did so as quickly as possible; perhaps a little too quickly because she stumbled, letting go of the robe in her haste to right herself, and clutching it as tightly as possible as she could when she had, blushing even though Cora hadn't seen anything.

"Um, that sounds lovely, thank you?" It wasn't supposed to be a question, but as it was by no means the stupidest thing she'd done so far, Ji-Hyun bit back the urge to apologise. She stepped forwards to get a better view, staring at the garments intently. They were less shocking when she saw them lying in their packaging. They looked - nice. Like things she could wear and not feel like she was dressing up as a Victoria's Secret angel.

"Oh," she murmured, reaching out carefully to brush her finger across the fabric. One of the garments was silky, and her hand lingered there. She'd never worn something that felt like that - not next to her skin at least. She wasn't entirely sure she wanted to, either - while it looked lovely, it maybe wasn't for her. Which was a shame, because the simplicity (well... it looked simple) was very appealing. She had said that she wanted lace, but the lacier trim seemed, when she looked at it, maybe not what she wanted after all?

"They're all nice, but I think these three are my favourites," she decided, touching each in turn. "Could I have one like this? But maybe not white? Not patterned, but maybe... pastel coloured?" White was so... wedding-y. Maybe pastels weren't much better, but patterned didn't seem quite right for it, and while something bolder might look good she would feel way too self-conscious to buy it. Cora was very nice and totally reassuring, and Ji-Hyun didn't want something like that anyway, but it would be so embarrassing! Especially if she was getting it fitted.

"It's - how much is it?" It was an important question, and one she should have asked a lot sooner. She had checked what kind of prices things were in muggle shops, but since you couldn't check Malkin's catalogue online, she only had a vague idea of how much she would have to pay. And even that might not hold true; like any clothing type, lingerie could be super expensive. It seemed worse that you would have to pay more for so little, but that didn't make it any less true. And because it was fitted, it would probably be more expensive - she just had to hope it wouldn't be too much more.