Thanks to 62442almystery of HPFF for betaing this!

Fleur sat down heavily in the overstuffed fireside chair, hair still damp from earlier. Gabrielle sat on the floor in front of her, book and parchment beside her, apparently writing some essay or another for one of her classes.

A dim fire crackled and popped in a small hearth nearby, casting long shadows over the sisters. Fleur's face looked even more weary and forlorn than before.

Gabrielle looked up. "Ees something ze matter, sister?" she asked as she set her long, eagle-feathered quill down next to the inkbottle.

Fleur sighed heavily, twirling a lock of golden blonde hair around her finger. "Eet is nothing," she said gloomily, casting her gaze to the side, where the logs burned leisurely.

Gabrielle scooted herself along the shaggy floor, plopping herself down in before her sister. "Do not lie to me, Fleur," she said quietly. "We are sisters. You can tell me."

Fleur turned her face away from her sister. "Are you…." She paused. If she continued now, she realized, there would be no turning back. What was to be said would be said, and Fleur would just have to live with it.

I am a strong French girl, she reminded herself, and no matter what Gabrielle thinks of me, I will always love her. Ze ees my sister, after all, and zat is what sisters do.

Fleur took a deep, steadying breath. "Are you ashamed of me, leetle sister?"

The young girl blinked. It took her a moment to reply, causing Fleur to hold her breath and give a slight shiver, fearful of what was to come. "No, of course not," Gabrielle replied after the silence had disappeared, and Fleur was able to breath freely again. "Why would I be?"

"I failed the task." The woman let her head sink lower, chin resting on her collarbone. "I just thought zat you would be…disappointed in me. All zat I wanted was to make ze family proud, and I failed. I could not save you from ze Black Lake. Everyone else was able to…except for me."

Gabrielle looked up at her sister, a sadness lingering in her mind from the words just spoken. A tear glistened in Fleur's eye, shining in the dim light from the fire.

Gabrielle stood, moving to the left side of the armchair, placing her arms around her sibling's shoulders. She embraced her warmly, whispering, "I am not upset about zis, sister."

Fleur leaned her head to the side, placing it calmly on the youngster's shoulder. "You should be," she said in an undertone, voice cracking.

"But I am not. I could not be disappointed or upset in my sister. I am proud of you, and I love you. You were chosen above all ze other schoolgirls for the role of ze champion, and zat alone says much."

Fleur's composure slowly ebbed away, and she dissolved into tears. "I am a failure, no matter what you zay! I could not get past ze Grindylows; I am weak and pathetic! Someone else should have been chosen as ze Champion! I am not worthy…."

"Shh," Gabrielle cooed gently to her older sister. "It ees all right…. Calm down, Fleur, calm down. You did well, really, you did, and you were great. Fleur, it ees all right…."

There was a silence, broken only by the soft hiccoughing of the older lass, an occasional, "Shh," from Gabrielle, and the pops and cracks of the logs being broken by the heat of the flames.

Darkness descended little by little on the Beauxbatons' carriage as the headmistress came by to tell them that it was time for lights to be put out. Fleur nodded, face puffy and red, yet Gabrielle did not leave her until she was all right.

Twenty minutes passed steadily as Gabrielle held Fleur, taking the role of the older sibling, being the one to give comfort and relief. Once Fleur had calmed down, she let go of the girl's sleeve and stood up, striding across the room to the vanity where a box of tissues sat, awaiting times when they were needed. Dabbing her tears with as much dignity as she could muster, Fleur turned to the sister and gave her a small, sad smile in thanks. Gabrielle returned it, and then turned to leave the room; however, a stifled, scratchy voice held her in her spot for a second longer.

"Thank you, Gabrielle."

The girl turned back to her. "You are welcome," she answered, eyes big and bright with hope. "Remember, Fleur, you are still a champion, and always will be."