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XX

Ron Weasley was nursing a glass of eggnog and glaring at Severus Snape from across the room. Susan had already abandoned him hours ago. She was sick and tired of his moping and moved on to help the twins re-decorate the tree for the fifth time. So he was left there in silence, all alone on the loveseat, downing more eggnog until a blonde woman sat herself down next to him and gave him a no-nonsense glare.

"It has been three years, Ron. Get over it," she said simply. "Love hurts, and that is what makes it wonderful. You win some and you lose some. You lost. You need to be a man and accept it, not hate the man who beat you."

"Wot?" demanded Ron. "I… I have no idea what you're referring to." He crossed his arms and turned away from his sister-in-law.

"I understand that you're still in love with Hermione…"

"That's not it!" he said hotly. His face flushed when the room looked his way after his outburst. He continued again in a quiet voice. "That's not it. I… I want what's good for her, and I get that she likes him. I'm just… I'm torn, Fleur. I want to protect her from bad things, and he used to be on that list. And, frankly, I'm still not convinced he's off it! I'm afraid she's making a terrible mistake and…" Ron sighed and buried his head in his hands. "I'm just a git," he said, his voice muffled.

Fleur placed a hand on his shoulder. "You're caring, Ron," she replied. "She's looked after you before and you want to do the same, I understand. But… sometimes, you just need to let her make her own choices. Does she look happy?" Ron looked at the brown-haired woman playing the piano and nodded. "Does he?" He switches his gaze to look at the brooding dark-haired man watching her, only to be shocked by the smile that flitted across his face. Dumbfounded, he nodded. "That's all there is to it, then!" announced Fleur. "Now, don't worry about her and just enjoy your night." She gave Ron a peck on the cheek, causing him to blush a bright red despite the fact that she had been doing so for years now, and swept out of the room.

XX

The 2012 Hogwarts Games – Medley 100-1000 – Assigned Pairing

The Pairing Diversity Boot Camp – Ron Weasley / Fleur Delacour-Weasley – love hurts

100 Different Pairings Competition – Ron Weasley / Fleur Delacour-Weasley – hate

100 Characters Competition – Fleur Delacour-Weasley – understand

OTP Boot Camp – torn

Forgive me for not writing Fleur's accent. I absolutely can't do it :3