Author's notes, take two: This story is dedicated to two people. Firstly, to the person who said I write slash because I'm not talented enough to write m/f pairings (I think this story proves his point rather than rebuts it, as it could quite possibly be the story I'm least happiest with), and to Calypso - I told you I'd eventually write this *grin*.
Big thanks as always, to the wonderful WT2 *hugs*
Never What They Seem.
He was losing her, and to the last person he had ever expected. Ron felt his eyes lock on them, his gaze unwavering as they strolled around the garden, looking determinedly for the gnomes that his mother had asked the twins to scour for. Fred and George had of course become suddenly preoccupied with the 'mountains of homework that Snape gave us, Mum!' or something similar in context. So, his own brother had offered to go in their place, and she had asked if she could accompany him, even though Ron was sure that she had never had to worry about gnomes in *her* garden before.
No, Ron thought to himself, eyes lingering on the beautiful frame of the half-veela. Fleur had undoubtedly never raised a finger when it came to common chores, why would she when there was sure to be at least a dozen love struck men at her side, eager to do even the most trivial thing for her? If it would earn them her attention, but for a moment, then they were at her beck and call. And Fleur always called. Always.
She'd been shocked by the amount of work she had to do, as had Ron himself, when Fleur had come to stay with the Weasley family over the holidays. Fleur was to teach at Hogwarts in the coming year, and to strengthen her English, had asked to be placed in a British home for the holiday months. In Fleur fashion, she had asked - demanded, Ron thought was more likely - to be placed in the home of a Ministry worker, obviously of the opinion that she would find the wealth and riches that adorned her own home. Most Ministry houses would have provided her with such elegance, but it was to the Weasley household she had been delivered, due to the fact the Weasley children would have the ability to help her settle not only into English lifestyle, but eventually into Hogwarts as well.
When Ron had heard that she would be coming, he'd been delighted. Well, delighted was perhaps a more mature way of putting the some what primal feelings he had experienced. Fleur was sure to want to socialise with him, for not only did she know him the best (she had kissed him, after all), but he was far more her type than the twins or Percy, and Bill, who was coming home for a couple of weeks, was far too old for her.
It seemed that someone had forgotten to tell Fleur that, however.
He had been crushed, initially, when Fleur had turned all her attention to Bill. On numerous occasions he had hear her comment airily that the only good thing about staying in the 'oh, how ... sweet. A country cottage,' was the fact she could sit by Bill's side at each meal, flirting wildly with him. Or at him. For Bill didn't seem to want anything to do with the beautiful part-veela, and did little more than smile at her with humour and an underlying sadness that Ron had never been able to quite understand. It was almost as though Bill pitied her, but what for, Ron believed he would never know. The temptress had everything a woman could want, was everything a man desired. She was perfect, and seemed to have little problem exhibiting it.
Realising that Bill was unlikely to fall under her charms, she found the twins and himself more willing admirers. He had never found himself competing so opening with George and Fred before, and they drove each other to such lengths of courtesy and politeness that their mother had been able to do little more than shake her head and wonder why they could not act so helpful all of the time. Indeed, the three of them made it so Fleur's life was as easy and relaxed as possible, she had no need to ask for even a drink, and it would be before her, chores that Molly would assign to her would be done in her place by one of them, and she never had a harsh word spoken against her, not if they could help it.
Percy, Percy hadn't been quite as respectful. In fact, Ron had exchanged angry words with his older brother on several occasions, demanding that he treat Fleur as she rightfully deserved.
"I treat her as I would treat anyone else!" Percy had argued back, disbelief in his eyes.
"But Fleur *isn't* simply someone else, Percy!" His words had failed to impress his brother, and that night, Fleur had had no choice but to wash and dry the dishes along with Percy, as the roster had laid out. Much protesting from both the twins and himself had achieved little, and Fleur had looked hopelessly lost with her arms elbow deep in soap suds.
How was it then, that in 5 weeks, she had transformed from someone who most likely did not know what even a basin was, to one who was willing to volunteer to go out in mid-autumn rain to hunt gnomes? And with Percy! Percy, who had never been gentle with her, or realised the wonder of her voice or the sweet smell of her perfume. Percy, who didn't know how to get lost in a scent, nor could he simply sit still, doing nothing more but watch her as she sat reading a book in the courtyard outside.
"It is rude of you to stare at her, Ron." Percy had calmly informed him that day, sitting down beside him. "Imagine if someone was to simply do nothing but stare at you all day, whether they be outside reading, eating dinner, or simply having a conversation with someone else, as you do." He'd hesitated, as though searching for the right words. "It's quite rude," he finally concluded.
"You don't understand Percy," and Percy hadn't, just like he never did. "She wants to be looked at, she knows that she is beautiful and than men can't help but look at her. She loves it, all Veela's do."
"She is as much a Veela under the surface as you are," older brother had then lectured, frowning at him as though he should understand all this. "And would you lump all Veelas into the same type, ignoring that they are as much individuals as you and I? Stop being so childish, Ron. Mother has brought us up better than that."
Those words had inflamed him, to be lectured by Percy on women? Only if Neville had been giving this speech would he have been more offended. Besides, Percy was talking about someone he barely knew, where as Ron had studied her since the moment he had first seen her.
"Percy, she wears clothes that reveal her Veela nature, she sniffs at the air to show her superiority, a superiority she has never had any problem reminding us all of," he glared as Percy shook his head slowly. "Surely you have seen the way she almost commands us to do her will, she is treated like a Princess because she demands it.
"But what came first, the image or the attitude?" Percy said with a sad smile. "It is hard when people expect you to be something, especially when those expectations are so high. Part-veela from birth, certainly beautiful enough to do the race such justice, perhaps she found it easier to become what everyone expected her to be, as opposed to fighting against the current to find herself." A flash of pain had briefly crossed Percy's face, and for a moment, Ron found himself contemplating whether his words were directly solely at Fleur. Somehow noting his thoughts, Percy had hastily risen to his feet, a hand going almost be reflex to his glasses, where he fumbled with them for a moment. "Treat her normally, Ron, not as though she is some Queen or Goddess. Loyal subjects she has, a friend she does not." With those parting words, Percy had left, a faint tint of colour staining his checks from having held such a conversation with his younger brother. Even now, Ron couldn't quite understand why Percy had approached him.
He had, if only for a few days, tried to take Percy's advice, though he was loathe to admit it to anyone. It had pained Ron to let the twins run around for Fleur, although he had noted that she never asked them to throw themselves at her feet, and that her rewarding smile was almost ... strained. But after a couple of days he had found that he needed more than the distracted smile she had gifted him during his moments of being her 'friend', and he had opted for the far easier task and certainly less complicated one of simply showing how much he adored her by being everything she could possibly want. That she had begun to insist on doing her own chores - Ron was sure that had something to do with the fact that Percy had told her off for not being 'involved' with the household that was putting her up, much to the support of their mother and the utter horror of the twins and himself, was only a slight hiccup in his plans to win her over.
And oh, had he tried everything to win her heart! No man (or boy, part of him whispered) could have been as dedicated as he had been. Ron had agreed with each of her words, not noticing when she gave conflicting opinions each time until Bill had pointed it out to him with a smile. Ron treated her so much better than Percy or even Bill, often the two of them would engage her in silly debates over things Ron was sure that someone like Fleur cared little about. What would Fleur know about politics, or why should she care about the state of affairs on the other side of the world? Fleur had never talked about those kind of things with *him*, and Ron would have talked about anything she wanted to. She had humoured them, both of them, for some strange reason. To be close to Bill, he could understand, albeit not without a scowl firmly in place, but in the last couple of weeks, she had engaged in such conversations with Percy even when Bill wasn't there.
Anyone who was willing to spend time voluntarily with Percy was a saint. The only explanation Ron could come up with was that she had taken his older brother on as a humanitarian cause.
But that didn't explain this.
Ron glared at the two figures who had yet to notice him staring out at them. Percy's hair was plastered to his head, making his glasses seem far too large for his face. Raindrops went flying from the ends of each strand as he threw his head back in laughter as Fleur tried vainly to throw a gnome over into the next garden, succeeding in little more than sending the poor gnome head first into the fence, from where it slid down to the ground with a muted 'oof'. He'd never heard Percy laugh like that, with such abandonment, but he thought little of it, feeling little else but anger over the fact that Percy of all people believed he had the right to laugh at Fleur. Beautiful Fleur, who wasn't capable of doing anything wrong ... who was laughing along with Percy.
Fleur never laughed. At least, she never laughed like that. There was no gentle tinkering, no restrained mockery. Just an honest laugh that seemed to light up her face like nothing Ron had ever said or done had. With a grin that he had also never seen grace her marble face, she picked up another gnome and threw it directly at Percy, who barely managing to duck out of the way, yelping as he lost his footing in the mud. Ron smirked, knowing that Percy was sure now to lose his temper and tell Fleur off, but instead, he watched in wonder as his brother instead pulled Fleur down onto the wet ground with him, when she offered him a helping hand to pull him up.
Then they were both laughing again, their strange laughs. Ron found he couldn't watch, not anymore. He wasn't so much a fool that he couldn't see that Fleur was, for reasons unknown to the whole of mankind, falling for Percy, but nothing was going to come of it if he could so help it. Percy didn't deserve Fleur, would never treat her how she was meant to be. Full of intent of saving Fleur from his obnoxious brother, and thus gaining her eternal gratitude, he reached for the door handle.
"Don't even think about it, little brother."
Ron turned slowly, eyes wide in belief as his locked with Bill's. Bill had never spoken to him like that before, an almost grim determination had stained his brother's voice. But that couldn't compare to the coldness that was reflected in his eyes. The Bill who always joked and teased with a gentleness that was warm instead of threatening seemed to have been whisked away. In his place stood a man who even Ron could tell one shouldn't cross.
"I don't know what you are talking about it." That didn't mean he wasn't stupid enough to try it.
"You are not going to do anything that could lead to Percy, or Fleur for that matter," Bill seemed to add as an after thought, "getting hurt. I know you have a crush on her, but it is time to let go, Ron."
This time his anger was directed at Bill, for perhaps the first time. He couldn't recall ever being angry at either of his two eldest brothers, they never tended to do anything to inspire such wrath. But this time?
"This isn't some silly crush," Ron seethed, his words coming out more as a snarl. "She is everything to me, I would do anything for her! Stupid Percy-"
"Stupid Percy knows far more about her than you ever bothered to learn," Bill broke in quietly, although his own anger seemed to punctuate each word. He took a few breaths, as though trying to regain some politeness, but before he could bring some calmness to the conversation, Ron launched his counter attack.
"Hardly. I know her favourite colours and what she likes for breakfast - I know exactly how she likes her coffee." With a triumphant glance at Bill, Ron continued. "I know which of her dresses she likes best, and that she wants to eventually work in the Ministry, and that she loves lilacs more than any other flower-"
"In other words, you know nothing at all. You know only the superficiality she parades, not the person behind it. Or did you really think that there was nothing more to her than that?" Bill smiled wryly at Ron's answering glare. "I thought so. Listen, Ron ..." again Bill paused, seemingly searching for words that wouldn't offend. "No-one is so uncomplicated that you can judge them simply on how pretty their hair is. What of her dreams, of her fears? Have you thought to ask her of her opinions, instead of automatically assuming she doesn't have any that don't somehow relate to what colour nail polish she is wearing?" The humour that Ron knew so well had begun to creep back into Bill's voice. "She would have told you eventually, if you had asked. She told Percy when he did."
"I don't know why," Ron muttered under his breath. "Fleur is far too good for Percy, he doesn't deserve someone as wonderful as her." As soon as the words were from his mouth, Bill's face seemed to darken in an indescribable rage.
"Don't you EVER speak of Percy in that way again." Each word was forced out through clenched teeth, and for a moment Ron was sure that Bill was going to hit him, such was the anger in his older brother's eyes. "Percy would do anything for you, anything! And you would keep from him the one person who is enough like him to understand him, because of your own petty jealousy? If anything, your brother is too good for her."
Ron dropped his eyes, not wanting to see the disappointment that radiating from Bill, nor knowing of a better way to deal with his own shame. Had it comes to this, that he was letting his own feelings for Fleur make him say things about Percy that he was already regretting? Or was it simply that he had needed anything to combat the truth of Bill's words, which had began to seep in so unwantedly, and belittling his competition for Fleur's affections was all he had left?
Either way, he had done a disservice to his brother. Percy, who had openly encouraged him to get past his, his mere infatuation - there he had said it, and get to know who Fleur really was, even though it was unlikely that Percy hadn't at that time begun to develop his own feelings for her. Percy, who had never been caught up by her beauty, who treated her no differently than he would anyone else. Percy, who was blushing a mighty shade of red as Fleur playfully dabbed mud on his nose.
"What do you mean, she is enough like him?" Noting the lack of anger in his younger brother's voice, Bill sighed, resting a hand on Ron's shoulder.
"Percy finds it difficult to open up to anyone - surely you've noticed that, Ron. It is almost like he's terrified of letting people see who he is, in case it disappoints them. It's easier sometimes to be just what everyone is expecting you to be, because then you don't have to find out who you really are. I think, I think Percy is too scared to be anything other than - what is it that you and the twins call him? 'Perfect Percy', as he fears even further rejection. I'm sure he'd like to throw off the shackles of being everything we expect of him for just one day and have fun for once," it was said with a smile, but with a hint of sadness as well.
"Percy, wanting to have fun?" Ron scoffed, then softly: "He said something similar to me, weeks ago. But he was saying it in reference to Fleur. He said that she plays the role of Veela because it is what people always assumed her to be." Ron paused, glancing back out at Percy and Fleur. "It was what I assumed, wasn't it, Bill? You were right, I never treated her as though she was anything more than a beautiful statue, something to be marvelled at, to be worshipped. But not something that you ever longed to know. I never wanted to know anything about her, content in the knowledge that she was beautiful and elegant."
"Percy was her friend first, I think that was a novel concept to her," Bill agreed, not knowing that he was again channelling Percy, something that Ron found quite disconcerting. But then, Percy and Bill had become closer these past couple of months, no doubt Bill had been hassling Percy over Fleur for some time. Not quite ready to see any more similarities between the two brothers - at the end of the day, this WAS still Percy he was thinking about, he did however allow a small, sad smile as Fleur leant forward and planted a hesitant kiss on Percy's cheek.
"They do make a cute couple," he conceded gruffly, ducking his own head in embarrassment as Percy returned the kiss shyly, although, Ron noted absently, most definitely not on Fleur's cheek. "And Percy might-" he glared at Bill before continuing, "just might be ..." he muttered the last few words, but Bill still managed to pick them up.
"Did you just say 'so utterly perfect for each other, it's sickening'? Bill repeated, not even bothering to keep the glee from his voice. Bill's smile fell when he saw that Ron, while obviously willing to concede defeat, was still hurt at the loss of his 'perfect girlfriend.' "I know you liked her, Ron," he said it softly, turning Ron away from the scene outside. "Maybe now though, you could get to know her as a friend. I think you'll find that her friendship is far more rewarding than idolising her."
"If you say I should get to know Percy better as well, I'll be more than happy to separate your head from your neck," It was said with a glare, but Ron knew that the words were only bravado. He didn't need Bill to tell him that he needed to revaluate his opinion of Percy, whom he'd regarded for many years as superficially as he had Fleur. "Anyway, I doubt Fleur would want to be within 10 feet of me, after the way I've been treating her."
"You're still a kid, you're allowed to act like a goof from time to time," Bill said with a smile, gently ruffling Ron's hair. "Why, Charlie made twice the fool out of himself when he tried to woe one of his teachers in his sixth year, and she forgave him."
"Really?" Interest piqued, Ron allowed himself to be led towards the living room. Bill laughed lightly in response.
"Actually, no - I don't think she ever did. But then, what Charlie did was a hundred times worse than the rather hilarious fawning you and your brothers have been doing of late. You wouldn't believe some of the things he got up to, trying to impress her!" And so, Ron spent the rest of the afternoon alternating between laughing and gasping for air as Bill told tale after tale of his years at Hogwarts, most often with some form of humiliation on Charlie's part thrown in for good measure. Shattered ego and broken heart were forgotten, and in their neglected state, began their repair. Ron even managed to roll his eyes when Percy and Fleur finally re-entered the house, before casually remarking with a smirk:
"Really, mom is going to go nuts when she sees how dirty you two are. What were you both doing back there anyway, conducting an illicit romance of some sort?" The smirk grew as Percy and Fleur alternatively reddened and paled.
"Bill," Percy growled low in his throat, before making a grab for his older brother. "We need to talk. Now." Ron laughed out loud at the spluttered explanations a bewildered Bill threw at Percy as he was dragged from the room, earning him a glare from his oldest brother. It took Ron a moment to realise that he was alone in the room with Fleur, who was looking decidingly uncomfortable. Before today, he'd never seen her look anything but confident.
"So, you and Percy, huh?" Fleur nodded stiffly, a wary look in her eyes.
"Yes. Percy and me. As of this afternoon." She hesitated for a moment. "Ron, I'm sorry how I treated you, how I treated you all. I never meant to lead you on, it's just that ... that ..." she didn't know what to say, and Ron wasn't in the mood to try and force the words out of her. He simply nodded, cutting her ramblings short.
He didn't reply automatically, instead, he looked at her, really looked at her. Ron allowed himself to see for the first time past the beautiful features, the sun spun hair, and found what was there far more dazzling. Happiness seemed to linger in her eyes, and Ron was sure that emotion had not been there before this afternoon. But a loneliness still seemed to ghost her face, and he realised that he was seeing her without all of the masks that both Bill and Percy had told him that she surely wore.
And then, he said the last thing he'd ever thought he say, least of all to Fleur.
"If you hurt my brother, I would suggest never showing your face around me again." He said it with a grim serious, and not for a minute did he doubt his own words. Fleur seemed startled for a moment, but then she laughed, hysteria touching her voice only slightly.
"I promise never to hurt your brother," she then said softly, coming over to him and kissing him gently on his cheek. It was nothing like the kiss she had given Percy, which even from a distance had seemed rooted in passion. No, it was more the kind of kiss a sister bestowed on a brother, although Ron was sure that brothers were not supposed to enjoy the kiss quite as much as he did. But he banished that enjoyment with a sad smile, before breaking into laughter himself when he heard a yelp from the kitchen.
"Do you think we should go save Bill from Percy?" He asked, a grin forming as he thought of the possible punishment Percy was dumping on Bill. Fleur responded with an equally wicked grin before heading to the door, but not quite entering.
"How about we just get better vantage spots, so we can simply watch?"
Bill was right. Ron had a feeling that he was going to enjoy the company of Fleur far more as a friend than as someone that was to be worshipped. And as they tittered together as Percy threatened to turn Bill into a frog- the eldest Weasley child was already a stoat, he realised that it might just be time to get to know Percy a bit better as well.