Ron believed that there was a certain code that every man had to abide by. There were countless rules, and one demanded his attention when he witnessed his best mate snogging his little sister in front of the entire house.

One of the rules – no, laws – was that one mate never touched the other's female relative of any relation. Ron had always brushed that off, because all of Ginny's former boyfriends were boys who he could mercilessly hate without a second thought. Ever since they were children, she had made things more difficult than they needed to be. She could have snogged any bloke in the entire school, but no, he had to be Harry. Harry, the boy they had brought in as a lonely orphan. Then he was the boy who lived, the chosen one, Harry Potter.

He was Ron's best mate, and he had snogged Ginny. He felt the same aggravation at Harry with a few pints (more like a gallon) of brotherly disgust as he felt towards Ginny. He was the chosen one; girls were sending him love potions and passing him love notes left and right. He could have chosen any one of them, but apparently Ginny was the chosen one's choice.

"Honestly, Ron, didn't you see it?" Hermione asked. She had a smug look on her face that Ron knew so well, he simply considered it her face.

"See what?"

"Harry is the most obvious person in the world if you know how he ticks," explained Hermione. "He hated Dean as much as you did when he was with Ginny, for one thing."

"I thought he was on my side!"

"He was, don't you see? You just had different motives."

"Yeah, he wanted to get in my little sister's trousers,"

Hermione gave him a stare full of insults. She seemed to settle on what to say to him, though.

"Harry is a boy –"

"I don't need a family life lesson."

"Let me finish! He's a boy. However, and this is very good for you, Harry is not a normal boy. He's always been confused about the female gender. Don't you remember last year? He was asking for advice left and right, trying to do the right thing. In the end, Cho was not Harry's type of girl."

"Really? How would you know?"

"I know Harry, and Ginny seems perfect for him."

"Quidditch doesn't make a relationship, Hermione."

"If I have to say 'I know' one more time..."

"It's never bothered you before."

Hermione rose from her chair, but Ron begged her to stay. She appeared to be going somewhere with her crazed lesson, and a moment with Hermione was...well he didn't exactly know what, but it felt nice.

"As I was saying," she began, "Harry and Ginny are great for each other. They cancel out each other's worst qualities. Harry's hero complex is blocked by Ginny's realistic attitude. Ginny's brashness is cancelled by Harry's modesty."

"You see that as 'the perfect relationship.' I see it as 'Harry snogging my little sister.'"

"Of all the boys Ginny could have dated, who would you have chosen?"

Despite all of Ron's inner monsters clawing away at Harry, he knew what the answer was. He would want Harry, the bloke he had known for years, to date his sister.

Hermione had the annoying smirk and raised eyebrow that drove Ron mad. "I would ask who you chose, but I'm sure that we both know."