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Fleur knew that it was a farfetched hope that her family would spend Christmas morning together before the trip over to the Burrow, what with how eager Victoire and Teddy had been lately to spend their time privately, spending hours snogging in her room. She understood, of course; she was a teenager with Veela blood once upon a time, and she was relieved that her daughter was going about that most precarious stage of her youth far more sensibly—and with a single boy—than she herself did in her time.
Sure enough, the family had barely finished opening their Christmas presents when Victoire gave her beau a look that had them both leaving the living room in seconds. Fleur glanced at Bill, who simply rolled his eyes with an amused smirk. She had warned him early on about how intense their daughters' adolescences would be, and that any attempts to be a stereotypical overprotective father would be utterly futile. He was therefore relieved, just like she was, that Victoire had Teddy to help her through it, just as he had guided her through everything throughout their childhood together.
Not everyone in the family was thrilled about it, however. Fleur glanced at Dominique, and then back at Bill, and nodded towards the backdoor of the house.
He nodded back. "Louie, would you like to go and build a snowman outside?"
"Yes!" Their little boy sprang to his feet and ran for his coat, and Bill cast a sympathetic look at Dominique before following him away.
Fleur let out a little sigh and sat down on the couch beside her younger daughter, who was curled up with the cat, Felicité, her fingers idly toying with the plum-colored satin ribbon that had flown off Victoire's present from Teddy in her excitement to open it. "Ça va, Dominique?"
"Tout va bien," her daughter mumbled, not looking at her.
"You needn't lie to me." Fleur reached out and lightly stroked Feli. The cat purred gratefully, her gaze fixed on the ribbon as Dominique twisted it.
"I'm not lying. It's Christmas, and I'm happy to be with my family. And we'll be seeing everyone at the Burrow soon."
"You are jealous of Victoire."
Dominique frowned, still not looking her way.
"And there is nothing wrong with that, it's perfectly okay—"
"It isn't fair." Her daughter cut her off, uncharacteristically. "I shouldn't be jealous of her. I know I shouldn't, but I can't help myself. And it isn't fair that she has Teddy, that she's never had to try to impress a boy. That she gets to be perfect in everything, and I'm not, and no boy will ever look at me the way Teddy looks at her."
"You are just as perfect as she is."
"No, I'm not. She's so pretty, and so smart, and better at magic, and I'm just..."
"You are both beautiful and brilliant," Fleur asserted. "And you cannot hope to match your sister in magic only because she is three years ahead of you in schooling. Once you have learnt as much magic as she has, you will be just as talented."
Dominique pressed herself deeper into the couch cushion, curling herself up as though to protect her insecurities from her mum's responses. Fleur reached over and extracted the twisted ribbon from her grip, smoothing it back out.
"I'll never have someone like Teddy."
"That is nonsense." Fleur lightly rubbed her shoulder. "You are part-Veela, Dominique. The power of love belongs to you just as much as it belongs to Victoire. I cannot say when it will happen, but it is inevitable that once you meet your desired boy, he will be every bit as enchanted by you as Teddy is by your sister."
Dominique sighed heavily. "It doesn't feel that way. It doesn't feel like I have any of your power, or hers."
"You do, I am quite certain of it. And you will know when your time comes." Fleur leant over and kissed her temple. "And Victoire can help you, of course, if you wish her to do so."
"If I have just as much of your power as she does, I shouldn't need her help."
"That is true, but family can always be helpful, even in the smallest of ways. And speaking of which, why don't we go and help the boys with their snowman? They will surely have made a mess of it by now."
Dominique cracked a wry grin. "Yeah, we should probably help them out." Gently placing Feli down beside her, she rose.
Fleur smiled, leaving the ribbon for Feli to play with and following her daughter. Her children would always know that they had her support, and each other's support, and they needn't ever be jealous of each other.