Half-Blood Prince: Via La Fleur!

[Kahlessa]

(I wrote this for an online Barnes & Noble discussion after many people posted messages about Fleur being annoying.)

There’s nothing wrong with Fleur; she’s just French.

What’s most important is that she’s a woman of substance. I thought that even before the end of the Half-Blood Prince.

In Goblet of Fire, after the second task when Harry saved her little sister Gabrielle:

--Fleur had many cuts on her face and arms and her robes were torn, but she didn’t seem to care, nor would she allow Madam Pomfrey to clean them.

“Look after Gabrielle”, she told her, and then she turned to Harry. “You saved ‘er,” she said breathlessly. “Even though she was not your ‘ostage.” --

She then kisses Harry and Ron in thanks. When the judges announce that she was awarded 25 points for the task, she says “I deserved zero.”

Fleur takes responsibility for her actions and holds herself to high standards. She doesn’t make excuses or whine about things being unfair.

In the Half-Blood Prince, in the hospital wing after Bill is horribly scarred, when his mother assumes Fleur would not want to marry him:

--“You thought I would not weesh to marry him? Or per’aps you hoped?” said Fleur, her nostrils flaring. “What do I care how he looks? I am good-looking enough for both of us I theenk! All these scars show is zat my husband is brave! And I shall do zat!” she added fiercely pushing Mrs. Weasley aside and snatching the ointment from her.—

I cheered when I read that. If she ever encounters Greyback, I’ll bet she turns him into a throw rug.

There’s an expression “A horse that can’t run on a mud track”. That means a person who can’t handle it when things go wrong. There are many people who are very nice and kind, but when something really bad happens, they cut and run. Fleur doesn’t, and even if she does act spoiled from time to time, she is there when it counts. Her friends and family can depend on her in a crisis. She can handle and adjust to extreme changes. That’s a good quality in a friend, or a spouse.

What’s important is that she does not pity Bill. She doesn’t talk about how sorry she is for him—she sees his scars as a sign of his courage. This is important for Bill to recover emotionally from his attack. I’ve known some people who suffered horrible disfigurations and many said the hardest thing to handle was the pity from family and friends. No one wants to be pitied for very long.

So I say “Via La Fleur!” Bill and the Weasleys are lucky to have her.

[Lukaran]

I loved the part when Mrs. Weasley, Bill’s mother, told Fleur that she could wear the tiara belonging to Bill’s great aunt. She had been against Bill marrying Fleur, but how Fleur responded to Bill’s injuries made Mrs. Weasley realize this was the woman for her son.

[Kahlessa]

I loved the part at the end when Bill had recovered a little and the only change was that he now liked his meat rare. Fleur said, “Well it’s a very good thing he’s marrying me, because the British overcook their meat, I’ve always said this.”

It’s clear Fleur is still going to be annoying from time to time, but she’s worth it. That’s something I think we all discover in life about certain people.