"Mum," I said, cornering my mother in kitchen. "What is he doing here?"
"Whatever do you mean Rose?"
"You know what I mean," I said. I turned around, pointing at the git that had just walked into our family Christmas, in a blue Weasley sweater with the letter 'S' on it. "What is he, the devil, doing here at our family Christmas?"
"Oh Rose," Mum said, sighing. "You know he and Albus are close. And he is working in my department now. He mentioned that he had no one to spend Christmas with when I asked him-"
"So you invited him?!" I asked, my voice full of betrayal. "You invited my sworn enemy to my family Christmas celebration? What happened to people only being invited if they were engaged to a family member?"
"Oh Rosie, that has never been a rule," Mum said. I gapped at her.
"It was a rule when I wanted to bring Logan last year," I exclaimed. Although my boyfriend, Logan Maclaggen, and I had since broken up, we had been serious enough that I wanted to have him come to Christmas, thinking that maybe, if he came, he would have been more open to the idea of proposing.
"Honey, your father only said that was a rule because he didn't like Logan," Mum said. "I only went along with it because it was clear you and him were going to break up soon."
"It wasn't clear to me!" I said. I heard a laugh from where the git stood, turning to glare at him. "Why does he have a Weasley sweater anyway? He isn't a part of this family."
"When Nana found out that he was spending Christmas with us, she knitted him one," Mum said. "I thought it was rather sweet of her."
"Yet she never knitted one for Michael Thomas when we were dating," I said bitterly.
Mum sighed. "Rose, have you noticed all the people your comparing his treatment to were ex-boyfriends who didn't treat you well?"
"They treated me well!" I said, feeling defensive.
Mum gave me a look, knowing just as well as I did that Michael cheated on me and Logan made me think he was going to propose while slowly growing more detached and hard to talk to until I eventually broke up with him, once I realized he was never planning on proposing.
"Rose, you are 24 years old," Mum said. "I think that it is time you got over being burned by your first love and move on."
At her words, I felt my face flush. "I did not love him. And I was not burned by him and even if I was, I would be able to get over it as I am a mature adult."
Mum gave me a disbelieving look. "Right, Rose. That's why you are cornering me in the kitchen when I have cooking to do being upset with me for inviting a man who had no one else to spend Christmas with to spend it with us. And why you claim he's your rival when you haven't spoken to him in years."
"I've spoken to him the past year," I said. I had seen him since we left Hogwarts, since his close friendship with Al meant he was always at family events, but I always tried to avoid him. The one place I couldn't avoid him was Mum's office. "Ever since he started working in your office I have been forced to interact with him on the few occasions where I come to see you."
"Rose, I don't want to hear any more about it," Mum said. "He is treated the way he is by our family because everyone likes him. He is a good man who is hardworking and has been an excellent friend to Albus. Now if you will excuse me, I have to go greet him, since I was the one who invited him."
"But-" I said, as she walked away, very clearly ignoring me and anything else I might have to say.
I watched her go over to him, go over to my rival, and give him the signature Hermione Granger-Weasley smile, giving him a hug. She called my dad over then and Dad shook his hand, seeming pleased that he was there, despite all of his past statements about him.
