Chapter 1: Dementors in Little Whinging

Hello guys, gals and non-binary pals. Welcome to the first chapter of Professor Delacour.

Please read AN for important info about this story. Here's some general info you should know going in:

This is an Order of the Phoenix story, as you probably guessed. This story will dive a bit into Occlumency, Legilimency and Mind Magic, but mostly as a way to calm and control one's own mind, not enter the minds' of others. If you want a story like that, read the 'Mind Arts' by (look up).

This story will also dive a bit into other magical races, Veela, Centaurs, Goblins, Satyrs, etc. This will be brought up in chapter two, and talked about throughout the story while in Fleur's class.

Lastly, while this story is rated M and has several suggestive themes and moments, it will not contain any Lemons, sorry if you wanted that. I personally don't write Lemons, as an Asexual person, it's just weird and disconnected for me, so it wouldn't be any good to read. If you want a Flowerpot Lemons story, I'm sure you can find one in about twenty seconds on this site.

If you want more Flowerpot goodness as you wait for Ch2, check out my short-story 'Sod it, I'm in' on my Profile. It's a post-Hogwarts AU in which Harry and Fleur go on a months-long road trip across England and beyond in an old VW hippie van.

Thank you to the wonderful people on the Harry x Fleur Discord for their ideas, critiques and betaing!

Please consider supporting me by becoming a Patron. Link on Profile or Twitter. Name is HephaestusBuilds.

Chapter 1: Dementors in Little Whinging

"Dudley, RUN!"

Everything was wrong, his mind was muddled. Nothing was making sense. The air was chilling in his lungs, making him struggle for breath. His hearing was muffled and his vision blurry.

And that damn buzzing in his ears was setting him off again, making him unable to concentrate. But Harry had bigger things to worry about right now.

Dementors, here, in Little Whinging… that wasn't possible. That wasn't right.

But it was happening.

"W-what are you doing, freak?" Dudley demanded as he ran as fast as his stocky body could move. "I'm gonna tell dad, I swear!"

"Shut it! It's not me, they're invisible magical creatures! Now, get down!" Harry snapped, spinning on the spot to wave his wand uselessly at the Dementors. "Expecto Patronum!"

But nothing happened. Again. Something was wrong with his magic, it must be. He hadn't had this kind of problem creating a Patronus before.

"Expecto Patronum! Expecto Patronum! Expecto Patronum!"

"W-what are you doing? Waving that thing around?"

"I'm trying to save our lives. If they catch us, they'll kiss us—"

"Kiss us?" Dudley looked beyond terrified now. "What do they want to kiss us for?"

"It's how they suck out your soul. Expecto Patronum!"

Why wasn't his magic working? Why couldn't he make a Patronus?

Come on, Harry, think of a happy thought, think of a happy thought!

But nothing was coming to him. He couldn't pull up a single happy memory. The memory of his parents, Christmas at Hogwarts, flying his broom, nothing.

"Ah, sod it!" He dove behind a row of rubbish bins, his wand raised at a parked car in between two of the Dementors. "Bombarda!

An explosion erupted, ensnaring the Dementors just for a few seconds, though it wasn't nearly as powerful as it should have been. Harry knew it wouldn't do much to them, but at this point, his Patronus wasn't working and it was a fight for his and Dudley's lives. Fuck the Statue of Secrecy, if he didn't stop the Dementors, he'd die.

"What are you aiming at?!" Dudley grabbed Harry's arm out of surprise. If it weren't for the situation, it would have made Harry shiver. "You can make explosions with that stick?"

"The Dementors! I told you!"

"But what are deme-tors?!"

"Evil soulless creatures that suck the souls out of people. They're invisible to Muggles."

"Mugg— you mean me?"

"Anyone non-magical." Harry answered, before grabbing Dudley's arm and hauling him to his feet, around a corner and down a narrow alley. "We have to get out of here! The only spell that works on them is a Patronus—."

"Then do one of those, then!"

"I can't!" Harry shouted, no doubt alerting half the neighborhood. If his exploding car didn't do that already.

Wait, come to think of it, where are all the Muggles? They should all be leaving their houses right now to see what was happening. Why-

The Dementors soared closer, gaining on them, having the natural advantage in the narrow alleyways. Where were they running, anyway? Which way were they running, north? South? In circles? Harry had no idea.

"Point Me!" So they were running west, the opposite direction of Privet Drive, but even if they got back home, what would the Dursleys be able to do? They wouldn't listen long enough for Harry to explain what was going on.

So it was up to Harry to figure out a solution.

A decaying, cloaked arm shot out from his blind spot. "Protego!" A weak magical shield erupted from the tip of Harry's wand, temporarily blocking the Dementor from grabbing hold of him.

"What's going on—?"

"Get behind me, Dudley!" Harry adjusted the fading shield charm to cover both of them, holding back Dudley with one arm. "Incendio!"

Flames swept up the outside of his shield, engulfing the Dementors and filling up the narrow brick maze they found themselves in. The smoke was making Harry's eyes water and his lungs wheeze, and the heat made him feel like he was in a furnace, but it was keeping the Dementors back.

At least for the moment.

"Run, Dudley!" Harry ordered with a shout, not taking his eyes away from the Dementors. "I'll hold them back! Go home, grab Hedwig. Tell her to get help, she'll know what to do—."

"EXPECTO PATRONUM!" A deep baritone voice echoed through the alley, quickly followed by a Golden Snitch-fast Lynx Patronus that darted around like lightning, attacking the Dementors with savage efficiency. The Dementors didn't last three seconds.

Harry spun on the spot, his wand raised in preparation to take down the newcomer if need be. "Incarcerous!"

The stranger flicked their wand, easily blocking Harry's impulsive attack. A tall and stern-looking dark skinned man in a blue cloak and hat emerged from the shadows and smoke. "Easy, Mr. Potter. Dumbledore sent me. Keep your wand out and at the ready, there may be more coming." His voice was bassy and intimidating. He pointed his wand at the ever-growing fire. "Aguamenti Maxima."

The fire was reduced to soggy embers in a matter of seconds. With the fire taken care of, the man stepped towards Harry and Dudley. Harry raised his wand dangerously. "Who are you? What's going on? How do you know Dumbledore?"

The man halted on the spot, his wand loosely raised in the air in a sign of surrender. "My apologies, Mr. Potter. My name is Kingsly Shacklebolt, I work for Dumbledore. Now, grab hold, we need to get out of here. This neighborhood is going to be swarming with Aurors any second, and we cannot afford to be seen together."

"Why not?" Harry asked hesitantly.

"...Because I am an Auror.

"What—?"

"Enough, we don't have time for this. We're leaving right away. Tonks." A pop sounded next to them, revealing a young woman with violet hair. "Take the other one, drop him off at his home and then meet us you-know-where."

"Aye aye, boss." The young woman grabbed Dudley, Apparating away within a second.

"What's going on? Where did she take Dudley? Who was that—?"

"Sorry, Mr. Potter. There's no time for questions." Without warning Kingsley grabbed hold of Harry, reaching into his cloak and producing a small trinket. A second later Harry's mind went blank and that was the last thing he remembered.

~Flowerpot Line Break~

The first thing Harry heard when he came to was that incessant buzzing in his ears that had been plaguing him all summer. It gave him headaches most days, making him agitated on others.

"He looks in a right state." A muffled, younger female voice said. "Are you sure he will be alright?"

"So would you if you went through what he had." Said another, sounding somewhat familiar. "I'm surprised with the power of magic he displayed, uncontrollable as it was."

"He'll pull through." A third reassured the others. "He's strong, like his father."

"But James never had to fight off three Dementors with Bombardas and Incendios."

"No, you're right— but it would have been a hell of a lot of fun."

"Oh won't you two stop already, you're going to wake the boy." A new voice chastised.

"Sorry, Molly."

"Mrs. Weasley?" Harry's voice was hoarse, like he had been screaming in his sleep. "...Where am I?"

"Oh! Harry, dear, you're awake! Heavens, we need to—, Tonks, go tell the others."

After struggling to sit up, Harry finally managed to open his eyes. The lights in the room were like pins in his eyes, and the buzzing was staying at a dull throb.

"W-what happened?" His throat burned with every word. "Where am I?"

"You're safe, Harry." Harry recognized the voice now. He turned, finding his godfather standing over him, a relieved smile on his face. "You're at my family home."

"But I- what?" Harry looked around the room, seeing familiar faces all around. Sirius, Professor Lupin and Mrs. Weasley were standing next to his bed. Though he had no idea where he was.

"Calm down, pup." Sirius soothed. "You had a bit of a scare there, but you're going to be fine."

"What happened?" Harry asked, groggily. His head was spinning, his entire head hurt, and that damn buzzing was back. "Why do I feel… like shite?"

"Magical exhaustion, best we can figure is that it's what caused you to go unconscious." A new voice said, Harry looked towards the doorway to find Mr. Weasley, looking out of breath and disheveled in his Ministry robes. "The Ministry is going mad, mad I say. Fudge and his lot are demanding Harry's head for this. I've heard rumor they're wanting to send him to Azkaban for this."

"They can't do such a thing, he's just a boy!" Mrs. Weasley cried, looking ready to fight the entire Ministry herself. "What does Albus say?"

"He's in the other room, he just returned as well. He's doing his best to use his sway in the Ministry to placate Fudge." Mr. Weasley told her, before looking to the group. "Albus says he'll do everything in his power to prevent that, and I believe him. He won't let Harry go to Azkaban."

"Azkaban prison?" Harry asked, feeling out of the loop. "Why would the Minister want to send me there for?"

"Because you broke the Statue of Secrecy." Sirius told him.

"But also because, according to them; 'attacked a Muggle residential area and destroyed Muggle property'." Lupin told him, looking white as a sheet. "Harry, this is serious, now, none of us in this room believe that you meant to do anything wrong, but we need to understand what happened so we can best help you."

Harry told them everything. How he had been at a Muggle park, how Dudley and his gang had shown up, then out of nowhere three Dementors attacked them. He told them how he couldn't cast a Patronus charm, so he was forced to use more martial magic.

"You couldn't cast a Patronus?" Lupin questioned, seemingly worried. "Any theory as to why? You had seemingly mastered the charm two years ago…"

Harry shrugged. "I don't know, I just couldn't cast it." He told them. "I tried thinking of every happy memory I have, but nothing. I don't know… it also doesn't help that my magic feels funny."

"Funny, how?" Sirius asked.

"...It's hard to put into words," Harry told them. "It's like… well, I guess it feels like when your arm is asleep? But instead it's my magic, and it's through my whole body. Whenever I try to cast magic," he held up his hand and waved his fingers as if to demonstrate. "It just feels all tingly."

The four adults in the room shared a worried look, making Harry concerned.

"We should tell Albus." Lupin said, before giving Harry a reassuring look. "But don't worry, Harry, there could be multiple reasons for the sensation you're feeling, and most of them can easily be remedied by simple potions, or, even by a good night's rest."

"I'll go get him." Mrs. Weasley said, leaving the room. "He should really hear this straight from Harry." Kingsley stepped through the door as soon as Mrs. Weasley left.

"Arthur," Kingsley said. "I need to get back to the Ministry before I'm missed, but I've ordered Tonks to patrol the neighborhood. So don't worry."

"Thank you, Kingsley." Arthur nodded. "We understand that you can't stay. Just be careful in the Ministry, Fudge is raising hell."

"I will, old friend." With that, the dark-skinned Auror left.

Mrs. Weasley returned after a few seconds, looking miffed. "Mrs. Weasley?" Harry asked. "Where's Dumbledore? …Did he already leave?"

"No, no, Harry, he hasn't left yet." Mrs. Weasley told him. "He's busy convincing the Minister to hold off on issuing a warrant for your arrest. He should be along once he's done, don't you worry."

"I- I haven't been expelled, have I?"

The answer was delayed. "...That remains to be seen." Lupin told him. "But for now, you should rest. It will help you recharge your magic."

"Yes, yes, indeed." Mrs. Weasley said. "You should pop upstairs and rest until Dumbledore is able to talk to you. Take the third door on the left on the third floor."

Knowing better than to argue, he agreed. "...Okay."

Harry found the door in question, opening it. A mass of curly brown hair shot through the doorway, crashing into him. It took Harry a second to realize it was Hermione.

"Oh, Harry! I was so terrified when Professor Lupin told us you had been attacked by dementors and wouldn't wake up."

"It's okay, Hermione." He accepted the hug, patting her awkwardly on the back. The buzzing in his ears got louder. "It's okay. I'm fine."

"What happened, mate? You alright?" Ron asked, standing just outside of Hermione's hug range. "They said you were attacked by three Dementors, but surely those foul gits wouldn't give you any trouble anymore?"

"I…" Harry started to say, but trailed off, not knowing how to put it into words. "I couldn't get the Patronus to work." He admitted. "My magic has been acting weird all summer."

"Weird how?" Hermione asked seriously, stepping closer again. "What do you mean?"

Great, Harry thought, that was the wrong thing to say around Hermione. Now she wouldn't rest until he told her everything and she had a plan to help him. A plan that probably involved research at the library once they returned to Hogwarts. Or, if he returned to Hogwarts.

"It just feels all tingly," he told her, just like he had Sirius and the others downstairs. "Like when your arm is asleep."

"I haven't heard anything like that before," she said, hand to her chin in thought. "I'll have to do some research. I'm sure I'll find something in the library to help you."

See? Hermione was just too easy to predict sometimes. "You don't have to." He told her, feeling it would go ignored. "Lupin said it could be a lot of different things." Hermione looked like she was about to speak, so he continued. "I already talked to him, Sirius and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. He said it could be fixed with some rest."

Hermione's shoulders relaxed a millimeter, but she still looked determined. "But still, I want to do some of my own research, just for my piece of mind."

The buzzing in his ears got louder, making him twitch his head. His scar started to burn as well. Great. "Knock yourself out." He mumbled, ready to end this conversation and talk about more important things. He knew Hermione meant well, and he loved her for that, but sometimes she was a little overbearing. "What's going on?"

"What do you mean?" Hermione asked, puzzled.

"Voldemort!" He nearly shouted, Ron and Hermione both flinched. "What's going on with Voldemort? What's he planning? Why are we here? Why is there a group of wizards and witches downstairs? And why haven't you two been replying to my letters?"

"He… he told us not to write you, Dumbledore, I mean." Hermione admitted. "We wanted to write you, I swear, but Dumbledore made us swear we wouldn't tell you anything."

"Why would he do that?" Harry questioned, getting angrier by the second, the buzzing in his ears and the stinging of his scar getting worse. "Why's he keeping me in the dark for? You two are here, wherever we are, and I had to stay with the Dursley's?! Why?"

"He didn't want you to know anything about the Order." Ron said.

"What order?" Harry asked. "Dumbledore ordered something?"

"No," Hermione answered. "The Order of the Phoenix. It's a secret society, of sorts. Dumbledore is the leader. He formed it during the last war to fight You-Know-Who. I don't know when, but he started it up again. Everyone here is a member."

"Except us." Ron said, upset. "Mum says we're too young, even if we've dealt with him before."

"Who's all in it?"

"Dumbledore, of course." Hermione said, listing off names. "Professors McGonagall and Snape, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Aurors Shacklebolt and Tonks, Mad-Eye— the real Mad-Eye—, and several more adults I don't know. No one will tell us anything, even how many members they have. But they've sworn us to secrecy."

"You could have at least told me," Harry started. "I wouldn't have told anyone, you know that."

"We wanted to," Hermione said. "But Dumbledore-"

"Dumbledore doesn't know everything, does he?" He yelled, cutting her off. "You could have at least written to me, let me know anything! Why am I only finding out now that there's a group dedicated to fighting Voldemort? I'm the one he wants, I should be one of the ones to kill him."

"Harry, please. We wanted-"

"SHUT UP!" He roared. "You're just making excuses! The both of you. Why am I the only one being kept in the dark when you two get to know everything-"

"We don't know anything you don't know, Harry." Hermione said, trying to calm him down. "Dumbledore said-"

"I don't give a rats' arse what Dumbledore said." He interrupted her again. "He made me stay at the Dursley's when I could have been here! Or anywhere else! Do you know how bad they were this summer?!"

Hermione's eyes went wide. "...Are they… mistreating you?" She asked cautiously, and Harry realized his slip. He didn't tell Ron and Hermione about the Dursleys, not really, not in full. He mentioned how they 'disliked' him and hated magic, and how he had all the chores, but he never implied anything else on purpose. He knew Hermione would overreact, and insist on him telling someone like Dumbledore, but Harry knew that wouldn't solve anything. Dumbledore was the person who forced him to go back there every summer, he wouldn't just let Harry go somewhere else.

Harry didn't know what to say, so he didn't say anything. The buzzing was almost deafening.

Hermione wouldn't let it go, however. "...Harry," she said softly. "If they're… mistreating you… I'm sure Dumbledore would like to-"

"DUMBLEDORE'S THE ONE WHO FORCES ME TO GO BACK THERE!" He roared, but his voice was barely audible over the buzzing in his ears. "He doesn't care about how they treat me! He could have sent me anywhere else but there, but he didn't! I asked to stay at the Burrow instead, but he refused!"

Hermione shrank back from his volume. "S-sorry, I didn't know-"

"Well if you'd have bothered to answer my letters, you'd have known!" He yelled. "But you didn't care enough to ignore Dumbledore!"

Hermione's eyes started to water, her lip quivering. "I-"

"Don't be such an arse to Hermione," Ron cut in, giving Harry a narrowed gaze. "It's not her fault Dumbledore wouldn't let us send letters, or reply to yours. He blocked all owls in and out of the Burrow before we came here. And no owl can find this place-"

"There are other ways to talk to me than letters-!"

"But Dumbledore wouldn't let us." Ron cut him off this time. "I get you're upset, mate. I'd be too if it was me, but you don't need to take it out on us, especially Hermione."

Harry's eyes shot to Hermione, but softened instantly. There were tears falling from her eyes. In an instant, almost all of Harry's anger washed away. He took a step closer to her, his voice calm. "I- I'm so sorry, Hermione." He said, truthfully. "I… I'm just so angry… I didn't mean to yell at you."

"...Apology accepted." She sniffed, wiping away her tears. Hermione wasn't the type of girl that just cried at any little thing, so Harry knew how much he must have upset her. "Just… please don't yell at me again, alright? Ron and I are on your side, here."

"I know, I'm sorry. I won't get mad at you again, I swear."

"Thank you."

Harry took a deep breath, the noise quieted just a bit. "Alright, what else do you two know about this Order?"

Hermione nodded, before beginning to tell him everything she, Ron and the twins knew.

~Flowerpot Line Break~

On the first floor of Grimmauld Place, an emergency Order meeting had just been called. Albus had to conclude his discussions with the Minister for the night to get to more important business.

"I am relieved that you could all come here on such short notice." He told the group, looking out to see the Weasley's, Sirius, Remus, Nymphadora, Minerva, Severus, Elphias Doge, Dedalus Diggle, Emmeline Vance, Sturgis Podmore and Hestia Jones. "We have much to discuss, but I would first like you all to know that Harry is indeed safe."

He noticed Minerva let out a breath of relief, while Severus looked displeased.

"We still do not know the reason he was attacked by the Dementors, or how they escaped Azkaban, though the Minister assures me he knows nothing of it."

"A right lie, that is." Sirius muttered. "The Ministry controls the Dementors, and Fudge controls the Ministry."

"I believe someone in the Ministry is behind the Dementors," he agreed. "But I am confident the Minister is not the mastermind behind it. It would be too bold a strategy for him, and it would gain him nothing but my ire."

"So, who do ya think it is?" Young miss Nymphadora asked. "Malfoy?"

"No, again." Albus said. "Lucius, while having the Minister's ear, does not have the sway to control the Dementors. It is likely someone else in the Ministry, someone in power."

"Well, we can narrow it down a bit." Arthur told him. "Madam Bones has the authority, but we all know she would never do such a thing. Perhaps it is a different Head of a Department?"

"Speculation will get us nowhere!" Sirius slammed his fist on the table, silencing them. "All I want is to assure that Harry is safe and taken care of this year." He gave Albus a hard look. "What have you done to guarantee his safety going forward? Or will you be having him risk his life in some Merlin-damned chamber again? Or maybe force him to compete in another deadly tournament?! Or will you just throw him at a Basilisk again?!"

The room was silent for half a minute, no one daring to say anything. Albus did not rise to Sirius' anger, however. He was more furious than anyone over what young Harry had been forced to endure while at Hogwarts. While he knew of Harry's role in the coming war, he still did not wish harm to befall him.

Albus pushed up his half moon spectacles. "I am glad you brought it up, Sirius. As I have been giving the matter a great deal of thought. Today's events were rather disturbing, as well the effects on Harry's magic."

"How do you mean?" Minerva asked, her lips a thin line. "What has happened to Potter's magic?"

"He has expressed some problems controlling his magic as of late, so I think it best to keep an eye on him." Albus answered, not going into further detail. "And for that someone to be at Hogwarts."

"I can keep an extra eye on him, Ms. Granger and Mr. Weasley." Minerva told him, before letting out a breath through her nose. "However, I do not know if it will be effective enough. They do not trust me enough to give me vital information. The professor-student dynamic is too wide for them to ever let me in on what they are thinking or doing. I had hoped that they would have learned that they could come to me with anything by now, but I realize now I was too hopeful."

"Those are my thoughts exactly." Albus agreed, before choosing his next words carefully. "I have come to learn over the years that Mr. Potter does not, almost on principle, trust adults, especially those in authority." He paused for a moment, watching the reactions of the others. No one said anything, but he could see them all silently agree.

"And loath I am to admit it," he continued. "But we, especially we at Hogwarts, have not given him any reason to. We allowed him and his friends to deal with problems that should have been ours. We have allowed them to be in danger too often, and therefore we have not earned his trust."

"So what would you do?" Sirius demanded. "Task some student to spy on him?"

"No, no, of course not. We could never put a student in that position, nor could we trust them fully. No, I believe our only course of action is to task a professor to watch over him. To have this professor get close enough to Mr. Potter to gain his trust, so that if he ever comes into danger again, we can protect him. This professor would also watch out for any signs that Mr. Potter is losing control of his magic, a condition we still do not know the cause of."

"Who would this professor be?" Minerva questioned. "I am by far the closest to Potter and his friends, but he does not trust me fully."

"Forgive an old man, Minerva, and please do not be insulted," Albus smiled. "But I believe that a younger professor would be better suited to the task. So that the age-gap, and thereby the unfortunate dynamic, would be lessened. I believe that if Mr. Potter can view this professor as not only an instructor, but a friend, he will trust them. And then, we could better ensure his safety."

"But which professor could do that?" Remus asked, thinking back to the professors he taught with when he worked at Hogwarts. "The youngest professor is still Aurora Sinistra, is it not? What is she, only 25 now?"

"Oh, Sinistra." Sirius winked, a grin on his face. "Now that is a pretty bird if I've ever seen one. I'm sure if you asked Aurora to bat her eyelashes at Harry, he'd trust her immediately and spill his guts."

"We will be doing no such thing!" Minerva cried, looking aghast. "We would never allow a professor to do such a thing to a student, no matter the reason."

Albus said nothing, knowing what he was about to suggest. Minerva would be against it from the start.

"But if you want Harry to trust a professor, and for that professor to be young," Sirius defended. "Aurora is our best bet."

"I have already selected whom I believe to be best suited for the task." Albus said, before looking at Minerva and Severus. "As my fellow professors are already aware, we have just begun a new subject at Hogwarts for students of third year and up; the 'Nonhuman Cultures and Magical Societies of the World' class, to be exact."

Albus saw Minerva suck a breath, knowing what was coming, but he continued. "And, as such, a professor is needed to teach such class. Although, I must admit that with the possible exception of Filius, no professor at Hogwarts would be suitable. And, as it just so happens, this newest professor is also our youngest professor to date. She, also conveniently, already knows Mr. Potter, and, as such, I believe she stands the best chance to gain his trust."

"Albus, you must be joking…" Severus said slowly. "Surely you aren't suggesting-"

"Just who is this bird that Snivelus doesn't want her around Harry?" Sirius demanded. Albus ignored his childish insult of a nickname for Severus, though Severus looked ready to draw his wand.

"Not someone we should have any worry about," Albus said. "It is none other than the former Beauxbatons champion, Ms. Fleur Delacour. She recently received her teaching license and we have already hired her as the newest Hogwarts professor."

"I do not think it is wise to give Ms. Delacour this task." Minerva said. "I change my mind, give it to Aurora."

"Albus," Molly began, looking upset. "Surely you aren't going to trust a Veela to teach hormonal teenagers? I do not mean to speak poorly of a witch I have never met, but it is in her nature-"

"It is in her nature to teach and care for those close to her." Albus cut her off softly. "Minerva, Filius, Severus, Pomona and I have already discussed Ms. Delacour in length in our numerous interviews and meetings. Ms. Delacour had outstanding marks and results from Beauxbatons, and her unique knowledge and understanding of nonhuman cultures is admittingly unrivaled in all of Europe. While she attended Hogwarts for the Tournament last year, she was nothing but a well-behaved young lady, one, who despite her Veela heritage, did her best to conceal her Allure." He gestured to Minerva who was still looking unsure. "I remained out of the vote, as I had suggested her. Ms. Delacour received three out of four approvals, so, if you all still have concerns, I suggest you ask Minerva why she eventually convinced the other two to accept Ms. Delacour."

Minerva shot him an icy glare, but Dumbledore continued. "I have no concerns over Ms. Delacour's ability to conceal her Allure and teach our students. As well as get close to Harry and keep an eye on him."

"But Albus," Molly said. "She's a Veela. Even if she fights her Allure, Harry will still be affected— so will Ron, I can already see the potential problems there—, will Harry be able to fight her Allure?"

Sirius barked a laugh. "If anyone can resist such a beautiful witch, it would be my godson!"

"But didn't you just suggest we use Aurora to bat her eyelashes at him?" Arthur asked. "Which is it?"

"It doesn't matter." Molly said. "I'm sorry, I have nothing against her as a witch or a person, but her Veela Allure is just too strong for her to teach at Hogwarts, let alone get close to Harry. Not one boy in her class will ever pay attention enough in her class in order to learn anything-"

"I believe that is enough insulting Ms. Delacour." Albus cut her off with a wave. "We have already discussed this as the Heads of Houses and Hogwarts, and we determined that Ms. Delacour is trustworthy enough to not let her unfortunate Veela abilities interfere with her work. I will hear no more opinions on the matter of her qualifications or abilities."

The room was silent for several moments, before Remus cleared his throat. "Are you really confident that Harry will trust and confide in this Ms. Delacour enough? From what I have heard of her and Harry, she and him were not exactly close last year during the Tournament." He rubbed his hands together in thought. "Will them knowing each other be enough for Harry to trust her? Or would her now being a professor ruin any chance of that?"

"I have already given that matter a great deal of thought," Albus admitted. "I know Harry to be an excellent judge of character, he will be able to see that Ms. Delacour only wishes to get to know him, as we will not be informing her of the reasons for our desire to watch him. I will only ask her to try to get to know him as she hadn't last year."

"Is that going to be enough for her to try to get close to him?" Arthur asked. "What if she has no interest in getting to know him?"

"There is also the matter of Mr. Potter saving her younger sister, Gabrielle." Albus told them. "Veela are whole-heartidly passionate about their family, and, as such, she will have a great deal of gratitude and appreciation for his role in saving her sister." Albus smiled, looking to Sirius, saying, "And, if that does not work, we could always ask Ms. Delacour to, what was it, Sirius, 'bat her eyelashes' at him?" He asked with a chuckle, joking.

Neither Molly nor Minerva looked pleased— and Severus still had a scowl on his face— but the remaining members chuckled with him.

"I only jest," he assured them. "I have full confidence in Ms. Delacour, as well in Harry. We can trust them to be mature."

~Flowerpot Line Break~

As soon as Albus concluded the meeting for the night, Minerva sought him out in the next room, as he knew she would.

"Albus," she said. "To you truly trust Ms. Delacour with this task? Molly may be correct that her Veela abilities may negatively affect-"

"Where were these concerns when you voted to hire Ms. Delacour?" Albus asked rather straightforwardly. "You yourself vetted and reviewed her teaching credentials and sat in on her mock teaching lessons last month." He paused, picking his next words carefully. "Minerva, do you have any genuine concerns about Ms. Delacour's ability to teach? Because if you do, I will trust your judgment as an educator and an old friend and fire her immediately…" He gave her a look. "But if you only protest because I am asking her to keep an eye on Harry, I must say it is not enough to sway my decision."

Minerva glared at him, but he was unfazed. He already knew she thought Ms. Delacour would make a great teacher, if she hadn't, she wouldn't have approved of her.

Minerva's lips went in a thin line, knowing he had her. "I just have concerns that if other students— particularly the boys, and some girls— notice Ms. Delacour giving Harry extra attention, then they may wrongly assume something has formed between them. Regardless of her efforts in hiding her allure, she is still an incredibly beautiful witch, and, as such, students will still envy her."

"They also envy Aurora."

"Yes, but Aurora was not attending Hogwarts as a student only one short year ago." Minerva countered. "I fear some students will not be able to view her as a professor now and attempt to disrespect or even take advantage of her."

Albus' eyes twinkled. "And if they do, I pity the poor soul who does."

"Albus-"

"I will instruct her to keep it a secret." He said with a calming hand. "Ms. Delacour knows better than to loudly proclaim her intention to befriend Harry. We can trust her with this."

"I hope you're right, Albus." Minerva said, not knowing if she was convinced or not. "But I will go along with it, for Harry's sake."

"Thank you, Minerva."

Albus gave his old friend a goodbye and headed for the door, but was stopped by a mass of red hair.

"Oh, Albus, there you are." Molly said. "Harry has been waiting to speak with you." She started for the stairs. "I'll go fetch him-"

"I am sorry, Molly, but I cannot speak to Harry at the moment."

She paused, looking him over as if something was wrong with him. "Why not?"

"I must speak with Cornelius," Albus lied. "I am still fighting to get Harry a trial before his sentencing."

Molly seemed to understand, but pressed on. "But surely you could spare a moment-"

"I'm sorry, Molly." Albus cut her off for a second time. "I cannot. Please, give Harry my sympathies, but I cannot talk to him at this time."

Molly looked like she was about to say something, but he didn't give her the chance, stepping out of the door and into the midnight air. He apparated away a second later.

to be continued

(Author's Note)

Well, there we have it, the first chapter of a story some people have been waiting months and months for. I hope it was worth the wait.

So, we opened the story with Harry being chased by Dementors as usual, but why wasn't his Patronus working? And why is his magic feeling 'weird'? Dumbledore is going to task the recently hired Fleur Delacour with keeping an eye on Harry this year, with the intention of befriending him and gaining his trust, so that if he is ever in need, the Order would know and be able to help him.

Speaking of Dumbledore, in this story he will not be Light! Dumbledore, or Greater Good! Dumbledore, but more of a realistic-ish, what you see is what you get(mostly), Dumbledore. He knows what role Harry will face in the coming war, including his death, but that does not mean he is willing to put in more danger. Everything that has happened to Harry in the story so far has been out of his control, so now he vows to do what he can to keep Harry safe.

He knows Harry doesn't trust him, or any adult— especially ones in authority— for that matter, so he's going to task a former pier to befriend him in order to gain his trust. It may be a little backhanded, attempting to use someone to keep an eye on Harry by befriending him and gaining his trust, but Dumbledore's intentions are good here. At least in this fic.

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QOTD: What is your favorite Harry ship? If it's Flowerpot, as I assume it is if you're reading this story, do you have any other favorites?

Next time: The newest Hogwarts professor