I don't own Harry Potter, and I'm doing this for fun, not profit. Please let that be a sufficient disclaimer!
...
It was only two days before Harry and Fleur would return to Hogwarts, autumn had arrived in a torrent of rain, and Harry's exams results had finally arrived.
"Well, my heart? Open the letter!" Fleur excitedly ordered.
Harry looked a little apprehensive – these were his OWLs, and his Potions NEWT, and they mattered. Nervously, he opened his envelope, read the important part, and sighed in relief.
"Well?" asked Fleur, impatiently. She was sure Harry had done well, but she wanted to know how well.
Harry offered the letter and Fleur eagerly took it, reading quickly through the results. "'arry, you've done really well! An O in Defence and in Herbology, an E in the rest... oh, and an O in your Potions NEWT!" Fleur noted happily.
From outside the room, Sebastian and Appoline had been shamelessly eavesdropping. This was discovered when Appoline spoke. "Well done, my little fly! That's amazing!"
"Indeed, you've done us proud, my little cabbage!" Sebastian added.
Harry blushed at the praise, pleased at his grades but also at the response to it from those he loved.
"We should celebrate, 'arry. Is there anything you'd like to do before you return to 'ogwarts?" Appoline asked.
Harry grinned. There was one thing he was hoping to do again before the end of the holidays...
...
"Geoff?" asked the snake.
"Huh? What is it, Barry?" came the sleepy reply.
"Do you know what my name rhymes with?" Barry asked, far too cheerily for the morning.
"What are you on about?" came Geoff's confused reply.
"I've just realised my name rhymes with something! Guess what it is!" Barry asked, excitedly.
Geoff rolled his large snake eyes. Hopefully if he guessed quickly, Barry would be quiet and he could go back to sleep. "Carry. Your name rhymes with carry. Well done, Barry", responded Geoff, trying to sound enthused.
"No, something better than that!" Barry stated, brimming with excitement.
"Garry. It rhymes with Garry. Now, I'll just go back to...", Geoff began.
"No, even better!" replied Barry, almost combusting with excitement.
Geoff sighed, then carried on going through the alphabet. "Harry. Your name rhymes with Harry."
"Yes! Do you think it's fate, Geoff? That my name rhymes with Harry? Maybe I'll be his familiar one day!" exclaimed Barry, his excitement now reaching 'shaking like a toddler on a sugar-high' stage.
"Because your name rhymes with Harry?" Geoff asked, clarifying.
"Yes!" asked Barry, eagerly.
"Barry?"
"Yes?"
"You're an idiot sometimes" said Geoff. Personally, Geoff thought the qualifier was being very polite.
Barry was just about to reply when an unexpected voice interrupted them. "I don't think Barry's an idiot sometimes."
"See! Sometimes I'm not an idiot!" argued Barry, neatly proving Geoff's point.
"Harry!" cried Geoff, his level of excitement chasing after Barry's.
"No", said Barry shaking his head. "My name only rhymes with Harry. Silly Geoff."
"No, I mean behind you!" clarified Geoff, his head pointing towards their favourite human.
"Harry! Look Geoff, Harry's here again!"
Geoff just shook his head in dismay at Barry's reaction – not again!
"Hi Geoff, Hi Barry!" Harry greeted, trying to contain his laughter.
"Harry, did you know your name rhymes with mine?" Barry asked excitedly.
Harry smiled at how animated Barry seemed. "That's right! At least, it does in English."
"Yeah, well we were born in England, and lived there until just before you met us", Geoff interjected.
Harry wasn't convinced that really mattered when it came to Parseltongue, but ignored that thought and carried on. "Ah, I see. Anyway, Fleur thought she'd like to..." Harry began, but was interrupted.
"Harry! You smell of Fleur!" Barry hissed, again full of excitement.
Harry looked confused, but then felt a little embarrassed. He and Fleur had been intimate that morning – still very much enjoying the newness of it all – but surely Barry wasn't referring to...
"What do you mean?" Harry asked, hoping it wasn't what he feared.
"You and Fleur have had a special cuddle!" Barry exclaimed.
"Special cuddle? Did you really just call it a 'special cuddle'?!" asked Geoff, horrified.
"Of course! When a witch and a wizard love each other very much, they have a special cuddle to..." Barry began, quoting... something or someone.
"So, are you hungry?" Harry interrupted, hoping to distract the snakes and also glad the others didn't speak Parseltongue. It was going to be an interesting visit, Harry could tell.
...
Two days later, Katie boarded the Hogwarts express, and headed towards the carriage she usually shared with Harry and others. Harry had clearly arrived there first, and was... preoccupied. Katie shook her head with a smile, and opened the door.
Fleur didn't mean to. She knew they would have company soon. But Harry had been so sweet, just caressing her arm, telling her how much he loved her; Fleur had no choice but to turn her head to the side and softly press her lips against his. Then, unreasonably, Harry had smiled against her lips – and Fleur could tell it was a loving, joyful smile, and so she just had to kiss her fiancé again.
Then Harry had run his hand up her spine and had threaded his fingers through the hair at the back of her head, encouraging her to continue, and Fleur knew it would be entirely unreasonable not to part her lips and gently seek out his tongue with hers. Fleur's tongue then softly, lovingly caressed Harry's own; these were not the frantic, passionate kisses they often shared before intimacy, but were the slow, loving, romantic kisses that they shared in moments like this.
That the slow, loving kisses more often than not turned into frantic, passionate kisses was merely a happy coincidence, Fleur told herself... before once again running the tip of her tongue along the underside of Harry's, exploring, tasting and enjoying. Until the carriage door opened.
"Should I come back later?" Katie asked jokingly, having caught Harry and Fleur in quite a sweet moment.
Fleur jumped a little, before a guilty blush bloomed onto her face. "I'm sorry Katie, I per'aps got carried away, and forgot where we were."
Katie waved Fleur's apology away. "So how were your summers?" she asked, taking a seat next to Harry.
Harry put an arm around Katie to give her a side-hug, then replied. "Really good. Really, really good, Katie."
"Oh? What made the holidays so good?" Katie asked, interestedly.
Harry blushed as an obvious answer came to mind; an answer he wasn't willing to just declare out of the blue.
Fleur saved the day. "Lots of things – Celeste's, seeing Cheveu, Uncle Remus and Uncle Siri, seeing Geoff and Barry, giving Gabrielle angel drops..."
Katie had to interrupt at that last one. "Awww, I bet she was adorable! Tell me all about it!" Katie gushed.
Harry, happy to be on less personal topics, gladly did.
...
Hermione joined them after a few minutes, and then, just as the whistle blew, Ron joined too.
A few minutes into the journey, and Katie, who had been waiting to share some news, couldn't contain her excitement any longer. "Guess what, everyone?" she asked.
Harry had a very good idea of what Katie was excited about, given the lack of a badge he had received in his Hogwarts letter, but didn't want to spoil her announcement. He shared a knowing look with Katie, and squeezed her arm in excitement.
"You're a prefect?" guessed Hermione excitedly.
"No! I'm captain of the Quidditch team!" Katie announced to her friends.
Ron, Harry and Fleur were excited at the news; Ron because he had always been Quidditch mad, and Harry and Fleur because they could guess how happy the news had made Katie, and knew it would help her desire to go professional after Hogwarts.
The five had an impromptu celebration in the carriage, with Neville and Ginny joining them partway through, the latter also excited at the news.
The rest of the ride passed in its usual way – with catching up, laughter, games and snacks from the trolley – but with the bonus addition of Fleur joining them for the start of term journey.
The sorting also passed in the usual way, though Harry interestedly noted that Fleur wasn't sorted; perhaps because she wasn't staying in the dorms? Instead, after the sorting, she was introduced.
"If I may impose on your time for a few more minutes before the feast, I would like to introduce two Masters students this year, both of whom will be well known to most of you", Dumbledore began.
"The first is Fleur Delacour, who will be studying her Potions Mastery with Professor Jones", Dumbledore introduced, to happy applause from the school; several people had met her – and remembered her impressive potion brewing – from last year.
"The second is Harry Potter, who will also be studying his Potions Mastery with Professor Jones", Dumbledore added, this time to very excited applause, particularly from the Gryffindor table.
"Now, I understand that towards the end of the year, Harry and Fleur may end up teaching some of your classes. Treat them with respect in the classroom, as they will be able to give and take points during any lessons they teach", finished Dumbledore.
Then, as the noise levels in the hall started increasing, Dumbledore clapped his hands and plates of food appeared on the tables.
...
Harry longed to spend the night with Fleur in Hogsmeade, but the pair agreed they would limit their nights together to weekends, as that would be easier for Harry to sneak in and out, and had the benefit of no morning lessons, in case the pair got... distracted in the morning.
So after dinner, Harry kissed Fleur softly goodnight, and went back to Gryffindor tower with Katie and the others. On arrival, Katie pulled Harry aside. "Harry, can I ask you something in private?", she requested, nervously.
Harry smiled encouragingly at his best friend. "Of course!" Then, looking round and seeing the other sixth year boys were all in the common room, suggested, "My dorm?"
Katie nodded, and the pair climbed the staircase, opened the door to Harry's dorm, and sat down together on Harry's bed.
"So, what is it, Katie?" Harry asked encouragingly.
Katie fidgeted a little, so Harry put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed gently, which seemed to calm her somewhat.
"It's... I know you're going to be especially busy this year, starting your NEWTs, and your Potions Mastery, and planning a wedding, and seeing Fleur, but I need to ask, and I understand if you don't want to! But I'm really hoping you can, because I'm not sure I'm ready yet, and I'm doing my NEWTs too, and..." Katie began, rambling somewhat.
Harry pulled Katie into a hug, rubbing small circles on her back and ignoring the delicious strawberry scent that she still, completely unfairly, continued to wear. "Katie, you're rambling. Just tell me what it is you want to ask", Harry encouraged.
Katie took a deep breath, squeezed Harry a little tighter, then pushed forward. "Well, there's two things really", she began. Harry didn't flinch, and kept rubbing circles on her back, so Katie continued.
"The first is whether you'd like to help captain the Quidditch team with me this year", she began, trying not to sound too nervous. "It's just that it'll be a completely new team, except us, and I'm scared I'll do a bad job, and..."
"Shhh. It's ok, Katie, I understand. Are you asking me to be deputy captain or co-captain?" Harry clarified.
"I'd really like to co-captain with you, but if you were deputy captain that would be really good too!" Katie replied, hopefully.
"And what's the second thing you wanted to ask?" Harry asked, without yet answering the first question.
"Well, it's a new team, and they aren't all going to be prodigies like you, and... well... they're going to need more time to train, if we're going to win", Katie nervously pointed out.
Harry nodded in understanding, now running his hands up and down Katie's back to try to soothe her nerves. "So you'd like me to co-captain the team, and you'd like longer training sessions?" Harry asked, making sure.
Katie nodded, her worry causing her to hold onto Harry tightly.
"For my best friend? I'll happily co-captain the team, and I'll see if I can fit more training sessions in", Harry answered, causing Katie to instantly relax into his arms; Harry hadn't realised quite how worried she had been.
"Thanks Harry," Katie replied, hugging him tightly. "You're the best!"
...
"Well, Mr. Potter, what subjects will you be taking this year?" Professor McGonagall asked as she made the rounds, handing out timetables.
"Aside from my Potions Mastery, I'll take Defence and Herbology", Harry replied confidently.
"What else? With your OWL results, you have the option of taking any of your subjects to NEWT level" McGonagall assured him.
Harry smiled, perhaps a little apologetically. "Thank you professor, but I think that's about all I can manage; with my Potions Mastery, co-captaining the Quidditch team, and starting to plan my wedding, I don't know if I could cope with any more", Harry admitted.
McGonagall strongly wanted to protest – the young Mr. Potter could at least take one or two more NEWTs – but she understood where his priorities were, and couldn't fault them too much.
"But Harry, you'll be limiting your career options! The more NEWTs you take, the more choices you'll have after Hogwarts!" Hermione insisted.
Harry shook his head and smiled. "But I already know what I want to do after Hogwarts", Harry explained.
"Oui. 'arry and I will be setting up our own Potions shop in Northern France", Fleur added, earning a pleased nod from Harry.
...
Having heard that sixth year was far harder work than even fifth year, Harry was a little apprehensive about how much homework he would be set. However, by the end of the first week of lessons, Harry was pleased that the increase in homework per subject was balanced out by the smaller number of subjects he was taking.
So much so that Harry felt no guilt at all in sneaking out of Hogwarts on Friday night, and walking with Fleur (albeit under his invisibility cloak) towards their Hogsmeade house.
Once they were in Hogsmeade and out of sight of the castle, Harry took the cloak off, and the pair walked hand-in-hand towards their temporary home.
After they were both inside, Fleur wasted no time. She kissed Harry eagerly, mewling when he returned the kiss with fervour. Her hands snaked their way up his back and into his hair, desperation and hunger driving her actions more than anything else.
Harry loved every second. At some point Fleur's necklace had come off, and so her allure was pouring off of her, wrapping around Harry like a sensual blanket and stoking his desire. Not that he needed it – Harry had read that women have less hunger than men, and so Harry had let Fleur initiate each time so far... but he craved Fleur's touch so strongly, and had hoped the weekend would begin this way.
Within minutes Harry and Fleur were in the bedroom, and it was only half an hour after that, their passions satisfied, that the pair could catch their breath and talk.
"I love you so much, my cherished", Fleur began, having caught her breath first.
After a moment, so had Harry. "I love you too, my heart. So, so much", Harry replied, with feeling.
Fleur basked in that love, before a thought popped into her mind. "'arry?"
"Yes, Fleur?"
"Boulogne-sur-Mer", Fleur stated with certainty.
"What?" Harry asked, devoid of understanding.
"Boulogne-sur-Mer. It's a town in northern France, and has good beaches. Not as good as those in Southern France, but still very good", Fleur explained.
"For our house?" Harry asked, clarifying.
"Yes. It will be easy to apparate to London – easier than back home to Mama and Papa – but still in France", Fleur elaborated.
"It sounds wonderful. Just like my fiancée", Harry replied, with the cheesiness of the sixteen-year-old he was.
...
Harry and Fleur were enjoying their Potions Mastery. It was odd for Harry – he had enjoyed both lessons and private tutoring with Professor Jones, but this was something in between – much more set in terms of material to cover, but still with the same comradery he had come to enjoy. That Fleur was there with him was a huge bonus.
"Ok, the next topic will be either really fun or horrendous, depending on how naturally you pick it up: modifying potions to go off-piste", Jones announced.
"What do you mean?" Fleur asked.
Jones smiled and started to explain. "Suppose you really need doxycide, but you can't get your hands on dragon liver. What do you do?"
Realisation dawned on both Harry and Fleur's faces. "You mean changing the recipe for potions we can already make?" Harry asked, just to make sure.
Jones nodded, a smile on her face. "That's right! But let's see if you can answer my question, it's a good case study."
Harry and Fleur both thought about the challenge. Fleur was the first to come up with an idea. "What about a different liver? Dragon liver purifies, so unicorn liver could also work?" Fleur suggested.
"But dragon liver is stronger, so you'd either need extra unicorn liver, or you'd need to change the potion in some way", Harry pointed out.
"Unicorn liver and some powdered unicorn horn?" Fleur suggested.
"With an extra clockwise turn, so the horn is properly mixed in?" Harry added
The pair turned towards their professor, to see a broad smile on her face. "Good idea, and good reasoning! Unicorn liver is about 80% as effective as dragon liver, so you wouldn't need much of the unicorn horn, maybe only a small spoonful. And the extra turn is a nice touch.
"This is a large part of what the mastery is about. You're both at the level where you can follow pretty much any recipe, but a real potion master can improve another's recipe, and even create their own. I look forward to what you both come up with", Jones finished with a smile.
...
Whilst his mastery and his NEWT subjects were going well, Quidditch was another matter. There seemed to be slim pickings for the Gryffindor team this year, with only Ginny really impressing in the trials.
Still, Katie and Harry were determined to keep up their winning streak, and so Harry gave in and let Katie schedule more than twice as many training sessions as Wood had been allowed, plus an additional training session on Saturday mornings that, as seeker, Harry wouldn't be required at. At least, that was the official story, and no-one seemed interested in challenging it.
Either way, the training paid off, at least to the extent that Gryffindor were able to keep Slytherin less than 150 points ahead, so when Harry caught the snitch the score was 220-180, so the lions won their first match of the year.
Katie was both relieved and pleased, though whilst she wouldn't say so to the rest of the team, it was really her and Harry that had mostly carried them through the match.
...
Towards the end of the first term, on a Friday just before a Hogsmeade weekend, Harry had a surprise. As usual, he had snuck out of the castle to spend the night with Fleur, though this time when the couple arrived at their Hogsmeade house, there were visitors.
"Big brother!" "Harry!"
"Gabrielle! Cheveu! What are you both doing here?" Harry asked, before wrapping his arms around his sisters and embracing them tightly.
"We're here for the weekend! Surprise!" Cheveu explained.
A broad grin spread a across Harry's face. "For the whole weekend?" Harry asked, not quite believing it.
Gabrielle nodded happily. "Of course! I've been wanting to visit all term, especially as I picked out the furniture in the guest room!"
Harry smiled affectionately at his little sister. Then an idea formed in his brain, and he asked an important question of Fleur. "My cherished, does France have butterbeer?"
Fleur rolled her eyes, though the affection in them was clearly visible. "Yes, though it's rare. Are you trying to spoil my sister?"
Harry nodded merrily. "Of course I am! Gabrielle, do you want to be spoiled?"
Gabrielle took on a very solemn expression and said, with her best responsible-sounding voice, "If my big brother thinks it best, I will defer to his excellent judgement."
Fleur rolled her eyes again, Cheveu laughed, and Harry kissed Gabrielle's hair affectionately. "Such a wise little sister", Harry commented.
...
Gabrielle loved butterbeer. The following day she found that she loved Honeydukes too. She also enjoyed the sugar quills at Zonko's, though was disappointed they didn't sell anything like angel drops; Cheveu promised to take her to a real joke shop on their return home.
Gabrielle wanted to see Hogwarts, and Harry did consider just sneaking her in under the cloak, but figured Dumbledore might let her have a tour, particularly as it was a Hogsmeade weekend so students were coming and going throughout the day. As fortune would have it, Harry ran into Dumbledore in the village, and the Professor was willing to let Gabrielle and Cheveu visit... under the strictest condition that they each took two lemon drops.
And so, after lunch at the Three Broomsticks – venison pies for Harry and Fleur, steak pie for Cheveu and chicken and asparagus pie for Gabrielle – Gabrielle was given a tour of Hogwarts.
"Hello Gabrielle!" Katie exclaimed, as the group entered the Gryffindor common room as part of the tour. "And hello Cheveu! What are you both doing here?!"
"Visiting Harry and Fleur for the weekend", explained Fleur, as Gabrielle raced towards Katie and threw her arms around her.
"Katie! I'm so glad I found you!" Gabrielle exclaimed, making Katie remember her desire to learn French.
The group didn't stay in the tower long, as Gabrielle wanted to see more of the castle, though Katie did opt to join the group for the rest of the tour – much to Gabrielle's delight.
The tour continued as planned, with the added bonus that the group ran into Daphne near the kitchens. She hadn't hung around very long – just long enough to exclaim, "There's two of them?! You're not getting another Galleon, Harry!", before hugging him briefly and disappearing to... who knows where.
Harry had even managed to introduce Gabrielle to the sorting hat, who merrily declared that, "the young girl is definitely a Hufflepuff, with her strong focus on family!" That wasn't too much of a surprise to the group, and Cheveu in particular was delighted.
All too soon it was dinner time, and with Dumbledore's blessing Gabrielle and Cheveu ate in the great hall. Afterwards, Harry made a little show of saying goodbye to Fleur and his sisters, then found a quiet corner to don his invisibility cloak.
Unfortunately he was spotted in the act. Fortunately it was by Katie, who had planned to head back to the tower with him but now intended to join him. Harry happily agreed, and so the sleepover at Harry and Fleur's continued with another guest.
...
The sleepovers became a regular occurrence during the first two terms, with every Hogsmeade weekend spent with some visitors – mostly Gabrielle and Cheveu, though once Sirius and Remus.
The Gryffindor Quidditch team continued to improve, too - their second game against Hufflepuff going much better, with a final score of 240-100. Katie was pleased the team, even without Harry, were already almost holding their own against another, even if it was the Badgers.
Harry's studies were also going well, with Harry confident he would do well in his electives.
And towards the end of the second term, there was another thing Harry was learning.
"Now, whisk the mixture well; we don't want lumps of flour", Fleur instructed, on a Saturday morning.
Harry dutifully complied, whisking so well that he splattered himself with the batter; it was a good job he was wearing the kitchen apron.
"Maybe not that well", Fleur laughed, waving her wand to clear the mess off the apron.
Harry smiled; it was only his first attempt, so some mistakes were expected. "What next, my love?" Harry asked, once the mixture was ready.
Fleur's eyes lit up as she answered. "Now we cook the batter!"
Harry looked surprised. "Is that it?" he checked.
Fleur nodded. "Yes. Just cook the batter, and then we have crêpes."
Harry stared in disbelief. "But that was so easy! The strawberry syrup was harder work than that!" he protested.
Fleur grinned at her fiancé's reaction. "The difficulty of crêpes are in the fillings, not the crêpes themselves", she replied wisely.
Harry smiled, happy that he had learned to cook something so quickly. "Well my cherished, grab a pan – we want to cook lots of crêpes!" Harry declared.
Fleur smiled affectionately – it was sweet how pleased Harry was.
...
Fleur decided she would have to teach Harry how to cook more foods – he wasn't terrible in the kitchen, and whilst she enjoyed cooking she didn't want to have to do it all once they were married.
Though that would need to wait for next term, as there was less than a week left before the Easter holidays. Fleur, for her part, was happy how the year was going, even if she hadn't made much of a start on planning the wedding.
Wait... She hadn't made much of a start on planning the wedding! She was getting married in less than eighteen months, and she hadn't done much at all! Clearly she had been neglectful, though of course that was completely Harry's fault – the weekdays were busy, and how was she supposed to achieve anything during weekends when she spent each one with her gorgeous, charming, loving, sweet, adorable fiancé?
Clearly she would need to make more progress over the Easter break.
...
The second term came to an end, and as Harry was riding on the Hogwarts express back to London, a sudden realisation hit him. He intellectually knew the fact already, but as he sat opposite Katie, talking about their Easter plans, Harry suddenly felt that knowledge: next term was Katie's last at Hogwarts.
"What's wrong, my heart?" Fleur murmured from her seat next to Harry.
"Just thinking how I'll miss my best friend next year", Harry replied quietly, so only Fleur could hear.
"Tell her then; she probably feels the same, and would be appreciate you telling her", Fleur encouraged.
Harry smiled and nodded. He moved to sit next to Katie, then rested his head on her shoulder.
"Hey Harry. What's up?" Katie asked quietly, as Fleur turned to engage Hermione and Ron in conversation.
"Just going to miss you next year, that's all", Harry murmured.
Katie put an arm around her best friend, dispensing a side-hug quite effectively. "I'm going to miss you too, Harry. Though I'll visit you and Fleur when I can", Katie reassured.
Harry closed his eyes, enjoying the nearness of his friend, and thought about the positives – at least he would still have Fleur's company next year! Then, he made the most of the train ride by spending it chatting away to Katie; after all, he had the Easter break to spend with his wonderful fiancée, so he could at least spend this time now with Katie.
...
Author Notes:
I'm aware someone has just started writing an AU of Delacour Godparents. That person... spoke to me on the Flowerpot discord first, laid out what they wanted to do, asked really nicely, and even asked my opinion on a few points. They're cool, so go take a look at "Delacour Godparents AU: Love's Melody" if a darker tale, just starting, is of interest.
A huge thanks, as always, to you readers, especially those who favourite, follow or review; knowing there are so many people who enjoy Delacour Godparents brings me joy.
Speaking of reviewers, thanks to The Quotable Patella, guest, jmsdragn, FenreldStormblade and Blue Luver5000 for reviews; and for the Quidditch superstars who are Arnie1701, SiriusOrionBitch, TheGreenBlueHunter, iamshinydragonmist, LAB1, The Quotable Patella (x2), Mitkon2001, alix33, Spider of Dreams, SKFF, PhantomKnightPercival, bahnannah, Magnus Whitlock, magitech, seaweedbrainwisegirl07 (x2), amortentiate, setokayba2n, Qhaq, mike3308, Red Renera, Urgazhi and annette-ella for the additional reviews.
SiriusOrionBitch – noted!
Mitkon2001 – some great ideas; one I was already planning on, one I'll now include. I'll see if I can answer your cake question in the story. My favourite would be Creme Egg Cheesecake.
alix33 – thanks!
The Quotable Patella – thanks for your reviews! Whilst canon Dumbledore is undoubtedly magically powerful, he is also shown to have flawed judgement: letting Harry grow up abused, letting Snape be an abusive and bullying teacher, being unaware that his close friend was actually a Death Eater in disguise for a year, letting Snape teach Harry occlumency, etc. Also, I see no reason why Dumbledore would have much experience in curse breaking specifically, whereas the Goblins have made a career of it.
Seaweedbrainwisegirl07 – four or five. The next story will be a few short offshoots of Delacour Godparents, though I'll write something longer (and again feel-good!) after that. Harry's Horcrux was obliterated at the same time Tom died; I may go back and clarify that.
Amortentiate – completely agree.
setokayba2n – oh, I hadn't thought of that!
FenreldStormblade – not long to go; I'll cover to the end of Harry's seventh year.