Merope Gaunt: Underestimated?

The Gaunts may be half-cracked, inbred, and violent, but they are still powerful wizards. Morfin, the least sane of the three, can cast nonverbal hexes, and Merope is at least as powerful once she is free of her father and brother. So why is the Gaunts' house so filthy?( Because she's crafty. )

The Lost Year

I find it strange that the Potters did not retreat into hiding until a week before their deaths. Even if Dumbledore didn’t tell them about Trelawney’s prophecy, the Fidelius Charm seems like a reasonable precaution for a couple that has “thrice defied” Voldemort; they must have been high on the Dark Lord’s hit list even before the prophecy was made. Fidelius seems even more reasonable when that couple is expecting a child. So why didn’t the Potters cast the charm earlier? Lily was a charms expert, and clues point to her being the one who eventually cast it anyway. So why did they do nothing for over a year? I find it even more strange that Voldemort did not set out to kill Harry or Neville until Halloween of 1981--a full fifteen months after their births. Why not kill them quickly and be done with it?( If you have a lot of questions, sometimes they answer each other. )