"Are you hiring me?" Dobby gazed tearfully at the letter and a stinky sock in his hands. At last, he had finally gotten the freedom he longed for, and in a peaceful way: dismissal.
No, it shouldn't be called dismissal. House-elves had enjoyed freedom since ancient times.
They helped out in human homes in exchange for milk, rice porridge, and bread. They could also grow to despise the way certain members of the family behaved, and when they left, they might even take the master of the house's good luck with them.
Those rights and abilities had vanished over time, as generation after generation of wizards had domesticated them.
Dobby thought that was wrong!
He longed to be free!
But he hadn't expected it to happen so soon, and so peacefully.
Lucius Malfoy, as head of the Malfoy family, had severed his relationship with Dobby. Even though the bond between master and servant had only ever been a verbal pledge of loyalty, its severance was just as verbal.
But that sense of ceremony sent Dobby's heart soaring.
"Yes." Anton nodded with a smile. "Forty Gold Galleons a month, plus five hundred pounds."
"Pounds?" Dobby and Draco both looked stunned.
"I know!" Goyle said excitedly. "It's Muggle money!"
"What does Dobby... what does Dobby need Muggle money for?" Dobby looked utterly confused.
"Maybe you can become the first House-elf to spend money in Muggle society?" Anton chuckled, as though he'd thought of something. "You know, with a simple Confundus Charm, as long as you're making a genuine purchase and not robbing anyone, the Aurors won't arrest you out of respect for me."
"Waaah..." Dobby was so moved he started crying. Tears welled in his enormous, tennis-ball-sized eyes as he hugged the letter and sock tightly. "Mr. Weasley is so good to