The creature that looked like a goblin.
It could Apparate whenever it wanted, appearing and disappearing without a trace...
It was unusually resistant to the Axii Sign.
The only good news was that it meant Harry no harm.
The bad news was that its master was probably very much out to get him.
Harry picked up his pen and quickly wrote a line: "Quick, contact Snape. Save me!"
He tied the note to Hedwig's leg and sent her off to Hermione as quickly as he could. But less than ten minutes later, Hedwig came fluttering back in a daze, pecking at Harry's head and begging for owl treats.
What a bizarre magical ability.
Harry hadn't sensed a thing, yet Dobby had heard his master calling. The thought made Harry's face darken.
Could Dobby really watch him twenty-four hours a day?
That night, Harry pretended to be asleep. Then, in the early hours of the morning, he got up, tied his finished letter to Hedwig, opened the window, and sent her out, bright-eyed and full of energy.
Less than ten minutes later, she flew back proudly.
Dobby really could keep an eye on him at all times.
The next day, Harry tried to use Hedwig as bait and get Dobby to talk, but he never got the chance. Dobby was very wary of Harry's Sign. It appeared, snatched the letter, and vanished again in an instant.
At dinner.
Harry spoke up, addressing Vernon. "Uncle, I'm afraid I'll have to ask to borrow some money."
"Is the inheritance your parents left you not enough for all your strange expenses?" Vernon sneered. "Impossible. You won't get so much as a penny from me."
"You gave me fifty pence for Christmas," Harry pointed out.
Vernon's smile froze.
"I only need enough to get to London," Harry went on. "Of course, if you have the time, you could take me there yourself."
"Going to London to see your strange friends?" Vernon spat, his fork scraping against his plate with a grating squeal.
"Actually, a dangerous creature is after me." Harry calmly cut his sausage. "I'm going to London to ask for help."
The other three stared at Harry.
"A dangerous creature?" Vernon sounded terrified, his voice rising almost to the pitch of Petunia's screams.
Harry nodded.
"How dangerous?" Petunia asked, trembling.
Harry shrugged. "At least, I can't deal with it right now."
Vernon stood up and pointed at the door. "Get out! Now!"
Harry set down his knife and fork and looked at him.
Vernon pulled out his wallet and tossed him a twenty-pound note, then repeated, "Get out!"
Harry took the money and stuffed it into his pocket. He nodded to Vernon. "Thanks. I'll pay you back."
He got up and picked up a kitchen knife. "Aunt Petunia, I'm borrowing this knife."
Petunia watched him deftly tuck it into his waistband and nodded, her heart pounding.
"Only taking a knife? Not bringing any of your strange things?" Vernon raised an eyebrow, gritting his teeth.
"I'll be back." Harry waved without turning around, then paused and added, "Once I've dealt with the dangerous creature."
"You'd better not come back!" Vernon roared, sending him off with his most heartfelt blessing.
When you couldn't handle something yourself, it was best to find someone who could help.
Harry left the neighborhood and took the Underground toward the Leaky Cauldron. Maybe that strange creature could keep him in check, but surely it couldn't restrain an entire pub full of wizards.
And if all else failed...
There was always Diagon Alley, where there were even more people.
Harry had just stepped into a quiet alley when, with a pop, Dobby appeared in front of him and pleaded desperately, "Dobby begs Harry Potter, please don't go any farther."
"Harry Potter must not return to Hogwarts."
Harry looked at him and sneered. "So you're finally willing to show yourself?"
"We should talk, shouldn't we?"
Dobby trembled but said nothing.
"If you can convince me, I might not go to Hogwarts." Harry raised a hand and reached toward his waist, slowly approaching Dobby.
Hope glimmered in Dobby's eyes. "Really?"
"On the condition that you convince me." Harry stopped within striking distance. "First, answer me: who is your master?"
Panic flashed through Dobby's eyes. He kept banging his head against the wall. "Bad Dobby, bad Dobby! Dobby told a secret, told Harry Potter what his master is going to do!"
"Stop." Harry's voice was sharp. "Who is your master?"
Dobby let out a piercing scream. "Dobby can't say. It's his master's secret. Dobby told Harry Potter the secret, but he can't say who his master is."
Then he beat himself even more fiercely.
"What are you?" Harry grabbed Dobby and asked a different question.
Dobby sobbed. "Dobby is a house-elf."
"What does a house-elf do?"
"House-elves serve wizards. They must serve one wizarding family forever. A house-elf nobody wants is the most pitiful, most lowly creature of all."
Harry raised an eyebrow. "Are you from the Malfoy family?"
Dobby looked at Harry in terror, slapping his own face and yanking at his ears as if he wished he could tear them off. "Oh, no! Harry Potter can read Dobby's mind!"
"Dobby didn't say anything, but Harry Potter still knew."
"Bad Dobby! Bad Dobby revealed his master's secret!"
"Bad Dobby is an unworthy house-elf."
Harry nodded coldly. "Seems that way. What exactly is their scheme?"
Dobby trembled and tried to say something, but something ingrained in his very bones stopped him from speaking. All he could do was keep punishing himself.
"You can't stop me." Harry lifted him up and looked him in the eye. "Professor Flitwick will come to see me in a month."
"Do you think you can take on a powerful wizard?"
"Maybe you mean well, but I don't like it. To me, it's malicious."
Dobby sobbed. "Dobby only wants to protect Harry Potter!"
"I don't need you to protect me. I can look after myself." Harry sneered. "How can someone who has to keep punishing himself just for saying something bad about his master protect me?"
"You're helping your master go after me."
Dobby stubbornly argued back. "No, Dobby really is only protecting Harry Potter. A great conspiracy is coming to Hogwarts!"
"Harry Potter..."
Harry tossed him to the ground. "Other than repeating those same few lines, what else can you say?"
"Last year, Dumbledore made me face Voldemort..."
Dobby screamed. "No! You mustn't say his name!"
"A weak little creature." Harry's expression stayed cold as he continued. "I faced Voldemort and fought him. I came through it alive and well."
"Could the danger stirred up by the Malfoy family really be worse than Voldemort?"
Dobby's sobs grew quieter. "But Harry Potter will still be in danger..."
"So you want to put a dog collar around my neck and keep me at home?" Harry's gaze turned fierce.
Dobby looked terrified. "No, Dobby doesn't mean that. Dobby just thought..."
"Do you speak for me?" Harry cut him off. "You think you know what's best for me, so I have to accept it?"
He drew the knife from his waistband and held it to Dobby's throat. "If you really want what's best for me, tell me what the Malfoy family is planning."
"Dobby can't reveal his master's secret." Dobby yanked at his ears until the skin split, blood smearing across them.
Harry's expression was cold. "Then stop bothering me, or I'll kill you."
"No! Dobby must protect Harry Potter!" Dobby shook his head, his voice astonishingly firm and decisive.
Harry frowned. The little patience he had left was gone.
What an annoying creature.
He wouldn't listen to reason, stubborn as a rock.
Harry raised his hand and cast a Sign.
Axii!
All he needed was that split second of unconsciousness.
He swung the kitchen knife at Dobby's neck.
Clang—
The blade plunged into a crack in the wall instead of hitting Dobby. Almost at the same moment, there was a pop, and Dobby vanished from beneath the knife, reappearing on the other side.
Dobby stared at Harry in terror. He raised a hand. "Harry Potter won't listen to Dobby's warning, so Dobby has no choice but to do this!"
A surge of magic several times stronger than Dobby's own poured out, and every trash can in the alley lifted into the air.
Bang—
Then they crashed heavily back down.
Harry formed a Sign.
Igni!
A Fire Serpent surged out and coiled around Dobby. Its molten stream scorched his skin, devouring nearly half of his life force in an instant.
Harry hurled the knife at Dobby with all his strength—
Clatter. The knife hit the ground.
Dobby vanished.
Harry spat. The ability to Apparate whenever he wanted was infuriating.
He picked up the knife and tucked it back into his waistband.
The sound of flapping wings came from above. A brown owl with a stern expression landed on his shoulder and held out its leg.
Was someone really sending him a letter right now?
He untied it and opened it.
"Mr. Potter:
We have received a report that at 9:12 p.m. tonight, you used the Levitation Charm in Old Sivers Alley, London. Please remain where you are and wait for a Ministry of Magic official.
As you know, underage wizards are not permitted to use magic outside school. If you engage in such behavior again, you may be expelled from this school (Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Wizardry, 1875, Clause Three).
Please also remember that under Article 13 of the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy, any magical activity that might draw the attention of non-magical persons (Muggles) constitutes a serious breach of the law.
Have a pleasant summer!
Mafalda Hopkirk
Ministry of Magic
Misuse of Magic Office"
Harry's face turned a little green.
What did the house-elf's spell have to do with him?
There was a pop behind him, the same sound Dobby had made when he appeared.
Harry instinctively stabbed backward.
Only when he turned around did he realize it wasn't Dobby but a wizard. The man twisted his wrist at the last second, and the knife missed. The force of the thrust carried Harry forward, and he crashed heavily into the wizard's chest, making him stagger.
"Are young wizards always this rude now?" the wizard cried out in pain, pushing Harry away. "Hello, I'm Arnold Picquery from Obliviator Headquarters."
"Tell me what happened, young wizard."
Thanks to Wànbiàn for the tip.
There'll be another update tonight, probably around nine. I'm a little stuck on this chapter!
Before you continue