"What kind of thi... who are you?"
Harry looked at the little creature in front of him, which resembled a Gringotts Goblin, and suddenly felt that being cut off from the world might not be so bad.
"I am Dobby, a house-elf."
Dobby wore a tattered hemp shirt, and the strips of cloth over his shoulders kept slipping down.
"Harry Potter must not go to Hogwarts. The most terrible things will happen at Hogwarts this year. There is a plot there!"
"Uh..." The corner of Harry's mouth twitched. He did not particularly want to believe the house-elf before him. "But what plot could unfold right under Dumbledore's nose? If Hogwarts isn't safe, then nowhere in the Wizarding World is safe."
"Besides, I escaped from Voldemort, didn't I?"
Dobby's eyes, which already looked rather large on his small head, immediately widened to the size of ping-pong balls. He jumped around, shrieking, "Don't say that name, please!"
Harry had not expected such a strong reaction from Dobby and hurriedly soothed him. "All right, all right. I mean I won't be harmed that easily... Dobby, stop jumping around for a moment. Would you like to sit down?"
Dobby looked shocked again. "Dobby knew before that Harry Potter was a great person, but Dobby never imagined he was so kind. He actually asked Dobby to sit down."
Harry felt a little embarrassed by the praise. "It's not that big a deal."
"No one asks Dobby to sit. No one treats Bobby as an equal like Harry Potter does..." Dobby began to sob between his words again.
"Stop, stop, stop, Dobby. Is there anything else? I don't belong here. If I can't go to Hogwarts, I won't be able to see my friends." Harry thought for a moment, then added, "My friends would treat you as an equal too, just like I do."
"Friends? But they don't even write to you."
"They might be too busy... wait, how do you know that?"
Dobby was not very good at lying. After Harry pointedly called attention to the problem, he slowly reached into his tattered pillowcase and pulled out a thick stack of letters.
Harry was furious. He reached out to snatch them, but Dobby nimbly dodged him.
"Not unless you promise Dobby you won't go to Hogwarts."
Harry rubbed his temples. "Vernon and Petunia won't let me go to Hogwarts, and now you won't let me go to Hogwarts either. Why is just going to school so hard?"
Sad and helpless, Harry sat on his hard wooden bed. Director Lorne's assured yet gentle manner suddenly flashed through his mind, along with his catchphrase-the General Affairs Office is dedicated to serving all students and staff.
No, I have to ask for help!
Watching Dobby, who had already clambered on top of the wardrobe, Harry came up with an idea. "Dobby, as long as you agree to let me see Director Lorne, I'll promise you I won't go to Hogwarts."
Dobby poked his head out from atop the wardrobe. "Really? The great Harry Potter won't lie to Dobby?"
Harry nodded solemnly. "Guaranteed."
Lorne's head was about to burst.
There were currently a dozen or so Magic Mobile Phones out in circulation, which he had awarded to the first-year young wizards during the new-student event.
Street Wizard Fighter had not yet been installed on those phones.
Downloading the software only required a simple scan with the storage component, or finding another Magic Mobile Phone that already had the software downloaded. Failing that, they could come to the shop and find him or Quirrell. But the question was, how could he let those students know a new game had been released?
The problem had come back to square one-he needed an instant messaging app.
That way, he could send every user messages bearing an official badge, provided, of course, that all those Magic Mobile Phones had the messaging app installed.
At present, only a dozen or so phones were out in circulation. If Lorne wanted to manage them, the worst-case scenario would merely involve going door to door.
If he still had not developed the messaging app before the Magic Mobile Phones went on sale, the maintenance costs and effort required would be incalculable.
Lorne had come up with several plans over the past few days, but exactly how to implement them still required careful study.
Like Quirrell, Lorne slept in the dormitory rooms on the shop's second floor. As a good boss, Lorne had arranged room and board for Quirrell when he hired him.
There were still a few empty rooms on the second floor, and Lorne was still debating whether to turn them into dormitories or private rooms.
A rustling sound suddenly came from downstairs.
Don't tell me a thief got in. Is public security in the Wizarding World this bad? I knew most of the Ministry of Magic were useless fools, but I never expected them to neglect even basic public welfare.
Lorne quickly went downstairs. With a casual lift of his hand, the room instantly lit up.
Perched on the arcade machine nearest the door was a scrawny monkey.
No, it was not a monkey.
Lorne walked over. Monkeys would not put their hands on the stone slab, much less launch his Street Wizard Fighter and thrash the computer opponent.
"We're closed," Lorne said, ordering the visitor out. "Whatever kind of thi... whoever you are, please leave my shop."
"I am Dobby, Dobby the house-elf." Dobby reluctantly took both hands off the stone slab and switched off the arcade machine. "Excuse me, sir, are you Lorne Miles?"
Dobby?
Lorne immediately remembered Dobby shouting "free," but according to the timeline, should Dobby not have been at Harry's house right now?
Before him, Dobby fidgeted with his hands, looking pitiful. He tugged up the strip of cloth on his shoulder and said in a shrill voice, "Harry Potter asked Dobby to invite Lorne Miles to his house."
"I am. Has he run into any danger?" Lorne asked with a frown.
Dobby thought for a moment. Perhaps, as far as Harry Potter was concerned, the most dangerous thing was Dobby himself.
He shook his head.
"Then I'm not going," Lorne said firmly, pointing at the clock hanging in the shop. "It's eleven thirty at night. Whether at Hogwarts or this shop, I'm off duty."
"Sorry, Dobby can only do this."
Standing on the chair, Dobby gently waved his thin arm, and all the loose objects in the shop floated into the air.
He looked at Lorne, seemingly forcing him to make a decision.
Lorne rolled his eyes. When it came to the Levitation Charm, he really had never feared anyone. He did not even need to raise his hand. With just a sweep of his gaze, every object Dobby was manipulating slipped out of the house-elf's control, then settled steadily to the floor under Lorne's control, completely unharmed.
Dobby stared, dumbfounded.
As a house-elf, he was quite confident in his own magic. He had seen Lucius cast spells at Malfoy Manor, and there was no way Lucius could have taken over his magic so easily and silently.
Despite his surprise, Dobby did not give up.
If magic would not work, he still had physical means!
Dobby jumped from the chair onto the arcade machine, clamped his teeth onto a corner of the screen, and began gnawing at it. He kept glancing up at Lorne, seemingly waiting for the latter to stop him.
Lorne had confidence in things produced by the system, but house-elf saliva... Resigned, Lorne grabbed Dobby by his clothes and lifted him up.
"Got you." Lorne felt as though he were playing a game with a three-year-old.
Dobby gave a sly smile. "I've got you too, sir."