Chapter 16: Dobby the House-Elf + Extra 3: Disgusting Dobby (Lucius's Perspective)
Abraxas was wrong about one thing. The Dark Lord would not continue to live forever. He was thinking about making a comeback all the time.
But Draco had to admit that old age was always a factor. His grandfather's other judgments about the Dark Lord seemed incredibly close to the truth.
After all, his grandfather had always been well-versed in the Dark Arts. An interest in the occult, alchemy, and the Dark Arts was probably a Malfoy family tradition.
Looking back at the Dark Lord's various actions and performances, he indeed fits the characteristics of splitting the soul and creating Horcruxes - moody, lacking judgment, and increasingly detached from human form... This is exactly the Dark Lord that Draco had faced!
Draco paced back and forth in his library, pondering a possibility - that a piece of the Dark Lord's soul might be contained in the Ravenclaw crown.
That's why, with the war imminent, Potter was busy looking for that damned Diadem in the Room of Requirement.
Potter might want to destroy the crown and eliminate the Dark Lord's Horcrux! Draco guessed.
Assuming it was true as he suspected, the crown had to be destroyed. Otherwise, the Dark Lord might not truly disappear, and might even return time and time again. Draco frowned and thought.
As for why the Dark Lord's soul could possess Quirrell, a human being, his grandfather did not give a reasonable explanation.
Perhaps, this is a more evil magic that even my grandfather is unaware of.
Draco needed to do more research. Fortunately, the Malfoy family library was filled with countless magical books, enough for any wizard fascinated by the dark arts to escape from the hustle and bustle and explore in it.
This library is huge and rich in collections. Some of the books are even rare books that have been passed down in the Malfoy family for many years - not even the Hogwarts library has them.
Not to mention, one of Lucius's special hobbies is to add more rare and ancient books found from some "special channels" to the library at home - most of them come from some magical families that have fallen on hard times, and even from the families of the "Twenty-Eight Sacred Clans".
Almost every one of these families with ancient heritage has unique heritage and secrets. It would be a pity to let them disappear, so the Malfoys are always keen to collect them.
To the extent that, Draco felt both relieved and headache when facing the huge library.
Draco obviously couldn't complete such a voluminous task as investigating a book by himself. He flipped through the books all morning but found nothing, and finally snapped his fingers impatiently.
Dobby, the house-elf, appeared before him, dressed in a threadbare, dirty pillowcase, blinking its watery, prominent green eyes. It bowed and said to him in a shrill voice, "My dear young master, is there anything I can do for you?"
Unexpectedly, the elf that came was Dobby. It evoked complex and unforgettable memories in Draco, because its image kept appearing and disappearing in Draco's indelible memory.
Given its current miserable state, no one would have imagined that it had a life-or-death friendship with the "Savior Potter." Draco stared at it, his expression intriguing.
There were many house-elves in the Malfoy estate, not just Dobby, but Draco was deeply impressed by this elf.
He still remembered that in his previous life, Dobby had betrayed the Malfoys at the end of his second year. Most house-elves were proud to serve a wizarding family, but Dobby was reluctant about this "honor", pursuing freedom and being very positive about obtaining "clothes".
For many years, no one knew where it was or what it had done. My father never mentioned it, as if it were an unspeakable shame.
Later, when Dobby was seen again, he was completely different. He was no longer the sloppy and miserable boy he used to be. Instead, he was wearing strange new clothes and had escaped from Malfoy Manor with Potter and the others. It seemed that he had become a loyal fan of Potter.
Draco looked at it, and a series of calculations went through his mind - how to get along with Dobby was a big problem.
Dobby has served the Malfoy family for many years. Simply giving him clothes and letting him go is not the best solution for the Malfoy family.
This exile might expose the Malfoy family's secrets that have been kept for many years, and anyone might use it to make a big fuss and stab the Malfoy family in the back.
Merlin bless it, in its previous life it only came to Malfoy Manor to rescue people and didn't do any other terrible acts of betrayal, which was already a blessing in disguise.
However, no one can guarantee that in the years to come, Dobby will not suddenly take advantage of his knowledge of the Malfoy family to cause damage to his former master's family from time to time.
Draco, as a typical Slytherin, was extremely averse to unnecessary risks. In this lifetime, he would never allow Dobby to have the opportunity to betray the Malfoy family and add any risks to the family.
Draco knew that his father, Lucius, had a problem with the elf, so this time, he would keep an eye on it himself.
His father's rough methods towards the house-elves were obviously not effective, and even aroused Dobby's rebellious psychology.
This time, Draco wanted to try another method: on the basis of not betraying the Malfoy family, he didn't mind giving it some rewards within limits in order to win people's hearts.
"Sit down." Draco decided to adopt a conciliatory policy. He nodded his chin towards the armchair next to him, motioning Dobby to sit down.
"Sit—sit down." Dobby burst into tears at the unprecedented concern in his tone, which startled Draco. "Never—never—"
"Master never lets Dobby sit down—as an equal—" He seemed deeply moved, and suddenly gave a loud sob.
Draco tried his best to make a soothing expression while saying "Shhh" and asked it to sit down.
Dobby sat hesitantly on the edge of the chair, not even daring to lean back. He looked like an ugly big doll, his two big bat-like ears drooping restlessly, his big eyes looking at Draco with tears in his eyes, and he continued to mumble and sob.
Draco was utterly disgusted by it. How could such a noisy, overreacting, tactless house-elf exist? He took a deep breath, silently reminding himself that this was not the time to show his disgust, and at the same time, tried to make his expression friendly.
"Dobby, I asked you to come here because I hope you can help me." Draco put on a gentle face to it.
"Help!" Dobby was deeply moved by this gentle attitude. He screamed loudly again, "Dobby can do anything for his masters! But the little master said help!" He wiped his face with the corner of a dirty and tattered pillowcase.
Oh my god, it's so awful! Draco was almost disgusted by it. Why does it have such bad taste in clothes? It's a disgrace to the Malfoy family.
"Wipe your hands clean. I need you to help me find all the books about Horcruxes." Draco quickly gave Dobby instructions while he was quiet.
"The Horcrux book... This is the young master's order... Dobby will find it!" Dobby's expression was panicked, and he trembled because of such evil words. But at this moment, no evil words could make him more excited than the unprecedented kindness of the master. So he patted his chest and promised solemnly.
"This will be a secret. Don't let anyone else know about this." Draco ordered it.
Dobby nodded obediently, and soon, it was jumping up and down in the library, flipping through the books quickly.
"What are you doing, Draco?" At this moment, Lucius pushed the door open and was stunned by the scene in front of him. He quickly looked offended.
He had never imagined that a house-elf like Dobby would appear in his magnificent library.
"Look at how filthy it is!" Lucius's expression was full of disgust, as if someone had put dragon droppings under his nose. "Why isn't this house-elf where it belongs?"
"Father, I asked it to do this. I encountered some difficulties when doing my homework, and I asked Dobby to find some materials for me." Draco stood up and explained.
Dobby picked up a large book in mid-air, blinked his big round eyes, and nodded timidly at Lucius, his big ears clicking as he nodded.
"I didn't know you could read," Lucius said, slightly surprised. He looked at Dobby with an arrogant look. "Don't get the book dirty or damaged."
Lucius was about to leave, but as if he remembered something, he narrowed his eyes and threatened Dobby, "You slob, serve Draco well! If you dare to make any mistakes, you know what I will do."
The house-elf nodded uneasily. It whimpered as it watched Lucius leave, recalling some tragic experience.
"I'm not saying anything bad about you, Dobby, but you should change your clothes." Draco curled his lips. Lucius's word "slob" really hit the nail on the head.
Dobby's outfit was out of place in the Malfoy household. Narcissa's energetic house-elves were all dressed up beautifully and neatly.
It's rare to find a house-elf as listless and haphazardly dressed as Dobby. No wonder Lucius looked unhappy when he saw him.
"The young master cares about Dobby!" An ancient book in Dobby's hand fell to the ground with a "clack", which successfully made Draco look distressed.
"Bad Dobby, Dobby dropped the book!" Dobby slammed his head against the bookcase in panic. This did not alleviate Draco's heartache for the books. Instead, he was very worried about the books on the bookcase that were shaking with the impact, fearing that they would be in trouble.
"Stop it, Dobby!" Draco shouted distraughtly.
"Thank you, little master." It weakly stopped its collision and stood there panting.
"Don't damage any books. I know this book won't be found in a moment. Keep looking, and bring it to me as soon as you find it." Draco gave it a few instructions and just wanted to leave the study quickly, lest Dobby make a fuss again, or fail to explain herself clearly, and hurt herself in front of him, or even these precious books.
"And," Draco tossed Dobby a gold Galleon, who took it in shock, his eyes widening.
"This is your salary for working for me. Hurry up and buy yourself some new clothes. Remember, I didn't give you any clothes as a gift. You have to buy them yourself." Draco said to Dobby who was standing there in a daze, and left the study in a hurry.
Draco knew that for house elves, they didn't get their freedom until their master handed them a piece of clothing.
He carefully circumvented this rule by "paying salary".
"The young master pays Dobby's salary!" Dobby stood there in a daze for a while, and suddenly screamed excitedly, tears of joy bursting out of his eyes.
Extra 3: The Disgusting Dobby (Lucius's Perspective)
Lucius Malfoy had a natural aversion to anything overly emotional.
The house-elf he hated the most was Dobby, who was always dirty, clumsy, and screamed at the slightest provocation, bringing shame to the Malfoy family.
When he was young and impetuous, he even wanted to throw Dobby away. But in order to protect the secrets of Malfoy Manor, his father told Lucius that Dobby must be buried in Malfoy Manor until his death.
Therefore, when Lucius became the head of the Malfoy family, Dobby was often sent to the basement of the manor to do the most dreadful kitchen work.
"Never appear before us unless summoned by the Master," he ordered Dobby coldly.
Lucius never thought he would see Dobby again. The nightmarish scream ruined Lucius's good mood that morning.
He strode to the study and saw his son directing Dobby to turn the pages of a book, as if he was looking up something.
Humph! With only first-year magical knowledge, he didn't bother asking his own father, but instead sought help from a slovenly house-elf.
What a foolish, silly child. Lucius glanced at his son's platinum-blond head from the corner of his eye, gripping his cane tightly and resisting the urge to rub his head.
However, although Dobby is annoying, his magic power is considered to be above average among house elves, which is enough to protect Draco.
Draco is almost twelve years old, and it's time for him to have his own house-elf to serve him.
Although he was not impressed by his son's aesthetic taste, Lucius could still afford the cost of trial and error.
That night, he summoned Dobby and looked at it with disgust, still unable to appreciate his son's strange taste. "From now on, you are Draco's personal house elf. You must be available at any time, do whatever he asks you to do, and protect his safety until the end of your life."
Dobby, for once, didn't cry. He bowed respectfully, pressed his big ears to the carpet, and said cheerfully, "Yes, Master."
"Swear to me. Never betray, obey orders, and do your best to protect Draco Malfoy's safety." Lucius said coldly.
"I swear," the elf repeated Lucius' words timidly.
Lucius nodded in satisfaction. With a crackling sound, Dobby disappeared into the silent air.
Assigning an elf to Draco to practice his skills would be a good idea. He should also realize that some elves are not as interesting as they seem; even when choosing your servants, you should adhere to the principle of "caution".
Who knows, in a few days, Draco will cry and return Dobby. Lucius rolled his eyes in disgust at the empty room.