"He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named has returned? It can't be!" The elves exclaimed after Dobby had told them everything he'd heard from Winky and Harry Potter.
"It's true, Dobby tells you!" he exclaimed shrilly. "The great Harry Potter lived through it all! He saw Cedric Diggory die at the Dark Lord's hands. Dobby knows it's true for he has mourned his death with Harry Potter and has the tears to prove it!"
"Dobby – hic – is telling the truth!" Winky exclaimed as she clutched a bottle of butterbeer in one hand and a soiled rag in the other. "Trust him!"
All the other elves looked around at each other in fear, worry, and anticipation. "The Dark Lord has regained power! Will the dark days of old now come to be again?" one elf squeaked hysterically.
"No one knows what will happen now," Dobby said boldly. "But whatever happens we must fight and defend for the great Harry Potter! We must be at his side if ever he needs us!"
"Dobby is right!" declared one of the older elves named Crippy. "Dark days are ahead for the great Harry Potter, they are!" he added gloomily. "Now that You-Know-Who is back he will stop at nothing to take Harry Potter's life, he won't.
"He – He won't?" Dobby asked fretfully.
"No, indeed!" the older elf continued. "He has death eaters all over the place, he does! He will be sending them after Harry Potter and everyone at his side before next year begins, he will!"
Dobby gasped and put his hands up to his mouth as he realized Crippy was right. Harry Potter was now in more graver danger than he had ever been, including two years ago. Dobby couldn't bear the thought of Harry Potter having to face so much terror all alone and especially in the grieving state of mind he was currently in. His mind raced quickly trying to think of something he could do to protect him, and soon the only thing he knew to do came to him.
He approached Nifty and said earnestly, "Nifty, see Winky over there?" he gestured toward Winky who was asleep by the fireplace surrounded by empty bottles of butterbeer again. "You will take care of her for Dobby, won't you?"
"Of – Of course Nifty will," she replied, rather puzzled. "But why? Where is Dobby going?"
"To Harry Potter," he replied simply. "For he needs Dobby now."
"Dobby! What on Earth are you doing here?" Harry exclaimed when Dobby had apparated into his bedroom.
"Dobby has come to serve and protect the great Harry Potter, sir!" Dobby declared vigorously. "Dobby will be at your side when danger comes!"
Harry looked mortified. "But Dobby you can't stay here!"
Dobby's ears drooped very low. "Why not, sir?"
"Well, remember what happened the last time you were here?" Harry exclaimed breathlessly.
"But Dobby thought Harry Potter forgave him!" Dobby exclaimed looking at Harry with eyes like flood gates about to burst wide open.
"I do, Dobby! I do!" Harry said hurriedly. "It's just the Dursleys most likely won't approve of you being here with you being a creature from the world of magic and all."
"But Dobby is willing to do all of their work for them!" Dobby exclaimed just as breathlessly. "He will wash, and sew, and knit, and clean, and cook, and iron, and sweep, and hose, and-"
"Alright, I get the idea, Dobby!" Harry abruptly interrupted him. "I guess you can stay as long as you promise me you won't do any magic and, or, let anything fall."
"Dobby promises, Harry Potter, sir!" Dobby exclaimed, crossing his heart. "Dobby will be a good elf, the best elf ever! Harry Potter will not regret this, sir!"
"Alright, Dobby, I trust you," Harry consented. "I guess you'll be all right with the Dursleys if you clean up the house for them. They're not here now, Dudley has a dentist appointment. So come with me and I'll show you where to begin."
So Harry led Dobby down the hall across from his room and into the messiest room he had ever seen. There dirty garments of every description scattered everywhere, there were empty bags and packages that used to be filled with snacks laying around, and there were even various old toys discarded here and there.
"This is Dudley's room, as you can see he's not very tidy," Harry chuckled. "Think you can fix it?"
"Certainly, Harry Potter, sir!" Dobby assured him, and with a snap of his fingers the clothes on the floor and bed picked themselves up and dropped into the hamper that was just outside the door in the hall. He snapped his fingers again and all the trash in the room disapparated and reappeared in the wastebasket, another snap and all the toys piled into the toy box against the wall. Then as an afterthought Dobby gave a final snap towards the bed and the sheets tucked in, the blankets folded neatly, and the pillows arranged themselves.
"Very good, Dobby!" Harry said praising him. "Now we better get out of here, Dudley will go bonkers if he finds me in here when he gets back!"
Harry ran quickly out of the room. Dobby started to follow but then he spotted something in the room out of the corner of his eye that aroused his curiosity greatly.
It was a large flat screen standing on a thin stool on a desk with a peculiar board just beneath it covered with numbers and disarranged letters and some peculiar symbols which Dobby was unfamiliar with. As he stepped up to it he touched the keyboard and instantly the blank screen lit up filled with a scene of brightly colored buildings and tiny strange looking figures wearing bright colored red and blue armor holding odd looking instruments.
Dobby was so fascinated by what he saw on the screen he touched the keyboard again and this time a red glowing message appeared on the screen which read CLICK TO START.
Dobby didn't know what to click and so he just clicked his fingertips together and aimed at the screen and before he could blink the figures on the screen began firing at each other and jumping up and doing flips and kicking at the at the air in the most strikingly alarming way and all the while there was funny music playing over it accompanied by very loud noises as the figures in the screen kept up their action.
Dobby was extremely started by what he was seeing. He guessed it was some sort of foreign wizard dueling going on in another dimension he was seeing through a magic mirror like the one in Dumbledore's office. The more he watched of it the more degraded he felt and decided he had best leave the room.
He stepped outside the door and looked around for Harry but he was nowhere in sight."Harry Potter, sir!" he called but there was no answer.
He stepped out into the hall and looked around frantically but found himself all alone and seemingly lost. Then suddenly he heard the sound of footsteps approaching and they weren't Harry's, he could tell for sure they belonged to a tall woman.
Suddenly desperate he looked around for a place to hide and found only the clothes hamper nearby. So he climbed into it and buried himself beneath the unwashed clothing.
Petunia Dursley hummed lightly to herself as she picked up the Dudley's dirty clothes hamper and carried to the washroom where she dumped it all into the washing machine and closing the door she set the time and function for the wash and turned it on as she stepped away.
Inside the washing machine Dobby suddenly felt himself being turned over and over in the most dizzying way as he became drenched in soapy water that was pouring out from every side.
"Dobby! Dobby, where are you!" Harry called frantically as he ran down the hall looking in every room for the little elf.
"Harry Potter! Help!" Dobby screamed from inside the washing machine as soapy water filled his mouth, nose, and ears. "Dobby is in here! Help Dobby!"
"DOBBY!" Harry screamed in horror as he rapidly turned off the washing machine and opened up the door in the middle and reached in and pulled out a very wet, drenched, and soppy house elf. Dobby coughed and spluttered out soapy water which was leaking out of his ears also.
"Are you alright, Dobby?" Harry asked as he grabbed a towel nearby and wrapped around the dripping elf. "How did you ever get in there?"
"D-Dobby s-s-sorry!" Dobby said through gasping coughs. "Dobby was just curious... and then he had to hide... and... and... now he is all soapy and wet!"
Harry asked no more questions but just took Dobby into the bathroom where he undressed him and rinsed his clothes in cold water so they wouldn't shrink and then dried them and Dobby out with his aunt's hairdryer.
