The gel nails couldn't be reversed without the right potions and the time of the timed spell was a 5 hours long. Therefore the whole school was stuck with long nails. The Gryffindor and Hufflepuff teams conjured nail cutters like most of the other students but the nails didn't help them with the match. Cutting gel nails was hard and the teams didn't have time to file the nails until they were manageable. The rest of the school was still cutting for filing the nails in the stands.
During the match Sirius and James fumbled with the quaffle twice because of the nails. Gideon and Fabian's nails extensions didn't get in the way of them being beaters somehow. James was going to ask them about that later. The Hufflepuff team wasn't doing much better until they found a new tactic after the Hufflepuff Captain talked to them. Suddenly the Hufflepuff keeper was catching the quaffle with the nails and the chasers were doing the same. This lead to the Hufflepuff leading by 5:0.
James called the Gryffindor team into a huddle. "Abbot told his team to catch the quaffle with their nails. I saw the keeper and chasers doing this. So lets raise them one and turn our nails into claws. Giddeon Fabian, a little help?"
"Prewitt twins-"
"at your-"
"Service!"
"Show us a spell to change nails to claws," James said. "But make it subtle incase Minnie declares it's not allowed."
"Aye aye-"
"Captain."
The twins unsurprisingly knew a spell to turn nails into claws. Once the Gryffindor teams' nails were claws they started scoring more and even their keeper saved more goals. Johnson their seeker hoped the claws wouldn't stop her from catching the snitch. She saw a speck of gold near the bottom and dove as the beaters hit a bulger at the other seeker to distract them. Johnson used gel nails before so atleast she was used to them. She reached out to the snitch and grabbed it. She felt the winged object in her hand. She was surprised she didn't drop it but the snitch wasn't big so she didn't have to pierce it to catch it.
Gryffindor won 159:7. The team was so relieved Fabian let a secret slip. "I knew our prank wouldn't effect how our team played."
"You did the other prank?" James confronted the twins, he wasn't sure which twin he was talking to. They made it their mission to leave him guessing.
"That's for us to know-"
"And you to never find out."
"Extra practice until you tell the truth," James declared.
"Fine but-"
"we'll get you back."
"Why did you prank us before the game?" Sirius demanded. "And copy our prank?"
"We were-"
"Inspired."
Sirius glared at the twins. "Did Dobby help you?" He guessed they had help from a house elf. The Mauraders were only able to pull off the prank for the entire Great Hall before breakfast because of Remus' fast speed.
"Why would we-"
"take advantage of a poor elf?"
Sirius had his answer. He secretly couldn't believe his cousin joined his competition. He confronted her before lunch. "Dobby had no choice, misters Prewitt were promising Dobby saftey from Bella," she cried.
Sirius understood why Dobby would join them, Bella was getting crazier everyday. "That's still no excuse to help the Maurader competition! You're worse than Reggie!"
"Reggie is just trying to help," Dobby defended, knowing the two had a rift now. "He tries to keep the peace after you rebel."
"He doesn't have to become like them," Sirius hissed. "You're okay with him following the ideas of Bella and mum?"
"I don't but he's not like the other Slytherins, he's not snobby," Dobby said.
"You have to stop him if I can't," Sirius told her then left without another word.
Second year passed by without any incident. Sirius personally pranked Dobby once because she helped the Prewitts, she got her revenge
But by 3rd year she stopped helping the Prewitts a lot. She had bigger things to worry about. Bella was getting crazier and when she graduated Hogwarts she was a nutcase. Dobby ignored Bella during the holidays and summer, afraid Bella would snap one day and try to put her head on the wall.
Andromeda fought Bella everyday, because Andromeda was growing distant from the Blacks too. Without Bellatrix at Hogwarts Andromed and Sirius made their choices. Sirius fought the Blacks and left to live with the Potters during the summer before Dobby's 3rd year and Sirius' 5th year. Andromeda started dating a muggleborn in school, only Dobby, Regalus, and Sirius knew about it.
By 3rd year Dobby was helping Andromeda keep a secret while also trying out for the Slytherin Quidditch team as a keeper. Sirius moaned about ow Dobby kept betraying him. But Dobby saw the pain in his eyes when he glanced at Regalus. She kept her promise and tried to keep Regalus from being like Bella, which wasn't too hard. Regalus was the opposite of Bella. But there were rumors about a Dark Lord rising and his pureblood beliefs. He claimed he will treat magical creatures equally but Dobby wasn't so sure. She grew up in the Blacks.
From the letters from home Dobby knew Bella subscribed to this new Dark Lord in a fanatical way. That was normal for the Blacks but Andromeda and Sirius didn't see it that way. Narcissa and Regalus weren't capable of being as fanatic as Bella which made Dobby's misson easier. Dobby kept an eye out on Regalus and his friends. They didn't tease many first years but in her fourth year, she caught Barty, Rab, and Regalus bullying Hufflepuffs. Dobby used was going to try to stop them by pleading to her cousin but Rabastian was distracted by staring at her until Regalus nudged him. The Hufflepuff used that chance to escape.
Since then Dobby decided to prank those three whenever they picked on muggleborns. It was mostly Barty. Dobby didn't get involved when she came accross them picking on muggle-borns with the other Slytherins like Rosier, McNair, the Carrows, or even Malfoy. Those Slytherins were trouble and rumored to try to get recruited by the Dark Lord. Dobby suspected Regalus and Rabastian were going along with it or not speaking up incase they were targetted. But she wasn't sure Barty wasn't being influenced.
By the middle of the year Dobby heard Bella took the mark. Sirius seeked Dobby out to remind her to make sure Regalus didn't do the same thing. By the Holidays the Blacks were holding a Ball for Bella's engagement. Dobby would be serving at it because the Dark Lord would be there. She was only going to keep an eye on Regalus and she couldn't refuse her family. She packed her trunk on Dec 22, when Sirius met her at the Great Hall. She was surprised to see him with his trunk packed too. "I'm going to the Potters over the holidays," he told her, sensing her question. "But if you need me I'll check up on you and help you keep Reggie away from our mental cousin."
"Don't come, I'll handle it," Dobby said. "The Dark Lord will be there. If you anger Bella or worse him, I won't be able to save any of you. Regalus is fine, he and Rab are only going along with the other Slyterhins. They aren't into it like Barty."
"Okay," Sirius said, not completely convinced since both were related to pureblood fanatics. "But call me if you need me."
Dobby promised she would then she took the train to the Black family home. Dobby found herself in Cissa's room helping her with her stuff when she got back. Andromeda was with them. Dobby found out they arranged a match for Andromeda with Wilkes. And Andromeda was planning to run away with the muggleborn after Christmas. She wouldn't dare do it while the Dark Lord visited them.
The Ball rolled around on December 24th. Bella wore a shimmering, green dress robe and her wild hair was styled in curls that fell down her back. Andromeda wore a purple dress robe of fine material with some bead work on the sleeves and matching. Her straight hair was curled a bit in an elegant knot by her neck. And Narcissa wore a glittery teal dress robe with ruffles. Her hair was elegantly done half up. Dobby herself had to hide her strawberry blond hair that resembled Bella's. She wore a small magenta dress robe made from the finest silks, for the ten minutes she was allowed to be at the ball.
Then she wore green and reddish-brown fancy Black pillowcase, the Color of the Black coat of arms, just like Kreacher. The pillow was made from old dress robe scraps. And both house elves had a rose gold silk stash tied around their waistes. The Blacks went all out for their ball for the Dark Lord and Bella's engagement, down to fancy rags for the house elves. Dobby had to hide her hair too. She grew 10 inches by her 4th year so she was almost 5' due to her witch heritage. But she had to pretend to be a pure, house elf so they use a height shorten potion on her to make her 3 feet tall.
Dobby talked to Regalus before the ball really started, and she was still allowed there. "They aren't doing anything but starting trouble," she told him. "You should stay out of their radar. That's what Sirius wants."
Regalus flinched at Sirius' name. "He doesn't have the right to judge," he said. "I'm not planning on getting involved," he told her. Regalus wore his plain emerald green dress robe, and didn't stick out. Dobby was in the kitchen changed into her rags when the ball started. Bellatrix was too busy being a psycho for most of the ball and engagement, so Regalus stood to the side. Andromeda talked to him to save them both from being questioned by the Dark Lord or Bella.
After Bella and Rodolphus exchanged enagement rings and the clapping died down, the Dark Lord stood up. He said a few words then asked about Bella's family. Bella was an auror right now but her loyalties were clearly for the Dark Lord. He looked at Andromeda and Bella's sharp gaze fell on Andromeda. Andromeda raised her occulemency shields and agreed when Bella declared Andromeda was bethrothed to Wilkes.
Reglaus raised his sheilds too when the Dark Lord directed his attention on him. Bella informed the Dark Lord Regalus decided to try to become a Curse Breaker. "That's a good route," the dark lord said. "You will be useful giving me information from the ministry section for now. It won't do for you to take the mark yet, if you work there." Regalus didn't show any emotion at being spared the mark. Rodolphus informed them Rabastian would try to work in the Department of Mysteries so the Dark Lord decided he'd work on the inside of the Ministry too and hold off taking the mark.
The ball almost ended without any issues when the Dark Lord noticed Dobby. "You didn't tell me you had two house elves?" he hissed. Bella and Druella looked nervous. "She's not an ordinary house elf is she?" the Dark Lord had his red, snake eyes trained on Dobby. Dobby tried to block her mind with her house elf magic.
"We took a second house elf because Kreacher is getting old and couldn't handle the estate by himself," Walburga spoke up.
He turned to Bellatrix. "Tell the truth," he bellowed.
"Sh-she's our half sister, an abomination to the House of Black," Bella admitted. "Due to a shameful affair my mother had, that's beneath us."
The Dark Lord was quiet for a few minutes. "You let her live with you?"
"I wanted to put her head on a wall," Bella said. "But they allow her to serve us like Kreacher because she has Black blood so she's useful."
"Very well, as long as she remembers her station," Voldemort nodded. He turned his sharp eyes on Bella and her parents. "She wasn't the product of a shameful affair, there is house elf blood and leprechaun contaminating your family 3 generations ago from from the parentage of Charis Crouch nee Black. Try not to spread that blood."
He looked directly at Dobby, "you have the noble blood of Black in you, you're no ordinary house elf. You will be one of your sisters' right hand after Hogwarts but you can do anything you want. You may not have heirs that aren't blood adopted but you are free to do anything else. A new order is upon is, the shackles of the magical creatures are being lifted. You are privileged to be in an ancient and noble house of Black from who my most loyal servants come from. And whom are on the right side of this crusade for a new dawn."
Bellatrix and her parents fell at his hems. "We will make sure her dirty blood is purged from the great house of Black." He left with a whip of his cloaks.