Harry Potter & the Journey Into Isolation
By The Short Fat Fag
Chapter Seventeen – Dobby's Confrontation
"Mr. Haslett," said Professor Toft happily, "how nice of you to come to my office this evening."
"You told me to, sir," the Hufflepuff replied timidly.
Smiling sweetly at the boy, "Yes, I did do that didn't I?"
"What did you want to see me about sir?"
"Well, young man, if you don't mind me being blunt with you, I couldn't help but notice how lonely you seem to be in class. I thought you might like to talk about it to someone who would understand."
Shocked, the student stood there and asked, "How did you know that sir?"
"I'm a teacher Mr. Haslett… Stuart, we're trained to watch for those signs and to help when we can," the Defense teacher said supportively. "Why don't we go into my sitting room and have a nice little chat."
Gulping the boy says, "Okay sir."
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Earlier in the evening, Dobby had insisted that Harry go to Gryffindor Tower and spend time with his friends and work on missed assignments from his teachers. At first Harry was reluctant to go after the session he had with Healer Lennox, but Dobby was insistent, so he went.
Now Dobby is popping around the infirmary cleaning and tidying things up when he hears another house elf pop into the room and turns to investigate.
"Dobby? Where is you's Dobby?"
"I is being here Corky," Dobby replied. "Is you's having news from the old crowd?"
Corky hesitated for a moment and said, "Yes, I's does. They's is listening to the voices Harry Potter is sending them and they is identifying the man who'ses being in it."
Dobby's eyes became huge and he asked, "Who'ses is it being?"
"Professor Toft," whispered Corky fearfully.
"I is knowing he's is being a bad wizard," Dobby said angrily and popped out of the room.
Standing there alone Corky says to himself, "I's is glad I's is not being him tonight."
"Albus?" asked Minerva McGonagall. "Do you think it wise for everyone to charge the castle?"
"Why do you say that, Minerva?"
"Professor Toft," the transfiguration teacher says with distaste, "may become suspicious and escape."
"True, but he most likely does not think we suspect him or else he wouldn't have been bold enough to apply for the Dark Arts position. No I think we may end up needing a larger number of order members in order to subdue him. Besides," the Headmaster explained, "from the looks on everyone's face here tonight, I don't think I could keep them away."
"What are we waiting for then, Harry could be in danger, let's get going," bellowed Mrs. Weasley and then everyone apparated away.
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Dobby popped into the common room of Gryffindor Tower and sees that Harry is at one of the study tables with Hermione reviewing her transfiguration notes. Seeing Ron playing wizard's chess with his sister Ginny, Dobby quickly goes over to them to ask a favor. Well, he kind of asks for a favor.
"I is needing Harry Potter's Weazy to be helping now and you's is doing it," Dobby said matter of factly.
"Well," Ginny said with a giggle, "I guess you've been drafted tonight."
Looking at the sixth year girl, Dobby says, "You's is doing it also." Then turning back to Ron the house elf continues, "I is needing you to be keeping Harry Potter very busy and very protected tonight."
"Is You-Know-Who coming?" asked Ron fearfully.
"No, it is not being He-Who-Must-Not-Being-Named," replied Dobby and as he looked over at Harry to make sure he wasn't listening, he finished, "It is being bad wizards from the summer."
Ron blanched and asks, "In the castle?"
"Yes, he is being in the castle right now, he's is and you's is taking care of Harry Potter you's is or else you's is dealing with Dobby!"
"Alright Dobby," Ron said, taking out his wand, "Let's go get him."
"No, Weazy is taking care of Harry Potter and is keeping him busy. Dobby is dealing with bad wizards. Dobby is not wanting Harry Potter and his friends to be seeing what Dobby is doing to bad wizards."
Ginny quickly jumped in and says, "Alright Dobby, we'll take him to the Room of Requirement for a D.A. meeting. That should keep us busy for a couple of hours."
"That is being good, Missy Weazy," Dobby says and pops away again.
Quickly putting the chess pieces away, Ron and Ginny get up from the table and make their way over to where Harry and Hermione are studying and plop down into two vacant chairs.
"Hey guys."
"Hey," Harry responds pleasantly, "Have you come to rescue me from Hermione?"
The Head-Girl gives her best friend a mock glare of disapproval that causes him to smile. That smile pleases her greatly, as they have been few and far between this term.
"Actually, we have," Ron says with a grin. This earned him a real glare from Hermione.
Ginny giggles at the two and continues for Ron, "Yeah Harry, we were kind of hoping you'd go with us to the Room of Requirement and tutor us in Defense Against the Dark Arts tonight."
"Yeah mate, you've met Toft. He's a right idiot and besides we always learn better from you. You make it easy to learn," Ron said. Then he added; "Besides I really need to do well on my N.E.W.T.'s."
"Isn't it awfully short notice for everyone in the other houses? They may be busy," Harry asked, thinking of their study habits.
"Who said we are inviting them?"
"RON!" Hermione said sternly. "Harry's right, it wouldn't be fair to everyone in the castle."
Ron was about to argue with her, when Ginny suddenly said, "Hermione is there something wrong with Crookshanks? He looks like he is throwing something up over there."
Concerned for her Kneazle, Hermione and Ginny go to investigate while Ron talks more with Harry.
"Come on Harry, if I were smart I'd do it for you."
Sighing, Harry quickly defends his best mate, "You are smart Ron, and you're way better than I am at chess and History of Magic and your tons better at being a Keeper than I would be. I'd be terrible at it."
Ron smiled and was about to say something when Hermione and Ginny reappeared. Quickly Hermione says, "Come on Harry, Ron's right we need to practice in the Room of Requirement."
Stunned, Harry asks, "Why the sudden change of heart?"
"Well, I've never produced my Patronus with a Dementor around like you have and I think that the room can re-create one for us, but we need you there because you've actually faced one before."
"Well, if you think so Hermione, but I think we should at least give everyone a chance to work with them," Harry said fairly.
"No, Harry," Hermione reasoned, "I want to see if we can do it right, before we spring it on the others. The room may not be able to do it. It wouldn't be fair to everyone if we failed to simulate one and they came all that way for nothing, now would it?"
"I guess you're right," agreed Harry. "Come on, let's go."
As Harry got up and gathered his things, Ron and Ginny mouthed a 'Thank you' to Hermione for her quick thinking. Smugly she smiled back at them; she wasn't Head Girl for nothing.
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Sitting together in his private quarters, Professor Toft, who currently has his hand on Stuart Haslett's shoulder pretending to be caring and compassionate, is listening to the young Hufflepuff talk about his home life when a small and unassuming looking house elf pops into the room.
"Professor Toft, I is needing to be speaking with you's I is."
Not happy to be interrupted, Toft turns to the elf and says grumpily, "Not now, can't you see I'm with a student right now?"
"Yes, I is seeing that, but I is still needing to be talking to you's now," insisted the elf.
"Can't it wait until later?" asked the Defense teacher as he ran his hand through Stuart's hair silkily, which caused the boy to shudder and look away.
Looking at the boy, the elf is suddenly reminded of Harry Potter and the way he looked after being forced to remember bad things and anger began to fill the elf's eyes. "No, I isn't waiting, I isn't! You's isn't going to being touching this good boy and making him feel bad things. You's is going to be paying for all the other good boys you is touching in bad ways!"
With wide eyes of astonishment the third year boy quickly realizing what the elf is talking about and jumps up and moves away from his teacher unable to speak. The elf quickly hops over to the boy and takes by the hand and leads him to the door.
"You's is being a good boy you's is. You's is not needing to being ashamed, you's isn't. But, I's is thinking that is being time for good little boys to be going off to their common rooms now."
Without needing to be told twice Stuart ran out of the room and down the corridor towards the Hufflepuff common room.
Then turning back to the wizard who had gotten to his feet and had drawn his wand, the elf says to him through narrowed eyes, "Is you's going to be making this easy or is you going to be making this hard?"
Without an answer, Toft sends a slashing curse towards the elf, who caught it in his hand and sent it back to the wizard, where is struck true to it's target. Fall to the floor, the slashing curse covered Toft's face and chest, making several deep cuts on them.
"Oh good," the elf maliciously, "Dobby was hoping that you's was wanting to be making this hard."
Then with a snap of his fingers, all hell just broke loose at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
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Unknown what was happening several floors below, Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny were all standing in the Room of Requirement looking at the Dementor facsimile that the room had provided them. All four Gryffindors had a different look on their faces. Harry looked deep in thought, Hermione beamed happily, Ginny was frowning slightly and Ron, well he was trying his best not to fall over laughing.
"Ron, this is not funny," Hermione said importantly. "This is a serious training session about dealing with Dementors and we need to be serious and adult about this. What if we should come across one like Harry did in fifth year? This training would be very important to us."
However, instead of having the desired effect of sobering the red head up, he fell to the floor cackling like an idiot, followed shortly by his younger sister.
"Oh you two," said a disapproving Hermione and stamping her foot. "You don't see Harry falling over making an idiot of himself do you?"
However, the Head Girl was not looking at the Boy Who Lived at that very moment and did not see his emerald green eyes twinkling with amusement nor his hand covering his mouth. However, Ron and Ginny did see this.
"Yes, we do," they said together and pointed.
Hermione turned to see Harry shaking with mirth, which again pleased her to no end, but she didn't let on. "Harry, you're as bad as Ron."
"Hermione," Harry said while trying to keep the smile from his face, "The Dementor is only six inches tall, it's not very scary you know."
Looking down at the tiny Dementor she did admit, "Yes, it is a bit lacking, but I'm sure that with practice, the room can make a better one later."
"Hermione," Ron said through fits of laughter, "I … don't even think … a mouse would be scared of that."
This caused Harry to shake even harder trying not to laugh, which is until … BOOM. A large explosion occurred somewhere in the castle.
"What was that?" asked Ginny.
"I have no idea," replied Harry, "my scar isn't burning, so Voldemort isn't near, but it could be Death Eaters. We should go and see."
"No Harry," Hermione said earnestly, "We should stay here."
"Hermione," Harry said desperately, "We can't let the teachers face Death Eaters all alone." And then he disappeared through the door and down the corridor.
Quickly the other three followed with wands drawn.
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As Dumbledore and the other members of the Order of the Phoenix arrive at the castle, he orders them to split up and search for Professor Toft.
"Everyone, I have no idea where he will be in the castle. So I want you to split up into teams no smaller than two and search for him. Minerva, Severus and I will begin with his office and quarters to see if he is there. Remember, he is very good at dueling and apparently is experienced at various forms of torture, so be careful and consider him highly dangerous."
Nodding, the various members' pair up and take to different parts of the castle seeking out the man who hurt the Boy-Who-Lived.
A few minutes later as the three teachers were walking down towards the Defense Against the Dark Arts corridor, they heard a load explosion of some kind. Momentarily shocked by the sound that seemed to coming from the teacher's private quarters, the three raced towards the door to his private quarters, when suddenly Wymer Toft is crashing through the heavy wooden door of his classroom and slams into the stone wall on the opposite side of the corridor and the hall is filled with Dobby's screaming voice…
"YOU'S IS BEING A BAD WIZARD YOU'S IS AND YOU'S IS NOT HARMING HARRY POTTER EVER AGAIN YOU'S ISN'T!"
As the three teachers stood there watching who they assumed was Wymer Toft sliding down the wall. He had been severely transfigured into some very odd things by Dobby and was no longer completely recognizable. Dobby appeared in the corridor and snapped his fingers towards the semi-conscious wizard, who then floated up and began to be smacked repeatedly against the stone wall.
"Dobby," Professor Dumbledore said strongly, "You must stop this immediately."
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"Come on guys, it's just up ahead," Harry said as he and the others were running towards the source of the explosion. As the four Gryffindors rounded the corner they saw Dobby standing in the hallway with this arm pointed at the limp form of someone they couldn't recognize as he slid down the wall into a great heap on the floor.
Harry stopped immediately as soon as he heard Dobby scream those fateful words.
"It was him after all," Harry whispers to himself. "I was him."
"It was who Harry?" Hermione asks curiously. However, before she could get an answer out of him, Dobby had already sprung back into action and was bouncing the man around the corridor like a rag doll.
"Whoa," Ron said, "Thank goodness that isn't us."
"Yeah," Harry said and began to approach the scene being played out in front of him and listened to what was going on.
"No, I's isn't stopping, I isn't," replied Dobby to Dumbledore. "Bad wizard is hurting Harry Potter and bad is paying he is."
"Dobby," Harry said quietly as he approached.
Spinning around to see who called to him, the little elf was horrified to see that Harry was there, when he had tried so hard to make sure he wouldn't know that the bad wizard was in the castle.
"Harry Potter, you's in not suppose to being here, you's isn't. You's is needing to be going back to you's studying, you's is."
Putting his wand away, Harry stops in front of the house elf. "Dobby, is that the man who held me captive this summer?"
"Yes, it is being him, Harry Potter."
Swallowing, Harry then asks, "Did you do this to him?"
"Yes, I's is doing that, Harry Potter."
"Good."
Becoming a little frightened, Dobby asks, "Is Harry Potter being angry with Dobby?"
"No," Harry replies softly.
"What is we doing with him now, Harry Potter?"
"Dumbledore will take care of that now."
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Sometime later in Dumbledore's office, the Headmaster and several key members of the Order of the Phoenix have gathered to interrogate the former Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher.
"Ah, Severus, did you bring it?"
"Yes Headmaster, I have it here," replied the Potions Master as he handed the older wizard a small vial of Veritaserum.
Bending down to the unconscious man, Dumbledore pulls his head back and drips three drops of the potion into his mouth. Then standing once again, he takes out his wand and says, "Ennervate."
Slowly the transfigured face of Wymer Toft comes to life and he opens his eyes.
"Wymer Toft?" the Headmaster asks.
"Yes."
"Are you the one responsible for the abduction of Harry Potter last August?"
"No."
"No?"
"That is correct," said the former teacher in a monotone voice.
"Who is responsible for that?"
"She is."
"She? Who is this 'she'?"
Suddenly the prisoner began to convulse in pain, unable to answer the question.
"Stop," Professor Dumbledore said sternly. "I withdraw the question."
Toft calmed immediately.
"How many people were involved in Harry Potter's abduction and torture?"
"Seven men and her. We raped the boy repeatedly at her command. He was a fine specimen of boyhood and gave us all a simply delightful fu…"
"STOP!" bellowed the Headmaster and the prisoner stopped speaking.
"Who were these other men?"
"I cannot tell you."
"Why is that?" asked the Potions Master, curious to know how someone could defy his truth serum.
"I do not know their names. We each had a code name for the operation in case one of us was caught. In doing so, we could not betray the others."
"This woman who is the leader, why did she want to abduct Harry Potter?"
"Her reasons are her own and she did not share them me. However, I do know that she loathes Potter and wanted to break him and leave him in the tender care of those who love him the most. She wanted them to suffer from not being able to help him. However, the boy refused to be broken completely and she was forced to place the seven of us in positions where we could do the most damage to him later on."
"Are the other six men close to Harry Potter now?"
"Yes."
"How close?"
Then a smile crept across the face of Wymer Toft and he answered, "Closer than you think."
To Be Continued … Please Read and Review
I wanted to thank the following people for reading and reviewing my chapter, I really appreciate it.
angel74, Benjis VIP, Bluetattingman, gaul1, Merlin Halliwell, Monica85, Rane, sami1010220, Separatrix, texasjeanette, WinterBliss and Wren Truesong