Lessons and House-Elf Troubles
"That is enough jumping around for today, Potter. Lets head to your room for your other lessons." Snape's wand disappeared into his robes.
Both Snape and Harry were breathing rather heavily. It had been their first dueling practice together. They stepped out of the Slytherin dueling arena. They remained quiet for the few steps it took to get into Harry's new room. Once they entered his room they sat on the two chairs next to the small round table that provided a little seating area to the room. Harry could do homework in peace here.
"You clearly show that you have been practicing with a Gryffindor lately. Moody's attack first, think later style shows in your tactics. Some of that fits your rash style. Your dodging defense is good for one so young. But you are a Slytherin. Think."
"Professor Moody always repeated that one should not think in battle. He always said that you should have your motions so ingrained in you that you don't need to think. I thought I was doing well with that."
"Yes, some things need to be automatic. For example most expert duelers have somewhere between one and two dozen go-to spell chains. Each of these spell chains is automatic. Your reactions, like dodging needs to be automatic."
"Then what do I need to think about? With all my opponents I've been outmatched. I need to react to survive."
"Don't give me these lazy excuses, Potter. Moody is a competent Auror, he had to have taught you about attacking."
"A good offense is the best defense. That is why I continuously try to go for the attack, to get the opponent off balance."
Snape sighed. "But that doesn't mean you need to throw out your brain. You need to continuously think about various plans of attack, of your surroundings, of your and your enemies positioning, of your enemies strategy and your best response, of potential other threats, of countless factors, while at the same time automatically defend any attack on you. You need to be proactive, which I have never seen you be. You need to do so many things at once that only with Occlumency can you really get it all under control. Which is why we will now return to your Occlumency lessons. Let me see how your defenses are building."
"Professor, before we do that, I have a quick question, have you seen Mafalda Weasley lately? The Twins were looking for her yesterday, and no one seems to have seen her since." Harry was trying to delay just another moment the pain of such lessons, even though it was inevitable.
"I'll look into it, Potter, now stop stalling." With that Snape dove into his mind again.
HPU
A few days later, Harry and Hermione sat in the abandoned class room. After the choice of the goblet, Hermione was adamant that he let her help him prepare. She had evidently decided to let the matter, whatever had made her act so strangely, rest. Harry's position as Slytherin's Champion had raised his standing enough that Hermione didn't worry about what her house mates thought. And anyways, as she said, "Whatever they might do to me is nothing compared to what you will have to face."
Initially they had tried to duel. This had run into several problems. First, the Slytherin dueling arena was not open to other houses. They had not been able to find a room private enough, that would also allow them to duel. When they had tried to go outside, they had discovered that even though Harry was not living up to either Moody's or Snape's expectations, he still had already far outpaced Hermione in his dueling skills.
It would have been Harry helping Hermione, not him becoming better prepared for the tasks.
There were other strengths, however, that Hermione could contribute. She had, upon hearing about the Triwizard Tournament, gone to the library. She had spent the past week researching past tournaments. She had made a statistic analysis of all past tasks. And so they now sat together and when over these statistics.
The two were covering the first task, and Hermione was convinced that it would be some dangerous magical creature. They went over the most likely candidates.
She had also researched the best approach to defending against these candidates.
"Dragons are the third most common first task. I have a hunch that it might be the task this time." Hermione said.
"Why?" Harry said.
"The Ministry is trying to convince everyone that they are serious about safety. As dangerous as dragons are, they are the safest of the most common first tasks. I think they will go with one of those, because they are also very dramatic. This is a show for the Magical world after all."
"Dragons are the safest?"
"Dragons are relatively safe, they are predictable. In the wild they actually rarely attack humans. Dragon handlers is an actual job. I have no idea how they brought chimaeras to the schools. Or how they were contained."
"So how would I best take down a dragon?" Harry tried to look for solutions, to calm him down.
A sudden crack disrupted their conversation.
"Help, Great Wizard, Master Harry Potter, HELP! Is being matter of live and death. …," shouted Dobby.
Harry had learned how to handle these kinds of outbursts. He abruptly and efficiently crumpled up some parchment and stuffed it into the house-elves mouth, while keeping it in with a quick sticky charm. Hermione frowned at his behavior, but for the time being Harry didn't see how else he could respond.
"Now Dobby, if you promise to calmly explain to me what the cause of this, then I will remove the parchment. Nod if you agree to this."
If Dobby had nodded any more violently, his head would have come off.
"Finite incantatem" Harry removed the sticking charm.
Dobby instantly ripped the parchment out of his mouth and with a snap made it disappear. As he did so he quickly explained: "Master Harry Potter giving many pardons, please. Dobby's friend, free-elf Winky is dying. Only, Greatest Wizard Harry Potter is being of help. Winky is needs of binding."
"It is so sad that house-elves are so indoctrinated in their servitude. I have been thinking about starting this group, S.P.E.W. …"
"Hermione, not now." Harry interrupted Hermione, then turning to Dobby, he spoke softer, "I don't understand, Dobby. Why does Winky need binding."
"All house-elves is of dying if not bound. Winky's old master was not happy with Winky and let her go."
"But why, Dobby?" Hermione now interjected.
"Is of ancient covenant between Wizards and House-Elves. Dobby is not knowing more. House-elves is dying if not bound to wizard. Winky is dying."
"But, Dobby, you are a free-elf, why would you not be dying?" Harry questioned.
"Mmm, Dobby has special bond."
"What do you mean? Special bond?"
"Dobby is bonded to Great Master Harry Potter, sir. Dobby's bond is bond of freedom. Dobby is wanting freedom, and the Greatest Wizard, Master Harry Potter is giving Dobby freedom."
"Harry you can't possibly take him seriously. These creatures deserve to be free. You can't help this slavery to continue." Hermione interjected again.
"Hermione, there is a lot in the wizarding world that we don't understand. I want to see in what condition this Winky is in before we make our decision. Dobby bring us to Winky."
"Yes, Master Harry Potter."
Dobby gestured for Harry and Hermione to follow him. He guided them to the kitchen of Hogwarts and past it. Through a wide hallway, to a small door.
They appeared in a dark corner of a small room. Both Harry and Hermione had to bend down to not hit their heads on the ceiling.
They stood next to a molding pile of dirty rags. Sown about were bottles of butterbeer in various stages of consumption. Harry even spied a few bottles of real beer. The rags where soiled and the smell of alcohol instantly hit Harry's nose. Underneath this pile a few elven extremities could be seen.
Dobby gently pulled at one of the hands. "Winky be waking up. Dobby is bringing Winky help. Winky is needing to get better." He murmured into the pile of rags.
"Dobby be leaving disgusting elf Winky alone. No help be for Winky." They heard. But nevertheless, Winky's head appeared from within the pile. Her eyes are squinted together and bloodshot, and her skin is a deadly white. It has a plastic look to it that reminds Harry of death. While the bloodshot eyes could be explained by the alcohol, the skin showed clearly a progressing sickness. Hermione sucks in her breath in horror. She holds her hands in front of her mouth as tears fill her eyes.
"Winky is needing bond," Dobby muttered. "if free for two days more Winky is being gone."
"Dobby, what do we need to do to save her?" Hermione exclaimed.
"Is very simple. Harry Potter's Hermy is holding Winky's brow."
Hermione, without thinking placed her right hand on Winky's forehead.
"Now, is saying, socius meus."
"Socius meus."
Winky's eyes pop open and she responds: "Socio."
The change in Winky was subtle, but still very noticeable. Her eyes were still bloodshot, that may have come from the alcohol. Her skin started to slowly gain color. A faint pink indicates that blood flow returned to the skin. The deadly plastic texture began to recede. It would take several days to get Winky back to full health, but recovery clearly started after this little ritual. She got up, in her naked elven glory, bowed to Hermione and said: "Winky is being ready. What does Mistress Hermy wanting Winky to do?"
Hermione looks at Harry, who as dumbstruck as she is. Then she looks at Dobby who nods his head vigorously, smiling from ear to ear.
"What does Harry Potter's Hermy first is commanding Winky is being very special." Dobby blurbed together.
Shaking her head in confusion Hermione finally says: "My first order shall be that if you, for whatever reason, don't like my orders, you will inform me of your concerns. I want you to talk to me about any problems you have with my … ownership of you. Clean yourself up and clean this room until you can live in this. I will have to find out what I should do with you."
HPU
Hermione was oddly quiet for the rest of the day. She did not say another word to Harry until she headed back to the Ravenclaw tower.
Harry knew she would be headed to the library tomorrow. And he was glad for it. Dobby's half explanation of his bond to Harry was worrying. He had always been happy for Dobby to be a free-elf. Now he learned that he was not so free at all, Harry did not know what to think. In effect Dobby operated completely independent from Harry. Dobby had found himself a job here at Hogwarts. Although that now raised the question if Dobby had found this job in particular in order to be closer to his master. It did not sit well with Harry.
In short, Harry would be pleased if Hermione's search would led some light on this.
One thing that he could test right now is if Dobby responded to him as a house-elf always did to his master.
"Dobby" Harry spoke softly.
There was a soft pop, and Dobby stood in front of him. 'Well, might as well get some information right now' Harry thought.
"Master Harry Potter called."
"Dobby, tell me everything you know about your special bond to me. Also, what is it with this master business?"
"Master Harry Potter, Dobby does not know about this. Great Wizard Harry Potter and our bond is being very different than Dobby's former master."
"What do you mean by that?"
"With good masters, the elven bond being very deep. With bad masters, wizards being closed to the full bond. But Great Master Harry Potter is different. Wondrous Wizard Harry Potter does not feel bond at all. Dobby not being smart enough to tell why."
HPU
After class, Harry wanted to be alone for a little while. He snug into an unobserved corner, and threw his invisibility cloak over him. Thus hidden, he made his way towards the front hall and to the bridge leading out of the castle. His goal was the little lake by the Forbidden Forest, where he had chased the dementors away last year. He wanted to be alone outside to be able to think a little. Getting away from the business of the Triwizard Tournament and the strange news of elven bonding.
On the bridge he was embarrassed to to observe a little encounter between Fleur Delacour and Nathaniel Bridgestream, a seventh year Gryffindor.
Fleur stood to the side, but Bridgestream was in the middle. Bridgestream was evidently agitated, and prone to sudden movements. Harry was worried that if Bridgestream stepped the wrong way, he would be discovered. Thus, he decided to wait for at least a moment and see if he could sneak past Bridgestream in a better moment.
"Fleur, … I was thinking, … you and I, we would look good together. How about you … er … come with me … mmm … to the Yule Ball?" Bridgestream asked. He had build up some of that Gryffindor courage to do this.
Fleur looked at Bridgestream with contempt. Harry was astonished that Bridgestream didn't tuck his tail in and ran at this moment. If ever a look could kill, this one would incinerate. Fleur seemed to hope for Bridgestream to just leave, but Bridgestream was either more stubborn or stupid then that. After a few moments she elaborated: "Je ne te conais pas. Leeve me alone."
This was finally enough. Bridgestream mumbled, "Sorry, I asked" and dashed away, into the castle.
Harry could have now moved on to the little lake, but something stopped him.
Fleur's face was utterly miserable. Every feature displayed loneliness. A lonely tear rolled down her right cheek.
Harry was struck. He had never imagined that the beautiful Fleur Delacour could be this sad. A wave of sympathy washed over him. She appeared so popular and well know, but seemed to have no real friends. Harry remembered the lackluster cheers from her own table at the night of the goblet. He was reminded of his own fame. He knew something of her trouble he was famous, and much of his time at Hogwarts was lonely too.
How could he help her?
HPU
"Nott, could I talk to you a minute?" Harry asked.
"Of course Potter, how can I help?"
"I have… There is this strange… Granger and I now both have our own house-elf. I don't know what to think of that."
"How are you sharing a house-elf? Only members of the same family can do that. Did you vassal her?"
"Vassal her?" Harry frowned, "What are you talking… No, I have Dobby and Granger's is Winky."
"Ok, what is the problem then. I don't understand, most families have at least one house-elf. Did you steal them?"
"No, we didn't steal them, I thought I helped Dobby to get free, but turns out he just traded an abusive master for a non abusive one. Winky was sent away by her former master. Don't you see a problem with having slave labor?"
"Slave labor? Have you talked to them? They love to work. In fact they couldn't survive without the bond." Nott's face displayed utter bafflement. House-elves wanted and needed to work, wizards provided that work, and benefited from the servants, what was the problem?
"I'm not against working. We all have to work to survive. But we can choose where we work. At lest after we leave school. House-elves are stuck. Wizards force them to work, and every labor deserves its wage."
"Look, this is a symbiotic relationship, house-elves get to live and have fun by the way, we get workers. Yes, some wizards abuse this, but that is a separate issue. House-elves love to work, that is what they are in their nature. Just be happy that you have your own worker."
Harry could see that he would not get a better answer than that. He would let it rest for now. Hopefully Hermione would not do something rash about the whole deal.
A.N. Happy 2020!
I am kind of torn with this chapter. It seems a bit out of place, but I do have a plan with what has been introduced. It's been a while since the last post, so I decided to just post it, imperfect as it is.
Also, how would you grade my house-elf accent?