Safe House

Thirty

"Merry Christmas!" I said to my brother's and Harry when they walked downstairs sometime after Mum stopped crying about Percy, Hermione was beside me and she greeted them with the same message.

"Thanks for the book, Harry," Hermione said "I've been wanting that New Theory of Numerology for ages! And that perfume's really unusual, Ron"

"No, problem" Ron said, Harry and Hermione both walked ahead into the kitchen.

"You got her perfume?" I whispered to Ron.

"Yeah, so what?" He said.

"And she still doesn't get that your in love with her" I rolled my eyes before following the rest.

"Am not!" Ron hissed behind me.

Mum was the only one in the kitchen when we walked in, sounding ill when she wished us a Merry Christmas.

"Who's that for?" Ron asked Hermione, nodding at the present she was holding.

"Kreacher" She smiled.

"It had better not be clothes!" Ron told her "You know what Sirius said: Kreacher knows too much, we can't set him free!"

"It isn't clothes" Hermione said "although if I had my way I'd certainly give him something to wear other than that filthy old rag. No, it's a patchwork quilt, I thought it wold brighten up his bedroom."

"Kreacher has a bedroom?" I asked.

"Well, Sirius say it's not so much a bedroom, more of a kind of - den" Hermione said. "Apparently he sleeps under the boiler in that cupboard off the kitchen."

"Is this it?" Ron asked, strolling over to the door, opposite the pantry.

"Yes" Hermione said "Er ... I think we'd better knock."

Ron knocked but there was no reply.

"Hello?" I said through the door, knocking. But there was still nothing.

"He must be sneaking upstairs" Ron said, then pulled open the door. "Urgh!"

"Ew, it stinks!" I said, bringing my sweatshirt up to cover my nose.

The source of the smell is what I'm guessing, was the pile of dirty and mouldy looking blankets.

Apparently, Kreacher slept in a dent in his "Bedroom". Not even a proper bed.

There was also gone off food scattered around.

"I think I'll just leave his present here" Hermione said laying it down neatly on the floor. "He'll find it later, that'll be fine."

"Quick, close the door before the stench is burned into our nose's forever" I said, Pushing the door shut as Hermione backed up.

"Come to think of it" Sirius said, walking towards us "has anyone actually seen Kreacher lately?"

"I haven't seen him since the night we came back here" Harry said.

"Oh yeah, when we just landed, he called us blood-traitors, you ordered him out" I said, rolling my eyes.

"Yeah ..." Sirius said "You know, I think thats the last time I saw him, too ... he must be hiding upstairs somewhere."

"He couldn't have left, could he?" Harry asked " I mean, when you said "out", maybe he thought you meant get out of the house?"

"No, no, house-elves can't leave unless their given clothes. They're tied to their family's house." Said Sirius.

"They can leave the house if they really want to" Harry said "Dobby did, he left the Malfoy's to give me warnings three years ago. He had to punish himself afterwards, but he still managed it."