Dobby had found the photos. They were face-down on the boy's bedside table.
Dobby thought he might lose his nerve if he saw the finished product, so he peeled each photo individually off the thick stack and stuffed them in a sock which he often used as a purse.
"Now, Dobby will rid Hogwarts of Hagrid!" he murmured, his rock-solid six-pack abs shifting as he raised his arms in triumph.
Promptly, he Disapparated to the top of Hagrid's hut. He teetered for a moment after losing his balance due to the sudden sharp decline, but burrowed his toes deeply into the hard roof so he wouldn't fall.
Swiftly, Dobby blindfolded himself with a sock and tucked the photos around the crevices of Hagrid's cabin.
He could not wait for the firing of Hagrid.
"Dobby?" called a voice. Dobby froze and ripped off the blindfold, though he was careful not to glance at any of the photos.
"I've been meanin' ter talk to yeh," Hagrid stated plainly, standing outside of his cabin and squinting at Dobby, who was silhouetted against the bright sun.
Dobby remained still.
"Look, Dobby, why haven' I seen yeh anymore?" Hagrid asked forlornly. "Did I do somethin' wrong?"
Dobby drew himself to his full height, letting the last photo tuck itself into Hagrid's roof with his clenched toes.
"No," Dobby squeaked, lying through his teeth. "Goodbye, Hagrid."
And he Disapparated away. Hopefully Hagrid wouldn't see the photos. If he did, there was no way he could remove all three hundred and ninety-four of them.
🐎🐎🐎🐎🐎🐎🐎🐎🐎🐎🐎🐎🐎🐎🐎
"Hmm," Hagrid mused as he peered at the remnants of evidence that Dobby had ever been there, the photos plastered around his house.
Hagrid sighed and rubbed his eyes, not bothering to glance at the photos. He may have just ruined Dobby's next surprise for him.
Dumbledore had warned him against a relationship with Dobby, as Dumbledore had been unceremoniously dumped by Dobby before.
Hagrid did not regret meeting the little elf.
"Don' worry abou' me, Professor Dumbledore," he bellowed under his breath. "I'm off to find a flobberworm."
