Emma Potter

23: Dobby

I saw the...creature too. I jumped up and made close to my brother. I opened my mouth to scream but Harry clamped a hand over my mouth. The little creature on the bed had large, bat-like ears andbulging green eyes the size of tennis balls. Me and Harry  knew instantlythat this was what had been watching us out of the garden hedgethat morning. s we stared at each other, Harry and I  heard Dudley's voice fromthe hall."May I take your coats, Mr. and Mrs. Mason?" 

The creature slipped off the bed and bowed so low that the endof its long, thin nose touched the carpet.I noticed that it waswearing what looked like an old pillowcase, with rips for arm- andleg-holes."Er — hello," said Harry nervously. "Harry and Emma Potter!" said the creature in a high-pitched voice "So long has Dobby wantedto meet you, sir and madame  . . . Such an honor it is. . . ."

"Er, thanks?" I say not knowing what else to say.  "Who are you?" asked Harry.

"Dobby, sir. Just Dobby. Dobby the house-elf," said the creature."Oh — really?" said Harry. "Er — I don't want to be rude oranything, but — this isn't a great time for us to have a house elf in our bedroom. 

The elf hung his head. "Not that we're not pleased to meet you" I added hurriedly. "but, er, is there any particular reason you're here?"

"Oh, yes madame."  said Dobby earnestly. "Dobby has come to tellyou, . . . it is difficult. . . Dobby wonders where to begin. . . .""Sit down," said Harry politely, pointing at the bed.

To our horror, the elf burst into tears — very noisy tears."S-sit down!" he wailed. "Never . . . never ever . . ."

The voices downstairs faltered. "I'm sorry," he whispered, "I didn't mean to offend you or anything —""Offend Dobby!" choked the elf. "Dobby has never been askedto sit down by a wizard — like an equal —"Harry, trying to say "Shh!" and look comforting at the sametime, ushered Dobby back onto the bed where he sat hiccoughing,looking like a large and very ugly doll. At last he managed to control himself, and sat with his great eyes fixed on Harry and me  in an expression of watery adoration.

"Um, you couldn't have met many decent wizards then" I asked, trying to cheer him up. Dobby shook his head. Then, without warning, he leapt up andstarted banging his head furiously on the window, shouting, "BadDobby! Bad Dobby!""Don't — what are you doing?"I hissed  springing up andpulling Dobby back onto the bed — Hedwig had woken up with aparticularly loud screech and was beating her wings wildly againstthe bars of her cage."Dobby had to punish himself,madame." said the elf, who had goneslightly cross-eyed. "Dobby almost spoke ill of his family, sir. . . ." 

"Your family?" 

"The wizard family Dobby serves, sir. . . . Dobby is a houseelf — bound to serve one house and one family forever. . . ."

Do they know you're here?" asked Harry curiously.

 Dobby shuddered."Oh, no, sir, no . . . Dobby will have to punish himself mostgrievously for coming to see you, sir. Dobby will have to shut hisears in the oven door for this. If they ever knew, sir —" 

"But won't they notice if you shut your ears in the oven door?" 

"Dobby doubts it, sir. Dobby is always having to punish himselffor something, sir. They lets Dobby get on with it, sir. Sometimesthey reminds me to do extra punishments. . . ." 

"But why don't you leave? Escape?"I asked. 

"A house-elf must be set free, madame. And the family will never setDobby free . . . Dobby will serve the family until he dies, madame. 

Harry and I stared,

"And we thought staying here for 4 more weeks was hard." I say ""This makes the Dursleys sound almost human. Can't anyone help you? Can't we?"