Chapter 288: Dobby's Choice
"Finite Incantatem!"
Dudley cast the spell again, removing the Silencing Charm that had been separating him from Harry.
"Dudley, this is Dobby, a house-elf!" Harry said urgently in a low voice.
"Did he come to 'help' you again?" Dudley glanced at Dobby, then looked back at Harry.
"Yes, same as before. He's warning me to leave Hogwarts immediately. I was about to explain about the basilisk when you woke up," Harry said quickly.
Dudley's perception remained as sharp as ever. Dobby had only been present for over ten seconds before Dudley awakened from his dream.
"Well, I have many things I want to ask this house-elf," Dudley's gaze fixed on Dobby.
"So, Dobby, shall we chat?" Dudley said, gently raising his right hand.
In the next moment, Dobby floated upward and drifted out of the dormitory. Seeing this, Harry quickly threw on a robe and followed.
Soon, under Dudley's control, Dobby arrived at Gryffindor's common room—still within the range of Dudley's prohibition.
"I'll release you from the restraint, but you must behave yourself. Do you understand?" Dudley addressed Dobby.
At this moment, Dobby's eyes were filled with grievance. He had only come to help Harry Potter, yet had been dealt with three times over.
"If you understand, blink your eyes," Dudley continued.
Dobby blinked.
"Release."
Dudley lifted the restraint on Dobby. Upon feeling the absence of bondage, Dobby immediately recoiled in terror, attempting to Disapparate, only to discover the anti-Apparition spell was still in effect.
"Don't force me to restrain you again," Dudley warned, watching Dobby carefully.
"D-Dobby only wanted to help Mr. Harry Potter! Dobby meant no harm!" Dobby said in terror.
"Your idea of 'helping' is intercepting our mail and nearly causing Harry to fall off his broomstick and die?" Dudley asked coldly.
"N-No, Dobby thought that if Mr. Harry Potter sensed the danger, he would leave Hogwarts," Dobby trembled as he spoke.
"Was someone ordering you to do these things?" Dudley's words carried an inherent authority. Especially after becoming Sequence 6, the pressure was something ordinary people couldn't bear.
"No... truly not," Dobby retreated step by step, sensing this boy as terrifying, invoking the same feeling as facing his master. He dared not harbour any rebellious thoughts.
"No?" Dudley's gaze sharpened. "The Malfoy family sent you, didn't they?"
Dudley questioned.
"No! Not them!" Dobby jumped like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, nearly leaping upright. He didn't understand how Dudley guessed his origins when he had revealed nothing.
"Was it Lucius Malfoy?" Dudley asked.
Dobby didn't dare speak, shaking his head frantically. His large ears flapped like two massive fans in wild motion.
"Not him? Then it must be Draco," Dudley continued.
The authority in his words grew increasingly overwhelming.
"No!" Dobby cried out. "I truly only wanted to help Mr. Harry Potter! Hogwarts will experience terrible things, and I don't want to see Mr. Harry Potter harmed! I swear no one ordered Dobby to do this! Dobby did all of this willingly!"
Dobby trembled as he spoke.
"Oh!" he suddenly exclaimed. "I shouldn't have said that! I daren't say these things! Bad Dobby!"
Dobby suddenly jolted, beginning to slam his head against the wall, attempting to punish himself.
Dudley and Harry exchanged glances. At this point, both could essentially confirm that Dobby had truly not been sent by Lucius Malfoy.
"Apparition is forbidden here," Dudley suddenly spoke, his words whispered in Hermes.
"Oh!" The frantically self-punishing Dobby stopped. He seemed bound by some powerful constraint, preventing him from further self-harm.
"Tell me—what do you know?" Dudley asked.
Though this house-elf's initial intentions might have been good, his methods were truly reckless. If Dudley hadn't been by Harry's side, these incidents could have caused far greater chaos. Perhaps in Dobby's mind, a crippled Harry was preferable to facing the basilisk.
"Dobby cannot say," Dobby shook his head.
Regarding his master's family matters, he couldn't reveal anything. If he did, he would have to punish himself.
Dudley frowned. House-elves are truly enslaved deeply, he mused silently.
Though Dobby had his own thoughts, he was clearly bound by some magic that prevented him from acting against his masters without self-punishment.
"What do we do now? We won't get anything out of him about the Malfoys," Harry said, frowning.
Though he pitied the house-elf, recalling the reckless things he'd done, Harry could only shake his head helplessly.
Dudley pondered briefly, then looked at Dobby. "Would you like to leave the Malfoy family?"
Upon hearing this, Dobby's eyes suddenly brightened. He had dreamed of becoming a free house-elf, but the magic rooted within their beings prevented them from escaping their masters' service—unless the master gave them a piece of clothing.
But that was impossible.
Dobby didn't speak, but his eyes said everything.
"A house-elf wanting to leave their master must receive clothing given by the master," Harry reminded Dudley.
"Perhaps I have a way," Dudley said softly.
"What way? You're not thinking of casting Imperius on Malfoy, are you?" Harry asked in surprise.
Dudley's mouth twitched slightly. "I don't need to resort to that spell," he said.
Then Dudley fell into thought. Through prohibition, severing Dobby's servant bond with the Malfoy family might be possible, but Dudley currently couldn't cast such a powerful prohibition. Otherwise... Suddenly, Dudley's eyes lit up slightly.
"I have an idea!"
After all, one only needed a piece of clothing. There was nothing difficult about that. Having Lucius do it would be hard, but having Draco accomplish it wouldn't be difficult at all.
"However..." Dudley frowned.
Though Dobby knew about the Chamber conspiracy, regarding other matters, he might not know much. If Dudley could plant Dobby within the Malfoy family to continuously gather intelligence, perhaps that would be an excellent option. Then Dudley would need to sever the master-servant magic between the Malfoys and Dobby without their knowledge—a task presenting some difficulty for Dudley.
"Dobby, now there's an opportunity for you to truly help Mr. Harry Potter. I wonder if you're willing?" Dudley suddenly smiled at Dobby.