Poetic Justice

On the Quidditch pitch, the atmosphere was electric as Gryffindor's hero of the day, Harry Potter, was hurriedly carried to the school hospital. His right arm hung limply, as if it were a rubber glove, drawing gasps of shock and murmurs of unease from the crowd. All eyes shifted uneasily to Gilderoy Lockhart, who stood smiling, oblivious to the chaos his spell had caused. Few dared to get too close to the man who had somehow managed to vanish all the bones in Harry's arm with a misguided charm.

Nearby, Malfoy was pale, his face a mask of frustration as his captain berated him. The Golden Snitch had been so close—mere centimeters from his grasp. If he had just raised his hand a fraction more, he could have seized it. Instead, the cheers that should have been his belonged to Harry Potter. The name echoed in his mind, taunting him: "Scarhead."

Meanwhile, in a secluded corner of the pitch, a small figure was banging his head against a wall repeatedly. "Dobby didn't want anything to happen to Harry Potter," the house-elf wailed. "Dobby only wanted Harry Potter to leave Hogwarts and go home! Dobby… Dobby must punish himself…"

"Hey! Can you focus on the task at hand?" A casual yet commanding voice interrupted Dobby's self-flagellation. The elf froze, his large ears twitching in fear. He tried to Apparate away instinctively, but nothing happened. Panic flooded his senses.

"Oh? So the anti-Apparition spell works on house-elves too?" The voice spoke again, this time laced with curiosity. A tall figure emerged from the shadows: Blake, a young wizard with sharp eyes and a confident smirk.

"Ah!" Dobby let out a high-pitched scream and tried to bolt, but Blake moved faster. With an ease that spoke of supernatural strength, he grabbed Dobby by the scruff of his neck and lifted him off the ground. The elf's legs kicked helplessly in the air.

"Ding! Extreme panic detected!" a mechanical voice chimed in Blake's mind. "Ding! Congratulations to the host for obtaining a golden treasure chest!"

Blake raised an eyebrow, intrigued by the notification. His gaze shifted to Dobby, and with his Eye of Truth, he evaluated the elf.

"Golden quality," he murmured. "No wonder you're different from the others. You've sought freedom for years, haven't you?"

"Please, sir," Dobby whimpered, "leave poor Dobby be. Dobby was only passing through."

Blake's smirk widened. "Passing through? I saw what you did to that Bludger. You're trying to kill Harry Potter."

"No! Never!" Dobby shrieked, his voice cracking. "Dobby would never harm Harry Potter! Dobby only wanted to save him, to make him leave Hogwarts! Terrible danger awaits him here! The Chamber of Secrets…"

The elf froze mid-sentence, realizing he had said too much. Frantically, he began slapping his head with his hands. "Bad Dobby! Bad Dobby!"

Blake sighed. "Enough of that. You're coming with me to see Professor Dumbledore. If you know the truth, you'll tell us everything."

"No! Not Professor Dumbledore!" Dobby wailed, his panic reaching new heights. "Ding! Extreme panic detected!" came the mechanical voice again. Blake couldn't help but grin at the notifications. "This is almost too easy," he muttered.

In the headmaster's office, Dumbledore set down a stack of parchment and reached for an empty cup. He sighed, standing to make himself a cup of hot cocoa, only to pause when a small circle of sparks appeared mid-air.

"Professor, are you free?" Blake's voice called from beyond the shimmering portal.

Dumbledore waved his hand. "Come in, Blake."

The circle expanded, and Blake stepped through, holding a struggling Dobby by the collar. "Not one of Hogwarts' house-elves, I presume?" Dumbledore observed calmly.

"No, sir," Blake replied. "I caught him tampering with a Bludger during today's Quidditch match. It broke Harry's arm."

Dumbledore's expression darkened. "Harry is injured?"

"He's in the hospital wing," Blake explained. "Though the arm injury wouldn't have been so bad if Lockhart hadn't tried to heal him."

Dumbledore's beard twitched in what might have been suppressed amusement. "I see. And this house-elf?"

Blake set Dobby down. The elf, no longer struggling, slumped onto the floor, defeated.

"Tell the professor what you told me," Blake commanded.

Dobby's eyes filled with tears as he spoke. "Dobby only wanted to protect Harry Potter! Dobby thought if Harry Potter was hurt, he would go home, away from Hogwarts! Terrible things are happening here… the Chamber of Secrets has been opened again…"

Dobby's hands twitched toward a nearby cup on the table. Before he could grab it to punish himself, Blake hoisted him up again. "Enough of that," Blake said firmly.

Dumbledore tapped Dobby gently on the forehead with his wand. The elf's struggles ceased, and he fell asleep instantly.

"What do you make of this?" Dumbledore asked Blake.

Blake crossed his arms. "The elf doesn't know we've dealt with the Chamber of Secrets incident, so he's acting out of misguided loyalty. But if he knows about the Chamber, it means his master is involved."

"Lucius Malfoy," Blake said without hesitation.

Dumbledore arched an eyebrow. "Your reasoning?"

Blake explained, "Ginny's books were scattered at Flourish and Blotts when Mr. Weasley and Malfoy argued. It would have been the perfect moment to slip a cursed diary into her things. And only a pure-blood family like the Malfoys would have a house-elf like Dobby."

Dumbledore nodded, his eyes gleaming with approval. "An excellent deduction, Blake. However, we lack concrete evidence to act against Lucius Malfoy."

Blake scowled. "So, he gets away with nearly endangering the entire school?"

"Not entirely," Dumbledore said with a sly smile. "Arthur Weasley frequently intercepts cursed items. Perhaps he might find something… inconvenient during a routine inspection of Malfoy Manor."

Blake grinned. "A little poetic justice, then."

Dumbledore's gaze softened as he looked at the sleeping Dobby. "Let him go home. But tell him the Chamber incident is resolved. Otherwise, he might try to 'rescue' Harry again."

Blake nodded. "Understood." With a flick of his wand, a portal opened, and Blake stepped through with Dobby in tow.

Left alone, Dumbledore turned to his empty cup, only to find it filled with steaming hot cocoa. He smiled, lifting the cup. "That boy is full of surprises."

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