"Elves and the Secret Room"

Elves and the Secret Room

Stephen was absent from classes for two days due to some issues with the amusement park. It turned out that while Ricky was filming a commercial to showcase the park to the world, a letter arrived from the International Confederation of Wizards.

Basically, he had to prove that the International Statute of Secrecy was being upheld on the island where the park was located, since it was outside the jurisdiction of other magical ministries. The Confederation intervened. Obviously, everything went more than well, especially after showing off the magnificent barriers. Although Stephen hates ministries—especially the British one—with the Confederation, he has to hold back a bit more, since it's basically the magical version of the UN, made up of the best wizards from around the world.

By the way, Stephen had been invited multiple times to join as a magical researcher thanks to his book on Eldritch magic.

After finishing the inspection tour for the officials, Stephen was finally able to return to school.

When he arrived, he found out that Harry had been attacked by a Bludger during a Quidditch match.

"So, did Lockhart try to heal his arm and turn it into jelly? Harry or the arm?" Stephen asked, speaking with the temporary Golden Duo.

"The arm!" Hermione shouted impatiently.

"Sorry, you talk so fast and at the same time that you sound like a machine gun of words," Stephen teased.

"So, that idiot Lockhart tried to heal Harry's arm—something Poppy could fix in a second—with a faulty spell, and now he's stuck in the infirmary all night?" Stephen asked.

"I-It was just a small mistake. Everyone makes mistakes sometimes," Hermione tried to defend Lockhart. After all, she was a big fan.

"That man is a fraud, Hermione, I'm telling you," Ron started his usual argument.

"Well, you two stay here. I'll go check on him," Stephen said as he left the Gryffindor common room.

Since it was after curfew, he entered the infirmary under invisibility. Inside, he saw something interesting.

It was Harry and the house-elf Dobby running around Harry's bed.

Harry, too tired to keep chasing him, just sat back and watched with irritation. But a snapping sound caught both of their attention.

"Misty?" Harry said, recognizing who had suddenly appeared behind Dobby.

Then he watched as Misty summoned chains from all directions, trapping Dobby before he could escape in time, while swords appeared, aiming at his throat.

"Hoho, a wild and furious Misty has appeared," Stephen joked as he dropped his invisibility.

"Young master, I caught the vile elf who harmed little Harry," Misty said, calming down slightly when she saw Stephen, but still not releasing Dobby, who was struggling to breathe.

"It's fine, Misty. Don't hurt him. Let's hear what he has to say," Stephen said as he sat down on a chair beside Harry's bed.

Though still angry at the elf, Misty released the chains that were choking him but conjured rings to restrict his magic. The swords continued to float around them, showing no signs of disappearing.

Dobby looked at Misty in shock, surprised by the unknown magic she wielded. After all, house-elves could only use magic for household chores or to defend their masters, but not for direct attacks like Misty.

"So, Dobby, right? Explain why you're trying to harm Harry, risking your life against magical law," Stephen asked.

"Dobby never wanted to harm Harry Potter! Dobby only wanted Harry Potter to leave Hogwarts! Hogwarts is very dangerous this year for Harry Potter and his friends! Dobby does not care about magical law as long as Harry Potter is safe!" Dobby said quickly.

"What magical law?" Harry asked Stephen, not understanding.

"You idiot, when you first met Misty, I told you that elves aren't allowed to harm wizards. And that's because there's a magical law that punishes elves for any harm they cause to humans," Stephen explained, looking at Harry as if he were an idiot, since he had already mentioned this before.

"Oh, right." In Harry's defense, after living with Misty—who occasionally punished the twins by giving them a beating for variety's sake—he had forgotten that such a law even existed. But then he remembered that Misty was special.

"Dobby wants to know why a free elf can use such powerful magic," Dobby said, looking at Misty and her clothing, assuming she was a free elf.

"Misty is not a free elf. She is a proud house-elf of the Flamel family," Misty said, angered by the blasphemy coming from the vile elf.

"But Dobby does not see the slave mark," Dobby argued in his defense, looking at the fine clothes Misty was wearing.

"My slave mark—" Misty looked down at her clothes and realized that, at some point, she had stopped using illusions to create them and had been convinced to wear real clothes.

"Misty is a free elf?!" Misty looked at her clothes, then at Stephen, as tears started falling from her face.

"Sigh Silly Misty, your slave mark is the Flamel servant seal," Stephen said, pointing to Misty's shoulder, where a seal was visible—shaped like a phoenix holding an ancient book in its talons, with the sun and moon on either side, representing immortality, wisdom, and the passage of time.

This seal was actually a magical contract that freed Misty and allowed her to choose her masters. Given her immense power, it wouldn't be surprising if someone tried to kidnap her and force her into servitude for another family. The seal acted as a safeguard for Misty while leaving the choice in her own hands. By the way, the tattoo takes the shape of the house one serves.

"That's right. Vile elf, do not try to confuse Misty. Misty is a proud servant of the Flamel family," Misty quickly recovered, touching her tattoo fondly.

Meanwhile, Stephen and Harry both noticed that Dobby was looking at Misty with envy and admiration.

"That's weird, elf," Stephen muttered under his breath, so only Harry could hear. Harry nodded in agreement.

After all, Dobby had realized that Misty was valued by her masters—she seemed genuinely happy to serve them—while he was despised and mistreated by the family he served.

"Alright, Dobby, you can leave. Don't worry, we already know about the Chamber of Secrets. No one will get hurt—Misty will take care of it," Stephen said.

"Yes! Misty is strong! Misty will take down the evil one who dares to harm young master and little Harry," Misty said proudly. The swords around her vanished, and she released Dobby at Stephen's command.

Dobby wanted to say something, but footsteps approaching the infirmary made him look at the others with concern before disappearing.

"Quick, put him on the bed," Madam Pomfrey ordered as she followed Dumbledore and the other professors, carrying a petrified Colin.

"The camera… he might have captured his attacker," McGonagall said as Dumbledore opened the camera, only for it to explode in soot and smoke, leaving everyone surprised.

"What does this mean, Dumbledore?" McGonagall asked.

"It seems the Chamber of Secrets has been opened," Dumbledore said, ignoring the fact that Harry was awake and hearing everything. Meanwhile, Stephen wasn't particularly interested. The fact that Colin was petrified wasn't that bad—he just needed to order some mandrake plants by mail, and the problem would be solved. So he instructed Misty to take him to his room and then buy some mature mandrake plants.

When he entered his room, he saw the twins, who were about to sneak out into the castle.

"Hey, boss, want to go exploring with us?" Fred invited Stephen as soon as he saw him.

"Sure, why not? I need to relax after so much work," Stephen said, following them as the twins rolled their eyes at his words.

"Fred and I are investigating the passages on the Marauder's Map."

"Last year, we were too busy, so this year, it's our duty to find any new secret passages."

"I solemnly swear that I am—"

"You lot, what are you doing out of your dormitory after curfew?"

Before Fred could say the incantation to activate the map, someone stopped them with a cold voice.

"Hello, Snapy, long time no see," Stephen said, quickly recognizing who it was and diverting attention so the twins could hide the parchment.

"Well, well, if it isn't the famous prince of clowns and his imperial jesters," Snape sneered.

"You should know, Mr. Flamel, that your meaningless title does not grant you the authority to break school rules. Twenty points deducted… each. Now, follow me," Snape said as he started walking toward the staff office.

Normally, he would have just deducted points or given them detention. But finding them outside their dormitory on the same night a Gryffindor student had been attacked was not something he could overlook. Not that he was blaming them, but a harsher punishment would discourage them from wandering around during dangerous times.

They arrived at the staff office. Normally, professors had their own offices, but for meetings or breaks between classes, they would gather there. After Colin's attack, they had been holding a meeting, but only McGonagall remained, organizing some papers.

"Snape, what brings you back...?" Just as McGonagall was about to ask why he had returned, Snape quickly glanced behind him and realized the problem.

"Professor McGonagall, I found these three wandering the castle halls after curfew," Snape said, pointing at the trio behind him.

McGonagall understood why he had brought them for punishment instead of sending them straight back to their dorms. She was also furious that they had been sneaking around right after a student had been attacked—though they were unaware of that.

"You—"

"Professors, there's a problem."

Just as McGonagall was about to scold the three, a ghost rushed through the wall, immediately drawing everyone's attention.

"Sigh. You three stay here and do not move. Understood?" McGonagall instructed, worried that bringing them along might put them at risk if the attacker was still around. Leaving them in the office was the safer option.

She then hurried off with Snape.

"This is your fault. Do you really think that after all these years, we'd just stumble upon a secret room so easily? What, do you think we're the protagonists of some movie or something?" Stephen grumbled as he waved his hand, unintentionally knocking into a statue holding a ball.

The ball fell, hitting McGonagall's quill, which was sent flying toward Professor Flitwick's chair stacked with books. It struck the eagle-shaped paperweight on his desk, knocking it over and triggering a confiscated firecracker.

The explosion sent fragments of the paperweight flying upward, striking the middle of a painting on the ceiling. A few mechanical noises followed, and then—a door creaked open behind Stephen.

"Sigh. A door just appeared behind me, didn't it?" Stephen asked without turning around. The twins, eyes gleaming with excitement, simply nodded.

Suddenly, the twins tried to rush inside without hesitation, only for Stephen to stop them.

"Idiots, McGonagall will be back any minute. This isn't the time to explore. We'll have to come back another day," he said quickly, hurriedly fixing the mess, leaving the twins looking dejected.

And just in time—McGonagall returned. It seemed the issue wasn't as serious as she had initially thought.

"Sigh. You three, return to your dormitories. You'll find out your punishment tomorrow," McGonagall said, exhausted from the chaotic day.

"Of course, Professor. See you later."

"Goodbye, Professor."

"Good night, Professor."

The three of them said as they ran off. By the way, McGonagall had one of the ghosts escort them to ensure they didn't wander off, while she stayed behind to deal with the newly discovered problem...

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