Chapter 3: Getting Help

The two made their way down to the study. The curio cabinet was along the back wall. There were dozens of things in there that made Harry's skin crawl. He put his nose to the glass and looked at what was there. There was a snuff box, that looked like it would bite you. A pair of tweezers that crawled around on legs like a spider. Harry didn't want to know what those did. A few rusty daggers, that he couldn't quite see since they were hidden in the back.

Then there was the necklace. A silver, oval shaped one with a large S on the front. It made his scar hurt.

"Sirius, that one," Harry said, pointing to said necklace. "It makes my scar hurt. That means Voldemort," he added as he backed away.

"Shite," was all the other man said, opening the cabinet and grabbing the necklace and holding it away from him. "I don't know what this is, but it feels like holding something slimy. Perhaps, we should find a box for it." He looked around the room to see if there was such a box. There wasn't.

Why would there be? His family reveled in the feel of evil. They went out of their way to collect or make things that would make a normal wizard's skin crawl. He hated them with every fiber of his being. Still, couldn't they have left one lead box where he could find it?

"Can't you conjure one?" Harry asked, still moving away from the feeling of evil. He was almost to the door, but he wouldn't leave Sirius here to face that thing along.

"Conjuring isn't permanent," Sirius said, putting the locket on a table and moving stuff around to see what he could find. Sure, it was his house, but even he didn't know what all it held. Hell, he was sure only his mother had a full understanding of what was here. She, however, wasn't playing nice, so he couldn't ask her. She would just brag anyway.

"But it will last until you find a real one," the teen pointed out, looking on the bookshelves at the other side of the room. He saw a lot of dark books there, and he was sure they would bite him if he tried to read them. Some in the library had done that to Hermione, until Bill, Sirius, Remus, and Mr. Weasley had spelled them harmless.

"Good point," Sirius said, and did just that. The feeling of evil lessened and the two men sighed in relief. That was much better. They could breathe now and think better. The panic was gone.

"What now?" Harry asked, coming closer to his godfather. He wasn't sure what they would do next, but he was hoping they would work on the bag for the doxies. He really wanted to have them with him sooner, rather than later.

"Let's get Moony in on this. I think he knows more household charms than I do," Sirius said, hoping that Harry would be receptive. "I know what you said, but give the bloke a chance," he added, making a supplication motion with his hands. Remus was his best friend. If those two didn't get along, he wasn't sure how to react to it.

He did see Harry's point of view, and he would be asking Moony about that. But Remus had always been standoffish. Like he was too scared of being hurt. The man's life had not been an easy one, but his morals made it even harder than it had to be. All he had to do was accept help when it was offered, and his life would have been easier. Sometimes Sirius hated that about his friend.

"Okay," was all the teen said, more than willing to give the guy another chance. However, unlike Dumbledore, it would only be one more. He didn't like the fact that the headmaster would let people slide with the bad things they'd done.

Malfoy was a prime example of a bully and Dumbledore would just pat him on the head and say, 'Don't do that again, my boy,' and expect the child to behave. Even when he'd shown time and time again that he would not.

"Let me call Kreacher and see if he knows where a lead box is," Sirius said, putting the conjured box next to him, so that it wouldn't disappear. "Kreacher," he bellowed to the air.

"Filthy blood-traitor calls Kreacher," the disgusting house elf said when it popped in, bowing as low as his old body would let him. It was a mocking bow, and everyone knew that. "Oh, how low the house of Black has fallen," the creature kept mumbling to himself. It was his way of coping with the rabble that was in the house.

"I need a lead box. Do we have any?" Sirius inquired, not paying any attention to the grumblings of the old elf. He was quite used to it, and he knew no matter what he said, the elf would continue on as he had been for all the years he had been locked in this dismal house, with only the portraits to keep him company.

"Kreacher will be bringing one to the blood-traitor master," Kreacher said, snapping his fingers and producing said box. It was small, only big enough to hold the necklace. Harry was sure he could put it in his pocket. "Can Kreacher be doing anything else for the disappointment of a master?" he asked, with a tone that stated he wanted to do anything but serve.

"You could try cleaning," Sirius suggested, pulling the box to him, but waiting until the vile being left the room. Kreacher had been funny about all the stuff that was being gotten rid of. He had been sneaking them to his sleeping space. Sirius knew this and didn't care.

"As filthy master says," was all the elf said as he bowed and disappeared.

"Do you think he will?" Harry asked, sure that he knew the answer, but wanted Sirius's opinion.

"Probably not," his godfather said with an air of resignation. "If only there was another way to get a different house elf," he muttered to himself, but Harry heard him.

"I'm going to call Dobby," Harry said, watching as Sirius put the necklace in the real box and vanished the conjured one. "If that's alright with you?" he added, not wanting to step on any toes.

"Who is Dobby?" the man asked, remembering hearing the name before, but he had been half crazy at the time, with just escaping from Azkaban. Or had it been when he was living off rats in Hogsmeade? He wasn't sure, but if Harry trusted this Dobby, he would too.

"A house elf that I freed from the Malfoys," the teen said, tilting his head a bit. He was sure he had told his godfather about Dobby before.

"Oh, I would love to hear that story. Sure, go for it," his godfather said, putting the box in his pocket. He would keep it on him until he decided what to do with it. He might just put it in that bag. That way he'd know where it was at all times. Something like this should not be left for anyone to find.

He did wonder for a moment if he should tell Dumbledore, but he dismissed the idea. That man had enough on his plate that he was not sharing. He'd show it to Bill instead. If anyone knew what it was, it would be the curse-breaker.

"Dobby," the teen called, hoping it worked. He liked Dobby and really wanted him to succeed in life. If he could help with that, all the better.

"Harry Potter is calling Dobby?" the tiny elf asked as he appeared. He then looked around the dirty, gloomy room and all but snarled. What confused him, was that he felt another house elf already in residence. 'Why was that elf not cleaning?' the elf wondered. He was sure the other elf must be crazy. The irony.

The elf was dressed in children's overalls with a flower-patterned shirt underneath. He looked like a warped kid, with bare feet. There was a silly hat on his head, that looked like it had been knitted by Hermione.

'So, that's where they got to,' Harry thought, looking at his friend. Out loud he said, "As you can see, the elf that lives here is not doing his job."

"It really does look this way, Harry Potter, sir," the elf agreed, his eyes getting larger and larger as he took in the condition of the room, and he could feel the house was in similar condition.

"How would you like to work for me and clean this place?" Harry asked the elf, bending down to his little friend's level. It was always better to treat Dobby as an equal, even if the elf didn't reciprocate.

"Harry Potter is being the greatest wizard of all times. He is giving Dobby something to do," the elf said, lunging forward and grabbing the nearest appendage, which was an arm. "This will keep Dobby busy for days and days," the ecstatic elf said, looking around with happiness.

"Just do your best, but don't wear yourself out," Harry said, gently prying the elf off his arm. "We'll talk pay later."

"Can Dobby be calling another elf to help?" Dobby asked with a bit of trepidation. He was sure that Harry would help, but he directed the question to the owner of the house. Sirius Black. It was only proper.

"Sure, call whoever you want," Sirius said, hoping that the elves would finally get the house clear of filth. And he meant the dirt kind, not the people kind like his dear departed mother.

Dobby disappeared and then reappeared with Winky in tow. "Winky is being needing a family," he said, pushing the drunk elf forward.

Winky stumbled, and she fell on her nose. She dragged herself up and looked blearily around the room. She had no idea why she was here. Dobby only appeared, grabbed her, and dragged her here. She just wanted to work again, but she couldn't find a family.

"Is she drunk?" the flabbergasted dogman asked, never having seen such a thing. This was a day for new discoveries. First talking doxies, and now a drunk house elf. Would wonders never cease?

"Winky is being very depressed at being given clothes," Dobby explained, hoping that these two would help. "Dobby is sure that if she has a family, she would be much better." He looked between the man and teen. He was hoping that Harry would step up, but he would be happy enough for the dogfather to take on Winky.

"Well, Winky, as you can see this place needs help. Do you want to work for me?" Sirius said since it was his house. He was more than happy to have an elf that was willing to work. Heck, he might just give Kreacher clothes. What Dumbledore wanted, be damned. This was his house.

"Master Black is offering Winky a family?" the female elf said, swaying in place, but she tried to smarten up her appearance by brushing at the butterbeer stains on her yellow dress. It didn't work, but she tried.

"Sure, I can always use help around here," Sirius said, putting his hand on her head and saying, "I take Winky as my elf." There was a slight glow where his hand was, and Winky's smile lit up the room.

"Winky accepts," Winky said, straightening up and looking sober immediately. Sirius removed his hand and then she snapped her fingers, and the dress was replaced with a smart tea towel, with a nice floral pattern on it.

"Great, you two get started, and don't let Kreacher bully you," Sirius said, looking to see a confused look on his godson's face. "If he does, you have my permission to tie him up," he added, thinking the little elves could take care of themselves.

"Yes, sir, Master Black," the two elves said, then they started popping around snapping their fingers, making the study look like it hadn't been part of a horror movie only minutes before. The dirt was gone from the walls, showing a rather nice wallpaper, that looked to be embroidered. The colors were amazing as it showed scenes of a day in the life of a wizard. There were some darker elements, but for the most part it was benign.

"You're confused by something," Sirius said to Harry, motioning for the boy to sit.

"I thought elves wanted to be free. Hermione said that it is wrong to bond to one. She said it's slavery," the teen said, not sure how to take what he just witnessed.

"Hermione is wrong," the older man said, crossing his legs and settling back for what might be a long talk.

"How?" was the question.

"You see, it is a mutually beneficial arrangement. They get magic from us; we get work from them. They could repay it with something else, but the little buggers love to do housework. I remember hearing that they were once brownies, but instead of food, they got magic," Sirius explained, thinking on how else to get the point across. Lily had been quick to understand when he explained it to her.

"Oh, well someone'd better tell Hermione that. She's on a crusade to free them," Harry said, knowing that what Sirius said was true. He'd seen it himself with Winky and the Hogwarts elves. He would need to talk to Dobby later.

"Hermione is a stubborn girl. I don't think anything I say will change her course. I will ask Remus to do it. She respects him," the dark-haired man said, knowing that the girl had little respect for him. He didn't know why, but she treated him like she did the twins. Like he was about to do some prank any moment, which he hadn't since she'd been here. That didn't stop her attitude.

"It's an authority thing," Harry said, adjusting his position in the uncomfortable chair. "Remus used to be her teacher. She respects teachers, and of course the headmaster."

"Oh, one of those," Sirius said with dawning understanding.

"Yeah," was the reluctant agreement. He might be mad at her, but she was still his friend.

"I get it. Remus used to be the same way. He still is, to a degree, but he was much like your friend in school," Sirius said, remembering all the times Remus had told them that they needed to find a teacher whenever they thought they found something interesting in Hogwarts. They talked him out of it, but it would still be his first instinct. "Speaking of Remus, let's go find him," he said, getting up and heading to the door.

"Sure," Harry said, still not sure how to treat the werewolf, but he was willing to try.