Lily

Chapter Twenty Seven:

Hermione hadn't forgotten about the Hogwarts house elves. In fact, she'd been knitting clothes to free them in secret, before deciding to inform Lily, Harry and Ron of her project one afternoon.

"Hermione, the house elves like working." Ron tried to explain.

"Without pay?!" Hermione exclaimed, crossing her arms, "They only think they like it because they haven't known any different!"

"Well, what are you planning on doing about it?" Ron sighed, trying to appease her.

Hermione grinned, pulling out a basket full of yarn, needles and pins that read "SPEW".

"Huh?" Harry asked.

"SPEW! Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare!" Hermione beamed, "I've started an organization to help free the elves, and I've got pins and everything!"

"Really?" Ron asked, surprised, "Uh, how many people are in this club?"

"Well there's me, of course, and then, I was hoping... you three?" Hermione asked hopefully.

"SPEW?" Harry repeated slowly.

Lily shot him a "be nice" look.

"I've got pins!" Hermione repeated, holding them up.

"I'll help, I guess, but I really don't want to walk around wearing a pin that says "SPEW"." Ron said.

"Me too." Harry said quickly.

Hermione looked a bit disappointed as she nodded her head in acknowledgment.

"I'll wear the pin." Lily offered.

Hermione looked up in joy.

"Really?! Thank you!" She cheered, handing over a pin.

Lily offered her a smile as she pinned it on her robe. Hermione then clapped her hands together.

"Now! As our first official act as SPEW, we are going to take a trip to where it all happens!" Hermione grinned, leading them out of the common room.

"Where?" Ron whispered to Harry, but Hermione overheard.

"Where the house elves work."

"Right... which is...?"

"The kitchens, Ronald." Hermione sighed.

"Oh. Right." He cleared his throat, pretending to have known that.

They approached a painting, not far from the Hufflepuff Common Room.

"What now?" Ron asked, glancing around empty hallway.

"We tickle the pear." Hermione said with confidence.

"We what?" Harry asked.

"I asked Fred and George how to get in." She explained.

"'Mione, you do know that my brothers aren't the most reliable people..." Ron trailed off.

"I know." She sighed, "Which is why I asked Lena about it as well. Her parents used to go to the kitchens all the time when they went to school here."

Hermione reached out to the painting and tickled the pear. The painting swung open and they entered the kitchens. The first thing Lily noticed was the crying. There was a house elf in the corner, sobbing, while another tried to comfort her. Lily recognize the crying elf as Winkey.

"Winkey?" She asked at the same time Harry said "Dobby?".

"Wait, you're Dobby?" Lily asked the little house elf, having heard stories from her brother about him.

"Yes, Miss! And Harry Potter! Dobby has missed Mister Harry Potter!" Dobby exclaimed.

"Hi, this is my sister, Lily." Harry said before Winkey let out a wail that distracted them all.

"Winkey." Hermione said, leaning down next to her, "It's okay, I created an organization to help you. We can free y-"

"No!" Winkey wailed, "Not free! Winkey doesn't want to be free!"

Dobby patted her on the back. Winkey picked up a bottle of fire whiskey and drank a large gulp.

"Is that...?" Hermione asked, wrinkling her nose.

"Fire whiskey." Ron said, "I've seen Fred and George drink it at parties, even though they're not supposed to."

Winkey sobbed into her hands.

"Winkey, we could help you-" Hermione tried again, but this time, Dobby cut her off.

"It'a no use, Miss." Dobby said sadly, "Winkey doesn't want to be free like Dobby."

"Free? But you're still working?" Hermione said.

"Professor Dumbledore pays Dobby!" He beamed in excitement.

"Paying house elves?!" Winked cried, "That's awful!"

"Winkey, what would make you happier here?" Lily asked the house elf.

"Winkey wants to work for Mister Crouch again." She frowned.

"Yes, but what else?" Hermione urged.

"Nothing else! Winkey is a house elf, and house elves work!"

Winkey's crying then got louder.

"Maybe we should go, Hermione." Ron said, uncomfortably.

Hermione looked back at Winky who was rocking back and forth, crying.

"I just want to help." Hermione said, but that only made Winky's cries grow impossibly louder.

"Yeah, we should go." Harry yelled over the noise.

"Will Mister Harry Potter come back to see Dobby?!" The house elf asked, hopefully.

"It's just Harry, and yeah, of course." Harry said.

"And Lily can see Dobby too?!" Dobby asked.

Lily nodded and smiled at the elf.

"Okay! Dobby will help Winkey! Goodbye Harry Potter and Lily!"

"Bye Dobby." Harry said, and they left the kitchens.

When the painting closed, they were left in the quiet of the corridor. They exchanged glances before Hermione broke the silence.

"Well, we've got some work to do." She declared with determination.

"I don't think the house elves want to be freed, 'Mione." Ron said.

"Nonsense, Ronald." Hermione scoffed before grabbing Lily's hand and dragging the girl after her, "Come on, Lily, we've got some knitting to do."

Lily sent a tentative smile towards her before stealing one last glance at Harry and Ron. Her twin mouthed "Good Luck".

Knitting with Hermione wouldn't have been so bad if Hermione hadn't insisted they work quickly and in silence. She claimed that "talking would make them work slower" and encouraged Lily to knit every free hour of the day. Hermione even stayed up late some night to get in a bit more knitting done then.

Lily tried to urge Hermione to slow down, but Hermione merely exclaimed "But they're taking the clothes! We have to make more!!".

Soon, the Gryffindors were called into the Common Room so that Professor McGonagall could tell them the news of an upcoming ball.

Most of the Gryffindor girls squealed with excitement, and the majority of the boys looked nervous or even ill. The next few days were full of everyone asking each other the same question- "Who are you going with?".

The ball was exciting, but also sure to bring up some tension between friends.