The house elf's large, sharp eyes were glued to the diary, his nostrils flaring as if trying to catch a scent.
"A bad thing, Milord," Donkey replied dryly. "If I may express my opinion, Donkey believes the lord should stay away from such vileness."
"That's what I needed to prove!" Harry exclaimed happily. "See, Ron, you wanted to keep the diary for yourself... Ron? RON!"
Weasley was lost to society. His eyes had become as wide as a house-elf's. Ronald stared at Donkey with a look of utter amazement. After Potter's final loud cry, Weasley shook his head sharply, as if shaking off a spell.
"Oh, Merlin's codpiece!" he exclaimed, dumbfounded. "A real elf in a suit! And I thought Dad was joking..."
Donkey remained completely unperturbed. He looked calmly at Ron and said coldly:
- Mr. Weasley, sir, of course Donkey is dressed! Or would you like to see Donkey naked? What a scoundrel you are!
Ron's jaw dropped to the floor at this answer. He looked so perplexed and astonished, as if a cow had suddenly spoken to him and started preaching veganism.
"What?!" Ron blurted out.
"Ah..." the house elf rolled his eyes. "How quickly children grow up! Mr. Weasley, sir, I assure you, Donkey's got nothing to look at under his suit..."
Ron realized the elf was making fun of him. He noticed Richie and Harry were trying their best not to laugh. Weasley's face began to turn red. Ron exclaimed indignantly:
- Morgana, take your suit!
"Ro-o-on..." Richard drawled jokingly. "Why are you so partial to Mr. Donkey's suit and always want to take it off?"
"Nothing of the sort!" Ron shouted back indignantly. "I don't give a damn about your house-elf's clothes... And anyway, get lost."
Ron noticed that Harry couldn't contain himself any longer. Potter was biting the sleeve of his robe and shaking with laughter. In a voice filled with sadness, Ron asked:
- And you, Harry?!
With difficulty hiding his smile, Richard turned to his comrades:
"Okay, gentlemen, jokes aside. Donkey, take the notebook to Mr. Broderick Bode. I'll write him a note right now. Don't tell anyone about the notebook except Bode. And one more thing..."
"Yes, Milord..." Donkey pricked up his long ears.
"Keep a low profile on Bode's research," Richard continued. "I have some doubts he'll share any truthful information with me."
"Donkey will do everything, my lord," the brownie replied.
The house elf waited until Richard had written a note for the Unspeakable, took the letter and Riddle's diary, and then disappeared with a pop.
"Now that's what I call a proper house-elf!" Harry Potter commented, a smile never leaving his face.
"Harry, he was making fun of me!" Ron said indignantly.
"Yeah," Potter agreed. "He was joking, but he wasn't setting me up or making fun of me. Donkey has a great sense of humor and style beyond all praise. Not like Dobby."
"Oh, come on," Ron pouted, offended. "I don't know who this Dobby of yours is, but you better look at what I have."
Ron proudly took a broom out of his bag.
"Wow!" Harry let out a delighted exclamation. "It's a Nimbus 2001!"
"Yes!" Ron beamed with happiness and pride. "I want to try out for the Gryffindor Quidditch team this year. What about you, Harry?"
"I don't have a broom," Harry replied, disappointed.
Richard realized his comrades would soon start discussing Quidditch, and that would last a long time. Most likely, all the way to Hogwarts. So he quickly retreated.
"Guys, I'll go and look for some friends," he said. "Don't be bored."
A/N:And Richie snatched Apple's future headquarters building in London.