Dumbledore and Harry's Adventures

Bonjour France

"Harry Potter sir freed Dobby! Harry Potter sir is the greatest wizard in the world! Dobby be knowing Harry Potter sir be wanting to call Dobby, so Dobby be waiting nearby for Harry Potter sir! Harry Potter sir is..."

Harry put up his hand to stop the excitable House Elf, who stopped speaking but quivered in anticipation.

"Wait! Dobby, how long have you been following me?"

Albus spoke up. "He's been following us since he was freed. Was the broom closet at my apartment comfortable, Dobby?"

Dobby nodded his head vigorously. "Oh, yes! Dobby thanks Tutor Albussy for the House Elf bed."

"My pleasure, Dobby. And feel free to not be so formal, Albussy will suffice. What did you think of Star Wars?"

Dobby grinned. "Oh! Dobby liked it, Albussy. Dobby liked R2-D2, he would have been a good Elf!"

Harry looked at the two in shock. "You knew he was there?"

"Of course, I knew, I think you know I can detect House Elf magic. Not that it was a surprise, as I knew he would be waiting for you to call him after you gave him the gift of freedom that he so desperately craved."

"But you freed him."

Dobby shook his head in adamant denial. "Dobby knows that Albussy is Harry Potter sir's good servant, and so Dobby knows Harry Potter sir is responsible for Dobby being free. Harry Potter sir is the most modest wizard ever!"

Harry sighed as he shook his head. After a deep breath, he looked back at a bemused Pierre. "Would you mind if Dobby stayed with us?"

Pierre chuckled. "I suspect that Dobby will be staying with us, regardless of my opinion, so of course I am happy for him to join. I will explain things to Jean."

Dobby whooped in joy. After that was resolved, the trio were led to the guest rooms (and guest House Elf room, which was a well-appointed broom closet). An amused Pierre and polite Jean wished them a good evening, as Harry felt his exhaustion catching up with him and collapsed into a comfortable king-sized bed.

The next morning, Harry, Albus, and Pierre had breakfast together. Harry assumed that Dobby and Jean were off doing their own things. As he finished his breakfast, his mind wandered and daydreamed of how he would enjoy another day in Paris, which then brought him to one of the downsides to the trip.

"Albus, is there a quick way for me to learn French?"

Albus put down his ever-present upside-down morning newspaper, took a drink of his lemonade, and looked at Harry thoughtfully. Pierre relaxed into his chair, though he also seemed interested in the answer.

"Well, Harry, I have found the most effective method is something we have already partially started. Simply immerse yourself in the language. Force yourself to avoid your native language and your innate desire to understand and be understood will help you focus on learning the language. If you are open to classes during your vacation, I can provide you with an hour of lessons each morning before we head off to explore the country."

"But, isn't there a magical way to speed things up? Can't you just... I don't know... jam it into my brain magically?"

Albus's eyes twinkled as he smiled. "There is a slightly risky shortcut. After all, you are hardly the first person who has wanted to skip the learning process like that. What we do is we take the knowledge of a native speaker, like Pierre for instance, and compile all the knowledge he has on the French language. We then pull a copy of that knowledge into a memory strand. Then, we place the memory strand into your brain, behind a block. We then knock you out, block the rest of your memories, and wake you up to inform you of the fact that you have amnesia and we are unlocking your memories. We then unblock the language memories first, and once they have assimilated, we unblock the rest of your memories. At the end, you should have the understanding and ability of a native speaker."