CoS Chapter 16 / Pregnant unmarried witches / CoS Chapter 17

[Joey Smiley]

No: HPFGUIDX 189247

<< 4. How did Ginny hide her feather-covered, paint-splattered robes? Did House Elves clean them without telling anyone? >>

Catlady responded:
 
> I think the House Elves tell Dumbledore a lot, so maybe they told him about Ginny's robes. Maybe he knew that Ginny was somehow involved long before us readers did.

Joey:

But then wasn't DD the one who said he wondered how the CoS was opened when Colin was Petrified? Thereafter he doesn't show any signs of him recognizing anything fishy regarding Ginny.

Also, I'm not sure if House Elves knew to suspect something if they find paint stains on robes. They could assume just about anything and go on with their work (of washing clothes, in this case) about which they seem to be so very serious. I presume they would have been more concerned about ensuring that her robes were clean.

In fact, your point leads me to wonder how often DD went to check if the how the House Elves of the Hogwarts kitchen were getting along. Weekly? Monthly? From what we get to see during the Trio's visits to Hogwarts kitchen in GoF, the House Elves seem to be neatly dressed and well-cared for. Yet I wonder why Winky's continued state of depression did not prompt DD to arrange for Madam Pomfrey's attention much earlier than GoF climax.

Cheers,
~Joey :-)