Chapter Six

DO NOT DISTURB

She slept heavily and woke to find herself sprawled face-down across the bed, the covers kicked off.

She turned over on her back, pulling a sheet across her and putting her fingers to her closed eyes, wincing as the events of yesterday slipped casually back into her memory.

How much longer was she going to be trapped here? Dumbledore had given no indication; a 'few days' he had said. She didn't think she could bear to spend one more hour in the company of Professor Snape. Yesterday had felt like a battle all the way. In all her life she had never met such an odious, condescending and, she had to admit, scary man.

Slipping out of the bed, she discovered a tray on the side-table, filled with fruit, cereal, toast and coffee. Andi was not sure how she felt about those elves coming into her room while she was asleep, but the breakfast was good.

She thought she would go out into the grounds this morning and have a wander - that is, if 'teacher' had no objections.

Actually, so what if he had? She wasn't a prisoner here, neither was she under his rule. There shouldn't be a problem.

Washing out her now empty water bottle, she filled it with orange juice which had been left in a jug on her tray and went to pack her bag.

She really did carry too much around with her.

Sighing, she pulled out most of the contents, looking sadly at her personal CD player - now redundant of course, as was her mobile and 'pocket pleaser'. Her cheeks burned again at the memory of yesterday. Why did he have to pick up that, of all things?; and her lucky penguin, which didn't seem to be working so well these days.

She wouldn't need her purse, credit cards, make-up, filofax - they all came out. In went sun cream; orange juice; shades; scrunchie; music manuscript (she must look at that) and the book she'd been reading.

Her knuckles paused in protest as she lifted them to Snape's door a little while later, but she knocked anyway.

She jumped when it was flung open a split-second later - she had heard no approaching steps.

He was dressed as yesterday, in neck-to-toe black. In contrast, his face was almost the colour of candle wax and, didn't he ever think about washing his hair?

A subtle herby scent wafted to her nose. Definitely rosemary mixed with...what - almond oil? It was the sweet, delicate fragrance she had been aware of yesterday when he had carried her into the castle, and it sat awkwardly with the stony face that now stared at her in irritation. It was hard to imagine he would consider such niceties as aftershave.

"Erm," she stuttered, having forgotten how intimidating he was. "I just thought I'd let you know - I'm going for a walk in the grounds. Just...you know...in case you...wondered..." She faltered under his withering glare.

"Thank you, Miss Carver. Anxiety would have eaten away at me otherwise. Now if you don't mind, I am rather busy."

He closed the door, leaving her standing open-mouthed in the corridor.

The way to the front door was actually quite straight-forward. Just to the end of the corridor, up a huge wide staircase and into the Entrance Hall.

The heat almost bowled her over as she walked out of the castle, down the steps and across the lawn. Playing safe and staying in a straight line, she made her way to the lake.

There was a huge Weeping Willow draping itself over the water which offered quite a nice and unusual shade, and she decided to camp there for a while.

Was this really the lake she had seen from the castle ruins yesterday? It seemed bigger somehow. She looked back at the castle and gasped.

It was the first time she had seen it and the sprawl of it was unbelievable. There were ten turrets that she could see and it must be about ten stories high, eleven in some places - it was difficult to count. It was certainly not the collection of broken walls she had walked around yesterday. They had been nothing special.

Except...they had been special to her grandmother. Even from a little girl, Andi had noticed the sparkle that would come to Gran's eyes as she recounted a most memorable holiday in Scotland. As she grew older, Andi had worked out that Gran had had a holiday romance, and the result had been Andi's mother.

In her last few years, Andi's grandmother had yearned to revisit the place, but had been too ill to make the journey. Andi had promised to make the journey for her.

And two years after her grandmother's death, here she was.

Except she wasn't.

Hogwarts? Wizards? A sinister professor? House-elves?

What the hell had happened yesterday?

In attempt to get her mind back to something she could relate to, she brought out her manuscript and began studying it.

It was the score for a piano concerto. She'd been booked to play it with an amateur orchestra at the end of August and even now, as she looked at the score, the butterflies started.

Still, it would be a challenge - and Lord knows, if she could get through another dinner with Snape, she could get through this.

She studied the score, her fingers moving over an imaginary keyboard, her head nodding as she kept time...

...if he could just be civil to her...

...E, not E flat...

...what on earth made a person so bitter...?

...she missed the beat...

...perhaps he was a misogynist...?

...she lost her fingering...

And now he was even disturbing her music!

She closed the manuscript with a snap and pushed her fingers through her hair in exasperation. She just sat for a while, trying to clear her head. She took a mouthful of orange juice, a couple of deep breaths and opened the music again...

When hunger pains made themselves known, she decided it was perhaps time to go back to the castle.

The midday sun belted down. Her skin was cooking, even with a Factor 20. The coolness of the castle was very welcome.

As she flip-flopped down the staircase (a slight pause to reassure herself it was the one on the left) it suddenly occurred to her that she didn't know how to get food.

She approached Snape's door.

Should she? Must she?

She gave a timid knock.

There was an audible sigh from behind the door before it was flung open again.

"Miss Carver?"

"I'm sorry to bother you, Professor," she said, pulling herself up to her full height in an effort to express confidence. "but how do I get some lunch?"

"There is a brass handle next to the fireplace in your room. Pull it out - speak your order - push it in. The house-elves will bring your food."

He snapped the instructions so impatiently, she nodded her head with each instruction, trying to keep it in her mind.

Ok. Ok. She thought she'd got it. Please God, let her have got it.

"Is there anything else?"

"No...thank you, Professor."

"Then I expect not to be disturbed again until dinner."

"No, sorry, Prof..."

But he'd closed the door.

She walked along to her room. He wasn't just rude, he was nasty. No one should be allowed to get away with that kind of...

She stopped in her tracks. She was certain she had counted three doors and yet...

She retraced her steps.

That door was definitely Snape's.

She walked forward, counting. There was no third door!

She felt the wall. She stood on the other side of the corridor and stared, but there was definitely no door!

What the hell was she to do now?

Her eyes darted up the corridor.

Oh, no. Please no. She couldn't possibly bring herself to knock again.

Seriously contemplating going without lunch and sitting in the corridor until dinner rather than disturb Snape again, she must have hesitated for a good ten minutes before ...

Forcing her legs to move, she walked slowly up to Snape's door.

Why? Why did this have to happen?

She lifted her hand and cringed as she knocked.

This time the door opened slowly and the expression that met her through the opening sent icicles down her spine.

"Ahhhhhhmmm," she spluttered. It was taking all her muscle-power to control her bladder. "I...I...can't seem to find my room..."

He stared at her for what seemed an age until she felt like shrinking into the floor.

"What do you mean, you can't find your room?" he hissed. "It is a mere three doors away! Even you cannot possibly have got lost."

"I..I mean, it isn't there. I know where it should be, but it isn't."

His lips disappeared as he swept out of the doorway and along the corridor to where her door should have been.

His step faltered as he came face to face with the blank wall. He barred his teeth and his eyes briefly swept the ceiling before he reached to his pocket and pulled out what Andi first thought was a stick.

He pointed it towards the wall.

"INVERTO!"

Andi screamed as a bright yellow bolt of light shot from the stick and fizzed on the wall revealing the outline of a door.

When the fizzing had died down, Snape opened the door and went inside. Andi followed slowly, stunned.

"Everything seems in order," he said, looking around the room. "I am afraid we have little control over the antics of our resident poltergeist." Then catching sight of Andi standing in the doorway, he snapped "Is there a problem?"

Andi stared at him in awe. "You...you really are a wizard!"

He gave her an exasperated look and moved swiftly to the fireplace. Pulling out a handle, he moved his mouth closer to the wall.

"Miss Carver wishes lunch. Poached salmon..." he glanced over to her and she nodded. "New potatoes and salad. Wine. Coffee." He then replaced the handle.

"You didn't need to do that, I think I could have managed," she told him quietly, still dazzled by what she had seen.

"I was reluctant to run the risk of being disturbed again," he said, shortly.

"Well, thank you, and...I love fish...how did you guess?"

"I saw it in your stars, Miss Carver." And he left the room.