Chapter 2:The Big Plan

Snowballs started to levitate all around them as Hermione, with her wand in her hand muttered," Wingardium Leviosa." Immediately they halted, hovering in mid air as she waited for the signal from Professor Snape. Glancing side ways she saw the prominent tall figure of her Professor, his strands of black hair falling over his eyes as he prepared for the distraction. Hands nimbly tying bundles together despite the fact they were gloved and frozen with the cold, his lips constantly moving from the charms he was muttering. She gulped, was this really going to work? Snape's eyes darted along the barrier checking that the bundles were secured properly, and then he gave a slight nod in her direction. With a flick of her wrist the snowballs went hurtling towards the opposite end of the battlefield. She ran not waiting to see if they had hit their target. BANG! BANG! BANG! The bundles had set off; twirling like small fireworks in the air they exploded with a cloud of red smoke. Coughing and stumbling she ran in roughly the direction of the castle walls. She could hear voices from behind her, Lupin seemed to be trying to clear the smoke with a spell and Ron seemed to have been hit repeatedly with her snowballs. A strong hand grabbed her arm firmly, she spun around in terror.

"Follow me," Snape whispered just loud enough for her to hear. Not waiting to see if she followed him, he sped ahead in a cyclone of black, his strides were long and he was soon far ahead. Hermione was breathing heavily and struggling to keep up. Suddenly, there it was, the castle wall ahead of her, she spotted the still outline of Snape crouched low and headed towards him.

"I wondered when you would grace me with your presence Miss Granger, give me your wand," he said in a perfectly calm voice. Hesitating for a split second Hermione gave her wand over to him.

"Rivelare i suoi misteri!" Snape spoke clearly to the wall in front of them. Nothing was happening; Hermione glanced sideways at Snape who seemed to be staring intently at the ivy bush that had climbed slowly up the wall with time. He gestured with his hand, and there right in front of her was an archway, gold rimmed and inscribed around the edge. He read it aloud, "Per aprirme lei deve risolvere dapprima questo crivella, l'ingiustizia e lei fallirĂ ."

"Sir what does it say?" she asked hesitantly.

"Miss Granger, the little Gryffindor know it all doesn't know a simple bit of Italian, tut, tut! Very well, for your information it says, to open me you must first solve this riddle, wrong and you will fail," he said with sarcasm dripping off every word.

Then as the final word was said, the writing around the edge changed into the riddle that was to be solved, "Dire che lei non cercherebbe mai di perderme, Mentre lei noi vive non può separare, devo dimorare per tutta la vita in lei, Chiuso a chiave entro il suo cuore di punizione. It means say you'd never seek to lose me, while you live we cannot part, I must dwell lifelong inside you, locked within your beating heart." he read fluently and precisely.

"Blood," she said. The arch swung soundlessly inwards to reveal a doorway with a serpent knocker protruding out of it. Hermione looked at Snape; he was staring silently at her. His face looked surprised and his eyes flashed suddenly with an emotion she could not recognise. The world seemed to stop and sound disappeared completely, there was complete silence. He was the first to turn away, his boots crunched in the snow and the world was restored to its rightful way. Her cheeks were hot and flushed as she shifted nervously from one foot to the next.

"Come," he said with his back to her. She followed as he pushed the door open and as he did so it revealed...