The higher one climbed through the castle's corridors, the quieter they became. Nearly everyone was gathered in the Great Hall at this hour—no one would linger in these deserted passageways at such a time.
Unless absolutely necessary, Snape rarely ventured to the castle's upper levels. The dungeons were his domain, his comfort zone. But now, following the faint traces of the Avenseguim tracking charm, he'd climbed all the way to the top floor, only for the magical thread to fade completely in an eighth-floor corridor.
Where the devil was she hiding?
Snape stared at the ridiculous troll tapestry hanging on the wall, then turned to examine the blank stretch of stone behind him. Nothing looked remotely capable of concealing a person.
He was still puzzling over this when, without warning, a door materialized in the empty wall. The next moment, Orli Waters walked straight through it, head down and distracted, colliding directly with his chest while muttering:
"Why is there a wall here?"
Snape felt every muscle in his body go rigid. He stood frozen, face set in stern lines, waiting for her to regain her footing. But he quickly realized something was decidedly wrong with her tonight—not only did she keep her face buried against his chest, but her hair carried the distinct scent of alcohol. Through the two layers of fabric between them, he could feel the warmth of her breath against his skin...
"Orli Waters!" He had to physically push her away, steadying her against the wall as he demanded sharply:
"Where did you get alcohol?!"
Orli rubbed her eyes groggily. When she finally focused enough to see who stood before her, the last traces of intoxication vanished instantly, replaced by a cold sweat breaking across her back.
It was Snape! How had he found this place?
She'd planned to spend the entire day hiding in the Room of Requirement, but had accidentally discovered Professor Trelawney's secret stash of sherry inside. So she'd helped herself to a small taste. When she'd tried to leave, she'd been confused by what seemed like a wall blocking her path—a wall that carried the most wonderful scent, something crisp and clean like peppermint mingled with wormwood. She'd leaned closer for another greedy breath...
And then she'd been shocked stone-cold sober.
"When did a room appear here?" Snape ignored her entirely, forcing himself to focus on the stretch of blank wall. The door Orli had emerged from had vanished completely.
"Revelio!" He brandished his wand, firing several detection spells at the stone surface, but they had no effect whatsoever.
"Professor, this is the Room of Requirement." Orli stood obediently in place, explaining with careful precision.
"You just walk back and forth three times while thinking about what kind of room you need, and it appears."
Snape shot her a deeply suspicious look, then followed her instructions, pacing the corridor three times. Sure enough, a door materialized in the blank wall—though it looked entirely different from the one before.
This was an elegant square door crafted from black walnut wood, inlaid with delicate silver trim. The handle was silver-plated as well, engraved with an intricate ring of olive branches. Hanging in the center was a perfectly round Christmas wreath decorated in silver and green, topped with two small golden bells that caught the torchlight.
Snape hesitated for a moment, then grasped the handle. The instant he cracked the door open, he slammed it shut with a resounding bang.
What in Merlin's name was this—some sort of fairy godmother's wish-granting chamber? Snape raged silently.
He'd only been thinking "I need a place where I can be alone with Waters," and just look at the ridiculous nonsense the room had conjured!
"Professor? What's wrong? Is there something strange inside?" Orli peered over his shoulder with obvious curiosity, then quite naturally reached out to push the door open herself. Snape moved to stop her, but it was already too late.
――――――――
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