Liar, Liar

20: Dismissal

I awoke wrapped in blankets and tucked under my covers.

Riss was still asleep in her bed, snoring softly.

It didn't take long for the events from last night to rush back at me, causing me to sit up in bed in a hurry. Snape.

He had made me tea and wrapped me up. He had brought me back here. Someone must have seen him, how would he go unnoticed? And in the middle of the ball, when students filled the corridors?

I had to wake Riss and ask her.

Oh, no. Riss. I had neglected her all night. Well, at least she was here now, and she looked alright. At least I hoped.

I shuffled out of  my bed, only to trip over the back of my dress and fall to the floor. I was still wrapped in his sweater from the previous night.

Riss awoke after hearing my commotion. "Oh, Merlin!" She exclaimed, rising immediately to help me. "Are you okay? What happened last night?"

"Uhhh..." My mind froze up.

"Snape said you got sick or something," she said. "They brought you in here super late from the hospital wing."

"Snape carried me into here?" I asked in disbelief.

"No, you silly," Riss laughed. "You must have fallen hard to bump your head so hard you'd think Snape would carry you in here," she chortled.

"Right, haha," I said, not quite sure how to play this off. I didn't know what Snape had told everyone.

"Do you even remember what happened?" Riss asked, concerned.

"Well.. yeah, kind of. What happened with Draco?" I tried to change the subject.

"Well, after you disappeared, he got even more antsy. He seemed super stressed at the start of the ball. I guess he couldn't carry his plan out if you weren't there. But it's not that important. I am fine, I started to get worried about you when you didn't show up for hours."

"How long did the ball last?" I scratched my head, trying to put together a timeline for how long I had been in Snape's quarters.

"They brought you in around three," Riss said. "I was worried sick, I was up all night waiting for you to get back. A few house elves rolled you in on a hospital wing cart, and asked me to help you into bed. They said you'd be fine in the morning," she exclaimed.

"Was Snape with them?" I asked. None of this made sense. When had Snape talked to Riss, and how had I gotten in with the help of house elves?

"Are you okay? Really?" She asked. "Snape told me moments after you disappeared that you had fallen or something and were in the hospital wing. He wouldn't let me come find you. He just said something about 'continuing on with it', which I assumed to mean going along with Draco's plan."

Snape must have told her right after I'd seen him in the Great Hall. He'd known I'd chase him down. He hadn't planned on sending me away. In fact, he had even made sure no one would try to find me. But why?

After piecing the events of yesterday together, I decided I still wanted to go see Snape. I had a few things I wanted to clear up. He had never answered my question last night. And I still had his sweater.

As soon as I realized that, Riss noticed too. "Whose sweater is that?" She asked, interested.

"It's probably from the lost and found in the hospital wing. I probably got cold with my dress on," I hurriedly assured her.

I leapt off of my bed, rifling through my drawers to find some clothes. I wasn't hungry enough for breakfast, I just wanted answers.

"What are you in such a rush for?" Riss asked. "We don't have morning classes today."

"I'm going to the hospital wing," I lied through my teeth. "I just want to make sure nothing's wrong with my head."

I pulled on a pair of mom jeans and converse, leaving his sweater on.

"Okay, good luck!" Riss called after me.

I sprinted down to the dungeons, taking the familiar path that I had ran not twelve hours ago. The portraits once more decoded to gossip about my hurrying.

"Shut up!" I yelled at them, getting annoyed by them. The deeper into the dungeons I went, the meaner the portraits got.

I reached Snape's classroom, panting from my lack of breath.

I raised my fist to the door and knocked. To my surprise, the door didn't open. I tried again, this time announcing my presence. "Professor, it's me, Sir. It's Zelle."

No response.

I gently tried the door handle. It opened with a creak. I slowly tiptoed into his classroom. It was dark as usual, but few candles were lit.

Snape sat at his desk, arms crossed. He looked furious.

"Sir-"

"What in the name of Merlin do you think you're doing down here?" He snapped, his lip curling in disgust.

I felt myself become very small.

"I- the door was open, I was just coming in to-"

"You opened it." Snape cut me off. "When no one responds to your knock, do you think you can just... strut in?" He said, mocking me.

I didn't know who I was talking to, but this wasn't the same Snape from last night.

"I came to return your sweater, Sir," I whispered.

"Oh yeah? And how exactly do you plan on doing that?" He spat.

My face drained as I realized my mistake. I had worn the sweater I wanted to return. Oh, Merlin. I knew exactly what this looked like.

"Professor, I'm so sorry. I didn't think-"

"You never do, Miss Agoria. Do you think you're special? Do you think you mean anything else to me because you're wearing an old moth bitten sweater from my closet?"

I could sense the disgust in his voice, and I started backing away. I had misread the situation from last night, and horribly so. I bit back tears.

But Snape wasn't done.

"I'm sick of this silly game you play with yourself that you think I'm part of. Showing up to my classroom early. When you don't have class. Chasing me down like a child. It humors me that you think you are anything but an insolent little girl."

The tears I was trying so hard to contain began to flow rapidly. Why was he speaking like this to me? It was just last night he's tucked me in, told me he'd never hurt me. Told me I could ask him anything.

"Take the liberty to remove yourself from my sight before I do so myself," he spat, turning his back to me.

I did all I could think of. I ran. I thought there had been something. Merlin knows what, he was my teacher and one of the meanest people in the school.

I was stupid, incredibly stupid. What had I been thinking, to wear the sweater down to his classroom? I just liked how it felt, to have something of his.

I needed to discard it, I needed a place to hide it. I needed a place to hide myself. A place where none of this could follow me.

I needed the Room of Requirement. Please, Please, I pleaded with it in my head. I just need somewhere to take a break. My heart was breaking, crumbling into pieces in my chest. I wanted to tear it out, to never feel again.

Anything for the pain to subdue, anything to take back the last twenty minutes.

The door I'd been begging sprung up in front of me. Thankful, I reached for the handle, pulling myself into a momentary haven. Perhaps this time it would be safe. Snape had said it was a room of requirement, anyway. Maybe this time, I'd get what I wanted.

It wasn't what I'd expected. I was in a small, dark room. And I wasn't alone.

"I thought you'd come."

I whirled to the source of the voice.

Malfoy. Standing next to the cabinet he'd been near the last time I'd used the room.

Before I could react, Malfoy grabbed my arm, took my wand, and pushed me into the open cabinet.