Chapter 4

Left alone in the relative silence, though he could hear the woman speaking to the elf, he mulled over her many voiced concerns that this or that might kill him and the possible reason behind them. He knew he was perfectly safe sitting here in the tub, and quieting his thoughts, he simply allowed himself to absorb the comfort and warmth of the water and the surroundings. He did consider that if he had to die now, that this would be a far more wonderful way to go than any he'd contemplated in Azkaban. Drowning here would be a most welcome way to die, sinking in the warm water with the smell of vanilla emanating from the bubbles. The soft moonlight filtering through the pale yellow curtains added to the low light coming from the couple of sconces around the room. Despite the many places on his body that ached, he felt the heat of the water beginning to seep into his muscles overcoming, if only a bit, the years of bone-numbing cold he'd lived through in prison. Yes, if he had to die anytime soon, this would be the way to go.

Shutting his eyes, he allowed his body to simply relax and absorb the wonderful sense of peace blanketing him.

It was probably a good thing that Anna bustled back in at that moment because he was about to fall asleep. And it would have been very rude of him to nod off, slip under the water and drown after he had specifically promised this angel he would not die while she was gone.

Half opening his eyes, he turned to look at her.

"You look sleepy," she stated.

He nodded and couldn't quite stifle a yawn.

"Well, let's get you washed up. I've got some clean clothes, and then we'll get you back to bed. Then would you like a bit of supper?"

The old man nodded eagerly, practically salivating at all the wonderful sounding tasks she'd just listed. He hadn't been clean in a month of Sundays. New clothes were unheard of in prison, and he was sure the ones she had would be soft and not scratchy. And a bed, a real bed with a proper mattress, a pillow, and warm blankets! And food! This would be his second meal today. It would mean two meals in one day. He hadn't had two meals in one day since he'd been sent to prison.

Anna knelt down at the side of the tub and pushed her sleeves up. Grabbing a washcloth from the nearby towel rack, she soaked it and soaped it up. She methodically washed each part of him, first telling him what was to be cleaned and then reaching under the sudsy water to lift and scrub gently. Anna was gratified when she felt him trying to flex his body to aid her washing. She also made a mental list of each part of him that appeared to cause him pain as it was washed and of each wound that needed medical attention. She would run down her list with Roscoe the next day so he could see to whatever her guest needed medically.

She gently washed his face and neck and then turned to pour water on his head to wash what little hair he had. She had to wash his hair a couple of times to get out the caked dirt, but after the third time, when the shampoo suds bubbled white, she was satisfied that his straggly, grayish hair was as clean as she could get it.

She rung out the cloth before offering it to him and then asked, "Umm, do you want to wash yourself, um, there?"

He seemed to want to and tried to raise his hand to take the cloth. Anna took his hand and placed the cloth in it. She was rewarded to see him close his hand around it. She moved the hand to the approximate location and released it so he could do whatever he was able to. She assured herself that whatever cleaning was done, combined with the sheer presence of soap and water, was more than had happened in a very long time.

After a moment of waiting, she asked brightly, "All done?" Although, she was not entirely sure if anything had actually been done.

Anna reached to the bottom of the tub by his feet and released the stopper. She stood up to grab several towels and then returned to her place by the tub. As the water slowly drained away, whatever part of him appeared from under the water got dried. She would have used a drying spell except for something that the wizard at the medical equipment store had said. He said that often elderly or neglected people craved touch and that anything she could do to touch him would revitalize both body and soul. So, she rubbed him with the towel to dry his hair and face, neck, chest and arms. When the water got dangerously low to his private areas, she deftly tossed a large towel across him, all the while busying herself drying his toes and feet.

Once she was done drying him, she pulled the wheelchair close to the tub and spread a dark green blanket over it. When she leaned down to lift him, he startled her by pulling away.

"What?" she said, but not fast enough to keep the hurt tone out of her voice. "Is there something wrong?"

He felt beyond embarrassed. How was he supposed to tell her he needed to use the toilet? And he was crushed that she felt hurt at his hesitancy.

He looked over to the toilet and tried to gesture with his head.

Following his line of sight, Anna saw the toilet and it clicked.

"Oh! No problem, no problem at all. I've gotten it all set up for you to use."

He saw that around the toilet was a lot of equipment.

Lifting him up, being careful not to shift the towel, she carried him over to the bowl.

"The man at the store showed me how to do this. I just set you down and put this strap across you so you don't fall over and snap this thing up into place, adjust the towel, and voilà. I even have a screen for you for privacy."

He had little choice but to use the equipment she provided, which seemed to work reasonably well. Seeing the set-up did alleviate one of his worries about living here with her.

After a moment, she inquired if he was done. Peeking discreetly above the screen, Anna saw him nod. She quickly unstrapped him, picked him up and carried him still draped with the towel to the wheelchair. When she'd set him down, she snugly wrapped him in the blanket, all the while humming a quiet tune. She then rolled him from the bathroom to his bed in the next room.

He saw that the bed had been changed and new sheets and a clean comforter had been laid out. On top of the bed, lying open, was also a white night shirt of some sort.

Parking the wheelchair, she opened the blanket and lifted him to the bed atop the white night shirt. Her hands moved speedily as she folded it around him and buttoned it up from the bottom. When she'd fastened it up past his waist, she took the edge of the towel that had been maintaining his modesty and slid it out. She eased his arms into the long white sleeves of the shirt and finished buttoning it up.

She proceeded to place two long white socks on his feet and then pulled a blanket over him. Next, she pushed a button on the side of the bed that raised the head so that he was in more of a seated position. Taking a comb from a sideboard, she gently combed his wet hair into place and then cast a drying charm on it.

Standing back, she admired her handiwork. "You look great!" she said brightly. "I hope you like it."

'Like it?' his mind exclaimed in astonishment. 'Like it?' He hadn't been clean in forever, and now he was swathed in clean soft cotton clothes, and he was warm, even his toes were warm. Merlin's beard, he could even feel his toes now. 'Like it?' Maybe he HAD died and somehow mistakenly ended up in heaven. Yes, he liked it, but not wanting to take a chance with his voice again, he nodded as vigorously as he could and tried to smile in measure to his delight.

Anna burst forth with a smile from ear to ear. "Good," she said moving back towards the bed. She lifted her hand and patted his shoulder. "You deserve it."

Pop! His thoughts and her chatter halted at the sound of the house-elf arriving. Immediately, his nose picked up a smell, no, an aroma. Food!

"Thank-you, Sera, put the tray on that tea cart and push it over here." The elf did as she was told, removing the lids from the dishes to reveal two bowls of chicken broth, a basket of corn muffins and a saucer of butter pats.

As he tried turned his head to locate the marvelous aroma, he only hoped he was not embarrassing himself by drooling.

"Tomorrow a friend of mine who is a Healer will be over to check out that cough of yours and give you a 'once-over,'" she informed him.

She lifted herself up on the bed next to him and leaned down to pick up one of the bowls of broth and a spoon. Stirring the broth and blowing some of the steam away, she served up a spoonful to him. He took in the warm liquid and thought that it had to be the best thing he'd tasted in 20 years.

"OK?" she asked hopefully.

He nodded as enthusiastically as he could.

She served up another spoonful that he greedily downed. Her monologue began again. Something about that blasted wizard from the medical equipment store and his helpful suggestions. But he heard none of it. His sole focus was that spoon and its movements.

In no time he had consumed the entire bowl of broth. Anna was a bit surprised at his voracious appetite, but she scolded herself that it shouldn't really surprise her considering where he'd come from.

"Well, now, how about a muffin?"

He nodded and turned to watch her take one of the mouth-watering golden biscuits from the basket. She broke off a small chunk and placed it in his eager mouth.

He couldn't describe its wonderful flavor and texture. It was scrumptious. He swallowed and looked expectantly at Anna who delightedly broke off another piece and gave it to him. Again that marvelous taste enveloped him. He'd never tasted anything so wonderful. There was a hint of honey in the mix, and it felt as though there was a pound of butter baked in. Lost in the euphoria of this delicacy, something in the back of his mind tried to push forward. It was something about corn muffins; some memory he tried to capture but couldn't.

Like the broth, the muffin was gone too quickly.

"Well, would you like something more? Broth or muffin?"

Again he felt stuck. That was not a 'yes' or 'no' question.

Realizing her error, she corrected herself, "Sorry, more broth?"

He nodded.

"OK," she said and picked up the other bowl. "Sera," she called.

Anna spooned the first bite into his mouth. Pop! The sound of the house-elf arriving was heard. Not taking her attention from the task of feeding him, she asked for another bowl of broth.

Addressing the old man, she said, "I hope you don't mind if I also have something to eat."

He smiled and his eyes turned upward to the ceiling, as though considering what he might answer to such a question. Then solemnly he looked back at her and regally nodded.

"Oh, thank you, your Lordship," she giggled.

Sera popped back in the room with another steaming bowl, setting it on the table and taking away the empty one.

He finished his second bowl and was hit with a sudden wave of fatigue. He yawned widely.

"Oh, tired now, are you?"

He slowly and contentedly nodded.

"OK, now I have something for you," Anna said as she slid off of the bed. Fishing around in her pocket, she produced a small object.

"It's getting late and we should get some sleep." The object she showed to him had a bell on it. "This attaches to the side of your bed. If you need me in the night, just make it jingle, and I'll be here."

She opened the small green band and wrapped it around the bed guard near his head. The gold bell attached to it glowed with a low light on the inside.

"It's charmed to ring when you stare at it for five seconds, even in the dark. Go ahead, try it. Just stare at it."

He focused his eyes on the shiny bell, thinking that there was no way this was going to work, but soon both he and Anna heard the happy jingling of the bell. It sounded like the bells heard at Christmas time.

He was thrilled with the new way of calling her, but a new fear now overtook him. Where was she going to be if he needed to summon her? Where was she going?

"It works!" she said in a tone that clearly indicated that she was pleased with her new gadget.

Once more he felt the cold fear of her leaving, of leaving him alone. He feared she might not come back. He'd be abandoned, forgotten again.

Calling the elf once more, "Sera, bring down some sheets and blankets and my pillow. Oh, and my nightgown and slippers, and make up that couch by the window for me."

When she turned back to the old man, she found him looking at her with an expression of profound relief and gratitude.

Startled by his deeply emotional expression, she exclaimed, "What?"

He inclined his head towards the couch she had just instructed the elf to make up.

Following his gaze, she suddenly realized what he'd feared. "What? Do you think I'd leave you alone on your first night? Don't be silly. If I did that, you might run off with the silver," she said in mock sincerity before giggling.

The relief on his face was mixed with amusement.

"No, no, later, when you're well enough to make it to the bathroom yourself, I'll move back to my room, but for now," she said, her voice softening, "I will be here for you."

The elf interrupted them, saying, "Miss Anna, your bed is made up."

Both he and Anna looked over to the couch to see it had been made up as a bed and that a flannel nightgown was draped over the arm.

"Thank you, Sera," Anna said, taking the new bowl of broth and a muffin. "You can take the rest of this food back to the kitchen."

Anna looked back at the old man and caught a frown on his face as the food disappeared.

"Oh, don't worry. There'll be plenty in the morning. Besides, you shouldn't stuff yourself if you're not used to it. It'll make you sick."

He looked hungrily at the bowl of broth remaining in her hand and the beautiful corn muffin in the other.

Noticing his leer, she squeaked, "Hey, this is for me, mister!"

She walked over to the couch and set the food down on an end table. Looking back at her guest, no, he wasn't a guest, he lived here now, Anna saw him yawn again. He was tired and probably eager to sleep, especially in the much nicer conditions. Inside her she felt a swell of happiness so powerful that she paused to regain her equilibrium.

Knowing that she shouldn't, she picked up her muffin and walked back to him.

"OK, since it is your first night here, I'll share my muffin with you," she said conspiratorially, producing the golden delight from behind her back. "But don't tell anyone."

He briefly debated whether he should accept her generous offer. He really was full and it was her supper, but they did taste heavenly.

He watched her sit back on the bed. She proceeded to break off a chunk of the yellow bread and pop it in her mouth. Next she broke off a piece for him. She moved her hand towards his mouth, and as he opened it, she quickly pulled her hand away.

She smiled mischievously, laughter making her eyes sparkle.

He pulled an angry face at her that conveyed something like, 'If I could get up, I'd grab that muffin and stuff it all in my mouth, girl!'

"OK," she said in mock-chastisement. "Here." She put the muffin piece into his mouth.

Then the two of them ate the rest of the muffin in companionable silence.

When the food was finished, Anna wiped off her hands and skirt as she got up from the bed.

"You tired?" she asked, and in answer, he yawned and nodded his head.

"OK, remember, if you need me, just stare at the bell for five seconds and I'll be right here."

She proceeded to re-level the bed so he could sleep. She straightened the blankets where she'd been sitting and generally fussed around him.

He watched her sleepily, amused at how the motherly instinct had come to the fore. He would have watched her all night, but Morpheus had stolen into the room, ready to whisk him away to dreamland.

He watched as she lowered the lights until the fire and the small bell at his side provided the only illumination in the room. She quietly made her way to the couch. His last thoughts before he slipped off to sleep were of her name – Anna. He thought that it was a very pretty name. It was his grandmother's name.