A mortal wants to get in.”
Instantly the door in the top of the rock opened, and Harry found himself lying on the grass beside the rock. In his excitement he had forgotten just where the door was, and, as he was resting exactly on top of it, when it sprang open it naturally threw him off the rock. Fortunately he was not hurt, though he was very much surprised.
It took but a moment, however, to pick himself up, snatch the elfin pin from the hole, and spring down the stone steps through the open doorway. As his foot touched the bottom, the trap-door in the rock above shut noiselessly.
The chamber in which he found himself was empty, so he entered the passageway which he had traversed with the elf on his former visit, slid down the glassy incline, and walked onwards until he came to the first door. As no one was there, and as there seemed to be no way for him to open the door, he knocked upon it as loudly as possible, and stepping back a little waited for a response.
Suddenly the door opened about half-way, but closed again just as suddenly without any one appearing. After waiting awhile longer, Harry knocked again till his knuckles were sore, and when no answer came, he kicked vigorously against the rocky barrier.
Finally he grew tired, and sat down. What to do next he hardly knew. It was impossible to go back the way he came, as he could not walk up the glassy incline. He had seen no passageway opening out of the one in which he was, and there seemed to be no other door than the one just ahead. Evidently, there was nothing to do but to wait until some of the elves happened along that way.
The silence at first was painful; but after a little while he fancied he heard mysterious sounds around him, like the rustling of garments, and soft footfalls, and once or twice what seemed to be a faint whispering. No one was visible, and he had almost concluded that he had merely imagined the sounds, when there came a sharp click just beside him, as if a piece of metal had struck the rocky side of the passageway.
He sprang to his feet, much startled and frightened, but there was nothing to be seen, and as he listened intently, he could not hear the slightest sound.
“Pshaw! I’m simply nervous!” he exclaimed, seating himself again.
But scarcely had he become quiet, when he felt something like a rope drawn tightly about his arms and feet, and then he was pulled over on his back upon the ground. He made a desperate effort to free himself, but both arms and legs were so strongly bound that all struggling was in vain; so he lay there perfectly quiet, half frightened out of his wits.