Almost Dead (Open)

Astoria felt the pain before she realised that she was even still alive. She couldn't remember what had happened after she had lost consciousness in that corridor, or how long it had been since then. But she sure that the fact that she could feel anything at all- that she was alive- was some kind of miracle. The opened her eyes and tried to sit up, wincing in pain as she fell back onto the surprisingly soft surface. Looking up at the ceiling, she was able to deduce that she was in the Hospital Wing, which meant someone must have gotten her there. She was thankful to be able to move her head, and she took in the clock and calendar on the far wall. It had been about three days since she'd tried to take refuge in the third floor corridor. "Hello?" she tried to call out, but it came out more like a rasp, "is anyone here?"

"Geez, no need to shout that much," Lilith spoke from the side Astoria somehow did not look to. She was sitting on a chair, her legs in black leather and high boots resting on the table and she was playing with an apple. She was in her horsemen gear, just about to go on a mission, but she decided to check up on her victim first. Auntie Marvolo probably wouldn't be happy is she managed to kill one of the goodies, for fun as a bonus.

Astoria didn't know how she hadn't managed to see the girl who's voice was so familiar. She supposed that Lilith had managed to blend into the darkness, and of course they had let her in. As far as anyone else in the school knew, Astoria and Lilith were still good friends. As far as the former knew, they had been until Lilith has crossed her so badly. But she didn't look at the other girl with anger. Her eyes showed exhaustion as she turned her face to look at her housemate. "I see you didn't manage to kill me," Astoria said, that same raspy sound coming from her lips as it had before, "where's your friend? Is he not joining you to finish the job?"

Lilith laughed at her statement. "And here I thought you of all people are clever. Why would I be here to finish the job? First of all, that would be pointless, Hannibal would get hell from his godmother, I would get hell from auntie and that's frankly not worth it. Neither is sabotaging the whole secret deal by killing you," Lilith replied sweetly. "You are not going to have that easy." She added.

Astoria rolled her eyes as she tried to sit up again. This time, she used her other arms and although it was shaky and it took her a moment she managed to get into a sitting position. From there, she reached out and took the glass of water from her beside table, sipping at it before she laughed herself. "I was not put in Ravenclaw for a reason," she said, her tone not quite hostile, but clearly not very friendly, "so what does that mean? Attacking me until I think I'm going to die- maybe even wish it, and then not quite finish me off. Sadistic, Lilith, even for you."

Lilith narrowed an eyebrow at her. "Even for me? Well, good to know not everyone always saw me as good little girl," she said, bitting into her apple. "But seriously, what we did to you? That was nothing. Hannibal accused me of being sentimental!" she added, chewing. "You probably won't even have scars. Ask your friend Lovegood, how torture looks. I heard she had private lesson with Carrow," Lilith teased.

Astoria's eyes narrowed at the mention of a Ravenclaw from the DA. What the hell had Luna ever done to anyone? Astoria knew why she was hurt, but Luna's family had never been involved in the Dark Arts. "Why are they hurting Luna of all people?" Astoria asked, a snappy tone in her voice. "And I hate to blow that oversized ego, but our little action was far from the worst I've gotten," Astoria said with a smirk, "the rest were just easy enough to cover up." She knew she was walking a fine line, baiting the Slytherin, because there was plenty of room for more harm now that she was no longer brinking on death. But she hated the way that these people thought they could do whatever they wanted and having nothing said back to them. She would rather be dead than stay silent.

Lilith wondered, if Astoria just tried to insult her. She shot her roomate curious look, before returning her primary attention to her apple. "She actually didn't do anything. Honestly, it was a little bit unfair. She paid for the fact, that the prat Potter, couldn't keep his mouth shut. I think they were both lucky though. There are people in this World, who would probably do so much worse, if they heard Potter bambling about Black being his teacher," Lilith explained. "That you got worse? Oh, I believe that. But I was not really intending to make it the worst. I just had a bad day," she added cheerfully. "I took it out on you, because you were the first I met and because... well because I can."

"I didn't think she would have done anything," Astoria said softly, half to herself. Of course Luna was just in the wrong place with the wrong people. Why did everyone feel the need to show each other up so publicly? In times like these, anything could get you killed. Astoria had tried to stay out of the way when they had first returned, but instead people had come after her. She was certain that it all started with her father- he hadn't wanted her dead, only scared enough to return to him. Now, though, she was more likely in more danger than ever, as she had rejected him entirely. But something told her that the encounter with Lilith and Hannibal had been little to do with her father at all. "You had a bad day?" Astoria asked drily, "am I supposed to believe that you didn't actually want to hurt me? That you and I are still friends?" Again, the Slytherin laughed, shaking her head before finishing the glass of water and placing it back on the table.

"Oh no, the girl who was you friend? She is gone. She jumped out of the tower, years ago," Lilith replied to her, a slight nostalgia clear in her voice. "What I wanted to say was, that I had a bad day. If I actually wanted to hurt you, it would take you much longer, than few days to wake up and think like a sane person," she then stated as if it was obvious.

Astoria rolled her eyes, thinking that this conversation was far too close to friendly. And friendly these days really only meant not deadly. "So you haven't really been my friend for that long?" she asked, "you're more deceitful than even I gave you credit for." Astoria had always seen through the false image that Lilith gave, but somehow she'd never managed to realise that she was pretending to be her friend, too. Or maybe Astoria just hadn't wanted to see it. "Of course," the Slytherin said, and although her tone was sarcastic, she knew that Lilith's words were true.

"I never said I stopped considering you a friend, Astoria. I am merely stating the fact, that I am not the girl you considered a friend for a very long time," Lilith replied. She may have left her friends behind, but she never stopped seeing them that way. All Lilith did, was to become someone able to stand against her enemies. Unfortunately, in some cases, it was harder and harder to tell the difference.

"I don't want to stop being your friend," Astoria admitted, despite wanting to remain impassive, "but how can I still think of you that way, after what you did to me? You enjoyed hurting me, Lilith. Watching him hurt me." But she did still see her that way. Astoria was loyal, perhaps not to her family, but to the friends who had taken their place. "You could have just let me be, but you chose to do what you did," she said, no longer caring what the other girl would say or do.

"It's better this way," Lilith replied. "When you try to have friends on the other side, it gets painfull. I am proof of it, so are you now," she added. She used to believe in good in people. It took almost everything from her to realize, that some people just cannot be good. Even if they wanted to.

Astoria let out a breath, nodding slowly. "I know," she agreed reluctantly, "I wish it was easier." Lilith had been her first friend, when they had met before they started their first year. It was a much easier time then, when she had been little more than a rich man's daughter and Lilith had been just another kid. "I was us to win this war," Astoria said quietly, "does that mean you die?"

"In this war, we are on the same side. In the next one? Who knows. You will have to cut very deep to rid of us, that's for sure," she replied with sort of a smile. "It is much easier for me now, then it was back then. Probably because I was pretty much in your position," Lilith said as she remembered how she was treated her first years at Hogwarts, the hell she went through. Just because she did not want to follow her parents footsteps like a proper Slytherin girl.

"So for now we don't have to kill one another," Astoria said, laughing drily, "what a comfort." Astoria in part thought that Bill Weasley was insane for making a deal either the Gaunts, something that wasn't talked about unless it was necessary. She knew because of her aunt, who had been told so that she could help someone who had left their camp. Alexis' letters were always brief, and lately she hadn't been getting any lately at all. Smiling softly at Lilith's words, she considered how the same could be said for her. "Things are easier for me now as well," Astoria said, "I rejected my parents. I am a Greengrass in only name now. It's a good feeling, making a final decision. Or at least it had been until now."

"Actually, for now I just have to be one of those, who make sure neither of you dies," Lilith corrected her. "And trust me, if it wasn't for that deal, this school has much less students by now," she added. "But, apparently we need you and you need us," she sighed. "So for now, you are right, killing each other would be quite pointless," Lilith finished, finishing her apple as well, skilfully throwing it across the room into a trash bin.

Astoria shrugged, figuring that that was the best she was going to get. So she wasn’t going to be allowed to die, which surprisingly didn’t make it all too much easier. “I’m not at all surprised by that. I was originally surprised that nobody had died yet,” the brunette replied, leaning back into the white pillows. “So how long were you sitting there for?” she asked, chewing lightly on her lip, “and do you know who brought me here? I don’t remember anything since the corridor.” The girl wished that things didn’t have to change, but she also knew that they would never be the same again. Maybe it was a good thing that their friendship was over now rather than later on.

"I did," Lilith replied simply with a shrug. "I was not going to play chances, that nobody will pass by and you bleed out on the floor," she added as if it was the most normal thing to do. "And not for long. I am just about to leave the castle, but have a few minutes to spare, so I figured why not play my good little girl charade a little longer and check up on you," she explained, checking the sun. She still had way too much time on her hands.

Astoria had figured that Lilith would only have brought her to the Hospital Wing to keep herself out of trouble. “Of course,” she said, thinking about how she should really be more concerned for her safety, “I’m surprised you’ve managed to keep it up for so long, really.” She looked around the empty Hospital Wing, shocked to find it not filled with other people who had been hurt like she had. “So, do you know where the healer is?” she asked, “I want to find out if I can leave now.”

"I am not doing it for the sake of a show. It's simply a mission, nothing else. You get closer to your people's hearts. Makes it easier to stab them," she said as if it was nothing worth to be concerned about. "I don't know where healer is, but what I do know is, that if you plan to get up without falling uncosncious before you reach the corridor again, I'd stay in bed for at least two more days," she added to it.

Astoria nodded her head, but she was getting a little tired. She didn’t want to continue the conversation, because it still hurt despite the fact that she had managed to pretend otherwise. She figured she would probably get over it soon enough, because she would have to. She couldn’t very well be mixing up who her friends and her enemies were, and although she couldn’t figure out where Lilith stood on that scale, Astoria didn’t want to end up in the same position again. “Great,” she said, “I just want to go. Probably not back to the dungeons, of course-” she smirked “-but anywhere other than here. This place isn’t exactly good for the morale.”