Blaise, Andre, and Imani sat around the bed in the Hospital Wing on which Dioleh's body had been laid, their cheeks wet from tears. Her eyes were closed, but no matter how hard any of them tried, they could not just imagine she was sleeping. The door opened and Hermione rushed forward, letting out a tearful cry. "Dioleh?" she whispered, clutching Dioleh's hand in her own. There was no response.
They fell into a mournful silence, broken only by Hermione's bitter sobs. No one could think of anything to say. Ron, Harry, and Ginny soon joined the group surrounding the bed. Even as discussions circled around them from Order members and teachers, none of them could move. "Who did it?" Hermione asked, finally getting control of herself enough to form words.
"Snape," Harry said numbly. "But Malfoy was the one who was supposed to. Voldemort ordered him to kill Dumbledore and Dioleh."
"That explains a lot," Andre muttered quietly.
"I can't believe this," Blaise whispered. "How can she be gone?"
"Snape didn't even hesitate," Harry said quietly. "He just killed her."
"Potter, I'd like a quick word," McGonagall said gently. Numbly, Harry got to his feet and went after her to Dumbledore's office. Blaise couldn't look away from Dioleh's face. Her hand felt cold in his as he stared at her with a blank expression.
"This can't be happening," he said finally. "I don't believe this. First Draco and now Dioleh...how can they all be leaving us?"
"Please, just stop," Imani whispered harshly. Blaise quieted, glancing over at her to see that tears were streaming down her cheeks. As she began to sob, Andre pulled her close and held her tightly to him as she cried into his shoulder.
⥖✦✧⦽✧✦⥗
Hours later, everyone had left the Hospital Wing apart from Harry. Hermione and Imani had been pulled away by Ron and Andre to get some sleep while Blaise had left to get some fresh air. The girls had only agreed to leave when Harry promised he wouldn't leave her. Even Madam Pomfrey was gone, tending to the wounded throughout the school. Thousands of thoughts bounced around Harry's head quicker than the killing curse came into effect as he stared at Dioleh's vibrant hair, standing out harshly against the white sheets.
Her skin was paler than Harry had ever seen it but as he watched, it seemed to gain back colour. Harry frowned, leaning forward in his seat, his brows furrowed. Then with a tremulous jolt, Dioleh sat up, her eyes wide and her breathing fast and shallow. "Dioleh," Harry said quickly in equal parts shock and as a means to calm her. As she continued to panic, Harry quickly moved forward, catching her wrists in a gentle hold to get her attention. Her eyes instantly darted to meet his.
"Harry," she said breathlessly. "Snape! He killed-"
"I know," Harry said quickly. "Breathe. Breathe. I'll explain everything once you calm down." He tried to silence every question in his mind as he watched her attempt to calm herself with mild success. After about ten minutes of deep breathing, Dioleh was finally calm enough to listen to Harry as he explained everything that had happened since Dumbledore was killed.
"W-What about Draco?" Dioleh said softly.
Harry hesitated a moment before admitting, "The Death Eaters disappeared along with him. He's gone." There was a long pause before Harry finally asked the question that had been dancing on the tip of his tongue since she had awoken. "Dioleh, how did you survive? Snape killed you. You weren't breathing. You had no pulse. We all thought you were dead."
"I don't know," Dioleh admitted quietly. "The last thing I remember is Snape firing a spell at me."
"He tried to kill you, Dioleh," Harry said. "Draco was ordered to kill you and Dumbledore. When he couldn't do it, Snape did it for him, or tried."
"Maybe the killing curse doesn't have that effect?" Dioleh suggested weakly.
"You can still do magic right?" Harry asked cautiously. Fixing her eyes on a glass of water a few tables away, Dioleh quickly moved the water inside around and messed with the wind before pulling out her wand.
"Lumos," she muttered. Everything worked. "I'm completely fine."
"What are you going to do?" Harry asked. "Voldemort thinks you're dead."
"Then it needs to stay that way," Dioleh said finally after a long silence. "They can't know I'm alive."
"Anyone?" Harry asked, his eyes wide.
"What?" Dioleh retorted in a low hiss. Sarcastically, she whispered, "Yeah, Harry. I'm going to let all my friends and loved ones believe I'm dead because I'm a monster." Footsteps approached outside the Hospital Wing and Dioleh quickly got to her feet, grabbing hold of Harry by the collar and dragging him into the small closet behind them. Shutting the door behind them, Dioleh rounded on him, shoving his chest slightly as she let go. "Okay, listen, we need to figure out right now who is the bare minimum of people who can know that I'm still alive, okay? And one of them does not include your girlfriend."
"Ginny would never-" Harry began.
"It's not worth the risk," Dioleh countered. "Now, Hermione has to know. Imani, Andre, and Blaise have to."
"You have to tell the Weasleys," Harry said. "Mrs. Weasley would hate herself for what happened. She wouldn't get over it."
"Okay, fine," Dioleh said. "Are they all here?"
"All the Weasleys other than Charlie are here," Harry explained.
"Then I need you to go gather all those people I mentioned," Dioleh requested.
"Where?" Harry asked.
"Here, guess," Dioleh said. "I'll wait here. Just make sure no one else will just appear. I trust you can tell the Weasley's everything later."
"Okay," Harry said. "How do I get to Imani, Blaise, and Andre?" Quickly Dioleh explained how to get to their dorms but she seriously doubted they were sleeping.
"But first check the hallway next to the Slytherin Common Room," Dioleh advised. "They could also be there."
"Okay," Harry said. "See you soon then." He hesitated a moment before letting out a sigh and wrapping his arms around her tightly. "I'm so glad you're alive, Dioleh." Surprised by the sudden affection, Dioleh hesitated before finally returning the hug with a smile.
"Me too," she said, her throat slightly constricted.