[ from rodolphus ] "What happened to my tea?" // "I feel like I’m dying." // "The condition is critical." // "I just want the truth."
"What happened to my tea?"
Chrysandra flinched slightly at his tone. "I have it right here," she said softly, setting it down in front of him. She still remembered how he took it. Serving tea to Rodolphus Lestrange wasn't a new experience at all. He'd been a few years ahead of her in school, but she was often the one sent for refreshments in the Slytherin common room. She'd never really minded. It was something she was good at, something that made her feel useful. It wasn't until she was older that she realised her subservient nature meant they'd never respect her, and by that point she was already set in her ways, already expected to always have tea ready and serve dinner. At least it was better than being ignored, she told herself. "Do you need anything else, Rodolphus?"
"Well you wouldn't feel so bad if you'd just stay still and let me do my job," she said, putting a hand on his shoulder to keep him down. "Just... calm down and let me get this poultice on. That will relieve most of the pain." She sighed inwardly, pressing the cloth to the wound. If they expected her to patch them up after they got hurt, the least they could do was actually listen to her when she told them what they needed to do. "There," she charmed the poultice in place, before casting another spell that would make the healing more rapid. "Now don't move. If you dislodge it I'll just have to do this all over again."
"The condition is critical."
"Yes, Rodolphus, I realize that," Chrysandra said, trying to keep her voice calm. This was above her ability to heal. She wasn't actually a healer, she just... well, studied it on her own. She wasn't trained in it. She was acting on instinct here, casting spells and charms that she'd read about or remembered from journal articles. "If you want to be helpful, please, back up. I need space." She couldn't believe she was talking to him like that. Half of her expected him to retaliate in anger, but he couldn't, not if he wanted her to keep trying to save his friend. Maybe the anger would come later, but for now all she could do was try and keep her patient alive. "Is someone else on their way?" They needed an actual healer, quick.
She sighed, trying to keep her face impassive. "The truth about what? I don't have any idea what you're talking about." Inwardly, her mind was racing. Did he know she was talking to Daisy? Had he found out what she really thought about the war? He couldn't have. She had been so careful... She met his eyes, her gaze steady. "I'm sorry, I'd answer your question, but I don't know what you're referring to. What do you mean, Rodolphus?" Playing ignorant was the best card she had. No one expected her to be anything, to know anything. She'd just be exactly what they expected: a vapid, docile little thing.