The Marauders: Year One | #Wattys2016

Tasseography

Tasseography

Even from the corridor, the smell of incense wafted out of the Divination classroom. James and Sirius stood outside of it, waiting for Remus and Peter to come back from the toilets after lunch. Peter wasn't feeling too good - James had a feeling it had something to do with how many plates of sausages he'd eaten at breakfast - and Remus had offered to take him to the loo. "Welcome to Divination class," James and Sirius were taking it in turns to say to each student that arrived carryingUnfogging the Future under their arms, as though they were official tour guides or door greeters.

Severus Snape watched from behind a suit of armor, hoping he wouldn't have to pass by James and Sirius on his way into the class. He sighed, his back against the wall, listening as they greeted each and every student walking past.

"What're you doing back there?" Lily asked, suddenly appearing before Severus.

Severus hesitated, "Just, you know, waiting to go into Divination..."

Lily's friend Marlene hovered behind her, "C'mon, Lil, we wanna get a good seat in there..."

"Sev, you should come and sit with us," Lily suggested.

Severus glanced at the door.

Lily followed his gaze, "Oh bugger on them, they won't pick on you if I'm with you."

"You hold an awfully high - and rather false - opinion of them if you truly believe that," Severus muttered.

Lily took hold on his arm and dragged him toward the Divination door. She wanted to be right, that the two Gryffindor boys wouldn't dare be nasty to Severus Snape directly in front of her, but she could see the glint in James's eyes as they approach and she felt Severus stiffen. She had a feeling he was using his legilimency to see inside James's brains and it was probably not a very good sigh. "Ignore him," she said strongly to Severus, then, a bit louder so James could hear, "He's just a doffer."

James grinned as Lily, Severus, and Marlene went by into the classroom. "Hullo, Love, welcome to Divination," he said aloud.

Severus flinched at the word Love almost as hard as Lily did.

"For the hundredth time, Potter, don't go calling me that," Lily snapped.

"Of course, Evans," James said, smirking.

Lily shook her head and Marlene led the way down to the front of the classroom, which was set up with low lying tables surrounded by little cushions for them to sit upon. They found one near the windows and Lily sat in the middle of three cushions with Marlene on one side and Severus on the other.

Remus and Peter made it just in time for the class to start and they hurried down to seats toward the back of the room, stealing a cushion from the next table over to make a group of the four of them. "I like this class already," Sirius said, "It's nice and dark, we're far off from the teacher, and it's the four amigos -- we can get away with murder in this class." He grinned.

Remus looked a bit hesitant, "We'll be needing to pay attention in order to pass, though, I've heard Divination can be rough because it's a gift as much as it is a skill..." But Sirius was already distracted, making eyes at a Hufflepuff girl who had glanced over and was now turning red as Sirius waved and leaned back, shaking his long, dark hair, and popping the collar on the leather jacket that he had pulled on in lieu of his school robes. Remus rolled his eyes.

Suddenly there was a great puff of bright green smoke with dark purple sparks before them and in the clearing of the smoke was the form of a rather old woman, dressed in a long cloak with a bright poison-green scarf tied up into her thick white hair. She wore a monocle that her one eye clutched on the left and a great many of rings and bracelets that jingled with every move she made. Professor Vablatsky was a lot to take in all at once and the boys eyes widened, a bit overwhelmed.