Percy Jackson and the Hound of Hogwarts [Book 3]

14) Professor Trelawney

As I walked into the Great Hall, Justin, Hannah, and Susan by my side, I felt more smiley than ever.

I sat by Cedric, and he passed me my schedule.

"That's a lot of classes you've got there," Cedric bit into his toast. "Gonna be a bit of trouble, eh?"

"I'll be fine," I said. "But my schedule is pretty full. I don't know how Hermione's going to handle it. She's sighed up for every class."

Cedric blinked, "She's going to die."

"All her books will topple onto her."

"She'll drown in ink."

"And words."

We grinned at each-other.

***

I met up with my friends on the way to Divination. It was a very long trip to the North Tower.

"There's — got — to — be — a — shortcut," Ron panted, climbing a seventh staircase.

"You just need to get in shape, Ron," I said, staring at the landing where we stood. There was a large painting with nothing but a bare stretch of grass.

"I think it's this way," Hermione said.

I shook my head. "Can't be. That's south. Damn, where's Hogwarts when you need her?"

"Aha!" The painting yelled, and I saw a knight in the picture. "What villains are these, that trespass upon my private lands! Come to scorn at my fall, perchance! Draw, you knaves, you dogs!"

The small knight tugged his small sword out of his scabbard, brandishing it wildly. The sword was a bit too big for him, and he swung it too much. He fell face-first onto the grass.

"Are you all right?" Harry moved closer to the painting.

"Get back, you scurvy braggart! Back, you rogue!"

The knight used the sword to pull himself back up, but ended up pushing the blade deeply into the ground. He couldn't pull it out, no matter how hard he tried. Eventually he flopped down on the grass and pushed his visor up, wiping the sweat off of his face.

I touched the wall again, and frowned. She was still helping the first-year girls.

"Listen," Harry said, "we're looking for the North Tower. You don't know the way, do you?"

"A quest!" The knight's fury vanished. He jumped to his feet and bellowed, "Come follow me, dear friends, and we shall find our goal, or else shall perish bravely in the charge!"

He tugged the sword again, failed to grab it, then failed to get on top his fat little pony.

"On foot then," he cried, "good sirs and gentle lady! On! On!"

He ran out of his painting and into the next one. We followed the sound of his clanking armor, and we even saw him every once in awhile.

We turned up a spiral staircase, and my friends puffed as they hurriedly ran up it. Eventually, we heard the murmur of voices and knew we were in the right place.

"Farewell!" The knight cried, popping up in a painting of some very serious looking monks. "Farewell, my comrades-in-arms! If ever you have need of noble heart and steely sinew, call upon Sir Cadogan!"

I walked up the rest of the steps and noticed that there weren't any doors, but there was a trapdoor above us.

"Sybil Trelawney, Divination teacher," Harry read off of his schedule. "How're we supposed to get up there?"

Almost immediately, the trapdoor opened, and a silvery ladder fell down in front of Harry's feet.

"After you," Ron grinned, and Harry went up the ladder.

I went up after him.

It didn't really look like a classroom. There were twenty small, circular tables stuffed inside it, each surrounded by armchairs and little poufs. The light was crimson; the curtains were closed, and each lamp had a red scarf draped around it. It was very hot, and the fire gave of a sickly perfume smell. The shelves were filled with random feathers, candle subs, playing cards, crystal balls, and a bunch of teacups.

"Where is she?" Ron whispered as the rest of the class had assembled.

"Welcome," a soft, misty voice said from the shadows. "How nice to see you in the physical world at last."

She moved into the firelight, and the first thing I noticed were her eyes. They were magnified by her round glasses, and they reminded me of a bug. She was very thin, and draped in a spangled shawl. She had necklaces and beads hung around her neck, and her wrists were encased in bangles and rings.

"Sit, my children, sit," Trelawney said. Immediately, the class sank into their chairs. Harry, Ron, Hermione, and I all sat around the same round table. I had a pouf.

"Welcome to Divination," Trelawney sat in a large chair in front of the fire. "My name is Professor Trelawney. You may not have seen me before. I find that descending too often into the hustle and bustle of the main school clouds my Inner Eye."

Everyone was silent, and I frowned. She didn't need the perfume for seeing the future.

Trelawney adjusted her shawl and continued, "So you have chosen to study Divination, the most difficult of all magical arts. I must warn you at the outset that if you do not have the Sight, there is very little I will be able to teach you. Books can take you only so far in this field..."

Harry, Ron, and I all grinned at a very startled looking Hermione.

"Many witches and wizards, talented though they are in the area of loud bangs and smells and sudden disappearings, are yet unable to penetrate the veiled mysteries of the future," Trelawney looked from face face, eyes big and wide. "It is a Gift granted to few. You, boy," she turned to Neville suddenly. "Is your grandmother well?"

"I think so," Neville said shakily.

"I wouldn't be so sure if I were you, dear," Professor Trelawney said. Neville gulped, and Trelawney continued, "We will be covering the basic methods of Divination this year. The first term will be devoted to reading the tea leaves. Next term we shall progress to palmistry. By the way, my dear," she suddenly turned to Parvati Patil, "beware a red-haired man."

Startled, Parvati shot a look at Ron, then scooted away slightly.

"Oh, don't worry about Ron, Parvati, he could hardly be considered a man," I said, and the class laughed as Ron's ears turned red. He kicked me from under the table, and I whispered, "I hope Crookshanks eats your rat. Then I hope it eats you."

"In the second term," Trelawney continued once we were finished, "we shall progress to the crystal ball — if we have finished with fire omens, that is. Unfortunately, classes will be disrupted in February by a nasty bout of flu. I myself will lose my voice. And around Easter, two of our number will leave us forever."

"That last bits a bit dark," I mumbled. Ron kicked me again.

I am SO sorry. I forgot to update. I mean, it's still Sunday for me, but it's eleven PM. I suck. Uh, forgive me? Yeah cool. Um. I joined a group chat on Tumblr recently, cause a friend — you know who you are — wanted me to cause chaos. I didn't cause much chaos, but whatever. Anyway, it was all super awesome until I realized I'm never going to talk on it. I have to turn notifications off because I don't want my phone buzzing in class, but I also know that I'll totally forget to check and see if people are talking. I forget stuff all of the time, if you didn't know by the way I forgot to post. But yeah, it's gonna be a problem. I'm also seriously loving some of the chapter titles for the fourth book. Like, it's just getting worse. The first like ten were normal, but then it gets weird. Today I wrote 'Stick my Stinger in Your Sucker -insert winky face-' I promise it actually has something to do with the chapter. I swear.

Anyway, I'm really sorry for posting late. I'll see you on Tuesday, and I hope you all had a super Sunday. I love you!