Astra

XV - The Hippogriff

THE ONES WHO HADN'T figured it out gasped out loud and even Professor Trelawney was taken aback. Harry had wide eyes as Astra burst out laughing. She couldn't know, could she? How would she have known that Sirius Black was after him? And why was she making a joke of it? Once Astra finished laughing, she rolled her eyes.

"Wow, you'll believe anything. Here," she said as she put Harry's teacup back on his plate. "Beware the black dog," she whispered along with a chuckle, grabbed her satchel, and headed out of class. The whole group was still in shock as Professor Trelawney allowed them to leave.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione descended Professor Trelawney's ladder and the winding stair in silence, then set off for Professor McGonagall's Transfiguration lesson. 

***

"You don't think.. you don't think it was real? Do you?" asked Harry, with a voice of worry.

Ron scoffed. "Why would she do that? You would think since it's her own father she wouldn't be so calm about it. But I guess that's why. Probably working with him or something."

"Oh, please. Astra isn't working for Sirius Black. Though I think Divination is very wooly, but she might have had some 'inner eye'. When I couldn't understand what was in the cup she took it and immediately said it was a snowy owl. I didn't see it though. Either way, she was just making that up for a laugh. Don't worry," Hermione responded. However, Harry wasn't completely convinced.

It took them so long to find her classroom that, early as they had left Divination, they were only just in time to Transfiguration.

Harry chose a seat right at the back of the room, a few seats away from Astra, feeling as though he were sitting in a very bright spotlight; the rest of the class kept shooting furtive glances at him, as though he were about to drop dead at any moment. They also shot a few glares at Astra, who still had a smirk on her face. Astra, however, was very practiced at throwing deathly glares and soon everyone looked away from her.

He hardly heard what Professor McGonagall was telling them about Animagi, though Astra seemed to be listening with rapt attention, and wasn't even watching when she transformed herself in front of their eyes into a tabby cat with spectacle markings around her eyes. When she finished, Astra was the only one who clapped.

"Thank you Miss Black. Really, what has got into you all today?" said Professor McGonagall, turning back into herself with a faint pop, and staring around at them all. "Not that it matters, but that's the first time my transformation's not got applause from a class." Astra rolled her eyes as everybody's heads turned to her and to Harry, and then back to her. Then Hermione raised her hand.

"Please, Professor, we've just had our first Divination class, and we were reading the tea leaves, and --"

"Ah, of course," said Professor McGonagall, suddenly frowning. "There is no need to say any more, Miss Granger. Tell me, which of you will be dying this year?"

Everyone stared at her.

"Me," said Harry, finally.

"I see," said Professor McGonagall, fixing Harry with her beady eyes. "Then you should know, Potter, that Sibyll Trelawney has predicted the death of one student a year since she arrived at this school. None of them has died yet. Seeing death omens is her favorite way of greeting a new class. If it were not for the fact that I never speak ill of my colleagues --" Professor McGonagall broke off, and they saw that her nostrils had gone white. She went on, more calmly, "Divination is one of the most imprecise branches of magic. I shall not conceal from you that I have very little patience with it. True Seers are very rare, and Professor Trelawney..."