Itchy, fragrant.
"Take a guess, my boy?"
Before Harry could answer, Cassandra had already slipped away.
This sister...
Harry gritted his teeth.
Ever since they vaguely yet directly confirmed their relationship, she had become even more enticing!
Harboring a desire to give Cassandra a good lesson, Harry devoured his breakfast sandwich.
The bacon sandwich tasted quite good and was very nutritious, at least enough for a fifteen-year-old with a soul in his twenties.
The first class in the morning was Divination Class, and since Hermione opted for Arithmancy instead of Divination, she went to another classroom.
After they parted, Harry headed to Divination Class in the North Tower with Ron.
Dazzling golden sunlight streamed through the corridor's tall windows, casting wide beams of light; the sky outside was so bright it seemed freshly glazed.
"Trelawney's classroom is bound to be as hot as a steam room; she never turns off the fire," Ron said as they ascended the stairs leading to the silvery stairway and trapdoor.
He was right—the dim classroom was so stifling that it was hard to breathe, and the scent of incense was even more intense than usual.
Someone who didn't know any better might think they'd entered a steaming smoker.
Harry walked to a curtained window, feeling slightly dizzy from the overpowering scent.
While Professor Trelawney was removing a shawl hanging over a lamp, Harry opened the window and leaned on an armchair draped with an Indian print cloth, a breeze caressing his face, feeling extremely pleasant.
"Nice one, mate," Ron whispered in praise to Harry, "Look at them, as dumb as can be, not even opening a window..."
Thanks to Harry's initiative, Ron also felt his incense-dazed mind clearing a bit.
Professor Trelawney didn't seem to mind Harry's action; she even gave him a meaningful glance.
The other students, intimidated by Professor Trelawney's penchant for issuing death predictions, refrained from opening windows, enduring the incense's discomfort in silence.
"My dears," Professor Trelawney said from her winged armchair, her unusually large eyes scanning them, "We've almost finished discussing planetary divination... but today is an excellent day to study the influence of Mars, as it's currently in a very interesting position. Please look this way, as I turn off the lights..."
With a wave of her magic wand, all lights extinguished, leaving only the fire as a light source.
Professor Trelawney bent down and retrieved a miniature solar system model encased in a glass dome from beneath her chair.
This model was beautiful; the burning sun, the nine planets, and their satellites floated inside the dome, sparkling brightly in their respective positions.
"How much does that thing cost?" Justin Finchley from Hufflepuff was practically spellbound, "That's awesome, I want one too..."
"One hundred and twenty-three Galleons," Professor Trelawney, overhearing Justin, replied.
"That's not expensive at all."
Coming from a family that could afford Eton College, Justin's family wasn't just average middle-class.
One might say they were among the top tier of the middle class, so one hundred and twenty-three Galleons, equivalent to six hundred fifteen British Pounds, was hardly a big deal.
Muggles are much wealthier than wizards... Harry thought lazily while Professor Trelawney began explaining the peculiar angle formed between Mars and Neptune.
Just as Professor Trelawney slipped into her mystical state, a strong incense smell wafted towards him.
A soft breeze from the window caressed his cheeks, the gentle chirping of an insect could be heard behind the curtains, and combined with Professor Trelawney's hypnotic lecturing style, his eyelids began to droop...
In his dream, he seemed to be transported a hundred years back, but the scene appeared different... he had returned to the final battle moment, but the dragon-like Lanlock suddenly transformed into a giant Voldemort.
The next moment, the giant Voldemort's face opened its huge mouth, lunging at him.
In an instant, a violet light flashed.
Suddenly, Vivi appeared before Harry again.
She was seated in the Minister of Magic's position, and the office was extraordinarily large, much bigger than any office Harry had ever seen.
Behind Vivi was a map of Europe marked in yellow and black, with over half of it colored in, leaving blank areas that included the United Kingdom and France
After exchanging a gaze with Vivi, Harry suddenly saw her rising from her seat, leisurely walking down.
"My darling? My darling?"
Half-awake, he felt someone shaking him.
He suddenly opened his eyes, seeing no sign of Vivi, only Professor Trelawney's long face, her eyes like black beetles, while the fireplace flames danced merrily.
"Oh, Professor Trelawney," Harry sniffed at the corner of his mouth, feeling like some drool had dripped out.
"Sleeping during class is not a good practice; I hope you won't do it again," Professor Trelawney sternly warned, "If you sleep in my class again, I will have to deduct points from Gryffindor—at least five points."
Oh, only five points.
Gryffindor students exchanged glances; this cost was still quite acceptable for Gryffindor.
Besides, this year Harry was an undisputed champion, sure to earn Gryffindor a championship in the House Cup.
Thinking of this, a ruthless idea surfaced in everyone's mind.
Why not? Sleep through the points deduction?
After all, Professor Trelawney's class is exceptionally dull, with nothing substantial, just pure... boredom.
Harry was unaware that he was already considered a champion by his classmates; he merely felt he hadn't slept enough.
It wasn't that he didn't sleep well last night; on the contrary, he slept quite soundly, completely forgetting that Vivi was supposed to call him—though Vivi, just as busy, had forgotten too, only sending a message telling him to sleep early and chat when free.
You are about to surpass Professor Bin, Harry thought, if we endure a few more divination classes, the title of the most boring class might just change hands.
Yet, suddenly, the bored Harry decided to add a bit of fun to the dull class, his eyes twinkling, and he began to explain: "Actually, I wasn't just sleeping, Professor Trelawney—I had a dream, dreamed about some things... I feel it might be related to the future."
Professor Trelawney widened her eyes, holding Harry's face in her hands, trembling as she asked, "Oh, yes, well, um... you dreamed of something... my dear, do you have anything... let's see, you obviously were influenced by the peculiar visual vibrations in my classroom! Have you never entered this state? Have you seen things you never saw before?"
"Yes..." Harry suddenly said solemnly, "I saw... 'ominous'!"
At Harry's words, the entire classroom froze.
No way, mate?
Isn't 'ominous' supposed to be something Professor Trelawney would say, holding your face?
"'Ominous'?!" Professor Trelawney, who was half-closing her eyes, suddenly widened them, trembling as she asked, "What... 'ominous'?"
It was evident that someone sharing a resonance with her pleased her greatly.
"I..." Harry hesitated.
"Go ahead, speak, my dear!" Professor Trelawney waved her arms.
"Well then..." Harry drawled.
After feeling he had captured the entire class's attention, he slowly opened his mouth, his expression resolute.
"I seemed to see... death."