Two significant events occurred in Divination class today. First, Hermione Granger and Professor Trelawney had a rather spectacular falling out, culminating in Hermione's dramatic exit. Second, this…
"Tonight! The heartless murderer who betrayed his friends will be free! Master and servant will be reunited…"
Divination class had already ended, yet Harry Potter and others lingered. Trelawney, for some inexplicable reason, had launched into a series of bizarre pronouncements, her behavior decidedly peculiar. Even more perplexing, she seemed to have no recollection of her outburst, quickly returning to normal afterward.
"Excuse me, Professor, but we must be going now."
They had no choice but to hurry to their next class.
As they descended from the Astronomy Tower, Draco Malfoy couldn't resist voicing his bewilderment. "What on earth was that all about? Was she having some kind of episode? Or did she perhaps ingest the wrong potion?"
There was no mistaking it; she was acting strangely. Something was definitely amiss.
"I… I don't know…" Harry looked equally perplexed.
"A prophecy."
A clear, familiar voice cut through their confusion.
"What?"
Harry and Malfoy exchanged a glance, turning to find Cassandra Volle, the young scion of their Death Eater lineage, standing behind them.
Sensing their surprise, Cassandra elaborated, "She just delivered a prophecy."
Harry and Malfoy readily accepted Cassandra's assertion; after all, she did possess such abilities.
"I'll inquire with the teacher later… Let us proceed to class."
With that, Cassandra swept past them down the stairs.
She seemed to have foreseen the future unaided before, but such occurrences were extremely rare and irregular. It would be best to consult Tom Riddle about it.
Watching Cassandra's retreating figure, Harry and Malfoy exchanged knowing smiles. They were intensely intrigued by this prophecy that Cassandra had seemingly validated.
"Scarface, who is this guy who betrayed his friend? Sirius Black?"
"But according to Malfoy, there was something fishy about what happened back then, and Sirius has long since regained his freedom. He can't possibly regain his freedom again tonight?"
Faced with Malfoy's question, Harry frowned slightly and shook his head. "Moreover, the nature of his regaining freedom is unclear."
At this moment, Malfoy seemed to latch onto another point. "The latter part is quite strange as well, this business about the master and servant. I've heard that some prophets have the ability to predict multiple events simultaneously; perhaps this aspect is entirely unrelated to the first."
"I don't understand. I feel like my head is spinning. I'd better go to class."
...
Their next class was flying, and under normal circumstances, Harry and Malfoy would have been eagerly anticipating it.
But this time was different. Consumed by the prophecy, Harry and Malfoy struggled to keep their minds on their broomsticks.
They were not alone in their preoccupation. Ron Weasley, too, was similarly distracted.
After class, Ron stared intently at Harry and Malfoy's backs, as if steeling himself.
Ron approached the two, informing them that he had something important to share, and then requested that they await him outside the Gryffindor Common Room.
Somewhat puzzled, Harry and Malfoy agreed to follow him anyway.
After the trio departed, two figures, one tall and one short, emerged from behind a large tree not far away.
"Teacher, are you truly going to allow them to proceed unchecked like this?"
Cassandra was puzzled as to why Tom Riddle would permit Harry and the others to act so recklessly.
But Tom merely chuckled cryptically, then ruffled Cassandra's hair. "There is nothing to worry about. Accompany them; consider it an exercise."
"…"
Cassandra did not object, instead walking in the direction Harry and the others had gone, remaining obedient in front of Tom.
...
Upon leaving the Gryffindor Common Room, Harry and the others made their way to a secluded corner of the castle hall.
"Ron, you brought us to see… this?"
Harry's lips twitched. To be honest, he was shocked.
What Ron was showing them was definitely not something they should be exposed to at their tender age.
Although the students around them were generally precocious, appearing almost as adults, it did not alter the fact that they were still minors.
Another point worth mentioning was that Malfoy appeared to be watching it with particular interest.
"Ah, not that."
Ron glanced around to ensure they were alone before quietly revealing what he knew. "Peter Pettigrew?"
Harry and Malfoy exchanged a look, both registering surprise in each other's eyes.
Because they knew Peter Pettigrew, right? That's…
They glanced down at the fat rat struggling in its cage, both feeling like they wanted to say something but didn't know how.
Ron, oblivious to their odd behavior, was equally puzzled. "Um… Tom Riddle told me that Peter Pettigrew, he's an Animagus."
If that's the case, then a great many things suddenly made sense!
"Sirius Black isn't a Death Eater. He wasn't the one who betrayed Scarface's parents."
"But according to Professor Trelawney's prophecy, there was indeed someone who betrayed their friends."
"And then there's…"
"That guy will regain his freedom tonight, but definitely not now!"
Harry and Malfoy looked unusually excited, deducing things back and forth.
This excited exchange left Ron bewildered. "Wait, wait, what's all this? I don't understand!"
Addressing Ron, who was one of their own, Harry and Malfoy did not hold back, especially since Ron had just provided them with this crucial information.
Then, the two shared what they knew and their own deductions with Ron.
Suddenly bombarded with so much information, Ron felt his mind swimming, but he roughly understood.
That was Peter Pettigrew… Peter Pettigrew used to be a friend of Harry's parents, but according to current deductions, Peter Pettigrew was very likely the traitor who killed Harry's parents, not Sirius.
This is a bit hard to figure out... Wait, if Peter Pettigrew's true identity is this, and considering that I've been "sleeping" with Harry's parents' friends for so many years, what should Harry call me?
Harry and Malfoy, unaware that Ron had suddenly gone astray in his thoughts, were engaged in a heated discussion.
"Next, we must locate Sirius Black, then we can ascertain the full truth of the matter."
Harry seemed very agitated; he would soon know the full truth about his parents' tragic deaths!
But Malfoy was somewhat troubled. "How are we going to find Sirius? We pursued him once already; he will certainly not reveal himself easily this time."
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