HP: Azkaban's Outstanding Graduate

Chapter 266 Divination Exam

Harry clutched the cold ring key tightly, as if grasping at a lifeline.

Dumbledore gazed into Harry's resolute green eyes, which reflected his motherly image, yet also his fatherly stubbornness.

After a long while, that sharp gaze gradually turned into a deep weariness, and finally fell on Sagres.

“Then,” Dumbledore’s voice returned to its usual calm, but with a hint of barely perceptible compromise, “the specific arrangements. The Faithful Charm…who do you propose as the Keeper of the Secret? I must remind you, this choice is of paramount importance and cannot be wrong.”

"I come."

Before Sagres could speak, Sirius stepped forward immediately, his tone resolute.

“I am Harry’s godfather, and his safety is my responsibility. Grimmauld Place is my home, and no one is more suitable than me.”

Dumbledore looked at him: "Sirius, no one doubts your courage, but your situation..."

"I am safe!"

Sirius's voice was hoarse with excitement, "The Ministry of Magic has withdrawn my arrest warrant, I am now a free man! I will protect Harry as I protected James and Lily, and I swear on my life that unless I die, Voldemort and his minions will never find the address of Grimmauld Place!"

Sagras added calmly, “Mr. Black’s determination is reassuring. In addition, I will add several layers of special protective magic and confusion spells on top of the Fidelity Charm to ensure that even if—I mean even if—the worst happens and the Secret Keeper fails, that area will remain a non-existent ruin in the minds of Muggles and wizards.”

“Very well,” Dumbledore finally nodded slowly. “Now that you’ve considered all this, Harry,”

He turned to the boy, “This summer you will be staying at 12 Grimmauld Place. But you must swear an oath in the name of your parents to strictly abide by all the rules set forth by Professor Greengrass: from this day forward, you shall never step out of your room without permission; Sirius shall accompany you at all times when you go out; and you shall always be vigilant.”

"I swear!"

Harry answered without hesitation, his heart pounding with immense joy and relief.

“As for you, Sirius,” Dumbledore’s gaze turned incredibly serious, “you have gained not only the right to reunite with your godson, but also a heavy responsibility. You must be more careful than ever before, for every decision you make will determine Harry’s life or death.”

“I understand, Professor.” Sirius straightened his back. “I will not let anyone hurt him.”

"Then it's settled." Dumbledore made the final decision, waving his hand as if to dispel the last tension in the air. "The specific casting of the spell is up to you. Sagres, I trust your magic to ensure everything goes smoothly."

Sagres nodded slightly, then turned and left.

Harry and Sirius exchanged a glance, both seeing unbelievable joy and relief in each other's eyes.

Harry looked at the rough ring in his palm and felt it was no longer cold, but had become hot and full of the breath of freedom.

“Let’s go home, Harry.”

Sirius put his arm around his godson's shoulder, his voice filled with unprecedented warmth and determination.

"Well, go home."

Harry repeated, his green eyes sparkling with the first true ray of sunshine that summer truly belonged to him.

Sagres, who was walking ahead, suddenly turned around, frowned, and looked at the two of them: "There's still an exam to take, why are you going home?"

"Uh……"

The two fell silent.

Sagres tilted his head slightly, his gray eyes sweeping over the two who were frozen in place, his brows furrowing even more.

"So engrossed in emotional catharsis that you forgot your basic schedule? It seems that being too excited can indeed affect logical judgment."

His calm voice was like a bucket of ice water, precisely extinguishing the flames of joy that had just risen between Harry and Sirius.

"The final exams are not quite over yet, Mr. Potter. If I remember correctly, your Divination exam is still pending."

He then turned to Sirius, “And you, Mr. Black, as a guardian, you can wait in the Great Hall or the Lounge, instead of planning a trip on a whim.”

The smiles on Harry and Sirius's faces froze instantly.

They then suddenly remembered that before barging into the principal's office, they were indeed on their way to the auditorium to complete their final exam.

"Uh... now?"

Harry instinctively tightened his grip on the ring in his pocket, feeling the burning sense of freedom seem to cool down a little.

Do you think Hogwarts' teaching schedule will give way to personal emotional needs?

Sagles countered with a question that betrayed no emotion whatsoever.

After he finished speaking, he turned around and walked towards the dueling arena.

Harry and Sirius exchanged a glance, both seeing a hint of helplessness and amusement on each other's faces.

The immense joy was suddenly pulled back to reality, a feeling akin to being dragged back to the ground just as takeoff was imminent.

“Okay,” Sirius ruffled Harry’s hair, trying to sound lighthearted, “go and finish that last exam, kid. I’ll wait for you outside—we have a summer vacation, or even longer.”

Harry nodded, took a deep breath, and suppressed his longing for "home" for the time being, then strode towards the Divination classroom in the North Tower.

When he arrived outside the divination classroom, Ron had just finished his exam and was coming down from the tower classroom alone.

"How is it?" Harry asked quickly.

“It’s a complete mess.” Ron pursed his lips. “I couldn’t see anything, so I just made up some things, but I don’t think she completely believed me…”

"Okay, see you in the common room."

Harry whispered, and Professor Trelawney's voice came from the attic: "Harry Potter!"

Harry quickly climbed up the ladder.

The air was still thick with that suffocating scent of spices, but now it was mixed with a tense atmosphere unique to exams.

Professor Trelawney sat in her nest-like armchair, draped in countless scarves and beads, her enormous glasses making her already enlarged eyes appear even more distorted.

The crystal ball in front of her gleamed with a hazy white light in the dim light.

“Ah, Mr. Potter…”

She spoke in a dreamlike tone, as if she had just returned from some distant illusion, “Come, child, gaze into the endless crystal eyes, try to decipher the patterns woven for you by the threads of fate… and then tell me, what do you see?”

Harry sat down as instructed, trying to focus his attention on the chaotic white mist.

The conversation in the principal's office and the feel of the ring were still echoing in his mind, making it difficult for him to concentrate.

He tried to recall the ambiguous statements in the textbook.

"Uh... I think I saw... a blurry... silvery area?"

He hesitated before speaking, "Perhaps...it represents a difficult journey? Or...hidden wealth?"

He felt he had spoken terribly.

Professor Trelawney gave a noncommittal hum.

She seemed uninterested in Harry's interpretation, instead gazing more intently at her own crystal ball.

Her breathing gradually became long and slow, and the air in the classroom seemed to freeze.

Suddenly, a completely different voice came from her lips, no longer the affectedly trembling one, but a hollow one that seemed to come from a distant shore:

"Tonight!"

Harry jerked his head up, a chill running down his spine. That voice… he recognized it!

Chapter 267 Return to the Forest

"...The pure beast will shed tears of blood and die from unforgivable blasphemy."

Trelawney's body trembled slightly, and her eyes rolled upwards behind her glasses, revealing large areas of white.

"The molting serpent...will spew out venom that nourishes evil..."

"...In the decaying cocoon, the torn soul...will suckle this succulent rain of sin...break free...and be reborn..."

The words came to an abrupt halt.

Professor Trelawney convulsed suddenly, gasping for breath as if she had just been pulled from the water.

She pushed up her glasses in a daze, looked around, and her eyes became unfocused and neurotic again.

“Oh, my dear child…”

She spoke weakly, as if nothing had just happened, "You saw... um... hidden wealth? Hmm, that's a beautiful wish, but you're probably just making it up..."

But Harry couldn't hear anything anymore. He sat there, his body ice-cold, his heart pounding wildly.

A pure beast... silver blood... a unicorn! A molting snake... venom... and what is that?

A rebirth from the ashes... Voldemort!

Did Professor Trelawney make a real prophecy? Or did she simply think that ending the final exam this way would be memorable?

He didn't even wait for Trelawney to give him a score—perhaps she had completely forgotten it was an exam—before abruptly standing up, the chair legs scraping loudly on the floor.

"Professor! I must... I must go to Professor Dumbledore immediately!"

Harry's voice was hoarse with shock.

Before Trelawney could respond with a puzzled look, Harry had already turned and rushed out of the curtained classroom, sprinting down the spiral staircase at almost breakneck speed.

He had only one thought in his mind: he had to find Dumbledore, or Sacramento, or Sirius Black immediately! That prophecy… tonight! And it all happened tonight!

Harry rushed down the spiral staircase of the North Tower like a whirlwind, his heart pounding wildly in his chest, Professor Trelawney's hollow prophecy piercing his thoughts like an icicle.

He had just staggered into the relatively brighter corridor when he suddenly crashed into a solid chest.

"Hey! Watch out, Harry!"

Sirius Black helped him up, a relaxed smile still on his face as he awaited the end of the godson exam. But when he saw Harry's pale, terrified face, the smile vanished instantly. "What happened? Did the exam go badly? Did Trelawney scare you again?"

"No... not..."

Harry, panting, clung tightly to his godfather's arm as if it were his only lifeline. "A prophecy...it seems she made a real prophecy! Sirius, tonight!"

He rapidly and incoherently repeated Trelawney's terrible prophecy: "The pure beast sheds tears of blood... dies of blasphemy... the molting serpent spits venom... the torn soul sucks up sin... rebirth! It's Voldemort! He's going to do something tonight, very likely... very likely he'll be resurrected!"

Sirius's expression suddenly turned extremely serious, and all his ease and comfort vanished.

He had experienced war and knew the weight of true prophecy. Although Trelawney was usually a bit comical, she could not be ignored in that state.

"Go find Dumbledore! Now!"