Luckily, part of this term's curriculum had been covered last term. Otherwise, no one would have studied seriously at all.
After applying ointment to a student who had been lashed by a Bubotuber vine for daydreaming in class, Pomona let him leave. Rita Skeeter was at the school now; if she sent him to the hospital wing, who knew how she would twist it in her writing.
After the child left, she turned to loosen the soil around the magical plants. During class, everyone had been too busy talking, as if they had endless things to say.
The Yule Ball was approaching. "Everyone" needed a dance partner, and aside from what dress robes to wear on the day, that was another hot topic. The girls had ranked the boys, though most of the boys knew nothing about this secret list. Viktor stood at the top.
The older girls were not very interested in Harry. Even if he was the Salvator Mundi and a "champion," he was still a "child." Cedric ranked ahead of Harry, but when the girls talked about him, it was nothing like the way they talked about Viktor—as if Viktor were a fragrant steak, and whoever moved too slowly would lose it.
No one noticed that Hagrid had disappeared.
He had left a letter outside Pomona's greenhouse before departing. Fortunately, it was not a resignation letter, but a note requesting leave.
After the incident with Émilie, Rita Skeeter had originally been forbidden from writing reports about Hogwarts. But now she had been allowed into the school to cover the Triwizard Tournament... so she had come for revenge.
Pomona viciously jabbed at the hard soil with her trowel, only to accidentally stab the Mandrake in the pot. It let out a shriek from beneath the soil, then went