Christmas Prophecy II (Bonus Chapter for Ebu Shi Luoli Kong, Many Thanks!!!)

Dumbledore was the first to notice her. He stopped eating, looked up, and with his usual gentle and tolerant smile, gently gestured to her. "Sybill, you've come. Come and sit down. The Christmas lunch is very sumptuous; any later and the hot dishes will get cold."

Trelawney didn't move immediately. She stood still, head slightly tilted back, her gaze sweeping blankly across the teachers' table. Her thin lips parted slightly, her voice weak and ethereal, carrying a deliberately crafted, mysterious tone. "Headmistress, I shouldn't have come to disturb you. I've been in my tower, gazing at that clear crystal ball, trying to discern the traces of fate in the shifting light and shadow. But just now, a clear omen appeared in the crystal ball—it guided me to put down my solitary lunch and come here to join you all. I think this is the call of fate, and I cannot resist it."

As she spoke, she moved her feet lightly toward the empty seat next to Dumbledore. But as her gaze swept over the number of people at the table, her dazed expression suddenly froze, her previously weak voice abruptly rose into a sharp, terrified scream, she abruptly shrank back, waved her hands repeatedly, shook her head like a rattle-drum, and her face was full of resistance and fear.

"No! No! I can't sit down! Headmaster, I absolutely cannot sit down!" Trelawney clutched her shawl tightly, her body trembling slightly. Her eyes, behind her thick glasses, were filled with terror as she stared intently at the dining table, as if some deadly danger lurked in that empty seat. "Count carefully, there are already twelve people sitting at this table! If I sit down, we'll make thirteen! There's no more ominous or dangerous omen than thirteen people dining together!"

Her voice suddenly became sharp, filled with undeniable certainty, each word clear and distinct in the bustling Great Hall, causing many students around to look up towards the teachers' table.

"Always remember this ironclad rule! When thirteen people dine together, the first person to stand up will be the first to die! This is Prophecy of blood and destiny, and it never fails!" Trelawney became more and more agitated as she spoke, her body trembling uncontrollably, her eyes filled with fear of the unknown calamity, as if the shadow of death would loom over the entire table at any moment.

Upon hearing this, Professor McGonagall, sitting to the side, frowned instantly, her face showing obvious impatience. She put down her knife and fork, gave a soft snort, and spoke to the frightened Trelawney: "Sybill, it's just a superstitious saying. Christmas is supposed to be a joyous occasion; there's no need to pay attention to these absurd superstitions. Sit down, the turkey is starting to get tough, and the tripe soup is getting cold. Don't delay your meal."

Professor McGonagall, always pragmatic, had never been interested in Trelawney's rambling Prophecy. Now that the peaceful atmosphere of the Christmas luncheon had been broken, her tone carried a hint of barely perceptible displeasure. However, out of consideration for her colleague, she maintained the decorum of a teacher.

Trelawney remained motionless, her lips trembling, her eyes filled with stubborn fear. After hesitating for a long time, under Dumbledore's gentle gaze, she finally moved slowly and cautiously to the empty seat and sat down. The moment she sat down, she tightly closed her eyes, pursed her lips, gripped the tablecloth tightly with both hands, and her body was taut, as if lightning would strike her or some malevolent creature would suddenly appear. Her face was deathly pale with tension, and she muttered to herself in broken words, all of which were inaudible, all murmurs about Grim omens.

Professor McGonagall shook her head helplessly at her neurotic state, picked up a spoon, scooped a spoonful of tripe into Trelawney's plate, and said in a flat tone, "Try this. The kitchen House-elf made it very flavorful. It's best eaten while it's hot."

Trelawney completely ignored Professor McGonagall's good intentions. She remained tense and only slowly opened her eyes after a while. Her eyes, magnified by her glasses, scanned the area around the dining table again. As if she had suddenly discovered something, her gaze sharpened slightly, and her voice became unsteady, carrying a hint of doubt and inquiry.

"But... where is my dear Professor Lupin?" She tilted her head slightly, her tone light and airy, her gaze falling on the empty seat where Lupin usually sat, a strange seriousness creeping into her eyes. "When I was counting the people just now, I couldn't sense his presence at all. Why isn't this gentle gentleman sitting at the table today?"

Upon hearing this, Dumbledore's eyes flashed with a hint of regret, and his tone carried concern for his colleague. "Poor Remus, he's sick again. It's truly a sad thing that he's ill on Christmas Day. He'll have to rest in his office and won't be able to attend this grand feast."

Upon hearing this, Trelawney's expression instantly became even more eerie. She leaned forward slightly, lowered her voice, and added a strong Grim to her originally ethereal tone. Her eyes stared blankly at Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall.

"Minerva, Albus, if you insist on knowing the truth, then I will speak frankly—I already saw Professor Lupin's fate in the crystal ball." Her voice carried a sinister certainty. "I can clearly foresee that poor Professor Lupin will not stay with us for much longer. His days are numbered, the gears of fate have begun to turn toward the end, and even he himself has already vaguely sensed this deep down, knowing that his time is coming."

At this point, Trelawney's lips curled into a strange smile, her eyes carrying a knowing indifference. "A few days ago, I offered to divine for him with Divination crystal ball, to help him see the dangers ahead. But do you know what? He practically fled in panic, hastily refusing my offer. It wasn't that he didn't want to know the future, but that he was afraid to face it. He knew better than anyone that his fate was already being watched by death."

Professor McGonagall's displeasure deepened upon hearing this. She coldly glanced at Trelawney, her tone filled with undisguised sarcasm and dissatisfaction. "It's obvious that no one would want to hear your baseless and panic-inducing Prophecy. Remus is merely frail and frequently ill; he's not as absurd as you describe."

Professor McGonagall knew Lupin's condition well and was also aware that Trelawney's Prophecy were mostly unfounded and alarmist. She simply did not want to believe her nonsense and thought that she was just ruining the Christmas luncheon atmosphere and deliberately creating anxiety.

Trelawney seemed completely oblivious to McGonagall's taunts. She was utterly absorbed in her own world of Divination, her eyes growing increasingly vacant. Her gaze pierced through the crowd, fixed on the empty space of the Great Hall, as if she had truly seen something imperceptible to ordinary people. Her body trembled slightly, and she began to mutter to herself incessantly, her voice sometimes soft and fragmented, sometimes sharp and shrill, filled with Grim aura that permeated the warm Great Hall, making the surrounding air seem chilling.

"Darkness... boundless darkness has completely enveloped this ancient castle..." She squinted slightly, her voice trembling with extreme fear, "I can feel that cold, damp, death-laden shadow lingering in the castle. It's hiding in the shadows, in these corners filled with laughter and joy. It's right here in this hall, right beside us!"

She abruptly raised her hand, her withered fingers pointing into the air, her eyes filled with terror, her tone growing increasingly sinister. "It's waiting, it's lurking, it's slowly approaching its target... I can see that within this year, someone in this castle will surely lose their most precious, most cherished thing—perhaps family, perhaps friendship, perhaps something indispensable in their life... And this terrible upheaval could even occur tonight, on this Christmas Eve, at any moment!"

As she finished speaking, she lowered her head slightly, her eyes unfocused, and muttered astrological terms that no one else could understand, "Mars retrograde, Saturn in the ninth house, the stars are in chaos, all the trajectories foreshadow impending disaster, bloodshed is imminent... I saw it, I saw it clearly—a giant, jet-black dog, standing in the cold graveyard, howling mournfully at the night sky!"

Trelawney's voice suddenly turned shrill, her whole body trembling violently, as if she had witnessed the horrific scene firsthand. "That's no ordinary dog, that's Grim, Grim, a messenger of death! It roams around the castle, wanders every corner of Hogwarts, constantly searching for the next soul to take! Its gaze has already locked onto this place, locked onto the people in this Great Hall!"

"Be careful! Everyone be careful!" She looked around sharply, her gaze sweeping over every student and teacher present, her eyes filled with terror, her voice shrill. "That messenger of death is nearby. It lurks in the shadows and could appear at any moment! Don't leave the group alone, don't wander around at night, and especially don't go near the Forbidden Forest behind the castle—that's its territory! Once it sets its sights on you, there's no escaping its fate!"

She became increasingly frantic, her voice a mixture of terror and certainty, her entire being descending into a near-manic stupor. She clutched her shawl tightly, her body shrinking back as if the black dog, a symbol of death, would appear before her at any moment. She continued to mutter incessantly, "thirteen people," "death," "Grim," "her time is near," the fragmented words flowing endlessly, oblivious to the strange looks from those around her, and disregarding the warmth and peace that should have characterized the luncheon.

At the High Table, Dumbledore maintained his gentle smile, though a barely perceptible hint of seriousness flashed in his eyes. He didn't interrupt Trelawney, but simply picked up his Pumpkin Juice, took a slow sip, and remained enigmatic. Professor McGonagall frowned, her face full of impatience, but ultimately refrained from arguing, simply looking down at her plate, deliberately ignoring the eccentric Divination professor beside her. The students around them looked on with a mixture of curiosity, fear, and indifference. The originally lively and warm Christmas lunch was now shrouded in a faint, lingering gloom by this series of ominous Prophecy.

Trelawney remained seated, staring blankly into the air, lost in her premonition of misfortune, muttering unsettling words in a ethereal and eerie voice that echoed for a long time in the brightly lit and fragrant Great Hall.

Lunch was over, and the students Earth Flow of the Great Hall in twos and threes. Some went back to the common room, some went for a walk in the corridor, and some ran outside the castle to have a snowball fight. Su Yu carried Kurama and walked out of the Great Hall with Fa-jie and Ka-jie.

"Where are we going this afternoon?" Fa-jie asked.

"How about we go back to the lounge?" Su Yu said. "It's cold outside."

"Are you afraid of the cold?"

"Hmm... I'm just still savoring the taste of last night..."

Fa-jie chuckled but didn't say anything.

When they returned to the Slytherin Common Room, it was already quite full. The group went back to the private room, and Kurama jumped down from Su Yu, squatted in front of the fireplace, and poked at the ashes with her paws. Mars flew up, and she jumped back a step, then moved closer.

Su Yu sat down, Fa-jie leaned on his shoulder, and Ka-jie sat opposite him, picking up a magazine and flipping through it.

"Are you tired?" Su Yu asked.

"Hmm," Fa-jie, "Wearing high heels is so tiring..."

Su Yu didn't speak, but reached out and hugged her feet, starting to massage them. Fa-jie closed her eyes, lay on the sofa, and her breathing gradually became even.

Ka-jie looked up from her magazine and glanced at Su Yu. "Aren't you going to Hogsmeade this afternoon?"

"Let's not go for now," Su Yu said. "How about we go tomorrow?"

"Then you'll come with me tomorrow."

"Yes, sir!"

Ka-jie lowered her head and continued flipping through the magazine, but she also stretched her legs into Su Yu. Kurama jumped back from in front of the fireplace, saw that there was no room left on Su Yu's legs, and buried his face in Ka-jie's arms.

Su Yu leaned back on the sofa, intently massaging Ka-jie. Fa-jie's breathing was very soft, the sound of Ka-jie turning the pages of the magazine was very soft, and Kurama's snoring was also very soft.