"Wake up, you lazy dragon."
Aiden felt a familiar, irritating voice calling him from the depths of sleep. Opening his eyes, he found the Director's fox-like face hovering directly in front of him.
"Haaah..." Aiden let out a long, theatrical yawn.
"Hmph. Dragon, I voted against the Hippogriff's execution for you just now. How will you repay me?" The Director's face was filled with smug satisfaction.
"I'll return the favor with a vote next time, how about that?" Aiden replied casually, already tired of the game.
"I don't want that," the Director pouted, acting like a petulant child demanding candy.
"Then what do you want?" Aiden, now completely immune to his antics, remained calm and collected.
"There's work to be done later. You're coming with me." The Director narrowed his fox eyes, the sound of the metaphorical abacus in his head clicking so loudly it almost echoed in the room.
"Fine," Aiden nodded, knowing resistance was futile.
The space around them stretched backward like pulled taffy, and in an instant, the Director had transported Aiden to the North Tower of Hogwarts.
"This is like that Eastern technique..." Aiden murmured, a similar scene flashing in his memory.
"They seem to call it 'shortening the ground to an inch.' In terms of comfort, it's indeed superior to Apparition," the Director commented conversationally.
"But it's probably not as widespread as Apparition, right?" Aiden analyzed, already deconstructing the residual spatial fluctuations.
The Director offered no reply and simply led Aiden forward. The two walked into the Divination classroom, where Professor Trelawney was in the middle of a lesson with the Gryffindor students.
"The key to reading the crystal ball is to keep your eyes and your mind clear," Trelawney was promoting with her usual dramatic flair.
Harry and Ron, however, were about to fall asleep, their heads leaning precariously over the glowing crystal ball.
"Can they really make prophecies like this?" Aiden whispered to the Director.
"Actually, everyone can. After all, we're all connected to the collective unconscious sea from birth. It's just that some people's pipes are thicker, and some are thinner," the Director explained.
"What about me?" Aiden asked curiously. "Do I have the 'Inner Eye'?"
Hearing Aiden's question, the Director rolled his eyes. "Others follow the pipes to find a sip of water, but you can jump right into the ocean for a bath. Do you even need to ask me that?"
"But I've never actually made a prophecy," Aiden pointed out, genuinely puzzled.
"Dragon, now you're just humblebragging. Did you know there are two types of seers in the world?" The Director held up a hand and gestured toward Trelawney on her stage.
"One type is like her. They are so dull, so empty, that they are easily controlled by fate. Prophecies are thus announced through their mouths, detailing what is to come."
Then the Director pointed at Aiden.
"The other type is you, Grindelwald, Cassandra Trelawney, and so on. You can actively make prophecies, influencing those around you and shaping fate itself, whether through charm, strength, or trust."
During their quiet conversation, the sharp sound of a crystal ball crashing to the ground echoed through the room. Trelawney had just proclaimed Hermione's soul to be as dry and boring as a textbook, which had finally ignited Hermione's long-simmering anger. She'd knocked over the crystal ball and stormed out in a rage.
"From a certain perspective, this professor's 'prophecies' are remarkably accurate," Aiden's clear laughter flowed past the Director like music.
Hermione's departure fulfilled Trelawney's prediction, and the remaining students became even more convinced of her abilities. This collective trust created ripples in the sea of consciousness, and a true prophecy... was about to descend.
After class, Harry and Ron were on the circular staircase, preparing to leave the tower. Harry, however, had picked up the crystal ball Hermione had knocked over. He decided to return it and apologize to Trelawney on his friend's behalf.
Harry trotted back to the silent classroom and placed the crystal ball on a nearby table. As he focused his gaze on its milky depths, it seemed to begin showing faint images.
A hand suddenly reached out from the shadows and grabbed his shoulder.
"...HE WILL RETURN... THE BLACK-HEARTED MURDERER WHO BETRAYED HIS FRIENDS WILL GAIN FREEDOM... THE SERVANT AND MASTER WILL REUNITE... THE DRAGON OF THE MIND IS WATCHING EVERYTHING..."
Professor Trelawney's voice was distorted, as if a hundred people were speaking through her mouth at once.
"Cough, cough... oh, I'm so sorry, my dear. Did I just say something?" Trelawney asked, waking from her trance.
"No, nothing at all," the frightened Harry said, immediately running from the room.
In the shadows of the classroom, the dragon and the fox were squatting in a corner, watching the entire scene with rapt interest. The Director was holding a small, enchanted crystal ball, which was now emitting a brilliant silver-white light.
"Well? Did you understand?" the Director turned and asked Aiden.
"I understood. Her primary magical organ is her entire head," Aiden couldn't help but marvel at the bizarre wonders of magic.
"Yes, the brain has always been an organ waiting to be fully developed. This is no exception for us wizards," the Director said, putting away his recording device. "Alright, work's done. Thanks for your company, Dragon. And don't worry, I'll find time to mail you that rare Chocolate Frog card you've been looking for."
The Director gave Aiden a final wink, then a shimmering passage opened in the air, and he stepped through it.
"Damn it!" Aiden's fist swung out, but unfortunately, he only hit empty air.
In the afternoon, Harry and the others rushed to Hagrid's hut to check on him.
"Buckbeak... has been sentenced to death," Hagrid said through sobs, looking utterly heartbroken.
"Hagrid, you really should plan your lesson content better. Did you know Lucius was targeting you from the very beginning?" Aiden's voice came from the sofa, where he'd been sitting unnoticed.
"Ah!" the trio and Hagrid all jumped in fright.
"Merlin's pants, Aiden! Can you please stop appearing and disappearing like that?" Ron complained for what felt like the hundredth time.
"Alright, I'll try. I already turned my presence up as high as it would go," Aiden said with a puzzled expression.
The small animals that usually gathered around Hagrid's hut had all scattered and fled, as if some ferocious beast had taken up residence inside.
"But Buckbeak... he's so kind... woo woo woo..." Hagrid whimpered.
Not knowing how to comfort the inconsolable half-giant, the group could only leave him alone to cool down.
Buckbeak's matter was just a small interlude in the grand scheme of things; the semester continued.
Having learned his lesson about the improper use of teaching aids, Hagrid changed all of this semester's Care of Magical Creatures classes to raising Blast-Ended Skrewts.
On Thursday, Astoria found Aiden in a quiet corner of the library.
"What's wrong?" Aiden asked, sensing her purpose.
"I feel like I've completed my acting," Astoria replied, her eyes bright with accomplishment.
"So fast?" Aiden clicked his tongue in amazement.
"Me too, litter box attendant. I'm about done as well," Lada's voice echoed in his mind as she jumped into his arms.
Aiden nodded. That night, he secretly slipped out of school and went to Diagon Alley to purchase the necessary potion ingredients.
The next day, in the Room of Requirement, Aiden handed the mixed potions to them. Astoria took her vial and drank it all in one decisive gulp.
Lada, however, simply held out her paw, her feline face conveying a silent, withering expression that seemed to say, "Do I look like I can hold this?"
Helpless, Aiden picked up Lada and gently poured the potion into her mouth.
After a few tense moments, the two completed their advancement. A new Psychiatrist and a Hypnotist-cat got up from the floor, their auras significantly more powerful.
Aiden used a cleaning charm to sweep the dust from both of them with a flick of his wand.
"You know your new abilities now, right?" Aiden asked.
The girl and the cat both nodded. Lada held out her paw, and transparent, shimmering scales briefly covered it.
Astoria, on the other hand, tried to use her newly acquired Awe on the two, but nothing happened.
"Kid, trying to use your powers on a demigod of the same pathway can easily get you into trouble, you know," Aiden said, holding his forehead.
"Hey, Astoria, you're so weak," Lada's voice chimed in telepathically, full of mock pity.
"Sigh... ever since I acknowledged you as my boss, I've been hiding in the shadows every day. And now I can't even beat a cat," Astoria said dejectedly.
"Don't be too anxious, Astoria. There will be a day for you to shine brightly," Aiden said, his eyes narrowing with hidden meaning.