Open Trying Tea Leaves

[Iris van Houten]

Iris was impatient with her third year so far. It seemed to be going slowly, when she had been looking forward to this year for ages. But the biggest factor in that was that Iris simply couldn't wait to get to Divination, which she had next semester. Iris had Ancient Runes now, which she enjoyed a lot too. But for that, they were mostly covering the origins of runes and not so much the prophetic qualities the stones had. Her big assignment for Ancient Runes was to give a presentation on someone out of Norse Mythology, and while that was interesting, Iris would have preferred to focus on rune spreads. But she had been told those would come later.

The girl was trying to work on her homework for Ancient Runes by reading through books on Norse Mythology while sipping her tea. But she hadn't been able to resist getting some other books out of the library as well, books about fortune telling and divination. So when she finished her tea, Iris closed her book on mythology and grabbed the Divination textbook she had also brought. She knew that tea leaves were read to tell the future, and why shouldn't she try that herself? The girl peered into her cup, then opened her book on the right page to see if she could make out anything in the shapes of the tea leaves at the bottom of her cup. This was a lot more exciting than mythology, in her opinion.

 

[Kasim Safir]

Even though he'd managed a few weeks without another poltergeist incident, Kas still approached the great hall with hesitance. If he knew a good way to jinx a ghost he'd feel a lot better about it. Or if he trusted his wand to let him. Still, Kas tragically still needed to eat, so he'd taken to taking a round-about route to the Hufflepuff table, lest any bastardous ghosts be lying in wait for him. Passing the Ravenclaw table, he spotted Iris van Houten staring intently into a cup. Ravenclaws had a tendency to stare at things at random he noticed, but it seemed like she was attempting some sort of tea reading thing. "I've heard from reliable sources that biscuits exponentially improve the accuracy of your reading," Kas said, pretending to squint at whatever was in Iris' cup. Kas figured he probably shouldn't count Freya as a reliable source for anything, but he much preferred her information to any text book. "Ah yes, see that blob right there indicates many scones in your future," He said knowingly.

 

[Iris van Houten]

Iris looked up as someone spoke to her, a slight smile on her face as she saw it was Kasim from Hufflepuff. She knew him from classes, and knew he spent time with Freya and with Lysander. But she didn't think they had ever really talked together. "Oh? And what reliable source is that?" She asked him, pretending to take him seriously though she could tell he was joking. She smiled as he made a prediction, tilting the cup a little. "I was thinking it might be a sun." She explained. "But I like your interpretation too." She put the cup down. "Does this mean you'll be in Divination next year?" She asked him a little hopefully. It would be nice to know someone who would be in that class as well. Maybe even someone with a similar interest in the subject to her.

 

[Kasim Safir]

Kas tapped his chin in mock though when Iris asked about his sources, shaking his head cryptically. "Sorry a gentleman never uh. Reveals his sources," He said, shrugging and giving up on the joke half way through. Not his best work anyway. And besides, he was pretty sure Iris would know Freya was full of it the second he mentioned her. He had to uphold his mystique somehow. "Does the sun mean it's gonna rain tomorrow or something, I was planning on going out to the lake," Kas lamented, dropping down into the seat across from Iris and looking at her cup speculatively. "It all just looks like blobs to me. Divination's not really my thing," He said. Kas wasn't really sure what his thing was, and while divination would certainly piss his parents off, Kas didn't think he could handle the smell of incense for that long.

 

[Iris van Houten]

Iris smiled a bit at Kas' words, certain now he had just made it up. But she nodded seriously. "Of course not." She told him. "Silly of me to ask." There was a slight smile on her face, but she gave no other indication of not believing he was serious. She shook her head as he asked about the sun. "Actually, a sun means great happiness." She told him with a small laugh. "So maybe I was just hoping for one." She said, though she did think she was objective enough to give good readings without her feelings getting in the way. "What are you planning to do at the lake?" She was a bit sad to hear Kas say he wasn't going to take divination. "Oh, that's too bad." She said softly. "What is your thing? Any electives you are taking or want to take?"

 

[Kasim Safir]

"Oh good, laketime for me it is," Kas said blandly, though he'd mostly been joking. He probably could use some time outside though. He'd been spending a lot of time skulking around the common room trying to avoid Connor this semester and it was grating on him. "Oh you know, usual beach stuff, lay by the water, contemplate my life. That sort of thing," He said, sliding Iris' divination book closer to him to peer at the some of the other shapes on the page. It was pretty tricky to do upside-down, but Kas figured that made it a bit more authentic to the whole divination experience anyway. "Mostly sarcastic, insincere answers is my thing, but I don't think they give out OWLs for it. More's the pity," Kas said with a sigh. "Divination's your deal though right? You like telling people's futures and stuff with cards and all that?" Kas had remembered hearing some talk about Iris doing tarot and other spooky ouija type stuff, though he couldn't exactly say she looked like the crazy seer type he was used to.

 

[Iris van Houten]

Iris laughed softly as Kas described what he would be doing at the lake. She thought he was pretty funny, and she was glad he was talking to her. She allowed him to look at the book, still hoping it might stir some interest in him. She smiled a little. "I don't think so either, but if you take Ancient Runes you could be sarcastic in an old language." She told him teasingly. "Though... you did miss the first semester." She told him. It was a little surprising to her that he knew she liked Divination, but she nodded. "Yes, I suppose that is my thing." She said with a small smile. "I've dabbled in tarot, but I'm eager to learn more about it. I'm not that confident in my abilities yet." She said honestly. "But I've done a few readings, yes."

 

[Kasim Safir]

"I have been considering expanding my sarcasm portfolio," Kas said, tapping his chin speculatively. Honestly, most school subjects barely interested Kas. He was really only doing the bare minimum till he could be done and free to do what he really wanted. Whatever that was. "You know, you don't look like the usual spooky divination type," He said mildly, thinking about kids like Selene Le Fey who definitely had that more waif-y 'daughter of a seer' look to her. "Think you could tell my future, then?" Kas asked, settling himself more comfortably and nodding to the tealeaves.

 

[Iris van Houten]

Iris let out a small laugh at Kas' words, amused by him. She understood why Freya spent time with him a lot, they had a similar sense of humor. She wasn't sure what to make of his next words, not sure if she should be flattered or offended. "Oh?" She asked, tucking some of her hair behind her ear. "What sort of changes to my appearance should I make so I create the right vibe?" She asked him mildly, mostly joking. She frowned a bit at his next suggestion, shaking her head. "I can't read your future in here." She said, gesturing to the teacup. "You have to drink the tea yourself before I can read the leaves about your future." She couldn't help thinking that much was obvious, which was clear in her tone of voice despite her best efforts.