This was the second year that Celia was attending graduation, and she still couldn't figure out why Hogwarts invited prefects to this. Did they need to fill out seats? Did they think this was some kind of reward? Being forced to listen to two 18-year-olds share their "life wisdom" was much more of a punishment than a reward. And that didn't even include the unending and tedious process that was the diploma giving. Celia had considered skipping, but she had worked too damn hard for that head girl badge, and she wasn't about to screw up her chances by giving off the (entirely true) impression that she didn't give a sh*t about the school and its stupid traditions. As everyone settled into their seats, Celia tried not to sigh too audibly. She really should have brought a book.
Indi was up first, and Celia listened boredly as the head girl began with the usual clichés. Things only began to get interesting when Indi claimed that the past seven years didn't matter. It was an overly simplistic sentiment, the kind of thing you might expect from someone who had lost her dueling title and been passed over as prefect and quidditch captain. It made Celia wonder if Indi was a little more bitter about her Hogwarts experience than she let on. Still, she did agree with the overall message that the professors had done very little to prepare them for the future, and she clapped when Indi was done. Jordie's speech was a complete disaster. He'd claimed that he "could never find the words," and it became obvious how true this confession was when his speech turned out to be nothing more than a string of motivational poster slogans.
And then it was time for the diploma giving. Celia did her best not to scowl at some of the names called out. There were quite a few people she was looking forward to never seeing again. She did clap for Indi and Natalia, knowing that their departure would be a loss for the Slytherin team. Trying to find chasers to replace them next year would be a nightmare. (The same couldn't be said about a certain graduating keeper). But more than anything, this part of the ceremony was utterly boring, and Celia had to resist the urge to ask the person next to her to put her out of her misery with a quick stunning spell. No one was booing, and the graduates this year were entirely too tame to pull any antics on stage. When the ceremony was finally over, Celia leapt up, ready to get the hell out.