Seneca would have laughed at the spectacle even if Holiday Fudge wasn't the protagonist of it. The two girls didn't like each other much after a shared experience with a detention. Ironically, it had involved a broken telescope in that same class.

The idea to tie yourself to a post was absurd. Couldn't Miss Fudge drink some calming draught before the class like a normal person? She had no right to give her that look - she was asking for it, making a fool of herself like that!

Seneca looked at her innocently. She allowed for some time to pass since that, before asking her in a polite, conversational tone: "Have you read the Odyssey, Miss Fudge?" She tried her darnest not to smile smugly. Miss Fudge probably wouldn't get the reference and then Seneca would have to explain it to her and it would a delight.