Chapter Summaries

At Hagrid's Hut, Brook and the others used the Golden Egg's clues to predict that the second task would take place underwater and involve merpeople, then opened it and heard a song describing a one-hour search to reclaim what they held most dear. The next morning, Skeeter's Daily Prophet article showed Brook atop the Dragon but focused on conspiracy theories instead of the competition.

• Hagrid hosted a celebration with several professors, where Ron recounted the Champions' performances in the first task.
• Harry examined the Golden Egg, and Hermione, Draco, and the others deduced that merpeople and an underwater treasure hunt were likely involved in the second task.
• Brook used magic to open the Golden Egg, whose song revealed that the Champions would have one hour to find and reclaim what they held most dear.
• Skeeter published an article with photographs of the first task but filled it with conspiracy theories rather than reporting on the competition.

Brook was asked to lead the Christmas Ball’s opening dance and teased Hermione into agreeing to be his partner. He made the invitation in the Great Hall amid falling pink petals, while Hermione realized he had wanted her to shield him from the attention of other girls.

• Hermione grew angry at Skeeter’s latest article attacking Dumbledore, and Ron hurried away with Harry to avoid her wrath.
• Brook worried about the Tournament’s second task and Hermione being taken as one of the hostages, while Professor McGonagall announced the Christmas Ball.
• Professor McGonagall told Brook that, as Hogwarts’ Champion, he would have to lead the opening dance, and Brook admitted he could not dance.
• Brook teased Hermione by asking her to teach him and pretending she should ask him to be her partner, then ran from her thrown bag.
• Brook invited Hermione to the ball beneath falling pink petals in the Great Hall, and she reluctantly accepted.
• Hermione realized Brook had staged the invitation so she could act as his shield from the eager attention of other girls.

Brook accepted Hermione as his Christmas Ball partner despite Fleur Delacour’s invitation, then agreed to help Evelyn attend the ball with Rolf. The chapter ended with Harry and Ron lamenting that they still had no dance partners.

• Brook turned down Fleur Delacour and told her that Hermione was more beautiful than anyone else.
• Evelyn asked Brook to be her dance partner so she could sneak into the ball with Rolf, and Brook offered to arrange for upper-year students to bring them in.
• Brook and Hermione decided to help Evelyn only if she made the top ten in her year’s final exams.
• Fred arranged for Angelina to be his dance partner and bring two younger students into the ball.
• Harry and Ron complained to Brook that they were the only ones in their group without dance partners, and Hermione questioned why they needed help asking someone.

Harry tried to ask Cho Chang to the Yule Ball but learned she had already agreed to go with Cedric Diggory. After Ron was rejected by a Beauxbatons girl, Brook and Harry pushed him to ask Lavender instead.

• Hermione learned Harry liked Cho Chang, and Harry admitted he wanted to ask her to the ball.
• Harry asked Cho to go with him, but she said she had already agreed to go with Cedric.
• Hermione took Cho into the library while Ron and Brook tried to cheer Harry up.
• Harry teased Ron about asking a Beauxbatons girl, and Ron returned after she ignored him.
• Brook brought Ron over to Lavender, and Harry told her that Ron wanted to ask her to be his dance partner.

Ron asked Lavender to be his dance partner, while Draco secretly arranged for Harry to attend the Yule Ball with his cousin Celestine Trafors. Brook and Hermione suspected Draco was using Polyjuice Potion to disguise himself as the girl, then practiced dancing together inside Brook’s ring.

• Ron asked Lavender to be his dance partner, and she accepted, but Hermione stormed out after Ron seemed to suggest Ginny was a backup option.
• Draco asked Harry to speak privately, and Brook followed them with Hermione using a Space Gate and a Disillusionment Charm.
• Draco told Harry that his cousin Celestine Trafors wanted to be his dance partner, and Harry agreed while Draco said he would be going home for Christmas.
• Brook and Hermione suspected Draco planned to use Snape’s improved Polyjuice Potion to impersonate Celestine, and they decided to act as if they knew nothing.
• Brook danced with Hermione inside his ring, quickly mastering the waltz and tango, before Hermione stepped on his foot.

Brook received Voldemort’s invitation to witness a display of “fireworks” in Japan and destroyed the invitation, but planned to attend before returning to Hogwarts for the Christmas Ball. On Christmas morning, he opened gifts with the other boys and admired Hermione’s painting of him atop the Hungarian Horntail.

• Hermione danced with Brook and insisted she had stepped on his foot on purpose, while younger witches continued trying to ask him to the ball.
• Krum invited Hermione to be his dance partner, but she refused because she had already agreed to go with Brook; Harry pulled Ron away after Ron insulted the idea.
• Brook read Voldemort’s invitation to visit on Christmas Eve, then burned it and watched it vanish into smoke.
• Voldemort’s forces remained bogged down in Japan’s urban fighting, so he decided to set off special “fireworks” there, and Brook planned to witness them.
• After Hogwarts was covered in snow, Brook found 1,032 Christmas presents in his dormitory and stored most of them in his ring.
• Brook opened gifts with his dormmates and received Hermione’s oil painting of him standing on the Hungarian Horntail.

Brook received Christmas gifts at Hogwarts, then joined Voldemort at Mount Fuji to witness a plan devised by Jia Xu: simultaneous eruptions at six Japanese volcanoes that would reshape the war and push Japan toward expansion. As the time approached, Bellatrix Lestrange prepared to trigger Mount Fuji’s eruption.

• Brook received gifts from his friends and professors, including an unsigned package marked with a scale that resembled Nagini’s.
• Brook told Hermione he would leave Hogwarts briefly and return before the ball, then used a Space Gate to reach Voldemort’s palace.
• Brook and Voldemort traveled to Mount Fuji, where Voldemort explained Jia Xu’s plan to set off six volcanoes and drive Japan toward war and territorial expansion.
• Voldemort said Jia Xu had departed after presenting the plan and was powerful enough that Voldemort could not have forced him to stay.
• At 8:59, Bellatrix Lestrange floated above Mount Fuji’s magma and cried, “For the Dark Lord!”

Hermione and Brook triggered a chain of volcanic eruptions that devastated Japan, then returned to Hogwarts for the Christmas Ball. The chapter ended with Hermione arriving in a stunning dress and joining Brook as his dance partner.

• Hermione dropped explosives into Mount Fuji’s magma, and the volcano erupted, followed by six other volcanoes across Japan.
• Voldemort and Brook watched the destruction spread as Royalist Faction wizards directed lava toward populated areas.
• Brook returned to Hogwarts, where he persuaded Harry and Ron to shower before the Christmas Ball.
• Harry met his dance partner, Celestine Trafos, while Ron attended with Lavender.
• Hermione arrived in a pale pink dress robe, and Brook offered his arm before they entered the ball together.

At the Yule Ball feast, Hermione and Brook talked with Pheobe about food and other magical schools while Krum offered to show Hermione Durmstrang. Brook then revealed that Norway was in turmoil because prisoners had escaped, alarming Karkaroff and prompting Dumbledore to ask what had happened.

• Professor McGonagall led the Champions and their partners into the transformed Great Hall, where students applauded them.
• Hermione and Brook shared seafood congee and sugarcane with Pheobe, who eagerly tried the fruit and described Christmas at Beauxbatons.
• Krum offered to guide Hermione around Durmstrang, but Karkaroff interrupted to protect the school's location and secrets.
• Brook revealed that Norway was troubled and hinted that he knew about Karkaroff's urgent summons, frightening the Durmstrang headmaster.
• Dumbledore asked Brook what had happened, and Brook replied, "Prisoners."

At the Yule Ball, Brook and Hermione led the Champions’ first dance while the Great Hall filled with lively dancing. During a break, Brook helped Harry and Celestine find common ground, but Celestine accidentally revealed that she had watched Harry’s matches, raising his suspicions.

• Dumbledore cleared the Great Hall for dancing and introduced The Weird Sisters as the Champions prepared to lead the first dance.
• Brook and Hermione danced together as the students and professors joined them, while Harry and Celestine danced with their roles reversed.
• After three songs, Brook took Hermione to the resting area, where Harry sat dazed beside Celestine.
• Brook asked Celestine about Quidditch, and she and Harry began talking about their favorite teams.
• Celestine praised Harry’s flying, and Harry realized she could not have seen his matches because she had only started school that year.

At the Yule Ball, Brook and Hermione watched Harry bond with Celestine while Dumbledore and Karkaroff dealt with The Pious. Brook recalled his private meeting with Grindelwald, who offered him The Pious so he could help free Dumbledore from his burdens, and Grindelwald was left reflecting on the failed attempt to achieve his goal.

• Brook and Hermione joined the dance floor as Harry and Celestine talked about Quidditch, while Ron and Lavender danced together.
• Brook recalled meeting Grindelwald in the Three Broomsticks Pub during a Hogsmeade weekend and following him to a private room.
• Grindelwald offered Brook control of The Pious, explaining that Brook's plans had created new possibilities for them and that he wanted Dumbledore freed from his burdens.
• Brook told Grindelwald to announce that his successor had appeared and gather The Pious in Norway, then refused Grindelwald's silver pocket watch.
• Vinda Rosier joined Grindelwald after Brook left, and Grindelwald remarked that he was getting old.

After Grindelwald recruited Rozier to lead The Pious into action, Brook and Hermione interrupted Hagrid's awkward attempt to ask Madam Maxime whether she was half-giant. Brook explained why she would keep that background secret and advised Hagrid to apologize later, leaving him ready to follow Brook's instructions.

• Grindelwald told Rozier that he had achieved his goal and urged The Pious to take action, and Rozier agreed to help him.
• Brook and Hermione left the Christmas Ball to walk through the enchanted garden, where they found Hagrid speaking with Madam Maxime.
• Hagrid asked Madam Maxime whether she had inherited giant ancestry from one of her parents, and she angrily decided to leave.
• Brook and Hermione joined them, and Brook explained that Madam Maxime could face discrimination and lose her position if her background became known.
• Hagrid realized he should apologize to Madam Maxime, and Brook told him to wait until later and repeat that she just had big bones.

Brook and Hermione discussed how to help Hagrid get closer to Madam Maxime, while Harry was found in shock clutching a glass slipper. After waking that evening, Harry went to Hagrid's Hut and told his friends that Celestine had left Hogwarts.

• Brook suggested that Hagrid's feelings for Madam Maxime might come from kinship, and proposed using Professor Pym's Giant Potion, improved by Snape, to help him.
• Brook and Hermione celebrated Christmas together after the Christmas Ball ended.
• Ron found Harry in a daze, clutching a glass slipper, and Brook used runes to revive him before giving him a Draught of Peace to help him sleep.
• A silver kitten turned into the words "Hagrid's Hut" when Harry touched it, prompting him to seek out his friends.
• At Hagrid's Hut, Harry told Brook, Hermione, and Ron that Celestine had left Hogwarts.

Harry mourned Celestine’s sudden disappearance and clung to her crystal slipper, while Brook deciphered the hidden message as “I AM MALFOY.” As Harry returned to his studies, news of Japan’s catastrophic volcanic eruptions and the resulting global turmoil spread.

• Harry told Brook, Hermione, and Ron how Celestine had vanished after midnight, leaving him a crystal slipper, and Ron offered to ask his father for help finding her.
• Brook found a cryptic inscription on the slipper, and Ron suggested it meant Celestine might die; Harry panicked and ran into the snowy night, with Ron following.
• Brook rearranged the inscription to reveal “I AM MALFOY,” while Hermione realized Draco had hidden his identity in a word game.
• After the Christmas holiday, Harry resumed his studies but kept Celestine’s slipper close and searched it for clues at night.
• The Daily Prophet reported that six volcanoes had devastated much of Japan, killing nearly forty million people and triggering international financial turmoil.
• The United States faced public outrage after the eruption destroyed dozens of its military bases in Japan and killed more than twenty thousand troops.

President Walker confronted the economic and military fallout from Japan’s volcanic disaster as Great Xia’s relief effort threatened to displace American influence in the Asia-Pacific. He ordered emergency bonds, a national address, and the conversion of Detroit factories to defense production.

• Walker’s advisers reported that Japan’s disaster had triggered a market crisis, severed semiconductor and auto supply chains, and sharply increased U.S. borrowing costs.
• William showed satellite images of Mount Fuji’s lava destroying Yokosuka Naval Base and the U.S. naval forces there.
• Robert reported that Great Xia had sent relief ships, pledged one hundred billion Daxia currency in aid, and begun repairing Japanese ports.
• Lane warned that Great Xia’s investment and Daxia-currency aid could cost America most of its Asia-Pacific supply nodes, while Yamamoto requested a two-hundred-billion-dollar U.S. loan.
• Walker ordered Johnson to issue Asia-Pacific Special Treasury Bonds at higher interest and directed Detroit factories to produce armored vehicle components.

Walker ordered unlimited QE and a conditional relief fleet for Japan while retaliating against CMM after its report exposed the commanders’ failure to evacuate. In Yanjing, Great Xia’s leaders defended sending aid as a strategic move, and the chapter left the wider political game still unfolding.

• Walker ordered the Federal Reserve to launch unlimited QE and told staff to redeploy the Big Dog carrier strike group to the South Sea, offering Japan a relief fleet if it mortgaged its New York real estate and Rockefeller Center shares.
• After the secretary reported CMM’s exposure of the commanders’ advance warning, Walker ordered investigations into CMM’s tax and fire-safety violations despite its ties to Murdoch Group.
• Secretary Liu reported that the first batch of Great Xia’s relief supplies had reached Japan and confessed his anger about helping Japan.
• Old Tian and Old Zhao explained that Great Xia had sent aid to avoid war and to use the relief effort as a strategic means of influencing Japan.
• Secretary Liu said Giant Dragon Steel had donated a container of paper cranes printed with the phrase “ride a crane to the west,” prompting the leaders to laugh.

Voldemort rejected the Cabinet Faction’s proposal to divide Japan and prepared to expand his power, while Rosier’s Pious tried to seize Norway but met fierce resistance from its Ministry of Magic and Dumbledore. The chapter ended with Rosier receiving Alice Schmidt, who arrived with Martin Merkel.

• Voldemort shot Cabinet minister Tanaka Kenichi and sent the Cabinet Faction the ultimatum to submit or perish.
• Voldemort’s role in stopping the lava and the Royalist Faction’s disaster preparations raised his standing in Japan as he eyed the south and Australia.
• Rosier rallied more than eight hundred members of The Pious and used healing potions to win Norway’s political leaders to her side.
• The Pious and Muggle special forces failed to break through Norway’s Ministry of Magic defenses, and Dumbledore drove back their assault.
• Rosier ordered a retreat, then met Hans Cat Country’s Martin Merkel and political leader Alice Schmidt at a cabin by a frozen fjord.

Alice Schmidt proposed an alliance to Rosier, and three days later The Pious coalition attacked the Norway Ministry of Magic, where Dumbledore fought off twelve former Durmstrang professors. After the battle, Dumbledore went to Nurmengard and found Grindelwald alive, telling him he had come to see him.

• Alice Schmidt told Rosier that they shared enemies and proposed a partnership to advance the Pious and restore Hans Cat’s former glory.
• Three days later, Carson and eleven former Durmstrang professors attacked the Norway Ministry of Magic and engaged Dumbledore in a fierce battle.
• Dumbledore overcame the professors’ coordinated attacks, and Rosier ordered the coalition to retreat.
• Dumbledore traveled to Nurmengard and found Grindelwald asleep in his room.
• Grindelwald asked if he was dreaming of Dumbledore, and Dumbledore told him he had come to see him.

Dumbledore visited Grindelwald in Nurmengard to ask for help against The Pious, but their reunion exposed the pain between them over Dumbledore’s unread letters and absence. Grindelwald agreed to contact Vinda, and after Dumbledore left, he regained his youthful appearance.

• Dumbledore told Grindelwald that The Pious had gathered again and were attacking the Norway Ministry of Magic, then asked him to intervene.
• Grindelwald learned that Dumbledore had not read his letters and sent him away, leaving Dumbledore regretful.
• For the next three days, Dumbledore visited Grindelwald at night while guarding the Norway Ministry during the day, and they talked while avoiding The Pious.
• Grindelwald agreed to contact Vinda but asked whether Dumbledore would keep visiting him.
• Dumbledore promised to return after dealing with his responsibilities, and Grindelwald’s frail body transformed into his handsome middle-aged appearance after Dumbledore left.

Grindelwald directed The Pious to strengthen its influence across Scandinavia while keeping Norway distracted, and he warned Rosier not to underestimate Brook. As the second task approached, Brook teased Hermione about how he would survive underwater, leaving her alarmed by his suggestion that he might drain the Black Lake.

• Grindelwald told Rosier that The Pious had infiltrated Denmark, Sweden, and Finland, and ordered her to use Muggle funding to reward its members.
• Grindelwald directed Rosier to encourage cooperation between Norway and the Muggles, while occasionally giving the Norway Ministry of Magic attacks to handle.
• Grindelwald told Rosier that Brook’s refusal of free power showed unusual self-control and that he might have been the mastermind behind recent events.
• The Pious went into hiding as Dumbledore remained at the Norway Ministry of Magic, and Dumbledore received Kingsley Shacklebolt’s report that he had contacted Yamamoto in Japan.
• Brook reassured Hermione about the upcoming underwater task and insisted that she keep wearing her protective ring.
• Brook suggested using Animagus abilities, draining the Black Lake with a Drying Charm, or using the Source of Purification, and Hermione protested that draining the lake could kill him.