Can't Afford It

Hagrid's desire to become the Professor of Magical Creatures didn't frustrate Fred, George, and Lee Jordan for long. As for the wound on Fred's hand from the Monster Book, it had already fully healed thanks to Madam Pomfrey's treatment.

As the end of October quietly approached, Hogwarts students in their third year and above were all talking about going to Hogsmeade.

Fred and George wanted to go to Zonko's Joke Shop to restock their Stink Pellets and see if they could get some tips on running a business from Zonko.

However, would Zonko, the store manager, be willing to share his experience in opening a store with the Twins? Albert doubted it, as not everyone is as generous as he is.

On the morning of Halloween Eve, Albert woke up with everyone, got up and went downstairs for breakfast. While in the First Floor corridor, he smelled the sweet and tempting aroma of roasted pumpkin in the air.

"It's another beautiful day." George happily stuffed the Pumpkin Pie into his mouth and chewed it heartily.

"We can have a great time in Hogsmeade." Fred swallowed a grilled sausage and then took a big gulp of Pumpkin Juice. "We can also come back tonight for the Halloween Eve dinner and have a big feast."

"You can also attend the 500th Deathday Party of Nearly Headless Nick." Albert looked up from behind his newspaper and glanced at Hermione, who was sternly reminding Harry to keep his promise not far away.

"What is Deathday Party?" Lee Jordan asked, puzzled.

Albert looked away and continued reading the headline in the Daily Prophet, casually explaining, "It's a gathering of ghosts."

"A gathering of ghosts?" George looked at Albert suspiciously. "How did you know?"

"Harry Potter just mentioned it, but you just didn't hear it." Albert gestured for the three of them to turn their heads to look at the side. Harry, Ron, and Hermione were sitting two tables away from them, and the others also turned their heads to look in their direction.

"That sounds interesting." Fred was intrigued.

"Don't be silly, ghost food doesn't suit human palates." Albert looked at Fred with the eyes of someone looking at an idiot and reminded him irritably, "If you can swallow all that moldy and rotten food at the banquet, then pretend I didn't say anything."

Harry's face turned grim after hearing Albert's words. He was filled with regret and had no desire to attend the Deathday Party.

However, Ron eventually gave in to Hermione's gaze. After listening to Albert, Ron didn't want to attend the Deathday Party, but after being glared at by Hermione, he couldn't help but shrink back guiltily. After all, they had already agreed to accompany Harry to Nick's Deathday Party.

"By the way, are you not planning to come to Hogsmeade with us again later?" Lee Jordan asked tentatively, looking at Albert who was engrossed in reading the newspaper.

"Yeah, I have plans with someone," Albert said without looking up.

"You can just say you're going on a date." Fred rolled his eyes at Albert, who hadn't gone to Hogsmeade with them since he got a girlfriend.

"What are you looking at? Is there any important news in the newspaper?" Lee Jordan asked curiously when he noticed Albert reading the newspaper.

"Yes, the Wolfsbane Potion is complete. Mr. Damocles made the formula public and was awarded the Order of Merlin, Third Class, for it," Albert explained briefly.

"Wolfsbane Potion, what is that?" the three asked in confusion.

However, they also knew that being able to obtain the Order of Merlin with just one potion, the Wolfsbane Potion was undoubtedly a great invention.

"A potion that, when drunk, keeps Werewolf behaving harmlessly during their transformation under the Full Moon."

Albert had already read the recipe and preparation process in the newspaper, and he raised an eyebrow with a slightly strange expression.

In fact, Damocles invented the Wolfsbane Potion a long time ago, but the potion was very difficult to prepare and the raw materials were very expensive, so it was something that Werewolf could not afford.

Later, Hertok Dagworth invited Albert to participate in the improvement of the Werewolf potion. Not only them, but also many famous Potions Master participated. Although the difficulty of preparing the potion and the price of the raw materials were reduced, for poor Werewolf, there was really no difference between one hundred Galleon and eighty Galleon, since they couldn't afford it anyway.

Of course, the Wolfsbane Potion isn't that expensive, but the price is still beyond what Werewolf can afford.

Albert shook his head after reading it.

"What's wrong?" Fred noticed Albert shaking his head.

"Wolfsbane Potion is too expensive."

"The price is too high?"

"As we all know, Werewolf have always been discriminated against by wizards and have a hard time finding work in the Wizarding World. They are basically a bunch of poor people who can't afford this stuff at all," Albert said irritably. "They have to take the Wolfsbane Potion before the Full Moon, which consumes at least dozens of Galleon every month, not to mention the waste caused by failed potion preparations. What's worse is that there are very few wizards who are capable of preparing Wolfsbane Potion."

The three understood what Albert meant: the Wolfsbane Potion was indeed a great invention, but Werewolf couldn't afford it!

"By the way, if you have time, come with us to Zonko's Joke Shop. Maybe you can get some useful information out of Zonko." Fred changed the subject; they weren't particularly interested in the Wolfsbane Potion.

"You can use Wizard Card as an excuse," Albert casually suggested to the three of them. "Just tell Zonko that you want to open a shop selling Wizard Card in the future. Remember not to talk too much about Wizard Card to Zonko, lest you be tricked into telling the truth after a few words."

"We know what to do." Fred and George exchanged glances, then Fred took out his notebook and made some notes so he wouldn't forget them later.

"Well then... see you at the dinner." After the meal, Albert accompanied the three to the anteroom, seeing them off under Filch's watchful gaze. Only then did he leisurely take out his pocket watch to check the time, before returning to the Great Hall to read the newspaper and continue waiting for the appointed time.

"I hope I didn't keep you waiting too long."

Before long, Albert heard Isobel's voice beside him.

"No, let's go."

Albert stood up and left the hall under the girls' gazes, glancing once more at Mrs. Norris was checking the list at Filch's feet in the Entrance Hall, before leaving.

"What's wrong?"

On the way to the school gate, Isobel asked, clearly having noticed Albert's earlier actions.

"My previous Prophecy have never come true," Albert said softly. "However, I have a feeling that something might happen at today's banquet."

"Why would you have such a thought?" Isobel asked, somewhat surprised.

"An intuition."

Albert reached out and took the girl's soft hand in his, turning his head to smile as he said, "Alright, let's not talk about that anymore. Where are we going later? Shall we go to Madam Puddifoot's Tea Shop again?"