Chapter Summaries

Albert competed in the third round by brewing an improved Baruffio's Brain Elixir, drawing the judges' intense attention with his practiced technique. After the judges inspected his potion, they withheld their verdict and moved on to the other contestants' brews, leaving the outcome uncertain.

• Albert chose Baruffio's Brain Elixir, confident that he could brew a perfect improved batch.
• The organizers supplied the contestants with ingredients, and Albert swiftly harvested frog brains and began brewing while the judges watched closely.
• Williams brewed a Vitality Potion, Daniela focused on her own potion, and Fujii Hiroki prepared an improved Highest Grade Love Potion.
• Williams and Fujii finished first, followed by Albert, who showed Isobel an OK gesture after inspecting his potion.
• After Daniela finished, the judges ended the round and gathered around Albert's cauldron to examine his Baruffio's Brain Elixir.
• The judges left Albert's potion without announcing a verdict and inspected the others' brews, encouraging the other contestants to hope for victory.

The judges scored the contestants’ improved potions, leaving Daniela in the lead by one point over Fujii Hiroki and two over Williams. Just as Daniela appeared to have won the Potions Championship, a staff member arrived with a House-elf, and her joy vanished as she sensed trouble.

• The judges tasted Williams’ improved Vitality Potion, confirmed that it worked well with Endurance Potion, and awarded him 90 points for the round.
• Fujii Hiroki explained that his mild Love Potion was designed to encourage affection without causing obsession, and he received 83 points, putting him one point ahead of Williams overall.
• Daniela introduced her Protective Potion, which failed to stop a Stunning Spell but could resist weaker jinxes, and earned 76 points.
• Daniela’s total reached 243 points, one above Fujii Hiroki’s and two above Williams’, making her appear to have won the championship.
• A staff member arrived with a House-elf, and Daniela and the Castelobruxo audience reacted with alarm.

Albert won the 99th Magical School Potions Tournament after a house-elf safely tested his Baruffio's Brain Elixir, then celebrated with Isobel and the other attendees. The gathering ended the next day, with Albert's championship recorded in The Book of Potions.

• The judges had Kasa drink Albert's Baruffio's Brain Elixir, and Kasa reported feeling invigorated with no discomfort.
• After waiting another quarter of an hour to confirm there were no side effects, the judges declared Albert the champion and awarded him the Golden Cauldron and prize money.
• Albert handed the Golden Cauldron to Isobel, who passed it to Professor Slughorn before kissing Albert in front of the crowd.
• Albert told Damocles and Professor Slughorn that Mr. Nicolas Flamel would officiate if he and Isobel married.
• The Magical Garden hosted a farewell banquet, and everyone departed the next day as Albert's championship was recorded in The Book of Potions.

After winning the Potions Championship, Albert accepted an interview with Rita Skeeter and celebrated privately with Isobel. He revealed that Felix Felicis had helped him brew the winning Baruffio's Brain Elixir, while Isobel warned him that Catherine and Valeria were interested in him.

• Slughorn brought Albert and Isobel to Dumbledore's office, where Dumbledore congratulated Albert and offered him an exclusive interview with Rita Skeeter.
• Albert accepted the interview, expecting Rita to write damaging nonsense if he refused, then joked with Isobel about the prize money and his ambitions.
• Albert told Isobel he had used Felix Felicis to improve his chances of brewing a perfect Baruffio's Brain Elixir and had entered the contest to build his reputation as a potioneer.
• Albert asked Bit to prepare a candlelit celebration feast, and he and Isobel discussed their plans for life after graduation and the importance of staying youthful.
• Isobel told Albert that Catherine and Valeria were interested in him, but he reminded her that he already had a girlfriend.

After winning the Magical School Potions Tournament, Albert celebrated privately with Isobel before returning to a jubilant Gryffindor Common Room. He escaped upstairs and told Fred, George, and Lee Jordan about the contest, including its sabotage and the potion recipes he expected to become valuable.

• Dumbledore announced that Albert had won the Potions Championship, and the Gryffindors searched for him while he celebrated with Isobel in the Room of Requirement.
• Nearly Headless Nick gave Albert the password, and Fred, George, and Lee Jordan pulled him into a noisy celebration in the Common Room.
• Albert silenced the crowd with a Sonorous Charm, briefly described the competition, and slipped away to the dormitory.
• Albert told Fred, George, and Lee Jordan that Gai Bernard had been forced to withdraw after someone stuffed Alioto Leaves into his mouth, though the culprit was never identified.
• Albert showed the three recipes from the final round and explained why he believed the Love Potion, Vitality Potion, and Protective Potion would sell well in the future.

Albert gave Rita Skeeter an interview about the Potions Championship, steering her toward a report exposing President Bernard’s favoritism and misconduct. Rita realized Albert was using her to retaliate against Bernard while protecting himself from unfavorable coverage.

• Nearly Headless Nick summoned Albert from Charms Class for an interview with the Daily Prophet, and Professor Flitwick allowed him to leave.
• Albert insisted Rita interview him alone and warned her not to fabricate negative stories, then destroyed pages from her floating notebook.
• Albert recounted the championship and left Rita to conclude that President Bernard had tried to rig the contest for his grandson, Gai Bernard.
• Albert described the attacks on contestants, the rule changes, the wand inspections, and the judges’ disputed scoring, giving Rita material for an exposé.
• Rita recognized that Albert was using her report to damage President Bernard’s reputation while enhancing his own.

After the Daily Prophet praised Albert, he watched the stormy Quidditch match with Isobel and lent Angelina his broom when lightning sent her falling. Hermione waterproofed Harry’s glasses so he could continue playing, though Albert suspected the help might cause trouble for Potter.

• Rita Skeeter’s interview made Albert popular at Hogwarts, while President Bernard became the subject of ridicule for his failed cheating attempt.
• The Slytherin Team postponed its match against Gryffindor, but the Gryffindor–Hufflepuff match went ahead in a violent storm.
• Lightning set Angelina’s broom on fire, and Albert lent her his broom after Harry helped save her from falling.
• Wood urged Harry to end the match quickly, but rain and fogged glasses made it hard for Harry to see, while Albert left the changing room with Isobel.
• Hermione gave Harry a Waterproof Charm for his glasses, and Albert warned that it might not be a good thing for Potter.

Dementors invaded the Quidditch match, feeding on the crowd’s excitement and causing Harry Potter to fall from his broom. Dumbledore drove the Dementors away and carried Harry back to the school, while the match ended with Diggory catching the Snitch.

• Albert warned Hermione and Isobel that starving Dementors would be drawn to the crowd at the Quidditch Pitch.
• Dementors descended on the stadium, and Albert summoned his Patronus to protect himself and the girls.
• Harry Potter fell from his broom after being affected by the Dementors, but Dumbledore caught him with a Shock Absorption Charm.
• Dumbledore and the professors used Patronuses to drive the Dementors from the pitch as Isobel helped calm the students.
• Dumbledore confirmed Harry was alive and carried him back to the school on a stretcher.
• Albert told Isobel that Diggory had caught the Golden Snitch, and they left the pitch.

After the Quidditch match, Albert comforted the Gryffindors over Harry Potter’s collapse, used wandless magic to prank Malfoy, and brought Harry’s wrecked broom to the School Hospital. The chapter ended with Albert reading a letter from Bard that left Lee Jordan wondering whether the Minister of Magic had a grudge against him.

• Madam Hooch ended the match after Hufflepuff caught the Snitch, while Harry Potter remained unconscious and Malfoy mocked his fall; Albert secretly drenched Malfoy and his companions and made them slip in the mud.
• Isobel asked about Albert’s wandless magic, and he explained that he had gained the skill from his Skill Panel and could now cast some simple spells without a wand.
• Professor Flitwick told Albert that Harry’s broom had crashed into the Whomping Willow and that Dumbledore was dealing with the Dementors; Albert took the broom wreckage to the School Hospital.
• Albert reassured Harry’s friends that he would recover, then returned to the Common Room and taught students about the Patronus Charm.
• Albert read a letter from Bard and showed it to Lee Jordan, who asked whether the Minister of Magic had a grudge against him.

Albert prepared to send Rita Skeeter evidence of the Dementors’ attack on Harry Potter, hoping to cause trouble for Fudge and the Ministry. He explained the political fight over his Wizengamot title to Isobel and reassured her that he would secure their future, while planning to use Rita without letting her expose him.

• Albert told Isobel that Fudge had delayed his Wizengamot British Youth Representative title because of factional conflict over his bloodline, and that he planned to make things difficult for the Minister.
• Albert selected photographs of Harry being carried away and Dementors causing chaos at the Quidditch pitch to send to Rita Skeeter with his letter.
• Isobel warned Albert against relying too heavily on his foresight and offered to leave Britain with him if they needed to escape.
• Albert reassured Isobel that he was building the strength to protect their future and regarded Voldemort as a problem Harry might handle, with himself as a safeguard.
• Albert said he trusted Rita to publish the story without revealing his secrets and privately considered how he might punish her if she betrayed him.

Rita Skeeter investigated stories at the Daily Prophet and received photographs and details about the Dementors entering Hogwarts and attacking Harry. She published a sensational front-page report that blamed the Ministry, while Albert anticipated Fudge’s attempt to weather the scandal and prepared a further trap for him.

• Bozo told Rita Skeeter about reports of Dementors entering Hogwarts, Sirius Black being sighted, and Lucius Malfoy’s complaint about a Hippogriff.
• Rita learned that the Wizengamot might appoint Albert Anderson as British Youth Representative, but some people wanted the news suppressed because he was supposedly Muggle-born.
• Rita accepted an anonymous letter containing photographs and an account of the Dementors’ attack on Hogwarts, then drafted a report questioning the Ministry’s authority.
• Barnabas Cuffe made Rita’s report the Daily Prophet’s front-page headline before the Ministry could stop publication.
• Fudge learned that the paper claimed Harry had fallen to his death, grew furious, and planned to downplay the incident, unaware that Albert had prepared another trap for him.

After Harry recovered from his fall during the Quidditch match, a Daily Prophet report falsely suggested he had died, while his friends discussed how Dementors had caused the accident. Harry was left considering how to master the Patronus Charm, and Hagrid advised him to ask Professor Lupin about Dementors.

• Harry read the Daily Prophet's report claiming he had been seriously injured and might be dead, and Hermione questioned how the paper had obtained a photograph from inside Hogwarts.
• The Gryffindor team visited Harry, and Wood reassured him that the Dementors' appearance was not his fault while George offered to lend him Albert's broom.
• Hermione and Ron discussed Harry's difficulty casting the Patronus Charm and suggested he seek help from Professor Lupin or Albert.
• Hermione said she was considering dropping Divination because she found the class unhelpful, while Harry asked why the Dementors had come to the match.
• Hagrid visited Harry with Centipede Flowers, explained that Dementors were drawn to happy emotions, and recommended asking Professor Lupin about them.

After the Quidditch match, Albert learned that Lucius Malfoy planned to have Buckbeak tried by the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures. Knowing Hagrid could not win in court, Albert decided to save Buckbeak by other means and enlisted Hermione to keep his plan secret.

• Ravenclaw defeated Hufflepuff, and Albert and Isobel congratulated the winning team while discussing Cedric's interest in Cho Chang.
• Percy told Albert that the Ministry might name him Wizengamot British Youth Representative and asked for advice about his own prospects at the Ministry.
• Albert and Percy encouraged Cedric to ask Cho to accompany him to Hogsmeade after Cedric's confession was rejected.
• Hagrid told Albert that Lucius Malfoy planned to bring Buckbeak before the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures, and Albert said Hagrid could not win the case.
• Albert told Hagrid he would arrange another way to save Buckbeak and warned him to know nothing about the plan.
• Hermione revealed she had overheard them, and Albert asked her to keep his plan secret; she agreed.

As winter worsened at Hogwarts, Albert and Isobel discussed his restored Hogsmeade house and practiced magic for dangers ahead. Albert also revealed his plan to help Hagrid fool the Ministry about Buckbeak, then told Isobel he had foreseen Dumbledore’s death.

• Albert had House-elf Bit arrange for Inigo Jones to restore his Hogsmeade house, which he planned to use as a laboratory and Safe House.
• Albert and Isobel joked about his reputation with girls and considered using a Time-Turner to make more time for themselves.
• Albert practiced wandless Transfiguration with Isobel, hoping to prepare for a possible encounter with a werewolf.
• Albert explained that he wanted to create a convincing Transfigured Hippogriff so Hagrid could make it seem that Buckbeak had escaped when Ministry officials arrived.
• Albert told Isobel that he had seen the Dark Mark over Hogwarts, Dumbledore falling from the castle to his death, and Harry Potter crying.

As Hogwarts prepared for Christmas, Albert discussed O.W.L. plans with his friends and learned that Cedric had been turned down by Cho Chang. Fred and George planned to give Harry the Marauder’s Map, while Albert hinted that an exciting event awaited the school next year.

• Hogwarts cleared up for Christmas, and the students discussed their holiday plans as a Hogsmeade visit notice appeared.
• Cedric told Albert he had failed to ask Cho Chang out, and Albert suggested he try again another time.
• Fred and George studied with their friends and explained that they planned to focus on their strongest O.W.L. subjects and might leave school after fifth year.
• Albert shared his exam notes with his friends and hinted that Hogwarts would host a grand feast the following year.
• Fred and George asked Albert about giving Harry the Marauder’s Map for Christmas so he could sneak into Hogsmeade.
• Albert agreed that Harry needed the map, while Fred, George, and Lee Jordan pressed him to reveal what would happen at Hogwarts next year.

Albert and Isobel shopped in Hogsmeade, where Albert recognized a stray black dog as Sirius Black and then met Minister Fudge outside the Three Broomsticks. The chapter ended with Fudge entering the pub as Albert and Isobel noticed his guarded manner.

• Albert and Isobel finished shopping in Hogsmeade and sent their packages back with the House-elf Bit.
• Albert spotted Harry Potter apparently hidden beneath his Invisibility Cloak near Honeydukes, but chose not to expose him.
• Albert and Isobel saw a black dog rummaging through rubbish, and Albert identified it as Sirius Black.
• Albert saw Fudge discussing the Hippogriff with Hagrid and introduced himself to the Minister of Magic.
• Albert and Isobel entered the Three Broomsticks, where Isobel remarked that she understood why Albert disliked Fudge.

Albert and Isobel overheard the professors reveal that Sirius Black had been James and Lily Potter’s friend and Harry Potter’s godfather, then Albert explained why he suspected Black had been framed. They returned to Hogwarts with Albert planning to expose the truth when the opportunity arose.

• Albert and Isobel listened through his prototype device as the professors discussed Black, the Potters, and Black’s supposed betrayal.
• The professors’ conversation and Hagrid’s outburst revealed that Black had been accused of betraying the Potters and killing Peter Pettigrew before being sent to Azkaban without a trial.
• Albert pointed out that Pettigrew’s remains consisted of only one finger and identified the Marauder’s Map nicknames as clues to the four friends’ transformations.
• Albert deduced that Black could be the black dog and that Scabbers might be Pettigrew, who had survived and betrayed the Potters.
• Albert told Isobel he intended to find an opportunity to expose the truth, while Isobel warned that the Ministry might resist admitting its mistake.

As Christmas approached, Albert told Fred, George, and Lee Jordan that they could catch Sirius Black during the execution of Hagrid’s Hippogriff and urged them to train their Patronus Charms. At Hogsmeade station, Dementors triggered a panic, and Albert’s intervention turned the students against the Ministry Aurors before the Aurors Apparated away.

• Albert told Fred, George, and Lee Jordan that Sirius Black was Harry’s godfather and revealed his suspicions about the Marauders’ identities, including that Professor Lupin was a werewolf.
• Albert said they would have a chance to catch Black on the day Hagrid’s Hippogriff was executed, and the three friends intensified their Patronus practice in hopes of earning the reward.
• At Hogsmeade station, Dementors approached the students, causing panic as the crowd surged toward the train.
• Albert quieted the station, helped a fallen girl, and drove Dementors back with his Griffin Patronus while Fred, George, and Lee Jordan managed only silver mist.
• Albert challenged the Aurors over bringing Dementors to the station, and the angry students attacked them with thrown objects and spells until the Aurors Apparated away.

Albert’s family read a newspaper account blaming the Ministry of Magic for the Dementor incident at Hogsmeade Station, and Albert admitted that he had driven the creatures away. He then advised Herb on investments in the East and suggested using a local figurehead to avoid resentment.

• Daisy read the Daily Prophet’s report criticizing the Ministry of Magic and praising the student who had driven away the Dementors.
• Albert explained Dementors to Nia and his parents, then confirmed that he had used magic to calm the crowd and repel them.
• Albert told Daisy and Herb that the Ministry would not trouble him because of his reputation and demonstrated wandless magic with a coin trick.
• Herb described his trip to the East and the locals’ differing views on returning home and rising housing prices.
• Albert predicted when housing prices would rise and fall, recommended two cities for investment, and advised Herb to establish a company with a local front figure.

Fudge faced public outrage over the Ministry’s handling of the Dementors stationed near Hogwarts, while Rita Skeeter’s article intensified calls for their removal. Fudge’s attempt to shift responsibility onto Scrimgeour failed, leaving him blamed for the policy he had ordered.

• Scrimgeour explained that trainee Robards had caused a public relations crisis and defended using Dementors to find Black despite protests against them.
• Fudge and Scrimgeour discussed the Dementors’ hunger and the need for more human sacrifices, a decision that required Fudge’s approval.
• Rita Skeeter planned and published a sensational report about the Dementors, prompting more families and Hogsmeade visitors to pay attention to the danger.
• After experiencing the Dementors, more wizards wrote to Fudge demanding that the creatures be withdrawn from Hogwarts and Hogsmeade.
• Fudge tore up Rita Skeeter’s report and tried to blame Scrimgeour, but the public held Fudge responsible for ordering the Dementors’ deployment.