Chapter Summaries

Albert helped Buckbeak escape the Ministry’s search, then performed paid Divinations for Phineas Nigellus Black about Regulus and Sirius. After learning that Sirius appeared innocent, Albert agreed to help capture Peter Pettigrew and clear Sirius’s name for five thousand Galleons.

• Hermione urged Harry and Ron to leave after Buckbeak vanished, while Lucius Malfoy accused Harry of hiding the Hippogriff and the Dementors found no trace of it.
• Dumbledore refused to let the Dementors search Hogwarts, and Hagrid told Albert that Buckbeak had escaped and that Phineas Nigellus Black wanted a Divination.
• Phineas paid Albert to learn whether Regulus was alive, and Albert saw that Regulus was dead and that his death was connected to a snake-marked necklace.
• Albert Divined that Sirius appeared innocent, advised Phineas to capture Peter Pettigrew, and agreed to help capture Pettigrew and clear Sirius’s name for five thousand Galleons.

Albert reviewed his tasks after rescuing Buckbeak and discussed the rescue and the twins’ prank on Malfoy with Fred, George, and Lee Jordan. Harry, Hermione, and Ron asked Albert privately about Buckbeak, and Albert caught the others eavesdropping as they fell through the open dormitory door.

• Albert reviewed the Task Panel and considered how to resolve the conflict between Black and Peter.
• Fred, George, and Lee Jordan returned to the dormitory and joked about Malfoy’s bout of diarrhea.
• Albert warned the three to find a scapegoat and discussed his Divination payment and Buckbeak’s rescue.
• Harry, Hermione, and Ron came to speak with Albert, and Harry asked whether Albert had taken Buckbeak away.
• Albert told Harry to keep secrets and revealed that Fred, George, and Lee Jordan had been listening at the door by making it fly open.

Harry, Hermione, and Ron joined Albert’s Defence Association gathering, where fifth year students were meant to prepare for their O.W.L. Defence Against the Dark Arts exam. After Slytherin students tried to disrupt the meeting, Albert and the Weasley twins drove them out and resumed the Boggart practice.

• Harry told Ron and Hermione that the Ministry still suspected Hagrid of freeing Buckbeak, while the Daily Prophet left the Ministry’s alleged bribery unreported.
• Hermione invited Harry and Ron to the Defence Association gathering, and they found more than a hundred students waiting on the Seventh Floor.
• Albert explained that the gathering prioritized fifth year O.W.L. preparation and warned students not to cause trouble.
• When a student challenged Albert’s rules, Fred and George stunned him and carried him out of the room.
• Several students secretly attacked Albert with Dark Curses, but he deflected them, and the gathered students knocked down the troublemakers, mostly Slytherins.
• Fred and George threw the fallen Slytherin students into the corridor, and Albert returned to the Boggart to continue the session.

Fifth-year students practiced banishing Boggarts at Albert’s gathering, where Harry and Ron later beat and humiliated Malfoy and the other Slytherins who had tried to disrupt it. Professor McGonagall dismissed the incident after hearing Albert’s account, then began employment consultations and asked who would go first.

• Albert ended the gathering after the students practiced driving away the Boggart and announced that he would teach Counter-curses and Defensive spells next time.
• Harry punched Malfoy over Hagrid and Buckbeak, and Ron crushed a Dungbomb in Malfoy’s trousers while Fred and George encouraged them.
• Professor McGonagall summoned Albert, Fred, George, and Lee Jordan, but accepted Albert’s explanation that the Slytherins had attacked first and warned them not to let it happen again.
• McGonagall began employment consultations, and Fred, George, and Lee all pointed to Albert as the first to go.

Professor McGonagall asked Albert, Fred, George, and Lee Jordan about their plans after Hogwarts, only to discover that Albert had already planned a career writing a Defence Against the Dark Arts book and helping his friends establish businesses. The consultations ended with McGonagall realizing the three friends were prepared to open their own shops, while Albert’s prediction about Snape becoming Headmaster left her wondering what would happen to Dumbledore.

• Professor McGonagall asked Albert about his future, and he said he planned to publish a practical Defence Against the Dark Arts book while considering a shop or work as a Divination practitioner.
• Albert predicted that Professor Snape would become Hogwarts Headmaster unless the Pink Toad counted, and hinted that the wizarding world would soon receive an unexpected surprise.
• Professor McGonagall invited Fred to discuss his plans, and he said he and George intended to open a Joke Shop with start-up capital and support from Albert.
• Professor McGonagall advised Fred to strengthen his core subjects, especially Charms, before sending him to fetch George.
• George gave essentially the same plans as Fred, and Lee Jordan said he hoped to open a Wizard Card boutique and make the game popular throughout the wizarding world.
• Professor McGonagall realized Albert was helping all three friends prepare to open shops, funded in part by his prize winnings.

As hostility between Gryffindor and Slytherin escalated into serious fights, Harry and his friends were repeatedly attacked, while Albert treated their injuries with an ointment developed from Beauty Potion research. Lee Jordan then reported that Slytherin was taking bets on the upcoming Quidditch championship, and Albert warned that they might not pay their winnings.

• Slytherin students shifted their anger toward Gryffindor, and repeated corridor scuffles escalated until several students, including a Hufflepuff girl, were hospitalized.
• Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle beat Harry, then unidentified people ambushed and beat the three Slytherins; Harry continued to be targeted, so Wood arranged for someone to accompany him.
• Harry, Ron, Fred, and George returned to the Common Room bruised and disheveled after another fight with Malfoy's group.
• Fred asked Albert for more ointment, and Albert explained that it was an anti-swelling potion refined from Pimple Potion research for a Beauty Potion.
• Lee Jordan reported that Slytherin was opening bets on the Quidditch championship, and Albert questioned whether they would pay their debts.

On the eve of the Quidditch final, Albert helped ease the Gryffindor players’ nerves and discussed the match with Hermione and the others. He also began arranging for Crookshanks to visit Hagrid’s Hut, intending to control Peter’s fate and protect Black’s innocence.

• The Gryffindor players discussed how they needed to beat Slytherin by more than fifty points and considered using the Transylvanian Tackle.
• Hermione told Albert she was nervous about Harry’s match, and Albert reassured her that Gryffindor would win.
• Albert suggested that Crookshanks could help Hagrid catch rats, and Hermione agreed to take him to Hagrid’s Hut in a few days.
• Albert privately planned to use the visit to arrange Peter’s fate and keep events involving Black under control.
• Fred and George revealed that they had bet on Gryffindor, then realized Kenneth had falsely claimed Albert had wagered ten Galleons.
• Ron worried that he might not recover his winnings after betting every Sickle he had.

Albert watched the tense buildup to the Gryffindor-Slytherin Quidditch match and discussed summer plans and a Beauty Potion with Isobel and Penelope. As bets and cheers for Gryffindor spread through the school, he settled in to watch the match begin.

• Albert avoided the tense Slytherin table and joined Isobel and Penelope for breakfast.
• Albert and Isobel discussed attending the Quidditch World Cup with Katrina, Catherine, and Valeria, and Isobel described their Beauty Potion research.
• Penelope asked whether Gryffindor would win, and Truman and Kenneth explained how they had brought Hufflepuff into the betting pool to pressure Slytherin to pay.
• Gryffindor entered the Great Hall to widespread applause, while students waved scarlet flags and Percy gave Albert a red rose.
• Albert asked Percy how much he had bet as Isobel pointed out that the Quidditch match was about to begin.

A Quidditch final between Gryffindor and Slytherin descended into foul play, a stadium-wide riot, and repeated suspensions before resuming. Harry eventually caught the Golden Snitch and secured Gryffindor’s victory, leaving Malfoy defeated on the ground.

• Marcus nearly knocked Angelina from her broom, and Fred retaliated by striking Marcus with his bat as both teams traded fouls and penalties.
• After Slytherin Beaters injured Wood, the Gryffindor players fought back, and spectators in the stands began throwing Dungbombs and other objects.
• Dumbledore suspended the match, and Madam Hooch and Madam Pomfrey treated and scolded the players while Professor McGonagall warned the spectators to behave.
• When play resumed, Malfoy tried to pull Harry from his Firebolt, and a Bludger hit Harry before another Bludger knocked Malfoy into the Gryffindor stands.
• Marcus caught the Golden Snitch illegally and had to release it after Lee Jordan announced the foul.
• Harry outraced Malfoy, caught the Golden Snitch, and won the match for Gryffindor.

After Gryffindor won the Quidditch Cup, Kenneth returned the students’ stakes and explained that the Slytherin bookies would pay the rest later under a Magical Contract. Albert came back from Hagrid’s and arranged for Hermione to bring Crookshanks there next Wednesday, when he planned to resolve a matter involving cats, dogs, wolves, and rats.

• Kenneth told the Gryffindors that Slytherin could not repay all the winnings immediately, but had returned their stakes and would pay the remainder before the school holiday.
• Kenneth reassured the students that a Magical Contract would punish the Slytherin bookies if they failed to pay by summer vacation.
• Kenneth gave George Albert’s twenty Galleons and returned George’s own stakes, while explaining that he had limited his winnings to avoid making Slytherin unable to pay.
• Harry said he had wagered ten Galleons, and Kenneth revealed that Ron had withdrawn his bet.
• Albert returned from Hagrid’s and asked Hermione to take Crookshanks there next Wednesday to clear the rats out of Hagrid’s house.

Albert arranged to draw Peter Pettigrew out while preparing to test a Human-Shape Restoration Charm on Remus Lupin. After Albert told Lupin he had seen Peter’s name at Hogwarts, Lupin resolved to seek the truth and tell Dumbledore what he knew about Sirius Black.

• Hermione invited Harry and Ron to visit Hagrid, while Albert told Fred, George, and Lee Jordan to prepare and watch them with the Marauder’s Map.
• Albert visited Lupin and explained that he had reconstructed a spell that could restore werewolves to human form, asking Lupin to help test it during summer vacation.
• Albert discussed the dangers and cost of Wolfsbane Potion with Lupin, then said he had seen the name Peter in Hogwarts Castle and linked it to the wizard Black had supposedly killed.
• After Albert left, Lupin searched the Marauder’s Map for Peter but could not find him, then watched Harry, Ron, and Hermione head toward Hagrid’s cabin.
• Lupin resolved to ask Albert about Peter after recovering and then confess what he knew to Dumbledore so he could help Black.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione visited Hagrid to search his hut for rats, where Crookshanks found Peter hiding in a milk tin. Peter escaped as Scabbers, and Ron and Crookshanks chased him outside, leaving Hermione uneasy as Harry followed.

• Harry, Ron, and Hermione arrived at Hagrid's Hut under the Invisibility Cloak, and Hagrid asked why they had come so late.
• Hagrid avoided answering Harry and Ron's questions about Buckbeak's disappearance and urged them to change the subject.
• Crookshanks caught several mice before finding Peter hiding in a milk tin in Hagrid's cupboard.
• Hermione opened the tin, and Peter escaped as a rat; Ron recognized him as Scabbers and tried to catch him.
• Scabbers bit Ron and fled outside, and Crookshanks and Ron pursued him as Harry followed and Hermione sensed something was wrong.

Albert and George captured Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew, while Albert restrained Professor Lupin as the full moon approached. Lupin insisted Black was innocent, but Albert planned to hand Black to the Ministry for the ten-thousand-Galleon reward and called for Dumbledore to witness what happened.

• Peter fled Crookshanks and ran into Sirius Black, who seized Ron and dragged him toward the Whomping Willow.
• Black transformed back into a man and threatened Hagrid with Ron, but Albert stunned him before he could act.
• Albert trapped and stunned Peter, identified by his missing toe, and George bound Ron when he tried to protect Scabbers.
• Albert captured Crookshanks and chained Black, then restrained Lupin after warning that he might transform during the full moon.
• Lupin told Albert, Harry, and Snape that Peter was alive and Black was innocent, while Snape demanded that Lupin answer for his actions.
• Albert insisted Black would be handed to the Ministry for the reward and sent Hagrid to fetch Dumbledore as a witness.

Albert kept Lupin contained as he and the others learned that Peter Pettigrew was alive and hiding as a rat, but Lupin transformed before Dumbledore arrived. After Albert drove off a horde of Dementors, he knocked out four supposed Ministry Aurors who arrived to take Black away without paying the promised reward.

• Albert sent Hagrid to fetch Dumbledore and questioned Lupin, who explained that he had used the Marauder’s Map to find Peter Pettigrew and that he and his friends had created the map.
• Lupin said Peter was the rat in Albert’s cage, but Albert postponed testing the claim until Dumbledore arrived.
• Lupin transformed under the moonlight, and Albert trapped him inside a reinforced cage.
• More than a hundred Dementors emerged from the Forbidden Forest, and Albert’s Griffin Patronus drove them back while Harry collapsed.
• Four men claiming to be Ministry Aurors arrived to take Black into custody, but Albert suspected they were impostors and knocked them all unconscious.

Albert captured Sirius Black and confronted Fudge over the Ministry’s Dementor attack, demanding an apology and protection for his bounty. He restored Lupin from his werewolf form and handed Dumbledore a caged rat as evidence that Peter Pettigrew might still be alive.

• Albert bound four men who claimed to be Aurors, accused them of unleashing the Dementors, and warned Hermione about the Ministry’s indifference to their deaths.
• When Dumbledore, Fudge, and Ministry personnel arrived, Albert showed them a crystal ball recording the Dementor attack and demanded an apology for the danger to Harry and the others.
• Albert refused to hand over Black without immediate payment or a guaranteed bounty, and challenged Fudge over the Ministry’s failure to honor his Wizengamot title.
• Albert revealed that Lupin had transformed into a werewolf and used his Human-Shape Restoration Charm to return him to human form.
• Albert said Lupin had found traces of Peter Pettigrew and gave Dumbledore a caged rat to test whether it was Pettigrew in Animagus form.

Dumbledore transformed Scabbers into Peter Pettigrew, whose confession proved Sirius Black innocent and exposed his betrayal of the Potters. Albert secured Black’s release and pursued his promised reward, while Fudge agreed to a deal after receiving Albert’s letter.

• Dumbledore transformed Scabbers into Peter Pettigrew, and Dumbledore and Albert corrected Fudge’s claim that Pettigrew had died.
• Dumbledore gave Pettigrew Veritaserum, and Pettigrew confessed to betraying the Potters, killing Muggles to fake his death, and spying on Harry for Voldemort.
• Hagrid struck Pettigrew after hearing his confession, and Fudge ordered the Aurors to take Pettigrew away while saying Black would have to cooperate with further investigation.
• Albert told Phineas to ensure Black paid his five-thousand-Galleon fee and gave Dumbledore a letter for Fudge proposing a deal.
• Fudge read Albert’s letter at the Ministry and agreed to the deal, realizing Albert had anticipated that the Ministry would resist paying Black’s ten-thousand-Galleon reward.

Sirius learned that Albert had caught Peter Pettigrew and cleared his name, then told Harry the truth about his parents’ betrayal and offered him a home. As Sirius and Lupin prepared to leave Hogwarts, Harry was still struggling to understand the upheaval and learned that Snape had exposed Lupin as a werewolf.

• Sirius woke in the School Hospital and learned from Phineas that Albert had caught Peter, cleared Sirius’s name, and saved him and Harry.
• Ron woke, panicked at seeing Sirius, and learned that Peter was alive, had been Scabbers, and was imprisoned in Azkaban.
• Harry woke and read the Daily Prophet report confirming Sirius’s innocence and Peter’s betrayal of the Potter family.
• Sirius offered Harry the chance to leave the Dursleys and live with him, and Harry eagerly accepted.
• Sirius explained that Albert had arranged his rescue and Lupin’s support, while Snape had exposed Lupin as a werewolf, prompting Lupin to resign.

After clearing Sirius Black’s name, Albert traded the Ministry’s bounty for a Time-Turner and discussed Isobel’s plans to publish a Runes book with him. Harry and Ron sought answers about the night Peter Pettigrew was caught, but Albert sent them to Hermione and Hagrid, who revealed that Buckbeak was hidden in Hagrid’s enchanted suitcase.

• Fudge announced that Sirius Black was innocent and Peter Pettigrew had been arrested, while Snape’s disclosure that Lupin was a werewolf led Lupin to resign.
• Albert showed Isobel the Time-Turner he had received from Fudge in exchange for Black’s bounty and his silence, and said Black had paid him five thousand Galleons, which he partly shared with the others.
• Isobel told Albert that Professor Bathsheba Babbling would help her with Ancient Runes and that she hoped to publish a book with him.
• Harry and Ron interrupted Albert and Isobel’s date to ask about Peter’s capture, but Albert told Harry to consult Hermione and Hagrid instead.
• Harry, Ron, and Hermione found Hagrid emerging from an enchanted suitcase and learned that Albert had given him Buckbeak to hide until summer.
• Harry asked Hagrid what had happened that night, and Hagrid said he believed Albert had arranged the whole affair.

After Lupin resigned, Albert and Isobel offered exam tutoring, while Albert pushed Fred, George, and Lee Jordan to study before opening their joke shop. As O.W.L.s approached, Albert gave the trio study materials and explained that their remaining Intelligence Candy could not be easily reproduced.

• Hogwarts cancelled Defence Against the Dark Arts after Lupin resigned, so Albert and Isobel agreed to tutor students on key exam topics.
• Fred, George, and Lee Jordan discussed opening their joke shop with Albert, who urged them to build their skills and finish school first.
• Albert promised the trio Quidditch World Cup tickets and a chance to profit from his prediction if they did well on their O.W.L.s, and they began revising diligently.
• Albert told the trio that their Intelligence Candy was an improved Brain Boosting Potion that he could not make more of for now.
• Albert gave the trio Katrina's exam notes and last year's exam paper, and George punched Fred when he suggested selling copies.

As Hogwarts students prepared for their exams, Albert and Isobel enjoyed a lakeside picnic before the O.W.L. schedule was announced. While Albert chatted with the visiting examiners, they revealed that Fudge was seeking an Order of Merlin for Albert for his werewolf-restoration spell and one for himself.

• Albert and Isobel shared a romantic picnic by the lake and discussed their preparations and plans for the future.
• Professor McGonagall distributed the O.W.L. schedule, warned students against cheating, and told them results would arrive by owl in July.
• George and Fred discussed likely practical exam tasks with their friends, while Shanna noted the topics she planned to practise.
• Albert joined the examiners in the professors' Common Room and learned that Fudge was applying for an Order of Merlin, Third Class for him based on his Human-Shape Restoration Charm.
• Marchbanks and Greengrass discussed Fudge's bid for an Order of Merlin, First Class, which had already gained support from more than half the Wizengamot.