Chapter Summaries

Harry struggled with the emptiness of being invincible until waking in a bed with Cho Chang, Hermione, and Astoria and spending the day with them. By evening, he felt calm and content, while Helena was embarrassed that he suspected her of listening in.

• Harry wondered what future goals could interest him when ruling the world and mastering known magic both seemed too easy.
• Harry woke in Cho Chang and Hermione's bedroom with Cho Chang, Hermione, and Astoria beside him.
• Harry and Cho Chang became intimate, followed by Hermione and Astoria.
• Harry and the others emerged from the bedroom in the evening and drank water while Helena pretended she had been preparing lesson plans.
• Harry gently questioned Helena about listening to them, then spoke calmly with her as Hermione teased him at dinner.
• The chapter ended with a New Year's Day countdown reaching midnight.

Harry and the others spent the night joking and playing cards in the Room of Requirement until they spotted a fire burning in a Hogwarts tower. Astoria raised the alarm, leaving the group to respond to the blaze.

• Harry teased Astoria about losing track of time, and she explained that she liked being treated as a little girl.
• Hermione confronted Harry about waking up in her and Cho’s bed with Astoria, and Harry blamed the Room of Requirement after recalling a dream.
• The group played cards for clothing stakes, and Harry, Hermione, and Astoria piled on layers while Cho won most rounds.
• Harry opened a window for air and saw flames burning in a tower below.
• Astoria spotted the fire and screamed for everyone at Hogwarts to hurry and put it out.

A fire swept through Hufflepuff’s dormitory tower, and Harry extinguished it with the Elder Wand, saving the students but badly damaging the Genealogy Tree. The professors traced the blaze to Fire Ants brought into the tower, and Professor McGonagall’s question left several girls frightened.

• Helena summoned the professors as flames spread through Hufflepuff’s dormitory tower, and the Genealogy Tree shook the students from their beds.
• The professors evacuated the students and tried to extinguish the fire while Snape and Madam Pomfrey checked on them.
• Hermione urged Harry to help, and Astoria handed him the Elder Wand; Harry’s spell extinguished the blaze but broke many branches of the Genealogy Tree.
• Hagrid identified Fire Ants at the scene, while Snape blamed him and Flitwick noted the creatures needed help to survive for more than a few hours.
• Professor McGonagall asked who had brought Fire Ants from Care of Magical Creatures class into the tower, and several girls turned pale.

After a fire damaged Hufflepuff Tower, Snape threatened four girls with expulsion and blamed Shyarly Lassoga, but Dumbledore intervened and arranged a lenient resolution. Harry later joked with Cho Chang and Hermione before discovering that his bedroom had vanished and sneaking into their room.

• Snape threatened to expel the four girls and make them pay for Hufflepuff Tower's repairs unless they identified the culprit.
• Haisa Butler accused Shyarly Lassoga of bringing a fire ant to the dormitory, while Ariel Mena and Valia Almeida backed her story.
• Snape praised the three accusers and offered them recommendation letters and places in his advanced Potions class.
• Dumbledore arrived, arranged Ministry funding for the repairs, and spoke privately with McGonagall, who then led the students to sleep in the Great Hall.
• Harry told Cho Chang that Snape had seen through the girls' scheme, then found that his bedroom had disappeared and sneaked into Hermione and Cho's room.

After Hufflepuff’s dormitory tower burned down, Hogwarts repaired it and expelled Ariel Mena, Valia Almeida, and Haisa Butler over undisclosed misconduct. The chapter ended with Harry, Hermione, and Cho Chang struggling through their homework and trading teasing remarks at the cottage.

• Students discovered that Hufflepuff’s dormitory tower had burned down, and Professor Sprout and Ministry workers began repairing it.
• Professor McGonagall granted Hufflepuff students until the following weekend to submit assignments damaged by the fire.
• Helena posted that Ariel Mena, Valia Almeida, and Haisa Butler had been expelled, prompting speculation about their punishment and the governors’ vote.
• By the following Wednesday, workers had restored Hufflepuff’s tower, while fifth-year students faced a heavy load of homework.
• Cho Chang helped Harry and Hermione with their assignments, and Harry and Hermione teased each other before Hermione jokingly vowed to protect Cho Chang.

Harry reflected on the growing house-elf society and talked with Helena over breakfast. He then left the Room of Requirement to meet George and Fred, who had finished something they promised him.

• Harry read about Hermione's society gaining members, including house-elves recruited by Malfoy and two Slytherin students.
• Harry recalled Hermione celebrating the society's growth and her belief that even coerced membership could advance house-elf rights.
• Harry asked Helena whether she would marry if she had a body, and she admitted she probably would not.
• After breakfast, Harry told Helena he was going to see George and Fred because they had finished what they promised him.

Harry recruited George and Fred after they demonstrated their paired Portkey Stones, offering to fund their inventions and establish a company for them. The twins agreed to leave Hogwarts, explore the Muggle world, and begin researching a network of Portkey Stones.

• George and Fred demonstrated how their paired rune-carved stones transported an iron hand between them.
• Harry asked about the stones' limitations, then offered the twins ten thousand Galleons each per year to invent products for his company.
• George and Fred accepted Harry's offer to form Harry Potter Magic Unlimited Company, though they worried about how their mother would react to them leaving Hogwarts.
• Harry urged the twins to explore the Muggle world and suggested they study the Internet at the University of California, Los Angeles to develop a network of Portkey Stones.
• The twins agreed, and Harry said he would go to the Ministry of Magic to discuss their withdrawal from school with their father.

Penelope and Fleur shared a room at the Leaky Cauldron and discussed their closeness to Harry, the marriage contract between Fleur and Harry, and Penelope’s many suitors. Penelope kissed Fleur in the shower, and the two later joked about Harry and Gabrielle.

• Penelope and Fleur woke up together and joked about Fleur’s Veela beauty and Harry’s lingering scent.
• The narration explained how Penelope and Fleur became close friends and moved into the room Harry and Astoria had used.
• Penelope joined Fleur in the shower and said she was measuring Fleur for Harry.
• Penelope kissed Fleur, and Fleur pushed her away when Penelope’s hands began to wander.
• Penelope said she was troubled by her pursuers and wondered whether to date one of them.
• Penelope warned Fleur to watch out for Harry pursuing Gabrielle, while Fleur dismissed the idea because Gabrielle was only ten.

Penelope managed the thriving Wizard Supermarket and received Harry’s plan to launch a Portkey Stone shop at Hogwarts. After Harry dismissed her mention of potential suitors as a private matter, Penelope realized how much she cared about him and was left heartbroken.

• Penelope turned down invitations from arrogant pure-blood families and ignored young wizards who competed for her attention.
• Harry appeared in Penelope’s office and asked her to open a shop using Portkey Stones, starting with a partnership at Hogwarts and later expanding as more stones became available.
• Harry insisted on naming the new shop himself, despite Penelope’s tactful objection to his chosen name.
• Penelope told Harry she was nineteen and mentioned two possible suitors, but Harry said she could decide for herself and Apparated away.
• Penelope smashed objects on her desk and mourned that Harry had shown no jealousy, wondering when she had fallen in love with him.

Giglio Zhenzhong tested Gold Rush’s new delivery service by sending a package to his daughter Isis at Hogwarts, where it arrived almost instantly. He won a lifetime VIP card, and Isis received her urgently needed wand in time for class, leaving Giglio eager to tell his friends about his luck.

• Giglio Zhenzhong entered the nearly deserted Gold Rush shop and paid to send a package containing a wand and other gifts to his daughter Isis at Hogwarts.
• The witch used the shop’s stone and spell to deliver the package instantly, then awarded Giglio a gold lifetime VIP card as Gold Rush’s first customer.
• Hogwarts students discovered the package at Hagrid’s Owl Rotation Post Station and crowded into the Great Hall looking for Isis.
• Isis received the package and later wrote to Giglio that her new wand had arrived in time for Professor Snape’s class.
• Giglio showed Isis’s letter to his skeptical wife, who accepted that the delivery had worked, while he planned to boast about Gold Rush to his friends.

Hermione persuaded Harry to take a walk around Hogwarts, where they discussed his Gold Rush delivery service and its plans to expand. Their stroll ended at the Forbidden Forest when Harry pulled Hermione out of a Thestral’s path and kissed her cheek.

• Hermione convinced Harry to leave their homework and enjoy the sunny autumn day together.
• Harry and Hermione walked around the Black Lake and remembered the Little Mermaid Harry had met during the Goblet of Fire’s second task.
• They discussed how Gold Rush delivery reduced the need for owl post and Harry’s plans for international stores and transfer stations.
• A Thestral burst from the undergrowth near the Forbidden Forest, and Harry pulled Hermione into his arms to keep her safe.
• Hermione mistook Harry’s embrace for a romantic advance, and Harry kissed her cheek after explaining that he had been protecting her.

Hermione and Harry watched Gryffindor’s Quidditch team train, where Ron practiced as the new Keeper. Slytherin’s team arrived and mocked Gryffindor, interrupting the training with shrieks and laughter.

• Hermione led Harry to the Quidditch pitch, where they settled in to watch Gryffindor train.
• Angelina led the team as Ron practiced his new Keeper role alongside two other newcomers.
• Ron reflected on how George and Fred’s departure left him feeling unprotected and responsible for Ginny.
• Angelina told the Slytherins their training time was in the afternoon, but Monta and his teammates mocked Gryffindor.
• Angelina urged her players to ignore Slytherin and begin warming up, while the Slytherins and their followers broke into shrieks and laughter.

Angelina put Ron and the Gryffindor Quidditch team through a disastrous practice while the Slytherins mocked them, and Hermione urged Harry to join the team. That night, Harry found himself locked out of his bedroom and shared a bed with Helena.

• Angelina led the Gryffindor team through passing practice, where Ron repeatedly missed the Quaffle and accidentally struck a Chaser in the face.
• Angelina had the team practice defending the goalposts, but Ron left two hoops undefended and let several goals through.
• Harry and Hermione watched the struggling team return to the castle, and Hermione suggested Harry could help improve it by joining.
• Hermione worked on her essays while Harry noticed Astoria and Cho Chang seemed unhappy, then she went to bed before him.
• Harry discovered he was locked out of his bedroom, entered another room, took Helena's blanket, and went to sleep beside her.

As Gryffindor and Slytherin prepared for their first Quidditch match, their captains’ rivalry and Slytherin’s intimidation tactics put pressure on Ron. After seeing Ron shaken by threats from the Slytherin team, Harry, Cho Chang, and Hermione discussed his lack of confidence, and Hermione teased Harry about Ginny.

• McGonagall and Snape favored their respective Quidditch teams, while Snape ignored reports of Slytherin players targeting Gryffindors.
• Harry, Cho Chang, and Hermione returned from visiting Big Black and the Basilisk in the Forbidden Forest as winter set in.
• Angelina encouraged Ron to recover his confidence after mistakes and reminded him of an impressive save he had made in practice.
• Monta threatened Angelina, and the Gryffindors mocked the Slytherins until Warrington intimidated Ron with a threat about the hospital wing.
• Angelina told Ron that Slytherin’s insults were a psychological tactic and urged him not to let the team or Fred and George down.
• Hermione criticized Ron’s timidity and teased Harry about his feelings for Ginny, with Cho Chang agreeing.

On the morning of his first Quidditch match, Ron panicked about his abilities and received reassurance from Neville, Ginny, and Luna. Gryffindor’s players reached the locker room for Angelina’s pre-match briefing as the match approached.

• Ron worried that he was too useless to play and admitted to Neville that his famous save during the trials had been an accident.
• Neville encouraged Ron and suggested asking Harry for advice, but Ron refused.
• Ginny teased Ron about his nerves, and Luna arrived wearing a lion-shaped hat that roared in support of Gryffindor.
• Luna asked whether Astoria was coming to watch, while Ginny realized Luna hoped to see someone else.
• Angelina briefed the Gryffindor team on Slytherin’s lineup, including its new Beaters, Hartle and Felis.

Ron struggled under Slytherin’s mocking song during his first match as Gryffindor Keeper, but Gryffindor narrowly won when their Seeker caught the Snitch. Harry slept through the match and woke to hear the result from Helena.

• Ron joined Angelina and the Gryffindor team for their match against Slytherin, where Monta taunted him about being their hopes of winning.
• Slytherin supporters sang a cruel song about Ron as the match began, and Warrington scored past him to put Slytherin ahead.
• Ron missed more shots as the Slytherin song grew louder and Gryffindor fell behind.
• Harry grew sleepy while reading by the fire, and Astoria photographed him asleep with the mobile phone he had given her.
• Harry woke several hours later and heard Helena say Gryffindor had narrowly beaten Slytherin after catching the Golden Snitch; he showed little interest.

Harry and Hermione attended Hagrid’s lesson on Thestrals in the Forbidden Forest, where Hermione learned why some people could see them. The chapter ended with Hermione eagerly volunteering to watch a Dark Wizard’s execution so she could observe Thestrals appearing to those who had not seen death.

• Harry abandoned his homework and took Astoria outside to play in the snow.
• Hagrid led his fifth-year students into the Forbidden Forest to study the creatures he had tamed.
• Harry, Neville, Pansy, and a thin Slytherin boy saw the Thestrals feeding, while most of the class could not see them.
• Hermione explained that only people who had seen death could see Thestrals, and Hagrid awarded Gryffindor ten points.
• Hermione volunteered to observe the execution of a condemned Dark Wizard so she could see Thestrals appear to others.

As Hogwarts quieted for Christmas, Harry gave Luna a rare magical creature he had found in Sweden: a Crumple-Horned Snorkack. Luna was thrilled and kissed Harry on the cheek, while he left her wondering whether he had kissed her while she slept.

• Helena managed Hogwarts' preparations and student supervision as Christmas approached, while Hermione tried to recruit the kitchen house-elves with hats.
• Harry, Hermione, Cho Chang, and Astoria decorated Harry's Cottage for Christmas, and the three girls buried Harry under conjured snow.
• On Christmas morning, Harry visited Luna in her Gryffindor dormitory and gave her a red-and-white creature-catching ball made by George and Fred.
• Harry released a pony-sized beast, and Luna identified it as the legendary Crumple-Horned Snorkack she had hoped to find with her father.
• Harry explained that he had hired the Diviners Guild and other wizards to search Sweden, and Luna thanked him with a kiss on the cheek.
• After Harry left, Luna wondered whether he had secretly kissed her while she was asleep, then felt ashamed for suspecting him.

Harry received Dumbledore’s request for help and left for Hagrid’s, while Hermione, Cho Chang, Astoria, Luna, Fleur, Penelope, and Gabrielle traveled to Yellu, Norway, for a winter vacation. The chapter ended with Harry and Hagrid setting out from Hogwarts into a blizzard toward the northeast.

• Harry opened Christmas presents with Hermione, Cho Chang, and Astoria, and found Dumbledore’s letter asking him to help with something over winter break.
• Hermione, Cho Chang, and Astoria planned a trip to Norway and invited Luna, while Harry headed to Hagrid’s residence as Dumbledore’s letter instructed.
• Hermione, Cho Chang, Astoria, Luna, Fleur, Penelope, and Gabrielle appeared in Yellu and entered its luxury ski hotel.
• Fleur used her wand to stop an approaching man from bothering the group, and he forgot what he had intended to do.
• Harry and Hagrid left Hogwarts and disappeared into the blizzard as they traveled northeast.

Harry and Hagrid traveled to the New Hebrides to find the last giant tribe, despite the difficult journey and several encounters along the way. After finding the giants gathered around bonfires, Harry created an Eternal Fire to present to their leader, Gug, and began walking down to meet them.

• Harry learned that the old Portkey route to the giants had been abandoned and that the Knight Bus refused to take him and Hagrid there.
• Harry and Hagrid traveled for five days, during which Harry dealt with two Trolls in Poland and a vampire family in Minsk.
• Harry and Hagrid found about seventy or eighty giants gathered in the New Hebrides, and Hagrid explained that their numbers had dwindled.
• Harry disagreed with Hagrid’s view that wizards were responsible for the giants’ decline, blaming their scarcity of food and constant fighting instead.
• Harry created an Eternal Fire on a branch and carried it down toward the giants to present to their leader, Gug.