Chapter Summaries

Harry freed Dobby by tricking Lucius Malfoy into giving him a sock, and Dobby set out to find work in the Hogwarts Kitchens. As Hogwarts settled back into normal life, Muggle merchandise became popular among the students, especially a Magic Cards game featuring Hogwarts characters.

• Harry watched Lucius leave without exposing the fake diary, then saw Dobby realize that the sock had freed him.
• Dobby thanked Harry, planned to seek work in the Hogwarts Kitchens, and vanished to find out whether they needed anyone.
• Hogwarts gradually returned to its usual routine after the Chamber of Secrets attacks, while students began enjoying Muggle-made merchandise.
• Fred and George examined the Muggle items and helped spark interest in bags, quills, golden egg charms, and other products around the school.
• Students took up the Magic Cards game, and Ron reacted to the powerful bond effect on the Harry, Ron, and Hermione cards.

Hogwarts students eagerly played a new card game based on the people and creatures they knew from their school and books. Matches across the castle showcased powerful combinations and ended with students eager to play again.

• A Hufflepuff boy used [The Diary's Seduction] to take control of his opponent's [Quirrell].
• Ron combined [Harry], [Ron], and [Hermione] with [Bond of Never Leaving or Abandoning One Another] and [Bond of Red Hair], prompting Seamus to concede.
• Neville equipped [Harry] with the [Sword of Gryffindor], played [Fawkes] and [Dumbledore], and defeated Dean by making his Dark Magic cards too costly to play.
• Ravenclaw students organized a card tournament, where a Ravenclaw girl used [Sorting Hat] to draw [Sword of Gryffindor] and beat a Slytherin boy.

Dumbledore showed McGonagall how widely the students’ card game had distracted them and promised to address it by speaking with Fudge. The next morning, he announced that students who ranked in the top ten on their year’s final exams or made tremendous progress would receive animated cards, leaving the students eager to study as he prepared to show another card.

• Dumbledore admired his own card in his office when McGonagall arrived and complained that cards were disrupting lessons and revision throughout the castle.
• Dumbledore told McGonagall that students needed guidance rather than a ban, and said he would speak to Fudge about a surprise.
• Dumbledore announced in the Great Hall that top-ten exam performers and students who made tremendous progress would receive animated cards.
• The students erupted with excitement about earning animated cards, and Dumbledore took out another card to show them.

Dumbledore displayed animated cards as prizes for the top ten students, inspiring Hogwarts pupils to study harder for their exams. As students across the houses began revising, Fred and George considered making and selling animated cards of their own.

• Dumbledore showed animated cards of the Heads of House, Hogwarts Castle, and the Quidditch Pitch, and announced that the top ten students would receive one.
• Ron resolved to study for the exams, while Harry and Hermione also became more focused on their work.
• Students across Hogwarts crowded the library and organized revision efforts in their houses.
• Fred proposed that he and George make animated cards to sell, and George agreed.

As Hogwarts students prepared intensely for their final exams, Ron worked harder than Harry had ever seen, while Fred and George quietly postponed their business plans until after the tests. The exams ended after a week, and Ron emerged from the Potions practical with Harry asking how he felt.

• Fred and George agreed to keep their business plans quiet until after the exams and to offer ordinary copies alongside the animated version.
• Hogwarts students spent their days revising, and Ron studied early each morning because he did not want to face his mother's disappointment again.
• On the night before the exams, students revised in silence, while Fred and George quizzed each other on Charms incantations.
• Harry completed the Charms theory exam, and the second-year students sat different exams throughout the week.
• After the final Potions practical, Ron rushed from the classroom, and Harry caught up to ask how he felt.

Harry learned he had placed tenth in the exams, while Hermione came first and Ron placed twenty-second. Professor McGonagall then told Ron, Neville, and several other Gryffindors that their academic progress had earned them the chance to choose an animated card.

• Ron worried that Snape had marked his Potions exam unfairly, while Hermione said she had made almost no mistakes.
• Harry and Ron discussed their exam performance in the common room, and Hermione reassured them that their results would not be as bad as they feared.
• Fred read the posted results: Hermione placed first, Harry tenth, and Ron twenty-second.
• Professor McGonagall praised Ron's improved History of Magic mark and Neville's improved Potions mark, then announced that the students who had made significant progress could choose an animated card.

Professor McGonagall gave animated cards to the students, and Harry and his friends prepared to leave Hogwarts for summer. Harry declined the Weasleys’ invitation to stay at The Burrow, took Polyjuice Potion on the train, and left King’s Cross with Vernon.

• Professor McGonagall handed out animated cards, and Ron, Neville, and Hermione showed their choices in the common room.
• Neville told Harry he chose Professor Sprout’s card because she had praised his talent, while Hermione chose the Hogwarts Castle card for its beauty.
• Harry told Ron he would first return to the Dursleys’ home, though Ron and Mrs. Weasley offered to welcome him at The Burrow.
• Harry, Ron, and Hermione rode the Hogwarts Express, and Harry drank Professor McGonagall’s Polyjuice Potion before arriving at King’s Cross.
• Harry thanked Mrs. Weasley for her offer, then followed Vernon out of King’s Cross Station.

Harry Potter returned to the Dursleys’ house disguised with Polyjuice Potion, but he gave himself away when he instinctively turned at the sound of his name. As crowds gathered outside the house, Vernon reassured him that he had asked the police to restrict access to the street.

• Passersby recognized Vernon and guessed that the disguised boy with him was Harry Potter after discussing Polyjuice Potion.
• A stranger called Harry’s name, and Harry turned around, confirming the crowd’s suspicions.
• The crowd surrounded Harry and Vernon, taking pictures and calling out to Harry as they hurried home.
• Harry found the Dursleys’ house surrounded by onlookers and went upstairs to his room.
• Vernon told Harry he had applied for a police restraining order and expected the road to be restricted soon, and Harry thanked him.

Harry received a letter and photograph from Hermione while life at the Dursleys’ remained unusually calm. During his annual inspection of Azkaban, Cornelius Fudge heard Sirius Black speak and declare that he was bored.

• Vernon gave Harry a letter from Hermione, who wrote from Paris about her holiday reading and asked how he was doing.
• Harry watched a news report about the Harry Potter books’ sales, and Vernon switched off the television.
• Cornelius Fudge visited Azkaban for his annual inspection and went to see the prisoner Black.
• Black unexpectedly spoke to Fudge and said he was bored.

Sirius Black found Peter Pettigrew alive in a newspaper photograph and realized Peter might be near Harry at Hogwarts. He escaped Azkaban in his dog form and headed into the North Sea to reach Hogwarts and protect Harry.

• Sirius Black asked Fudge for a newspaper and spotted Peter Pettigrew, disguised as a rat, on Ron Weasley's shoulder in a photograph.
• Sirius Black read that Ron would return to Hogwarts and learned that Voldemort's remnant soul was still active.
• Sirius Black feared Peter could betray Harry and put him in danger at Hogwarts.
• Sirius Black transformed into a black dog, slipped through the cell bars, and evaded the Dementors.
• Sirius Black jumped from Azkaban into the sea and set out to swim toward Hogwarts.

Christopher worried that Allen Vane had stopped writing, but Barry discovered that the first half of the third Harry Potter book had arrived among the submissions. Christopher and Barry hurried to read it.

• Christopher paced at Bloomsbury Publishing, anxious that Allen Vane had sent no manuscript since June.
• Barry suggested Allen might have stopped writing after the success of the first two books, while Christopher argued that the unfinished story made that unlikely.
• Christopher considered sending someone to Allen’s last known address or placing a newspaper notice, but Barry reminded him that Allen had always avoided contact.
• Barry began reading a new submission titled Scotland Highlands Magic Chronicles and realized it was the first half of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.
• Christopher saw that the manuscript contained eleven chapters and rushed to his office to read it, with Barry following.

Christopher and Barry read the first eleven chapters of Harry’s story, following his escape from the Dursleys, the threat of Sirius Black, and the dangers at Hogwarts. The manuscript ended with Hermione warning that Black might have sent Harry the Firebolt, leaving Christopher and Barry desperate to know what happened next.

• Harry fled Privet Drive after accidentally inflating Aunt Marge, and the Knight Bus took him to the Leaky Cauldron, where Cornelius Fudge let him stay.
• Mr. Weasley warned Harry not to seek out Sirius Black, and Lupin protected Harry from a Dementor on the Hogwarts Express.
• At Hogwarts, Harry met Buckbeak, faced a Dementor-shaped Boggart, and lost his Nimbus 2000 when Dementors attacked during a Quidditch match.
• Harry overheard that Black had betrayed his parents and killed Peter Pettigrew, then received an anonymous Firebolt that Hermione feared might be cursed.
• Hermione reported the Firebolt to Professor McGonagall, who confiscated it, and the manuscript ended with Hermione insisting Black might have sent the broom.
• Christopher and Barry discovered there was no more to read, complained about the abrupt ending, and both decided they wanted to read the manuscript again.

Bloomsbury and booksellers prepared for the September release of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, while the announcement sparked public debate and drew the attention of a mysterious black dog. At Number Four, Privet Drive, Harry waited anxiously for Aunt Marge to arrive.

• Bloomsbury approved an eleven-chapter first part priced at three pounds, and bookstores across Britain planned prominent displays and large orders for its September 1 release.
• Newspapers announced the book, and Peter Thorne’s criticism of the Harry Potter frenzy prompted arguments among readers.
• A skeletal black dog studied the release announcement in a London alley, then headed north.
• Vernon prepared for Aunt Marge’s visit, ordered Dudley to tidy the living room, and told Harry to stay in his room as much as possible.
• Harry recalled Aunt Marge’s hostility toward him as he learned that Vernon would pick her up from the station at four.

Aunt Marge spent a week at the Dursleys’ house, repeatedly insulting Harry while Vernon and Petunia tried to keep the peace. At dinner, her drunken attacks on Harry’s parents finally prompted Vernon to throw her out, and she headed for the living room still making cruel remarks.

• Aunt Marge arrived at the Dursleys’ house and immediately mocked Harry, while Vernon told her not to speak about him that way.
• Over the following week, Aunt Marge treated Dudley warmly but repeatedly criticized Harry, and Vernon and Petunia often intervened.
• At the final dinner, Aunt Marge insulted Harry’s parents and claimed they had died in a car crash, so Harry stood up and defended them.
• Aunt Marge continued berating Harry until Vernon slammed the table and ordered her to leave at once.
• Aunt Marge refused at first, then agreed to go and walked toward the living room while insulting Harry and his parents again.

Harry accidentally caused Aunt Marge to swell and float, leaving the Dursleys’ home in chaos. He packed his belongings and fled into the night, leaving Aunt Marge near the ceiling and Vernon, Petunia, and Dudley in the wrecked dining room.

• Aunt Marge swelled and floated into the chandelier while Vernon and Petunia tried to catch her.
• Ripper bit Vernon, then chased Dudley around the dining room and wrecked the furniture and crockery.
• Harry realized his magic had caused Aunt Marge to inflate and feared the consequences of using magic outside school.
• Harry packed his suitcase and Hedwig’s cage with magic while Aunt Marge continued swelling.
• Harry kicked open the front door and fled into the night as Vernon shouted after him.

Harry fled Privet Drive without knowing where he would go, while Fudge informed Dumbledore that Dementors would patrol Hogwarts’ boundaries to search for Sirius Black. Dumbledore questioned the plan and wondered why Sirius had escaped now.

• Harry ran from Privet Drive through an alley and continued along an unfamiliar street with Hedwig and his trunk.
• Fudge told Dumbledore that Sirius Black had escaped from Azkaban and might be targeting Harry.
• Dumbledore pointed out that Sirius had escaped despite twelve years under the Dementors’ guard, but Fudge said the Ministry lacked the staff to search for him effectively.
• Fudge said the Dementors would begin patrolling Hogwarts’ boundaries the next morning and promised they would stay outside the castle grounds.
• After Fudge left, Dumbledore wondered why Sirius had escaped at this time as Fawkes comforted him.

On September 1, bookstores across Great Britain opened for the release of "Prisoner of Azkaban," drawing enormous queues and selling books at a frantic pace. By afternoon, customers were reading the new book and speculating about the escaped prisoner, Black.

• Alfred, Simon, Duncan, and William prepared their bookstores across Great Britain for the release, with large stocks and long queues forming before opening.
• At nine o’clock, bookstores opened and customers surged in to buy copies, while staff struggled to keep the lines moving and orderly.
• Duncan let an elderly woman buy a copy for two pounds seventy-five when she was short of the full price.
• William arranged for two thousand additional copies to be sent to Liverpool’s flagship store after its first thousand sold out.
• By afternoon, readers discussed Black’s escape and debated whether he was good or bad while they waited to read the book.

Harry, Ron and Hermione shared a compartment on the Hogwarts Express with the sleeping Professor R. J. Lupin, whom Hermione suspected was their new Defence Against Dark Magic teacher. The train stopped in sudden darkness and cold as a hooded creature entered, leaving Harry overwhelmed by a distant woman's scream begging it not to touch him.

• Harry, Ron and Hermione searched the crowded Hogwarts Express for a compartment and found Professor R. J. Lupin asleep in the last one.
• Hermione noticed Lupin's labeled trunk and guessed he was the new Defence Against Dark Magic teacher, and the three settled in quietly.
• Harry wondered why Minister Fudge had treated him kindly and recalled that Sirius Black had escaped Azkaban and was reportedly coming for him.
• The train jolted to a stop, its lights went out, and the compartment grew unnaturally cold.
• A hooded creature glided into the compartment, and Harry heard a woman's distant scream pleading for it not to touch him.

Harry collapsed when a Dementor searched the train, and Professor Lupin drove it away with a spell before giving Harry chocolate to recover. As Harry tried to understand what had happened, Malfoy arrived at the compartment with Goyle and Crabbe.

• Harry woke on the compartment floor after collapsing, while Ron, Hermione, Neville, and Ginny checked on him.
• Professor Lupin gave Harry chocolate and explained that a Dementor from Azkaban had searched the train for Sirius Black.
• Hermione and Ron told Harry that Lupin had used a burst of silver light to make the Dementor leave.
• Malfoy came rushing into the compartment with Goyle and Crabbe behind him.

After Harry recovered from the Dementor attack, Malfoy mocked him before leaving the compartment, where Ron discovered Scabbers acting unusually frightened. Meanwhile, the newly opened Ferret Bookstore drew a long queue as wizards bought Prisoner of Azkaban, and readers in the Leaky Cauldron discussed its events, including Harry’s Firebolt.

• Malfoy visited Harry’s compartment, mocked him for fainting after the Dementor attack, and left with Crabbe and Goyle.
• Ron found Scabbers trying to escape from his schoolbag and calmed the frightened rat.
• A long queue formed outside the Ferret Bookstore as wizards came to buy books sourced from Muggle publishers.
• Wizards in the Leaky Cauldron read Prisoner of Azkaban and speculated about who had sent Harry the Firebolt.