About two weeks after the Daily Prophet announced that Cornelius Fudge would become the next Minister of Magic, the Daily Prophet's prediction prize was delivered by the Owl Postman.
Snow was still falling outside, and the owl postmen crowded into the auditorium as usual.
One of the owls tossed a frost-covered envelope in front of Albert. A moment later, another owl threw a heavy-looking leather bag onto the table in front of Albert, the dull metallic sound immediately drawing the attention of the others around him.
Albert reached out and picked up the leather bag, weighed it in his hand a couple of times, and after listening to the crisp sound inside, he guessed what was inside.
He didn't open the leather bag immediately, but instead put it in his backpack. Then, he drew his wand and used a drying charm to remove the frost from the envelope before opening it and reading its contents.
The letter read:
Congratulations, Mr. Albert Anderson.
You won 100 Galleons in the "Next Minister of Magic" prediction contest. Please sign here. Barnabasculf
Note: Do not open the leather bag before signing, as it has been enchanted to ensure that Albert himself receives the Galleons.
Inside the envelope was another parchment, a magical contract to ensure that the money was signed for by Albert himself.
If anyone else tries to take money that doesn't belong to them from the leather bag, they will be in trouble. The letter doesn't say what kind of trouble it is, but Albert guesses it might be some kind of curse or tracking magic that will allow them to find the thief who stole the money.
Albert wanted to keep the secret as discreetly as possible, but secrets always spread.
Soon after, the entire school knew that he had participated in the Daily Prophet's prediction contest and had won a large sum of Galleons.
As for how much it costs?
No one knew the exact number. Some said 50 Galleons, some said 100 Galleons, and some guessed 200 Galleons. In the end, George couldn't help but tell the truth, which made a lot of people extremely envious.
Every time someone brings this up, their tone is so sour, it's enough to corrode a hole in the ground.
"Now, everyone calls you 'Lucky Albert,'" Shanna said, sitting down in front of Albert and turning to ask, "How do you feel about that?"
"That's great. I like this title, and I hope I can continue to be lucky. Maybe I can win another big prize," Albert said with a smile.
"You can lie on the table and take a nap now, maybe you'll dream about winning the lottery." Shanna couldn't help but roll her eyes.
"I've always been lucky." Albert pulled out his wand, waved it in front of the group, and continued to exaggerate, "Mr. Ollivander told me that wands made of redwood bring luck to their users, and this wand of mine is made of redwood."
"Redwood can bring good luck?" Angelina looked doubtful, clearly not believing the claim.
"There has indeed been such a saying. It is rumored that wands made of redwood can bring luck to the user, so these wands are very popular among wizards." Katrina looked Albert up and down with a strange gaze. "Of course, some people think it's pure nonsense."
"Of course it's true. I guessed it right with the help of my wand." Albert had an expression that said, "My wand really brings good luck."
Li Jordan's face twitched slightly; in their memory, that was exactly what had happened. Albert had simply "placed the wand vertically on the table, letting it fall freely to one side," and then inexplicably decided to place 25 Galleons on Cornelius Fudge.
When Fred recounted the events to everyone, they were all dumbfounded, looking at him with expressions that said, "Are you kidding me?"
What kind of crazy move is this? Is this the correct way to win the lottery?
However, this matter did not remain a topic of discussion for long, as the Christmas holidays were already fast approaching.
After Albert packed his luggage, he boarded the school's Thestrals and traveled along the snow-covered road to the Hogsmeade station.
"What are you doing?" George asked, puzzled, as he saw Albert reaching out and touching the front of the carriage.
"Aren't you curious about what's pulling the carriage?" Albert pointed to the snow. "Can't you see the footprints in the snow?"
"Something is pulling the cart?" All three were shocked, but the footprints in the snow were the best evidence: an unseen horse.
"Thestrals," Albert said softly. "It is said that only those who have witnessed death can see the Thestrals."
"I've heard of these creatures. They're very ominous," Li Jordan said in a low voice as he tried to pull Albert away from the Thestrals. "I've heard that these creatures bring terrible disasters to anyone who sees them; they're a bad omen."
"You're overthinking it. Thestrals are a type of winged horse with a bad reputation associated with the dead. Otherwise, do you think Hogwarts would use them to pull carriages?" Albert couldn't help but roll his eyes at Lee Jordan, pulling his luggage into the express train, intending to find an empty carriage to rest.
Albert was in a good mood, watching the scenery rushing past the window. Along the way, the group ate snacks and chatted about what they planned to do during the Christmas holidays.
When bored, we'd play Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Bean Adventure, which Fred suggested. The game involves closing your eyes, randomly picking up a Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Bean, putting it in your mouth, and seeing who's unlucky enough to get a weird flavor.
Li Jordan was the unluckiest, tasting a grain of dirt. He once again declared in front of everyone that he would never eat Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans again, making everyone burst into laughter.
As the train began passing through Muggle towns, Albert took off his wizard's cloak and put on a Muggle coat. Fortunately, Daisy had thoughtfully prepared the coat for him, otherwise Albert would have completely forgotten about it.
In the afternoon, the train finally stopped at King's Cross Station.
As everyone prepared to leave Platform 9¾, they were stopped at the ticket gate by a gaunt old guard who wouldn't allow too many people to pass through at once.
A large group of people emerged from the sturdy walls at the same time, attracting the attention of the Muggles.
However, the students of Hogwarts still attracted the attention of Muggles.
As Albert stepped out of the wall, he noticed an incongruously dressed man standing nearby, along with several Ministry of Magic personnel.
Among them, there was even one who used the Disillusionment Charm on himself; however, the Disillusionment Charm technique was not very good, and Albert vaguely caught his location.
Before mastering the Disillusionment Charm, Albert might not have noticed the other party, but now that he has some understanding of the Disillusionment Charm, finding a weakness is not too difficult.
Bye-bye, Albert!
Goodbye, Albert!
Li Jordan and Shanna waved goodbye to Albert.
"Goodbye," Albert waved back to them.
"He's there, Mom, Albert's over there!" Nia waved as she ran towards them. Albert waved to his family with a big smile, then turned to Fred and George and said, "Goodbye, I'm off!"
"Goodbye, my family is here too." Fred pointed to a spot not far away, where Albert saw the red-haired Weasleys, along with Fred's brother Ron and sister Ginny.
"What are you looking at?" Nia complained, displeased.
"Okay, okay, I bought you some snacks. But I'll give them to you when we get on the bus." Albert reached out and patted Nia's head, but the girl turned her head away.
"Don't touch a lady's head, that's very impolite," Nia complained earnestly.
Herbert couldn't help but laugh, reaching out to take Albert's luggage and asking, "How's life at Hogwarts?"
"Not bad, I learned a lot of useful things," Albert replied without hesitation.
"Welcome home." Daisy smiled and handed Tom to Albert.
"It's gotten heavier," Albert said, hefting Tom's weight.
"Tom stayed at his grandfather's house for a few days recently," Nia whispered. "You know what kind of person Sansa's grandmother is."
Albert looked at his fat cat and sighed softly. He got into the back seat of the car, placed Tom on his lap, and while grooming him, muttered, "He needs to lose weight."