“Does it look good?”
After fiddling with the hat on her head for a long time in front of the bathroom mirror, Nia went to the living room to show her new hat to her family.
"It looks good. It suits you very well."
Albert was combing Tom's hair with a comb. When he heard the footsteps, he looked up at Nia who was wearing a hat and said gently, "If you wear a white dress, you will look like a little angel. By the way, do you want me to take some photos for you?"
Although Nia was quite happy in her heart, she still pouted and complained: "You're lying, you always say that."
Albert had been using this method to cheer himself up since he was a child, and now he was too lazy to change his way of saying it.
I am obviously not a child anymore.
Seeing Nia take off her hat and put it aside, Albert changed the subject, "Why don't you try this thing? You don't have to wear makeup anymore."
"What is this?" Nia looked at the wooden box curiously and asked, "Cosmetics or skin care products?"
“It should be considered a skin care product.”
Albert pointed to the glass medicine bottle inside the wooden box.
This is a...well, skin care product that Isobel concocted with the help of Madame Perenelle.
"Skin care products?"
Nia looked at the bottle in Daisy's hand, picked up a bottle from the box, and read the instructions on it:
Plant extract.
Usage: external application.
Effect: Reduce swelling, quickly eliminate acne on the face and eliminate scars.
"Is it effective?" Nia asked suspiciously.
“It will take effect in a few hours at the latest.”
Nia put the bottle back and picked up another one.
Plant extract.
Directions for use: Oral administration, 10 drops at a time.
Effect: Can effectively prevent acne on the face.
Well, actually it’s similar to the effect of taking vitamin C.
It was a bribe from Isobel to Nia. Adolescent girls always encounter similar problems. Based on his own ideas and the special effects of magic plants, Albert asked Isobel to try to make... a beauty potion.
"Mom, what's the effect of your bottle?" Nia put the bottle in her hand back and asked, staring at the bottle of potion in Daisy's hand.
Daisy hesitated for a moment, but still handed the bottle of medicine to Nia.
It is also some kind of plant extract.
Usage: external application.
Effect: Beauty.
The effects of magical plants in some aspects are indeed much stronger than those in the ordinary world.
"Is it too late for me to use it now?" Daisy couldn't help asking as she looked at her son.
"It should be of some use."
"Son, you're not going to spend the entire summer learning this stuff, are you?" Herb looked at Albert with a strange look.
"This was made by Isobel. I just gave her some suggestions. Girls are very concerned about their appearance. Although there are so-called beauty potions in the magic world, the effects are not what you think. So I suggested that she use plant extracts."
"Has it been tested?"
"Yes, we've tested it." Albert picked up Tom who wanted to run away and nodded to the two of them. "However, the bodies of wizards and ordinary people seem to be a little different. When you use it, use a smaller amount and see the effect first."
For the rest of the evening, Daisy and Nia discussed the skin care products Albert brought them.
As long as you are a woman, there is no one who does not want to become beautiful.
Finally, Daisy took away the right to use the beauty potion. If it is really effective, she can ask Albert to get another bottle for Nia.
Herb naturally received a gift as well.
Albert bought him a bunch of wine in the French magical world.
Although Herb was not a drinker, the wine from the magical world still piqued his interest. While tasting the wine to experience the novelty, he compared it with the various wines he had drunk before to see which one tasted better.
Albert sat on the sofa, petting the cat, watching the TV news, and feeding Tom dried fish from time to time.
On the TV screen, the announcer was reporting the news about a fugitive criminal:
… The public must be aware that Blake is armed and extremely dangerous… A hotline has been set up and anyone who knows of Blake’s whereabouts must report it immediately.
"It started around the beginning of August, and similar news appears every night," Herb said to Albert. "The announcers never elaborated on the origins of the criminal named Black. I suspect he may have escaped from your place. By the way, do you want some?"
"That bottle of champagne is for me and Nia." Albert glanced at the bottle of honey champagne on the table and looked at Herb with resentment.
"Sorry, sorry, I thought all of them were for me, so I just randomly took a bottle that you guys could drink too..."
Albert put Tom aside, took the wine glass and asked Nia beside him, "Do you want some too?"
"Can I drink it?" Nia asked with a blink.
"As long as it's in moderation, it's fine." Albert also poured a cup for Nia and Daisy, and explained to Herb: "That guy is called Sirius Black. He escaped from the wizard prison. It is said that he is the first person to escape from the British wizard prison. The magic community currently offers a reward of 10,000 Galleons for him."
"Wizard prison?"
"Well, it is said that on the isolated island overseas, no one can be found. It is full of death and despair, and no one can escape from the guard of the Dementors. Black is the first prisoner to successfully escape in hundreds of years." Albert said calmly.
"Dementors?"
"A very scary monster that feeds on people's joy and brings despair to them," Albert explained.
"Dementors are guards?"
"For now."
"at present?"
"Dementors are evil creatures. Ordinary people cannot see them, but they can sense them. Once a war breaks out, those monsters will side with the evil side and roam around Britain without restraint. This is one of the reasons why I asked you to leave Europe."
"How dare the Ministry of Magic tolerate such a monstrosity?"
"Wizards are arrogant, and... it's said that Dementors can't be killed, only driven away with the Patronus Charm."
"Can't be killed? That doesn't make sense. If Dementors can't be killed, unless they can't reproduce, the whole world would probably be full of Dementors." Daisy thought this statement was unreasonable.
"I don't know." Albert didn't know much about Dementors. He only knew that the Patronus Charm could restrain Dementors.
"However, Black is less valuable than I thought!" Herb made a rough estimate and concluded that the reward was only about 49,700 pounds.
"Ten thousand Galleons is already a lot of money in the wizarding world." Albert felt that Herb was a little bit overwhelmed after winning the lottery and didn't even take the money seriously.
He also understood what Herb meant. After all, it was not surprising that the reward for being the first to escape from prison was higher. Moreover, he now had a wrong understanding of the probability of money in the magical world and the ordinary world.
"That wizard prison must be terrible," Nia whispered.
"Yes, it is terrible."
…
While the Andersons were chatting, something similar was happening at the McDougal household.
Mrs. McDougal was looking at the headdress, necklace and earrings in front of her with an extremely complicated expression. She didn't even know what to say.
"I remember Albert seems to have a vault in Gringotts. You should ask him to put his things in the vault. It will be safer that way." Mrs. MacDougal seemed to have thought of something and sighed softly, "Keep a good eye on him. Don't be like me."
After talking with the Anderson family, Mrs. MacDougal also knew the reason why they wanted the two to get married early. Although she was still reluctant to believe it, seeing the Anderson family's attitude in this regard, and the fact that Albert was a student of Gryffindor College, she also knew that the other party was not a peaceful person.
"If a wizarding war really breaks out, it would be nice to leave Britain."
After all, Mrs. McDougal, who had experienced that period, also knew very well what happened at that time.
"When the time comes, remember to take Katrina with you!"
After learning that the two might go to participate in the Magic School Potions Championship, Mrs. MacDougal also understood that Muggle wizards being too dazzling would not be a good thing in potentially chaotic times.
"You're not leaving?"
"No, this is our home, I won't leave."
"But… "
"Don't worry. I'm a pureblood and I spend most of my time working at St. Mungoel's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries." Mrs. MacDougal whispered soothingly, "It'll be fine."
"No, please don't say that again." Isobel couldn't help but frowned, "Albert thinks setting a flag for yourself is a bad omen."
Mrs. McDougal shook her head, obviously not understanding what Isobel meant by flag, and continued, "Tomorrow, I will put the things in our vault. It's not safe to keep them at home."