Chapter Summaries

Severus woke in the Prince household and learned that his parents were gone. After Tom told him they had left him behind and his mother had burned down Spinner's End, Severus refused to believe him and broke down in grief.

• Severus woke in an unfamiliar room and panicked when he could not find his parents.
• Lucius told Severus to come downstairs for dinner before Godfather explained what had happened.
• Brutus carried the struggling Severus downstairs, and Tom told him he could never return to Spinner's End.
• Tom said Severus's parents had entrusted him to Tom, then left, and that his mother had burned down their home.
• Severus rushed at Tom, was repeatedly knocked back by a spell, and finally sobbed that it was not real.

Tom took Severus to the burned ruins of Spinner’s End so he could learn that his parents had died, then struggled with guilt and his sense of having no home. Back at the manor, Lucius asked to take Severus under his wing and train him as a confidant.

• Tom brought Severus to Spinner’s End, where a limping neighbor said a fire had killed Severus’s parents and their remains had been found in the ruins.
• Severus rejected the neighbor’s account, but Tom told him the truth would bring only pain and took him back to his godfather.
• Tom returned to Abraxas’s manor and asked Abraxas whether he was cruel for making Severus face reality; Abraxas comforted him and urged him to come home.
• Tom resumed teaching Lucius magical theory during the holidays, and Lucius offered to teach Severus etiquette and cultivate him as a confidant.

Lucius tried to recruit Severus into the wizarding world but injured himself when they tumbled down the stairs. Tom indulged Lucius’s cute act, then went to the Ministry and reunited intimately with Abraxas.

• Tom realized Lucius had inherited Abraxas’s calculating nature, while Lucius dismissed potion brewing because it would ruin his hair.
• Lucius tried to cheer up Severus, who blamed magic for his father’s abuse, and dragged him downstairs despite his protests.
• Lucius and Severus fell down the stairs, with Lucius shielding Severus and injuring his ribs.
• Tom comforted Lucius after Dobby summoned him, and Severus recoiled at Lucius’s sweet, pleading voice.
• Tom went to the Ministry of Magic and kissed Abraxas in his office.

Tom arrived at Black Manor after Orion called for help and found the children fighting. He separated them and assigned Sirius, Severus, and Regulus lines to copy, while wondering where the eldest Black and his godson were.

• Tom came to Black Manor and tried to leave when he saw the children wrestling, but Orion begged him to stay.
• Tom separated the fighting children and asked Sirius and Severus what had happened.
• Severus explained that Sirius had pushed Regulus away and that he had stepped in to help him.
• Tom lifted the spell on Sirius and ordered the three children to copy the Malfoy family rules and the Slytherin rules ten times each.
• When the Black boys protested that they were Blacks, Tom added ten copies of the Black family tree.

Sirius explained to Severus how House of Black's heir training and apparent favoritism had made him feel like a decoy and driven him to want to escape his family. He left the conversation resentful of Lucius, who had never voiced similar complaints.

• Sirius stopped arguing with Severus and reflected on how others scorned him and considered him unfit to inherit.
• Sirius recalled how his parents let him skip etiquette lessons to fly while Regulus endured strict training.
• Sirius told Severus that he had mistaken his family's treatment of him for rejection until he saw their care for Regulus and learned more from Andromeda.
• Sirius described House of Black's contempt for pure-blood zealots and said the family home had felt suffocating.
• Severus remarked that Lucius had never complained or wanted to run away, and Sirius glared at him over the prospect of Lucius becoming his brother-in-law.

Lucius accompanied the Black sisters and endured Bellatrix's insults before she sent him back to supervise copying. At Hogwarts, Tom declined Slughorn's suggestion that he teach Potions and learned that Slughorn planned to stop supplying the Order of the Phoenix with potions.

• Lucius accompanied Bellatrix, Andromeda, and Narcissa, while Bellatrix mocked his inability to remember her name.
• Narcissa pleaded with Bellatrix, who hugged her and insulted Lucius before ordering him to supervise copying at Malfoy Manor.
• Lucius left the sisters, privately blaming Bellatrix for being the greatest stumbling block in his life.
• Tom visited the staff room, where Slughorn complained about his pay and suggested that Tom teach Potions and serve as Slytherin's matron.
• Tom declined Slughorn's suggestion, and Slughorn said he would stop providing potions to the Order of the Phoenix.

Bellatrix watched Andromeda arrive safely at Hogwarts and join Slytherin, while Tom observed the students and spoke with Filius Flitwick about duels and the Potter family. Their conversation left Tom considering Fremont Potter’s wealth, political instincts, and loan of the Cloak of Invisibility.

• Bellatrix relaxed when Andromeda arrived with Professor McGonagall, then grew impatient with the Sorting Hat’s song.
• The Sorting Hat placed Andromeda Black in Slytherin, where Bellatrix drew her sister to her side.
• Tom noticed Rodolphus watching him, searched through his memories, and judged him useful despite his lack of sense.
• Filius Flitwick reminded Tom that reading students’ minds broke the rules, then asked him to duel.
• Tom and Flitwick discussed Fremont Potter’s Potions talent, the profits from Hair Sleekeazy, his closeness with Dumbledore, and his loan of the Cloak of Invisibility.

Tom wondered whether Dumbledore intended to obtain the Resurrection Stone, then began teaching the new students Defense Against the Dark Arts in the Forbidden Forest. He attacked an Acromantula to make the students draw their wands, but they found themselves surrounded by a swarm of spiders.

• Tom considered the Deathly Hallows and suspected Dumbledore might want to borrow the Resurrection Stone.
• Professor Flitwick recalled that he and Minerva had once faced a difficult Sorting Hat decision, and Tom joked about Gryffindor and its missing sword.
• Tom warned his students against arrogance and speaking out of turn before leading them out of the classroom for their first Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson.
• Tom blew apart an Acromantula and ordered the terrified students to draw their wands.
• A student pointed out the swarm of Acromantulas surrounding Tom and the class, leaving the new students wondering whether they could still drop out.

Tom Riddle left the Forbidden Forest after confronting Dumbledore, then met Lyall Lupin in a remote village to see his son Remus. He found the Lupin family living in hardship and learned that an iron door in their home was used during the full moon.

• Tom Riddle protected the young wizards with Fiendfyre and confronted Dumbledore about his promise to teach him.
• Tom complained about the trouble caused by his enemies and left the Forbidden Forest for a small village.
• Tom introduced himself to Lyall Lupin and asked to see Remus.
• Lyall led Tom to his home, where Tom noticed the iron door used during the full moon.
• Mrs. Lupin brought Remus downstairs, and Remus politely bowed from a distant corner.

Tom examined the young Remus Lupin and offered his parents work caring for abandoned wizard children in exchange for Remus receiving an education like an ordinary wizard. Lyall and Hope accepted, while Lyall feared that joining the Order of the Phoenix would cost their son his future.

• Tom examined Remus and found him unusually weak, then put him to sleep so he could speak with his parents.
• Tom offered Lyall and Hope jobs caring for abandoned young wizards in Muggle orphanages, promising Remus the same treatment and education as other wizard children.
• Lyall accepted Tom's offer on behalf of himself and Hope, thanking him for his help.
• Tom left and wondered whether Dumbledore was trying to use Remus to pave the way for him.
• Hope asked Lyall about Tom, and Lyall explained that he had once offended a werewolf and believed they had to choose Tom's offer over joining the Order of the Phoenix.

Tom questioned whether the future could be changed as Dumbledore warned him that powerful groups would force their interests upon him and urged him to control his followers. After Dumbledore left, he brooded over his lost Blood Pact and the failures of the past, while Gellert remained confined in Nurmengard.

• Tom returned to his office and dismissed Dumbledore’s warning at first.
• Dumbledore warned Tom that he could not kill everyone and that pure-bloods, Muggle-borns, and half-bloods would continue to pursue their interests.
• Dumbledore explained that his victory over Gellert had allowed him to control the Order of the Phoenix, then told Tom to keep restless people in check and make choices.
• Dumbledore returned to his office and wondered whether the Blood Pact would have survived if others had not forced him into war.
• Dumbledore lamented that no one loved him anymore, while Gellert remained disheveled and imprisoned in Nurmengard.

Gellert mourned his lost past while imprisoned, and Tom returned to his manor to test and instruct his followers. The chapter left Tom questioning whether supposedly reformed werewolves could be trusted.

• Gellert gazed at the sunset, recalled Albus, and lamented the Deathly Hallows, lightning, the tower, and fate as he treasured a shattered crystal vial.
• Tom returned to his manor, ordered his followers to show their left arms, and revealed a black snake mark on each of them.
• Avery cheerfully called the mark a collar, while Corban kicked him and asked Tom what he wanted them to do.
• Tom asked Gagson when the Goblin Rebellions took place, then explained the 1752 uprising and questioned whether reformed werewolves could be trusted.

Tom ordered Corban Yaxley to warn Greyback that he would deal with him if he lost control, then took Abraxas home from the Ministry to rest. Lucius found them sharing an affectionate moment, but Tom sent him back to the study, where Lucius took out his frustration on Severus.

• Tom told Corban Yaxley to warn Greyback that Tom would handle him if he could not control himself.
• Corban suspected Tom was choosing Dumbledore's side and considering his Ministry contacts, but Tom used Legilimency to warn him not to cross his bottom line.
• Tom took Abraxas from the Ministry and helped ease the pain in his lower back at Malfoy Manor.
• Lucius came upon Tom and Abraxas, teased them for acting like a model couple, and heard Abraxas reflect on how much his son had grown.
• Tom reminded Lucius that an heir belonged in the study, so Lucius returned there and rubbed Severus's head roughly.

Severus tried to prove his worth while rejecting the idea that he might become Lucius’s servant. Lucius sought his father’s support for building powerful alliances, and Abraxas promised to back his decisions.

• Lucius teased Severus about his relationship with Sirius and claimed that he and Severus were the closest of friends.
• Severus decided to become a Potions Master so he could make Malfoys pay ten times the price for potions and avoid being discarded or made a servant.
• Lucius told Abraxas that he aimed to become a qualified Malfoy and would need powerful allies when his father could no longer protect him.
• Abraxas promised to support Lucius’s decisions, and Lucius guessed that his grandfather had once told Abraxas the same thing.

In 1964, Abraxas prepared Lucius for Hogwarts and weighed the dangers facing House Malfoy, while Tom studied forbidden soul magic. Tom reassured Abraxas that he would not lose himself, though he insisted he had reasons to prepare for the future.

• Abraxas told Lucius to treat Narcissa well, find his godfather at Hogwarts, and intensify his magical training.
• Abraxas reviewed a list of young wizards and decided it was time to remind House Lestrange who held power.
• Abraxas told Tom that Rodolphus wanted to use the Blacks' influence to become the Lestrange heir, but the Rosier siblings could deal with him.
• Abraxas discovered Tom was reading about Horcruxes and warned him that forbidden soul magic could drive him insane.
• Tom explained that he did not seek eternal life but wanted to prepare for his godson's future, then reassured Abraxas that his fears would not come true.

Tom returned to Hogwarts in high spirits after mocking Dumbledore, then disciplined Amycus Carrow and Lauren for fighting in class. He left Slytherin down twenty points and assigned Amycus a week of detention with Professor Slughorn.

• Tom told Dumbledore that his love for Grindelwald had made him accept a self-built prison, then mocked his appearance.
• Dumbledore demanded that Tom return and apologize in the Pensieve, but Tom left him behind.
• Tom entered the classroom and used his wand to separate Amycus Carrow and Lauren as they fought.
• Amycus accepted punishment, and Tom deducted twenty points from Slytherin and assigned him detention with Professor Slughorn for a week.

Tom taught the young wizards to counter spells with Transfiguration and assigned them essays and individual assessments. By the Black Lake, he traded barbs with Dumbledore and asked him to introduce Nicolas Flamel.

• Tom had the students practice using Transfiguration to counter offensive spells while he mocked their efforts.
• Tom assigned the students essays on defensive spells and offensive magic, due in a month, followed by one-on-one assessments.
• Tom encountered Dumbledore by the Black Lake and exchanged insults with him.
• Tom asked Dumbledore to introduce him to Nicolas Flamel so he could ask the alchemist some questions.

Tom told Dumbledore he planned to split his soul to protect Lucius and the place that needed him, and Dumbledore agreed to contact Nicolas Flamel while guiding him. Their serious conversation ended with Tom teasing Dumbledore about his confinement magic and offering to listen to his story.

• Dumbledore offered to help Tom with alchemy, but Tom mocked his skill and explained that he wanted to see Nicolas Flamel.
• Tom said splitting his soul was necessary to protect Lucius from the dangers he and Abou had faced, despite Dumbledore warning him about the cost.
• Dumbledore agreed to write to Nicolas Flamel and stay involved as Tom's guide, hoping Tom might achieve the change Dumbledore once wanted.
• Tom burned away Dumbledore's Water Prison Spell with Fiendfyre and teased him about his interest in confinement magic.
• Tom offered to listen as Dumbledore protested that he had never confined anyone in the way Tom implied.

Dumbledore told Tom about his past with Gellert Grindelwald and the guilt that led him to oppose their shared dream of rule. After their duel at the Black Lake, Dumbledore chased Tom to ask to see the Resurrection Stone.

• Dumbledore admitted that he and Gellert had once believed their magical abilities gave them the right to rule, but they disagreed over using force against resistance.
• Dumbledore said an accident he blamed himself for, followed by the Mirror of Erised, made him confront his guilt and his feelings about Gellert.
• Tom challenged Dumbledore to a duel to the death, and their fight lowered the Black Lake's water level and thickened the mist.
• Tom stopped fighting and headed back to the castle, unimpressed by Dumbledore's teaching of Fire God Paves the Way.
• Dumbledore followed Tom and asked to examine the Resurrection Stone that Abraxas wore, while Tom threatened to cut off the hand gripping his sleeve.

Tom refused to lend Dumbledore the Resurrection Stone without supervision, while Gellert left his cell and admitted he had broken his agreement to protect Albus. The chapter ended with Dumbledore pestering Tom for the stone as Tom continued to tease him.

• Dumbledore asked Tom to show him the Resurrection Stone, and Tom agreed to lend it for one day only if he stayed present.
• Dumbledore examined the Cloak of Invisibility and reflected on his memories and a wish that might come true.
• Gellert woke from his memories, called the Resurrection Stone worthless, and asked Krafte to free him.
• Gellert said he had broken his agreement because revealing the truth would take away Albus's will to live.
• Gellert reassured Krafte that Vinda would not attack Britain's wizarding world.
• Tom avoided writing Dumbledore a letter and returning to Malfoy Manor, while Dumbledore followed him and repeatedly demanded the Resurrection Stone.