Chapter Summaries

Nelson and Tom entered the Chamber of Secrets, where Tom released Nagini and revealed that a Basilisk guarded the castle but had gone mad after an accident. Tom began preparing to face it as Nelson resumed telling him about Newt and Tina’s investigation.

• Nelson told Tom about his experiences in Kraków and the Second Salemers while Tom listened for eavesdroppers.
• Tom led Nelson through Hogwarts to the girls’ lavatory, opened the Chamber of Secrets with Parseltongue, and helped him descend safely.
• Nelson and Tom explored the clean underground chamber, and Nelson illuminated it before they entered the hall containing Slytherin’s enormous statue.
• Tom released Nagini from a small ball, and she coiled around him while facing the statue.
• Tom explained that a Basilisk guarded the castle but had lost its mind after an accident more than sixty years earlier, then asked Nelson to continue his story about Newt and Tina.

Nelson and Tom prepared to fight Slytherin’s Basilisk with enchanted protective masks and Nelson’s magical devices. The Basilisk emerged and survived Nelson’s spinning shield attack, leaving the two facing its furious counterattacks in the Chamber of Secrets.

• Tom gave Nelson a pair of Black Crystal glasses that transformed into a protective Faceplate, and Nelson praised its enhanced vision.
• Nelson scattered Small Silver Balls around the palace as he and Tom prepared to battle the Basilisk, while Nagini watched anxiously.
• Tom opened Slytherin’s statue with Parseltongue, and the Basilisk burst out and attacked Nelson.
• Tom used Side-Along Apparition to pull Nelson away as Nelson’s Ring Shield struck the Basilisk and tore through the palace floor.
• Nagini tried to shield Nelson and Tom, but Nelson stepped in front of her and reassured her.
• The Basilisk charged from the dust, and Nelson dodged its attacks while taunting it for being too slow.

Nelson used an array of enchanted weapons and traps to attack the Basilisk after it tore itself free from Slytherin’s chains. As the barrage failed to settle the fight, Nelson and Tom discussed the threat Muggles posed to Wizards and Grindelwald’s motives.

• The Basilisk dragged itself out of Slytherin’s statue and ripped the chains embedded in its wounds free, collapsing the pillar in the process.
• Nelson waited for the Basilisk to reveal itself in the dust, then unleashed arrows and other enchanted projectiles from hidden weapons.
• Nelson used a whirlwind spell to clear the dust, but the Basilisk resisted, so he directed a barrage of gunfire and cannon blasts at it behind the Ring Shield.
• Nelson revealed that silver balls he had scattered around the Chamber contained his weapons and explained how he had prepared them with magic.
• Tom asked whether Grindelwald wanted to rule Muggles, and Nelson admitted that he no longer understood what Grindelwald was trying to do.

Tom and Nelson fought the Basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets, with Nelson’s volleys and enchanted spears pinning it down while Tom prepared a spell. The Basilisk began to regenerate, but Tom’s dark magic seized it as the chapter ended.

• Tom sensed the green fog swelling and prepared to attack as the Basilisk stirred inside it.
• Nelson unleashed two volleys of enchanted ammunition, tearing apart the Basilisk’s body and exposing its regenerative core.
• Nelson pinned the Basilisk with enchanted alloy spears and heated them, preventing it from escaping as it thrashed.
• The Basilisk tore off its own jaw and a smaller Basilisk crawled from its throat, while Tom explained how difficult the creature was to kill.
• Tom removed his mask, resisted the Basilisk’s petrifying gaze, and used dark magic to seize the newly emerged Basilisk, turning its eyes black.

Nelson returned to Hogwarts after three years away, helped Tom defeat the Basilisk and repair the Chamber of Secrets, and prepared to resume his studies. The chapter ended with Professor Slughorn greeting Nelson at dinner before he could escape.

• Tom and Nelson subdued the Basilisk, removed its restraints, and restored the Chamber of Secrets after their battle.
• Nelson told Tom that Mr. Riddle was gravely ill, but Tom refused to discuss the matter and changed the subject to Nelson's plans to practice becoming an Animagus in Albania.
• Tom and Nelson finished repairing the Chamber, then left to eat while Nelson prepared to complete his return-to-school paperwork.
• At dinner, Alphard thanked Nelson for an unspecified favor, and the Slytherins watched Nelson's return as Tom's stare silenced their whispers.
• Nelson tried to avoid Slughorn, but the professor grabbed his shoulder and greeted him enthusiastically.

Nelson returned to Hogwarts, where Slughorn publicly praised his Patronus and drew attention to his achievements. On the way back to the Slytherin common room, Nelson told Tom that Grindelwald’s influence and the wizarding world’s received history concealed deeper truths, leaving Tom to wonder who held them.

• Slughorn welcomed Nelson back to Slytherin, praised his Patronus Charm, and announced that Wizengamot and Wizarding Examinations Authority officials would visit him.
• Tom offered to escort Nelson from the dining hall, and the two left while Slughorn explained the Patronus Charm to the students.
• Tom told Nelson that Slughorn sought sponsors for talented students who could not afford advanced Potions and Alchemy materials after the school governors had rejected his request.
• Nelson suggested that Grindelwald’s followers had influenced ministries and wealthy sponsors, and said pure-blood families were more likely than Muggle-born families to have Squib children.
• Nelson told Tom that wizarding histories contained hearsay and fabrications, and Tom asked whether the truth belonged to the politically unaligned third of wizards.

Nelson returned to Hogwarts, where students remembered his quiet helpfulness and Dumbledore asked about his studies and his Patronus. Dumbledore was relieved Nelson had not become a Dark Wizard, but Nelson challenged his assumptions by describing a wanted Dark Wizard who used magic to heal others.

• Tom asked Nelson what he wanted, and Nelson answered that he wanted to know what he wanted to do.
• Students in the dining hall discussed Nelson's distant but helpful presence, while Dwight recalled Nelson answering the Ravenclaw knocker's riddle for him.
• Professor Sykes reprimanded Dwight for standing on a chair in muddy Quidditch shoes and assigned him to help Ogg observe Black Lake.
• Nelson and Dumbledore shared lemon sundaes, and Nelson gave Dumbledore the form to sign and send to the Ministry of Magic.
• Nelson demonstrated his complete Patronus Charm, and Dumbledore said he was relieved Nelson had not become a Dark Wizard.
• Nelson challenged Dumbledore's assumptions by saying he knew a wanted Dark Wizard who used magic to heal others.

Nelson challenged Dumbledore’s assumptions about Zweig and entered Newt’s memory of the battle in Paris. There, he watched Melgan Wiltening and Elizabeth Williams confront Grindelwald as the battle began.

• Nelson questioned Dumbledore’s claim that Zweig was a dark wizard, and Dumbledore apologized for judging him by stereotypes.
• After Dumbledore vanished in a burst of flame, Nelson found his Pensieve and entered the memory Newt had given him.
• Nelson followed young Newt through the battle-torn streets of Paris toward Grindelwald and the enormous Lethifold surrounding him.
• Nelson saw Melgan Wiltening and Elizabeth Williams face Grindelwald, who greeted them and said the Acolytes would withdraw in fifteen minutes.
• Elizabeth attacked Grindelwald with a massive lightning spell, but he emerged unharmed and prepared to show them a battle between the strong.

Melgan and Elizabeth joined their magic to trap and devastate Grindelwald, who survived by destroying the central waterspout and taking the remaining attacks himself. Just as he explained his defense, Dumbledore appeared in Nelson’s memory and questioned whether it was truly Newt’s memory.

• Elizabeth summoned a gigantic Thunder Dragon while Melgan completed a spell that turned Paris’s storm clouds into enchanted rain, suppressing magic and weakening Fiendfyre.
• Melgan’s rain formed Flood Dragons around Grindelwald, and Elizabeth sacrificed the Thunder Dragon to arm them with lightning and scales.
• Grindelwald’s shield broke, so he summoned black fire; Melgan and Elizabeth then unleashed an enormous combined strike that devastated several blocks of Paris.
• Grindelwald survived with severe injuries and explained that he destroyed the central waterspout to prevent the other attacks from merging into it.
• Dumbledore froze the memory, told Nelson that he had entered it, and pointed out that Newt was far away at Flamel’s house.

Nelson learned that his Lost Mist could reshape memories, and Grindelwald claimed that Nelson’s parents had been betrayed before their deaths. After Dumbledore gave Nelson a guarded account of his parents’ past, Nelson left without seeking revenge yet.

• Dumbledore explained that Nelson’s memory had changed because his Lost Mist could erode memories into a story of his own.
• Grindelwald appeared, revealed his discovery in Limbo, and accused Dumbledore of keeping Nelson from learning the truth about his parents.
• Grindelwald claimed Nelson’s parents had been betrayed, but Dumbledore ended the memory before he could explain further.
• Nelson woke in Dumbledore’s office and demanded an account of his parents’ deaths.
• Dumbledore described Elizabeth Williams and Melgan Wiltening, their relationship, and the Shafiq family’s possible role during the war.
• Nelson left Dumbledore’s office, saying he was not ready to seek revenge on Grindelwald.

Nelson discussed prejudice with Tom while they organized Slytherin’s books, then revealed his plan to save Nagini from her Blood Malediction. He found that the curse was assimilating Nagini’s soul into a snake and proposed trying Animagus training and destroying the snake inside her soul in Limbo.

• Nelson and Tom organized books in the Chamber of Secrets and discussed Wizards’ prejudice toward magical creatures and other people.
• Nelson told Tom and Nagini that he suspected Herpo the Foul had caused Nagini’s inherited Blood Malediction, but Herpo could not break it.
• Nelson examined Nagini’s spirit in Limbo and found that her soul had already taken the form of a snake as the curse assimilated it.
• Nelson proposed helping Nagini become an Animagus to reverse her physical transformation, with Human Transfiguration as another possible solution.
• Nelson said they would need to find and destroy the snake consuming Nagini’s soul in Limbo.

Nelson brought Tom and Nagini through Limbo to question Herpo the Foul about Nagini’s Maledictus blood curse. Herpo could not remove it, but he explained how it worked before being dragged away and shouting at Tom in Parseltongue.

• Nelson led Tom and Nagini through a conjured King’s Cross station and train to the inverted tower where Herpo the Foul was chained.
• Tom learned that Nelson had imprisoned Herpo in Limbo, where the Dark Wizard repeatedly flattered Nelson and begged for mercy.
• Herpo recognized Tom as resembling both a Peverell and a Slytherin, then identified Nagini as a member of a family he had cursed generations earlier.
• Herpo said he could not remove Nagini’s blood curse because separating the beast soul from her would kill her, and explained that it devoured the host’s life force.
• Nelson concluded that Nagini’s consciousness and the snake remained relatively independent, while Herpo shouted at Tom in Parseltongue as Nelson dragged him away.

Tom mocked and subdued Herpo the Foul after Herpo tried to recruit him, while Nelson questioned Herpo about Nagini and the Swooping Evil’s venom. Back in the Chamber of Secrets, Nelson suspected Herpo had a hidden connection to the Maledictus bloodline and planned to investigate, as he and Tom considered how dangerous Herpo might be.

• Nelson released Herpo from his chains, and Tom approached him while Nelson watched with Nagini.
• Tom pretended to admire Herpo, then attacked him, mocked his ancient promises and magic, and demonstrated modern magic against him.
• Herpo accused Tom of betraying his Slytherin heritage, but Tom said his ancestors had survived by rejecting Herpo’s influence.
• Nelson asked Herpo whether Swooping Evil venom could split a soul body, then left with Tom and Nagini after getting the answer he wanted.
• Back in the Chamber of Secrets, Nelson told Tom he suspected the beast soul in the Maledictus bloodline was one of Herpo’s contingencies and said he would seek information.
• Nelson revealed he had found a special medicine that a magical creature could produce endlessly, and he suspected Herpo had a double-digit number of Horcruxes.

Walburga overdressed Nelson for a visit from Ministry officials, and Nelson met Judge Shafiq, who had come to assess his Patronus Charm. Nelson challenged Shafiq over the Ministry’s responsibility for the Dementor attack and claimed compensation, then approached a covered cube beside the Black Lake with Slughorn and the other Wizard.

• Walburga dressed Nelson in heavy ornaments and formal clothes before he escaped to Professor Slughorn’s office without eating breakfast.
• Professor Slughorn introduced Nelson to Judge Shafiq and another Wizard, and Nelson recognized Shafiq from Dumbledore’s public trial.
• Judge Shafiq questioned Nelson about casting a Patronus, and Nelson joked that he expected a Wizengamot summons and trial date.
• Nelson reminded Shafiq that Ministry officials had sent Dementors to Hogsmeade and cited regulations entitling victims of magical creature incidents to compensation.
• Professor Slughorn led the group to a lawn by the Black Lake, where Nelson saw a black-cloth-covered cube and wondered if it concealed a Dementor.

Nelson demonstrated his Patronus Charm for Minister Leach and Judge Shafiq, revealing that his silver falcon had an unusual connection to the Dementor in Slughorn’s glass box. After the falcon destroyed the Dementor, Nelson quietly recovered the small ball it had spat out.

• Minister Leach praised Nelson and suggested he consider joining the Department of Magical Law Enforcement after graduation.
• Judge Shafiq and Minister Leach explained that Nelson’s Patronus needed to be registered and offered him a prize, an Order of Merlin, and an examination exemption for demonstrating it.
• Professor Slughorn revealed that he had captured a wild Dementor, which Nelson recognized as connected to a small metal ball he had carried for years.
• Nelson first failed to summon a Patronus, then recalled his friends welcoming him back to school and conjured a silver falcon.
• The falcon pierced and battered the Dementor before returning a small ball to Nelson, who concealed it and told Judge Shafiq his Patronus was a falcon.

Nelson received recognition for using his Patronus during the Dementor uprising and arranged to collect a Death's-head Hawkmoth pupa from Slughorn. He and Tom traveled to the Leaky Cauldron, where Tom hinted that he had bought something interesting.

• Judge Shafiq explained to Minister Leach that he had been watching Leach's career and discussed why his promotions had been slow.
• Slughorn offered Nelson a wish, and Nelson requested a Death's-head Hawkmoth pupa after learning Tom had already obtained one for him.
• Minister Leach arranged an award ceremony for Nelson the next morning and gave him directions to the Ministry of Magic.
• Nelson and Tom discussed Patronus registration and Tom's first attempt at the Patronus Charm while waiting to travel to the Leaky Cauldron.
• Tom booked two adjoining rooms for three days and told Nelson he had bought something good that he would show him later.

Nelson and Tom visited Diagon Alley before heading into Knockturn Alley to sell Tom’s magical antiques and gemstones. They arrived at Borgin’s shop, where Nelson introduced himself as Karkaroff while examining a red eyeball.

• Nelson and Tom ate breakfast at the Leaky Cauldron, and Tom used an Undetectable Extension Charm to carry a tomato.
• Tom showed Nelson the pet shop he had bought and explained that he planned to use it as a safe house.
• Nelson and Tom entered Knockturn Alley, where Tom warned Nelson to keep his face covered and stay close.
• Tom led Nelson to the Borgin family shop to sell gemstones and a bookshelf they had smashed.
• Borgin greeted Tom, then asked who Nelson was, and Nelson gave his name as Karkaroff while examining a red eyeball.

Tom Chamberlain and Nelson visited Borgin and Burkes to sell goods, but Borgin tried to force Tom to hand over supposed Slytherin relics and magic. Nelson and Tom disrupted the ambush, and Tom prepared to fight as the fog filling the shop began to clear.

• Tom refused to discuss a larger deal with Caractacus Burke and tried to leave, but Borgin Burke arrived and blocked the exit with a crowd of wizards.
• Nelson was bitten by a cursed skull, and Caractacus promised to recover the beads from Nelson’s broken bracelet.
• Borgin asked whether Tom was a pure-blood and demanded access to Salazar Slytherin’s alleged relics and ancient magic.
• Borgin’s men surrounded Tom and Nelson, while Borgin threatened to torture Tom after Tom refused to reveal anything.
• Nelson set off a dense fog in the shop, and Caractacus accidentally disarmed himself while trying to hit Nelson.
• Tom crouched behind a shelf, then turned toward the nearby attacker and raised his wand as red light filled the fog.

Tom and Nelson defeated Borgin Burke and uncovered his interest in the Slytherin relic, but Tom discovered something strange about Borgin’s soul just before Borgin exploded. The blast destroyed Borgin and Burkes and left Tom and Nelson facing the aftermath.

• Borgin Burke revealed that he had traced Nelson’s ring to Morfin Gaunt and believed it was the key to Slytherin’s treasure.
• Nelson distracted Borgin while Tom secretly moved into position, and the pair overcame the remaining attackers.
• Borgin used a magical eye to observe the fight and offered Nelson and Tom money to join his group.
• Tom seized Borgin from behind, then used Parseltongue magic to attack him after Borgin offered five thousand Galleons.
• Tom sensed that Borgin’s soul was only the size of an eye, and Borgin exploded, blasting apart Borgin and Burkes.

Nelson and Tom survived the explosion at Borgin Burke’s shop and subdued Caractacus, who revealed that he had used a Horcrux to divide his soul and prolong his life. Tom exposed inconsistencies in Caractacus’s account as blue-eyed bodies emerged from the ruins and Caractacus disappeared.

• Caractacus confronted Nelson and demanded the magic treasure, but Tom appeared alive behind him in armor and helped disarm him.
• Nelson took Caractacus’s wand while Tom questioned him and showed him two magical eyeballs, one containing part of Caractacus’s soul.
• Caractacus admitted that Borgin Burke was himself and explained how he had created a Horcrux and used a murdered man’s body to make a second Borgin Burke.
• Caractacus offered to help Tom study Slytherin’s magic in exchange for a way to improve the Horcrux, but Tom accused him of distorting the truth.
• Tom revealed a blue-eyed man crawling from the ruins, and more blue-eyed bodies emerged as Caractacus vanished.