Chapter Summaries

Sean explained to Sirius that he fought Voldemort because Hogwarts was his home, and Sirius agreed to help him despite the difficult task ahead. The next day, Harry saw the crowds gathered for the release of Master Scamander's final work while his friends waited for Sean.

• Sirius asked Sean why he had chosen to fight the Dark Lord, and Sean replied that he had studied at Hogwarts and considered it a good place.
• Sirius showed Sean the Black family tapestry, explained how his mother erased him after he left home, and recounted how Harry's grandparents had welcomed him.
• Sean asked what Sirius would do if someone tried to destroy the Potters' home, and Sirius said he would kill the attacker before realizing Sean's connection to Harry.
• Sean spoke about prophecy, fate, and his centaur teacher's advice, then asked Sirius for help with their difficult task.
• The next day, Harry withdrew money at Gringotts and found his friends waiting for Sean as crowds gathered outside Flourish and Blotts for Master Scamander's final work.

Sean met Harry, Hermione, Ron, Justin, and Neville as they gathered to buy schoolbooks, then joined them at Flourish and Blotts for the release of Newt Scamander’s Dreams and Gods. He spotted Scamander signing copies and began reading the book, curious about what it said about the Boundary and dreams.

• Sean arrived at Flourish and Blotts and greeted Harry, Hermione, Ron, Justin, and Neville, who discussed their new subjects and books.
• Hermione, Justin, and Sean talked about choosing Muggle Studies, while Ron joked that Justin would take any subject his friends chose.
• The group approached Flourish and Blotts and saw banners advertising Dreams and Gods, including one crediting Dumbledore as its first buyer.
• Hermione pushed into the crowd to buy a copy, while Sean joined the queue and noticed Newt Scamander signing books beside three Kneazles.
• Sean examined the book’s Black Cat cover and began reading, wondering how Scamander understood the Boundary and dreams.

Sean read that a Wizard entering a god’s domain exposed their soul, where opposing angelic and demonic sides fought, and realized Voldemort had been Harry’s opposite soul in the dream. In Diagon Alley, Harry admired the newly unveiled Firebolt while Sirius watched him, unaware that following Harry into a dream could make him lose himself.

• Sean read the old Hufflepuff senior’s account of gods, Wizards’ opposite souls, and the danger of entering a god’s domain.
• Sean connected the description of an opposite soul fleeing through a window to Voldemort’s experience in Harry’s dream.
• Hermione and Justin interrupted Sean, and Hermione decided to investigate whose beautiful dreams Ginny and Hannah had experienced.
• Harry and Ron entered Quality Quidditch Supplies to see the newly displayed Firebolt while Sean stayed outside reading.
• Sirius watched Harry admire the broom, holding Dreams and Gods and longing to follow the Wizard into a dream.

Sirius took Sean to 12 Grimmauld Place and told him about the Black family, his estrangement from them, and his role in James and Lily's deaths. He left Sean with his guilt unresolved, wondering why their ghosts had never haunted him.

• Sirius brought Sean to 12 Grimmauld Place and showed him the Black family tapestry.
• Sirius explained that his favorite cousin Andromeda had been disowned for marrying Ted Tonks, and Sean noticed the links between the Black and Malfoy families.
• Sirius said Bellatrix, Rodolphus, Rabastan, and Barty Crouch Jr. were imprisoned in Azkaban for their cruelty.
• Sirius recalled running away from his family and finding a home with James's parents.
• Sirius confessed that he had persuaded James and Lily to make Peter their Secret-Keeper, then found them dead and blamed himself for their deaths.
• Sirius wondered why James and Lily had never haunted him as ghosts.

Sean helped Sirius decide to pursue seeing his loved ones again, and Sirius prepared for sleep in hopes of meeting them in a dream. In a mist-filled dreamscape, Sirius met the Black Cat and asked for memories, opening a passage back into the past.

• Sean urged Sirius to consider Harry’s choice and reminded him that clearing his name might let Harry live with him.
• Sirius resolved to fight the Dark Lord to save innocent lives and begged Sean to let him see his loved ones again.
• Sean warned Sirius that the world beyond the Veil might not be beautiful, then departed with a Pukwudgie.
• Sirius cleared the cabinet, got bitten by a Silver Snuffbox, and became drowsy after winding a Music Box.
• Sirius awoke in a white mist, met the Black Cat, and asked it to give him memories.

The Black Cat guided Sirius through his memory of a Hogwarts exam, where he saw James, young Sirius, Lupin, and Wormtail, then led him toward a reunion with his dead friends. In The Boundary, Sirius's fear and guilt took the shape of black dogs, and the Black Cat faced them as a giant cat while Sirius ran ahead.

• The Black Cat took Sirius into his Hogwarts memory and watched James, young Sirius, Lupin, and Wormtail finish an exam.
• Sirius watched the four friends joke together after the exam, while the Black Cat also spotted young Snape studying beneath a Beech Tree.
• The Black Cat led Sirius through The Boundary, where he saw houses and signs devoted to the Black Cat.
• Sirius worried that James and Lily might hate him, and his fear, resentment, and guilt summoned a pack of black dogs.
• The Black Cat urged Sirius to run and grew into a giant cat that made the dogs hesitate as Sirius ran past the wilderness.

Sirius struggled with guilt over James and Lily’s deaths while Black Cat guided him through the Dream. He awakened determined to face the future and return if they won, while Black Cat questioned why the dream had lasted five and a half hours.

• Sirius relived his imagined account of James and Lily’s deaths as black dogs pursued him through the Dream.
• Black Cat stopped a black dog from attacking Sirius and told him that fear could remain while he kept moving.
• Black Cat warned Sirius that his guilt and attachment to the past were weighing him down and said he could return at Hogwarts when ready to face the future.
• Sirius vowed to return if they won, and Black Cat offered to guide wandering soul guests out of the Dream.
• Sirius awoke beside the hypnotic music box and invoked Black Cat as the Lord of dreams and mist.
• Black Cat wondered why Sirius’s visit had lasted five hours and thirty minutes.

The Black Cat remained in The Boundary long enough to witness dusk and wondered about its unusual ability to carry souls into Dreams. At the Leaky Cauldron, Harry learned that Sirius Black was searching for him, while Mr. Weasley urgently asked Harry to promise something before leaving for The Burrow.

• The Black Cat explored The Boundary, noticed the growing number of Black Cat decorations and yarn, and stayed there for five hours and forty minutes.
• The Black Cat saw dusk before the mist rose, reflected on its unfinished Divination and its power to bring souls into Dreams, and left hoping to find Lita next time.
• During the second-to-last week of summer vacation, Sean arrived at the Leaky Cauldron as The Weasleys, Harry, Hermione, and Justin prepared to leave for The Burrow.
• Mr. Weasley told Harry he needed to explain something, but Harry said he had overheard Mr. and Mrs. Weasley discussing Sirius Black and was not afraid of him.
• Mr. Weasley began urgently asking Harry for a promise as Mrs. Weasley called him away; Sean, the black dog in Room 10, and Professor Snape watched the exchange.

Harry told Ron, Hermione, Justin, and Sean that Sirius Black had escaped and that Mr. Weasley had warned him not to seek Black out. Snape took Sean back to Hogwarts and forbade him from visiting Hogsmeade until Black was caught, leaving Sean caught between Snape’s refusal and McGonagall’s approval.

• Harry told Ron, Hermione, Justin, and Sean about Mr. Weasley’s warning that Sirius Black had escaped and might be looking for him.
• Ron's See-saw began whistling and glowing, and the group discussed visiting Hogsmeade while Sean admitted he did not know whether he could go.
• Hermione suggested that a professor might approve Sean’s Hogsmeade permit, but Snape arrived and summoned Sean back to Hogwarts.
• Snape warned Sean that Black was extremely dangerous and forbade him from visiting Hogsmeade until the Ministry caught him.
• Sean realized McGonagall had approved his permit but Snape had not, leaving him unsure whether he could visit Hogsmeade.

Sean practiced Fiendfyre and considered reshaping the Dark Arts before Snape taught him to resist the Imperius Curse. The spell awakened the Boundary’s power through Sean’s amulet, and Snape recognized it as the legendary Void Talisman and demanded to know where his own dream was.

• Sean practiced Fiendfyre under Snape’s supervision and pondered whether the Dark Arts could be reshaped to pursue wisdom without corrupting Wizards.
• Snape warned Sean that he needed to control Fiendfyre and began teaching him to resist the Imperius Curse.
• Snape used the Imperius Curse on animals to demonstrate its effects, then cast it on Sean and told him to resist.
• Sean heard competing voices in his mind, regained control, and released vast white mist from the amulet on his chest.
• Snape recognized the amulet’s power as the Void Talisman and asked Sean where his own dream was.

Snape reflected on a portrait knight’s rambling advice, while Sean obtained Dumbledore’s permission to take the Sword of Gryffindor. Sean and Will traveled to 12 Grimmauld Place, where Sirius and an old, gaunt creature were waiting for him.

• Snape let a Knight Portrait visit his Dungeon and listened to its encouragement before throwing the portrait out.
• That night, Snape thought about the rising mist and Sean’s unexplained gain of half a day.
• Sean entered Dumbledore’s office, fed Fawkes herbs, and took the Sword of Gryffindor with Dumbledore’s written approval.
• Will transported Sean to 12 Grimmauld Place, where Sirius and an old, gaunt creature awaited them.
• Sean noticed the severed House-elf heads lining the staircase before reaching Sirius.

Sean arrived at the Black ancestral home carrying the Sword of Gryffindor and prepared to destroy Regulus's Locket. After opening the Locket with Parseltongue, he revealed the living eyes inside, leaving its destruction still to come.

• Sean arrived at Grimmauld Place, where Sirius and Kreacher welcomed him and noticed the Sword of Gryffindor in his hand.
• Sean explained that he needed the sword to destroy Horcruxes, and Sirius asked to touch it.
• Will brought out Regulus's Locket, and Kreacher confessed that he had failed to destroy it and could not tell the family about the cave.
• Sean reassured Kreacher and raised the Sword of Gryffindor, but realized the Locket's protective magic prevented him from shattering it directly.
• Sean spoke Parseltongue to open the Locket, revealing two living eyes behind its glass windows.

Sean destroyed the Horcrux in the Locket, freeing Sirius, Kreacher, and Will from its torment. He gave the fragments to Kreacher, then left Sirius with instructions to seek out Nagini, while a Wizard elsewhere fell into another hazy dream.

• The voice in the Locket tried to exploit Sean's fears and shame Sirius, Kreacher, and Will, but Will rejected its accusations.
• Sean pierced the Locket's eyes with his sword, destroying the Horcrux and ending the voice's torment.
• Sean gave the Locket fragments to Kreacher, who wept and vowed to keep fighting for Regulus's cause.
• Sean asked Sirius to seek out Nagini, then left with Will.
• A Wizard lying in a Dungeon bed sank into a hazy dream.

The Black Cat entered Severus Snape’s dream and witnessed his childhood encounter with Lily and Petunia at the playground. After Snape woke within The Boundary, he surveyed the unreal surroundings with the Black Cat beside him.

• The Black Cat found Snape’s dream and saw him flee the violent quarrels at Spinner’s End.
• The young Lily displayed her magic to Petunia, who reacted with fear and envy.
• Snape emerged from the bushes and told Lily that she was a witch, while Petunia mocked him and his home.
• Snape noticed the Black Cat in his dream, and the dream collapsed as he awakened in The Boundary.
• Snape surveyed the Children’s Home, the road, and the Black Cat statues, then sneered at their appearance.

Snape left The Boundary with a new conviction after seeing how the Black Cat had changed his life. Sean continued training in Fiendfyre, but Snape redirected him toward potions ahead of the Potion Conference, and Sean reflected on the danger of Dark Arts shaping a wizard’s instincts.

• Snape watched the Black Cat struggle with mist clumps in The Boundary and realized the cat had brought something real into his life.
• Snape woke in the morning convinced that his dream had shown him reality clearly.
• Sean failed to find Lita and put the search aside, focusing instead on mastering Fiendfyre before summer vacation.
• Snape stopped Sean from resuming Fiendfyre practice and ordered him to improve his potion brewing before the Potion Conference.
• Sean chose Shrinking Solution and Calming Draught as the remaining potions he needed to brew at an expert level.
• While practicing, Sean recognized his impulse to use Fiendfyre as a warning that mastering Dark Arts such as the Imperius Curse could affect him, and concluded that he needed to reshape their Order within a wizard’s heart.

Sean received Lupin’s letter accepting a place at Green’s Bookshop, but replied that Lupin should become Hogwarts’ Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. As Sean headed to improve his Patronus Charm, he overheard McGonagall and Snape arguing about someone’s release and Dumbledore.

• Bai Yi delivered Lupin’s letter to Sean, in which Lupin offered to remain at Green’s Bookshop as its manager.
• Sean wrote back encouraging Lupin to take the Defense Against the Dark Arts position at Hogwarts instead.
• Sean decided he needed to improve his Patronus Charm before Hogwarts had more Dementor guards after third year.
• Sean overheard McGonagall insist that someone should be allowed to go, while Snape refused and cited an Adoption Order.
• McGonagall said they would all go and Dumbledore would handle matters, prompting Snape to angrily warn her not to mention Dumbledore again.

Snape learned that Sean had a protected safe house and several illegal escape tools, then worried that Sean would seek danger. After spending the end of summer with Professor McGonagall and Marcus, Sean returned to Hogwarts aboard the Hogwarts Express with his friends.

• Professor McGonagall told Snape that she and Snape were secret-keepers for Sean's safe house, and Snape suspected Sean had an unregistered wand as well.
• Sean spent the final week of summer at McGonagall Villa, where Professor McGonagall and Marcus helped him master a corporeal Patronus.
• On September 1, Professor McGonagall asked Sean whether he wanted to visit Hogsmeade, then took him to Platform 9 for the train to Hogwarts.
• Sean reunited with the Weasleys, Harry, Hermione, and Justin at the platform, while Ron pointed out Percy trying to impress Penelope.
• Mrs. Weasley hugged Sean, but Professor McGonagall stopped her from kissing him and told him to board the train.

Sean and the others boarded the Hogwarts Express and found their new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, R. J. Lupin, asleep in their compartment. As the train traveled north, the students discussed Lupin and Sirius Black while Crookshanks stirred up trouble with Ron.

• Mrs. Weasley gave Harry sandwiches and asked him to pass one to Green's boy, while Mr. Weasley pulled Harry aside at the station.
• Sean, Justin, and Hermione found Lupin asleep in a compartment, and Ron, Harry, and Neville soon joined them.
• Justin identified Lupin as the manager of Green's Bookshop, and Sean confirmed that Lupin had more than enough ability to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts.
• Ron suggested going to Hogsmeade together so Black would not attack them, but Hermione warned him that Black had killed people in a crowded street.
• Crookshanks escaped from its basket and jumped onto Ron, who shoved it away as Lupin stirred briefly and continued sleeping.

Sean read on the train while Professor Lupin slept through most of the journey. After waking, Lupin asked Hermione about Green and said he wanted to meet him to ask for his salary.

• Sean read the unfinished Wizarding Magic Chronicles while Lupin slept in their compartment.
• Hermione and the others declined to wake Lupin when the snack trolley arrived, and the witch left them Cauldron Cakes.
• Malfoy mocked Ron, but stopped when he noticed Sean and left after Lupin stirred.
• Ron threatened to curse Malfoy, and Hermione reminded him that Lupin was there.
• Lupin woke, greeted Hermione, and asked whether she knew a wizard named Green.
• Lupin said he wanted to meet Green and ask him for his salary as the train continued north through the rain.

The Hogwarts Express stopped in darkness when a Dementor boarded, and Sean drove it away with a corporeal Patronus. The group learned that Harry had suffered a much stronger reaction than the others, then returned to the compartment as the train neared Hogwarts.

• Lupin showed Ron, Hermione, and the others the Green's Series manuscripts while the train slowed and came to a sudden stop.
• The lights went out, and Sean greeted Lupin before the students crowded into the corridor to investigate the train's stoppage.
• A Dementor entered the carriage, Harry collapsed in distress, and Sean cast a Patronus that drove it away.
• Lupin gave the students chocolate and praised Sean's corporeal Patronus before leaving with Sean, Justin, and Hermione to speak with the driver.
• Ron, Ginny, and Neville described Harry's collapse, and Sean explained that Dementors drained happiness and that chocolate helped.
• Lupin said the train would reach Hogwarts in ten minutes, while Hermione wondered about Sean's Patronus Charm.