Recaps

Aurora Grindelwald was Sorted into Slytherin, where she warned Daphne Greengrass that a greater threat awaited her. Ian Prince was Sorted into Ravenclaw after the Sorting Hat recognized his resemblance to a lonely woman, provoking an angry reaction at the teachers’ table and a fainting student at Slytherin.

• Aurora Grindelwald was Sorted into Slytherin, whose students welcomed her enthusiastically despite rumors about her family.
• Daphne Greengrass was also Sorted into Slytherin and nervously apologized to Aurora, who told her she had already provoked a greater trouble.
• Peter Papacro was Sorted into Gryffindor before Ian Prince eagerly put on the Sorting Hat.
• The Sorting Hat said Ian belonged in Ravenclaw because he resembled a deceased, lonely woman, and Sorted him there despite having been threatened to choose Slytherin.
• A furious figure at the teachers’ table slammed a hand down, while a student at the Slytherin table pretended to faint.

After Daphne Greengrass fainted during Ian Prince’s Sorting, Professor Sprout took her to the infirmary while Snape watched Ian uneasily. Ian joined Ravenclaw, met the prefect, and attended the opening feast, where Dumbledore introduced the new Defence Against the Dark Arts professor, Ronnie Erich.

• Daphne Greengrass fainted at the Slytherin table, and Professor Sprout carried her to the infirmary after confirming she was unharmed.
• Snape stared at Ian and the Sorting Hat until Dumbledore calmed him, then Ian removed the hat and returned it to Professor McGonagall.
• Ian joined Ravenclaw, shook hands with the students, and met prefect Detrick Wiggins.
• Cho Chang was sorted into Ravenclaw and sat beside Ian, where they discussed Daphne and her insult toward Grindelwald.
• Dumbledore introduced Ronnie Erich as the new Defence Against the Dark Arts professor and began the welcoming feast.

At the Hogwarts banquet, Ian asked Ravenclaw prefect Penelope Clearwater to find two brothers, one of whom had a dead younger sister named Ariana. After the feast, Dumbledore sent the students to their dormitories, and Snape seized the Sorting Hat from Professor McGonagall.

• Ghosts appeared at the banquet and joined the students in eating and joking.
• Penelope Clearwater offered to help Ian search for two brothers, possibly twins, whose younger sister had died and might have been named Ariana.
• Dumbledore warned students to stay out of the Forbidden Forest and reminded them not to use magic in the corridors.
• Ian waved to Aurora across the Great Hall, and she waved back before the students left for their dormitories.
• Snape snatched the Sorting Hat from Professor McGonagall, and the hat cried out for help.

Snape confronted the Sorting Hat over Ian Prince’s placement in Ravenclaw, demanding an explanation for why the boy had not been sorted into Slytherin. The Sorting Hat revealed that Ian’s arrogance toward knowledge made him resemble Rowena Ravenclaw, and Dumbledore accepted that Ravenclaw was the House that could help him reach greatness.

• Snape carried the protesting Sorting Hat toward a restroom to punish it, but Dumbledore persuaded him to stop and hear its explanation.
• Snape argued that Ian’s ambition, cunning, willpower, and understanding of glory made him an obvious Slytherin.
• The Sorting Hat said Ian was suited to become Rowena Ravenclaw’s apprentice, prompting McGonagall and Dumbledore to recognize the significance of its claim.
• Dumbledore revealed that Ian had already shown the ability to improve and create magic, astonishing McGonagall and Snape.
• The Sorting Hat explained that Ian shared Rowena’s arrogance toward knowledge and declared Ravenclaw the House that could help him ascend to greatness.

Ian and the new Ravenclaw students climbed the moving stairs to their Common Room, where a Bronze Eagle Head tested each student with a question before letting them inside. Ian passed with an answer about Rowena Ravenclaw and considered improving the door’s question bank.

• Penelope and Dietrich led the Ravenclaw students up the shifting stairs, and Dietrich pulled Ian away from the crowd.
• Penelope explained that Ravenclaw students had to answer the Bronze Eagle Head’s question to enter the Common Room, and Cho Chang answered that knowledge changed the world more than power.
• Ian answered that he would choose Rowena Ravenclaw as his mentor, then entered after telling the Bronze Eagle Head to ask why next time.
• Ian and Cho Chang explored the blue-and-bronze Common Room and joked about a senior who had repeatedly questioned the door.
• The Bronze Eagle Head continued asking questions, including riddles, and Ian decided its question bank needed improvement.

Ian settled into his Ravenclaw dormitory with roommates William Smith and Michael Jordan, then wrote a reassuring letter to the orphanage while the other boys studied and slept. As rain fell outside Hogwarts, a strange winged creature watched Ian through the dormitory window.

• Ian was assigned to a three-person dormitory with William Smith and Michael Jordan.
• Michael shared the food he had smuggled from the feast and explained that his father had died fighting The Dark Lord.
• William began studying while Ian wrote a letter to Headmistress Elena to reassure the orphanage that he was safe at Hogwarts.
• Michael fell asleep, and William continued studying as Ian finished his letter and went to bed.
• A strange creature with blue wings watched the sleeping Ian from beneath the dormitory eaves.

After a stormy night, Ian and his roommates woke for Hogwarts’s first day of classes and headed to Transfiguration. The chapter ended with Professor McGonagall warning Ian about his questionable freeze-dried food after he recognized her while she was disguised as a cat.

• A strange creature watched Ian from outside the Ravenclaw dormitory until a fiery red Magical Creature chased it into the night.
• William woke Ian and Michael, accidentally startling Michael by striking him hard in the chest.
• Ian, William, and Michael ate breakfast and raced to their first lesson, Professor McGonagall’s Transfiguration class.
• Michael rushed to pet the tabby cat on the lectern, but Ian recognized it as Professor McGonagall and hid his freeze-dried raw meat.
• Professor McGonagall praised Ian’s sharp eyes and warned him that spoiled food could harm his health.

Ian struggled to turn a match into a needle in Professor McGonagall’s Transfiguration class because he approached magic as a way to alter matter. McGonagall recognized his mistaken understanding and introduced him to the ancient idea that wizards give matter new rules, leaving Ian with a revelation.

• Professor McGonagall transformed a lectern into a leopard to demonstrate Transfiguration and warned the Young Wizards about its dangers.
• The students practiced turning matches into needles, and William succeeded before Ian did.
• Ian asked McGonagall why his attempts failed, explaining that he had been trying to convert the wood’s components into iron atoms.
• McGonagall told Ian that magic was the mind’s manifestation and the echo of imagination, not merely a way to distort matter.
• McGonagall wrote “Wizard is Deity” in Runes, giving Ian a new perspective on Transfiguration.

Ian understood that a wizard’s magic power imposed influence on matter, allowing Transfiguration to persist while that influence remained. After successfully turning a matchstick into an iron needle and then experimenting further, he was interrupted by Professor McGonagall when the transformation became smoke.

• Ian realized that magic power acted as a wizard’s innate divine force and that Transfiguration faded when its influence ended.
• Ian cast Vera Verto and transformed a matchstick into a patterned iron needle, impressing Professor McGonagall and his classmates.
• Ian sensed that some of his magic power remained dormant while maintaining the needle’s form, and reasoned that spells and Runes merely guided magic’s influence.
• Ian cast Vera Verto again, causing the needle to peel into green smoke as his classmates watched.
• Professor McGonagall forcibly terminated Ian’s Transfiguration and threatened him with Azkaban after a student compared the smoke to his sister’s underwear.

Ian’s dangerous Transfiguration experiment in Professor McGonagall’s class led her to warn him and the other students about the lethal risks of turning objects into gases or liquids. After class, Ian tested the technique again in the Owlery, killed a mouse with a burst of steel needles, and named his new attack the Prince Killing Curse.

• Ian transformed a matchstick into Gillywater-colored smoke, prompting Professor McGonagall to reprimand him and explain that inhaled Transfiguration could cause fatal injuries.
• Ian admitted he had acted on curiosity, and Professor McGonagall revised her lesson to warn the class that transforming objects into gases or liquids could be deadly.
• Professor McGonagall warned Laura that joking about using such magic on someone could bring punishment worse than expulsion, then ended class.
• Ian left William and Michael to deliver a letter to Wu's Orphanage and escaped an older student's unsettling invitation before reaching the Owlery.
• Ian transformed straw into gas, sent it into a mouse, and changed it into sharp steel needles that burst from the mouse's body; he named the attack the Prince Killing Curse.

Ian confirmed that Transfiguration followed a broader magical path and improved his skill by experimenting in the Owlery. After Professor Ronnie Erich discovered evidence of Ian’s unusual Transfiguration, Ian studied books on the subject in the library and considered its ultimate potential.

• Ian gained six points of Transfiguration proficiency after realizing that wizards could impose rules on matter.
• Ian used Vera Verto to turn straw into a lifelike but dull-witted mouse, then changed it back into straw before leaving the Owlery.
• Ian passed Professor Ronnie Erich, who later found a straw-spiked dead mouse and deduced that Ian had caused its death through Transfiguration.
• Ian ate lunch and went to the library, where he gathered books about Transfiguration and considered how its principles might lead toward the Great Wish Spell.

Professor McGonagall told Dumbledore about Ian Prince’s astonishing Transfiguration progress and worried that Gellert Grindelwald might influence Ian and Miss Grindelwald. Dumbledore said Ian had talent equal to Merlin’s and left McGonagall questioning her assumptions about which student was influencing the other.

• Professor McGonagall reported Ian Prince’s extraordinary Transfiguration progress to Dumbledore.
• Dumbledore compared Ian’s talent to Merlin’s and said the Sorting Hat had chosen him as Lady Ravenclaw’s successor.
• Professor McGonagall worried that Gellert Grindelwald might impose his ideas on Ian and Miss Grindelwald.
• Dumbledore assured McGonagall that Ian’s convictions would resist Grindelwald’s influence and said Ian resembled his younger self.
• Dumbledore told McGonagall that Miss Grindelwald had stood beside Ian, not the other way around.

Dumbledore failed to decipher the Bronze Door but learned that it selected souls and could trap those it deemed unqualified. He prepared to enter it to search for Ian, leaving Hermione and Snape to hope they would both return.

• Dumbledore tried and failed to determine the Bronze Door’s rune sequence, admitting that its ancient magic exceeded his knowledge.
• Hermione worried that Ian might need help, while Snape concealed his concern beneath sharp remarks.
• Dumbledore explained that the door selected souls and could trap those who lacked the proper qualifications.
• Dumbledore said he knew how to activate the door and planned to enter it to look for Ian.
• Dumbledore assured Hermione that Ian would return, then asked Snape to wish him luck before approaching the door.

Hermione, disguised as Snape with Polyjuice Potion, discovered Lockhart had summoned Snape to his office and suspected he had romantic intentions. After helping Snape brew a potion for Ron, she left the dungeon and found Lockhart waiting for her, asking why she had missed their agreed meeting.

• Hermione speculated that Lockhart wanted to give Snape a Love Potion, and Snape warned her to avoid Lockhart until the curse was lifted.
• Hermione brewed a potion under Snape's direction, which woke Ron and revealed that Neville had only been pretending to be unconscious.
• Ron mistook Hermione for a second Snape and insulted Snape, who cursed him to vomit slugs.
• Hermione defended Ron and Neville as friends, but Snape ordered her to leave them behind and return the next day for an antidote.
• Hermione left the office and found Lockhart waiting in the entrance hall, where he asked why she had not come to his office as agreed.

Ian researched historical mysteries in the Hogwarts Library, persuaded Madam Pince to let him borrow extra books, and used a fear spell on Mrs. Norris. He returned to Ravenclaw Tower and hurried with his classmates to Potions, which Ravenclaw would take alongside Slytherin.

• Ian borrowed books about Hogwarts records, wizarding history, the Misty Illusion, and Limbo to investigate Teacher Mara, Pandora, and Ariana’s possible family connection.
• Ian convinced Madam Pince to let him borrow seven or eight books by appealing to her sympathy and promising to bring her candy.
• Ian cast Fear Descends on Mrs. Norris after she growled at him in an empty corridor.
• Ian stored the books in his dormitory, then joined the Ravenclaw first-years as they hurried to Potions Class with Slytherin.

Ian and Aurora paired up for Potions while William panicked after insulting Aurora’s family. The chapter left the first-year students waiting as Snape entered and sealed the classroom door.

• Ian found William sitting alone and learned that Michael had been spending time with a Slytherin girl.
• Aurora approached Ian and William, and Ian introduced William as his shy roommate.
• Aurora asked Ian to partner with her for Potions, and William fled to the corner of the classroom.
• Ian and Aurora discussed Daphne Greengrass, who was still asleep after her shock; Ian agreed that she might be pretending.
• Snape entered the classroom and shut the door, leaving Ian wondering where the expected latecomer was.

Ian and Aurora attended Snape’s Potions class, where Ian recognized Snape’s familiar speech and learned that Aurora’s family could see the future. During their Boil-Cure Potion practical, Aurora did nearly all the work while Ian tended the fire.

• Ian was disappointed that Daphne had not recovered, then borrowed Aurora’s annotated Potions textbook after she duplicated it with Geminio.
• Ian predicted Snape’s familiar introductory speech, and Aurora revealed that she had foreseen the same scene through her family’s gift.
• Aurora said her grandfather was far more capable at seeing the future, but did not answer Ian’s question about whether he had foreseen his own ending.
• Snape told the class to brew Boil-Cure Potion and ordered Michael Jordan back to his own house.
• Aurora prepared the ingredients and stirred the potion while Ian tended the fire, then put it out when the brew was complete.

Ian successfully brewed a Boil-Cure Potion with Aurora, but Snape disputed Ian’s contribution and required Ian to make a second batch alone. Ian completed it while explaining his techniques to the watching Young Wizards, leaving Snape frustrated as the class enthusiastically claimed they understood.

• Ian and Aurora finished their Boil-Cure Potion, and Ian credited their success to both of them.
• Snape awarded Slytherin five points, deducted one point from Ravenclaw, and said Aurora had done the work while Ian had hindered her.
• Snape required two finished potions for the assignment and prevented Aurora from helping Ian brew the second batch.
• Ian processed the ingredients, controlled the heat, and explained the brewing steps while Snape watched for mistakes.
• Ian completed a textbook-quality potion, and the watching Young Wizards called out that they understood the process.

Ian won the Potions class prize for his Boil Cure Potion, and Snape awarded him a pouch of Felix Felicis. Ian gave the largest bottle to Aurora, leaving Snape furious as he overheard him claim he had worked hard to obtain it.

• Snape criticized Ian’s potion as lifeless but accepted it as better than most students’ attempts.
• Jiggs and Singed caused a potion to erupt, and Snape stopped the droplets with a Levitation Charm before warning the class not to repeat the mistake.
• Snape supervised the students until they had brewed passable potions, then awarded Ian the prize and Ravenclaw five points.
• Snape gave Ian a pouch containing Felix Felicis and dismissed the class.
• Ian gave the largest bottle of Felix Felicis to Aurora as a return gift, while Snape overheard him and exploded in anger.

Ian explored Hogwarts and found the entrance to the Room of Requirement, but Peeves startled him and became the target of his magic. Ian discovered he could physically grab the ghost and began tormenting him, leaving Peeves calling for Dumbledore.

• Snape took a longer route back to his safehouse rather than watch Ian divide the spoils, and rumors about him spread among Hogwarts students.
• Ian parted from Aurora and began exploring Hogwarts, using Vera Verto on decorative plants to practice his magic.
• Ian found the likely entrance to the Room of Requirement, where Peeves suddenly jumped out and startled him.
• Ian instinctively cast Sectumsempra at Peeves, whose body split apart before reassembling; Ian then realized his magic could affect the ghost.
• Ian seized Peeves, beat him, and set his hair on fire with Incendio, while Peeves begged a portrait to fetch Dumbledore.

Ian subdued Peeves and confirmed that his strange ability let him affect spirits. He found the Room of Requirement’s vast store of ownerless objects, collected Galleons, and recovered Ravenclaw’s Diadem, which contained a Horcrux, planning to take Voldemort on a voyage the next night.

• Ian threatened Peeves into promising not to report him, then released the frightened spirit.
• Ian opened the Room of Requirement by thinking of a place to hide things and found mountains of abandoned objects.
• Ian discovered that he could summon ownerless Galleons from the clutter, though his attempt to summon everything sellable failed.
• Ian searched the room and found Ravenclaw’s Diadem, now bearing Tom Riddle’s nameplate.
• Ian placed Voldemort’s Horcrux in a battered box and decided to take it on a voyage the next night.

Ian took Ravenclaw's Diadem and spell notebooks from the Room of Requirement, then learned from Silly Barnabas that Voldemort had hidden the corrupted diadem there and cursed the mural to keep silent. Ian left with the diadem, intending to handle its Dark Magic safely, while Silly Barnabas worried that he was studying souls.

• Ian packed Ravenclaw's Diadem and several old spell notebooks from the Room of Requirement, intending to bring the diadem to Teacher Mara and return later for more treasures.
• Silly Barnabas warned Ian not to take the diadem and revealed that he had watched a young wizard hide it in the room.
• Silly Barnabas explained that an Unspoken Curse prevented him from telling anyone who did not already know the diadem was there.
• Ian said he understood souls and would not put on the diadem, then left the Room of Requirement with it.
• Silly Barnabas worried that Ian was researching souls before the troll in the mural resumed beating him.

Ian visited Snape after dinner, where Snape gave him the old Advanced Potion-Making book and revealed that Ian came from a family of potioneers. Ian left with confirmation that Snape was not his father, but he still did not know who had destroyed his family.

• Ian went to Snape’s office and apologized for his attitude toward potions by bowing deeply.
• Snape gave Ian Advanced Potion-Making and warned that he would receive a different set of end-of-term exam questions.
• Ian noticed the Half-Blood Prince’s writing on the book and prompted Snape to reveal that it had belonged to a Potions Master in Ian’s family.
• Snape implied Ian’s family had been wiped out and confirmed no relatives remained, but refused to say who was responsible.
• Ian tried to repay Snape with a Money Bag, claiming he had found Hogwarts treasure, but Snape threw the money back and sent him away.
• Ian picked up the book and wondered whether Voldemort had destroyed his family, thinking of Snape as his only remaining uncle.

Ian visited Hogwarts' Kitchen, where the House-elves happily served him steak and lemonade, and reflected that freeing them could lead to another war. Returning to Ravenclaw after curfew, he found the Bronze Eagle Head waiting to demand an explanation.

• Ian entered Hogwarts' Kitchen and met Defence Against the Dark Arts professor Ronnie Erich, who warned him about Filch and invited him to class the next day.
• After Ronnie Erich left, House-elves Sibi and Hobby prepared steak and lemonade for Ian and celebrated his praise.
• Ian considered House-elves' magically ingrained devotion to service and concluded that trying to free them could lead to another war.
• Ian left the kitchen and returned to Ravenclaw after curfew, carrying Snape's notebook textbook.
• The Bronze Eagle Head told Ian it had been waiting all day to ask him why, then said it simply held grudges.

Ian got past the Bronze Eagle Head by praising Rowena Ravenclaw, then returned to the Common Room and turned his Potions skill into a paid tutoring venture. He ended the night teaching Ravenclaw first-years, gathering his earliest followers.

• Ian failed to convince the Bronze Eagle Head that Rowena Ravenclaw was a worthy teacher until he used a cheesy pickup line, which opened the door.
• Cho Chang told Ian that Professor Erich would teach Irish Pixies in the next Defence Against the Dark Arts class and that Ravenclaw students hoped to earn House points.
• Ravenclaw students praised Ian's work in Potions and asked him to teach them how to brew Boil-Cure Potion.
• Ian agreed to tutor the students for a Sickle per lesson, accepting Chocolate Frogs from one boy in exchange for future lessons.
• Ian began explaining potion preparation to the gathered students and promised to teach them more potions the next day.