Chapter Summaries

Scrimgeour and Corun confronted Michael Landry over his suspected assassination attempt, exposing him as a Death Eater and triggering a fierce fight inside the Floo Network Administration. Michael tried to escape with a Portkey, but two spells struck his defenses from behind before he could get away.

• Scrimgeour and Corun entered the Floo Network Administration to arrest Michael Landry for allegedly using Ministry owls to send Devil's Snare to assassinate an Auror.
• When Scrimgeour confronted him, Michael realized his actions had been exposed and attacked rather than submit to questioning.
• Scrimgeour and Corun fought Michael, who used Dark Arts and wide-area spells while moving toward the other employees to limit their attacks.
• Michael raised three defensive spells, took out a Portkey, and prepared to escape as Scrimgeour and Corun tried to stop him.
• Two spells came from behind Michael, broke through the weakest part of his defenses, and flew toward his back.

Barty Crouch Sr. killed Michael after helping Scrimgeour defeat him, then revealed that Michael was a Death Eater who had acted on Voldemort’s orders. He defended the execution as necessary because the corrupt Ministry could not be trusted to deliver justice, leaving Scrimgeour confronting the conflict between law and vengeance.

• Michael tried to activate his Portkey, but Barty Crouch Sr. ambushed him and Scrimgeour ordered Corun to secure him.
• Barty Crouch Sr. killed Michael with Diffindo before Corun could intervene, shocking Scrimgeour and the Ministry employees.
• Barty Crouch Sr. told Scrimgeour to inspect Michael’s arm, where Scrimgeour and the others found the Dark Mark.
• Barty Crouch Sr. explained that Michael had assassinated an Auror on the Dark Lord’s orders and argued that Fudge might suppress the truth to protect himself.
• Scrimgeour objected that Michael should have faced a lawful trial and life imprisonment, while Barty Crouch Sr. argued that a failed legal system invited vigilante justice.

Barty Crouch Sr. argued to Scrimgeour that the Ministry’s failures justified abolishing Azkaban and introducing the death penalty, then left him to consider the proposal. Scrimgeour concealed the circumstances of Michael’s death, while Barty hoped he might become an ally in pursuing the Ministry for Magic.

• Scrimgeour recalled how a flawed Magical Contract led to an innocent wizard’s imprisonment and, later, the murder of a family of four, reinforcing his doubts about the Ministry’s justice system.
• Barty Crouch Sr. told Scrimgeour that he would abolish Azkaban and add the death penalty if he became Minister for Magic, then Apparated away.
• Scrimgeour ordered Corun to report that Michael had resisted arrest and died accidentally during the Aurors’ response.
• Scrimgeour questioned Barty’s confidence in becoming Minister for Magic after the others had left.
• Barty admitted to himself that he had deliberately revealed his ambitions and hoped Scrimgeour would share enough of his ideals to support him.

Barty Crouch Sr. strengthened his campaign against Fudge while Fudge relied on Umbridge to disrupt Hogwarts and delay his impeachment. The backlash at Hogwarts spread to students’ parents, threatening to topple Fudge before Linley and Irina were ready to replace him.

• Barty Crouch Sr. used the Daily Prophet and the Roll Family’s information network to improve his public standing and expose Fudge’s damaging secrets.
• Fudge placed his last hope in Umbridge, expecting her to create disorder at Hogwarts and divert Dumbledore from the impeachment.
• Umbridge issued Educational Decree No. 26 to stop teachers from discussing Michael’s crimes, but the ban made students more curious about the story.
• Hogwarts students complained about Fudge and Umbridge to their parents, fueling demands that Fudge resign and Umbridge leave the school.
• Linley and Irina’s plan to remove Umbridge at the end of the school year and support Barty Crouch Sr. depended on keeping Fudge in office until then.

Linley and Irina prepared the D.A. Army for combat by shifting their weekly gatherings toward dueling practice and announced that future Illusion Trials would use a punishing new high-difficulty mode. Linley used the Alchemy Detector as a server to tailor a trial to Irvin, who entered an illusion in Knockturn Alley and saw a blue screen appear.

• Linley and Irina resumed holding weekly gatherings for the D.A. Army and focused the young wizards on practicing their dueling skills instead of learning new spells.
• Linley warned the group that high-difficulty Illusion Trials would make death the only failure besides clearing the trial, and that participants might die repeatedly.
• Linley used the Alchemy Detector Nicolas Flamel had given him to power up to ten Illusion Formations and tailor trials to each participant.
• Linley chose Irvin to lead the first high-difficulty trial, and Irvin entered an illusion in Knockturn Alley wearing Auror robes.
• A blue screen appeared before Irvin as he prepared to act.

Irvin entered Knockturn Alley in an Illusion Trial to reclaim the Prophecy Crystal Ball from Antonin Dolohov, choosing the plan that let him destroy the orb and kill the Death Eaters. He fought through increasingly coordinated ambushes and narrowly dodged a combined assault of fifteen Killing Curses as he pursued Dolohov.

• Irvin chose to destroy the Prophecy Crystal Ball and kill the Death Eaters rather than preserve the orb.
• Five Death Eaters ambushed Irvin with Killing Curses, but he dodged their spells and killed all five with Sectumsempra, Palm Thunder, and Thunderbolt.
• Irvin hurried deeper into Knockturn Alley to catch Dolohov before he escaped with the Prophecy Crystal Ball.
• More Death Eaters attacked Irvin from hidden positions, and their Killing Curses grew increasingly coordinated and began predicting his movements.
• Irvin narrowly escaped an assault of fifteen Killing Curses and counterattacked the Death Eaters lying in ambush.

Irvin fought through the Illusion Trial’s Death Eaters and faced Dolohov, the final opponent, while running low on magic. He defeated Dolohov with a surprise Palm Thunder, leaving the trial’s outcome unstated.

• Irvin spent most of his magic unleashing a lightning storm that killed eight of the fifteen Death Eaters and forced the other seven to defend themselves.
• Irvin killed the remaining seven Death Eaters with spells and Disillusionment before Dolohov struck him from behind.
• Irvin recognized Dolohov as the trial’s final opponent and attacked him using what he had learned from Linley and Irina’s earlier fight.
• After ten minutes of combat, Irvin surprised Dolohov with a Palm Thunder that pierced his forehead.

Linley had Irvin and the young wizards test high-difficulty Illusion Trials, with only Hermione and Astoria clearing them besides Irvin. Afterward, Linley taught Harry and the others Occlumency and warned Harry to block the visions Voldemort sent him.

• Irvin collapsed after killing the illusion-generated Dolohov, and Linley explained that he had made the trial easier by having the Alchemy Detector ignore Irvin's Ancient Magic Lightning Strike.
• Linley activated the Illusion Formations and had the young wizards attempt trials that randomly ignored one of their abilities.
• Hermione cleared the trial after three attempts because the simulation ignored her mastery of Sectumsempra, while Astoria cleared it after two failures because her simulated body lacked the Blood Curse.
• Linley ended the gathering satisfied that the young wizards could clear the trials before the battle at the Department of Mysteries, then kept Harry and the others behind for Occlumency practice.
• Linley told Harry that he was unlikely to master Occlumency soon and urged him to activate it whenever his perspective shifted to Voldemort's, since later visions might be deliberate.

Harry resisted Irina’s warning to block Voldemort’s visions, while Linley and Irina cautioned him that Voldemort might use the connection to deceive or control him. After several gatherings of the Illusion Trial, five young wizards had cleared it at least once, and Professor Trelawney was dismissed by Umbridge.

• Harry argued that Voldemort’s visions could help him discover attacks, and Irina warned that Voldemort might exploit their connection.
• Linley and Irina told Harry to use Occlumency if the visions changed or seemed unrealistic, though Harry remained reluctant to shut them out.
• Fred and George practiced using alchemy in combat, while more young wizards attempted the Illusion Trial and five cleared it across three gatherings.
• Umbridge dismissed Professor Trelawney, and students gathered in the Entrance Hall to find her distressed, holding her wand and an empty wine bottle.

Umbridge dismissed Professor Trelawney from her teaching post, but Dumbledore stopped her from forcing Trelawney out of Hogwarts. The professors escorted Trelawney upstairs while Umbridge was left displeased by Dumbledore’s use of a legal loophole.

• Umbridge told Professor Trelawney that the Minister had signed her dismissal order, and Trelawney broke down in tears.
• Professor McGonagall comforted Trelawney and insisted she would not have to leave Hogwarts.
• Dumbledore arrived and told Umbridge that she could dismiss Trelawney but could not expel her from the castle.
• Dumbledore used magic to lift Trelawney’s trunks and draw her behind him, then asked Professor McGonagall to take her upstairs.
• Professor McGonagall, Professor Sprout, and Professor Flitwick escorted Trelawney away, leaving Umbridge displeased.

Dumbledore appointed the centaur Firenze as the new Divination professor, and Firenze taught Harry and the other students centaur star divination. After class, Linley challenged Firenze’s prophecy, suggesting that the future had twisted and the stars’ signs had become unclear.

• Dumbledore introduced Firenze as the new Divination professor, and Umbridge fainted in outrage.
• Harry attended Firenze’s first Divination class in a classroom transformed into a forest and learned about centaur prophecy.
• Firenze taught the students that centaurs relied mainly on observing the stars, while also describing smoke-reading methods.
• Linley stopped Firenze after class and asked whether his prophecy reflected changed or blurred signs in the stars.

Linley revealed his Star Origin to Firenze, who confirmed a five-year-old centaur prophecy about inevitable conflict and a distant future obscured from view. Linley gave Firenze a strand of stellar power in thanks, while elsewhere Umbridge confronted a trembling girl in her office.

• Linley showed Firenze the Star Origin and used stellar power to create a starry sky in Classroom Eleven.
• Firenze confirmed that the centaurs' prophecy came from a divination five years earlier and recited its surviving lines.
• Linley concluded the prophecy concerned a future more distant than the coming conflict with Voldemort.
• Linley gave Firenze a strand of stellar power to improve his perception of the stars.
• Umbridge sat in her office and watched a trembling girl standing before her.

Umbridge pressured Marietta into betraying the D.A. Army by threatening her mother’s job, and Marietta agreed to lead Umbridge to their next gathering. The D.A. Army badge secretly recorded their conversation, while Linley revealed that Marietta’s betrayal was also an opportunity for Dumbledore to leave Hogwarts and search for Horcrux clues.

• Umbridge questioned Marietta about the D.A. Army’s meetings and threatened her mother’s job at the Floo Network Administration.
• Marietta agreed to take Umbridge to the D.A. Army’s next gathering, but remembered the Magical Contract and delayed revealing the group’s secrets until after they were caught.
• A D.A. Army badge hidden in Marietta’s robes transmitted her conversation to Dumbledore’s office.
• Irina regretted that Marietta had chosen betrayal, and Dumbledore noted that this outcome had been part of her plan.
• Linley entered Dumbledore’s office and said Marietta’s betrayal could give Dumbledore a chance to leave Hogwarts and search for Horcrux clues.

Dumbledore worried about Hogwarts while he searched for Horcruxes, and Linley reassured him that Umbridge would not endanger the students. At the next gathering, Linley exposed Marietta's betrayal and arranged for the students to escape before Umbridge arrived, then allowed Umbridge to arrest him and Irina.

• Dumbledore asked Linley to spare Marietta's life, and Linley said the Magical Contract would destroy her future rather than harm her body.
• Linley told the gathered students that Marietta had betrayed them and warned that Umbridge was coming to arrest them.
• Cho Chang identified Marietta as the absent traitor, and the students fled the Room of Requirement for their common rooms.
• Linley and Irina waited until Umbridge reached the eighth floor, then left the vanished Room of Requirement as she arrived.
• Umbridge seized Linley and Irina and marched them to the Headmaster's office, where she entered without knocking.

Fudge summoned Linley and Irina to Dumbledore's office over the D.A. Army, but they denied knowing about the student organization. Umbridge brought in Marietta as a witness, and Fudge offered to promote her mother as a reward.

• Fudge questioned Linley and Irina about the illegal student organization, but both denied being involved.
• Umbridge suggested bringing in the informant, and Fudge agreed.
• Umbridge dragged a sobbing Marietta into the office as a witness.
• Umbridge told Fudge that Marietta's mother, Mrs. Eckert, led the Floo Network Administration and helped monitor Hogwarts fireplaces.
• Fudge promised Marietta's mother a promotion and pay raise, while Dumbledore realized her crying had not been caused by a contract threatening her mother.

Marietta discovered that the Magical Contract had sealed her magic after she betrayed the D.A., while Fudge and Umbridge accused Linley and Dumbledore of retaliating against her. Marietta feared that exposing Linley would provoke him into rebelling against the Ministry and becoming another Dark Lord.

• Marietta told Umbridge that she could no longer control her magic and collapsed, believing she had become a Squib.
• Dumbledore sensed that Marietta's magic remained within her but had been frozen by Mana Suppression, and recognized Linley's contract penalty as the cause.
• Fudge and Umbridge feared losing their own magic, and Umbridge accused Linley and Dumbledore of causing Marietta's condition.
• Fudge called Marietta's punishment retaliation and blamed lawless criminals, while Umbridge urged Marietta to reveal the supposed mastermind.
• Marietta feared that exposing Linley would not restore her magic and could push him into rebellion against the Ministry, creating another Dark Lord.

Dumbledore accepted responsibility for organizing Dumbledore’s Army after Umbridge produced a magically disguised copy of its membership contract. Fudge accused him of plotting to overthrow the Ministry, leaving Dumbledore facing arrest or confrontation.

• Dumbledore raised his Wand to stop Umbridge from roughly handling Marietta, and Kingsley urged Umbridge to calm down.
• Umbridge revealed a Magical Contract listing Dumbledore’s Army members, unaware that Linley had enchanted the replica to make readers forget the names and ensure it would vanish within an hour.
• Fudge celebrated finding the list, but Dumbledore pointed out that the group was named after him, not Rory, Lowell, or Harry Potter.
• Dumbledore claimed he had organized the group and recruited the students, while Marietta silently agreed with him.
• Fudge shouted that Dumbledore was attempting rebellion and trying to overthrow the Ministry of Magic.

Dumbledore refused Fudge’s attempt to arrest him and used overwhelming magic to defeat the Ministry officials in the Headmaster’s office. He left McGonagall unharmed, while the four attackers lay unconscious.

• Fudge ordered Kingsley and Dawlish to arrest Dumbledore and threatened to send him to Azkaban.
• Dumbledore declared that he would not surrender, and McGonagall offered to stand with him.
• Dumbledore told McGonagall to protect Hogwarts, but Fudge, Kingsley, and Dawlish attacked him with Disarming Charms.
• Dumbledore’s magic destroyed the spells and blasted Fudge, Umbridge, Kingsley, and Dawlish unconscious.
• Dumbledore’s protective barrier shielded McGonagall from the destruction, while Kingsley emerged disheveled but uninjured.

Dumbledore left Hogwarts after entrusting its protection to McGonagall, Linley, and Irina, then Fudge installed Umbridge as Headmistress. With Dumbledore gone, Umbridge tightened her cruel rule over the students while Fudge ignored public demands for Dumbledore’s return.

• Dumbledore gave McGonagall a Two-way Mirror and left with Fawkes, while Irina supplied him with Apparition Keys.
• Fudge and Umbridge recovered, searched Hogwarts for Dumbledore, and failed to find him; Fudge left Linley and Irina alone.
• Fudge issued Educational Decree Number Twenty-Eight, appointing Umbridge Headmistress in Dumbledore’s place.
• Parents sent letters condemning Fudge and demanding Dumbledore’s return, but Fudge burned them and dismissed the pressure.
• Umbridge imposed harsh rules at Hogwarts and punished students severely, while Linley and Irina saw students suffering from her methods.

Linley supported Fred and George’s decision to leave Hogwarts early and gave them Professor Green’s address in France. The twins began their planned fireworks spectacle across the castle, where the chapter left the students facing explosions and flying magical displays.

• Fred and George told Linley they planned to stage a spectacle and leave Hogwarts for France to study with Professor Green.
• Linley gave Fred Green’s address and assured the twins they could obtain N.E.W.T. certificates later.
• Fred and George revealed their fireworks would retaliate against offensive magic and multiply if hit with a Vanishment Charm.
• The next morning, the twins’ fireworks erupted throughout Hogwarts, sending fire dragons and giant Catherine-wheel displays through the castle.