Recaps

Regulus watched Sirius demonstrate his progress in Human Transfiguration to Professor McGonagall, recognizing Sirius’s talent and hard work even as his dragon scales lacked magical properties. Sirius began another demonstration with an ink-bottle stopper, leaving its result unrevealed.

• Regulus stayed in Professor McGonagall’s office to observe Sirius and wait for a chance to ask his own question.
• Sirius showed McGonagall his practice notes, then guessed at the advanced subject Regulus had come to discuss.
• Sirius Transfigured the skin on his forearm into dark Hebridean Black Dragon scales, which Regulus recognized as a precise but purely physical transformation.
• The scales faded after Sirius held the transformation, and Regulus praised his progress while McGonagall showed satisfaction.
• Sirius announced he was not finished, and McGonagall floated an ink-bottle stopper into his hand for another demonstration.

Sirius demonstrated advanced transformations to Regulus and Professor McGonagall, who gave him guidance and a booklet of exercises for developing his Magic Perception. Regulus then insisted Sirius leave the office before he and McGonagall discussed something privately, and Sirius reluctantly went into the corridor.

• Sirius transformed a cork stopper into fire, water, and wind before the wind dispersed and returned to cork.
• Regulus praised Sirius, and McGonagall advised him to solidify small patches of his dragon-scale transformation and learn to sense transformed objects without relying on sight.
• McGonagall tested Sirius's ability to sense a moving sheet of parchment with his eyes closed and gave him a booklet of sensory exercises.
• Regulus told Sirius to leave first, and McGonagall backed him up despite Sirius's protest.
• Sirius grudgingly left the office, then stopped after only a few steps in the corridor.

Regulus asked McGonagall whether he could visit Dumbledore and arranged to use her office to travel by phoenix flame on Saturday. He planned to test whether he could place his Guardian Will inside Hogwarts’s space, then left the office and found Sirius waiting in the corridor.

• Regulus asked McGonagall if Dumbledore would return soon, and she told him he had permission to go find him.
• Regulus chose McGonagall’s office for the phoenix crossing so he could attempt to insert his Guardian Will into a gap in Hogwarts’s space.
• Regulus arranged to borrow the office on Saturday morning and told McGonagall he might need to take leave.
• McGonagall reminded Regulus to submit his Transfiguration essays before Friday and to complete the following week’s essay as well.
• Regulus considered why he could not yet seek knowledge from Voldemort and decided to find Dumbledore first.
• Regulus left McGonagall’s office and found Sirius waiting at the corner of the corridor.

Regulus ignored Sirius’s complaints and led him outside the Castle, where Sirius asked how to gain power. Regulus pointed him toward understanding his relationship with Magic, leaving Sirius to ponder the belief-driven path that suited his intuition.

• Regulus ignored Sirius’s questions about his conversation with Professor McGonagall as they walked toward the Great Hall.
• Regulus left through the Castle gates, and Sirius followed him to a secluded spot beside the stone wall.
• Sirius told Regulus that he had been training but still lacked power, and Regulus advised him to keep thinking.
• Regulus asked Sirius to consider his relationship with Magic and the world, prompting Sirius to struggle with the questions.
• Regulus recognized that Sirius’s intuitive magic could grow through clear, firm belief, though Sirius had not yet understood the path he was already on.

Sirius asked whether Magic and the world would help him rescue Regulus, who urged him to act and find the answer for himself. Regulus explained that he sought freedom beyond the limits of space and time, then agreed to continue training Hermes after Hermes apologized and asked to resume their confrontations.

• Sirius asked Regulus whether Magic and the world would help him do something difficult, and Regulus told him to try rather than rely on someone else's answer.
• Sirius asked what Regulus wanted, and Regulus said he wanted freedom to travel through space and live long enough to explore what lay beyond human limits.
• Sirius and Regulus returned to the Great Hall and went to their respective tables for dinner.
• Hermes stiffly apologized to Regulus in front of their friends, who watched and reacted to his awkward attempt.
• Hermes asked Regulus if they could continue their training, and Regulus agreed before Hermes eagerly ate to regain his strength.

Regulus pushed Hermes through an intense dueling session, then told the others he would be away in India next week. After they accepted the cover story and promised to train, Regulus left to pursue his real plans, which he kept secret.

• Regulus repeatedly attacked Hermes in the Room of Requirement, forcing him to improve his dodging, Legilimency, and Magic Power control.
• After about an hour, Regulus stopped the training, and Hermes managed to say that the ordeal had been good.
• Regulus told Avery, Alex, Lina, and Samuel that he would be away in India, and Avery launched into a long account of its dangers and wizarding customs.
• Regulus revealed that India was a false lead intended to misdirect anyone asking about his whereabouts, and Avery agreed to spread the story.
• Alex nodded that he would keep Lina and Samuel within the limits of what they could reveal, while Regulus warned everyone to make progress before he returned.
• Regulus told them to train and left the Room of Requirement.

Regulus wrote to Orion to arrange leave for a Saturday departure and sent Walburga an ordinary, affectionate letter. At breakfast, Orion planned to disguise Regulus’s absence as a trip to repair the Black family vineyard in France, while anticipating that people might investigate.

• Regulus sent Orion a brief letter saying he planned to leave on Saturday and needed travel arrangements.
• Regulus wrote Walburga a letter about school and his health, responding to her efforts to become a more normal mother.
• Kreacher brought Regulus’s sealed letter to Orion and Walburga at breakfast, and Orion understood that Regulus was preparing to leave after their earlier discussion.
• Orion considered how students and Death Eater sympathizers might investigate Regulus’s absence from Hogwarts.
• Orion planned to tell Slughorn that Regulus was visiting the Black family’s French vineyard to oversee repairs to its protective Magic.

Orion arranged a false trip to France for Regulus, using the story to identify anyone investigating his whereabouts, while Regulus requested leave from Slughorn. Slughorn recognized the letter’s purpose and approved the request, leaving it up to him whether to repeat the false story.

• Orion planned to use a fabricated France itinerary and a false Regulus to expose anyone probing the Black heir’s whereabouts.
• Walburga received a letter from her son, read it repeatedly, and was visibly moved by his greetings and concern for her.
• Regulus read and burned Orion’s detailed letter describing supposed trouble at the Black family vineyard in Provence.
• Regulus visited Slughorn and requested leave for family matters, and Slughorn realized the France story was intended for outsiders.
• Slughorn signed Regulus’s leave form and advised him to bring an extra robe for the cold in France.

Regulus told Lily he would be away for at least a week because of family matters, and the two shared a quiet evening in the Library. Before leaving, Lily promised to help him with his studies, and they parted warmly.

• Regulus read about ancient ritual magic and soul resonance in the Library before Lily joined him.
• Regulus told Lily that he would be away for at least a week and that their weekend practice would be postponed.
• Lily showed Regulus her progress with the Constant Shield Charm and described practicing the Enhanced Senses Charm each night.
• Lily offered Regulus her notes and tutoring, then playfully asked him to call her Professor Lily.
• Regulus and Lily left the Library, with Lily wishing him well as he departed to prepare for his trip.

Regulus Black rode Baruk through the Forbidden Forest and discovered that the Acromantula had built a shock-absorbing suspension system. Preparing to meet Dumbledore without exposing his allegiance, Regulus transformed his appearance into that of a rugged young wizard.

• Regulus arrived near Aragog's nest, and Baruk carried him through the forest on its newly stabilized back.
• Regulus stopped in a clearing, illuminated the forest, and used a water mirror to examine his face.
• Regulus considered how Dumbledore's trust and Voldemort's reliance on fear left both factions vulnerable to betrayal.
• Regulus decided to conceal his identity when contacting Dumbledore outside Hogwarts and planned to alter his appearance, magic, and fighting style.
• Regulus changed his black hair to long, coarse silver-white hair, turned his gray eyes amber with vertical pupils, reshaped his features, and made himself taller and more muscular.

Regulus created a new identity by changing his appearance and making his magic power fierce and explosive, then tested a close-range fighting style. After promising Baruk a future trip and treats, he returned to Hogwarts as himself, ready to leave on his journey.

• Regulus used Betelgeuse's image to make his magic power overflow with a scorching, aggressive texture and practiced a close-range fighting style in the clearing.
• He tested high-speed charges and explosive spells against trees and rocks, confirming that the new fighting style worked.
• Regulus restored his usual appearance and magic power, then reassured Baruk with promises before leaving it behind.
• Regulus Apparated from the Forbidden Forest and flew toward the Castle.

Regulus visited McGonagall’s office, where she fitted his transformed appearance with combat clothing before he used Fawkes’s tail feather to open a brief spatial gap. His attempt to place Bellatrix’s Guardian Will into the Castle failed, but he observed McGonagall restoring the space and left with Fawkes.

• Regulus transformed as he entered McGonagall’s office, and she used Permanent Transfiguration to tailor his clothes for combat.
• Regulus summoned Fawkes with the phoenix tail feather, then used the brief spatial gap created by the Phoenix Flame to push Bellatrix’s Guardian Will into it.
• The Castle rejected the Guardian Will, and McGonagall gathered the remnants and carefully soothed the disturbed space.
• Regulus studied McGonagall’s technique and wondered whether gaining a title could help him earn the Castle’s acceptance.
• McGonagall told Regulus to warn her before trying something like that again, then he departed with Fawkes in a burst of golden flame.

Regulus arrived by phoenix in a remote village near the Scottish border and entered a shabby tavern, where his unleashed Magic Power unsettled the patrons. Albus Dumbledore recognized him despite his altered appearance and watched him with keen interest.

• Fawkes delivered Regulus to a narrow alley and flew away.
• Regulus surveyed the bleak, isolated settlement and entered its tavern.
• Regulus sensed a curse slowly eroding the old man crouched by the bar.
• Regulus's scorching aura made the tavern patrons wary, and two wizards moved closer to their wands.
• Albus Dumbledore recognized Regulus beneath his changed hair, eyes, and clothing, then watched him with interest.

Regulus, using the name Geralt, met Dumbledore at a tavern after knocking down a wizard who challenged him. Dumbledore confirmed he was recruiting, and the two prepared to talk.

• Regulus rejected the tavern's Butterbeer and insulted it, prompting a large wizard to confront him.
• Regulus restrained the wizard's wand arm and knocked him unconscious with a punch, while the man's companion carried him out.
• Regulus cleaned grime from his hand with a flicker of fire, ordered malt ale, and crossed the tavern to meet Dumbledore.
• Dumbledore replaced Regulus's malt ale with cloudy sparkling water, saying he was too young for the drink.
• Regulus introduced himself as Geralt, and Dumbledore confirmed he was recruiting and invited him to talk.

Regulus met Dumbledore in a tavern and reported what he had learned about Voldemort’s altered appearance and diminishing humanity, along with his preparations for war. Dumbledore listened and said he had also been investigating the Inferi.

• Dumbledore studied Regulus’s controlled, outwardly forceful Magic Power and praised how thoroughly he had prepared his appearance and temperament.
• Regulus told Dumbledore he had seen Voldemort at Lestrange Manor and described his waxlike skin, snake-like features, red slit pupils, and undetectable Magic Power.
• Regulus said Voldemort seemed to regard Bellatrix as an object and guessed that he had sacrificed his ability to empathize in pursuit of power.
• Regulus reported that Voldemort was gathering Werewolves under Fenrir Greyback in northern Yorkshire and using supplies, territory, and Potions to control them.
• Regulus shared reports of Inferi, a massacre in Little Hangleton, Ministry infiltration, and Dementors beginning to relent.
• Dumbledore listened to the intelligence and told Regulus that he had also been investigating the Inferi.

Dumbledore explained to Regulus how Voldemort’s growing attacks and the Ministry’s inaction were outpacing his efforts to build a resistance. As a wary, powerful wizard arrived at the tavern, Regulus sized him up.

• Dumbledore told Regulus about disappearances, attacks, and his plans to investigate the Yorkshire border while recruiting allies against Voldemort.
• Dumbledore described the growing attacks on wizarding families and the difficulty of assembling enough people to oppose Voldemort.
• Regulus considered how far Voldemort’s war preparations had advanced compared with Dumbledore’s early resistance efforts.
• Dumbledore checked his Pocket Watch and announced that another guest had arrived.
• A wary wizard entered the tavern, surveyed the room, and approached Regulus and Dumbledore’s table.

Dumbledore tried to recruit Angus Kro to fight Voldemort, but Kro refused because he believed the Wasteland’s Magical Creatures needed his protection. Regulus accepted Kro’s reasons but judged his choice unwise, and ended the chapter by confronting him directly.

• Dumbledore introduced Angus Kro, a former Ministry enforcement officer who tracked poachers, to Regulus, who presented himself as the adventurer Geralt.
• Dumbledore described the Death Eaters’ expanding attacks and asked Kro to join the fight, while Kro questioned him about the attacks’ locations, scale, and available forces.
• Kro refused, saying he needed to remain in the Wasteland to protect Magical Creatures from poachers and would fight Voldemort’s followers only if they came there.
• Regulus considered Kro’s refusal understandable but warned himself that the war would eventually reach the Wasteland.
• Regulus leaned toward Kro, let his Magic Power surge, and told him, “Don't be a pussy.”

Regulus confronted Kro in a wasteland after Kro challenged Geralt, and the two fought through a series of increasingly powerful spells. The chapter ended with both men’s magic surging as they prepared to continue the duel.

• Kro left Dumbledore’s gathering and Apparated to open ground, and Regulus followed him using Spatial Perception.
• Regulus challenged Kro to a fight, while Dumbledore watched from a nearby rise.
• Kro and Regulus traded spells, using the terrain and fast movements to avoid each other’s attacks.
• Regulus intensified his assault and blasted through Kro’s defenses, leaving him with superficial cuts.
• Kro’s anger settled into a colder resolve as his magic power surged, and Regulus’s Betelgeuse heat flared in response.

Regulus fought Kro across the Wasteland, then urged him to leave his solitary post and join Dumbledore’s side in the war. Kro said he would consider it, and Regulus departed with Dumbledore.

• Regulus and Kro exchanged powerful spells as their duel wrecked the Wasteland, while Dumbledore watched from the hills and recognized Regulus’s close-combat style as Abyssal Whisper.
• Regulus overwhelmed Kro at close range, and their fight ended when Kro held his wand to Regulus’s waist while Regulus stopped his fist inches from Kro’s face.
• Regulus challenged Kro’s years of guarding the Wasteland and argued that joining Dumbledore’s fight could help address the problems threatening it.
• Kro said he would consider Regulus’s offer, and Regulus walked back to Dumbledore before vanishing to the hills beside him.
• Dumbledore remarked that Regulus recruited more effectively than he did, and the two departed, leaving the ruined Wasteland empty.

Regulus accompanied Dumbledore to the Hog's Head Inn, where Dumbledore's brother Aberforth greeted them with insults and a quarrel about their respective animals. Regulus watched the brothers trade barbs while reflecting on their history, and the chapter left their purpose for visiting unaddressed.

• Regulus followed Dumbledore through Hogsmeade to the filthy Hog's Head Inn.
• Aberforth emerged from the back room and traded accusations with Dumbledore about the people who followed him.
• Dumbledore and Aberforth argued over the state of the pub, Aberforth's goat, and Dumbledore's Phoenix, Fawkes.
• Regulus sat back and watched the quarrel, considering Aberforth's reputation, his bond with goats, and the brothers' history after Ariana's death.

Regulus and Dumbledore visited Aberforth at the Hog's Head Inn, where Aberforth mocked his brother and gave Regulus a room for the night. Regulus told Dumbledore they would visit a werewolf village the next day to see whether his soul anchor had helped Edgar Tomlin keep his sanity through a full moon.

• Aberforth served Dumbledore his foul homemade gin and complained that Dumbledore only visited when he needed help with someone else's troubles.
• After Aberforth went to feed the goats, Dumbledore made bread and cheese for Regulus, and the two talked in the shabby pub.
• Aberforth gave Regulus a key to a room upstairs and warned him that following Dumbledore would not end well.
• Regulus told Dumbledore he wanted to visit the mining village north of Yorkshire on the next full moon to check on the werewolves.
• Regulus reflected that Edgar Tomlin had already endured one full moon with Guardian Will's anchor in his soul and hoped the experiment would let him retain his sanity again.

Regulus spent the night at the Hog's Head Inn, used magic to improve his bed, and endured Aberforth's awful breakfast before exploring Hogsmeade. After dining at the Three Broomsticks and attracting attention from students and Madam Rosmerta, he left the inn with Dumbledore by Apparition.

• Regulus silently killed rats and other small creatures in his room, then magically repaired and improved his bed.
• Regulus tried Aberforth's unappetizing breakfast and went out to explore Hogsmeade while Dumbledore stayed at the inn.
• Regulus drew attention from Hogsmeade students as he walked through the village, then ate lunch at the Three Broomsticks, where Madam Rosmerta flirted with him.
• Regulus returned to the Hog's Head Inn at night and thanked Aberforth for his hospitality before leaving with Dumbledore by Apparition.
• Aberforth told Regulus not to return and warned Dumbledore not to walk alone at night.

Regulus and Dumbledore returned under concealment to the werewolf camp and found the pack had grown while the filth and misery had returned to the burned clearing. As Greyback rallied the gathered werewolves beneath the full moon, Regulus watched in silence, leaving the camp's next move unresolved.

• Regulus and Dumbledore used powerful concealment charms and Apparated into the camp's central clearing.
• They found the clearing covered in fresh filth and bones, and Regulus sensed that the pack had grown from roughly thirty or forty werewolves to around sixty.
• Dumbledore watched the newly bitten and long-transformed werewolves emerge from their shacks while Regulus considered how Voldemort's attacks were expanding the pack and spreading fear.
• Greyback gathered the werewolves and told the newcomers they could not return to their former lives, insisting that the camp was the only place they belonged.
• Greyback threatened to punish anyone who disobeyed as the pack waited for the full moon, while Regulus withdrew his gaze and noted that Greyback had recovered from the previous encounter.

Regulus and Dumbledore watched the werewolves transform under the full moon, and Edgar endured the change without losing the last spark of his humanity. Dumbledore recognized that Regulus’s Guardian Will was protecting Edgar, while Regulus silently asked whether Dumbledore liked what he saw.

• Regulus found Edgar sitting closer to the center of Greyback’s pack than he had been the previous month, and the other werewolves left him alone.
• Greyback transformed first, followed by more than sixty werewolves who changed amid howls and breaking bones.
• The transformed werewolves rampaged through the clearing, but Edgar stayed by a broken wall instead of joining their fights and frenzied behavior.
• Regulus saw a faint light of humanity persist in Edgar’s eyes and recognized that Bellatrix’s Guardian Will had survived its second full-moon test.
• Dumbledore observed the Guardian Will protecting Edgar’s humanity, understood that Regulus had placed it there, and looked at Regulus with approval and surprise.
• Regulus kept watching Edgar and silently asked Dumbledore whether he liked the light.

Regulus brought Dumbledore to observe Edgar’s failing Guardian Will anchor, and Dumbledore awakened the humanity protected inside it. Edgar gained enough clarity to make choices during his transformation, while Regulus left with a new direction for strengthening the anchor but no understanding yet of how Dumbledore had ignited the flame.

• Regulus and Dumbledore passed through the fighting Werewolf pack to reach Edgar, who remained quiet and apart from the others.
• Dumbledore slipped his will through Edgar’s Mental Barrier and Regulus’s protective shell without disturbing their structure.
• Dumbledore awakened the dim flame of Edgar’s humanity, making it shine within the blue-white Guardian Will shell.
• Edgar relaxed, recognized his own paws, and actively moved away from a nearby wolf instead of joining the pack’s violence.
• Regulus observed Dumbledore’s method and realized that protection could help humanity resist from within, though he still did not understand how the flame had been ignited.