Recaps

Regulus reunited with Lily and her family at the station, where his hidden status became unmistakable when the crowd fell silent as he revealed himself. Lily’s parents learned that she had kept news of him from them, while Petunia noticed Snape watching Lily.

• Regulus greeted Mr. and Mrs. Evans and told them he and Lily often practiced magic together.
• Regulus spoke kindly to Petunia, and she blurted out that he was better-looking than Snape.
• Lily reunited with Regulus and Baruk, while Nox startled the spider back into Regulus’s pocket.
• Regulus said goodbye to the Evans family, walked away, and lifted his Disillusionment Charm, prompting the platform to fall silent around him.
• Mr. Evans asked Lily who Regulus was, and Lily told him to read the newspapers hidden under her bed.
• Petunia spotted Snape watching Lily as Lily continued to follow Regulus’s retreating figure.

Regulus returned to Hogwarts and his growing magical and mental presence froze several people on the platform, while a targeted glance unsettled Remus Lupin. He boarded the train with his friends, who began questioning Lina and Samuel about his declaration in Diagon Alley as the train headed into the darkening Scottish sky.

• Avery Cuthbert shouted to Regulus, and Regulus’s glance froze several people who had tried to approach him before he smiled at Eleanor Bones and nodded to the Potter family.
• Regulus’s passing glance made Remus Lupin lose his footing, and Charlus Potter recognized that Regulus had deliberately directed mental pressure at him.
• Regulus greeted Avery, Sebastian Cuthbert, Abros Mulciber, the Roxiers, Lina, and Samuel before boarding the train with his friends.
• After Lina said that she and Samuel had witnessed Regulus’s declaration in Diagon Alley, Avery pulled them into the compartment and demanded the full story.
• The train departed as Baruk watched the passing countryside and Regulus looked toward the darkening sky over Scotland.

Regulus attended Hogwarts’s opening feast as the school began another term amid the growing war and Voldemort’s influence. After Barty Crouch was sorted into Slytherin, Dumbledore urged students to see their enemies as people, choose their own path, and remember that those caught in the middle were not alone.

• Caius Selwyn greeted Regulus at the Slytherin table, where Regulus sat with Avery, Hermes, Alex, Lina, and Samuel.
• Barty Crouch was sorted into Slytherin, and Regulus privately thought the boy would find a real father at Hogwarts.
• Avery questioned Lina and Samuel about the events in Diagon Alley while the Slytherins nearby listened.
• Dumbledore warned the students against dehumanizing labels, urged them to make their own choices, and reassured those caught between sides that they were not alone.
• Regulus reflected that Dumbledore’s words might help those still hesitating, but could not change those who had already committed themselves to Voldemort.

Regulus attended his first Potions class of the year, where Slughorn privately gave him a carefully prepared ointment based on a question Regulus had asked two years earlier. Slughorn explained how he developed it and warned Regulus not to test it without following its specific rules for use.

• Slughorn taught the third-years how to brew Shrinking Solution, and Regulus made a properly colored, smooth batch with steady heat control.
• After class, Slughorn asked Regulus to stay behind while his friends left without waiting for him.
• Slughorn presented Regulus with a sealed jar of odorless ointment he had spent a year and a half developing in response to Regulus's first-year question.
• Slughorn described the historical preparations and ingredients that informed the ointment, including dragon blood and troll heart powder.
• Slughorn resealed the jar and warned Regulus not to experiment with the ointment because it had specific rules for use.

Regulus received a body-strengthening potion from Slughorn, who explained how it could be transformed into a soul-shielding shell capable of blocking Voldemort’s connection through the Dark Mark. The potion’s ingredients and timing pointed to a dangerous process around the winter solstice, and Regulus left with the jar after assuring Slughorn he understood his warnings.

• Regulus recognized the jar as the finished product of two years of work by Slughorn and learned that the ointment could serve as the base for another potion.
• Slughorn warned Regulus never to collect the rare ingredients, brew them during the alignment near the winter solstice, add his soul’s signature, or apply the potion as a complete covering.
• Regulus connected Slughorn’s indirect instructions to the Dark Mark and noticed that the brewing window coincided with Voldemort’s planned Christmas meeting.
• Slughorn explained that a properly formed shell would isolate Regulus’s soul from outside magic, and that disrupting the setting process would prevent it from forming.
• Regulus thanked Slughorn, accepted the jar, and promised not to let the professor find out what he used it for.

Regulus recognized Slughorn’s potion instructions as an extraordinary act of trust and offered him information about a mysterious magical place beneath the North Sea. Slughorn learned that Grindelwald may have arranged for Regulus to find it, but Regulus declared he would choose his own path.

• Regulus realized Slughorn’s soul-related potion could help him oppose Voldemort and decided not to offer money in return.
• Regulus told Slughorn about the Abyssal Whisper and a place beneath the North Sea whose core could reveal the end of a magical path at the cost of free will and independent thought.
• Regulus revealed that Grindelwald owned the document with the place’s coordinates and may have seen him.
• Slughorn concluded that Grindelwald had arranged for Regulus to find the place and wondered whether Regulus had accepted his plans.
• Regulus told Slughorn he would follow his own path rather than let Grindelwald, Voldemort, or Dumbledore dictate it, then left after promising to keep the potion secret.

Regulus researched the ingredients for Slughorn’s soul-affecting potion and sent his findings to his parents, who began arranging to collect them. As Walburga worried about Regulus meeting Voldemort at Christmas, Orion suggested they have another child.

• Regulus searched the Library for information on all nine potion ingredients and sent his findings to his parents with a Family Bloodline Beacon.
• Orion and Walburga read Regulus’s letter and discussed gathering the ingredients and whether Slughorn could be trusted.
• Walburga worried that Regulus would meet Voldemort at Christmas without the potion, but Orion told her not to worry.
• Orion reflected on Sirius, Regulus, Voldemort, and the Black family bloodline while Walburga questioned his confidence.
• Orion asked Walburga, “Let’s have another.”

Regulus attended his first Divination lesson with Ophelia Wickham and tried to understand how diviners perceived the future. The lesson moved from tea-leaf readings to crystal balls, but Regulus found no divinatory magic in either method and remained uncertain about how prophecy worked.

• Regulus climbed to the tower classroom with Avery and their friends, where Ophelia Wickham introduced Divination and demonstrated accurate predictions for two students.
• Wickham taught the class to read tea leaves, while Avery invented fortunes for Alex and Hermes and Regulus examined the cups for magical traces.
• Regulus considered how prophecy might follow connections between people and events, and whether a prediction could change when someone heard it and acted differently.
• Wickham brought out crystal balls, and Regulus found that his was ordinary crystal with no magical structure or stored spells.

During Divination, Regulus considered how prophecies, their listeners, and people’s choices might shape the future, while Lina briefly glimpsed broken red sealing wax in her crystal ball. The lesson ended with Regulus telling Avery, Alex, Lina, Samuel, and Hermes that they would all get beaten up that night, leaving them uneasy about whether his words would come true.

• Lina briefly saw red sealing wax fall onto a stone and break in two inside her crystal ball, but she could not make the image appear again.
• Pruitt claimed he saw himself riding a white horse toward a castle, and Wickham told him to keep looking rather than explain the vision.
• Regulus considered how Snape’s role in conveying Trelawney’s prophecy might connect listeners’ choices to its fulfillment, and wondered whether a prophecy could influence events.
• Avery teased Regulus for seeing nothing in his crystal ball, and Regulus questioned whether a prediction he deliberately arranged to fulfill would count as prophecy.
• As class ended, Regulus told Avery, Alex, Lina, Samuel, and Hermes that they would all get beaten up that night, leaving them wary and embarrassed.

Regulus fought all five of his friends without using a wand, overwhelming four of them before concentrating on Hermes. Hermes kept attacking and resisting Regulus’s mental and physical assaults, but Regulus finally slammed him into the floor and a mishap by Alex and Avery sent his limp body tumbling to his friends.

• Regulus released his mental pressure and invited Avery, Alex, Lina, Samuel, and Hermes to attack him.
• The five coordinated their spells against Regulus, who dodged and countered until he sent Avery, Alex, Lina, and Samuel crashing into the padded wall and floor.
• Hermes continued fighting alone, landing spells and evading Regulus’s attacks despite mounting injuries and mental assaults.
• Regulus pinned Hermes with a Pressure Charm, shattered his Shield Charm, and drove him face-first into the broken floor before the Flame Whip’s blast hurled him through the air.
• Alex cast Slowdown and Shock Dampening on Hermes, while Avery’s Relashio left Hermes limp and flailing until he landed facedown beside his friends.
• Regulus watched Alex and Avery’s spells collide, then fixed his gaze on Avery as Avery drew in his neck.

Regulus watched Baruk chase and bind Avery, Alex, Lina, and Samuel in the Training Ground, then returned to his private room to refine his magic. He successfully used Phase Light to make a stone chip disappear from view and retrieved it from the concealed space.

• Hermes recovered after being knocked out, while Regulus released Baruk from its shrinking Transfiguration and let it play in the Training Ground.
• Baruk chased Avery and the others, and Avery knocked it back with an Arania Exumai spell before Baruk adapted and caught him.
• Baruk dragged Avery around, wrapped Alex, Lina, and Samuel in silk, and left all four bound before returning to Regulus.
• Regulus went to the Private Cabin and practiced controlling two points of light, adjusting their brightness, phase, and direction.
• Regulus made a floating stone chip invisible from several angles with Phase Light, then reached into the concealed space and brought it back into view.

Regulus found James, Sirius, and Peter sneaking toward the Whomping Willow and teamed up with Professor McGonagall to construct a convincing forbidden chamber in their path. The chapter left James and Sirius discovering the bronze doors and preparing to investigate them.

• Regulus spotted James, Sirius, and Peter heading toward the Whomping Willow while Professor McGonagall guarded the tunnel.
• Regulus joined McGonagall, and they agreed to test whether the boys would heed a warning by creating a sealed passage beside the original tunnel.
• Regulus used magic to build aged bronze doors, a warning seal, and a dusty hall of mirrors, while McGonagall advised him on making the trap convincing.
• James and Sirius discovered the newly formed passage and saw the bronze doors at its end.

James, Sirius, and Peter opened a sealed bronze door and entered a chamber full of mirrors, despite the warning not to let the mirrors see anyone. Peter discovered that his reflection was acting independently, and the chapter ended with the doors slamming shut as the reflections of all three boys smiled at them.

• Sirius checked the passage for traps before he and James approached the sealed bronze doors, while Peter urged them to turn back.
• Peter spotted a small recess in the doors, and James and Sirius powered its runes until the doors opened.
• The boys entered a dusty chamber lined with mirrors, and Sirius warned James not to uncover the objects hidden under black cloth.
• James tested a mirror and found that his reflection lagged behind his movements, while Peter noticed his own reflection watching the others and smiling.
• James and Sirius raised their wands as their reflections kept their hands down and smiled, and the bronze doors slammed shut behind them.

Regulus watched James, Sirius, and Peter struggle with the sealed bronze doors while he and McGonagall met the newly arrived Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, Aksha Karnstein. Aksha teased McGonagall about their old friendship and questioned why Regulus was with the Gryffindors, while Regulus recognized the significance of the Karnstein name and studied her unusual magic.

• James failed to force open the bronze doors as Sirius searched for a mechanism and Peter huddled nearby in fear.
• Regulus sensed a swiftly approaching magical presence, readied his power, then recognized the newcomer and withdrew it.
• Aksha Karnstein greeted McGonagall as Little Minerva, and McGonagall acknowledged that she and the students were still outside late at night.
• Aksha noticed the students in the water and teased McGonagall about the Gryffindors and Regulus's presence among them.
• Regulus recalled records of the Karnstein family and concluded that Aksha was an exceptionally old, wealthy vampire with highly disciplined magic.

Regulus watched James and Sirius fight the creatures emerging from the mirrors while he talked with Aksha and McGonagall by the lake. He tried to learn Aksha’s age, but she left him guessing and McGonagall noticed how comfortable he seemed with her.

• Aksha criticized Dumbledore for admitting Remus Lupin to Hogwarts after she heard him howl, and Regulus agreed before adding that Lupin deserved sympathy.
• James attacked his mirror reflection with spells while Sirius bound another reflection with a chain and then urged James to strike the mirrors.
• James and Sirius damaged the mirrors, forcing the crawling reflections back, while Peter stayed huddled in a corner and McGonagall watched with satisfaction.
• Aksha teased Regulus about being well behaved around McGonagall, and Regulus said the professor treated him well.
• Regulus asked Aksha whether she knew Nicolas Flamel to work out her age, but Aksha recognized his purpose and told him to ask directly.
• Regulus turned to McGonagall when Aksha pressed him to ask her age, and McGonagall reflected that he seemed unusually at ease with mature women.

Regulus watched Aksha reveal how she could draw the portion of Voldemort’s curse attached to her into her hand, while recognizing the dangerous connection it retained. He left the curse and its source to the older wizards, and the chapter ended with Aksha and Regulus praising Voldemort’s work as McGonagall objected.

• James and Sirius repeatedly struck the mirror with spells, forcing the creature crawling from it back inside, while Peter stayed frozen by the door.
• Regulus examined Aksha with Magic Perception until she noticed and blocked his view, but he declined to probe further.
• Regulus asked Aksha whether she had encountered the curse affecting the Defense Against the Dark Arts course, and she offered to show him.
• Aksha drew the visible portion of Voldemort’s curse into a tangled clump above her palm, revealing fine threads that connected it to an unreachable location.
• Aksha let the curse sink back into her body and said she would not follow its connection to Voldemort; Regulus decided the matter belonged to Dumbledore and the older wizards.
• McGonagall rebuked Aksha and Regulus for discussing Voldemort’s abilities, while they continued to praise how well he had made the curse.

Aksha learned how Regulus built his Shield Charm flying shell and eagerly planned to try it with him, while McGonagall tried to keep them from causing trouble. Meanwhile, James and Sirius destroyed the haunted mirrors, and Regulus left after McGonagall sent him back to bed, with Aksha arranging a secret daytime meeting.

• Aksha questioned Regulus about his studies and his Fiendfyre-powered flying shell, then proposed that they fly together during the holidays.
• Regulus demonstrated how to shape the Shield Charm shell and explained its steering openings, cushioning charms, and need for constant magical reinforcement; Aksha copied his design.
• Aksha asked Regulus to show her the mushroom-cloud explosion he had made when attacking the Rowle family, but McGonagall objected to causing such damage at school.
• James and Sirius shattered the mirror and defeated the reflections while Peter stayed out of the fight; the three boys escaped when Regulus opened the door.
• McGonagall sent Regulus back to bed, and Aksha told him to meet her during the day without letting the professor know; Regulus agreed.

Lily discussed her parents’ worries about Regulus and the Rowle family affair before asking how powerful a wizard could be. After Regulus described Grindelwald’s threat to burn Paris and Dumbledore’s defeat of him, Lily wondered how Regulus himself compared.

• Lily demonstrated her improved defensive spells, and Regulus praised her progress.
• Lily read parts of her parents’ letter to Regulus, including her father’s concern about the destruction in the newspaper and her mother’s questions about their relationship.
• Regulus told Lily that his business with the Rowle family was over, easing her concern about the danger he had faced.
• Lily asked how powerful a wizard could be, and Regulus explained that Grindelwald’s fire had threatened to consume Paris before Nicolas Flamel, Newt, and other wizards contained it.
• Regulus said Dumbledore later defeated Grindelwald, prompting Lily to ask how powerful Regulus was.

Regulus reassured Lily that he could destroy a city with Fiendfyre, then helped her practice the Patronus Charm and encouraged her to keep pursuing what she truly wanted. Lily left after making Regulus promise to show her his Patronus once hers took shape.

• Regulus told Lily he could burn a city, then joked that London deserved it more than Paris.
• Lily and Regulus discussed Dumbledore's work against the Death Eaters and the worsening attacks outside Hogwarts.
• Lily cast her Patronus several times, producing denser and longer-lasting silver light but no animal form.
• Regulus considered how Sirius might use his memories to cast a Patronus and reflected that pursuing one's desires through action could build strength.
• Lily asked Regulus to show her his Patronus when hers took shape, and he promised before they left the classroom.

During a Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson, Aksha taught students how to escape and defend themselves from werewolves. Slughorn then summoned Regulus, telling him that the Ministry suspected him of murdering Wizengamot member Edmund Wilton, and brought him to face Crouch and Moody.

• Aksha taught the class ways to evade a werewolf, including using obstacles, scent repellent, light, and the Slowing Charm.
• Slughorn interrupted the lesson and asked Regulus to come with him, while Avery silenced students who began whispering.
• Slughorn told Regulus that Edmund Wilton had been murdered and that magical traces at the scene allegedly matched those from Rowle Manor.
• Regulus recalled that Wilton had proposed regulations targeting family magic and suspected Crouch intended to take him to the Ministry before his father could intervene.
• Slughorn led Regulus to his office, where Crouch, Moody, and several Aurors were waiting with investigation documents.

Barty Crouch confronted Regulus Black with evidence linking him to the death of Wizengamot member Edmund Wilton and tried to take him to the Ministry and seize his wand. Slughorn blocked the move while Regulus stayed calm and weighed the political trap, and the standoff ended as Regulus tapped the armrest.

• Crouch showed Regulus the report comparing Wilton’s death scene with the destruction at Rowle Manor and said the department wanted to verify Regulus’s movements and magic.
• Regulus denied killing Wilton, and Crouch ordered the Aurors to take him to the Ministry and restrict his spellcasting.
• Regulus asked whether Crouch had brought the Aurors to arrest him, while Slughorn insisted that Regulus remain at school until Orion arrived.
• Crouch ordered an Auror to secure Regulus’s wand, but Regulus did not hand it over, so Crouch had his refusal recorded.
• Crouch threatened compulsory measures, including Veritaserum, and Slughorn said Crouch would have to record him as an obstruction too.
• Regulus raised his hand and tapped the armrest as the confrontation continued.

Regulus used a sound-propagated Severing Charm to incapacitate Crouch and the Aurors who came to seize his wand, while protecting Slughorn from the attack. Crouch ordered Moody to restrain Regulus, but Regulus raised his finger again, leaving the confrontation poised to continue.

• Regulus assessed Crouch's protections and Auror escort, then decided that Crouch should pay for trying to force him into custody.
• Regulus tapped the armrest and sent an inaudible, Mandrake-infused Severing Charm through the office, making two Aurors collapse and leaving Crouch and Moody struggling with nausea.
• Regulus canceled the spell's vibrations around himself and Slughorn, keeping the professor unharmed while the attack struck the others.
• Slughorn recognized the Mandrake-based spell and saw that the Aurors remained conscious and could recover, so he settled back and judged Regulus to be exercising restraint.
• Crouch regained his wand and ordered Moody to restrain Regulus as the surviving Auror raised his wand and the two fallen Aurors struggled to move.
• Regulus raised his index finger again while Moody aimed his wand at him.

Regulus incapacitated Crouch and several Aurors with increasingly powerful uses of the Severing Charm while Moody resisted, then prepared a lethal third strike. Slughorn and Moody moved to stop him, but McGonagall burst into the office and confronted Crouch.

• Regulus used the Severing Charm to injure Crouch and the Aurors, while Moody dodged one attack but remained impaired.
• Crouch activated an alarm and tried unsuccessfully to reach his escape device as Slughorn assessed the injured men.
• Regulus raised the Severing Charm to its lethal setting, and Slughorn and Moody recognized that his next strike could kill everyone in the office.
• McGonagall burst through the office door and angrily challenged Barty Crouch.

Regulus stopped attacking the Aurors after McGonagall intervened, and Slughorn began treating the injured. Regulus left to meet Orion outside while Crouch recovered and prepared to regain control of the investigation and negotiate with Orion.

• McGonagall entered Slughorn's office and saw Regulus's magic restraining Moody, Crouch, and two Aurors while leaving Slughorn unharmed.
• Slughorn told McGonagall that Crouch had planned to confiscate Regulus's wand and force him to take Veritaserum.
• McGonagall called to Regulus, and he withdrew his magic, stopping the injuries from worsening.
• Slughorn treated Crouch and the young Auror while Moody ordered arriving Aurors to help the wounded and keep others outside.
• McGonagall told Regulus that Orion was waiting on the stone bridge, and Regulus said he would wait for Crouch outside.
• Crouch resolved to keep control of the reports and deployments, preserve room to negotiate with Orion, and ordered the people outside to hold their positions.

Regulus left the dungeons with McGonagall after Crouch’s arrival, then gathered a crowd of Hogwarts students as he headed toward his parents and the Ministry officials. The chapter ended with Regulus walking alone across the bridge toward Orion, Walburga, and the hooded figures while Aurors watched from both sides.

• McGonagall escorted Regulus out of the dungeon corridor as Aurors hurried in to assist the incapacitated Crouch.
• Aksha met Regulus on the stairs, and Regulus told her that Crouch had brought people from the Ministry of Magic.
• Regulus told Avery to gather the Slytherins, and students began assembling as he led them out of the Castle.
• Orion and Walburga waited at the far end of the bridge with more than thirty hooded figures, while Aurors stood between them and the Castle.
• Regulus walked onto the bridge toward his parents as McGonagall, Aksha, and the gathered students watched from the Castle end.