Chapter Summaries

Regulus used his Starry Sky Kite Patronus to hold back the Grey Mist, then discovered that a corrupted wand beyond the Stone Gate was its source. Just as he was about to destroy the wand, Albus Dumbledore appeared and took it.

• Regulus's Starry Sky Kite Patronus dispersed the Grey Mist's faces, but they regenerated because their source remained beyond the Stone Gate.
• Regulus reinforced his Shield Charm and prepared Spatial Warp and Fiendfyre as the barrier weakened and the faces attacked his mind.
• The Starry Sky Kite returned carrying a corroded Black Walnut Wood wand that contained the source of the Grey Mist and its faces.
• Regulus prepared to destroy the wand with blazing white fire, but Albus Dumbledore appeared inside the barrier and caught it before it reached the flames.
• Dumbledore examined the wand, made it vanish, and turned to Regulus, who greeted him as the Starry Sky Kite watched curiously.

Regulus survived the Grey Mist’s assault until Dumbledore arrived and dispersed it, then learned the history and nature of the Plague Wand. The chapter ended with Dumbledore explaining that his white light overcame the faces because it carried a little brightness.

• Dumbledore used a white light to clear the Grey Mist and relieve Regulus’s exhaustion.
• Dumbledore praised Regulus for protecting Avery and Alex, while neither asked the other about their secrets or choices.
• Regulus asked about the wand, and Dumbledore identified it as the Plague Wand, forged by Valentino Solito from pain and despair caused by a magical plague.
• Dumbledore explained that the Plague Wand could not be destroyed safely and had been sealed at Hogwarts after Valentino was defeated.
• Regulus asked about Dumbledore’s white light, and Dumbledore said it was a beam with a little brightness in it.

After Dumbledore sent Regulus back to the Slytherin common room, Regulus reflected on the failed operation and agreed to meet him on Saturday. The next day, he reassured Avery and Alex before investigating wandcraft in the Library, where he found a book about emotion-infused wands.

• Dumbledore told Regulus that Macnair, Cuthbert, and Roxier were in the Hospital Wing, then offered to talk with him on Saturday.
• Dumbledore used unfamiliar Space Magic to send Regulus to the Slytherin common room, where Regulus reconsidered the operation and began thinking about whether light could carry darkness.
• Avery and Alex returned to the dormitory, and Regulus reassured them, told them the matter was over, and instructed them not to tell anyone.
• Regulus went to the Library after Charms Class to learn about wands and read that emotion-infused wands were made by forcing intense emotions into them, often through Dark Arts and sacrifice.

Regulus analyzed the Grey Mist and the Plague Wand, concluding that magical properties could counter one another and that he needed to develop more options without rushing. The next morning, he visited Hermes in the Hospital Wing with Avery and Alex, where Avery taunted the recovering boy.

• Regulus read about unusual wands and considered whether his own wand had changed through prolonged use.
• Regulus recalled how his spells had failed against the Grey Mist and reasoned that the Plague Wand's source had to be cut off to stop the faces from returning.
• Regulus identified the Patronus Charm as a natural counter to negative magic and considered Fiendfyre's destructive power, while resolving to follow his existing studies at a measured pace.
• Regulus, Avery, and Alex visited Hermes in the Hospital Wing after Madam Pomfrey said the curse had faded but left him very weak.
• Avery told Hermes, "You're not much, are you?" and Hermes did not argue.

Regulus and his friends visited Hermes, then faced the consequences of investigating the Astronomy Tower without alerting their professors. After learning about Moonlight Orchid in Herbology, Regulus asked Professor Sprout what could oppose darkness as powerful as Dementors, and she began to answer.

• Regulus wished Hermes a quick recovery, and Abros Mulciber told him that Dumbledore had lifted Hermes's curse and asked him to look after Hermes.
• Regulus and Alex brewed an excellent Boil-Cure Potion in Slughorn's class, earning ten points for Slytherin.
• Regulus, Avery, and Alex apologized to Slughorn for failing to report Hermes's trip to the Astronomy Tower, and he warned them to seek help from professors when danger arose.
• Regulus fertilized a Puffapod in Herbology and stayed behind to ask Sprout about plants that could counter dark magic.
• Sprout explained that Moonlight Orchid could repel some lesser dark creatures and help stabilize minds, but Regulus asked what could oppose darkness on the level of Dementors.

Regulus learned from Professor Sprout about the Sunlight Ebony Shrub and its ability to purify dark magic, then considered how plant magic might reveal the nature of opposing attributes. Dumbledore persuaded Sprout to answer Regulus’s advanced questions in their next Herbology class, despite her concerns about exposing a young student to dangerous concepts.

• Professor Sprout showed Regulus the Sunlight Ebony Shrub and explained that it slowly transformed dark magic into neutral magic.
• Regulus left the greenhouse thinking about the relationship between gentle and extreme forms of power and the need to keep studying and practicing.
• Dumbledore met with Professor Sprout and discussed Regulus’s unusual perception of magic and his interest in advanced questions about magical plants.
• Dumbledore asked Sprout to share what she knew if Regulus asked about plants with opposing attributes, including the Sunlight Ebony Shrub.
• Sprout warned that such ideas could be dangerous for an eleven-year-old, but Dumbledore argued that guiding Regulus was safer than restricting him.
• Sprout began describing other plants associated with dark attributes.

Professor Sprout refused to disclose dangerous plants to Dumbledore, hoping he would trust Regulus more. In the Library, Regulus studied wand materials and questioned why wandlore was kept secret and dominated by the Ollivander family.

• Professor Sprout told Dumbledore she would only recommend the Sunlight Ebony Shrub to Regulus, and asked him to trust Mr. Black more.
• After dinner, Avery and Alex followed Regulus to the Library, where they studied together.
• Avery and Alex noticed Lily Evans at the Library entrance and left after acknowledging her, leaving her to join Regulus.
• Regulus read about wand materials and reflected on the lack of explanations in the book and the Ollivander family's control of wandmaking knowledge.

Regulus advised Lily on how to understand Marcia Flint’s awkward attempts to connect, and Lily used his advice to begin a real friendship with her. The chapter ended with Lily thinking that Regulus sometimes sounded like her father.

• Lily told Regulus that Marcia often talked about her family’s possessions and asked how she should respond.
• Regulus explained that Marcia might be trying to make friends in the way she had been taught and advised Lily to listen and ask questions.
• Lily thanked Regulus and invited him to share his achievements with her without fear of seeming boastful.
• Lily asked Marcia about her Diricawl, Silver Star, and listened as Marcia shared stories about it.
• Marcia offered Lily sweets, thanked her for listening, and Lily promised she could share more.
• Lily thought of Regulus and laughed, telling Marcia that he sometimes sounded like her dad.

Regulus told Avery to inform the Cuthbert and Rosier families in person about the Astronomy Tower Incident, while keeping its deeper secrets undisclosed. He then studied and tested movement spells in the Forbidden Section and the Room of Requirement, considering how to combine them to overcome their individual limits.

• Avery asked Regulus if he could tell his family about the Astronomy Tower Incident, and Regulus told him to explain it in person over Easter rather than write a letter.
• Regulus revealed that Abros Mulciber had known Daren McNeil caused Hermes's injury and had helped cover it up, directing the families to ask the Black family for further information.
• Avery nearly asked Regulus about Evans, but stopped when Regulus looked at him, and Regulus left the dormitory.
• Regulus went to the Forbidden Section to research ways to improve his combat mobility, reading about the Swift Charm, Sprint Charm, Sidestep Charm, and Levitation Charm.
• Regulus tested all four spells in the Room of Requirement, identified their limitations, and considered combining them.

Regulus developed and tested a movement tactic that combined four charms, while considering how he might eventually learn or develop true flight magic. He returned to the Dormitory expecting a formal meeting with Dumbledore the next morning.

• Regulus practiced switching between the Sidestep, Swift, Sprint, and Levitation Charms until he could move smoothly through an obstacle course.
• Regulus tested the tactic against sixteen Training Dummies and sustained forty minutes of evasive movement before they stopped attacking.
• Regulus recognized that his Chicken-Run Tactics could not replace true flight and considered the risks of seeking Voldemort's Non-broom Flight Magic.
• Regulus returned to the Dormitory, found Avery and Alex asleep, and prepared for his ten o'clock meeting with Dumbledore.

Regulus met with Dumbledore in the Headmaster’s Office, where they discussed the Astronomy Tower Incident, his Patronus, and the sealed Plague Wand. Dumbledore then asked Regulus how he viewed magic, leaving him to answer.

• Regulus entered the Headmaster’s Office and exchanged a silent signal with his ancestor Phineas Nigellus Black’s portrait.
• Dumbledore offered Regulus sweets and tea, and Regulus asked whether he checked Cockroach Clusters for real cockroaches.
• Dumbledore praised Regulus’s actions during the Astronomy Tower Incident and remarked on his Starry Sky Kite Patronus.
• Dumbledore told Regulus that the Plague Wand had been sealed away so its crimes could not become a tool for pursuing power.
• Dumbledore asked Regulus how he viewed magic.

Regulus explained to Dumbledore how he came to see magic as both a system of comprehensible rules and a mystery shaped by emotion and belief, and Dumbledore affirmed his understanding. Dumbledore then clarified that light did not need to attack darkness: by shining steadily, it could make darkness recede, giving Regulus a new way to think about resisting the grey mist.

• Regulus told Dumbledore that studying magic had taught him its rules, but summoning his Patronus revealed that magic also responded to emotions, beliefs, and desires.
• Regulus described magic as having two parallel paths: one governed by rules and study, and another rooted in mysteries that logic could not fully explain.
• Dumbledore praised Regulus for recognizing that reason and emotion were complementary parts of magic.
• Regulus asked what Dumbledore had meant by saying the light beneath the Astronomy Tower carried only a little light within it.
• Dumbledore demonstrated that light could make darkness recede without fighting it, and explained that Regulus could make his wand a vessel for light so the grey mist would avoid it.

Regulus trained a rapid sequence of movement spells in the Room of Requirement, building a practical combat style he called Chicken-Run Tactics. He left the room thinking about Voldemort’s flight magic and preparing for his formal meeting with Dumbledore the next morning.

• Regulus planned how to chain Sidestep, Swift, Sprint, and Levitation Charms, then practiced until he could move smoothly between them.
• Regulus tested the four-spell sequence against sixteen moving Training Dummies in a simulated ruin and sustained the exercise for forty minutes.
• Regulus judged Chicken-Run Tactics usable but recognized that it could not replace true flight magic, and he resolved to keep Voldemort’s Non-broom Flight Magic in mind.
• Regulus returned to the Dormitory and considered what Dumbledore might ask at their scheduled meeting in the Headmaster’s Office.

Regulus met with Dumbledore in the Headmaster’s Office, where they discussed his conduct during the Astronomy Tower incident, his Patronus, and the sealed Plague Wand. The conversation ended with Dumbledore asking Regulus how he viewed magic.

• Regulus entered the Headmaster’s Office and exchanged a silent greeting with Phineas Nigellus Black’s portrait.
• Dumbledore offered Regulus sweets, then switched to tea after Regulus asked whether cockroach clusters could contain real cockroaches.
• Dumbledore praised Regulus for protecting his companions during the Astronomy Tower incident and admired his Starry Sky Kite Patronus.
• Dumbledore said Fawkes was drawn to Regulus because phoenixes could see souls and were attracted to pure, warm hearts.
• Regulus asked about the Plague Wand, and Dumbledore said it had been sealed away so Valentino Solito’s crimes could not inspire others to seek power.
• Dumbledore admitted he had invited Regulus to ask him a question, then asked how he viewed magic.

Regulus explained to Dumbledore how he saw magic as both a system of rules and a living force shaped by emotion, and Dumbledore affirmed his understanding. Dumbledore then clarified that light magic could repel darkness by its nature rather than by attacking it, leaving Regulus reconsidering how to face the Grey Mist.

• Regulus told Dumbledore that his experience summoning a Patronus showed him magic could be both precisely studied and moved by emotion and conviction.
• Dumbledore praised Regulus for recognizing that reason and feeling were complementary paths in magic.
• Regulus asked Dumbledore what he had meant when he said the beam of light contained only a little light.
• Dumbledore explained that darkness could not be destroyed, but sufficient light could make shadows recede and cause the Grey Mist to avoid a wand imbued with light.
• Regulus considered how natural repulsion differed from directly fighting the Grey Mist with a Shield Charm.

Dumbledore shared his philosophy of leaving space for magic with Regulus, who reflected on his advice and decided to make room for leisure in his life. The chapter ended with Dumbledore watching Regulus spend time outside with Avery and Alex.

• Dumbledore told Regulus that magic needed space to breathe and encouraged him to balance calculation with feeling.
• Regulus thanked Dumbledore and left the office after hearing that Hogwarts would remain his school and a place where he could make mistakes.
• Dumbledore told Phineas Black that Regulus was ready to hear such guidance.
• At lunch, Regulus considered Dumbledore's advice and accepted Avery and Alex's invitation to go outside.
• Dumbledore watched Regulus, Avery, and Alex play in the snow and walk to the Black Lake, then told Fawkes to give Regulus and magic time.

Regulus developed Spatial Warp into a repeatable spell that could move objects accurately over distances of up to fifty meters. After testing its limits and casting it without a Wand, he considered why Natural Magic lacked fixed spells and concluded that its methods might need to vary between wizards.

• Regulus reconsidered his brute-force method for Spatial Warp and began developing an incantation and gestures to guide the magic.
• After weeks of experiments, Regulus successfully moved a Galleon five meters, then tested the spell with a book and a Sickle.
• Regulus completed Spatial Warp as a teachable spell with fixed syllables, standard gestures, and repeatable results.
• Regulus tested the spell's range, size limits, and cooldown, then successfully cast it without a Wand.
• Regulus wondered why Natural Magic had no fixed spell and concluded that its practice might differ according to each wizard's connection with nature.

Regulus reviewed his magical progress and returned Hermes to the Slytherin Dormitory after his recovery. Hermes explained how Daren McNeil had betrayed him during their attempt to break the Protective Charm, while Regulus said Dumbledore had resolved the matter.

• Regulus assessed his advances in spellcraft, Magical Plants, Star Orbit Meditation, and the Spatial Warp Charm, while deciding to postpone work with the Sunlight Ebony Shrub and Fiendfyre.
• Avery told Regulus that Hermes would be discharged, and Regulus agreed that they should collect him.
• Regulus, Avery, and Alex brought the recovering Hermes back from the Hospital Wing, where Regulus saw Daren McNeil pretending to sleep.
• Hermes told Regulus that his family had ordered him to work with Daren to break the Protective Charm beneath the Astronomy Tower.
• Hermes explained that Daren released the Grey Mist from a crystal at the last moment, catching him by surprise.
• Regulus told Hermes that they had learned the truth, the matter had been resolved, and Dumbledore had cleaned it up.

Hermes challenged Regulus to a duel to judge his strength, and Regulus led him to the Room of Requirement. Regulus demonstrated overwhelming power without a wand, leaving Hermes to reconsider how he wanted to compete.

• Hermes told Regulus he wanted to fight him again, and Regulus agreed to settle the matter in a larger space.
• Regulus led Hermes, Avery, and Alex to a Dueling Training Ground in the Room of Requirement.
• Hermes asked Regulus to set the rules, but Regulus invited him to decide.
• Regulus conjured a Stone Spike at Hermes's throat without a wand or incantation, then made it spin until it glowed red-hot.
• Regulus stopped and dispersed the Stone Spike, then asked Hermes how he wanted to compete.

Hermes challenged Regulus to a formal wizard duel, hoping to test how far his Dark Arts could go against Regulus’s overwhelming defenses. After Regulus destroyed Hermes’s spells and shield with ease, Hermes was left exhausted, and the duel’s outcome was clear.

• Hermes proposed a formal duel, and he and Regulus took their places in the Training Ground.
• Hermes tried several basic spells from different angles, but each broke against an invisible barrier surrounding Regulus.
• Hermes intensified his Blood Boil spell, but Regulus shattered it with a burst of magic that knocked Hermes backward.
• Hermes summoned shadow tentacles with Shadow Eater, but Regulus’s barrier crushed them all.
• Nearly out of Magic Power, Hermes raised a Shield Charm against Regulus’s Repelling Charm, which shattered it.