Chapter Summaries

Pheobe tried to join Vaughn’s private lessons, but he deferred the decision and began discussing Chinese magic with Cheng Quandao instead. Meanwhile, Hermione reunited with Harry and Ron, who decided to investigate Snape, and Ron rushed to announce a money-making scheme to the Great Hall.

• Pheobe entered Vaughn’s laboratory, was overwhelmed by the Flesh Polyhedron’s strange light, and learned Vaughn planned to study Chinese magic with Cheng Quandao.
• Pheobe proposed that she represent Beauxbatons in discussions with Vaughn, but Cheng Quandao said she would need Li Nanyu’s permission before joining their lessons.
• Hermione admitted she had deliberately made mistakes in the assessment, and Harry and Ron explained that Umbridge’s actions had motivated them.
• Hermione concealed her knowledge of Vaughn’s plans with the help of her Personality Armament, while Harry and Ron decided to investigate Snape and Voldemort themselves.
• Hermione restored Ron to normal, and Ron hurried to the Great Hall, where he stood on a chair and announced that he knew what was on the selection exam.

Ron sold his predictions for the afternoon exams, which he had based on Vaughn’s published potions, and Snape later punished Gryffindor despite Ron’s guesses helping many fourth-years pass. Vaughn used Qimen Dunjia to seal Snape’s office and secured Dumbledore’s agreement to his final condition, warning him not to delay.

• Ron claimed he could predict the afternoon exams and sold students a parchment listing potions Vaughn had published, while Percy tried to stop him.
• Students passed the parchment around, and Ron earned a few dozen Galleons before it was torn apart; he later admitted he had guessed the questions would cover Vaughn’s potions.
• Snape deducted fifty points from Gryffindor, but Ron’s predictions helped nearly half the fourth-years pass; Snape’s changed questions left the older students struggling.
• Vaughn used Qimen Dunjia to create a magical field around Snape’s office, and Dumbledore praised his quick mastery of the Eastern magic.
• Vaughn reminded Dumbledore that he had not agreed to Vaughn’s final condition, and Dumbledore finally agreed after Vaughn warned him not to stall.

Vaughn showed Dumbledore and Snape that Peter Pettigrew was alive and revealed how Peter had betrayed the Potters and framed Sirius. They considered using Peter to earn Voldemort’s trust, while Pheobe learned that Vaughn had rejected her because Beauxbatons had offered him no corresponding price for closer cooperation.

• Vaughn showed Dumbledore the Marauder’s Map, and Snape activated it to discover Peter Pettigrew’s name on it.
• Vaughn told Dumbledore and Snape how Peter betrayed the Potters, framed Sirius, and escaped after killing Muggles.
• Dumbledore proposed using Peter as a helper who could earn Voldemort’s trust, and Vaughn said Peter would know what to do once released.
• Pheobe found Madame Maxime with Hagrid near the Forbidden Forest and told her that Vaughn had rejected her request to work beside him.
• Madame Maxime explained that China had offered Vaughn Chinese magic, while Pheobe and Beauxbatons had offered no tuition in return.

Vaughn prepared to turn the World Within the Painting into a dueling venue to lay the groundwork for an eight-school tournament, while worrying that Voldemort’s curse might be affecting Isabella. Later, Fleur Delacour brought him an ancient book that could hold the secret to creating the Philosopher’s Stone.

• Ron’s predictions helped him gain attention after the older students failed Snape’s Potions exam, and Hogwarts announced its exchange representatives.
• Vaughn proposed transforming the World Within the Painting into an international dueling venue, and Dumbledore stayed behind to oversee its upgrades.
• Vaughn noticed Isabella’s burn scar and suspected it was connected to Voldemort’s curse, but Isabella reassured him before teasing him about liking older women.
• Vaughn continued preparations for the Potions exchange while Hermione regretted giving up her chance to participate and hurried toward his Laboratory.
• Pheobe brought Vaughn a decaying copy of The Book of Abraham the Jew, which he recognized as containing the secret to creating the Philosopher’s Stone.

Vaughn acquired Nicolas Flamel’s alchemical book and began reading it with Hermione, while Remus Lupin met Kingsley Shacklebolt and Tonks at the Leaky Cauldron to discuss c’s demands over the Werewolf March Incident. Kingsley realized Lupin’s blunt response could convey Vaughn’s hard line to Scrimgeour, though he remained unsure why Vaughn wanted him to carry that message.

• Pheobe explained that Nicolas Flamel had donated the Book of Abraham the Jew to Beauxbatons after destroying its two most important pages about the Philosopher’s Stone, and Vaughn thanked her for it.
• Vaughn ended his lesson with Pheobe and Cheng Quandao after they struggled with his Muggle-based explanations, then reminded Pheobe to study the Spectral Vision Charm.
• Hermione arrived at the Laboratory after waiting nearby, recognized the book as Flamel’s, and read it with Vaughn while Fruit Tea dozed beside them.
• Remus Lupin met Kingsley Shacklebolt and Tonks at the Leaky Cauldron to discuss c’s position on the fallout from the Werewolf March Incident.
• Lupin said that the Werewolf Class was a prerequisite for c to withdraw its lawsuit, but he could not tell Kingsley what c would do if Fudge rejected Vaughn’s conditions.
• Kingsley realized that repeating Lupin’s words to Scrimgeour would communicate Vaughn’s hard line, and wondered why Vaughn had arranged for him to deliver the message.

Scrimgeour reopened the Werewolf March Case after Vaughn maneuvered events to make the Ministry’s investigation look like pressure on the pure-blood families to accept the Werewolf Class proposal. Dumbledore understood the deception and expected it to divide the opposition long enough to advance the proposal, while Tonks spent the day with Lupin and Hermione tried to hide her all-night study session with Vaughn.

• Kingsley told Scrimgeour that c would withdraw its lawsuit if the Ministry approved the Werewolf Class proposal, and said Lupin had no answer about what c would do otherwise.
• Scrimgeour decided to reopen the Werewolf March Case, while Tonks accompanied Lupin through London under Kingsley’s arrangement.
• Dumbledore told Vaughn that Scrimgeour had requested permission to reopen the case, and Vaughn explained that he had used the meeting at the Leaky Cauldron to steer Scrimgeour into that decision.
• Dumbledore realized Vaughn was using Scrimgeour’s investigation to mislead the pure-blood families and create divisions, with Amelia serving as the go-between.
• At breakfast, Harry suspected Hermione and Vaughn had met the previous night, while Ron blamed Scabbers for his troubles.

Vaughn visited his family, learned that anonymous photographs of Kingsley and Kreacher had reached the Ministry, and returned to Hogwarts with a letter from Japan. He burned the letter after Ginny delivered it, while warning Dumbledore to keep his distance from her.

• Ron told Harry that Scabbers’s disappearance still troubled him, and Vaughn later mentioned it to Arthur at the Burrow.
• Molly welcomed Vaughn home, and Arthur showed him photographs of Kingsley Shacklebolt and Kreacher that he had intercepted before they reached Scrimgeour.
• Vaughn reassured Arthur that he had identified who sent the photographs, visited Pandora, and returned to Hogwarts with Molly’s knitted jumper.
• Ginny found Vaughn in Dumbledore’s office and gave him an envelope from someone in Japan; Vaughn told her to wear his protective necklace and promised she could join his Research Group if she earned two O grades.
• After Ginny left, Vaughn confronted Dumbledore about her, then threw the Japanese letter into the fireplace.

Vaughn and Dumbledore traced the photographs sent to Scrimgeour to DeSantis’s North American wizards and inferred that they wanted to disrupt the Werewolf Class proposal while pressuring the pure-blood families. As Vaughn considered how to keep them occupied, Arthur reported a Ministry inspection trip to Azkaban, and the chapter ended with Vaughn examining the twins’ Eye of God invention.

• Vaughn refused to read Mahoutokoro’s letter because its wizards had approached Ginny, then showed Dumbledore photographs intercepted by Arthur.
• Vaughn and Dumbledore suspected DeSantis’s North American wizards had sent the photographs to Scrimgeour to complicate their plans and make their own moves easier.
• Dumbledore said the Werewolf Class proposal was progressing, and Vaughn decided they should find the North American wizards something to do.
• Amelia arranged for Arthur to partner with Scrimgeour while she and Fudge inspected Azkaban, and Arthur sent Vaughn the details.
• Fred and George demonstrated the Eye of God, a flying, talking eyeball with implanted memories, while describing their progress on the Phone Mirror and magical-interference shielding.

Vaughn hired Fred and George to research interference-blocking material and make fake wands containing offensive spells, then gathered the Forbidden Forest’s fantastic beasts to assign them oversight duties in the World Within the Painting. After Firenze and Magorian arrived, Vaughn asked to speak with the centaur leaders.

• Vaughn told Fred and George to prioritize finding interference-blocking material and commissioned fake wands with offensive spells for five hundred Galleons.
• Vaughn went to the Forbidden Forest to gather employees for the upgraded Practical Class, where they would become overseers of experimental subjects in the World Within the Painting.
• Vaughn met Hagrid, healed his injured fingers, and learned that Professor Sprout would send magical plants to the classroom.
• Vaughn reunited with Ilia and the other fantastic beasts, then explained that they would oversee order in the World Within the Painting.
• Firenze and Magorian arrived, and Vaughn asked the centaur leaders to speak with him.

Vaughn learned from Firenze that the centaurs’ prophecies had shifted from a world reborn after war to one consumed by flames, and he advised them to test how his presence affected their readings. After arranging help for the centaurs and forcing Dumbledore to accept Hagrid’s rock cakes, Vaughn looked ahead to the Ministry’s visit to Azkaban, where he had prepared a surprise for Fudge.

• Vaughn asked Firenze about the centaurs’ changes, and Firenze explained that their prophecies had shown Vaughn’s indistinct shadow and a future of war, then changed to visions of worldwide destruction.
• Vaughn suggested that Firenze compare prophecies with and without Vaughn at their center, and he offered to connect the centaurs with the Forbidden Forest office for help.
• Vaughn visited Hagrid, promised assistance for the centaurs, and took Hagrid’s enormous parcel of rock cakes to Dumbledore.
• Vaughn teased Dumbledore into accepting the rock cakes, then left the Headmaster’s Office satisfied.
• Vaughn anticipated the Ministry delegation’s trip to Azkaban the next day and privately reflected that his surprise for Fudge would shift blame away from him.

Jacob Rosier and Lucius Malfoy gathered seven pure-blood family representatives to form an alliance against Vaughn, persuading them that his plans threatened their interests and promising North American support against Dumbledore. They made an Unbreakable Vow with Lucius as witness, while Vaughn revealed that he had learned about the meeting and obtained a list of its nine attendees.

• Jacob urged Selwyn and the other representatives to join forces, arguing that Vaughn threatened the survival of pure-blood families.
• Jacob cited Amelia’s Azkaban inspection plans and the Potions exchange changes, while Lucius claimed that Vaughn and Dumbledore were consolidating power.
• Jacob said he and Lucius had allied with North American wizards, including a Legendary Wizard, and called for the representatives to make an Unbreakable Vow.
• Yaxley agreed to take the vow, and Lucius revealed his activated Dark Mark as he prepared to witness it.
• Vaughn explained to Dumbledore that the alliance had been provoked by the Potions exchange changes and the proposed return of the Triwizard Tournament.
• Vaughn showed Dumbledore a list of the nine attendees, saying Fruit Tea had obtained it, though Dumbledore suspected one of them was Vaughn’s spy.

Vaughn convened a Wizengamot inquiry to challenge Azkaban’s management and security, presenting allegations of poor oversight and warders neglecting their duties. As the meeting began examining his claims, Ogden reacted with anger while the members waited to see what evidence Vaughn would produce.

• At Azkaban, Fudge rejected Amelia Bones’s demand that Ministry officials surrender their wands, and Amelia left with Rita Skeeter rather than join his inspection.
• Vaughn told Arthur that he had asked Dumbledore to convene a Wizengamot inquiry, and Arthur hoped the meeting would go smoothly.
• Dumbledore opened the meeting and revealed that Vaughn had requested an inquiry into Azkaban’s management and security.
• Vaughn accused Azkaban’s management of widespread failures and its warders of neglecting their duties, then offered his visit notes and memories as evidence.
• Ogden took Vaughn’s parchment and grew angry as the members considered the allegations.

Vaughn argued before the Wizengamot that Azkaban’s lax Ministry oversight and dependence on Dementors created serious security risks. As the meeting ended with those risks under debate, Sirius escaped Azkaban and set out after Peter.

• Ogden grew furious as the Wizengamot read Vaughn’s notes describing Azkaban’s lax security and the Ministry’s loss of control.
• A Ministry official challenged Vaughn’s authority and the credibility of his memories, but Vaughn defended his inspection and invoked Dumbledore as a witness.
• Vaughn warned that Ministry loopholes could let prisoners escape and that Dementors might become dangerous if Azkaban no longer supplied enough prisoners to feed them.
• Sirius walked out of Azkaban with a wand taken from a Ministry official after Dementors left the fortress filled with fallen wizards.
• Sirius used a spell to vanish, declaring that he was back and that Peter’s time was up.

After Sirius Black escaped from Azkaban and incapacitated the Ministry delegation, Scrimgeour accused Amelia Bones of conspiring with him, while Vaughn accused Fudge of negligence. The Wizengamot opened Amelia’s hearing after the injured witnesses arrived through Vaughn’s Dimensional Gate.

• Kingsley Shacklebolt reported that Sirius Black had escaped Azkaban using Fudge’s wand and stunned the Aurors and Ministry delegation, and he said Scrimgeour had charged Amelia with helping him.
• Vaughn sent healing potions to St Mungo’s and accused Fudge of abusing his authority and neglecting his duties; Dumbledore postponed that charge until Amelia’s case and Fudge’s hospitalization were resolved.
• Dumbledore opened the Wizengamot gallery to Ministry officials and reporters as the Ministry reeled from the escape and factions weighed its political consequences.
• Scrimgeour, convinced Amelia had aided Sirius, brought charges against her, while Vaughn proposed waiting for the injured witnesses to testify.
• The injured witnesses arrived through Vaughn’s Dimensional Gate, and Dumbledore opened the hearing by asking Scrimgeour to present his evidence against Amelia.

At Amelia Bones’s Wizengamot hearing, witnesses and Newt Scamander established that she had spent the day of Sirius Black’s escape in the Ministry, undermining Scrimgeour’s accusation. Amelia then revealed that her argument with Fudge had been over his refusal to surrender the inspection delegation’s wands, leaving the hearing poised to expose Fudge’s misconduct.

• Scrimgeour accused Amelia of helping Sirius escape, but Amelia agreed Sirius must have had an accomplice and called Hopkirk to testify that she had returned to the Ministry after the inspection.
• Hopkirk and several Ministry employees, including Tonks, confirmed that Amelia and Rita Skeeter had spent the day in Amelia’s office, while one witness said Amelia had spoken through the fireplace.
• Amelia identified Newt Scamander as the person she and Rita had interviewed, and Newt confirmed her account through the Wizengamot fireplace.
• Scrimgeour questioned the injured witnesses, who confirmed that Fudge and Amelia had argued before she left Azkaban; Scrimgeour realized Vaughn had used his accusations to advance the case against Fudge.
• Amelia asked the witnesses to explain the argument, and a Ministry official testified that Fudge had refused to surrender the delegation’s wands as required by procedure.

Vaughn’s strategy turned Sirius’s escape from Azkaban into a political crisis that threatened Fudge’s position and forced the Wizengamot to confront the prison’s failures. After the hearing, Vaughn explained to Dumbledore how he had prepared Sirius and manipulated Fudge, then agreed to take Dumbledore to dinner at the Burrow.

• Vaughn urged the Wizengamot to put Fudge on trial, arguing that Sirius’s escape had damaged the Ministry’s credibility and Wizarding Britain’s reputation.
• The hearing ended with Fudge’s faction fearing his downfall, while Vaughn and Dumbledore stayed behind; Arthur left after Vaughn confirmed he would bring Dumbledore to dinner.
• Travers’s legs trembled after the hearing, and Barty Crouch Sr. helped him stand before leaving with the others.
• Dumbledore asked Vaughn whether he had foreseen the day’s events, and Vaughn revealed that he had left a Personality Armament with Sirius to send him information and help preserve his positive emotions.
• Vaughn explained that he had used Amelia’s argument with Fudge and the Inquiry Meeting to expose Azkaban’s failings and provoke Fudge into making a damaging decision.
• Dumbledore accepted Vaughn’s explanation and asked to be taken to dinner; Vaughn agreed, and a Strange Sphere appeared.

Vaughn and Dumbledore visited the Weasley family at the Burrow, where Vaughn reunited with Hermione, Ginny, and Fruit Tea. Afterward, Dumbledore asked about Vaughn’s Azkaban plans, and Vaughn said he would urge Amelia to prepare for the danger posed by the Dementors.

• Vaughn and Dumbledore arrived at the Burrow, where Fruit Tea greeted Vaughn and Hermione nervously faced Dumbledore after leaving school without permission.
• Dumbledore agreed to overlook Hermione’s rule-breaking if she earned excellent final exam results, and Ginny welcomed him with sweets.
• The family realized Ron had not been invited, while Ron remained at Hogwarts and complained about Fred and George’s bogey-flavored sweets.
• At dinner, Ginny asked Vaughn about abolishing the Dementor system, and Vaughn said he and Dumbledore had attended an Azkaban inquiry at the Ministry.
• After dinner, Dumbledore thanked Vaughn for bringing him to the warm family gathering, then asked how Vaughn planned to resolve the Azkaban issue.
• Vaughn told Dumbledore that abolishing the Dementor system faced too much resistance and that he would remind Amelia to prepare for the threat once she took office.

After Sirius Black escaped from Azkaban, Hermione, Harry, and Ron compared conflicting reports about the incident and Fudge’s role. Meanwhile, Vaughn taught representatives from several wizarding schools the Magic Extraction Method and considered how to make his lessons easier to understand.

• Ron showed Harry and Hermione a Daily Prophet article blaming Vaughn and Amelia Bones for Sirius Black’s escape, while Harry fixated on Sirius’s photograph.
• Neville gave Hermione The Quibbler, whose Rita Skeeter article described Fudge’s failed Azkaban inspection and Amelia’s alibi; Hermione compared the reports and concluded the Daily Prophet was distorting events.
• Ron realized that Fudge might be in serious trouble, and Hermione felt encouraged by the prospect of his downfall.
• Vaughn demonstrated the Magic Extraction Method to students from several wizarding schools, whose representatives had brought research and texts in exchange for places studying with him.
• Vaughn reflected on why students struggled with his spells and considered simplifying his teaching, then asked Cheng Quandao and Pheobe whether they had anything else to discuss.

Pheobe delivered Beauxbatons’ support for Vaughn and Dumbledore’s plans, while Cheng Quandao offered China’s help with international pressure. Vaughn assessed the growing competition over the proposed Eight-School Tournament and discovered that neither diplomatic side quest had registered as complete, leaving him to consider what would count as genuine support and friendship.

• Pheobe told Vaughn that Madame Maxime and Beauxbatons supported reviving the Triwizard Tournament and would seek help from the Flamels to pressure the Confederation.
• Cheng Quandao relayed Li Nanyu’s offer to put international pressure on Fudge, but Vaughn said Fudge could not be removed completely yet.
• Vaughn reasoned that the Eight-School Tournament would intensify competition among magical schools and that Mahoutokoro’s misconduct had weakened its chances.
• Vaughn checked his system and saw that the China diplomacy quest remained incomplete despite Li Nanyu’s goodwill and the Potions Exchange.
• Vaughn realized that Beauxbatons’ acceptance had not increased the Eight-School Tournament quest’s progress, which still showed 0/8.

Vaughn spent Reputation Points to complete the Essence Charm and the Thousand Transformations Charm, then tested his ability to transform. He explained the spell’s dangers to Hermione and ended up in Dumbledore’s office for a late-night snack, where Li Nanyu was also present.

• Vaughn spent 49 Reputation Points to complete the Essence Charm and used more to complete the Thousand Transformations Charm.
• Vaughn tested the Thousand Transformations Charm by turning into an ant and then Cheng Quandao, discovering that transformations of similar size cost less magic.
• Hermione and Fruit Tea found Vaughn transformed into a black cat, and Hermione mistook him for an Animagus before he explained the new spell.
• Vaughn warned Hermione that publicizing the Thousand Transformations Charm could cause chaos, and Hermione urged him to keep it secret.
• Vaughn invited Hermione to a late-night snack in Dumbledore’s office and offered Li Nanyu the chance to join them.