Chapter Summaries

Vaughn hosted a late-night hot pot supper in Dumbledore’s office and explained his ambitions for the Eight-Champion Tournament to Li Nanyu and Dumbledore. He planned to use the tournament to test contractual magic that could restrain wizards, potentially overturning the International Statute of Secrecy.

• Vaughn prepared a Yin-Yang Hot Pot in Dumbledore’s office, and Hermione joined him, Dumbledore, and Li Nanyu for supper.
• Dumbledore reported that Akinbade had offered support for reviving the Eight-Champion Tournament and wanted to meet Vaughn, while Nicolas Flamel also wanted a meeting.
• Li Nanyu asked Vaughn why he wanted to create an international stage, and Vaughn said magic protein could disrupt existing orders and new rules were needed.
• Vaughn showed Dumbledore and Li Nanyu his refined Thousand Illusions Charm, which could alter a living body’s biological characteristics.
• Vaughn revealed that he intended to develop contractual ritual magic or an Unbreakable Vow and use tournament contestants to test it.
• Dumbledore realized Vaughn’s goal was to impose restraints on wizards and ultimately lift the veil between the wizarding and Muggle worlds.

Vaughn confronted Dumbledore over changing the International Statute of Secrecy and expanding his experiments, while Dumbledore weighed whether to support or stop him. Dumbledore chose to keep working with Vaughn, and Vaughn proposed recruiting willing Muggles under Ministry approval for his trials.

• After Li Nanyu left, Vaughn argued that the International Statute of Secrecy was outdated and could not protect wizards or Muggles.
• Dumbledore considered breaking his agreement with Vaughn or killing him, but feared driving him toward disaster and ultimately decided to continue supporting him.
• Dumbledore told Vaughn that the Trial Space alterations were nearly complete and asked when he would provide experimental subjects.
• Vaughn said he planned to include Muggles and Dark wizards as well as werewolves, and explained that the Muggles would receive shelter and food in return for taking harmless potions.
• Vaughn said he would submit a proposal to Amelia in c's name and obtain Ministry permission, with volunteers agreeing to have their memories erased afterward.

Vaughn and Dumbledore discussed how to make Fudge sign an authorization that would implicate him in Vaughn’s experiments on Muggles. Meanwhile, Harry suspected that Snape and Voldemort’s followers were after the diary at Hogwarts, while Matthew recruited François in Ireland to help lure Greyback’s werewolves with Muggles.

• Vaughn explained that Fudge could be made to sign an authorization before leaving office, leaving him responsible for the backlash over Vaughn’s experiments on Muggles.
• Harry and Ron worried about Umbridge and debated seeking Vaughn’s help, but Harry concluded that Snape’s connection to Hogwarts pointed to Voldemort’s diary as the target.
• Matthew met François in a Dublin pub and learned that François had found Greyback’s Army and witnessed its brutal attack on a village.
• Matthew proposed using a gathering of Muggles as bait to draw Greyback’s werewolves together, and François feared he would be made a scapegoat.
• Matthew reassured François that Vaughn would come to Ireland and that the Ministry would authorize gathering Muggles for the plan.

Vaughn tested the Thousand Illusions Charm, weighed the difficulty of developing Contract Magic, and learned that Fudge had been discharged from St Mungo's. At Fudge's trial, Vaughn argued that his refusal to surrender his wand had enabled Sirius Black's escape, leaving the courtroom focused on Fudge's breach of procedure.

• Vaughn confirmed that the Thousand Illusions Charm used more magic when a transformation greatly changed his volume and considered how much research Contract Magic would require.
• Fruit Tea led Vaughn to the Shrieking Shack, where Tonks told him Fudge had been discharged from St Mungo's and that the trial would begin that afternoon.
• Vaughn, Tonks, and Lupin went to the Wizengamot courtroom, where Amelia presided over Fudge's trial.
• Vaughn accused Fudge of abuse of authority, collusion with Death Eaters, and helping Sirius Black escape, citing Fudge's refusal to surrender his wand at Azkaban.
• Fudge called Vaughn's accusations slander and accused him of treachery, but he could not explain why he had refused to hand over his wand.
• Vaughn revealed that he did not need a complete chain of evidence to show that Fudge's refusal to surrender his wand had made Sirius's escape possible.

Vaughn secured Fudge’s suspension but offered him a way to preserve his faction’s influence in exchange for signing a permit to use Muggles as Potions Exchange test subjects. Fudge signed and resolved to restore his standing by capturing Sirius, while Matthew told François that C had secured Ministry permission and their operation could begin.

• Amelia adjourned the hearing, upheld Vaughn’s case against Fudge, and suspended Fudge from political activity while he remained free on bail in London.
• Vaughn offered to support one of Fudge’s allies as acting minister if Fudge signed a permit, and Fudge agreed after Vaughn promised it would be dated before the Azkaban inspection.
• Vaughn passed the signed permit to Amelia and left with Lupin and Tonks, while Fudge went home and vowed to capture Sirius and make Vaughn pay.
• At an abandoned factory outside Dublin, Matthew told François that C had obtained Ministry permission and that it was time to move.

François told Fenrir Greyback that C was conducting research at an abandoned arms factory in Dublin that might lead to the elimination of werewolf poison. Greyback ordered François to take him there and sent his werewolves to gather more help for an attack.

• Greyback collected coins from his werewolves while François questioned why they had to hide.
• François told Greyback he had found a C werewolf wizard in Dublin and traced him to an abandoned arms factory where Muggles were gathered.
• François claimed C was combining magic protein with the Wolfsbane Potion in an effort to eliminate werewolf poison.
• Murphy confirmed that the research might be possible, and Greyback ordered François to lead him to the factory.
• Greyback threatened François into agreeing and ordered a werewolf to stir up Dublin for a feast.

François lured Greyback and the Werewolf Legion into raiding C’s factory, but revealed himself as Vaughn Weasley’s undercover agent when Vaughn arrived. Vaughn disabled the werewolf wizards and stopped the assault, intending to capture the Legion and reserving death for Greyback.

• Greyback gathered nearly five hundred werewolves in Dublin and sent them to seize vehicles and attack the factory where Muggles had been assembled.
• François realized Greyback planned to leave Ireland after the raid, then followed the attackers to the factory while secretly using a mirror to contact Vaughn.
• Greyback ordered François to find and kill Matthew, but François Apparated away when Matthew revealed an enchanted envelope that brought Vaughn through a Dimensional Gate.
• Vaughn silenced Greyback and the werewolf wizards, then used the Dimensional Gate to spread a Blinding Curse across them.
• Vaughn cast an Infrasound Charm that stopped the charging werewolves, planning to capture them all except Greyback.

Vaughn captured Greyback and his army in Ireland, then handed Greyback over to Lupin and C's werewolf wizards, who tortured him until his mindscape collapsed. The next morning, news of Greyback's death caused an uproar at Hogwarts, where Ron, Harry, and Hermione argued over Vaughn's actions.

• Vaughn sent Greyback's Army and the impoverished Irish Muggles through the Dimensional Gate to the Trial Space, then let C's werewolf wizards take revenge on Greyback.
• Vaughn reassured François that he had stayed true to himself and promised to bring North American werewolves into C, with a place for him on the Executive Committee.
• C's werewolf wizards tortured Greyback until his mindscape collapsed, and Vaughn decided not to send him to Azkaban.
• Newspaper reports about Greyback and Wolfsbane Potion 2.1 stirred excitement among Hogwarts students and visiting schools in the Great Hall.
• Dean and Seamus questioned Ron about Vaughn's actions, while Harry and Hermione praised Vaughn and Ron worried about the fact that he had killed someone.

Vaughn used the release of Wolfsbane Potion 2.1 and raids against dark wizards to strengthen his political position in Britain and Ireland. He then went to meet Lupin at the Shrieking Shack, where Lupin was struggling with his suspicions about Vaughn's role in Sirius's escape and his own anger over Greyback.

• Owls delivered a second batch of newspapers and magazines featuring Vaughn's paper on Wolfsbane Potion 2.1, which Vaughn had arranged to sell through The Quibbler.
• Vaughn defended killing Greyback by pointing out that the execution took place in Ireland, outside England's jurisdiction.
• Newspaper articles questioned the potion and accused Vaughn of potentially building a Werewolf Legion, but Vaughn urged Dumbledore to focus on establishing the Werewolf Class.
• The Daily Prophet reported that Vaughn and C had raided dark-wizard gatherings in England and Ireland, with Amelia's approval, killing or capturing more than five hundred dark wizards.
• Vaughn left to visit Lupin at the Shrieking Shack, while Lupin wrestled with his suspicions about Sirius's escape and his anger over Greyback.

Vaughn showed Lupin that Peter Pettigrew was alive and explained that he and Dumbledore were using him as bait to lure Voldemort, then asked Lupin to contact Sirius. Back at Hogwarts, Harry, Ron, and Hermione discussed the Ministry's Acting Minister vote, with Hermione expecting Amelia to win.

• Vaughn used the Marauder's Map to show Lupin that Peter Pettigrew was hiding as Ron's pet rat, Scabbers.
• Vaughn admitted that he had arranged Sirius's escape and told Lupin not to expose Peter, who was being used as bait in a plan against Voldemort.
• Vaughn asked Lupin to help him find Sirius and establish contact, and promised that someone would soon take Lupin to see him.
• In the Gryffindor common room, Hermione warned Ron to stop spreading rumors about Vaughn, while Harry wondered whether Amelia or Mr. Crouch would become Acting Minister.
• Hermione predicted that Amelia would win the vote, while Ron contrarily suggested Mr. Crouch and Harry hoped Amelia would take office.

Harry and Ron found partners for the ball while Hermione wondered why Umbridge had become acting Minister for Magic. Vaughn arrived just before the ball and reassured Hermione that he would be her partner.

• Hermione, Harry, and Ron reacted to Umbridge's election as acting Minister and planned to mislead her with false secrets.
• Harry and Ron realized they had no partners for the ball, and Hermione left to get ready.
• Ron invited Lavender Brown to the ball, and she happily accepted.
• Ron announced that Harry wanted Cho Chang as his partner, and Cho agreed to go with him.
• Cho reminded Hermione to change into her evening gown, and Hermione hurried back to Gryffindor Tower.
• Vaughn caught Hermione when she walked into him and told her he would not leave her alone at the ball.

Fred and George sold fake Amortentia at the ball and were punished by McGonagall, while Percy earned her praise for refusing to cover for them. As the twins found dance partners, Vaughn learned that Hogwarts was spreading rumors that he and Pheobe had a secret romance.

• Fred and George tried to sell Percy perfume as Amortentia, but Percy refused and warned them to stop.
• McGonagall confiscated the twins' earnings, took fifty points from Gryffindor, and assigned them detention after the ball; she praised Percy for acting properly.
• Vaughn watched as Angelina chose to dance with George, while Fred invited Pheobe onto the dance floor.
• Dumbledore told Vaughn that students were spreading rumors of a secret romance between him and Pheobe, and Vaughn suspected Fred and George had started them.

At the Yule Ball, Vaughn danced with Hermione and then Isabella, explaining that the Trial Space would prepare exchange students for danger. He revealed to Isabella that he intended to unite wizarding schools into a powerful force capable of reshaping the wizarding world.

• Dumbledore told Vaughn that Ron had started the rumours about Vaughn and Pheobe after claiming he had seen them on a date by the Black Lake.
• Vaughn danced with Hermione, then agreed to dance with Isabella so she could fend off Karkaroff’s unwanted attention.
• Isabella questioned Vaughn about the dangerous Trial Space he planned for the exchange students, and Vaughn argued that they needed practical experience facing danger.
• Vaughn explained that wizarding schools held immense influence because they educated nearly all wizards and could unite behind a common purpose.
• Vaughn told Isabella he was gathering the schools into a force that could stir up an unstoppable gale.

Vaughn showed Hermione the transformed Trial Space and revealed the rules for a faction-based competition built around brewing potions, recruiting NPCs, and destroying rival teams’ Magic Crystals. He announced that the rewards would include the Essence Charm and increasingly complete Magic Extraction Method and magic protein materials, leaving Dumbledore, Isabella, and Hermione impressed by the competition’s design and stakes.

• After the ball, Vaughn brought Hermione to the Practical Class Classroom, where Dumbledore and Isabella were waiting to finalize the Trial Space.
• Hermione saw that the Trial Space had been transformed into a battlefield with nine faction camps surrounding a central region.
• Vaughn set the Trial Space’s rules, then gave Hermione, Isabella, and Dumbledore access to the complete design.
• Vaughn explained that nine school teams would recruit NPCs with potions and try to destroy rival factions’ Magic Crystals while avoiding wardens.
• Vaughn announced the Essence Charm, Magic Extraction Method notes, and magic protein manuscript as prizes for successive competition victories.

Vaughn prepared to launch the Potions Exchange’s second stage while Hermione kept Harry and Ron from learning about the trap for Voldemort. Harry secretly met Draco Malfoy, who warned him that his parents had mentioned a Diary connected to Voldemort’s return and urged him to find it and remove it from Hogwarts.

• Vaughn finished preparing the Trial Space, arranged for Lupin to be contacted, and returned to help begin the Potions Exchange’s second stage.
• Hermione denied telling Vaughn about Snape and Umbridge, while Harry and Ron pressed her for information and Malfoy quietly watched them.
• After class, Malfoy bumped into Harry and secretly slipped him a note inviting him to meet in Moaning Myrtle’s Bathroom.
• Harry went to the bathroom alone, where Malfoy revealed that he had overheard his parents discuss the Diary and feared Voldemort would return.
• Malfoy urged Harry to find the Diary and get it out of Hogwarts, then left after asking him to prevent Voldemort from destroying the school.

After Malfoy revealed that Voldemort’s resurrection plot involved the Diary, Harry, Ron, and Hermione decided they would have to investigate without Vaughn or Dumbledore, who were both absent from Hogwarts. Meanwhile, Vaughn arrived at the old Black family home and asked Kreacher about Sirius and Lupin.

• Malfoy’s guilt over betraying his father and his love for Hogwarts led him to reveal that Voldemort’s return involved the Diary, while keeping Snape’s role secret.
• Harry told Hermione and Ron that the Diary could be used to resurrect Voldemort, and the three debated whether to act on their own or seek Vaughn’s help.
• McGonagall announced that Dumbledore had left for the International Confederation of Wizards headquarters and would leave her overseeing Hogwarts.
• Umbridge confronted Harry and Ron, but Hermione left them to deceive her and later reminded them that they still had to find a way to tell Vaughn or Dumbledore.
• Harry and Ron agreed to search for the Diary themselves, while Hermione resolved not to let them disrupt Vaughn’s plans.
• Vaughn arrived at the old Black family home, stopped Kreacher from hurting himself, and learned that Lupin was inside.

Vaughn visited Sirius at the old Black house and learned that an Auror had used dark magic on him under Fudge’s orders. He explained the plan to use Peter as bait for Voldemort, leaving Sirius to ask why Vaughn had saved him.

• Vaughn warned Phineas to keep Walburga from revealing Sirius’s secret, then found Lupin looking healthier and more hopeful.
• Vaughn removed the contaminated Personality Armament from Sirius and learned that an Auror named Williams had used dark magic on him at Fudge’s command.
• Sirius learned that Peter was alive at Hogwarts, while Lupin admitted he had withheld Vaughn and Dumbledore’s plan from him.
• Vaughn explained that Peter had to stay alive as bait for Voldemort, and Sirius asked why Vaughn had saved him.

Vaughn asked Sirius to provoke Peter by publicly telling the truth about the past, while Sirius and Lupin discussed Vaughn’s influence on Harry and agreed to meet him together. At a secret gathering, Jacob Rosier and eight allies heard Lucius explain how Vaughn’s Trial Battlefield used captured people as subjects for potion experiments, intensifying their plans against him.

• Vaughn admitted that he had secured benefits from the Black Family inheritance and asked Sirius to make Peter feel threatened by publishing his account in the Daily Prophet.
• Sirius learned that Lupin had distanced himself from Dumbledore to support Vaughn’s work for werewolves, and Lupin explained that Vaughn was close to Harry and teaching him Occlumency.
• Sirius decided to regain his strength before confronting Peter and invited Lupin to join him in visiting Harry.
• Jacob Rosier convened eight allies to discuss Vaughn’s Practical Class, and Lucius described the political threat they believed it posed at Hogwarts.
• Lucius revealed that Vaughn and Dumbledore had turned the World Within the Painting into the Trial Battlefield, where captured Muggles, wizards, and werewolves served as subjects in potion trials.

Jacob, Lucius, and the other pure-bloods discussed how to find Voldemort, while Harry and Draco sneaked into Snape’s office to search for the Diary. They overheard Lucius ask Snape for help, but learned that Voldemort still trusted no one and had given his followers no instructions.

• Lucius warned the Pure-blood Meeting that Vaughn’s magic-protein research could expose dangerous knowledge, and Jacob agreed that Vaughn’s ambitions were clear.
• Jacob urged the group to find Voldemort, but Lucius and Corban explained they could not contact him; Jacob suggested Dumbledore might know a way to locate him.
• Harry and Draco left the Slytherin dungeon under the Invisibility Cloak, and Harry said they should watch Snape to find the Diary.
• Draco objected to spying on his godfather, but Harry said Snape’s activated Dark Mark showed he had returned to Voldemort’s service.
• Harry and Draco entered Snape’s office and hid under a table, where Draco recognized Lucius speaking with Snape.
• Lucius asked Snape to help find the Diary, but Snape pointed out that Voldemort had given them no instructions and still refused to show himself.

Harry and Draco overheard Lucius and Snape discussing how to contact Voldemort, then escaped with help from Fruit Tea. Harry planned to tell Vaughn about the Diary, but ended the night privately questioning whether Vaughn had engineered Sirius's escape.

• Harry and Draco overheard Lucius tell Snape that Jacob believed Harry would help the Death Eaters complete Voldemort's resurrection if they found the Diary.
• Harry struck his head under the desk and nearly exposed them, but Fruit Tea distracted Lucius and helped them escape Snape's office.
• Draco urged Harry to tell Vaughn about the Diary, and Harry agreed to do so when he got the chance.
• Harry returned to the dormitory, where Ron described a nightmare about Fred and George and Harry speculated that Sirius might come to Hogwarts to help Voldemort.
• After Ron suggested telling Vaughn about Snape, Harry lay awake, troubled by the possibility that Vaughn had orchestrated Sirius's escape to bring down Fudge.