Chapter Summaries

On Christmas night at The Burrow, Percy explained why he still intended to pursue a career in the Ministry of Magic despite his past mistreatment. He believed gaining influence could help protect his family, though he admitted his books offered little practical guidance.

• Dumbledore left The Burrow for France, and Moody, Sirius, and Lupin went out for a drink together.
• Tonks complained that she had not been invited, then stormed away and Disapparated.
• Bill told Silvan that he was the Secret-Keeper for The Burrow’s Fidelius Charm, which had been cast to protect the family from Death Eaters.
• As everyone settled inside, Silvan asked Percy whether he still wanted to work at the Ministry of Magic.
• Percy said he had once wanted to flee the Ministry after being locked up, but decided that advancing there could help him protect his family and assist others.

Sirius invited Harry and the Weasleys to visit Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place, but his chaotic driving led him to use magic on a Muggle. Mrs. Weasley scolded Sirius for using the Confundus Charm, and he admitted he was wrong.

• Sirius invited Harry to visit Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place and offered him a chance to live there.
• Fred asked to join the visit, and Sirius agreed to bring the Weasleys along.
• Sirius drove the group through London recklessly and nearly crashed into a Muggle's house.
• Sirius used a Confundus Charm to make the Muggle believe they were friends and drive them to their destination.
• Sirius used Obliviate on the Muggle, and Mrs. Weasley reprimanded him for both spells.

Harry and the others followed Sirius into the hidden Black family home, where Sirius’s treatment of Kreacher exposed the House-elf’s hostility toward him and unusual deference to Silvan. The group was left inside the grim, neglected house as Kreacher hurried off to serve Silvan tea.

• Harry felt uneasy about Sirius’s earlier actions but was reassured by Sirius’s apologies and Mrs. Weasley’s response.
• Sirius led the group to the concealed entrance between numbers eleven and thirteen, and the Black family home appeared between the buildings.
• Fred and George explored the dusty, cobweb-filled house and complained about its shabby condition.
• Mrs. Weasley was startled by Kreacher on the stairs, and Sirius angrily ordered the House-elf to show the visitors respect.
• Kreacher insulted Sirius, then greeted Silvan warmly and hurried away to bring him black tea.

The group explored the filthy Black family home and examined its family tree as Sirius explained his estrangement from his family and the ties among pure-blood wizarding families. Silvan revealed that Ollivander was excluded from the Sacred Twenty-Eight because the family did not forbid marrying Muggles or other magical beings.

• Fred and George asked why Kreacher showed Silvan such respect, and Silvan said it was gratitude for helping the House-elf.
• The group explored the pest-ridden house, where Harry eagerly inspected the rooms and Bill studied an old family tapestry.
• Sirius showed Harry the Black family tree and explained that his mother had burned away his name after he ran away to live with Harry's grandparents.
• Sirius told Harry that many members of the Black family had supported Voldemort and pointed out their connections to families such as the Malfoys and Goyles.
• Ron suggested that Silvan might find relatives on the tapestry, but Sirius said Ollivander had been excluded from the Sacred Twenty-Eight.
• Silvan explained that Ollivander had not forbidden marriage to Muggles or other magical beings, and Sirius said the list lost authority without the Ollivander name.

Sirius summoned Tonks to drive everyone back to The Burrow, where Snape arrived to deliver a secret report left by Dumbledore. After Snape left, Mr. Weasley returned with several Aurors for a private discussion, and the chapter ended with the family gathering for dinner.

• Mrs. Weasley refused to let Sirius drive, so Sirius contacted Tonks, who drove everyone back to The Burrow.
• Silvan went to ask Charlie about Dragon Bloodwood, but Snape arrived at The Burrow and Mrs. Weasley kept the children outside.
• Fred and George told Ron that Snape had come to read a report Dumbledore had left, but they did not know what it contained.
• Snape declined Mrs. Weasley's dinner invitation and left after briefly looking at Harry and the others.
• Mr. Weasley returned with several Aurors and discussed something privately inside The Burrow while the children waited outside.
• Mrs. Weasley called everyone in for stew and bacon sandwiches and suggested that Arthur install a kitchen door for future private discussions.

While the Order of the Phoenix met at The Burrow, Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Silvan tried to listen in and heard plans for Dumbledore’s international diplomacy and Sirius’s communications duties. The meeting ended before they learned more, and Moody began asking about Mundungus’s sudden departure.

• Fred and George stayed in Diagon Alley to work on their shop, Percy returned to the Ministry, and Bill and Charlie left for their own work.
• Mrs. Weasley kept Ron and Harry out of Order business, so they struggled through their O.W.L. homework with Hermione’s help.
• Ron spotted the open door to the Burrow and pulled Harry over to eavesdrop, while Hermione and Silvan followed.
• Moody assigned Dedalus to continue Dumbledore’s task and asked Sirius to manage communication among Order members while Dumbledore attended a meeting in Finland.
• The group left the Burrow, and Moody asked where Mundungus had gone after he abruptly left the meeting.

Silvan and the others discovered that Mr. Weasley had vanished and was marked as being in mortal peril, leaving the Weasley family terrified. Silvan suspected the disappearance was connected to the Death Eaters and wondered whether they were trying to lure Harry out of The Burrow.

• Ron explained that Mundungus was a black market dealer whom Fred and George used to obtain materials for their Skiving Snackboxes.
• Harry, Ron, and Hermione finished their History of Magic homework and struggled to complete Snape's five Potions essays before school began.
• Silvan and the others found the Burrow unusually quiet and saw that Mr. Weasley's hand on the family clock pointed to "mortal peril."
• Ginny said Kingsley had reported that Mr. Weasley left the Ministry but never came home, while Sirius, Bill, and the others searched for him.
• Mrs. Weasley refused to let Ron go looking for his father and tried to prepare dinner despite her distress.
• Silvan suspected Mr. Weasley's disappearance was connected to the Death Eaters and questioned whether they intended to lure Harry away from the Burrow.

At the Burrow, Bill reported that Mr. Weasley had been attacked by Dark magic but was out of mortal danger and had been taken to St Mungo's. Harry worried that the attack might have been meant to target him, but Sirius and Tonks urged him to trust Moody's caution and remain safely at the Burrow.

• Bill returned to the Burrow and told the Weasleys that Mr. Weasley had been found in Wimbledon with serious but nonfatal injuries.
• Bill explained that Kingsley and Moody had taken Mr. Weasley to St Mungo's, while Moody had ordered others to keep Harry at the Burrow in case the attack was a trap.
• Mr. Weasley's clock hand moved from "mortal peril" to "hospital," easing Mrs. Weasley's fears.
• Bill said Mr. Weasley had gone to Wimbledon to investigate post boxes spitting out rubbish, which the Death Eaters had likely used to lure him away from the Ministry.
• Tonks, Kingsley, Sirius, and two Aurors arrived, and Tonks stopped Mrs. Weasley and Bill from leaving before they received an update.
• Harry asked to visit Mr. Weasley, but Tonks said Moody wanted him to stay; Sirius and Tonks reassured Harry that the attack was not his fault.

Harry stayed at The Burrow while Ron, Ginny, and the others went to St Mungo’s Hospital. Sirius took Silvan to examine the attacker’s wand, and Tonks wondered why Mad-Eye had not asked Silvan’s grandfather to inspect it instead.

• Harry and Hermione stayed behind at The Burrow while the Weasleys went to St Mungo’s Hospital and two Aurors left to guard the area.
• Sirius told Silvan that Alastor wanted him to examine the attacker’s wand, and offered to Apparate him there.
• Tonks declined to accompany them because Umbridge was at St Mungo’s Hospital, and Harry and Hermione followed the group outside for fresh air.
• Silvan, Sirius, and Tonks talked about Silvan’s grandfather and the danger from the Death Eaters as they reached the clearing.
• Tonks was surprised to learn that Mr. Ollivander had been in Diagon Alley all Christmas and wondered why Mad-Eye had not asked him to examine the wand.

Silvan realized Sirius had lured him into a swamp and discovered that the impostor was Bellatrix Lestrange. After Silvan escaped her attacks, Voldemort appeared, leaving Silvan facing the Dark Lord as Bellatrix begged for another chance.

• Silvan recognized that Moody’s request to examine a wand had been suspicious, then found himself Apparated to a misty swamp by the disguised Sirius.
• Silvan’s Horcrux Codex blasted Bellatrix, revealing her disguise and injuring her arm.
• Bellatrix cast the Killing Curse, but Silvan transformed into a black cat and dodged it before using Snake Eye to petrify her.
• Silvan stopped Snake Eye before it drained his magic, then recalled a prophecy and dodged another Killing Curse from behind.
• Voldemort revealed himself, and Bellatrix recovered and begged him to let her kill Silvan.

Voldemort confronted Silvan, explaining that Silvan’s earlier attack had made him fear death and driven him to seek revenge. Silvan escaped the Cruciatus Curse and cast the Killing Curse, but Voldemort dodged it and prepared to fight back.

• Voldemort revealed that he had captured Silvan because he wanted to learn how Silvan had stolen the [Horcrux Codex].
• Voldemort said Silvan had first made him fear that he could be killed when they met at Hogwarts four years earlier.
• Voldemort explained that his sudden urge to kill Silvan had made him use an Auror’s blood for his rushed resurrection instead of waiting for Harry Potter.
• Voldemort cast the Cruciatus Curse, but Silvan transformed between cat and human to break its effects.
• Silvan cast Avada Kedavra at Voldemort, who dodged behind a tree and accused Silvan of deceiving him.

Silvan fought to escape Voldemort and the Death Eaters as Fiendfyre consumed the woods, using the Horcrux Codex and his Animagus form to evade attacks. He summoned Silver Mane’s purifying unicorn soul to hurt Voldemort, then fled again as the fire closed in.

• Voldemort fired Killing Curses at Silvan, who dodged them as a black cat and used the Horcrux Codex to block one.
• Voldemort conjured a giant Fiendfyre serpent while Death Eaters blocked Silvan’s escape through the woods.
• Silvan killed a Death Eater who had cast a net across his path, then narrowly escaped Voldemort’s pursuit.
• Silvan summoned Silver Mane’s unicorn soul, whose Purification trait caused Voldemort intense pain.
• Silvan abandoned his chance to turn the tables and fled on the Horcrux Codex as the Fiendfyre surged around him.

Silvan tried to escape Voldemort’s Fiendfyre trap, but Dumbledore arrived and rescued him after discovering clues to Voldemort’s return. As Fawkes carried Silvan away, Silvan left Dumbledore a pointed message for Voldemort.

• Silvan killed two Death Eaters and faced Voldemort as Fiendfyre closed around him.
• Voldemort attacked Silvan, but a golden-red spell struck a Fiendfyre serpent before Silvan could release the Killing Curse sealed in the Horcrux Codex.
• Dumbledore arrived with Fawkes, extinguished the Fiendfyre, and began dueling Voldemort.
• Dumbledore told Voldemort that Rita Skeeter’s report and an ancient ritual had led him to suspect Voldemort had returned.
• Dumbledore sent Silvan away with Fawkes, and Silvan began passing along a mocking message about Voldemort’s parentage.

Silvan returned to The Burrow after surviving a confrontation with Voldemort and the Death Eaters, then rested while the Order of the Phoenix gathered to hear what had happened. He told Harry that Bellatrix had impersonated Sirius and said Sirius was probably still alive, but left the reason Voldemort had targeted him unexplained.

• Fawkes brought Silvan back to The Burrow, where Ginny, Hermione, and Mrs. Weasley found him and Mrs. Weasley apologized for his capture.
• The Order of the Phoenix crowded around Silvan with questions, but Mrs. Weasley sent them away so he could rest in Charlie's room.
• Silvan reassured Harry that the person impersonating Sirius was Bellatrix Lestrange and reasoned that Sirius was likely alive because Bellatrix had needed his hair for Polyjuice Potion.
• Silvan told Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny that he had seen Voldemort up close and admitted Bellatrix had not mistaken him for someone else.
• Silvan asked Ron to bring in the Order members, then went downstairs with them to the living room and kitchen because the house was too crowded.

Silvan recounted his encounter with Voldemort and the Death Eaters to the Order of the Phoenix at The Burrow, prompting them to revise their plans. He later wondered how Dumbledore and Fawkes had found him at the swamp.

• Silvan described being taken by the fake Sirius, meeting Voldemort, and escaping, while concealing his Animagus transformation.
• Moody questioned Silvan about the masked Death Eaters, and Tonks noted that many former followers had returned to Voldemort before leaving the room after Moody rebuked her.
• Moody concluded that the Order of the Phoenix had to revise its strategy, and nearly half the group left The Burrow.
• Silvan, Harry, Ron, and Hermione discussed how Dumbledore had appeared at St Mungo's Hospital and later checked on Harry.
• Silvan wondered how Fawkes had located him at the swamp and brought Dumbledore to his rescue.

The Weasley children speculated about Dumbledore’s battle with Voldemort while Harry worried about Sirius. Dumbledore returned to the Burrow and sent members of the Order to act on a lead about Sirius, but he refused Harry’s request to join the search.

• Fred, George, Ron, and Hermione debated what magic Dumbledore had used against Voldemort, and Silvan said Dumbledore had blocked a spell with Transfiguration.
• Harry waited anxiously for news about Sirius while Silvan wondered what had happened after Dumbledore sent him back to the Burrow.
• Dumbledore returned after nearly three hours and ordered Kingsley to notify Fudge and Moody to tell Hagrid he could act.
• Dumbledore told Remus and Dedalus to search the Lestrange family’s old manor in Berkshire for Sirius.
• Harry asked to join the search, but Dumbledore refused and ordered him to remain at the Burrow until school began.

Harry waited at The Burrow for Remus Lupin to return with Sirius while Dumbledore and the Order of the Phoenix searched for the Lestrange manor. After the meeting, Dumbledore explained that Fawkes had found Silvan through a feather hidden in Hagrid’s Christmas gift.

• Dumbledore said Rodolphus Lestrange had been the Secret-Keeper of the manor and that his death had weakened its Fidelius Charm.
• Mrs. Weasley sent Harry, Silvan, and the other children upstairs and destroyed Fred and George’s hidden gadgets.
• Harry waited for Remus Lupin to come back with Sirius, but evening arrived without them.
• After the Order meeting ended, Dumbledore apologized to Silvan for not noticing sooner that he was in danger.
• Dumbledore explained that Fawkes had found Silvan through a tail feather embedded in the wallet Hagrid had given him.

Silvan explained how he had wounded Voldemort’s wraith, and Dumbledore realized Voldemort feared Silvan because he might be able to destroy him completely despite his Horcruxes. Dumbledore received an urgent message, while Silvan prepared to return to Hogwarts, where Dumbledore promised Voldemort would not attack him.

• Silvan realized that Fawkes had tracked him through the magical connection of the Phoenix tail feather Hagrid gave him, and Dumbledore admitted he had feared Voldemort might kill him.
• Dumbledore asked why Voldemort hated Silvan more than Harry, and Silvan revealed that he had injured Voldemort’s wraith with a unicorn’s power years earlier.
• Dumbledore concluded that Silvan had shown Voldemort his last means of survival could be destroyed, making Silvan a threat even while Voldemort’s Horcruxes remained.
• Dumbledore considered whether destroying Voldemort’s wraith could make his Horcruxes useless, then received a serious message delivered by Fawkes.
• Silvan said he would be careful as school approached, and Dumbledore assured him Voldemort would not dare attack him at Hogwarts.

Silvan and Harry left The Burrow under heavy Order of the Phoenix protection to return to school, while Dumbledore arranged a warning for Silvan’s grandfather, Garrick. They reached King’s Cross Station safely, but Harry kept searching the crowd for Sirius.

• Dumbledore warned Silvan that Voldemort would try to kill him and agreed to have Garrick warned through the Order of the Phoenix.
• Bill continued caring for the recovering Mr. Weasley at St Mungo’s while Silvan waited for a chance to learn Apparition.
• Ten Order of the Phoenix members arrived at The Burrow to escort Silvan, Harry, and the others back to school.
• Moody avoided the entrance to King’s Cross Station, fearing an ambush, and led the group on foot from two intersections away.
• Harry searched the crowded station for Sirius, though Remus Lupin and the others sent to find him had not returned.

The Order of the Phoenix escorted the students onto the Hogwarts Express, where Silvan, Ron, and Harry scrambled to finish their Potions essays. Snape announced that he would teach Harry Apparition and Occlumency, then warned Hermione not to let anyone copy her work as he left them to face the assignment.

• The Order members scattered through King's Cross and slipped onto Platform Nine and Three-Quarters before returning to the station after the train departed.
• Fred and George mourned leaving their unfinished joke shop, while Lee Jordan pulled them into another compartment.
• Silvan and Ron stayed behind to work on their homework after Harry and Hermione went to the prefects' compartment and Ginny left to see her friends.
• Harry and Hermione returned, and Harry asked Hermione to meet Cedric Diggory for him while he finished his Potions essay.
• Snape entered and told Harry and Silvan that Dumbledore had asked him to teach them Apparition and Occlumency.
• Snape warned Hermione that copied work would earn failing grades and said the assignment's grade would count toward an O.W.L. examination.