Chapter Summaries

Michael and Wade discussed Percy Weasley’s new authority and suspected that the Ministry had given him a reason to sever ties with his family. Professor Flitwick warned Wade not to leave Hogwarts and mourned the diligent student Percy had once been, leaving Wade with an unspoken plea not to follow the same path.

• Michael warned Wade that Percy could inspect anywhere at Hogwarts and might use the school to advance his career.
• Wade said Percy had broken with his family to climb higher, and suspected the Ministry had signaled that his relatives were a liability.
• Professor Flitwick summoned Wade and told him not to sneak out of Hogwarts while Percy was around.
• Flitwick recalled Percy’s diligence and his early interest in spell research, lamenting how much he had changed.
• Wade understood Flitwick’s unspoken plea not to become like Percy.

Wade skipped classes and used the professors’ schedules to find time to discuss difficult spell questions with Professor Flitwick. They explored a layered Duplicating Charm, while leaving their unresolved concerns about Percy unspoken.

• Wade studied the professors’ timetables and mapped out their free periods.
• Wade flew to Professor Flitwick’s office, where Flitwick was grading third-year holiday assignments.
• Wade joked with Flitwick about how professors might punish students for sloppy handwriting.
• Wade showed Flitwick spell questions inspired by a competitor’s work at the Alchemy Competition.
• Wade and Flitwick discussed combining spells and consulted an old book on the Duplicating Charm, while neither mentioned Percy.

Wade went to Professor McGonagall’s office hoping to ask about getting a Time-Turner, but first overheard Percy securing permission to inspect Hogwarts records connected to Hogsmeade visits. McGonagall gave Wade a package from Dumbledore and told him the school had not applied for a Time-Turner for him; Wade asked whether Dumbledore had already left the school.

• Percy asked Professor McGonagall to inspect student records, but she refused access to the family records of students already enrolled.
• Professor McGonagall gave Percy a permit to consult Hogsmeade entry and exit records and records of large parcels, including students’ Hogsmeade application forms and guardian letters.
• Wade waited until Percy left, then entered Professor McGonagall’s office.
• Professor McGonagall gave Wade a brown package from Dumbledore and said the school had not applied for a Time-Turner for him that year.
• Wade asked Professor McGonagall whether Dumbledore had already left the school.

Wade read Dumbledore’s letter explaining that dangerous experiments in Kosovo had disturbed time, leaving the Time-Turner unusable and appointing Snape to teach him Memory Magic. Percy gained access to Hogwarts’s archive room, where he began searching through its neglected records.

• Professor McGonagall told Wade that Dumbledore had left Hogwarts secretly and warned him to keep the matter confidential.
• Wade opened Dumbledore’s package and learned that time anomalies linked to the Kosovo research meant he must stop using the broken Time-Turner.
• Dumbledore told Wade that Snape would teach him Memory Magic every Wednesday evening and urged him to put his own safety first.
• Percy presented Filch with a signed permit to enter the archive room and privately resented Filch as he waited for the key.
• Filch unlocked the archive room and let Percy enter to search its dusty, cluttered records.

Percy searched Hogwarts’ archive for recent student application forms and found Harry Potter’s guardian listed as Sirius Black. He then discovered that Wade Grey’s guardian was Terence Murray, the school’s Alchemy professor, and realized the name was familiar.

• Percy asked Filch to direct him to recent student records, and Filch showed him a rack of newer files.
• Percy searched the records against Professor McGonagall’s student list and found Ginny Weasley’s application signed by Molly Weasley.
• Percy found Harry Potter’s application listing Sirius Black as his guardian and wondered about Harry’s Muggle relatives.
• Percy continued through the files until Wade Grey’s application listed Terence Murray as his guardian.
• Percy recognized Terence Murray as the school’s Alchemy professor.

Percy questioned why Professor Terence Murray had signed Wade Grey’s Hogsmeade application, then asked Filch about the rules for guardian signatures. Filch explained that old traditions gave mentors and godfathers the authority to act as guardians, but Percy remained puzzled because Wade’s father was alive.

• Percy examined Wade Grey’s application and confirmed that Terence Murray’s signature appeared genuine.
• Frustrated by the name, Percy left the archive room and went to return its key to Filch.
• Filch spent his free time caring for Mrs. Norris and the Little Crabs before Percy knocked on his door.
• Percy asked why a professor had signed Wade’s application instead of a parent or guardian.
• Filch explained that old traditions allowed mentors or godfathers to discipline children and act with a father’s authority.
• Percy pointed out that Wade’s father was alive, and Filch said he knew nothing about the students’ family matters.

Percy Weasley questioned Filch about Wade Grey’s guardian signature, prompting Filch to report his suspicions to Professor McGonagall. She ordered Filch to keep watching Percy and revealed that she had altered an old application form to protect Wade’s family information.

• Percy Weasley questioned Filch about Wade Grey’s application and Professor Murray’s signature, then hurried away when Filch challenged his interest.
• Filch told the Little Crabs to stay home and went to Professor McGonagall’s office to report Percy’s inquiries.
• Professor McGonagall told Filch to watch Percy, explaining that he was likely acting as a pawn for people in the Ministry of Magic.
• McGonagall considered several possible reasons the Ministry might be interested in Wade’s family and judged coercion to be the least likely.
• McGonagall retrieved Wade’s genuine old Hogsmeade permission form and recalled that she had erased its expired validity date so Percy would not learn the truth about his guardian.

Percy tried to persuade Wade to hand his Golem technology over to the Ministry of Magic, but Wade rejected his vague promises and threats. Wade then met Snape, who demanded to know how he had convinced Dumbledore to let him study forbidden knowledge.

• Percy lectured Hogwarts students about becoming Aurors until they found excuses to leave him alone.
• Percy told Wade that Golems should be managed by the Ministry of Magic and promised Wade protection and increased income in exchange for his technology.
• Wade challenged Percy’s offer as an attempt to seize control without guaranteeing compensation, and Percy warned that higher-ranking Ministry officials might take forceful measures.
• Wade asked Percy to identify the officials behind the pressure, but Percy avoided answering and hurried away.
• Wade went to Snape’s office, where Snape questioned how he had persuaded Dumbledore to let him study knowledge forbidden to students.

Wade told Snape about the Dream Weaver and the danger of memory magic, prompting Snape to agree to teach him despite his misgivings. Snape tested Wade’s Occlumency with Legilimency, but the spell rebounded and nearly knocked his wand from his hand.

• Wade told Snape that Professor Abigail’s memories had been altered by a Goblin called the Dream Weaver, who had made her a Scourer spy.
• Wade explained that the Dream Weaver was dead but had accomplices skilled in memory magic, and that their goal was to make wizards disappear.
• Snape pieced together the implications of Wade’s account and agreed to teach him, warning that memory magic could destroy a person’s identity.
• Snape asked whether Wade had studied Occlumency, and Wade confirmed that he had.
• Snape cast Legilimency at Wade, but the spell rebounded and staggered Snape.

Wade demonstrated his powerful Occlumency to Snape after an enchanted spell rebounded off his protective accessories. Snape learned that Remus Lupin had taught Wade the skill, and Wade explained that he had sought it after a dangerous visitor appeared at Hogwarts during his first year.

• Snape's spell rebounded off Wade's protective accessories and knocked Snape into a desk.
• Wade removed his enchanted accessories and let Snape cast Legilimency on him.
• Wade emptied his mind, leaving Snape unable to find anything in his consciousness.
• Snape praised Wade's Occlumency and learned that he had studied it since his second year.
• Snape suspected Lupin had taught Wade and reacted angrily to the thought of Lupin as Wade's tutor.
• Wade confirmed that Lupin taught him after Wade asked for Occlumency to protect himself from a visitor at Hogwarts.

Snape taught Wade that genuine mental defense required deceiving a Legilimens with carefully fabricated memories, and Wade rapidly constructed a convincing scene with Dumbledore. The lesson continued as Snape asked Wade to examine his own memory and identify flaws in it.

• Snape explained that Occlumency alone could not withstand torture and that hiding real memories behind convincing illusions was a stronger defense.
• Snape taught Wade how to assemble and refine fabricated memories, warning that inconsistencies could expose the deception.
• Wade created a memory of discussing his future career with Dumbledore after only a few minutes of practice.
• Snape praised the scene’s flow and characterization but said its details still needed work.
• Snape asked Wade to use Legilimency on him, and Wade began by viewing the memory he had just fabricated.

Wade practiced fabricating memories under Snape’s instruction and learned to spot flaws by examining them as an observer. Snape warned him that repeated fabrication could blur the line between false and real memories, and sent him away to choose an anchor to preserve his sense of truth.

• Wade identified errors in his fabricated memory, including the portraits, Fawkes, and the season outside the window.
• Snape pointed out further details Wade had missed and guided him through repeated attempts until his memory could nearly fool someone.
• Snape warned Wade that repeatedly revisiting a fabricated memory could overwrite the real one and make him lose track of what had happened.
• Snape told Wade to choose a personally significant memory as an anchor and think about it before their next lesson.
• As Wade left, Snape reminded him that memory showed him what he was willing to believe, then whispered, “Monster...”

Wade visited the recovering Hughes, who worried about forgetting his present life, and lent him a camera to preserve important memories. Later, Wade overheard Percy preparing to investigate students using Secret Passages, then learned that Mrs. Gray was afraid because something had looked toward the castle.

• Wade visited Hughes in the Hospital Wing, and Hughes refused an offer to go outside because he did not want to cause trouble.
• Hughes asked whether he would forget who he was as an adult, and Wade lent him a camera so he could preserve memories in photographs.
• Wade overheard Whitby report that Gryffindor students, including Fred, George, Harry Potter, and Wade Gray, had used Secret Passages to leave Hogwarts.
• Percy thanked Whitby and began drafting a report, prompting Wade to worry that Percy would restrict students and worsen his conflict with the Twins.
• Luna offered Mrs. Gray Valerian Root to help with her fear, but the ghost fled when Wade arrived and then returned to speak with him.
• Mrs. Gray told Wade, "It... it looked over here."

Wade heard Mrs. Gray describe an ancient presence that frightened her and learned that she disliked him because he reminded her of the man who had betrayed her. After receiving news of violence in Natalia’s country and asking if she was safe, Wade felt himself falling as countless voices sighed around him.

• Mrs. Gray told Wade she had sensed something ancient and terrifying, then said he reminded her of the man who had deceived her before vanishing into a wall.
• Wade told Michael that Percy was considering sealing the Secret Passages and urged the twins to avoid clashing with him over it.
• Michael gave Wade an international Daily Prophet supplement reporting deadly violence in Kizlyar and explained that Cho Chang had wanted Wade to see it.
• Wade wrote to Natalia in the Book of Friends to ask whether she and her family were safe.
• As Wade fell asleep, he felt himself being pulled and heard the sighs of dozens or hundreds of people.

Wade experienced Mrs. Gray’s memories and felt the despair of the dead being drawn toward a red sphere in a dark void. Hogwarts pulled Mrs. Gray back, but an enormous eye with black flames noticed her before Wade awoke to Luna’s voice.

• Wade found himself seeing through Mrs. Gray’s perspective in a dark void beneath a red sphere.
• Figures who had died in different places appeared, and Wade recognized a peddler and the girl in the sari from his dreams.
• The sphere drew the dead toward it, and Mrs. Gray was pulled toward it along with them.
• Hogwarts’s lights anchored Mrs. Gray and dragged her away from the sphere as an enormous eye opened and approached.
• Mrs. Gray crashed onto the castle floor, and Luna’s voice called to her as Wade awoke.

Wade learned that Hogwarts had pulled Mrs. Gray back from a presence in the darkness, and she warned him that refined despair might have awakened it and that it had seen Hogwarts. Meanwhile, Neville’s Disarming Charm overwhelmed Ron during practice, leaving Ron puzzled about why his Shield Charm had failed.

• Wade asked Mrs. Gray about the eye and the force that had pulled her back, and she said Hogwarts seemed conscious and had rescued her.
• Mrs. Gray explained that Hogwarts remembered its inhabitants and that it remembered her as Helena Ravenclaw, its founder’s daughter.
• Mrs. Gray told Wade that someone had gathered and refined the despair of many dying people, possibly awakening the presence in the darkness, and urged him to warn Dumbledore.
• Neville’s Disarming Charm shattered Ron’s Shield Charm, knocked him down, and sent his Wand flying.
• Ron took back his Wand and wondered why his Shield Charm had failed despite his practice.

Harry coached Ron and Neville while Wade reflected on Harry’s capacity for love. A Slytherin girl arrived seeking to join SSC, and Ron’s prejudiced rejection left him speechless when she challenged his judgment.

• Harry corrected Ron’s Shield Charm technique as Neville prepared to practice with him.
• Wade remembered the power of love in the Department of Mysteries and praised Harry’s teaching.
• Harry and Wade heard a knock at SSC’s door, and Theo went to answer it.
• A girl asked to join SSC and explained that she was a Slytherin.
• Ron insulted Slytherins, but the girl challenged him for judging her by her House, and another girl mocked his reasoning.

Wade welcomed Luna, Astoria, and Rolf Scamander into SSC’s Umbrella Room after they arrived hoping to join. He showed them the ordinary activity room and asked them to explain their request.

• Luna offered to drive away Blibbering Humdingers she thought were bothering Ron, and Wade sent Ron to keep practicing.
• Wade greeted Luna, Astoria, and Rolf at the Umbrella Room and invited them inside.
• The chapter described SSC’s reputation at Hogwarts and the rumors students spread about its members and meeting place.
• Wade showed the visitors SSC’s desks, practice area, and handmade decorations, then served them tea.
• Wade asked the three visitors whether they wanted to join SSC.

Astoria asked to join SSC, then explained that she wanted practical training and the strength to live by her own choices. She offered to contribute family resources, but the group waited for Wade to decide whether to accept her and her friends.

• Astoria asked Wade if she, Rolf, and Luna could join SSC, then learned it was a group of friends rather than a formal club.
• Luna and Rolf described how the three had become friends through the maze game, and the group teased Rolf about his role as their logistics soldier.
• Luna listed strange rumors that had drawn interest in SSC, prompting Wade to realize the rumors were probably about him.
• Astoria told Wade she wanted strength and practical learning so she could resist her family's pure-blood ideals and choose her own life.
• Astoria offered equipment, books, ancient alchemical items, and help in return for joining, while the members waited for Wade's response.

Rolf explained that he wanted to become strong enough to protect others amid signs of growing danger, prompting Wade to decide to restart the Spell Study Group. Wade then told Michael that he suspected hidden forces might target Hogwarts and that students should prepare for a possible battle.

• Rolf said Fantastic Beasts were becoming restless and that he wanted to become someone people could rely on.
• Wade proposed applying to Professor McGonagall to restart the Spell Study Group, and Astoria, Rolf, and Luna welcomed the idea.
• Michael questioned Wade’s plan, and Wade showed him a prophecy about two shadows and an extinguished sun.
• Michael suggested the prophecy might concern the old order or the Statute of Secrecy, while Wade wondered if it described something once powerful that others were trying to revive.
• Wade told Michael he wanted the group to be more open to protect its members and prepare for forces that might target Hogwarts.
• Michael agreed that Wade should apply to Professor McGonagall.