Chapter Summaries

Darren reached Dumbledore after stunning Umbridge, and Dumbledore told him that Arthur was receiving treatment at St. Mungo’s and was not expected to die. Dumbledore sent Darren, Harry, Ron, Fred, George, and Ginny to Sirius’s home, where Harry recounted the night’s events and Fred, George, and Ginny prepared to visit their father.

• Darren stunned Umbridge, and Professor McGonagall erased her memory before taking him to Dumbledore.
• Darren asked to see Arthur and offered potions, but Dumbledore told him Arthur was receiving treatment and had not died.
• Dumbledore sent Darren, Harry, Ron, Fred, George, and Ginny to Sirius’s home by Portkey because Hogwarts’s communications and exits were being watched.
• Harry told the others what had happened that night but left out that he had possessed the snake and bitten Arthur.
• Fred, George, and Ginny asked Sirius for cloaks so they could go to St. Mungo’s and stay with Arthur.

Darren tried to help Fred and George reach the injured Mr. Weasley, but Harry stopped him from hurting himself, and the group waited anxiously for news. Mrs. Weasley arrived at dawn to say Mr. Weasley was asleep and out of danger, and Darren continued pretending he had stayed awake all night.

• Sirius refused to let Ginny, Fred, and George go to St. Mungo's, and Darren urged him to endure until Peter Pettigrew exposed the truth.
• Sirius suggested injuring himself as an excuse to visit Mr. Weasley, but Darren cast Sectumsempra at himself and Harry shoved his wand aside, sending the spell into the ground.
• Ginny checked Darren for injuries, and Darren claimed he had wanted to hurt himself so the others could visit Mr. Weasley.
• Mrs. Weasley's letter said Mr. Weasley was still alive, and Sirius and the others spent the night worrying while Darren secretly slept.
• Mrs. Weasley arrived and said Mr. Weasley was asleep and out of danger, with Bill beside him at St. Mungo's.
• Mrs. Weasley hugged Darren and warned she would confiscate his wand if he ever tried to hurt himself again.

Darren reassured Harry about Voldemort’s influence on his dreams and promised to discuss it with Dumbledore. On a visit to Mr. Weasley at St. Mungo’s, Fred accidentally transformed Darren into a little fox, and the group arrived at the hospital room with Ginny carrying him.

• Harry told Darren about his dreams of turning into a snake and wanting to bite Mr. Weasley and Dumbledore, and Darren blamed Voldemort’s influence through Harry’s scar.
• Darren promised Harry he would catch him if he turned into a snake and said he would speak to Dumbledore.
• Harry hid his recurring nightmares from Darren and noticed the shadows beneath Darren’s eyes.
• Moody and Tonks escorted Darren, Harry, and the Weasleys from Black’s home to St. Mungo’s, where Moody asked Darren for advice on spells.
• Fred accidentally fed Darren a Transfiguration Pumpkin, turning him into a little fox, and George admitted he had eaten the last antidote.
• The group reached Mr. Weasley’s room, where he greeted them while reading the Daily Prophet.

Darren was turned into a fox by Fred and George’s prank while visiting Mr. Weasley in St. Mungo’s, then overheard Moody warn that Voldemort might awaken through Harry and target him. Darren refused to guard himself against Harry, and Harry secretly listening realized how much danger he had brought Darren into.

• Mr. Weasley reunited with his family and discovered that Fred and George had turned Darren into a fox with a Transfiguration Pumpkin.
• Ginny held Darren until he changed back, and Mr. Weasley sent the others away after asking Harry and the others questions.
• Moody warned Darren that Voldemort might awaken within Harry and try to kill him, and he urged Darren to stay alert around Harry.
• Darren declared that he would not guard against Harry because Harry was his brother, then pretended to sob where Harry and the others could hear him.
• Harry secretly listened and concluded that he had endangered Darren, even wondering whether Voldemort had controlled him to bite Mr. Weasley.

Harry feared Voldemort might use him to hurt Darren, so he tried to leave Grimmauld Place and then withdrew from everyone. The chapter ended with Darren confronting Harry and threatening to hurt himself unless Harry talked to him.

• Harry packed to leave Grimmauld Place, but Phineas delivered Dumbledore's order for him to stay.
• Harry stayed in his room and pretended to sleep when Darren came to speak with him.
• Harry woke to find Ron and Darren asleep nearby, and he felt relieved that Phineas was watching over them.
• The next morning, Darren told Harry that he had ignored him for an entire day.
• Harry insisted he was fine, and Darren threatened to hurt himself if Harry kept shutting him out.

Darren reassured Harry that Voldemort could influence him through his scar but could not take control of his body, and the group celebrated Christmas together. Kreacher went missing and was later found in the attic, while the chapter ended with the Weasleys learning that Mr. Weasley's snakebite wound still could not heal.

• Darren took Harry's wand and explained that Voldemort could influence him through the thing in his scar but could not possess him, reassuring Harry about Mr. Weasley's attack.
• Harry and the others celebrated Christmas Eve at the Order of the Phoenix headquarters, and Darren secretly opened his gifts before sharing sweets with everyone.
• Sirius announced that Kreacher had gone missing, and the group searched the house before Sirius found it in the attic.
• Harry and Darren remained uneasy about Kreacher, which Harry had been watching him secretly, but Harry did not tell anyone.
• Harry and the others visited Mr. Weasley, and Mrs. Weasley learned that the snake venom had left his wound unable to heal.

Darren left the Weasleys’ ward with Harry, Hermione, and Ginny and encountered Lockhart’s devoted fans at the hospital. After the fans accused him of harming Lockhart, Darren used a Remembrall recording to reveal Lockhart’s attempt to push him, then persuaded Lockhart’s healer to let him visit.

• Darren gave Mr. Weasley a new potion to try, then slipped out of the ward while Mr. and Mrs. Weasley argued.
• On the way to the tearoom, Harry spotted Lockhart’s photograph, and two of Lockhart’s fans accused Darren of causing his condition.
• Hermione and Ginny furiously cursed the fans, and Lockhart’s healer drove them away before accusing Darren and Harry of disturbing Lockhart.
• Darren altered Hermione’s memories to make her believe she had brought Lockhart’s Remembrall, then apologized to the healer for Lockhart’s condition.
• Hermione played the Remembrall recording of Lockhart trying to push Darren, and Darren asked the healer not to let anyone look down on Lockhart.
• The healer agreed to keep the recording secret and welcomed Darren to visit Lockhart.

Darren visited Lockhart in the hospital and pretended to apologize while privately confessing how he had set Lockhart up and left him able to see but unable to speak. After Darren left, Harry and the others worked with Rita Skeeter to expose Lockhart’s past, while Darren kept his healer convinced that he was kind and remorseful.

• Darren and Harry visited Lockhart, and Harry secretly jabbed him with his wand while pretending his furious expression showed excitement.
• Hermione took the Remembrall and led Harry, Ginny, and Ron away to enlist Rita Skeeter’s help in publicizing Lockhart’s actions.
• Darren privately told Lockhart that he had engineered the attacks and petrification, and had deliberately left him one movable eye so he could not accuse Darren.
• Darren warned Lockhart that the Remembrall would reveal how Lockhart had nearly pushed him to his death and then looked into the Basilisk’s eyes.
• Darren convinced Lockhart’s healer that he had apologized and asked her to keep the incident secret, then left the ward and told his friends that Lockhart had forgiven him.

At St. Mungo’s, Neville’s friends learned that his parents had been tortured into madness by Death Eaters, and Darren comforted him while revealing his support for the Longbottoms. As the holiday ended, Harry reluctantly agreed to return to school, and Dumbledore gathered the Order of the Phoenix to discuss recent events and Darren and Snape’s failed acting practice.

• Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and Darren encountered Neville with his parents at St. Mungo’s, where Mrs. Longbottom introduced them and urged Neville not to be ashamed of his family.
• Alice offered Neville a gum wrapper, and Neville thanked her and told her he loved her before Darren and the others embraced him.
• Darren reassured Neville that his parents were heroes, and Harry explained that Darren had been donating money for their care; Darren identified Bellatrix as the Death Eater who tortured them.
• As Christmas ended, Sirius grew depressed about the approaching school term, while Harry changed his mind about staying home after Darren said he would stay with him.
• Dumbledore arrived on the final day of the holiday and took Darren to an Order of the Phoenix meeting, where he discussed recent events and Darren and Snape’s act.

Dumbledore tested Darren’s Legilimency resistance and arranged lessons and a rehearsed falling-out with Snape, but Darren could only fabricate painful memories and struggled to act convincingly. Snape then summoned Harry downstairs, where he found Snape and Black facing off while Darren stood sternly beside them.

• Dumbledore used Legilimency on Darren, who fabricated false memories that convinced Dumbledore he was reliving painful experiences.
• Darren explained that he avoided the Hospital Wing because he feared the Order’s plans could be exposed while he was unconscious.
• Dumbledore scheduled Legilimency lessons for Darren and had the Order rehearse a convincing falling-out between Darren and Snape.
• Darren struggled to act naturally, so the Order gave him a memorized sequence of movements instead; Black and Snape said they needed no rehearsal to argue.
• Mrs. Weasley called Harry downstairs because Snape had come to speak with him, and Harry found Snape and Black facing each other while Darren stood sternly nearby.

Snape told Harry that he would have to take weekly Legilimency lessons with him, while Sirius confronted Snape over his treatment of Darren. Their argument turned into a fight, and Snape announced that Darren would also attend lessons and continue detention as the feud was staged to convince Harry and Voldemort that he and Darren had fallen out.

• Snape told Harry that Dumbledore had ordered him to teach Harry Legilimency, with lessons scheduled for Monday evenings and kept secret from Umbridge.
• Sirius accused Snape of bullying Darren, and Snape taunted Sirius about abandoning Darren, provoking Sirius to attack him.
• Harry tried to separate Sirius and Snape as they fought until Darren intervened and members of the Order of the Phoenix rushed in.
• Mrs. Weasley pulled Darren aside, then ordered Sirius and Snape to stop fighting.
• Snape announced that Darren would have Legilimency lessons on Monday and detention on Sunday, but Darren said he did not want to go.

Harry learned from Sirius that Darren had suffered insomnia and nightmares, which Sirius suspected Snape had caused, and promised to watch over him. At Dumbledore’s Office, Darren pretended to feel guilty and insecure before Dumbledore began another Legilimency test.

• Sirius gave Harry a concealed package to open if Snape bullied him or Darren, and warned him that Darren had been plagued by insomnia and nightmares.
• Harry boarded the Knight Bus with the others and overheard Tonks reassure Darren that Snape might not be dangerous, while Tonks secretly revealed that Harry had believed their act.
• Darren visited Dumbledore’s Office, where the portraits mocked his acting and Dumbledore praised his supposed honesty and courage.
• Dumbledore asked Darren to block his Legilimency and began the test, prompting Darren’s system to ask whether to fabricate memories.

Darren let Dumbledore explore his memories, then resisted by showing him selected scenes and was given a drugged drink that put him to sleep. Meanwhile, Harry learned that his recurring dream led to the Department of Mysteries, and he later went to the library to look for Darren.

• Darren fabricated memories of himself protecting Harry, Hermione, and others, and Dumbledore withdrew from Legilimency and warned him about trusting people too easily.
• Dumbledore tried Legilimency again, and Darren showed him memories of Cedric's death, the DA, Harry's punishment, and Cho Chang kissing him.
• Dumbledore comforted Darren with chocolate and gave him lemon juice containing Snape's Draught of Living Death, which made Darren fall asleep.
• Harry realized that his recurring dream showed the route to the Department of Mysteries and told Snape, who warned him not to investigate it or say Voldemort's name.
• Harry left Snape's office convinced that Snape hated or despised him, then found Ron and Hermione in the library and asked where Darren was.

Harry learned that Voldemort was overjoyed, then discovered that Bellatrix and nine other wizards had escaped from Azkaban. The chapter ended as Darren and the others began reading a sensational Daily Prophet article accusing Gilderoy Lockhart of murder.

• Hermione told Harry to wait for Darren before sharing what had happened with Snape, and Dumbledore sent a note saying Darren was practicing with him.
• Darren explained that Dumbledore gave him Draught of Living Death so he could sleep after their weekly Legilimency practice.
• Harry told Darren and the others that Voldemort wanted something from the Department of Mysteries, and worried that Voldemort might reach it.
• Harry woke after laughing in his sleep and told Ron that he had felt Voldemort's intense joy.
• The Daily Prophet reported that ten wizards, including Bellatrix, had escaped from Azkaban, while Fudge blamed Black and promised the Ministry would capture them.
• Darren and the others read a headline claiming Gilderoy Lockhart was a murderer.

Darren’s Remembrall sparked a Daily Prophet exposé blaming Lockhart’s fans for mistreating him, and Darren secretly profited while acting indignant about the article. The school’s attention then shifted to the escaped Death Eaters, as growing doubts about the Ministry spread and students began to believe Voldemort had returned.

• Rita Skeeter published an article featuring Laurie Laut’s account and a Remembrall that exposed Lockhart’s crimes and defended Darren from his fans’ accusations.
• Darren received hundreds of Galleons from Remembrall sales and pretended to be furious that Laurie had given the evidence to a reporter.
• Darren wrote Laurie a condemning Howler and complained to Harry, Hermione, and Ron, earning more Paternal Points as they stayed silent despite feeling guilty.
• After the Ministry failed to recapture the escaped Death Eaters, students and professors began questioning the Ministry’s claims and reconsidering whether Voldemort had returned.
• A Ravenclaw student openly declared in the Great Hall that they believed the Dark Lord had returned.

Umbridge tightened her control of Hogwarts, driving Harry to focus on Dumbledore's Army while his Legilimency lessons with Snape seemed to worsen his connection to Voldemort. As January passed, the students reached Valentine's Day and prepared for their second Hogsmeade visit, where Darren had plans with Harry and Hermione.

• Umbridge posted Educational Decree No. 26, and after Lee Jordan challenged her restrictions, she punished him by injuring the back of his hand.
• Umbridge increasingly targeted Trelawney and Hagrid, disrupting Hagrid's lessons and making him warn Harry and Darren against visiting his hut.
• Harry felt that Umbridge had taken away much of his happiness and threw himself into Dumbledore's Army, where Neville rapidly improved and mastered the Shield Charm before Harry.
• Harry complained that Snape's Legilimency lessons made him more sensitive to Voldemort, and Ron suspected Snape might be harming him, though Hermione rejected the idea.
• January passed amid homework, Dumbledore's Army practice, and Darren's lessons with Dumbledore, and on Valentine's Day Darren turned down girls who asked him out so he could meet Harry and Hermione.

Hermione brought Harry and Darren to meet Luna Lovegood and Rita Skeeter to discuss publishing an account of their encounter with the Death Eaters. Darren worried that the Ministry would retaliate against Luna’s father, and Hermione left the choice of telling their story to the brothers.

• Harry left for Quidditch practice, while Ron complained that he could not join the trip to Hogsmeade.
• At The Three Broomsticks, Harry and Darren found a scarred, drunken Hagrid, who dismissed questions about his injuries and left.
• Hermione led Harry and Darren to Luna and Rita Skeeter, and Rita began writing about Darren before he took her quill away.
• Hermione asked Rita to write about what Harry and Darren had experienced, and Darren suggested publishing their account in The Quibbler.
• Luna said her father welcomed controversial stories, but Darren warned that the Ministry might target him, so Hermione told Harry and Darren to decide whether to share the truth.

Harry and Darren recounted Voldemort’s return for Rita Skeeter’s article, while Harry struggled with Legilimency and dreamed of the mysterious door. Meanwhile, Darren and Snape staged a convincing confrontation for Harry to discover in Snape’s memories, with Dumbledore guiding their performance.

• Harry and Darren described the events of Voldemort’s return to Hermione, Luna, and others so the truth could reach more people.
• Gryffindor lost its Quidditch match after Ron failed to block any shots, and Harry suspected Umbridge had provoked him deliberately.
• Harry tried to clear his mind for Legilimency but fell asleep and dreamed of the door again before Ron’s snoring woke him.
• Darren, Snape, and Dumbledore prepared a staged argument intended to make Harry believe Darren opposed Snape and Voldemort.
• Darren entered Snape’s office and argued against pledging allegiance to Voldemort while Snape improvised threats and accusations, with Dumbledore prompting Darren under a Disillusionment Charm.

Dumbledore staged Darren’s attack on Snape to make it appear that Darren had been bewitched, then arranged for him to recover in the Hospital Wing. Darren kept the plan secret, refused to apologize to Snape, and headed back to Slytherin as Umbridge assigned him detention with her.

• Dumbledore gave Darren a Blood-Spraying Potion and prompted him to attack Snape with spells, which wrecked Snape’s office before Darren collapsed.
• Cassandra carried Darren to the Hospital Wing, where Harry and the others worried over his depleted magic and questioned him about the attack.
• Darren stayed silent as instructed, then heard that Snape had blamed the incident on a possible Imperius Curse and demanded an apology and detention.
• Dumbledore told Darren to refuse to apologize and return to the Slytherin dormitory, and Darren followed his instructions.
• Umbridge encountered Darren on his way and assigned him detention in her office instead of with Snape.

After Darren concealed what had happened with Snape, he told Dumbledore that he considered Hogwarts his home and chose to endure Umbridge’s punishment to protect his brother. The Quibbler published Darren and Harry’s account of Voldemort’s return, and Darren and his friends began reading the flood of letters it brought.

• Dumbledore advised Darren to say he had forgotten everything about Severus, but Darren insisted he would accept Umbridge’s punishment to keep her from targeting his brother.
• Darren told Dumbledore that Hogwarts felt like home and forgave him, leaving Dumbledore emotional.
• On Monday, Darren claimed he could not remember what had happened with Snape, while Harry continued his Legilimency lessons despite Darren’s concern.
• Hundreds of owls brought letters after The Quibbler published its story about Darren and Harry telling the truth about Voldemort’s return.
• Darren replied to a Lockhart fan who wanted to sue Laurie Laut, and Hermione, Luna, and the others helped him open the letters.
• Hermione burned a letter whose writer said she believed Darren and wanted to spend time with him.