Chapter Summaries

Manus helped Dumbledore solve Hogwarts’ timetable problem and explained the rational calculations behind his method, prompting both of them to reflect on how magic shaped Wizards’ thinking. Dumbledore grew curious about Manus and asked what books he liked to read.

• Manus completed Dumbledore’s timetable and explained his calculations, leaving Dumbledore amazed by his maturity and intelligence.
• Manus concluded that magic’s link to emotion made Wizards rely on instinct, and resolved to teach Severus rational thinking and logical reasoning.
• Dumbledore reflected on how his past use of intimidation had influenced Tom, later Voldemort, and regretted failing to guide him gently.
• Manus told Dumbledore that he liked Talking to Your Wand, and Dumbledore asked what books he usually liked to read.
• Manus wondered whether his rational approach had sparked Dumbledore’s interest in learning more about him.

Manus discussed books with Dumbledore, explaining his love of magical knowledge, and learned that Dumbledore favored The Tales of Beedle the Bard. Dumbledore asked Manus to guess his favorite story, leaving Manus to consider the collection’s five tales.

• Manus listed books he had read, and Dumbledore praised him as a studious and humble child.
• Manus reflected on how knowledge and magic offered him a reliable way to understand and shape the world.
• Manus asked Dumbledore which book he liked best, and Dumbledore named The Tales of Beedle the Bard.
• Dumbledore asked Manus to guess his favorite story, and Manus weighed the possible meanings of the five tales.

Manus explained his view of life's meaning to Dumbledore, then dismissed the Deathly Hallows as unimpressive magical items rather than treasures. The chapter left Dumbledore facing Manus's skepticism about the Hallows' value.

• Manus reflected that life meant living well, making choices without regret, and calmly accepting death when it came.
• Dumbledore asked Manus to identify the story he liked, and Manus named The Tale of the Three Brothers.
• Dumbledore said Death might exist and revealed that the Deathly Hallows were real, prompting Manus to wonder about Death and its nature.
• Manus rejected the Hallows as exaggerated items, arguing that magic itself mattered more than the Elder Wand, Resurrection Stone, or Invisibility Cloak.

Manus spoke with Dumbledore about the Deathly Hallows, Ravenclaw, and the value of curiosity, impressing the Headmaster with his intelligence and outlook. Dumbledore returned to Hogwarts delighted to have found a promising young wizard, though he still feared the Wizarding World had no one ready to face Voldemort.

• Manus questioned whether the Elder Wand made its wielder invincible or whether only an invincible person could claim it, causing Dumbledore to abandon his cautious plan.
• Dumbledore suggested Manus would suit Ravenclaw, and Manus praised the pursuit of knowledge and explained why he valued the words “I don't know.”
• Manus and Dumbledore spent the rest of the banquet talking, each learning more about the other.
• Dumbledore returned to Hogwarts and celebrated discovering Manus, while reflecting that nobody else seemed able to challenge Voldemort.

Dumbledore reflected on the danger Voldemort posed and saw Manus as hope for the future. After his birthday banquet, Manus returned home with his family and began reviewing what he had gained, including an unexpected incident during his conversation with Dumbledore.

• Dumbledore considered Voldemort more dangerous than Grindelwald and realized he needed a successor before risking a final confrontation.
• At the King Family Manor, Manus told his family that he and Dumbledore had discussed books and Hogwarts.
• Manus packed up the remaining birthday cake to share with Severus, his only friend of the same age.
• On the carriage ride home, Manus reviewed his new wand, his family’s library, and the possibility that his magic was inexhaustible.
• Manus recalled an unexpected incident during his conversation with Dumbledore.

Manus explained the three stages of mental power, from unstable mist to resistant solid, and the dangers and abilities associated with each. He described how mages could cross the final threshold by gathering their will around a unique, stable Condensation Nucleus, while warning that losing it could undo the transformation.

• Manus reflected that his Spirit Sea was still like a vast lake because he had only accumulated mental power for seven years in this world.
• Manus explained that first-stage mental power was mistlike, leaving memories unreliable and spellcasters vulnerable to outside influence.
• Manus described second-stage mental power as liquid, enabling mages to control emotions and memories, preserve spell models, and resist mental interference.
• Manus explained that third-stage mental power was solid and could resist most Enchantment School magic from the first two stages.
• Manus described the standard method of reaching the third stage: gathering mental will around a unique, stable Condensation Nucleus, whose destruction could cause the mage to fall back to the second stage.

Manus completed the transformation of his spiritual power into a Mental Core shaped by his desire to pursue many kinds of magic. He visited Severus in Cokeworth and brought him half of his birthday cake, leaving the two friends ready to share it.

• Manus recognized that his emerging Mental Core reflected his deep desire to explore the many magical systems he had learned about.
• Manus accelerated the transformation through meditation and completed it before his carriage reached the outskirts of Cokeworth.
• Manus left Griffin and Aivina waiting and carried a box of cake to the Snape residence.
• Severus welcomed Manus, who explained that his birthday dinner had been dull and that no one there had cared about his birthday.
• Manus told Severus that he had brought half of the cake because the partygoers had left the top layer untouched.

Manus celebrated his birthday with Severus and brought home books before considering ways to strengthen his body. He examined his greatly enhanced Beast Blood Baptism spell, whose effects now approached those of Myriad Beasts Totem, without the bodily markings and traits he disliked.

• Manus visited Severus, shared cake with him, and accepted a wrapped birthday gift before heading home.
• Aivina helped Manus bring his books inside, and Manus carried them to his room himself while thinking about practicing the Undetectable Extension Charm.
• Manus reflected on his old mentor’s advice to train his body and considered using magic as well as exercise to improve his strength.
• Manus examined Beast Blood Baptism +100000 and found that its effects nearly matched Myriad Beasts Totem while avoiding unwanted physical markings and traits.

Manus considered using Beast Blood Baptism and acquiring a magical pet, then tested healing and teleportation spells. After a powerful Teleport left him severely weakened, he realized his magic was replenished by converting his physical stamina.

• Manus decided to prepare Beast Blood Baptism materials and look for a clever magical pet that could scout and extend his spell range.
• Manus cast Episkey on one arm and Cure Minor Wounds on the other to compare their healing effects.
• Manus tested Dimension Door and barely sensed his magic decrease, then cast Teleport and passed out on his bed.
• Aivina found Manus asleep, assumed he had worn himself out, and left him undisturbed.
• Manus woke the next day too weak to get out of bed and concluded that his magic was replenished by converting his physical stamina.

After discovering that Wizard could convert stamina into magic, Manus recovered from his exhaustion and received belated birthday gifts from Dumbledore and Severus. He identified Severus’s imperfect Pepperup Potion and began testing Scarpin’s Revelaspell, whose unusually clear feedback could reveal its ingredients.

• Manus realized Wizard could turn a small amount of stamina into a large amount of magic, then rested and recovered enough to get out of bed.
• Aivina gave Manus an owl-delivered letter and package from Dumbledore, who apologized for forgetting his birthday and sent belated wishes and a gift.
• Manus opened Severus’s gift and identified the pale blue potion as Pepperup Potion by its smell and the vapor that escaped from his ear.
• Manus cast Scarpin’s Revelaspell on the potion and found that it gave him unusually clear feedback about its ingredients.

Manus compared two identification spells, examined Dumbledore’s Phoenix tail feather birthday gift, and considered how to use it without violating the persona he was maintaining. He set aside the idea of seeking Phoenix materials and turned to planning a new birthday gift for Severus.

• Manus compared Scarpin's Revelaspell with the Identification Spell and decided research-supporting magic deserved higher priority.
• Manus identified Dumbledore’s gift as a Phoenix tail feather and considered using it for Beast Blood Baptism or obtaining other Phoenix materials.
• Manus began writing to Dumbledore about purchasing Phoenix materials, then stopped because the inquiry conflicted with his fairy-tale persona.
• Manus put away the unwritten letter and decided to wait until he returned before performing Beast Blood Baptism.
• Manus remembered that Severus’s birthday was next week and reconsidered his gift plans now that his restrictions on Charms had been lifted.

Manus prepared a birthday gift for Severus by transforming wrapping paper into a potted Wiggentree and enchanting it with a protective field. After finishing the present, he dressed for the snowy weather and set out for Severus’s home.

• Manus transformed wrapping paper into a small, papier-mâché-textured Wiggentree ornament for Severus.
• Manus used Word Magic to inscribe Salvio Hexia on the pot, giving it a protective field that could deflect Jinxes and Hexes.
• Manus considered the gift’s rough appearance and resolved to improve it in the future.
• Manus dressed for the winter weather, greeted Aivina, and headed to Severus’s home.

Severus and Manus met at their secret base, where Severus gave Manus a homemade Pepperup Potion and they joked about using it before it expired. Manus left Severus anticipating his birthday present, which he promised to reveal the following week.

• Severus went outside after finishing his chores and joined Manus for a walk away from the center of Cokeworth.
• Severus asked whether Manus had opened his gift and learned that the box contained a Pepperup Potion he had brewed himself.
• Manus joked about catching a cold to use the potion before it expired, then laughed when Severus seriously considered the idea.
• Manus and Severus reached the abandoned factory dormitories they used as a secret base, and Severus put on the scarf and gloves Manus had tossed him.
• Manus told Severus that his birthday present was ready and would remain a mystery until the following week.

At nine years old, Manus reflected on how his guidance had changed Severus while repairing a bent branch on the Wiggentree he had enchanted. He then laid out an unusual board and pieces for a new game, leaving Severus to see what he had prepared.

• Manus and Severus bickered over the Wiggentree ornament Manus had given him for his birthday two years earlier.
• Manus recalled that he had deliberately trained Severus to think rationally, build confidence, and become more independent, though he wondered if he had overcorrected.
• Severus told Manus he had found a bent branch that morning, and Manus repaired it while suggesting Severus might have broken it in his sleep.
• Severus decided to move the plant from his bedside to his desk and watch it more closely.
• Manus unfolded an old Wizard's Chess board and arranged unfamiliar pieces on its intersections in an unusual pattern.

Manus used Qi Magic and a longhorn beetle to search a board representing Cokeworth for danger, and one piece representing the nearby woods flew off the board. He concluded the danger remained in the woods, while Severus confronted him about a previous lie.

• Manus showed Severus a board whose pieces represented places around Cokeworth, then explained that a longhorn beetle could sense traces of danger.
• Manus enchanted the beetle and instructed Severus to move it over each piece on the board.
• A wooden piece representing the small woods near the Snape house shook, flew off the board, and landed on the floor.
• Manus concluded the source of danger remained in the small woods, and Severus helped him finish checking the other pieces.
• Severus asked Manus why he had lied and said Severus broke something while sleepwalking.

Manus investigated a danger detected near his home and took Severus to their secret base, where he activated a ritual mirror. The mirror transformed and revealed a face in its darkness.

• Manus apologized for teasing Severus and explained that a presence was lingering in the woods near their home.
• Manus and Severus discussed whether the presence was a Dark wizard or a nonhuman creature as they headed toward the secret base.
• Manus checked the Snape house and told Severus that leaving it unprotected would help keep it inconspicuous.
• Manus and Severus entered the hidden base through a concealed pit beneath a broken wall.
• Manus activated his large ritual platform, and its stone mirror transformed into a jeweled mirror that revealed a face in the darkness.

Manus tested his Pseudo-All-Knowing Mirror, which revealed that a Werewolf named Fred Hones was hiding in the small woods near Severus's home and would transform that night. Manus decided to deal with him and sent Severus to fetch aconite.

• Manus questioned the Magic Mirror, which identified Fred Hones as a Werewolf preparing to transform in the small woods on the approaching full-moon night.
• Severus panicked when he realized the woods were close to his home, while Manus decided Fred was a target he could hunt.
• Manus questioned the Magic Mirror about its knowledge, then covered it with a tablecloth to shut it down.
• Manus calmed Severus and told him to bring aconite from the Potions area to deal with the Werewolf.

Manus invented a potion he named Wolfsbane Potion to deal with a werewolf near Cokeworth. He sent Huginn to deliver the single dose, leaving its effect on the werewolf untested.

• Severus brought Manus aconite and questioned whether poisoning a werewolf could work or whether the Ministry might help.
• Manus decided to invent a potion for werewolves and asked Severus to fetch ingredients while he brewed it.
• Manus successfully made a small amount of purple Wolfsbane Potion, though Severus wondered whether it could kill a werewolf.
• Manus stopped Severus from using raw meat as bait and revealed that Huginn had found a disheveled man eating raw rabbits in the woods.
• Manus gave the Wolfsbane Potion to Huginn and entrusted the raven with delivering it.

Manus sent Huginn to kill a Werewolf with Wolfsbane Potion, then confirmed the potion’s lethal effectiveness. After the meal, Manus went to inspect the dead Werewolf, Fred Hones, in the grove.

• Manus told Severus that Huginn had gone to deal with the Werewolf and prepared fries with meat sauce for lunch.
• Manus watched through a Patronus as Huginn coated his claws with Wolfsbane Potion and struck the Werewolf.
• Huginn returned with blood on his claws, and Manus confirmed that the potion had killed the Werewolf almost instantly.
• Manus left Severus and went to the grove, where he found Fred Hones’s corpse beside the campfire.
• Manus heard something and twitched his ears while examining Fred Hones.

Manus met Lily Evans while hiding the remains of a rabbit killed by the Werewolf Fred Hones. After Lily recovered from the shock, they introduced themselves and discovered that she lived near Severus Snape.

• Manus concealed the corpse and its scent as Lily approached, looking for her missing rabbit.
• Manus told Lily that a wolf had eaten the rabbit, and she fainted after seeing its remains.
• Manus helped Lily recover, and they exchanged names.
• Lily told Manus that she lived nearby, and he asked if she knew Severus Snape.
• Lily reacted awkwardly to Severus's name, and Manus suggested that she and Severus might become friends.