Recaps

Will met with Fred and George Weasley in the Room of Requirement and became a partner in their animal-transforming biscuits. After agreeing to help them access the Restricted Section, he considered whether their experiments could lead him to develop an animal transformation spell.

• Will welcomed Fred and George Weasley to the Room of Requirement and offered them a chilling jug, which they declined.
• Will asked about the Twins’ biscuits, and Fred and George explained that they were developing treats that turned people into animals.
• Will proposed sharing his expertise in exchange for a share of the profits, and they agreed that he would receive ten percent.
• The Twins asked Will to get them written permission to consult books on transformation Potions in the Restricted Section, and he agreed on the condition that they keep their research private.
• After the Twins left, Will wondered whether reverse-engineering their Animal Crackers could help him create an animal transformation spell, then fell asleep.

Harry’s Quidditch practice was interrupted by a confrontation between the Gryffindor and Slytherin teams, which Will ended by confusing Marcus Flint. Will then met the Weasley Brothers at a Stone House by the Black Lake and gave them books about Dzou Yen and elixirs.

• Harry practiced flying while Colin Creevey tried to photograph him from outside the Quidditch Pitch.
• Marcus Flint and Draco Malfoy arrived to claim the pitch for Slytherin, and Malfoy insulted the Weasleys.
• Will arrived to meet George and Fred, but Marcus Flint warned him against associating with the Gryffindors.
• Will cast a Confusion Charm on Marcus Flint, causing him to collapse.
• Will gave the Weasley Brothers books about Dzou Yen and elixirs at a Stone House by the Black Lake.

Will read Primordial Spirit Beast Explained and learned how Chinese practitioners used Transfiguration and Magical Qi to become animal forms, a practice the West called Animagus. The text suggested that mastered Transfiguration could imitate divine beasts, and Will wondered if wizards could become Fantastic Beasts.

• Will considered looking beyond European books for magical knowledge and focused on Chinese texts, whose language he already knew.
• Will read that a practitioner’s natural Magical Qi pathways determined which beast form they could assume, while rituals and great power could enable further transformations.
• Will learned that skilled practitioners could transform parts of their bodies to imitate features of divine beasts, though becoming a true divine beast required mastering its Magical Qi.
• Will gained Transfiguration experience and wondered whether wizards could become Fantastic Beasts.

Will considered the differences between Eastern and Western transformation magic but decided to postpone becoming an Animagus while he learned more. After a potion explosion, he and the Weasley Brothers built a taller stone structure beside the Black Lake and named it High Tower.

• Will read about becoming a Primordial Spirit Beast and decided he needed more information before attempting the Ritual.
• A potion experiment by the Weasley Brothers exploded in the Stone House, filling it with smoke and residue.
• George and Fred suggested building another room so their experiments would not disturb Will.
• Will and the Weasley Brothers agreed to expand the Stone House upward and used spells and magical glue to build a tower.
• The three named the new structure High Tower, which was completed on November 21, 1992.

As the High Tower grew into a gathering place for Will and his friends, Professor McGonagall asked him to help Hermione manage the pressure she put on herself. The chapter ended with McGonagall offering to teach Will a special trick.

• Will's friends increasingly visited the High Tower, which he expanded to three stories and equipped with fireplaces and a kitchen.
• Harry and Neville joined Ron and Hermione at the High Tower to do homework, and Anco delivered Will's meal before his lessons and Transfiguration Club.
• Professor McGonagall taught the club about the Animagus ritual and answered a student's question about using other sources of magic.
• Professor McGonagall asked Will to guide the High Tower's members and speak to Hermione, who had become anxious from comparing herself to him.
• Will agreed to talk to Hermione, and Professor McGonagall began describing a trick she intended to teach him.

Will agreed to accompany Snape to Egypt over Christmas to study Rituals and Natural Magic, then spoke with Hermione about her relentless studying and encouraged her to find what she genuinely loved. Hermione left considering that excellence did not have to define her path.

• Will asked Snape whether Rituals and Natural Magic were used in potions, and Snape invited him to Egypt over Christmas to study Ritual Studies.
• Snape warned Will against attempting an Animagus transformation carelessly and asked him to do something for him in return for the trip.
• Will wrote to Uncle Hobart that he would spend Christmas in Egypt and asked Anco to deliver cookies around the High Tower.
• Will told Hermione that she did not need to imitate him and asked what she truly loved studying.
• Hermione admitted she did not know what she loved, and Will suggested she give herself time to explore possibilities such as Magical Law.

Will talked Hermione into finding her own goal, then spent time recovering from a transformation prank while studying how magic flowed through transformed bodies. Professor McGonagall taught him the Undetectable Extension Charm, leaving him eager to build vast spaces inside enchanted containers.

• Hermione decided to look for her own goal after talking with Will, who credited Professor McGonagall for helping her.
• A prank transformed the High Tower members into bizarre forms, and Snape treated them in the Hospital Wing while Will studied the magic behind their transformations.
• The group concluded that the Weasley Brothers were responsible for the cookies from Anonymous after Sylvia avoided their effects.
• Hermione and Neville left the Hospital Wing first, and Will was discharged several days later.
• Professor McGonagall taught Will the Undetectable Extension Charm and warned him that the Ministry prohibited privately enchanted items.

Will traveled with Snape through the International Floo Network to Egypt for a Potions symposium, where they met Uagadou Potions professor Nabila Okanta. The chapter ended as Okanta led them out of the Floo room and Will saw the immense inverted-pyramid structure around them.

• Will left for Egypt with Snape during Christmas break and learned they would travel through the International Floo Network.
• At the British Ministry of Magic, Bernard Neal escorted Snape and Will to the international fireplaces and learned that Will was Snape's apprentice.
• Snape and Will arrived in Egypt, where Nabila Okanta greeted Snape and offered to arrange an interpreter for Will.
• Okanta led Snape and Will toward their lodgings near the symposium venue, and Will saw a vast inverted pyramid.

Will and Snape arrived in Egypt with Okanta for the International Potions Symposium, traveling from the Egyptian Wizards' Council to the enchanted oasis where it would be held. Okanta arranged their lodgings and invited Snape to the symposium, while Will hoped his guide would know about Uagadou's Transfiguration.

• Okanta showed Will and Snape the Egyptian Wizards' Council and explained how its True Hourglass controlled the pyramid and its Sand Vortices.
• Will and Snape traveled through a Sand Vortex and emerged in Egypt, where the desert heat quickly overwhelmed them.
• Okanta took Will and Snape by Flying Carpet to the oasis hosting the International Potions Symposium.
• Okanta arranged cool, charmed lodgings for them and asked Snape to attend the symposium the next morning.
• Okanta offered Will a guide to Cairo, and Will hoped the guide had graduated from Uagadou so he could learn about its Transfiguration.

Will met Aisha Nagar, a fourth-year Uagadou student, who guided him through Egypt toward Cairo. He questioned her about Uagadou’s Human Transfiguration practices, and she began explaining the school’s belief in awakening one’s own gift.

• Snape appeared with his hair washed and tied back, and he told Will to mind his own business when Will praised his new look.
• Okanta introduced Will to Aisha Nagar, and she took him toward Cairo as his guide.
• Will and Aisha rode Shadow Camels across Egypt while she explained Egyptian Wizarding history and landmarks.
• Will asked Aisha to discuss something beyond sightseeing, and they talked about Transfiguration over coffee at a cat café.
• Aisha said Uagadou students learned Human Transfiguration by awakening their own gifts, and Will asked what she meant.

Will learned about Uagadou’s philosophy of Transfiguration from Aisha Nagar and demonstrated that he had already studied Human Transfiguration. After hours of discussion, he advanced to Transfiguration LV4 and chose Sight Insight to aid his future Animagus work.

• Aisha explained that Uagadou viewed forms as manifestations of the soul and treated Transfiguration as a guiding philosophy.
• Will revealed that he could transform his arm into a wolf’s paw and asked Aisha to teach him more about Uagadou’s approach.
• Aisha discussed Transfiguration with Will for hours while he took notes and gained experience.
• Will fetched Aisha kumquat medicinal tea for her sore throat, then urged her to resume the lesson.
• Will advanced to Transfiguration LV4 and selected Sight Insight as his Bonus Ability.

Will learned more about Egyptian Ritual Studies from Aisha and reached level two before meeting Bill Weasley at a restaurant in Thebes. Bill warned him that tomb robbers had unleashed a dangerous curse tied to ancient Egyptian gods and sacrifices.

• Will asked Aisha to teach him about Ritual Studies, and his studies advanced to level two with the Ritual Inscription ability.
• Aisha took Will to the Cat's Rest Restaurant, where he tried Egyptian food.
• Will recognized Bill Weasley, introduced himself as a friend of George and Fred, and told Bill why he was in Egypt.
• Bill warned Will that tomb robbers had unleashed a curse in the tomb of Ramesses II and told him to flee and report anyone who spoke to him about ancient Egyptian gods or sacrifices.

Bill warned Will and Aisha that tomb robbers had released a curse from Ramesses II’s tomb, prompting Will to worry about its power. Aisha reassured him that Egypt’s Wizards’ Council had a professional team to handle escaped curses as they traveled by Flying Carpet.

• Bill explained Ramesses II’s magical power and warned Will to tell Snape about the curse and return to England after the International Potions Symposium.
• Bill thanked Will for investing in George and Fred’s business plan, paid for the meal, and urged him to warn Snape.
• Will and Aisha said goodbye to Bill and rented a high-speed Flying Carpet to travel from Thebes Street.
• Will worried that the curse might threaten them, while Aisha said Egypt’s Wizards’ Council had a crisis-response team that could handle it.

Egyptian Council Aurors and Curse-Breakers entered a cave at Mount Catherine with a reluctant Gringotts team to contain a spreading curse and capture Akri. A battle broke out with Akri and his accomplices, ending as Kassem’s searing ray struck Akri’s raised palm.

• Kassem led the Egyptian team into the cave, while the Gringotts Curse-Breakers followed after being ordered to join them.
• Akri and his accomplices ambushed the teams, triggering a fierce battle in the narrow passages.
• The Egyptian Wizards and Gringotts Curse-Breakers countered the traitors’ spells and maneuvered to flank them.
• Akri diverted Kassem’s searing ray by raising his right hand, and the spell grazed his palm.

After Akri’s capture, the Egyptian Wizards’ Council extracted key details of his curse plot and sent teams to contain the damage. Meanwhile, Will learned more about Uagadou and its magic, while the council prepared to punish Akri and reflected on Egypt’s history.

• Kassem subdued Akri, whose accomplices surrendered, and the Gringotts Leader took him to the Wizards’ Council.
• Will returned to camp, told Snape he had gathered information at Uagadou and met Bill Weasley, and heard that curses had escaped from Ramesses II’s tomb.
• Aisha told Okanta that Will had studied Animagus transformation and rituals, surprising Okanta with his advanced magical abilities.
• A wizard in the Curse Processing Department used Legilimency on Akri and identified three curse sites and a dangerous book in the Alexandria Library of Cairo.
• Kassem and the council members agreed that Akri should receive the maximum penalty, death, and ordered Aurors and Curse-Breakers to contain the threats.
• After leaving the Inverted Pyramid, the middle-aged wizard said that his people’s history of invasion seemed to have ended.

Will and Aisha visited the Library of Alexandria, where Will searched for Uagadou textbooks and met Aisha’s uncle Khafre. Over the next two days, Will explored Egypt safely and began considering how to combine different Animagus traditions.

• Aisha tricked Will into visiting the Library of Alexandria, where she hoped to enjoy some quiet while he searched for books.
• Will met Aisha’s uncle Khafre, who seemed unusually authoritative and talkative, then dismissed Aisha’s suspicions as a possible change of mood.
• Will continued exploring Egypt with Aisha for two days without encountering danger.
• The Egyptian Wizards' Council announced that it had caught the thief who robbed the tomb of Ramesses II.
• Will learned that Chinese and Egyptian Animagus traditions emphasized finding one’s true self and returning to nature, while England’s relied more on Potions and ritual, and he considered combining them.

Will tested Ritual Inscription and found that it let him reproduce rituals successfully with poor or substituted materials as long as he followed their steps. He then set up a concealed desert shelter, while Khafre watched him from the Egyptian Wizards' Council's monitoring chamber.

• Will used the finding and cleaning rituals, then discovered Ritual Inscription preserved their effects even when he replaced most materials with unsuitable substitutes.
• Will found that both rituals failed when he skipped a required step, and concluded that following the steps in order was enough to reproduce their best results.
• Will went into the desert at night and performed the Shelter ritual, raising a protective dome that concealed him behind a mirage.
• Khafre watched Will set up the ritual from the Egyptian Wizards' Council's monitoring chamber and wondered what he was doing.

Will’s unconventional Ritual Inscription made his Sanctuary Ritual succeed, while Nefertari watched in disbelief. At the closing banquet of the International Potions Symposium, Sandstorm Golems attacked, and a rune-covered arm dragged Will into quicksand before Snape could save him.

• Nefertari watched Will complete a Sanctuary Ritual using a shattered Moonstone and a pattern drawn with sand and powdered Scarab shells, and the Ritual succeeded.
• Will concluded that Ritual Inscription let his Ritual draw more Natural Magic, then spent a day relaxing with Aisha as the International Potions Symposium ended.
• Sandstorm Golems burst into the banquet hall, and Will, Snape, and the Aurors fought back as the attackers’ bodies repeatedly reformed.
• A rune-covered Obsidian-like arm seized Will from a Quicksand Trap and blocked his spells, while Snape’s Killing Curse struck a Shadow Barrier.
• The quicksand swallowed Will, and the Sandstorm Golems collapsed and vanished, leaving the hall in ruins with dead and wounded behind.

Will Behrens was taken by Nefertari, who revealed himself as Pharaoh Ramesses, into his hidden Pyramid chamber. Nefertari announced that Will would participate in his ascension.

• Will was forced into a stone chamber, where he found Khafre and learned that he was possessed by Nefertari, also known as Pharaoh Ramesses.
• Nefertari told Will that he wanted his help with Ritual Studies and led him through the Pyramid, assuring him that no curses would harm him.
• Will used the Wizard's Eye to inspect magical runes and passed the remains of 19th-century explorers in the passage.
• Nefertari opened a hidden chamber filled with scrolls, magical artifacts, and a Ritual Array, and declared that Will would participate in his ascension.

Will negotiated with Nefertari for a future partnership in exchange for her knowledge, then learned that Ascension made her part of Natural Magic while threatening her identity and memories. After hearing her explanation, Will’s magic reached LV.max and he gained Mind Over Matter, and Nefertari prepared to begin the ritual.

• Will argued that his rare Ritual Studies talent and long-term service could make him a valuable partner to Nefertari.
• Nefertari agreed to discuss a future partnership after Will proved himself by completing the ritual, and offered to explain its structure.
• Nefertari explained that nature has a mind and magic is the essence of the world, which caused Will’s magic to reach LV.max and granted him Mind Over Matter.
• Nefertari revealed that Ascension made her part of Natural Magic and gradually erased her identity, while repeated rituals helped preserve her memories and humanity.
• Nefertari said she could not arrange the ritual herself and told Will they had to begin.

Nefertari explained that her ascension ritual needed three temples, rare magical materials, and the Sand of the Heart, made from sacrificed souls. Will reluctantly followed her instructions and learned Ritual Studies while building the ritual, as chaos erupted outside the Pyramid.

• Nefertari showed Will the scarabs, royal sand, blue lotus, Last Breath, and Sand of the Heart required for the ritual.
• Nefertari revealed that the Sand of the Heart came from souls extracted through sacrifice and insisted that ascension justified the cost.
• Will decided to help complete the ritual to protect himself and gain Nefertari’s promised knowledge.
• Nefertari guided Will through the underground chambers as he repeatedly made mistakes and gained Ritual Studies experience.
• Will spent a long time eating and sleeping in the Pyramid and temples while preparing the ritual, as the outside world descended into chaos.

After Will helped Nefertari prepare a ritual using Soul Sand and scarab fragments, she began a bid for immortality inside the Pyramid. The ritual consumed Khafre and Nefertari, leaving Will outside as the magic collapsed and watched him.

• Snape demanded that the Egyptian Wizards' Council find the abducted Hogwarts student, while Aurors and Snape searched without success for days.
• Nefertari recalled the ancient ritual in which priests prepared a vast magical array powered by the life force and emotions of countless sacrifices.
• Nearly a month later, Nefertari began the ritual atop the Sarcophagus, combining black Soul Sand, scarab fragments, and the withered Blue Lotus.
• As the Pyramid shook and magic surged, Will escaped the chamber by leaping over a stone slab.
• The magic collapsed inward, Khafre's corpse disintegrated, and Nefertari dissolved into dark smoke as Will sensed her watching him.

After Nefertari marked Will Behrens with a pact requiring his help and a future Ascension Ritual, he left for the Chamber of Secrets to claim promised knowledge. Meanwhile, the Egyptian Wizards' Council faced mounting pressure to find him, and an Auror finally reported that the boy had been found.

• Nefertari branded Will with the Pact of the Sun and required him to help stabilize her form and arrange another Ascension Ritual in Egypt a hundred years later.
• Nefertari promised Will ancient knowledge in the Chamber of Secrets for fulfilling the pact, and Will agreed to leave.
• The Egyptian Wizards' Council searched frantically for Will as Dumbledore, Hogwarts professors, British wizarding families, and Muggle officials pressured Egypt to find him.
• Madam Okanta reassured Hobart Howard and Snape that the search had expanded to the Pyramids, while Aisha blamed herself for introducing Will to Khafre.
• An Auror announced that Will had been found.

Will woke in an Egyptian wizard hospital after being rescued from the Pyramid of Khufu and gave Hobart and Snape an account of his captivity. He claimed Khafre’s group had tried to exploit his talent for Ritual Studies, while the shadowy Magic in the room remained unseen by the others.

• The Egyptian Council Head learned that Will had been found unconscious in the Pyramid of Khufu and arranged for Curse-Breakers to remove the curse traces from him.
• Will woke three days later with Hobart, Professor Snape, and several Healers gathered around his bed.
• Will described being captured by Khafre’s group, forced to study Ritual symbols and incantations, and punished when he made mistakes.
• Will claimed his captors had argued before a magical explosion, after which he ran deeper into the Pyramid and lost consciousness.
• Will stopped speaking when he noticed shadowy Magic in the room.

After the Egyptian Wizards' Council compensated Will for his kidnapping, he recovered in hospital and prepared to leave Egypt with Snape and Hobart. He was eager to return to England before Hogwarts began, despite not having fully absorbed the knowledge he had gained from Nefertari.

• The Egyptian Wizards' Council treated Will's disappearance as a kidnapping and agreed to his request for books on Ritual Studies and Uagadou's Animagus practices.
• Snape brought Will a potion and teased him about his old lie that he was a Muggle-born Wizard, then warned him not to lie again.
• Snape told Will they could return to England within a day or two, and Will said he was ready to leave Egypt.
• Hobart told Will he had hurried to Egypt after receiving his letter and had pressured the Egyptian Muggle Government to help find him.
• Will asked Hobart to return to England the next day because Hogwarts was about to start term.
• The next morning, Will left with Snape and Hobart through the International Floo Network.