Chapter Summaries

Will made Neville the Secret Keeper for a hidden refuge beneath the High Tower, which Will planned to renovate into a shelter and laboratory. In Dumbledore's office, Harry confronted him about the danger behind his recent training and asked what Dumbledore needed him to do.

• Will took Neville beneath the High Tower and explained that he wanted to create a secret refuge in case Hogwarts became dangerous.
• Neville recited an oath, and Will cast the Fidelius Charm, making Neville the Secret Keeper of the underground place.
• Will told Neville he would renovate the refuge and planned to move his laboratory and dungeon there.
• Dumbledore felt a sudden unease while Harry ate cake in his office, then asked Harry about how he had been doing.
• Harry told Dumbledore he knew there was a reason for his intensified training and asked what Dumbledore needed him to do.

Harry asked Dumbledore to explain why Voldemort wanted to kill him, and learned that his mother’s sacrifice had protected him and that Voldemort had made Horcruxes to preserve his life. Dumbledore revealed that a fragment of Voldemort’s soul had accidentally attached itself to Harry, making Harry an accidental Horcrux.

• Harry told Dumbledore he was ready to face Voldemort and asked to be told the truth.
• Dumbledore explained that Lily’s love magic had protected Harry and required him to live with a blood relative.
• Dumbledore said Voldemort wanted to kill Harry because he mistakenly believed Harry had defeated him as a child.
• Dumbledore explained that Voldemort had split his soul and hidden fragments in Horcruxes to avoid death.
• Dumbledore revealed that a fragment of Voldemort’s soul had attached itself to Harry, making Harry an accidental Horcrux.

Harry learned that he was a Horcrux and might survive if Voldemort's soul fragment was destroyed without harming him. He resolved to fight Voldemort himself and protect Will, while Dumbledore reflected on the influence of Will and the High Tower.

• Dumbledore explained that Harry was a special Horcrux and could survive if the soul fragment inside him was destroyed while his own soul was protected.
• Harry accepted that he might have to die and urged Dumbledore to act, saying he could no longer stand by while Will and his friends suffered.
• Dumbledore told Harry it was not yet time and apologized for manipulating his life.
• Harry left the office determined to confront Voldemort himself and stop Will from carrying the burden alone.
• The Sorting Hat criticized Dumbledore for underestimating Harry and praised Will's influence on him.
• Dumbledore considered Will's growing ambition and looked toward the High Tower in the Forbidden Forest.

Will moved the prisoners into a reinforced underground laboratory beneath the High Tower, then accompanied Dumbledore to visit Grindelwald at Nurmengard. He proposed developing the Infinite Cage so that it would prevent escape by Apparition.

• Will reinforced the space beneath the High Tower, moved the Laboratory's prisoners into its underground house, and returned to wait for Dumbledore to leave.
• Will met Dumbledore before dawn on Sunday, and Fawkes refused to leave Will, so Dumbledore let the phoenix come with them to Nurmengard.
• Will and Dumbledore visited Grindelwald, who offered them coffee and asked Will what he wanted to learn.
• Will asked about soul studies, but Grindelwald said he could not teach him much about that subject.
• Will suggested modifying the Infinite Cage to block Apparition, and Grindelwald considered the idea a worthwhile but difficult direction for development.

Will agreed to study ways to modify Grindelwald’s Infinite Cage, and Dumbledore ended their visit after they discussed the research. At the Ministry, Scrimgeour and Ludo Bagman discussed who would oversee construction of the proposed Magical University, with Ludo pushing for his department to take charge.

• Grindelwald explained possible modifications to the Infinite Cage, and Will agreed to research them despite their limitations against Fawkes.
• Dumbledore ended the visit, but he and Will stayed for lunch after Grindelwald said he had hoped to eat with them.
• Scrimgeour asked Ludo whether Will and the others had left and learned they had accepted nearly all the Ministry’s terms.
• Ludo asked whether the Magical University’s construction would go to his Department of International Magical Cooperation or the Department of Magic Maintenance.
• Scrimgeour said he planned to assemble a new team, while Ludo argued that his department should oversee the work and Scrimgeour accused him of wanting to line his pockets.

Ludo Bagman hoped to profit from the magical university’s construction project, but Scrimgeour assigned Kane and a group of Aurors to oversee every account. Scrimgeour then ordered Ludo to put Cedric Diggory in charge of assembling an accounting team.

• Ludo Bagman saw the magical university project as a chance to make enough money to escape his debts.
• Scrimgeour assigned Ludo’s department to provide staff and put Ludo in charge of liaising with the Americans and handling part of the construction work.
• Scrimgeour ordered Kane and a group of Aurors to oversee the project’s accounts and arrest anyone responsible for irregularities.
• Scrimgeour warned Ludo against skimming money and told him to work conscientiously rather than face Voldemort on the battlefield.
• Scrimgeour told Ludo to find Cedric Diggory and have him assemble a team to monitor all the accounts.

Ludo Bagman summoned Cedric Diggory to Minister Scrimgeour, who assigned him to oversee the Magical University's accounts in Austria. Meanwhile, Fawkes left Hogwarts with Dumbledore, clearing the way for Will to begin his plans and research.

• Ludo went to the Department for Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures to summon Cedric Diggory to the Minister's Office.
• Scrimgeour asked Cedric to travel to Austria and oversee the Magical University's accounts, and Cedric accepted.
• Scrimgeour told Cedric to prepare to leave early and meet the accounts supervisor from America before construction began.
• Will watched Fawkes leave Hogwarts with Dumbledore and decided he could now advance his plans and research.
• Will vanished from the spot with a Silver Flame.

Will built the Underground High Tower and used its laboratory to investigate soul studies, hoping to solve Scrimgeour’s problem. After testing the effects of the Flesh-Stitching Curse, he reviewed Voldemort’s theories of the soul and prepared to apply them.

• Will used magic to construct the Underground High Tower in minutes and entered its underground laboratory.
• Will examined two Dark Wizards whose arms had been fused by the Flesh-Stitching Curse and found that their magical structures remained separate.
• Will severed part of the fused arm, then separated the Dark Wizards and healed their wounds before stunning them.
• Will observed a Dark Wizard’s damaged hand slowly regenerating and concluded that the soul, magic, and body formed a trinity.
• Will consulted Voldemort’s theories on soul integrity, soul splitting, fragment size, and resonance as he prepared to test the knowledge he had learned.

Will studied how Voldemort’s Horcruxes damaged his soul and body, and how Voldemort used Dark Magic and flesh-stitching to repair himself. The research inspired Will to investigate capturing the cursed part of Scrimgeour’s soul, and he began testing the curse on several Dark Wizards.

• Will reviewed how murder and a spell split a wizard’s soul to create Horcruxes, and concluded that Voldemort had used flesh-stitching and Dark Magic to patch the damage to his body.
• Will considered growing a new hand for Scrimgeour, then decided to test whether he could capture the soul in a severed hand without carrying the curse.
• Will brought several Dark Wizards out of the dungeon and exposed them to the previously infected Dark Wizard to create more test subjects.
• Will observed the subjects over several hours to determine whether the curse infected the soul directly or damaged it through the body and magical structure.

Will investigated Voldemort's curse and determined that it damaged Scrimgeour's soul through the body and magical structure, leaving him to work out how to rebuild them. Meanwhile, Harry erupted at Snape in Defence Against the Dark Arts, and Will stopped him before he could land a punch.

• Will reinforced his Underground High Tower laboratory and spent several days researching Voldemort's curse, concluding that it eroded the soul through the body and magical structure.
• Slughorn invited Will to dinner to discuss questions for Eldred Worple's The Biography of Behrens, and Will accepted.
• In Potions class, Will helped Sylvia with her potion while they exchanged teasing remarks about Slughorn's investments.
• Snape insulted Harry's father during Defence Against the Dark Arts, and Harry shouted back, threatened Snape, and charged at him with a punch.
• Will immobilized Harry and intervened, while Snape left the classroom and told them to let Professor McGonagall handle the matter.
• Will looked at Harry, who lost consciousness.

Harry admitted that fear of his approaching death had overwhelmed him, leading him to attack Snape and refuse to apologize. In the Hospital Wing, he told Will how terrified he was of losing his remaining time with friends, and Will began comforting him.

• Professor McGonagall told Harry that Gryffindor had lost fifty points and ordered him to apologize to Snape, but Harry refused.
• Madam Pomfrey found nothing physically wrong with Harry and instructed him to rest in the Hospital Wing for two days.
• Will visited Harry, who explained that Snape's insult had triggered the anxiety he had been carrying since learning he was going to die.
• Harry told Will he feared that any day might be his last and that he would never see his friends again.
• Will used Emotion Weaving to calm Harry and told him that being afraid was normal.

Will comforted Harry after Dumbledore told him he was destined to die, then revealed that he was studying Soul Studies to find a way to save him. Will left Harry resolved to face his fate and went to dinner with Slughorn, who asked about Harry.

• Will told Harry that his fear was normal and offered to use a Memory Charm, but Harry refused and said he had to face his destiny.
• Will revealed that he was studying Soul Studies, including the field that covered Horcruxes, to find a way to help Harry.
• Will told Harry he had kept quiet because he would not make him wait for death, and Harry was deeply moved by his friend's efforts.
• Strange urged Harry to trust Will, and Harry promised to take care of himself and repay Will if he could.
• Will went to Slughorn's office for dinner, where Slughorn asked how Harry was.

Will told Slughorn that Harry carried a fragment of Voldemort's soul and asked him for everything he knew about Tom Riddle. Slughorn gave Will a memory of his past conversation with Tom, leaving Will pleased that he had completed Dumbledore's task and no longer owed him anything.

• Will told Slughorn that Harry was emotionally unstable and carried a fragment of Voldemort's soul.
• Slughorn panicked when Will called Voldemort Tom Riddle and asked him what he had told Tom about Horcruxes.
• Slughorn praised Will's magical ability and said he believed Will would surpass Tom.
• Slughorn extracted his memory and placed it in a vial for Will.
• Will accepted the memory and thought he had completed Dumbledore's task and owed him nothing more.

Will persuaded Slughorn to stop wavering and support the fight against Voldemort, then revealed his Felix Charm and impressed Slughorn with his accomplishments. The chapter ended with Will preparing to ask Slughorn to do several things.

• Will urged Slughorn to choose a side and reminded him of his former students, including Lily, prompting Slughorn to break down in grief and regret.
• Will comforted Slughorn and used the Felix Charm, giving him the sensation of Felix Felicis without a potion.
• Slughorn praised Will, compared him favorably to Tom, and lamented that Severus had such an outstanding student.
• Will told Slughorn that he had completed Potion Transfiguration in his first year and developed the Felix Charm during his fourth year while competing in the Triwizard Tournament.
• Slughorn asked Will about his research, and Will said he had told him these things because he wanted him to do a few things.

Will asked Slughorn to oversee Worple’s account of Behrens’s biography and have it printed by summer, promising that events would make the wizards believe it. Meanwhile, Dumbledore reviewed the Order’s wartime operations and Ministry developments before deciding to visit the Ministry of Magic.

• Will told Slughorn to arrange for Worple to write Behrens’s biography and finish the manuscript by May for a summer release.
• Will assured Slughorn that the Wizarding World would believe the book once reality proved its claims, and planned to defeat Voldemort and become its savior.
• At 12 Grimmauld Place, Moody reported that two interceptions had gone smoothly, while Lupin described stronger coordination with the Aurors and praised Charlie’s work with a Green dragon.
• Dumbledore agreed that Charlie could learn from Lupin and later take on a suitable role in the Order of the Phoenix.
• Dumbledore read Amelia Bones’s report on Ministry affairs, including plans to investigate the Most Extraordinary Society of Potioneers and reorganize wartime supplies.
• Dumbledore decided to visit the Ministry of Magic within the next day or two.

Ludo Bagman attended the Ministry's announcement about the Magical University and traveled with a group of wizards to Austria. At Hogwarts, Draco Malfoy rallied Pure-blood students to act for the returned Dark Lord, then began to explain what he expected them to do.

• Ludo Bagman worried that the Magical University project could attract a Death Eater attack and planned to ask Minister Scrimgeour for a Floo Powder network near the construction site.
• Dumbledore arrived at the Ministry meeting, and Scrimgeour seated him beside himself, leaving Ludo unable to raise his request.
• Scrimgeour announced the Ministry personnel bound for Austria, and Ludo answered reporters' questions before leading wizards to the International Floo Network room.
• Draco Malfoy entered a classroom packed with Pure-blood students and blamed the Ministry and Dumbledore for their loss of status.
• Draco announced that the Dark Lord had returned and urged the students to demonstrate their loyalty through action.
• When a Slytherin asked what they should do, Draco rebuked him and began to give the group instructions.

Draco rallied a group of Hogwarts students to secretly support the Dark Lord, following Will’s instructions while concealing their allegiance. After Will praised him and clarified his true task, Draco sensed that Will’s power was becoming more apparent.

• Draco told the students that the war had begun and urged them to take responsibility, then proposed coordinating with the Dark Lord from inside Hogwarts.
• When an impatient student interrupted him, Draco used Levicorpus to hoist him upside down before lowering him and laying out three tasks: find secret passages, hide their Pure-blood beliefs, and await his orders.
• The students dispersed quietly, and Pansy Parkinson gave Draco a note asking him to meet her that night; Draco had no interest in becoming closer to her.
• Will revealed he had been present and praised Draco for following his instructions, then told him to focus on gathering students who supported the Dark Lord’s side.
• After Will vanished, Draco sensed that the mist around Will was clearing and that his true power was about to be revealed.

Draco took comfort in his Tower Medal while Will investigated a curse and developed a plan to create a soul through the Trinity of soul, magic, and flesh. On the full moon, Will turned the priest in Louisiana into a Wizard and altered his memories, leaving the priest convinced that the Wizard God had blessed him again.

• Draco recalled that the High Tower would shelter him, then declined Pansy's invitation because he could not attend.
• Will studied the curse infecting a Dark Wizard and found that it followed a stable path through the victim's magic structure.
• Will reasoned that a body part with flesh and a magic structure but no soul might be used to cultivate a soul.
• Will traveled to Louisiana on the full moon and used a Werewolf to transform the praying priest.
• Will altered the priest's memories so that he believed the Wizard God had given him the seed of magic, a wand, and knowledge; other blessed people received the same treatment.

Will tested whether Werewolf Venom could create a Magic structure in a limb without a soul, while Harry resolved to study and become useful despite Strange warning him away from Soul Studies. The chapter ended with the Sorting Hat growing dissatisfied with Dumbledore over Harry.

• Will rebuilt a Dark Wizard’s severed arm from flesh taken from his leg, then had a Werewolf bite him and watched a Magic structure emerge in the soulless limb.
• Will’s frequent absences from class went unchallenged because the professors agreed he no longer needed their lessons.
• At dinner, Hermione teased Ron about his abilities, while Harry stayed quiet and said he was going to the Library.
• Harry told Strange he wanted to stop waiting helplessly and study so he could help Will and fight the Death Eaters.
• Strange rejected Harry’s request to study Soul Studies and offered to help him choose books on combat magic instead.
• The Sorting Hat sighed in Dumbledore’s office and grew dissatisfied with how Dumbledore was handling things because of Harry.

The Sorting Hat worried that Dumbledore’s plans would put Harry at risk and hoped Will would have time to help. At Malfoy Manor, Voldemort ordered Lucius and Yaxley to train foreign wizards, gather information on officials’ and academics’ families, and pressure Snape to make progress; Will continued studying forbidden knowledge at Hogwarts.

• The Sorting Hat reflected on Harry’s growth and resolved to cover for Will while hoping he could achieve a breakthrough in soul studies.
• Voldemort reprimanded Lucius about Snape’s lack of progress and Draco’s late reports, then assigned Lucius and Yaxley to train foreign wizards as organized Death Eater units.
• Voldemort ordered Lucius to compile addresses and family details for senior Ministry officials and prominent academics before the school year ended.
• Voldemort told Lucius to warn Snape that he would face consequences if he remained unsuccessful, then dismissed Lucius and Yaxley.
• The Sorting Hat hoped Harry and Will would be given more time as Will studied a notebook of forbidden knowledge in his tower study.