Chapter Summaries

Shawn defeated Tom’s attempt to kill him, sent him to Hogsmeade to await orders, and learned that a rumor about him was spreading through Slytherin. After receiving urgent letters from Lucius, Shawn ordered Tom to act and sent Lucius a reply whose contents left him stunned.

• Tom launched a weakened Killing Curse at Shawn, who blocked it with a small shield and gave Tom a Communication Card, Galleons, and a wand before sending him to Hogsmeade.
• Shawn freed Draco from Tom’s Petrificus Totalus, told him to keep Tom’s identity secret, and took urgent letters from Lucius.
• After reading the letters, Shawn sent Tom an order and postponed his visit to the Headmaster’s Office.
• Draco told Shawn that a rumor about him had spread among the students, and Shawn ordered him to have Alice investigate how it began and whether anyone had deliberately embellished it.
• Shawn soothed Purple Shadow, wrote a reply to Lucius, and sent Kreacher to deliver it after Purple Shadow refused to carry the letter.
• Lucius read Shawn’s message about the Dark Lord taking charge of the School Governor matter and wondered whether Shawn had more influence than he realized.

The Order of the Phoenix met at the Tonks family home to review intelligence and discuss the lack of leads on Voldemort’s allies. After the meeting, Mundungus Fletcher secretly sold their intelligence in Knockturn Alley and went on to another rendezvous.

• Moody questioned the Order about pure-bloods collecting alchemy materials, Lupin’s whereabouts, and Amelia Bones’s refusal to join them.
• Moody caught Mundungus copying the Order’s intelligence, and Mundungus claimed he needed the notes to remember his work among dark wizards.
• Kingsley asked Tonks whether Shawn Black had contacted her family, but she dismissed the idea of currying favor with rich relatives.
• The Order’s routine meeting ended, and Mundungus stole a silver trinket before leaving the Tonks home.
• Mundungus Apparated to Knockturn Alley, sold handwritten intelligence to a concealed buyer, and then headed toward another shabby door.

Tom summoned the Death Eaters to Riddle House, where the gathered followers were unnerved by his changed appearance and controlled demeanor. He called Selwyn forward first, leaving Selwyn fearing that his past betrayal would cost him his life.

• Lucius and the other Death Eaters argued over his support for Black and his purchases of alchemy materials, while Borgin and Burkes traded information with Yaxley.
• The Death Eaters received Tom's summons through their Dark Marks, donned their cloaks and masks, and hurried to leave the area.
• Shawn arrived at Riddle House under concealment and watched Tom await the gathering as streams of black smoke carried the Death Eaters to the courtyard.
• The Death Eaters crawled forward to kiss Tom's robe and knelt around him, growing uneasy at how young and composed he appeared.
• Tom surveyed the gathered Death Eaters and ordered Selwyn to step forward, making Selwyn fear that Tom knew he had betrayed his followers to the Ministry.

Tom punished Selwyn by demanding his family’s fortune and Hogwarts governor seat, then ordered the Death Eaters to expand their influence and prepare for his return to power. Shawn watched from behind Tom, intending to use him as a shield while he continued building resources and influence.

• Tom demanded 100,000 Galleons and Selwyn’s Hogwarts governor seat within ten days, threatening the Selwyn family if he refused.
• Tom ordered Lucius to discreetly transfer the Hogwarts governor contracts held by seven Death Eater families within ten days.
• Tom told the Death Eaters to infiltrate the Ministry, consolidate their resources for economic expansion, and recruit allies, warning them against reckless actions.
• Tom blasted the courtyard gates with a Killing Curse to intimidate the assembled Death Eaters.
• Shawn noted Tom’s magic had limits and considered how to expand his own influence while keeping Dumbledore occupied.

Shawn approved Tom’s plan to capture Voldemort’s main soul by turning it into a Horcrux, then returned to Hogwarts and learned that Ron, Cormac McLaggen, and Pansy Parkinson were spreading suspicious rumors about him. He ordered Alice to investigate Cormac further and headed to the Seventh Floor to find a teacher for his Purple Shadow.

• Tom told Shawn that he could sense Voldemort’s location and proposed using their shared soul origin to imprison the main soul as a Horcrux.
• Shawn gave Tom authority to use the Death Eaters’ resources, but warned him to put his own safety before capturing Voldemort.
• Shawn returned to Hogwarts and joined the Slytherin table for dinner, where Alice reported that Ron, Cormac McLaggen, and Pansy Parkinson were implicated in the rumors about him.
• Shawn ordered Alice to investigate Cormac McLaggen’s background thoroughly.
• Shawn declined to walk with Draco and went toward the Seventh Floor to find a teacher for his Purple Shadow.

Shawn visited Dumbledore and asked to borrow Fawkes, offering the discovery of another Horcrux as leverage. After Shawn produced the Notebook, Dumbledore agreed, and Fawkes protested as Shawn prepared to take him.

• Shawn reached the Seventh Floor and encountered Snape, who hinted that dangerous potion ingredients could injure him even through Dragonhide Gloves.
• Shawn inferred that Snape was gathering information independently of Dumbledore, then went to the Headmaster's Office.
• Dumbledore made milk tea for Shawn, who added pudding pearls, and they silently considered their differing approaches to changing the wizarding world.
• Shawn asked to borrow Fawkes and offered to find another Horcrux in exchange.
• Shawn handed Dumbledore the Notebook, then went to Fawkes while Dumbledore agreed to let him take the phoenix.
• Fawkes called out in protest, but Dumbledore waved Shawn on, assuring Fawkes that Shawn had a potential friend and plenty of food.

At Nurmengard, Grindelwald explained that prophecy only described possibilities and prepared Vita to replace Hogwarts’ next Defense Against Dark Magic teacher while warning her not to shape Shawn’s politics. At Malfoy Manor, Tom studied curses and received an encrypted message on his communication card.

• Vinda Rosier reported on Grindelwald’s political operations in Poland, Russia, and the United States, then asked whether they would intervene in Britain after Voldemort’s apparent return.
• Grindelwald told Vita to let Shawn handle Voldemort and approved her plan to impersonate Hogwarts’ next Defense Against Dark Magic teacher, while forbidding her from influencing Shawn’s political views.
• After Vita left, Grindelwald reflected that prophecy showed only possible futures and that he had restarted his campaign to pursue a chance of victory and a future with Albus.
• At Malfoy Manor, Lucius learned that Tom wanted curse books gathered from major pure-blood families, and Lucius set out to collect them and seek atonement money.
• Tom studied curses to prepare for capturing the main soul and breaking the curse on the Horcrux ring, and discovered that a Dragon Pox curse might have been used in Nobby Leach’s assassination.
• Tom received an encrypted message on his flashing communication card and hesitated before reading it.

Harry and Terence Higgs raced for the Golden Snitch as Gryffindor and Slytherin fought to decide the Quidditch Cup. While Draco reported that Slytherin had lost, Shawn learned that influential Pure-blood Association elders were likely behind rumors targeting him and ordered Alice to find their hidden residences.

• Lee Jordan commentated as Gryffindor and Slytherin traded goals, leaving Slytherin ahead by twenty points.
• Harry spotted the Golden Snitch, and both teams sent players to support their Seekers as they fought for it.
• Alice told Shawn that powerful Pure-blood Association elders might have ordered rumors against him, and Shawn instructed her to have Mr. Fawley locate them.
• Theodore proposed capturing Cormac McLaggen and interrogating him, but Shawn rejected the plan and decided to target the elders' safe houses instead.
• Draco announced that Slytherin had lost after Harry beat Terence Higgs to the Snitch.

After Gryffindor won the Quidditch Cup, Snape held Shawn accountable for Slytherin’s loss, and Shawn set Draco’s chance of joining the team next term behind perfect exam results. Shawn then returned to the Common Room, spent time with Purple Shadow and Fawkes, and sent letters and a message to Tom as he waited for events outside Hogwarts to develop.

• Harry caught the Golden Snitch and celebrated Gryffindor’s Quidditch Cup victory while McGonagall joined the cheering students.
• Snape confronted Shawn over Slytherin’s loss, and Shawn agreed to crush Gryffindor next term.
• Draco asked Shawn for a place as Seeker, and Shawn said he would consider it only if Draco earned all O’s in his finals.
• Shawn doubled the Slytherins’ self-study time and redirected their spell practice toward Shield Charms and Petrificus Totalus.
• Shawn found Fawkes chasing Purple Shadow in the Common Room, and Fawkes knocked Shawn off balance before disappearing in sparks.
• Shawn wrote to Lucius and Grindelwald, contacted Tom about his assignment, and invited him to a Throne meeting before term ended.

Shawn protected Slytherin’s House points, then organized a celebration and convened the Throne’s final meeting of the term. The meeting introduced a mysterious Duke of Spades whose identity left the members speculating.

• Shawn and Snape’s point deductions and safeguards put Slytherin a hundred points ahead of Gryffindor.
• The students completed their exams, and Shawn expected strong results apart from Potions.
• Shawn hosted a banquet for Hogwarts’ outstanding students and announced that there would be no rules for the feast.
• The Throne met in the Pentagram Hall, where Percy, Neville, Hermione, Penelope, Alice, Draco, and Theodore represented their Houses.
• A silver-cloaked Duke of Spades appeared in Slytherin’s section, and the members wondered who he was.
• Alice felt unsettled by the Chief’s regard for the duke, while Draco wondered if he had misunderstood Theodore before.

Theodore challenged the mysterious Duke of Spades to prove his strength, but Tom defeated him and offered to train him. Shawn ended the confrontation and began the meeting.

• Theodore stepped forward and challenged Tom to a duel, demanding that he prove he deserved the Duke of Spades' rank.
• Tom accepted Shawn's warning not to go too far, and the two exchanged dueling salutes.
• Theodore opened with the Killing Curse, but Tom blocked it with a Necromantic Shield and attacked with chains of black mist.
• Theodore charged through Tom's shields and used his Sequence Playing Cards to unleash another Killing Curse, but Tom deflected it with Spell Reversal and bound him with chains.
• Theodore admitted defeat, and Tom asked Shawn to let him train Theodore into a top Auror within two years.
• Shawn refused to hand Theodore over and called everyone back to their seats so the meeting could begin.

Shawn assigned tasks at the Throne meeting, then distributed special cards to his young followers and reinforced his authority. When Katherine asked him to demonstrate a Level Six Disarming Charm, he admitted he did not know it and summoned a terrifying magical halberd instead, leaving her to hail him as Chief.

• Tom rejected Shawn’s offer and unsettled the young wizards, while Shawn encouraged Theodore and assigned Alice, Draco, and the others their tasks.
• Harry left the luncheon feeling isolated, spotted a red-haired student heading toward the Fourth-Floor Restricted Area, and followed with his wand drawn.
• Shawn distributed specially made cards to over thirty young wizards and gave a ceremonial speech that prompted them to hail him as Chief.
• Katherine asked Shawn to demonstrate the Level Six Disarming Charm, and Alice tried to stop her from challenging the Chief.
• Shawn admitted he did not know the Level Six Disarming Charm, then summoned a lightning-wreathed halberd with Kunikuzushi and explained its power.
• Katherine backed away in terror and declared, “All hail the Chief!”

After Harry was absent from the end-of-term feast, Dumbledore awarded the House Cup to Slytherin instead of giving Gryffindor extra points. Shawn left Hogwarts by Apparition after receiving a message from Tom, but arrived at Malfoy Manor rather than the Black family home.

• Susan told Shawn that her aunt wanted her to spy on him, then asked whether the students would get to eat giant snake meat next term.
• Shawn teased Neville about Susan, and Draco put an arm around Neville to offer him advice.
• At the end-of-term feast, Dumbledore noticed Harry was missing and announced Slytherin as the House Cup winner.
• Shawn worried about Tom, Alice, and Percy, then received a message from Tom after returning to the Slytherin Common Room.
• Shawn summoned Purple Shadow and Apparated away, accidentally shocking the students nearby.
• Shawn appeared at Malfoy Manor, where Lucius stared at him in astonishment.

Shawn met with Tom and Lucius Malfoy to discuss securing Hogwarts governor seats and consolidating Death Eater family businesses. He proposed magical production lines and a joint chamber of commerce, leaving Lucius to organize the next steps.

• Shawn arrived at the Malfoy manor and joined Tom in the study, where Lucius reported that their faction controlled six Hogwarts governor seats and described the remaining families.
• Shawn considered how to approach the Longbottom, Bones, Shafiq, Ollivander, Fawley, and Rowle families, then asked Lucius to continue reporting on their businesses.
• Lucius said Death Eater families controlled about forty-five percent of the British Wizarding economy, but their holdings were fragmented.
• Shawn gave Lucius designs for machine tools and production lines and asked him to have alchemists and potion makers develop magical versions.
• Tom threatened to kill anyone who resisted, but Shawn reassured Lucius that the families would accept the changes once they saw increased output.
• Shawn proposed a joint chamber of commerce in which he and Tom would hold seventy percent of the shares, and Lucius accepted the arrangement.

Shawn returned Slytherin's Locket to Tom, then left Malfoy Manor with Purple Shadow, while Tom took Lucius to confront Borgin and Burkes over the locket's sale. Dumbledore visited Grindelwald to ask about the prophecy, but Grindelwald withheld its details, leaving Dumbledore to infer that Shawn was involved.

• Tom wrote that he could not yet remove the curse from the Horcrux ring and suggested finding someone else to die in their place.
• Shawn decided to keep the ring under observation as a possible weapon and gave Tom Slytherin's Locket, which Tom accepted with gratitude.
• Shawn took Purple Shadow home, and Tom later brought Lucius to Knockturn Alley to confront Borgin and Burkes about selling Merope Gaunt's locket.
• Shawn returned to the Black family home, learned Dumbledore had not come back, and went to bed after preparing for his holiday.
• Dumbledore visited Grindelwald at Nurmengard and demanded to know what he had seen in the prophecy.
• Grindelwald refused to reveal the prophecy's details, and Dumbledore left after concluding that Shawn was the child of prophecy.

Lucius Malfoy and Yaxley intervened at the Ministry to stop Fudge’s attempt to arrest Shawn Black, whose innocence Scrimgeour had defended. Lucius secured Fudge’s cooperation with political promises and a bribe, leaving Fudge pleased to regain some influence.

• Pius Thicknesse and Yaxley arrived at the Ministry, where they encountered Lucius Malfoy and agreed to confront Fudge over Shawn Black’s arrest warrant.
• Fudge argued with Scrimgeour, who refused to arrest Shawn without evidence and left the Minister’s Office.
• Lucius told Fudge that the Black family was essential to the pure-blood community and hinted that Shawn’s apparent ties to Dumbledore were misleading.
• Lucius gave Fudge three thousand Galleons and instructed Pius to follow the Minister’s orders.
• Fudge accepted the arrangement, withdrew his order against Shawn, and went to fetch his treasured red wine.

Shawn interrupted his spell training to join Tom’s ambush on two powerful Pure-blood Association elders, but their wind shield deflected his Rainbow Swords. He held back from charging in and prepared to use his Alchemy Cards against them.

• Shawn practiced his Thunder Shadow Severing Charm and dark magic in the Black family’s underground training room.
• After receiving Lucius’s message, Shawn disguised himself and Apparated to the valley, where Tom was battling two elders behind an Anti-Apparition Jinx.
• Shawn sensed Tom through the Soul Shackles and launched three Rainbow Swords into the mist while preparing a Thunderlight Floating Ring.
• Shawn saw Tom fighting the silver-haired and brown-haired elders, who used a wind shield, a Fiendfyre Three-Headed Dog, and five Magma Giants.
• The silver-haired elder mocked Shawn after the wind shield deflected his swords, and Shawn summoned more than ten Alchemy Cards instead of rushing into the fight.

Shawn and Tom overwhelmed two elderly Pure-blood Association members in a fierce battle, forcing them to surrender. The old men demanded to be released so they could negotiate, but Shawn remained furious.

• Shawn unleashed Water Pythons, Rainbow Swords, and Killing Curses against the silver-haired elder’s wind shield.
• Lucius watched the fight from the valley entrance and wondered why the Dark Lord had joined forces with Shawn.
• Tom absorbed the pooled water into his serpentine chains, which strangled the Fiendfyre Three-Headed Dog, the magma giant, and Old Rowle’s summoned creatures.
• Shawn charged the exposed elders and battered the silver-haired elder’s Shield Charms with his Lightning Long Halberd.
• The two elders discarded their staffs and surrendered, then warned Shawn and Tom that the Pure-blood Association was not to be underestimated.

Shawn and Tom captured two elders of the Pure-blood Association, and Tom interrogated them for information. Shawn learned that the association extended beyond Britain and faced him with a larger, divided alliance of pure-blood groups.

• Tom bound the silver-haired and brown-haired elders after Shawn planned to question them, and Shawn ordered Tom to interrogate them while he spoke with Lucius.
• Shawn reminded Lucius to choose his side and asked about Draco, whose spell practice and friendships had helped bring talented people into the Throne’s Outer Circle.
• Tom returned alone and gave Shawn a parchment containing the elders’ identities, backgrounds, and news that three other similar elders lived in England.
• Shawn learned that Lucius’s father, Abu, had once led the British Pure-blood Association, which had split after Voldemort’s rise.
• Shawn discovered that many countries had Pure-blood Associations linked by a loose alliance, resolved to write to Grindelwald, and left the valley.

Grindelwald suspected Shawn had already run into the Pure-blood Associations and began writing to warn him away from them. Meanwhile, Dumbledore analyzed Shawn’s abilities, relationships, and ambitions but could not decide how to handle him, until a letter brought news of trouble in the north.

• Grindelwald read Shawn’s letter, suspected he had clashed with the Pure-blood Associations, and began composing a cautious reply.
• Dumbledore assembled intelligence and memories into a detailed assessment of Shawn’s powers, connections, family, and career.
• Dumbledore considered whether Shawn was a new Chosen One and rejected killing, imprisoning, or supporting him as clear solutions.
• Dumbledore recalled that Harry and Ron had fought in the trap chamber, and concluded that Shawn had influenced Harry’s development.
• Fawkes delivered Dumbledore a letter, and Dumbledore learned that trouble had arisen in the north again.