Chapter Summaries

After Professor Trelawney delivered a prophecy about a Dark Lord and a captive servant, Harry wondered whether it referred to Voldemort and decided to tell his friends. Before he could explain, Ron received a letter from Hagrid asking specifically to see him, and Harry agreed to go along.

• Professor Trelawney gave a prophecy about a Dark Lord whose servant would escape and help him rise again, then denied having made it.
• Harry returned to the Gryffindor Common Room and learned from Hermione that Ron was upstairs working on a magical automaton.
• Harry fetched Ron and asked him to come downstairs, but Ron received a letter from Hagrid asking to see him.
• Ron showed Harry the letter, and Harry suggested they visit Hagrid together to find out why he wanted Ron.

Harry, Hermione, Ron, Neville, and Hagrid discussed Professor Trelawney’s prophecy and whether she truly had prophetic powers. As evening fell, Hagrid offered to walk them back to the Castle.

• Hermione called Trelawney a fraud, but Hagrid revealed that one of her past prophecies had come true and had led Dumbledore to hire her.
• Harry wondered whether Trelawney’s prophecy about the Dark Lord and a servant was genuine, while Hagrid said her other prophecies had not come true.
• Hermione argued that the prophecy did not fit You-Know-Who and Sirius Black, and Ron challenged her dismissal of Dumbledore.
• Hagrid asked Hermione to help improve his lesson plans over the holidays, and she gladly agreed.
• As it grew late, Hagrid apologized for keeping them and offered to walk them back to the Castle.

Harry and Ron pursued the black dog and Crookshanks to the Whomping Willow, where the dog revealed a hidden passage beneath its roots. Harry and Ron could not get past the tree, leaving them stranded outside as Hermione lagged behind and Neville went to fetch a professor.

• Harry told Neville to get Professor McGonagall or Professor Lupin while he, Ron, and Hermione chased after the black dog and Crookshanks.
• Harry recognized the Whomping Willow after dodging one of its branches and used Starlight Dazzle to light the area.
• Harry saw the black dog dodge the tree’s attacks, uncover a hole beneath its roots, and slip inside.
• Ron tried to get past the Whomping Willow but retreated when its branches blocked his way.
• Ron wished Neville were there to subdue the tree, while Harry remained frustrated outside the hidden passage.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione found Sirius Black in the Shrieking Shack, where he claimed the rat Scabbers was responsible for James and Lily's deaths. Professor Lupin arrived and confirmed that Black was telling the truth.

• Harry, Ron, and Hermione followed the sounds upstairs and found Sirius Black beside Crookshanks and Scabbers in the bedroom.
• Harry recognized Black as an Animagus and sensed that his grief and regret were genuine.
• Black blamed himself for James and Lily's deaths, then pointed to Scabbers as the enemy who had really caused their deaths.
• Ron questioned Black's sanity, and Professor Lupin appeared and said Black's claims were true.

Lupin demonstrated how he could deflect Hermione’s and Ron’s spells with his robes, then explained the technique while he and Black behaved as though they meant the students no harm. Harry suspected there was more behind their strange conduct, but the chapter left the situation unresolved.

• Lupin knocked Hermione’s and Ron’s wands from their hands with wandless spells, but their wrist cords returned the wands to them.
• Hermione and Ron cast binding spells, and Lupin deflected both with his robes.
• Lupin explained how to make spells trigger against clothing and said the trick required precise control.
• Black teased Lupin for acting like a teacher, and Lupin insisted that he was their teacher now.
• Harry questioned whether Lupin and Black’s unusual behavior meant there was more to the situation.

Harry and Ron revealed that they knew the Marauders’ nicknames, prompting Lupin and Black to explain their history and how Black had spotted Wormtail in a newspaper. The group remained wary of the rat, and Black’s unexpected wand and the magically secured dome left the confrontation poised to continue.

• Harry told Lupin that he had found the Marauders’ Notebook, and Lupin explained that he was Moony, Black was Padfoot, Peter was Wormtail, and Harry’s father had been Prongs.
• Black recounted how he had searched for Peter after James’s death, then recognized him in a photograph in the Daily Prophet the previous summer.
• Hermione questioned whether Black and Lupin were deceiving them, but Lupin offered to let her cast a reverting spell on the rat.
• Black threatened to kill or torture Peter, and Lupin reminded him that he had vowed not to act like the rest of his family.
• Black kicked the glass dome without moving it and showed Lupin that he had obtained a wand, which made it easier for him to act.

Professor Babbling froze everyone as Lupin and Black prepared to test Scabbers, then confronted Black about their shared past. Black explained that after James and Lily died, he blamed himself and did not fight the accusation that he had betrayed them.

• Professor Babbling appeared and immobilized Lupin, Black, Harry, Hermione, and the others before they could use a Restoring Charm on the rat.
• Professor Babbling recognized Black and mocked him for hiding near Hogwarts as a dog.
• Professor Babbling questioned why Black had not defended himself against the claim that he was the Potters’ Secret Keeper.
• Black said he could not have abandoned James, then admitted he had not resisted because he blamed himself for James and Lily’s deaths and had been involved in the street explosion.

Professor Babbling trapped Scabbers, and Hermione’s spell revealed that the rat was a short, disheveled man. The transformed man stood trapped in the circle while everyone stared at him.

• Professor Babbling cast a one-way barrier around the glass cover, and Black removed the cover.
• Scabbers tried to escape but bounced back whenever he reached the barrier.
• Hermione hit Scabbers with her third spell, restoring him to human form.
• Ron stared in disbelief at the man who had been his pet rat, while Hermione recalled Professor McGonagall’s graceful Animagus transformations.

Lupin questioned Peter about his claim that Sirius had tried to kill him, while Sirius revealed Peter had been hiding from Voldemort’s former followers. The chapter left Peter facing accusations that he had betrayed James and Lily to Voldemort.

• Professor Babbling reminded everyone that it was the full moon, and Lupin confirmed Slughorn had brought him Wolfsbane Potion.
• Lupin asked Peter to explain himself, and Peter insisted Sirius had killed James and Lily and had pursued him for twelve years.
• Peter claimed Voldemort had taught Sirius dark magic that allowed him to escape Azkaban, and Sirius mocked the suggestion.
• Sirius named Death Eaters he had encountered in Azkaban, including Bellatrix, and Peter visibly panicked.
• Sirius accused Peter of hiding from Voldemort’s followers and said Peter had passed information to Voldemort a year before James and Lily were attacked.

Harry confirmed that Peter was responsible for his parents’ deaths, and the group decided to take him to the Ministry of Magic so Sirius could clear his name. They planned to return to Hogwarts first and find Dumbledore, leaving Peter trapped in a golden bubble.

• Harry used his ability to sense emotions to confirm that Sirius was telling the truth and Peter was the real culprit.
• Sirius and Lupin prepared to kill Peter, but Harry argued that Peter should be sent to Azkaban instead.
• Lupin explained that handing Peter to the Ministry would expose the truth and clear Sirius’s name.
• Lupin suggested returning to Hogwarts to find Dumbledore before facing the Ministry officials and Dementors in Hogsmeade.
• Professor Babbling restrained Peter inside a golden bubble.

Lupin transformed into a docile but scrawny werewolf, and Professor Babbling led Harry, Ron, Hermione, Black, and the others to Dumbledore’s office. Dumbledore recognized Black and Lupin without surprise as Babbling began asking him to hear their story and bring in witnesses.

• At midnight, Lupin transformed into a thin, dog-headed werewolf while remaining docile because of Slughorn’s potion.
• Babbling asked Black why Lupin still resisted his werewolf condition, advised him to consider purification, and suggested it could help him keep teaching at Hogwarts.
• Harry and Black covered Lupin with the Invisibility Cloak, and their group traveled through the crowded Castle toward Dumbledore’s office.
• Babbling brought Harry, Ron, Hermione, Black, and Lupin to the Headmaster’s Office, where Dumbledore was awake beside a crystal ball.
• Black changed back into human form and greeted Dumbledore, who showed no surprise when Lupin emerged from beneath the Cloak.
• Babbling asked Dumbledore to hear their long story and suggested they bring in other witnesses.

Cornelius Fudge arrived at Dumbledore’s office with Amelia Bones, Rufus Scrimgeour, and two Dementors, but Dumbledore stopped the Dementors and ordered them removed. Sirius Black then identified the rat trapped under glass as Peter Pettigrew, shocking Fudge, Bones, and the professors.

• Fudge, Bones, Scrimgeour, and two Dementors entered Dumbledore’s office through the fireplace.
• Dumbledore froze the Dementors before they could attack Black and insisted Fudge send them away.
• Fudge returned the Dementors to the fireplace, and Dumbledore asked Black to explain what had happened.
• Black pointed to the trapped rat and said they should turn him back.
• Black identified the rat as Peter Pettigrew, startling Fudge, Bones, and the two professors.

After returning from Hogwarts with Peter Pettigrew, Fudge presented reporters with a recording of recent events, sparking a commotion. He welcomed the publicity as a chance to resolve the Black affair and revisit the Ministry’s history, then recalled Barty Crouch’s past ambitions to become Minister.

• Fudge, Scrimgeour, and Bones returned to the Ministry with the restrained Peter Pettigrew as reporters waited in Fudge’s office.
• The reporters speculated that the officials’ return might concern Sirius Black or another major development.
• Fudge played the reporters an edited recording of events at Hogwarts, beginning after Dumbledore had driven off the Dementors.
• The reporters erupted in astonishment, and Fudge promised them copies of the recording.
• Fudge reflected that the news could resolve the Black affair and recalled how Barty Crouch had once been a leading contender for Minister.

Peter escaped his Ministry of Magic cell by using a wire to pick the lock and Occlumency to evade the Dementors. He left the prison undetected, ahead of his expected trial and transfer to Azkaban.

• The Ministry of Magic locked Peter in a cell overnight, relying on a magic-restricting barrier and Dementors to prevent his escape.
• After waiting until half past three, Peter dug steel wire from his shoe and used Occlumency to suppress the signals the Dementors sensed.
• Peter quietly picked the cell lock and slipped past the unresponsive Dementors.
• Peter recalled learning Occlumency after becoming Ron's pet, when Harry Potter taught his master the spell.

Harry and his friends suspected Peter Pettigrew had escaped after the Daily Prophet and other British newspapers unexpectedly suspended publication. Marcel Vieira brought the French Sweet Iris Times to Hogwarts with news of the Ministry of Magic’s failure, and the students gathered to hear it read aloud.

• Harry, Hermione, Neville, and Ron noticed that the Daily Prophet had not arrived and wondered why the newspapers had stopped publishing.
• Ron suggested that Peter Pettigrew might have escaped, and the others agreed it was the likeliest explanation.
• Marcel Vieira rushed into the Great Hall with a copy of the Sweet Iris Times and announced that the Ministry of Magic had made a fool of itself abroad.
• Vieira explained that the Sweet Iris Times was still publishing while British newspapers and papers influenced by the Ministry had suspended publication.
• Students crowded around Vieira, and a Ravenclaw student called for someone to read the newspaper aloud.

At Hogwarts’ graduation feast, Ravenclaw won the House Cup while Harry, Hermione, and their friends focused on Peter Pettigrew’s escape. Peter remained ahead of the Ministry’s pursuers with a scavenged wand and was trying to find the Burrow, but his unfamiliarity with human travel and Apparition left him lost.

• The Hogwarts feast proceeded despite Peter Pettigrew’s escape, which drew less attention than Sirius Black’s escape from Azkaban.
• Ravenclaw won the House Cup after Gryffindor fell behind in exam scores, despite Hermione earning Outstanding in eleven subjects.
• The newspapers reported that Peter was still at large as more than twenty Hit Wizards and Aurors pursued him.
• Peter used a wand he had found in the Ministry’s sewers, but its awkwardness and his rusty magic made him Apparate erratically.
• Peter continued toward the Burrow by instinct, remaining lost after more than a dozen hours of travel.

Seven dark figures arrived near Hogsmeade to provide backup at Hogwarts, while Dumbledore sensed their presence during the graduation feast. After the feast, Harry and his friends remained worried that Peter Pettigrew had escaped despite being tracked.

• Club King and Red King arrived near the Forbidden Forest with five other wizards, and Club King complained about the danger of provoking someone at Hogwarts.
• Club King and Red King argued about vampires and zombies while discussing their assignment to provide backup and agreeing to flee if danger appeared.
• Dumbledore sensed something near Hogsmeade during the graduation feast and told Professor McGonagall he wanted Cockroach Clusters.
• Harry complained that Peter Pettigrew had not been caught, and Hermione said Peter could escape because he had a wand and knew Apparition.

A black-haired man in Serbia used a costly spell on a mysterious apparatus but could not see the result he sought, while Dumbledore sensed something was wrong and vanished from Hogwarts. Hermione, Harry, Ron, and Neville found themselves confronting Peter Pettigrew before all of them turned into silvery motes of light.

• In Serbia, a black-haired man used his blood and a potion to activate a strange apparatus, aging himself in the process before the Elixir of Life restored him.
• The man concluded that even Heavenly Eye could not reveal what he needed to know and said he could deceive Dumbledore only once.
• After the Hogwarts feast, Dumbledore searched for an answer from the Headmaster's Office, then left with Fawkes.
• Hermione, Harry, Ron, and Neville saw themselves grappling with Peter Pettigrew in the corridor before they dissolved into silvery motes of light.
• Harry appeared to do something at the last moment, and Peter Pettigrew also turned into motes of light.

Harry and his companions vanished and reappeared as Harry’s strange ability activated, while a mysterious Black Man sensed the event from a distant war zone. Ginny witnessed the disappearances, and Dumbledore arrived to ask what had happened.

• Harry repeatedly saw himself, Hermione, Ron, and Neville appear before him before they began dissolving into darkness, and he realized his strange ability had activated.
• Harry reached for Peter and opened the Left Hand of Chaos and Calamity, causing Peter to dissolve into silvery-white motes as Harry vanished again.
• In a war-torn city in northern East Africa, a mysterious Black Man sensed the power being used and wondered at the events, though he could not go there.
• Ginny watched Harry, Ron, Hermione, Neville, and Peter appear and disappear in the corridor, while Black Ginny fell silent.
• Dumbledore arrived with Fawkes and asked Ginny what she had seen.

Harry, Hermione, Ron, and Neville returned to the Castle after a broken Time-Turner sent them through a frightening encounter with their past selves. Dumbledore remained baffled by their return, and Professor McGonagall took them to the Common Room while the Ministry officials dealt with Peter Pettigrew.

• Harry, Hermione, Ron, Neville, and Peter appeared in the Castle beside a shattered Time-Turner, and Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall rushed to them.
• A golden hammer of light knocked Peter down and pinned him, while Dumbledore checked the four students for injuries.
• The students recalled that Peter had activated the Time-Turner as they tried to stop him, and that seeing their earlier selves had made them fear they would vanish.
• Dumbledore told the students to rest in the Common Room and asked Professor McGonagall to take them there.
• Professor Flitwick arrived with Rufus Scrimgeour and Amelia Bones, and Dumbledore left Peter in their custody before departing.
• Madam Bones asked Professor McGonagall what had happened.