Chapter Summaries

Harry and his friends traveled to Hogwarts under heavy Order of the Phoenix protection, but the journey remained uneventful. Lupin joined their compartment as the newly rehired Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, and the chapter ended with the group settling in for the train ride.

• Harry thought the Order of the Phoenix had assigned too many people to protect him and his friends, since their trip to the train passed without danger.
• Lupin told Harry he had returned to Hogwarts as Professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts after Dumbledore secured his reappointment, and he had become engaged to Tonks.
• Ron, Hermione, and Lavender welcomed Lupin into their crowded compartment.
• Harry spotted Qiu with her parents and waved to her, embarrassing her before he pulled back inside.
• Qiu spent time with Harry before returning to her girlfriends, while Hermione, Ron, and Lavender played cards in the compartment.
• Harry recalled that he had earned Outstanding marks in most of his nine O.W.L. subjects, Exceeds Expectations in Herbology, and Acceptable in History of Magic.

Harry was surprised when Romilda Vane appeared at his compartment and openly flirted with him. He declined her invitation to join her and her friends, while reflecting on his role as Gryffindor's vice-captain and his lack of interest in anyone but Qiu.

• Harry recognized Romilda Vane, who had openly pursued him since joining the Quidditch team, and recalled that he had kept her out of R.B. to avoid upsetting Qiu.
• Harry reminded himself that Qiu was the only person he was interested in and regarded Romilda's sudden appearance with surprise.
• Harry told Romilda that Katie Bell was captain and he was only vice-captain.
• Romilda spotted Lupin and Lavender in Harry's compartment, then invited Harry to sit with her and her friends, winking at him.
• Harry considered the romance films Dudley had shown him over the holiday as he tried to interpret Romilda's flirtation.

Harry, Neville, Luna, and Lavender talked in the hospital wing about their friendship and whether R.B. meetings would continue. Luna’s questions about Romilda’s apparent confession made Harry interrupt her, while Professor Lupin revealed he had been listening and laughed.

• Neville told Harry that he had been discussing Professor Sprout’s holiday questions with Toller and other students.
• Luna asked whether R.B. meetings would continue now that Professor Lupin had returned, and Harry said they were no longer necessary.
• Luna questioned whether she and the others were really friends, and Harry and Lavender assured her that they had been friends for years.
• Luna asked Harry whether Romilda and the people with her had confessed their feelings to him, and Harry hastily stopped her questions.
• Harry noticed Professor Lupin trying not to laugh, and Lupin admitted he had been listening before laughing aloud.

Harry considered Marcus Belby’s unsuccessful pursuit of Qiu and learned that Slughorn had invited him and Hermione to a gathering. Belby said Hermione was being invited by Cormac McLaggen, while Harry wondered why McLaggen had joined Gryffindor’s Quidditch team as a Keeper when Ron already held the position.

• Harry recalled that Marcus Belby had pursued Qiu, joined the Quidditch team for her, and remained without a girlfriend after she rejected him.
• Belby invited Harry to a gathering on Professor Slughorn’s behalf, and Harry hesitated because Lavender and Luna were with him.
• Belby said Neville Longbottom could not attend because he was working on a Herbology project, and that Hermione Granger was also invited.
• Belby explained that Cormac McLaggen would invite Hermione after the prefects’ meeting with the new Head Boy.
• Harry reflected that McLaggen had joined Gryffindor’s team as a Keeper despite Ron’s reputation as an outstanding Keeper.

Harry learned that Natalie, the newly appointed Female Head of the Student Council, had asked Ron to spend more time with her, despite having a Male Head and older Boy Prefects available. Hermione also noticed Natalie repeatedly watching Ron during the meeting, leaving Harry convinced she had a particular interest in him.

• Harry recalled Ron's disastrous Hogsmeade date with Natalie, when Ron had stared at Madam Rosmerta and Natalie had later dated and broken up with another boy.
• Harry realized Natalie’s new position would bring her into regular contact with Ron, who was a Prefect.
• Hermione told Harry that Natalie had asked Ron to spend more time with her because she found it difficult to communicate with boys.
• Hermione said Natalie had kept glancing at Ron during the meeting, especially while Fawley was speaking.
• Harry concluded Natalie was likely interested in Ron.

Harry attended Professor Slughorn's dinner party despite disliking the Slug Club, and he reflected on why neither he nor Qiu had joined. Ginny bristled when Blaise Zabini sneered at Harry's popularity, and Slughorn warned Zabini about her Bat-Bogey Hex.

• Harry recalled that Slughorn had invited him to the Slug Club, but he had declined because he disliked its name and was pursuing Qiu.
• Harry arrived at Slughorn's dinner party and received warm greetings from most of the students, while Blaise Zabini and Tracey Davies did not greet him.
• Ginny envied the students who hugged Harry, but held back because she had arrived with him only an hour earlier.
• Zabini sneered at Harry's popularity, and Ginny challenged him with a glare and a sharp remark.
• Slughorn told Zabini that he had seen Ginny cast an impressive Bat-Bogey Hex and warned him not to provoke her.

Harry left Professor Slughorn’s gathering and followed Millicent Bulstrode invisibly after seeing her act suspiciously. He discovered Draco Malfoy and his companions in a compartment and used Peeping Eye to spy on them.

• Harry told Slughorn he was leaving to see his girlfriend, and Slughorn let him go.
• Harry spotted Millicent Bulstrode outside the compartment, noticed her panic, and followed her under his Invisibility Cloak.
• Harry saw Bulstrode enter a compartment with Draco Malfoy, Pansy Parkinson, Crabbe, and Goyle.
• Harry silently opened the compartment door and cast Peeping Eye inside before Goyle shut it.
• Harry watched and listened to the compartment through Peeping Eye from outside.

Draco complained about being left out of Slughorn’s club and hinted that he would soon leave Hogwarts for a more exciting life. His remarks led Pansy and the others to suspect he planned to join Voldemort, while Harry questioned whether Draco had actually made contact with him.

• Bulstrode listed the students Slughorn had invited, and Draco and Pansy discussed their family connections and why they had qualified.
• Pansy said Slughorn had not invited Theodore Nott after learning that Nott’s father had been arrested by the Ministry of Magic.
• Harry recalled that Slughorn’s Potions grade requirement also explained why Draco and Ron had not joined the club.
• Draco dismissed Slughorn’s club and said he might leave Hogwarts partway through the term to live a more exciting life.
• Draco said his mother wanted him to finish school, but he argued that Voldemort would value loyalty and usefulness over exam results.

Harry returned to Hogwarts for the start of the school year and noticed Professor Flitwick reinforcing the Castle’s defensive barrier. Reflecting on Voldemort’s power and his own progress, Harry resolved to strengthen his friends, though he still believed Voldemort would be difficult to defeat.

• Harry rode to the Castle with Ron, Lavender, and Qiu, while Hermione shared a carriage with Neville, Ginny, and Luna.
• Harry saw Professor Flitwick reinforcing the defensive magical barrier around the Castle grounds and wondered if it was a precaution against Voldemort.
• Harry listened to Dennis Creevey talk casually about Voldemort and recalled how frightening Voldemort had seemed during their past encounters.
• Harry considered how his magic and knowledge had grown through the Meditation Method and the Ravenclaw and Slytherin Legacies.
• Harry planned to share what he knew about the Legacies with his friends and help them become stronger, while keeping his knowledge of Neil and deities secret.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione discovered that Cedric Diggory and Yi Qianqian had joined Hogwarts’s staff. At the feast, Dumbledore announced that Lupin had returned to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts, and the students welcomed him enthusiastically.

• Harry and Ron noticed Cedric and Yi Qianqian sitting at the staff table and asked Hermione why they were there.
• Hermione guessed that Cedric and Yi Qianqian had been hired by Hogwarts as teachers.
• Dumbledore spoke about Voldemort’s return and urged the students to stand united.
• Dumbledore announced that Lupin had returned to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts, prompting applause from students across the school.

Dumbledore announced that the Duelling Club would reopen under Professor Lupin, while Harry and his friends teased Cedric and Yi Qianqian before gathering to discuss confidential matters. The group began their private meeting after Harry cast a Sensory Barrier, but Qiu cut off the banter and turned them back to business.

• Dumbledore announced that the Duelling Club would reopen on Friday evenings under Professor Lupin.
• Harry, Ron, and their friends intercepted Cedric and Yi Qianqian and teased them about their relationship and new roles.
• The group moved to an empty classroom, where Cedric explained that Yi Qianqian knew about their situation and had come after learning the facts.
• Harry cast a Sensory Barrier, impressing Yi Qianqian with how much his magic had improved.
• Harry teased Yi Qianqian about calling him and Cedric children, until Qiu pinched his thigh and told everyone to stop discussing trivial matters.

With Lucius Malfoy imprisoned and the Malfoy Manor sealed, Draco lost the protection that had let him intimidate other students and kept to himself at Hogwarts. Cedric and Yi Qianqian remained unsure whether he was secretly planning something, while Ron explained his subject choices during a Duelling Club meeting.

• Draco stopped bullying students after a Ravenclaw student stood up to him and mocked his claim that his father would hear about it.
• Cedric and Yi Qianqian watched Draco but saw no sign of unusual behavior.
• Harry, Cedric, Ron, and other R.B. members gathered during the Duelling Club to discuss Draco.
• Ron described choosing eight Advanced Classes, including Charms, Transfiguration, Herbology, Potions Class, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Study and Care of Fantastic Beasts, and Divination.

At the Duelling Club, Hermione turned down Cormac McLaggen’s invitation to practise, and her friends concluded that he liked her while she had no interest in him. After the session ended, Harry and Qiu walked back together, knowing Qiu would be busy studying for her Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Test the next day.

• Professor Lupin and Professor Flitwick demonstrated how to use Protective Charms as substitutes for Shield Charms, then invited eligible students to practise.
• Cormac McLaggen asked Hermione to practise with him, but she politely refused and said she was busy.
• Yi Qianqian and Lavender told Hermione that McLaggen liked her, and the group concluded that Hermione did not like him in return.
• Professor Lupin praised Harry and the others for their abilities and told them to go back to their Common Rooms and finish their homework.
• Harry and Qiu walked back together, and Qiu told Harry she would study in the Library with Marietta and the others the next day.

Harry joined the Gryffindor Quidditch team for a morning run, then visited Dumbledore, who asked him to help study Hufflepuff's Cup after removing its soul fragment. The cup had returned to its original state, but its effects remained unexamined.

• Katie Bell gathered the Gryffindor Quidditch team for morning runs and discussed the new lineup after several players graduated.
• Harry ran with the team and Ravenclaw players, then spent time with Qiu before they went to breakfast.
• Qiu went to the library, while Harry used Dumbledore's password to enter the Headmaster's Office.
• Dumbledore showed Harry Hufflepuff's Cup and said he had removed its soul fragment.
• Dumbledore asked Harry to help him study the cup's effects.

Harry left Hogwarts without permission to spend the day in Hogsmeade, then sheltered from the rain in the Shrieking Shack and discovered that someone else was inside. He turned invisible as two strangers discussed a blocked passage beneath the Whomping Willow.

• Harry found that Cedric and Yi Qianqian were absent, then got chased away by Qiu, Ron, and Hermione when he tried to spend time with them.
• Harry sneaked out of Hogwarts and spent the morning browsing Zonko's, where he bought a few interesting items.
• Harry entered the Shrieking Shack to avoid the rain and cleaned the dusty rooms with Scourgify.
• Harry heard two unseen visitors discussing how they could not pass through the passage beneath the Whomping Willow, and made himself invisible.

Harry confronted two Dark Wizards in the Shrieking Shack, where they exposed his hiding place and forced him outside. He revealed himself as Harry Potter and prepared to fight them using the Left Hand of Chaos and Calamity.

• Harry believed his summer gains had made him formidable in magical combat, aside from Dumbledore and Voldemort.
• The werewolf wizard used a wave of force to expose Harry, and the dark-faced wizard fired a spell at him.
• Harry escaped through a window and drew the two wizards outside to avoid damaging the Shrieking Shack.
• Harry dropped his invisibility so he could use the Left Hand of Chaos and Calamity.
• The two wizards recognized Harry Potter and appeared astonished to find him there.

Harry confronted Black Seven, Alger Korman, and Black Nine, Biazis, and proved his skill by breaking Korman’s attacks and nearly overwhelming him with golden light swords. Biazis stepped in to save Korman with Blue Steel Armor, and Harry recognized that the werewolf wizard was unusually powerful.

• Korman asked Biazis whether they had to capture Harry alive, and Biazis said their orders allowed them to kill him.
• Korman attacked Harry with a black Blade Wave, but Harry shattered it with a Disintegration Charm.
• Korman twisted the space around Harry, but Harry protected himself with a golden shield.
• Harry sent dozens of golden light swords at Korman, whose shield could not stop them all.
• Biazis protected Korman with Blue Steel Armor, which cracked under the light swords, and Harry noted the werewolf’s remarkable magical ability.

Harry fought a powerful werewolf wizard who could speak while transformed, dodging his attacks until the werewolf’s speed began to fade. Harry then launched a counterattack with Voldemort’s cutting spell, Black Spirit Death Blade.

• The werewolf wizard transformed into a towering wolf-like form and told Alger Korman that he intended to eat Harry.
• Alger Korman urged the werewolf to attack Harry while asking him to leave the head and, if possible, the organs.
• The werewolf wizard shattered Harry’s Shield Charm with one swipe and pursued him at tremendous speed, while Harry used magic to evade his attacks.
• Alger Korman held back his lightning spell because Harry and the werewolf wizard were too close together.
• After the werewolf wizard slowed from his burst of speed, Harry began counterattacking with Black Spirit Death Blade.

Harry survived Biazis’s claw attack thanks to Sirius’s Shield Charm device and Black family vest, then faced Biazis and Korman as they judged him too formidable to fight separately. Korman called for the two of them to attack Harry together.

• Biazis’s claws tore through Harry’s outer clothes, but Sirius’s magical device activated a Shield Charm and Harry used Air Ballistics to escape the follow-up attack.
• Biazis noticed Harry had not been injured and suspected his claws had weakened.
• Harry’s Black family vest had protected him from the remaining force of Biazis’s attack.
• Biazis and Korman concluded neither could likely defeat Harry alone, and Korman told Biazis they should fight together.

Harry used the Holy Spirit Barrier to withstand Korman’s soul attacks, then cast Lightning Storm against Korman and Biazis. A golden bolt struck Korman as the storm gathered overhead.

• Korman realized Harry’s Holy Spirit Barrier nullified the Horror-Screaming Wail.
• Harry began chanting while Biazis stopped to watch for an unknown spell.
• Harry’s incantation appeared to do nothing, leaving Korman and Biazis uncertain.
• A vast black thundercloud formed overhead, revealing that Harry had cast Lightning Storm.
• A golden bolt of lightning struck Korman.