Chapter Summaries

Draco used his Dragon Ball to summon a giant snake after Ron and Hermione pressured him during the lake exercise. Hermione took a longer route toward the island while Ron disrupted Draco, buying time for the Dragon Pearl's magic to run out.

• Draco fought off underwater creatures, Hermione's spells, Ron's Patronus, and encroaching black mist during the lake exercise.
• Ron drenched Draco with a Blasting Curse that he claimed to have misdirected by accident.
• Draco activated his One-Star Dragon Pearl and summoned a giant snake whose waves drove Ron outside his Patronus's protection.
• Ron protested Draco's use of a magical item, but Douglas gave no indication that he would intervene.
• Hermione took a wider route toward the island after the underwater creatures abandoned her to attack the giant snake.
• Douglas called the next group to prepare while Harry recognized Ron and Hermione's delaying strategy and expressed confidence that Hermione would reach the island.

After Douglas assigned a five-foot essay on the practical lesson, Ron celebrated his victory over Draco while the Slytherins stewed in silence. Flitwick mistook Snape’s thermos for a fashionable staff product, and Hogwarts enjoyed a brief calm before monthly exams approached.

• Douglas assigned the sixth-year Defense Against Dark Magic students a five-foot tactical analysis essay based on their observed matches.
• Ron bragged to Harry, Hermione, and Neville about tricking Draco with a tentacled creature, a Blasting Curse, and his Patronus, while Draco sat in furious silence.
• Harry stopped Ron from loudly joking about getting a ten-foot essay, and Hermione suggested Ron deserved one for his performance.
• Flitwick noticed Snape and Douglas carrying thermoses, and Sprout speculated that they came from the Marauders Power Company.
• Hogwarts settled into a quiet stretch of classes and morning runs before the students remembered that monthly exams were nearing.

Harry trained Ron for Keeper tryouts while testing a movement-recording trench coat and wearing an amulet from Douglas. Later, Douglas followed a coded message to the Forbidden Forest, where he reunited with his former study-group friend Maeve Doyle.

• Harry gave Ron special Keeper training and prepared to collect movement data for Douglas and Sirius.
• Douglas found a coded note on the Hogwarts noticeboard inviting him to meet at the usual place in the Forbidden Forest.
• Douglas decoded the message and decided to meet its unknown sender that night.
• Douglas climbed an ash tree in the Forbidden Forest and found Maeve Doyle waiting there.
• Maeve told Douglas that Head of House Flitwick had helped her visit Hogwarts, then teased him about her conversations with Lady Helena.

Maeve told Douglas how she had found Peter Pettigrew hiding in a Dark Wizard’s pocket in Australia and brought him to Hogwarts. Douglas learned that Pettigrew had helped resurrect Voldemort and confirmed Maeve’s suspicion that he had emptied Azkaban.

• Maeve explained that Australia wanted to cooperate with the United Kingdom and that Percy now led its Department of International Magical Cooperation.
• Maeve pulled Peter Pettigrew, disguised as a rat, from her enchanted coat pocket and gave him to Douglas as a congratulatory gift.
• Maeve said she had found Pettigrew in a Dark Wizard hideout in northern Queensland and had kept him from the authorities because she expected Douglas would want him.
• Douglas revealed that Pettigrew had sacrificed his arm to help resurrect Voldemort, and Maeve asked whether Voldemort had returned.
• Douglas said Voldemort was occupied and everything was under control, then confirmed Maeve’s suspicion that he had arranged the first emptying of Azkaban.

Douglas met Maeve, shared an unspoken secret about the old Four Houses battle, and invited her to dinner before she left. Meanwhile, Voldemort interrogated Wormtail at Malfoy Manor, read his memories, and heard the story of his flight from Europe to Australia and back.

• Douglas and Maeve hid from Hagrid, then talked about Maeve’s orchard in Australia and shared a knowing smile about the old Four Houses battle.
• Maeve told Douglas she would leave by Portkey the day after tomorrow, and Douglas invited her to a meal before she went.
• Douglas released Wormtail in a sealed clearing in the Forbidden Forest, where Wormtail pleaded for his life and feared being handed to Black and Lupin.
• At Malfoy Manor, Voldemort confronted Wormtail while Snape and Lucius watched, and demanded his memories.
• Voldemort used Legilimency to see Wormtail’s flight from Europe through Southeast Asia and northern Australia before his return to Europe.

Douglas learned that Aragog was dying and that his decline had unsettled the Forbidden Forest. After contacting Bill and Newt in Egypt, Douglas summoned them back to Hogwarts because he believed he had found a way to obtain soul toxin.

• Voldemort handed Wormtail over to Snape as an assistant before leaving that night.
• Lupin told Douglas that Aragog was dying and that Acromantulas, Centaurs, and Thestrals were behaving strangely in the Forbidden Forest.
• Douglas reviewed Newt’s research on Nagini’s Blood Demon Curse, then called Bill and Newt in Egypt.
• Douglas told Bill and Newt to return to the United Kingdom because he might have found a way to obtain soul toxin.

Douglas and Newt agreed to seek Hagrid’s consent before asking Aragog to help create a soul toxin, since Aragog’s willing participation was essential. They arrived at Hagrid’s Hut and found Hagrid in tears, leaving the reason for his grief unknown.

• Newt arrived at Douglas’s study, where his Niffler Wangcai greeted him by trying to steal a brass button.
• Douglas explained that he wanted to use Aragog’s venom, spirituality, and soul power to create a soul toxin, and Newt warned that Aragog had to agree willingly.
• Douglas and Newt agreed to tell Hagrid the benefits and risks first and, if he agreed, ask Aragog together; Newt also said Hagrid might help with the process.
• Douglas and Newt traveled through the Forbidden Forest to Hagrid’s Hut, where Hagrid opened the door with tear-swollen eyes and began to cry.

Hagrid grieved over Aragog’s decline and the threat posed by the Acromantulas, while Douglas and Newt explained that they were trying to save Nagini from a Blood Curse. Hagrid sympathized with her suffering but said he could not spare much time from caring for Aragog and suggested they ask Dumbledore for help.

• Hagrid told Newt and Douglas that Aragog was dying and recalled how their friendship had begun when Aragog was a young spider.
• Douglas warned Hagrid that Aragog’s death could leave the Acromantulas uncontrolled, and Hagrid admitted Aragog could no longer restrain his grandchildren.
• Newt and Douglas told Hagrid that Nagini was once a human woman trapped in a snake’s body by a Blood Curse.
• Hagrid condemned Nagini’s fate and asked how he could help, but explained that Aragog needed him and directed them to Dumbledore.

Douglas tried to persuade Hagrid to ask Aragog for venom before the Acromantula’s death, while promising the Marauders Company would protect its colony after Aragog died. Hagrid was shocked by the offer, and the chapter left him considering the company’s plan for the Acromantulas.

• Douglas praised Hagrid’s knowledge of magical creatures until Hagrid agreed to help without asking what he wanted.
• Douglas asked Hagrid to persuade Aragog to provide venom for research, but Hagrid refused, saying it would leave Aragog defenseless.
• Douglas argued that Aragog was already dying and had little need to defend itself.
• Douglas promised that the Marauders Company would take control of Acromantula Valley and provide the colony with food, shelter, and caretakers.
• Hagrid reacted with shock as Douglas explained that the company would protect the Acromantulas from harming people and from being slaughtered by the Ministry of Magic.

Douglas persuaded Hagrid to take him to Aragog so he could ask the aging Acromantula to willingly create Soul Toxin, presenting the sacrifice as a way to protect his colony and preserve his memory. Hagrid agreed, while Newt recognized that Douglas had manipulated him by concealing that only Aragog was likely capable of producing the toxin.

• Douglas gave Hagrid a research proposal explaining that Soul Toxin required a fantastic beast to willingly infuse its venom with its soul and spiritual essence.
• Hagrid objected that Aragog would never surrender his soul and threatened to fight Douglas if he harmed the Acromantulas.
• Douglas said he could capture Aragog’s descendants instead, then argued that Aragog could protect his colony and be remembered by sacrificing himself.
• Hagrid recalled his long friendship with Aragog, broke down in tears, and finally agreed to take Douglas to him.
• Newt muttered that Douglas’s persuasive methods resembled Grindelwald’s and realized that Aragog’s unique age and power made him the only plausible source of Soul Toxin.

Douglas, Hagrid, and Newt encountered hostile Acromantulas in the Forbidden Forest, where Douglas stunned the attacking spiders with lightning. They reached the dying Aragog, who revealed that he had expected them and knew about Douglas’s efforts to give outcast races a home.

• Hagrid tried to protect Douglas and Newt when Acromantulas surrounded them, but the spiders said Aragog was too weak to control them and threatened to eat the visitors.
• Douglas cast Rolling Thunder, knocking the attacking Acromantulas unconscious, and assured Hagrid and Newt that they were alive.
• Voldemort, disguised as Snape, sensed Douglas’s unusual lightning magic from the Potions office and wondered what he was doing in the Forbidden Forest.
• Douglas, Hagrid, and Newt entered Aragog’s cave, where the dying spider said he had been waiting for them and knew the old valley could no longer be held.
• Aragog recognized Douglas’s work with werewolves and giants and praised him for giving rejected races a new home; Douglas reacted with interest.

Douglas negotiated with Aragog over relocating and managing the Acromantula colony, while Newt confirmed that Aragog was dying. Aragog accepted Douglas’s proposed terms, leaving the colony’s future tied to a long-term partnership with Douglas’s company.

• Aragog revealed that he had waited for Douglas to recognize the colony’s danger and value, then proposed a trade to secure his descendants’ survival.
• Newt examined Aragog and told Hagrid that Aragog had reached the end of his life and could not be treated.
• Aragog warned that without a way to control the colony, the Acromantulas could threaten the Forbidden Forest’s residents after his death.
• Douglas proposed relocating the Acromantulas, controlling breeding and feeding, buying their webs, and training suitable spiders for patrols in exchange for supervision and strict limits on their behavior.
• Aragog agreed to Douglas’s terms but refused to provide venom, and Douglas suggested they discuss it separately as part of a long-term partnership.

Douglas, Newt, and Hagrid arranged to obtain Aragog’s soul toxin when he reached the end of his life, while promising to maintain his health in the meantime. They established a research facility to study the toxin and Acromantulas, and Douglas revealed that he had found a soul expert to assist them.

• Aragog realized Douglas’s group wanted his soul toxin and worried that refusing would leave Hagrid unable to protect his children.
• Douglas clarified that Aragog would not have to die immediately and that they would try to keep him alive until the toxin was needed.
• A temporary research facility was built over Aragog’s cave, with safeguards and a warning against consuming research materials.
• Newt forbade Fred and George from attempting undocumented or unsafe toxin experiments, and Douglas outlined the facility’s research goals.
• Newt asked about a Potions Master skilled in souls, and Douglas said he had already found someone who could help.

Douglas and Dumbledore reviewed a film about events from 1926 to 1932, made with memories supplied by those involved, including Grindelwald. They then discussed recruiting Grindelwald to help with soul research aimed at saving Nagini and removing Voldemort’s soul fragment from Harry, and Dumbledore approved Douglas’s plan.

• Douglas and Dumbledore watched and critiqued a film about Newt Scamander, Grindelwald, and the effort to stop Grindelwald from seizing power.
• Dumbledore explained that Grindelwald had approved the film’s public release and that Sirius had arranged a wizard-only cinema for its Easter opening.
• Douglas told Dumbledore that the group was preparing to extract soul toxin and needed an expert on souls to treat Nagini and protect Harry from the Horcrux inside him.
• Douglas said he wanted to observe Grindelwald’s soul expertise firsthand, and Dumbledore agreed to let him proceed using his own judgment.
• Douglas kept secret that he possessed the Resurrection Stone and did not want to rely on the original plan succeeding.

Douglas brought Snape a proposal to study Soul Toxin, presenting it as a way to investigate Nagini’s Blood Curse and suspected Horcrux status. Disguised as Snape, Voldemort became fascinated by the research’s potential for modifying Horcruxes, though he outwardly condemned it.

• Douglas gave Snape a research proposal on Soul Toxin, and Snape questioned why Douglas wanted to collaborate with him.
• Douglas said Nagini had once been human and suffered a Blood Curse that eroded her soul, then claimed she might be one of Riddle’s Horcruxes.
• Douglas explained that Aragog could provide Soul Toxin and asked Snape to help with the research as a Potions Master versed in Dark Magic and soul theory.
• Voldemort secretly considered using Soul Toxin to improve his Horcruxes or consume other people’s souls.
• Snape, still disguised as Voldemort, denounced the proposal and declared that the soul was sacred and must not be touched.

Douglas tried to tempt Snape with the possibility of studying souls and bringing someone back to life, while Voldemort secretly recognized the offer as bait directed at him. At Hogwarts, Filch delighted in an automatic vacuum cleaner, and Harry gathered senior members of the Charon Detective Agency for a meeting.

• Douglas challenged Snape's claim that souls were sacred and suggested that deeper study might make it possible to bring someone back to life.
• Voldemort kept up his act as Snape and privately realized that Douglas's offer was far more tempting to him than to Snape.
• After Gryffindor's Quidditch tryouts in heavy rain, Harry and Ron encountered Filch unexpectedly urging them to get dry and avoid catching a cold.
• Filch showed off an automatic vacuum cleaner from the Marauders Power Company, and Colin explained that it had caused Filch's strange behavior.
• Ron announced that he had become Gryffindor's official Keeper, while Ginny and the other students teased him about being frightened of Filch.
• Harry asked Ginny to gather former Detective Club members, then began a senior meeting of the Charon Detective Agency without waiting for Hermione.

Harry told the Charon Detective Agency that the Academic Affairs Office had commissioned them to survey Hogwarts’ long-neglected dungeons, where they could keep some unclaimed finds once the areas were confirmed safe. Hermione joined the meeting and, after explaining that she was rethinking her approach to changing laws, insisted Harry draft a safety code for the explorers.

• Harry announced that the Academic Affairs Office had commissioned the Detective Club to survey Hogwarts’ unknown dungeons, using a list that had not been updated in 162 years.
• Harry explained that the club could keep a portion of unclaimed items found in dungeons after confirming they were safe, and Ron and Ginny became excited about the possibilities.
• Hermione arrived with books about magical laws and regulations, and Ginny explained the new commission to her.
• Hermione said she had worried the club might disband but now wanted recruitment to go ahead and suggested it could grow into a wizarding-world detective agency after graduation.
• Hermione admitted her earlier methods for supporting house-elf rights had been ineffective and said she was studying law to change the status quo.
• Hermione told Harry to draft a Dungeon Exploration Safety Code, while Parvati asked about refunds for her House-elf Rights Society fees and Hermione said the society still existed.

Hermione decided to draft the Intelligent Magical Creatures Rights Act and establish a Wizarding World Legal Research Group, with support from the professor and Director Black. Ginny and Neville agreed to join, while the rest of the Gryffindors hesitated.

• Hermione told her friends that Ministry laws contained only seven provisions about house-elves, while other magical species had laws recognizing their status and rights.
• Hermione announced she would draft the Intelligent Magical Creatures Rights Act and debate it before the Wizengamot, with the professor's and Director Black's support.
• Hermione said Director Black would back broader legal reforms and that Head of House Lupin wanted her help with a New-Generation Werewolf Species Act.
• Hermione proposed a Wizarding World Legal Research Group and asked the Gryffindors to join, but most stayed silent.
• Ginny and Neville volunteered to join, surprising the other students.

Neville impressed Hermione with his understanding of how laws should reflect different people’s needs, and students began volunteering for the Law Research Group. At Hogwarts, Slane confronted Douglas over his abandoned novel updates, while Douglas calmly ate the food Lucy had sent him and admitted he was becoming a demon in young readers’ eyes.

• Neville explained to Hermione that laws needed to account for different perspectives and be understandable and acceptable to the people expected to follow them.
• Hermione welcomed Neville into the Law Research Group, and Ron, Seamus, and other students volunteered before Hermione cautioned them to consider the time commitment.
• Slane visited Douglas’s office after asking Headmistress Sprout to confirm he was there, bringing food Lucy had made for him.
• Slane berated Douglas because readers were harassing him over the lack of updates to The Banana-Loving Honey Badger.
• Douglas admitted he had been awful about updating and calmly continued eating as Slane’s anger grew.

Slane confronted Douglas over his neglected novels, but Douglas offered him a new manuscript, about a reborn materials science PhD named Lynn Payne who was judged nearly a Squib and received a Hogwarts letter. Slane questioned the manuscript’s portrayal of a pure-blood family breaking off an engagement, suspecting Douglas had a larger purpose.

• Slane demanded that Douglas resume updating his books and complained that he was too busy with other projects to write.
• Douglas admitted he had forgotten where he left off and said he might update the old books this year, next year, or the year after.
• Douglas gave Slane a booklet for a new novel, and Slane eagerly read its opening about Lynn Payne receiving a Hogwarts letter after being judged nearly a Squib.
• Slane read that Lynn was a reborn materials science PhD from the Muggle World and that a pure-blood family publicly broke his engagement.
• Slane warned Douglas that pure-blood families might object to the plot, while Douglas said children without magical talent still had other paths open to them.