Chapter Summaries

Tom won his duel with Dawson at the Dreamshade Tea Party, earning the promised spellbook and Slughorn’s attention. Slughorn then questioned Tom about his background and ambitions in Potions, and Tom praised the subject and the value of studying it under a professor’s guidance.

• Tom’s illusion caused Dawson to believe he had won, but the Slytherins saw that Dawson had been burned and Tom was unharmed.
• Professor Slughorn declared Tom the winner, while the male prefect silenced Dawson and told him to provide the promised Feigned Death Potions.
• The male prefect gave Tom a spellbook containing Phosphorus Fire Burn and offered him the chance to exchange for more magic later.
• Slughorn spoke with Tom about his orphanage background and his connection to Kyle, deciding not to press him about who had taught him magic.
• Slughorn asked Tom about Potions and his aspirations, and Tom praised the subject’s complexity and the importance of a professor’s guidance.

After Tom’s success at Slughorn’s party made him a rising figure among Hogwarts students, Dumbledore worried that he resembled young Grindelwald, until Herbert urged him not to let the past overshadow the future. Tom focused on mastering Phosphorus Fire Burn and began investigating a special core for his coreless wand.

• Slughorn praised Tom’s caution with unknown potions and invited him to join the Slug Club when he was ready.
• After Dawson’s defeat, Slytherins and students from other houses increasingly admired Tom, while word spread about the wizarding robes he promoted for Kyle’s planned shop.
• Dumbledore grew wary of Tom’s growing influence because he reminded him of young Grindelwald.
• Herbert spoke with Dumbledore about how dwelling on the past could cost him the future, and Dumbledore quietly considered her advice.
• Tom quickly mastered Phosphorus Fire Burn, whose casting made his coreless snakewood wand feel as if it lacked something.
• Tom concluded that his wand needed a special core because conventional cores were incompatible with it.

Tom explored how Phosphorus Fire Burn might inspire unusual wand cores, while his solemn practice and encounters with death changed the spell and deepened his interest in death. He discovered it could burn away curses and was studying intensely until a letter from Mo Fei helped him relax.

• Tom considered using bones as wand-core material but decided he was not ready to experiment on himself.
• Tom pictured Mo Fei’s corpse dissections while practicing Phosphorus Fire Burn, and his flame developed a quiet quality with a silver glimmer.
• Tom reflected on witnessing Mrs. Field’s death, seeing Thestrals, and killing an attacker with venomous snakes, which drew him toward studying death.
• Tom discovered that his altered Phosphorus Fire Burn could remove curses by burning bones and began studying curses.
• Headmaster Dippet considered urging Tom to relax, but a letter from Mo Fei arrived and eased Tom’s strain.

After Mo Fei’s letter eased Tom’s fear of being abandoned, Tom rested by the Black Lake and wrote back about how much he missed the orphanage. He created a gentle, memory-infused spell that soothed the Horned Serpent, while Herbert saw his potential to master the Patronus Charm.

• Mo Fei’s letter reassured Tom that he was safe and still connected to the orphanage, easing the insecurity that had driven him to study magic so intensely.
• Tom went to the Black Lake, where the Horned Serpent protected him from the wind as he fell asleep dreaming of home.
• Tom wrote to Mo Fei about Hogwarts, his longing for the orphanage, and his plans to return for the holidays.
• Tom cast a modified Lumos filled with happy memories, and the Horned Serpent touched it, became deeply affectionate, and fell asleep in his pocket.
• Herbert witnessed Tom’s spell and recognized it as a gentle magic with effects resembling a weakened Patronus Charm.

Tom encountered Peeves on his way to the Owlery and decided to test his newly changed magic on him. The chapter also recounted Professor Merrythought’s theory that Peeves arose from generations of young wizards’ prank-loving thoughts absorbed by Hogwarts, leaving Tom poised to experiment.

• Tom spotted Peeves preparing to dump dirty water on him and chose to punish him with a test of his changed magic.
• The chapter described how Peeves differed from Hogwarts’s ghosts, could handle objects and prank students, and feared the Bloody Baron.
• Professor Merrythought discussed Peeves in class and suggested their core drive was pranks rooted in a lingering childlike spirit.
• Tom proposed that Peeves might not have been deliberately created, but had emerged from the castle absorbing generations of young wizards’ thoughts about pranks.
• Merrythought agreed that Peeves were unusual earthbound spirits born from Hogwarts’s complex magic.

Professor Merrythought explained why methods for dealing with Earthbound Spirits did not work on Peeves, then assigned the young wizards an essay on ways to punish him. Tom considered dark magic but chose Legilimency as his homework answer.

• A Ravenclaw suggested using Earthbound Spirit methods against Peeves, but Madam Merrythought explained that those methods would not work.
• Madam Merrythought described how Earthbound Spirits formed and advised the young wizards to leave and notify the Ministry of Magic if they encountered one.
• Madam Merrythought explained that Peeves was tied to young wizards' prank thoughts, targeted Gryffindor because its students planned pranks, and could be punished with spells or a professor's help.
• Madam Merrythought assigned a three-foot essay on ways to deal with Peeves, prompting the young wizards to protest.
• Tom remembered Owen's idea to summon Nick to threaten Peeves and decided to write about Legilimency instead of dark magic.

Tom used Lumos to test whether warm emotions tied to memory could influence Peeves, after immobilizing him with Petrificus Totalus. The spell first calmed Peeves, but then drove him into a sudden frenzy, and the Horned Serpent shielded Tom from a bucket swung at his head.

• Tom recalled that his professor had approved his theory about using Legilimency and Obliviate to alter the memories and obsessions that sustained spirits.
• Tom approached Peeves in a deserted corner and immobilized him with Petrificus Totalus before starting his experiment.
• Tom cast Lumos close to Peeves, and the warmth of the light reminded Peeves of the pleasure and praise associated with successful pranks.
• Tom saw Peeves grow calmer and more transparent, but Peeves suddenly went berserk, his eyes turning scarlet as he attacked Tom with a bucket.
• The Horned Serpent moved between Peeves and Tom and took the bucket strike.

Tom stopped Peeves’s frenzied attack with Transfiguration and Parseltongue, which appeared to make Peeves vanish into Hogwarts’s magical defenses. Headmaster Dippet discovered that Peeves had been targeted by the Imperius Curse and returned to his office determined to respond.

• Tom bound Peeves with a magically reinforced rope after his spells failed to affect him directly.
• Tom used Parseltongue to stop Peeves, and Peeves turned gray and vanished into the castle walls as the Horned Serpent watched.
• A gigantic snake beneath Slytherin sensed its master’s power, wondered whether Tom was the master’s heir, and went back to sleep.
• Headmaster Dippet used Prior Incantato to see that Peeves had been driven to attack Tom by a special Imperius Curse.
• Dippet erased the corridor’s traces, dismissed the arriving professors, and returned to his office vowing that Hogwarts would answer the intrusion.

Dippet investigated the attempt to control Tom with the Imperius Curse and suspected a connection between Dawson and Cody Hill’s rivalry with Malfoy. He sent Dumbledore to Hogsmeade, where inquiries about unfamiliar wizards led him into the Hog's Head, whose proprietor angrily confronted him.

• Dippet questioned Peeves and learned the suspect had appeared to be a young wizard using a secondhand wand.
• Dippet suspected Dawson might be involved because he had lost face at Horace’s Dream Tea Party, but could not explain who had mastered the Imperius Curse.
• Dippet discovered that Cody Hill, a Prefect candidate competing with Malfoy, had met privately with Dawson many times.
• Dippet sent Dumbledore to investigate Hogsmeade, where Dumbledore heard that someone wanted to rent the empty building beside the Hog's Head and that unfamiliar wizards had been visiting.
• Dumbledore entered the Hog's Head, and someone hostile accused him of declaring war by coming inside.

Dumbledore confronted Aberforth at the Hog's Head to investigate a Dark wizard connected to an incident at Hogwarts, but their conversation turned into a fierce duel over old family guilt. Aberforth revealed that the suspicious visitor was linked to the Hill family, leading Dumbledore to suspect someone was trying to provoke conflict between him and another man or Hogwarts.

• Aberforth attacked Dumbledore with Rolling Flames in his Dueling Domain, and Dumbledore contained the fire with Protego Diabolica.
• Aberforth followed with Ultimate Explosion and Thunderbolt Bombardment, but Dumbledore defended himself and urged him to calm down.
• Aberforth and Dumbledore argued over their shared guilt and the painful events behind their estrangement.
• Aberforth told Dumbledore that a suspicious visitor had moved into a Hogsmeade house and that a young wizard had been seen entering it.
• Aberforth identified the house as belonging to the Hill family and suggested that outsiders were trying to stir up conflict between Dumbledore and another man.

Dumbledore investigated an empty house in Hogsmeade for evidence of a conspiracy tied to Mo Fei’s plans and Grindelwald’s influence. He used a Time-Turner to strengthen Prior Incantato and began retracing what had happened there.

• Aberforth ended his magical conversation with Dumbledore and warned him not to return.
• Dumbledore left the pub and went to the house Aberforth had mentioned.
• Dumbledore bypassed the house’s weak protections and found signs of recent use, including a room where Mr Hill had practiced Dark Magic.
• Dumbledore decided to retrace events in the living room with Prior Incantato, using his Time-Turner to reinforce the spell.
• The past began rewinding before Dumbledore’s eyes.

Dumbledore used a damaged Time-Turner to discover that Mr. Hill’s father had given him a Dark Magic mirror, then reported the danger to Headmaster Dippet. Dippet acted against the Hill family, while the growing threat from Grindelwald remained unresolved.

• Dumbledore rewound time and saw Mr. Hill receive a cloth-covered mirror from his father, who instructed him how to use it.
• Dumbledore ended the spell, damaging the seer-made Time-Turner, and concluded that the mirror could store an Imperius Curse.
• Dumbledore reported his findings to Headmaster Dippet, who recognized the Hill family’s actions as part of the wider danger posed by Grindelwald’s followers.
• Dippet summoned Young Mr. Hill to his office and decided to deal with the Hill family while buying time before a possible battle with Grindelwald.
• Hill left Britain, and his family later disappeared from the British Wizarding World; Madam Merrythought acquired the mirror.

As Hogwarts’ first-year exams approached, Tom remained unfazed while other students worried about both the exams and the unexplained tensions among Slytherin families. He performed exceptionally in every exam, earning an “O” in all subjects, though his Flying Class mark was somewhat inflated.

• Slytherin students wrote to their parents about changes at Hogwarts, and investigating families learned why the Hill family had left Britain in disgrace.
• As final exams approached, Tom stayed calm because Mo Fei had trained him with written and practical tests at the orphanage.
• Tom transformed a stone into an ornate tea set in Transfiguration and moved a stone block smoothly with the Levitation Charm, earning an “O” in both exams.
• Tom completed the Potions and Herbology exams with ease, while Professor Herbert already knew his ability from his regular work.
• Madam Merrythought gave a difficult Defence Against Dark Magic written exam full of tricky questions, but Tom adapted well and earned an “O.”
• Tom received an “O” in every subject when the final results came out, including an inflated mark in Flying Class.

Tom and the other students celebrated Slytherin’s House Cup victory before leaving Hogwarts for the summer holidays. On the train, Tom accepted Malfoy’s offer of friendship and received two books to help him study Phosphorus Fire Burn.

• Headmaster Dippet announced that Slytherin had won the House Cup, and the students celebrated as the summer holidays began.
• On the journey back to London, Tom felt isolated because the other students saw him as an imposing chief, and his friendship with Owen had faded.
• Malfoy approached Tom and offered to become his friend, proposing an alliance between Tom as leader of the younger Slytherins and himself as an incoming Prefect.
• Tom accepted Malfoy’s offer, hoping their connection would give him access to valuable magical knowledge from noble families.
• Malfoy gave Tom The Value of Corpses and Lost Memorial Rituals, advising him to practice Phosphorus Fire Burn cautiously.

After Malfoy sent Qiqi to investigate Tom, she was forced to flee when Mo Fei sensed and struck at her, leaving Malfoy to suspect Tom came from a powerful family. Tom returned to the orphanage, where a warm welcome reminded him that it was the place he truly felt at home, and Mo Fei prepared to talk with him.

• Malfoy ordered Qiqi to follow Tom through the barrier and discover where he lived.
• Mo Fei's attack drove Qiqi to Apparate back to Malfoy, who questioned her and concluded that Tom's family was likely powerful.
• Mo Fei asked Tom about magic that could conceal someone, and Tom explained the Disillusionment Charm before using the Horned Serpent to check their surroundings.
• Mo Fei took Tom back to the orphanage, where the residents welcomed him home and shared a celebratory dinner.
• After the others left and the table was cleared, Mo Fei and Tom settled down for a private conversation.

Mo Fei apologized for not asking sooner about Tom’s life at Hogwarts, and Tom explained the Slytherin rumors surrounding his Gaunt ancestry. Mo Fei then asked whether Tom wanted to meet his remaining relatives, and Tom was tempted by the possibility that they might accept him.

• Mo Fei asked Tom how life at Hogwarts had been and apologized for overlooking the difficulties he might have faced.
• Tom reassured Mo Fei that Hogwarts was manageable and described how Slytherins had mistaken him for a pure-blood aristocrat while he investigated the Gaunt family.
• Tom suspected that the person who followed him had been sent by the Malfoy family to learn about his background.
• Mo Fei wondered whether someone at Hogwarts had concealed Tom’s ancestry and considered Dumbledore as a possible protector.
• Mo Fei asked whether Tom wanted to visit his Gaunt relatives, and Tom considered whether his grandfather and uncle might accept him.

Tom eagerly agreed to meet his Gaunt relatives in Little Hangleton, and Mo Fei promised to plan the journey for later that week. As Mo Fei recounted his time with Grindelwald and Nicolas Flamel, Tom learned how wizarding strength was judged and began to imagine becoming a magic master himself.

• Tom agreed to meet his grandfather and told Mo Fei that the Gaunt family lived in Little Hangleton.
• Mo Fei promised to ask about the route the next day and try to meet Tom's blood relatives that week.
• Tom asked Mo Fei about his travels, and Mo Fei described his experiences with Grindelwald and Nicolas Flamel.
• Mo Fei explained the different ways wizards' combat strength and magical skill were classified.
• Tom accepted Grindelwald as his teacher despite learning he was the Dark Lord, and wondered whether he could become a magic master someday.

Tom worked in the orphanage backyard to prepare soil for cultivating Glimmer Daisies, drawing on a year of Herbology lessons with Professor Herbert. Kyle returned, praised Tom’s dedication, and asked whether he had promoted the clothes Kyle planned to sell in Hogsmeade.

• Mo Fei set out to research how to reach Little Hangleton while Tom worked on the orphanage backyard.
• Tom recalled Professor Herbert’s lessons about tailoring soil nutrients and conditions to each plant’s needs.
• Tom prepared special soil for Glimmer Daisies by mixing magical ingredients and turning it over on a weekly schedule.
• Kyle found Tom turning the backyard soil and praised his Herbology skills, while Tom insisted he still had much to learn.
• Kyle asked whether Tom had promoted his planned Hogsmeade shop, and Tom said Slytherin students had admired the clothes Kyle made.

Mo Fei and Tom traveled to Little Hangleton to visit Tom’s relatives, while Kyle stayed behind to prepare his clothing shop. After settling at the village inn, Mo Fei took the restless Tom toward the outskirts to find the Gaunt family’s old house.

• Tom fled to his room when Kyle tried to ask him about the wizard robes he had worn at the Dream Tea Party.
• Mo Fei learned the route to Little Hangleton and invited Kyle, but Kyle declined because he needed to prepare his shop and learn to run it.
• Mo Fei and Tom rode by carriage to Little Hangleton and booked rooms at the village’s only inn.
• Villagers mistook Mo Fei and Tom for London aristocrats visiting the Riddles, and Tom put away his few belongings upstairs.
• Mo Fei took the anxious Tom toward the outskirts to look for the Gaunt family’s old house, after declining the innkeeper’s offer to guide them.

Mo Fei and Tom found the decaying Gaunt home, where Tom discovered that his uncle Morfin had no affection for his mother, Merope. Tom was left shocked and disillusioned after hearing Morfin curse her.

• Mo Fei and Tom followed the Horned Serpent's guidance to the Gaunt family's home outside Little Hangleton.
• Tom saw the ruinous house and asked Mo Fei to accompany him to investigate.
• After no one answered their knocks, Mo Fei suggested they return the next day.
• Morfin arrived with a barrel of beer and demanded to know why they were at his door.
• Mo Fei asked Morfin about Merope, and Morfin angrily called her a disgrace and blamed her for their father's death.
• Tom heard Morfin's abuse of his mother and lost any remaining affection for the Gaunt family.