Recaps

Draco told Hermione that he left because he thought he could come back, stunning her and drawing serious attention from Fred and George. Hermione rejected the romantic speculation of Lavender and Parvati and demanded that Draco explain what grounds he had for his confidence.

• Fred and George admired Draco's earlier remark, while Lavender and Parvati interpreted it as evidence that he fancied Hermione.
• Draco said he had left because he thought he could come back, leaving Hermione, Fred, and George startled by his confidence.
• Lavender and Parvati imagined Draco's departure as part of a romantic story, and Draco privately decided he might enlist their help in winning Hermione over.
• Hermione snapped at Lavender and Parvati to stop their irrelevant speculation.
• Hermione asked Draco what factual grounds supported his belief and accused him of concealing the truth.

Draco used Hermione’s question rules to dodge her demand for details, then revealed that his family had withdrawn all support. Hermione and the Great Hall reacted with surprise and sympathy, while Draco insisted he was not trying to win their pity.

• Draco argued that his presence proved he had returned, and Hermione struggled to challenge his reasoning under their five-question agreement.
• Hermione said her follow-up about the process did not count as a new question, and Draco agreed to answer by saying his family had left him to his own devices.
• Draco clarified that his family was giving him no support, prompting speculation and sympathy throughout the Great Hall.
• Hermione asked whether the lack of support included money, intelligence, and protection in Wizarding society.
• Draco said he was not trying to win sympathy.

Draco deflected Hermione’s question about how he expected to return to Hogwarts by comparing her independence to his own ambitions. Hermione angrily silenced Lavender and Parvati’s romantic speculation, then was left flustered by Draco’s explanation.

• Draco said he did not need sympathy, quieting the Great Hall’s pity for him.
• Hermione asked what Draco had relied on when he agreed to leave Hogwarts, and Draco asked whether she was on her own, too.
• Lavender and Parvati imagined a romantic connection between Draco and Hermione, provoking Hermione to berate them and order them to be quiet or leave.
• Hermione demanded that Draco answer her question without changing the subject or making personal attacks.
• Draco said he admired Hermione’s capabilities and wanted to graduate and become an excellent wizard without anyone else’s support, leaving her bewildered and blushing.

Draco told Hermione that he would explain privately why he had needed Dumbledore's intervention to remain at Hogwarts, leaving her torn between suspicion and curiosity. He invited her to find somewhere quiet and talk before afternoon classes.

• Draco said he wanted to learn from Hermione and rely on himself rather than his family, prompting shocked reactions from the Great Hall.
• Hermione asked why Draco had needed Dumbledore's intervention when his father demanded he leave Hogwarts.
• Draco said the truth was something he had promised to tell Hermione privately, not the crowd.
• Hermione struggled between warning herself that Draco was setting a trap and wanting to hear the truth.
• Draco asked Hermione to find somewhere quiet with him and talk before afternoon classes.

Hermione agreed to meet Draco privately but postponed choosing the time and place so the students would not follow them. She promised to contact him and asked him to come alone, and Draco ended the chapter by asking to make a small request.

• Hermione accepted Draco's invitation and asked where they would meet, setting off excited speculation throughout the Great Hall.
• Draco suggested that Hermione choose the time and place later to keep curious students from following them.
• The students, especially Lavender and Parvati, grew disappointed when the meeting did not happen immediately.
• Hermione considered ways to contact Draco, rejecting letters, messengers, and passing a note as too risky.
• Hermione told Draco she would arrange the meeting and asked him to arrive on time and alone.
• Draco nodded and asked Hermione if he could make one small request.

Draco asked Hermione to show him where the classrooms were, leaving her embarrassed by how harmless his request seemed. Hermione challenged his claim that he could not find the Herbology greenhouse.

• Draco asked Hermione to take him to the classrooms because he had missed the morning tour.
• Hermione and the students were stunned that Draco’s “little request” was simply for directions.
• The Weasley Twins’ teasing and Lavender and Parvati’s romantic hopes collapsed when they heard the request.
• Hermione pointed out that Herbology was in the conspicuous greenhouse outside the castle and questioned how Draco could fail to find it.

Draco persuaded a reluctant Hermione to walk with him to the greenhouses and show him the way to other classrooms. As they continued together, Hermione remained irritated but revealed her Herbology textbook before falling silent again.

• Hermione challenged Draco for claiming he could not find the greenhouses, and Draco admitted he had forgotten his afternoon classes.
• Draco asked Hermione to walk with him and point out nearby classrooms, and she reluctantly agreed before leaving the Great Hall.
• Draco reminded the students to get to class and hurried after Hermione, while Fred and George laughed at his sudden change in manner.
• Hermione tried to outpace Draco, but he caught up and asked about their first Herbology lesson.
• Hermione showed Draco her copy of One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi, then continued walking in silence as he followed behind her.

Draco and Hermione arrived at Greenhouse One, where Professor Sprout prepared a lesson on dittany and praised Draco’s knowledge. Ron and Harry rushed in and stopped in surprise when they saw Draco chatting comfortably with the professor.

• Draco and Hermione entered Greenhouse One and found Professor Sprout tending a young dittany plant.
• Professor Sprout greeted them and confirmed that the lesson would cover dittany.
• Draco asked about the more pronounced serrations on the greenhouse dittany’s leaves.
• Professor Sprout explained that the leaf shape changed with the intensity of the light and praised Draco’s observation.
• Ron and Harry hurried into the greenhouse and stared in surprise at Draco speaking with Professor Sprout.

Draco discussed dittany with Professor Sprout before Harry and Ron arrived for Herbology, where Sprout instructed the students to prepare for practical work. When she asked what they knew about dittany, Hermione eagerly raised her hand.

• Harry and Ron entered the greenhouse and found Draco discussing dittany leaf variations with Professor Sprout, who praised his observations.
• Ron began to tell Sprout what Draco had done in the Great Hall, but Harry stopped him, and Sprout urged Ron to set aside his prejudices.
• Sprout instructed Harry and Ron, then the arriving students, to wash their hands and check their dragonhide gloves before handling dittany.
• The students gathered around the dittany pots as Sprout welcomed them to their first practical Herbology lesson, and the system awarded Draco 20 fortune points.
• Sprout asked whether anyone knew about dittany, and Hermione confidently raised her hand.

Draco used the Knowledge Compendium to master Herbology after Ron called attention to his missing textbook, then calmly challenged Ron to answer a question too. Professor Sprout stopped their confrontation and praised Hermione’s detailed answer about dittany, leaving Hermione flustered by Draco’s admiration.

• Draco spent 300 luck points to load the contents of a Herbology textbook into his mind.
• Ron pointed out that Draco had no textbook and suggested he answer Professor Sprout’s question from memory.
• Draco answered calmly and challenged Ron to answer the next question, but Professor Sprout rejected turning class into a competition.
• Professor Sprout asked Hermione to explain dittany, and Hermione gave a detailed account of its uses, recipes, and precautions.
• Professor Sprout awarded Gryffindor five points for Hermione’s answer, and Hermione blushed when Draco praised her.

Professor Sprout taught the students how to harvest dittany leaves carefully and extract their healing juice, emphasizing respect for the plants. She then asked Draco to demonstrate the process in front of the class, leaving him surprised by her choice.

• Professor Sprout explained dittany's healing uses and warned that rough handling would make the plant stop producing juice.
• Professor Sprout demonstrated how to select, remove, and crush a mature leaf to collect raw dittany juice.
• Ron dismissed the procedure as simple, but Harry stopped him from touching the plant carelessly.
• Neville asked about the wrist movement, and Professor Sprout praised him before demonstrating it again more slowly.
• Professor Sprout asked Draco to demonstrate the process because of his composed bearing, and Draco was bewildered.

Draco impressed Professor Sprout and the class by expertly removing a dittany leaf while treating the plant with care, earning ten points for Gryffindor. Ron was left humiliated by his failed prediction, while Hermione grew flustered after Draco met her gaze and nodded.

• Ron mocked Professor Sprout's choice of Draco to demonstrate, and Sprout reprimanded him for judging his classmate before the demonstration.
• Draco smoothly removed a leaf from the dittany without disturbing the plant, astonishing the class with his precise technique.
• Draco asked whether he had hurt the plant, prompting Professor Sprout to praise his care and award ten points to Gryffindor.
• Draco modestly stepped aside, while Ron avoided looking at him and Lavender and Parvati praised his skill and thoughtfulness.
• Hermione watched Draco with conflicted admiration, blushed when he nodded to her, and tried to hide her growing agitation.

During Herbology, Draco helped Neville, Seamus, Dean, and other Gryffindors successfully handle dittany, earning their gratitude and Professor Sprout’s approval. As the class warmed to him, Draco approached Hermione and softly called her name, leaving her startled by her reaction.

• Professor Sprout praised Draco’s skill and asked him to help struggling students.
• Draco guided Neville through removing a dittany leaf, and Neville succeeded and began calling him Draco.
• Draco taught Seamus to use a controlled wrist flick, helping him remove an intact leaf and share the method with classmates.
• Draco helped Dean and several other students, and the Gryffindor first-years’ suspicion of him gradually faded.
• Draco approached Hermione’s worktable and called to her, causing her heart to skip a beat.

Draco helped Hermione improve her Dittany technique, then earned Professor Sprout’s praise and an invitation to visit the greenhouses. After ending the formal lesson, Professor Sprout offered the students a chance to see other greenhouse plants.

• Draco praised Hermione’s work and suggested lightly tapping the leaf stalk to judge how to remove it.
• Hermione tried Draco’s suggestion, produced a nearly perfect leaf, and admitted that his idea made sense.
• Draco left Hermione to work and joined Professor Sprout, who praised his guidance of Neville, Seamus, and Hermione.
• Professor Sprout invited Draco to visit the greenhouses, and he gained 20 Fortune Points.
• Professor Sprout ended the lesson and invited students to see the Mimbulus mimbletonia and Fidgety Vine if they wished.

Draco prompted Professor Sprout to offer the remaining students a special visit to Greenhouse Three, persuading Hermione to stay. Inside, Sprout challenged the group to identify the Mimbulus mimbletonia and explain their evidence.

• Draco asked Professor Sprout about the Mimbulus mimbletonia's usual location, prompting her to offer the students a visit to Greenhouse Three.
• Hermione decided to stay after Olivia encouraged her, and Professor Sprout warned the group to remain quiet and not touch any plants.
• Professor Sprout led the students into Greenhouse Three, where they saw strange plants and dangerous specimens behind magical barriers.
• Professor Sprout asked the students to identify the Mimbulus mimbletonia in a protected area and give their evidence, while the others looked toward Hermione and Draco.

During Professor Sprout’s Herbology lesson, Draco explained how Mimbulus mimbletonia used its dull, wilted appearance and remembered threats to defend itself. Professor Sprout praised his understanding, and the class continued toward the next plant.

• Hermione identified a concealed gray-green plant as a possible shy resident, and Professor Sprout praised her reasoning.
• Draco pointed out the wilted Mimbulus mimbletonia and explained that its bumps sensed disturbances and triggered its defensive spray.
• Draco described how the plant remembered repeated provocation and saved its poisonous pus for life-threatening danger.
• Neville sympathized with the plant, and Professor Sprout praised him for respecting its survival strategy.
• Professor Sprout commended Draco’s insight and taught that understanding plants was the foundation of respect before leading the class onward.

Draco impressed Professor Sprout and the students with Herbology knowledge she judged to be at N.E.W.T. level, while Hermione struggled with feeling outmatched. As the group left Greenhouse Three for dinner, Draco invited Hermione and Olivia to discuss their upcoming History of Magic lesson.

• Draco answered Professor Sprout’s questions with extensive Herbology knowledge, astonishing the students and leaving Hermione feeling outmatched.
• Professor Sprout praised Draco’s insight as N.E.W.T.-level and invited him to study in her greenhouses whenever he liked; Draco said he would consider it.
• Professor Sprout reassured Hermione and the other students, then ended the exploration and led them back toward the castle.
• Neville praised Draco, who encouraged him to observe plants carefully and agreed to go to the Great Hall with him for dinner.
• Draco caught up with Hermione and Olivia and suggested they discuss History of Magic while walking.

Draco, Hermione, Olivia, and Neville discussed the Goblin Rebellion on their way to the Entrance Hall, where Peeves began tormenting Neville and provoking Hermione and Draco. Draco shielded Hermione, cast Protego, and confronted Peeves.

• Draco suggested reviewing the Goblin Rebellion before History of Magic, and Hermione explained key treaties and recommended a book for further reading.
• Draco joined Hermione's discussion, earning her approval as the group walked into the Entrance Hall.
• Peeves mocked Neville and frightened him while the other students hurried away.
• Hermione drew her wand and warned Peeves to stop, but Peeves mocked her and taunted Draco about his past behavior and his interest in Hermione.
• Draco stepped in front of Hermione, cast Protego to shield the group, and warned Peeves that he had a death wish.

Draco tricked Peeves into giving the group a chance to escape, but Peeves caught up with Draco and Hermione in a portrait-lined corridor. Draco stopped running and claimed he had only been messing with Peeves.

• Draco tricked Peeves into turning around by claiming the Bloody Baron had arrived, then led Hermione, Neville, and Olivia away.
• Draco and Hermione fled through the corridors while Olivia led Neville in a different direction after Draco ordered them to split up.
• Peeves blocked Draco and Hermione in a portrait-lined corridor and taunted them as they tried to escape.
• Draco stopped, let go of Hermione, and told Peeves that he had not been trying to run away and had only been messing with him.

Draco stopped Peeves and intimidated him by invoking his father, Lucius Malfoy, drawing Hermione’s contempt and criticism from nearby students. When Peeves erupted at the crowd, Harry and Ron stepped forward, and Ron claimed they wanted to tell him the truth.

• Draco halted Peeves with a gesture and asked whether Peeves knew who his father was.
• Peeves named Lucius Malfoy, while Hermione recognized Draco was relying on his family’s influence and lost her remaining goodwill toward him.
• Students criticized Draco for using his father’s reputation, while some younger Slytherins admired him for it.
• Enraged by the crowd’s remarks, Peeves roared at the students and demanded that someone face him.
• Harry and Ron emerged from the crowd, and Ron told Peeves they had come to reveal the truth.

Ron exposed Draco as a Gryffindor whose family had abandoned him, enraging Peeves and leaving Draco apparently without protection. As Peeves attacked despite Draco’s calm warning, Draco said he had given him a chance.

• Ron told the students that Draco was in Gryffindor and had been disowned, turning the crowd against Draco.
• Peeves realized Draco had bluffed him and threatened to torment him throughout Hogwarts.
• Hermione recognized Draco’s danger and prepared to intervene while Draco calmly told Peeves to wait.
• Peeves hesitated until Ron mocked him, then lunged at Draco as Hermione shouted for him to stop.
• Draco stood his ground and told Peeves, “I gave you a chance.”

Draco used an unknown silver banishing spell to overwhelm Peeves, leaving the students amazed and curious about the magic. As Draco lowered his wand and everyone expected Peeves to flee, Draco made another unexpected move.

• Draco cast “Evil Spirits Begone” and ordered Peeves to get out of Hogwarts.
• Silver light and chimes enveloped Peeves, making him flicker, writhe in pain, and beg Draco for mercy.
• Students and teachers could not identify Draco’s spell, while Harry, Ron, and Hermione watched in shock and fascination.
• Draco lowered his wand with a faint smile, then made another move that surprised everyone.

Draco stopped his spell against Peeves and summoned the frightened poltergeist, then told the watching students that the charm only worked on Peeves. The crowd reacted with relief and curiosity, while Hermione remained wary, and a teasing voice from behind them announced that someone had missed quite a show.

• Draco dispelled the silvery light around Peeves, called him over as Xiao Pi, and left him obedient and visibly unharmed.
• The students reacted with fear and disbelief as Peeves stayed still before Draco, while Lavender admired Draco and Neville watched him with conflicted feelings.
• Draco told the crowd that his targeted Banishing Charm only worked on Peeves, calming many students and prompting them to speculate about the spell.
• Hermione remained wary of Draco's ability to command Peeves, while Harry stayed quiet and Ron expressed relief that the spell could not be used on people.
• A teasing voice from behind the crowd said that they had missed quite a show.

Fred and George warned the students that Draco could command Peeves, prompting doubts about how he might use that power. Draco defended himself as someone who had acted without malice, and the corridor fell silent when Professor McGonagall arrived, while Draco kept his attention on Peeves.

• Fred and George told the crowd that Draco could order Peeves around, making the students wary of his power.
• Hermione worried that Draco might use Peeves against people, while Lavender and Parvati defended Draco as someone who only protected himself.
• Draco argued that he had shown no ill will since term began and had not retaliated against those who provoked him, persuading many students.
• George questioned where Draco had learned the spell, and Draco gave him a calm, cryptic reply.
• Professor McGonagall arrived to investigate the noise, and Draco continued watching the trembling Peeves.

Draco sent Peeves fleeing before Professor McGonagall and Professor Snape arrived to investigate the disturbance. When questioned about Peeves’s disappearance, Draco claimed he had tried to win him over with love and reason, leaving the gathered students stunned.

• Draco told the frightened Peeves to leave, and Peeves shot through the ceiling without making a sound.
• Professor McGonagall arrived to find Draco alone in the corridor, with Peeves gone and students gathered around him.
• Professor Snape and Professor Flitwick joined McGonagall, who questioned Draco about the crowd, the unusual magic, and Peeves’s whereabouts.
• Draco calmly said Peeves had tried to cause trouble and that he had attempted to communicate with him using love and reason.
• The students froze in disbelief at Draco’s explanation.