Chapter Summaries

Herman, an eleven-year-old transmigrator in Britain, used his power to transform and animate objects to earn money at an underground casino and fight off attackers. Back at St. Chris's Children's Home, he learned that an old gentleman wanted to admit him to a school through special recruitment.

• Herman warned a cheating gambler at Scar Reed's casino, and the security staff dragged the man away after recognizing Herman's authority.
• The security chief paid Herman £4,500 and warned a new underling that Scar Reed would punish anyone who offended him.
• Herman used his power to turn cards into flying swords against a group of attackers, collected their money and guns, and knocked them unconscious while erasing their memories.
• Herman returned to St. Chris's Children's Home, where Liz told him that a kindly old gentleman had come to see him.
• Herman overheard Director Margery say that the visitor wanted to admit him to his school through special recruitment.

Herman discovered that Dumbledore had come to recruit him for Hogwarts and learned that his parents had supposedly attended the school. After recognizing the photograph Dumbledore used to persuade Director Margery as a picture of Harry Potter, Herman spoke with Dumbledore alone and questioned him about another orphanage student.

• Director Margery questioned Dumbledore about why Hogwarts wanted Herman, and Dumbledore claimed Herman’s parents had attended the school and showed her a photograph.
• Director Margery agreed that Herman could decide whether to attend Hogwarts, and Herman entered the office after overhearing their conversation.
• Herman recognized the photograph as one of Harry Potter and his parents, realizing Dumbledore had used magic to deceive Director Margery.
• Dumbledore asked to speak with Herman alone, and they walked through the grounds of St. Chris's Children's Home.
• Herman asked about the older student Dumbledore had once visited an orphanage to recruit, then suggested that the student must have used magic correctly.

Dumbledore discussed Herman’s magical talent and warned him about the Statute of Secrecy, while deciding that Herman’s character differed from Tom’s. He gave Herman his Hogwarts acceptance letter and agreed to take him to Diagon Alley after visiting somewhere unpleasant first.

• Dumbledore explained that Herman’s ability to change objects’ shapes was accidental Transfiguration and praised his unusually precise control of magic.
• Herman argued that his use of magic had been self-defense, and Dumbledore warned him that wizards were forbidden to use magic on Muggles before agreeing to keep the incident secret between them.
• Dumbledore compared Herman with Tom and concluded that Herman was a kindhearted child with strong potential in Transfiguration.
• Dumbledore gave Herman his Hogwarts acceptance letter and explained how to buy school supplies and use wizarding currency.
• Herman asked Dumbledore to take him to Diagon Alley, and Dumbledore agreed but said they would first visit somewhere unpleasant.

Dumbledore took Herman to the Ministry of Magic and explained its transport methods and the Wizengamot courtroom. After securing a bail order, he led Herman into a cell, where a woman greeted him impatiently.

• Dumbledore Apparated with Herman to London, and Herman complained about the disorienting journey.
• Dumbledore brought Herman through the Ministry of Magic, where they encountered Snape, who angrily confronted Dumbledore for keeping him waiting.
• Dumbledore continued with Herman while Snape stayed behind, then explained that the Wizengamot courtroom handled magical crimes.
• Herman worried he was being taken to trial for using magic on Muggles, but Dumbledore said he was only showing him the courtroom and promised he would not reveal their secret.
• Dumbledore presented a Wizengamot bail order to a guard and entered a stone cell with Herman, where a woman called out, "Laodeng, what took you so long!"

Dumbledore freed Harley from the Ministry of Magic and gave her a Hogwarts acceptance letter and a photograph of her parents. After Harley left to find Sirius, Dumbledore assigned Snape to take Herman to Diagon Alley for school supplies.

• Herman met Harley, a red-haired girl who said Sirius had killed the wizard whose murder had brought her to France.
• Dumbledore warned Harley that Sirius’s killings could make them wanted criminals and urged her to begin school at Hogwarts.
• Harley accepted her Hogwarts letter and received a photograph of herself with her parents from Dumbledore.
• Harley left through a fireplace after Dumbledore asked her to tell Sirius that blood could not extinguish hatred; she replied that someone had to pay.
• Snape declined to speak with Harley, and Dumbledore assigned him to take Herman to Diagon Alley before vanishing into the fireplace.

Snape took Herman through Floo Powder to Borgin and Burkes in Knockturn Alley, then left him in Diagon Alley to buy his school supplies. Herman learned he could collect Ministry funding for orphans at Gringotts and began exploring the shops.

• Snape took Herman through the Floo Network, and Herman arrived at Borgin and Burkes with a mouthful of soot.
• Borgin greeted Snape, who ordered fresh potion ingredients, including dragon blood and unicorn horn powder.
• Herman recognized that they were in Knockturn Alley and followed Snape to Diagon Alley.
• Snape told Herman to buy his supplies himself and explained that he could collect his Ministry funding at Gringotts.
• Herman began exploring Diagon Alley and its shops.

Herman collected his Hogwarts grant and exchanged pounds for Galleons at Gringotts, then went to Ollivander's to buy his first wand. After testing several wands, he found one that felt perfectly suited to him.

• Herman collected fifty Galleons in student grant money from Gringotts and exchanged five hundred pounds for another hundred Galleons.
• Herman tried to learn how he could exchange more money, and the old goblin covertly hinted that illegal exchanges took place in Knockturn Alley.
• Herman asked about opening a vault, learned that Gringotts reserved vaults for ancient families and prominent figures, and left to shop.
• Herman went to Ollivander's Wand Shop, where his first wand caused a burst of flame that singed Ollivander's hair.
• Herman found a deep red wand on his third try, and Ollivander declared it was his wand.

Herman chose a walnut wand with a unicorn hair core, and Ollivander explained how wands worked and why the wand suited him. Herman left with more questions about wandmaking and whether a larger wand could hold more magic.

• Herman asked Ollivander not to wrap his wand, but accepted his warning that using it before his magic was stable could be dangerous.
• Ollivander described Herman’s eleven-inch walnut wand and unicorn hair core, which favored precise and controlled magic.
• Herman asked about learning wandmaking, and Ollivander explained that wands developed consciousness and chose wizards they acknowledged.
• Ollivander warned that using a unicorn hair wand for Dark Magic could weaken or damage it, and explained that wands amplified and helped control a wizard’s magic.
• Herman asked whether wands with more magic could be made, then wondered why wandmakers could not make wands larger and add more phoenix feathers.

Herman left Ollivander's Wand Shop after learning that wizards could own only one registered wand, then met a confident young girl at Madam Malkin's robe shop. After learning Herman had grown up among Muggles, she declared she would look after him at Hogwarts and began to share her supposed inside information about house sorting.

• Ollivander explained why combining wand cores or making an oversized wand would be dangerous or impractical, and Herman apologized for his ideas.
• Ollivander told Herman that Ministry regulations allowed each wizard only one registered wand, so Herman left the shop.
• At Madam Malkin's, Herman met a girl who criticized the shop and described her parents and their plans for her.
• Herman said his parents had died and that he had grown up in a Muggle orphanage, prompting the girl to question whether wizard relatives should have adopted him.
• The girl told Herman she would have his back at Hogwarts, then leaned in to reveal that she had exclusive information about house sorting.

Herman learned more about the Sorting Hat from a little girl at Madam Malkin's, then discovered she was Draco. He went to Flourish and Blotts for his schoolbooks and planned to buy books about the wizarding world while arranging delivery to the Leaky Cauldron.

• Herman listened as the little girl explained that the Sorting Hat placed students according to personality and could heed a student's preferred house.
• The girl revealed that her name was Draco and left with her parents, promising to look after Herman at Hogwarts.
• Herman went to Flourish and Blotts, collected his first-year textbooks, and asked the assistant to deliver them to the Leaky Cauldron.
• The assistant told Herman that buying additional books would move his delivery up the queue and directed him to books about the wizarding world.
• Herman recognized the brown-haired boy at the encyclopedias as part of the family he had seen at Gringotts.

Herman met an eager young student in Flourish and Blotts and used his recommendations to make a list of books about the wizarding world. The boy and his mother felt reassured about starting at Hogwarts, and the boy's mother prompted him to introduce himself.

• Herman took two copies of "Hogwarts, A History" and gave one to a boy who asked if he came from an ordinary family.
• Herman asked the boy for book recommendations and borrowed paper and a pencil to copy his reading list.
• The boy enthusiastically recommended books on Hogwarts, magical history, notable wizards, and their school textbooks.
• Herman agreed with the boy's advice, and the boy felt less anxious about attending Hogwarts.
• The boy's mother encouraged him to introduce himself to Herman.

Hugo Granger met Herman while shopping for Hogwarts books, eagerly sharing recommendations despite his limited budget. Herman offered to lend Hugo old newspapers, while Dr. Granger secretly read a risqué wizarding magazine and sensed his son eyeing his money.

• Hugo introduced himself to Herman and enthusiastically recommended books, then apologized after learning Herman was an orphan.
• Hugo's mother asked Herman to help her studious son relax at school, and Hugo crossed less essential titles off his book list because he was short on money.
• Herman explained that he had fifty Galleons in financial aid for orphans, and Hugo briefly eyed his father while imagining what the extra money could buy.
• Herman noticed Dr. Granger hide Wizard Player and planned to inspect the magazine later, then claimed he wanted old newspapers to learn about the wizarding world.
• Hugo liked the idea of reading old newspapers, and Herman promised to lend them to him after he had finished reading them.

Herman bought books and school supplies in Diagon Alley, then searched for a pet to take to Hogwarts. He left the Magical Menagerie browsing its magical animals, still looking for the right companion.

• Hugo and Herman exchanged contact addresses, and Hugo asked Herman to send him old newspapers.
• Herman spent 67 Galleons on books, including alchemy books and a year of back issues of the Daily Prophet, and arranged delivery to the Leaky Cauldron.
• Herman bought his cauldron, telescope, and brass scales before setting out to choose a pet.
• At Eeylops Owl Emporium, Herman saw Hedwig and learned she cost 80 Galleons, then left without buying an owl.
• Herman entered the Magical Menagerie, where he found a variety of magical pets at more affordable prices.

Herman bought a magical raven from the pet shop, named it Xiao Hei, and went to the Leaky Cauldron to get a room. There, he found the landlord absent and met a young girl working behind the bar.

• Herman rejected several pets before choosing a magical raven that could deliver letters and roam freely.
• Herman paid thirty Galleons for the raven, received a magical whistle and a month of feed, and named the bird Xiao Hei.
• Herman entered the busy Leaky Cauldron and called for the landlord to rent a room.
• A young girl told Herman the landlord was away and complained that Old Tom had tricked her into working there.

Herman booked room 304 at the Leaky Cauldron for the thirty-seven days before Hogwarts term began, where he met Hannah Abbott and saw her family’s house-elf Kerry magically clean the room. He asked Hannah if she would sell Kerry, but she refused, and Herman stayed without getting a house-elf.

• Herman booked room 304 for thirty-seven days and introduced himself to Hannah Abbott, who was also starting Hogwarts that year.
• Hannah led Herman to the dusty room, called for Kerry, and had the house-elf clean it and prepare fresh supplies.
• Herman decided to stay at the Leaky Cauldron after watching Kerry transform the room.
• Hannah stopped Kerry from hurting himself and explained that her family would not acquire more house-elves.
• Herman asked whether Hannah would sell Kerry, but Hannah and her family refused because they feared the house-elf would despair and harm himself.

Herman followed an intense study routine, then began practicing magic and spent his remaining Galleons paying for the damage. While considering how to reach Knockturn Alley safely, he met Hagrid at the Leaky Cauldron and learned that McGonagall had rejected the creatures Hagrid found for Professor Kettleburn.

• Herman studied wizarding textbooks every day and postponed alchemy until he better understood magical terminology.
• After half a month, Herman began practicing magic, damaging room furnishings and wasting ingredients until Hannah charged him six Galleons for repairs and cleaning.
• Herman considered visiting Knockturn Alley but worried that he lacked money, a trustworthy bodyguard, and enough strength to protect himself.
• Hagrid arrived at the Leaky Cauldron, drank a barrel of Butterbeer, and told Old Tom that Professor Kettleburn had sent him to find animal feed and creatures for students to adopt.
• Hagrid said McGonagall had rejected the creatures he found in France and Germany, and Old Tom privately approved because Hannah was about to start school.

Herman tried to recruit Hagrid as a bodyguard by persuading him to search Knockturn Alley for a supposedly lost keepsake, but Hagrid went there alone. Herman also received a letter from Hugo describing his excitement about learning wizarding history and asking about their studies.

• Herman befriended Hagrid and listened as he explained his duties as Hogwarts Keeper of Keys and groundskeeper, including keeping students out of the Forbidden Forest.
• Herman asked Hagrid to escort him to Knockturn Alley, claiming he had lost a silver coin there, but Hagrid said he could not protect him from hostile spells.
• Hagrid promised to search for the coin himself after Herman said it was a keepsake from his parents, and Herman watched him leave for Knockturn Alley.
• Hannah asked Herman about the coin because she had seen him playing with one, and Herman claimed he had two, one from each parent.
• Hugo wrote to Herman about reading wizarding history, studying first-year textbooks, and sending old newspapers with Xiao Hei.

Herman sent a letter to Hugo, then left the Leaky Cauldron for Cokeworth to handle unfinished business at the orphanage. Meanwhile, Scar Reed waited for Herman’s return, hoping to enlist his superpowers against the Fierce Tiger Gang.

• Herman sent Xiao Hei to deliver a letter and old newspapers to Hugo.
• Herman left the Leaky Cauldron and used the Confundus Charm to persuade a taxi driver to take him to Cokeworth.
• After arriving in Cokeworth, Herman headed toward an area controlled by local gangs instead of going straight to St. Chris's Children's Home.
• Scar Reed learned that his casino’s earnings were falling and suspected someone was cheating.
• Reed told his deputy to find Herman, explaining that he needed the boy’s superpowers to deal with the Fierce Tiger Gang.

Reed remembered how Herman had once terrified him after an underling attacked St. Chris's Children's Home, then recruited Herman as a casino consultant. After a gunfight destroyed the Fierce Tiger Gang and Reed fled Cokeworth, Herman appeared aboard his speedboat to demand his consulting fee.

• Reed recalled finding Herman at the branch headquarters, where the boy had beaten his underlings and warned Reed to stay away from the orphanage.
• Reed learned Herman liked gambling machines and arranged for him to work as a casino consultant while secretly planning to use him for greater ambitions.
• As Reed ordered his deputy to find Herman and station armed men near the orphanage, the Fierce Tiger Gang attacked the casino, claiming Reed had slept with one of their women.
• Reed's reinforcements helped wipe out the Fierce Tiger Gang, and the police surrounded the casino as Reed and his deputy escaped toward the shore.
• Reed and his deputy boarded a speedboat to leave Cokeworth, but Herman emerged from the cabin and demanded his consulting fee.

Herman killed Scar Reed and his deputy after stopping their bullets with ice transformed from river water, then staged the deaths as a gang shootout and took their valuables. He returned to St. Chris Orphanage, told the children he would soon leave to study elsewhere, and went to see Director Margery.

• Herman admitted that he had manipulated the Fierce Tiger Gang boss into confronting Reed, and Reed fired his entire magazine at him.
• Herman blocked the bullets with a transparent ice barrier, then used the pistols to kill Reed and his deputy.
• Herman arranged the bodies aboard the speedboat to make the deaths look like a gang revenge attack and took the two cases of valuables.
• Herman returned to the orphanage that night and slept; the next day he played with the children and explained that he would soon leave to study elsewhere.
• After lunch, Herman went to Director Margery's office and greeted her.